title: Shifting paradigms in restoration of the world's coral reefs.
abstract: Many ecosystems around the world are rapidly deteriorating due to both local and global pressures, and perhaps none so precipitously as coral reefs. Management of coral reefs through maintenance (e.g., marine-protected areas, catchment management to improve water quality), restoration, as well as global and national governmental agreements to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (e.g., the 2015 Paris Agreement) is critical for the persistence of coral reefs. Despite these initiatives, the health and abundance of corals reefs are rapidly declining and other solutions will soon be required. We have recently discussed options for using assisted evolution (i.e., selective breeding, assisted gene flow, conditioning or epigenetic programming, and the manipulation of the coral microbiome) as a means to enhance environmental stress tolerance of corals and the success of coral reef restoration efforts. The 2014-2016 global coral bleaching event has sharpened the focus on such interventionist approaches. We highlight the necessity for consideration of alternative (e.g., hybrid) ecosystem states, discuss traits of resilient corals and coral reef ecosystems, and propose a decision tree for incorporating assisted evolution into restoration initiatives to enhance climate resilience of coral reefs.
authors.affiliation: Australian Institute of Marine Science, PMB No. 3, Townsville MC, QLD, 4810, Australia.|School of BioSciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, 3010, Australia.
authors.forename: Madeleine J H
authors.identifier: 0000-0003-4607-0744
authors.initials: MJH
authors.lastname: van Oppen
authors.affiliation: Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology, Kaneohe, HI, 96744, USA.
authors.forename: Ruth D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Gates
authors.affiliation: School of BioSciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, 3010, Australia.
authors.forename: Linda L
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Blackall
authors.affiliation: Australian Institute of Marine Science, PMB No. 3, Townsville MC, QLD, 4810, Australia.
authors.forename: Neal
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Cantin
authors.affiliation: Australian Institute of Marine Science, PMB No. 3, Townsville MC, QLD, 4810, Australia.|AIMS@JCU, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD, 4811, Australia.|College of Marine and Environmental Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD, 4811, Australia.
authors.forename: Leela J
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Chakravarti
authors.affiliation: Australian Institute of Marine Science, PMB No. 3, Townsville MC, QLD, 4810, Australia.|School of BioSciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, 3010, Australia.
authors.forename: Wing Y
authors.initials: WY
authors.lastname: Chan
authors.affiliation: ThinkOutsideThe, 12 Giffen Close, Holt, ACT, 2615, Australia.
authors.forename: Craig
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cormick
authors.affiliation: School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2006, Australia.
authors.forename: Angela
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Crean
authors.affiliation: Australian Institute of Marine Science, PMB No. 3, Townsville MC, QLD, 4810, Australia.|School of BioSciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, 3010, Australia.
authors.forename: Katarina
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Damjanovic
authors.affiliation: Australian Institute of Marine Science, PMB No. 3, Townsville MC, QLD, 4810, Australia.|AIMS@JCU, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD, 4811, Australia.|College of Marine and Environmental Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD, 4811, Australia.|Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD, 4811, Australia.
authors.forename: Hannah
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Epstein
authors.affiliation: Marine Ecology Research Centre, School of Environment, Science and Engineering, Southern Cross University, Lismore, NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: Peter L
authors.initials: PL
authors.lastname: Harrison
authors.affiliation: USDA-Agricultural Research Service, Forage and Range Research Laboratory, Logan, UT, 84322-6300, USA.
authors.forename: Thomas A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.affiliation: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration-National Marine Fisheries Service, Miami, FL, USA.
authors.forename: Margaret
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Miller
authors.affiliation: Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, PO Box 1379, Townsville, QLD, 4810, Australia.
authors.forename: Rachel J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Pears
authors.affiliation: Australian Institute of Marine Science, PMB No. 3, Townsville MC, QLD, 4810, Australia.
authors.forename: Lesa M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Peplow
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, NSW, 2109, Australia.
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Raftos
authors.affiliation: Australian Institute of Marine Science, PMB No. 3, Townsville MC, QLD, 4810, Australia.
authors.forename: Britta
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Schaffelke
authors.affiliation: SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, NY, 13210-2788, USA.
authors.forename: Kristen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Stewart
authors.affiliation: Australian Institute of Marine Science, PMB No. 3, Townsville MC, QLD, 4810, Australia.|Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD, 4811, Australia.
authors.forename: Gergely
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Torda
authors.affiliation: Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, PO Box 1379, Townsville, QLD, 4810, Australia.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Wachenfeld
authors.affiliation: School of BioSciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, 3010, Australia.
authors.forename: Andrew R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Weeks
authors.affiliation: Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology, Kaneohe, HI, 96744, USA.
authors.forename: Hollie M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Putnam
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D037421:Anthozoa; D002980:Climate; D057231:Climate Change; D057894:Coral Reefs; D017753:Ecosystem
keywords: assisted evolution; climate change; coral reefs; global warming; hybrid ecosystems; rehabilitation; restoration; scleractinia