Coral Reefs, Destruction, and Management

1
Coral Reefs, Destruction, and Management

• Nick Machovec

2
Reefs

• Occur only between 30N to 30S of the equator
• Reefs do not grow at depths greater than 100 feet
• Most of the coral (91) occurs in the Red Sea,
  Indian Ocean, Southeast Asia and the Pacific
  Ocean

3
Reef Distribution
4
What is a coral reef?

• Reefs are made up of generations of coral polyps
• Waves and various species of fish break down the
  corals skeletons into fragments that settle into
  the spaces in the reef structure
• Corraline algae contribute to reef structure

5
Hermatypic Coral

• Occur in the photic zone (above 100 ft depth)
• Coral polyps do not photosynthesize
• These algae produce excess amounts of nutrients
  that can be used by coral polyps
• The more clear the water, the faster coral reefs
  grow

6
Coral Polyp
7
Reefs As A Home

• 4,000 species of fish call the coral reef home
• Reefs are also important for other animals such
  as sponges, cnidarians, worms, crustaceans,
  molluscs, echinoderms, sea squirts, sea turtles
  and sea snakes
• Butterflyfish are good indicator species of how
  well the reef is doing

8
(No Transcript)
9
Threats to Coral Reef

• Human activity is the greatest threat to coral
  reefs
• Physical destruction is most often caused by
  boating traffic
• Cyanide, used in the live fish food trade
• abnormal increase in the current Earths
  temperature is causing warmer waters, which can
  cause coral bleaching.

10
Coral Reef Destruction

• The Nature Conservancy
• The biggest factor which currently contributes to
  coral reef damage is poor land management
• Housing developments
• Mangroves

11
Coral Reef Destruction

• This nutrient rich runoff helps facilitate algae
  and phytoplankton to thrive in coastal regions
• Coral reefs have lived in environments where
  nutrients are relatively low
• Algal blooms block rays of sunlight from
  reaching coral
• As a result, the symbiotic algae cannot
  photosynthesize
• Copper

12
Good Coral Reef Vs Bad Coral Reef
13
Algal Bloom
14
Reefs Management

• Inhabitants of Ahus Island, Manus Providence,
  Papua New Guinea.
• While line fishing is permitted, net and spear
  fishing are restricted based on cultural
  traditions.
• The result

15
Reefs Management

• Marine Protected Area (MPAs)
• MPAs have been introduced in Southeast Asia and
  elsewhere around the world
• The objectives of MPAs.
• Indonesia currently has nine MPAs, claiming a
  total 41,129 square kilometres of coastal waters
  are to be under protection

16
Works Cited

• Australian Government Productivity Commission
  (2003). Industries, Land Use and Water Quality in
  the Great Barrier Reef Catchment - Key Points.
  Retrieved on 2006 May 29.
• Castro, Peter and Michael Huber. 2000. Marine
  Biology. 3rd ed. Boston McGraw-Hill.
• Emma Young (2003). Copper decimates coral reef
  spawning. Retrieved on 2006 August 26.
• Hughes, et al. 2003. Climate Change, Human
  Impacts, and the Resilience of Coral Reefs.
  Science. Vol 301 15 August 2003.
• Rachel Nowak (2004-01-11). Sewage nutrients fuel
  coral disease. New Scientist. Retrieved on 2006
  August 10.
• Spalding, Mark, Corinna Ravilious, and Edmund
  Green. 2001. World Atlas of Coral Reefs.
  Berkeley, CA University of California Press and
  UNEP/WCMC.