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Paracyathus stearnsii. Corallum showing arrangement of the sclerosepta. Sclerosepta of first-order primary cycle (arrow) project farthest into the center of the calice. The septa of the polyps (soft tissue which does not appear here) are usually inserted in pairs between 2 consecutive sclerosepta, and bear the gonads. Scale bar = 5 mm
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Samples of the temperate solitary coral Paracyathus stearnsii Verrill, 1869 were collected monthly or bimonthly from January 1977 to September 1978 off the California coast. This species is gonochoric and reproduces only sexually. Females produce a large number of small eggs (ca. 105 per polyp) in gametogenic synchrony and both sexes spawn between...
Context in source publication
Context 1
... gonads of Paraeyathus stearnsii are carried on all septa, 1 gonad per septum. Two septa, belonging to different septal cycles (determined by their order of ap- pearance), are sandwiched between each pair of sclero- septa ( Fig. 1), and these septa are fused in many areas. The gonads occupy different radial and axial positions on different septa so that there is no overlap of gonadal tissues. Gonads of lower order (older) septa are longer and wider than those of higher order septa. The gonad of a Gametogenesis Individuals ofParacyathus stearnsii had an annual ...
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Citations
... gonochoric corals, male and female polyps did not show sexual dimorphism, likely excluding protandry or protogynous hermaphroditism (Harrison, 2011). Within the genus Paracyathus, P. stearnsii (Fadlallah and Pearse, 1982b) is another case of gonochorism. The sex ratio in a population with random mating is normally 1:1 (Maynard-Smith, 1978), as it has been observed in this population of P. pulchellus. ...
... The sex ratio in a population with random mating is normally 1:1 (Maynard-Smith, 1978), as it has been observed in this population of P. pulchellus. Similarly, the sex ratio among individuals of P. stearnsii, collected off the coast of California, did not seem to differ from 1:1 (Fadlallah and Pearse, 1982b). Based on the absence of embryos in all the polyps analyzed, it is highly likely that the embryos of P. pulchellus have an external development. ...
... The morphological aspects of male gametogenesis in Paracyathus pulchellus correspond to those of other scleractinians of this and other families with the same or different reproductive traits. For example, aspects of spermatogenesis observed in P. pulchellus have been described, among Caryophylliidae family, in the gonochoric and broadcasting P. stearnsii (Fadlallah and Pearse, 1982b), Solenosmilia variabilis (Pires et al., 2014), Desmophyllum dianthus (Feehan et al., 2019), and Desmophyllum pertusum (Brooke and Järnegren, 2013;Pires et al., 2014), in the gonochoric and brooding Caryophyllia inornata (Goffredo et al., 2012), and in the hermaphroditic and broadcasting species C. ambrosia, C. sequenzae, and C. cornuformis . Spermatogenesis with similar morphological traits was also observed in other families: e.g., in the gonochoric and brooding Balanophyllia elegans (Dendrophylliidae; Fadlallah and Pearse, 1982a), Leptopsammia pruvoti (Dendrophylliidae; G o ffr e d o e t a l . ...
Basic information on the reproductive biology of many scleractinian corals species is limited or entirely lacking, particularly from temperate zones, though it is essential for a better understanding of their ecology. This study describes the morphological aspects and the annual cycle of gametogenesis and biometric parameterss of the papillose cup coral Paracyathus pulchellus collected at Palinuro (Italy, Southern Tyrrhenian Sea), filling a knowledge gap about the reproductive biology of a widespread Mediterranean and Northern Atlantic coral. Samples of P. pulchellus were collected by SCUBA diving between 5- and 10-meters depth during 18 monthly collections from June 2010 to December 2011. Sexually active polyps displayed either oocytes or spermaries, indicating that P. pulchellus was gonochoric. The sex ratio of sexually active polyps was 1:1. Gametogenesis began with undifferentiated germ cells arose in the gastrodermis that migrated towards the mesoglea of the mesentery where they completed the development. During spermatogenesis, spermary diameter increased from 25 to 83 µm. Oocyte diameter ranged from 9 to 146 µm and during oogenesis the nucleus/cytoplasm ratio decreased due to the accumulation of yolk. The nucleus migrated to the periphery of the oocyte adhering closely to the cell membrane. No embryo was observed in the coelenteric cavity of the polyps, suggesting an external development of planktotrophic larvae due to the small-sized mature oocytes and a possible broadcast spawning reproductive mode. Gonadal index of both females and males increased significantly from August until November and fertilization took place from November to January. Only sexually inactive individuals were observed from February to April, suggesting a quiescence period in both males and females. Seasonal variations in water temperature and photoperiod may have a key role in regulating gametogenesis. The analysis of the main biometric parameters (polyp width, height, dry skeletal mass, volume, surface/volume ratio and bulk skeletal density) showed a negative correlation between size and skeletal density, and no sexual dimorphism.
