Published Papers - Reimer James Davis

A massive and ancient antipatharian colony at a seamount in the northwest Pacific

James Davis Reimer, Kensuke Yanagi, Guillermo Mironenko Castelló, Kurt Bryant B. Bacharo, Hiroyuki Yokooka, Keita Koeda, Shinji Tsuchida, Yoshihiro Fujiwara

Marine Biodiversity ( Springer Science and Business Media LLC )  54 ( 6 )   2024.12 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Abstract Many colonial anthozoans are ecosystem engineers and contribute to creating intricate benthic communities that often harbor high levels of marine biodiversity. Here, we report on an extraordinarily large antipatharian colony observed on the West Mariana Ridge in the Northwest Pacific. Based on colony form, morphological analyses, and DNA barcoding results, we identified the colony as Leiopathes cf. annosa. From in situ observations, we estimate the size of the colony as approximately 308 cm in height and 441 cm in width, with a central stem of 28 cm in diameter. If growth rates of Leiopathes species in this region of the Pacific Ocean are similar to those previously reported from Hawaii, this colony may be approximately 7000 years old, placing it among the longest-lived marine organisms reported. Seamounts in this region and such large anthozoan colonies should be targeted for more biodiversity investigation and future conservation.

• Access this article

  DOI

Assessment of marine litter interactions with urban coral reefs in Okinawa, Japan

Ilechukwu, I; Das, RR; Lalas, JAA; Jamodiong, EA; Abram, A; De Palmas, S; Reimer, JD

MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN ( Marine Pollution Bulletin )  209 ( Pt B ) 117248   2024.12 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Azooxanthellate Palythoa (Cnidaria: Anthozoa) Genomes Reveal Toxin-related Gene Clusters and Loss of Neuronal Genes in Hexacorals

Yoshioka, Y; Yamashita, H; Uchida, T; Shinzato, C; Kawamitsu, M; Fourreau, CJL; Castelló, GM; Fiedler, BK; van den Eeckhout, TM; Borghi, S; Reimer, JD; Shoguchi, E

GENOME BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION ( Genome Biology and Evolution )  16 ( 9 )   2024.09 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

A taxonomic revision of the sponge-associated genus Thoracactis Gravier, 1918 (Anthozoa: Zoantharia) based on an integrated approach

Hiroki Kise, Javier Montenegro, Paulo V.F. Corrêa, Marcos V.C. Clemente, Paulo Y.G. Sumida, Bert W. Hoeksema, James D. Reimer

Contributions to Zoology ( Brill )  93   229 - 251   2024.04 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Abstract The integrated approach of molecular phylogenetic and morphological analyses has revolutionized the systematics and our understanding of the evolutionary relationships of marine taxa. One such group is the hexacorallian order Zoantharia Rafinesque, 1815. The monotypic genus Thoracactis Gravier, 1918 has been little investigated since its placement within the order Zoantharia more than 100 years ago. Here, we examined museum specimens collected from the Cape Verde Islands (eastern Atlantic) and newly collected specimens from Brazil (southwestern Atlantic), using a combined molecular and morphological approach. Our results conclusively show Thoracactis to be referable to the family Parazoanthidae. Morphological data show that Thoracactis topsenti Gravier, 1918, the type species of this monotypic genus, has a cyclically transitional arrangement of its sphincter muscle, and this arrangement has previously been reported from the Parazoanthidae. Thoracactis can be distinguished from other hexasterophoran glass-sponge-associated genera (Churabana Kise, Montenegro & Reimer, 2022, Parachurabana Kise, 2023, and Vitrumanthus Kise, Montenegro & Reimer, 2022) by a combination of morphological, ecological and molecular phylogenetic data. In addition, molecular phylogenetic analyses clearly indicate that Thoracactis topsenti is placed within Parazoanthidae. These results are yet another demonstration of the utility of comprehensive combined approaches. From now, research attention should focus on the revision of remaining taxonomic questions within the family Epizoanthidae, with the goal of a comprehensively revised suborder Macrocnemina within reach.

• Access this article

  DOI

Anemonefish are better taxonomists than humans

Kashimoto, R; Mercader, M; Zwahlen, J; Miura, S; Tanimoto, M; Yanagi, K; Reimer, JD; Khalturin, K; Laudet, V

CURRENT BIOLOGY ( Current Biology )  34 ( 5 ) R193 - R194   2024.03 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Abundance and distribution of marine litter on the beaches of Okinawa Island, Japan

Ilechukwu, I; Das, RR; Jamodiong, EA; Borghi, S; Manzano, GG; Hakim, AA; Reimer, JD

MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN ( Marine Pollution Bulletin )  200   116036   2024.03 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Coral assemblages at higher latitudes favor short-term potential over long-term performance

Cant, J; Reimer, JD; Sommer, B; Cook, KM; Kim, SW; Sims, CA; Mezaki, T; O'Flaherty, C; Brooks, M; Malcolm, HA; Pandolfi, JM; Salguero-Gómez, R; Beger, M

ECOLOGY ( Ecology )  104 ( 9 ) e4138   2023.09 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Can environmental DNA unlock the mysteries of biodiversity on coral reefs?

Reimer, JD; Gösser, F

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES ( Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences )  290 ( 1998 ) 20230605   2023.05 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Morphological and phylogenetic study of<i> Acanthosquilla</i> Manning, 1963 (Stomatopoda: Nannosquillidae) mantis shrimps, with description of two new species from the Ryukyu Islands, Japan

Nakajima, H; Reimer, JD; Naruse, T

ZOOTAXA ( Zootaxa )  5231 ( 4 ) 351 - 375   2023.02 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

First observation of <i>Waminoa</i> sp. on <i>Dendronephthya</i> aff. <i>rigida</i>

Kushida, Y; Kunihiro, S; Reimer, JD

PLANKTON & BENTHOS RESEARCH ( 日本プランクトン学会、日本ベントス学会 )  18 ( 1 ) 52 - 54   2023.02

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

<p>Associations between different taxa constitute critical data to recognize ecological symbioses. Acoela flatworms of the genus <i>Waminoa</i> are an overlooked but often present group in coral reef ecosystems. More than 97% of the reports on <i>Waminoa</i> individuals until now have found them on scleractinian coral species, and the relationships between <i>Waminoa</i> species and other potential hosts such as octocorals, which are often large and ecologically important components in coral reefs, are not known well. Here we report the first observation of <i>Waminoa</i> sp. from a species of <i>Dendronephthya</i>, at Zanpa, Okinawa, Japan. We observed three morphotypes on a colony of <i>D.</i> aff. <i>rigida</i> (Studer, 1888), with almost all <i>Waminoa</i> individuals in shaded locations.</p>

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  CiNii Research

Building consensus around the assessment and interpretation of Symbiodiniaceae diversity.

