Social–environmental drivers inform strategic management of coral reefs in the Anthropocene
Journal
Nature Ecology & Evolution
Journal Volume
3
Journal Issue
9
Start Page
1341
End Page
1350
ISSN
2397-334X
Date Issued
2019-08-12
Author(s)
Darling, Emily S.
McClanahan, Tim R.
Maina, Joseph
Gurney, Georgina G.
Graham, Nicholas A. J.
Januchowski-Hartley, Fraser
Cinner, Joshua E.
Mora, Camilo
Hicks, Christina C.
Maire, Eva
Puotinen, Marji
Skirving, William J.
Adjeroud, Mehdi
Ahmadia, Gabby
Arthur, Rohan
Bauman, Andrew G.
Beger, Maria
Berumen, Michael L.
Bigot, Lionel
Bouwmeester, Jessica
Brenier, Ambroise
Bridge, Tom C. L.
Brown, Eric
Campbell, Stuart J.
Cannon, Sara
Cauvin, Bruce
Chen, Chaolun Allen
Claudet, Joachim
Donner, Simon
Fadli, Nur
Feary, David A.
Fenner, Douglas
Fox, Helen
Franklin, Erik C.
Friedlander, Alan
Gilmour, James
Goiran, Claire
Guest, James
Hobbs, Jean-Paul A.
Hoey, Andrew S.
Houk, Peter
Johnson, Steven
Jupiter, Stacy D.
Kayal, Mohsen
Kuo, Chao-yang
Lamb, Joleah
Lee, Michelle A. C.
Low, Jeffrey
Muthiga, Nyawira
Muttaqin, Efin
Nand, Yashika
Nash, Kirsty L.
Nedlic, Osamu
Pandolfi, John M.
Pardede, Shinta
Patankar, Vardhan
Penin, Lucie
Ribas-Deulofeu, Lauriane
Richards, Zoe
Roberts, T. Edward
Rodgers, Ku’ulei S.
Safuan, Che Din Mohd
Sala, Enric
Shedrawi, George
Sin, Tsai Min
Smallhorn-West, Patrick
Smith, Jennifer E.
Sommer, Brigitte
Steinberg, Peter D.
Sutthacheep, Makamas
Tan, Chun Hong James
Williams, Gareth J.
Wilson, Shaun
Yeemin, Thamasak
Bruno, John F.
Fortin, Marie-Josée
Krkosek, Martin
Mouillot, David
Abstract
Without drastic efforts to reduce carbon emissions and mitigate globalized stressors, tropical coral reefs are in jeopardy. Strategic conservation and management requires identification of the environmental and socioeconomic factors driving the persistence of scleractinian coral assemblages—the foundation species of coral reef ecosystems. Here, we compiled coral abundance data from 2,584 Indo-Pacific reefs to evaluate the influence of 21 climate, social and environmental drivers on the ecology of reef coral assemblages. Higher abundances of framework-building corals were typically associated with: weaker thermal disturbances and longer intervals for potential recovery; slower human population growth; reduced access by human settlements and markets; and less nearby agriculture. We therefore propose a framework of three management strategies (protect, recover or transform) by considering: (1) if reefs were above or below a proposed threshold of >10% cover of the coral taxa important for structural complexity and carbonate production; and (2) reef exposure to severe thermal stress during the 2014–2017 global coral bleaching event. Our findings can guide urgent management efforts for coral reefs, by identifying key threats across multiple scales and strategic policy priorities that might sustain a network of functioning reefs in the Indo-Pacific to avoid ecosystem collapse.
Subjects
Animals
Anthozoa
Climate
Climate Change
Coral Reefs
Ecosystem
Humans
animal
climate
climate change
coral reef
ecosystem
human
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Type
journal article