TRANSPLANTASI KARANG BATU BERCABANG DI PERAIRAN TANJUNG PAPUTUNGAN

Abstract

The formation of coral reefs is a long and complex process. The process of forming coral reefs begins with the attachment of various lime-producing biota on a hard substrate. Coral reefs take quite a long time to recover and are highly dependent on water conditions. Until now, pressures caused by human activities such as pollution from land and destructive fisheries practices have been considered a major threat to coral reefs. Efforts to overcome damage to coral reef ecosystems can be done by developing coral transplantation techniques. In response to this, the research wiil apply the method of artificial reefs from concrete blocks as a container for the installation of colonies of Acropora formosa spesies and Porites cylindrica spesies. A total of 75 branched coral colonies were transplanted in the waters of 75 branched coral colonies were transplanted in the waters of the Paputungan cape 39 colonies of branched growth forms of Acropora form and 36 colonies of branched grotwth forms of Porites cylindrica spesies were transplanted in artificial reef units. Data collection in the field in the form colonies that were successfully transplanted into artificial reef units totaling 6 units will be documented using cameras from each block taken perpendicular pictures and photographing colonies from earch artificial reef unit. The results of the shoot were then analyzed using software of the Image-J application. At the end of the observation process, it was found that the highest resistence of transplane colonies was 97.2 % where there were 35 surviving colonies and 1 dead colony out of a total of 36 colonies transplanted by Porites cylindrica spesies. Meanwhile, observations found that the lowest resistnce of transplant colonies that survived and 13 colonies that died out of a total of 39 colonies transplanted by acropora formosa spesies. Acropora formosa has a relatively fast increase compared to Porites cylindrica spesies. The highest accretion was dominated by the 18.05 mm fragment-size Acropora formosa spesies at the end of the sixth lunar observation.

Keywords: Restoration, transplantation, Branching Coral, Tanjung Paputungan, North Minahasa