The Diseases of Deep‐Water Corals

Rogers, Alex D.; Kemp, Kirsty M.; Davies, Andrew J.; Taylor, Michelle L.

doi:10.1002/9781118828502.ch32

Cited by 4 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 148 publications

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“…There is no accepted quantitative definition of soft coral gardens or coral gardens more broadly. Rogers et al (2015) propose that to qualify the density of coral garden species must exceed 10 times the background level. Practically this relies on a good understanding of the background level which is rarely the case, including in this context.…”

Section: Defining Soft Coral Gardensmentioning

confidence: 99%

Identification of a Soft Coral Garden Candidate Vulnerable Marine Ecosystem (VME) Using Video Imagery, Davis Strait, West Greenland

et al. 2020

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The term vulnerable marine ecosystem (VME) was introduced to facilitate the spatial management of deep-seas, identifying those habitats vulnerable to anthropogenic disturbance, such as trawling. Consistent interpretation of the VME definition has been hampered by an underlying paucity of knowledge about the nature and distribution of deep-sea habitats. Photographic and video platforms yield data rich, quantifiable imagery to address these knowledge gaps. A low-cost towed benthic video sled has been used to investigate deep-sea habitats and trawling impacts in west Greenland. A review of imagery from multiple cruises highlighted an area where benthic megafauna contributes to notable structural complexity on the continental slope of the Toqqusaq Bank. Quantitative analysis of imagery from this area provides the first description of a soft coral garden habitat and other communities. The coral garden and observed densities are considered in relation to the VME guidelines (FAO, 2009) and wider literature. The study proposes a 486 km 2 area spanning ∼60 km of continental slope as a VME. This has direct implications for the management of economically important deep-sea trawl fisheries, which are immediately adjacent. This furthers our knowledge and understanding of VMEs in North Atlantic, in a previously understudied region and demonstrates the utility of a low-cost video sled for identifying and describing VMEs.

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Section: Defining Soft Coral Gardensmentioning

confidence: 99%

Identification of a Soft Coral Garden Candidate Vulnerable Marine Ecosystem (VME) Using Video Imagery, Davis Strait, West Greenland

et al. 2020

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“…When the density of these assemblages is not considered to establish boundaries on their distribution, it is difficult to clearly isolate the idea of what is a coral garden and apply conservation measures [79]. A density criterion of >0.1 colonies m −2 across an area of at least 25 m 2 was added to the coral garden definition: areas where the coral garden-forming species forms dense aggregations [19,79,80]. ICES [81] had previously tried to include the density of corals to remove arbitrary decisions on this term, but it was difficult to quantify densities of corals in situ.…”

Section: Definition Of Octocoral Garden For Conservationmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Mauritanian Slope (NE Atlantic) Has No Desert:Swiftia phaeton(Holaxonia: Plexauridae) Shaping Coral Gardens

Sampaio¹,

Beuck²,

Menezes³

et al. 2023

Corals - Habitat Formers in the Anthropocene

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Swiftia Duchassaing & Michelotti, 1864, is often found sparse in the NE Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. When the cruise MSM 16/3 “PHAETON” filmed the upper bathyal off Mauritania in 2010, the first dense populations dominated by Swiftia were discovered in the NE Atlantic Ocean, co-occurring with the framework-forming scleractinians Desmophyllum pertusum (Linnaeus, 1758) and Madrepora oculata Linnaeus, 1758. Remotely operated vehicle (ROV) video annotation from two canyons and two coral mounds considered Swiftia phaeton Sampaio, Beuck & Freiwald, 2022 presence, size class and abundance as well as substrate and geomorphology of the seafloor. Coral gardens definition included abundance and size of the species. Dense and very dense mono- and multispecific coral gardens dominated by S. phaeton were mapped between 20°24′N and 17°54′N in 470–640 m depth. The resilience of these coral gardens off Mauritania is mainly linked to the presence of hard substrate available to settle and to the exposition of currents rich in food. Still, these ecosystems are located inside a hydrocarbon exploration area off Mauritania and where fisheries occur since the 1960s. Sedimentation plumes caused by both activities can travel and impact on settlement, development, and survival of these populations. Hence, these vulnerable “oases” should be protected.

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“…Mesophotic coral ecosystems are logistically challenging to monitor (Sherman et al, 2013), given their depth range and distance from shore. Therefore, unlike their shallow-water counterparts, there is a lack of information on the distribution and the prevalence and incidence of disturbances at mesophotic depths (Rogers et al, 2015;Andradi-Brown et al, 2016;Weil, 2019). MCEs were once thought to be more stable than shallowwater coral (Lesser et al, 2009;Bridge et al, 2011;Slattery et al, 2011;Armstrong and Singh, 2012;Reardon, 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prevalence of Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease at El Seco, a Mesophotic Reef System off Vieques Island, Puerto Rico

2021

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Mesophotic coral ecosystems (MCEs) are ecologically and functionally vital, as they are Essential Fish Habitats that function as refugia for corals and sponges of shallow-water reefs. Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease (SCTLD) is a relatively new lethal coral disease, first affecting coral reefs in Florida and has now spread through most of the Caribbean. SCTLD was observed in Puerto Rico in December 2019 in Culebra Island. Since then, SCTLD has appeared along the east coast of Puerto Rico, affecting primarily shallow reefs in San Juan, Culebra and Vieques Island, and Fajardo. During late June and July 2020, four mesophotic reef habitats were surveyed at El Seco (off Vieques Island), on the southeast coast of Puerto Rico. SCTLD was observed at colonized pavement (CPRT – 23–30 m), bank coral reef (BCR – 35–40 m), patch coral reef (PCR – 36–42 m), and rhodolith (Rhodo – 40–50 m) habitats. The mean percent substrate cover by sessile-benthic categories varied significantly between habitats (PERMANOVA, p < 0.001), with a higher mean (± SE) coral cover at BCR (26.95 ± 5.60%), followed by PCR (12.88 ± 3.88%). SCTLD was detected in all habitats, but the disease prevalence was significantly higher at BCR, ranging from 9.70 to 21.13% of colonies infected (Kruskal-Wallis ANOVA, p < 0.007). Even though PCR habitats exhibited less coral cover, SCTLD prevalence was still elevated ranging from 6.66 to 15.07%. The deepest record of SCTLD at El Seco was 40.9 m. The majority (∼98%) of the corals infected with the disease were from the Orbicella complex spp. (faveolata/franksi). However, there were other infected species, such as Agaricia grahamae, A. lamarcki, Montastraea cavernosa, and Porites astreoides. As seen in the surveys conducted in 2011 and 2020, the loss of coral cover allows for the emergence of other benthic “detractors,” such as peyssonnelids, specifically Ramicrusta spp. Ramicrusta spp., an aggressive encrusting red alga known to take over available space and overgrow corals, significantly increased its substrate cover at the impacted reefs. Therefore, the severity and virulence of SCTLD will most likely have severe and long-lasting negative impacts on the coral communities at El Seco mesophotic reef system.

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The Diseases of Deep‐Water Corals

Cited by 4 publications

References 148 publications

Identification of a Soft Coral Garden Candidate Vulnerable Marine Ecosystem (VME) Using Video Imagery, Davis Strait, West Greenland

Identification of a Soft Coral Garden Candidate Vulnerable Marine Ecosystem (VME) Using Video Imagery, Davis Strait, West Greenland

The Mauritanian Slope (NE Atlantic) Has No Desert:Swiftia phaeton(Holaxonia: Plexauridae) Shaping Coral Gardens

Prevalence of Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease at El Seco, a Mesophotic Reef System off Vieques Island, Puerto Rico

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