Revisiting the population status of the sea urchin<i>Diadema antillarum</i>in northern Puerto Rico

Mercado-Molina, Alex E.; Montañez-Acuña, Alfredo; Rodríguez-Barreras, Ruber; Colón-Miranda, Roberto; Díaz-Ortega, Geraldine; Martínez-González, Neidibel; Schleier-Hernández, Sandra; Sabat, Alberto M.

doi:10.1017/s002531541400188x

Cited by 18 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…The highest (0.75 m −2 ) densities were observed in back-reef E, which is consistent with previous findings associating higher populations to protected back-reefs (Rodríguez-Barreras et al, 2014). Diadema antillarum experienced widespread regional collapse over three decades ago and in recent years have shown moderate recovery (Ruiz-Ramos, Hernández-Delgado & Schizas, 2011;Lessios, 2016), partially due to limited successful recruitment (Mercado-Molina et al, 2015). Flamenco's reefs are not an exception in this trend, as D. antillarum does play a significant role in determining benthic community structure across increasing shoreline distances, but with overall low densities (<1 individual m −2 ), below their capacity sustain critical herbivory functions (Hughes, Reed & Boyle, 1987).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Spatial benthic community analysis of shallow coral reefs to support coastal management in Culebra Island, Puerto Rico

Gómez-Andújar

Hernández-Delgado

2020

PeerJ

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Caribbean coral reefs provide essential ecosystem services to society, including fisheries, tourism and shoreline protection from coastal erosion. However, these reefs are also exhibiting major declining trends, leading to the evolution of novel ecosystems dominated by non-reef building taxa, with potentially altered ecological functions. In the search for effective management strategies, this study characterized coral reefs in front of a touristic beach which provides economic benefits to the surrounding coastal communities yet faces increasing anthropogenic pressures and conservation challenges. Haphazard photo-transects were used to address spatial variation patterns in the reef’s benthic community structure in eight locations. Statistically significant differences were found with increasing distance from the shoreline, reef rugosity, Diadema antillarum density, among reef locations, and as a function of recreational use. Nearshore reefs reflected higher percent macroalgal cover, likely due to increased exposure from both recreational activities and nearby unsustainable land-use practices. However, nearshore reefs still support a high abundance of the endangered reef-building coral Orbicella annularis, highlighting the need to conserve these natural shoreline protectors. There is an opportunity for local stakeholders and regulatory institutions to collaboratively implement sea-urchin propagation, restoration of endangered Acroporid coral populations, and zoning of recreational densities across reefs. Our results illustrate vulnerable reef hotspots where these management interventions are needed and recommend guidelines to address them.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Spatial benthic community analysis of shallow coral reefs to support coastal management in Culebra Island, Puerto Rico

Gómez-Andújar

Hernández-Delgado

2020

PeerJ

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“…The highest current densities of D. antillarum have been reported in overfished areas such as Jamaica, and explained in terms of low abundance of predators (Sellers et al 2009;Clemente et al 2010;Idjadi et al 2010). Conversely, densities of D. antillarum have exhibited reductions in no-take reserves where fish stocks have recovered (Brown-Saracino et al 2007;Martín-Blanco et al 2010;Mercado-Molina et al 2015). Nevertheless, small labrids (wrasses) are usually excluded and dismissed as potential predators of D. antillarum (see Harborne et al 2009).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of fish removal on the abundance and size structure of the sea urchinDiadema antillarum: A field experiment

