Foliose Corals Research Articles

Resilience of turbid coral communities to marine heatwave

High sea surface temperatures recorded in summer 2021 introduced a unique opportunity for ‘real-time’ assessment of Exmouth Gulf turbid reef’s resilience to a marine heatwave event. Four sites along a turbidity and temperature gradient were surveyed during (March 2021) and after (October 2021) the event to assess bleaching rates (Bleaching Index = BI), differences in coral morphological responses to the heat wave, and post-event changes in benthic and coral community structure. Despite experiencing higher temperatures (> 30 °C) and Degree Heating Weeks (DHW = 8), the most turbid reef site, Somerville, displayed greater resilience to heat stress (BI = 14) compared to the “clear water” site, Bundegi (BI = 19.3), where temperatures never exceeded 30 °C (3 DHW). Our results also reveal that encrusting and massive corals, often considered more resilient to bleaching, displayed increased bleaching susceptibility at the turbid sites, potentially due to the synergistic effects of sedimentation and heat stress. In contrast, branching and foliose corals showed greater resilience to the heat wave in turbid water settings, while encrusting and branching corals exhibited lower resilience in the clearwater site. These findings highlight complex interactions between heat and reduced UV stress on turbid reefs potentially increasing resilience to bleaching but likely only for those coral morphologies that are not heavily impacted by sedimentation.

TYPES AND ABUNDANCE OF MARINE DEBRIS IN THE CORAL REEF ECOSYSTEM OF PASUMPAHAN ISLAND, WEST SUMATRA

Debris has long been a worrying problem, especially in the marine environment. Human activities and marine tourism activities cause coral reef ecosystem damage. The research was carried out in June - September 2022 to determine the type and abundance of marine debris, lifeforms, and condition of coral cover, as well as the relationship between the abundance of marine debris and coral cover on Pasumpahan Island, West Sumatra. The research method used was a survey, and the data obtained was analyzed descriptively. The research location was divided into three observation stations by placing three transects at each station. Based on the research results, six types of marine waste were found, with abundance ranging from 0.01 to 0.085 units/m2. The coral lifeforms found are Acropora branching, Acropora encrusting, Acropora submassive, Coral encrusting, Coral foliose, Coral millepora, Coral mushroom, and Coral massive, with a percentage of live coral cover ranging from 1.00-36.48%. A strong negative relationship exists between the abundance of marine debris and the percentage of coral cover in Pasumpahan Island, West Sumatra

Turbid reefs experience lower coral bleaching effects in NE Borneo (Sabah, Malaysia)

The impacts of climate change are becoming more evident in recent years. Future projections suggest that heat stress events will likely be more frequent and severe over the next century, threatening the high diversity of the Coral Triangle. Shallow turbid reefs may help dampen some of these effects as several studies have shown their inherent resilience to heat stress events. Therefore, our main goal was to test this hypothesis by assessing the response of corals to the heat stress event of 2020. We conducted bleaching surveys in two contrasting habitats in Darvel Bay, Sabah: the turbid reef of Sakar, and the clear-water reef of Blue Lagoon. Relatively high coral cover (40–43%) was observed on both reefs in 2019. Underwater data loggers were used to monitor temperature and light. Coral colonies were scored from video transects of 100 m at 5 m and 10 m depth in both localities, with an additional transect at 15 m depth in Blue Lagoon. A total of 1326 coral colonies were evaluated for bleaching presence and bleaching severity based on the six-point scoring method. Bleaching severity varied significantly between both reefs. Low bleaching impacts were observed in the high turbid reef, with an average of 9.6% of colonies having bleached. Meanwhile, the clear-water reef of Blue Lagoon had an average of 37.1% of coral colonies affected by bleaching. Bleaching severity also varied significantly among depth, where corals in deeper depths bleached less in Blue Lagoon. Foliose coral forms were most affected in Blue Lagoon, while massive coral forms suffered the most in Sakar reef. Bleaching responses were also significantly different among coral genera. While Ctenactis and Herpolitha were consistently resistant in both reefs, Leptoseris, Fungia and Goniopora were most affected in the 5 m of Blue Lagoon. Meanwhile, Pachyseris was notably more affected in Sakar reef at 10 m than in Blue Lagoon. Overall, bleaching indices within these two reefs are lower than most that were assessed around the globe during heat stress events in 2020. These outcomes support the hypothesis of turbid reefs hosting resilient coral communities in the face of climate change.

