Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Water flow influences the mechanisms and outcomes of interactions between massive Porites and coral reef algae

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Marine Biology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Negative interactions between corals and algae often are implicated in preventing the recovery of coral-depauperate reefs. However, few studies have explored the effects of environmental conditions on the mechanisms underlying the outcomes of coral–algal interactions. We examined the influence of water flow, a pervasive feature of reefs that is known to affect both coral and algal physiology, on massive Porites–algal interactions at different spatial and temporal scales with two types of algal competitors. Outcomes of coral–algal interactions were influenced by both water flow and algal type. Algal turfs outcompeted corals more frequently in low flow conditions, where microbial concentrations were higher, than in higher flow areas. Turbinaria ornata outcompeted massive Porites more often in higher flow and consistently was associated with lower microbial concentrations. This study highlights that outcomes of coral–algal interactions are microhabitat dependent and that water flow limits the effectiveness of some mechanisms of coral–algal competition.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Adam TC, Schmitt RJ, Holbrook SJ, Brooks AJ, Edmunds PJ, Carpenter RC, Bernardi G (2011) Herbivory, connectivity, and ecosystem resilience: response of a coral reef to a large-scale perturbation. PLoS One 6(8):e23717

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Atkinson M, Bilger R (1992) Effects of water velocity on phosphate uptake in coral reef-flat communities. Limnol Oceanogr 37:273–279

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Azam F, Fenchel T, Field JG, Gray JS, Meyer-Reil LA, Thingstad F (1983) The ecological role of water-column microbes in the sea. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 10(3):257–263

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barott KL, Rohwer FL (2012) Unseen players shape benthic competition on coral reefs. Trends in Microbiol 20(12):621–628

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Barott K, Smith J, Dinsdale E, Hatay M, Sandin S (2009) Hyperspectral and physiological analyses of coral-algal interactions. PLoS ONE 4:e8043

  • Barott KL, Rodriguez-Brito B, Janouškovec J, Marhaven K, Smith JE, Keeling P, Rohwer F (2011) Microbial diversity associated with four functional groups of benthic reef algae and the reef-building coral Montastraea annularis. Environ Microbiol 13(5):1192–1204

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Barott KL, Williams GJ, Vermeij M, Harris J, Smith JE, Rohwer FL, Sandin SA (2012) Natural history of coral−algae competition across a gradient of human activity in the Line Islands. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 460:1–12

  • Bellwood DR, Hughes TP, Folke C, Nyström M (2004) Confronting the coral reef crisis. Nature 429:827–833

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Birrell CL, McCook LJ, Willis BL (2005) Effects of algal turfs and sediment on coral settlement. Mar Pollut Bull 51:408–414

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Box SJ, Mumby PJ (2007) Effect of macroalgal competition on growth and survival of juvenile Caribbean corals. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 342:139–149

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brown AL, Carpenter RC (2013) Water flow mediated oxygen dynamics within massive Porites–algal turf interactions. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 490:1–10

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Carpenter RC, Williams SL (1993) Effects of algal turf canopy height and microscale substratum topography on profiles of flow speed in a coral forereef environment. Limnol Oceanogry 38(3):687–694

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carpenter R, Williams S (2007) Mass transfer limitation of photosynthesis of coral reef algal turfs. Mar Biol 151:435–450

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cole JWL, Grizzle JE (1966) Applications of multivariate analysis of variance to repeated measures experiments. Biometrics 22:810–828

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Denny MW (1988) Biology and the mechanics of the wave-swept environment. Princeton University Press, Princeton

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Dinsdale EA, Pantos O, Smriga S, Edwards RA, Angly F, Wegley L, Hatay M, Hall D, Brown E, Haynes M, Krause L, Sala E, Sandin SA, Thurber RV, Willis BL, Azam F, Knowlton N, Rohwer F (2008) Microbial ecology of four coral atolls in the Northern Line Islands. PLoS One 3:e1584

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Doty MS (1971) Measurement of water movement in reference to benthic algal growth. Bot Mar 14(1):32–35