Davies SW, Gamache MH, Howe-Kerr LI, Kriefall NG, Baker AC, Banaszak AT, Bay LK, Bellantuono AJ, Bhattacharya D, Chan CX, Claar DC, Coffroth MA, Cunning R, Davy SK, Del Campo J, Díaz-Almeyda EM, Frommlet JC, Fuess LE, González-Pech RA, Goulet TL, Hoadley KD, Howells EJ, Hume BCC, Kemp DW, Kenkel CD, Kitchen SA, LaJeunesse TC, Lin S, McIlroy SE, McMinds R, Nitschke MR, Oakley CA, Peixoto RS, Prada C, Putnam HM, Quigley K, Reich HG, Reimer JD, Rodriguez-Lanetty M, Rosales SM, Saad OS, Sampayo EM, Santos SR, Shoguchi E, Smith EG, Stat M, Stephens TG, Strader ME, Suggett DJ, Swain TD, Tran C, Traylor-Knowles N, Voolstra CR, Warner ME, Weis VM, Wright RM, Xiang T, Yamashita H, Ziegler M, Correa AMS, Parkinson JE

PeerJ   11   e15023   2023 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

A Draft Genome Sequence of Dorometra sesokonis (Antedonidae, Comatulida, Crinoidea, Echinodermata).

Virgili R, Poliseno A, Pirro S, Reimer JD

Biodiversity genomes   2023   2023

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Ascidians observed associating epizoically on holothurians in waters in the kerama islands, okinawa, japan

Hamamoto K.

日本ベントス研究会連絡誌 ( 日本プランクトン学会、日本ベントス学会 )  17 ( 4 ) 338 - 342   2022.11 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

<p>Photograph records of four holothurian individuals upon which colonial ascidians were associated epizoically are reported from the waters around Akajima Island, Kerama Islands, Okinawa, Japan. Although holothurians are known to be hosts of many organisms, these new observations add a new perspective to understanding the ecological role of holothurians as mobile scaffolds. Some ascidians have limited capabilities of locomotion, but we believe an association with holothurians would increase the mobility of ascidians. On the other hand, such associations may be beneficial as part of the holothurians’ chemical defenses, since some ascidians and/or harbored cyanobacteria produce bioactive compounds. Even though these observed cases may be temporary associations, it is apparent holothurians are ecosystem engineers on coral reefs not only due to their feeding behavior, but also due to their associated fauna.</p>

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  CiNii Research

Editorial: Coral Reef Research Methods

James D. Reimer, Nina Yasuda, Shashank Keshavmurthy

Frontiers in Marine Science   9   2022.11 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (other science council materials etc.)

• Access this article

  DOI

Colour patterns influence symbiosis and competition in the anemonefish-host anemone symbiosis system

Hayashi, K; Tachihara, K; Reimer, JD; Laudet, V

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES ( Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences )  289 ( 1984 ) 20221576   2022.10 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Records and distribution of the coral-killing sponge<i> Chalinula</i><i> nematifera</i> in the Ryukyu Islands, Japan

Reimer, JD; Fourreau, CJL; Fujii, T; Ise, Y; Kushida, Y; Mizukami, I; Nakano, M

PLANKTON & BENTHOS RESEARCH ( 日本プランクトン学会、日本ベントス学会 )  17 ( 3 ) 249 - 254   2022.08

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

<p>We report the presence of the coral-killing sponge species <i>Chalinula nematifera</i> (de Laubenfels, 1954) in southern Japan via photographic records and specimens. The species appears to be a substrate generalist on scleractinians and occasionally octocorals, and is found across a wide variety of depths (0 to 24 m), as has been recently reported for this species from Indonesia. From our information, the species is found in southern Japan across the southern and central Ryukyu Islands, with a northern limit of Amami-Oshima Island, although future work will likely expand the range. As our records stretch back more than 20 years, we do not believe <i>Chalinula nematifera</i> is a recent arrival to the region. Due to the potential for this species to harm coral reefs, we suggest field surveys are needed to establish a baseline distribution and abundance database to aid in future monitoring.</p>

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  CiNii Research

A world of taxonomic pain: cryptic species, inexplicable host-specificity, and host-induced morphological variation among species of Bivesicula Yamaguti, 1934 (Trematoda: Bivesiculidae) from Indo-Pacific Holocentridae, Muraenidae and Serranidae.

Cribb TH, Bray RA, Justine JL, Reimer J, Sasal P, Shirakashi S, Cutmore SC

Parasitology ( Parasitology )  149 ( 6 ) 1 - 23   2022.03 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

A community and functional comparison of coral and reef fish assemblages between four decades of coastal urbanisation and thermal stress.

Cook KM, Yamagiwa H, Beger M, Masucci GD, Ross S, Lee HYT, Stuart-Smith RD, Reimer JD

Ecology and evolution ( Ecology and Evolution )  12 ( 3 ) e8736   2022.03 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Battle of the bands: systematics and phylogeny of the white Goniobranchus nudibranchs with marginal bands (Nudibranchia, Chromodorididae)

Soong, GY; Bonomo, LJ; Reimer, JD; Gosliner, TM

ZOOKEYS ( ZooKeys )  1083 ( 1083 ) 169 - 210   2022.01 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

A Comparison of Size, Shape, and Fractal Diversity Between Coral Rubble Sampled From Natural and Artificial Coastlines Around Okinawa Island, Japan

Masucci G.D.

Frontiers in Marine Science ( Frontiers in Marine Science )  8   2021.11 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

A New Species of Sea Whip Gorgonian-Associated Zoantharian (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Hexacorallia: Parazoanthidae) from the Ryukyu Islands, Japan, with Subgeneric Subdivision of Genus Umimayanthus.

