High Zooxanthellae Densities and Turnover Correlate with Low Bleaching Tolerance in Kenyan Corals.

Abstract

When a coral bleaches, the obligate symbiosis between the coral polyp and the micro-algal zooxanthellae is disrupted and the zooxanthellae are expelled from the polyp. Although a bleached coral does not necessarily die, it is more vulnerable to disease, algal overgrowth, bioerosion and eventually mortality. Mass bleaching and mortality events in the last decade have prompted increased research into zooxanthellae, and it is possible that zooxanthellae population strategies affect a coral’s tolerance to bleaching stress.