- Dona Paula, Goa, India.
- +91-0832- 2450327
- iiosc2020[at]nio[dot]org
Abstract Submission No. | ABS-2022-06-0271 |
Title of Abstract | Predicting reef connectivity across the Southwestern Indian Ocean using a high-resolution multidecadal simulation |
Authors | Noam Vogt-Vincent*, Helen Johnson, April Burt |
Organisation | Department of Earth Sciences, University of Oxford |
Address | Department of Earth Sciences, South Parks Road Oxford, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom Pincode: OX1 3AN Mobile: 7435565042 E-mail: noam.vogt-vincent@st-annes.ox.ac.uk |
Country | United Kingdom |
Presentation | Oral |
Abstract | The Southwestern Indian Ocean (SWIO) is home to around 5% of the world's tropical coral reefs, which are enormously important for marine biodiversity, as well as the coastal communities that depend on them. Reefs across the region are seriously threatened by climate change, but the resilience and vulnerability of particular reefs depends on a number of parameters, one being connectivity (established by the transport of coral larvae through ocean currents). However, tracking larval dispersal directly is unfeasible due to their small size, necessitating indirect observations from genetics or numerical models. We have run a regional configuration of the CROCO ocean model, spanning the SWIO at a resolution of c. 2km, to simulate surface currents over a timescale of 28 years and gain insight into likely coral larval dispersal pathways and connectivity. Using lagrangian particle tracking and statistical parameterisations for larval mortality and recruitment, we will estimate patterns of connectivity between reef sites (with a particular focus on Seychelles), persistent barriers to dispersal, and seasonal/interannual variability in connectivity across this highly dynamic region. Predicted connectivity will be compared against independent connectivity estimates from genetic studies, and previous regional simulations at a lower resolution to establish whether the computational expense involved in running such a high resolution simulation is necessary for predicting connectivity on a regional scale. Ongoing progress towards this goal will be presented. |