Analysis of Coral Reef Coverage Condition in The Waters of Central Bangka Regency

This research aims to discover the percentage of coral reef coverage and the condition of the coral reef ecosystem in small islands in Central Bangka regency waters. The research was conducted on May 2022 on six small islands: Panjang Island, Semujur Island, Ketawai Island, Ketugas Island, Gusung Asam Island, and Bebuar Island. The method used was underwater photo transect (UPT) and then analyzed using Coral Point Count with Excel extension software (CPCe). The result shows that of 6 small islands, only Semujur Island is populated. Coral reefs in small islands in Central Bangka regency were a type of fringing reef dan patch reefs with 3,0 - 8,8 meter depth. Standard damage criteria show that the damage was Moderate (44,60%) to Excellent (87,00%). The details were Moderate category on Ketugar Island, Good category was in Panjang Island, Gusung Asam Island, and Bebuar Island, while the coral reefs in Excellent category were in Semujur Island and Ketawai Island. 24 lifeform types were found with a dominant percentage value of approximately 18,47 - 46,87%. Lifeform was dominated by Coral Foliose (CF), Acropora Tabulate (ACT), dan Dead Coral with algae (DCA). Live coral reefs closer were dominated by healthy lifeforms, with most of the close being Dead Coral with algae. It showed that coral reefs might get disturbed by algae occurrence and triggers massive algae expansion. Fish in Coral reefs primarily targeted fish. It prefers the lifeform type to dead coral with algae lifeform.

Coral Reef Conditions At the Snorkeling Spots of the Karimunjawa National Park, Indonesia

Abstract Karimunjawa as a marine national park has attracted tourists to come and explore coral reefs. The reefs are under increasing pressure from the development of underwater tourist activities so it is necessary to pay attention to the reef condition to maintain its sustainability. This study was conducted in September 2019 by examining the condition of coral reefs in the most visited snorkeling spots based on information from tour operators, i.e. the Ujung Bintang, Maer and Karang Sendok spots. Data was collected using a 20 m line belt transect to count coral cover and was analyzed using coral morphology triangles to assess the Coral Condition Index (CCI) and Impact Severity Index (ISI). The condition of coral reef cover at the Ujung Bintang and Maer spots were in the “good” category based on the CCI, while at the Karang Sendok spot the corals were in the “bad” category based on the ISI. The three snorkeling spots have competition-adapted (K) morphology, which means that the coral reefs are dominated by non-Acropora corals associated with coral reefs with high waves. The dominant life form at the Ujung Bintang spot was foliose corals, at the Maer spot, it was foliose coral and non-Acropora branching corals, while at the Karang Sendok it was Acropora, which is more vulnerable than foliose and massive corals. The CCI at the three spots was in the “good” category as there are healthy coral colonies, whereas the ISI was in the “poor” category since partially and recently dead coral colonies were found there. The coral colony damage in the spots was dominated by bleached coral colonies and partially dead coral colonies.

Tutupan Terumbu Karang pada Kedalaman Berbeda di Perairan Pantai Batu Sungu, Desa Les, Kabupaten Buleleng

