Tom Wijers, Oliver Klokman, Albertinka J. Murk, Jilles Sijbrandij, Alwin Hylkema
{"title":"Low retention of restocked laboratory‐reared long‐spined sea urchins Diadema antillarum due to Spanish hogfish Bodianus rufus predation","authors":"Tom Wijers, Oliver Klokman, Albertinka J. Murk, Jilles Sijbrandij, Alwin Hylkema","doi":"10.1111/rec.14264","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"The die‐off of the long‐spined sea urchin <jats:italic>Diadema antillarum</jats:italic> in the 1980s highlighted its crucial role as a primary grazer in tropical western Atlantic coral reefs. However, natural recovery has been slow, exacerbated by a new die‐off in 2022. Interest in actively restoring <jats:italic>D. antillarum</jats:italic> populations has grown with the emergence of culture and rearing techniques. Restocking reefs with laboratory‐reared urchins shows potential for enhancing coral reef resilience by reducing algal cover and promoting coral settlement, but success rates vary. Predation and migration contribute to low retention rates, with distinguishing between them is challenging. In this study near Saba, Caribbean Netherlands, we released 200 laboratory‐reared <jats:italic>D. antillarum</jats:italic> on a reef and monitored for <jats:italic>D. antillarum</jats:italic> retention and potential <jats:italic>D. antillarum</jats:italic> predator presence and interaction for 35 days. Only 40% of the urchins were still present on the reef after day one. The Spanish hogfish <jats:italic>Bodianus rufus</jats:italic> was identified as the primary daytime predator, responsible for nine direct predation events. No nighttime predation was observed, but interaction with a batwing coral crab <jats:italic>Carpilius corallinus</jats:italic> was noted. These insights can help optimize future restocking attempts and emphasize the importance of assessing predator presence beforehand. Reefs with high abundances of predators such as Spanish hogfish should be avoided for <jats:italic>D antillarum</jats:italic> restocking. In addition, before being released, lab‐reared animals should be given time to acclimate to conditions in the wild by being placed in protected in situ cages. Here, they could also grow to larger sizes that are less vulnerable to predation.","PeriodicalId":54487,"journal":{"name":"Restoration Ecology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.8000,"publicationDate":"2024-09-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Restoration Ecology","FirstCategoryId":"93","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1111/rec.14264","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"ECOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
The die‐off of the long‐spined sea urchin Diadema antillarum in the 1980s highlighted its crucial role as a primary grazer in tropical western Atlantic coral reefs. However, natural recovery has been slow, exacerbated by a new die‐off in 2022. Interest in actively restoring D. antillarum populations has grown with the emergence of culture and rearing techniques. Restocking reefs with laboratory‐reared urchins shows potential for enhancing coral reef resilience by reducing algal cover and promoting coral settlement, but success rates vary. Predation and migration contribute to low retention rates, with distinguishing between them is challenging. In this study near Saba, Caribbean Netherlands, we released 200 laboratory‐reared D. antillarum on a reef and monitored for D. antillarum retention and potential D. antillarum predator presence and interaction for 35 days. Only 40% of the urchins were still present on the reef after day one. The Spanish hogfish Bodianus rufus was identified as the primary daytime predator, responsible for nine direct predation events. No nighttime predation was observed, but interaction with a batwing coral crab Carpilius corallinus was noted. These insights can help optimize future restocking attempts and emphasize the importance of assessing predator presence beforehand. Reefs with high abundances of predators such as Spanish hogfish should be avoided for D antillarum restocking. In addition, before being released, lab‐reared animals should be given time to acclimate to conditions in the wild by being placed in protected in situ cages. Here, they could also grow to larger sizes that are less vulnerable to predation.
期刊介绍:
Restoration Ecology fosters the exchange of ideas among the many disciplines involved with ecological restoration. Addressing global concerns and communicating them to the international research community and restoration practitioners, the journal is at the forefront of a vital new direction in science, ecology, and policy. Original papers describe experimental, observational, and theoretical studies on terrestrial, marine, and freshwater systems, and are considered without taxonomic bias. Contributions span the natural sciences, including ecological and biological aspects, as well as the restoration of soil, air and water when set in an ecological context; and the social sciences, including cultural, philosophical, political, educational, economic and historical aspects. Edited by a distinguished panel, the journal continues to be a major conduit for researchers to publish their findings in the fight to not only halt ecological damage, but also to ultimately reverse it.