Abstract

Across the Caribbean and Florida, coral reefs are declining as a result of human induced and natural elements. To help restore degraded Acropora reefs throughout the Bahamas, The Nature Conservancy?s Northern Caribbean Pro-gram has begun establishing and maintaining in-water coral nurseries. Currently there are two coral nurseries – one located in the southwest area of New Providence and in Central Andros Island. Adapting the method developed by Ken Marks, fragments of opportunity are identified in the wild, collected and reared in the nursery for up to two years, then outplanted to selected restoration areas. Outplant sites will provide an opportunity for cross fertilization between ge-netically distinct populations that would otherwise not reproduce naturally due to their separate domestic sites. It is expected that the nurseries will lead to an increase in Acropora larval production. The Conservancy will also conduct genetic testing to determine connectivity between corals in the USVI, Florida, and the Bahamas to facilitate better management of the coral reef network in the region. Genetic testing will also help to identify the most resilient Acroporid coral genomes and the optimum environmental factors which foster the best coral reef recovery. The nurseries will there-fore make available a “bank” of corals that can help repair Acropora reefs damaged by ship groundings, and other human induced factors as well as major storm events.

PDF Preview