Bali island has many magnificent underwater coral reef gardens that attract tourists. Besides Pemuteran and Menjangan island waters, Batu Sungu water has also potential to be a new tourist destination. Thus, to determine the potency and management plan in Batu Sungu waters, this research aimed to examine the overall coral cover, coral growth forms, other benthic forms, and each of their components in 5 and 10 m depths. The overall coral cover, coral growth forms, other benthic forms, and each of their components were counted by using the Line Intercept Transect (LIT) method. Before collecting data, study sites were observed by using the Manta Tow method. Data were collected in 2 depths (5 dan 10 m) with 5 sites each (replicates) that separates within 50 to 150 m. A 25 m LIT was spread parallel to the coastline above the reefs. Live coral colonies, other benthic forms below the transects were measured for the number, length, and growth forms. Water quality was measured in situ (temperature, current, and clarity) and ex situ (pH). Results showed that the category of coral coverage in Batu Sungu water is "good” in 5 m and "moderate” in 10 m whereas there was no significant difference among each component of the overall coral cover. The most dominant coral growth form among the 2 depths was Coral Massive whereas significantly abundant in 5 m. Moreover, the number of Coral Foliose was found significantly high in the same depth. Other coral growth forms were relatively similar in numbers in two depths. As likewise, the cover of other benthic forms and its component were not significantly different among two depths, except Dead Coral with Algae which significantly plentiful in 5 m. Sand was dominantly found in two depths with no significant difference. Furthermore, Coraline Alga was only observed in 5 m, however, there were no Macroalga and Alga Assemblages found at this depth. It is assumed that the similarity number of the overall coral cover, coral growth forms, other benthic forms, and each of their components is related to the alikeness of water quality among the two depths.

KONDISI KARANG SCLERACTINIA DI PERAIRAN BULUTUI KECAMATAN LIKUPANG BARAT KABUPATEN MINAHASA UTARA

Hard coral is one of the main components of this forming coral reef ecosystem. Bulutui waters have coral reef ecosystems that have a direct role as a source of livelihood for people around these waters. However, there are non-environmentally friendly human activities such as fishing using explosives or chemical solutions that cause coral reef damage. The aimed of this research was to find out the condition of hard coral’s percentage cover and to described the frequency of hard coral’s occurance therefore it’s could be representative data at this location. Coral data was collected by using PIT (Point Intercept Transect) method. The value of percentage cover of hard corals at Bulutui waters are 20.58% and the value is categorized damaged. The total frequency of hard coral’s occurance at station 1 are 66 and dominated by Coral Submassive (CS), at station 2 are 23 and dominated by Coral Massive (CM), at station 3 are 18 and dominated by Coral Foliose (CF) and then at station 4 are 140 and dominated by Coral Foliose (CF).Keywords: Percentage Cover, Scleractinia Coral, Bulutui Waters, PIT Methods.

KONDISI TERUMBU KARANG DI KAWASAN WISATA PULAU BOKORI, KENDARI, PROVINSI SULAWESI TENGGARA

Bokori Island has been a tourist destination managed by the Tourism Office of the Southeast Sulawesi Provincial since 2014. The location is close to the city center, making this island visited by many tourists. In addition to the beauty of the island, it is also necessary to maintain the beauty of coral reefs as objects for underwater recreation. The study was conducted on 24–25 July 2019 at three sites of observation. The research purpose was to determine the condition of coral reefs of the island, which is used as a tourist destination. The result indicates that the condition of coral reefs is categorized good by having coral cover about 50.67%. The dominant coral at the island is the foliose coral (CF) group with percent cover about 22%, followed by coral branching (CB) 10%, Acropora tabulate (ACT) 8.57%, mushroom coral (CMR) 6%, encrusting coral (CE) 2% and massive coral (CM) 1.33%. The dominant type of substrate was dead coral with algae (DCA) about 37.3%, and the damage due to explosion could still be seen in the location. The current condition of coral needs to be maintained and improved supervision so that live coral can improve so that the function to support underwater tourism can be achieved.

Assessment of effective coral rehabilitated in Marine Protected Areas of south Vietnam

More than 20,300 fragment corals belonging to 24 species, eight genera and six families were rehabilitated in marine protected areas of south Vietnam. Mean survival rates of coral fragments ranged from 60–97.7%, the average growth rate of the branched corals was 4.8 mm/month meanwhile the foliose coral was 1.9 mm/month. The survival and growth rate of corals are different among areas because each coral species has different biological characteristics, structure colonies and due to differences in natural conditions each area. The results showed that the growth rate of corals will return to normal after 4 months rehabilitation. The factors affected the effective coral rehabilitation including: Coral reef predators, spatial competition among species, environmental conditions change due to human’s activities; and other factors such as hydrodynamic regimes, cutting fragment corals cause its injury damage. The rehabilitation and protection activities of coral reefs in marine protected areas should be continued and expanded, contributing to the protection of biodivesity, marine resource and sustainable coral reefs ecosystem development.

