9ICRS Plenary Addresses

PLENARY ADDRESSES

1

ROLE OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC FACTORS IN CORAL

REEF PROTECTION AND MANAGEMENT.

Alcala, Angel C.* *Silliman University–Angelo King

Center for Research and Environmental Management,

Marine Laboratory, Bantayan, 6200 Dumaguete City,

Philippines. Email: suakcrem@fil.net

Coral reefs are now under severe stress from both natural and

human-induced environmental changes causing considerable

damage. Many of the human activities directly or indirectly

impacting coral reefs are driven by socio-economic factors.

Foremost among these factors is poverty. In developing

countries the need for sources of subsistence living, of

livelihood, and of income through tourism and exploitation of

economically important species is great. As a result, coral reefs

have been mined, blasted, poisoned, overfished or otherwise

subjected to misuse and abuse. There must be a way to utilize

socio-economic values of and benefits from coral reefs as

incentive for their protection and sustainable management. To

do this, successful approaches to conservation such as

establishment of marine protected areas, community-based

coastal resource management and integrated coastal zone

management as well as other useful management tools should

be applied to current efforts at coral reef conservation. Indeed,

experience has shown that such approaches may be our last

option to stop the degradation of coral reefs and coral reef

resources heavily impacted by man.

ECOMORPHOLOGY OF REEF FISHES:

TRANSCENDING BARRIERS IN SPACE AND TIME

Bellwood, David R.*. *Dept Of Marine Biology, James

Cook University, Townsville, Qld. 4811, Australia. Email:

david.bellwood@jcu.edu.au

Coral reefs support a staggering diversity of species and

forms. This grabs our attention but challenges our attempts to

describe the system or the biology of the component species.

We now have a workable taxonomic description for most reef

fishes and corals. Quantitative and experimental studies have

added to this knowledge to provide a picture of the factors

shaping local populations. The challenge now is to look

beyond individual species and reefs to patterns and processes

operating at larger scales. Recent descriptions of congruent

global biogeographic patterns in reef fishes and corals point to

processes that operate beyond species and population levels,

and highlight the need to consider reefs systems in a global

context. Furthermore, observations of the abilities of

individuals emphasises the critical importance of

understanding the function or role of individuals in reef

systems. Ecomorphology provides a basis for evaluating

individual abilities which transcends space and time, a method

based on a description of abilities alone. I will provide

examples from reef fishes which describe how this approach

may help us to understand the significance of abilities in

shaping assemblages and in describing the roles of reef fish

among habitats, between oceans and back through time to the

reef fish assemblages of the Eocene, Jurassic and Triassic. This

approach offers a common language as relevant to marine

parks managers as to palaeontologists where abilities, not

names or numbers, are important.

CORAL REEF CONSERVATION IN PALAU: A

SUCCESS STORY

Idechong, Noah* Palau

No abstract

HOMAGE TO STYLOPHORA PISTILLATA: AN

IMPORTANT CORAL IN CORAL REEF RESEARCH.

Loya Y., Department of Zoology, The George S. Wise

Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv

69978, Israel. Email: yosiloya@post.tau.ac.il

Stylophora pistillata (Esper 1797), one of the most

important hermatypic species on a global scale, has been used

for many years as a key species for coral research in many

fields, including Coral Biology, Ecology, Physiology,

Biochemistry, Geochemistry, Immunology, Evolution,

Paleoecology, Biogeography and others. This paper highlights

some of the major contributions made in coral reef research

using S. pistillata as a model species, from the community

level to the cellular and molecular levels. Studies concerning

regional variations at the population level include population

structure and dynamics, life history strategy, growth and

regulation of populations, regeneration, competitive networks

and reproductive strategy. The accumulated information has

served studies contributing to coral reef conservation and

restoration strategies. Major contributions have been made to

our knowledge of the physiology of corals, especially in

advancing our understanding of the symbiotic relationship

between the coral host and its symbiotic algae (zooxanthellae),

such as environmental effects (biotic and/or abiotic factors) on

photosynthesis, respiration and calcification mechanisms,

energy budgets (autotrophy vs. heterotrophy), carbon

partitioning and utilization, adaptive mechanisms of algal

regulation and causes and effects of coral bleaching. Other

studies concerning symbiotic relationships between the coral

host and animals associated with it (sponges, other cnidarians,

molluscs, crustaceans, worms echinoderms and fish) discuss

obligatory, mutualistic or parasitic relationships affecting the

life history of the coral and its symbiotic organisms. Seminal

studies have been performed on marine pollution effects (crude

oil, sewage and phosphates) at the

CORAL REEFS OF INDONESIA: PAST, PRESENT AND

FUTURE

Nontji, Anugerah., Indonesian Institute of Science,

Jakarta. Email:aanontji@indosat.net.id

The geographic setting of Indonesia, situated in the tropics

between Asia and Australia, and between the Pacific and the

Indian Ocean, has made this archipelago an ideal place for

coral reefs to grow. Coral reefs are found along the coast of

many of the islands in various formations e.g. fringing reefs,

barrier reefs, and atolls. Coral reefs have been long known to

provide various uses for the coastal community, such as for

food, building materials, trades, etc. Recent development has

confronted the reefs to an increasing threat because of the

detrimental impact of human activities, such as from

destructive fishing techniques (dynamiting, poisoning, etc),

over exploitation of resources, pollution, etc. The total area of

coral reefs in Indonesia is estimated roughly about 85,700 km 2 .

Recent surveys indicated that only about 6 % of the Indonesian

reefs is still in excellent condition, and the rest are in various

stages of destruction. There is a strong need to rehabilitate and

manage the coral reefs in proper way so as to maintain their

sustainability. A Coral Reef Rehabilitation and Management

Program (COREMAP) was launched in 1998, to respond to

this issue. This multi-sectoral program is planned for 15 years

(until 2013) and will be executed in ten provinces in Indonesia.

The first phase (1998-2001) however, will be executed in four

provinces (Riau, South Sulawesi, Papua, and Nusa Tenggara

Timur) and financially supported by the World Bank, Asia

Development Bank, and AusAID..9ICRS Plenary Addresses

2

CORAL REEFS AND CORAL REEF STUDIES IN

JAPAN

Omori M.*. *Department of Aquatic Biosciences, Tokyo

University of Fisheries, 4-5-7 Konan, Minato-ku, Tokyo

108-8477, Japan Email: makomori@tokyo-u-fish.ac.jp

Japan has a long history of coral reef research. Japan was

even a leading nation in the world in this research at one time.

In June 1934, the Japanese Society for the Promotion of

Scientific Research established the Palao Tropical Biological

Station in Koror Island, Palau, which was then governed by the

Japanese Mandate of the League of Nations. The war

unfortunately stopped all studies there in 1943. In spite of the

short life span of the station, the research activities by Prof. S.

Hatai and 29 young Japanese scientists contributed

significantly to studies on coral reefs. The return of the

Ryukyu Archipelago to Japan in 1972 allowed researchers

access to coral reefs once again. The University of Ryukyus

began research at the Sesoko Marine Science Center. The

Akajima Marine Science Laboratory, which is a small non-governmental

research station, was established at Akajima

Island in 1988. Scientific research on coral reefs is being

conducted at various institutions in Japan today. Japanese

Coral Reef Society was established in 1997, and is actively

promoting exchange of information and public awareness

through research, training, and publications. The coral reefs in

the Ryukyu Archipelago will be shown by video.

