Spatial distribution and abundance of nonindigenous coral genus Tubastraea (Cnidaria, Scleractinia) around Ilha Grande, Brazil

Abstract

The distribution and abundance of azooxanthellate coral Tubastraea Lesson, 1829 were examined at different depths and their slope preference was measured on rocky shores on Ilha Grande, Brazil. Tubastraea is an ahermatypic scleractinian nonindigenous to Brazil, which probably arrived on a ship's hull or oil platform in the late 1980's. The exotic coral was found along a great geographic range of the Canal Central of Ilha Grande, extending over a distance of 25 km. The abundance of Tubastraea was quantified by depth, using three different sampling methods: colony density, visual estimation and intercept points (100) for percentage of cover. Tubastraea showed ample tolerance to temperature and desiccation since it was found more abundantly in very shallow waters (0.1-0.5 m), despite the fact that hard substratum is available at greater depths at all the stations sampled. At most sites, 1 to 5 colonies per 0.25 m² were found most frequently, but occasionally more than 50 colonies were found per 0.25 m², indicating a somewhat gregarious spatial distribution for this coral. The coral Tubastraea was found to occupy slopes of every possible angle in the Canal Central of Ilha Grande, but more colonies were found occupying slopes of 80 to 100°. Therefore, its insensitivity to angles of recruitment and its tolerance for different depths makes it an organism with great ecological tolerance, with a potential to colonize new areas and increase its current range in Brazil's coastal waters.

Groups travel further: pelagic metamorphosis and polyp clustering allow higher dispersal potential in sun coral propagules

“…In fact, planulae usually settle and metamorphose within a relatively brief period of time, around 3 d (Glynn et al 2008), probably favoring self-recruitment and promoting the gregarious spatial pattern often reported for this species (e.g., Paula and Creed 2005;Glynn et al 2008). However, we observed that alternative developmental pathways are possible in T. coccinea.…”

Sessile and sedentary macrofauna from the Pirapama Shipwreck, Pernambuco, Brazil

“…Conversely, Work et al (2008) observed that artificial substrates favored the emergence of invasive species that eliminated native reef species -similar to what happened in Rio de Janeiro with the introduction of Tubastraea coccinea Lesson, 1829 and T. tagusensis Wells, 1982 and their negative interference on natural coral and octocoral communities (DePaula & Creed 2005, Creed 2006) -and suggested that these structures should be removed from natural environments. Thus, it is extremely important to continuously carry out qualitative and quantitative biological monitoring of artificial reefs, for which the ecological role in the maintenance of natural coastal reefs is still unknown.…”

Chemical composition and release in situ due to injury of the invasive coral tubastraea (Cnidaria, Scleractinia)

“…The corals remained in situ for 3 weeks at 3 m depth before the beginning of the experiment. Only T. tagusensis colonies were used for the experiment because this species is far more abundant in the Ilha Grande Bay (PAULA; CREED, 2005).…”