Meeting Abstract

P2.55  Tuesday, Jan. 5  Recruitment Sensitivity to Contaminated Substrata in Larvae of Coral Species: Montipora capitata and Porites hawaiiensis ANSON, JA; University of Hawaii jorg@hawaii.edu

The continued decline in coral populations is a concern in coral reef ecosystems throughout the Pacific region. As anthropogenic stressors increase globally, understanding the population dynamics and larval ecology of corals is central to developing management responses. Recruitment bioassays were performed by exposing planula larvae to substrata contaminated with copper, a common metal in the marine environment. Slides conditioned with biofilms and crustose coralline algae were exposed in various copper treatments for 2-3 days. Recruitment bioassays using the contaminated substrata tested responses in larvae of two coral species, Montipora capitata and Porites hawaiiensis. Settlement success was scored over 7 and 5 days, respectively. Copper exposure altered settlement success in both species. Larvae of M. capitata were more sensitive to copper exposure than those of P. hawaiiensis. A stress response was observed in recruitment assays in M. capitata in which settlement occurred earlier in high copper treatments. The settled larvae of subsequently bleached in less than 48hrs following exposure. Copper inhibited settlement in both species but a greater settlement success was observed in the P. hawaiiensis bioassay. Both coral species demonstrated larval sensitivity to substratum quality, indicating the importance of this parameter to the early life-history stages of corals and therefore broadening our knowledge on larval ecology for sound policy development and implementation purposes throughout Pacific island nations.