EVALUATING THE EFFECTS OF CORAL BLEACHING AT A MISSION: ICONIC REEFS CORAL RESTORATION SITE IN THE FLORIDA KEYS NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARY

Coral reefs worldwide have been significantly stressed by high ocean temperatures in the past year during the fourth global coral bleaching event. From June to September 2023, the Florida reef tract experienced severe coral bleaching. Cheeca Rocks is a historically abundant, biodiverse, and resilient patch reef monitored under the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary’s Mission: Iconic Reefs restoration effort. To quantify the impacts of this bleaching event on a high coral cover reef site, I compared orthophotomosaic imagery collected at one 10-meter by 10-meter Cheeca Rocks restoration monitoring plot in June 2022, before the bleaching event, and in May 2024, after the bleaching event. I quantified the benthic cover (%) of corals by using TagLab software to annotate coral colonies. Results showed a decrease in coral cover, an increase in mortality on coral colonies, and an increase in turf macroalgae in 2024. Coral cover decreased from 35 to 27%, and turf macroalgae increased from 12 to 25% in 2024 relative to 2022. Overall, Orbicella spp. and Siderastrea spp. maintained the highest coral cover, even after bleaching. However, Orbicella faveolata, an ESA-listed threatened species, showed the largest decline in cover, from 28 to 20%. Coral colony mortality was most prevalent on the tops of coral colonies, potentially due to increased exposure to high solar irradiance. Results demonstrate the importance of continued coral reef monitoring to quantify climate-based disturbances and ecological resilience, and to inform restoration design and implementation.

Presentation Preference: Poster

Primary Presenter: Mia Gomez, Florida Atlantic University Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College (mialgz03@gmail.com)

Authors:

Mia Gomez, Florida Atlantic University Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College  (mialgz03@gmail.com)

T. Shay Viehman, NOAA, National Ocean Service, National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science  (shay.viehman@noaa.gov)

Sophie Cook, CSS, Inc., under contract to NOAA, National Ocean Service, National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science  (sophie.cook@noaa.gov)