[Coral-List] SCTLD on Bonaire

Wed Jul 26 19:05:42 UTC 2023

Dear everyone who responded to my reply on proposed 4-eyed butterfly
fish removal.

Thanks for posting and this is what I expected.  However, you have
focused on the action I proposed, not the points I was making leading
up to that.
Yes, I agree, the precautionary approach of science would assume the
fish are innocent until proven guilty.  And the jury is certainly
still out on the 4-eyes, as the evidence is not really in.  The last
thing we need is an army of divers spearing 4-eyes along with the
lionfish, and this was not my intention!   But unfortunately the jury
is out on nearly everything:  dive gear, vectors, etc, and this should
not be so!

Next year marks a decade into an existential threat to several species
of corals.  The NOAA task force developed their 5-year plan, launched
in 2020.  But did that slow the spread or answer the key questions?
https://www.coris.noaa.gov/activities/stony_coral_tissue_loss_disease/
  There are far too many questions remaining, and SCTLD is still
spreading and infecting new areas.  This threat was so great that it
required a Manhattan Project equivalent, and if a billion dollars had
been released for research, we certainly would not be where we are
now, grasping at straws.

Again, SCTLD threatens to drive Dendrogyra and perhaps other coral
species to extinction.  This is extremely weighty.  The scientific
community must realize that it is essential that we turn the
precautionary principle on its head and assume guilt until proven
innocent.   This applies to the ballast water of ships, diver-induced
spread, and predators being likely vectors-  all should be assumed
guilty until proven innocent.  Active research should be aggressively
researching these and other hypotheses, and posting trends and facts
immediately.  Is this happening?  Not that I have seen- but I am not
an expert.  Are the experts satisfied with progress?   Is real
progress being made on the biology and ecological control of the
disease?

Back to my Hypothesis that Four-eyed Butterflyfish are potentially the
primary vector of local spread:
One myth that must be dispelled is that 4-eyed butterfly fish are
benign mucus feeders.  While they might be on occasion, they are also
voracious tissue feeders and strip tissues right off of corals.  I
think that this is why they feed on diseased corals as the tissues so
easily come off?   We all have our assumptions, based on our
experience, and I doubt that those who responded have followed
butterflyfish around in your sites for hours like I have.  So my
personal perspective seeing them as a predator is based on experience,
and having 4-eyed butterfly fish come into my nursery sites and devour
corals while spreading a horrible rapid disease.

My hypothesis: yes, the fish do come into a diseased coral and eat up
all the infected tissues lifting off of the skeleton.  So this feeding
action in-effect debrides the active infection off of the colony, so
that helps the infected individual recover.  They come back day after
day to clean up any new lesions.   But as they feed, the pathogen
contaminates their mouth, and as they bite and feed on healthy coral
tissues and nearby colonies, the pathogen is deeply embedded into the
coral tissues that are bitten.  So when a researcher visits the site
and sees the fish cleaning the wounds, they might not realize that the
fish are returning to a colony that they took bites out of a few days
earlier, causing the initial infection!

With this hypothesis, I would assume guilt until proven innocent, if I
were in an area where the disease is just starting to spread.  I would
implement some experiments:  take data on the overall abundance of the
butterflyfish and the range of individual fish.  If there are corals
isolated from other corals on the reef where butterfly fish are not
present, I would follow them closely as controls, being careful to
visit those patches first.  If there are no 4-eyed free controls, I
would experimentally remove 4-eyed butterfly fish from patches around
Dendrogyra colonies.  I would also do experimental removal from a
diseased patch or two to see if the fish help with healing more than
simultaneous progression to uninfected colony areas.  Very soon I
would have some results.  If proven to be an important vector, I would
then begin removing the fish from around the most precious and
susceptible coral species.  But I am not in your ocean, so all I can
do is watch from afar.

With the horrific mass bleaching that has now arrived in your region,
the corals will be even more stressed and what was formerly resistant
to the disease may succumb. For the areas which lose a large percent
of the corals, a new dynamic emerges; the predator to prey ratio
becomes badly skewed against the corals.  I am not sure if this is
widely published but I have seen it many times.  All coral predators,
(including the 4-eyed butterfly fish), will at that point exert a
stronger negative impact on whatever remains, and whatever remains
will be your most precious bleaching resistant corals.  The corals
will need your help surviving the predators.

Please deal with this problem of SCTLD, as the ball has been in your
court for nearly a decade!  Your lack of effectively addressing SCTLD
threatens the coral reefs of the entire planet.  If it ever arrives in
the IndoPacific, it will be a very dark day for us all.

Regards to all,

Austin

Austin Bowden-Kerby, PhD
Corals for Conservation
P.O. Box 4649 Samabula, Fiji Islands

https://www.corals4conservation.org
Publication on C4C's coral-focused climate change adaptation
strategies:  https://www.mdpi.com/2673-1924/4/1/2/pdf
Film on our "Reefs of Hope" coral restoration for climate change
adaptation strategies:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BG0lqKciXAA
TEDx talk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7PRLJ8zDm0U
https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/emergency-response-to-massive-coral-bleaching/

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On Wed, Jul 26, 2023 at 7:34 AM Nicole Crane via Coral-List
<coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov> wrote:
>
> Targeting ‘bio criminals’ has always been a disaster. And I think I  really
> can say always. But the real reason is that we tend to turn to and on
> animals to solve problems without gathering enough evidence. Butterfly fish
> may be vectors, but as Judy points out, there are likely others. Disease is
> a tricky business and without a solid understanding there is bound to be
> regret at targeting a potential vector for extermination. Let’s please not
> destroy critical members of an ecosystem because we are focused on one
> member (corals), and think we understand trophic dynamics enough (eg lack
> or predation) to make that call.
> Nicole
>
> On Tue, Jul 25, 2023 at 7:56 AM Judith Lang via Coral-List <
> coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov> wrote:
>
> > Thanks Alina!
> >
> > I was getting ready to remind the four-eyed butterflyfish hunters that
> > there are other possible biovectors for SCTLD in the Caribbean. The
> > infection could also be carried by common invertebrates like
> > coralliiophilid snails and fireworms, even perhaps Diadema during their
> > nightly grazing excursions in areas with large enough populations for that,
> > or by some other fishes. And don’t forget the plankton that corals catch to
> > eat and even formites (Adey et al. 2019, Front. Mar. Sci. 6:678. doi:
> > 10.3389/fmars.2019.00678)--like the quasi-particulate organic matter that’s
> > present in reef environments.  Similarly, although the distribution of the
> > first few infected areas of the Caribbean precludes initial travel there
> > via ocean currents from Florida, ballast water is not the only possible
> > mechanism by which the pathogen(s) can be transported by ships or smaller
> > vessels.
> >
> > My personal wish is that these valid concerns about "the on-going
> > anthropogenic disasters” be focused on the elected officials, businesses
> > and all other parties who bear most of the responsibility for these
> > catastrophes, and still resist making the corrective changes that even they
> > acknowledge are necessary.
> >
> > Judy
> >
> > Judy Lang
> > www.agrra.org
> >
> > > On 25 Jul 2023, at 09:33, Alina Szmant via Coral-List <
> > coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov> wrote:
> > >
> > > Hello Austin:
> > >
> > > Sorry to be negative, but your suggestions remind me of bringing in
> > mongooses to eat the rats in Hawaii, or kill all the wolves so that there
> > are more deer and moose for humans to hunt... many more examples of humans
> > trying to correct human induced problems by manipulating other species that
> > really back fired in the longer term. Poor butterfly fish didn't cause any
> > of these problems so I don't see why they should take the fall for the
> > on-going anthropogenic disasters. And spearing a few fish is not going to
> > make the disease go away. Bad idea.
> > >
> > >
> > > Alina
> > >
> > >
> > > *************************************************************************
> > > Dr. Alina M. Szmant, CEO
> > > CISME Instruments LLC
> > > 210 Braxlo Lane,
> > > Wilmington NC 28409 USA
> > > AAUS Scientific Diving Lifetime Achievement Awardee
> > > cell: 910-200-3913
> > > EMAIL: alina at cisme-instruments.com
> > >
> > > CISME IS NOW SOLD BY QUBIT SYSTEMS; https://qubitbiology.com/cisme/
> > >
> > >
> > > **********************************************************
> > > Videos:  CISME Video 5:43 min
> > https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VAYeR9qX71A&t=6s
> > > CISME Short version Demo Video 3:00 min
> > https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fa4SqS7yC08
> > > CISME Cucalorus 10x10 Sketch   4:03 min
> > https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12sAV8oUluE
> > >
> > >
> > > -----Original Message-----
> > > From: Coral-List <coral-list-bounces at coral.aoml.noaa.gov> On Behalf Of
> > Austin Bowden-Kerby via Coral-List
> > > Sent: Monday, July 24, 2023 3:00 PM
> > > To: Steve Mussman <sealab at earthlink.net>
> > > Cc: coral list <coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov>
> > > Subject: Re: [Coral-List] SCTLD on Bonaire
> > >
> > > Dear friends dealing with SCTLD,
> > >
> > > As Four-spot Butterflyfish are now proven as a primary vector of SCTLD,
> > I would consider removing these predators around pillar corals.  While this
> > approach may seem reactionary and unproven to some, consider that this
> > species of butterflyfish are not in the least bit endangered.  The
> > precautionary principle of science should be turned on its head when
> > extinction risk is involved: Guilty until proven innocent.  As the
> > Dendrogyra corals are so precious, I personally would not wait for more
> > > data- I would assume that these fish are the primary vector, as this is
> > apparently the only proven vector so far.
> > >
> > > We had a staghorn coral nursery in Roatan collapse due to a rapid tissue
> > loss disease facilitated by a pair of four-eye butterflyfish way back in
> > 2005, and the same problem was observed in Belize several years later.  At
> > the very least, judge for yourself: monitor for the presence of the fish
> > and observe their preferential feeding on diseased colony areas, and then
> > record these same individuals moving and picking at healthy tissues (which
> > a week later will likely be diseased).  But I personally would not wait for
> > the obvious negative outcome.
> > >
> > > Perhaps overfishing of butterfly fish predators might be a factor in the
> > spread of this disease in the Caribbean, and if so, the ecologically
> > balanced reefs with the lowest abundance of four-eyed butterfly fish will
> > retain some pillar coral colonies?
> > >
> > > Here in the Pacific, we have had horrific problems with Melon or Redfin
> > Butterflyfish stripping all the tissues off of Acropora corals when we
> > transplanted Acropora corals to reefs where the corals were absent, or
> > present only within Stegastes farmerfish territories (the farmerfish chase
> > the butterflyfish away).  We speared out the butterflyfish to good effect.
> > > But then we found that over-abundant Parrotfish were also a horrific
> > problem, in addition to COTS.  The farmerfish were found to effectively
> > chase all three of these predators away.  In spite of some negative costs
> > associated with Stegastes on Acropora corals, we are now looking into using
> > farmerfish as "guard dogs" to protect the corals, as we work to
> > re-establish Acropora corals on ecologically imbalanced reefs.  Dead reefs
> > very low in coral cover, on the other hand, do not harbor these three coral
> > dependent predators, nor do they harbor diseased corals, but these reefs
> > are often impacted by algal overgrowth, so small outplants fare poorly. So
> > we developed new approaches using "nucleation patches" and planting corals
> > to structures that quickly restore fish abundance, which in turn reboot
> > natural processes (links below).
> > >
> > > Regards,
> > >
> > > Austin
> > >
> > >
> > > Austin Bowden-Kerby, PhD
> > > Corals for Conservation
> > > P.O. Box 4649 Samabula, Fiji Islands
> > > https://www.corals4conservation.org
> > > Publication on C4C's coral-focused climate change adaptation strategies:
> > > https://www.mdpi.com/2673-1924/4/1/2/pdf
> > > Film on our "Reefs of Hope" coral restoration for climate change
> > adaptation
> > > strategies:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BG0lqKciXAA
> > >
> > https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/emergency-response-to-massive-coral-bleaching/
> > > <
> > https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/emergency-response-to-massive-coral-bleaching/
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > <
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> > >
> > > On Tue, Jul 25, 2023 at 3:11 AM Steve Mussman via Coral-List <
> > coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov> wrote:
