J. S. Madin

Coral settlement and recruitment are negatively related to reef fish trait diversity

The paper examines how reef fish foraging trait diversity affects coral settlement and recruitment success across multiple sites.

Widespread reductions in body size are paired with stable assemblage biomass.

The paper assesses body size changes across six taxon groups and finds that decreases in body size are paired with stable assemblage biomass due to compensatory abundance increases.

Fine-scale variability in coral bleaching and mortality during a marine heatwave

This study tracks coral bleaching and mortality during a marine heatwave, finding that spatial and taxonomic differences in bleaching are driven by environmental factors, habitat complexity, and species composition.

Coral niche construction: coral recruitment increases along a coral-built structural complexity gradient

The paper shows that coral-built structural complexity increases larval recruitment, supporting niche construction theory in corals.

Shaping coral traits: plasticity more than filtering

This study shows that coral morphological traits are more influenced by phenotypic plasticity than environmental filtering, affecting habitat structure in reef ecosystems.

Disturbance-induced changes in size-structure promote coral biodiversity

The paper shows that intermediate disturbance levels promote coral species coexistence, while extreme disturbances lead to monocultures.

A geometric basis for surface habitat complexity and biodiversity

The paper develops a geometric theory to explain biodiversity in surface habitats, showing it explains 98% of variation in coral reefs.

Quantifying coral morphology

This study quantifies coral morphology using geometric variables derived from 3D laser scans, revealing that two axes capture 88% of shape variation and can predict traditional growth form categories with 70-95% accuracy.