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Sessile organisms exploit a life-history strategy in which adults are immobile and their growth position is determined at settlement. The morphological strategy exploited by these organisms has strong selective value, because it can allow beneficial matching of morphology to environmental and biological conditions. In benthic marine environments, a 'sheet-tree' morphology is a classic mechanism exploited by select sessile organisms, and milleporine hydrocorals provide one of the best examples of this strategy. Using 30-year analysis of Millepora sp. on the reefs of St. John, US Virgin Islands, I tested for the benefits of a sheet-tree morphology in mediating the ecological success of an important functional group of benthic space holders. The abundance of Millepora sp. chaotically changed from 1992 to 2021 in concert with hurricanes, bleaching and macroalgal crowding. Millepora sp. responded to these disturbances by exploiting their morphological strategy to increase the use of trees when their sheets were compromised by bleaching and spatial competition with macroalgae, and the use of sheets when their trees were broken by storms. Together, these results reveal the selective value of a plastic sheet-tree morphology, which can be exploited by sessile organisms to respond to decadal-scale variation in environmental conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Invertebrate ectosymbionts within the coralla of scleractinians enhance host fitness through protection from corallivores and nutrient addition. Here, we explore the ectosymbiotic relationship between the coral Pocillopora verrucosa and the crab Trapezia serenei and the shrimp Alpheus spp., to test for effects on coral calcification under contrasts of seawater temperature (27.7 °C and 29.9 °C) and pH (ambient, 8.0 and reduced, 7.7). Regardless of temperature, ectosymbionts depressed calcification by 55% (vs without ectosymbionts) at ambient pH; however, ectosymbionts only depressed calcification under ambient pH but not at reduced pH. These results suggest that P. verrucosa grows fastest at ambient pH without ectosymbionts, but when ectosymbionts are present, colonies are protected from further declines in calcification at reduced pH. This implies that there may be a change from a currently parasitic ectosymbiont-coral relationship to a commensal relationship that could increase fitness advantages for corals hosting crustacean ectosymbionts under ocean acidification conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: On Caribbean reefs, colonies of the hydrocoral Millepora alcicornis are capable of pursuing and overgrowing arborescent octocorals (Wahle ). Nearly four decades since these interactions were described, we quantified arborescent octocorals encrusted by Millepora spp. ( Linnaeus 1758) on shallow reefs in St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands, and evaluated encrusted colonies for evidence of an origin through pursuit. In 2014, 8% of octocorals (n=1684 colonies) were encrusted by Millepora spp., and in 2015, 12% were encrusted (n=847 colonies). Millepora spp. encrusted colonies of 10 octocoral genera, and in 2014, the most frequently encrusted were Eunicea spp. (40% of encrusted octocorals); in 2015, the most frequently encrusted were Gorgonia spp. (46% of encrusted colonies). In both years, ≥67% of encrusted octocorals were >21 cm from other colonies of Millepora spp.; 7% of octocorals were >1.3 m from colonies of Millepora spp. in 2014; and 16% of octocorals were >2.0 m from colonies of Millepora spp. in 2015. Relative to the ~5% of octocorals encrusted by Millepora spp. in Jamaica in the late 1970s, a high percentage (~9%) of octocorals were encrusted by Millepora spp. in St. John in 2014 and 2015. The large distances from most encrusted octocorals to the nearest colonies of Millepora spp. in St. John are inconsistent with a hypothesized origin through pursuit, contact, and overgrowth (sensu Wahle ). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The recruitment of scleractinian corals to settlement tiles is widely used to infer relative rates of recruitment to natural reef surfaces. On tiles fixed approximately horizontally, the majority of corals settle to lower surfaces, and it is assumed that this distribution reflects the benefits of avoiding algal competition, grazers, and sedimentation on upper surfaces. Using settlement tiles with and without refuges (shallow depressions, 2–10mm in width and depth), we tested the hypothesis that coral recruits are not found on the upper surfaces of smooth settlement tiles because these surfaces lack refuges suitable for small colonies. Tiles were deployed for 4 to 14months over 2years in near-horizontal orientations on shallow reefs (~5-m depth) of one Caribbean and six Pacific islands, and following collection, tiles were inspected for coral recruits. In eight of nine deployments and in both regions, densities of recruits in upward-facing refuges were indistinguishable from densities on lower surfaces, or were several-fold higher in upward-facing refuges. In the ninth deployment (lasting 14months in the Caribbean) refuges were occluded by sediment and calcareous algae, and on these tiles densities of coral recruits were higher on the lower surface. Together, these results expand from a local-scale (Nozawa, 2008) to a global-scale the conclusion that the highest area-normalized density of coral recruits occurs in upward-facing refuges. An important implication of this finding is that coral recruitment on upward-facing natural reef surfaces will be increased by refuges that can be occupied by small corals. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The benthic community structure of the shallow reefs of St. John, US Virgin Islands, was studied from 1992 to 2007 to test the hypotheses that the abundances of non-scleractinian invertebrates have changed, and further, that the changes are associated with variation in the percentage cover of scleractinian coral and macroalgae. The study utilized photoquadrats (0.25m2) from fringing reefs (7–9m depth) characterized by igneous boulders and low (<5%) coral cover, and results from six sites were pooled to describe these reefs as a single habitat. Photoquadrats were analyzed biennially for the abundance of invertebrates, particularly those belonging to four well represented classes (Anthozoa, Demospongiae, Echinoidea, and Polychaeta), as well as the cover of scleractinians and macroalgae. Overall, the combined (multivariate) abundance of 30 invertebrate taxa changed over time, the combined (multivariate) abundance of the four invertebrate classes changed over time, and the individual (univariate) abundance of anthozoans, sponges, and echinoids changed over time. Throughout the study, coral cover remained <5%, and while it varied significantly, it did not display a consistent trajectory of change; in contrast, the cover of macroalgae increased throughout the study. While it is unsurprising that the abundances of invertebrates changed over 15y, notably they varied even though coral cover remained stable, in only a few cases were they related positively to macroalgal cover, and in most cases it was members of the suspension feeding guild that became more abundant. These outcomes suggest that: (1) benthic invertebrates on the shallow reefs of St. John may be more strongly influenced by regional (e.g., larva supply) than local (e.g., coral cover) conditions, (2) Caribbean reefs have changed more since the early 1990s than can be inferred from variation in cover of coral and macroalgae, and (3) suspension feeding invertebrates have become more common on shallow fringing reefs in at least one location. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: An opportunity to explore the effects of fluctuating temperatures on tropical scleractinian corals arose when diurnal warming (as large as 4.7°C) was detected over the rich coral communities found within the back reef of Moorea, French Polynesia. In April and May 2007, experiments were completed to determine the effects of fluctuating temperature on Pocillopora meandrina and Porites rus, and consecutive trials were used to expose them for 13days to 26°C, 28°C (ambient conditions), 30°C, or a fluctuating treatment ranging from 26 to 30°C over 24h. The multivariate response was assessed using maximum dark-adapted quantum yield of PSII (FV/FM), Symbiodinium density, chlorophyll-a content, and calcification. In trial 1, multivariate physiology of both species was significantly affected by treatments, with the fluctuating temperature resulting in a 17–45% decline in Symbiodinium density (relative to the ambient) matching that occurring at a constant 30°C; FV/FM, chlorophyll-a content, and calcification, did not differ between the fluctuating and the steady treatments. In contrast, in trial 2 that utilized corals collected two weeks after those used in trial 1, the corals were unaffected by the treatments, likely due to an environment×trial interaction caused by seasonal declines in Symbiodinium density. Together, these results demonstrate that short transgressions to ecologically relevant high and low temperatures can elicit a potentially detrimental response equivalent to that occurring upon exposure to a constant high temperature. The dissimilar responses among dependent variables and consecutive trials underscore the importance of temporal replication and multivariate approaches in coral ecophysiology. It is likely that recent history has a stronger effect on the response of corals to treatments than is currently recognized. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The phase change from coral to macroalgal dominance on many Caribbean reefs was exacerbated by the mortality of the echinoid Diadema antillarum in 1983–1984, and until recently, this sea urchin has remained rare on reefs throughout the western Atlantic. By the late 1990s, Diadema started to reappear in large numbers on some Jamaican reefs, and by 2000, the high densities were correlated with significantly greater abundances of juvenile corals. Here, we show that dense populations of Diadema now occur over a multi-kilometre-wide scale at six locations scattered along a 4100 km arc across the entire Caribbean. In all cases, these dense populations are found in shallow water (< 6 m depth) on outer reef communities and are associated with reduced macroalgal cover and enhanced coral recruitment. We conclude that population recovery of Diadema is occurring at both local and regional scales, and that grazing by this echinoid is creating conditions favouring the recruitment of corals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]