Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Impacts of Hurricanes Irma and Maria on Coral Reef Sponge Communities in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands

  • Special Issue: Impact of 2017 Hurricanes
  • Published:
Estuaries and Coasts Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Many studies have evaluated the impacts of hurricanes on coral communities, but far less is known about impacts, recovery, and resilience of sponge communities to these extreme events. In September 2017, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, was impacted by two Category 5 hurricanes within 2 weeks: Hurricanes Irma and Maria. Such extreme events occurring in such rapid succession are virtually unprecedented. Pre-hurricane (2015, 2016) surveys of permanent transects at six sites around St. Thomas were compared with those at 10 weeks post-hurricanes (December 2017) to evaluate storm impacts on sponges and on benthic coral reef constituents. These surveys also established a baseline for evaluating future recovery. Percent cover of sponges declined by 24.9% post-hurricanes. In contrast, sponge density increased by 43.9% from 2015 to 2016 and declined slightly after the hurricanes. Overall sponge volume did not vary over time, and whereas sponge diversity was similar in 2015 and 2016, it increased post-hurricanes. Sponge morphologies were differentially affected by the hurricanes; the proportion of upright sponges declined by 36.9%, while there was a 24.4% increase in encrusting sponges. Coral and macroalgal cover did not change significantly over the sampling period, while percent cover of epilithic algae increased and non-living substrata decreased from 2015 to 2016 but did not change further post-hurricanes. At all sites, recruitment and/or regrowth of sponges was observed within 10 weeks post-hurricanes, indicating potential resilience in Caribbean sponge communities. Whether these sponge communities return to pre-hurricane conditions and how long that will take remains to be seen.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Alvarez-Filip, L., and I. Gil. 2006. Effects of Hurricanes Emily and Wilma on coral reefs in Cozumel, Mexico. Coral Reefs 25: 583.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Anthony, Kenneth R.N., Jeffrey A. Maynard, Guillermo Diaz-Pulido, Peter J. Mumby, Paul A. Marxhall, Long Cao, and Ove Hoegh-Guldberg. 2011. Ocean acidification and warming will lower coral reef resilience. Global Change Biology 17: 1798–1808. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2486.2010.02364.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Aranceta-Garza, F., E.F. Balart, H. Reyes-Bonilla, and P. Cruz-Hernández. 2012. Effect of tropical storms on sexual and asexual reproduction in coral Pocillopora verrucosa subpopulations in the Gulf of California. Coral Reefs 31: 1157–1167.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Arias-Gonzalez, Jesús Ernesto, Tak Fung, Robert M. Seymour, Joaquín Rodrigo Garza-Pérez, Gilberto Acosta-González, Yves-Marie Bozec, and Craig R. Johnson. 2017. A coral-algal phase shift in Mesoamerica not driven by changes in herbivorous fish abundance. PLoS One 12 (4): e0174855. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0174855.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Aronson, R.B., W.F. Precht, M.A. Toscano, and K.H. Koltes. 2002. The 1998 bleaching event and its aftermath on a coral reef in Belize. Marine Biology 141: 435–447.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bates, Douglas, Martin Mächler, Benjamin M. Bolker, and Steven C. Walker. 2015. Fitting linear mixed-effects models using lme4. Journal of Statistical Software 67: 1–48. https://doi.org/10.18637/jss.v067.i01.

