When: Thursday, 30th of May 2013; 12:00 to 13:00 hrs.

Where: Building 19 (Kevin Stark Research Building), Room #106 (upstairs); video-linked
to the University of Queensland (GCI Boardroom, Level 7, Gehrmann Building 60

Abstract: Branching corals are a critical component of coral reef ecosystems for habitat, shelter and reef growth.  The purpose of this study is to investigate the growth of important habitat-forming corals (e.g., Acropora muricata, and Pocillopora damicornis), at a range of locations along the east coast of Australia, taking advantage of locations where prior measurements of coral growth have been conducted (e.g., Lord Howe, Harriott 1999; Davies Reef, Oliver et al. 1983; Lizard Island, Oliver 1985).  In doing so, current measurements of linear extensions can be directly compared to prior measurements and test for changes in coral growth, as have been reported for massive corals (De’ath et al. 2009). By investigation coral growth along a 2,345 km latitudinal gradient from Lizard Island (14.67°S) to Davies Reef (18.85°S), Heron Island (23.35°S) and Lord Howe Island (31°S), environmental factors such as temperature, aragonite saturation and light can be used to assess the main environmental controls on branching corals.  Effects of these environmental parameters on growth rates of massive corals (e.g., Porites) are well-known (e.g., Lough and Barnes 2000) but are yet to be determined for branching species. This study will be the first to assess decadal changes in growth of branching species along the east coast of Australia. By monitoring coral skeletal growth, a better understanding of the future composition of coral reef communities will be vital for management, conservation, and fisheries.

Biography: Kristen completed her BSc in Canada studying biology.  Her love of the ocean took her to Honduras where she volunteered as a marine research assistant at the Utila Centre for Marine Ecology. Kristen came to James Cook University to undertake a semester of course work being awarded a Graduate Certificate of Science in Marine Biology.  Under the supervision of Morgan Pratchett, she completed her Honours year receiving her BSc Honours with first class distinction, studying summer growth rates of corals at Lord Howe Island.  She is continuing her research with a PhD at the Centre of Excellence, studying the growth of branching corals along the east coast of Australia to assess for changes in growth and determining the key environmental drivers of these habitat-forming species.

Research Associate – Coral Ecologist
ARC CoE Coral Reef Studies (2013 – )

NSF Postdoctoral Researcher
California State University Northridge (2010 – 2012 )

Curriculum vitae

Research Interests

My broad interests include coral reproductive biology, coral larval physiology and ecology, symbiosis, and coral systematics. My research to date has focused on the early life stages of coral and their response to climate change and ocean acidification.

My PhD research showed that climate warming will likely evoke an important acclimatory response in the early life stages of coral species with horizontal Symbiodinium transmission. At elevated temperatures, establishment and persistence of symbiosis was successful with a thermal-tolerant Symbiodinium, and not with thermal-sensitive Symbiodinium. However, when multiple Symbiodinium types were present, elevated temperatures resulted in a breakdown of symbiosis. Therefore, corals will likely respond to increased seawater temperatures by forming symbioses with more thermal-tolerant Symbiodinium types or locally adapted populations from one generation to the next. However the establishment of a stable symbiosis may be more difficult as symbionts compete for space and resources within the host.

My postdoctoral research elucidated the effects of rising temperature and ocean acidification on the physiology of larvae, spat and juvenile brooding corals. Broadly, it found the brooding larvae differ in their response to future predicted environmental conditions depended on their release day.  Further, larvae that were in the pelagic for long periods were more affected by elevated temperature and pCO₂. Once settled, new recruits calcified more readily under oscillating pCO₂ condition that typically occurs on reefs.  Importantly, the effect of pCO₂ on new recruits was light-dependent. High pCO₂ inhibited calcification at intermediate light intensities, however this inhibitory effect disappears at both higher and lower light intensities.

My current research investigates whether initial uptake of Symbiodinium by larvae of broadcast spawning species changes the larval competency dynamics, dispersal ability and post-settlement success.

