Microbial processes

Changes in the physical and chemical environment are likely to be causing changes in microbial processes, but there is little information available.

• Ecological role of marine microbes in the Great Barrier Reef  

Particle feeding

Most populations of particle feeders are healthy although sea cucumbers are at risk to local depletion. 

Primary production

There is insufficient evidence to know if patterns of primary production are changing.

• Chlorophyll concentrations in the Great Barrier Reef
• Phytoplankton in The Great Barrier Reef 
• Ecological roles of macroalgae

Herbivory

Populations of herbivorous fish are healthy and generally not under pressure; however larger herbivores, like dugongs, have declined along the urban coast.

• Macroalgae, nutrients and phase shifts on coral reefs
• Effects of competition and herbivory on interactions between hard coral and a brown alga 
• Catastrophies, phase shifts and large scale degredation of a Carribean reef
• Effects of herbivores and water quality on Sargassum [1.74Mb]
• Reef degradation and coral biodiversity in Indonesia: Effects of land-based pollution, destructive fishing practices and changes over time 
• State of herbivorous fish populations
• Not all herbivores eat the same thing: diversity in herbivory is important 
• Cross-shelf variation in the role of parrotfishes on the Great Barrier Reef 
• Role of marine turtles in ecological communities
• Restoring sea turtles populations to fulfil their ecological roles

Predation

Most predator populations are relatively healthy but a few species are under serious pressure, with potential flow-on impacts.

• Effects of Zoning on Coral Trout
• Abundance patterns of predatory fishes
• Shark population density and zoning
• The effects of marine reserve protection on the trophic relationships 
• Rapid worldwide depletion of predatory fish communities
• No-take reserves protect coral reefs from predatory starfish
• Trophic structure on the Line Islands reefs 
• Restoring sea turtles populations to fulfil their ecological roles

Symbiosis

Little is known about most symbiotic relationships.

• Symbiosis in coral reefs
• Turtle barnacles
• Identity and diversity of coral endosymbionts
• Vulnerability of coral reefs of the Great Barrier Reef to climate change  

Reef building

The rate of reef building may be beginning to slow.

• Methods of estimating reef carbonate production 
• Coral reef growth rates 
• Bioerosion
• Coral recruitment monitoring: Reef Water Quality Protection Plan - inshore reef monitoring 
• Coral recruitment in the Great Barrier Reef
• Latitudinal patterns in recruitment  

Competition

Competition between corals and algae appears normal except for some inshore areas, but there is little information about other types of competition.

• Competition between corals and algae on coral reefs
• Replinishment of corals: role of algae
• Modelled causes of coral reef degradation
• The fate of bleached corals: patterns and dynamics of algal recruitment  [0.45Mb]
• The effects of nutrients and herbivory on competition between a hard coral and a brown alga [0.4MB]  
• Effects of competition and herbivory on interactions between hard coral and a brown alga  

Connectivity

Most species and habitats remain adequately connected; connectivity between marine habitats and adjacent freshwater habitats has been reduced.

• Larval retention and connectivity among populations of corals and reef fishes: history advances and challenges
• Ecological connectivity in the Great Barrier Reef
• Connectivity, biodiversity conservation, and the design of marine reserve networks for coral reefs
• Incorporating connectivity science into coral reef management
• Migration of Humpback whales along the Australian east coast
• Seabird population connectivities
• Booby population connectivites within and outside the GBR
• Seabirds as indicators of open ocean ecology
• Black marlin movements on Great Barrier Reef
• Movement heterogeneity of dugongs over large spatial scales 
• Migration of green and loggerhead turtles to and from Eastern Australian Rookeries
• Long-distance migrations by hawksbill turtles from north-eastern Australia