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Summary

DOI: 10.7717/peerj.1239

Description

The marine gastropod, Coralliophila abbreviata, is an obligate corallivore that causes substantial mortality in Caribbean Acropora spp. Considering the imperiled status of Acropora cervicornis and A. palmata, a better understanding of ecological interactions resulting in tissue loss may enable more effective conservation strategies. We examined differences in susceptibility of A. cervicornis to C. abbreviata predation based on coral tissue condition. Coral tissue condition was a strong determinant of snail prey choice, with snails preferring A. cervicornis fragments that were diseased or mechanically damaged over healthy fragments. In addition, snails always chose fragments undergoing active predation by another snail, while showing no preference for a non-feeding snail when compared with an undisturbed prey fragment. These results indicate that the condition of A. cervicornis prey influenced foraging behavior of C. abbreviata, creating a potential feedback that may exacerbate damage from predation in coral populations compromised by other types of disturbance.

Document Information

Document Type
Journal article

Document Format
Acrobat Portable Document Format

Publication Date
2015-09-10

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No contact information is available for this record.

Please contact the owner organization (SEFSC) for inquiries on this record.

Item Identification

Title: Enhanced susceptibility to predation in corals of compromised condition
Status: Completed
Publication Date: 2015-09-10
Abstract:

The marine gastropod, Coralliophila abbreviata, is an obligate corallivore that causes substantial mortality in Caribbean Acropora spp. Considering the imperiled status of Acropora cervicornis and A. palmata, a better understanding of ecological interactions resulting in tissue loss may enable more effective conservation strategies. We examined differences in susceptibility of A. cervicornis to C. abbreviata predation based on coral tissue condition. Coral tissue condition was a strong determinant of snail prey choice, with snails preferring A. cervicornis fragments that were diseased or mechanically damaged over healthy fragments. In addition, snails always chose fragments undergoing active predation by another snail, while showing no preference for a non-feeding snail when compared with an undisturbed prey fragment. These results indicate that the condition of A. cervicornis prey influenced foraging behavior of C. abbreviata, creating a potential feedback that may exacerbate damage from predation in coral populations compromised by other types of disturbance.

Purpose:

To examine differences in susceptibility of A. cervicornis to C. abbreviata predation based on coral tissue condition

Other Citation Details:

Cite this as

Bright AJ, Cameron CM, Miller MW. (2015) Enhanced susceptibility to predation in corals of compromised condition. PeerJ 3:e1239 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.1239

DOI (Digital Object Identifier): 10.7717/peerj.1239

Document Information

Document Type: Journal article
Format: Acrobat Portable Document Format
Status Code: Published

Support Roles

Author

CC ID: 327127
Date Effective From: 2015-09-10
Date Effective To:
Contact (Person): Bright, Alan J
Address: 75 Virginia Beach Drive
Miami, FL 1
Email Address: allan.bright@noaa.gov
Phone: 305-361-4561

Author

CC ID: 327129
Date Effective From: 2015-09-10
Date Effective To:
Contact (Person): Cameron, Caitlin
Address: 75 Virginia Beach Drive
Miami, FL 33149
USA
Email Address: caitlin.cameron@noaa.gov
View Historical Support Roles

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Security Class: Unclassified
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Open to everyone

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Metadata Use Constraints:

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URLs

URL 1

CC ID: 353504
URL: https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.1239
URL Type:
Online Resource

Catalog Details

Catalog Item ID: 33009
GUID: gov.noaa.nmfs.inport:33009
Metadata Record Created By: Lee M Weinberger
Metadata Record Created: 2016-06-26 09:31+0000
Metadata Record Last Modified By: SysAdmin InPortAdmin
Metadata Record Last Modified: 2022-08-09 17:11+0000
Metadata Record Published: 2022-04-27
Owner Org: SEFSC
Metadata Publication Status: Published Externally
Do Not Publish?: N
Metadata Last Review Date: 2022-04-27
Metadata Review Frequency: 1 Year
Metadata Next Review Date: 2023-04-27