Favia fragum is a Caribbean coral exhibiting high abundance on shallow reefs and scarcity at depth. Light quality and quantity may contribute to this vertical zonation. We studied the effects of light spectrum and irradiance on recruitment, survival and growth of F. fragum . A larval settlement experiment with four different light treatments (white or blue light, each at 75 or 750 μmol quanta m −2 s −1 ) was performed for a 5-...

Coral reefs are increasingly threatened by ocean warming. Interestingly, corals from hypersaline environments such as the Gulf of Aqaba (GoA) show high thermotolerance. To test whether salinity modulates coral thermal tolerance, we exposed Stylophora pistillata from the hypersaline Gulf of Aqaba and Montipora digitata from Bali, Indonesia to a simulated heatwave (1 °C rise every four days) lasting 39 days under ambient (35 PSU...

Zooplanktivory is an important source of nutrients in corals, providing up to 35% of daily metabolic energy requirements in some species. However, little is known about coral zooplanktivory shortly after larval settlement and metamorphosis. In most species it is unclear if, when and under which conditions newly settled polyps are able to capture and ingest prey. This remains a critical knowledge gap, as zooplanktivory could al...