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**Coral Reef Assessment, Monitoring, and Restoration:**

**NCRI Report to the 10^th^ Meeting of the U. S. Coral Reef Task Force**

**CNMI and Guam**

**October 3--6, 2003**

Specific NCRI research programs address many of the key coral reef
assessment, monitoring, and restoration issues raised in ***The National
Action Plan to Conserve Coral Reefs***, the ***Coral Reef Conservation
Act of 2000***, and ***Executive Order No. 13089***(Coral Reef
Protection) to preserve and protect coral reef ecosystems. These
initiatives include:

• Classification of reef habitats and environments using remote-sensing
technologies

• Determination of long-term coral density, calcification, and extension
for comparison to global CO~2~ rise and other parameters/indicators of
climate change; Development of software for the rapid collection of
coral density data and analysis/display of comparison time series

• Establishment and maintenance of a coral nursery using community
outreach and education

• Innovative large-scale coral reef mapping incorporating the latest
computer and mapping technologies

• Investigations on marginal reef systems: species distribution,
population ecology, and community structure of *Acropora cervicornis*
off Fort Lauderdale, Florida

• Inventory and survey of marine fishes on natural and artificial reefs
of southeast Florida

• Molecular genetic assessment of dispersal potential and population
connectivity in coral reef invertebrates and the implications for future
research and applications in marine reserve design

• Restoration design and postrestoration monitoring

• Monitoring (and assessment) of Southeast Florida coral reefs

Information on these and other past projects is generated and
disseminated at national and international meetings on a regular basis.
Additionally, NCRI is a supporter of and participant in the Local Action
Strategy (LAS) initiative adopted at the 8^th^ USCRTF Meeting in Puerto
Rico, with active involvement in three of the four Southeast Florida
Action Strategy Team (SEFAST) issue groups. The "Southeast Florida Coral
Reef Initiative," reported elsewhere at this meeting by the State of
Florida, is the Florida LAS for coral reef conservation and management.

**8000 N. Ocean Dr., Dania Beach, FL 33004 USA +1-954-262-3617 fax
+1-954-262-4027 email: ncri@mail.ocean.nova.edu**

**NCRI Project Synopses**

**[Assessment]{.underline}** 2

> [Large-Scale Coral Reef Bathymetric Base Mapping]{.underline} 2
>
> [Classification of Reef Habitats and Environments Using Remote-Sensing
> Technologies]{.underline} 3
>
> [Mapping Southeast Florida (Broward County) Reefs Using Acoustic
> Technology]{.underline} 3
>
> [Molecular Genetic Assessment of Dispersal Potential and Population
> Connectivity in Coral Reef Invertebrates and the Implications for
> Future Research and Applications in Marine Reserve Design]{.underline}
> 4
>
> [Nearshore Hardbottom Fishes of Broward County]{.underline} 4
>
> [Multivariate Examination of Spatial Patterns of Grunt (Haemulidae)
> Recruitment]{.underline} 5
>
> [Investigations on Marginal Reef Systems: Species Distribution,
> Population Ecology, and Community Structure of Acropora cervicornis
> off Fort Lauderdale, Florida]{.underline} 6
>
> [Histological Stress Indicators for Corals in Marginal
> Environments]{.underline} 7

**[Monitoring]{.underline}** 7

> [Southeast Florida Reef Evaluation and Monitoring (collaborative with
> Florida DEP, FFWC/FMRI, Broward County DPEP, Miami-Dade County DERM,
> and Palm Beach County ERM)]{.underline} 7
>
> [Puerto Rico Reef Monitoring]{.underline} 7
>
> [Climate Change Determination through Analysis of Coral Skeletal
> Growth]{.underline} 7

**[Restoration]{.underline}** 8

> [Restoration Design and Postrestoration Monitoring Project
> (collaborative with Broward County DPEP)]{.underline} 8
>
> [Establishment and Maintenance of a Coral Nursery Using Community
> Outreach and Education (collaborative with Broward County DPEP and
> National Fish and Wildlife Foundation)]{.underline} 9

