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QUANTITATIVE ASSESSMENT OF CORAL DISEASES IN THE FLORIDA KEYS: STRATEGY AND METHODOLOGY
Citation:
Santavy, D L., E. Mueller, E. C. Peters, L. G. MacLaughlin, J. W. Porter, K. L. Patterson, AND J G. Campbell. QUANTITATIVE ASSESSMENT OF CORAL DISEASES IN THE FLORIDA KEYS: STRATEGY AND METHODOLOGY. HYDROBIOLOGIA 460(1-3):39-52, (2001).
Impact/Purpose:
Our overall objective is to use quantitative assessments to characterize annual patterns in the distribution and frequency of scleractinian and gorgonian coral diseases over a large geographic region of sourthern Florida
Description:
Most studies of coral disease have focused on the incidence of a single disease within a single location. Our overall objective is to use quantitative assessments to characterize annual patterns in the distribution and frequency of scleractinian and gorgonian coral diseases over a large geographic region of sourthern Florida. Pilot surveys conducted in 1997, on randomly selected stations, were used to develop and test methods, select and determine suitability of sites, and obtain preliminary data to assess the variance and efficiency of the experimental design. Survey periods targeted late spring, the time when coral diseases are believed to emerge, and late summer, the time when coral diseases are believed to be most prevalent. Permanent survey sites were established in 1997 and 1998. Two strata were chosen to evaluate patterns of coral disease prevalence in the experimental design. The first stratum geographic area, consisted of reefs in the vicinity of Key West, New Grounds, and the Dry Tortugas. The second stratum, reef typed, consisted of back, fore, and transitional reefs. Radial arc transects (10-m diameter) were used to quantify 10 diseases affecting 16 species of stony corals and gorgonian sea fans over a large geographical region. During the pilot survey, we demonstrated that the outer 8- to 10-m segment (113m2) was an adequate sampling area. The survey implemented important quality assurance measures for data quality control. Power analysis determined that future studies should adopt a=0.10, b=0.0383, and 1-b=0.9617 in our experimental design. The highest prevalence of disease in our study was during the 1997 summer survey, with a mean percent coral disease (MPCD) of 28% occurring at Key West area reefs, or 55% of all back reef stations. Our results do not show a clear pattern of seasonality in coral diseases within either stratum, although difference in disease distribution among reef types and geographic areas were apparent in some of the spring and su