Fujii T, Alves Dos Santos ME, Reimer JD

Zoological science ( Zoological Science )  38 ( 5 ) 466 - 480   2021.10 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Large host anemones can be shelters of a diverse assemblage of fish species, not just anemonefish.

Hayashi K, Kuwamura T, Tachihara K, Reimer JD

Journal of fish biology     2021.09 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Correction to: Two new species of threadlike blood flukes (Aporocotylidae), with a molecular revision of the genera Ankistromeces Nolan &amp; Cribb, 2004 and Phthinomita Nolan &amp; Cribb, 2006.

Cutmore SC, Yong RQ, Reimer JD, Shirakashi S, Nolan MJ, Cribb TH

Systematic parasitology ( Systematic Parasitology )    2021.09

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Two new species of threadlike blood flukes (Aporocotylidae), with a molecular revision of the genera Ankistromeces Nolan &amp; Cribb, 2004 and Phthinomita Nolan &amp; Cribb, 2006.

Cutmore SC, Yong RQ, Reimer JD, Shirakashi S, Nolan MJ, Cribb TH

Systematic parasitology ( Systematic Parasitology )    2021.09 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Investigating Sources of Conflict in Deep Phylogenomics of Vetigastropod Snails.

Cunha TJ, Reimer JD, Giribet G

Systematic biology     2021.09 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Author Correction: Potential local adaptation of corals at acidified and warmed Nikko Bay, Palau.

Kurihara H, Watanabe A, Tsugi A, Mimura I, Hongo C, Kawai T, Reimer JD, Kimoto K, Gouezo M, Golbuu Y

Scientific reports ( Scientific Reports )  11 ( 1 ) 17353   2021.08

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Consensus Guidelines for Advancing Coral Holobiont Genome and Specimen Voucher Deposition

Voolstra C.R.

Frontiers in Marine Science ( Frontiers in Marine Science )  8   2021.08 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Downslope migration of free-living corals (Scleractinia: Fungiidae) in typhoon-exposed reef habitats at Okinawa, Japan.

Ohara T, Hoeksema BW, Wee HB, Reimer JD

Marine environmental research ( Marine Environmental Research )  170   105445   2021.08 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Variation on a theme: pigmentation variants and mutants of anemonefish.

Klann M, Mercader M, Carlu L, Hayashi K, Reimer JD, Laudet V

EvoDevo ( EvoDevo )  12 ( 1 ) 8   2021.06 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Phylogenomics, Origin, and Diversification of Anthozoans (Phylum Cnidaria).

McFadden CS, Quattrini AM, Brugler MR, Cowman PF, Dueñas LF, Kitahara MV, Paz-García DA, Reimer JD, Rodríguez E

Systematic biology ( Systematic biology )  70 ( 4 ) 635 - 647   2021.06 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Hexacoral-crinoid associations from the modern mesophotic zone: Ecological analogues for Palaeozoic associations

Zapalski M.K.

Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology ( Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology )  572   2021.06 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Potential local adaptation of corals at acidified and warmed Nikko Bay, Palau.

Kurihara H, Watanabe A, Tsugi A, Mimura I, Hongo C, Kawai T, Reimer JD, Kimoto K, Gouezo M, Golbuu Y

Scientific reports ( Scientific Reports )  11 ( 1 ) 11192 - 11192   2021.05 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Ocean warming and acidification caused by increases of atmospheric carbon dioxide are now thought to be major threats to coral reefs on a global scale. Here we evaluated the environmental conditions and benthic community structures in semi-closed Nikko Bay at the inner reef area in Palau, which has high pCO2 and seawater temperature conditions with high zooxanthellate coral coverage. Nikko Bay is a highly sheltered system with organisms showing low connectivity with surrounding environments, making this bay a unique site for evaluating adaptation and acclimatization responses of organisms to warmed and acidified environments. Seawater pCO2/Ωarag showed strong gradation ranging from 380 to 982 µatm (Ωarag: 1.79-3.66), and benthic coverage, including soft corals and turf algae, changed along with Ωarag while hard coral coverage did not change. In contrast to previous studies, net calcification was maintained in Nikko Bay even under very low mean Ωarag (2.44). Reciprocal transplantation of the dominant coral Porites cylindrica showed that the calcification rate of corals from Nikko Bay did not change when transplanted to a reference site, while calcification of reference site corals decreased when transplanted to Nikko Bay. Corals transplanted out of their origin sites also showed the highest interactive respiration (R) and lower gross photosynthesis (Pg) to respiration (Pg:R), indicating higher energy acquirement of corals at their origin site. The results of this study give important insights about the potential local acclimatization and adaptation capacity of corals to different environmental conditions including pCO2 and temperature.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Populations of a widespread hexacoral have trophic plasticity and flexible syntrophic interactions across the Indo-Pacific Ocean

Santos M.E.A.

Coral Reefs ( Coral Reefs )  40 ( 2 ) 543 - 558   2021.04 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Global diversity and distribution of Lamippidae copepods symbiotic on Octocorallia

Korzhavina O.A.

Symbiosis ( Symbiosis )  83 ( 3 ) 265 - 277   2021.04 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Unexpected high abundance of aragonite-forming Nanipora (Octocorallia: Helioporacea) at an acidified volcanic reef in southern Japan

Reimer J.D.

Marine Biodiversity ( Marine Biodiversity )  51 ( 1 )   2021.02 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Nanipora Miyazaki & Reimer, 2015 is a recently discovered genus of aragonite-skeleton producing octocorals closely related to the blue coral genus Heliopora de Blainville, 1830. Since its discovery, Nanipora has been reported from coral reefs in Okinawa, Japan, and Thailand, and from seagrass beds in the northern South China Sea. However, it remains little known and studied. Here, we report on the unexpected discovery of an abundance of Nanipora colonies in shallow waters less than 2-m deep around a CO2 vent from the uninhabited volcanic island of Iwotorishima, Okinawa, in southern Japan. Nanipora colonies were found covering both coral rubble and hard substrates, alongside a few soft coral and zoantharian species. Polyps were pale white in color with none brown or darker in coloration as in some recent reports. As the original description of N. kamurai from Zamami Island in Okinawa describes the species as azooxanthellate, as the current Iwotorishima specimens also appear to be, and recently reported specimens from Thailand, Dongsha Atoll, and Yaeyama are zooxanthellate, it may be that there are more than one Nanipora species; the type species N. kamurai that is also likely at Iwotorishima, and a zooxanthellate species that constitutes the other records. Although Nanipora is not well studied, its presence at this volcanic CO2 seep suggests it has the ability to survive under unique and extreme environmental conditions, rendering it as a potentially important subject of study in the face of increasing ocean acidification.

