Insecticides and a fungicide affect multiple coral life stages

Markey, Kathryn; Baird, Andrew H.; Humphrey, Craig; Negri, Andrew P.

doi:10.3354/meps330127

Cited by 86 publications

(67 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…The early life history stages of coral have been shown to be extremely sensitive to changes in water quality (Ward and Harrison 1997;Negri et al 2005;Markey et al 2007), partic- ularly fertilisation Reichelt-Brushett and Harrison 2005). The Wnding that environmentally realistic changes in suspended sediment, salinity and dissolved inorganic nutrients can have a negative impact on fertilisation, and to a lesser extent on development, is clearly a reason for concern.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of suspended sediments, dissolved inorganic nutrients and salinity on fertilisation and embryo development in the coral Acropora millepora (Ehrenberg, 1834)

et al. 2008

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Exposure of coral reefs to river plumes carrying increasing loads of nutrients and sediments is a pressing issue for coral reefs around the world including the Great Barrier Reef (GBR). Laboratory experiments were conducted to investigate the eVects of changes in inorganic nutrients (nitrate, ammonium and phosphate), salinity and various types of suspended sediments in isolation and in combination on rates of fertilisation and early embryonic development of the scleractinian coral Acropora millepora. Dose-response experiments showed that fertilisation declined signiWcantly with increasing sediments and decreasing salinity, while inorganic nutrients at up to 20 M nitrate or ammonium and 4 M phosphate had no signiWcant eVect on fertilisation. Suspended sediments of ¸100 mg l ¡1 and salinity of 30 ppt reduced fertilisation by >50%. Developmental abnormality occurred in 100% of embryos at 30 ppt salinity, and no fertilisation occurred at ·28 ppt. Another experiment tested interactions between sediment, salinity and nutrients and showed that fertilisation was signiWcantly reduced when nutrients and low concentrations of sediments co-occurred, although both on their own had no eVect on fertilisation rates. Similarly, while slightly reduced salinity on its own had no eVect, fertilisation was reduced when it coincided with elevated levels of sediments or nutrients. Both these interactions were synergistic. A third experiment showed that sediments with diVerent geophysical and nutrient properties had diVerential eVects on fertilisation, possibly related to sediment and nutrient properties. The Wndings highlight the complex nature of the eVects of changing water quality on coral health, particularly stressing the signiWcance of water quality during coral spawning time.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of suspended sediments, dissolved inorganic nutrients and salinity on fertilisation and embryo development in the coral Acropora millepora (Ehrenberg, 1834)

et al. 2008

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“…By contrast, the area of cultivated land leads to terrestrial run-offs such as sedimentation, nutrients and agrochemical pollutants, all of which can affect corals and macroalgae (e.g. McCook 1999; Markey et al 2007). …”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The human demographic expansion and associated increases in fishing, nutrient loadings and ocean warming, compounded with environmental variables, have been broadly debated to explain the increasing degradation of coral reefs worldwide (Hughes 1994;Hoegh-Guldberg 1999;McCook 1999;Micheli 1999;Jackson et al 2001;Friedlander & DeMartini 2002;Hughes et al 2003;Bellwood et al 2004;Gardner et al 2005;Aronson & Precht 2006;Cinner & McClanahan 2006;Mumby et al 2006;Lesser et al 2007;Markey et al 2007;Mora et al 2007). As the intensity of human activities is expected to increase (Cohen 2003;IPCC 2007), discriminating among stressors will be crucial to emphasize conservation strategies and effectively revert the degradation of coral reefs (Palumbi 2005;Aronson & Precht 2006).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A clear human footprint in the coral reefs of the Caribbean

2008

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The recent degradation of coral reefs worldwide is increasingly well documented, yet the underlying causes remain debated. In this study, we used a large-scale database on the status of coral reef communities in the Caribbean and analysed it in combination with a comprehensive set of socioeconomic and environmental databases to decouple confounding factors and identify the drivers of change in coral reef communities. Our results indicated that human activities related to agricultural land use, coastal development, overfishing and climate change had created independent and overwhelming responses in fishes, corals and macroalgae. While the effective implementation of marine protected areas (MPAs) increased the biomass of fish populations, coral reef builders and macroalgae followed patterns of change independent of MPAs. However, we also found significant ecological links among all these groups of organisms suggesting that the long-term stability of coral reefs as a whole requires a holistic and regional approach to the control of human-related stressors in addition to the improvement and establishment of new MPAs.

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“…The FSW was changed daily and larvae of both species were exposed to 0, 100, 1000 or 5000 µg l -1 VectoBac G or VectoLex G for each of the stages. Larvae were assessed for survival (still mobile) at 5 d and survival and metamorphosis at 9 d respectively (Markey et al 2007). Larval metamorphosis was induced by the addition of 5 µl of crustose coralline algae (CCA) extract (Markey et al 2007).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Larvae were assessed for survival (still mobile) at 5 d and survival and metamorphosis at 9 d respectively (Markey et al 2007). Larval metamorphosis was induced by the addition of 5 µl of crustose coralline algae (CCA) extract (Markey et al 2007). Juveniles were inoculated with symbiotic dinoflagellates (Symbiodinium spp.)…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bacillus insecticides are not acutely harmful to corals and sponges

Negri¹,

Soo²,

Flores³

et al. 2009

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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Bacillus thuringiensis is a Gram-positive bacterium that produces crystalline endotoxins and is widely considered an environmentally safe insecticide to control mosquitoes and a number of agriculture pests. Bacteria closely related to B. thuringiensis have recently been discovered in association with diseased sponges, which has raised concerns that Bacillus insecticides may be harmful to tropical marine invertebrates. We exposed coral larvae and juvenile corals to the insecticides VectoBac ® G (containing B. thuringiensis israelensis) and VectoLex ® G (containing B. sphaericus). VectoBac G and VectoLex G had no effect on the survival and metamorphosis of Acropora millepora and A. tenuis larvae at very high concentrations (5000 µg l -1). The juvenile corals of the same species were also unaffected after 4 sequential 48 h exposures to B. thuringiensis israelensis and B. sphaericus at different stages of development. Adult corals (A. millepora) and sponges (Ianthella basta) were exposed to a single 6 h pulse of 1000 µg l -1 VectoBac G. Although B. thuringiensis israelensis was detected in the seawater using denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis, it was not detected in association with the corals or sponges. No evidence of coral or sponge disease was observed during the following 2 wk. These results indicate that insecticides containing endotoxin-producing Bacillus spp. are unlikely to be acutely pathogenic to corals and sponges. However, the effect on most tropical marine invertebrates remain untested and the risks of seed populations of alien Bacillus becoming established on reefs and horizontal transfer of toxin genes to native bacteria also need to be addressed.

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Insecticides and a fungicide affect multiple coral life stages

Cited by 86 publications

References 40 publications

Effects of suspended sediments, dissolved inorganic nutrients and salinity on fertilisation and embryo development in the coral Acropora millepora (Ehrenberg, 1834)

Effects of suspended sediments, dissolved inorganic nutrients and salinity on fertilisation and embryo development in the coral Acropora millepora (Ehrenberg, 1834)

A clear human footprint in the coral reefs of the Caribbean

Bacillus insecticides are not acutely harmful to corals and sponges

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