Resilience, Ecology and Fisheries

 

           Coral reefs  around  the world  are under threat  from many  factors that have been steadily increasing in intensity over many decades, such as over-fishing, pollution and sedimentation. Large-scale coral bleaching has rapidly grown as a global problem, and ocean chemistry changes in the future are expected to reduce rates of reef accretion. While environmental changes are inevitable, reefs will change rather than disappear entirely, with some species showing more tolerance to climate change, diseases and bleaching than others. To better understand and respond to these threats and changes to the ecology of the reefs, as well as their impact on reef-dependent people, NCORE is adopting an interdisciplinary system science approach and engaged in organizing the CARRUS Alliance to provide a network for better understanding of coral reefs at the scale of the whole reef system. NCORE projects are not limited to shallow water coral reefs but also include mesophotic (30-100 m depth) and deep-water (>100 m depth) reefs.

 

Key Questions

 

How much of what kinds of fishing can a portion of a reef tolerate given particular levels of nutrients, under what rates, intensities, and types of disturbances to the corals and how do you manage these stressors?

 

What system science analysis framework can be best employed to describe and measure coral reef resiliency to changes in the environment?

 

What is the ecological link of mesophotic reefs and deep-water corals to shallow water coral reefs and how do they contribute to the resiliency of the global coral reef system?

 

What are the factors results from the loss of symbiotic zooxantheallae and/or a reduction in photosynthetic pigment concentrations in zooxanthellae residing within scleractinian corals?

 

Projects

 

Project

PI(s)

Sponsor

Dates

Tech Development of a High Resolution, Rapid Survey Capability to Identify Spawning for Large Pelagic Fishes

Cowen, Robert (MBF)

University of New Hampshire

8/2/2007 to 4/30/2008

The role of algal symbiont diversity in determining the resistance of scleractinian corals to bacterial bleaching

Baker, Andrew (MBF)

US-Israel Bi-National Science Foundation

10/1/2007 to 9/30/2009

Preservation and Characterization of Novel Yeast from Marine and Associated Freshwater Habitats

Fell, Jack W (MBF)

USDA

9/27/2007 to 3/31/2008

Modeling The Response of Seagrasses To CERP Activities

Lirman, Diego (MBF)

NPS

9/12/2007 to 3/30/2009

Conduct Follow-up Coral Bleaching In Water Rapid Assessment Surveys For The Florida Reef Resilience Program 

Lirman, Diego (MBF)

Nature Conservancy

9/1/2007 to 12/31/2007

Incorporating Ecosystem Consideration in the Management of Forage Fish Fisheries: Case Studies

Babcock, Elizabeth A (MBF)

PEW CHARITABLE TRUSTS

8/1/2007 to 7/31/2008

The Ecology and Physiology of Photoreception In Larvae of Reef-Building Corals 

Miller, Margaret W (MPO)

Henry Foundation Inc.

8/1/2007 to 8/20/2008

Collaborative Research: Causes for Diversity of Cold-Water Coral Mound Fields in the Straits of Florida

Grasmueck, Mark (MGG)

NSF

8/1/2007 to 7/31/2009

Biscayne Bay's Nearshore Habitats: Linking Seasonal Patterns In Benthic Community Structure With Salinity And Temperature

Lirman, Diego (MBF)

NPS

7/15/2007 to 12/31/2009

Fisheries Management in South Central Biscayne Bay

Swart, Peter K (MGG)

NPS

7/9/2007 to 12/31/2009

Acoustic Seabed Classification and Quantification of Reef Habitats

Reid, R. P (MGG)

NOAA

7/1/2007 to 6/30/2008

Monitoring Shoreline Fish Assemblages of Biscayne and Florida Bays

Luo, Jiangang (MBF)

NOAA

7/1/2007 to 6/30/2009

Coral Reef Habitat Modeling To Support Ecosystem-Based Management

Ault, Jerald S (MBF)

NOAA

7/1/2007 to 6/30/2008

Staghorn Restoration Project 

Lirman, Diego MBF 

Nature Conservancy

6/1/2007 to 1/31/2009

Integrated Ecological Assessment of Antigua and Barbuda 

Kourafalou, Vassiliki (MPO), Lirman, Diego (MBF), McManus, John (MBF), Mcmanus, Liana (MAF), Reid, R. P (MGG), Shay, Lynn K (MPO), Zika, Rod (MAC)