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ducklow HW, Mitchell R (1979) Observations on naturally and artificially diseased tropical corals: a scanning electron microscope study. Microb Ecol 5:215–223

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Garren M, Azam F (2010) New method for counting bacteria associated with coral mucus. Appl Environ Microbiol 76(18):6128–6133

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Garren M, Kwangmin S, Raina JB, Rusconi R, Menolascina F, Shapiro OH, Tout J, Bourne DG, Seymour JR, Stocker R (2014) A bacterial pathogen uses dimethylsulfoniopropionate as a cue to target heat-stressed corals. ISME 8:999–1007

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Genin A, Karp L, Miroz A (1994) Effects of flow on competitive superiority in scleractinian corals. Limnol Oceanogr 39(4):913–924

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Haas AF, Nelson CE, Wegley Kelly L, Carlson CA, Rohwer F, Leichter JJ, Wyatt A, Smith J (2011) Effects of coral reef benthic primary producers on dissolved organic carbon and microbial activity. PLoS One 6(11):e27973

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Haas AF, Gregg AK, Smith JE, Abieri ML, Hatay M, Rohwer F (2013) Visualization of oxygen distribution patterns caused by coral and algae. PeerJ 1:e106

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hauri C, Fabricius KE, Schaffelke B, Humphrey C (2010) Chemical and physical environmental conditions underneath mat- and canopy-forming macroalgae, and their effects on understory corals. PLoS One 5(9):e1268

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Helmuth BST, Sebens KP, Daniel TL (1997) Morphological variation in coral aggregations: branch spacing and mass flux to coral tissues. J Exp Mar Biol Ecol 209:233–259

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hench JL, Rosman JH (2013) Observations of spatial flow patterns at the coral colony scale on a shallow reef flat. J Geophys Res Oceans 118:1142–1156. doi:10.1002/jgrc.20105

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hench JL, Leichter JJ, Monismith SG (2008) Episodic circulation and exchange in a wave-driven coral reef and lagoon system. Limnol Oceanogr 53(6):2681–2694

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hughes TP (1994) Catastrophes, phase shifts, and large-scale degradation of a Caribbean coral reef. Science 265(5178):1547–1551

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jompa J, McCook LJ (2002) The effects of nutrients and herbivory on competition between a hard coral (Porites cylindrica) and a brown alga (Lobophora variegata). Limnol Oceanogr 47(2):527–534

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jompa J, McCook LJ (2003) Coral–algal competition: macroalgae with different properties have different effects on corals. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 258:87–95

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kline DI, Kuntz NM, Breitbart M, Knowlton N, Rohwer F (2006) Role of elevated organic carbon levels and microbial activity in coral mortality. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 314:119–125

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kohler KE, Gill SM (2006) Coral Point Count with Excel extensions (CPCe): a Visual Basic program for the determination of coral and substrate coverage using random point count methodology. Comput Geosci 32(9):1259–1269

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kühl M, Cohen Y, Dalsgaard T, Jørgenson BB, Revsbech NP (1995) Microenvironment and photosynthesis of zooxanthellae in scleractinian corals studied with microsensors for O2, pH and light. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 117:159–172

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lang J (1973) Interspecific aggression by scleractinian corals. 2. Why the race is not only to the swift. Bull Mar Sci 23(2):260–279

    Google Scholar 

  • Lenihan H, Adjeroud M, Kotchen M, Hench JL, Nakamura T (2008) Reef structure regulates small-scale spatial variation in coral bleaching. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 370:127–141

  • Mass T, Genin A, Shavit U, Grinstein M, Tchernov D (2010) Flow enhances photosynthesis in marine benthic autotrophs by increasing the efflux of oxygen from the organism to the water. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 107(6):2527–2531

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • McCook LJ (2001) Competition between corals and algal turfs along a gradient of terrestrial influence in the nearshore central Great Barrier Reef. Coral Reefs 19:419–425

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McCook LJ, Jompa J, Diaz-Pulido G (2001) Competition between corals and algae on coral reefs: a review of evidence and mechanisms. Coral Reefs 19:400–417

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moberg F, Folke C (1999) Ecological goods and services of coral reef ecosystems. Ecol Econ 29:215–233

