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Full-Text Articles in Marine Biology
Population Status Of Acropora Corals In The Florida Keys, Steven Miller, Mark Chiappone, Leanne M. Rutten, Dione W. Swanson
Population Status Of Acropora Corals In The Florida Keys, Steven Miller, Mark Chiappone, Leanne M. Rutten, Dione W. Swanson
Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Proceedings, Presentations, Speeches, Lectures
Population declines of staghorn coral (Acropora cervicornis) and elkhorn coral (A. palmata) are often-cited examples of Caribbean reef change since the 1970s, due, in part, to disease and localized effects from storms and predation. Both corals were listed as threatened on the U.S. Endangered Species List based upon range-wide decline and poor recovery. A spatially intensive survey undertaken in the Florida Keys of Acropora corals quantified habitat distribution, colony abundance, size, and condition at 235 sites spanning over 200 km in 2007. A two-stage stratified sampling design using belt transects incorporated cross-shelf habitats and no-fishing management …
Stony Coral Species Diversity And Cover In The Florida Keys Using Design-Based Sampling, Leanne M. Rutten, Mark Chiappone, Dione W. Swanson, Steven Miller
Stony Coral Species Diversity And Cover In The Florida Keys Using Design-Based Sampling, Leanne M. Rutten, Mark Chiappone, Dione W. Swanson, Steven Miller
Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Proceedings, Presentations, Speeches, Lectures
Large-scale sampling of stony coral species richness, species distribution, and cover was undertaken at 423 Florida Keys sites between Miami and SW of Key West during 2005 and 2007. A two-stage, stratified random sampling design employed belt transects to enumerate numbers of species and point-intercept surveys to quantify cover. The sampling design incorporated ten reef and hard-bottom habitats from < 1 m to 27 m depth, as well as oceanographic regions and areas inside and outside of protected management zones. These data provide insights into the spatial extent and factors influencing stony coral biodiversity. For stony corals, a pool of ~50 taxa encompassing the Orders Milleporina and Scleractinia, including species and morphotypes, was recorded. Significant differences were found in species richness and cover among cross-shelf habitats, with great values on inner shelf margin patch reefs, followed by deeper fore-reef slope habitats that extended to the 27 m depth limit sampled. In contrast, the shallow fore-reef, especially in areas historically dominated by the branching coral Acropora palmata, yielded relatively low numbers of species and cover that are presently dominated by smaller, brooding corals such as Porites astreoides and Favia fragum.
Evaluation Of Methods To Enhance Reef Restoration, David S. Gilliam, Alison L. Moulding, Vladimir N. Kosmynin, Vanessa I. P. Brinkhuis, Richard E. Dodge
Evaluation Of Methods To Enhance Reef Restoration, David S. Gilliam, Alison L. Moulding, Vladimir N. Kosmynin, Vanessa I. P. Brinkhuis, Richard E. Dodge
Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Proceedings, Presentations, Speeches, Lectures
The coral reefs of southeast Florida are offshore a highly urbanized area with a population exceeding 5 million people and three major shipping ports with over 6000 ships calling on an annual basis. Reef injury events are common and have been caused by ship groundings and marine construction activities such as channel dredging and cable placement. Restoration activities generally only include the reattachment of dislodged stony corals, removal of rubble, and boulder stabilization. The Florida Department of Environmental Protection has recognized these limited activities and is collaborating with Nova Southeastern University’s Oceanographic Center to study ways to accelerate coral reef …
Analysis Of Factors Influencing Southeast Florida Coral Reef Community Composition, M. A. Phillips, David S. Gilliam, L. K. B. Jordan, Richard E. Dodge, Louis E. Fisher
Analysis Of Factors Influencing Southeast Florida Coral Reef Community Composition, M. A. Phillips, David S. Gilliam, L. K. B. Jordan, Richard E. Dodge, Louis E. Fisher
Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Proceedings, Presentations, Speeches, Lectures
The southeast Florida reef system lies offshore a heavily populated and urbanized coast. These high latitude reefs are not only affected by their geography but also by anthropogenic factors that accompany an urban area such as dredging activities, ship groundings, waste water outfalls, runoff and beach erosion. Sedimentation has been shown to influence stony coral community composition including dominance, abundance, cover, diversity, and colony size. Using annual monitoring data collected since 2000, the southeastern Florida reef community is being analyzed to examine if and how sedimentation and other factors such as depth, distance from shore and distance from port channels …
Fractal Patterns Of Coral Communities: Evidence From Remote Sensing (Arabian Gulf, Dubai, U.A.E.), Samuel J. Purkis, Bernhard Riegl, Richard E. Dodge (Editor)
Fractal Patterns Of Coral Communities: Evidence From Remote Sensing (Arabian Gulf, Dubai, U.A.E.), Samuel J. Purkis, Bernhard Riegl, Richard E. Dodge (Editor)
Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Proceedings, Presentations, Speeches, Lectures
In this study, the spatial character of benthic communities is investigated in an Arabian Gulf shallow subtidal carbonate ramp setting, using IKONOS satellite imagery. The patchy distribution of three assemblages of live and dead corals on extensive (but also fragmented) hardground pavements was investigated using a variety of spatial statistics. It was found that the spatial expression of the benthic groups display characteristics that approximate to power-law distributions over several orders of magnitude to an extent that suggests fractal behaviour. Pronounced anisotropy was observed between the spatial patterns in the near-shore and off-shore region which is attributed to different mechanisms …
Multiple Spatial Scale Assessment Of Coral Reef And Hard-Bottom Community Structure In The Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, Steven Miller, Dione W. Swanson, Mark Chiappone
Multiple Spatial Scale Assessment Of Coral Reef And Hard-Bottom Community Structure In The Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, Steven Miller, Dione W. Swanson, Mark Chiappone
Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Proceedings, Presentations, Speeches, Lectures
The zoning plan for the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (FKNMS) established 23 relatively small no-fishing zones distributed mostly along the offshore reef tract in 1997. In 1999, a two-stage, stratified random sampling design based on the proportion of coral reef and hard-bottom types within the FKNMS was conducted. Our study focused on differences in coverage, density, and condition of benthic organisms with respect to habitat type, regional variations, and differences between no-fishing zones and reference sites at 80 locations spanning 200 km. Most variables exhibited significant spatial differences by habitat type or between individual no-fishing zones and reference sites …