**Assessment**

> ***Large-Scale Coral Reef Bathymetric Base Mapping***

Consistent with the first action step of the USCRTF National Action Plan
to Conserve Coral Reefs (i.e., to map all U.S. coral reefs), this
project provides the accurate, geo-referenced comprehensive maps and
habitat assessments specified in the Plan. Detailed bathymetric data for
the Southeast Florida reefs of Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach
Counties, from 0--40 m depth to serve as the basemap for overlaying the
results of biological and geological inventories, assessments, and
monitoring were produced. The maps are integrations of several available
datasets including: air photographs at 1:24,000 and 1:6000 scale,
bathymetric data from light detection and ranging (LIDAR) and laser
depth survey (LADS) surveys along the Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm
Beach County coast, and US Navy multibeam sonar bathymetric surveys at a
variety of deep and shallow sites throughout Broward County. All these
datasets allowed the generation of a detailed bathymetric map of the
Southeast Florida seafloor from the shoreline to about 40 m depth. 3-D
digital elevation models and fly-throughs were developed. Plans have
been developed to collaborate with the Navy and US ACOE to acquire
repeated LIDAR data sets of Broward County to evaluate for detection of
change in reef characteristics.

To date, results have been disseminated at four major meetings: at the
combined meeting of the American Geophysical Union and the American
Association of Limnology and Oceanography in Honolulu, February 2002; at
the 7^th^ International Conference on Remote-Sensing for Coastal and
Marine Environments in Miami, May 2002; at the 2002 International
Society of Reef Studies European Meeting in Cambridge, UK, September
2002; and at the 2002 Geological Society of America Meeting in Denver,
October 2002

Also, in collaboration with the USGS, NASA, and the Free University of
Amsterdam, several datasets were obtained for the large-scale mapping of
reefs using air- and space-borne sensors. An EAARL LIDAR dataset from
Puerto Rico was obtained from the USGS, which is being assembled.
Together with the University of Amsterdam, bathymetric charts based on
satellite imagery (Ikonos, Aster) were produced for a carbonate ramp in
Dubai (UAE). A colaborative research effort between NCRI and USGS/NASA
in Biscayne Bay, Florida, uses acoustic ground-truthing lines to verify
the accuracy of LIDAR bathymetry.

> ***Classification of Reef Habitats and Environments Using
> Remote-Sensing Technologies***

This work is also consistent with the National Action Plan of the USCRTF
and with the Coral Reef Conservation Act of 2000. The work being
conducted by NCRI is to develop, plan, and initiate a shallow-water
biodiversity inventory, to perform associated biogeological assessments,
and to participate in a monitoring program of southeast Florida shelf
reefs. An integral outcome of this baseline is an accurate and detailed
map of biological and geological resources, useful for management and
for ecological understanding.

NCRI has added capacity by acquiring a Quester Tangent Corporation (QTC)
VIEW Series V System and a Seatronics Inc Echoplus ground discrimination
unit. Both systems are suites of acoustic remote sensing equipment and
software, capable of sea-floor classification based on the shape of echo
returns. The two systems differ in the way the returning echo from the
seafloor is processed. QTCView uses the entire first echo, while
Echoplus uses only the backscatter portion of the first and the second
echo as well. These intrinsically different signal processing techniques
were evaluated for comparability of results with regards to seafloor
discrimination. The output of acoustic ground discrimination mapping are
geo-referenced maps with color-coded echo-classes. These echo-classes
were then ground-truthed and interpreted by a more detailed
geo-morphological and ecological analysis.

For cross-correlation with acoustic seafloor classes, we utilized
optical remote sensing methods (aerial imagery and LADS LIDAR
bathymetry) and traditional bathymetry surveys by single- and multibeam
bathymetry. These high-density bathymetry datasets allowed good
discrimination of geomorphological units (sand plains, patchy reefs,
hardground), which via GIS overlays could be directly compared to the
data classes obtained by acoustic ground discrimination. A high level of
correlation was observed.

This research expands on but is nevertheless intrinsically different
from simple habitat mapping. These mapping studies are still in
progress, however significant progress has been made in the mapping of
all available habitats. In Broward County, four corridors, 1 km wide and
3 km long, were mapped on a 50-m grid spacing, which allowed production
of detailed maps of the biotic zonation on these reefs, as far as
detectible by acoustic methods. Experimental studies into the actual
discrimination ability of the direct-incidence waveforms as used by the
employed methods were conducted in the NSU OC marina. It was shown that
the acoustic methods are capable of detecting even relatively small
flora (small in relation to the wavelength of the employed signal) and
that even if no direct surface scatter was obtained, volume scatter of
organisms like algae that can form dense mats was found to be important
in classification. The importance of volume scatter versus surface
scatter is currently under investigation.

