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Many of you have written or spoken to me
about the presentation I gave recently at the International
Marine Aquarium Conference (IMAC 2004) in Chicago last June.
Several of you requested a summary of what I spoke about,
so I am providing a manuscript submitted to the Coral Disease
and Health Consortium that documents our progress in the culture
of Caribbean species, that fully explains the subject of my
IMAC 2004 lecture.
To use skills learned as an aquarist to
benefit science and coral reef conservation has been a long-time
goal of mine as an aquarist. I have found myself in a somewhat
special position, drawing on decades of experience as a diver,
well over a decade of experience with the husbandry of corals
in reef aquaria, and now a few amazing years as a coral reef
scientist. It is equally special how these fields overlap
and complement each other, but unfortunately few participants
in each field are aware of the intricacies and specialized
knowledge of the other disciplines. I think this is changing,
as more and more scientists come in contact with successful
coral displays, and as more and more aquarists are themselves
scientists in various disciplines. Diving? Well, diving puts
everything into perspective!
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As aquarists, we have experienced around
20 years of success with keeping some corals alive, 10-15
years of success keeping almost all zooxanthellate corals
alive, and only limited success with most of the azooxanthellate
species. Certainly, the prolific growth of Aiptasia
sp. anemones gave some clue that "farming" cnidarians
was possible. In 1999, I wrote a paper (Borneman and Lowrie
1999) for which a friend of mine, Deborah Lang, did some serious
legwork in helping me determine all the species of corals
that were being propagated at that time (with some obviously
questionable species that are difficult to identify). We were
able to list some 400 species as available, although most
were Acropora species and soft corals. Over the years,
cultured corals have been made available to the hobby from
mariculture operations, aquaculture facilities, and local
sources (aquarium clubs, local trading, etc.). Entire businesses
are now devoted solely to the propagation of corals, books
have been written on the subject, and now some websites even
offer "propagation tools," such as forceps, snippers,
glues and mounting materials. Frags.org,
a relatively new website and concept, is a loosely formed
organization of some 250+ private individuals and businesses
who offer cultured corals for sale or trade. Organizations
like this are truly remarkable, having stemmed from earlier
efforts such as the "League of Coral Farmers." Some
coral farms, such as Tropicorium,
Inc. have been around longer than many aquarists have kept
corals, and the pioneering propagation work by Dick Perrin
(and son) are models of the industry's potential.
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Coral farming has other beneficial or economically
valuable uses beyond the aquarium trade (Table
1). I have also compiled a table of sources of aquacultured
corals (Table 2). I apologize to any people
or companies who aquaculture but are not listed, and would
encourage everyone I have omitted to contact me so that I
can add their names to the list. While in most cases cultured
coral is ecologically favorable to wild-collected coral, it
is generally acknowledged that the economically preferable
option is to allow coral collectors to maintain their employment
by teaching them to become coral mariculturists, rather than
supplanting resource country opportunities by displacing wild
collection with land-based aquaculture outside those resource
countries. The numerous attempts to begin coral mariculture
have not, unfortunately, lessened the impact of wild collection
to date. However, more and more mariculture operations are
now forming, becoming viable, and substituting larger proportions
of cultured corals for wild harvest. I wrote
about such a coral farm, that was attempting to bring Caribbean
cultured corals to the aquarium trade, several years ago.
Some aquarists have rightfully noted that
maricultured corals are not as "hardy" as those
grown in tanks. They are often just as demanding in terms
of acclimation as wild colonies, and tend to suffer higher
mortality than tank-cultured colonies. But, mariculture facilities
are able to selectively culture the "best of the best"
under conditions that, while still subject to environmental
stochasticity (random variability), are far less variable
than those affecting collections taking place over vast regions
and very different habitats. Culture stock is selected for
desirable traits such as color, shape, growth, and survivability.
Much less selection is possible with wild harvest. Furthermore,
maricultured corals are grown near the coast and near logistical
transport, likely decreasing transport- and shipping-related
stress and mortality. Mariculture facilities now exist or
are planned in many resource countries (Table
3).
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Outside the aquarium trade, managers, government,
conservation-minded groups and scientists are also beginning
to take note of coral farming's potential uses for various
purposes. Several recent publications highlight and acknowledge
the desirability of coral farming. A passage from the U.S.
Coral Reef Task Force's, "Proposed National Action Strategy:
Proposed Actions and Strategies to Address Key Threats states:
"The following actions are offered to address concerns:
Expand and strengthen capacity building efforts in countries
with coral reefs to enforce relevant laws and regulations,
collect trade data, and develop and implement sustainable
management plans, certification schemes, and alternative
harvest practices such as aquaculture and coral farming."
The use of novel methods of restoration,
rehabilitation and replenishment using propagated corals has
also been mentioned in statements from the International Coral
Reef Initiative, the Proceedings of the Caribbean Acroporid
Workshop, and numerous other publications. I have recently
reviewed several articles that directly relate to the aquarium-based
culture of corals for restoration, and other articles have
appeared sporadically throughout the years, many of them by
well-known professional aquarists of public aquaria (most
notably, Walter Adey and staff at the Smithsonian Institution,
Jean Jaubert and scientists at the Monaco aquarium and related
facilities, and Bruce Carlson and staff at the Waikiki aquarium).
The idea that growing corals is possible is still, however,
a somewhat novel idea to many in the scientific community.
