Journal
MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN
Volume 96, Issue 1-2, Pages 356-367Publisher
PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2015.04.047
Keywords
Submarine groundwater discharge; Water quality; High-latitude; Flood plume; Australia; Coral
Funding
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies
- University of Queensland
- National Environmental Research Program Tropical Ecosystems Hub Project
- Burnett Mary Regional Group, Reef Check Australia
- Queensland Government Department of Science, Information Technology, Innovation and the Arts, Brisbane
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Terrestrial runoff and flooding have resulted in major impacts on coral communities worldwide, but we lack detailed understanding of flood plume conditions and their ecological effects. Over the course of repeated flooding between 2010 and 2013, we measured coral cover and water quality on the highlatitude coral reefs of Hervey Bay, Queensland, Australia. In 2013, salinity, total suspended solids, total nitrogen and total phosphorus were altered for up to six months post-flooding. Submarine groundwater caused hypo-saline conditions for a further four months. Despite the greater magnitude of flooding in 2013, declines in coral abundance (similar to 28%) from these floods were lower than the 2011 flood (similar to 40%), which occurred immediately after a decade of severe drought. There was an overall cumulative decrease of coral by similar to 56% from 2010 to 2013. Our study highlights the need for local scale monitoring and research to facilitate informed management and conservation of catchments and marine environments. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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