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Article
Growth and carbonate production of crustose coralline algae on a degraded turbid reef system
Marine Pollution Bulletin
  • Tiffany Z. Y. Goh, National University of Singapore
  • Andrew G Bauman, National University of Singapore
  • Fraser A. Januchowski-Hartley, Swansea University
  • Kyle M. Morgan, Nanyang Technological University
  • Jovena C. L. Seah, National University of Singapore
  • Peter A. Todd, National University of Singapore
ORCID
0000-0001-9260-2153
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
12-1-2021
Keywords
  • Crustose coralline algae,
  • Encrusting carbonate production,
  • Settlement tiles,
  • Turbid reefs,
  • Anthropocene
Abstract

Crustose coralline algae (CCA) and other encrusting calcifiers drive carbonate production on coral reefs. However, little is known about the rates of growth and calcification of these organisms within degraded turbid reef systems. Here we deployed settlement cards (N = 764) across seven reefs in Singapore for two years to examine spatio-temporal variation in encrusting community composition and CCA carbonate production. Our results showed that CCA was the dominant encrusting taxa (63.7% ± 18.3SD) across reefs. CCA carbonate production rates (0.009–0.052 g cm−2 yr−1) were less than half of those reported for most Indo-Pacific reefs, but similar to other turbid reef systems. Highest CCA carbonate production rates were observed furthest from Singapore's main shipping port, due to a relative increase in CCA cover on the offshore reefs. Our results suggest that proximity to areas of high industrialisation and ship traffic may reduce the cover of encrusting calcifying organisms and CCA production rates which may have negative, long-term implications for the stabilisation of nearshore reefs in urbanised settings.

DOI
10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.113135
Comments

This research was supported by Singapore National Research Foundation, Prime Minister's Office Singapore, under the Marine Science Research and Development Programme (MSRDP-P03) and permitted by Singapore National Parks Board (NP/PR17-045).

Citation Information
Tiffany Z. Y. Goh, Andrew G Bauman, Fraser A. Januchowski-Hartley, Kyle M. Morgan, et al.. "Growth and carbonate production of crustose coralline algae on a degraded turbid reef system" Marine Pollution Bulletin Vol. 173 Iss. Part B (2021) p. 113135 ISSN: 0025-326X
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/andrew-bauman/10/