11th ICRS Abstract book - Nova Southeastern University

24-9
Sponge-Mediated Coral Reef Restoration: Efficiency, Sustainability And Relative
Performance
Brendan BIGGS* 1
1 Biological Sciences, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL
Physical disturbances damage coral reef three-dimensional structure, leaving behind
unstable debris. Reef recovery is dependent, in large part, on coral reestablishment, and
substratum stability is critical to the success and survival of live fragments and coral
recruits. Coral reef sponges, whose attachment can anchor live coral and stabilize loose
carbonate, help mediate the process of reef rejuvenation by providing time for the
consolidation of coral skeletons by crustose coralline algae. Restoration efforts currently
employ epoxy and cement to secure rubble and upended colonies, but these agents are
unnatural, possibly less attractive, and potentially unfavorable to coral larvae. Utilizing
organisms that naturally bind and stabilize rubble to help restore reefs has largely been
overlooked. On shallow, fringing reefs in Curacao, four treatments varying substratum
and binding agent -- coral rubble alone, coral rubble seeded with sponge fragments, coral
rubble bound by cement, and cement rubble bound by cement -- were used to assess the
performance of sponges relative to cement as a binding agent and to investigate
preference of coral larvae for natural vs. artificial substrata. Regrowth of branch tips
removed from sponges (Niphates erecta, Aplysina cauliformis, and Aplysina sp) for
seeding coral rubble was also measured to evaluate the sustainability of sponge use.
Sponge fragments attached to rubble readily, stabilizing and anchoring piles rapidly.
Rubble piles with sponges had significantly more coral recruits, and were taller and
tighter in shape, than coral rubble alone. Recruitment was heaviest to coral rubble bound
by cement, but did not differ significantly for natural vs. artificial substrata. Regrowth
was slowest for N. erecta, while both Aplysina species replaced tissue rapidly. Results
indicate that using sponges to boost reef recovery is both feasible and sustainable and
would be an effective natural addition to current restoration techniques.
24-10
Species Specific Sensitivities Of Transplanted Coral Fragments From Eleven
Species To Predation And Bleaching
Romeo DIZON* 1 , James GUEST 2 , Edgardo GOMEZ 1 , Alasdair EDWARDS 2
1 The Marine Science Institute, University of the Philippines, Quezon City, Philippines,
2 School of Biology, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom
The selection of appropriate coral species is critical to the success of restoration
interventions involving coral transplantation. Knowledge about the tolerance of species to
various stressors, e.g. predation, disease and bleaching, is essential in deciding which are
most suitable for transplantation. In this study, the performance among species and
between two fragment sizes (3 to 5cm and 5 to 11cm) was compared for 11 coral species
(Acropora muricata, Echinopora lamellosa, Hydnophora rigida, Heliopora coerulea,
Montipora digitata, Pocillopora damicornis, Pavona frondifera, Porites cylindrica, P.
lutea, P. nigrescens and P. rus). A total of 100 fragments of each species were attached to
a standard calcium carbonate substrate (dead Tridacna shells) at five sites in a shallow
lagoon (3-4 m depth) near Bolinao, north-western Philippines during December 2005 and
February 2006. The survival and status of the 1100 transplants were monitored
fortnightly for the first 6 months and semi-annually subsequently. On each occasion,
mortality, partial mortality, predation and bleaching were noted for each transplant.
Early mortalities were due to the predation of the muricid gastropod, Drupella sp., on A.
muricata and the nudibranch, Phestilla sp., on the Porites transplants. Elevated water
temperatures during June and July 2007 caused total or partial bleaching in 62% of the
living transplants. Subsequently, survivorship of the transplants dramatically decreased.
Periodic monitoring from July to November 2007 revealed inter-specific differences in
their relative resistance to, and recovery from bleaching. P. frondifera was the most
resistant species while H. coerulea, P. lutea and M. digitata were the fastest to recover.
