Crustose coralline algae can contribute more than corals to coral reef carbonate production - INRAE - Institut national de recherche pour l’agriculture, l’alimentation et l’environnement
Journal Articles Communications Earth & Environment Year : 2023

Crustose coralline algae can contribute more than corals to coral reef carbonate production

Christopher Cornwall
Jérémy Carlot
Oscar Branson
Travis Courtney
  • Function : Author
Ben Harvey
  • Function : Author
Chris Perry
  • Function : Author
Andreas Andersson
  • Function : Author
Guillermo Diaz-Pulido
  • Function : Author
Maggie Johnson
  • Function : Author
Emma Kennedy
  • Function : Author
Erik Krieger
  • Function : Author
Jennie Mallela
Sophie Mccoy
  • Function : Author
Maggy Nugues
  • Function : Author
Evan Quinter
Claire Ross
Emma Ryan
Vincent Saderne
Steeve Comeau

Abstract

Abstract Understanding the drivers of net coral reef calcium carbonate production is increasingly important as ocean warming, acidification, and other anthropogenic stressors threaten the maintenance of coral reef structures and the services these ecosystems provide. Despite intense research effort on coral reef calcium carbonate production, the inclusion of a key reef forming/accreting calcifying group, the crustose coralline algae, remains challenging both from a theoretical and practical standpoint. While corals are typically the primary reef builders of contemporary reefs, crustose coralline algae can contribute equally. Here, we combine several sets of data with numerical and theoretical modelling to demonstrate that crustose coralline algae carbonate production can match or even exceed the contribution of corals to reef carbonate production. Despite their importance, crustose coralline algae are often inaccurately recorded in benthic surveys or even entirely missing from coral reef carbonate budgets. We outline several recommendations to improve the inclusion of crustose coralline algae into such carbonate budgets under the ongoing climate crisis.
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hal-04659699 , version 1 (24-07-2024)

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Christopher Cornwall, Jérémy Carlot, Oscar Branson, Travis Courtney, Ben Harvey, et al.. Crustose coralline algae can contribute more than corals to coral reef carbonate production. Communications Earth & Environment, 2023, 4 (1), pp.105. ⟨10.1038/s43247-023-00766-w⟩. ⟨hal-04659699⟩
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