AGENDA 21, INTERNATIONAL CORAL REEF

INITIATIVE AND THE NEW MILLENIUM:

PROGRESS AND PROSPECTS FOR CORAL REEFS

Salvat, B.* *EPHE, ESA CNRS 8046, Université de

Perpignan, France. Email : bsalvat@univ-perp.fr

1929 (Sir Maurice Yonge), the first International Coral Reef

Symposium - ICRS - in India, 1969 , and the launching of the

International Society for Reef Studies- ISRS - in 1980 (David

Stoddart) and the International Coral Reef Initiative - ICRI - in

1995 (USA)… these are landmarks of the increasing interest

in, and concern for, coral reefs. An analysis of what has been

done and why is presented in the general context of political,

economic and social evolution over these last decades :

research for improved knowledge and management of

resources; activities at local, national, regional and global

levels; and creation and activities of international organisations

(governmental and nongovernmental) and large international

conferences. Several decades ago, the major concern focussed

on the question of what are coral reefs and how they function.

The main concern today is how to manage human activities

affecting coral reef ecosystems. The present situation -global

view of the reef ecosystem and the effects of global economic

expansion - raises the challenge of what action must be

undertaken at the beginning of the new millenium. Can we

predict what will happen and how to react at different levels

and in different fields of activities with the willingness to

preserve coral reefs for the benefit of mankind ?

RETICULATE EVOLUTION: THE ALTERNATIVE

PARADIGM.

Veron J.E.N.*. *AIMS, PMB 3, Townsville MC 4810,

Australia. Email:

For most marine organisms, ocean currents are the vehicles

of larval dispersal and are therefore the pathways of genetic

connectivity. These paths repeatedly and continuously change

over time, creating changes to the distribution ranges and

genetic compositions of species. Geographic space and

evolutionary time interact: species break apart, then re-form

into different units. For corals, this creates ‘reticulate’ patterns

in both geographic space and evolutionary time. In geographic

space, species are typically distinct in any single region but

loose their identity as definable units over very great distances.

When these patterns are envisaged in evolutionary time,

species have no time or place of origin and there are no

distinctions between geographic (sympatric) and non-geographic

(allopatric) concepts of origination. Differences

between species and subspecies taxonomic levels and between

species and ‘hybrids’ are arbitrary and/or unrecognisable.

Importantly, reticulate evolution is driven by environmental

parameters, not biological competition. Rates of evolution and

extinction (which occurs through fusions as well as

terminations of lineages) are similar over long geological

intervals. Reticulate evolution gives the overall impression of

punctuated equilibria, as is frequently observed in fossil

records.

JOURNEY TO CENTRE OF THE CENTRE: ORIGINS

OF HIGH MARINE FAUNAL DIVERSITY IN

CENTRAL INDONESIA FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF

AN ACROPOROLOGIST.

Wallace, Carden C. Museum of Tropical Queensland,

Townsville, Australia 4810. Email: carden@mtq.qld.gov.au

The reef coral mega-genus Acropora has been shown to have

had its likely origins in Africa or Europe, far from the current

“centre of diversity” of marine life, and its own location of

greatest diversity, in the Wallacea region of Indonesia. How

did this genus come to reach its current diversity focus? The

most likely explanation involves historical tectonic and

eustatic events, including partitioning of the old Tethys

Seaway during the events of the Miocene period, as well as

extinctions of a broader Pacific fauna during the more recent

eustatic periods of the Plio-Pleistocene. The continuous

presence of an open passageway through Wallacea, even

during eustatic periods, through to the present day, has ensured

that this area has retained its deepwater fauna as well as being

open to settlement by shallow water Pacific species. The

relevance of these events is collaborated by a morphological

phylogeny of the genus: a revision of these ideas, using genetic

characters, is not far behind.9ICRS STATE OF KNOWLEDGE A1: Large Scale Ecology

Session A1: Large Scale Ecology of Coral Reefs: Linking Biogeography, Meta

Communities and Local Ecological Dynamics

3

SCALING THE CONTRIBUTION OF THE

CORALLINE ALGAE HYDROLITHON ONKODES TO

THE CALCIFICATION OF TWO REEFS USING IN

SITU AND REMOTE SENSING DATA.

Andréfouët Serge * , Claude Payri, J.R.M Chisholm, J.

Jaubert, H. Ripley. *University of South Florida, Dept. of

Marine Science, 140 7 th Ave. South, Saint Petersburg, Fl.

