Vertical Distribution of a Colonial Ascidian on a Coral Reef: The Roles of Larval Dispersal and Life-History Variation

1992 ◽  
Vol 139 (4) ◽  
pp. 802-824 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas S. Stoner
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Coral Reef ◽  
Vertical Distribution ◽  
Larval Dispersal ◽  
Life History Variation ◽  
Colonial Ascidian

scholarly journals Seascape and life-history traits do not predict self-recruitment in a coral reef fish

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (8) ◽  
pp. 20160309 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcela Herrera ◽  
Gerrit B. Nanninga ◽  
Serge Planes ◽  
Geoffrey P. Jones ◽  
Simon R. Thorrold ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Coral Reef ◽  
Spatial Scale ◽  
Papua New Guinea ◽  
Coral Reef Fish ◽  
Microsatellite Dna ◽  
Larval Dispersal ◽  
Life History Traits ◽  
Reef Fishes ◽  
Sibling Pairs

The persistence and resilience of many coral reef species are dependent on rates of connectivity among sub-populations. However, despite increasing research efforts, the spatial scale of larval dispersal remains unpredictable for most marine metapopulations. Here, we assess patterns of larval dispersal in the angelfish Centropyge bicolor in Kimbe Bay, Papua New Guinea, using parentage and sibling reconstruction analyses based on 23 microsatellite DNA loci. We found that, contrary to previous findings in this system, self-recruitment (SR) was virtually absent at both the reef (0.4–0.5% at 0.15 km 2 ) and the lagoon scale (0.6–0.8% at approx. 700 km 2 ). While approximately 25% of the collected juveniles were identified as potential siblings, the majority of sibling pairs were sampled from separate reefs. Integrating our findings with earlier research from the same system suggests that geographical setting and life-history traits alone are not suitable predictors of SR and that high levels of localized recruitment are not universal in coral reef fishes.

Three sibling species of didemnid ascidians from northern Norway: Didemnum albidum (Verrill, 1871), Didemnum polare (Hartmeyer, 1903), and Didemnum romssae sp.nov.

1996 ◽  
Vol 74 (2) ◽  
pp. 357-379 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica A. Marks
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Sibling Species ◽  
Distinct Species ◽  
Morphological Characters ◽  
Reticulate Evolution ◽  
Life History Variation ◽  
Larval Size ◽  
Colonial Ascidian ◽  
Northern Norway ◽  
Didemnid Ascidians

Recent advances in taxonomy have disclosed the prevalence of cryptic sibling species in marine systems. In didemnid ascidians, morphological variation between species is often slight, and many species may have been overlooked. Species boundaries within this group are often equivocal, and patterns among taxa are reminiscent of those formed by reticulate evolution in plants. Specimens of the sessile colonial ascidian Didemnum albidum (Verrill, 1871) were examined for life-history and morphological characters and found to constitute at least three sympatric sibling species. One of these, Didemnum romssae, is described here as a new species. Colonies were collected from hard-bottom assemblages in Troms and Finnmark counties in northern Norway. Zooid morphology in D. romssae is similar to that of D. albidum, but varies within each species, even for traits usually considered specific. Didemnum romssae is proposed as a distinct species on the basis of consistent differences in (i) the shape and size of calcium carbonate spicules within the common test; (ii) larval size and the number of lateral ampullae; (iii) timing of reproduction; and (iv) the absence of a seasonal nonfeeding, overwintering stage, which occurs in D. albidum. Examination of specimens from museum collections considered synonymous with D. albidum confirmed the presence of a third species, Didemnum polare (Hartmeyer, 1903), which differed from the other two species in zooid and larval morphology as well as spicule shape. Complexes of sibling species such as these provide a tractable system for studying the consequences of life-history variation among closely related taxa.

Life history, larval dispersal, and connectivity in coral reef fish among the Scattered Islands of the Mozambique Channel

Coral Reefs ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 223-232 ◽  
Author(s):  
James L. O’Donnell ◽  
Ricardo Beldade ◽  
Suzanne C. Mills ◽  
Hannah E. Williams ◽  
Giacomo Bernardi
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Coral Reef ◽  
Reef Fish ◽  
Coral Reef Fish ◽  
Larval Dispersal ◽  
Mozambique Channel
Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document