Cycloseris cyclolites

Cycloseris cyclolites
	A specimen about 30 cm in diameter off Lizard Island, Australia, at 22 m depth
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Cnidaria
Class:	Anthozoa
Order:	Scleractinia
Family:	Fungiidae
Genus:	Cycloseris
Species:	C. cyclolites
Binomial name
	Cycloseris cyclolites; (Lamarck, 1815) [1]
Synonyms [1]
	Diaseris mortoni Tenison-Woods, 1880; Fungia adrianaeVan Der Horst, 1921; Fungia cyclolitesLamarck, 1815; Fungia glansDana, 1846;

Last updated June 15, 2019

Cycloseris cyclolites is a species of disc coral in the family Fungiidae. It was first described by the French naturalist Jean-Baptiste Lamarck in 1815. It is native to the tropical and subtropical Indo-Pacific region where it is found on soft sediment in shallow water.

The Fungiidae are a family of Cnidaria, often known as mushroom corals. The family contains thirteen extant genera. They range from solitary corals to colonial species. Some genera such as Cycloseris and Fungia are solitary organisms, Polyphyllia consists of a single organism with multiple mouths, and Ctenactis and Herpolitha might be considered as solitary organisms with multiple mouths or a colony of individuals, each with its separate mouth.

A species description is a formal description of a newly discovered species, usually in the form of a scientific paper. Its purpose is to give a clear description of a new species of organism and explain how it differs from species which have been described previously or are related. The species description often contains photographs or other illustrations of the type material and states in which museums it has been deposited. The publication in which the species is described gives the new species a formal scientific name. Some 1.9 million species have been identified and described, out of some 8.7 million that may actually exist. Millions more have become extinct.

Jean-Baptiste Pierre Antoine de Monet, chevalier de Lamarck, often known simply as Lamarck, was a French naturalist. He was a soldier, biologist, and academic, and an early proponent of the idea that biological evolution occurred and proceeded in accordance with natural laws.

Description

A solitary disc coral, C. cyclolites is round or slightly oval, forming a dome up to 4 cm (1.6 in) wide with a hollowed out under surface. The primary septa are thick and straight with up to four more whorls of septa in larger specimens. The colour varies, usually being whitish or greenish, but shallow water specimens are sometimes brightly coloured. The primary septa often have white margins.^[2]

In corals, a septum is one of the radiating vertical plates lying within the corallite wall. Outside the corallite wall these plates are known as costae. The septa may be thick, thin or vary in size. They may have teeth which range from needle-like to blade-like and are often characteristic of different genera.

Distribution and habitat

Cycloseris cyclolites is found in oceans of the tropical and subtropical Indo-Pacific region. Its range extends from Madagascar, the East African coast and the Red Sea through India and Malaysia to northern Australia, Japan and various island groups in the Pacific Ocean. Its typical habitat is on soft substrate, often muddy sand, between reefs, but it also sometimes occurs on the reefs themselves. C. cyclolites is part of a species complex and it is probable that reports of this species in the Western Indian Ocean should be assigned to a different species.^[2]

In biology, a species complex is a group of closely related organisms that are very similar in appearance to the point that the boundaries between them are often unclear. Terms sometimes used synonymously but with more precise meanings are: cryptic species for two or more species hidden under one species name, sibling species for two cryptic species that are each other's closest relative, and species flock for a group of closely related species living in the same habitat. As informal taxonomic ranks, species group, species aggregate, and superspecies are also in use.

Ecology

This is a zooxanthellate species of coral, meaning that the soft tissues contain symbiotic unicellular dinoflagellates which provide nutrients to their host. The coral is highly adapted to life on sand or mud in calm waters and is capable of shedding any sediment that threatens to blanket it. Being unattached, it is able to move about freely.^[3] Movement is made by a combination of distension of the polyp by inflating the tissues with water, and moving the tentacles about. The polyp can enlarge by 300 or 400% and this reduces the density of the whole animal, allowing it to "float" to the surface of the sediment in which it has become buried.^[3]

Zooxanthellae are single-celled dinoflagellates that are able to live in symbiosis with diverse marine invertebrates including corals, jellyfish, and nudibranchs. Most known zooxanthellae are in the genus Symbiodinium, but some are known from the genus Amphidinium, and other taxa, as yet unidentified, may have similar endosymbiont affinities. Another group of unicellular eukaryotes that partake in similar endosymbiotic relationships in both marine and freshwater habitats are green algae zoochlorellae.

