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Trait-based approaches advance ecological and evolutionary research because traits provide a strong link to an organism's function and fitness. Trait-based research might lead to a deeper understanding of the functions of, and services provided by, ecosystems, thereby improving management, which is vital in the current era of rapid environmental change. Coral reef scientists have long collected trait data for corals; however, these are difficult to access and often under-utilized in addressing large-scale questions. We present the Coral Trait Database initiative that aims to bring together physiological, morphological, ecological, phylogenetic and biogeographic trait information into a single repository. The database houses species- and individual-level data from published field and experimental studies alongside contextual data that provide important framing for analyses. In this data descriptor, we release data for 56 traits for 1547 species, and present a collaborative platform on which other trait data are being actively federated. Our overall goal is for the Coral Trait Database to become an open-source, community-led data clearinghouse that accelerates coral reef research.

Trait-based approaches advance ecological and evolutionary research because traits provide a strong link to an organism’s function and fitness. Trait-based research might lead to a deeper understanding of the functions of, and services provided by, ecosystems, thereby improving management, which is vital in the current era of rapid environmental change. Coral reef scientists have long collected trait data for corals; however, these are difficult to access and often under-utilized in addressing large-scale questions. We present the Coral Trait Database initiative that aims to bring together physiological, morphological, ecological, phylogenetic and biogeographic trait information into a single repository. The database houses species- and individual-level data from published field and experimental studies alongside contextual data that provide important framing for analyses. In this data descriptor, we release data for 56 traits for 1547 species, and present a collaborative platform on which other trait data are being actively federated. Our overall goal is for the Coral Trait Database to become an open-source, community-led data clearinghouse that accelerates coral reef research.

Growth is a fundamental biological trait, generally considered to have an important role in structuring populations and communities. Accordingly, many studies have quantified growth rates of scleractinian corals, but using a variety of different methods and measures that may or may not be comparable. The purpose of this review is to compile extensive data on the growth of corals, to relate disparate methods of measuring coral growth, and to explore spatial, temporal, and taxonomic variation in growth rates. The most common metric of coral growth is linear extension, measured as unidirectional change in branch length or colony radius. Rates of linear extension vary greatly among corals, being highest among arborescent Acropora species. This is not unexpected given the limited carbonate investment in producing long, slender branches compared to solid hemispherical colonies. However, differences in the way that extension rates are actually measured (e.g., linear extension of individual branches vs. changes in the mean solid radius of massive corals) could potentially bias interspecific comparisons of coral growth. The most comparable measure of growth, which gives unbiased estimates of growth across different growth forms, is average annual calcification or change in weight normalized to a measure of size. Surprisingly, even calcification rates appear to be much higher for branching Acropora compared to other coral genera, which contributes to the high extension rates recorded for this genus. Despite inconsistencies and incompatibilities among studies of coral growth, there is clear evidence that coral growth rates vary spatially and temporally, largely in response to light and water quality (e.g., turbidity), temperature, and aragonite saturation state. Ongoing changes in environmental conditions (e.g., due to climate change) are expected to have generally negative consequences for the growth of scleractinian corals, which may be further exacerbated by shifts in assemblage structure towards relatively slowgrowing species.