Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-dsjbd Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-22T16:42:36.572Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Do epibenthic algae induce species-specific settlement of coral larvae?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 June 2010

Go Suzuki  and
Takeshi Hayashibara
Go Suzuki*
Affiliation:
Ishigaki Tropical Station, Seikai National Fisheries Research Institute, Fisheries Research Agency, Fukai-Ota 148-446, Ishigaki, Okinawa 907-0451, Japan
Takeshi Hayashibara
Affiliation:
Ishigaki Tropical Station, Seikai National Fisheries Research Institute, Fisheries Research Agency, Fukai-Ota 148-446, Ishigaki, Okinawa 907-0451, Japan
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: G. Suzuki, Ishigaki Tropical Station, Seikai National Fisheries Research Institute, Fisheries Research Agency, Fukai-Ota 148-446, Ishigaki, Okinawa 907-0451, Japan email: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Effect of epibenthic algae as species-specific coral settlement inducers was examined by laboratory experiments using six Acropora species. When epibenthic algae grew on artificial plates at three depths (shallow, middle and deep) on a reef slope over a period of two months, there was no effect as species-specific inducers. However, when the growth period was prolonged to five months, the larvae of Acropora digitifera which dominates on the shallow reef slope mainly settled on the plates that were conditioned at the shallow depth, while the larvae of A. muricata which dominates on the middle slope concentrated on the plates that were conditioned at the middle depth. These results indicate that epibenthic algae may act as a cue for the habitat selection of Acropora corals as a settlement inducer. However, the fact that there was no preference for specific plates in other species suggested that epibenthic algae do not act as a sole indicator in selecting a suitable settlement place for Acropora larvae.

Keywords

vertical zonationAcropora coralsrecruitmentreef slope
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 91 , Issue 3 , May 2011 , pp. 677 - 683
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2010

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Babcock, R.C. and Mundy, C.N. (1996) Coral recruitment: consequences of settlement choice for early growth and survivorship in two scleractinians. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 206, 179–201.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baird, A.H., Babcock, R.C. and Mundy, C.N. (2003) Habitat selection by larvae influences the depth distribution of six common coral species. Marine Ecology Progress Series 252, 289–293.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bao, WY., Satuito, C.G., Yang, G.L. and Kitamura, H. (2006) Larval settlement and metamorphosis of the mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis in response to biofilms. Marine Biology 150, 565–574.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Carlon, D.B. (2002) Production and supply of larvae as determinants of zonation in a brooding tropical coral. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 268, 33–46.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dollar, S.J. (1982) Wave stress and coral community structure in Hawaii. Coral Reefs 1, 71–81.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Done, T.J. (1982) Patterns in the distribution of coral communities across the central great barrier reef. Coral Reefs 1, 95–107.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fujioka, Y. (1998) Checklist of the hermatypic corals of Urasoko Bay, Ishigaki Island, southwestern Japan. Bulletin of Nansei National Fisheries Research Institute 31, 1–11.Google Scholar
Goreau, T.F. (1959) The ecology of Jamaican coral reefs. I. Species composition and zonation. Ecology 40, 67–90.Google Scholar
Harrington, L., Fabricius, K., De'ath, G. and Negri, A. (2004) Recognition and selection of settlement substrata determine post-settlement survival in corals. Ecology 85, 3428–3437.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hayashibara, T., Iwao, K. and Omori, M. (2004) Induction and control of spawning in Okinawa staghorn corals. Coral Reefs 23, 406–409.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Heyward, A.J. and Negri, A.P. (1999) Natural inducers for coral larval metamorphosis. Coral Reefs 18, 273–279.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Iwao, K. (1997) Study to find chemical inducer for metamorphosis of scleractinian corals. Midoriishi 8, 20–22. [In Japanese.]Google Scholar
Jeffery, C.J. (2002) New settlers and recruits do not enhance settlement of a gregarious intertidal barnacle in New South Wales. Journal of Experimental Biology and Ecology 275, 131–146.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kitamura, M., Koyama, T., Nakano, Y. and Uemura, D. (2007) Characterization of a natural inducer of coral larval metamorphosis. Journal of Experimental Biology and Ecology 340, 96–102.Google Scholar
Kuffner, I.B., Walters, L.J., Becerro, M.A., Paul, V.J., Ritson-Williams, R. and Beach, K.S. (2006) Inhibition of coral recruitment by macroalgae and cyanobacteria. Marine Ecology Progress Series 323, 107–117.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lewin, R. (1986) Supply-side ecology. Science 234, 25–27.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Maida, M., Coll, J.C. and Sammarco, P.W. (1994) Shedding new light on scleractinian coral recruitment. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 180, 189–202.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Morse, D.E. and Morse, A.N.C. (1991) Enzymatic characterization of morphogen recognized by Agaricia humilis (scleractinian coral) larvae. Biological Bulletin. Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole 181, 104–122.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Morse, A.N.C., Iwao, M., Baba, K., Shimoike, T., Hayashibara, T. and Omori, M. (1996) An ancient chemosensory mechanism brings new life to coral reefs. Biological Bulletin. Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole 191, 149–154.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mundy, C.N. and Babcock, R.C. (1998) Role of light intensity and spectral quality in coral settlement: implications for depth-dependent settlement? Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 223, 235–255.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Negri, A.P., Webster, N.S., Hill, R.T. and Heyward, A.J. (2001) Metamorphosis of broadcast spawning corals in response to bacteria isolated from crustose algae. Marine Ecology Progress Series 223, 121–131.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Suzuki, G., Hayashibara, T., Shirayama, Y. and Fukami, H. (2008) Evidence of species specific habitat selectivity of Acropora corals based on the identification of new recruits by two molecular markers. Marine Ecology Progress Series 355, 149–159.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Suzuki, G., Hayashibara, T. and Toyohara, H. (2009) Role of post-settlement mortality in the establishment of Acropora reef slope zonation in Ishigaki Island, Japan. Galaxea 11, 13–20.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thiyagarajan, V., Lau, S.C.K., Cheung, S.C.K. and Qian, P. (2006) Cypris habitat selection facilitated by microbial films influences the vertical distribution of subtidal barnacle Balanus trigonus. Microbial Ecology 51, 431–440.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Underwood, A.J. and Keough, M.J. (2001) Supply-side ecology. The nature and consequences of variations in recruitment of intertidal organisms. In Bertness, M.D., Gaines, S.D. and Hay, M.K. (eds) Marine community ecology. Sunderland, MA: Sinauer Associates, pp. 183–200.Google Scholar
Webster, N.S., Smith, L.D., Heyward, A.J., Watts, J.E.M., Webb, R.I., Blackall, L.L. and Negri, A.P. (2004) Metamorphosis of a scleractinian coral in response to microbial biofilms. Applied and Environmental Microbiology 70, 1213–1221.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Yamano, H., Kayanne, H., Yonekura, N., Nakamura, H. and Kudo, K. (1998) Water circulation in a fringing reef located in a monsoon area: Kabira Reef, Ishigaki Island, Southwest Japan. Coral Reefs 17, 89–99.CrossRefGoogle Scholar