Coral community changes in response to a high sedimentation event:A case study in southern Hainan Island  

作　　者：LI XiuBao HUANG Hui LIAN JianSheng YANG JianHui YE Cheng CHEN YongQiang HUANG LiangMin 

机构地区：[1]Key Laboratory of Marine Bio-resources Sustainable Utilization,South China Sea Institute of Oceanology,Chinese Academy of Sciences [2]Tropical Marine Biological Research Station in Hainan,Chinese Academy of Sciences

出　　处：《Chinese Science Bulletin》2013年第9期1028-1037,共10页

基　　金：supported by Key Topics in Innovation Engineering of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (KZCX2-YW-227);the National Natural Science Foundation of China (40830850,41106141 and 40931160437);the National Key Technology R&D Program(2009BAB44B01);the Ocean Public Welfare Scientific Research Project(201005012-6)

摘　　要：A high sedimentation event caused by dredging and dumping of sediment was recorded on Xiaodonghai Reef in Yulin Bay,southern Hainan Island,China.Significantly high sedimentation and constant light shading were observed during the sediment dumping event(SD Event).Using long-term video transects,we quantified coral community changes and responses to the SD Event between 2008 and 2010.The SD Event caused severe coral mortality on Xiaodonghai Reef at a depth of 6 m,while corals at 3 m were less affected.Total live coral cover at 6 m decreased from 54.3% to 14.8%,and Diploastrea heliopora replaced Galaxea fascicularis as the dominant coral species at 6 and 9 m.The density of juvenile corals also declined after the SD Event,especially for the genera Galaxea and Platygyra.However,the density of juvenile Porites and Pocillopora spp.slightly increased.Monitoring for 11 months after the SD Event indicated no recovery of coral communities on Xiaodonghai Reef.Long-term video transect data also revealed that mean live coral cover dramatically declined,from 30.5% in 2008 to 9% in 2010,while the dominant corals in Yulin Bay shifted to more tolerant coral species,such as massive Porites spp.and D.heliopora.The rapid coral community degradation in Yulin Bay between 2008 and 2010 was probably caused by high sediment deposition resulting from intensive dredging and land-clearing activities.These results highlight the necessity for an integrated watershed management to control sediment deposition on near-shore coral reefs.A high sedimentation event caused by dredging and dumping of sediment was recorded on Xiaodonghai Reef in Yulin Bay, southern Hainan Island, China, Significantly high sedimentation and constant light shading were observed during the sediment dumping event （SD Event）. Using long-term video transects, we quantified coral community changes and responses to the SD Event between 2008 and 2010. The SD Event caused severe coral mortality on Xiaodonghai Reef at a depth of 6 m, while corals at 3 m were less affected. Total live coral cover at 6 m decreased from 54.3% to 14.8%, and Diploastrea heliopora replaced Galaxea fascicularis as the dominant coral species at 6 and 9 m, The density of juvenile corals also declined after the SD Event, especially for the genera Galaxea and Platygyra. However, the density of juvenile Porites and Pocillopora spp. slightly increased. Monitoring for 11 months after the SD Event indicated no recovery of coral communities on Xiaodonghai Reef. Long-term video transect data also revealed that mean live coral cover dramatically declined, from 30.5% in 2008 to 9% in 2010, while the dominant corals in Yulin Bay shifted to more tolerant coral species, such as massive Porites spp. and D, heliopora. The rapid coral community degradation in Yulin Bay between 2008 and 2010 was probably caused by high sediment deposition resulting from intensive dredging and land-clearing activities. These results highlight the necessity for an integrated watershed management to control sediment deposition on near-shore coral reefs.

关 键 词：沉积事件 珊瑚礁 海南岛 群落变化 小流域综合治理 泥沙淤积 案例 珊瑚群落 

分 类 号：Q958[生物学—动物学]