Several fireworms Hermodice carunculata (Pallas, 1766) were observed feeding on coral colonies or transplanted fragments of the threatened staghorn coral Acropora cervicornis (Lamarck, 1816), in outplanting sites at Bayahibe, Dominican Republic. The fireworm H. carunculata has a highly negative impact on A. cervicornis populations, causing several lesions on the living tissue of branches and partial or complete mortality at the outplanting sites. This is the first report of predation on transplanted colonies in a coral restoration program in the Dominican Republic.
Dorsal fins, one of the most notable dolphin's physical features, play important kinematic and hydrodynamic roles and are related to physiological and environmental adaptation processes. Differences in dorsal fin shape have been recently associated with geographic variation, habitat specialization between ecotypes, and ontogenetic factors. We studied dorsal fin variation across several common bottlenose dolphin populations in the Caribbean. A total of 252 dorsal fin photographs from eight coastal regions in the Caribbean were selected for analysis. Dolphin dorsal fin proportions were compared among regions and compared with data previously collected from Holbox, Mexico. Dorsal fin models were constructed for each region. We found that across the Caribbean, coastal bottlenose dolphins exhibit low variation in dorsal fin shape, with the most common dorsal fin pattern having low and triangular shapes, two traits that greatly contrast with the oceanic ecotype. Also, significant differences in overall dorsal fin proportions found among some adjacent groups support the hypothesis that subgroups could be present even within extremely short geographical distances -as has been previously documented. The results of this study can be implemented in population monitoring efforts worldwide, as it uses free software and provides a step-by-step guideline to analyze the data.
Debido a distintas presiones globales y locales, los ecosistemas costero-marinos se encuentran rápidamente en declive a un ritmo alarmante. La República Dominicana es especialmente vulnerable a los efectos de la degradación de estos ecosistemas y sus recursos, por ello es necesaria la implementación de acciones de conservación y restauración de los mismos. Estas acciones se deben realizar desde una perspectiva holística, que considere no solo el aspecto biológico, sino también el aspecto económico y social mediante la integración a la comunidad local. La Fundación Dominicana de Estudios Marinos, desde sus inicios, ha involucrado a la comunidad de la zona sur del Santuario Marino Arrecifes del Sureste en sus programas conservación marina. Esta línea engloba 3 componentes esenciales: 1) el establecimiento de alianzas con el sector privado turístico, 2) la integración de jóvenes de la comunidad y 3) la participación de usuarios directos de los recursos naturales. En este artículo, presentemos la estructura y resultados de la integración comunitaria en la conservación marina, evidenciando el valor de esta estrategia para escalar los esfuerzos de conservación y apoyar el sustento de la comunidad local.
The sea urchin Diadema antillarum is an herbivore that plays an important ecological role in controlling benthic community structure in Caribbean reefs. After the mass mortality documented between 1982-1983, their populations were reduced by 94-99% triggering a phase shift from coral to macroalgae-dominated benthic communities across the Caribbean. Almost 4 decades after its regional collapse, it is not clear weather D. antillarum populations are recovering, thus local surveys are valuable to track the fate of this herbivore. This study aims to determine the population structure of this sea urchin in a shallow reef located southeast of the Dominican Republic. We conducted a visual survey in three haphazardly selected sites of the reef studying a total surface of 90 m2 in which test size and D. antillarum densities were measured. Overall, the mean density of D. antillarum was 1.77 ± 1.07 ind/ m2 (Mean ± SD) with an average test size of 67.3 ± 22.7 mm (Mean ± SD) a median of 70 mm and a mode of 80 mm. Test diameter had a platykurtic distribution (kurtosis = 2.53) slightly skewed to the left (skewness = -0.1). This information is valuable to establish a local baseline to follow up the population dynamics of this key species.
Crustose Coralline Algae (CCA) is a well-known settlement inducer for stony corals and, ultimately, recruitment, a vital component for reef growth and resilience. However, potential impacts of diseased CCA on larval settlement are not fully understood, especially on particular coral species. As oceans continue to warm, coral larvae need to be able to respond to settlement cues in elevated temperatures, yet the combined effects of thermal stress and CCA health status on larval behavior is not well known for most coral species. Here we assessed the effect of elevated temperatures and disease on the ability of the CCA Hydrolithon boergesenii to induce settlement of Diploria labyrinthiformis larvae. D. labyrinthiformis planulae were exposed to 4 substrate combinations (healthy CCA, diseased CCA, bare substratum, and bare tissue culture plate) and three temperatures (27.5°C, 29°C, and 31°C). Overall, settlement started earlier and was 1.5-3x higher at 31°C, regardless of CCA health status, but at this temperature, larval mortality increased two-fold in diseased CCA. Settlement differences between healthy and diseased H. boergesenii were only observed at 29°C, with healthy CCA facilitating twice as much settlement and having 3x lower mortality than diseased. Our findings suggest that, even though larvae can settle in both healthy and diseased CCA, temperature plays an important role in whether larvae will settle or perish. This study highlights the importance of healthy CCA to maintain and increase settlement and the ability of larvae to adapt to a warming ocean, contributing to the knowledge of D. labyrinthiformis larval ecology, valuable for larval rearing for restoration purposes.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.