Further work regarding the groundtruthing as well as an expansion of the
available datasets is currently in progress. A main emphasis of the work
is the groundtruthing of classification results and the unequivocal
experimental verification of detected acoustic classes. It is the goal
of the present research to understand the actual physical processes
(i.e., whether volume scatter or direct surface scatter on the fauna)
underlying the formation of different echo classes. Towards this goal,
acoustic ground discrimination is also performed on several different
frequencies (different frequencies = different signal wavelength =
different scattering characteristics).

> ***Mapping Southeast Florida (Broward County) Reefs Using Acoustic
> Technology***

Mapping of Southeast Florida (Broward County) reefs are being conducted
in partnership with the State of Florida Department of Environmental
Protection (FDEP) and Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission Florida
Marine Research Institute (FMRI). Mapping will utilize acoustic
technology to identify key reef habitats.

> ***Molecular Genetic Assessment of Dispersal Potential and Population
> Connectivity in Coral Reef Invertebrates and the Implications for
> Future Research and Applications in Marine Reserve Design***

Criteria upon which to base the design and location of marine protected
areas (MPAs) for conserving biodiversity in coral reef and other marine
communities are currently receiving considerable attention in the
scientific and management communities. An overarching issue regarding
the design of MPAs is the process of site selection and boundary
delineation to achieve maximum protection and enhancement of marine
communities both within and outside the reserve area. Decisions about
design and placement of MPAs requires a comprehensive assessment of
patterns of biodiversity and population connectivity in species
representing different trophic levels and life-history strategies.
Despite the critical importance of elucidating such patterns for
effective MPA design and marine species management, the vastness of the
oceans and difficulties of effectively tracking minute reproductive
propagules have made obtaining this information an extremely difficult
prospect. Fortunately, the development of new and powerful molecular
genetic methods is providing an avenue to better infer the historical
and present dynamics of dispersal and demographic connections among
populations.

Previous studies in this context have typically focused on reef species
that are easily visible and/or of exploitative interest (i.e., fishes
and commercially valuable invertebrates), and have generally relied on
lower-resolution genetic markers (allozymes and restriction fragment
length polymorphisms) to address these issues. However, there is a
substantial gap in our understanding of the patterns of biodiversity and
population structure in commercially unexploited invertebrate species,
and the small, more cryptic invertebrates that occupy lower but
ecologically important trophic levels and display life-history
strategies (e.g., lacking planktonic dispersal stages; demonstrating
strong habitat specificity) that are likely to be important influences
in the generation of biodiversity, speciation, and community population
structure.

To address this gap, NCRI is conducting a broad-scale, longer-term study
using high-resolution markers (DNA sequences) to gain a comprehensive
assessment of the degree of biodiversity and population connectivity in
generally less-studied species that are numerically important members of
Caribbean coral reef communities. Our initial focus is on amphipod
crustaceans and echinoderms that display a broad range of life-history
strategies, including highly restricted dispersal capabilities and/or
strong habitat specificity, indicating greater potential for forming
genetically unique populations (and possibly undergoing speciation) over
shorter geographic scales. It is anticipated that these smaller and in
some cases cryptic marine invertebrates will provide an additional
perspective on existing biodiversity and population connectivity in
coral reef systems than has been revealed by studies on larger,
broadcast-spawning, high-dispersal capability species.

This project includes the second and third action steps of the USCRTF
National Action Plan to Conserve Coral Reefs and utilizes strategic
research (third action step) to contribute to all seven of the coral
reef conservation issues enumerated under the monitoring, assessing, and
inventorying of reef health (second action step). This project also has
direct application to "Expand and strengthen the U.S. Network of Coral
Reef MPAs" listed under Actions to "Reduce the adverse impacts of human
activities."

> ***Nearshore Hardbottom Fishes of Broward County***

During the summer of 2001, a project inventorying the fishes on the
nearshore edge of the first reef tract of Broward County was initiated
as a project of opportunity. This study was undertaken to examine the
fish assemblages on the nearshore hardbottom area adjacent to a
30-kmstretch of beach in Broward County, FL with an eye to the potential
effects of a proposed beach renourishment. There is substantial
literature on the effects of filling and sedimentation, including beach
renourishment projects, on invertebrate fauna; however, there is little
literature available concerning the effects on fishes. Although there
may be more gray literature, reports and other unpublished research, in
existence, only one report and one relevant publication appear in
standard data base searches. Fortuitously both studies were done in
Southeast Florida (Courtenay Jr., W.R., Hartig, B.C., and Loisel, G.R.
1980, U.S. Army Corp Engineers, Rpt. 80--1(1) 23 pp.; Lindeman, K.C. and
Snyder D.B. 1999. Fish. Bull. 97: 508--525).