I recently submitted a grant application to supplement funding
for a project involving coral culture, and received a comment
from a reviewer who remarked, "While this proposal is
a novel idea, I do not think it is feasible or even possible
to grow Acropora in closed system aquaria." Clearly,
there is still a wide gap in the sharing of information between
many scientists and aquarists.
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Despite such comments, there is clearly
a strong trend in science to begin approaching, experimenting
with and utilizing various techniques and forms of coral culture
to benefit research and reef restoration. Why is there a sudden
interest? There are two major reasons. The first is that coral
reefs are dying or degrading rapidly on a global scale. Notably,
the near extirpation of the primary hermatypic Caribbean species,
Acropora cervicornis and A. palmata, has created
a desire for new ways to re-establish the species throughout
their range. The second reason is the number of reefs that
are candidates for reef replenishment or restoration due to
ship groundings and other environmental impacts.
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Reef restoration is big business and can
involve large remediation sums and settlements, and private
corporations offer various technologies to help restoration
efforts. The use of artificial substrates, such as Reef-Balls™,
and technologies such as mineral accretion, are often employed.
The downsides to the use of many current restoration techniques
are numerous.
They are both costly and not usually cost-effective. They tend to be very labor intensive, They are questionably effective (high mortality or low
diversity/abundance of restored fragments), and They are complicated.
Many restorations also involve a "borrow
from Peter to pay Paul" ideology, whereby corals are
removed from a donor site and replaced in a receiver site.
When forests are restored from fire or logging, trees are
not uprooted from other forests and taken to the damaged areas.
Rather, small seedlings are planted from existing nurseries.
Similarly, groups in Israel, Fiji, the Solomon Islands, Japan,
and other places currently have coral nurseries in place using
varying techniques, many of which are products of aquarium
propagation methods. It is very encouraging to see these efforts
taking form and being utilized. Coral nurseries, albeit ex
situ (or aquaculture) rather than in situ (mariculture),
are also where my role in this article comes about.
An oft-stated ideal among reefkeepers
is that, as aquarists, we can grow corals and help save reefs
by putting them back out on the reef. The fact is that this
is currently not, and may never be, a workable option. Any
coral that has been placed into a reef aquarium has undoubtedly
come into contact with many species that are not native to
any putative area of reintroduction. In mixed displays containing
Pacific and Caribbean species, this is even more of an issue
since little mixing of benthic species occurs between the
coral reefs of the tropical Atlantic and Indo-Pacific regions.
Genome mixing by plasmid transfer is possible and even likely;
such chimeral species with genes from several potential sources
should not be released. Well-meaning aquarists often forget
that although Free Willy was a great and inspiring
movie, "releasing" clownfish, lionfish, corals,
algae, and (more importantly) possibly invasive species or
pathogens (likely invisible to the aquarist) is a very real
danger and a very bad idea. Strict controls must be maintained
to even consider such "home projects" as a viable
option, and even then permission for reintroduction to any
wild community would not likely be given.
To that end, an effort is now underway
to develop a coral health certification whereby corals in
culture would be designated as "healthy" and posing
minimal risk for reintroduction or for transfer to other facilities.
Certification would apply only to the target projects, but
would also have many implications for other aspects of aquaculture,
mariculture, and even wild harvest. Perhaps certification
could even eventually be used to ensure healthy corals within
the scheme of the export to retail aquarium trade chain. It
would certainly be of great interest and benefit to the aquarium
trade to know that corals offered for sale are known to be
healthy through a systematic checklist of factors. I worked
on the development of these guidelines with a large committee
of experts in July 2004. Goals of the certification include:
developing a best practice management for aquacultured corals
from collection to quarantine and culture conditions; assessments
of coral health throughout the processes; and the possible
pretreatment/surface sterilization of colonies prior to reintroduction.
These goals will help ensure that only healthy corals are
returned to reefs. When completed, these guidelines will establish
the first health standards for corals.
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While the major focus of our efforts is
for the culture of clonal fragments for coral disease research,
we have received funding and permission for test reintroductions
to a ship grounding site in the Florida Keys. This study will
compare the growth and survival of corals removed from the
Truman Annex (see article below), and then
grown in our facility, other aquaculture facilities in Florida,
and a live rock mariculture site. The corals will then be
explanted onto the test restoration site. Questions to be
answered from this work are numerous. Is aquaculture a feasible
way to generate coral fragments for restoration and/or rehabilitation?
Can tank-raised corals compete and survive on the reef? Will
tank-raised corals act as a vector for disease to wild communities?
Together with the owners of the coral farm
discussed below, we also have plans for, or are involved in
expansions of this work for other areas of research and conservation
activities. All in all, this project is truly groundbreaking
in many ways and has thus far been extraordinarily successful.
What gives me great hope and pride is the enthusiastic reception
from outside parties with nearly constant inquiries as to
the further development of the project. We have what I believe
to be the largest inventory of Caribbean corals in the country,
and we do not plan to stop anytime soon. It is our goal to
continue expanding our diversity and inventory to other areas
and other species until we have a carefully organized, genetically
diverse and characterized stock of corals available for use
by all interested parties. Included in our plans are techniques
to settle sexually produced coral larvae from spawning events
to rapidly and sustainably increase production of coral fragments
on a largescale. I attempted to induce settlement of larvae
resulting from spawning events from the Flower Gardens in
2003, and my effort was a dismal failure and an obvious learning
event. Now, I have contacted those who have utilized spawn
settlement techniques to great success in Japan and Germany,
and plan to try again this year during spawning events. Additionally,
we will be receiving later this year a large quantity of aquarium-settled
and grown colonies from Rotterdam as part of a joint effort
to increase the use of sexually spawned and settled corals
for various purposes (Dirk Peterson, pers. comm.).
