Study shows that corals prefer to grow touching turf

[SantaMonica]

Note: Scrubbers are supposed to grow green hair, which is not covered in this study. But many people still think that scrubbers grow turf, and this study does include the amount of microbes related to turf. Brackets "[ ]" added.


"Microbial to reef scale interactions between the reef-building coral Montastraea annularis and benthic algae", Proceedings of the Royal Society, Biological Sciences, Nov 2011
http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/ ... 2155.short


Page 2, Col 1, (a)

"This study was conducted on the island of Curacao, former Netherlands Antilles"

Page 4, Col 2, (b)...

The [...] coral-associated bacterial communities increased in tissues near [coralline] and [dictyota], but decreased for coral tissue adjacent to [halimeda] or turf algae.

Page 5, Col 1...

We found [anaerobic microbes] present in coral tissue near or at interfaces with three of the four groups of algae: 8.5 percent relative abundance at [coralline] interfaces; 2.2 percent relative abundance near [dictyota] interfaces, 2 percent relative abundance near [halimeda] interfaces; but absent near and at interfaces with turf algae.

Page 5, Col 2, (c)...

Every coral colony observed [on the natural Curacao reef] was interacting with at least one type of alga, with an average of 61 to 80 percent of the coral perimeter involved in any type of algal interaction. Interactions with turf algae were the most abundant, accounting for 32 to 58 percent of the coral edge. [In other words, the corals grew this way, touching the algae, naturally. And more of them grew and reproduced while actually touching turf algae, than grew anywhere else.]

Page 7, Col 1...

This study is the first to identify the types of bacteria present along coral-algal interactions, and we find that bacterial stress response pathways were reduced at coral interfaces with [coralline], [dictyota] and turf algae.

[xerophyte_nyc]

Huh????

Read this article more carefully please. "our observations indicate that the important reef building species of the Caribbean genus Montastraea are directly stressed by neighbouring turf algae despite the fact that Montastraea species were historically characterized as competitively superior species [45]. Turf algae are theorized to negatively influence the growth, reproduction, and feeding efficiency of corals, which would explain the reduction in coral fitness observed in this study

Note: Scrubbers are supposed to grow green hair, which is not covered in this study. But many people still think that scrubbers grow turf, and this study does include the amount of microbes related to turf. Brackets "[ ]" added.


"Microbial to reef scale interactions between the reef-building coral Montastraea annularis and benthic algae", Proceedings of the Royal Society, Biological Sciences, Nov 2011
http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/ ... 2155.short


Page 2, Col 1, (a)

"This study was conducted on the island of Curacao, former Netherlands Antilles"

Page 4, Col 2, (b)...

The [...] coral-associated bacterial communities increased in tissues near [coralline] and [dictyota], but decreased for coral tissue adjacent to [halimeda] or turf algae.

Page 5, Col 1...

We found [anaerobic microbes] present in coral tissue near or at interfaces with three of the four groups of algae: 8.5 percent relative abundance at [coralline] interfaces; 2.2 percent relative abundance near [dictyota] interfaces, 2 percent relative abundance near [halimeda] interfaces; but absent near and at interfaces with turf algae.

Page 5, Col 2, (c)...

Every coral colony observed [on the natural Curacao reef] was interacting with at least one type of alga, with an average of 61 to 80 percent of the coral perimeter involved in any type of algal interaction. Interactions with turf algae were the most abundant, accounting for 32 to 58 percent of the coral edge. [In other words, the corals grew this way, touching the algae, naturally. And more of them grew and reproduced while actually touching turf algae, than grew anywhere else.]

Page 7, Col 1...

This study is the first to identify the types of bacteria present along coral-algal interactions, and we find that bacterial stress response pathways were reduced at coral interfaces with [coralline], [dictyota] and turf algae.

[Garf]

[SantaMonica]

You are forgetting the fact that the corals grew there in the first place, touching the algae, more (at least) thousands of years. The study is about the increase of algae in the last 20 years or so.

All reefs are like this, with large amounts of algae intermixed within the algae growth.

[Ace25]

I draw a completely different conclusion based on the latest research. In the ocean algae and corals touching is like living with an obnoxious roommate that you can't get rid of. Just because it isn't bad enough to kill the coral unless it gets out of control doesn't mean the coral is happy and healthy. Imagine how much faster the coral would grow without the algae touching it which uses up energy fighting the algae instead of growth. Actually I don't have to imagine that, others have done the research and proven it.

In the tank we can manually control macro algae near corals by interaction, ie. good clean up crew, manual removal, keeping nutrients levels stable and acceptable, keeping and maintaining good bacteria and microfauna levels, etc. While the ocean does have a lot of diversity, in one example of algae winning there are places it can't maintain a balanced nutrient level due to fertilizer run off from farmlands, which makes algae out compete corals in turn smothering and killing them. Raising CO2 levels raise water temperature which leads to coral bleaching. There are so many factors in the ocean, more today than ever, that gives algae an advantage over corals. Corals are a very adaptable animal though, and we are finding that some high light loving corals are moving deeper in the ocean and adapting to less light in order to get out of the warmer waters and away from algae.

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/blog...nd-at-410-feet

[Garf]

I just don't understand that on this thread the response is along the lines of "algae is good for corals and they love growing next to each other" yet on another thread currently active, something along the lines of "algae is bad for corals, which is why we need to grow them in a separate box", is the solution. Clarification would be nice, as I'm sure there must be a reason.

[Amphiprion]

Huh????

Read this article more carefully please. "our observations indicate that the important reef building species of the Caribbean genus Montastraea are directly stressed by neighbouring turf algae despite the fact that Montastraea species were historically characterized as competitively superior species [45]. Turf algae are theorized to negatively influence the growth, reproduction, and feeding efficiency of corals, which would explain the reduction in coral fitness observed in this study

I draw a completely different conclusion based on the latest research. In the ocean algae and corals touching is like living with an obnoxious roommate that you can't get rid of. Just because it isn't bad enough to kill the coral unless it gets out of control doesn't mean the coral is happy and healthy. Imagine how much faster the coral would grow without the algae touching it which uses up energy fighting the algae instead of growth. Actually I don't have to imagine that, others have done the research and proven it.

In the tank we can manually control macro algae near corals by interaction, ie. good clean up crew, manual removal, keeping nutrients levels stable and acceptable, keeping and maintaining good bacteria and microfauna levels, etc. While the ocean does have a lot of diversity, in one example of algae winning there are places it can't maintain a balanced nutrient level due to fertilizer run off from farmlands, which makes algae out compete corals in turn smothering and killing them. Raising CO2 levels raise water temperature which leads to coral bleaching. There are so many factors in the ocean, more today than ever, that gives algae an advantage over corals. Corals are a very adaptable animal though, and we are finding that some high light loving corals are moving deeper in the ocean and adapting to less light in order to get out of the warmer waters and away from algae.

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/blog...nd-at-410-feet

Agreed. It has more to do with the ubiquity of turf algae than anything else, not that corals like it. They are competitors that evolved side-by-side. I don't think corals have to like algae for them to be useful, though. We don't have to grow them next to each other, luckily, otherwise I wouldn't be using a scrubber at all--at least not with corals.