Distribuição e condições ecológica de corais (Cnidaria Seleractinia) no ambiente recifal raso da praia de Carapibus, Conde - PB.

Abstract

Monitoring of reef environments has taken prominence among the scientific community as a way to understand and preserve these environments. This study aimed to describe qualitative and quantitatively the occurrence of corals (Cnidaria: Scleractinia) in the shallow reef environment of Praia de Carapibus, Conde/ PB. Data collection occurred from August/ 2014 to September/ 2015, applying visual transects and sense protocols. Were conducted 30 transects of 20 m each of which was obtained data on Scleractinia fauna, morphometry and health condition. There was the record of 507 colonies of the species Siderastrea stellata and Favia gravida, where the first accounted for 98% of cases. Comparing the environmental zones, the 3rd Zone was the one that, significantly, recorded the highest coral diversity and also the increased occurrence of colonies; as had, on average, smaller in size coral. Most colonies were healthy (69.03%), but there was bleaching record, where the pale colony condition was the highest record. It is considered the need for continued monitoring of the reef environment (with spatial and temporal comparisons), characterizing the areas of greatest occurrence of organisms and directing the preservation of the same in order to maintain the life and development of this reef environment there.