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Many of you have asked whether or not any
of the Caribbean corals will be available to the aquarium
trade. This answer is, we have no such plans at present. The
"black market" corals I acquired from local Houston
stores could technically be propagated and sold. The other
collections are under strict permit requirements and can be
used only for reef research and the goals outlined by the
CDHC. Eventually, I hope that propagules from original broodstock
or future acquisitions will be available, but we have no plans
to approach this subject in the near future. The coral farm,
Reef Savers Inc., will, however, be offering Pacific species
on a large scale to the trade as broodstock is developed.
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Currently in progress, we are continuing
fragmentation of the many colonies that must be managed to
maximize growth from the margins and produce appropriately
sized specimens. We are beginning procedures to measure both
linear growth and weight of corals to determine calcification
rates. Because of the scale of the project, we are developing
practical, logistical genotype separations so that we can
track parent and resultant daughter colony propagules. We
are setting up more systems, including special quarantine
systems required in other large acquisitions, since several
hundred or thousand pounds of coral entering a facility at
any one time can be constrained by the extraordinarily large
space requirements necessary to ensure protocol adherence;
a situation not usually experienced by traditional aquarium
trade acquisitions even by large wholesale facilities. Cost-
and function-effective bases and mounting techniques are required
for end-use purposes. We are also working on "microfragmentation"
to increase the colonies' growth potential and to meet the
very small size requirements for typical molecular research
needs. The "fine-tuning" for large-scale water flow,
plankton, calcification, and lighting needs of these species
are constantly being "tweaked" to ensure the best
progress of our efforts. Finally, we are building Acropora
palmata- specific systems for future acquisitions of this
highly demanding, but critically important, species.
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In terms of our current and future needs,
we would like to dramatically expand our production of the
Caribbean acroporids because of their ecological importance
and the potential for their culture. The health certification
must be developed and put into place. The rapid progress and
unexpected success of the project, to date, have produced
a somewhat more urgent need to develop formal arrangements
for supply and demand within the CDHC plan, and to establish
logistics for specimen transfer. While the corals produced
for research will be sold in the same manner as "lab
rats" provided by biological supply sources, the costs
have not yet been determined because of the novelty of culturing
Caribbean species on a large scale, and the break-even points
to become a self-sustaining venture are still unknown. Efforts
are underway to establish a non-profit division of Reef Savers
that will be responsible for all research and conservation-related
activities. This will, in turn, give us better access to other
grant-funded opportunities to cover further development costs
of the facility in current and future projects. Efforts to
obtain supplemental funding support are currently underway.
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Future plans of this project include cooperative
work with researchers and managers for specific research,
restoration and rehabilitation needs, including those outside
the goals of the CDHC. We are working with interested parties
and a new aquarium-trade conservation initiative, Reef Protection,
International, to develop educational and outreach materials.
We plan to work with other labs and facilities to develop
redundant and specific systems for other interested parties
and ensure widespread dispersal of clonal libraries and subsequent
maintenance of existing genotypes. With future acquisitions,
we will establish wider Caribbean location-specific systems
and genotypes so that separation or mixing of genotypes for
location-specific needs can be achieved. We will begin environmental
tolerance tests and attempt to develop "high-tolerance"
strains using corals' natural acclimatization abilities, focusing
on environmental tolerances to the most common stressors facing
natural communities, such as temperature and increased nutrient
levels. Finally, we will work with all appropriate parties
toward the formation of a coral "gene bank" that
will require partial or total sequencing of genotypes in culture.
Together, these efforts should be able to help move coral
reef science forward to an appreciable extent, and it has
been a great pleasure and honor to have been given such an
opportunity - one that has exceeded our wildest expectations
in a very short period of time. I also thank all of you who
have subsequently offered products, financial support, or
advice toward this project subsequent to my presentation at
IMAC, 2004.
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Acknowledgements
I would like to thank all of the following
people for their contributions and help in this project: the
Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, and especially Laurie
McLaughlin, Joanne Delaney, Billy Causey, Harold Hudson, and
Bill Keller; the Coral Disease and Health Consortium, and
especially Cheryl Woodley, Esther Peters, Cindy Hunter, Andy
Bruckner, Pam Parnell, Roy Yanong, and Ilze Berzins; the Tropical
Aquaculture Center, especially Craig Watson; Ken Nedimyer;
the Flower Gardens National Marine Sanctuary, and especially
Emma Hickerson and G.P. Schmahl; Walt Smith; Dirk Peterson;
Drew Weiner; the Florida Aquarium; Mote Marine Laboratory;
Dennis Tagrin; Roger Vitko (Tunze USA); and especially my
collaborative "partners," Eric and Kim Koch of Reef
Savers, Inc.
