Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Life Sciences Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Articles 1 - 4 of 4

Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences

Timing And Potential Drivers Of Symbiont Selection In The Early Life Stages Of The Massive Starlet Coral Siderastrea Siderea, Sarah G. Koerner Jul 2019

Timing And Potential Drivers Of Symbiont Selection In The Early Life Stages Of The Massive Starlet Coral Siderastrea Siderea, Sarah G. Koerner

HCNSO Student Theses and Dissertations

The ability of corals to build reefs can be attributed to their relationship with single-celled algae of the familySymbiodiniaceae.Through the process of photosynthesis, these algae can provide their coral hosts with over 90% of their daily energy requirements. Most coral species acquire multiple species of symbionts from the surrounding water during their larval stage or immediately after settling. However, over time, the coral will select a dominant symbiont speciesthat can depend on the local environment. Until this study, the size or age of the coral at which this transition from multiple Symbiodiniaceaespecies to one dominant species occurs has remained …


Fallen Pillars: The Past, Present, And Future Population Dynamics Of A Rare, Specialist Coral–Algal Symbiosis, Andrea Chan, Cynthia L. Lewis, Karen L. Neely, Iliana B. Baums May 2019

Fallen Pillars: The Past, Present, And Future Population Dynamics Of A Rare, Specialist Coral–Algal Symbiosis, Andrea Chan, Cynthia L. Lewis, Karen L. Neely, Iliana B. Baums

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

With ongoing changes in climate, rare and ecologically specialized species are at increased risk of extinction. In sessile foundation fauna that reproduce asexually via fragmentation of existing colonies, the number of colonies does not reflect the number of genets and thus can obscure genotypic diversity. Colonies that are the product of fragmentation are not visually distinguishable from colonies that stem from sexual recruits. For this reason, molecular markers are necessary to assess genotypic variation and population structure in clonal organisms such as reef-building corals and their endosymbiotic dinoflagellates. For the rare Caribbean pillar coral, Dendrogyra cylindrus, and its endosymbiotic …


Recurring Episodes Of Thermal Stress Shift The Balance From A Dominant Host-Specialist To A Background Host-Generalist Zooxanthella In The Threatened Pillar Coral, Dendrogyra Cylindrus, Cynthia Lewis, Karen L. Neely, Mauricio Rodriguez-Lanetty Jan 2019

Recurring Episodes Of Thermal Stress Shift The Balance From A Dominant Host-Specialist To A Background Host-Generalist Zooxanthella In The Threatened Pillar Coral, Dendrogyra Cylindrus, Cynthia Lewis, Karen L. Neely, Mauricio Rodriguez-Lanetty

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

Most scleractinian corals form obligate symbioses with photosynthetic dinoflagellates (family Symbiodiniaceae), which provide differential tolerances to their host. Previously, research has focused on the influence of symbiont composition and the dynamic processes of symbiont repopulation during single episodes of hyperthermal events, followed by years of less-stressful conditions. In contrast, this study characterized for the first time, the role of Symbiodiniaceae species changes in response to annually recurring hyperthermal events, a scenario soon expected to become the norm. Consecutive hyperthermal events during summer 2014 and 2015 along the Florida Reef Tract offered a unique opportunity to study bleaching susceptibility and recovery …


Environnmental Influences On Caribbean Octocoral-Symbiodiniaceae Symbioses, Mark Mccauley Jan 2019

Environnmental Influences On Caribbean Octocoral-Symbiodiniaceae Symbioses, Mark Mccauley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A Caribbean octocoral colony is an assemblage of the octocoral host, dinoflagellate algae (family Symbiodiniaceae), bacteria and other microbes, together functioning as meta-organism (holobiont). Even though octocorals dominate many Caribbean reefs, compared to scleractinian corals, little is known about their biology under ambient or potentially stressful conditions. Of the nine species of octocorals (gorgonian corals, Order: Alcyonacea) studied, each had significantly different polyp behaviors, biochemical compositions, Symbiodiniaceae parameters, isotopic signatures, in addition to hosting distinct microbial assemblages. We identified multiple Symbiodiniaceae species (Breviolum minutum, Breviolum B41, Breviolum B1a and Breviolum B1i), inhabiting the gorgonians. These symbioses were temporally and …