> There were six objectives for this study:

1\. Characterize the inshore fish assemblages along a 30-km stretch of
Broward County shoreline potentially impacted by a proposed beach
renourishment using nondestructive techniques, i.e., visual censusing.

2\. Compare the results obtained with differing census methodologies.

3\. Compare the fish assemblages on hardbottom areas adjacent to
previously renourished beach to hardbottom areas adjacent to
never-renourished beach.

4\. Compare the fish assemblages on hardbottom areas anticipated to be
directly affected by the proposed renourishment beach to hardbottom
areas not anticipated to be directly affected.

5\. Compare the inshore fish assemblages to previously reported
assemblages on the second and third reef tracts to gain insight into the
possible unique aspects of nearshore hardbottom and the potential for
mitigation.

6\. Make recommendations to provide general guidance for beach
renourishment relative to existing fish assemblages.

100 transect-counts and point-counts were done every 305 m (at Dade,
D1-D5, and Broward County 1000\' range monument marker, R31-R127,
latitudes) for approximately 30 km of shoreline. Repeat of 100 transect
and 98 rover-diver counts were made every 152 m halfway between the
previous counts. Thus, there was a transect-count and either a
point-count or a rover-diver count completed every 152 m of shoreline. A
total of 72,500 fishes of 46 families were recorded, of these more than
85% were juvenile coral reef fishes (\>5 cm total length). This study
will provide a comprehensive insight into the nearshore fish assemblages
along a substantial stretch of Florida coastline. This information is
critical for both understanding the potential damage of nearshore
development (e.g., beach renourishment) to coral reef ecosystems as well
as for designing species-appropriate restoration projects. In August of
2003 the coastline south of Port Everglades was surveyed again**.** This
area is scheduled for beach renourishment beginning late fall 2004. The
same sites were counted with the same methods as in 2001(using 2001 DGPS
site data). The data has not been analyzed to date, but, when completed,
will provide a measure of year-to-year variation, critical to
understanding any response of the fish assemblage to environmental
insult or mitigation.

Preliminary results from this study were presented at the 2001 annual
meeting of the Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute (Baron et al.
2001) and a more complete analysis of the data has recently been
submitted for publication (Baron and Spieler, submitted). In addition,
the results, as well as raw data, will be made available to other
programs that are involved in reef assessment (e.g., REEF).

> ***Multivariate Examination of Spatial Patterns of Grunt (Haemulidae)
> Recruitment***

The grunts (Haemulidae) are a speciose family of coral-reef fishes
found, in abundance, within the greater Caribbean area. They are
commercially important; directly, in some areas where they are a food
source for humans, and indirectly, as a significant forage base for
harvested piscivores throughout their range. Further, haemulids are
important in the energetic dynamics of coral reefs because they forage
off the reef, either on plankton or on benthic invertebrates, and
provide a source of exogenous nitrogen to the reef. Despite, their
importance to coral reef ecology, little is understood of their early
life history, particularly the dynamics of settlement and recruitment.
Haemulids settle predominantly inshore. In South Florida, settlement is
predominantly on inshore hard bottom, an area that can be dramatically
impacted by human activity (i.e., beach renourishment) (Lindeman, K.C.
and Snyder D.B. 1999. Fish. Bull. 97: 508--525; Jordan et al., in press;
Baron and Spieler, submitted). However, a recent study which compared
recruitment of grunts to hardbottom and artificial reefs called into
question the assumption that inshore settlement is an innate preference;
the inshore association could be a direct response to specific
environmental variables (Jordan et al., in press). Effective management
of this important group of fishes requires a more complete understanding
of the determinants of their early life history.

The study site is offshore Broward County, Florida, where NCRI
researchers have already accumulated a database of in excess of 1100
fish counts on natural reef and 1400 counts on artificial reef. In a
series of overlapping, hypothesis-driven substudies, the study will
examine the roles of refuge, water depth, predation, food
quantity/quality, and interspecific competitive exclusion on grunt
recruitment. The substudies will examine natural distribution and
potential distribution determinants as well as experimentally verify
potential determinants using artificial reef modules and
removal/replacement studies. Recruitment will be monitored monthly for
24 months. In addition, preliminary studies will examine the potential
role of food quantity/quality and the strong inverse relationship noted
between juvenile grunts and bicolor damselfish, *Stegastes partitus,* in
Broward County (Spieler, 2002).