  • Bell, James J. 2008. The functional roles of marine sponges. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 79: 341–353.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bell, James J., Simon K. Davy, Timothy Jones, Michael W. Taylor, and Nicole S. Webster. 2013. Could some coral reefs become sponge reefs as our climate changes? Global Change Biology 19 (9): 2613–2624.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bell, James J., Megan Shaffer, Holly Bennett, Emily McGrath, Charli Mortimer, Alberto Rovellini, Joseph Marlow, Andrew Biggerstaff, and José Luis Carballo. 2017a. Impacts of short-term large-scale climatic variation on sponge assemblages. In Climate change, ocean acidification and sponges, ed. José Luis Carballo and James J. Bell, 143–177. Cham: Springer International.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Bell, James J., Andrew Biggerstaff, Tracey Bates, Holly Bennett, Joseph Marlow, Emily McGrath, and Megan Shaffer. 2017b. Sponge monitoring: Moving beyond diversity and abundance. Ecological Indicators 78: 470–488.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bell, James J., Alberto Rovellini, Simon K. Davy, Michael W. Taylor, Elizabeth A. Fulton, Matthew R. Dunn, Holly M. Bennett, Nora M. Kandler, Heidi M. Luter, and Nicole S. Webster. 2018. Climate change alterations to ecosystem dominance: How might sponge-dominated reefs function? Ecology 99 (9): 1920–1931.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Biggerstaff, A., J. Jompa, and J.J. Bell. 2017. Increasing benthic dominance of the phototrophic sponge Lamellodysidea herbacea on a sedimented reef within the Coral Triangle. Marine Biology 164 (12): 220–216. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-017-3253-3.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Biggs, Brendan C. 2013. Harnessing natural recovery processes to improve restoration outcomes: An experimental assessment of sponge-mediated coral reef restoration. PLoS One 8 (6): e64945. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0064945.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Blair, Stephen M., Timothy L. McIntosh, and Benjamin J. Mostkoff. 1994. Impacts of Hurricane Andrew on the offshore reef systems of central and northern Dade County, Florida. Bulletin of Marine Science 54: 961–973.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brandt, Marilyn E., Lauren K. Olinger, Andia Chaves-Fonnegra, Julie B. Olson, and Deborah J. Gochfeld. 2019. Coral recruitment is impacted by the presence of a sponge community. Marine Biology 166 (4): 49–13. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-019-3493-5.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Camp, Joanne, Adam A. Scaife, and Julian Heming. 2018. Predictability of the 2017 North Atlantic hurricane season. Atmospheric Science Letters 2018: 19e813. https://doi.org/10.1002/asl.813.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cangialosi, John P., Andrew S. Latto, and Robbie Berg. 2018. Hurricane Irma (AL112017). National Hurricane Center Tropical Cyclone Report. 111 pp.

  • Chaves-Fonnegra, Andia, Kevin A. Feldheim, Jesse Secord, and Jose V. Lopez. 2015. Population structure and dispersal of the coral-excavating sponge Cliona delitrix. Molecular Ecology 24 (7): 1447–1466.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chaves-Fonnegra, Andia, Manuel Maldonado, Patricia Blackwelder, and Jose V. Lopez. 2016. Asynchronous reproduction and multi-spawning in the coral-excavating sponge Cliona delitrix. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 96: 515–528.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chaves-Fonnegra, Andia, Behrnard Riegl, Sven Zea, Jose V. Lopez, Tyler Smith, Marilyn Brandt, and David S. Gilliam. 2018. Bleaching events regulate shifts from corals to excavating sponges in algae-dominated reefs. Global Change Biology 24: 773–785.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Clarke, K.R., and R.M. Warwick. 2001. Change in marine communities: An approach to statistical analysis and interpretation. 2nd ed. Plymouth: PRIMER-E.

    Google Scholar 

  • Coffroth, Mary Alice, and Howard R. Lasker. 1998. Population structure of a clonal gorgonian coral: The interplay between clonal reproduction and disturbance. Evolution 52 (2): 379–393.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cropper, Wendell P., Jr., and Daniel DiResta. 1999. Simulation of a Biscayne Bay, Florida commercial sponge population: Effects of harvesting after Hurricane Andrew. Ecological Modelling 118: 1–15.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • de Goeij, M. Jasper, Dick van Oevelen, Mark J.A. Vermeij, Ronaled Osinga, Jack J. Middleburg, Anton F.P.M. de Goeij, and Wim Admiraal. 2013. Surviving in a marine desert: The sponge loop retains resources within coral reefs. Science 342 (6154): 108–110.

