Status of near shore reefs of the Great Barrier Reef 2004 (CRC Reef Research Centre: Project C1.14)

The benthic communities at 33 near shore reefs between Cape Tribulation (16°S) and Keppel Is (23°S) were surveyed in 2004. Prospective near-shore coral reef sampling locations were initially selected from six broad geographic regions of the GBR: Cairns, Innisfail, Townsville, Whitsunday, Mackay, and Keppel. Each of these regions has a unique combination of climatic regime, coastal and shelf topography and the characteristics of adjacent catchments. Where topography allowed, two depths were surveyed at replicate sites at each reef giving a total of 63 locations. Surveys measured benthic cover, community composition, diversity of coral species and size-structures of coral communities. Environmental factors recorded included sediment composition, transect depth, adjacent depth, exposure to runoff, exposure, fetch and distance to land.Voucher specimens of some coral species of uncertain identity were collected and lodged with the Museum of Tropical Queensland for identification and future reference.
The objectives of this study were twofold:1. to describe near-shore reefs of the Great Barrier Reef province and assess their status; and2. to collate information on the past condition of near-shore reefs, particularly from the grey literature, for comparison with the current status.
The status of near-shore reefs is of concern largely because they are the portion of the GBR that is most at risk from runoff. The most deleterious effects of runoff on corals appear to be caused by sediment. Coral reproduction and the early survival of juveniles are the population processes that are most likely to be affected. For these reasons, the descriptions of the study reefs include not only measures of coral cover, but also estimates of species diversity and measures of size-frequency of colonies - attributes that indicate the stage that a reef community has reached in its development.A subset of the data has been provided to the Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS, http://www.iobis.org/OBISWEB/DisplayMetaData.jsp?content=meta/137.html).