Herbivory on Cuban Coral Reefs

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Coral Reefs of Cuba

Abstract

Herbivory is an essential ecological process on coral reefs because it balances competition among benthic organisms such as corals and macroalgae. The geomorphological diversity of Cuban coral reefs and their distinctive protection levels present a unique opportunity to showcase the impacts of herbivory on reef dynamics. In this chapter we compiled information on the distribution and abundance of the essential reef herbivores (sea urchins and fishes) on the Cuban shelf and analyzed these data in light of reef characteristics and functioning (e.g., structure, benthic composition). We report an overall low (<1 Ind. m−2) presence of Diadema antillarum on the Cuban shelf and herbivorous fish biomass ranging from 11 g m−2 (La Habana) to 60 g m−2 (Jardines de la Reina), which may explain the overall high macroalgal abundance (47% cover). Our detailed review of Cuban reef literature reveals few studies addressing herbivory directly on coral reefs but many studies describing benthic and fish communities, which offer excellent potential for future studies. We describe two contrasting examples of herbivore effect on macroalgal communities and identify potential questions and research topics of interest for Cuba and the rest of the Greater Caribbean.

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Acknowledgments

This chapter would not have been possible without the invaluable commitment and collaboration of all authors and their institutions, particularly Centro de Investigaciones Marinas, Blue-Sanctuary-Avalon, and the Institute of the Environment at Florida International University. This is contribution #1460 from the Coastlines and Oceans Division of the Institute of Environment at Florida International University.

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Duran, A. et al. (2023). Herbivory on Cuban Coral Reefs. In: Zlatarski, V.N., Reed, J.K., Pomponi, S.A., Brooke, S., Farrington, S. (eds) Coral Reefs of Cuba. Coral Reefs of the World, vol 18. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-36719-9_11

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