  • De’ath, Glenn, Katharina E. Fabricius, Hugh Sweatman, and Marji Puotinen. 2012. The 27–year decline of coral cover on the Great Barrier Reef and its causes. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 109 (44): 17995–17999. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1208909109.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DeBiasse, M.B., V.P. Richards, and M.S. Shivji. 2010. Genetic assessment of connectivity in the common reef sponge, Callyspongia vaginalis (Demospongiae: Haplosclerida) reveals high population structure along the Florida reef tract. Coral Reefs 29: 47–55.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Diaz, M. Cristina, and Klaus Rützler. 2001. Sponges: An essential component of Caribbean coral reefs. Bulletin of Marine Science 69: 535–546.

    Google Scholar 

  • Diaz, Maria Cristina, and Klaus Rützler. 2011. Biodiversity of sponges: Belize and beyond, to the greater Caribbean. In Too precious to drill: The marine biodiversity of Belize, ed. Mariea Lourdes D. Palomares and Daniel Pauly, 57–65. Fisheries Centre Research Reports 19(6). Vancouver: Fisheries Centre, University of British Columbia.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dudgeon, Steve R., Richard B. Aronson, John F. Bruno, and William F. Precht. 2010. Phase shifts and stable states on coral reefs. Marine Ecology Progress Series 413: 201–216.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Easson, Cole G., Marc Slattery, Henrique G. Momm, Julie B. Olson, Robert W. Thacker, and Deborah J. Gochfeld. 2013. Exploring individual- to population-level impacts of disease on coral reef sponges: Using spatial analysis to assess the fate, dynamics, and transmission of Aplysina red band syndrome (ARBS). PLoS One 8 (11): e79976. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0079976.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Easson, Cole G., Kenan O. Matterson, Christopher J. Freeman, Stephanie K. Archer, and Robert W. Thacker. 2015. Variation in species diversity and functional traits of sponge communities near human populations in Bocas del Toro, Panama. Peer J 3: e1385. https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.1385.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Edmunds, Peter J. 2019. Three decades of degradation lead to diminished impacts of severe hurricanes on Caribbean reefs. Ecology 100 (3): e02587. https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.2587.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Edmunds, Peter J., and Jon D. Witman. 1991. Effect of Hurricane Hugo on the primary framework of a reef along the south shore of St. John, US Virgin Islands. Marine Ecology Progress Series 78: 201–204.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Edmunds, Peter J., Georgios Tsounis, Ralf Boulon, and Lorenzo Bramanti. 2019. Acute effects of back-to-back hurricanes on the underwater light regime on a coral reef. Marine Biology 166 (2): 20–28. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-018-3459-z.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Emanuel, Kerry. 2005. Increasing destructiveness of tropical cyclones over the past 30 years. Nature 436: 686–688.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Emanuel, Kerry A. 2013. Downscaling CMIP5 climate models shows increased tropical cyclone activity over the 21st century. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 110: 12219–12224.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ennis, Rosmin S., Marilyn E. Brandt, Kristin R. Wilson Grimes, and Tyler B. Smith. 2016. Coral reef health response to chronic and acute changes in water quality in St. Thomas, United States Virgin Islands. Marine Pollution Bulletin 111 (1-2): 418–427.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Fenner, Douglas P. 1991. Effects of Hurricane Gilbert on coral reefs, fishes and sponges at Cozumel, Mexico. Bulletin of Marine Science 48: 719–730.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gardner, Toby A., Isabelle M. Côté, Jennifer A. Gill, Alastair Grant, and Andrew R. Watkinson. 2005. Hurricanes and Caribbean coral reefs: Impacts, recovery patterns, and role in long-term decline. Ecology 86: 174–184.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gochfeld, Deborah J., Carmen Schlöder, and Robert W. Thacker. 2007. Sponge community structure and disease prevalence on coral reefs in Bocas del Toro, Panama. In Porifera research: biodiversity, innovation, and sustainability, ed. Márcio R. Custódio, Gisele Lôbo-Hajdu, Eduardo Hajdu, and Guilherme Muricy, 335–343. Rio de Janeiro: Museu Nacional Série Livros 28.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hoegh-Guldberg, O., P.J. Mumby, A.J. Hooten, R.S. Steneck, P. Greenfield, E. Gomez, C.D. Harvell, P.F. Sale, A.J. Edwards, K. Caldeira, N. Knowlton, C.M. Eakin, R. Iglesias-Prieto, N. Muthiga, R.H. Bradbury, A. Dubi, and M.E. Hartziolos. 2007. Coral reefs under rapid climate change and ocean acidification. Science 318 (5857): 1737–1742.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hosseini, S.R., M. Scaini, and M. Marani. 2018. On the influence of global warming on Atlantic hurricane frequency. The International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences 42: 527–532.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hughes, Terrence P. 1994. Catastrophes, phase shifts, and large-scale degradation of a Caribbean coral reef. Science 265 (5178): 1547–1551.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hughes, T.P., and J.H. Connell. 1999. Multiple stressors on coral reefs: A long-term perspective. Limnology and Oceanography 44: 932–940.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jackson, Jeremy B.C., Mary K. Donovan, Katie L. Cramer, and Vivian V. Lam, eds. 2014. Status and trends of Caribbean coral reefs: 1970-2012. Gland: Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network, IUCN.