Although some species were generally susceptible to bleaching, some genotypes within a
species showed remarkable recovery after bleaching.
Oral Mini-Symposium 24: Reef Restoration
24-11
Assessment Of Gorgonian Transplantation Techniques Offshore Southeast Florida, Usa
Vanessa BRINKHUIS* 1 , Alison MOULDING 1 , Vladimir KOSMYNIN 2 , David GILLIAM 1
1 National Coral Reef Institute, Nova Southeastern University Oceanographic Center, Dania
Beach, FL, 2 Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Tallahassee, FL
Due to continuing anthropogenic degradation of coral reefs worldwide, there is need for
effective and experimentally tested reef restoration protocols. Much effort has been spent on
scleractinian coral transplantation. However, less attention has been directed towards effective
techniques for the transplantation of gorgonians (Coelenterata: Octocorallia). This study used
clippings from healthy adult Pseudopterogorgia acerosa and Plexaura flexuosa gorgonian
colonies to test the effectiveness of several gorgonian attachment techniques. In April 2007, 40
donor colonies of each species were tagged. A total of 80 clippings (25cm) were collected from
each species (2-3 clippings from each donor colony). A ship grounding site offshore Broward
County, Florida was chosen as the transplantation site. Forty clippings from each species were
attached with cement, and 40 were attached with epoxy (attachment material treatments). In
addition, 40 clippings from each species had 10 cm of their base tissue removed from around
their proteinaceous axis, and 40 clippings did not undergo base stripping (base treatment).
Donors and clippings were monitored 1, 2, 3, and 6 months post-transplantation. Within the
first month all clip wounds on the donor colonies were completely healed. By 6 months species
specific differences in success were evident. The highest percent attachment and survival was
100% for both P. flexuosa base treatments attached with epoxy, and the least successful
treatment, with the highest percent missing and lowest survival at 60%, was the P. acerosa nonbase-stripped
treatment attached with cement. It appears that for P. acerosa, tissue that had not
been stripped became necrotic and sloughed off, resulting in a loose attachment which
prevented the clippings from growing over the attachment material. This project provides
resource mangers with quantitative evidence that gorgonian transplantation can be an effective
part of reef restoration activities.
24-12
Staghorn Corals Transplantation, a Method to Increase Axial Polyps (AP) Quantities of
Transplants Using Cicatrisation Tissues High AP Generation Potential. Applications on
Acropora microphtalma, Acropora muricata and Acropora pulchra
Cedric GUIGNARD* 1 , Thomas LE BERRE 1
1 Seamarc Pvt Ltd, Male', Maldives
High growth rates and availability of broken fragments have made staghorns the most
commonly transplanted hard coral species. During the first 3 months after transplantation, Axial
Polyps Generation (APG) is an important factor to consider for the future transplant’s shape and
productivity. Then avoiding any damage of Initial Axial Polyps (IAP) seems logical to preserve
the “branching” fragments potential. However, recent observations made in the Maldives
indicate that cicatrisation tissues covering broken sections, here named “Cuts”, had a higher
APG potential than IAP themselves. To verify this hypothesis, an initial experiment using 80
fragments of Acropora muricata, has been set up to compare APG of the fragments with at least
one IAP to those without. After 3 months the results showed a significant difference.
Transplants with IAP presented an average of 3,0 AP (+/- 0,5 at 95% CI) while transplants
without IAP presented an average of 5,9 AP (+/- 0,6 at 95% CI). To investigate a practical
application of this result, several experiments including also Acropora pulchra and Acropora
microphtalma species have been launched following different protocols where fragments where
especially damaged to increase the quantity of cicatrisation tissue areas. These damages are
named “Extra Cuts” and aims at producing Extra Axial Polyps (EAP), this to valorise fragments
Radial Polyps (RP) areas which have been proved to have a low APG potential in the first
experiment. This permitted to develop a method able to produce EAP and then to increase
transplants AP quantities without causing any significant mortality. This method was found
easy and productive to valorise a fragment stock.
217