Response of the temperate scleractinian coral Cladocora caespitosa to high temperature and long-term nutrient enrichment.

ABSTRACT: Anthropogenic nutrient enrichment and increased seawater temperatures are responsible for coral reef decline. In particular, they disrupt the relationship between corals and their dinoflagellate symbionts (bleaching). However, some coral species can afford either high temperatures or nutrient enrichment and their study can bring new insights into how corals acclimate or adapt to stressors. Here, we focused on the role of the nutrient history in influencing the response of the Mediterranean scleractinian coral Cladocora caespitosa to thermal stress. Colonies living naturally in nutrient-poor (<0.5 µM nitrogen, <0.2 µM phosphorus, LN) and nutrient-rich (ca. 10-20 µM nitrogen, 0.4 µM phosphorus, HN) locations were sampled, maintained under the right nutrient conditions, and exposed to a tempe

SUBMITTER: Hadjioannou L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6775152 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature