Coloured Pigments and Coral Bleaching?

Prasanna Weerakkody firefish at sltnet.lk
Wed May 29 09:25:06 EDT 2002


One thing that I found very interesting at the onset of the 1998 bleaching
monitoring in Sri Lanka was that some corals took on a brilliant ultramarine
blue for a couple of days before bleaching into blue. this was mostly
observed on colonies of Acropora formosa and couple of Montipora species.
I'm talking about whole colonies (2-3meters across) going deep blue. I sure
would like to have an explanation for this if there is one.

An additional note that there was a mild bleaching event that we were
observing on several south coast reefs in Sri Lanka during April. The corals
had become significantly paler overall, (60-70% of colonies) but none had
bleached into pure white except for development of completely bleached spots
ranging from 5-15 cm across on some colonies. I have not been able to
monitor for the last month but the indications were that things would be
easing up with the arrival of the Indian Ocean monsoon.

Prasanna

At 10:48 AM 28-05-02 +0100, you wrote:
>Dear Coral Listers
>
>I would be grateful if any of the coral physiologists involved in bleaching
>work could offer any details on a question that's been put to me a couple
>of times.
>
>The colourful pigments (blues, pinks etc.) that are charateristic of many
>shallow water corals (Acropora etc.) are, as I understand it, located in
>the coral tissue itself.  Whereas the pigments present in the zooxanthellae
>are more or less brown in colour.  If coral bleaching (due to elevated
>SSTs) is principally the result of expulsion or loss of zooxanthellae, then
>why do the corals go completely white.  i.e. what happens to the more
>colourful coral pigments? Are they damaged as well but independently by
>temperature induced failure of protective systems?
>
>sincerely,
>
>Rupert Ormond
>
>
>
>
>Dr. Rupert Ormond
>Director,
>University Marine Biological Station Millport,
>Isle of Cumbrae,
>SCOTLAND
>UK  KA28 0EG
>
>email: rupert.ormond at millport.gla.ac.uk
>tel: (44)-01475-530581
>fax: (44)-01475-530601
>web: http://www.gla.ac.uk/Acad/Marine/
>
>
>
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>
>
>
Prasanna Weerakkody
Nature Conservation Group
No.9, Balapokuna place,
Colombo 6.
Sri Lanka

E-mail: firefish at sltnet.lk
Ph:     941-856041

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