MONITORING CHANGES IN CORAL REEF HABITAT COVER ON BERALAS PASIR ISLAND USING SPOT 4 AND SPOT 7 IMAGERY FROM 2011 AND 2018

Beralas Pasir is part of the Regional Marine Conservation Area (KKLD), which was established by the Bintan Regency Government with Bintan Regent Decree No. 261 / VIII / 2007. Water tourism activities undertaken by tourists on the island have had an impact on the condition of the coral reefs, as have other factors, such as bauxite, granite and land sand mining activities around the island. This research aims to determine changes in the coral reef habitat cover and the condition of the coral reefs around Beralas Pasir Island with a remote sensing function, using SPOT 4 imagery acquired on June 1, 2011 and SPOT 7 imagery from April 5, 2020. Data collection of environmental parameters related to the coral reefs was also made. The image processing used the Lyzenga algorithm to simplify the image classification process. The percentage of coral live cover around the island ranges from 26% -53%; this has experienced a significant change, from 67,560 hectares in 2011 to 38,338 hectares in 2018, a total decrease in the area of 29,222 hectares. Some of the natural factors found in the research which have caused damage to the reefs were Drupella snails, the abundance of Caulerpa racemosaalgae, and sea urchins. The majority of the coral reef types consist of Non-Acropora: Coral Massive, Coral, Coral Foliose, Coral Encrusting, Acropora: Acropora Tabulate, Acropora Encrusting, and Acropora Digitate

Benthic and Substrate Category Profile of Coral Reef in Labuan Pandan Waters, East Lombok

Coral reefs are unique ecosystems and only occur in the tropics area. One of the coral reef distribution in Indonesia is Lombok Island. The coral reefs in Lombok Island under degradation conditions caused by natural and human activities. The purpose of this study was to provide an overview of the benthic profile and substrate of coral reefs in the Labuhan Pandan waters, Eastern Lombok. Observations were conducted in March 2019 at 5 stations using the Underwater Photo Transect (UPT) method. The results showed that in general benthic coral reefs were dominated by Acropora Branching (35.40%) then followed by Soft Coral (20.89%), DCA (14.08%), Coral Foliose (11.07%), Rubble (7.36%) and Halimeda (2.77%). The highest percentage of Acropora Branching were found at KND_01 station (63.33%) followed by PTG_01 (49.13%), PTG_02 (31.18%), BDR_01 (21.73%), and PTG_03 (11.00%). The highest DCA percentage was found at BDR_01 station (29.27%) while Soft Coral was found dominant at PTG_02 (47.67%). Halimeda was only found in PTG_02 (1.87%) and PTG_03 (12.00%). Differences in the composition of benthic and substrate may be caused by differences in water conditions at each station.

Diversity of cultivable protease-producing bacteria and their extracellular proteases associated to scleractinian corals.

Protease-producing bacteria play a vital role in degrading organic nitrogen in marine environments. However, the diversity of the bacteria and extracellular proteases has seldom been addressed, especially in communities of coral reefs. In this study, 136 extracellular protease-producing bacterial strains were isolated from seven genera of scleractinian corals from Luhuitou fringing reef, and their protease types were characterized. The massive coral had more cultivable protease-producing bacteria than branching or foliose corals. The abundance of cultivable protease-producing bacteria reached 106 CFU g−1 of coral. Phylogenetic analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences revealed that the isolates were assigned to 24 genera, from which 20 corresponded to the phyla Firmicutes and Proteobacteria. Bacillus and Fictibacillus were retrieved from all coral samples. Moreover, Vibrio and Pseudovibrio were most prevalent in massive or foliose coral Platygyra and Montipora. In contrast, 11 genera were each identified in only one isolate. Nearly all the extracellular proteases from the bacteria were serine proteases or metalloproteases; 45.83% of isolates also released cysteine or aspartic proteases. These proteases had different hydrolytic ability against different substrates. This study represents a novel insight on the diversity of cultivable protease-producing bacteria and their extracellular proteases in scleractinian corals.

