11th ICRS Abstract book - Nova Southeastern University

Poster Mini-Symposium 26: Biodiversity and Diversification of Reef Organisms
26.1166
Protist Biodiversity: Ciliates With Zooxanthellae and Other Noteworthy Ciliates on
Coral Reefs
Christopher LOBBAN* 1 , Maria SCHEFTER 2
1 Natural Sciences - CNAS, University of Guam, Mangilao, Guam, 2 University of Guam,
Mangilao, Guam
The benthic ciliate communities of coral reefs are virtually unknown, but some striking
species have recently been found, including two with Symbiodinium endosymbionts. The
objective of these on-going studies is to document the marine ciliate biodiversity of
Guam. Working with an international group of collaborators, we have found the
following. Maristentor dinoferus is gregarious and large enough (nearly 1 mm long) to
allow observations of its diurnal movements in situ. Its abundant pigment, maristentorin,
has been chemically characterized and shown to be hypericin-like (thus also related to
gymnochromes and fringelites from crinoids) and is most likely a feeding deterrent. We
have been able to document the interaction between grazing acanthurid fish,
Ctenochaetus striatus, and Maristentor clusters. Maristentor is a heterotrich ciliate that
looks like Stentor but is more closely related to folliculinids and was placed in its own
family. In addition to maristentorin, Maristentor also has mycosporine-like amino acids.
A hypotrich ciliate, Euplotes uncinatus, lives in the same community as M. dinoferus and
also has Symbiodinium. It is microscopic and the only zooxanthellate member of a large
genus. These two species are the only two currently known ciliates with zooxanthellae,
although an additional species was reported from Florida in 1942, but presumably these
or similar symbioses occur on other tropical reefs. We have also observed a large (500
µm) black nassophorean ciliate that consumes filamentous cyanobacteria. It could be
mistaken for one posture of Maristentor and is visible with the naked eye in the same
habitat, but its movement is different and it does not form erect clusters. Also present in
the Maristentor communities is a species of Condylostoma. Finally, we show pictures of
a striking and as yet unidentified, small, bright red ciliate found so far only in University
of Guam Marine Laboratory seawater tanks.
26.1167
The Sponge Fauna Of Indonesian Marine Lakes
Leontine BECKING* 1 , Nicole DE VOOGD 1
1 Zoology, National Museum of Natural History - Naturalis, Leiden, Netherlands
Marine lakes are little known, yet fascinating, habitats. These land-locked salt water
bodies are thought to have been formed in the Holocene and have maintained a marine
character ever since through a network of submarine connections to the sea. The marine
flora and fauna of these lakes are sparsely documented, although as a result of the relative
isolation from the marine continuum, the lakes are expected to harbour small, isolated,
rapidly evolving populations, endemic subspecies, and new species. The objective of the
present study was to survey the sponge fauna of five marine lakes in Indonesia: three
located on the islands of Kakaban and Maratua in East Kalimantan, and two located on
the islands of Mansuar and Wayag in Papua. We, furthermore, surveyed the coastal
mangroves and reefs adjacent to the lakes in order to establish true lake-endemics. We
will present preliminary results on the sponge diversity of the marine lakes. Over 200
sponge specimens were collected from the five lakes, belonging to at least 52 species, 32
genera and 25 families. Six species were present in all lakes and are also known from the
adjacent coastal habitats, e.g. Cinachyrella australiensis, Myrmekioderma granulata, and
Tehthya aff. seychellensis. Two species are abundant in all lakes and appear to be lake
endemics: Suberites sp. and Darwinella sp. Interestingly, these species are also known
from other marine lakes in Palau and on Satonda Island (near Sumbawa, Indonesia).
Further comparison still has to be made in order to determine whether these species also
occur in the surrounding reefal area, if the species prevalent in all lakes are indeed the
same species and if any new sponge species are recorded from these lakes.
26.1168
Coral Reef Profile in Layang Layang Island Of Malaysia
Daud AWANG* 1
1 Department of Fisheries Malaysia, Fisheries Research Institute, Sarawak, Malaysia
In order to protect our shoreline from natural disaster and erosion, that's where we need coral
reefs. The distribution of the coral reef is important for the coastal zone management and it is
depend on the profile of the reef itself. It is important for us to know the exact profile of coral
reefs in our region.. Atoll reefs are not very common in Malaysia. Atoll reefs can be found such
as Beting Patinggi Ali, Gugusan Semarang Peninjau (Layang Layang Malaysia of Malaysia,
Terumbu Siput, Ubi, Peninjau etc). In this research, we are trying to find out the situation,
pattern and profile of reef around Pulau Layang Layang Malaysia.
26.1169
Species Boundaries And Evolutionary Lineages in The Blue Green Damselfishes chromis
Viridis And c. Atripectoralis (Pomacentridae)
Tawfiq FROUKH* 1 , Marc KOCHZIUS 2
1 Biotechnology, Faculty of Agricultural Technology, Al-Balga Applied University, Salt, Jordan,
2 Biotechnology and Molecular Genetic, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany
The blue green damselfishes were described as a complex of two species (Chromis viridis and
C. atripectoralis), mainly based on the colouration of the pectoral fin base. In this study, we
analysed the mitochondrial control region of 88 blue green damselfishes from Indonesia, the
Philippines, Red Sea, and the Great Barrier Reef. The phylogenetic analysis revealed four major
monophyletic clades. Two clades included specimens of C. atripectoralis from the Great
Barrier Reef; and individuals of C. viridis from the Red Sea, respectively. The remaining
individuals of C. viridis from Indonesia and the Philippines were grouped into two clades
without phylogeographic structure. The obtained results verified (1) that C. viridis and C.
atripectoralis are distinct species; and (2) revealed three deep evolutionary lineages of C. viridis
in the Indo-Malay Archipelago and the Red Sea.
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