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Recovery of the threatened staghorn coral ( Acropora cervicornis) is posited to play a key role in Caribbean reef resilience. At four Caribbean locations (including one restored and three extant populations), we quantified characteristics of contemporary staghorn coral across increasing conspecific densities, and investigated a hypothesis of facilitation between staghorn coral and reef fishes. High staghorn densities in the Dry Tortugas exhibited significantly less partial mortality, higher branch growth, and supported greater fish abundances compared to lower densities within the same population. In contrast, partial mortality, branch growth, and fish community composition did not vary with staghorn density at the three other study locations where staghorn densities were lower overall. This suggests that density-dependent effects between the coral and fish community may only manifest at high staghorn densities. We then evaluated one facilitative mechanism for such density-dependence, whereby abundant fishes sheltering in dense staghorn aggregations deliver nutrients back to the coral, fueling faster coral growth, thereby creating more fish habitat. Indeed, dense staghorn aggregations within the Dry Tortugas exhibited significantly higher growth rates, tissue nitrogen, and zooxanthellae densities than sparse aggregations. Similarly, higher tissue nitrogen was induced in a macroalgae bioassay outplanted into the same dense and sparse aggregations, confirming greater bioavailability of nutrients at high staghorn densities. Our findings inform staghorn restoration efforts, suggesting that the most effective targets may be higher coral densities than previously thought. These coral-dense aggregations may reap the benefits of positive facilitation between the staghorn and fish community, favoring the growth and survivorship of this threatened species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rocky reefs in the temperate Northeast Pacific constitute a small portion of the nearshore seabed, yet are highly valued as productive habitat for local fisheries. Surveying these structurally complex, untrawlable habitats requires robust gear that can be deployed in rough sea states. Here, a cost-effective, compact video lander was evaluated for its ability to survey the diversity and abundance of nearshore (< 40 m), rocky-reef-associated fish populations (e.g. Sebastes, Cottidae, Hexagrammidae). To determine the application and limitations of surveying complex rocky reefs with this new tool, this study sought to (1) determine the frequency of observation of known nearshore fish species, (2) evaluate the influence of baiting the lander on the observed fish assemblage, (3) identify the optimal deployment time to maximize observed species richness and abundance, and (4) evaluate species-specific behavioral responses to the lander characterized a priori as attractive, avoidance, or neutral. Seventy percent of lander deployments met established requirements of visibility, view, and habitat. Seventy-seven percent of observed fishes were identifiable to species. The method observed 15 species belonging to 5 families; 5 species were classified as common (observed in > 20% of deployments), the remaining rare. Contrary to lander studies in other regions, bait was not found to improve species-specific identification, increase observed species richness or abundance (at the species or feeding guild level), or shorten deployment duration. A deployment time of 8 min on the benthos was determined as optimal for observing maximum species richness and abundance in the nearshore, doubling the previously described lander drop durations evaluated in deeper Oregon, U.S.A., waters. Species-specific behavioral responses to this compact lander were evaluated by viewing trends in species abundance (assessed within 30 s bins) over the deployment duration; no attractive or avoidance behaviors were observed. Results confirm that this simple, cost-effective video lander configuration is suitable for sampling the suite of fish species found in the nearshore, including rockfish species federally designated as “overfished” ( Sebastes pinniger and Sebastes ruberrimus) . Furthermore, this study illustrates the importance of evaluating the performance of survey tools in the specific environment in which the tool will be used to determine best-practices from long-term monitoring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We developed a method for quantifying the abundance of the threatened staghorn coral ( Acropora cervicornis) and evaluated the accuracy of commonly used methods to assess colony condition. For small- to medium-sized colonies, we show that colony ellipsoid volume estimated from simple colony dimensions serves as a reliable and efficient proxy for the more time-consuming, conventional measure of colony total linear extension, and that this predictive relationship varies significantly among extant populations in the Caribbean. We also determined that visual estimates of colony partial mortality closely approximate to true values for colonies with <25% mortality, with in situ estimates outperforming estimates from digital images. These results provide coral reef managers and restoration practitioners with guidance for assessing partial mortality and location-specific regression models to estimate 'amount' of staghorn coral in both extant and restored staghorn populations in Belize, the United States Virgin Islands, and the Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida, U.S.A. As staghorn coral monitoring and restoration efforts continue to expand in the Caribbean, these methods for quickly determining staghorn abundance and condition will directly aid resource managers tasked with monitoring wild populations and tracking restoration success over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Distinguishing management effects from the inherent variability in a system is a key consideration in assessing reserve efficacy. Here, we demonstrate how seascape heterogeneity, defined as the spatial configuration and composition of coral reef habitats, can mask our ability to discern reserve effects. We then test the application of a landscape approach, utilizing advances in benthic habitat mapping and GIS techniques, to quantify this heterogeneity and alleviate the confounding influence during reserve assessment. Seascape metrics were quantified at multiple spatial scales using a combination of spatial image analysis and in situ surveys at 87 patch reef sites in Glover's Reef Lagoon, Belize, within and outside a marine reserve enforced since 1998. Patch reef sites were then clustered into classes sharing similar seascape attributes using metrics