Comparison of methods used to estimate coral cover in the Hawaiian Islands.

Nine coral survey methods were compared at ten sites in various reef habitats with different levels of coral cover in Kāne'ohe Bay, O'ahu, Hawai'i. Mean estimated coverage at the different sites ranged from less than 10% cover to greater than 90% cover. The methods evaluated include line transects, various visual and photographic belt transects, video transects and visual estimates.

MODELS OF RETICULATE EVOLUTION IN THE CORAL GENUS ACROPORA BASED ON CHROMOSOME NUMBERS: PARALLELS WITH PLANTS.

Somatic chromosome number was determined for 22 species of the scleractinian coral genus Acropora, three species of Montipora, and one species of Fungia, using colchicine-treated cells of externally developing embryos. Most had 28 chromosomes, except for six species of Acropora, which had somatic numbers of 24, 30, 30, 42, 48, and 54. Two models that invoke a combination of polyploidy and aneuploidy are presented to account for the observed intrageneric variation in somatic chromosome number.