33701, USA. Email: serge@carbon.marine.usf.edu

Hydrolithon onkodes is the dominant coralline algae on the

reef flats of atoll rims in the Tuamotu archipelago and can

occupy as much as 80% of the reef surface. Conversely, on

barrier reefs in the Society islands, H. onkodes is scarce,

accounting for less than 3% percent of the total cover.

Calcification on the reef flats of Rangiroa Atoll (Tuamotu) and

Moorea Island (Society) is estimated to average 7 kg

CaCO3.m -2 .y -1 . Acquisition of multispectral (10 bands between

425-785 nm) remote sensing data using a Compact Airborne

Spectrometer Imager in 1998, enabled the distribution of H.

onkodes on these reefs to be mapped on scales of several km 2

at a spatial resolution of 1 m 2 . The oceanic margins of the atoll

reef flats were dominated by H. onkodes, interspersed with

patchy communities of encrusting corals and turfs. At Moorea,

it was necessary to combine airborne data with ground surveys

in order to map the density of algae, as this could not be

determined directly from airborne data. Considering that H.

onkodes produces 8.5-11 g CaCO3.m -2 .d -1 , its contribution to

reef flat calcification on both reefs can be compared. However,

some precautions are necessary when comparing these

contributions to the total calcification measured along entire

reefs. We discuss the hypotheses necessary to perform such

comparisons and the limits of this multi-scale exercise.

THE LENGTH OF THE LARVAL PHASE IN CORALS:

NEW INSIGHTS INTO PATTERNS OF

CONNECTIVITY.

Baird A.*. *School of Marine Biology & Aquaculture,

James Cook University, Townsville Q. 4811, Australia.

Email: andrewbaird@ozemail.com.au

One of the major goals in marine ecology is to establish the

degree of connectivity between local populations. To test the

likelihood of localised recruitment and whether or not the

geographical range of corals is influenced by dispersal ability I

compared the larval longevity of five species of acroporid

corals of contrasting distributions. Pronounced differences

were apparent among species in the capacity to delay

metamorphosis. The larvae of Acropora valida remained

competent for 90 days, compared to 60 days for A. millepora

& A. gemmifera and 14 days for A. pulchra. Furthermore, the

larvae of wide spread species settled more rapidly with peak

settlement in A. valida & A. humilis occurring on day 4

compared to day 7 for A. millepora & A. gemmifera and day

10 for A. pulchra. Successful colonization of remote locations

seems therefore to depend on both larval longevity and on

rapid settlement to enable populations to become established.

GENETIC POPULATION STRUCTURE OF A SOFT

CORAL WITH SEXUAL AND ASEXUAL MODE OF

REPRODUCTION.

Bastidas* C., Uthicke S., Fabricius K., Benzie J.A.H.

*Australian Institute of Marine Science PMB No. 3

Townsville QLD 4810 and James Cook University

Townsville QLD 4811, AUSTRALIA. Email:

c.bastidas@aims.gov.au

Many anthozoans combine sexual and asexual reproductive

modes, with dispersal between reefs being achieved by sexual

propagules, whereas asexual division of colonies is suggested

as an important mechanism to gain space in the reef. This

study aimed to investigate the relative importance of sexual

and asexual reproduction, and gene flow, between 12 reef

populations of Sinularia flexibilis (Octocorallia, Alcyoniidae)

along the Great Barrier Reef (maximum of 1300 km apart).

This widely distributed Indo-Pacific species is a gamete

broadcaster that can achieve large aggregations in near shore

reefs in the GBR. The results of electrophoretic analyses of 9

polymorphic allozymes indicated that genotypic frequencies

for each population did not differ significantly from those

expected from Hardy-Weinberg predictions. This demonstrates

a dominant role of sexual reproduction in these populations,

i.e. clones do not extend considerably beyond the minimum

spatial sampling scale in the study (5 m). However, significant

genetic differentiation between some populations (FST),

indicates that gene flow is restricted between some reefs and

even sites within a reef. Nevertheless, there was no

relationship between geographic separation and genetic

differentiation. Analysis comparing groups of populations

showed no significant differentiation on a north-south gradient

or across the shelf (in relation to distance to the coast) in the

GBR.

