Michael Kingsford

James Cook University · Marine Biology and Aquaculture

Rocky reefs of New South Wales (NSW) are characterised by a mosaic of habitats, including kelp forest and urchin-grazed barrens. These habitats support a diversity of dependent species. Decades of research have demonstrated that kelps form extensive forests with distinctive fish and invertebrate faunas and the ‘barrens’ boulder habitat provides she...

Inshore coral reefs support unique ecosystems that are subject to a variety of threats and disturbances. Marine protected areas are powerful conservation tools and often include zones which vary in the level of fishing restriction, including fully protected (no-take) zones, partially protected zones (limited fishing), and less protected “open” fish...

Cubozoan jellyfish pose a risk of envenomation to humans and a threat to many businesses, yet crucial gaps exist in determining threats to stakeholders and understanding their ecology. Environmental DNA (eDNA) provides a cost-effective method for detection that is less labour intensive and provides a higher probability of detection. The objective o...

The composition of coral reef habitats strongly influences associated fish assemblages. As habitat formers, soft corals constitute a morphologically diverse component of coral reefs, although their importance as fish habitat is largely unquantified. Our study assessed relationships between soft and hard coral habitats and assemblages of reef-associ...

Partially Protected Areas (PPAs) are a ubiquitous management tool, yet their ecological effects are often poorly understood. Here, we compare conservation outcomes for two different kinds of PPAs (allowing limited line fishing, but with or without spearfishing) on sheltered and exposed sides of coral reefs of the southern Great Barrier Reef. Compar...

Sponges (Porifera) are a key component of many coral reef ecosystems. In some biogeographic regions, they are considered the dominant benthic fauna and they have the capacity to fulfil many similar roles to reef-building scleractinians. Certainly, sponges predominate at depth, below the critical thresholds of most coral species. The biological and...

Marine resources are often shared among countries, with some fish stocks straddling multiple Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs). Therefore, understanding the structure of populations is important for the effective management of fish stocks. Otolith chemical analyses could discriminate among populations based on differences in the chemical composition...

Clupeiformes are the most important food fish in the world, and provide a key trophic link in marine food chains. Here we describe broad scale patterns of clupeiform demographic characteristics of the delicate round herring sprat Spratelloides delicatulus on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR). Sampling was conducted over 10° of latitude and two seasons a...

Marine species and ecosystems are widely affected by anthropogenic stressors, ranging from pollution and fishing to climate change. Comprehensive assessments of how species and ecosystems are impacted by anthropogenic stressors are critical for guiding conservation and management investments. Previous global risk or vulnerability assessments have f...

Multifactorial sampling designs were used to determine the vertical distribution of ichthyoplankton at multiple temporal and spatial scales in New Zealand. Hypotheses concerning the vertical distribution of fish larvae were tested in the following: depth strata, surface, near-surface, mid-depth and deep, and near the substratum. The consistency of...

Jellyfish are abundant in coastal waters across broad latitudinal ranges and are often considered pests and a group that can cause phase shifts in marine ecosystems. Recent studies have highlighted their potential as biomonitors of contaminants including metals, herbicides and nutrients. Traditionally, sedentary organisms like molluscs and annelid...

Partially Protected Areas (PPAs) are a widely-used management tool, yet comparatively little is known about their effectiveness compared to more commonly studied No-Take Marine Reserves (NTMRs). Here, we examine the efficacy of two kinds of PPAs (with and without spearfishing) within the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park (GBRMP) that are subject to a...

Cyclones have one of the greatest effects on the biodiversity of coral reefs and the associated species. But it is unknown how stochastic alterations in habitat structure influence metapopulation structure, connectivity and genetic diversity. From 1993 to 2018, the reefs of the Capricorn Bunker Reef group in the southern part of the Great Barrier R...

Inshore marine seascapes support a diversity of interconnected habitats and are an important focus for biodiversity conservation. This study examines the importance of habitat attributes to fish assemblages across a mosaic of inshore habitats: coral reefs, rocky reefs, macroalgae beds, and sand/rubble beds. Fishes and benthic habitats were surveyed...

Cubozoan jellyfish are classified as plankton despite the strong swimming and orientation abilities of cubomedusae. How these capabilities could affect cubozoan population structures is poorly understood. Medusae of the cubozoan Copula sivickisi can uniquely attach to surfaces with the sticky pads on their bells. Biophysical modelling was used to i...

Partially Protected Areas (PPAs) are a widely-used management tool, yet comparatively little is known about their effectiveness compared to more commonly studied No-Take Marine Reserves (NTMRs). Here, we examine the efficacy of two kinds of PPAs (with and without spearfishing) within the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park (GBRMP) that are subject to a...

Understanding the hierarchy of populations from the scale of metapopulations to mesopopulations and member local populations is fundamental to understanding the population dynamics of any species. Jellyfish by definition are planktonic and it would be assumed that connectivity would be high among local populations, and that populations would minima...

