GROWTH AND SURVIVAL RATE OF SPS HARD CORAL Psammocora contigua  IN AN EX-SITU NURSERY

Mohamad Saupi Ismail and Dzulfikkar Baitul Ma'mur
Fisheries Research Institute, Department of Fisheries, Malaysia, 11960 Batu Maung, Penang, Malaysia
*Corresponding author: alfiks2001@dof.gov.my

Corals face many serious threats and problems that can result in extinction in the future. Various techniques for coral propagation have been created to perpetuate this valuable heritage. This study examined the difference in fragment size of Psammocora contigua in an ex-situ nursery with twenty fragments each for fragment size that was less than 5cm2 and fragment size of more than 9cm2.

The coral donor colonies were collected from shallow sandy lagoon of about 5 m depth off Pulau Kendi, Pulau Pinang, and transported to Tunku Abdul Rahman Aquarium. The "dry" transportation technique was used according to Yates and Carson, (1992). The corals were transported in medium-sized Styrofoam box to the Aquarium. The transit time was approximately four hours. All transplanted fragments were placed in fibreglass tanks measuring 5 m x 1 m x 1 m. Coral fragments were cleaned every week to remove fouling organisms. Water quality parameters such pH, KH (Calcium hardness), NH3, NO3, and PO4 were measured every month. Coral growth was measured as the change in fragment size over time.

The bigger fragment size took 120 days to grow and cover the entire 38cm2 base, while the smaller fragment size took 180 days to achieve the same growth. The survival rate was 100% for both fragment sizes after a period of twelve months. Therefore, fragment size is important in efforts to propagate and manage coral species such as Psammocora contigua for the purpose of coral reef conservation throughout the world.