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Coral Reef

All articles tagged with #coral reef

Untouched reefs provide a natural baseline as planted structures host more corals in Singapore trial
environment25 days ago

Untouched reefs provide a natural baseline as planted structures host more corals in Singapore trial

In Singapore’s Sisters’ Islands Marine Park, eight artificial reef structures were deployed in 2018; six were planted with corals and two were left unplanted as a control. By February 2022, surveys counted 1,961 live coral colonies from 43 genera on the planted structures, compared with 95 colonies from seven genera on the two unplanted structures. Early inhabitants on all structures were barnacles and bivalves, with natural coral settlement appearing about two years after deployment. The two unplanted plots provide a baseline for natural recruitment, while the planted plots show substantial coral establishment, illustrating how natural and human-assisted reef growth interact in this setting.

via Space Daily|
#artificial-reef#coral-reef#environment
Argentine Deep-Sea Discovery: Vatican-Sized Coral Reef Upends Our View of Life Beneath
science1 month ago

Argentine Deep-Sea Discovery: Vatican-Sized Coral Reef Upends Our View of Life Beneath

A Schmidt Ocean Institute expedition to Argentina's deep sea unexpectedly found a colossal Bathelia candida coral reef—nearly the size of Vatican City—hosting abundant life and 28 candidate new species, along with a rare deep-sea whale fall and the phantom jellyfish Stygiomedusa gigantea, while dives also logged garbage and a near-pristine VHS tape, underscoring how much remains unknown and vulnerable beneath the waves.

via A-Z Animals|
#bathelia-candida#biodiversity#coral-reef
Rats on remote islands reroute reef life by starving seabirds
science2 months ago

Rats on remote islands reroute reef life by starving seabirds

Invasive rats on tropical islands decimate seabird populations and their nutrient-rich guano subsidies to surrounding coral reefs. This reduces nutrient input and reshapes the reef cryptofauna: rat-free reefs are dominated by tiny cryptobenthic fishes, while rat-infested reefs see relatively more invertebrates and altered predator–prey dynamics, signaling cascading changes through the reef food web.

via The Times of India|
#coral-reef#cryptofauna#rats
Rats rewire Indian Ocean reefs by starving seabirds and reshaping food webs
science2 months ago

Rats rewire Indian Ocean reefs by starving seabirds and reshaping food webs

New research shows invasive rats on Indian Ocean islands decimate seabirds, cutting nutrient inputs to coral reefs and rewiring reef food webs. The loss of seabird-derived nutrients shifts the base of the ecosystem from cryptobenthic fishes to invertebrates, altering predator energy pathways and illustrating a complex, uneven nutrient impact across rat-infested and rat-free reefs.

via Oceanographic Magazine|
#coral-reef#food-web#invasive-species
Benin's deep-water reef revived, teeming with life
science2 months ago

Benin's deep-water reef revived, teeming with life

A coral reef off Benin long thought dead has been found alive in a mesophotic, deeper low-light zone. Researchers used 1960s records to guide sonar surveys and underwater drone footage, revealing a living ecosystem with eight fish species and eight coral types. The find highlights gaps in reef mapping and conservation planning and sets the stage for further fieldwork to confirm species and health, with potential implications for regional biodiversity and local fisheries.

via Yahoo|
#benin#biodiversity#coral-reef
Rediscovered Deep-Water Reef Off Benin Surprises Scientists with Rich Biodiversity
science2 months ago

Rediscovered Deep-Water Reef Off Benin Surprises Scientists with Rich Biodiversity

Scientists rediscovered a healthy mesophotic reef off Benin, West Africa, more than 60 years after it was first hinted at, hosting at least eight coral types and eight fish species (including soft corals and black corals). The reef lies about 175 feet below the surface and bridges shallow and deep habitats, offering opportunities for paleoclimatic study and carbon dating, with plans to seek protection and hopes that the Gulf of Guinea becomes a regional hub for marine science.

via Slashdot|
#benin#coral-reef#marine-conservation
Rediscovered West African Reef Teems With Life
science2 months ago

Rediscovered West African Reef Teems With Life

A coral reef long presumed dead off the West African coast was found to be alive and teeming with life after modern sonar surveys and an underwater drone revealed a mesophotic coral ecosystem with eight coral types and eight fish species, marking the first confirmed living reef in the Gulf of Guinea shelf and highlighting how little is known about coastal West African ecosystems, with further sampling still needed to confirm species identities and extent.

via Good News Network|
#biodiversity#coral-reef#gulf-of-guinea
Benin's long-lost deep-sea reef found thriving after decades
science2 months ago

Benin's long-lost deep-sea reef found thriving after decades

A deep-water coral reef off Benin, previously deemed dead from 1960s surveys, has been rediscovered thriving thanks to modern sonar, an underwater drone, and the Deep Sea Camera System. The researchers mapped 11.5 km of seabed, found eight coral types and eight fish species (including golden African snappers and Guinean angelfish), and identified it as a mesophotic ecosystem. Further sampling is needed to confirm coral vitality and historical status, but the find points to an underexplored reef habitat with implications for ocean history and conservation.

via Oceanographic Magazine|
#benin#biodiversity#coral-reef
Crown-of-Thorns: The Venomous Giant Starfish Threatening Coral Reefs
science3 months ago

Crown-of-Thorns: The Venomous Giant Starfish Threatening Coral Reefs

Crown-of-thorns starfish are large, venomous sea stars with up to 21 spines that can reach 80 cm; their toxins can cause severe pain and, in rare cases, fatal reactions. More pressingly, they voraciously eat hard coral—up to about 10 square meters per starfish per year—threatening reefs like the Great Barrier Reef and capable of wiping out reef sections in weeks when populations surge. They regrow from fragments, making culling ineffective, so management favors injections of vinegar or bile salts. Natural predators such as giant triton snails and many reef fish help limit outbreaks, and the presence of giant tritons can even drive COTS away. They feed by everting their stomachs to digest coral tissue, turning it into a coral soup before retracting it.

via BBC Wildlife Magazine|
#coral-reef#crown-of-thorns-starfish#great-barrier-reef
Soundscapes Offer Hope for Jamaica's Bleached Reefs
science3 months ago

Soundscapes Offer Hope for Jamaica's Bleached Reefs

Jamaican researchers are testing underwater speakers that play healthy reef sounds to attract fish to bleached corals, following a similar Great Barrier Reef study that boosted fish on sound-equipped artificial reefs; the effort also involves 3D-printed artificial reefs and lab-grown coral with the Alligator Head Foundation, but it's too early to know if Jamaica will see recovery, and volunteers can support via the foundation.

via bgr.com|
#coral-bleaching#coral-reef#jamaica
Color-changing surgeonfish signals for a clean at the Great Barrier Reef
science5 months ago

Color-changing surgeonfish signals for a clean at the Great Barrier Reef

Diver Jamie Wilson filming the Great Barrier Reef captured hundreds of pale surgeonfish visiting a cleaning station, and one fish abruptly darkened from white to black. Scientists say such color changes may signal to cleaner wrasse that the fish is ready for a cleaning and not a threat, aiding parasite removal and communication in reef ecosystems.

via BBC Wildlife Magazine|
#animal-behavior#coral-reef#great-barrier-reef