The grunts are an extremely important component of Caribbean coral-reef
ecology. The results of these studies will provide critical information
for understanding and managing the distribution of juvenile grunts as
well as provide insight into essential fish habitat (EFH) and required
criteria for effective habitat mitigation and restoration.

> ***Investigations on Marginal Reef Systems: Species Distribution,
> Population Ecology, and Community Structure of*
> [Acroporacervicornis]{.underline}*off Fort Lauderdale, Florida ***

This is another important contribution toward the monitoring, assessing,
and inventorying of reef health listed as the second action step in the
USCRTF National Action Plan to Conserve Coral Reefs. The importance of
marginal reef systems to more highly developed reefs is emerging as an
important ecological issue. During previous research by NCRI personnel
and NSU OC graduate students, aggregations of staghorn coral (*Acropora
cervicornis*) were found distributed along the coastal waters off Ft.
Lauderdale.

Persistence and growth of this coral ecosystem in close proximity to
highly urbanized coastal features present a valuable research
opportunity because this population appears to flourish beyond known
temperature constraints and in the midst of significant anthropogenic
stressors, including:

A. Increased freshwater influx, in addition to potential pollutants and
biotic and abiotic stressors into the nearshore reef environments from
two major inlets.

B. Proximity to major harbor traffic and a designated offshore anchorage
among the reef tract. The reef tracts of this area are subject to
periodic vessel grounding, including a U.S. Navy nuclear submarine in
1993 and three container ships in 1999.

C. High-density urban development of adjacent upland and coastal lands.

Thus, the occurrence of robust populations of *A. cervicornis* and other
scleractinian corals in the shallow waters off Broward County, Florida,
provide an interesting counterpoint to the decline and disease-stricken
*A. cervicornis* populations throughout the Caribbean, especially in the
Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (FKNMS).

This study has provided a quantitative estimate of *A. cervicornis*
distribution, abundance, and status in Broward County. It has also
established a baseline against which to compare the 'normal' limits of
coral development within the region. Additionally, NCRI has also
investigated aspects of the reproductive condition, seasonality, and
gametogenic cycle of *A. cervicornis* off Broward County.

Because an assessment of the potential for natural recovery of *Acropora
spp*. populations in south Florida is seriously impaired due to a
general lack of knowledge, key research goals for 2003 are aimed at
advancing investigations on species sexual reproductive biology and
ecology, including an assessment of size-stage thresholds for gamete
production, within- and among-colony variability in gamete production,
as well as fertilization patterns. Studies on coral predation, diseases,
and disturbance dynamics, such as storm damage, are also underway. Our
ongoing studies draw from related NCRI projects, both current and past,
that will further the focus of NCRI to develop, test, and implement the
best scientific hypotheses and response relevant to understanding,
evaluation, protection, and preservation of coral reefs in the region.
This work embodies the NCRI mission to study minimally impacted,
stressed, and imminently threatened and endangered reefs. This project
addresses specific objectives that will bring forth new information
about the function and dynamics of these marginal high-latitude coral
communities.

> ***Histological Stress Indicators for Corals in Marginal
> Environments***

Observational and tissue-level sediment stress indicators are being
developed for important species of hard and soft corals through
experimental dosing and field studies. Results will be useful to gage
effects of sediment-generating activities, such as dredging and beach
renourishment.

**Monitoring**

> ***Southeast Florida Reef Evaluation and Monitoring (collaborative
> with Florida DEP, FFWC/FMRI, Broward County DPEP, Miami-Dade County
> DERM, and Palm Beach County ERM)***

NCRI is partnering with the State of Florida Department of Environmental
Protection (FDEP) and Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission Florida
Marine Research Institute (FMRI) to conduct yearly monitoring at 10
permanent sites in Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach Counties. The
monitoring follows the formal protocols developed by FMRI for the CREMP
(Coral Reef Evaluation and Monitoring Program) used in the Florida Keys.