• Access this article

  DOI

Investigating incidence and possible causes of pink and purple pigmentation response in hard coral genus Porites around Okinawajima Island, Japan

Kubomura T.

Regional Studies in Marine Science ( Regional Studies in Marine Science )  41   2021.01 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Loss of natural coastline influences species diversity of anemonefish and host anemones in the Ryukyu Archipelago

Hayashi K.

Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems ( Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems )  31 ( 1 ) 15 - 27   2021.01 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

A new Antipathozoanthus species (Cnidaria, Hexacorallia, Zoantharia) from the northwest Pacific Ocean.

Kise H, Obuchi M, Reimer JD

ZooKeys ( ZooKeys )  1040 ( 1040 ) 49 - 64   2021 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

A new species of zoantharian within the genus <italic>Antipathozoanthus</italic> is described based on specimens collected from the coast of mainland Japan, northwest Pacific Ocean. <italic>Antipathozoanthus tubus</italic><bold>sp. nov.</bold> is characterized by its substrate (epibiotic on polychaete tube) and habitat (exposed rock). As well, the results of molecular phylogenetic analyses using concatenated multiple genetic markers also support the distinction between <italic>A. tubus</italic><bold>sp. nov.</bold> and its congenerics. <italic>Antipathozoanthus tubus</italic><bold>sp. nov.</bold> is the first species of <italic>Antipathozoanthus</italic> species reported to be epibiotic on polychaete tubes, and is the second species in the genus that is not associated with antipatharians.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Zoantharian Endosymbiont Community Dynamics During a Stress Event.

Fujiwara Y, Kawamura I, Reimer JD, Parkinson JE

Frontiers in microbiology ( Frontiers in Microbiology )  12   674026   2021 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

An integrative approach reveals a new species of Zoantharia (Cnidaria, Anthozoa), Terrazoanthus silveirai, in the South-western Atlantic Ocean

Vaga C.F.

Marine Biology Research ( Marine Biology Research )  17 ( 7-8 ) 603 - 614   2021 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Environmental DNA can act as a biodiversity barometer of anthropogenic pressures in coastal ecosystems

Joseph D. DiBattista, James D. Reimer, Michael Stat, Giovanni D. Masucci, Piera Biondi, Maarten De Brauwer, Shaun P. Wilkinson, Anthony A. Chariton, Michael Bunce

Scientific Reports ( Springer Science and Business Media LLC )  10 ( 1 )   2020.12 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Description of the sea pen Calibelemnon hinoenma sp. nov. from shallow waters in southern Japan

Kushida Y.

Marine Biodiversity ( Marine Biodiversity )  50 ( 6 )   2020.12 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Sea pen species of the genus Calibelemnon are important components of soft bottom communities. Here, we formally describe Calibelemnon hinoenma sp. nov. from shallow waters in Amami Oshima, Kagoshima in the Ryukyu Islands, via molecular and morphological observations and analyses. This species can be distinguished from its congeners by the presence of paired autozooids, siphonozooids aligned irregularly in one to three rows at the side of the rachis between polyps, and the red-brown rufous color of the oral disks. Phylogenetically, the new species is located in an Anthoptilum-Umbellula-Calibelemnon clade. Ancestral state reconstruction analyses suggest that Calibelemnon species may have undergone at least two habitat changes, from shallow to deep waters, followed by a return to shallow waters. In the Ryukyu Islands, there have been many recent discoveries of unique marine species, with this sea pen species being the latest.

• Access this article

  DOI

Crinoid diversity and their symbiotic communities at Bangka Island (North Sulawesi, Indonesia)

Riccardo Virgili, Carlo Cerrano, Massimo Ponti, Markus T. Lasut, James D. Reimer

Marine Biodiversity ( Springer Science and Business Media LLC )  50 ( 5 )   2020.10 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Functional diversity of reef molluscs along a tropical-to-temperate gradient

Matthew Floyd, Masaru Mizuyama, Masami Obuchi, Brigitte Sommer, Mark GR Miller, Iori Kawamura, Hiroki Kise, James D. Reimer, Maria Beger

Coral Reefs ( Springer Science and Business Media LLC )  39 ( 5 ) 1361 - 1376   2020.10 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

<title>Abstract</title> Global warming is leading to range shifts of marine species, threatening the structure and functioning of ecological communities and human populations that rely on them. The largest changes are seen in biogeographic transition zones, such as subtropical reef communities, where species range shifts are already causing substantial community reorganisation. This causes functional changes in communities over subtropical latitudes, though a baseline functional understanding remains elusive for many taxa. One key marine taxon are molluscs, which provide many ecosystem services, are important prey for fishes and are also fisheries targets themselves, but remain largely unstudied. Here, we examine the trait composition, functional diversity, and functional redundancy of mollusc assemblages along the tropical-to-temperate transition in Japan (25° to 35° Northern latitude). Specifically, we use a trait database of 88 mollusc species from 31 subtropical reefs along the Pacific coast of Japan to show that trait composition of mollusc assemblages changes continuously along the latitudinal gradient. We discover that functional diversity of mollusc assemblages decreases with increasing latitude, a pattern associated with declines in functional dispersion. Moreover, we find a clear distinction between tropical and subtropical mollusc assemblages, with substrate-attached, suspension feeding bivalves more abundant in the tropics and free-living gastropod grazers more prevalent at higher latitudes. Our trait-based evidence in this study shows a contraction and almost complete shift in the functioning of marine mollusc assemblages at biogeographic transition zones and our trait database facilitates further study. Our findings provide evidence of the changing taxonomic and functional composition of extant mollusc communities with latitude, pointing to potential pertinent changes and tropicalisation of these communities with rapid ocean warming.

