The current status of coral reefs and their vulnerability to climate change and multiple human stresses in the Comoros Archipelago, Western Indian Ocean.
Mar Pollut Bull
; 133: 956-969, 2018 Aug.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-29778407
ABSTRACT
Coral bleaching and various human stressors have degraded the coral reefs of the Comoros Archipelago in the past 40â¯years and rising atmospheric CO2 levels are predicted to further impact marine habitats. The condition of reefs in the Comoros is poorly known; using SCUBA based methods we surveyed reef condition and resilience to bleaching at sites in Grande Comore and Mohéli in 2010 and 2016. The condition of reefs was highly variable, with a range in live coral cover between 6% and 60% and target fishery species biomass between 20 and 500â¯kg per ha. The vulnerability assessment of reefs to future coral bleaching and their exposure to fishing, soil erosion and river pollution in Mohéli Marine Park found that offshore sites around the islets south of the island were least likely to be impacted by these negative pressures. The high variability in both reef condition and vulnerability across reefs in the Park lends itself to spatially explicit conservation actions. However, it is noteworthy that climate impacts to date appear moderate and that local human pressures are not having a major impact on components of reef health and recovery, suggesting these reefs are relatively resilient to the current anthropogenic stresses that they are experiencing.
Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Banco de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Antozoos
/
Actividades Humanas
Tipo de estudio:
Prognostic_studies
Límite:
Animals
/
Humans
País como asunto:
Africa
Idioma:
En
Año:
2018
Tipo del documento:
Article