Changes in coral reef community structure along a sediment gradient in Fouha Bay, Guam

Details

• Journal Title:
  Marine Pollution Bulletin
• Personal Author:
  Minton, D. ; Burdick, D. ; Brown, V.
• NOAA Program & Office:
  NOS (National Ocean Service) ; ONMS (Office of National Marine Sanctuaries) ; NMFS (National Marine Fisheries Service) ; PIR (Pacific Island Region)
• Description:
  High sedimentation rates have well-documented, deleterious impacts on coral reefs. However, few previous studies have attempted to quantitatively describe a coral reef community across a large continuous sediment gradient. In this study distinct benthic assemblages in Fouha Bay, Guam, were identified using a Moving Window Analysis conducted along a two-order of magnitude sediment gradient, with transition boundaries that were generally consistent with sediment thresholds identified in the literature. Coral richness dropped exponentially with increasing sedimentation rate. Richness was nearly three times greater in assemblages with sedimentation rates <10 mg cm−2 d−1 compared to assemblages experiencing rates between 10 and 50 mg cm−2 d−1, and nearly 30 times greater than assemblages experiencing rates between 50 and 100 mg cm−2 d−1. No corals were found in assemblages with sedimentation rates >110 mg cm−2 d−1. Reducing sedimentation in this area could result in a shift of more diverse and abundant coral assemblages toward the head of the bay.
• Content Notes:
  This work was partially supported by funding to DM from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
• Keywords:
  • Fouha Bay
  • Moving Window Analysis
  • Gradient
• Source:
  Marine Pollution Bulletin 181 (2022) 113816
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.113816
• Format:
  PDF
• Document Type:
  Journal Article
• Funding:
  Contract no. NFFT5000-12-04727JR
• Place as Subject:
  Guam
• Rights Information:
  Accepted Manuscript
• Rights Statement:
  The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Dwayne Minton reports financial support was provided by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
• Compliance:
  Submitted
• Download URL:
  https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/52229/noaa_52229_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.74 MB]
• Collection(s):
  National Ocean Service (NOS) ; National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) ; Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP)
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha256:8c03e1d806ade72a3a8c840f8ea1eb1fa457ea36dc7f8316b4b67bba20143b20