• Access this article

  DOI

Diversity of feeding in anthozoa (Cnidaria): A systematic review

Santos T.B.

Diversity ( Diversity )  12 ( 10 ) 1 - 9   2020.10 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Palaeoclimate ocean conditions shaped the evolution of corals and their skeletons through deep time

Andrea M. Quattrini, Estefanía Rodríguez, Brant C. Faircloth, Peter F. Cowman, Mercer R. Brugler, Gabriela A. Farfan, Michael E. Hellberg, Marcelo V. Kitahara, Cheryl L. Morrison, David A. Paz-García, James D. Reimer, Catherine S. McFadden

Nature Ecology & Evolution ( Springer Science and Business Media LLC )  4 ( 11 ) 1531 - 1538   2020.08 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Symbiodiniaceae diversity of Palythoa tuberculosa in the central and southern Red Sea influenced by environmental factors

Hin Boo Wee, Michael L. Berumen, Timothy Ravasi, James Davis Reimer

Coral Reefs ( Springer Science and Business Media LLC )  39 ( 6 ) 1619 - 1633   2020.08 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Ceriantharia (Cnidaria) of the World: an annotated catalogue and key to species

Sérgio N. Stampar, James D. Reimer, Maximiliano M. Maronna, Celine S. S. Lopes, Hellen Ceriello, Thais B. Santos, Fabián H. Acuña, André C. Morandini

ZooKeys ( Pensoft Publishers )  952 ( 952 ) 1 - 63   2020.07 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

The diversity of Ceriantharia is known from studies formally describing species from the late 18^th Century onwards. However, no nomenclators including a list and discussion of all valid species have been produced since a list discussed by Carlgren in 1912. The present nomenclator presents a complete list of adult species of Ceriantharia of the World, including a discussion on each species. It includes the three families (Arachnactidae, Botrucnidiferidae, Cerianthidae) and the currently accepted 54 species based on their adult form. This study serves as a presentation of the “state-of-the-art" list of species of Ceriantharia, and includes a species identification key to support taxonomic identification. Additional in-depth species-by-species investigations for almost all cerianthid species is still needed, as the information available for most of these species is quite superficial.

• Access this article

  DOI

The diversity of Symbiodiniaceae hosted by Palythoa tuberculosa found at the edge of the South China Sea

HIN BOO WEE, YEE WAH LAU, KERYEA SOONG, REIMER DAVIS

Journal of Sustainability Science and Management ( Penerbit UMT, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu )  15 ( 4 ) 54 - 65   2020.06 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Anemonefish aggressiveness affects the presence of Dascyllus trimaculatus co-existing with host anemones

Kina Hayashi, Katsunori Tachihara, James Davis Reimer

Marine Biology ( Springer Science and Business Media LLC )  167 ( 6 )   2020.06 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

First observation of mole-like burrowing behavior observed in a sea pen

Yuka Kushida, Takuo Higashiji, James Davis Reimer

Marine Biodiversity ( Springer Science and Business Media LLC )  50 ( 3 )   2020.06 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Widespread Occurrence of a Rarely Known Association between the Hydrocorals Stylaster roseus and Millepora alcicornis at Bonaire, Southern Caribbean

Simone Montano, James D. Reimer, Viatcheslav N. Ivanenko, Jaaziel E. García-Hernández, Godfried W.N.M. van Moorsel, Paolo Galli, Bert W. Hoeksema

Diversity ( MDPI AG )  12 ( 6 ) 218 - 218   2020.05 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Among symbiotic associations, cases of pseudo-auto-epizoism, in which a species uses a resembling but not directly related species as substrate, are poorly documented in coral reef ecosystems. In the present study, we assessed the distribution of an association between the hydrocorals Stylaster roseus and Millepora alcicornis on about 50% of coral reef sites studied in Bonaire, southern Caribbean. Although previously thought to be uncommon, associations between the lace coral S. roseus and the fire coral M. alcicornis were observed at both the windward and leeward sides of Bonaire, mainly between 15 and 25 m depth, reaching a maximum occupation of 47 S. roseus colonies on a single M. alcicornis colony. Both species' tissues did not show any signs of injuries, while an in-depth inspection of the contact points of their skeletons revealed that both partners can partially overgrow each other. How it is possible that S. roseus is able to settle on the stinging tissue of Millepora as well as how, by contrast, the latter may facilitate the lace coral by offering a certain degree of protection are questions that deserve further investigations.

• Access this article

  DOI

Cnidaria and Ctenophora: Review of deep-sea Cnidaria and Ctenophora fauna in the NW Pacific Ocean

Reimer, J.D, Yanagi, K, Kise, H, Poliseno, A, Kushida, Y, Saeedi, H, Lindsay, D.J

Biogeographic Atlas of the Deep NW Pacific Fauna (eds. Saeedi, H. & Brandt, A.). Pensoft Publishers Ltd., Sofia, Bulgaria. ( Pensoft Publishers )    67 - 88   2020.05 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (other science council materials etc.)

• Access this article

  DOI

A Goniopora stokesi community at Tatsugasako, Otsuki, Kochi, Japan : a new northernmost specimen-based record

Reimer J.D.

日本ベントス研究会連絡誌 ( 日本プランクトン学会、日本ベントス学会 )  15 ( 2 ) 185 - 187   2020.05 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (other science council materials etc.)

