A Series of Interactions between Coral Reef and Mangrove Ecosystems in Bocas del Toro, Panama

Date of Award

2004

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Natural Sciences

First Advisor

Beulig, Alfred

Keywords

Coral, Mangroves, Marine Ecology, Panama

Area of Concentration

Biology

Abstract

A series of experiments were conducted to determine various interactions between coral reef and mangrove ecosystems in Bocas del Toro, Panama. Three study sites were observed over the course of seven weeks. Site A consisted of a sandy beach shoreline with a nearshore coral reef, site B contained a fringing mangrove shoreline with no nearshore coral reef, and site C contained a fringing mangrove shoreline with an adjacent nearshore coral reef. In the first study, settled leaf-litter was quantified in two mangrove fringed areas, one of which was adjacent to a coral reef. It was determined that fringing mangroves that grew in close proximity to coral reefs displayed significantly lower rates of settled leaf-litter than in adjacent coastal areas. These differences occurred within the first 30 m from the shoreline. These results could be correlated to the presence or absence of an adjacent coral reef. The second experiment examines the density of holothurians in coastal locations possessing either mangroves, corals, or both ecosystems. When mangroves and coral reef ecosystems were found in close proximity to each other, significantly higher populations of holothurians occurred than in areas that contained either a mangrove or a coral reef alone. The third experiment examined the fouling coverage of the prop roots of Rhizophora mangle in sites B and C. It was determined that a nearby coral reef influenced the species composition of adjacent mangrove root fouling communities in the form of higher diversity. Water quality was also analyzed from both nearshore and adjacent to shore sites. Data was collected weekly and analyzed for temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen concentrations, nitrogens, hardness, phosphorus, calcium, and magnesium concentrations. It was determined that there were relatively very few differences between any of the tested areas.

Rights

This bibliographic record is available under the Creative Commons CC0 public domain dedication. The New College of Florida, as creator of this bibliographic record, has waived all rights to it worldwide under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights, to the extent allowed by law.

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