Publications Online

Select Publications

To request reprints email: Vivian.Cumbo@my.jcu.edu.au

Cumbo VR, Fan TY, and Edmunds PJ (2013). Brooded coral larvae differ in their response to high temperature and elevated pCO₂ depending on the day of release. Marine Biology accepted

Cumbo VR, Fan TY, and Edmunds PJ (2013). Effects of exposure duration on the response of Pocillopora damicornis larvae to elevated temperature and high pCO₂. J Exp Mar Bio Ecol 439: 100- 107

Dufault, AM, Ninokawa A, Bramanti L, Cumbo VR, Fan, TY and Edmunds PJ (2013). The role of light in mediating the effects of ocean acidification on coral calcification. J Exp Bio accepted

Edmunds PJ, Cumbo VR, and Fan TY (2013). Metabolic costs of larval settlement and metamorphosis in the coral Seriatopora caliendrum under ambient and elevated pCO₂. J Exp Mar Bio Ecol accepted

Cumbo VR and Baird AH (2013). Chromera velia: Coral symbiont or parasite? Galaxea accepted

Cumbo VR, van Oppen MJH, and Baird, AH (2013). The promiscuous larvae: flexibility in the establishment of symbiosis in corals. Coral Reefs: 32(1): 111- 120

Cumbo VR, Baird AH, Moore R, Negri A, Salih A, van Oppen, MJH, Marquis CP (2013). Chromera velia is endosymbiotic in larvae of the reef corals Acropora millepora and A. digitifera. Protist. 164: 237 – 244

Cumbo VR, Fan TY, Edmunds PJ (2012). Physiological development of brooded larvae from two pocilloporid corals in Taiwan. Marine Biology. 159: 2853-2866

Cumbo VR, Fan TY, and Edmunds PJ (2012) Scleractinian corals capture zooplankton within days of settlement and metamorphosis. Coral Reefs. 31:1155

Dufault, AM, Cumbo VR, Fan, TY and Edmunds PJ (2012). Effects of diurnally oscillating pCO₂ on the calcification and survival of coral recruits. Proc. R Soc B. 279: 2951-2958

Edmunds PJ, Cumbo VR and Fan TY (2011). Effects of temperature on the respiration of brooded larvae from tropical reef corals. J Exp Bio 214 (16): 2783-2790

Bay LK, Cumbo VR, Abrego D, Kool JT, Ainsworth TD, and Willis, BL (2011). Infection dynamics vary between Symbiodinium types and cell surface treatments during establishment of endosymbiosis with coral larvae. Diversity, 3 (3). pp. 356-374

Adams LM, Cumbo VR, and Takabayashi, M (2009). Exposure to sediment enhances primary acquisition of Symbiodinium by asymbiotic coral larvae. MEPS 377: 149-156

Baird AH, Cumbo VR, Leggat W, and Rodriguez-Lanetty, M (2007). Fidelity and flexibility in coral symbioses. MEPS  347: 307–309

Current Students

Amin Mohamed Esmail (PhD): Distribution and characterization of chromerids and apicomplexans associated with coral reefs

Sylvia Zamudio (Masters): Evaluating the upper thermal threshold of a tropical scleractinian coral

When: Tuesday 28^th of May 2013; From 9:00 to 10:00 hrs.

Where: Building 19 (Kevin Stark Research Building), Room #106 (upstairs)

Abstract: Many global measures of economic success only account for the production of economic capital without accounting for environmental externalities, and the result is an unstable system where the desire to maximise short-term profits works against desires to preserve long-term natural and human capital. The financial liability for marine resource degradation is misplaced and taken up by governments and non-profits. On the flip side, profit motives can be redirected to create self-sustaining systems that produce ecological, socio-cultural, and economic outcomes through “impact investing.” While impact investments are being tested, a significant funding gap remains for marine conservation. Innovative finance mechanisms exist, but are relatively untested in the marine conservation context. Financial decisions are often made without stakeholder involvement, after participatory conservation plans are finished. This research will investigate if and how impact investing can achieve marine conservation outcomes, design and test participatory processes for selecting marine finance mechanisms, and critically analyze the implementation of one finance mechanism in detail – marine biodiversity offsets in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area.

Biographies: Melissa Bos received a BS in Chemistry and Marine Science from the University of Miami, after which she began working as an environmental consultant. With a desire to focus on the science behind coral reef management, Melissa then went on to earn a MS in Oceanography from the University of Hawaii at Manoa where she investigated nutrient dynamics in coral reef ecosystems. As a NOAA coral reef management fellow placed within the State of Hawaii, Melissa facilitated stakeholder-driven Local Action Strategies to address key threats to coral reefs. Melissa then became the Hawaii and Pacific Island Coordinator of NOAA’s Alliance for Coastal Technologies where she facilitated partnerships between resource managers, researchers, and the technology industry. She has held faculty positions at both the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology and Hawaii Pacific University. As Director of the Global Marine Partnership Fund at Conservation International, Melissa began to focus on innovative finance and participatory strategic planning for large-scale marine conservation initiatives. As Director of the Hawaii Marine Program at Conservation International, Melissa developed and funded the Hawaii Fish Trust, a ground-breaking program that unties fishers, Hawaiian communities, non-profits, and the State of Hawaii towards common goals. Melissa also has experience working at the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority in Social and Economic Sciences and Sustainable Funding.

