Seasonal regulation of herbivory and nutrient effects on macroalgal recruitment and succession in a Florida coral reef.

ABSTRACT: Herbivory and nutrient enrichment are drivers of benthic dynamics of coral reef macroalgae; however, their impact may vary seasonally. In this study we evaluated the effects of herbivore pressure, nutrient availability and potential propagule supply on seasonal recruitment and succession of macroalgal communities on a Florida coral reef. Recruitment tiles, replaced every three months, and succession tiles, kept in the field for nine months, were established in an ongoing factorial nutrient enrichment-herbivore exclusion experiment. The ongoing experiment had already created very different algal communities across the different herbivory and nutrient treatments. We tracked algal recruitment, species richness, and species abundance through time. Our results show seasonal variation in the eff

SUBMITTER: Duran A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5101614 | biostudies-literature | 2016

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature