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Snapshot recordings provide a first description of the acoustic signatures of deeper habitats adjacent to coral reefs of Moorea.

ABSTRACT: Acoustic recording has been recognized as a valuable tool for non-intrusive monitoring of the marine environment, complementing traditional visual surveys. Acoustic surveys conducted on coral ecosystems have so far been restricted to barrier reefs and to shallow depths (10-30 m). Since they may provide refuge for coral reef organisms, the monitoring of outer reef slopes and describing of the soundscapes of deeper environment could provide insights into the characteristics of different biotopes of coral ecosystems. In this study, the acoustic features of four different habitats, with different topographies and substrates, located at different depths from 10 to 100 m, were recorded during day-time on the outer reef slope of the north Coast of Moorea Island (French Polynesia). Barrier reefs appeared to be the noisiest habitats whereas the average sound levels at other habitats decreased with their distance from the reef and with increasing depth. However, sound levels were higher than expected by propagation models, supporting that these habitats possess their own sound sources. While reef sounds are known to attract marine larvae, sounds from deeper habitats may then also have a non-negligible attractive potential, coming into play before the reef itself.

SUBMITTER: Bertucci F

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5691791 | biostudies-other | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other

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Snapshot recordings provide a first description of the acoustic signatures of deeper habitats adjacent to coral reefs of Moorea.

Bertucci Frédéric F Parmentier Eric E Berthe Cécile C Besson Marc M Hawkins Anthony D AD Aubin Thierry T Lecchini David D

PeerJ 20171114

Acoustic recording has been recognized as a valuable tool for non-intrusive monitoring of the marine environment, complementing traditional visual surveys. Acoustic surveys conducted on coral ecosystems have so far been restricted to barrier reefs and to shallow depths (10-30 m). Since they may provide refuge for coral reef organisms, the monitoring of outer reef slopes and describing of the soundscapes of deeper environment could provide insights into the characteristics of different biotopes o ...[more]

PMID: 29158970

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Project description:Nonreef habitats such as mangroves, seagrass, and macroalgal beds are important for foraging, spawning, and as nursery habitat for some coral reef fishes. The spatial configuration of nonreef habitats adjacent to coral reefs can therefore have a substantial influence on the distribution and composition of reef fish. We investigate how different habitats in a tropical seascape in the Philippines influence the presence, density, and biomass of coral reef fishes to understand the relative importance of different habitats across various spatial scales. A detailed seascape map generated from satellite imagery was combined with field surveys of fish and benthic habitat on coral reefs. We then compared the relative importance of local reef (within coral reef) and adjacent habitat (habitats in the surrounding seascape) variables for coral reef fishes. Overall, adjacent habitat variables were as important as local reef variables in explaining reef fish density and biomass, despite being fewer in number in final models. For adult and juvenile wrasses (Labridae), and juveniles of some parrotfish taxa (Chlorurus), adjacent habitat was more important in explaining fish density and biomass. Notably, wrasses were positively influenced by the amount of sand and macroalgae in the adjacent seascape. Adjacent habitat metrics with the highest relative importance were sand (positive), macroalgae (positive), and mangrove habitats (negative), and fish responses to these metrics were consistent across fish groups evaluated. The 500-m spatial scale was selected most often in models for seascape variables. Local coral reef variables with the greatest importance were percent cover of live coral (positive), sand (negative), and macroalgae (mixed). Incorporating spatial metrics that describe the surrounding seascape will capture more holistic patterns of fish-habitat relationships on reefs. This is important in regions where protection of reef fish habitat is an integral part of fisheries management but where protection of nonreef habitats is often overlooked.

Project description:BackgroundBeginning in the last century, coral reefs have suffered the consequences of anthropogenic activities, including oil contamination. Chemical remediation methods, such as dispersants, can cause substantial harm to corals and reduce their resilience to stressors. To evaluate the impacts of oil contamination and find potential alternative solutions to chemical dispersants, we conducted a mesocosm experiment with the fire coral Millepora alcicornis, which is sensitive to environmental changes. We exposed M. alcicornis to a realistic oil-spill scenario in which we applied an innovative multi-domain bioremediator consortium (bacteria, filamentous fungi, and yeast) and a chemical dispersant (Corexit® 9500, one of the most widely used dispersants), to assess the effects on host health and host-associated microbial communities.ResultsThe selected multi-domain microbial consortium helped to mitigate the impacts of the oil, substantially degrading the polycyclic aromatic and n-alkane fractions and maintaining the physiological integrity of the corals. Exposure to Corexit 9500 negatively impacted the host physiology and altered the coral-associated microbial community. After exposure, the abundances of certain bacterial genera such as Rugeria and Roseovarius increased, as previously reported in stressed or diseased corals. We also identified several bioindicators of Corexit 9500 in the microbiome. The impact of Corexit 9500 on the coral health and microbial community was far greater than oil alone, killing corals after only 4 days of exposure in the flow-through system. In the treatments with Corexit 9500, the action of the bioremediator consortium could not be observed directly because of the extreme toxicity of the dispersant to M. alcicornis and its associated microbiome.ConclusionsOur results emphasize the importance of investigating the host-associated microbiome in order to detect and mitigate the effects of oil contamination on corals and the potential role of microbial mitigation and bioindicators as conservation tools. Chemical dispersants were far more damaging to corals and their associated microbiome than oil, and should not be used close to coral reefs. This study can aid in decision-making to minimize the negative effects of oil and dispersants on coral reefs. Video abstract.

Dataset Information

Snapshot recordings provide a first description of the acoustic signatures of deeper habitats adjacent to coral reefs of Moorea.

Publications

Snapshot recordings provide a first description of the acoustic signatures of deeper habitats adjacent to coral reefs of Moorea.

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