Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles
Species-specific trends in the reproductive output of corals across environmental gradients and bleaching histories
ORCID
0000-0001-9260-2153
Document Type
Article
Publication Title
Marine Pollution Bulletin
ISSN
0025-326X
Publication Date
4-30-2016
Keywords
Marginal reefs, Persian gulf, Gulf of Oman, Acropora, Platygyra, Cyphastrea
Abstract
Coral populations in the Persian Gulf have a reputation for being some of the toughest in the world yet little is known about the energetic constraints of living under temperature and salinity extremes. Energy allocation for sexual reproduction in Gulf corals was evaluated relative to conspecifics living under milder environmental conditions in the Oman Sea. Fecundity was depressed at Gulf sites in two Indo-Pacific merulinid species (Cyphastrea microphthalma and Platygyra daedalea) but not in a regionally endemic acroporid (Acropora downingi). Gulf populations of each species experienced high temperature bleaching at the onset of gametogenesis in the study but fecundity was only negatively impacted in P. daedalea and A. downingi. Large population sizes of C. microphthalma and P. daedalea in the Gulf are expected to buffer reductions on colony-level fecundity. However, depleted population sizes of A. downingi at some Gulf sites equate to low reef-wide fecundity and likely impede outcrossing success.
DOI
10.1016/j.marpolbul.2015.11.034
Volume
105
Issue
2
First Page
532
Last Page
539
Additional Comments
This study was permitted by the Environment Agency Abu Dhabi, Fujairah Municipality and Dibba Municipality. Funding was provided by New York University Abu Dhabi, the Mohammed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund, and the Ford Motor Company Conservation and Environment Fund.
NSUWorks Citation
Emily Howells, Remi Ketchum, Andrew G. Bauman, Yasmine Mustafa, Kristina D. Watkins, and John Burt. 2016. Species-specific trends in the reproductive output of corals across environmental gradients and bleaching histories .Marine Pollution Bulletin , (2) : 532 -539. https://nsuworks.nova.edu/occ_facarticles/1322.
Comments
Appendix A. Supplementary data
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