Oceanographic Center Report helps Reduce Human Impacts to Coral Recruitment

Orange egg clusters floating on the water surface after spawning of a Montastraea cavernosacolony in an aquarium.

Oceanographic Center graduate student Maureen Trnka, and researcher, Alison Moulding, Ph.D., undertook a comprehensive review of the coral reproduction literature for the National Coral Reef Institute to identify predicted coral spawning and larval duration times in the Caribbean and to help identify gaps in scientific knowledge. 

The purpose is to provide information to managers to help them reduce human impacts during the critical coral spawning window.  Modification of the type or timing of activities that introduce nutrients, toxic chemicals, and suspended particles may lead to enhanced fertilization and coral recruitment success.   For many of the main reef-building species, information on coral spawning times is known and can be predicted.  However, in most locations this information has not been widely available or previously considered during planning and implementation of human activities.  Compilation of this information by species and by region will give managers the information they need to help protect corals during a sensitive phase of their life history. 

A link to the article can be found at http://www.nova.edu/ocean/ncri/research/a21.html