Calibration of Sr/Ca, Li/Mg and Sr‐U Paleothermometry in Branching and Foliose Corals

AbstractCoral skeletons are the most commonly used high‐resolution temperature proxy in the tropical oceans, providing paleoclimate reconstructions dating back centuries to millennia. However, physiological differences in skeletal formation modes together with artifacts arising from coral biomineralization (vital effects) can confound the temperature dependence of single element‐to‐calcium ratios. In efforts to reduce vital effects and isolate temperature, new approaches have been developed based on Sr‐U and Li/Mg, which combine Sr/Ca and U/Ca and Li/Ca and Mg/Ca, respectively. Here we examine the systematics of Sr/Ca, Sr‐U, and Li/Mg paleothermometry in 33 colonies of branching (Acropora, Pocillopora, and Stylophora) and foliose (Turbinaria) genera. To address the calibration of these morphologically complex calcifiers, we conducted repeat field trips every 1 to 3 months and collected the most recent (~1 month) uppermost growth of individual colonies over ~18‐ to 24‐month periods. This enables seasonally resolved calibration of genera that exhibit rapid extension and slower secondary calcification. Based on this experimental design, we show that all three proxies capture seasonal to annual temperature variations for their respective growth intervals, providing calibrations across an 11 °C range. Species effects on the temperature dependence were largest for Sr/Ca (22.7%) yet minor for Li/Mg (7.2%) and Sr‐U (6.3%). Residuals from proxy‐temperature regressions were correlated between Sr/Ca and Li/Mg, indicating similar biological processes may influence Sr/Ca and Li/Mg thermometry. The implications of this study are that Sr‐U and to a lesser extent Li/Mg are applicable to fossil branching coral skeletons identified to genus level without the need for modern‐day calibration. We further show that all three paleothermometers provide complementary temperature constraints, with Li/Mg and the more species‐dependent Sr/Ca showing greater effectiveness at resolving seasonal variability and Sr‐U showing greater reliability at capturing mean annual temperature.

Condition Correlation of Coral Reef and Abundance of Indicators Reef Fish in Mandrajaya Water Ciletuh Geopark West Java

The coral reef ecosystem has role as feeding and nursery ground for indicator reef fishes. Coral reef ecosystems in recent years has decline in function, globally the area of coral reefs has decline about 11%. This study aims to analyze the correlation between the condition of life coral reef with the abundance of indicators reef fish. This research was conducted in the waters of Mandrajaya (Ciletuh Geopark) with 5 stations. The method used in this research is Line Intercept Transect (LIT) and Underwater Visual Census (UVC). Data observed were the percentage of live coral and dead coral, as well as the number of indicator reef fish found. Results show that the percentage value of life coral is 51.17% dominated by the CF (Coral Foliose) category, this value shows that the condition of living coral cover is included in the good category. The obtained Mortality Index is worth 0.43 (low), this value is obtained from the ratio of life coral and dead coral. A total number of indicators reef fish is 31 individuals / 1750m² from four species, dominated by Chaetodon octofasciatus (12 individuals). Correlation between life coral cover and abundance of indicators reef fish was positive and had a sufficient relationship on both variables (r = 0.58) with a determinant coefficient of 48%.

Shifting communities after-- typhoon damage on an upper mesophotic reef in Okinawa, Japan.

Very few studies have been conducted on the long-term effects of typhoon damage on mesophotic coral reefs. This study investigates the long-term community dynamics of damage from Typhoon 17 (Jelawat) in 2012 on the coral community of the upper mesophotic Ryugu Reef in Okinawa, Japan. A shift from foliose to bushy coral morphologies between December 2012 and August 2015 was documented, especially on the area of the reef that was previously recorded to be poor in scleractinian genera diversity and dominated by foliose corals. Comparatively, an area with higher diversity of scleractinian coral genera was observed to be less affected by typhoon damage with more stable community structure due to less change in dominant coral morphologies. Despite some changes in the composition of dominant genera, the generally high coverage of the mesophotic coral community is facilitating the recovery of Ryugu Reef after typhoon damage.

