Coral bleaching and associated mortality is an increasingly prominent threat to coral reef ecosystems.
Although the effects of bleaching-induced coral mortality on reef fishes have been well demonstrated,
corals can remain bleached for several weeks prior to recovery or death and little is known about how
bleaching affects resident fishes during this time period. This study compared growth rates of two
species of juvenile butterflyfishes (Chaetodon aureofasciatus and Chaetodon lunulatus) that were
restricted to feeding upon either bleached or healthy coral tissue of Acropora spathulata or Pocillopora
damicornis. Coral condition (bleached vs. unbleached) had no significant effects on changes in total
length or weight over a 23-day period. Likewise, in a habitat choice experiment, juvenile butterflyfishes
did not discriminate between healthy and bleached corals, but actively avoided using recently dead
colonies. These results indicate that juvenile coral-feeding fishes are relatively robust to short term effects
of bleaching events, provided that the corals do recover.
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