that correlated significantly to observed variations in both fish and coral communities. When the efficacy of the marine reserve was assessed without including landscape attributes, no reserve effects were detected in the diversity and abundance of fish and coral communities, despite 10 years of management protection. However, grouping sites based on landscape attributes revealed significant reserve effects between site classes. Fish had higher total biomass (1.5×) and commercially important biomass (1.75×) inside the reserve and coral cover was 1.8 times greater inside the reserve, though direction and degree of response varied by seascape class. Our findings show that the application of a landscape classification approach vastly improves our ability to evaluate the efficacy of marine reserves by controlling for confounding effects of seascape heterogeneity and suggests that landscape heterogeneity should be considered in future reserve design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Hawaiian Archipelago experienced a moderate bleaching event in 2019—the third major bleaching event over a 6-year period to impact the islands. In response, the Hawai'i Coral Bleaching Collaborative (HCBC) conducted 2,177 coral bleaching surveys across the Hawaiian Archipelago. The HCBC was established to coordinate bleaching monitoring efforts across the state between academic institutions, non-governmental organizations, and governmental agencies to facilitate data sharing and provide management recommendations. In 2019, the goals of this unique partnership were to: 1) assess the spatial and temporal patterns of thermal stress; 2) examine taxa-level patterns in bleaching susceptibility; 3) quantify spatial variation in bleaching extent; 4) compare 2019 patterns to those of prior bleaching events; 5) identify predictors of bleaching in 2019; and 6) explore site-specific management strategies to mitigate future bleaching events. Both acute thermal stress and bleaching in 2019 were less severe overall compared to the last major marine heatwave events in 2014 and 2015. Bleaching observed was highly site- and taxon-specific, driven by the susceptibility of remaining coral assemblages whose structure was likely shaped by previous bleaching and subsequent mortality. A suite of environmental and anthropogenic predictors was significantly correlated with observed bleaching in 2019. Acute environmental stressors, such as temperature and surface light, were equally important as previous conditions (e.g. historical thermal stress and historical bleaching) in accounting for variation in bleaching during the 2019 event. We found little evidence for acclimation by reefs to thermal stress in the main Hawaiian Islands. Moreover, our findings illustrate how detrimental effects of local anthropogenic stressors, such as tourism and urban run-off, may be exacerbated under high thermal stress. In light of the forecasted increase in severity and frequency of bleaching events, future mitigation of both local and global stressors is a high priority for the future of corals in Hawai'i. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We describe spatial patterns in fish abundance across the lagoonal patch reef system at Glover's Reef Atoll in Belize, and assess the relative influence of physical, biological, and abiotic structural variables on these patterns. Physical factors--specifically, distance from reef channels, current flow, and temperature--play a significant role in structuring overall patterns in fish abundance across the lagoon. The types of variables that best explained trends in abundance of specific groups of fishes were related to feeding habits of these groups. For example, fishes dependent on primary and secondary sources of productivity (herbivores and planktivores) were most highly influenced by physical factors. Abundances of benthophagous fishes were best predicted by benthic habitat variables such as coral cover, while abundance of piscivorous fish groups was best predicted by abiotic structural habitat variables such as reef area. While data on physical oceanographic properties are not normally considered in relation to abundance patterns of reef fishes, we find that such factors are good predictors of abundance for these species. Where physical data are not available, simple distance metrics may serve as reasonable proxies for physical oceanographic processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pelagic dispersal of most benthic marine organisms is a fundamental driver of population distribution and persistence and is thought to lead to highly mixed populations. However, the mechanisms driving dispersal pathways of larvae along open coastlines are largely unknown. To examine the degree to which early stages can remain spatially coherent during dispersal, we measured genetic relatedness within a large pulse of newly recruited splitnose rockfish (Sebastes diploproa), a live-bearing fish whose offspring settle along the US Pacific Northwest coast after spending up to a year in the pelagic environment. A total of 11.6% of the recruits in a single recruitment pulse were siblings, providing the first evidence for persistent aggregation throughout a long dispersal period. Such protracted aggregation has profound implications for our understanding of larval dispersal, population connectivity, and gene flow within demersal marine populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary 1. Ecologists continue to debate whether the assembly of communities of species is more strongly influenced by dispersal limitations or niche-based factors. Analytical approaches that account for both mechanisms can help to resolve controls of community assembly. 2. We compared littoral snail assemblages in Lake Tanganyika at three different spatial scales (5-25 m, 0.5-10 km and 0.5-27 km) to test whether spatial distance or environmental differences are better predictors of community similarity. 3. At the finest scale (5-25 m), snail assemblages shifted strongly with depth but not across similar lateral distances, indicating a stronger response to environmental gradients than dispersal opportunities. 4. At the two larger scales (0.5-27 km), both environmental similarity and shoreline distance between sites predicted assemblage similarity across sites. Additionally, canonical correspondence analysis revealed that snail abundances were significantly correlated with algal carbon-to-nitrogen ratio and wave energy. 5. Our results indicate that the factors governing assemblage structure are scale dependent; niche-based mechanisms act across all spatial scales, whereas community similarity declines with distance only at larger spatial separations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]