Fossil Acropora prolifera (Lamarck, 1816) reveals coral hybridization is not only a recent phenomenon

Precht, William F.; Vollmer, Stephen V.; Modys, Alexander B.; Kaufman, Les

doi:10.2988/18-d-18-00011

Cited by 8 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 72 publications

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“…The reef coral genus Acropora is solely represented on modern western Atlantic reefs by two important reef-front species, A. cervicornis (Lamarck, 1816) and A. palmata (Lamarck, 1816) (the cervicornis group), as well as their persistent F1 hybrid, which is currently recognized as a third species, A. prolifera (Lamarck, 1816) (Aronson et al, 2008a, b; Japaud et al, 2014; Anguila-Perera and Hernández-Landa, 2018; Nylander-Asplin, 2018; Precht et al, 2019; Hoeksema and Cairns, 2020). Acropora is furthermore represented in the fossil record of the western Atlantic, including three named and several still to be described species from the Caribbean and North, Central, and South America (Vaughan, 1919; Weisbord, 1973; Budd et al, 1994; Wallace, 2012).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Earliest western Atlantic staghorn corals (Acropora) from the lower Oligocene Suwannee Limestone of Florida, USA, and their significance for modern coral distribution

Wallace

Portell²

2022

J. Paleontol.

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The Suwannee Limestone of Florida and Georgia, USA, is a carbonate paleoenvironment with a rich diversity of marine fossils. These record the presence of coral- and seagrass-bearing communities in the western Atlantic from the Eocene/Oligocene boundary to the mid Oligocene (33.9–28.1 Ma). From the Suwannee Limestone, we describe two new species of the cosmopolitan, diverse, and abundant coral genus Acropora (“staghorn corals”), Acropora suwanneensis new species and Acropora upchurchi new species, which predate all other described Acropora species from the Americas and Caribbean by at least 10 million years. Diminutive skeletal structure in both species is indicative of their living in protected calm-water habitats. At their time of occurrence, an Atlantic–Pacific connection was open through Central America. Both species belong to morphological lineages also present in the fossil record of the eastern Atlantic (Europe, or the western Tethys). These lineages no longer occur in the Atlantic Ocean, but they are extant in the Indo-Pacific region, with the closest modern relative of each new species occurring in the Pacific Ocean to central Indo-Pacific. Some species in the two morphological lineages have existed for up to 20+ million years. The new species may have played a part in perpetuating a cosmopolitan Tethyan fauna and expanding Acropora habitats in the western Atlantic, by which they likely also contributed to the renowned species and habitat diversity of Acropora in the modern Indo-Pacific.UUID https://zoobank.org/40118623-8b82-4352-a065-b58da74a5c41

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Earliest western Atlantic staghorn corals (Acropora) from the lower Oligocene Suwannee Limestone of Florida, USA, and their significance for modern coral distribution

Wallace

Portell²

2022

J. Paleontol.

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“…Within each region, further population structure is observed but the specifics differ between species, with A. cervicornis showing generally more fine‐scale differentiation than A. palmata (Baums et al, 2005, 2006; Devlin‐Durante & Baums, 2017; Drury et al, 2016; Hemond & Vollmer, 2010; Vollmer & Palumbi, 2002, 2006). A. palmata and A. cervicornis have been present in the fossil record since the late Pliocene (~2.6–3.6 million years ago) whereas the hybrid is mostly absent from the fossil record (Budd & Johnson, 1999; McNeill et al, 1997; Precht et al, 2019). Regardless of the differences in evolutionary history and population structure among the Caribbean acroporids, their ecological success is tied to the presence of S .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Genomic variation of an endosymbiotic dinoflagellate (Symbiodinium ‘fitti’) among closely related coral hosts

et al. 2021

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“…Within each region, further population structure is observed but the specifics differ between species with A. cervicornis showing generally more fine-scale differentiation then A. palmata (Baums et al 2005(Baums et al , 2006Devlin-Durante & Baums 2017;Hemond & Vollmer 2010;Kitchen et al 2019;Vollmer & Palumbi 2002. A. palmata and A. cervicornis have been present in the fossil record since the late whereas the hybrid A. prolifera is mostly absent from the fossil record (Budd & Johnson 1999;McNeill, Budd, & Borne 1997;Precht, Vollmer, Modys, & Kaufman 2019). Although A. prolifera produces viable eggs and sperm, molecular analyses indicates that F2 adults are very rare or absent while backcrosses with either parent species occur occassionally (Kitchen et al 2020;Van Oppen, Willis, Vugt, & Miller 2000;Vollmer & Palumbi 2002).…”

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Genotypic similarity among algal symbionts corresponds to associations with closely related coral hosts

Reich

Kitchen

Stankiewicz

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Mutualisms where hosts are coupled metabolically to their symbionts often exhibit high partner fidelity. Most reef-building corals form obligate symbioses with specific species of photosymbionts, dinoflagellates in the family Symbiodiniaceae, despite needing to acquire symbionts early in their development from environmental sources. Three Caribbean acroporids (Acropora palmata, A. cervicornis, and their hybrid A. prolifera) are geographically sympatric across much of their range in the greater Caribbean, but often occupy different depth and light habitats. Both species and their hybrid associate with Symbiodinium ‘fitti’, a genetically diverse species of symbiont that is specific to these hosts. Since the physiology of the dinoflagellate partner is strongly influenced by light (and therefore depth), we investigated whether S. ‘fitti’ populations from each host source were differentiated genetically. We generated shallow genome sequences of acroporid colonies sampled from across the Caribbean. Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) among S. ‘fitti’ strains were identified by aligning sequences to a ~600 Mb draft assembly of the S. ‘fitti’ genome, assembled from an A. cervicornis metagenome. Phylogenomic and multivariate analyses revealed that allelic variation among S. ‘fitti’ partitioned to each host species, as well as their hybrid, rather than by biogeographic origin. This is particularly noteworthy because the hybrid, A. prolifera, has a sparse fossil record and may be of relatively recent origin. Many of the SNPs putatively under selection were non-synonymous mutations predicted to alter protein efficiency. Differences in allele frequency among S. ‘fitti’ populations from each host taxon may correspond to distinct phenotypes that thrive in the different cellular environments found in each acroporid. The non-random sorting among genetically diverse strains, or genotypes, to different hosts could be the basis for lineage diversification via disruptive selection, leading to ecological specialization and ultimately speciation.

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Fossil Acropora prolifera (Lamarck, 1816) reveals coral hybridization is not only a recent phenomenon

Cited by 8 publications

References 72 publications

Earliest western Atlantic staghorn corals (Acropora) from the lower Oligocene Suwannee Limestone of Florida, USA, and their significance for modern coral distribution

Earliest western Atlantic staghorn corals (Acropora) from the lower Oligocene Suwannee Limestone of Florida, USA, and their significance for modern coral distribution

Genomic variation of an endosymbiotic dinoflagellate (Symbiodinium ‘fitti’) among closely related coral hosts

Genotypic similarity among algal symbionts corresponds to associations with closely related coral hosts

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