    Google Scholar 

  • Knutson, Thomas R., John L. McBride, Johnny Chan, Kerry Emanuel, Greg Holland, Chris Landsea, Isaac Held, James P. Kossin, A.K. Srivastava, and Masato Sugi. 2010. Tropical cyclones and climate change. Nature Geoscience 3 (3): 157–163. https://doi.org/10.1038/NGEO779.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kuffner, I.B., L.J. Walters, M.A. Becerro, V.J. Paul, R. Ritson-Williams, and K.S. Beach. 2006. Inhibition of coral recruitment by macroalgae and cyanobacteria. Marine Ecology Progress Series 323: 107–117.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lirman, D., and P. Fong. 1997. Patterns of damage to the branching coral Acropora palmata following Hurricane Andrew: Damage and survivorship of hurricane-generate asexual recruits. Journal of Coastal Research 13: 67–72.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maldonado, Manuel, and Ana Riesgo. 2008. Reproduction in the phylum Porifera: A synoptic overview. Treballs de la Societat Catalana de Biologia 59: 29–49.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maldonado, Manuel, and Craig M. Young. 1996. Effects of physical factors on larval behavior, settlement and recruitment of four tropical demosponges. Marine Ecology Progress Series 138: 169–180.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McMurray, Steven E., Timothy P. Henkel, and Joseph R. Pawlik. 2010. Demographics of increasing populations of the giant barrel sponge Xestospongia muta in the Florida Keys. Ecology 91 (2): 560–570.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Miloslavich, Patricia, Juan Manuel Díaz, Eduardo Klein, Juan José Alvarado, Cristina Díaz, Judith Gobin, Elva Escobar-Briones, Juan José Cruz-Motta, Ernesto Weil, Jorge Cortés, Ana Carolina Bastidas, Ross Robertson, Fernando Zapata, Alberto Martín, Julio Castillo, Aniuska Kazandjian, and Manuel Ortiz. 2010. Marine biodiversity in the Caribbean: Regional estimates and distribution patterns. PLoS One 5 (8): e11916. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0011916.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • National Hurricane Center. 2018. https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/gis/. Accessed 21 Sept 2018.

  • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Office for Coastal Management. 2018. https://www.coast.noaa.gov/hurricanes/. Accessed 15 Sept 2018.

  • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Buoy Data Center. 2018. https://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/station_history.php?station=41052. Accessed 15 Sept 2018.

  • Nemeth, Richard S., and Joshua S. Nowlis. 2001. Monitoring the effects of land development on the near-shore reef environment of St. Thomas, USVI. Bulletin of Marine Science 69: 759–775.

    Google Scholar 

  • Norström, Albert V., Magnus Nyström, Jerker Lokrantz, and Carl Folke. 2009. Alternative states on coral reefs: Beyond coral–macroalgal phase shifts. Marine Ecology Progress Series 376: 295–306.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nyström, Magnus, Carl Folke, and Fredrik Moberg. 2000. Coral reef disturbance and resilience in a human-dominated environment. Trends in Ecology & Evolution 15: 413–417.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pasch, Richard J., Andrew B. Penny, and Robbie Berg. 2018. Hurricane Maria (AL152017). National Hurricane Center Tropical Cyclone Report. 48 pp.

  • Paul, Valerie J., Ilsa B. Kuffner, Linda J. Walters, Raphael Ritson-Williams, Kevin S. Beach, and Mikel A. Becerro. 2011. Chemically mediated interactions between macroalgae Dictyota spp. and multiple life-history stages of the coral Porites astreoides. Marine Ecology Progress Series 426: 161–170.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pawlik, Joseph R., Timothy P. Henkel, Steven E. McMurray, Susanna López-Legentil, Tse-Lynn Loh, and Sven Rohde. 2008. Patterns of sponge recruitment and growth on a shipwreck corroborate chemical defense resource trade-off. Marine Ecology Progress Series 368: 137–143.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Richards, Vincent P., Andrea M. Bernard, Kevin A. Feldheim, and Mahmood S. Shivji. 2016. Patterns of population structure and dispersal in the long-lived “redwood” of the coral reef, the giant barrel sponge (Xestospongia muta). Coral Reefs 35: 1097–1107.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ritson-Williams, Raphael, Suzanne N. Arnold, Nicole D. Fogarty, Robert S. Steneck, Mark J.A. Vermeij, and Valerie J. Paul. 2009. New perspectives on ecological mechanisms affecting coral recruitment on reefs. Smithsonian Contributions to the Marine Sciences 38: 437–457.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roff, George, and Peter J. Mumby. 2012. Global disparity in the resilience of coral reefs. Trends in Ecology & Evolution 27: 404–413.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roff, George, Iliana Chollet, Christopher Doropoulos, Yimnang Golbuu, Robert S. Steneck, Adelle L. Isechal, Robert van Woesik, and Peter J. Mumby. 2015. Exposure-driven macroalgal phase shift following catastrophic disturbance on coral reefs. Coral Reefs 34: 715–725.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rogers, Caroline S., and Jeff Miller. 2006. Permanent ‘phase shifts’ or reversible declines in coral cover? Lack of recovery of two coral reefs in St. John, US Virgin Islands. Marine Ecology Progress Series 306: 103–114.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rogers, Caroline S., Jeff Miller, Erinn M. Muller, Peter Edmunds, Richard S. Nemeth, James P. Beets, Alan M. Friedlander, Tyler B. Smith, Rafe Boulon, Christopher F.G. Jeffrey, Charles Menza, Chris Caldow, Nasseer Idrisi, Barbara Kojis, Mark E. Monaco, Anthony Spitzack, Elizabeth H. Gladfelter, John C. Ogden, Zandy Hillis-Starr, Ian Lundgren, William Bane Schill, Ilsa B. Kuffner, Laurie L. Richardson, Barry E. Devine, and Joshua D. Voss. 2008. Ecology of coral reefs in the US Virgin Islands. In Coral reefs of the USA, ed. Bernhard M. Riegl and Richard E. Dodge, 303–373. Dordrecht: Springer.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Rose, Christopher S., and Michael J. Risk. 1985. Increase in Cliona delitrix infestation of Montastrea cavernosa heads on an organically polluted portion of the Grand Cayman fringing reef. PSZN Marine Ecology 6: 345–363.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rützler, Klaus, Carla Piantoni, Rob W.M. Van Soest, and M. Cristina Díaz. 2014. Diversity of sponges (Porifera) from cryptic habitats on the Belize barrier reef near Carrie Bow Cay. Zootaxa 3805: 1–129. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.3805.1.1.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, T.B., R.S. Nemeth, J. Blondeau, J.M. Calnan, E. Kadison, and S. Herzlieb. 2008. Assessing coral reef health across onshore to offshore stress gradients in the US Virgin Islands. Marine Pollution Bulletin 56 (12): 1983–1991.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, T.B., R.S. Ennis, E. Kadison, R.S. Nemeth, and L. Henderson. 2016a. The United States Virgin Islands Territorial Coral Reef Monitoring Program. 2016 annual report, 286 pp. Charlotte Amalie: University of the Virgin Islands.

