Removing dead coral after marine heatwaves can mitigate coral-algae competition and increase viable coral recruitment

Kai Kopecky, Gaia Pavoni, Massimiliano Corsini, Andrew Brooks, Bartholomew Difiore, Fabio Menna, Erica Nocerino
2025 · doi:10.32942/x2vd1w
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This paper examined how dead coral skeletons left behind after marine heatwaves affect spatial competition between coral and macroalgae, and whether removing those dead branching skeletons changes coral recovery on reef patches. Following a marine heatwave, the authors removed dead skeletons from some patches and left others intact, then used underwater photogrammetry with AI image analysis to quantify long-term trajectories of live coral and macroalgae over four years. Dead skeleton removal left 1.6 times more live coral remaining, cut macroalgae development by half, and increased coral recruit densities fivefold on stable primary substrate, with dead skeletons described as an alternate substrate that promoted macroalgae. The authors note the ecological focus is on coral reefs rather than human disease, and the findings are framed for reef settings where carbonate budgets are not in deficit, which limits direct extrapolation beyond that context. The paper does not explicitly discuss endometriosis or adenomyosis; it was included in the corpus via a keyword match in the upstream search index.

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Abstract

Ecological disturbance regimes are shifting and leaving behind novel legacies, like the remnant structures of dead foundation species, which have poorly known impacts on ecosystem resilience. We explored how dead coral skeletons produced by marine heatwaves–material legacies of increasingly common disturbances on coral reefs–influence spatial competition between corals and macroalgae, focusing on whether removing dead branching skeletons stimulates recovery of coral after disturbance. Following a marine heatwave, we removed dead skeletons from reef patches then used underwater photogrammetry and AI-powered image analysis to quantify trajectories of coral and macroalgae. After four years, removal of dead skeletons resulted in 1.6 times more live coral remaining and reduced development of macroalgae by half, relative to patches where skeletons were left intact. Dead skeletons acted as an alternate substrate type that facilitated macroalgae development, and greater macroalgal abundance caused steeper declines in live coral. Lastly, removal of dead skeletons led to five times greater densities of coral recruits on stable (primary) reef substrate. Our findings identify a promising avenue to manage for coral resilience (on reefs where carbonate budgets are not in a deficit) and reveal how material legacies of changing disturbance regimes can alter physical environments to sway the outcomes of spatial competition.
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Abstract

Ecological disturbance regimes are shifting and leaving behind novel legacies, like the remnant structures of dead foundation species, which have poorly known impacts on ecosystem resilience. We explored how dead coral skeletons produced by marine heatwaves–material legacies of increasingly common disturbances on coral reefs–influence spatial competition between corals and macroalgae, focusing on whether removing dead branching skeletons stimulates recovery of coral after disturbance. Following a marine heatwave, we removed dead skeletons from reef patches then used underwater photogrammetry and AI-powered image analysis to quantify trajectories of coral and macroalgae. After four years, removal of dead skeletons resulted in 1.6 times more live coral remaining and reduced development of macroalgae by half, relative to patches where skeletons were left intact. Dead skeletons acted as an alternate substrate type that facilitated macroalgae development, and greater macroalgal abundance caused steeper declines in live coral. Lastly, removal of dead skeletons led to five times greater densities of coral recruits on stable (primary) reef substrate. Our findings identify a promising avenue to manage for coral resilience (on reefs where carbonate budgets are not in a deficit) and reveal how material legacies of changing disturbance regimes can alter physical environments to sway the outcomes of spatial competition. DOI https://doi.org/10.32942/X2VD1W Subjects Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Marine Biology

Keywords

Material legacies, resilience, disturbance, competition, Global Change, Marine Heatwaves, foundation species, Coral reefs, macroalgae, underwater photogrammetry, Artificial intelligence, resilience, disturbance, Competition, global change, Marine Heatwaves, foundation species, Coral reefs, macroalgae, Underwater photogrammetry, Artificial Intelligence Dates Published: 2025-05-08 00:19 Last Updated: 2025-05-08 00:19 License No Creative Commons license Additional Metadata Data and Code Availability Statement: All data and code used that support this manuscript can be accessed at https://github.com/kkopecky711/Dead-coral-removal-experiment.git. Additionally, all data and code will be permanently archived in a publicly accessible repository via the Environmental Data Initiative (EDI) upon acceptance of this manuscript. Language: English

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