title: Evaluating life-history strategies of reef corals from species traits.
abstract: Classifying the biological traits of organisms can test conceptual frameworks of life-history strategies and allow for predictions of how different species may respond to environmental disturbances. We apply a trait-based classification approach to a complex and threatened group of species, scleractinian corals. Using hierarchical clustering and random forests analyses, we identify up to four life-history strategies that appear globally consistent across 143 species of reef corals: competitive, weedy, stress-tolerant and generalist taxa, which are primarily separated by colony morphology, growth rate and reproductive mode. Documented shifts towards stress-tolerant, generalist and weedy species in coral reef communities are consistent with the expected responses of these life-history strategies. Our quantitative trait-based approach to classifying life-history strategies is objective, applicable to any taxa and a powerful tool that can be used to evaluate theories of community ecology and predict the impact of environmental and anthropogenic stressors on species assemblages.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada. edarling@sfu.ca
authors.forename: Emily S
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Darling
authors.forename: Lorenzo
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Alvarez-Filip
authors.forename: Thomas A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Oliver
authors.forename: Timothy R
authors.initials: TR
authors.lastname: McClanahan
authors.forename: Isabelle M
authors.initials: IM
authors.lastname: Côté
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Bellwood
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D037421:Anthozoa / Q000502:physiology*; D044822:Biodiversity; D017753:Ecosystem; D010802:Phylogeny; D013045:Species Specificity