Florida Coral Reef

Coral reefs:

One sixth of world’s population depend on coral reefs for food, coastal protection, livelihood and tourism income.

Supports 25% of all marine fish species

Florida = only state in US with extensive shallow coral reef formations near coast.

specialised habitats for shelter, food and breeding sites for animals like spiny lobster, snapper and grouper.

lay the foundation of a dynamic ecosystem with tremendous biodiversity.

Location

Florida's Coral Reef stretches approximately 360 linear

miles from Dry Tortugas National Park west of the Florida
Keys to the St. Lucie Inlet in Martin County. Roughly two-
thirds of Florida's Coral Reef lies within Biscayne National
Park and the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, a
marine protected area that surrounds the Florida Keys
island chain.

Natural Features
A type of barrier reef but lack the shallow inshore laggons found on most barrier reefs - thus referred to as a barrier bank
reed. Has patch reefs which grow in shallower water in between the reed and land which are typically small.
High in marine and coastal biodiversity.

Main Corals -
📍 Types (1)
Corals generally divided into two main categories - stony corals and octocorals (sea fans/whips and other soft ones).
More than 45 species of stony corals and 35 species of octocorals found along in this reef - each kind lives in a separate
colony that’s shaped differently.

stony coral = reef architects - polyps, living portion of corals, extract calcium from seawater and combine it with co2
to construct the limestone skeletons.

Reef building corals = brain, star and elkhorn corals

brain = dome shaped, resembles human brain

star = dome shaped but star patterns - accordion like fold within polyp cups

elkhorn + staghorn = branch like projetions like antlers

Marine sponges - very important - more than 70 species found along reef.

Animals → ecosystem health + ecological function + recreation + commercial fishing

Reef tract provide breeding and feeding grounds for 1/4 of all marine life worldwide and is home to millions of plants adn
animals including endangered speciesl ike green sea turtle, West Indian manatee and smalltooth sawfish.

Mammals
13 species of whales

Florida Coral Reef 1

 7 species of dolphins

West Indian manatee + Bottlenose dolphines

285 species of birds - seabird + shorebird species

green, loggerhead and hawksbill sea turtles

Other species -
Lobster
Caribbean spiny lobster → economically important commercial fisheries - annual loss of thousands of traps pose
economic + environmental concerns

Stone Crab
vulnerable to changes in water chemistry like acidification - have experienced overfishing since 1997.

Shrimp

Important fishery in the Florida Keys - measures needed to protect stocks.

Sea Urchins
Historically most important invertebrate grazers in the coral reef - helping to control the abundance of harmful algae.

massive die off of long-spined sea urchins caused cascading effects in coral reefs throughout region.

includes other urchins, crabs, and herbivorous fishes

Value of Reef
opportunities for recreation, education, scientific research adn public inspiration.

current medicines combat cancer, pain and inflammation

Florida’s coral reefs support 71,000 jobs and generates about $8.5 billion in sales and income annually.

Total tourism value = $1.1 billion

Provide more than $355 million/year in flood protection benefits to buildings and protects nearly $320 million in
annual economic activity.

Supports nation’s largest sport-fishing community, important commercial fisheries and a highly active diving, tourism
and boating industry.

Threats to Florida’s coral reefs

Animals → relative ebundance substantially altered - large bodied fish most affected.

heavy reacreatonal and commercial fishing pressure suppress biodiversity.

A social-ecological problem

Climate stressors

ocean temperatures: increase in global greenhouse gases

ocean acidification: absorb carbon dioxide → affect corals’ ability to produce their limestone skeleton

coral bleaching - a stress response when water temperatures spike over 1 degree celcius of average summer water
temperature. Results in loss of corals symbiotic algae partner which supply the coral with essential nutrients - lose
main food source and starve.

live coral at 2% down from 13% in 1996 + more than 56,000 acres of seagrass bed damaged by boat scarring -
double the scarring from 20 years ago

Florida Coral Reef 2

 Place-based challenges:

coral disease: stony coral tissue loss disease - with coral bleaching, more susceptible (more than 20 of the 45 reef
buliding coral species are vulnerable); disease is also highly transmissable.

overfishing + overuse: recreational usage increased by more than 750% across Florida’s coral reefs and fishing has
been occurring at unsustainable levels.

Reef fish form, spawning aggregations, when fish assemble in higher than usual densities to reproduce →
particularly vulnerable to exploitation → understanding location and timing of fish aggregations and the habitats
that support them is important.

Eg/ Biscayne National park = > 75% being overfished - Black grouper found less than 1% of their historical
abundance (40%)

marine debris

vessel grondings

invasive species: Lionfish - no natural predators - lionfish populations exploded and depleting populations of
important native reef fish like juvenile snapper + wrasses (clean corals of macroalgae)

pollution

Increase in human population lead to increased pollutants like storm water, wastewater outfalls → degrading
quality of water in the marine environment.

poor water quality: nutrient introductions to reefs cause algal blooms - algae takes advantage of excess nutrients in
the water and outcompetes corals for space on reef → nutrient enrichment = increase susceptibility to coral disease

Florida Coral Reef 3

 and bleaching

Management to mitigate the impacts

Everglades Restoration
Everglades ecosystem comprised of diverse habitats and sweeping watershed including 2.5 million acres of federally
protected lands and waters - lost 50% ofits natural habitat and over 70% of its historic water flow to urban adn agricultural
development → restoring what has been lost.

delays in this restoration harming reef → excess discharges from lakes (Lake Okeechobee) inundate coastal estuary
communities with polluted waters → cause algal blooms → runoff into the ocean and damage reef and marine
wildlife.

periods of drought = high salinity levels which have led to seagrass die offs, algal blooms, and fish kills - impacts
travel down into marine waters.

restoration improve resilience to withstand reef stressors - climate change, ocean acidification, disease, bleaching,
overfishing, sedimentation from coastal development, ship groundings + anchor damage.

Marine Protected areas along Florida Reef Tract

protecting estuaries that helps eed reefs with marine life

Everglades National Park helps protect one of the largest seagrass meadows in NA → seedFlorida’s coral reefs

Works with gov agencies → managing areas to protect marine wildlife and habitat

Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary

includes the reef tract

protects over 6000 marine species - approx 800 underwater cultural and historical sites, diverse habitats

Protection promots ecosystem health along entire Florida Reef Tract

Important economic driver - 43,000 jobs out of 75,000 residents + contributing $4.4 billion annually to Florida’s
economy.

Sanctuary developed Restoration Blueprint → proposals to increase protections in the santuary and counteract
decline of habitat, wildlife and cultural resources.

expanding sanctuary boundaries

updating marine zones + regulations

revising management plan

protect diversity of habitats + wildlife corridors and shoreline to reef zones

improve water quality - everglades restoration + addressing local source of pollution

protect and restore coral reefs

plan for climate change

expanding sanctuary - increase number and size of fully protected no fishing marine reserves

implement mandatory boater education program

includes sanctuaries like: Biscayne National Park, the Coral Ecosystem Conservation Area (covers nearly a third
of the Florida Reef Tract - protects it

NPCA’s Action in the FRT

increasing the resiliency of oceans and coastal habitat

restoring “blue carbon ecosystems” like mangroves and seagrass beds

providing safe havens for marine wildlife

restoring coral reefs and sustaining fisheries.

Florida Coral Reef 4

 Effectiveness:
marine reserves are effective in promoting fish size, abundance, and sustainability

Florida Coral Reef 5