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Nutrient status in coral reefs of the Îles Eparses (Scattered Islands): comparison to nearby reefs subject to higher anthropogenic influences (Mozambique Channel and Mascarenes, Indian Ocean)

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Oceanological and Hydrobiological Studies

Abstract

Indian Ocean coral reef environments off Mascarenes (Réunion and Rodrigues Islands), Comores archipelago (Mayotte) and Eparses atolls (Europa, Glorieuses, Juan de Nova and Tromelin), were sampled in 2007 and 2009 for environmental parameters and benthic diatoms studies. This preliminary note documents the nutrient concentrations [NO −3 , NO −2 , PO −4 and Si(OH)4] of coastal waters in diverse sites and examines the possible relationship between nutrient concentration and anthropogenic pressure. The pool of data is restricted, but the marine coastal environments of Réunion, Rodrigues and Mayotte exhibit, on average, higher levels of nutrient concentration, as compared to Eparses atolls, probably in relation to the degree of urbanisation. A project based on the study of benthic diatom assemblages will offer the opportunity to search for possible anthropogenic signatures.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. LaBex “CORAIL”, USR 3278 CNRS-EPHE, CRIOBE-Université de Perpignan, FR-66086, Perpignan, France

    Catherine Riaux-Gobin & Pablo Saenz-Agudelo

  2. Department of Palaeoceanology, Institute of Marine Sciences, Szczecin University, Mickiewicza 18, PL-70-383, Szczecin, Poland

    Andrzej Witkowski

  3. Laboratoire d’Océanographie Biologique, CNRS/UPMC Paris6, UMR 7621, FR-66650, Banyuls-sur-Mer, France

    Jacques Neveux, Louise Oriol & Gilles Vétion

Authors
  1. Catherine Riaux-Gobin
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  2. Andrzej Witkowski
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  3. Pablo Saenz-Agudelo
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  4. Jacques Neveux
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  5. Louise Oriol
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  6. Gilles Vétion
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Correspondence to Catherine Riaux-Gobin.

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Riaux-Gobin, C., Witkowski, A., Saenz-Agudelo, P. et al. Nutrient status in coral reefs of the Îles Eparses (Scattered Islands): comparison to nearby reefs subject to higher anthropogenic influences (Mozambique Channel and Mascarenes, Indian Ocean). Ocean and Hydro 40, 84–90 (2011). https://doi.org/10.2478/s13545-011-0033-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/s13545-011-0033-4

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