[Coral-List] attaching coral skeletons and shells
Janie Wulff
wulff at bio.fsu.edu
Thu Jul 23 13:00:26 EDT 2009
Sponges can bind rubble piles together. They do it quickly, and are
aesthetically appealing and inexpensive. Easiest to use are
branching species because they can be simply inserted among the
rubble pieces. If there's enough current to move unstabilized rubble
around, just cable tie each sponge piece to a piece of rubble before
inserting it in the pile. Most sponge species will firmly attach to
multiple pieces of rubble in 1-4 days. The branches from which you
cut sponge pieces will regrow. Coralline algae and bryozoans will
recruit and bind your rubble further, as they grow from one piece to
another; and coral larvae consider sponge-bound rubble suitable for
settlement. A couple of references: Wulff, J.L. 1984.
Sponge-mediated coral reef growth and rejuvenation. Coral Reefs
3:157-163. and Biggs, B. 2008. Sponge-mediated coral reef
restoration: efficiency, sustainability, and relative performance.
Abstracts, 11th International Coral Reef Symposium.
Good luck, Brad! -Janie
At 9:05 AM -0400 7/23/09, Brad Baldwin wrote:
>Hi folks-
>Any suggestions on the best ways to glue coral rubble together
>underwater to make small artificial reefs? Alternatively I would like to
>do the same with empty conch shells. I know many of you do reef
>restoration work and glue coral fragments/cultured juveniles down
>underwater so am hopeful you can share some tips on products and
>techniques.
>Thanks, Brad
>
><>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><
>
>Brad Baldwin
>Department of Biology/Johnson Hall 123
>St. Lawrence University
>Canton, NY 13617
>315-229-5240 (7429 fax)
>bbaldwin at stlawu.edu
>
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