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith, Tyler B., Viktor W. Brandtneris, Miguel Canals, Marilyn E. Brandt, Justin Martens, Robert S. Brewer, Elizabeth Kadison, Matthew Kammann, Jessica Keller, and Daniel M. Holstein. 2016b. Potential structuring forces on a shelf edge upper mesophotic coral ecosystem in the US Virgin Islands. Frontiers in Marine Science 3: 115. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2016.00115.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sobel, Adam H., Suzana J. Carmago, Timothy M. Hall, Chia-Ying Lee, and Michael K. Tippett. 2016. Human influence on tropical cyclone intensity. Science 353 (6296): 242–246.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Stevely, John M., Donald E. Sweat, Theresa M. Bert, Carina Sim-Smith, and Michelle Kelly. 2011. Sponge mortality at Marathon and Long Key, Florida: Patterns of species response and population recovery. Proceedings of the 63rd Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute 63: 384–400.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stoddart, D.R. 1969. Post-hurricane changes on the British Honduras reefs and cays: Re-survey of 1965. Atoll Research Bulletin 131: 1–36.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Van Soest, W.M. Rob, Nicole Boury-Esnault, Jean Vacelet, Martin Dohrmann, Dirk Erpenbeck, Nicole J. De Voogd, Nadiezhda Santodomingo, Bart Vanhoorne, Michelle Kelly, and John N.A. Hooper. 2012. Global diversity of sponges (Porifera). PLoS One 7 (4): e35105. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0035105.

  • Van Woesik, R., L.M. de Vantier, and J.S. Glazebrook. 1995. Effects of Cyclone ‘Joy’ on nearshore coral communities of the Great Barrier Reef. Marine Ecology Progress Series 128: 261–270.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Villamizar, Estrella, María C. Díaz, Klaus Rützler, and Renato De Nóbrega. 2013. Biodiversity, ecological structure, and change in the sponge community of different geomorphological zones of the barrier fore reef at Carrie Bow Cay, Belize. Marine Ecology 2013: 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1111/maec.12099.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vroom, Peter, Linda Walters, Kevin Beach, James Coyer, Jennifer Smith, Marie-Josée Abgrall, Dorothy Byron, Kathryn DeAngelis, Brenda Konar, Julie Liss, Ryan Okano, Cassandra Roberts, Laura Herren, Monica Woo, and Celia Smith. 2005. Hurricane-induced propagation and rapid regrowth of the weedy brown alga Dictyota in the Florida Keys. Florida Scientist 68: 161–174.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ward-Paige, Christine A., Michael J. Risk, Owen A. Sherwood, and Walter C. Jaap. 2005. Clionid sponge surveys on the Florida Reef Tract suggest land-based nutrient inputs. Marine Pollution Bulletin 51 (5-7): 570–579.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wilkinson, C., and D. Souter. 2008. Status of Caribbean coral reefs after bleaching and hurricanes in 2005. Townsville: Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network, and Reef and Rainforest Research Centre.

