Hoey, Andrew S., Berumen, Michael L., Bonaldo, Roberta M., Burt, John A., Feary, David A., Ferreira, Carlos E.L., Floeter, Sergio R., and Nakamura, Yohei (2018) The ecology of parrotfishes in marginal reef systems. In: Hoey, Andrew S., and Bonaldo, Roberta M., (eds.) Biology of Parrotfishes. Taylor & Francis, Boca Raton, FL, USA, pp. 276-301.

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Abstract

The benthic community of a coral reef is a complex and diverse entity, comprised not just of coral but many other benthic organisms (e.g. filamentous turf algae, macroalgae, encrusting coralline algae, sand, detritus), all of which contribute to the productivity and functioning of the reef ecosystem. Depending on the individual system, coral cover on a healthy and pristine reef may therefore only approach a maximum level of 60-70 percent (Wilkinson 2008). On Lizard Island, an island of low human habitation in the mid shelf region of the northern Great Barrier Reef (GBR), Australia, which has been under the management of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority since 1978, coral cover on exposed reef crest and reef slope habitats reaches a maximum of 42 percent and 47 percent average live coral cover respectively (Hoey and Bellwood 2010a). Is this high coral cover? And, if so, what constitutes low coral cover? Some reefs labour under biogeographic and environmental constraints such that a level of coral cover of 20 percent would be considered 'high' (Vroom 2011). What level of coral cover under those circumstances would be considered low? In short, the concept of a "low coral cover reef" poses a number of definitional challenges, which must first be navigated in order to set the context for the ecology of parrotfishes within such systems.

Item ID:	55267
Item Type:	Book Chapter (Research - B1)
ISBN:	978-1-4822-2401-6
Funders:	Australian Research Council (ARC), CNPq, Brazil
Date Deposited:	04 Sep 2018 02:38
FoR Codes:	31 BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES > 3103 Ecology > 310305 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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