| dc.creator | Hernández-Delgado, Edwin A. | |
| dc.creator | Claudio-Hernández, Héctor J. | |
| dc.date | 2012-05-23T14:23:32Z | |
| dc.date | 2012-05-23T14:23:32Z | |
| dc.date | 2009-11 | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2017-03-17T16:53:33Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2017-03-17T16:53:33Z | |
| dc.identifier | Hernández-Delgado, Edwin A.; and Claudio-Hernández, Héctor J. "Rapid assessment of Mona Island’s coral reefs following the 2005-2006 post-bleaching mass mortality event: Evidence of climate change impacts". Río Piedras Campus: External Scientific Advisory Committe (ESAC), 2009. http://repositorio.upr.edu:8080/jspui/handle/10586 /186 | |
| dc.identifier | http://hdl.handle.net/10586 /186 | |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://repositorioslatinoamericanos.uchile.cl/handle/2250/647342 | |
| dc.description | Mona Island, located nearly halfway between La
Hispaniola and PR, is considered a unique and
pristine natural wonder in the Caribbean. Its coral reef ecosystems are paramount for maintaining the meta-population connectivity of most commercially important fish species in the region. But an unprecedented sea surface warming event occurred during 2005 throughout the northeastern Caribbean Sea that caused a mass regional coral bleaching event. It was followed by significant coral mortality.
This study is the result of an exploratory expedition carried out in June 2006 by Sociedad Ambiente Marino and the UPR-Coral Reef Research Group to conduct a rapid ecological assessment to address what was the impact of the bleaching and coral mortality event in Mona Island. Digital video-imaging was used to document the status of benthic community structure at six locations.
Coral reefs were characterized by a dramatic phase
shift favoring macroalgal-cyanobacterial dominance.
Percent coral cover ranged from 3 to 14%, when
estimates conducted between 1981 and 2000
showed % coral cover values ranging from 10 to
35%. Percent macroalgal cover ranged from 42 to
85%, often dominated by unpalatable brown algae,
Dictyota spp. Percent cyanobacterial cover ranged
from 0.3 to 13%. Most large reef-building coral
species were showing significant signs of mortality.
There was also a significant difference (p=0.0002) in community structure among sites, which were
clustered in four different patterns according to
degree of mortality and post-mortality trajectory.
Differences were actually attributed to the high
frequency of other benthic categories such as
recently dead corals (RDC), crustose coralline algae(CCA) and rubble (SPR). This is the first known mass coral mortality event reported in Mona Island and represents an unequivocal sign of climate change impacts. | |
| dc.language | en_US | |
| dc.publisher | External Scientific Advisory Committe (ESAC) | |
| dc.subject | coral reefs | |
| dc.subject | Mona Island | |
| dc.subject | Puerto Rico | |
| dc.subject | climate change | |
| dc.subject | Sociedad Ambiente Marino and UPR-Coral Reef Research Group | |
| dc.subject | sea surface warming event | |
| dc.title | Rapid assessment of Mona Island’s coral reefs following the 2005-2006 post-bleaching mass mortality event: Evidence of climate change impacts | |
| dc.type | Poster | |