Table 1. Potential uses of cultured
corals:
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Medical research (bone grafts, pharmaceuticals) |
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Coral reef research |
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Restoration |
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Reef replenishment |
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Aquarium trade |
|
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Jewelry |
|
|
Curios |
|
|
Fisheries |
|
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Coastal management |
|
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Tourism and diving |
|
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Employment in coral mariculture or aquaculture
field |
Table 2. Sources of cultured corals:
Frags.org - coral fragment trading group of
individuals and businesses
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Getting Tanked
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Blowfish Aquatics
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Reef Savers
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Coral Planet
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CoralSandBar
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Gooch's Corals
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Captive Reef Corals
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Live Aquaria
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Invert-ual Realities
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eCorals
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Tropical Paradise
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Tampa Bay Saltwater
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Reefdweller/Reefaholics
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Harbor Aquatics
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CoralFragz
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The Coral Reef
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Coral Reef Productions
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AquariumCity
|
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Atlantis Aquatics
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Inland Aquatics
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AquaTouch Livestock
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Coral Dynamics
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REEFlections
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Premium Aquatics
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Reefer Madness
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Indo-Pacific Sea Farms
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Splash of Life
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Tropicorium
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Dr. Mac & Sons Corals
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Joe Kelley
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Reeffarmers
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The Reef Web
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Rod's Reef
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Marine Ecosystems
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Captive Raised Corals
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Inland Reef Aquaria
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Midland Marine
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GARF
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Greg Hiller
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Dynamic Ecomorphology
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Salt Water Connections
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Coral Reef Aquarium
|
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Coral Connection
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J & B's Marine Propagations
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SeaCrop
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Mermaid's Reef
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TheSea.org
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SeaCare
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Reef Creations
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Something Fishy
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Captive Bred Corals
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eTropicals.com
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Lonestar Corals
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Shawn & Michael
Bennett's
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Adrian's Coral Reef
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Soutas Saltwater
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AquaCorals
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Monaghan's Corals
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The Saltwater Reef
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Ken's Reef
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Amphibious
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The Cultured Reef
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South Pacific Aquatics
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5th Day Aquatics
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Bama Saltwater
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The Frag Store
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Tridacna Reef
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Ocean Aquatics
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Belau Aquaculture
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Walt Smith International
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CV Dinar
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Blaine Perun's Farms
at the Sea
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Table 3. Countries with existing or
planned coral mariculture facilities:
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Palau
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Dominica
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Australia
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Puerto Rico
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Tonga
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USA (Florida)
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Solomon Islands
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Red Sea
|
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American Samoa
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Philippines
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Marshall Islands
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Indonesia
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Fiji
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Israel
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Japan
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Model Systems and
Coral "Lab Rats" for the Coral Disease and
Health Consortium: Large-Scale Culture of Reef Corals
for Disease Research
Eric Borneman1,
Eric Koch and Kim Koch2
1Department
of Biology, University of Houston, Houston TX eborneman@uh.edu
2Reef Savers, Inc.,
Stafford, TX eric@reeftanks.org
Draft manuscript prepared for the CHDC
Workshop on coral disease diagnostics. Madison, Wisconsin.
April 27-29, 2004.
Introduction
This project implements one of the Coral Disease and
Health Consortium's high priority recommendations: to
identify and develop model coral species (analogous
to "laboratory rats") that are well characterized
and suitable for laboratory culture, and to establish
a culture facility able to supply model species for
scientific research.
To investigate normal coral biology and disease states
using modern scientific techniques, it is necessary
to identify and develop model species, and make them
routinely available for research. Model laboratory species
share well-known desirable characteristics, including
ease of culture, high growth and fecundity rates, and
relatively simple genetics. Model corals will be analogous
to "lab rats," and enable rapid advances by
focusing research on fundamental biological concepts
broadly applicable across the taxa. Model corals must
be representative of coral diversity, and include Indo-Pacific
and Caribbean species, autotrophs and heterotrophs,
branching and boulder growth forms, species with different
calcification rates, and with different algal symbionts.
They must be susceptible to bleaching and disease, and
also include taxa that are resistant to bleaching and
disease. Developing a living stock collection for model
corals will provide infrastructure critical for basic
research by providing well-characterized and documented
experimental organisms to domestic and international
researchers.
The Coral Disease and Health Consortium (CDHC) has
determined coral culture of key species to be integral
in furthering the study of coral disease. At the first
CDHC workshop (Charleston, South Carolina 2001), the
following were deemed essential among the numerous high
priority action items: 1) to be able to keep corals
alive for study in controllable conditions, and 2) to
establish clonal lines and the equivalent of coral "lab
rats" that can be used to establish baseline data.
These items were deemed imperative in the study of coral
disease in order to gain efficacious results to help
ameliorate pathologies causing rapid and severe coral
mortality and resultant ecosystem damage. Limitations
in the abilities to provide research corals and to maintain
colonies in captivity were seen as hampering research
progress, and it was acknowledged that most animal and
human research depended on the existence of such basic
needs. The U.S. Coral Reef Task Force, the International
Coral Reef Initiative, NURP/CRMC, and the NOAA Coral
Conservation Program (in conjunction with the National
Marine Fisheries Service) have all identified the needs
of this project as one of several key items to be addressed
as part of their national action plans designed for
the conservation of and addressing the global decline
of coral reefs, including efforts to reduce impacts
from overfishing, pollution, habitat destruction, disease,
coral bleaching, and damaged reefs. Additionally, among
the proposed solutions are novel strategies to reduce
these impacts to coral reefs, including the use of restoration
and culture-based technologies, the development of new
techniques and technologies for marine research, and
the culture of organisms to develop new value from the
sea through aquaculture.