This new finding has major implications for corals under climate change: if rich coral communities arise from geological processes that take place over millions of years, they will be even harder to replace if lost due to global warming.

Scientists from CoECRS reveal for the first time that abrupt changes in the mix of coral species are associated with earthquakes, volcanoes, and jostling among the Earth’s giant tectonic plates. The study shows that slow geological processes generate the patterns of reef biodiversity that we see today, and explains why some coral species are more widespread than others.

“There are many theories to explain how coral reefs came to be,” says lead author, Dr Sally Keith of CoECRS and James Cook University. “Traditionally scientists have tested these theories by looking at where species occur. We used a fresh approach that focused on where species stopped occurring and why.”

“Our results were striking”, says Dr Keith. “Unexpectedly, we found that coral species are not limited by sudden changes in the environment or large gaps in habitat – but rather by major geological events such as the clash of two giant tectonic plates.”                                   

The team concludes that the slow movement of the Earth’s crust over millions of years has gradually created the biodiversity pattern we see across the Oceans today.

“For example, Hawaii is a chain of volcanic islands that has formed as a tectonic plate moves over a ‘hotspot’ of molten rock. The rock repeatedly punches through the Earth’s crust as lava, producing volcanoes that jut out above the ocean surface, eventually forming a chain of volcanic islands,” explains Dr Keith.

“Over time, corals spread across the island chain using the islands as ‘stepping stones’, while at the same time they remaining isolated from the rest of the Pacific. As a result, a distinct set of Hawaiian coral reefs arises.”

The team discovered that species’ traits, such as their age or ability to tolerate deeper habitats, have influenced the success of corals in moving from one region to another – probably because older and more versatile species have a greater likelihood of survival when entering new environments.

The discovery has big implications for coral reefs in the face of climate change.

“Climate change is leading to the loss of corals throughout the tropics. This study has shown that the diversity of corals we see today is the result of geological processes that occur over millions, even tens of millions, of years,” says Professor Sean Connolly, a co-author of the study.

“If we lose these coral-rich environments the recovery of this biodiversity will take a very long-time, so our results highlight just how critical it is to conserve the coral reefs that exist today.”

The paper “Faunal breaks and species composition of Indo-Pacific corals: the role of plate tectonics, environment, and habitat distribution” by Sally Keith, Andrew Baird, Terry Hughes, Josh Madin and Sean Connolly appears in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

More information:

Dr Sally Keith, CoECRS and JCU, +61 (0)449 132 695 or sally.keith@jcu.edu.au
Prof Sean Connolly, CoECRS and JCU, +61 (07) 4781 4242 or sean.connolly@jcu.edu.au
Jenny Lappin, CoECRS, +61 (0)7 4781 4222
Jim O’Brien, James Cook University Media Office, +61 (07) 4781 4822 or 0418 892 449
www.coralcoe.org.au

When: Monday, 27th of May 2013; 12:00 to 13:00 hrs.

Where: Building 19 (Kevin Stark Research Building), Room #106 (upstairs)

Abstract: This presentation summarizes the main findings of the Future of Marine Animal Populations project which was part of 10-year long Census of Marine Life program. Here I described our work towards describing global biodiversity patterns and their underlying processes. We also analyze the effectiveness of biodiversity protection and the future of biodiversity in light of looming environmental threats.

Biography: Dr. Camilo Mora is Associate Professor University of Hawaii at Manoa, University of Hawaii. As post-doctoral fellow and researcher with the Census of Marine Life’s Future of Marine Animal Populations project, Camilo carried out research and analyses on the causes and consequences of marine biodiversity change. He collaborated widely with other Census projects, and worked at three different institutions: Dalhousie University, SCRIPPS Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego and University of Auckland. His research interests include biogeography, threats to biodiversity, global conservation assessments and methods for macroecology. His lab focuses on interconnected lines of research aimed to understand how biodiversity patterns are generated and modified by human activities and in the process identifying the conditions where suitable conditions for both, humans and biodiversity, are met.

