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HERO ID
7883177
Reference Type
Journal Article
Title
Subtropical thermal variation supports persistence of corals but limits productivity of coral reefs
Author(s)
Mcilroy, SE; Thompson, PD; Yuan, FL; Bonebrake, TC; Baker, DM
Year
2019
Is Peer Reviewed?
1
Journal
Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B: Biological Sciences
ISSN:
1471-2954
Volume
286
Issue
1907
Page Numbers
20190882
Language
English
PMID
31311470
DOI
10.1098/rspb.2019.0882
Web of Science Id
WOS:000477953500012
Abstract
Concomitant to the decline of tropical corals caused by increasing global sea temperatures is the potential removal of barriers to species range expansions into subtropical and temperate habitats. In these habitats, species must tolerate lower annual mean temperature, wider annual temperature ranges and lower minimum temperatures. To understand ecophysiological traits that will impact geographical range boundaries, we monitored populations of five coral species within a marginal habitat and used a year of in situ measures to model thermal performance of vital host, symbiont and holobiont physiology. Metabolic responses to temperature revealed two acclimatization strategies: peak productivity occurring at annual midpoint temperatures (4-6°C lower than tropical counterparts), or at annual maxima. Modelled relationships between temperature and P:R were compared to a year of daily subtropical sea temperatures and revealed that the relatively short time spent at any one temperature, limited optimal performance of all strategies to approximately half the days of the year. Thus, while subtropical corals can adjust their physiology to persist through seasonal lows, seasonal variation seems to be the key factor limiting coral productivity. This constraint on rapid reef accretion within subtropical environments provides insight into the global distribution of future coral reefs and their ecosystem services.
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