Stings from certain species of cubozoan jellyfish are dangerous to humans and their seasonal presence in tropical marine waters poses a significant risk to coastal communities. The detection of cubozoans is difficult due to high spatial and temporal variation in their occurrence and abundance. Environmental DNA (eDNA) has the potential to detect ra...

The critical size hypothesis states that pelagic larvae (vertebrate or invertebrate) must reach a critical size to begin metamorphosis and settle to their suitable reef habitat; however, there have been few critical tests of its broader validity. If there were a narrower range of ages at settlement relative to size, then the data would conform to a...

Soft corals are well known for producing toxic and unpalatable compounds to deter predation. In spite of these antipredation defences, a suite of specialised predators has coevolved to feed on soft corals. Direct quantification of this predation, however, has been minimal and the influence of predation on soft corals is yet to be investigated. In t...

Movements undertaken by marine organisms occur for varying reasons and knowledge surrounding them is critically important for understanding population structures, ecology and for effective management and conservation of species. The objective of this study was to test a hypothesis that the cubozoan jellyfish Alatina alata spends a large part of its...

The medusae of cubozoan jellyfishes have sophisticated behaviours and are strong swimmers. Therefore, they have the potential to influence their distribution and connectivity among populations. We used ecological and behavioural data in combination with local oceanography to estimate the potential for medusae of the cubozoan Copula sivickisi to dis...

Reconstruction of sea surface temperature (SST) from the δ18O and Sr/Ca composition of coral skeletal density banding (CSDB), identified with x-ray diffraction and micro computed tomography, provides invaluable centuries-long records of ocean circulation and climate change. Comparison with age-equivalent instrument measurements of SST over the last...

Patterns of age and growth of a sedentary damsel fish Acanthochromis polyacanthus were tested over a latitudinal range of approximately 10 degrees (1200 km) on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR), Australia. Within latitudes, these patterns were also compared on reefs in distance strata (inner, mid, and outer) across a continental shelf that ranged in wid...

The pelagic larval phase represents a critical period in the early life history of fishes, since larval growth and development can contribute substantially to patterns of survival, dispersal and connectivity. The microstructure of otoliths was examined to investigate events during the early life history of the bridled monocle bream Scolopsis biline...

Historical data are often used as benchmarks or reference points for assessing regional changes in ecosystem structure and function. For that purpose, we provide historical (1991–1992)data concerning the spatial and temporal consistency of vertical structuring of a diverse assemblage of larval fishes in inner continental shelf waters adjacent to Sy...

The structural complexity of coral reef environments has a strong influence on the assemblage of reef-associated fishes and invertebrates. These unique ecosystems provide these reef-associated species with a broad range of potential habitats, which offer important resources such as food and shelter. The most studied habitat association on reefs is...

The ecology of habitats along the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) shelf-break has rarely been investigated. Thus, there is little understanding of how associated fishes interact with deeper environments. We examined relationships between deep-reef fish communities and benthic habitat structure. We sampled 48 sites over a large depth gradient (54–260 m) in...

Patterns of age and growth of a sedentary damsel fish Acanthochromis polyacanthus were tested over a latitudinal range of approximately 10 degrees (1,200 km) on the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Within latitudes these patterns were also compared on reefs across a continental shelf that ranged in width from 52 to 128 km. Although variation in lengt...

Most coral reef fishes have a pelagic larval stage before recruiting to reefs. The survival of larvae and their subsequent recruitment can drive the dynamics of reef populations. Here we show that the recruitment of the snapper Lutjanus carponotatus to One Tree Island in the Capricorn Bunker Group, in the southern Great Barrier Reef, was highly var...

A global challenge is dealing with the risk of envenomation by the stinging jellyfish. Those who are affected include: the people stung, tourist providers; diving and adventure operations, beach and park authorities, life guards, commercial marine operators as well as local and centralized government; we focus on tourism. There is a diversity of je...

Marine reserves exhibit increases in targeted fish species, but long-term effects on biodiversity are poorly understood. Factors other than reserve status may affect decadal changes, including environmental change. We examined the fish fauna at the iconic Poor Knights Islands over 4 decades (1974-2016) before and after implementation of a no-take m...

Tropical mesophotic and sub-mesophotic fish ecology is poorly understood despite increasing vulnerability of deeper fish assemblages. Worldwide there is greater fishing pressure on continental shelf-breaks and the effects of disturbances on deeper fish species have not yet been assessed. Difficult to access, deeper reefs host undocumented fish dive...

The potentially lethal Chironex fleckeri (Class Cubozoa) inhabits estuarine and nearshore coastal waters in the western Pacific. The spatial scales of connectivity between C. fleckeri populations are poorly understood. Biophysical modelling of Port Musgrave, a 17 × 21 km shallow bay in tropical Australia, was used to investigate the potential for c...

Herbicides from agricultural run-off have been measured in coastal systems of the Great Barrier Reef over many years. Non-target herbicide exposure, especially photosystem II herbicides has the potential to affect seagrasses and other marine species. The symbiotic benthic jellyfish Cassiopea maremetens is present in tropical/sub-tropical estuarine...

