Fertilization by coral-dwelling fish promotes coral growth but can exacerbate bleaching response

Detmer, A Raine; Cunning, Ross; Pfab, Ferdinand; Brown, Alexandra L.; Stier, Adrian C.; Nisbet, Roger M.; Moeller, Holly V.

doi:10.1016/j.jtbi.2022.111087

Cited by 6 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 69 publications

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“…2K). This signals a deficiency in photosynthate translocation to the coral host after heat stress, consistent with previous empirical [42–44] and theoretical [56] studies. Possibly as a result, heat-treated coral colonies also calcified less (p = 0.044, Fig.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 90%

“…2K). This signals a deficiency in photosynthate translocation to the coral host after heat stress, consistent with previous empirical [42][43][44] and theoretical [56] studies.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 90%

“…Our results instead add to the evidence that corals’ optimal symbiont abundance also depends on how the algae allocate their fixed carbon (e.g. [43, 56]). Therefore, symbiont nutrient exchange strategy may itself be a dynamic regulator of bleaching susceptibility.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 64%

“…The positive relationship we find between symbiont cell density and selfishness provides an alternative mechanism by which bleaching likelihood could depend on symbiont density. Diminished but fast-regrowing symbiont populations may leave corals carbon-deprived, poorly equipped to face the energetic demands of heat stress, and thus more vulnerable to the carbon limitation theorized to cause bleaching [43, 56, 73]. Future bleaching recovery research should correlate symbiont in vivo regrowth rates with carbon translocation to better validate this framework.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Endosymbiont strategic shifts inhibit cooperation during coral bleaching recovery

Allen-Waller

Barott

2022

Preprint

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The future of coral reefs in a warming world depends on corals' ability to resist or recover from losing their photosynthetic algal endosymbionts (coral bleaching) during marine heatwaves. Heat-tolerant algal species can confer bleaching resistance by remaining in symbiosis during heat stress but tend to provide less photosynthate to the host than heat-sensitive species. Understanding this potential nutritional tradeoff is crucial for predicting coral success under climate change, but the energetic dynamics of corals hosting different algal species during bleaching recovery are poorly understood. To test how algal energetics affects coral recovery, we heat-stressed corals (Montipora capitata) hosting either heat-sensitive Cladocopium sp. or heat-tolerant Durusdinium glynni algae for two weeks, followed by a one-month recovery period. We found that while thermotolerant D. glynni regained density and photochemical efficiency faster after bleaching than Cladocopium, this algal recovery did not correspond with host physiological recovery, and D. glynni populations still contributed less photosynthate to the host relative to Cladocopium. Further, high-density algal populations of both species translocated a smaller proportion of their photosynthate than low-density populations, and corals receiving less photosynthate suffered reduced calcification rates and lower intracellular pH. This is the first evidence of a direct negative relationship between symbiont population size and 'selfishness,' and the first to establish a connection between Symbiodiniaceae carbon translocation and coral cellular homeostasis. Together, these results suggest that algal energy reallocation towards regrowth after bleaching can harm coral physiology, and that reestablishing a beneficial endosymbiosis can pose a secondary challenge for holobionts surviving stress.

show abstract

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 90%

“…2K). This signals a deficiency in photosynthate translocation to the coral host after heat stress, consistent with previous empirical [42][43][44] and theoretical [56] studies.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 90%

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 64%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Endosymbiont strategic shifts inhibit cooperation during coral bleaching recovery

Allen-Waller

Barott

2022

Preprint

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“…Finally, we note that our model assumes that symbionts are strictly beneficial. However, an excess of mutualistic partners can be costly, including in coral-fish symbioses where modeling work suggests that excessive nitrogen fertilization may drive coral-algal dysbiosis and bleaching (Detmer et al, 2022).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cascading benefits of mutualists' predators on foundation species: A model inspired by coral reef ecosystems

2023

Self Cite

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Multispecies mutualisms are embedded in a network of interactions that include predation, yet the effects of predation on mutualism function have not been well integrated into mutualism theory. Where predators have been considered, the common prediction is that predators reduce mutualist abundance and, as a consequence, decrease service provision. Here, we use a mathematical model of a predatory fish that consumes two competing coral mutualists to show that predators can also have indirect positive effects on hosts when they preferentially consume competitively dominant mutualists that are also lower in quality. In these cases, predation reverses the outcome of competition, allowing the higher quality mutualist to dominate and enhancing host performance. The direction and strength of predator effects depend on asymmetries in mutualist competition, service provision, and predation vulnerability. Our findings suggest that when the strength of predation shifts (e.g., due to exploitative harvest of top predators, introduction of new species, or range shifts in response to climate change), mutualist communities will exhibit dynamic responses with nonmonotonic effects on host service provision.

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Symbiotic dinoflagellates divert energy away from mutualism during coral bleaching recovery

Allen-Waller

Barott

2023

Symbiosis

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Fertilization by coral-dwelling fish promotes coral growth but can exacerbate bleaching response

Cited by 6 publications

References 69 publications

Endosymbiont strategic shifts inhibit cooperation during coral bleaching recovery

Endosymbiont strategic shifts inhibit cooperation during coral bleaching recovery

Cascading benefits of mutualists' predators on foundation species: A model inspired by coral reef ecosystems

Symbiotic dinoflagellates divert energy away from mutualism during coral bleaching recovery

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