Stanford Foundation

6/1/2007 to 8/31/2008

Collaborative Research: Experimental Investigations of Coral Biomineralization: Understanding the Biomineralization Response to Ocean Acidification

Langdon, Chris (MBF)

NSF

5/1/2007 to 4/30/2010

Quality Control And Interpretation Of Environmental Data

Glynn, Peter W (MBF)

NOAA

5/1/2007 to 4/30/2008

Collaborative Research: a Comparison of the Mating System and Evolutionary Potential of Lemon Sharks, Negaprion Brevirostris 

Gruber, Samuel H (MBF)

NSF

2/1/2007 to 1/31/2011

Regulation of Ureotely in Batrachoidid Fishes 

 McDonald, M Danielle (MBF)

NSF

2/1/2007 to 1/31/2007

Development of Stock Assessment Methods Appropriate to Queen Conch, Strombus Gigas, Population Dynamics and Fisheries 

 Ehrhardt, Nelson M (MBF)

Center for Marine Conservation

2/1/2007 to 12/31/2007

Florida’s Deep-water Oases: Exploration and Characterization of Deep Reef Ecosystems

Grasmueck, Mark (MGG)

NOAA

1/1/2007 to 12/31/08

Nitrogen Isotope Studies of Pollution In The Coastal Waters of Florida 

Swart, Peter K (MGG)

Florida Water Environment Association

1/1/2007 to 12/31/2007

Nonlinear Estimation and Control of Particle Trajectories in the Ocean 

 Chin, Toshio M (MPO)

ONR

11/1/2006 to 9/30/2008

Antigua and Barbuda Coastal and Marine Ecosystem Management Program 

McManus, John W (MBF)

Stanford Financial Group

11/1/2006 to 5/31/2012

A coupled bio-physical approach to fisheries habitat in the southeastern North Atlantic
 

Olson, Dan (MPO)

NOAA

10/1/2006 to 10/30/2008

Analysis of Coral Reef Decline in Punta Cana: Identification of Proximal Causes and Potential Corrective Steps 

 Brand, Larry (MBF), McManus, John (MBF), McManus, Liana (MAF)

Grupo Punta Cana

10/1/2006 to 39325

Reefs of Hope: Identifying the coral reefs most likely to survive global warming over the next 30-50 years 

Baker, Andrew (MBF)

Pew Charitable Trusts

10/1/2006 to 9/30/2009

Collaborative Research: Resiliency of corals to changing saturation state: A field study

Swart, Peter (MGG), Langdon, Chris (MBF), Millero, Frank (MAC)

NSF

7/1/2006 to 6/30/2008

Monitoring the adaptive response of corals to climate change

Baker, Andrew (MBF)

Wildlife Conservation Society

7/1/2006 to 6/30/2008

Statistical Analysis of Existing Bottomfish Data Towards the Application of Stock Assessments Models in the Pacific Island Region

Ault, Jerald S (MBF) 

University of Hawaii

6/15/2006 to 4/15/2007

Climate change and coral reefs: Integrating calcification, photosynthesis and symbiosis flexibility into species survival trajectories for Caribbean reef corals

Baker, Andrew (MBF), Langdon, Chris (MBF)

NSF

10/1/2005 to 11/30/2008

Effects of Climate Change on Ecosystem Services Provided by Coral Reefs and Tidal Marshes

Broad, Kenneth (MAF)

EPA

11/1/2004 to 9/30/2007

Non-invasive Imaging of Near-Surface Preferential Flow Pathways and Dynamics in Carbonate Vadose Zone

Grasmueck, Mark (MGG)

NSF

4/1/2004 to 3/31/2008

Conservation and Restoration Through Knowledge: Assessing the Status of Fisheries in Biscayne National Park 

Ault, Jerald S (MBF)

National Park Service

8/10/2003 to 1/31/2007

Workshop on Population Connectivity to Marine Systems

Cowen, Robert (MBF)

NSF

6/1/2002 to 11/30/2007

Coupled natural and human dynamics in coral reef ecosystems: the effect of marine reserve network design and implementation on fisheries, biodiversity and human communities

Olson, Don (MPO), Broad, Kenneth (MAF), McManus, Liana (MAF), McManus, John (MBF), Cowen, Robert (MBF)

AMNH/NSF

10/15/2001 to 9/30/2007

Shallow-Water Grouper Distribution, Habitat Characteristics and Spawning Behavior

Die, David J (CIMAS)

NOAA

7/1/2001 to 6/30/2009