When: Thursday, 23rd of May 2013; 12:00 to 13:00 hrs.

Where: Building 19 (Kevin Stark Research Building), Room #106 (upstairs); video-linked to the University of Queensland (GCI Boardroom, Level 7, Gehrmann Building 60)

Abstract: Viruses are the most common biological agents in the global oceans, with numbers typically averaging ten billion per litre. The ability of viruses to infect all organisms indicates they most likely play a central role in marine ecosystems and have important consequences for the entire marine food web. Marine viruses influence many biogeochemical and ecological processes, including energy and nutrient cycling, host distribution and abundance, and horizontal gene transfer events.  Viruses are obligate symbionts, typically thought of as agents of disease, but they can also confer benefits to their hosts and the surrounding environment. Although the importance of viruses in the marine environment is recognised, many aspects of viral-host interactions are poorly understood and this is undoubtedly the case in coral reef research. The goal of this presentation is to provide an overview of the current research on viruses in the marine environment, including a summary of what has been done on corals thus far, and outline how our viral research at AIMS is improving our understanding of viruses associated with coral reefs.  Elucidating the role viruses play in corals is timely, particularly in relation to the threats coral reefs face, such as the impact of climate change on these important ecosystems.

Biographies: 

Karen Weynberg was awarded her M.Res. degree in marine biology from the University of Plymouth, UK, in 2005. Her research was conducted under the supervision of Dr Declan Schroeder at the Marine Biological Association of the UK. The MRes dissertation was based on the molecular characterisation of giant lysogenic viruses that infect macroalgae of the order Ectocarpales. In 2009, Karen was awarded a PhD from the University of Warwick, UK. Her research, supervised by Dr Willie Wilson and Professor David Scanlan, was conducted mainly at Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML). The basis of the PhD was to detect and isolate novel viruses that infect microalgae, mainly of the nano- and pico- size fractions. Several novel viruses were isolated and characterised.  Two of the novel viruses were selected for whole genome sequencing, which enabled insights to be gleaned on horizontal gene transfer between virus and hosts and other interactions arising from their close relationship over evolutionary time. Following her PhD, Karen worked as a postdoctoral researcher for 18 months on a BBSRC-DEFRA funded project at PML, in collaboration with the University of Durham, researching the potential for microalgae to be used as a source of biofuel. However, Karen realised she sorely missed working with marine viruses and in October 2011, Karen began working at AIMS as a Super Science Fellow, researching the viruses associated with corals.

Elisha M Wood-Charlson received her PhD in 2008 from Oregon State University, which focused on the molecular mechanisms of recognition between algal symbionts and coral larvae during infection.  After finishing her PhD, she spent some time teaching as a lecturer at UC Santa Cruz, California, and a visiting Assistant Professor at Linfield College, Oregon. In late 2009, Elisha started a post-doctoral fellowship with the Center for Microbial Oceanography: Research and Education, based at the University of Hawai’i at Manoa, working on viruses that infect cyanobacteria, the dominant form of life in the North and South Pacific Subtropical Gyres. Her recent return to coral research brings these diverse research fields together with the goal of understanding the community composition and function of coral holobiont-associated viruses under “normal” conditions and conditions associated with changing climate, such as bleaching and disease.

When: Friday, 17th of May 2013; 12:00 to 13:00 hrs.

Where: Building 19 (Kevin Stark Research Building), Room #106 (upstairs); video-linked to the University of Queensland (GCI Boardroom, Level 7, Gehrmann Building 60)

Abstract: Human populations worldwide are highly reliant on the ocean and its resources for sustenance, livelihoods, and cultural continuity. Human activities in ocean environments have, however, resulted in significant impacts to ocean health and diminishing returns to society from these ecosystems. Despite broad recognition of the human role in ocean degradation, the vast majority of research focuses on the biophysical rather than the human dimensions of coral reef ecosystems, limiting our understanding of social relationships with these environments and potential solutions for managing toward sustainability.  In this talk, I provide an overview of social-ecological relationships, with a focus on coral reefs in the Hawaiian Islands. First, I report findings from historical research on coral reef fisheries, starting first at the species level and then aggregating upwards to comprehensive reconstructions of human-environmental relationships, highlighting the implications of historical research for current management challenges. Next, I shift to research on contemporary social-ecological relationships, focusing on data-poor, tropical fisheries in indigenous Hawaiian communities. I will share novel methods and findings from participatory fishery assessments and recent efforts to quantitatively link fisheries ecology, ecosystem services, and community wellbeing at the local level. Finally, I will discuss my research on marine resource governance and policy, including research assessing the challenges and opportunities for social data in fisheries assessments and planning, social and ecological benefits of community-based and co-management governance approaches, and translating concepts from social-ecological systems research into actionable strategies that managers can implement. I will conclude with my own personal views on how integrated social-ecological research can help manage coral reefs toward more sustainable outcomes, and roles researchers can play to ‘move beyond the science’ in working toward solutions.