LARVAL COMPETENCE PERIODS INFLUENCE IN

CORAL CONNECTIVITY AND SETTLEMENT: A

MODELLING APPROACH.

Blanco-Martín, Bernardo*. *School of Marine Biology and

Aquaculture, James Cook University, Townsville QLD.

4811, Australia. Email: Bernardo.Blanco-Martin@

jcu.edu.au

Coral ecology, recovery from disturbance, biogeography and

evolution are to a certain extent determined by the dispersive

larval phase connecting their populations on different reefs.

Various factors have been identified as driving dispersal,

including the spatial properties of reefs, hydrodynamics and

larval biology. Larval competence curves describe the relative

amount of larvae available for settling at different times from

release. A study of their influence in the connectivity and

settlement in coral populations using a spatially realistic model

is presented presented. A G.I.S. coverage of the Great Barrier

Reef was employed to create an spatial representation of the

Capricorn Bunker Group in a Cellular Automata Model. The

models were run using five different larval competence curves

(three brooders Stylophora pistillata, Pocillorpora damicornis

and Seriatopora hystrix and two spawners Acropora valida

and Acropora millepora) and two different current sets

(random and south trend). The larval outputs and inputs for the

whole system and six selected reefs were investigated. The

earlier peak in the curves presented by the brooders is

translated in a larger number of larvae settling per larvae

produced in all current conditions. The longer tail in the curves

for spawners allows them to have a higher connectivity under

random currents but not under southern flow in this reef

system. Individual reefs and coral species present very

different behaviors, particularly in their connectivity..9ICRS STATE OF KNOWLEDGE A1: Large Scale Ecology

4

RARITY IN COMMUNITIES OF CORAL REEF

FISHES.

Caley J.R.*, Geoffrey P. Jones, and Philip L. Munday.

*School of Marine Biology and Aquaculture, James Cook

University, Townsville, Queensland 4811, Australia.

Patterns of rarity in biological communities reflect the

interactions of processes operating on local ecological scales

and regional and biogeographic scales. A species may be rare

either in terms of its numerical abundance or its geographic

range. Its status as rare or common has important implications

for local ecological interactions and for conservation and

management issues. The study of rarity in terrestrial species

has developed rapidly in the past two decades. In comparison,

issues of rarity for marine species are poorly understood. Here

we report on analyses of rarity in coral reef fish communities.

Our analyses confirm that some patterns of rarity in these

communities are consistent with patterns previously identified

for terrestrial species while inconsistent with others. These

analyses have also highlighted the generally poor availability

of data for marine organisms with which to do such analyses.

TURBIDITY AND SEDIMENTATION EFFECTS ON

LARGE-SCALE PATTERNS OF OCTOCORAL

BIODIVERSITY.

Fabricius K.* and Glenn De’ath. *CRC for the Great

Barrier Reef World Heritage Area, Australian Institute of

Marine Science, PMB No. 3, Townsville MC, Qld 4810,

Australia. Email: k.fabricius@aims.gov.au

Patterns of octocoral biodiversity were determined from

extensive reef surveys along and across the whole GBR.

