Status of Caribbean coral reefs after bleaching and hurricanes in 2005

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Status of Caribbean Coral Reefs after Bleaching and Hurricanes in 2005Seagrass and mangrove communities monitored at Chengue Bay during 2005 did not showsignificant changes from the 2005 bleaching event. There was no bleaching in the ColombianPacific at Malpelo Island in June and Gorgona Island in October.The impacts of coral bleaching on the reefs of Colombia in 2005 are summarized in this tableshowing the effect on coral cover and the number of bleached colonies. The effects on the reefs variedconsiderably within sites with low resultant mortality.ColombianCaribbean ReefsIslas delRosario-CartagenaSitesExaminedCoralCover BleachedCoral ColoniesBleachedCoralMortality48 0.5-80% 29-100% 0-2%Islas San Bernardo 18 0.5-70% 50-100% 0-5%San Andres 30 1-15% 7-60% ?Providencia 29 1-10% 0.6-54% ?Santa Marta-ParqueTayronaIm p a c t s o f Hu r r i ca n e s in 200512 1-5% 0-15% 0-1%Hurricane Beta was a moderate category 1 hurricane that passed very close to Providenciaand Santa Catalina Islands on 29 October 2005. When 20 sites were examined 15 days later,there was negligible damage to coral reefs, seagrass beds, beaches and mangroves; however,terrestrial vegetation and island infrastructure were severely damaged.VenezuelaIn t r o d u c t i o nThe coast of Venezuela is 2875 km long and with most of this (67%) in the Caribbean wherethe reefs are found. There are no reefs along the Atlantic coast because of freshwater andsediment runoff, and upwellings. Nearshore coral reefs occur only in Moroccoy National Parkand adjacent areas (San Esteban, Turiamo and Ocumare de la Costa), with more than 30 coralspecies and reef growth to 20 m depth; and Mochima National Park and adjacent reefs (Cocheand Cubagua islands), with more than 20 coral species to depths of 14 m. The best developedreefs are around the oceanic islands, especially at Archipelago de Aves, Archipelago Los Roques,La Orchila and La Blanquilla, which have 57 coral species growing to great depths e.g. 57 m.Stat u s o f Co r a l Reefs Pr i o r to 2005The oceanic reefs of Venezuela were once among the few virtually pristine reefs in the Caribbean,but surveys since 2003 showed sites varied between 18% and 51% mean coral cover. Theexception was the coastal coral reefs at Parque Nacional Morrocoy (PNM), which were severelydegraded in 1996, probably by chemical pollution or a severe phytoplankton bloom, followedby sudden oxygen depletion caused by a climate and oceanic anomaly. Coral cover droppedfrom 43% to less than 5% at the former CARICOMP reef site of Bajo Caiman. SubsequentCARICOMP surveys at Bajo Cayo Sombrero, one of the few reefs in the park with live corals,indicated that the coral community was in a relatively stable condition, with more than 35%110
The Effects of Coral Bleaching in Southern Tropical America: Brazil, Colombia, and Venezuelacoral cover. Several coral diseases including yellow band, black band, white diseases, dark spotsand ciliate infections had affected the corals.The table shows the percentage of bleached colonies of zoanthids, octocorals and hardcorals in Venezuela, between August 2005 and February 2006. The intensity is recorded asthe surface area of the colony affected at oceanic reefs: Isla La Blanquilla (LB) and ParqueNacional Archipiélago Los Roques (Pnalr); and coastal reefs: Parque Nacional Morrocoy(PNM-RFSC) on the western coast and Parque Nacional Mochima (PNM) on the easterncoast that is influenced by upwelling. BCS is the CARICOMP site of Venezuela at PNM-RFSC, which was examined during each sampling period (n = number of colonies surveyed;N = number of sites surveyed at each location).Surface area of the colony bleached %Time ofobservationAug-Sep 2005Nov-Dec 2005Jan-Feb 2006Location(N)Coastal/Oceanic
Page 1 and 2:
Stat u s o fCa r i b b e a nCo r a
Page 3 and 4:
Dedication: This book is dedicated
Page 5 and 6:
Status of Caribbean Coral Reefs aft
Page 7 and 8:
Page 9 and 10:
Page 11 and 12:
Page 13 and 14:
Page 15 and 16:
Page 17 and 18:
Page 19 and 20:
Page 21 and 22:
Page 23 and 24:
Page 25 and 26:
Status of Coral Reefs in the Caribb
Page 27 and 28:
Page 29 and 30:
Page 31 and 32:
Page 33 and 34:
Page 35 and 36:
3. Hu r r i ca n e s a n d t h e i
Page 37 and 38:
Hurricanes and their Effect on Cora
Page 39 and 40:
Hurricanes and their Effect on Cora
Page 41 and 42:
4. Th e 2005 Bl e a c h i n g Ev e
Page 43 and 44:
The 2005 Bleaching Event: Coral-Lis
Page 45 and 46:
Page 47 and 48:
Page 49 and 50:
5. Stat u s o f t h e Mesoamerican
Page 51 and 52:
Status of the Mesoamerican Reef aft
Page 53 and 54:
Page 55 and 56:
Page 57 and 58:
Page 59 and 60:
Page 61 and 62: Status of the Mesoamerican Reef aft
Page 63 and 64: Status of the Mesoamerican Reef aft
Page 65 and 66: 6. Co r a l Reefs o f t h e U.S. Ca
Page 67 and 68: Coral Reefs of the U.S. Caribbean19
Page 69 and 70: Coral Reefs of the U.S. CaribbeanMe
Page 71 and 72: Coral Reefs of the U.S. Caribbeanwe
Page 73 and 74: Coral Reefs of the U.S. CaribbeanSe
Page 75 and 76: Coral Reefs of the U.S. CaribbeanBl
Page 77 and 78: 7. Th e Effects o f Co r a l Bl e a
Page 79 and 80: The Effects of Coral Bleaching in t
Page 89 and 90: Status of Caribbean Coral Reefs aft
Page 107 and 108: 9. Th e Effects o f Co r a l Bl e a
Page 109 and 110: The Effects of Coral Bleaching in S
Page 111: The Effects of Coral Bleaching in S
Page 115 and 116: The Effects of Coral Bleaching in S
Page 117 and 118: 10. Ma n ag i n g f o r Ma s s Co r
Page 119 and 120: Managing for Mass Coral Bleaching:
show all

Status of Caribbean coral reefs after bleaching and hurricanes in 2005

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?