Assessing evidence of phase shifts from coral to macroalgal dominance on coral reefs
"Many marine scientists have concluded that coral reefs are moving toward or are locked into a seaweed-dominated state. However, because there have been no regional- or global-scale analyses of such coral reef "phase shifts," the magnitude of this phenome...
Coral reef recovery on Guam (Micronesia) after catastrophic predation by Acanthaster planci
"At Tanguisson Reef, Guam, in 1968-1969 a population explosion of the coral - eating sea star Acanthaster planci devastated the coral community. In the wake of this predation, coral species richness, density, and cover were drastically reduced, and the sp...
Relative roles of herbivory and nutrients in the recruitment of coral-reef seaweeds
"The relative effects of and interactions between, bottom-up and top-down processes are fundamental to population and community structure in both terrestrial and marine systems. These issues are especially critical for seaweed populations on coral reefs, ...
High-resolution characterization of the abiotic environment and disturbance regimes on the Great Barrier Reef, 1985-2017
"This data compilation synthesizes 36 static environmental and spatial variables, and temporally explicit modeled estimates of three major disturbances to coral cover on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR): (1) coral bleaching, (2) tropical cyclones, and (3) out...
Demographics of increasing populations of the giant barrel sponge Xestospongia muta in the Florida Keys
"The structure of Caribbean coral reef communities has been altered by numerous anthropogenic and natural stressors. Demographic studies of key functional groups have furthered efforts to describe and understand these changes. Little is known, however, ab...
Density dependent settlement and mortality structure the earliest life phases of a coral population
"The local densities of heterospecifics and conspecifics are known to have profound effects on the dynamics of many benthic species, including rates of settlement and early post-settlement survivorship. We described the early life history of the Caribbean...
Spatial and temporal patterns of genetic variation in the widespread antitropical deep-sea coral Paragorgia arborea
"Numerous deep-sea species have apparent widespread and discontinuous distributions. Many of these are important foundation species, structuring hard-bottom benthic ecosystems. Theoretically, differences in the genetic composition of their populations var...
Influence of reserve size and boundary length on the initial response of exploited reef fishes in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, US
"We examine the influence of reserve size and boundary length on the relative rate of fish density change in reserves versus fished reference reefs for three exploitable-sized reef fish categories: (1) combined fish (34 species of Haemulidae, Lutjanidae, ...
Regionally isolated populations of an imperiled Caribbean coral, Acropora palmata
"The movements of larvae between marine populations are difficult to follow directly and have been the subject of much controversy, especially in the Caribbean. The debate centres on the degree to which populations are demographically open, such that depl...
The role of nearshore ecosystems as fish and shellfish nurseries
"Coastal ecosystems provide many vital ecological and economic services, including shoreline protection, productive commercial and sport fisheries, and nutrient cycling. Key nearshore ecosystems such as seagrass meadows, marshes, and mangrove forests are ...
Assessing evidence of phase shifts from coral to macroalgal dominance on coral reefs