Microbial community at a reef site along the southern coast of Curacao

Coral reefs are considered to be possible sinks for microbial organisms, however the removal mechanisms at play are not well understood. Here, we characterize pelagic microbial groups at a Caribbean reef off Curacao and examine interactions between microbial community members and three coral species (Madracis mirabilis, Porites astreoides and Stephanocoenia intersepta) based on 16S rRNA gene V1-V2 amplicon seqeuncing.