The influence of wave exposure on coral community development on man-made breakwater reefs, with a comparison to a natural reef

Burt, J; Feary, D; Usseglio, P; Bauman, A; Sale, PF

The influence of wave exposure on coral community development on man-made breakwater reefs, with a comparison to a natural reef

Burt, J Feary, D Usseglio, P Bauman, A Sale, PF

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Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Bulletin of Marine Science, 2010, 86 (4), pp. 839 - 859
Issue Date:: 2010-10-01

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Burt, J	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Feary, D	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Usseglio, P	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Bauman, A	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Sale, PF	en_US
dc.date.issued	2010-10-01	en_US
dc.identifier.citation	Bulletin of Marine Science, 2010, 86 (4), pp. 839 - 859	en_US
dc.identifier.issn	0007-4977	en_US
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/14688
dc.description.abstract	Breakwaters dominate shorelines in many coastal urban areas, providing substantial hard-bottom habitat upon which diverse and abundant reef communities develop. In recognition of their potential ecological and economic importance, there is increasing interest in understanding how design features can influence community development. We investigated the influence of wave exposure on breakwater coral communities in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Coral community composition, cover, size structure, recruitment, mortality, and growth rates were compared quarterly between two windward and two leeward breakwater sites for 1 yr to explore the influence of wave exposure on coral community development. Comparisons also were made with a natural coral reef to gain an understanding of how community structure and dynamics compare between these habitats. Benthic and water column sediment particle sizes were also analyzed. Leeward breakwaters contained a low-cover coral community dominated by small colonies with high mortality compared with windward breakwaters and the natural reef. Windward breakwater coral communities had comparable recruitment, mortality, and growth rates as the natural reef. Fine sediments (< 63 μm) dominated the benthos and water column on leeward breakwaters, while windward breakwaters and the natural reef were dominated by sediments with larger size classes (> 125 μm), likely as a result of differences in wave action among reef types. Overall, these results suggest that leeward breakwaters represent sub-optimal habitats for coral community development. However, with appropriate design, breakwaters can develop diverse and abundant coral communities with comparable coral cover, demographics, and growth rates to those on the natural reef in Dubai. © 2010 Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science of the University of Miami.	en_US
dc.relation.ispartof	Bulletin of Marine Science	en_US
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.5343/bms.2009.1013	en_US
dc.subject.classification	Marine Biology & Hydrobiology	en_US
dc.title	The influence of wave exposure on coral community development on man-made breakwater reefs, with a comparison to a natural reef	en_US
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	4	en_US
utslib.citation.volume	86	en_US
utslib.for	0502 Environmental Science and Management	en_US
utslib.for	04 Earth Sciences	en_US
utslib.for	05 Environmental Sciences	en_US
utslib.for	06 Biological Sciences	en_US
dc.location.activity	ISI:000231023200007
pubs.embargo.period	Not known	en_US
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Science
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Science/School of Life Sciences
utslib.copyright.status	open_access
pubs.issue	4	en_US
pubs.publication-status	Published	en_US
pubs.volume	86	en_US

Abstract:

Breakwaters dominate shorelines in many coastal urban areas, providing substantial hard-bottom habitat upon which diverse and abundant reef communities develop. In recognition of their potential ecological and economic importance, there is increasing interest in understanding how design features can influence community development. We investigated the influence of wave exposure on breakwater coral communities in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Coral community composition, cover, size structure, recruitment, mortality, and growth rates were compared quarterly between two windward and two leeward breakwater sites for 1 yr to explore the influence of wave exposure on coral community development. Comparisons also were made with a natural coral reef to gain an understanding of how community structure and dynamics compare between these habitats. Benthic and water column sediment particle sizes were also analyzed. Leeward breakwaters contained a low-cover coral community dominated by small colonies with high mortality compared with windward breakwaters and the natural reef. Windward breakwater coral communities had comparable recruitment, mortality, and growth rates as the natural reef. Fine sediments (< 63 μm) dominated the benthos and water column on leeward breakwaters, while windward breakwaters and the natural reef were dominated by sediments with larger size classes (> 125 μm), likely as a result of differences in wave action among reef types. Overall, these results suggest that leeward breakwaters represent sub-optimal habitats for coral community development. However, with appropriate design, breakwaters can develop diverse and abundant coral communities with comparable coral cover, demographics, and growth rates to those on the natural reef in Dubai. © 2010 Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science of the University of Miami.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/14688