The goals of maintaining coral cultures are attainable
using widespread techniques that, unfortunately, have
not been widely disseminated amongst the coral research
community, and such abilities have largely and erroneously
been thought to be the exclusive domain of a few unusual
persons or facilities (Carlson 1999). To date, research
culture attempts in aquaria have met with very limited
success, but are thought to have potential (Becker and
Mueller 1999). Mariculture efforts are hampered by the
fact that conditions in the ocean are subject to many
of the same conditions that wild colonies face, and
disturbances can destroy such efforts entirely (Bak
and Criens 1981, Sakai et al. 1989, Yap and Gomez 1985).
In particular, laboratory or aquarium culture attempts
of Caribbean Acroporids have been largely unsuccessful
(see for example, Becker and Mueller 1999). However,
those attempting to culture Acropora in the past
have failed to meet the requirements of the species
in culture facilities, or lacked the skills required
to maintain and grow these decidedly sensitive species
(Gaines, pers comm.). Under proper conditions, growth
rates easily match or exceed those found in the wild,
and organisms can be raised in controlled areas free
of storm damage, predation, encroachment, disease, and
other variables inherent to in situ study (Borneman
and Lowrie 1999). These techniques have allowed the
long-term maintenance, growth and reproduction of every
zooxanthellate and hermatypic coral made available,
encompassing most species of Scleractinia and including
several hundred species of other taxa (Octocorallia,
corallimorpharians, etc.).
Corals grown by asexual means are of the same genotype,
a characteristic of great benefit in coral research.
Corals grown in aquariums can be acclimated to changing
conditions, and could be reintroduced to increase the
diversity or number of damaged, declining, or impoverished
reef areas. Finally, species grown in captivity have
been overwhelmingly reported to be exceptionally durable,
and may, in fact, be more likely to establish themselves
and survive adverse conditions as they mature (Carlson
1999). The ability of corals grown in captivity to adapt
to environmental variations outside their normal range
is well known.
The objectives of the CHDC committee charged with developing
the goals were to determine which species are most suitable
for use as coral "lab rats." Requirements
for species were decided as follows: able to be maintained
in captivity; susceptible, resistant, or appropriate
to conditions being studied; availability; preferably
fast growth; existing database within literature or
other sources; able to be propagated, sexually or asexually;
ecological important species. For the Caribbean, the
following species were chosen: Acropora cervicornis
and A. palmata, Siderastrea siderea, Montastraea
annularis/faveolata/franksi, Porites astreoides and
P. porites, Agaricia agaracites, and Gorgonia
ventalina.
Facility
The facility being used to develop clonal lines is
Reef Savers, Inc., a large coral farm in Stafford, Texas.
Several systems were set aside and designated exclusively
for the project, with numerous systems available for
expansion, if required. The systems are composed of
250-gallon acrylic tank modules, with a total system
volume of approximately 5000 gallons. Each module tank
shares the same system water volume, although each tank
is capable of being isolated by shut off-valves from
every other tank in the module. Each tank is illuminated
by various combinations of metal halide lamps, ranging
from 250 - 400 watts utilizing different spectrums from
6500K to 20,000K, depending on the depth and irradiance
levels that are being emulated. Additionally, very high
output actinic fluorescent lamps are used to simulate
dawn and dusk and allow for a more gradual and natural
increase and decrease in photosynthetic rates of coral
colonies.
The tanks are designed to maximize gas exchange and
ensure saturated or supersaturated levels of oxygen.
Water flow is provided by a number of methods. Primary
flow is accomplished large diameter outflows of commercial
grade centrifugal pumps. By themselves, they provide
unidirectional flow along the length of the tank that
is between 5-20 cm/second depending on the distance
from the pump outflow. This alone provides water flow
equivalent to areas of maximal coral diversity. In addition,
large outflow "propeller" powerheads (Tunze
Stream pumps) provide turbulence against the laminar
flow with total flow per powerhead of approximately
7,000 - 10,000 gallons/hour. Finally, surge tanks can
be used in systems designed to emulate to high-energy
environment, allowing an environment conducive to rapid
growth of shallow water species.
Water quality is supplemented on each
system by the use of large protein skimmers, each powered
by a designated high-pressure commercial pump. A sand
bed is used in each tank of fine-grained oolitic aragonite
sand to provide habitat for decomposing meiofauna and
microbial flora that is a primary source of nutrient
processing. Additionally, live rock is used in the sump
of each stack to increase habitat and biodiversity for
meiofauna and the production of demersal zooplankton.
Pacific systems utilize Pacific live rock and Caribbean
systems utilize Atlantic aquacultured live rock. Water
for the systems is artificial, utilizing Crystal Seas
BioAssay formula (Marine Enterprises, Inc.). Source
water is purified through a commercial mixed bed deionization
and reverse osmosis system, and mixed seawater additionally
filtered though a 2 micron cartridge filter to further
remove impurities.
Calcium and carbonate is replenished by several means;
through the addition of reagent grade calcium chloride
and sodium carbonate, and by custom-made calcium reactors.
The reactors operate by bubbling carbon dioxide through
a specially designed chamber containing various natural
marine sources of calcium carbonate that we have mixed
to maximize various minor and trace element constituents.
No other elements are added as supplements to the systems.
There are many other very special and unique aspects
of design and husbandry involved at this facility, but
which are beyond the scope of this article.
