Strahler Ordering Analyses on Branching Coral Canopies: <i>Stylophora pistillata</i> as a Case Study
The three-dimensional structural complexities generated by living sessile organisms, such as trees and branching corals, embrace distinct communities of dwelling organisms, many of which are adapted to specific niches within the structure. Thus, characterizing the build-up rules and the canopy compa...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-01-01
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| Series: | Journal of Marine Science and Engineering |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/10/1/121 |
| _version_ | 1797492875144986624 |
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| author | Yaniv Shmuel Yaron Ziv Baruch Rinkevich |
| author_facet | Yaniv Shmuel Yaron Ziv Baruch Rinkevich |
| author_sort | Yaniv Shmuel |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The three-dimensional structural complexities generated by living sessile organisms, such as trees and branching corals, embrace distinct communities of dwelling organisms, many of which are adapted to specific niches within the structure. Thus, characterizing the build-up rules and the canopy compartments may clarify small-scale biodiversity patterns and rules for canopy constituents. While biodiversity within tree canopies is usually typified by the vertical axis that is delineated by its main compartments (understory, trunk, crown), traditional studies of coral canopy dwelling species are evaluated only by viewing the whole coral head as a single homogeneous geometric structure. Here, we employ the Strahler number of a mathematical tree for the numerical measurements of the coral’s canopy complexity. We use the branching Indo-Pacific coral species <i>Stylophora pistillata</i> as a model case, revealing five compartments in the whole coral canopy volume (Understory, Base, Middle, Up, and Bifurcation nods). Then, the coral’s dwellers’ diel distribution patterns were quantified and analyzed. We observed 114 natal colonies, containing 32 dwelling species (11 sessile), totaling 1019 individuals during day observations, and 1359 at night (1–41 individuals/colony). Biodiversity and abundance associated with Strahler numbers, diel richness, abundance, and patterns for compartmental distributions differed significantly between day/night. These results demonstrate that the coral-canopy Strahler number is an applicable new tool for assessing canopy landscapes and canopy associated species biodiversity, including the canopy-compartmental utilization by mobile organisms during day/night and young/adult behaviors. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T01:10:57Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-16e7df7719504932b2d3cb30488e67dd |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2077-1312 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T01:10:57Z |
| publishDate | 2022-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Marine Science and Engineering |
| spelling | doaj.art-16e7df7719504932b2d3cb30488e67dd2023-11-23T14:17:21ZengMDPI AGJournal of Marine Science and Engineering2077-13122022-01-0110112110.3390/jmse10010121Strahler Ordering Analyses on Branching Coral Canopies: <i>Stylophora pistillata</i> as a Case StudyYaniv Shmuel0Yaron Ziv1Baruch Rinkevich2Marine Biology and Biotechnology Program, Department of Life Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Eilat Campus, Beer-Sheva 8855630, IsraelSpatial Ecology Lab, Department of Life Sciences, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 8410501, IsraelIsrael Oceanography and Limnological Research, National Institute of Oceanography, Tel-Shikmona, P.O. Box 9753, Haifa 3109701, IsraelThe three-dimensional structural complexities generated by living sessile organisms, such as trees and branching corals, embrace distinct communities of dwelling organisms, many of which are adapted to specific niches within the structure. Thus, characterizing the build-up rules and the canopy compartments may clarify small-scale biodiversity patterns and rules for canopy constituents. While biodiversity within tree canopies is usually typified by the vertical axis that is delineated by its main compartments (understory, trunk, crown), traditional studies of coral canopy dwelling species are evaluated only by viewing the whole coral head as a single homogeneous geometric structure. Here, we employ the Strahler number of a mathematical tree for the numerical measurements of the coral’s canopy complexity. We use the branching Indo-Pacific coral species <i>Stylophora pistillata</i> as a model case, revealing five compartments in the whole coral canopy volume (Understory, Base, Middle, Up, and Bifurcation nods). Then, the coral’s dwellers’ diel distribution patterns were quantified and analyzed. We observed 114 natal colonies, containing 32 dwelling species (11 sessile), totaling 1019 individuals during day observations, and 1359 at night (1–41 individuals/colony). Biodiversity and abundance associated with Strahler numbers, diel richness, abundance, and patterns for compartmental distributions differed significantly between day/night. These results demonstrate that the coral-canopy Strahler number is an applicable new tool for assessing canopy landscapes and canopy associated species biodiversity, including the canopy-compartmental utilization by mobile organisms during day/night and young/adult behaviors.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/10/1/121Strahler ordermarine forest animalsstructure complexityEilatcoral reefcanopy |
| spellingShingle | Yaniv Shmuel Yaron Ziv Baruch Rinkevich Strahler Ordering Analyses on Branching Coral Canopies: <i>Stylophora pistillata</i> as a Case Study Journal of Marine Science and Engineering Strahler order marine forest animals structure complexity Eilat coral reef canopy |
| title | Strahler Ordering Analyses on Branching Coral Canopies: <i>Stylophora pistillata</i> as a Case Study |
| title_full | Strahler Ordering Analyses on Branching Coral Canopies: <i>Stylophora pistillata</i> as a Case Study |
| title_fullStr | Strahler Ordering Analyses on Branching Coral Canopies: <i>Stylophora pistillata</i> as a Case Study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Strahler Ordering Analyses on Branching Coral Canopies: <i>Stylophora pistillata</i> as a Case Study |
| title_short | Strahler Ordering Analyses on Branching Coral Canopies: <i>Stylophora pistillata</i> as a Case Study |
| title_sort | strahler ordering analyses on branching coral canopies i stylophora pistillata i as a case study |
| topic | Strahler order marine forest animals structure complexity Eilat coral reef canopy |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/10/1/121 |
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