　View Summary

<p>The zooxanthellate scleractinian species <i>Goniopora</i> <i>stokesi</i> is widely distributed across the Indo-Pacific Ocean, and in Japan the northernmost records of this species are from Tatsukushi, Kochi on Shikoku, although these records are not associated with specimens deposited in museums. The species is unique among <i>Goniopora</i> in that it lives on soft bottom sediment, forming free-living colonies, and produces asexual daughter colonies, or ‘polyp balls,’ via budding from parent colonies. Here we report on a large <i>G</i>. <i>stokesi</i> community from Otsuki, Kochi, Japan, representing the northernmost specimen-based record of the species. Specimen-based records are important as verifiable baseline data in light of global warming and climate change, which is expected to drastically effect the marine flora and fauna of Kochi and surrounding areas.</p>

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  CiNii Research

Two new species of the genus Chironephthya (Octocorallia, Alcyonacea, Nidaliidae, Siphonogorgiinae) from the Gulf of Thailand

YUKIMITSU IMAHARA, SUCHANA CHAVANICH, VORANOP VIYAKARN, YUKA KUSHIDA, JAMES D. REIMER, TOSHIHIKO FUJITA

Zootaxa ( Magnolia Press )  4780 ( 2 ) 324 - 340   2020.05 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Two new species of the genus Chironephthya, C. sirindhornae sp. nov. and C. cornigera sp. nov., are described based on three specimens collected from the Gulf of Thailand. Both species are well distinguished from the previously described species of the genus Chironephthya by their colonies consisting of multiple stems that stand upright from a common base, and by a significantly thinner canal wall without large spindles. As a result of phylogenetic analyses using COI, mtMutS, and 28S rDNA sequences of these two species, these three specimens constituted an independent small clade within a large mixed clade of Siphonogorgia and Chironephthya, with the two species slightly different from each other. The discrepancy in the morphology suggested the erection of a new genus to accommodate these species, however, as the subclade was included in a large mixed clade of Siphonogorgia and Chironephthya, we place these species within genus Chironephthya. Our results further highlight the continuing confusion between Siphonogorgia and Chironephthya, and demonstrate the need for taxonomic revision of these genera.

• Access this article

  DOI

Zoantharia (Cnidaria: Hexacorallia) of the Dutch Caribbean and One New Species of Parazoanthus

Javier Montenegro, Bert W. Hoeksema, Maria E. A. Santos, Hiroki Kise, James Davis Reimer

Diversity ( MDPI AG )  12 ( 5 ) 190 - 190   2020.05 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Species of the anthozoan order Zoantharia (=Zoanthidea) are common components of subtropical and tropical shallow water coral reefs. Despite a long history of research on their species diversity in the Caribbean, many regions within this sea remain underexamined. One such region is the Dutch Caribbean, including the islands of St. Eustatius, St. Maarten, Saba, Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao, as well as the Saba Bank, for which no definitive species list exists. Here, combining examinations of specimens housed in the Naturalis Biodiversity Center collection with new specimens and records from field expeditions, we provide a list of zoantharian species found within the Dutch Caribbean. Our results demonstrate the presence at least 16 described species, including the newly described Parazoanthus atlanticus, and the additional potential presence of up to four undescribed species. These records of new and undescribed species demonstrate that although the zoantharian research history of the Caribbean is long, further discoveries remain to be found. In light of biodiversity loss and increasing anthropogenic pressure on declining coral reefs, documenting the diversity of zoantharians and other coral reef species to provide baseline data takes on a new urgency.

• Access this article

  DOI

A species complex within the red-reticulate Goniobranchus Pease, 1866 (Nudibranchia: Doridina: Chromodorididae)

Giun Yee Soong, Nerida G. Wilson, James D. Reimer

Marine Biodiversity ( Springer Science and Business Media LLC )  50 ( 2 )   2020.04 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Octocoral-associated Parazoanthus cf. swiftii from the southwestern Atlantic

Claudia F. Vaga, Maria E. A. Santos, Alvaro E. Migotto, James Reimer, Marcelo V. Kitahara

Marine Biodiversity ( Springer Science and Business Media LLC )  50 ( 2 )   2020.04 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Evolutionary implications of analyses of complete mitochondrial genomes across order Zoantharia (Cnidaria: Hexacorallia)

Angelo Poliseno, Maria Eduarda Alves Santos, Hiroki Kise, Brooks Macdonald, Andrea M. Quattrini, Catherine S. McFadden, James Davis Reimer

Journal of Zoological Systematics and Evolutionary Research ( Wiley )  58 ( 4 ) 858 - 868   2020.03 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Five-year study on the bleaching of anemonefish-hosting anemones (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Actiniaria) in subtropical Okinawajima Island

Kina Hayashi, James Davis Reimer

Regional Studies in Marine Science ( Elsevier BV )  35   101240 - 101240   2020.03 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

The Origin of the Subtropical Coral Alveopora japonica (Scleractinia: Acroporidae) in High-Latitude Environments

Ji Hyoun Kang, Ji Eun Jang, Jae Hwan Kim, Sangil Kim, Shashank Keshavmurthy, Sylvain Agostini, James D. Reimer, Chaolun Allen Chen, Kwang-Sik Choi, Sang Rul Park, Hyuk Je Lee

Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution ( Frontiers Media SA )  8   2020.02 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Eroding diversity away: Impacts of a tetrapod breakwater on a subtropical coral reef

Giovanni Diego Masucci, Alessandro Acierno, James Davis Reimer

Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems ( Wiley )  30 ( 2 ) 290 - 302   2020.02 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Unique combinations of coral host and algal symbiont genotypes reflect intraspecific variation in heat stress responses among colonies of the reef-building coral, Montipora digitata

Javid Kavousi, Vianney Denis, Victoria Sharp, James Davis Reimer, Takashi Nakamura, John Everett Parkinson

Marine Biology ( Springer Science and Business Media LLC )  167 ( 2 )   2020.02 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

First records of the genus Sphenopus from temperate waters and lower mesophotic depths

Hiroki Kise, Takuo Higashiji, Masanori Nonaka, Daisuke Uyeno, James Davis Reimer

Marine Biodiversity ( Springer Science and Business Media LLC )  50 ( 1 )   2020.02 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Coral cover and rubble cryptofauna abundance and diversity at outplanted reefs in Okinawa, Japan.

