11th ICRS Abstract book - Nova Southeastern University

18.678
Mapping Bottom Features Of The Site Selected For The Underwater Observatory
in Sharm El Sheikh (South Sinai, Egypt)
Stefano ACUNTO 1 , Jessika GIRALDI* 1 , David BALATA 1 , Luigi PIAZZI 1 , Francesco
CINELLI 1
1 University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
A bionomic and topographic map of the site selected for construction of the Underwater
Observatory was made as part of the building plan of the structure.
The study area was located at Marsa Ghoslani bay in front of the Visitor Center of the
Ras Mohammed National Park (Sharm el Sheikh). This area is characterised by a small
fringing reef that, at the depth of ~ 5 meters, reaches a gentle slope rocky bottom covered
with sand and scattered coral assemblages.
Underwater visual, photographic and video surveys were made along 6m wide x 50m
long belt transects (n=15) perpendicular to the coastline. Visual recording of bottom
features included type of substratum (rock, sand and rubble) and type of organisms (hard
coral, soft coral). Bathymetric data were obtained measuring depth at each metre along
the line. A bionomic and topographic site map obtained from the analysed date (scale
1:100) was used to select the building site for the Observatory. The area was mainly bare
rock and therefore, direct impact on benthic organisms resulting from construction was
minimised.
18.679
Differentiating Among Global And Local Stressors in Florida Keys (Usa) Coral
Reefs Using Coral Regeneration Rates And A Cellular Diagnostic System
Elizabeth FISHER-MOSES* 1 , Cheryl WOODLEY 2 , John FAUTH 3 , Pamela
HALLOCK 4
1 Eckerd College, Saint Petersburg, FL, 2 NOAA National Ocean Service, Hollings Marine
Laboratory, Charleston, SC, 3 Department of Biology, University of Central Florida,
Orlando, FL, 4 College of Marine Science, University of South Florida, Saint Petersburg,
FL
Coral reefs are threatened resources in Florida and worldwide, and reef declines are
attributed to an array of local, regional and global stressors. Successful management of
stressed reefs requires multiple indicators that permit rapid identification and diagnosis of
causative agents. We used data acquired from coral regeneration rates, a cellular
diagnostic system and public environmental data to differentiate between local (e.g.,
pollutants) and global (e.g., temperature) stressors. We applied this multi-scale approach
at one patch reef in Biscayne National Park (BNP) and four patch reefs in the upper
Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary between 2001 and 2003. Sites were chosen in
consultation with resource managers to reflect a spectrum of possible anthropogenic
influences based on distance from urbanized coasts. Key Largo (KL) 6 m and BNP are
located along heavily developed coastline while White Banks and Algae Reef were
adjacent to an intact mangrove shoreline associated with John Pennekamp Coral Reef
State Park. No evidence for temperature or light stress was observed during our study.
Cellular diagnostic analyses indicated that local stressors, specifically xenobiotics,
affected corals at our study sites (particularly Key Largo 6 m and BNP), with the highest
stress levels during winter storms and following heavy rainfall. In addition to elevated
cellular diagnostic markers, coral colonies at KL 6 m and BNP were clearly stressed as
evidenced by highly variable and overall low lesion regeneration rates. Other reef sites
experienced relatively favorable conditions as evidenced by consistently high lesion
regeneration rates and a high percentage of healed lesions. Further studies are needed to
determine what xenobiotics are affecting these corals. Our study emphasized the
importance of using a hierarchical, mechanistic approach to assess reef condition. Using
this approach provides resource managers with information linking coral ecosystem
decline with environmental conditions.
Poster Mini-Symposium 18: Reef Status and Trends
18.680
Coral Cover Evaluation Of Todos Os Santos Bay Reefs After The 2003 Mass Bleaching
Event in Southwestern Atlantic
Igor CRUZ* 1 , Amanda NASCIMENTO 1 , Camila BRASIL 2 , Ruy KIKUCHI 3 , Zelinda LEAO 3
1 Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Federal da Bahia, Salvador, Brazil, 2 Instituto de
Geociências, Universidade Federal da Bahia, Salvador, Brazil, 3 Centro de Pesquisas em
Geofísica e Geologia, Universidade Federal da Bahia, Salvador, Brazil
Aiming to investigate the consequences of a mass coral bleaching event observed in Todos os
Santos Bay in 2003, reefs were re-surveyed in 2007. The 2003 bleaching event affected
37.6±25.5% coral cover, when sea surface temperature (SST) reached yearly maximum
anomaly of about 0.75°C, between 04/01/2003 and 05/04/2003. In 2007 the same eight reef
sites were surveyed applying a similar video-transect technique. Six, 20 m long and 0.21 m
wide, belt-transects from each reef site were analyzed, and organisms were identified under 20
random points in each image (frame) in a total of 100 frames per transect. For comparing 2003
and 2007 coral cover, T-test was used with an á = 0.05. The results show that living coral cover
didn’t change significantly (X = 14.0±8.1% in 2003 to X = 13.1±10.2% in 2007, p = 0.836). In
2007 bleaching was mild in Todos os Santos Bay affecting only 10.7±9.8% coral cover of the
investigated reefs. Coral reefs from Todos os Santos Bay have been suffering from changes in
the bay water quality mainly caused by the increased runoff of pollutant and sedimentation, as
well as over exploitation of reef resources using, sometimes, prohibited fishing practices, and
coral bleaching seems to be an additional factor. Because of the persistence of Todos os Santos
Bay fauna to all these environmental stresses, its coral fauna can be considered as a resilient
one.
18.681
A Strategic Approach For Developing A National Baseline Coral Reef Condition
Patricia BRADLEY 1 , Wayne DAVIS* 2 , William FISHER 3 , Michael MCDONALD 4
1 Office of Research and Development (ORD)/NHEERL/AED, U.S. EPA, Key West, FL,
2 Office of Environmental Information, U.S. EPA, Ft. Meade, MD, 3 Office of Research and
Development/NHEERL/GED, U.S. EPA, Gulf Breeze, FL, 4 Office of Research and
Development/NHEERL, U.S. EPA, Research Triangle Park, NC
The U.S. Congress, American public, and other interested parties want to know the condition of
U.S. and territorial coral reef ecosystems. They want to know whether the reefs’ conditions are
getting better or worse, and whether our programs and policies are making a difference. Many
organizations monitor coral reefs, but these efforts generally operate independently of one
another, have many different missions and mandates, and are fairly localized. There is a critical
need for nationally-consistent, comprehensive, and scientifically-defensible monitoring to
detect environmental status and trends for coral reef ecosystems.
We propose to apply the approach developed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s
Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program (EMAP): development of unbiased
statistical design frameworks, and sensitive ecological indicators that are responsive to a
gradient of stressors. This approach has been successfully applied for freshwater, estuarine and
forest ecosystems and is transferable to assess coral reef ecosystems at state, regional, and
national scales. Developing and maintaining such a coral reef monitoring program requires a
partnership among the various federal, state and territorial agencies with responsibilities for
coral reefs.
Our first application of this approach is in the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI). In 2006, indicators
were evaluated across stressor gradients using EPA’s recently published Stony Coral Rapid
Bioassessment Protocol. In 2007, a probabilistic sample design was used to monitor the coral
reefs around St. Croix, USVI and a similar design will be used for St. John and St. Thomas,
USVI in 2008. These results, coupled with those of other agencies and organizations will
provide valid indicators and data for EPA’s “Report on the Environment” and begin to address
the current condition of the Nation’s coral reef ecosystems and the impacts of human activities
upon them.
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