Coral Collections
The collection of corals for this project include both
Caribbean and Pacific species. Pacific species are acquired
from a number of sources, including Fiji, Indonesia,
Tonga, and the Solomon Islands. Additionally, a number
of previously cultured genotypes have been acquired
from various sources and their origin is unknown. Although
the current livestock is limited to the species presented
in Table 2, the acquisition of additional
species is ongoing and can include virtually any species
that is requested by the research community. Access
to most tropical Indo-Pacific species is almost limitless
and corals are easy to acquire. The majority of the
information below is in regard to the Caribbean species
since the Indo-Pacific species are so readily available.
Their culture encompasses the majority of the facility
and it is almost "second nature" for us to
grow and propagate these species.
Caribbean species were initially slow to acquire. A
limited sampling of a few colonies was permitted at
the Flower Gardens National Marine Sanctuary. This provided
an initial small broodstock of Porites astreoides,
P. divaricata, and Montastraea faveolata.
Attempts were made to acquire Acropora from Belize,
but permitting constraints on the amount of material
made the effort unfeasible. In November 2003, the Florida
Keys National Marine Sanctuary made available many corals
from the Truman Annex in Key West where a Navy dredging
effort for the expansion of the port threatened a seawall
covered by corals. These colonies were removed for relocation
and many were provided, in part, for the CDHC culture
systems. In January 2004, a second collection effort
was made at the Truman Annex site and involved the acquisition
of several hundred colonies. Small colonies of Acropora
cervicornis that had recruited onto a live rock
aquaculture lease site were provided by Ken Nedimyer
(Sea Life, Inc.).
In March 2004, we received word that numerous Caribbean
corals had been sold to several aquarium stores in the
Houston area, likely the result of black market sales
by an unscrupulous collector. The corals were immediately
collected from the stores and, after two weeks of quarantine
and surface sterilization using Lugol's solution and
gentamycin, were also placed into the culture system.
These colonies were reportedly obtained in the Bahamas.
Finally, from February to April, 2004, several species
were sent to us from aquarists who had obtained them
as settlements on aquacultured live rock (Tampa Bay
Saltwater) and subsequently propagated them by fragmentation.
These corals were also subjected to the quarantine and
sterilization procedure. Future plans will involve collections
from Puerto Rico, Panama, and Dominica. Long-term plans
include increasing the genetic diversity through acquisitions
from throughout the Greater Caribbean region.
Coral Acclimation and Fragmentation
While some of the colonies acquired have been small
(< 10cm), some colonies from the Truman Annex site
were quite large (>50cm). Initially, stabilization
of the colonies was essential, and they were placed
immediately into the systems after removal of potentially
fouling organisms (tunicates, sponges, and large iron
deposits on the underside of the skeleton). Some colonies
were flushed well with seawater to remove excess mucus
and limit the organic loading on the tank systems. Ozone
was employed by injection into the protein skimmer for
several days while the corals acclimated to tank conditions
and lowered their stress responses (increased mucus
production, some mesenterial filament extrusion). This
also reduced organic loading from epibionts, some of
which were in the process of dying as a result of the
collection and transport.
Lighting was provided on a reduced photoperiod (six
hours versus the normal 12 hour period), and the initial
Truman Annex collection proved that even this level
of irradiance was too much initially for these turbid
water collections. Several colonies of Agaricia agaracites,
Favia fragum, Diploria strigosa, and Montastraea
faveolata displayed various degrees of partial bleaching.
Upon reduction of irradiance using only the fluorescent
lights, all but two F. fragum and one A. agaracites
recovered quickly. At that time, the 250-watt metal
halides (6500K) were started on an increasing photoperiod,
starting at 2 hours per day and increasing by 2 hours
every week thereafter until the full photoperiod was
reached. At this point, some colonies were moved under
400 watt metal halide lights (6500K and 20,000K, depending
on observations of their responses and the species)
to increase growth rates. All subsequent collections
have followed this general protocol, and no further
bleaching has occurred except in several colonies of
Agaricia humilis from the second Truman Annex
collection. These corals were immediately shaded and
they completely recovered their symbionts within a week.
Most colonies are placed on top of eggcrate that is
raised above the substrate by a few inches using 2"
PVC pipe as "legs." Larger colonies, irradiance
sensitive species (Agaricia spp., F. fragum),
shade-loving (Scolymia spp.), and free-living
species (Manacina areolata) are placed either
directly on the sand substrate or are placed on eggcrate
that sits directly on the sand. The species are located
close or far from water flow depending on the species
requirements or tolerances. Genotypes are segregated,
where known, as are collections from the various regions.
Following stabilization, and once growth over any broken
margins had occurred, fragmentation has been initiated.
We have used lapidary and tile saws fitted with very
thin diamond lapidary blades, and using seawater in
the wet saw reservoir, to fragment the massive species.
Fragment sizes may vary, but around 2-5 cm fragments
are an ideal size to encourage rapid spread from multiple
margins. Branching species are fragmented with wire
snippers. All cut pieces are rinsed thoroughly in seawater
prior to returning them into the systems.
Because of the numbers of corals involved, we have
only begun the fragmentation process to date. Many of
the fragments still require attachment to a base, the
design and production of which is still being developed.
Some fragments have been attached to small pieces of
live rock, and others to a molded base made of unsanded,
uncolored tile grout (calcium carbonate) using calcium
chloride to speed the curing and provide an added boost
of calcium in the substrate to potentially encourage
rapid calcification. The molds are fitted with an acrylic
block in the center to create a square hole while the
grout cures, and is then removed leaving an indentation
for cut and trimmed fragments to be mounted with live
tissue touching the edges of the cured grout. Any space
around the fragment is filled with aragonite sand and
then hardened using a few drops of thin-set cyanoacrylate.