> ***Puerto Rico Reef Monitoring***

NCRI intends to take advantage of 18 permanent reef-monitoring sites at
deep (20 m) and shallow (10 m) locations spanning the east end of the
island of Vieques, Puerto Rico. These sites were established in 2001 and
baseline monitoring was performed. Each site consists of a 30 m^2^ area
where detailed benthic data is collected via in situ diving and
photographically. In addition field transects for fish data collection
are conducted. We intend to collect subsequent data in a similar fashion
for establishing a long-term data set. We intend to integrate protocols
and data sharing with Puerto Rico DNER and with Florida DEP/FMRI.

Furthermore, several optical datasets are available for the eastern part
of Vieques. It is planned that the spectral qualities of different
benthic types be assessed and then an algorithm be built that allows
their correlation to the older hyperspectral dataset. Thus, if habitat
maps can be generated from an old dataset, a change--detection analysis
against a newer dataset could be performed.

> ***Climate Change Determination through Analysis of Coral Skeletal
> Growth***

This project contributes to both of the USCRTF national strategies to
conserve coral reefs by helping to understand coral reef ecosystems and
supporting strategic research on regional threats to coral reef health.
It addresses the stated purposes of the Coral Reef Conservation Act of
2000 to preserve, sustain, and restore the condition of coral reef
ecosystems and to develop sound scientific information on the condition
of coral reef ecosystems and the threats to such ecosystems.

Coral growth rates, based on annual density bands, serve as indicators
for environmental change as well as a template for isotopic and
elemental analysis of the skeleton. Additionally, coral growth can be
analyzed for spatial variations such as the latitudinal effects based on
sea-surface temperature and temporal variations such as El Niño/La Niña
cycles. Skeletal density and calcification of corals have recently
gained attention because of the potential impacts from global climate
change and their unique ability to record this change over their long
lifespan (often 100+ years). Historical skeletal growth rates
(extension, density, and calcification) thus become useful for testing
hypotheses regarding variations in growth attributable to climatic
changes such as rising carbon-dioxide levels and sea-surface
temperature.

Projected increases in carbon dioxide (CO~2~) are predicted to decrease
the aragonite saturation state of surface waters which ultimately
decreases the carbonate ions available for calcification. Coral
calcification on many reefs just slightly outpaces erosion; therefore,
even a small decline in calcification may shift the balance of many
actively accreting reefs. It has been estimated that corals have
decreased their calcification rate by 10% or more in the last 100 years
as a result of atmospheric CO~2~ rise. Others have attributed coral
growth to be a function of to changes in sea surface temperature (SST)

We collected 38 coral cores from 13 Caribbean islands and have over 200
coral cores and samples from South Florida and the Florida Keys. Through
sclerochronology and X-ray densitometry techniques, we have developed an
objective and accurate approach to address the relationship between
historic changes in coral growth rates and rising CO~2~ levels and SST
over the last 100 years in Florida and the Caribbean.. This project will
also produce a database of coral growth records that can be used to test
other growth model hypotheses as well as local- and regional-scale
impacts.

NCRI scientists have developed the Coral X-radiograph Densitometry
System (Coral*XDS),* a Windows-based program which provides a tool for
the measurement of linear extension and density from coral X-radiographs
and the objective determination of skeletal calcification for
high-density, low-density, and annual bands.Coral*XDS* is freely
available for download through the NCRI
website:[http://www.nova.edu/ocean/coralxds/]{.underline}. In addition,
Coral*XDS* is additionally being developed to serve as an ideal platform
for relating coral growth and isotopic/elemental data. We are adapting
the current program to allow the input of isotopic/elemental data to
advance the understanding of skeletal growth, both deposition and
composition, in relation to environmental conditions by providing a
program suited to analyzing the interplay between density banding and
geochemistry.

**Restoration**

> ***Restoration Design and Postrestoration Monitoring Project
> (collaborative with Broward County DPEP)***

The United States nuclear submarine *Memphis* grounded in 30 feet of
water on a tropical coral reef off southeast Florida in February 1993.
The grounding caused extensive physical and biological damage to the
reef substrate and to the coral community. The impact of the grounding
was assessed through field and photographic studies and the area of
damage was determined. A recovery rate for the reef was assigned. The
NOAA Habitat Equivalency Model (HEM) was used to calculate the reef area
to be replaced in order to compensate for damages. Settlement of the
claim in April 1997 resulted in funding for the Broward County
Department of Planning and Environmental Protection to conduct the
restoration of this site. The restoration was planned and is coordinated
through NCRI participation as a hypothesis-based experiment that
provides for design and placement of concrete structures with limited
monitoring.

