An important aspect of using coral propagation to improve reef resilience to future stress is ensuring replanted coral communities are stress tolerant. We have been applying novel screening tools to identify different genetic variants of key coral species via molecular analyses, and subjecting targeted corals to high-throughput heat stress assays to determine stress tolerance rankings. This in turn informs choice of coral for propagation and outplanting.
We have been developing new “multi-trait” measurement approaches to gain a deeper understanding of how coral biology is affected by intensive propagation – in contrast to common measures of outplanting success related only to growth and survivorship. As part of this work, we have been developing new tools to identify functionally different coral colonies, in real time, to maximise how we choose diverse stock for nursery propagation.
Corals associate with a variety of microbes (including symbiotic algae and bacteria) that are fundamental to health and resilience. We examine how growing and out-planting coral across diverse environments impacts different constituents of the coral organism including the coral microbiome, and in turn how coral-associated microorganisms can be harnessed to optimise outcomes.
Since the beginning of the Coral Nurture Program, we have been documenting how intensive outplanting influences the trajectory of reef ecological recovery, in comparison to neighbouring “control” reef sites. As community structure of the many organisms that live on a coral reef are dependent on the abundance and diversity of corals present, we conduct parallel experiments tracking how planting specific coral species influences success of reef recovery.
Nursery-based coral propagation is an essential research focus within the Coral Nurture Program. To ensure we can tailor protocols to suit diverse coral species, genotypes and sites, we evaluate health and performance of key coral species across diverse reef environments. We examine how coral nurseries can support local fish communities (for example where herbivorous fish naturally nursery structures) and also fast-track corals to the size at which they can begin to sexually reproduce.
A critical element of the Coral Nurture Program’s success has been accelerating the rate, scale and cost-effectiveness of re-planting coral – however, it is not about how many we plant, but rather how many of these ultimately survive. To increase coral outplant long-term success for diverse coral species and growth forms, we evaluate how outplant survivorship and health is affected by environmental conditions and outplanting practices – ultimately making recommendations for best practice based on our findings.
Maintaining or improving coral cover and diversity rests on understanding rates of natural recovery. We have assessed coral recruitment on the reef to understand the scale and extent with which outplanting should be conducted to benefit the reef beyond that which is possibly naturally. We also examine how growing corals in our nurseries can be used to generate colonies that are sexually mature and therefore contribute to natural recruitment.
Optimising the effectiveness of Coralclip® to secure corals to the reef has required new understanding of the biology of attachment – the process by which corals naturally re-cement themselves to reef substates. We are using new approaches to define how attachment effectiveness varies across coral species and reef environments.
We closely track social and economic impacts throughout our program life cycle to ensure that our research-informed efforts are continually tailored to optimise cost-effectiveness and return on investment. Tracking industry benefits – including economic rationale – of coral propagation is a critical feature as to when and where activity should be initiated, continued or stopped.
Collaboration is key for securing a future for the world’s coral reefs. We actively collaborate with other scientists and practitioners around the world to share learnings and address unique scientific questions. We encourage people to get in touch with any collaboration proposals that align with our research themes.
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