Annual coral bleaching and the long-term recovery capacity of coral

Verena Schoepf; Andréa G Grottoli; Stephen J Levas; Matthew D Aschaffenburg; Justin H Baumann; Yohei Matsui; Mark E Warner

doi:10.1098/rspb.2015.1887

Annual coral bleaching and the long-term recovery capacity of coral

Proc Biol Sci. 2015 Nov 22;282(1819):20151887. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2015.1887.

Authors

Verena Schoepf¹, Andréa G Grottoli², Stephen J Levas³, Matthew D Aschaffenburg⁴, Justin H Baumann⁵, Yohei Matsui², Mark E Warner⁴

Affiliations

¹ School of Earth Sciences, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, School of Earth and Environment, and UWA Oceans Institute, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia, Australia schoepf.4@osu.edu.
² School of Earth Sciences, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA.
³ School of Earth Sciences, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA Department of Geography and the Environment, Villanova University, Villanova, PA, USA.
⁴ School of Marine Science and Policy, University of Delaware, Lewes, DE, USA.
⁵ School of Earth Sciences, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA Department of Marine Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.

Abstract

Mass bleaching events are predicted to occur annually later this century. Nevertheless, it remains unknown whether corals will be able to recover between annual bleaching events. Using a combined tank and field experiment, we simulated annual bleaching by exposing three Caribbean coral species (Porites divaricata, Porites astreoides and Orbicella faveolata) to elevated temperatures for 2.5 weeks in 2 consecutive years. The impact of annual bleaching stress on chlorophyll a, energy reserves, calcification, and tissue C and N isotopes was assessed immediately after the second bleaching and after both short- and long-term recovery on the reef (1.5 and 11 months, respectively). While P. divaricata and O. faveolata were able to recover from repeat bleaching within 1 year, P. astreoides experienced cumulative damage that prevented full recovery within this time frame, suggesting that repeat bleaching had diminished its recovery capacity. Specifically, P. astreoides was not able to recover protein and carbohydrate concentrations. As energy reserves promote bleaching resistance, failure to recover from annual bleaching within 1 year will likely result in the future demise of heat-sensitive coral species.

Keywords: C and N isotopes; Caribbean; annual bleaching; calcification; energy reserves; long-term recovery.

Publication types

Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

Animals
Anthozoa / physiology*
Calcification, Physiologic
Carbon Isotopes / metabolism
Caribbean Region
Chlorophyll / metabolism
Chlorophyll A
Energy Metabolism
Hot Temperature / adverse effects*
Longevity*
Mexico
Nitrogen Isotopes / metabolism
Seasons
Species Specificity

Substances

Carbon Isotopes
Nitrogen Isotopes
Chlorophyll
Chlorophyll A