[Coral-List] Conch as artificial reef

[Gary Ostrander]

When I was teaching a Tropical Marine Biology Course on San Salvador in
the 1980's and 1990's we often used conch shells to construct artificial
reefs for the student to monitor recruitment over 2-3 weeks.   Moreover,
there were a few sites around the island where the local population
routinely cleaned conch and discarded the shells in the water.  The
15-20 foot high piles of discarded conch shells appeared to be excellent
artificial reefs.

Gary K. Ostrander
Johns Hopkins University

>>> Greenforce Bahamas <greenforce at batelnet.bs> 01/22/04 07:57PM >>>
Hi,

Have been considering using conch shells to construct an artificial
reef for a pilot study. Has anyone used conch shells for this purpose
before. Any advice? Are they a good substrate for coral recuitment? Have
they been successful for such purposes in the past? Are there any
recommendation regarding citation of artificial reefs, other than
depending on goals of reef use?

Many thanks,

Kirstie Knowles (Science co-ordinator) and the Greenforce, Bahamas
team.



Greenforce Bahamas
Blanket Sound
Andros Island
Bahamas
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