... According to Fautin et al. (1989), planulae of anthozoans vary in length from less than 0.1 mm to over 5 mm (see also Fadlallah and Pearse 1982;Goffredo et al. 2011). Planulae of 0.8-1 mm in length have been observed in shallow-water temperate octocorals (see Gori et al. 2007;Linares et al. 2008;Quintanilla et al. 2013;Teixido et al. 2014, among others), up to 3.5-4 mm in tropical alcyonaceans (Benayahu et al. 1989;Benayahu 1991;Ben-David-Zaslow et al. 1999;Gutiérrez-Rodríguez and Lasker 2004), and around 3.3 mm (on average, ± 1.0 SD) in deep-sea soft corals (see Anthomastus ritteri in Cordes et al. 2001). ...
A new genus of scleriteless gorgonian, Huziogorgia gen. nov., is proposed based on the morphological and molecular study of a set of colonies identified as the recently described species Trichogorgia utinomii Cordeiro, 2019. Huziogorgia utinomii comb. nov. has planar colonies, lyrate to dichotomous, with long and flexible terminal branches. The polyps are no retractile, always extended, slightly trumpet-shaped, biserially placed, but not strictly. The axis is circular in cross section, showing concentric non-undulated layers. The materials were collected during three Antarctic cruises to the Antarctic Peninsula and South Shetland islands onboard the RV Polarstern (ANT XIX/3, ANT XXIII/8, and ANT XXIX/3). A molecular comparison based on mitochondrial genes (mtMutS and mtMutS+Igr1+COI) relates the new genus to the family Ifalukellidae Bayer, 1955 (Ifalukella Bayer, 1955, Trichogorgia (Hickson, 1904), Plumigorgia Nutting, 1910) and some genera of uncertain relationships, but currently related to the family Chrysogorgiidae Verrill, 1883 (Pleurogorgia Versluys, 1902 and Stephanogorgia Bayer & Muzik, 1976). Genetic distances between this species and the closest genera and families also suggest the separate placement of Huziogorgia gen. nov. in a new family, Huziogorgiidae fam. nov.
... The comparatively long oogenic cycle experienced by T. renifomis and its congener, T. mesenterina 30 , along with various other broadcast spawning gonochorists (e.g. Astrangia lajollaensis 45 ; Paracyathus stearnsii 46 ; Plesiastrea versipora 38 ) may be connected to a higher energetic demand placed on gonochoric individuals producing only eggs compared to their hermaphroditic counterparts. In support, Loya and Sakai 21 reasonably posited that partitioning of resources towards females may be greater based on typically longer oogenic cycles compared to spermatogenic cycles in most corals. ...
Here we describe for the first time the reproductive biology of the scleractinian coral Turbinaria
reniformis studied during three years at the coral reefs of Eilat and Aqaba. We also investigated the
possibility of sex change in individually tagged colonies followed over a period of 12 years. T. reniformis
was found to be a stable gonochorist (no detected sex change) that reproduces by broadcast spawning
5–6 nights after the full moon of June and July. Spawning was highly synchronized between individuals
in the field and in the lab. Reproduction of T. reniformis is temporally isolated from the times at
which most other corals reproduce in Eilat. Its relatively long reproductive cycle compared to other
hermaphroditic corals may be due to the high reproductive effort associated with the production
of eggs by gonochoristic females. Sex ratio in both the Aqaba and Eilat coral populations deviated
significantly from a 1:1 ratio. The larger number of males than of females may provide a compensation
for sperm limitation due to its dilution in the water column. We posit that such sex allocation would
facilitate adaptation within gonochoristic species by increasing fertilization success in low density
populations, constituting a phenomenon possibly regulated by chemical communication.
