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Long-term dynamics of a high-latitude coral reef community at Sodwana Bay, South Africa

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Abstract

Dynamics in reef cover, mortality and recruitment success of a high-latitude coral community in South Africa were studied over 20 yr with the aim to detect the effects of climate change. Coral communities at this locality are the southernmost on the African continent, non-accretive, attain high biodiversity and are dominated by soft corals. Long-term monitoring within fixed transects on representative reef was initiated in 1993 and has entailed annual photo-quadrat surveys and hourly temperature logging. Although sea temperatures rose by 0.15 °C p.a. at the site up to 2000, they have subsequently been decreasing, and the overall trend based on monthly means has been a significant decrease of 0.03 °C p.a. Despite this, minor bleaching was encountered in the region during the 1998 El Niño–Southern Oscillation event, again in the summer of 2000/2001 and in 2005. A significant decreasing trend of 0.95% p.a. in soft coral cover has been evident throughout the monitoring period, attributable to significant decreases in Sinularia and Lobophytum spp. cover. In contrast, hard coral cover gradually and significantly increased up to 2005, this being largely attributable to increases in cover by Acropora spp. Recruitment success and mortality of both soft and hard corals has displayed high inter-annual variability with increasing but non-significant trends in the last 5 yr. The reduction in soft coral cover has been more consistent and greater than that of hard corals, but it is difficult at this stage to attribute this to changes in water quality, acidification-linked accretion or temperature.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful for financial assistance from the Department of Environmental Affairs, the National Research Foundation and the South African Association for Marine Biological Research. The Mazda Wildlife Fund sponsored a 4 × 4 vehicle. We are also grateful to staff of the Oceanographic Research Institute for their support in the field. Finally, we thank the topic editor and four anonymous reviewers for their help in improving the manuscript.

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  1. Oceanographic Research Institute, PO Box 10712, Marine Parade, Durban, 4056, South Africa

    S. N. Porter & M. H. Schleyer

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  1. S. N. Porter
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Correspondence to S. N. Porter.

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Porter, S.N., Schleyer, M.H. Long-term dynamics of a high-latitude coral reef community at Sodwana Bay, South Africa. Coral Reefs 36, 369–382 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00338-016-1531-z

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