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Switch between Morphospecies of Pocillopora Corals.
David A Paz-García1, Michael E Hellberg, Francisco J García-de-León
1Laboratorio de Necton y Ecología de Arrecifes, Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas del Noroeste (CIBNOR), Instituto Politécnico Nacional 195, Colonia Playa Palo de Santa Rita Sur, La Paz 23096, Baja California Sur, Mexico.
The American Naturalist
|December 15, 2015
Summary
Coral reef builders in the eastern Pacific, Pocillopora, can change shape. Environmental shifts trigger these morphospecies changes, impacting reef stability and coral identification.
Area of Science:
- Marine Biology
- Coral Reef Ecology
- Evolutionary Biology
Background:
- Pocillopora corals are crucial reef builders in the eastern tropical Pacific.
- The classification of Pocillopora morphospecies is debated due to discrepancies between morphology and genetic data.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the in situ temporal stability of Pocillopora morphospecies.
- To understand the influence of environmental conditions on coral morphological plasticity.
Main Methods:
- Monitoring the morphology of individual Pocillopora colonies over 44 months in the southern Gulf of California.
- Correlating morphological changes with environmental factors such as storms, water turbidity (chlorophyll a levels), and water flow.
- Analyzing mitochondrial DNA to assess the genetic identity of colonies exhibiting morphological shifts.
Main Results:
- Twenty-three percent of tagged Pocillopora damicornis colonies exhibited a morphological shift to Pocillopora inflata.
- These changes coincided with increased storm frequency and decreased water turbidity.
- Seven months post-shift, P. inflata colonies began reverting to P. damicornis morphology.
- All colonies shared a common mitochondrial identity, with changes often occurring in low-flow conditions.
Conclusions:
- This study provides the first in situ evidence of morphospecies switching in Pocillopora corals.
- Environmental shifts significantly influence morphologically plastic responses in corals.
- Morphological plasticity in Pocillopora may complicate species identification and reef ecological assessments.
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