No effect of dredging on the prevalence of coral disease detected during a large dredging program

Abstract The frequency of disease within coral communities was evaluated using an 18-month series of coral photographs taken before, during, and after a major dredging program at Barrow Island, off Australia's northwest coast. Up to 60 corals were assessed repeatedly at each of four dredging ‘impact’ sites ( 20 km from dredging). Contrary to an earlier report, the frequency of occurrence of coral disease (usually