Evidence from sediments of long-term Acanthaster planci predation on corals of the great barrier reef

Peter D. Walbran, Robert A. Henderson, A. J. Timothy Jull, M. John Head

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

41 Scopus citations

Abstract

Since 1962 the crown-of-thorns starfish, Acanthaster planci, has caused the devastation of living coral in large tracts of the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Some authorities view this as a modern phenomenon, resulting from ecological disturbance caused by man. Evidence from skeletal remains in sediment suggests that large A. planci populations have been part of the Great Barrier Reefecosystem for at least 8000 years. Coral predation by A. planci is likely to have influenced the morphological fabric of the Great Barrier Reef in its post-glacial development and may also have influenced species richness of the reef biota.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)847-850
Number of pages4
JournalScience
Volume245
Issue number4920
DOIs
StatePublished - 1989

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General

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