This method was developed for these fragments and is
proving to be effective for the massive and plating
species. Branching corals are affixed using either high-density
cyanoacrylate or fast curing epoxy putty, depending
on the size and shape of the fragment. They are also
mounted sideways to encourage basal spread by allowing
maximal healthy tissue contact with the substrate, and
allowing the broken edge and injured tissue to be exposed
to strong water flow that speeds recoverage of skeleton
by tissue and rapid recovery by exposure to strong water
flow.
Mortality and Growth
Of the several hundred original colonies, three small
colonies have been lost from a failure to recover from
bleaching induced by the systems' intense lighting (F.
fragum [2], A. agaracites [1]). One colony
(Colpophyllia natans) was lost from a "brown
jelly" infection that occurred after damage to
the colony during the transportation process. Approximately
sixty small fragments of M. faveolata were lost
after the second Truman Annex collection. The colonies
had been previously collected and amassed in plastic
bins that were placed underneath a dock in the harbor.
The fragments were piled on top of each other, and the
local conditions (low water flow, shading) as well as
physical damage from abrasion resulted in very weak
fragments prior to transport. There was also a white
material surrounding and affecting many polyps on the
fragments, and this condition spread to affect adjacent
polyps. These fragments were temporarily housed in a
separate tank for observation and recovery, if it was
going to occur. The fragments continued to decline,
and were dead within a week. These were never added
to the main culture systems. Several fragments were
removed and fixed prior to their loss for further analysis
of the white material.
The other 630+ colonies from the Truman Annex site
have absolutely thrived in the system. They appear to
be healthier now than on the marginal habitat where
they were originally located. All fragments are displaying
extensive polyp expansion and reproduction, with growth
occurring rapidly on all colonies. Several first "generation"
fragments were ready for a second division after a period
of only four months. Notably, the A. cervicornis
colonies are thriving and growing rapidly, and all have
formed new branches and many new axial corallites. As
we thought, the husbandry of this species does not appear
to be difficult at all when the proper techniques and
skills are employed. Also surprising is the rapid growth
of massive species, known to be slow-growing in the
wild. It appears the slow growth is a result of their
colony formation, with propagation that enhances marginal
expansion allowing for rapid growth. The corals are
being fed multiple times per day using various zooplankton
substitutes, including newly hatched Artemia nauplii,
Golden Pearls (Brine Shrimp Direct), and CyclopEze.
Additional live culture systems that will provide a
constant drip of prey items are being constructed to
increase colony growth and health.
Future Plans
Special treatment protocols will be initiated on subsamples
of clonal lines to enhance tolerance of numerous environmental
stressors currently impacting the species habitats;
data will be collected regarding the tolerance levels
of the species to various environmental parameters.
Findings will be communicated to the scientific community,
management authorities, and the public through publications
and workshops, with the culture techniques being taught
to any interested parties as part of the CDHC goal of
maintaining "coral guinea pigs" through no-impact
culturing systems for study and research. The benefits
of establishing a stock of these critically important
species is an essential step in understanding the requirements
of these species and the conservation of coral reefs.
One of the primary goals of future efforts is to acquire
larger stock populations of the critically important
A. cervicornis and A. palmata species.
We are confident that large-scale propagation of A.
cervicornis will be possible. This species is among
the most important to Caribbean reefs, but because of
its rarity today, is difficult to acquire and is carefully
guarded by managers. We would urge resource managers
to allow collections of this species to enable us to
rapidly reproduce fragments for research (or rehabilitation
efforts). We are equally confident that we can grow
the notoriously sensitive and demanding A. palmata.
We believe the key to successful culture of this species
will be in the efficient and proper transport of collected
fragments, and that once in systems specifically designed
to meet the species requirements, they will thrive just
as every other Acroporid does when proper husbandry
is provided.
In summary, a continuous source of fragments for use
in research, reef rehabilitation and restoration projects
will soon be available, with each system allowing fragments
to be available for each collection region. Additionally,
clonal coral specimens will be available for research
that do not impact the wild, and do not require time
consuming or expensive collection trips to obtain. Any
corals with signs of disease or other pathology, if
it occurs while in culture, will be isolated immediately
and available for study by interested research parties.
Valuable data will be gained from the treatment acclimated
corals and their ability to withstand continued and
unmitigated stressors present in wild communities. The
ability of corals to adapt to local conditions is critical
in assessing management strategies and in forecasting
the potential of reefs to recover from disturbances.
Tolerances of all clonal cultures to a variety of environmental
parameters will be quantified. This information will
provide necessary data to address most of the unknown
stressor-response characteristics of corals in the Caribbean.
The results of this project to date have been extraordinarily
successful. We have, through the opportunities afforded
by the Truman Annex collections, acquired broodstock
of nearly all zooxanthellate hermatypic genera in the
Caribbean. This far exceeds the original proposal of
focusing on a few key species. It is anticipated that
the success of this project will ultimately result in
significant progress in disease research, reduction
of the collection of wild colonies that impacts genotypic
diversity and coral coverage on a reef, and the eventual
return of large numbers of viable colonies to the reef.
These colonies would then be able to contribute to future
settlements of colonies through spawning and natural
fragmentation, enhancing the function of the reef as
habitat and increasing biodiversity at the site.
