2017-09-01 Coral Magazine

reef,” Sebastian Ferse, a reef ecologist at the ZMT and co-
author of the study, explained. “If a reef has a very com-
plex structure, it offers many different niches for its in-
habitants, and the biomass is correspondingly high.” The
drone data also provides information on how badly a reef
has been damaged by coral bleaching or dynamite fishing.
Ferse plans to use drones for his research in Indone-
sia, where he envisions making video recordings to show
the biodiversity and the behavior of fishes on the reef. He
wants to identify the “tipping point”—the point at which
a reef structure is so damaged that biodiversity decreases
significantly. This information could prove essential for
making reef management decisions and establishing and
monitoring marine protected areas.
Casella and the mangrove ecologists at the ZMT also
plan to test the use of drones for the multispectral map-
ping of mangroves in the Fiji Islands. Their goal is to find

out how useful images collected by drones are for environ-

mental assessment compared to those taken by satellites.

REFERENCE

Casella, E. et al. 2016. Mapping coral reefs using consumer-

grade drones and structure from motion photogrammetry

techniques. Coral Reefs, DOI: 10.1007/s00338-016-1522-0.

New deep-water carnivorous

sponge discovered

A German-Norwegian team of scientists has discovered

a new sponge species along the coast of Mauritania in

western Africa. It lives on cold-water corals and captures

live zooplankton. Such feeding in close association with

live corals has not yet been described for a sponge group.

When is a sponge a sponge? This question can be

asked when a specimen of the Cladorhizidae family is

found in a fishing net. “The species of these sponges have

neither a water-permeable pore system nor flagella cells—

both typical characteristics of sponges,” explained Dr.

Dorte Janussen of the Senckenberg Research Institute in

Frankfurt. But genetic studies and the presence of spicules

showed that the organisms are, nevertheless, sponges.

Janussen, together with research associate Dr. Chris-

tian Göcke, discovered the new sponge. “The new spe-

cies Cladorhiza corallophila described by us was collected

during an expedition with a research vessel in 2010 in a

Images of the coral reef in Moorea, taken by a drone.

E. CASELLA, LEIBNIZ CENTER FOR MARINE TROPICAL RESEARCH

DOES YOUR FISH FOOD DO THAT?

Prevents (and helps reverse) symptoms of poor nutrition:

• Lateral Line Disease


• Hole-in-the-Head


• Fin Erosion

SPECTRUM GUARANTEE

Plus increases color

& vitality in 30 days

if fed exclusively*

Most brands try to dazzle you with an impressive ingredient list. That’s easy.

What’s not so easy is to guarantee results. Of course, Spectrum uses the best quality ingredients

in the industry. But we think how it affects the health of your fish is the real test. We’re so confident

that New Life Spectrum® versus anyone else will make you (and your fish) a believer that we guarantee:

*For all the details, visit

http://www.nlsfishfood.com/guarantee