Hyperspectral and physiological analyses of coral-algal interactions.

ABSTRACT: Space limitation leads to competition between benthic, sessile organisms on coral reefs. As a primary example, reef-building corals are in direct contact with each other and many different species and functional groups of algae. Here we characterize interactions between three coral genera and three algal functional groups using a combination of hyperspectral imaging and oxygen microprofiling. We also performed in situ interaction transects to quantify the relative occurrence of these interaction on coral reefs. These studies were conducted in the Southern Line Islands, home to some of the most remote and near-pristine reefs in the world. Our goal was to determine if different types of coral-coral and coral-algal interactions were characterized by unique fine-scale physiological signatures.

SUBMITTER: Barott K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2778555 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature