Could the invasive scleractinians Tubastraea coccinea and T. tagusensis replace the dominant zoantharian Palythoa caribaeorum in the Brazilian subtidal?

Luz, Bruna Louise Pereira; Kitahara, Marcelo V.

doi:10.1007/s00338-017-1578-5

Cited by 23 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 2 publications

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“…It is not yet known if O. mirabilis will negatively impact the abundances of octocoral hosts, but if this occurs then local biodiversity would be greatly diminished. Invasive azooxanthellate sun corals are displacing ecosystem engineers (e.g., reefbuilding corals and zoantharians) in Brazil, having a depressing effect on biodiversity, nearly two decades after their rst sightings (Miranda et al, 2016;Luz and Kitahara, 2017). It is too early to determine the extent to which the ophiuroid will continue to affect C. waltoni, and perhaps begin to impact octocorals and other epizoites.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although the corals and brittle star have evolved very different life histories, like Tubastraea spp., O. mirabilis possesses several traits that allow for rapid colonization of new habitats in western Atlantic warm waters. Sun corals are sessile, epibenthic species with major impacts on benthic communities (Lages et al 2011;Sammarco et al, 2015;Luz et al, 2017;Guilham et al, 2020) whereas individuals of O. mirabilis are vagile, highly active epizoites usually associated with diverse benthic taxa, especially cnidarians and sponges (Mantelatto et al 2016; Fortunato and Lôbo-Hajdu 2021; Tavares et al 2021). While both Tubastraea spp.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Exotic Brittle Star Interactions With Native Octocoral Epizoites: An Endemic Benthic Ctenophore in Peril?

Glynn

Coffman

Detloff

et al. 2021

Preprint

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Widespread and large populations of the exotic eastern Pacific ophiuroid brittle star Opthiothela mirabilis now occur in southeastern Florida, extending the range of this recently introduced species from southern Brazil northward to the eastern Caribbean Sea and Florida. The Florida brittle stars, representing two lineages, are epibionts on shallow (3-18 m depth), tropical/subtropical plexaurid (e.g., Eunicea spp., Muricea elongata) and gorgoniid (Antillogorgia spp.) octocorals. The scope of this study includes recent distributional records of O. mirabilis in south Florida, field abundances in relation to the cohabiting endemic ctenophore Coeloplana waltoni, behavioral observations of the ophiuroid, ctenophore and the predatory amphipod Caprella penantis, as well as a laboratory experiment testing the effects of the alien ophiuroid on the native ctenophore. Individuals of O. mirabilis have been collected near St. Lucie Inlet, extending its northern-most range by about 110 km since 2019. Two years of field sampling have demonstrated significant declines of the native, benthic ctenophore with increasing abundances of the exotic ophiuroid. Evidence suggests that the ophiuroid is negatively affecting the abundances of the ctenophore through interference competition, greatly aided by its abrasive armature of calcareous spines, plates and hooks. Sporadic and intense predation by a caprellid amphipod (Caprella penantis) also probably contributes to the ctenophore’s decline, but to a lesser extent than that caused by the ophiuroid. Adding to the risk of extinction of C. waltoni is its narrow requirement of living octocorals as hosts and restricted distribution in southeast Florida and the Bahamas.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exotic Brittle Star Interactions With Native Octocoral Epizoites: An Endemic Benthic Ctenophore in Peril?

Glynn

Coffman

Detloff

et al. 2021

Preprint

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“…These high densities lead to substantial changes in the structure and function of the native benthic community (de Paula et al., 2014; Silva et al, 2014; Silva et al, 2019). For example, at Búzios Island, T. coccinea and Tubastraea tagusensis cover the hard substrate at many locations, outcompeting native and endemic species such as Palythoa caribaeorum (Luz & Kitahara, 2017) and Mussismilia hispida (Creed, 2006), and also changing the soft‐bottom seascape (Capel, Creed, & Kitahara, 2020).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Tubastraea coccinea , popularly known as the sun coral, has established populations in the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and over 3,500 km of the Brazilian coast (Boschma, 1953; Cairns, 2001; Castro & Pires, 2001; Costa et al., 2014; Fenner, 1999, 2001; Fenner & Banks, 2004; de Paula & Creed, 2004; Romano & Cairns, 2000; Sammarco, Porter, & Cairns, 2010; Vaughan & Wells, 1943). Several of these invaded areas are experiencing economic and environmental impacts from this coral (Creed et al., 2017; Luz & Kitahara, 2017). One of the important reasons for the invasiveness and rapid spread of T. coccinea along the southwestern Atlantic coastline is suggested to be the occurrence of multiple primary (Capel et al, 2017) and secondary (Capel, Creed, Kitahara, Chen, & Zilberberg, 2019) invasions, along with its diverse reproductive strategies, early maturity (Fenner & Banks, 2004; Glynn et al., 2008), rapid growth, and high recruitment rate (Costa et al., 2014; Lages, Fleury, Menegola, & Creed, 2011).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Life‐history traits ofTubastraea coccinea: Reproduction, development, and larval competence

Luz

Domênico

Migotto

et al. 2020

Ecology and Evolution

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The sun coral Tubastraea coccinea Lesson, 1829 (Dendrophylliidae) is a widely distributed shallow‐water scleractinian that has extended its range to non‐native habitats in recent decades. With its rapid spread, this coral is now one of the main invasive species in Brazil. Its high invasive capability is related to opportunistic characteristics, including several reproductive strategies that have allowed it to disperse rapidly and widely. To better understand the reproductive biology of T. coccinea and aid in developing management strategies for invaded areas, we investigated aspects of its reproductive performance and life cycle, including the effects of colony size, seawater temperature and salinity, and lunar periodicity on offspring production and larval metamorphosis competence. A total of 18,139 offspring were released in different developmental stages, mainly from the larger colonies, which also produced larvae with longer competence periods. The main reproductive peak occurred during the First Quarter and New Moon phases and was highest in water temperatures around 26°C. Together, these results help to explain the rapid expansion of T. coccinea into non‐native habitats such as the Caribbean and southwestern Atlantic, and will inform actions of the recent Brazilian National Plan for the prevention, eradication, control, and monitoring of sun corals.

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“…The genus Tubastraea (Scleractinia, Dendrophylliidae) consists of six extant Indo-Pacific species, all of which are azooxanthellate and colonial (Cairns, 2001). Among them, three are invasive in the Atlantic Ocean, where in some cases, they outcompete native species (Creed et al, 2017;Luz & Kitahara, 2017;Miranda et al, 2016;Santos et al, 2013). In addition to their broad repertoire of reproductive strategies, the success of these Indo-Pacific species in colonizing new habitats in the Atlantic is attributed in part to their ability to regenerate (Carlos-Júnior et al, 2015;Glynn et al, 2008;Luz et al, 2018Luz et al, , 2020, including being able to undergo whole-body regeneration from small fragments (<0.5 cm 2 ) of the corallum (Luz et al, 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

High regenerative capacity is a general feature within colonial dendrophylliid corals (Anthozoa, Scleractinia)

2021

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The regenerative capacity of cnidarians plays an essential role in the maintenance and restoration of coral reef ecosystems by allowing faster recovery from disturbances and more efficient small‐scale dispersal. However, in the case of invasive species, this property may contribute to their dispersal and success in nonnative habitats. Given that four Indo‐Pacific members of the coral genus Tubastraea have invaded the Atlantic, here we evaluated the ability of three of these species (Tubastraea coccinea, Tubastraea diaphana, and Tubastraea micranthus) to regenerate from fragments of undifferentiated coral tissue to fully functional polyps in response to differences in food supply and fragment size. For comparative purposes, another colonial dendrophylliid (Dendrophyllia sp.) was included in the analyses. All dendrophylliids displayed regenerative ability and high survival rates that were independent of whether or not food was supplied or fragment size. However, regeneration rates varied between species and were influenced by fragment size. Temporal expression of key genes of the regenerative process (Wnt and FGF) was profiled during whole‐body regeneration of T. coccinea, suggesting a remarkable regenerative ability of T. coccinea that points to its potential use as a laboratory model for the investigation of regeneration in colonial calcified anthozoans.

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Could the invasive scleractinians Tubastraea coccinea and T. tagusensis replace the dominant zoantharian Palythoa caribaeorum in the Brazilian subtidal?

Cited by 23 publications

References 2 publications

Exotic Brittle Star Interactions With Native Octocoral Epizoites: An Endemic Benthic Ctenophore in Peril?

Exotic Brittle Star Interactions With Native Octocoral Epizoites: An Endemic Benthic Ctenophore in Peril?

Life‐history traits ofTubastraea coccinea: Reproduction, development, and larval competence

High regenerative capacity is a general feature within colonial dendrophylliid corals (Anthozoa, Scleractinia)

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