Hughes, Terry (2003) Biogeographic comparisons of coral faunas. Oceanus, 29 (3-4). pp. 291-301.

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Abstract

The taxonomic composition of scleractinian faunas was examined, (a) for the Caribbean versus the Great Barrier Reef, and (b) from 50 locations within the Indian and Pacific Oceans, to search for inter-ocean and regional-scale variation in species assembly rules. In the Caribbean several major taxa are missing and entire functional groups of corals are rare or absent. The low diversity of Caribbean reefs may render them more prone to phase-shifts following human disturbances than more diverse Indo-Pacific assemblages. Extinctions of even one or two ecologically important species are more likely to be associated with losses of critical ecosystem functions, compared to high diversity regions. In the Indo-Pacific, there is a striking linear correlation between species richness of each coral family. Consequently, geographic variation in Indo-Pacific scleractinian faunas is remarkably small and the proportion of species in each family is constrained within a narrow range.

Item ID:	26654
Item Type:	Article (Non-Refereed Research)
ISSN:	0182-0745
Keywords:	coral reefs, biogeography, assembly rules, biodiversity, scleractinians
Date Deposited:	23 Jun 2013 23:22
FoR Codes:	06 BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES > 0602 Ecology > 060205 Marine and Estuarine Ecology (incl Marine Ichthyology) @ 100%
SEO Codes:	96 ENVIRONMENT > 9608 Flora, Fauna and Biodiversity > 960808 Marine Flora, Fauna and Biodiversity @ 100%
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