Assessing acute thermal assays as a rapid screening tool for coral restoration

Scientific Reports, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 14(1)

Published: Jan. 22, 2024

Abstract Escalating environmental threats to coral reefs coincides with global advancements in restoration programs. To improve long-term efficacy, practitioners must consider incorporating genotypes resilient ocean warming and disease while maintaining genetic diversity. Identifying such typically occurs under exposures that mimic natural stressors, but these experiments can be time-consuming, costly, introduce tank effects, hindering scalability for hundreds of nursery used outplanting. Here, we evaluated the efficacy acute Coral Bleaching Automated Stress System (CBASS) against on bleaching response Acropora cervicornis , dominant species Florida’s Reef. Comparing metrics, F v / m chlorophyll, host protein, observed similar responses between heat CBASS treatment 34.3 °C, which was also calculated threshold. This suggests potential as a rapid screening tool, 90% exhibiting tolerances. However, variations phenotypes arose from measurement timing experiment accumulation, cautioning generalizations solely based metrics like . These findings identify need better refine tools necessary quickly effectively screen determine their relative tolerance interventions.

Language: Английский

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Selective breeding enhances coral heat tolerance to marine heatwaves

Nature Communications, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 15(1)

Published: Oct. 14, 2024

Marine heatwaves are becoming more frequent, widespread and severe, causing mass coral bleaching mortality. Natural adaptation may be insufficient to keep pace with climate warming, leading calls for selective breeding interventions enhance the ability of corals survive such heatwaves, i.e., their heat tolerance. However, heritability this trait-a prerequisite approaches-remains unknown. We show that selecting parent colonies high rather than low tolerance increased adult offspring (3-4-year-olds). This result held response both 1-week +3.5 °C 1-month +2.5 simulated marine heatwaves. In each case, narrow-sense (h

Language: Английский

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Census of heat tolerance among Florida's threatened staghorn corals finds resilient individuals throughout existing nursery populations

Proceedings of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences, Journal Year: 2021, Volume and Issue: 288(1961)

Published: Oct. 20, 2021

The rapid loss of reef-building corals owing to ocean warming is driving the development interventions such as coral propagation and restoration, selective breeding assisted gene flow. Many these target naturally heat-tolerant individuals boost climate resilience, but challenges quickly reliably quantifying heat tolerance identifying thermotolerant have hampered implementation. Here, we used bleaching automated stress systems perform rapid, standardized assays on 229 colonies Acropora cervicornis across six nurseries spanning Florida's Coral Reef, USA. Analysis dose-response curves for each colony revealed a broad range in thermal among (approx. 2.5°C Fv/Fm ED50), with highly reproducible rankings independent tests (r = 0.76). Most phenotypic variation occurred within rather than between them, pointing potentially dominant role fixed genetic effects setting widespread distribution tolerant throughout population. identification provides immediately actionable information optimize nursery restoration programmes threatened staghorn corals. This work further blueprint future efforts identify source thermally conservation worldwide.

Language: Английский

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Interactive effects of microplastic pollution and heat stress on reef-building corals

Environmental Pollution, Journal Year: 2021, Volume and Issue: 290, P. 118010 - 118010

Published: Aug. 27, 2021

Language: Английский

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Selecting Heat-Tolerant Corals for Proactive Reef Restoration

Frontiers in Marine Science, Journal Year: 2021, Volume and Issue: 8

Published: May 26, 2021

Coral reef restoration is an attractive tool for the management of degraded reefs; however, conventional approaches will not be effective under climate change. More proactive must integrate future environmental conditions into project design to ensure long-term viability restored corals during worsening bleaching events. Corals exist along a continuum stress-tolerant phenotypes that can leveraged enhance thermal resilience reefs through selective propagation heat-tolerant colonies. Several strategies selecting thermally tolerant stock are currently available and range broadly in scalability, cost, reproducibility, specificity. Different components coral holobiont have different utility practitioners as diagnostics drivers phenotypes, so selection tailored resources goals individual projects. There numerous unknowns potential trade-offs consider, but we argue focus on tolerance critical because do survive cannot contribute communities at all. Selective uses extant practically incorporated existing frameworks, putting researchers position perform empirical tests field trials now while there still window act.

Language: Английский

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