Modelling environmental drivers of black band disease outbreaks in populations of foliose corals in the genus Montipora

Seawater temperature anomalies associated with warming climate have been linked to increases in coral disease outbreaks that have contributed to coral reef declines globally. However, little is known about how seasonal scale variations in environmental factors influence disease dynamics at the level of individual coral colonies. In this study, we applied a multi-state Markov model (MSM) to investigate the dynamics of black band disease (BBD) developing from apparently healthy corals and/or a precursor-stage, termed ‘cyanobacterial patches’ (CP), in relation to seasonal variation in light and seawater temperature at two reef sites around Pelorus Island in the central sector of the Great Barrier Reef. The model predicted that the proportion of colonies transitioning from BBD to Healthy states within three months was approximately 57%, but 5.6% of BBD cases resulted in whole colony mortality. According to our modelling, healthy coral colonies were more susceptible to BBD during summer months when light levels were at their maxima and seawater temperatures were either rising or at their maxima. In contrast, CP mostly occurred during spring, when both light and seawater temperatures were rising. This suggests that environmental drivers for healthy coral colonies transitioning into a CP state are different from those driving transitions into BBD. Our model predicts that (1) the transition from healthy to CP state is best explained by increasing light, (2) the transition between Healthy to BBD occurs more frequently from early to late summer, (3) 20% of CP infected corals developed BBD, although light and temperature appeared to have limited impact on this state transition, and (4) the number of transitions from Healthy to BBD differed significantly between the two study sites, potentially reflecting differences in localised wave action regimes.

Trend in coral-algal phase shift in the Mandapam group of islands, Gulf of Mannar Marine Biosphere Reserve, India

The present study revealed proliferation of macro-algae modifying coral reef ecosystems in a different manner due to diseases and sedimentations in the Mandapam group of islands in the Gulf of Mannar. Benthic surveys were conducted with major attack of seven coral reefs diseases with high sedimentation rate, nine species of fleshy macro-algae (Turbinaria ornata, Turbinaria conaides, Caulerpa scalpelliformis, Caulerpa racemosa, Kappaphycus alvarezii, Padina gymnosphora, Sargassum wightii, Ulva reticulata and Calurpa lentillifera) proliferation against major corals life forms (Acropora branching, Acropora digitate, Acropora tabulate, coral massive, coral submassive, coral foliose and coral encrusting). The results confirm that diseased corals most favor to macro-algae growth (15.27%) rather than the sedimentation covered corals (8.24 %). In the degradation of coral life forms, massive corals were more highly damaged (7.05%) than any other forms. Within a short period of time (May to September), coral coverage shrank to 17.4% from 21.9%, macro-algae increased 23.51% and the average sedimentation rate attained 77.52 mg cm−2d−1 with persisting coral reef diseases of 17.59%. The Pearson correlation showed that the coral cover decreased with increasing macro-algae growth, which was statistically significant (r = −0.774, n = 100, P < 0.0005). The proliferation of the various macro-algae C. scalpellifrmis, T. ornata, C. racemosa, T. conaides, U. reticulata, S. wightii, K. alvarezii, P. gymnosphora and C. lentillifera increased with percentages of 6.0, 5.8, 5.7, 4.9, 4.2, 3.7, 2.7 and 1.9, respectively. If this trend continues, the next generation of new recruit corals will undoubtedly lead to a phase shift in Gulf of Mannar corals.

