The abundance of herbivorous fish on an inshore Red Sea reef following a mass coral bleaching event

• Published in: Environmental biology of fishes Vol. 96; no. 9; pp. 1065 - 1072
• Main Authors: Khalil, Maha T., Cochran, Jesse E. M., Berumen, Michael L.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer Netherlands 01.09.2013; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Acanthuridae; Agnatha. Pisces; Animal and plant ecology; Animal Systematics/Taxonomy/Biogeography; Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Animals; Applied ecology; Autoecology; Biological and medical sciences; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Conservation, protection and management of environment and wildlife; Coral bleaching; Coral reefs; Environment; Environmental degradation: ecosystems survey and restoration; Fish; Freshwater & Marine Ecology; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Herbivores; Herbivorous fish; Life Sciences; Nature Conservation; Overfishing; Reefs; Vertebrata; Vertebrates: general zoology, morphology, phylogeny, systematics, cytogenetics, geographical distribution; Zoology; Saudi Arabia; Arabian Peninsula; Red Sea; Indian Ocean; Asia; Middle east; ASW, Caribbean Sea; ISW, Red Sea; ISW, Red Sea, Aqaba Gulf; Saudi Arabia; Herbivory; Surgeonfish; Parrotfish; Bleaching; Central Red Sea; Herbivorous; Mass; Marine environment; Ecological damage; Vertebrata; Reef; Pisces
• ISSN: 0378-1909; 1573-5133
• DOI: 10.1007/s10641-012-0103-5

A healthy herbivore community is critical for the ability of a reef to resist and recover from severe disturbances and to regain lost coral cover (i.e., resilience). The densities of the two major herbivorous fish groups (the family Acanthuridae and scarine labrids) were comparatively studied for an inshore reef that was severely impacted by a mass coral bleaching event in 2010 and an unaffected reef within the same region. Densities were found to be significantly higher on the affected reef, most likely due to the high algal densities on that reef. However, densities of herbivores on both reefs were found to be on average about 1–2 orders of magnitude lower than previously published reports from some Pacific reefs and from Red Sea reefs in the Gulf of Aqaba and only slightly higher than Caribbean reefs. Thus, it is predicted that recovery for this reef and similarly affected reefs may be very slow. The protection of herbivores from overfishing and the introduction of other management strategies that maximize reef resilience in Saudi Arabian waters are highly recommended.