Captive rearing of the deep-sea coral Eguchipsammia fistula from the Red Sea demonstrates remarkable physiological plasticity
Type
ArticleKAUST Department
Biological and Environmental Sciences and Engineering (BESE) DivisionCoastal and Marine Resources Core Lab
Marine Science Program
Red Sea Research Center (RSRC)
Reef Genomics Lab
Research Support
Date
2015-01-20Permanent link to this record
http://hdl.handle.net/10754/550075
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
The presence of the cosmopolitan deep-sea coral Eguchipsammia fistula has recently been documented in the Red Sea, occurring in warm (>20 °C), oxygen- and nutrient-limited habitats. We collected colonies of this species from the central Red Sea that successfully resided in aquaria for more than one year. During this period the corals were exposed to increased oxygen levels and nutrition ad libitum unlike in their natural habitat. Specimens of long-term reared E. fistula colonies were incubated for 24 h and calcification (G) as well as respiration rates (R) were measured. In comparison to on-board measurements of G and R rates on freshly collected specimens, we found that G was increased while R was decreased. E. fistula shows extensive tissue growth and polyp proliferation in aquaculture and can be kept at conditions that notably differ from its natural habitat. Its ability to cope with rapid and prolonged changes in regard to prevailing environmental conditions indicates a wide physiological plasticity. This may explain in part the cosmopolitan distribution of this species and emphasizes its value as a deep-sea coral model to study mechanisms of acclimation and adaptation.Citation
Roik A, Röthig T, Roder C, Müller PJ, Voolstra CR. (2015) Captive rearing of the deep-sea coral Eguchipsammia fistula from the Red Sea demonstrates remarkable physiological plasticity. PeerJ 3:e734 https://dx.doi.org/10.7717/peerj.734Publisher
PeerJJournal
PeerJPubMed ID
25653911PubMed Central ID
PMC4304856Additional Links
https://peerj.com/articles/734ae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.7717/peerj.734
Scopus Count
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