Title
Nutrient Dynamics in the Coral-Algal Symbiosis: Developing Insight from Biogeochemical Techniques
Publication Date
2015-08-07
Availability
Open access
Embargo Period
2015-08-07
Degree Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PHD)
Department
Marine Geology and Geophysics (Marine)
Date of Defense
2015-03-13
First Committee Member
Peter K. Swart
Second Committee Member
Mark A. Altabet
Third Committee Member
Ali Pourmand
Fourth Committee Member
Gregor P. Eberli
Fifth Committee Member
Andrew C. Baker
Sixth Committee Member
Chris Langdon
Abstract
This work addresses the threats of nitrogen loading to coral reefs and encompasses many unanswered questions on the topic of dissolved inorganic (DIN) utilization by Scleractinian corals and their endosymbiotic algae. Experimental efforts were made to understand the conditions under which NO3- or NH4+ leads to declines in calcification and identify other physiological changes in the coral-algal symbiosis which may accompany such growth declines. The synergistic influences of NH4+ and CO2 were investigated in order to gain insight on the potential influences of elevated DIN on corals in a high CO2 world. The study of NO3- and NH4+ uptake and impacts on corals hosting two different endosymbiont clades of Symbiodinium was carried out to predict how nutrient enrichments may influence corals which host more thermally tolerant symbiont communities. Finally, in light of the importance of managing nitrogen loading to reefs, the validity of the use of d15N in coral tissue as a nutrient source indicator was investigated through direct measurements of the 15N fractionation associated with NO3- and NH4+ uptake.
Keywords
coral; symbiosis; nitrogen; stable isotope; fractionation; calcification
Recommended Citation
Devlin, Quinn, "Nutrient Dynamics in the Coral-Algal Symbiosis: Developing Insight from Biogeochemical Techniques" (2015). Open Access Dissertations. 1514.
https://scholarlyrepository.miami.edu/oa_dissertations/1514