DNA reveals the past and future of coral reefs
New DNA techniques are being used to understand how coral reacted to the end of the last ice age in order to better predict how they will cope with current changes to the climate. James Cook Univer
From 2005 to 2022, the main node of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies was headquartered at James Cook University in Townsville, Queensland (Australia)
The Indian Ocean tsunami of 26 December 2004 was a natural disaster almost without precedent in human history. On the north and west coast of Aceh, where the tsunami was its most ferocious, the direct damage to coral reefs, while occasionally spectacular, was surprisingly limited. In contrast, the damage to the human environment was extensive; mortality rates in many villages approached 80% and almost all infrastructure, including fishing boats, was destroyed. Reef condition, however, varied widely within the region and was clearly correlated with human activity prior to the tsunami; where local management had been effective, coral cover was high and fish assemblages were diverse, where reefs had been exposed to destructive fishing and/or inappropriate coastal development, coral cover was low and reef fish assemblages where depauperate. The destruction to the human environment caused almost all agricultural, industrial and fishing activity to cease. While the villages have now been rebuilt, population density, agriculture and fishing have yet to return to pre-tsunami levels. Under these conditions, the reef recovery has been dramatic. Coral cover has increased three to six fold at most of the previously damaged sites and these reefs now support abundant and diverse young fish assemblages. This is a dramatic example of what can be achieved in a resilient reef system when human activity is curtailed.
New DNA techniques are being used to understand how coral reacted to the end of the last ice age in order to better predict how they will cope with current changes to the climate. James Cook Univer
A new study on the effects of climate change in five tropical countries has found fisheries are in more trouble than agriculture, and poor people are in the most danger. Distinguished Profess
James Cook University researchers have found brightly coloured fish are becoming increasingly rare as coral declines, with the phenomenon likely to get worse in the future. Christopher Hemingson, a
Researchers working with stakeholders in the Great Barrier Reef region have come up with ideas on how groups responsible for looking after the reef can operate more effectively when the next bleaching
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Abstract: The Reef Ecology Lab in KAUST’s Red Sea Research Center explores many aspects of movement ecology of marine organisms, ranging from adult migrations to intergenerational larval dispersal
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Abstract: Evolution of many eukaryotic organisms is affected by interactions with microbes. Microbial symbioses can ultimately reflect host’s diet, habitat range, and even body shape. However, how
Abstract: The past few years have seen unprecedented coral bleaching and mortality on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) but the consequences of this on biodiversity are not yet known. This talk will expl
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