ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the advantages and disadvantages of using corals as biomonitoring organisms, and reviews several bioassays that show potential for being sensitive to sublethal stress in corals both in the laboratory and in the field. Coral reef ecosystems worldwide are being degraded or destroyed at an unprecedented rate. The decline of these ecosystems is attributed to anthropogenic impacts from increased rates of sedimentation, point and nonpoint source pollution, and physical habitat destruction which, alone or combined with natural stressors, may limit the ability of reef ecosystems to withstand and recover from stress events. Growth rates of small pieces of branching corals and small diameter cores taken from the surface of massive corals are determined by estimating buoyant weight in sea water over time. Corals are important organisms for microscale ecotoxicological studies on the health of coral reefs due to their key role in the ecosystem.