Symbiosis is any type of a close and long-term biological interaction between two different biological organisms, be it mutualistic, commensalistic, or parasitic. The organisms, each termed a symbiont, may be of the same or of different species. In 1879, Heinrich Anton de Bary defined it as "the living together of unlike organisms". The term was subject to a century-long debate about whether it should specifically denote mutualism, as in lichens; biologists have now abandoned that restriction.

The dinoflagellates are a classification subgroup of protista.They are a large group of flagellate eukaryotes that constitute the phylum Dinoflagellata. Most are marine plankton, but they also are common in freshwater habitats. Their populations are distributed depending on sea surface temperature, salinity, or depth. Many dinoflagellates are known to be photosynthetic, but a large fraction of these are in fact mixotrophic, combining photosynthesis with ingestion of prey (phagotrophy). In terms of number of species, dinoflagellates are one of the largest groups of marine eukaryotes, although this group is substantially smaller than diatoms. Some species are endosymbionts of marine animals and play an important part in the biology of coral reefs. Other dinoflagellates are unpigmented predators on other protozoa, and a few forms are parasitic. Some dinoflagellates produce resting stages, called dinoflagellate cysts or dinocysts, as part of their lifecycles.

Related Research Articles

Scleractinia, also called stony corals or hard corals, are marine animals in the phylum Cnidaria that build themselves a hard skeleton. The individual animals are known as polyps and have a cylindrical body crowned by an oral disc in which a mouth is fringed with tentacles. Although some species are solitary, most are colonial. The founding polyp settles and starts to secrete calcium carbonate to protect its soft body. Solitary corals can be as much as 25 cm (10 in) across but in colonial species the polyps are usually only a few millimetres in diameter. These polyps reproduce asexually by budding, but remain attached to each other, forming a multi-polyp colony of clones with a common skeleton, which may be up to several metres in diameter or height according to species.

Pavona duerdeni, the porkchop coral, is a coral that forms clusters of cream-colored lobes or discs. They grow in large colonies, divided into ridges or hillocks. The coral is considered to be uncommon due to its low confirmed abundance, yet they are more commonly found in Hawaii, the Indo-Pacific, and the Tropical Eastern Pacific. They make up some of the largest colonies of corals, and have a slow growth rate, as indicated by their dense skeletons. Their smooth appearance is due to their small corallites growing on their surface.

Fungia is a genus of corals in the family Fungiidae. It is monotypic with the single species Fungia fungites, which is found growing on reefs in the Indo-Pacific.

Cycloseris is a genus of solitary disc corals in the family Fungiidae. They are found in the Indo-Pacific. They inhabit the lower reef slopes, and the areas between reefs with soft sediments. They tolerate turbid waters.

Siderastrea radians, also known as the lesser starlet coral or the shallow-water starlet coral, is a stony coral in the family Siderastreidae. It is found in shallow parts of the western Atlantic Ocean as small, solid mounds or encrusting sheets.

Stylophora pistillata, commonly known as hood coral or smooth cauliflower coral, is a species of stony coral in the family Pocilloporidae. It is native to the Indo-Pacific region and is commonly used in scientific investigations.

Cynarina lacrymalis is a species of stony coral in the family Lobophylliidae. It is variously known as the flat cup coral, solitary cup coral, button coral, doughnut coral, or cat's eye coral. It is found in the western Indo-Pacific Ocean and is sometimes kept in reef aquaria.

Alveopora fenestrata is a species of stony coral that is found in the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, the southwest and northern Indian Ocean, the central Indo-Pacific, Australia, Southeast Asia and the oceanic west Pacific Ocean. It can be found in shallow coral reefs, to a depth of 30 metres (100 ft). It is particularly susceptible to coral bleaching.

