Opportunistic spongivore fishes in a reef of Gulf of Mannar, India

Emmett, Jonathan Samuel; Raj, K. Diraviya; Mathews, G.; Laju, R.L.

doi:10.1007/s10641-021-01150-3

Cited by 3 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 52 publications

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“…In marine habitats, sponges are often affected by predation by spongivorous animals, such as fishes, turtles, and nudibranchs (Ruetzler, 2003;Lesser, 2006;Wulff, 2006;Emmett et al, 2021). Several sponge species are particularly adapted to a higher risk of predation by using specialized structural and chemical defensive mechanisms Rohde and Schupp, 2011).…”

Section: Chemical Ecology Of Marine Spongesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Diversity of prokaryotic communities associated with sponges in Vietnam and their secondary metabolite biosynthetic potential

Ton That Huu Dat

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Sponge-associated prokaryotic diversity has been studied from a wide range of marine environments across the globe. However, for certain regions, e.g. Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia and Singapore, an overview of the sponge-associated prokaryotic communities is still pending. In this study we characterized the prokaryotic communities from 27 specimens, comprising 18 marine sponge species, sampled from the central coastal region of Vietnam. Illumina MiSeq sequencing of 16S rRNA gene fragments was used to investigate spongeassociated bacterial and archaeal diversity. Overall, 14 bacterial phyla and one archaeal phylum were identified among all 27 samples. The phylum Proteobacteria was present in all sponges and the most prevalent phylum in 15 out of 18 sponge species, albeit with pronounced differences at the class level. In contrast, Chloroflexi was the most abundant phylum in Halichondria sp., whereas Spirastrella sp. and Dactylospongia sp. were dominated by Actinobacteria. Several bacterial phyla such as Acidobacteria, Actinobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Chloroflexi, Deferribacteres, Gemmatimonadetes, and Nitrospirae were found in two-thirds of the sponge species. Moreover, the phylum Thaumarchaeota (Archaea), which is known to comprise nitrifying archaea, was highly abundant among the majority of the 18 investigated sponge species. Altogether, this study demonstrates that the diversity of prokaryotic communities associated with Vietnamese sponges is comparable to sponge-prokaryotic assemblages from well-documented regions. Furthermore, the phylogenetically divergent sponges hosted species-specific prokaryotic communities, thus demonstrating the influence of host identity on the composition and diversity of the associated communities. Therefore, this high-throughput 16S rRNA gene amplicon analysis of Vietnamese sponge-prokaryotic communities provides a foundation for future studies on sponge symbiont function and sponge-derived bioactive compounds from this region.

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Section: Chemical Ecology Of Marine Spongesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Diversity of prokaryotic communities associated with sponges in Vietnam and their secondary metabolite biosynthetic potential

Ton That Huu Dat

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Importance of complex sponges as habitat and feeding substrata for coral reef fishes

Coppock,

Kingsford,

Jones

2024

Mar Biol

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Coral reef fishes are usually assumed to be most strongly associated with reef-building corals. However, sponges can be a significant structural component of coral reef ecosystems and their framework can enhance the local abundance and biodiversity of fish assemblages. Little is known regarding the range of fish species using complex sponges as either shelter or feeding substrata. Here we use a combination of stationary video cameras and focal animal sampling to document fish species positively associated with complex sponges in Kimbe Bay, Papua New Guinea. Stationary cameras identified 45 fish species using the sponges for either shelter, feeding substrata or as sites for ambush predation. A guild of 10 individual fish species from five families (Blenniidae, Chaetodontidae, Gobiidae, Labridae and Pomacentridae) were observed to quantify sponge and other habitat use and compared with habitat availability to determine the level of sponge selectivity. One species, Pleurosicya elongata (the Slender Spongegoby), lived in obligate association with Ianthella basta (Elephant Ear sponge), and there was a positive relationship between sponge size and number of resident fish, however this was not significant for all life stages. Five other fish species appeared to preferentially select sponges as habitat (Amblyglyphidodon aureus, Chaetodon kleinii, Coradion chrysozonus, Escenius prooculis and Pomacentrus nigromanus), while for others, sponge use appeared incidental. When selectivity indices were calculated for specific sponge species it was apparent that some fishes exhibited preferences for particular sponge species or growth forms. These results suggest more fish species may be reliant on sponges than is widely appreciated.

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Report on an outbreak of coral-killing sponge Clathria (Microciona) aceratoobtusa in an unprotected reef of the Gulf of Mannar, India

2022

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Global climate change has aggravated the severity of space competition put up by marine sponges in the tropical coral reef ecosystems. We report here an outbreak of coral-killing sponge Clathria (Microciona) aceratoobtusa (Carter, 1887) over live coral colonies of the genus Turbinaria in an unprotected reef (mainland patch reef) in the Gulf of Mannar in India. An outbreak of this orange-reddish sponge was observed during an explorative dive in April 2020. Live coral cover in the reef was 62.06% (SD±3.36), which was dominated by the genus Turbinaria with 82.31%. Among the total of 549 Turbinaria colonies counted in five transects, 21.86% (n = 120) of colonies were found infested by the sponge. As the mainland patch reef lies outside the boundary of marine protected area, it is exposed to human-induced threats, apart from climate change implications. This report would serve as an evidence to indicate the intensity of the space competition waged by sponges in a disturbed reef ecosystem.

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Opportunistic spongivore fishes in a reef of Gulf of Mannar, India

Abstract: including obligate and opportunistic sponge feeders were observed at Pattinamaruthoor patch reef. Protection of spongivore fishes from overexploitation is critical as it could allow corals to recover from climate change implications.

Cited by 3 publications

References 52 publications

Diversity of prokaryotic communities associated with sponges in Vietnam and their secondary metabolite biosynthetic potential

Diversity of prokaryotic communities associated with sponges in Vietnam and their secondary metabolite biosynthetic potential

Importance of complex sponges as habitat and feeding substrata for coral reef fishes

Report on an outbreak of coral-killing sponge Clathria (Microciona) aceratoobtusa in an unprotected reef of the Gulf of Mannar, India

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