ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Mar. Sci.
Sec. Coral Reef Research
Volume 12 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fmars.2025.1599155
Extirpation of Acropora cervicornis genotypes from a coral nursery during the 2023 marine heatwave undermines conservation efforts
Provisionally accepted
- Central Caribbean Marine Institute, Little Cayman, Cayman Islands
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Global climate change has decimated historical baseline coral cover in the Caribbean, including wild Acropora cervicornis, now listed as Critically Endangered by the IUCN Red List of Species. Although still at risk to the same environmental conditions that decimated wild populations, propagating A. cervicornis genotypes with increased disease resistance and thermal tolerance could help prevent extinction. Here we report the impacts from the 2023 marine heatwave on an A. cervicornis nursery in Little Cayman that experienced 19.4 Degree Heating Weeks (DHW). In total, 91.6% of the 415 colonies suffered complete mortality with seven out of ten genotypes being eradicated, suggesting a genetic basis for thermotolerance. This accentuates the importance of genetic diversity for survival of A. cervicornis. However, the eradication of over 90% of coral colonies also highlights the futility of putting corals back into the same environment, emphasizing the need for innovative conservation strategies that incorporate novel tools capable of enhancing resilience and ensuring restoration remains viable under future climate conditions.
Keywords: Coral Bleaching, Survival, restoration, Climate Change, Global Warming, thermal tolerance, Caribbean, Little Cayman
Received: 24 Mar 2025; Accepted: 20 Aug 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Le Gall, Johnson and Goodbody-Gringley. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Gretchen Goodbody-Gringley, Central Caribbean Marine Institute, Little Cayman, Cayman Islands
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