View article

During an oil spill, shallow, tropical coral reefs are likely to be simultaneously exposed to high intensities of ultraviolet radiation (UVR), which can exacerbate the toxicity of petroleum oils. While successful recruitment of corals is critical for reef recovery following disturbances, the sensitivity of several early life stages of coral to petroleum hydrocarbons has not been investigated, particularly for UVR co-exposure. Here we present the first dataset on the relative sensitivity of three early life stages (gametes, embryos and planula larvae) in a model broadcast spawning coral species, Acropora millepora, to the dissolved fraction of a heavy fuel oil (HFO), both in the absence and presence of UVR. All early life stages were negatively impacted by HFO exposure but exhibited distinct sensitivities. Larval metamorphosis was the most sensitive endpoint assessed with a 10% effect concentration of 34 μg L⁻¹ total aromatic …