Online supplement
Figure S1. Kenyan reef corals classified to life-history strategies from species traits. (a)
Hierarchical cluster analysis of 135 Kenyan scleractinian coral species. (b) Clustering scenarios
with two and three clusters (grey box) received the most model support from non-parametric
MANOVAs. (c) Importance of individual traits as determined by random forests analysis; larger
circles indicate more influential traits than smaller circles.
Figure S2. Principal Coordinates ordination based on a Gower dissimilarity matrix of 11 species
traits of 135 Kenya species with three life-history strategies (red: competitive, green: weedy, blue:
stress-tolerant). Traits are numbered from most to least important from the random forests analysis
(Fig. S1c): (1) domed growth form, (2) growth rate, (3) fecundity, (4) branching growth form, (5)
skeletal density, (6) brooding reproduction, (7) colony size, (8) depth range, (9) corallite diameter,
(10) broadcast spawning reproduction, (11) symbiont diversity, (12) plating growth form, (13)
generation length, (14) solitary colony formation.
Table S1. Summary of species traits across three life histories of Kenyan reef corals (N = 135
species). For categorical traits of colony growth form, solitary colony formation and reproductive
mode, the percent of species with each trait characteristic is presented. For continuous traits, mean
(standard deviation) are reported.
Corallite
%
%
%
%
%
%
Colony diameter
Branch Domed Plating Solitary Brood Spawn size (cm)
(cm)
274.96
2.60
95.1
0
48.8
0
0
100
(388.68)
(1.28)
Depth
range
(m)
12.38
(5.35)
Fecundity Gen.
Skeletal Symbiont
(eggs
length Growth rate density diversity
polyp -1 ) (years) (mm year-1 ) (g cm-3 ) (m-value)
13.61
9.88
43.21
1.55
1.93
(16.68)
(0.78)
(36.99)
(0.35)
(1.26)
Life history
No.
spp
Competitive
41
Stress-tolerant
82
6.1
100
22
9.8
1.2
100
179.37
(305.95)
6.48
(7.67)
16.07
(5.14)
568.06
(889.38)
10.06
(1.36)
11.37 (9.34)
1.64
(0.22)
1.34
(0.86)
Weedy
12
58.3
50
8.3
0
100
36.4
176.36
(201.04)
2.61
(2.88)
11.96
(4.92)
8.09
(8.21)
8.50
(2.28)
19.22
(10.08)
1.67
(0.29)
2.40
(2.17)
Table S2. Life-history classifications for 32 genera of scleractinian reef corals observed on Kenyan
reefs during annual surveys on unfished and fished reefs between 1991 and 2011. Average absolute
percent cover on unfished and fished reefs is reported as mean (standard deviation). Fishing
sensitivity is on a log-scale from -4.6 (more abundant on fished reefs) to 0 (no change) to 4.6
(extirpated on fished reefs compared to unfished reefs). Bleaching sensitivity is based on
observations of the bleaching frequency and severity of taxa during thermal stress events; higher
values indicate more sever and frequent bleaching responses than lower values. We also identify
genera with ‘mixed’ life histories where species were assigned to more than one life history.
