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The Karimunjawa Marine National Park, situated in the Java Sea, Indonesia, is renowned for its rich biodiversity and lively coral reefs. However, amidst the backdrop of this natural beauty, concerns have been raised regarding the potential impacts of shipping activities on the health and diversity of these fragile ecosystems. The increase in maritime traffic, including commercial vessels, tourist boats, and fishing vessels, traversing through the Karimunjawa Marine National Park, raises significant environmental concerns. The movement of these vessels, especially along specific shipping routes, has the potential to disturb and damage coral reefs through various mechanisms. Hence, this study aimed to investigate the possible impacts of shipping routes on the coral abundance and diversity and the coral health in the Karimunjawa Islands, Java Sea, Indonesia. This study categorized ship routes into West Route, East Route, and Non-Route and assessed coral health and diversity across 15 islands. Key metrics analyzed included coral disease prevalence, coral cover, diversity index, species richness, relative abundance, and evenness, using 15 × 2 m belt transects at 3 and 8 m depths with three repetitions each. Statistical analysis revealed significant differences in coral abundance and species richness among ship-route groups, but no significant depth-related differences. These results suggest that while shipping routes affect certain aspects of coral health and diversity, other factors may be more influential in shaping coral disease prevalence and overall diversity in Karimunjawa reefs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Karimunjawa National Park (KNP) has increasing tourist visits and shipping traffic as its main tourist destination. These conditions have the potential to the degradation of coral reef ecosystems. Hence, the objective of this study was to investigate the biological effects of anchorage on disease prevalence, % coral cover, abundance, and diversity of corals. The six islands with high, medium, and low anchoring intensities were selected. The survey method was carried out by scuba diving on each selected island at depths of 3 and 8m by establishing a 2x25m line and belt transects with three replications. The statistical results indicated that there were significant differences among anchoring levels in disease prevalence. Even the coral abundance and diversity tend to be lower on the island with high anchoring activity. However, there were no significant differences in species richness, diversity index, or relative abundance among anchoring levels. Moreover, the different levels of anchoring also made no difference in the percentage of coral cover (p 0.087 >0.05). This study revealed that anchoring damage might be indirectly responsible for the dispersal and elevated levels of disease. Further study is needed to identify anchoring activity and coral disease in wider areas to conserve the coral reefs of KNP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]