... The reproductive cycle of S. glaucum for production of the mature eggs is characterizing to be prolonged, there is an agreement to what was stated that brooders of all taxa soft corals or others typically have prolonged reproductive periods (gametogenesis and planula release) [55], this may confident our result about the manner of S. glaucum, where during the present study, it is noticed that the development of their eggs occurred internally inside the female polyps to be fertilized and developed into larvae; whereas, the larvae were collected at the laboratory aquarium from the autozooids of the female colonies, where, some coral species releases planula larvae after internal fertilization or release gametes, during colonies transportation to the laboratory [56], therefore, the colony transportation may be considered as a stressful condition that cause the coral respond to release of their sexual products [57]. On the other hand, Benayahu and Loya [10] at the Northern Gulf of Eilat and Schleyer et al. [54] in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa indicated that, the soft coral Sarcophyton glaucum is a broadcasting species with externally developing larvae; where they pointed out that, the gametes were externally fertilized forming larvae. ...
Eighteen specimens of the soft coral Sarcophyton glaucum have been collected and tagged to determine the growth rate using the weight variations technique and to investigate the reproductive season histologically. Six colonies were totally weighed and 12 fragments (produced from three colonies) were marked and weighed. Some samples showed sever shrinkage that lead to death. The maximum semiannual growth rate was recorded in summer (30.05 gm/6 m). The average monthly growth reached 3.95 gm/month. Many factors affect the growth rate such as water currents , turbidity, sedimentation, temperature and reproduction process. The studied species is a dioecious species (unisex), where the Autozooid polyps are the reproductive organs while sipho-nozooids are sterile. Female gonads were observed to develop at late July before male gonads which began at late September. Larvae releasing started at late January and the gonads are completely spawned in February. Fertilization occurs internally to form planulae larvae which li-brated completely in February. The oogenesis exhibited prolonged about 23 months, which gave rise to oocytes of different developmental stages in female colonies at any given time, and a sper-matogenic cycle of only 10-12 months.
... Polip-polip yang telah didekalsifikasi selanjutnya disimpan dalam wadah khusus (tissue cassette ) dan dicuci dalam air kran mengalir sela ma 24 jam untuk menghilangkan HCl pada permukaan jaringan. Polippolip tersebut kemudian disimpan dalam larutan alkohol 70% untuk sementara waktu (Fadlallah & Pearse 1982, Glynn et al 1994 sebelum dilakukan persiapan untuk histologinya. ...
... Knowledge of the reproduction of scleractinian corals is now extensive (e.g., Fadlallah & Pearse 1982;Harriott 1983;Harrison & Wallace 1990;Shlesinger et al. 1998;Vermeij et al. 2004;among others). In octocorals, on the other hand, patterns of reproduction remain understudied (Kahng et al. 2011) despite their ecological importance and dominance among many modern-day reef communities (e.g., Caribbean; Ruzicka et al. 2013). ...
... Oogenesis of A. hystrix lasted at least 9 months, from February when the first identifiable oocytes were observed in the dissections, until November. The observation of Stage II oocytes in two samples from November and December 2009 suggests the occurrence of overlapping oogenic cycles as observed in other species (Fadlallah & Pearse 1982;Schleyer et al. 2004;Ribes et al. 2007), and possibly a longer oogenic cycle (9-12 months). ...
