Highly endangered staghorn coral in the Caribbean sea
A genome-wide survey of highly endangered staghorn coral in the Caribbean has identified 10 genomic regions associated with resilience against white band disease.
About Staghorn Coral
Staghorn coral is one of the most important corals in the Caribbean. Along with elkhorn coral
and star corals it built Caribbean coral reefs over the last 5000 years.
Staghorn coral can form dense groups called ‘thickets’ in very shallow water.
Get food from photosynthetic algae that live inside the coral’s cells.
In the early 1980s, a severe disease event caused major mortality throughout its range and now the population is less than 3 percent of its former abundance. The greatest threat to staghorn coral is ocean warming, which causes the corals to release the algae that live in their tissue and provide them food, usually causing death. Other threats to staghorn coral are ocean acidification (decrease in water pH caused by increased carbon dioxide in the atmosphere) that makes it harder for them to build their skeleton, unsustainable fishing practices that deplete the herbivores (animals that feed on plants) that keep the reef clean, and land-based sources of pollution that impacts the clear, low nutrient waters in which they thrive
Population Status
Staghorn coral used to be a dominant coral on Caribbean reefs and was so abundant that an entire reef zone is named for it. Beginning in the 1980s, the staghorn coral population declined 97 percent from white band disease. This disease kills the coral’s tissues. Populations appear to consist mostly of isolated colonies or small groups of colonies compared to the vast thickets once prominent throughout its range, with thickets still a prominent feature at only a handful of known locations. Successful reproduction is very rare, so it is hard for staghorn coral populations to increase.
Appearance
Staghorn coral colonies are golden tan or pale brown with white tips and they get their color from the algae that live within their tissue. Staghorn corals have antler-like branches and typically stem out from a central trunk and angle upward. Branches are typically 1–3 inches thick. Individual colonies can grow to at least 4 feet in height and 6 feet in diameter. Staghorn coral colonies can grow in dense stands and form an interlocking framework known as thickets. Each staghorn coral colony is made up of many individual polyps that grow together. Each polyp is an exact copy of all the polyps in the same colony.
Behavior and Diet
Staghorn coral get food from photosynthetic algae that live inside the coral’s cells. They also feed by capturing plankton with their polyps’ tentacles. Coral bleaching is the loss of the algae that live in coral tissue. This loss can lead to coral death through starvation or increased vulnerability to diseases.
Due to their bush-like growth form, staghorn corals provide complex habitat for fish and other coral reef organisms. When staghorn corals are abundant, they provide shoreline protections from large waves and storms.
Where They Live
Staghorn coral is found typically in clear, shallow water (15–60 feet) on coral reefs throughout the Bahamas, Florida, and the Caribbean. The northern extent of the range in the Atlantic Ocean is Palm Beach County, Florida, where it is relatively rare. Staghorn coral lives in many coral reef habitats including spur and groove, bank reef, patch reef, and transitional reef habitats, as well as on limestone ridges, terraces, and hardbottom habitats. NOAA Fisheries has designated four critical areas determined to provide critical recruitment habitat for staghorn corals off the coast of Florida and off the islands of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Threats to Staghorn Coral:
Ocean warming; ocean acidification, unsustainable fishing practice and land-based
sources of pollution.