Rodríguez-Barreras

Durán

Lopéz-Morell

et al. 2015

Marine Biology Research

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To cite this article: Ruber Rodríguez-Barreras, Alain Durán, Julián Lopéz-Morell & Alberto M. Sabat (2015): Effect of fish removal on the abundance and size structure of the sea urchin Diadema antillarum: A field experiment, Marine Biology Research, Abstract Three decades after its population collapse, the sea urchin Diadema antillarum has yet to return to pre-mortality densities in most Caribbean localities. Circumstantial evidence suggests high post-settlement mortality due to predation as a potential mechanism to explain the lack of, or the slow recovery of this sea urchin. In this study we experimentally reduced the densities of two reef fish, Thalassoma bifasciatum and Halichoeres bivittatus, at one site for one year and measured the effect of their removal in the abundances and size structures of D. antillarum in relation to that of a comparable control site. We hypothesized a significant increase in urchin abundance and a reduction in mean test diameter at the experimental site with respect to the control site after the reduction in fish abundance. Overall, the density of D. antillarum did not vary significantly between control and experimental sites for the different census periods. Fish removal had a significant effect on the size structure of D. antillarum and in the mean density of the medium size classes. Results suggest that removal of these two labrids can significantly increase the relative abundance of medium-sized sea urchins and modify its population structure. Efforts to recover D. antillarum populations would be strengthened if densities of T. bifasciatum and H. bivittatus remain low.

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“…At the same time, other studies reported that increased densities of D. antillarum were associated with decreases in macroalgal density (Maciá, Robinson and Nalevanko, 2007;Myhre and Acevedo-Gutiérrez, 2007) and concomitant increases in juvenile coral abundance (Carpenter and Edmunds, 2006;Edmunds and Carpenter, 2001; Idjadi, Haring, and Precht, 2010). Nevertheless, other reports found no such relationship (Lacey, Fourqurean and Collada-Vides, 2013;Mercado-Molina et al, 2015;Rodríguez-Barreras et al, 2018;Steiner and Williams, 2006).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 93%

Sea urchins, parrotfish and coral reefs in Grand Cayman, BWI: exemplar or outlier?

Sherman

2020

Preprint

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The change in state of Caribbean coral reefs over the last 40 years has been characterized by phase shifts from scleractinian coral cover to macroalgal cover, the loss of structural complexity and a decline in biodiversity. Not only do scientists want to understand these changes, but also predict the future of coral reefs and their capacity for resilience. In particular, the loss of herbivory, due to declines in parrotfish and the sea urchin Diadema antillarum, has been implicated in many studies as a proximate cause of the coral to macroalgal phase shift. However, reports of the particular role of these putative herbivores have varied, with some studies claiming a causal role for parrotfish, others for Diadema and still others suggesting no such relationships. Often these studies just examined one response measure of coral reef biodiversity. In this paper, I report the relationship between parrotfish and Diadema to many metrics of reef organization surveyed simultaneously in the same transects in reefs outside and within the Marine Protected Area (MPA) of Grand Cayman, an island that has been affected by increasing tourism over the last 30 years. The magnitudes of the various measures of reef diversity reported here are consistent with those reported elsewhere. The relationships among those measures are consistent with those reported in some prior studies and inconsistent with others, reflecting the variation in responses documented in prior studies. The presence of sea urchins was associated with survey sites having higher levels of coral cover, lower levels of macroalgae cover, and lower densities of parrotfish than survey sites without sea urchins. Moreover, parrotfish abundance was associated with a decrease in coral cover and little relationship to macroalgae cover. Neither coral cover nor macroalgae cover was different in sites within the MPA compared to sites outside the MPA. I argue that the combination of site-specific local stressors and their interaction with global stressors makes it unlikely that any one island or even regional reef system could serve as an exemplar for Caribbean-wide reef degradation. Moreover, it is difficult to assess the potential for reef resilience in the face of the ongoing assaults from increasing tourism pressures and global climate change.

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Revisiting the population status of the sea urchinDiadema antillarumin northern Puerto Rico

Cited by 18 publications

References 34 publications

Spatial benthic community analysis of shallow coral reefs to support coastal management in Culebra Island, Puerto Rico

Spatial benthic community analysis of shallow coral reefs to support coastal management in Culebra Island, Puerto Rico

Effect of fish removal on the abundance and size structure of the sea urchinDiadema antillarum: A field experiment

Sea urchins, parrotfish and coral reefs in Grand Cayman, BWI: exemplar or outlier?

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