The reproductive biology of the Caribbean gorgonian Antillogorgia hystrix was studied in the shallow-water reefs of Cross Harbour, Great Abaco (The Bahamas) from 2009 to 2010. Antillogorgia hystrix is an internal brooder that reproduces annually. The population at Cross Harbour was gonochoric and the sex ratio was skewed toward females (~3:1). Oogenesis precedes spermatogenesis by several months, and lasts at least 9 months, with oocytes >100 μm in diameter first becoming visible in dissections of samples from February; mature oocytes are present in late October–November. The size of mature oocytes (400–900 μm in diameter) was greater than that of the spermaries, which were rarely larger than 400 μm. Brooded planulae were observed in polyps from early November to mid-December, and planula release was observed in aquaria in December 2009, which suggests that planulation occurs continuously over this period. Planulae of A. hystrix contained dinoflagellate symbionts, presumably acquired during embryogenesis and/or by mature planulae while they were in the gastrovascular cavity of the polyp. Brooding is an uncommon reproductive strategy among Caribbean gorgonians and this is the first report of internal brooding in the genus Antillogorgia. The genus contains a number of sympatric species with different modes of reproduction, and knowledge of their reproductive biology is critical to understand their ecology and evolution.
... Within the family Caryophyllidae, for example, the species Ca ryo phyllia inornata, C. smithi, Lophelia pertusa and Paracyathus stearnsii are gonochoric, whereas C. ambrosia, C. cornuformis and C. sequenzae appear to be hermaphroditic (Fadlallah & Pearse 1982a, Goffredo et al. 2012. However, all these species, except for C. inornata, show the same fertilization mode (external; broadcast spawners) (Fadlallah & Pearse 1982b, Goffredo et al. 2012. Similarly, in the family Dendrophylliidae, Balano phyllia elegans and Leptopsammia pruvoti are gono choric, whereas B. europaea is des cribed as a hermaphroditic species (Fadlallah & Pearse 1982a, Goffredo & Zaccanti 2004, Goffredo et al. 2006. ...
Knowledge of reproductive biology is essential to understanding population dynamics and ecological processes in corals. Sexual condition and the reproductive cycle of the Mediterranean endemic scleractinian Cladocora caespitosa was assessed through histological analyses. Our results showed that this species is gonochoric in the Western Mediterranean Sea. Oocytes and spermaries were detected annually from March to October, reaching their maximum size between July and August coincidentally with the highest seawater temperatures. A drastic decrease in gametes between August and October indicated that spawning occurred at the end of summer. These results differ from those obtained for the Adriatic Sea, where this species was described as hermaphroditic and spawning occurred at the beginning of summer. The unusual plasticity of this temperate coral and the endangered condition of C. caespitosa bioconstructions in the Mediterranean highlight the need for further research on this topic.
... The pattern of reproduction has also been described for several shallow water solitary corals, of which the majority are gonochoric, brooding species . Balanophyllia elegans is a non-seasonal brooder (Fadlallah & Pearse, 1982a) and Paracyathus stearnsii is a seasonal spawner (Fadlallah & Pearse, 1982b). Fungia scutaria is gonochoric and spawns gametes during the late summer (Krupp, 1983), ...
p>Deep water corals and coral reefs have gained considerable attention recently, both in the public and scientific domain. These corals inhabit depths from relatively shallow at a few tens of metres, to over 6000m, and most have cosmopolitan distributions. These corals can form complex frameworks that attract a variety of invertebrate and vertebrate fauna. Many commercially important species have been observed using these reefs for protection, procreation and feeding, and so have been the target of recent demersal trawling.
This thesis considers the reproduction of eleven species of deep-water scleractinian from the NE Atlantic and Antarctica. Shallow-water reef and solitary coral reproduction has been extensively reported, but basic ecological information on deep-water species is lacking. The gametogenesis and reproductive biology of these eleven species was explored by dissection, histological techniques, and scanning electron microscopy.
