SCLERACTINIAN CORAL COMMUNITY DEMOGRAPHICS AND RECRUITMENT PATTERNS IN SOUTHEAST FLORIDA

Quantifying and understanding coral community dynamics, including recruitment, is critical for developing effective ecosystem management strategies, particularly in areas that have experienced significant coral losses such as Southeast Florida’s Kristin Jacobs Coral Reef Ecosystem Conservation Area. While several federal, state, and regional efforts effectively track annual changes in juvenile and adult coral colonies, few coral reef monitoring programs are designed to track new coral recruitment. This study’s aims were to assess potential differences in community composition of adult and recruit stony corals in southeast Florida using phototransects, and to test the efficacy of eDNA approaches for monitoring coral recruitment. Replicate phototransects demonstrated significant differences in recruit density and community composition across sites. This photogrammetry approach was more applicable than eDNA and indicates that site specific management and restoration strategies in a regional context may be warranted for the study area.