The rapid appearance of Ramicrusta spp. is described and analyzed from 40 permanent monitoring coral reef stations in Puerto Rico. Before 2016, Ramicrusta had not been observed from any of the reef monitoring stations. By 2018, it was present at 76% of all the monitoring stations. Ramicrusta was the dominant substrata type at all of the shallow reef sites sampled on the east coast (e.g., Fajardo, Culebra, and Vieques), reaching a cover (±SE) as high as 63.0 ± 5.8%. The spread of Ramicrusta occurred at the expense of historically resilient living benthic elements, such as turf algae. Since its detection in 2016, colonization of hard substrata by Ramicrusta remained constant, with the exception of two shallow reefs in Fajardo and Culebra, where the cover was significantly reduced by the scouring and or abrasive effects of two major hurricanes. The ecological implications of Ramicrusta prevalence on Puerto Rican reefs remain unclear; however, increasing herbivory might be a useful mitigation tool in the reduction of Ramicrusta abundance on coral reefs.

中文翻译：

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对波多黎各珊瑚礁的潜在新威胁：最近出现的Ramicrusta spp。

Ramicrusta spp的迅速出现。从波多黎各的40个永久性监测珊瑚礁站进行了描述和分析。2016年之前，未在任何珊瑚礁监测站观测到拉米科斯塔。到2018年，在所有监测站中占76％。在东海岸采样的所有浅礁站点（例如，法哈多，库莱布拉和别克斯），拉米科斯塔是主要的地层类型，覆盖率（± SE）高达63.0±5.8％。Ramicrusta的扩散是以牺牲具有历史弹性的底栖生物为代价的，例如草坪藻类。自2016年被发现以来，Ramicrusta在硬质基质上进行定殖除了在法哈多和库莱布拉岛的两个浅礁之外，其他两个飓风的冲刷和/或磨蚀作用都大大减少了覆盖范围，因此保持不变。拉米科斯塔流行对波多黎各人的珊瑚礁的生态影响尚不清楚；然而，增加食草量可能是减少珊瑚礁上水杨属植物丰度的一种有用的缓解工具。