Mineral Content in Substrate Media, Growth Rate, and Survival Rate of Acropora sp.

Abstract

Coral reef ecosystems are formed from the composition of coral animals that produce lime (CaCO3). Coral animals are animals that do not have a backbone that are included in the phylum Coelenterata. These animals consist of polyps and a skeleton to produce lime. The choice of coral substrate media helps the coral to settle and affects the growth and survival rate of corals. Corals can attach and grow quickly on a suitable substrate medium. This study aims to determine the substrate media’s material content, coral growth rate, and the survival rate of Acropora sp. transplanted on cement, kanstin faba, and Lapindo brick substrate media. This type of research is experimental. The research design used in this study was a Randomized Complete Block Design. The first group is the difference in substrate media consisting of cement, kanstin faba, and Lapindo brick. The second group is the difference of corals consisting of A. formosa, A. tenuis, and A. millepora. The results showed that the mineral content of the cement substrate media, kanstin faba, and Lapindo brick contained CaO, SiO2, Fe2O3, and Al2O3. The highest coral growth rate was found on cement substrate media at 1.63 cm/month, while the highest growth rate based on coral species was in A. formosa at 1.63 cm/month. Coral survival rate was highest on cement substrate media and A. formosa with a value of 96%.