Coral Gardening - Microfragmentation — Florida Keys

OPP-FBCR0Ppermanent identifier · cite as oceanportfolio.org/p/OPP-FBCR0P

Published as: Microfragmenting for the successful restoration of slow growing massive corals | Technique: Coral Gardening - Microfragmentation | Genera: Orbicella, Montastrea | Method: Arrays of eight microfragments were planted near one larger fragment of similar size at each location. Six replicate pairs were haphazardly placed within each ∼700m2 study site. Fragments at both sites were monitored for growth and survival over 31 months | Survival of transplants reported by the source: 59.5% | Post-restoration monitoring: 31 months | Authors' conclusion: Initial growth, when standardized to initial surface area, in nearshore outplants was significantly higher for both species of microfragment arrays compared to larger fragments.there was no different between fragment types in the long term, despite average change in surface area showing that microfragment arrays produced nearly 6.5 times more tissue for O. faveolata and nearly 2 times more tissue for M. cavernosa. This lack of significance was due primarily to high variability between arrays of each species and lack of experimental power. Predation was a significant problem. | Lessons reported: If predation events are reduced, massive corals can be successfully grown and outplanted for restoration purposes. | This record was compiled from a published source and has not been confirmed by the organisation that carried out the work. No contribution to the condition index is recorded: the source reports survival of transplanted material, which is not a measure of ecosystem condition.

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