In spite of growing evidence that climate change may dramatically affect networks of interacting species, whether-and to what extent-ecological interactions can mediate species’ responses to disturbances is an open question. Here we show how a largely overseen association such as that between hydrozoans and scleractinian corals could be possibly associated with a reduction in coral susceptibility to ever-increasing predator and disease outbreaks. We examined 2455 scleractinian colonies (from both Maldivian and the Saudi Arabian coral reefs) searching for non-randompatterns in the occurrence of hydrozoans on corals showing signs of different health conditions (i.e. bleaching, algal overgrowth, corallivory and different coral diseases). We show that, after accounting for geographical, ecological and co-evolutionary factors, signs of disease and corallivory are significantly lower in coral colonies hosting hydrozoans than in hydrozoan-free ones. This finding has important implications for our understanding of the ecology of coral reefs, and for their conservation in the current scenario of global change, because it suggests that symbiotic hydrozoans may play an active role in protecting their scleractinian hosts from stresses induced by warming water temperatures.

Montano, S., Fattorini, S., Parravicini, V., Berumen, M., Galli, P., Maggioni, D., et al. (2017). Corals hosting symbiotic hydrozoans are less susceptible to predation and disease. PROCEEDINGS - ROYAL SOCIETY. BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES, 284(1869) [10.1098/rspb.2017.2405].

Corals hosting symbiotic hydrozoans are less susceptible to predation and disease

Montano, Simone
Primo
;
Galli, Paolo;MAGGIONI, DAVIDE;Arrigoni, Roberto;Seveso, Davide
Penultimo
;
Strona, Giovanni
Ultimo
2017

Abstract

In spite of growing evidence that climate change may dramatically affect networks of interacting species, whether-and to what extent-ecological interactions can mediate species’ responses to disturbances is an open question. Here we show how a largely overseen association such as that between hydrozoans and scleractinian corals could be possibly associated with a reduction in coral susceptibility to ever-increasing predator and disease outbreaks. We examined 2455 scleractinian colonies (from both Maldivian and the Saudi Arabian coral reefs) searching for non-randompatterns in the occurrence of hydrozoans on corals showing signs of different health conditions (i.e. bleaching, algal overgrowth, corallivory and different coral diseases). We show that, after accounting for geographical, ecological and co-evolutionary factors, signs of disease and corallivory are significantly lower in coral colonies hosting hydrozoans than in hydrozoan-free ones. This finding has important implications for our understanding of the ecology of coral reefs, and for their conservation in the current scenario of global change, because it suggests that symbiotic hydrozoans may play an active role in protecting their scleractinian hosts from stresses induced by warming water temperatures.
Articolo in rivista - Articolo scientifico
Bleaching; Climate change; Co-evolution; Coral reefs; Drupella; Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology (all); Immunology and Microbiology (all); 2300; Agricultural and Biological Sciences (all)
English
2017
284
1869
20172405
open
Montano, S., Fattorini, S., Parravicini, V., Berumen, M., Galli, P., Maggioni, D., et al. (2017). Corals hosting symbiotic hydrozoans are less susceptible to predation and disease. PROCEEDINGS - ROYAL SOCIETY. BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES, 284(1869) [10.1098/rspb.2017.2405].
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/10281/191877
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