Literature Cited:
Bak, R. P. M., and S. R. Criens. 1981. Survival after
fragmentation of colonies of Madracis
mirabilis, Acropora palmata, and A. cervicornis
(Scleractinia) and the subsequent impact of a coral
disease. Proc 4th Int Coral Reef Sym 2: 221-7.
Becker, L. C., and E. Mueller. 1999. The culture, transplantation
and storage of Montastraea
faveolata, Acropora cervicornis, and Acropora
palmata: what we have learned so far. Bull Mar Sci
69: 881-896.
Borneman, E. H., and J. Lowrie. 1999. Advances in captive
husbandry and propagation: an
easily utilized reef replenishment means from the private
sector. Bull Mar Sci 69: 897-914.
Carlson, B. A. 1999. Organism responses to rapid change:
what aquaria tell us about nature.
American Zoologist 39: 44-55
Sakai, K., Nishihiri, M., Kakinuma, Y. and Song, J.
1989. A short-term field experiment on the effect of
siltation on survival and growth of transplanted Pocillopora
damicornis branchlets. Galaxea 8: 143 - 156.
Yap, W. and Gomex, E. 1985. Growth
of Acropora pulchra . III. Preliminary observations
on the effects of transplantation and sediment on the
growth and survival of transplants. Marine Biology 87:
203 - 209.
Table 1. Physico-chemical parameters
of Reef Savers, Inc.
| Variable |
Range |
Average |
|
pH
|
8.2 - 8.4
|
8.2
|
|
Alkalinity (meq/l)
|
3.5 – 4.5
|
4.2
|
|
Calcium (ppm)
|
375 – 450
|
420
|
|
Ammonia*
|
unmeasurable
|
unmeasurable
|
|
Nitrite*
|
unmeasurable
|
unmeasurable
|
|
Nitrate*
|
unmeasurable
|
unmeasurable
|
|
Phosphate*
|
unmeasurable
|
unmeasurable
|
|
Oxygen (% saturation)
|
89 (night) – 116 (day)
|
102
|
|
Salinity (ppt)
|
35-37
|
35.5
|
|
Temperature (oC)
|
24-28
|
26.5
|
|
Irradiance (µE/m2/s-1)
|
250 - 700
|
|
|
* The
test kits used are low range colorimetric field
kits without the power to resolve the low levels
of nutrients in the systems.
|
Table 2. Pacific Species
in Culture, full production
|
Name
|
Number of colonies
|
Fragments possible
|
|
Pocillopora damicornis
|
200
|
5,000
|
|
Acropora spp. (many)
|
1,000
|
20,000
|
|
Stylophora pistillata
|
200
|
5,000
|
|
Totals
|
1,400
|
30,000
|
Table 3. Atlantic Species
in Culture, current production
| Locations
possible |
Name |
Number
of colonies |
Fragments |
|
KN
|
Acropora cervicornis
|
7
|
tbd*
|
|
TA, AC
|
Agaricia spp.
|
49
|
tbd*
|
|
TA
|
Colpophyllia natans
|
5
|
tbd*
|
|
TA, AS
|
Dichocoenia stokesi
|
14
|
tbd*
|
|
TA
|
Diploria strigosa
|
75
|
tbd*
|
|
TA
|
Diplora clivosa
|
1
|
tbd*
|
|
TA
|
Diploria labyrinthiformis
|
4
|
tbd*
|
|
TA
|
Eusmilia fastigiata
|
25
|
tbd*
|
|
TA
|
Favia fragum
|
11
|
tbd*
|
|
TA
|
Isophyllia sinuosa
|
4
|
tbd*
|
|
TA, AS
|
Madracis sp.
|
24
|
tbd*
|
|
AC
|
Manacina areolata
|
4
|
tbd*
|
|
TA, AS, AC
|
Millepora alcicornis
|
12
|
tbd*
|
|
TA, AS
|
Montastraea cavernosa
|
74
|
tbd*
|
|
TA, AS
|
Montastraea annularis
|
3
|
tbd*
|
|
TA, FG
|
Montastraea faveolata
|
92
|
tbd*
|
|
TA
|
Montastraea franksi
|
3
|
tbd*
|
|
TA
|
Mussa angulosa
|
1
|
tbd*
|
|
TA
|
Mycetophyllia sp.
|
8
|
tbd*
|
|
TA, AC, AS
|
Oculina diffusa
|
54
|
tbd*
|
|
TA
|
Oculina varicosa
|
1
|
tbd*
|
|
TA, FG
|
Porites astreoides
|
39
|
tbd*
|
|
TA, AS
|
Porites porites
|
12
|
tbd*
|
|
TA
|
Scolymia sp.
|
10
|
tbd*
|
|
TA
|
Siderastrea radians
|
9
|
tbd*
|
|
TA
|
Siderastrea siderea
|
21
|
tbd*
|
|
AS
|
Solenastrea hyades
|
1
|
tbd*
|
|
TA
|
Stephanocoenia micheleni
|
72
|
tbd*
|
|
Totals
|
|
635
|
> 7,000
|
|
KN = Ken Nedimyer AS = Aquarium store
TA = Truman Annex FG = Flower Gardens AC
= Aquacultured
*tbd (to be determined): The fragmentation of
whole colonies is not yet completed; however,
a general estimate is given for stock on hand.
|
|
|