Biondi P, Masucci GD, Reimer JD

PeerJ ( PeerJ )  8   e9185 - e9185   2020 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Global climate change is leading to damage and loss of coral reef ecosystems. On subtropical Okinawa Island in southwestern Japan, the prefectural government is working on coral reef restoration by outplanting coral colonies from family Acroporidae back to reefs after initially farming colonies inside protected nurseries. In order to establish a baseline for future comparisons, in this study we documented the current status of reefs undergoing outplanting at Okinawa Island, and nearby locations where no human manipulation has occurred. We examined three sites on the coast of Onna Village on the west coast of the island; each site included an outplanted and control location. We used (1) coral rubble sampling to measure and compare abundance and diversity of rubble cryptofauna; and (2) coral reef monitoring using Line Intercept Transects to track live coral coverage. Results showed that rubble shape had a positive correlation with the numbers of animals found within rubble themselves and may therefore constitute a reliable abundance predictor. Each outplanted location did not show differences with the corresponding control location in terms of rubble cryptofauna abundance, but outplanted locations had significantly lower coral coverage. Overall, differences between sites (Maeganeku1, Maeganeku2 and Manza, each including both outplanted and control locations) were significant, for both rubble cryptofauna and coral coverage. We recommend (1) to outplant colonies from more stress-resistant genera in place of <italic>Acropora</italic>, and (2) to conduct regular surveys to monitor the situation closely. With a lack of baseline data preceding impacts, rigorous monitoring over time can highlight trends towards increases or decreases in evaluated variables, allowing to obtain a clearer idea of the effects of transplants and on the trajectory of impacts due to climate change and local stressors . Finally, we also recommend (3) to establish conservation and sustainable practices that could aid the ongoing restoration efforts such as installing anchoring buoys to reduce impacts from anchoring, which could reduce coral mortality of both outplanted and native coral colonies.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Comparison of Symbiodiniaceae diversities in different members of a <i>Palythoa</i> species complex (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Zoantharia)-implications for ecological adaptations to different microhabitats.

Mizuyama M, Iguchi A, Iijima M, Gibu K, Reimer JD

PeerJ ( PeerJ )  8 ( 2 ) e8449   2020 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

In this study we compared genotypes of zoantharian host-associating algal symbionts among Palythoa species, which are among the dominant benthic reef organisms in the Ryukyu Archipelago, Japan, and evaluated Symbiodiniaceae diversities of closely related congeneric Palythoa species. We targeted a species complex of the zoantharian genus Palythoa (P. tuberculosa, P. sp. yoron, P. mutuki) living among different microhabitats in a narrow reef area of Tokunoshima Island. For phylogenetic analyses, we used two DNA marker regions; nuclear internal transcribed spacer (ITS) and plastid mini-circle non-coding region (psbAncr), both of which have previously been used to determine Symbiodiniaceae genotypes of zoantharian species. Our results showed that all Palythoa species hosted symbionts of the genus Cladocopium, with genotypic compositions of this genus showing some variations among the three different Palythoa species. Additionally, we found that the Cladocopium genotypic composition was statistically different among Palythoa species, and among P. tuberculosa specimens in different microhabitats. Our results suggest that ecological divergence among these three Palythoa species may be related to differing Symbiodiniaceae diversities that may in turn contribute to eco-physiological adaptation into different microhabitats on coral reefs.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

A sea pen field in shallow water in the Amakusa Islands, southern Japan

KUSHIDA YUKA, KISE HIROKI, MCFADDEN CATHERINE S., REIMER JAMES DAVIS

Plankton and Benthos Research ( 日本プランクトン学会、日本ベントス学会 )  15 ( 3 ) 259 - 268   2020 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

<p>Sea pens are ecologically important habitats for associated marine organisms, serving as ecosystem engineers in sandy or muddy seafloor environments. In such areas, sea pens can form habitats with high population densities known as "sea pen fields". However, the presence and importance of sea pen fields have not been well studied in shallow waters in East Asia. Here, we report a sea pen field of <i>Virgularia</i> sp. aff. <i>gustaviana</i> in the shallow waters of Ushibuka Marine Park, in the Amakusa Islands of southern Japan. The average colony numbers of the field across all depths (7–20 m) was 10.3 colonies/m² (live colonies) to 13.6 colonies/m² (all: live+dead colonies+holes), and the area of the sea pen field was at least ∼50,000 m². At a depth of 15 m, the substratum consisted of sand and fallen leaves of terrestrial origin, and the highest sea pen density was observed (averages=17.2 live colonies/m², =25.8 total (live+dead+holes) colonies/m²). At a depth of 20 m, the substratum consisted of broken shells and rocks and had the lowest density (live colonies: average=0.8 colonies/m², all: average=1.0 colonies/m²). There were significant differences in colony number of <i>Virgularia</i> sp. aff. <i>gustaviana</i> between the "sand", "sand+leaves", and "broken shells/rocks" substrates. We hypothesize that the strength of the water currents caused by local geographic features and tidal movements produce suitable sedimentation and habitat for this species of sea pen. Therefore, we suggest that preserving the natural coastline is crucial to protect this and other sea pen fields in shallow waters and their benthic marine communities.</p>

• Access this article

  DOI

Knock knock, who's there?: marine invertebrates in tubes of Ceriantharia (Cnidaria: Anthozoa).

Ceriello H, Lopes CSS, Reimer JD, Bakken T, Fukuda MV, Cunha CM, Stampar SN

Biodiversity data journal ( Pensoft Publishers )  8   e47019   2020 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

This study reports on the fauna found in/on tubes of 10 species of Ceriantharia and discusses the characteristics of these occurrences, as well as the use of mollusc shells in ceriantharian tube construction. A total of 22 tubes of Ceriantharia from Argentina, Brazil, Japan, Norway, Portugal and the United States were analysed, revealing 58 species of marine invertebrates using them as alternative substrates. Based on a literature review and analyses of the sampled material, we report new occurrences for <italic>Photis sarae</italic> (Crustacea), <italic>Microgaza rotella</italic> (Mollusca), <italic>Brada</italic> sp., <italic>Dipolydora</italic> spp., <italic>Notocirrus</italic> spp., and <italic>Syllis garciai</italic> (Annelida). The use of mollusc shells in tube construction increases the tubes’ structural resistance and strength. Ceriantharian tubes are suitable alternative substrates for the dwelling of numerous tubicolous and infaunal species that usually burrow into sediments or anchor on fixed or mobile habitats seeking shelter, thus playing a relevant role as local biodiversity hotspots.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Evolution and biogeography of the Zanclea-Scleractinia symbiosis

Maggioni D.

