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Physiological and ecological consequences of the water optical properties degradation on reef corals

View ORCID ProfileTomás López-Londoño, Claudia T. Galindo-Martínez, Kelly Gómez-Campo, Luis A. González-Guerrero, Sofia Roitman, F. Joseph Pollock, Valeria Pizarro, Mateo López-Victoria, Mónica Medina, Roberto Iglesias-Prieto
doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.02.18.431834
Tomás López-Londoño
1The Pennsylvania State University, Department of Biology, 208 Mueller Lab, University Park, USA
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  • ORCID record for Tomás López-Londoño
  • For correspondence: txl40@psu.edu
Claudia T. Galindo-Martínez
1The Pennsylvania State University, Department of Biology, 208 Mueller Lab, University Park, USA
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Kelly Gómez-Campo
1The Pennsylvania State University, Department of Biology, 208 Mueller Lab, University Park, USA
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Luis A. González-Guerrero
1The Pennsylvania State University, Department of Biology, 208 Mueller Lab, University Park, USA
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Sofia Roitman
1The Pennsylvania State University, Department of Biology, 208 Mueller Lab, University Park, USA
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F. Joseph Pollock
1The Pennsylvania State University, Department of Biology, 208 Mueller Lab, University Park, USA
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Valeria Pizarro
2The Nature Conservancy, Northern Caribbean Office, The Cape Eleuthera Island School, Rock Sound, Bahamas
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Mateo López-Victoria
3Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Department of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, Cali, Colombia
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Mónica Medina
1The Pennsylvania State University, Department of Biology, 208 Mueller Lab, University Park, USA
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Roberto Iglesias-Prieto
1The Pennsylvania State University, Department of Biology, 208 Mueller Lab, University Park, USA
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Abstract

Degradation of water optical properties due to anthropogenic disturbances is a common phenomenon in coastal waters globally. Although this condition is associated with multiple drivers that affect corals health in multiple ways, its effect on light availability and photosynthetic energy acquisition has been largely neglected. Here, we describe how declining the water optical quality in a coastal reef exposed to a turbid plume of water originating from a man-made channel compromise the functionality of the keystone coral species Orbicella faveolata. We found highly variable water optical conditions with significant effects on the light quantity and quality available for corals. Reduction of light penetration into the water column elicits the development of low-light phenotypes close to theoretical limits of photoacclimation despite their occurrence at shallow depths. Predicted photosynthetic energy depletion with increasing depth is associated with patterns of colony mortality and contraction of the habitable space for the population. A numerical model illustrates the potential effect the progressive degradation of water optical properties on the gradual mortality and population decline of O. faveolata. Our findings suggest that preserving the water optical properties seeking to maximize light penetration into the water column may have an extraordinary impact on coral reefs conservation, mostly toward the deeper portions of reefs.

Competing Interest Statement

The authors have declared no competing interest.

Footnotes

  • https://figshare.com/s/e5e49575f67b90202579

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The copyright holder for this preprint is the author/funder, who has granted bioRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity. It is made available under a CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license.
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Posted February 18, 2021.
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Physiological and ecological consequences of the water optical properties degradation on reef corals
Tomás López-Londoño, Claudia T. Galindo-Martínez, Kelly Gómez-Campo, Luis A. González-Guerrero, Sofia Roitman, F. Joseph Pollock, Valeria Pizarro, Mateo López-Victoria, Mónica Medina, Roberto Iglesias-Prieto
bioRxiv 2021.02.18.431834; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.02.18.431834
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Physiological and ecological consequences of the water optical properties degradation on reef corals
Tomás López-Londoño, Claudia T. Galindo-Martínez, Kelly Gómez-Campo, Luis A. González-Guerrero, Sofia Roitman, F. Joseph Pollock, Valeria Pizarro, Mateo López-Victoria, Mónica Medina, Roberto Iglesias-Prieto
bioRxiv 2021.02.18.431834; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.02.18.431834

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