<i>Alveopora spongiosa</i> species of cnidarian

Alveopora spongiosa is a species of stony coral that is found in the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, the southwest and northern Indian Ocean, the central Indo-Pacific, Australia, Southeast Asia Japan, the East China Sea and the oceanic west and central Pacific Ocean. It can be found on protected upper coral reef slopes, generally from depth of 9–20 m, but can grow at depths of up to 50 m. It is moderately susceptible to coral bleaching, and is harvested for the aquarium trade.

Paragoniastrea australensis, also known as the lesser star coral, is a species of stony corals in the family Merulinidae. It occurs in shallow water in the Indo-Pacific region.

Turbinaria is a genus of colonial stony corals in the family Dendrophylliidae. Common names for this genus include disc coral, scroll coral, cup coral, vase coral, pagoda coral and ruffled ridge coral. These corals are native to the Red Sea, Indian Ocean, Japan and the south Central Pacific Ocean.

Turbinaria stellulata, also known as disc coral, is a species of colonial stony coral in the family Dendrophylliidae. It is native to the Indo-Pacific region. The International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated its conservation status as being "vulnerable".

Turbinaria peltata, commonly known as disc coral, is a species of colonial stony coral in the family Dendrophylliidae. It is native to the Indo-Pacific region. The International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated its conservation status as being "vulnerable".

Turbinaria radicalis, also known as disc coral, is a species of colonial stony coral in the family Dendrophylliidae. It is native to the central Indo-Pacific, tropical and sub-tropical Australia, the South China Sea, northern Australia and the West Pacific. It is a zooxanthellate coral that houses symbiont dinoflagellates in its tissues. It is a rare coral throughout its range and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated its conservation status as being "near-threatened".

Favites pentagona is a species of stony coral in the family Merulinidae, sometimes known as larger star coral. It is native to the Indo-Pacific region and its range extends from the Red Sea through the Indian Ocean to the Western Pacific Ocean. This is a common species throughout its wide range and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated its conservation status as being of "least concern".

Oulophyllia crispa, sometimes called the intermediate valley coral, is a species of stony coral in the family Merulinidae. It is native to the tropical western and central Indo-Pacific region. Although this coral has a wide range, it is generally uncommon and seems to be decreasing in abundance, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated its conservation status as being "near threatened".

Anthelia glauca, the giant anthelia, is a species of soft coral in the family Xeniidae. It is a colonial species and is found in shallow water in the Indo-Pacific region.

Cycloseris curvata is a species of disc corals in the family Fungiidae. Cyclosteris curvata is a mostly solitary free living scleractinian disc coral found in the indo-pacific region. They grow on soft substrates and are known to tolerate turbid waters. Like other anthozoan corals they lack a medusa stage characteristic of other cnidarians. They have been observed as both green and brown in color in the field.

Heterocyathus aequicostatus is a small species of coral in the family Caryophylliidae in the order Scleractinia, the stony corals. It is native to the Indo-Pacific region. It is a large polyp, solitary, free-living coral and is usually found on soft substrates.

Cycloseris distorta is a species of disc coral in the family Fungiidae. It is a free-living, solitary coral and is native to the tropical and subtropical Indo-Pacific region where it is found on soft sediment in shallow water.

References

1 2 Hoeksema, Bert (2019). "Cycloseris cyclolites (Lamarck, 1815)". World Register of Marine Species . Retrieved 1 May 2019.
1 2 "Cycloseris cyclolites". Corals of the World. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
1 2 Fossil Scleractinian Corals from James Ross Basin, Antarctica. American Geophysical Union. p. 11.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[WoRMS-1] 1 2 Hoeksema, Bert (2019). "Cycloseris cyclolites (Lamarck, 1815)". World Register of Marine Species . Retrieved 1 May 2019.

[World-2] 1 2 "Cycloseris cyclolites". Corals of the World. Retrieved 1 May 2019.

[AGU-3] 1 2 Fossil Scleractinian Corals from James Ross Basin, Antarctica. American Geophysical Union. p. 11.