Growth Patterns of Reef-Building Porites Species in the Remote Clipperton Atoll Reef

Remote reefs offer insights into natural coral dynamics, influenced by regional environmental factors and climate change fluctuations. Clipperton Atoll is the eastern tropical Pacific’s most isolated reef, where coral reef growth and life strategies have been poorly studied so far. Recognizing the coral species’ growth response might help understand ecological dynamics and the impacts of anthropogenic stressors on coastal reefs. The present study evaluates annual coral growth parameters of the most abundant coral reef-building species, Porites australiensis, Porites arnaudi, Porites lutea, and Porites lobata. The results showed that during 2015–2019, corals exhibited the lowest annual linear extension (0.65 ± 0.29 cm yr−1), skeletal density (1.14 ± 0.32 g cm−3), and calcification rates (0.78 ± 0.44 g cm−2 yr−1) for the genera along the Pacific. Differences in growth patterns among species were observed, with Porites lutea and Porites lobata showing a higher radial extension, developing massive-hemispherical morphologies, and acting as structural stabilizers; meanwhile, P. arnaudi and P. australiensis exhibited more skeletal compaction but also with a high plasticity on their morphologies, contributing to benthic heterogeneity. These differences are particularly important as each species fulfills different ecological functions within the reef, contributing to the ecosystem balance and enhancing the relevance of the massive species in the physical structure of remote reef systems, such as Clipperton Atoll.