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Monismith S (2007) Hydrodynamics of coral reefs. Annu Rev Fluid Mech 39:37–55. doi:10.1146/annurev.fluid.38.050304.092125

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nelson CE, Alldredge AL, McCliment EA, Amaral-Zettler LA, Carlson CA (2011) Depleted dissolved organic carbon and distinct bacterial communities in the water column of a rapid-flushing coral reef ecosystem. ISME J 5:1374–1387

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Nugues MM, Smith GW, van Hooidonk RJ, Seabra MI, Bak RPM (2004) Algal contact as a trigger for coral disease. Ecol Lett 7:919–923

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Patten NL, Seymour JR, Mitchell JG (2006) Flow cytometric analysis of virus-like particles and heterotrophic bacteria within coral-associated reef water. J Mar Biol Assoc UK 86:563–566

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Patterson MR, Sebens KP, Olsen RR (1991) In situ measurements of flow effects on primary production and dark respiration in reef corals. Limnol Oceanogr 36(5):936–948

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Quan-Young LI, Espinoza-Avalos J (2006) Reduction of zooxanthellae density, chlorophyll a concentration, and tissue thickness of the coral Montastraea faveolata (Scleractinia) when competing with mixed turf algae. Limnol Oceanogr 51(2):1159–1166

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rasher DB, Hay ME (2010) Chemically rich seaweeds poison corals when not controlled by herbivores. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 107(21):9683–9688

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rasher DB, Stout EP, Engel S, Kubanek J, Hay ME (2011) Macroalgal terpenes function as allelopathic agents against reef corals. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 108(43):17726–17731

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Reidenbach M, Monismith S, Koseff J et al (2006) Boundary layer turbulence and flow structure over a fringing coral reef. Limnol Oceanogr 51:1956–1968

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • River GF, Edmunds PJ (2001) Mechanisms of interaction between macroalgae and scleractinians on a coral reef in Jamaica. J Exp Mar Biol Ecol 261:159–172

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shashar N, Kinane S, Jokiel PL, Patterson MR (1996) Hydromechanical boundary layers over a coral reef. J Exp Mar Biol Ecol 199(1):17–28

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smith JE, Shaw M, Edwards RA, Obura D, Pantos O, Sala E, Sandin SA, Smriga S, Hatay M, Rohwer FL (2006) Indirect effects of algae on coral: algae-mediated, microbe-induced coral mortality. Ecol Lett 9:835–845

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Steneck RS, Dethier MN (1994) A functional group approach to the structure of algal-dominated communities. Oikos 69(3):476–498

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thompson TL, Glenn EP (1994) Plaster standards to measure water motion. Limnol Oceanogr 39(7):1768–1779

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wangpraseurt D, Weber M, Røy H, Polerecky L, De Beer D, Suharsono, Nugues MM (2012) In situ oxygen dynamics in coral-algal tnteractions. PLoS ONE 7:e31192

Download references

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank P.J. Edmunds for comments and assistance throughout this project. Thanks to C. Nelson for assistance with microbial aspects, specifically flow cytometry. Thanks to V.W. Moriarty, M.D. Johnson, S.A. Swanson, and J.C. Gowan for laboratory and field assistance. Thanks as well to the Gump Field Station for their support. The project was funded under the MCR LTER OCE 04-17412/OCE 10-26851 Grant, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation and California State University, Northridge. This is Contribution No. 226 from the CSUN Marine Biology Program.

Author information

Author notes

  1. Anya L. Brown

    Present address: Odum School of Ecology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 30602, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, California State University, Northridge, CA, 91330-8303, USA

    Anya L. Brown & Robert C. Carpenter

Authors
  1. Anya L. Brown
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Robert C. Carpenter
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Anya L. Brown.

Additional information

Communicated by F. Bulleri.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Brown, A.L., Carpenter, R.C. Water flow influences the mechanisms and outcomes of interactions between massive Porites and coral reef algae. Mar Biol 162, 459–468 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-014-2593-5

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-014-2593-5

Keywords

Search

Navigation