    Google Scholar 

  • Woodley, J.E., E.A. Chornesky, P.A. Clifford, J.B.C. Jackson, L.S. Kaufman, N. Knowlton, J.C. Lang, M.P. Pearson, J.W. Porter, M.C. Rooney, K.W. Rylaarsdam, V.J. Tunnicliffe, C.M. Wahle, J.L. Wulff, A.S.G. Curtis, M.D. Dallmeyer, B.P. Jupp, M.A.R. Koehl, J. Neilgel, and E.M. Sides. 1981. Hurricane Allen’s impact on Jamaican coral reefs. Science 214 (4522): 749–755.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wulff, J.L. 1995. Effects of a hurricane on survival and orientation of large erect coral reef sponges. Coral Reefs 14: 55–61.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wulff, J.L. 2006. Resistance vs recovery: Morphological strategies of coral reef sponges. Functional Ecology 20: 699–708.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wulff, Janie. 2012. Ecological interactions and the distribution, abundance, and diversity of sponges. Advances in Marine Biology 61: 273–344.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wulff, Janie. 2013. Recovery of sponges after extreme mortality events: Morphological and taxonomic patterns in regeneration versus recruitment. Integrative and Comparative Biology 53 (3): 512–523.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wullf, Janie L. 1991. Asexual fragmentation, genotype success, and population dynamics of erect branching sponges. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 149: 227–247.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zea, Sven. 1993. Recruitment of demosponges (Porifera, Demospongiae) in rocky and coral reef habitats of Santa Marta, Colombian Caribbean. PSZNI: Marine Ecology 14: 1–21.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

We thank A. Gutting and L. Olinger for their help in the field, M. Slattery for his comments on the manuscript, and the Captain and crew of the R/V F.G. Walton Smith. Research was conducted under Virgin Islands Department of Planning and Natural Resources permits DFW15085T and DFW17039T. This is contribution no. 201 from the University of the Virgin Islands’ Center for Marine and Environmental Studies.

Funding

Funding was provided by a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Coral Reef Conservation Program grant (no. NA15NOS4820074) to ME Brandt, DJ Gochfeld, and JB Olson and by National Science Foundation RAPID Collaborative grants (nos. OCE-1807807, OCE-1808233, and OCE-1810616) to DJ Gochfeld, JB Olson, and ME Brandt, respectively.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Center for Natural Products Research, University of Mississippi, P.O. Box 1848, University, MS, 38677, USA

    Deborah J. Gochfeld

  2. Department of BioMolecular Sciences, University of Mississippi, P.O. Box 1848, University, MS, 38677, USA

    Deborah J. Gochfeld & Andia Chaves-Fonnegra

  3. Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL, 35487, USA

    Julie B. Olson

  4. Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute and Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, Florida Atlantic University, 5600 N US Highway 1, Fort Pierce, FL, 34946, USA

    Andia Chaves-Fonnegra

  5. Center for Marine and Environmental Studies, University of the Virgin Islands, 2 John Brewers Bay, St. Thomas, VI, 00802, USA

    Andia Chaves-Fonnegra, Tyler B. Smith, Rosmin S. Ennis & Marilyn E. Brandt

Authors
  1. Deborah J. Gochfeld
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Julie B. Olson
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Andia Chaves-Fonnegra
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Tyler B. Smith
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Rosmin S. Ennis
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Marilyn E. Brandt
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Deborah J. Gochfeld.

Additional information

Communicated by Melisa C. Wong

Electronic supplementary material

ESM 1

(PDF 3821 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Gochfeld, D.J., Olson, J.B., Chaves-Fonnegra, A. et al. Impacts of Hurricanes Irma and Maria on Coral Reef Sponge Communities in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands. Estuaries and Coasts 43, 1235–1247 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-020-00694-4

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-020-00694-4

Keywords

Search

Navigation