Biography: John N. (“Jack”) Kittinger is an early career fellow with a background as a human geographer and coastal ecologist with broad interests in understanding and advancing solutions to complex problems that face society and the ocean environment. His research explores how social, economic and cultural factors influence the ways in which people use, perceive and govern natural resources, with a particular emphasis on using applied social science to inform environmental management, planning and policy. He has extensive experience coordinating multidisciplinary teams in cross-cutting research and frequently works with other researchers on social-ecological systems research.  Many of Kittinger’s research projects have focused on applying the results of basic research to community planning and management, and he often collaborates with scientists, managers and community stakeholders in knowledge-to-action partnerships to bridge science to policy and practice.  His current research focuses on linking ecosystem services and food security to community well-being, collaborative planning and resource co-management, and social resilience and vulnerability to environmental and social change. Kittinger works primarily in Hawai‘i, the Pacific Islands and the Asia-Pacific region.

Jack Kittinger received his Ph.D. from the Department of Geography at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, his M.S. in marine science and environmental studies from the University of San Diego and his B.S. in biology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

“People benefit by reefs having a complex structure – a little like a Manhattan skyline but underwater,” said Peter Mumby of The University of Queensland and University of Exeter. “Structurally-complex reefs provide nooks and crannies for thousands of species and provide the habitat needed to sustain productive reef fisheries. They’re also great fun to visit as a snorkeler or diver. If we carry on the way we have been, the ability of reefs to provide benefits to people will seriously decline.”

To predict the reefs’ future, the researchers spent two years constructing a model of how reefs work, building on hundreds of studies conducted over the last 40 years.  They then combined their reef model with climate models to make predictions about the balance between forces that will allow reefs to continue growing their complex, calcium carbonate structures and those such as hurricanes and erosion that will shrink them.

Ideally, Mumby says, the goal is a carbonate budget that remains in the black for the next century at least. Such a future is possible, their model shows, but only with effective local protection and assertive action on greenhouse gases.

“Business as usual isn’t going to cut it,” he said. “The good news is that it does seem possible to maintain reefs – we just have to be serious about doing something. It also means that local reef management – efforts to curb pollution and overfishing – are absolutely justified. Some have claimed that the climate change problem is so great that local management is futile. We show that this viewpoint is wrongheaded.”

Mumby and his colleagues also stress the importance of reef function in addition to reef diversity. Those functions of reefs include the provision of habitat for fisheries, the provision of a natural breakwater to reduce the size of waves reaching the shore, and so on. In very practical terms, hundreds of millions of people depend directly on reefs for their food, livelihoods, and even building materials.

“If it becomes increasingly difficult for people in the tropics to make their living on coral reefs, then this may well increase poverty,” said Emma Kennedy, a PhD student that developed the models at the University of Exeter. “It’s in everyone’s best interest to keep that from happening”.

The research took place in the Caribbean under the EU-funded project Future of Reefs in a Changing Environment (FORCE, www.force-project.eu). Prof Mumby is part of the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies.

Article written by Cell Press.

More information:

Prof Peter Mumby, University of Queensland, University of Exeter and CoECRS, ph +61 (0)7 3365 1686; Mobile: 61 0449811589 or p.j.mumby@uq.edu.au

Emma Kennedy, University of Exeter (UK) mobile: + 44 7727634559

Photographs and High Definition video clips are available to illustrate the story. Contact Peter Mumby by email or mobile. Web-ready video clips can be downloaded for free from www.reefvid.org

Media contacts: Tracey Franchi - t.franchi@uq.edu.au; Jo Bowler, University of Exeter Press Officer – pressoffice@ex.ac.uk

Jenny Lappin, CoECRS, +61 (0)7 4781 4222
http://www.coralcoe.org.au/