ArticleProceedings. Biological sciences2020
Long-term shifts in the colony size structure of coral populations along the Great Barrier Reef.
Article in Proceedings. Biological sciences, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 24 papers.
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Who cites it
24 citing papers in PubMed, 125 citations in OpenAlex.
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- Seabirds boost coral reef resilience.Science advances · 2023Article
- Prediction of habitat complexity using a trait-based approach on coral reefs in Guam.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- Biophysical models resolution affects coral connectivity estimates.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- Minor Genetic Consequences of a Major Mass Mortality: Short-Term Effects inThe Biological bulletin · 2022Article
- Size structure of the coral Stylophora pistillata across reef flat zones in the central Red Sea.Scientific reports · 2022Article
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- Mechanisms and potential immune tradeoffs of accelerated coral growth induced by microfragmentation.PeerJ · 2022Article
- Geomorphically controlled coral distribution in degraded shallow reefs of the Western Caribbean.PeerJ · 2022Article
- Dangerous demographics in post-bleach corals reveal boom-bust versus protracted declines.Scientific reports · 2021Article
- Field measurements of a massive Porites coral at Goolboodi (Orpheus Island), Great Barrier Reef.Scientific reports · 2021Article
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Authors and funding
4 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
The age or size structure of a population has a marked influence on its demography and reproductive capacity. While declines in coral cover are well documented, concomitant shifts in the size-frequency distribution of coral colonies are rarely measured at large spatial scales. Here, we document major shifts in the colony size structure of coral populations along the 2300 km length of the Great Barrier Reef relative to historical baselines (1995/1996). Coral colony abundances on reef crests and slopes have declined sharply across all colony size classes and in all coral taxa compared to historical baselines. Declines were particularly pronounced in the northern and central regions of the Great Barrier Reef, following mass coral bleaching in 2016 and 2017. The relative abundances of large colonies remained relatively stable, but this apparent stability masks steep declines in absolute abundance. The potential for recovery of older fecund corals is uncertain given the increasing frequency and intensity of disturbance events. The systematic decline in smaller colonies across regions, habitats and taxa, suggests that a decline in recruitment has further eroded the recovery potential and resilience of coral populations.
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