Species inventories and estimates of octocoral abundances

were assessed on 361 sites (161 reefs), each covering 1000 to

4000 m 2 between 0 and 18 m depth. Mid-shelf reefs north of

Latitude 16_ are the centre of octocoral biodiversity on the

GBR. Overlapping distribution ranges of near-shore and off-shore

taxa maximise richness on mid-shelf reefs. Taxonomic

richness decreases with increasing latitude, and is low and

relatively even across the shelf south of 21__lat. Richness is

strongly affected by water clarity, and to some extent by

sediment deposits: at any given position across and along the

shelf, the generic richness is greatest in areas of low turbidity

and high sediment deposits. Percent cover of hard corals and

octocorals are poorly explained by physical and spatial

variables. There are two major management implications of

these findings: (1) Turbidity and sedimentation, which increase

with run-off from disturbed soils, affect the generic richness of

octocorals. The reefs with highest octocoral richness are < 20

km off the coasts, and thus well within the range of terrestrial

run-off, indicating potential loss of diversity through

expanding land use. (2) Taxonomic composition is more

strongly related to environmental conditions than are total hard

and soft coral cover; taxonomic inventories are thus better

indicators of human impacts than is assessment of total cover.

THE ROLE OF ENDEMISM IN CORAL SPECIES

DIVERSITY.

Douglas Fenner.* *Australian Institute of Marine Science,

Townsville, Australia. Email: d.fenner@aims.gov.au

Endemic species have been proposed to contribute to high-diversity

coral communities. Endemic species are those with

restricted biogeographic distributions. However, in lists of

endemic corals in areas such as Indonesia, most of the endemic

species listed were described quite recently. A list of all

Acropora species described in the past 30 years shows that

most were known from one area when first described, but are

now known from several areas. In this report, new records of

coral species are given for the Philippines, Indonesia, and

Australia, some of which were previously considered endemic

to another country. Additional newly published records

indicate very low numbers of endemic species, such as only

two endemic corals now known from the Philippines,

representing only about 0.5% of the coral species known there.

A comparison of different areas around the globe indicates that

the number of endemic coral species in most areas is about 0-6

species, and that the number of endemic species does not vary

with the total species diversity in an area, over a range of two

orders of magnitude of total species diversity. Thus,

endemism does not contribute to the high coral species

diversity seen on some coral reefs.

SOURCE/SINK POPULATION STRUCTURE OF

CORAL REEF FISH: THE IMPORTANCE OF PATCH

QUALITY VERSUS PATCH LOCATION AND

IMPLICATIONS FOR MANAGEMENT.

Figueira W.F.*. *Duke University Marine Lab, 135 Duke

Marine Lab Rd., Beaufort, NC 28516. Email:

wff@duke.edu

Populations of fish on individual patches of coral reef are

typically thought of as open sub-populations, dynamically

coupled via larval dispersal to a larger network of patches. In

such systems, successful management using spatial closures

requires identification of areas that contribute

disproportionately to the overall metapopulation. The coral

reef literature generally considers the spatial location of a

patch to be most important, with the term “source” applied to

upstream patches due to their ability to seed downstream

(“sink”) patches with larval recruits. There is, however,

considerable evidence that factors of habitat quality within a

patch can significantly impact the demographic rates of

resident fish. In this study I use a spatially explicit computer

simulation model of a generalized reef fish to evaluate how

patch contribution to the metapopulation is affected by these

two patch characteristics: 1) relative location; and, 2)

demographic rates. Previous modeling suggests that

understanding the relative contribution of both factors can be

central to designing successful reserves, and that uninformed

placement of reserves has the potential to negatively affect the

population by displacing fishing effort onto source areas.

Conditions such as the magnitude and direction of currents,

spatial geometry of the metapopulation, and relative

differences in demography that may cause one or the other

patch characteristic to dominate are discussed with special

attention paid to the extent of local recruitment..9ICRS STATE OF KNOWLEDGE A1: Large Scale Ecology

5

POPULATION DYNAMICS OF REEF FISHES AT

LARGE SCALES: USING COMPUTER SIMULATIONS

TO MAKE LARGE-SCALE INFERENCES FROM

SMALL-SCALE DATA.

Forrester G.E.*, Richard R. Vance and Mark A. Steele.

*Dept. of Biological Sciences, University of Rhode Island,

Kingston, RI 02881-0816, USA. Email address:

gforrester@uri.edu

Field demographic data collected from fish occupying small

patch reefs (a few m 2 in area) were used to parameterize a

model that describes fish abundance on a collection of several

hundred such patches of reef (which we call a