BAKTERI PADA KARANG SCLERACTINIA DI KAWASAN PERAIRAN BUNAKEN, MOROTAI DAN RAJA AMPAT

Research on hard coral (Scleractinian coral) contaminated with bacteria is still not much done, especially in Indonesian waters. This study took samples of coral mucus in 2010 at 3 (three) different locations, namely Bunaken (May); Morotai (September) and Raja Ampat (November), which focused on the analysis of Research on hard coral (Scleractinian coral) contaminated with bacteria is still not much done, especially in Indonesian waters. This study took samples of coral mucus in 2010 at 3 (three) different locations, namely Bunaken (May); Morotai (September) and Raja Ampat (November), which focused on the analysis of gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. The method used for field sampling is time swim, which is by diving at a depth of 5-10 meters for ± 30 minutes and randomly taking samples of coral mucus using siring or by taking directly on corals (reef branching). Mucus samples were analyzed by bacterial isolation in the laboratory. The result shows that there were differences between gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria in the three research sites and that gram-positive bacteria were higher or dominant. Further research that can identify the bacteria species and explain its relationship to the ecosystem is highly recommended.Keywords: Bacteria, Scleractinian coral, gram-positive and -negative, Bunaken, Morotai, Raja Ampat                                               AbstrakPenelitian tentang karang keras (Scleractinian coral) yang terkontaminasi bakteri masih belum banyak dilakukan, terutama di perairan Indonesia. Penelitian ini mengambil sampel mucus karang pada tahun 2010 di 3 (tiga) lokasi berbeda, yakni Bunaken (Mei); Morotai (September) dan Raja Ampat (November), yang difokuskan pada analisis bakteri gram postif dan gram negatif. Metode yang digunakan untuk pengambilan sampel di lapangan adalah time swim, yaitu dengan penyelaman pada kedalaman 5-10 meter selama ±30 menit dan mengambil sampel mucus karang secara acak menggunakan siring atau dengan mengambil langsung pada karang (fraksi cabang). Sampel mucus dianalisis dengan cara isolasi bakteri di laboratorium. Hasil analisis menunjukkan bahwa ada perbedaan antara bakteri gram positif dan gram negative di tiga lokasi survei dan bakteri gram positif lebih tinggi atau dominan. Penelitian lebih lanjut yang dapat menentukan jenis bakteri serta menjelaskan hubungannya dengan ekosistem sangat disarankan untuk dilakukan.Kata Kunci : Bakteri, Scleractinian coral, gram positif dan negatif, Bunaken, Morotai, Raja Ampat