biostudies-literatureUnknown5(1)Hazraty-Kari SElevated temperatures cause coral bleaching and reef degradation. However, coral may have strategies to survive by reproducing more heat-tolerable larvae. We examine the direct and carryover effects of thermal stress on fecundity and fitness in the reef-building coral Acropora tenuis. Fragments from the same colony are subjected to control temperature (~27.5 °C) or heat stress (~31 °C) for ten days. We then examine the fecundity of adults (egg number and size) and the thermal tolerance of larvae and recruits (survival rates, growth, and size). The stressed fragments show a trade-off in egg production, an increase in egg number but a decrease in size. In addition, larvae and recruits from the stressed colony show marginally higher survival rates in the higher water temperature but do not diCommunications biologyhttps://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC9751277biostudies-literatureAdaptations by the coral Acropora tenuis confer resilience to future thermal stressPMC9751277Hazraty-Kari SKitanobo SMorita MNakamura TTavakoli-Kolour PfalseAdaptations by the coral Acropora tenuis confer resilience to future thermal stressElevated temperatures cause coral bleaching and reef degradation. However, coral may have strategies to survive by reproducing more heat-tolerable larvae. We examine the direct and carryover effects of thermal stress on fecundity and fitness in the reef-building coral Acropora tenuis. Fragments from the same colony are subjected to control temperature (~27.5 °C) or heat stress (~31 °C) for ten days. We then examine the fecundity of adults (egg number and size) and the thermal tolerance of larvae and recruits (survival rates, growth, and size). The stressed fragments show a trade-off in egg production, an increase in egg number but a decrease in size. In addition, larvae and recruits from the stressed colony show marginally higher survival rates in the higher water temperature but do not di2022-01-01T00:00:00Z2022 Jan2025-04-04T19:11:03.032Z2025-02-18T23:49:23.016ZS-EPMC9751277