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Microbial ecology: Algae feed a shift on coral reefs

Nature Microbiology volume 1, Article number: 16061 (2016) Cite this article

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Human pressures on coral reefs are giving macroalgae a competitive advantage over reef-building corals. These algae support larger, and potentially pathogenic, microbial populations that are metabolically primed for less-efficient, yet faster, carbohydrate remineralization, perpetuating a vicious cycle of reef degradation.

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Figure 1: Frameworks for understanding shifting dominances on coral reefs.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Melissa Garren is at the School of Natural Sciences, California State University Monterey Bay, 100 Campus Center, Seaside, California 93955, USA and Pelagic Data Systems Inc., San Francisco, California 94112, USA.,

    Melissa Garren

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  1. Melissa Garren
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Correspondence to Melissa Garren.

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Garren, M. Microbial ecology: Algae feed a shift on coral reefs. Nat Microbiol 1, 16061 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1038/nmicrobiol.2016.61

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nmicrobiol.2016.61

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