| Autor: |
T. N. Whitman, M. O. Hoogenboom, A. P. Negri, C. J. Randall |
| Jazyk: |
angličtina |
| Rok vydání: |
2024 |
| Předmět: |
|
| Zdroj: |
Scientific Reports, Vol 14, Iss 1, Pp 1-15 (2024) |
| Druh dokumentu: |
article |
| ISSN: |
2045-2322 |
| DOI: |
10.1038/s41598-024-64294-z |
| Popis: |
Abstract Restoration methods that seed juvenile corals show promise as scalable interventions to promote population persistence through anthropogenic warming. However, challenges including predation by fishes can threaten coral survival. Coral-seeding devices with refugia from fishes offer potential solutions to limit predation-driven mortality. In an 8-month field study, we assessed the efficacy of such devices for increasing the survival of captive-reared Acropora digitifera (spat and microfragments) over control devices (featureless and caged). Devices with fish-exclusion features demonstrated a twofold increase in coral survival, while most corals seeded without protection suffered mortality within 48 h. Overall, spat faced more grazing and higher mortality compared to microfragments, and upward-facing corals were more vulnerable than side-facing corals. Grazing-induced mortality varied by site, with lower activity in locations abundant in mat-forming cyanobacteria or Scleractinian corals. Many scraping parrotfish were found feeding on or near the seeded corals; however, bites by Scarus globiceps explained the most site-related variation in grazing. Cyanobacteria may be preferred over corals as a nutritional resource for scraping parrotfish—advancing our understanding of their foraging ecology. Incorporating side-facing refugia in seeding devices and deploying to sites with nutrient-rich food sources for fish are potential strategies to enhance coral survival in restoration programs. |
| Databáze: |
Directory of Open Access Journals |
| Externí odkaz: |
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