Identification of Scleractinian Coral Recruits Using Fluorescent Censusing and DNA Barcoding Techniques |
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Authors: | Chia-Min Hsu Stéphane de Palmas Chao-Yang Kuo Vianney Denis Chaolun Allen Chen |
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Institution: | 1. Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, Nangang, Taipei, Taiwan.; 2. Institute of Oceanography, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan.; 3. ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Townsville, Australia.; 4. Taiwan International Graduate Program (TIGP)-Biodiversity, Academia Sinica, Nangang, Taipei, Taiwan.; University of Connecticut, United States of America, |
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Abstract: | The identification of coral recruits has been problematic due to a lack of definitive morphological characters being available for higher taxonomic resolution. In this study, we tested whether fluorescent detection of coral recruits used in combinations of different DNA-barcoding markers (cytochrome oxidase I gene COI], open reading frame ORF], and nuclear Pax-C intron PaxC]) could be useful for increasing the resolution of coral spat identification in ecological studies. One hundred and fifty settlement plates were emplaced at nine sites on the fringing reefs of Kenting National Park in southern Taiwan between April 2011 and September 2012. A total of 248 living coral spats and juveniles (with basal areas ranging from 0.21 to 134.57 mm2) were detected on the plates with the aid of fluorescent light and collected for molecular analyses. Using the COI DNA barcoding technique, 90.3% (224/248) of coral spats were successfully identified into six genera, including Acropora, Isopora, Montipora, Pocillopora, Porites, and Pavona. PaxC further separated I. cuneata and I. palifera of Isopora from Acropora, and ORF successfully identified the species of Pocillopora (except P. meandrina and P. eydouxi). Moreover, other cnidarian species such as actinarians, zoanthids, and Millepora species were visually found using fluorescence and identified by COI DNA barcoding. This combination of existing approaches greatly improved the taxonomic resolution of early coral life stages, which to date has been mainly limited to the family level based on skeletal identification. Overall, this study suggests important improvements for the identification of coral recruits in ecological studies. |
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