Description of the reef morphology and the changes in coral communities at each survey site
Coral reefs around Motobu peninsula including our survey area had been experiencing disturbance events and subsequent recoveries repeatedly. In early 1970s, coral communities were extensively devastated by the wide-spread infestations of the Crown-of-Thorns Starfish. Corals gradually recovered between mid 1980s and early 1990s, but they again disappeared due to the mass-bleaching event in 1998. Our monitoring program, continued from 1988, revealed that the recovery process of coral communities differed even among relatively small area. Here we describe the rate of recovery and the changes in coral community composition at each survey site in conjunction with the characteristic of reef morphology. Previous data on coral cover and other associated information before we start the monitoring program in 1988 were referenced to the following documents. (The list is limited to the documents published in English.)
References
Nishihira M, Yamazato K (1972). Brief survey of Acanthaster planci in Sesoko Island and its vicinity, Okinawa. Sesoko Mar. Sci. Lab. Techn. Rep. 1: 1-20.
Nishihira M, Yamazato K (1974) Human interference with the coral reef community and Acanthaster infestation of Okinawa. In: Proceedings of the Second International Symposium on Coral Reefs, vol. 1. 1974.
Sakai K, Muzik K, Nakamura S, Nishihira M (1988) A note on resurvey of coral communities and Acathaster populations around Okinawa Island in 1984. Galaxea. 7: 41-51.
The Japanese Coral Reef Society and Ministry of the Environment (2004) Coral reefs of Japan. Ministry of the Environment, Tokyo, Japan. ISBN-10: 4915959805