NCRI scientists have evaluated the effectiveness of different artificial
reef designs in enhancing coral reef restoration. A 3-year plan to
perform hypothesis testing of restoration strategies of the damaged reef
has been developed which involves comparison of settlement, growth, and
survival rate of corals among artificial reefs treated with potential
attractants (iron, lime rock, coral transplants) and control reefs (no
attractants). The reefs are divided into four treatments of gross
structural complexity (greater than 1 cm) to allow the determination of
the interactive effects of four different fish communities on coral
settlement and growth. In addition, the work allows the investigation of
microbial biofilms as settlement precursors. Transplant treatments
include identical replicates (same numbers of each species) to allow the
determination of species-specific differential survival and growth rates
of coral transplants. The four complexity treatments are formulated to
test the hypothesis that multiple refuge size and the resultant diverse
fish assemblages may affect coral recruitment, survival, and growth. One
hundred and sixty concrete modules have been built and deployed on soft
substrate adjacent to the grounding site. Settlement plates, coral
transplants, and refuge were added to the modules. Data collection was
initiated in October 2001. Donor colonies for the coral transplants were
identified, cored, and transplanted into the modules. Monitoring and
analysis will continue through FY 2003. Results from this study will be
published in appropriate scientific journals and made available to other
programs that are involved in restoration of damaged reefs.

> ***Establishment and Maintenance of a Coral Nursery Using Community
> Outreach and Education (collaborative with Broward County DPEP and
> National Fish and Wildlife Foundation)***

The Nurseries for Reef Fisheries Habitat Project (or "Coral Nursery
Project") was established in 2001 as a cooperative effort among
scientists from Nova Southeastern University (NSU OC) and the National
Coral Reef Institute (NCRI), marine resource managers from the Broward
County (Florida) Department of Planning and Environmental Protection
(DPEP), and community members from Ocean Watch Foundation Dive Club
(OWF). In addition to the support provided by the above groups, funding
was provided by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) and its
federal partner, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
(NOAA)Fisheries Community-Based Restoration Program.

The Coral Nursery Project aims to: (1) create a nursery for corals of
opportunity that may be used to help restore damaged reefs in the
future, (2) provide reef managers with coral species specific and colony
size specific transplantation success information, and (3) recruit
volunteers from the community with interests in diving and the marine
environment to assist with the project and to learn about coral
identification, data collection, and transplantation procedures. An
additional side benefit of this project has been increased local public
awareness and education about marine conservation. This project has
received extensive coverage in major local newspapers, evoking an
editorial endorsement of continued funding of this project by *The Miami
Herald*.

The project has generally involved one field day per month (on a
weekend) with a team of 10 people. This team generally consists of two
scientist from NSUOC/NCRI, two managers from DPEP, and six volunteers
from OWF. The team makes two dives each day using NCRI research vessel
and the DPEP research vessel. During the first dive, the team locates
and collects corals of opportunity (i.e., overturned, loose, or
dislodged coral colonies), which might perish due to being detached from
the reef. After collection, the corals are transported to an artificial
reef that serves as the substrate for the nursery. During the second
dive, the corals are tagged, transplanted to the substrate, and
monitored for growth and survivorship. Over the course of the day, the
team discusses coral reef ecology, coral identification, data
collection, and transplantation procedures. Corals from this nursery can
provide a source of transplant donors for future restoration of coral
reef habitat.

From June 2001 through December 2002, the NCRI research vessel,
*Researcher*, and the BC DPEP research vessel, *Monitor*, have been used
for 34 field days. These days included collecting and transplanting
corals, locating and tagging control corals, and monitoring the
transplanted and control corals. A total of 249 loose/dislodged coral
colonies were transplanted to the two artificial reefs that make up the
Nursery. The size, species, and health of each of these corals were
recorded at the time of transplantation. In addition, the corals were
tagged and imaged with a camera attached to a framer. Thirty-two control
corals were mapped and tagged and imaged in the same way as the
transplanted corals. Information on colony size, species, and health
were recorded. All of these corals are located on natural reef near the
Coral Nursery site. All of the transplanted and control corals were and
will continue to be monitored quarterly. Monitoring includes recording
general health and stability and taking planar images of each colony to
be used for growth analysis. An analysis and comparison of health and
growth of the transplanted corals against the control corals will
continue through the project. As of December 2002, 243 of the 249
transplanted colonies were alive and securely attached to the Nursery
substrate.