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Peer-reviewedCC BY 4.0Ecology and Evolution

Taxon‐Specific Loss in Scleractinian Living Coral Area Following a Bleaching Event Is Linked to Reef Structural Decline in the Central Red Sea

  • Natalie Dunn1,2
  • Fabio Marchese2
  • Marta Ezeta Watts1,2
  • Megan K. B. Nolan1,2
  • Francesca Benzoni1,2
  1. 1Marine Science Program King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) Thuwal Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
  2. 2Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering Division King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) Thuwal Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
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Abstract

Marine heatwaves are increasing in frequency and intensity worldwide, triggering coral bleaching events. While colony and community scale consequences of bleaching have been well documented, its consequence on reef structural complexity remains comparatively less studied. Using Structure‐from‐Motion (SfM), colony fate tracking of hermatypic scleractinians, and a cross‐scale, sequential approach, this study linked in situ thermal stress to coral colony‐scale bleaching and mortality and reef‐scale structural change during the 2023 bleaching event in the central Saudi Arabian Red Sea. Taxon‐specific bleaching thresholds were consistent with regional bleaching alert levels; however, ecological risk varied substantially among reefs. We further support that the relationship between thermal stress and change in reef‐building coral colony area is taxon‐dependent, and that bleaching‐driven coral mortality can rapidly alter reef structural complexity, with potential consequences for ecosystem function. This study represents the first mechanistic assessment of coral resilience across biological scales in the central Red Sea, and provides new insight into reef structural persistence under accelerating climate change.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{dunn2026taxonspecific,
  title = {{Taxon‐Specific Loss in Scleractinian Living Coral Area Following a Bleaching Event Is Linked to Reef Structural Decline in the Central Red Sea}},
  author = {Natalie Dunn and Fabio Marchese and Marta Ezeta Watts and Megan K. B. Nolan and Francesca Benzoni},
  journal = {Ecology and Evolution},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.1002/ece3.74565},
  url = {https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ece3.74565},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Taxon‐Specific Loss in Scleractinian Living Coral Area Following a Bleaching Event Is Linked to Reef Structural Decline in the Central Red Sea
AU  - Natalie Dunn
AU  - Fabio Marchese
AU  - Marta Ezeta Watts
AU  - Megan K. B. Nolan
AU  - Francesca Benzoni
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/30
JO  - Ecology and Evolution
DO  - 10.1002/ece3.74565
UR  - https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ece3.74565
AB  - Marine heatwaves are increasing in frequency and intensity worldwide, triggering coral bleaching events. While colony and community scale consequences of bleaching have been well documented, its consequence on reef structural complexity remains comparatively less studied. Using Structure‐from‐Motion (SfM), colony fate tracking of hermatypic scleractinians, and a cross‐scale, sequential approach, this study linked in situ thermal stress to coral colony‐scale bleaching and mortality and reef‐scale structural change during the 2023 bleaching event in the central Saudi Arabian Red Sea. Taxon‐specific bleaching thresholds were consistent with regional bleaching alert levels; however, ecological risk varied substantially among reefs. We further support that the relationship between thermal stress and change in reef‐building coral colony area is taxon‐dependent, and that bleaching‐driven coral mortality can rapidly alter reef structural complexity, with potential consequences for ecosystem function. This study represents the first mechanistic assessment of coral resilience across biological scales in the central Red Sea, and provides new insight into reef structural persistence under accelerating climate change.
SN  - 2045-7758
SN  - 2045-7758
ER  -