Daily increments of Pomacentrus coelestis, an abundant and well-studied fish, were validated for the life of the fish and depending on the location, age-maxima were estimated to be 127-160 days on reefs separated by tens to hundreds of kilometres on the Great Barrier Reef. This contrasts with congeners and other damselfishes that live for 5 years o...

Little is known on cubomedusae population structure, and what is known for many species is mostly from rare occurrences or from a metapopulation perspective. Knowledge on population units is critical for understanding population dynamics as well as predicting potential risk to swimmers. Otolith shape analysis is a proven stock identification techni...

Many coral reef fish larvae spend days to months in the open ocean before settlement on coral reefs [1]. Early in development, larvae have limited swimming capabilities and will therefore be greatly affected by currents. This can potentially result in dispersal distances of tens of kilometers [2]. Nevertheless, up to 60 % of surviving larvae have b...

Predatory fishes play critical roles in the trophodynamics of coral reefs, and the biomass of predatory fish can be a strong determinant of the structure of reef fish assemblages. In this study, we used variations in predator biomass between management zones on the Great Barrier Reef to examine how predators influence the biomass, mortality, condit...

A “StingerCam” camera system provided high temporal resolution image data on the presence of large cubozoan jellyfish over nearly five years on the tropical coast of northeastern Australia. There was strong seasonality in the occurrence of Chironex fleckeri and an unnamed species of the family Carybdeidae (Morbakka spp.). Jellyfish of both species...

Identification of potentially harmful cubomedusae is difficult due to their gelatinous nature. The only hard structure of medusae, the statolith, has the potential to provide robust measurements for morphometric analysis. Traditional morphometric length to width ratios (L: W) and modern morphometric Elliptical Fourier Analysis (EFA) were applied to...

Supporting Info_Mooney & Kingsford, Cubozoan ID using statolith shape. Supporting Tables and R scripts for statolith morphometric analyses. (DOCX)

Very little is known on the sources and movements of the potentially fatal cubomedusae Chironex fleckeri found around estuary mouths and beaches along tropical coastlines of Australia. Largely anecdotal evidence suggests an alternating season of polyps in protected estuaries during the dry season and medusae emerging from estuaries to feed along be...

Predation and competition are critical processes influencing the ecology of organisms, and can play an integral role in shaping coral reef fish communities. This study compared the relative and interacting effects of competition and predation on two competing species of coral reef fish, Pomacentrus amboinensis and P. moluccensis (Pomacentridae), us...

Diagram of experimental setup, showing placement of the smaller experimental tank inside the larger flow-through holding tank. (TIF)

Larval dispersal and limited knowledge of physical boundaries challenge our understanding of the processes that drive genetic divergence and potential speciation in the marine environment. Divergence, both within and between populations of marine taxa, is not uncommon, but spatial and temporal stability of observed genetic structure is not well kno...

The structure of medusae populations is poorly known. Natural geochemical signatures based on elemental composition of calcified structures are a common tool for investigating population structure or connectivity in marine systems. Chironex fleckeri (Cubozoa) medusae have a hard calcified structure, the statolith. Laser ablation-inductively coupled...

Settlement is a key life history transition for coral reef fishes, and how long a fish spends close to a reef prior to settlement is poorly understood. We used laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) and otolith microstructure analysis (daily increments and settlement marks) to determine the length of time larval fis...

Jellyfish have a demonstrated capability to accumulate metals within their tissues, but to date, there have been no quantitative assessments of accumulation and retention rates and patterns. Bioconcentration patterns of copper and zinc in the upside-down jellyfish Cassiopea maremetens were modelled over a 28-day study (14 days exposure followed by...

Citation: Boaden, A. E., and M. J. Kingsford. 2015. Predators drive community structure in coral reef fish assemblages. Ecosphere 6(4):46. http://dx. Abstract. The importance of top-down effects in structuring ecological communities has been widely debated by ecologists. One way in which to examine these processes is to study the secondary effects...

A predictive model of the fate of coral reef fish larvae in a reef system is proposed that combines the oceanographic processes of advection and turbulent diffusion with the biological process of horizontal swimming controlled by olfactory and auditory cues within the timescales of larval development. In the model, auditory cues resulted in swimmin...

Cardinalfishes (Apogonidae) are abundant on corals reefs, but there are few data on demography to understand trophodynamics and population dynamics. Ostorhinchus doederleini is a small and abundant apogonid on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) and throughout the western Pacific Ocean. We present key demographic parameters for the entire life history fro...

Coral trout Plectropomus leopardus (mean total length = 498.9 +/- 19.7 mm, n = 10) were tagged and tracked with ultrasonic transmitters over 81 d at an intra-lagoonal location at One Tree Island, Great Barrier Reef, Australia (23.4979 degrees S, 152.0712 degrees E). Movement and habitat preferences were compared during the transition between the re...

The Cubozoa are poorly known compared to their scyphozoan relatives. This has partly been due to a limited knowledge of taxonomy, the rarity of some taxa as well as extreme temporal and spatial variation in abundance of medusae. The latter may reflect the small spatial scales of many populations. Although cubozoan medusae vary greatly in size, they...