CORAL REEFS' HEALTH

The Health of Coral Reefs

[Writer's initials]

[Dated]

Herbivorous Fish and the Health of Coral Reefs

Introduction

A large number of world's sea biodiversity get their necessary habitat from the Coral reefs. Coral reefs provide health to marine ecosystem because of instant influence of environmental changes. But these coral reefs are in danger due to human and climatic impacts unfortunately. The health of coral reef is affected by many reasons such as biotic and some are anthropogenic. In this assignment, the primary focus will be on the aspects of marine herbivorous that positively and negatively affect the health of coral reefs. In recent years, coral reefs have turned into highly degraded because of the high death rate of long-spine marine urchin which is a reef herbivore. The mortality level has not recovered by the urchins but their return is unstable to the revival of the coral reefs. Because of some new advancements in the ethnicity of these species, rise to the trend of hatchery occurring. And this hatchery raises the vigorous population of the urchin. However, through many observations it has been revealed that the raised hatchery of urchin might not always behave as their wild opponent and could be a matter to lessen the rates which are enough to weaken the effects of such efforts. In this regard, a research is conducted to analyze the behavioral effects that may occur because of the long-spine urchins that would rely their lives on the wild and to build up the method that could overcome the deficiencies.

The prohibition or limitation of taking herbivorous species is a good option for saving the reefs but can create a problem in the inflexibility of reefs as urchins make them. Results of research have showed the significance of herbivores in favoring the coral revival following some disturbances like a bleaching agent. Herbivores are recognized in many environmental systems as it has effects on the ecology. For coral reefs herbivores act a vital role in modifying the competitive association between corals and macro-algae. These both compete for gap and in the absence of herbivores. Often the corals overgrow by faster growing macro-algae which deprived them from necessary sunlight and hence they decline (Nyström and Folke, 2001). For example, the Caribbean reefs took an unexpected shift from coral reefs to macro-algae populated reefs in early 1980's.

Fig. A fish by the Coral Reef

Discussion

The herbivores of coral reefs are of various types such as fish and other invertebrates. They become a reason to enhance coral pliability. Many researches demonstrate that the presence of diversity in herbivores fish, their size and the huge quantity are very critical for facilitating corals and controlling the sea-weeds. A large number of herbivores with a balance diet make possible for the corals to live and grow. Some famous coral reef herbivores include long-spine urchins and parrot-fish. The coral reef herbivores are divided into the group on the basis of three functions and that are scrapers, grazers, and bio-eroders (Hughes, 1994). Each group performs specific roles in upholding ...