Graduation Year

2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree

Ph.D.

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

Degree Granting Department

Integrative Biology

Major Professor

John Parkinson, Ph.D.

Committee Member

Andrew Kramer, Ph.D.

Committee Member

Kathleen Scott, Ph.D.

Committee Member

Ryan McMinds, Ph.D.

Keywords

conservation, ecology, genomics, microbiome, symbiosis

Abstract

Coral reef ecosystems are declining globally from numerous stressors, including localized pollution, disease, and marine heatwaves induced by climate change. To preserve these ecosystems, it is critical to identify corals that can withstand stressors—primarily future marine heatwaves—and prioritize them for coral restoration efforts until these stressors are mitigated. Coral responses to thermal stress can be influenced by several partners, including mutualistic microalgae and a vast prokaryotic community. Here, I use advanced molecular techniques to examine which partners (coral host, algal symbiont, and microbial communities) are associated with coral health, how they contribute to holobiont physiology, and their potential to increase coral resilience to climate change. In the first chapter, I review how different partners contribute to coral physiology and describe their potential for improving coral resilience. In the second chapter, I investigate the effects of host and symbiont genotype interactions on coral growth rate, finding host effects but no symbiont effects. In the third chapter, I explore whether common physiological metrics and prokaryotic communities are predictive of thermal stress outcomes prior to the onset of thermal stress, identifying multiple traits and taxa correlated with coral mortality. In the fourth chapter, I assess the utility of characterizing coral reef sediment prokaryotic communities to monitor coral reef health, specifically for reefs under active restoration, advocating for focused, site-specific methodologies. This research advances our understanding of factors associated with coral and ecosystem resilience and should improve the efficacy of coral restoration programs.

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