Genus
Acanthastrea
Life history group
Stress-tolerant
Unfished
% cover
1991-1997
0.12 (0.07)
Fished %
cover 19911997
0 (0)
Fishing
sensitivity
4.62
Bleaching
sensitivity
11.52
Acropora
Competitive
7.1 (6.81)
0.52 (0.25)
2.50
20.98
Alveopora
Weedy
0.1 (0)
0.16 (0.13)
-0.46
30.83
Astreopora
Stress-tolerant
0.49 (0.66)
0.85 (0.69)
-0.55
14.31
Coscinarea
Stress-tolerant
0.09 (0)
0.02 (0.01)
1.74
16.04
Cyphastrea
Stress-tolerant
0.3 (0.12)
0.38 (0.37)
-0.23
12.03
Echinopora
Stress-tolerant
2.14 (2.65)
0.14 (0)
2.60
12.06
Echinophyllia
Stress-tolerant
0 (0)
0 (0)
NA
6.47
Favia
Stress-tolerant
0.73 (0.38)
0.49 (0.28)
0.39
17.89
Favites
Stress-tolerant
0.77 (0.46)
0.28 (0.14)
0.98
15.73
Fungia
Stress-tolerant
0.1 (0.04)
0.12 (0.08)
-0.16
13.01
Galaxea
Stress-tolerant
2.71 (2.03)
0.41 (0.26)
1.84
11.50
Gardineroseris
Stress-tolerant
0 (0)
0 (0)
NA
9.64
Goniastrea
Stresstolerant/Weedy
0.5 (0.36)
1.11 (0)
-0.78
17.34
Goniopora
Stress-tolerant
0.5 (0.3)
0.22 (0.17)
0.80
16.15
Species classifications
for mixed life-histories
4 Stress-tolerant (G.
australensis, G.
edwardsi, G. pectinata,
G. retiformis)
1 Weedy (G. aspera)
Unfished
% cover
1991-1997
Fished %
cover 19911997
Fishing
sensitivity
Bleaching
sensitivity
0 (0)
0 (0)
NA
4.42
Genus
Life history group
Herpolitha
Stress-tolerant
Hydnophora
Competitive/Stresstolerant
0.76 (0.56)
0.42 (0.18)
0.58
10.37
Leptastrea
Stresstolerant/Weedy
1.21 (1.11)
0.18 (0.22)
1.85
9.12
Leptoria
Stress-tolerant
0.52 (0.16)
0.08 (0)
1.82
17.95
Lobophyllia
Stress-tolerant
0 (0)
0.34 (0)
-3.52
14.89
Montastrea
Stress-tolerant
0.09 (0)
0 (0)
4.62
6.79
Montipora
Competitive/Stresstolerant
5.24 (6.22)
0.4 (0.36)
2.46
27.76
Pavona
Competitive/Stresstolerant
0.33 (0.1)
1.56 (0.94)
-1.56
8.21
Platygyra
Stress-tolerant
0.72 (0.26)
0.41 (0.35)
0.57
13.48
Plesiastrea
Stress-tolerant
0.3 (0.16)
0 (0)
4.62
17.26
Pocillopora
Porites
branching
Porites
massive
Competitive/Weedy
1.08 (0.37)
0.4 (0.22)
0.98
23.43
Weedy
6.16 (6.4)
7.87 (3.25)
-0.24
21.85
Stress-tolerant
6.58 (4.05)
4.17 (2.67)
0.45
11.50
Psammocora
Stresstolerant/Weedy
0 (0)
0.22 (0.07)
-3.06
5.58
Seriatopora
Weedy
0 (0)
0 (0)
NA
16.71
Stylophora
Weedy
0.35 (0.25)
4.92 (1.99)
-2.63
30.34
Synaraea
Weedy
3.22 (1.2)
0 (0)
4.62
7.78
Turbinaria
Competitive/Stresstolerant
0.65 (0.17)
0.66 (0)
-0.02
12.97
Species classifications
for mixed life-histories
1 Competitive (H.
rigida)
2 Stress-tolerant (H.
exesa, H. microconos)
2 Stress-tolerant (L.
bottae, L. transversa)
1 Weedy (L. purpurea)
3 Competitive (M.
aequituberculata, M.
digitata, M. mollis)
9 Stress-tolerant (M.
danae, M.
efflorescens, M.
foliosa, M. grisea, M.
monasteriata, M.
peltiformis, M.
tuberculosa, M.
venosa, M. verrucosa)
1 Competitive (P.
clavus)
2 Stress-tolerant (P.
decussata, P. varians)
2 Competitive (P.
eydouxi, P. verrucosa)
1 Weedy (P.
damicornis)
1 Stress-tolerant (P.
superficialis)
1 Weedy (P. contigua)
1 Competitive (T.
mesenterina)
2 Stress-tolerant (T.
frondens, T.
reniformis)