Project Description:
Coral reef ecosystems are highly threatened, encompassing the half a trillion corals colonies that live on tropical reefs (Dietzel et al 2021 https://www.nature.com/articles/s41559-021-01393-4). This number, however, excludes coral colonies living in high-latitude subtropical coral communities. High-latitude subtropical reefs are often heralded as potential refugia for tropical corals, but habitat area is limited and not all species can live in the colder, more variable conditions. As climate warms, coral species shift their ranges poleward, changing the character of the ecosystem. This process is called tropicalisation, where algae-dominated reefs can gain higher coral prevalence and abundance. But it is unclear to what point corals have expanded: How many corals live in high latitudes now? How many corals might fit?
Employing principles of population ecology, and unique datasets to estimate coral abundances and vital rates, this project will attempt to answer these questions. The student will extract the numbers of individuals from photo transects to work out mean coral numbers and then work with maps of coral habitat and coral vital rates to interpolate and estimate the total number of coral colonies in high-latitude coral communities. The idea is that the project has global scope, with data from Australia, Japan, Taiwan and Mozambique to represent high-latitude coral communities, but a student could choose a specific area to focus on too. The project may include fieldwork in Mozambique, but for safety (and time) reasons a student would need existing advanced dive qualifications.
Pre-requisites:
Advanced dive qualifications if attending fieldwork in Mozambique
Supervisory Team:
Maria Beger
Contact:
Maria Beger: m.beger@leeds.ac.uk
How to apply:
- Complete the online REP application form one for each project of interest.
- Email a copy of your CV to yes-dtn@leeds.ac.uk (only once is needed).
- Complete the EDI Form (only one is needed). Although this is optional, if places are over-subscribed, preference will be given to under-represented groups, as defined above.