Reproductive data obtained indicate that, in common with shallow water scleractinia, there is no strict pattern to their reproductive habit and a variety of modes were observed. The species examined in this study ranged from hermaphroditic species that spawn gametes ( Caryophyllia ambrosia, C. seguenzae, C. cornuformis ); gonochoric species that spawn gametes seasonally ( Lophelia pertusa, Madrepora oculata, Flabellum angulare ); gonochoric species that spawn quasi-continuously ( Fungiacyathus marenzelleri, Flabellum alabastrum ) and brooding species ( Flabellum thouarsii, F. curvatum, F. impensum ). Oocyte size appears to increase as depth increases, and fecundity reduces with depth. The population dynamics of C. seguenzae was also examined. There appears to be a large juvenile component to this species population, with stability shown through the three years examined.</p
... Spawning gametes for external fertilization and larvae development has been established as the dominant pattern of sexual reproduction in scleractinian corals (Szmant-Froelich et al. 1980;Kojis andQuinn 1981, 1982;Fadlallah and Pearse 1982;Harriott 1983;Harrison et al. 1984;Shlesinger and Loya 1985;Szmant 1986;Oliver et al. 1988). Supporting this finding, the majority of mussids have been reported as hermaphroditic broadcasters (Marshall and Stephenson 1933;Harriott 1983;Willis et al. 1985;Heyward et al. 1987;Pitombo 1992;Wilson and Harrison 1997;Pires et al. 1999). ...
Using histological analysis, the reproductive pattern of Mussismilia hispida, a zooxanthellate coral species endemic to the Brazilian coast, was verified. Fragments from two tagged colonies and ten haphazardly chosen colonies were collected monthly, from April 1989 to March 1990, at Praia da Tartaruga, Buzios, Rio de Janeiro state. The results showed that M. hispida is a sequential hermaphroditic species with a broadcast-spawning mode of reproduction. Small immature oocytes were first observed in April 1989 while early spermatic cysts were found in December 1989. After entering the mesoglea, the largest oocytes increase in size by incorporating the smallest ones into their cytoplasm. Mature oocytes and spermaries occurred concomitantly on the same fertile mesenteries during summer, and disappeared from some samples between February 1990 and March 1990 (late summer/early autumn). Gonad maturation occurred with increasing seawater temperature, suggesting seasonal synchrony in the reproductive cycle. Not all oocytes reached their full development, and some were resorbed after a short period of degeneration. No zooxanthellae were found in pre-spawn oocytes, which characteristically had a large amount of vitelline material and a peripheral germ vesicle.
... Among solitary scleractinians various reproductive behaviours can be found, ranging from year-round brooding of larvae as seen in Balanophyllia elegans (Fadlallah and Pearse 1982a), to brief annual spawning periods as seen in Paracyathus stearnsii (Fadlallah and Pearse 1982b). Solitary corals such as Caryophyllia smithi are known to release large brooded larvae (Tranter et al. 1982) while Heteropsammia cochlea releases very numerous small eggs (Fisk 1981). ...
... Life history observations for M. rubrum support the trend for solitary or small and short-lived scleractinians to produce brooded, rapidly settling larvae. Nevertheless, there are exceptions to this trend, such as in the life histories of the corals Paracyathus stearnsii (Fadlallah and Pearse 1982b) and Caryophyllia smithi (Tranter et al. 1982), solitary forms that produce numerous small externally developing larvae. Further comparisons of these groups may provide insights into the demographic processes, environmental and phylogenetic constraints that determine life history variation in the Scleractinia. ...
The reproductive biology of the solitary ahermatypic coral Monomyces rubrum was studied in northeastern New Zealand between January 1996 and January 1998. The period of oogenesis lasted around 11 months, from late January to December, while spermatogenesis was more rapid, starting in late August and culminating in a spawning period in early December. Reproduction commenced at a polyp size of around 1,000 mm3 (5-6 years old) and the maximum estimated fecundity of the largest corals (7,000 mm3) was no more than 200 eggs. Oocytes were probably fertilized while within the mesentery and were shed into the coelenteron where they developed, via a solid blastula stage, for approximately 1 month. Planulae were relatively large, 3-4 mm in length and 1-2 mm diameter at the time of release, and crawled or swam immediately to the substratum. Peaks of planula shedding were semi-lunar in January 1997, but only one peak was observed in January 1998. The production of a few large rapidly settling larvae by this member of the family Flabellidae is consistent with the trend for solitary short-lived corals from other families to brood larvae rather than spawn gametes.
