Table of Contents

• Coverage
• Dataset Description
  • Methods & Sampling
  • Data Processing Description
  • BCO-DMO Processing Description
• Related Publications
• Related Datasets
• Parameters
• Instruments
• Project Information
• Funding

All observations were made while snorkeling in ~3 meters (m), with a minimum of two observers in the water. Observers were positioned to simultaneously visualize multiple morphologies with the goal of observing five common lagoon species (P. effusa, P. grandis, P. meandrina, P. verrucosa, and P. tuahiniensis). Coral spawning observations were documented as follows: (1) photographs of each colony were taken during or following spawning (Canon G7X MarkII); (2) colonies were tagged and geolocated via GPS (Garmin GPSMAP 64); (3) biopsies were collected from each tagged colony in sterile Whirlpaks; and (4) where possible, gametes were collected from the water next to the colonies when the spawning phenomenon begins, by creating a siphon system using plastic bottles. After collecting eggs and sperm from different colonies (one bottle per colonie), the bottles used for collection were poured into larger reservoirs (~5 liter bottles) to facilitate genetic mixing, as well as fertilization as soon as possible directly on a boat.

Sanger sequencing was completed with mtORF forward primers using Applied Biosystems BigDye Terminator v3.1 chemistry on the Applied Biosystems 3730 Genetic Analyzer with Capillary Electrophoresis. Sequences were aligned using Geneious Alignment in GENEIOUS PRIME 2020.2.4.

- Loaded CSV file "Pocillopora_spawning_IDs.csv" into the BCO-DMO processing system.
- Renamed column "Date_spawned_YYYYMMDD" to "Date_spawned" and "Notes1" to "Notes".
- Converted "Date_spawned" from YYYYMMDD string format to ISO 8601 date format (YYYY-MM-DD), overwriting the original column.
- Converted combined "Date_spawned" and "Spawning_Start_Time" fields from UTC-10 to UTC ISO 8601 datetime, stored in new column "Spawning_Start_Date_Time_UTC".
- Converted combined "Date_spawned" and "Spawning_End_Time" fields from UTC-10 to UTC ISO 8601 datetime, stored in new column "Spawning_End_Date_Time_UTC".
- Saved the final file as "999317_v1_pocillopora_spawning_ids.csv".

Supplemental Files:

- Loaded CSV file "Pocillopora_spawning_timing.csv" into the BCO-DMO processing system.
- Converted the "Date" column from "%Y%m%d" format to "%Y-%m-%d" date format.
- Renamed columns by replacing periods with underscores.
- Saved the final file as "999317_v1_pocillopora_spawning_timing.csv".

- Loaded CSV file "spawning_yes_no.csv" into the BCO-DMO system.
- Converted Date column from day-month-year format (e.g., 15-Jan-2020) to ISO 8601 date format (YYYY-MM-DD).
- Saved the final file as "999317_v1_pocillopora_spawning_yes_no.csv".

NSF Award Abstract:
Natural and anthropogenic impacts are increasingly co-occurring with negative consequences for marine systems, specifically coral reefs. Natural predator outbreaks, such as the corallivorous Crown of Thorns Sea stars, can rapidly kill corals. Further, the stress generated by climate and ocean warming is driving coral bleaching, or the breakdown of the coral-dinoflagellate nutritional symbiosis, which can cause coral starvation and mass mortality. The reefs of Mo'orea, French Polynesia, are currently experiencing an outbreak of Crown of Thorns sea stars, with high coral mortality. In conjunction, the current El Niño warming is driving up ocean temperatures, with the potential to exacerbate peak seasonal thermal stress on corals. In particular, Pocillopora spp, which are dominant reef builders in Mo'orea, are being preferentially eaten by Crown of Thorns Sea stars and have historically displayed coral bleaching during the warmest months. In light of the rapid and extensive coral predation on the ecologically dominant Pocillopora spp on the forereef in Mo'orea and compounding El Niño thermal stress, this project examines the role of lagoon reef Pocillopora spp reproduction, recruitment, and temperature tolerance in reef recovery. This work provides the capacity to quantify species-specific reproduction and thermal tolerance to better understand and forecast legacy effects on reef recovery and resilience. Broader impacts of this project include research support for early career scientist training, as well as data and materials for undergraduate and high school student curriculum modules and research projects for schools in French Polynesia and Rhode Island.

This project represents an urgently needed assessment of the impact of multiple co-occurring disturbance events of corallivore outbreaks and thermal stress on coral reefs. Along with quantifying the Crown of Thorns Sea star abundance and distribution, researchers are completing a genetic and ecological characterization of the diversity and abundance of adult and juvenile Pocillopora spp in the lagoon to determine the population prior to spawning and thermal peak, quantifying reproduction of Pocillopora spp and larval thermal tolerance, and determining the density and thermal tolerance of Pocillopora spp recruits in the lagoon and forereef during the peak of seasonal thermal stress and several months after, in an El Niño year. The results advance understanding of the consequences of coral spawning and recruitment immediately following a natural disturbance. Importantly, the project provides information on how the dominant Pocillopora spp are contending with the chronic and acute stress of ocean warming and marine heat waves at sensitive early life stages. The results of this project provide a deeper understanding of the legacy of stress on the ecologically, economically, and culturally significant coral reef ecosystem.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.