A UBCO researcher has created a modeling program that can help scientists plan for the recovery and protection of coral reefs affected by climate change. Credit: Jean-Philippe Marechal.
A UBC Okanagan research team has created a computer modeling program to help scientists predict the effects of climate damage and potential recovery plans for coral reefs around the world.
This is a critical goal, says Dr. Bruno Cartouran, because climate change is killing many coral species and could cause the collapse of entire coral reef ecosystems. But because they are so complex, it is a logistical challenge to study the impact of devastation and regeneration on coral reefs.
Real-world experiments are impractical because researchers would have to manipulate and disrupt large areas of reef, along with coral colonies and herbivore populations, and then monitor changes in structure and diversity over many years.
“Needless to say, conducting experiments that will disrupt natural coral reefs is unethical and should be avoided, while the use of large aquariums is simply not feasible,” said Dr Karturan, who recently completed his PhD at the Faculty of Natural Sciences by Irving K. Barber. “For these reasons, no such experiments have ever been conducted, hampering our ability to predict coral diversity and the associated reef resilience.”
For his latest research, recently published in Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, Dr. Karturan used models to create 245 coral communities, each with a unique set of nine species and each occupying a surface area of 25 square meters. The model represents coral colonies and different types of algae growing, competing and reproducing together while being affected by climate.
Crucially, he notes, all key components of the model, including species traits such as competitive abilities and growth rates, are informed by pre-existing real-world data from 800 species.
The research team simulated different scenarios – including strong waves, a cyclone or intense heat – and then measured the resilience of each reef model, taking into account damage, recovery time and habitat quality 10 years after the disturbance.
By running so many scenarios with computer modeling, the team found that more diverse communities — those with species that have very different traits — are the most resilient. They recovered better from damage and had better habitat quality 10 years after disturbance.
“More diverse communities are more likely to have certain species that are very important for sustainability,” explains Dr Karturan. “These species have specific traits – they are morphologically complex, competitive and have a good capacity to recover. When present in a community, these species maintain or even enhance habitat quality after disturbance. Conversely, communities without these species were often dominated by harmful algae in the end.”
Coral diversity determines the strength and future health of coral reefs, he adds. Coral species are at the heart of coral reef ecosystems because their colonies form the physical habitat where thousands of fish and crustaceans live. Among them are herbivores, such as parrotfish and surgeonfish, which maintain coral habitat by eating algae. Without herbivores, the algae would kill many coral colonies, causing the coral habitat to collapse, wiping out many of their populations.
“What is unique about our study is that our results apply to most coral communities in the world. By measuring the effect of diversity on resilience in more than 245 different coral communities, the range of diversity likely overlaps with the actual coral diversity found on most reefs.”
At the same time, the study provides a framework for successfully managing these ecosystems and helping coral reef recovery by revealing how the resilience of coral communities can be managed by establishing colonies of species with complementary characteristics.
Looking ahead, there are other questions the model can help answer. For example, coral species vital to resilience are also the most affected by climate change and may fail to recover if extreme climate heat waves become too frequent.
“The very real and sad conclusion is that one day we may lose these important species,” says Dr Karturan. “Our model can be used to experiment and perhaps determine whether the loss of these species can be offset by some other, more resilient ones that would prevent eventual reef collapse.”
Researcher uses computer modeling to predict reef health More information: Bruno S. Carturan et al, Functional Richness and Resilience in Coral Reef Communities, Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution (2022). DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2022.780406 Courtesy of University of British Columbia
Citation: Computer modeling aims to inform restoration, coral reef conservation (2022, August 2) Retrieved August 2, 2022, from
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