Abstract
MEPS Marine Ecology Progress Series Contact the journal Facebook Twitter RSS Mailing List Subscribe to our mailing list via Mailchimp HomeLatest VolumeAbout the JournalEditorsTheme Sections MEPS 508:139-148 (2014) - DOI: https://doi.org/10.3354/meps10862 Effects of simulated fish predation on small colonies of massive Porites spp. and Pocillopora meandrina Caitlin M. Cameron1,2,*, Peter J. Edmunds1 1Department of Biology, California State University, 18111 Nordhoff Street, Northridge, California 91330-8303, USA 2Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, University of Miami, 4600 Rickenbacker Causeway, Miami, Florida 33149, USA *Corresponding author: CCameron516@gmail.com ABSTRACT: The effects of corallivory on small colonies of massive Porites spp. (<5 cm diameter) and Pocillopora meandrina (<7 cm high) were explored in situ on shallow reefs in Moorea, French Polynesia. Experiments were conducted to test the hypothesis that corals respond equally to damage caused by single bites of fishes belonging to 3 functional feeding guilds defined as excavators, scrapers, and browsers, which damage corals in different ways. While recovering from damage, massive Porites spp. grew 24 to 43% faster by weight than P. meandrina, and lesions caused by scraping and browsing healed more rapidly on P. meandrina than on massive Porites spp.; lesions caused by excavation healed more rapidly on massive Porites spp. than on P. meandrina. These results suggest that the effects of fish corallivores differ between coral taxa, with the contrasting effects potentially arising from differences in skeletal structure, corallum morphology, and mode of corallivore feeding. KEY WORDS: Scleractinia · Damage · Recovery · Fish predation · Porites · Pocillopora Full text in pdf format PreviousNextCite this article as: Cameron CM, Edmunds PJ (2014) Effects of simulated fish predation on small colonies of massive Porites spp. and Pocillopora meandrina. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 508:139-148. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps10862 Export citation RSS - Facebook - Tweet - linkedIn Cited by Published in MEPS Vol. 508. Online publication date: August 04, 2014 Print ISSN: 0171-8630; Online ISSN: 1616-1599 Copyright © 2014 Inter-Research.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
