See more from this Division: Topical Sessions
See more from this Session: Crises on the Reefs? Anticipating the Effects of Global Warming on Reefs by Reference to the Fossil Record—Is the Past Really the Key to the Present in the New Field of Conservation Paleobiology?
Abstract:
A preliminary examination of 30 A. palmata samples from Buck Island (USVI) reveals a statistically significant difference between the epibiont signature on standing dead A. palmata colonies (mostly thick and conformable coralline algae and vermetid gastropods) versus storm-deposited branches that form the substrate on which they sit (primarily Carpenteria utricularis and Biarrititzina carpenteriaetermis). This difference reflects more exposed versus cryptic post-mortem micro-environments, respectively, following the two scenarios of coral mortality. Studies are planned to increase the sample size and the number of sites. In addition, a detailed census of massive corals is underway to characterize regional changes in community structure deeper along the forereef.
It is unlikely that today's reefs will ever see environmental conditions akin to the early twentieth century. This argues for strategies that will be successful in a world that will be different than the one in which Holocene reefs developed. A look back in time may provide the best means for understanding reef change in response to future conditions.
See more from this Division: Topical Sessions
See more from this Session: Crises on the Reefs? Anticipating the Effects of Global Warming on Reefs by Reference to the Fossil Record—Is the Past Really the Key to the Present in the New Field of Conservation Paleobiology?