Diving associated coral breakage in Hong Kong: differential susceptibility to damage.
We conducted the first quantitative assessment of coral breakage along a gradient of diving activities in Hong Kong, the most densely populated city in southern China. A survey of six 1 × 25 m transects at seven sites revealed a total of 81 broken corals, among which 44% were branching, 44% plate-like and 12% massive. There were 3-19 broken colonies per site. At most study sites, the percentage of broken corals exceeded the recommended no-action threshold of 4%, suggesting that management intervention is justified. There was a significant positive correlation between the number of broken coral colonies and the number of divers visiting the site. The branching Acropora and the plate-like Montipora suffered from much higher frequency of damage than their relative abundance, raising the concern that the cumulative impact of such differential susceptibility to breakage may affect coral community composition.
Department of Biology, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong, China.
Alfred Cheuk-sun
AC
Au
Department of Biology, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong, China.
Liye
L
Zhang
Department of Biology, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong, China. Electronic address: sschung@hkbu.edu.hk.
Shan-shan
SS
Chung
Department of Biology, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong, China. Electronic address: qiujw@hkbu.edu.hk.
Jian-Wen
JW
Qiu
D000818:Animals; D037421:Anthozoa; D044822:Biodiversity; D004242:Diving; D006723:Hong Kong; D006801:Humans
Coral breakage; Coral damage; Coral management; Coral morphology; Impact of diving; Sustainability