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Anemonefishes are an iconic and diverse group that is reliant on a critical habitat (anemones), which has declined significantly in recent years – primarily due to mass bleaching events. Disenfranchised anemonefishes may relocate or recruit to already colonised anemones when their host dies and the available habitat is limited. This may lead to hybridization between closely related species, further impacting biodiversity on the reef. Artificial structures may enable the regeneration of host anemones and anemonefishes as coral reefs continue to degrade. Anemonefish recovery is dependent on providing a suitable substrate for host anemone attachment and growth. The objective of this study is to test the application of ‘anemonefish hotels’; concrete structures that can be seeded with the optimal combination of anemones and anemonefish to aid recovery. These structures take advantage of a modular design which enables components to be kept in aquaria for anemones to attach to initially, then deployed in the field. The target species for this project is the ‘bubble-tip’ anemone (Entacmaea quadricolor), a generalist which hosts 14 different anemonefish species. Taking advantage of this anemone’s ability to reproduce asexually (i.e. ‘splitting’) may be the key to developing a method to seed the artificial structures sustainably. |