> > >
> > >>
> > >> Hi Mel,
> > >>
> > >> I don’t know how there could be any science-based evidence that
> > >> disinfecting scuba equipment is slowing or preventing the spread of
> > >> SCTLD especially considering the fact that the specific pathogen
> > >> involved has yet to be identified. However, my critique of the
> > >> protocols affecting divers is also not founded on science. Mine is
> > >> just a visceral reaction based solely on how I see divers interacting
> > >> with infected corals and observations involving how the disinfection
> > >> protocols are carried out in situ. There are just too many variables
> > involved for this process to inspire confidence.
> > >> While there is little known about the potential for scuba divers to
> > >> serve as vectors of coral disease, there are a number of studies like
> > this one:
> > >> “Considering Commercial Vessels as Potential Vectors of Stony Coral
> > >> Tissue Disease”
> > >> https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2021.709764/full.
> > >>
> > >> Simply put, we don’t know how this disease is spreading, but I would
> > >> assert that we do know that it is at least reasonable to assume that
> > >> ships are potential vectors - therefore why all the focus on divers
> > >> (an untested
> > >> entity) while cruise ships arriving from other known-to-be-infected
> > >> islands are continuing to be allowed to tie up close to shore
> > >> virtually on top of some of Bonaire’s shallow reefs close to where the
> > >> disease was first detected?
> > >>
> > >> Regards,
> > >>
> > >> Steve
> > >>
> > >> Sent from EarthLink Mobile mail
> > >>
> > >> On 7/23/23, 9:30 PM, Melbourne Briscoe <mel at briscoe.com> wrote:
> > >>
> > >> There is a lot of discussion on the Bonaire forum of ScubaBroad about
> > >> the presumed futility of restricting divers in order to slow the
> > >> progressions of SCTLD there. Is there any evidence that this is
> > >> actually helpful, or is it simply a precautionary approach based on
> > hope?
> > >>
> > >> - Mel Briscoe
> > >>
> > >> On Sun, Jul 23, 2023 at 7:55 PM Steve Mussman via Coral-List <
> > >> coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
> > >> (mailto:coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov)>
> > >> wrote:
> > >>
> > >> I have several recent photos of SCTLD infected corals from the reefs
> > >> of Bonaire if anyone is interested, they are available to share.
> > >>
> > >> I also came across several pillar coral colonies that I’ve been
> > >> informally monitoring over the years that have seemingly withstood
> > >> multiple stressors including (so far) SCTLD. I’ve read that Dendrogyra
> > >> cylindrus have been almost totally wiped out by SCTLD in Florida
> > >> waters so I am wondering why they don’t suffer a similar fate on
> > >> Bonaire. I’m guessing it has something to do with the fact that
> > >> Bonaire’s waters have not yet warmed like Florida’s have. ( I have
> > >> several pictures of what appear to be healthy pillar coral from Bonaire
> > as well).
> > >>
> > >> Considering that paper on SCTLD and butterflyfish - what about other
> > >> species as potential vectors? I have a good shot of a lizardfish
> > >> laying directly upon a healthy star coral. It seems that there are
> > >> multitudes of possible suspects. Although I faithfully disinfected my
> > >> scuba gear as directed, I couldn’t help but feel like I was
> > >> participating in a modern day version of a rain dance ritual.
> > >>
> > >> On a more positive note, a welcomed respite, there were no cruise
> > >> ships barging in on Bonaire the entire week.
> > >>
> > >> Regards,
> > >>
> > >> Steve Mussman
> > >>
> > >> _______________________________________________
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> > >>
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> --
>
> *Nicole Crane, Executive Director*
>
>
> David H. Smith Conservation Research Fellowship
> <https://conbio.org/mini-sites/smith-fellows/>
>
> Society for Conservation Biology
>
> 1133 15th Street NW, Suite 300
>
> Washington, DC 20005
>
> Senior Conservation Scientist/Co-Lead
> One People One Reef <https://onepeopleonereef.org/>
>
>
> Faculty, Division of Natural and Applied Sciences, Cabrillo College
> <https://www.cabrillo.edu>, Aptos CA
>
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> Please do not feel obligated to respond outside of your normal working
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