New cave-dwelling reef coral
sheds light on coral-algal symbiosis
October 2012. Its closest relatives
are larger, have symbiotic algae in their soft tissue and need sunlight to
grow. The new species has no such algae and its tissue is colourless. When
other reef coral species lose their algae, they may die, a recurring disease
known as coral bleaching.
Coral specialist Dr. Bert W.
Hoeksema of Naturalis Biodiversity Centre in Leiden, (The Netherlands) recently
published the description of a new coral species that lives on the ceilings of
caves in Indo-Pacific coral reefs. It differs from its closest relatives by its
small polyp size and by the absence of symbiotic algae, so-called
zooxanthellae.
Symbiotic relationship
This discovery sheds new light on the relation of reef corals with symbiotic algae. The new species has adapted to a life without them. Consequently, it may not grow fast, which would be convenient because space is limited on cave ceilings.
This discovery sheds new light on the relation of reef corals with symbiotic algae. The new species has adapted to a life without them. Consequently, it may not grow fast, which would be convenient because space is limited on cave ceilings.
Reef corals in shallow tropical seas normally need the symbiotic algae for their survival and growth. Without these algae, many coral reefs would not exist. During periods of elevated seawater temperature most reef corals lose their algae, which leads to a dramatic whitening of the reefs, a coral disease known as bleaching.
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