Recent Status of Coral Reef Ecosystem in Penuktukan Bali, Indonesia: the Implication for Sustainable Marine Tourism Implementation

Recent development of marine tourism in Penuktukan Village, Sub district Tejakula of the Buleleng Regency in Bali has been contributed to the coral reef ecosystem. The aim of the research was to determine the coral reefs coverage, coral reef and fishes diversity inPenuktukan Villages, Sub district Tejakula of the Buleleng Regency. Result of the research confirms that coral reef coverage in Penuktukan was varied from 53 to 56%, indicates human impact to coral reefs ecosystems. The coverage level can be influenced by tourist activities.Based on the observation it is clear that Coral Foliose types were dominant.Diversity index (H’) of coral reefs ranging from 1.754 to 1.814; while the evenness index (E) was ranging from 0.8435 to 0.9468. The observed fish was less than 25 individual.These fishes taxonomically belong to Serranidae , Lutjanidae , Letherinidae , Caesionidae , Scaridae , Haemulidae and Chaetonodae .It was lowest compared to the standard for population in healthy water. The implementation of marine based tourism in Penuktukan Village should be controlled through visitor management and coral reef ecosystem conservation. Keywords: Bali, coral reefs, marine tourism.

Coral Reef Coverage Percentage on Binor Paiton-Probolinggo Seashore

The coral reef damage in Probolinggo region was expected to be caused by several factors. The first one comes from its society that exploits fishery by using cyanide toxin and bomb. The second one goes to the extraction of coral reef, which is used as decoration or construction materials. The other factor is likely caused by the existence of large industry on the seashore, such as Electric Steam Power Plant (PLTU) Paiton and others alike. Related to the development of coral reef ecosystem, availability of an accurate data is crucially needed to support the manner of future policy, so the research of coral reef coverage percentage needs to be conducted continuously. The aim of this research is to collect biological data of coral reef and to identify coral reef coverage percentage in the effort of constructing coral reef condition basic data on Binor, Paiton, and Probolinggo regency seashore. The method used in this research is Line Intercept Transect (LIT) method. LIT method is a method that used to decide benthic community on coral reef based on percentage growth, and to take note of benthic quantity along transect line. Percentage of living coral coverage in 3 meters depth on this Binor Paiton seashore that may be categorized in a good condition is 57,65%. While the rest are dead coral that is only 1,45%, other life form in 23,2%, and non-life form in 17,7%. A good condition of coral reef is caused by coral reef transplantation on the seashore, so this coral reef is dominated by Acropora Branching. On the other hand, Mortality Index (IM) of coral reef resulted in 24,5%. The result from observation and calculation of coral reef is dominated by Hard Coral in Acropora Branching (ACB) with coral reef coverage percentage of 39%, Coral Massive (CM) with coral reef coverage percentage of 2,85%, Coral Foliose (CF) with coral reef coverage percentage of 1,6%, and Coral Mushroom (CRM) with coral reef coverage percentage of 8,5%. Observation in 10 meters depth resulted in coral reef coverage percentage of 63,33%. 75% of living coral found on this 10 meters depth are dominated by Acropora branching coral, while the rest 25,21% are filled by Acropora tabulate coral and non-Acropora coral in the life form of branching, massive, sub-massive, foliose, and mushroom, where coral Mortality Index (IM) reached 28,5%. The high number of coral reef coverage percentage on Paiton is caused by successful coral transplantation and low activity of society in this location. The domination of large size Acropora branching coral were estimated comes from a few types, showing that coral resulted from transplantation has grown large and form a complex 3 dimension structure that is suitable for the life form of fish and living benthic.

Fluctuations in coral health of four common inshore reef corals in response to seasonal and anthropogenic changes in water quality

Environmental drivers of coral condition (maximum quantum yield, symbiont density, chlorophyll a content and coral skeletal growth rates) were assessed in the equatorial inshore coastal waters of Singapore, where the amplitude of seasonal variation is low, but anthropogenic influence is relatively high. Water quality variables (sediments, nutrients, trace metals, temperature, light) explained between 52 and 83% of the variation in coral condition, with sediments and light availability as key drivers of foliose corals (Merulina ampliata, Pachyseris speciosa), and temperature exerting a greater influence on a branching coral (Pocillopora damicornis). Seasonal reductions in water quality led to high chlorophyll a concentrations and maximum quantum yields in corals, but low growth rates. These marginal coral communities are potentially vulnerable to climate change, hence, we propose water quality thresholds for coral growth with the aim of mitigating both local and global environmental impacts.