Coral Reefs ( Coral Reefs )    2020 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Corrigenda: <i>Hanah</i>, a replacement name for <i>Hana</i> Lau, Stokvis, Ofwegen &amp; Reimer, 2018 (preoccupied name).

Lau YW, Stokvis FR, van Ofwegen L, Reimer JD

ZooKeys ( ZooKeys )  918 ( 918 ) 161 - 162   2020

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Crown-of-thorns starfish outbreak at oceanic Dongsha Atoll in the northern South China Sea

Reimer J,H Kise, HB Wee, CL Lee, K Soong

Marine Biodiversity ( Marine Biodiversity )  49 ( 6 ) 2495 - 2497   2019.12 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Population differentiation across small distances in a coral reef-associated vermetid (Ceraesignum maximum) in Palau

Soliman T.

Coral Reefs ( Coral Reefs )  38 ( 6 ) 1159 - 1172   2019.12 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Despite being one of the world's leading countries in coral reef conservation and management, very little data exist for coral reef-associated species in the island nation of Palau, hampering managers' ability to more effectively protect coral reef ecosystems.Here we examine populations of the vermetid Ceraesignum maximum, a common species on coral reefs, with short or absent pelagic larval stage, in order to elucidate patterns of gene flow within Palauan reefs. We collected specimens (n = 582) from 20 sites across Palau. Cytochrome oxidase subunit I analyses show private haplotypes at all sites examined, with a clear separation between outer and inner reef locations, and a unique population within isolated Nikko Bay. Oceanographic isolation between the waters of Nikko Bay, inner and outer reefs may contribute to our observed genetic differentiation. Our results indicate past demographic expansion of C. maximum across the region and also indicate that multiple sites of both inner and outer reef locations would need to be protected to conserve this species' genetic diversity, including unique Nikko Bay. These results demonstrate the utility of C. maximum as a good species to investigate gene flow across small scales (< 10 km) as seen in Palau.

• Access this article

  DOI

A molecular phylogeny of carcinoecium-forming Epizoanthus (Hexacorallia: Zoantharia) from the Western Pacific Ocean with descriptions of three new species

Hiroki Kise, Javier Montenegro, Merrick Ekins, Takeya Moritaki, James Davis Reimer

Systematics and Biodiversity ( Informa UK Limited )  17 ( 8 ) 773 - 786   2019.11 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

First record of “polyp-ball colonies” produced by Zoanthus sociatus (Cnidaria, Anthozoa, Zoantharia)

González-Muñoz R, A Garese, FH Acuna, JD Reimer, N Simoes

Marine Biodiversity ( Marine Biodiversity )  49 ( 5 ) 2197 - 2198   2019.10 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Morphological and phylogenetic diversity of Waminoa and similar flatworms (Acoelomorpha) in the western Pacific Ocean.

Kunihiro S, Farenzena Z, Hoeksema BW, Groenenberg DSJ, Hermanto B, Reimer JD

Zoology (Jena, Germany) ( Zoology )  136   125692   2019.10 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Phylogenetic relationships among the clownfish-hosting sea anemones

Titus B.M.

Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution ( Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution )  139   106526 - 106526   2019.10 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

The clownfish-sea anemone symbiosis has been a model system for understanding fundamental evolutionary and ecological processes. However, our evolutionary understanding of this symbiosis comes entirely from studies of clownfishes. A holistic understanding of a model mutualism requires systematic, biogeographic, and phylogenetic insight into both partners. Here, we conduct the largest phylogenetic analysis of sea anemones (Order Actiniaria) to date, with a focus on expanding the biogeographic and taxonomic sampling of the 10 nominal clownfish-hosting species. Using a combination of mtDNA and nuDNA loci we test (1) the monophyly of each clownfish-hosting family and genus, (2) the current anemone taxonomy that suggests symbioses with clownfishes evolved multiple times within Actiniaria, and (3) whether, like the clownfishes, there is evidence that host anemones have a Coral Triangle biogeographic origin. Our phylogenetic reconstruction demonstrates widespread poly- and para-phyly at the family and genus level, particularly within the family Stichodactylidae and genus Stichodactyla, and suggests that symbioses with clownfishes evolved minimally three times within sea anemones. We further recover evidence for a Tethyan biogeographic origin for some clades. Our data provide the first evidence that clownfish and some sea anemone hosts have different biogeographic origins, and that there may be cryptic species of host anemones. Finally, our findings reflect the need for a major taxonomic revision of the clownfish-hosting sea anemones.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

A New Epizoanthus Species (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Epizoanthidae) Associated with the Gastropod Mollusk Guildfordia triumphans from Southern Japan.

Kise H, Reimer JD

Zoological science ( Zoological Science )  36 ( 3 ) 259 - 265   2019.06 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Status of giant clam resources around Okinawa-jima Island, Ryukyu Archipelago, Japan

Neo ML, KK Lim, SY Yang, GY Soong, GD Masucci, P Biondi, HB Wee, H Kise, JD Reimer

Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems ( Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems )  29 ( 6 ) 1002 - 1011   2019.06 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Diversity of zoantharian species and their symbionts from the Macaronesian and Cape Verde ecoregions demonstrates their widespread distribution in the Atlantic Ocean

López C, JD Reimer, A Brito, D Simón, S Clemente, M Hernández

Coral Reefs ( Coral Reefs )  38 ( 2 ) 269 - 283   2019.04 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Reduced Symbiodiniaceae diversity in Palythoa tuberculosa at a heavily acidified coral reef

Wee H.B.

Coral Reefs ( Coral Reefs )  38 ( 2 ) 311 - 319   2019.04 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Symbiodiniaceae diversity in hosts is known to change with the environment and particularly with temperature and light intensity. However, higher levels of pCO(2), as could be expected under future ocean acidification scenarios, have been documented to show little to no effect in influencing the diversity of Symbiodiniaceae in hosts in previous studies. In this study, we examined hypervariable psbA(ncr) sequences to identify the Cladocopium (former Symbiodinium 'Clade C') diversity within the zooxanthellate zoantharian Palythoa tuberculosa at an acidified reef in southern Japan. Palythoa tuberculosa were collected from a reef at the volcanic island of Iwotorishima in southern Japan; specimens from a high pCO(2) site and from a nearby control (normal pCO(2)) site (Inoue et al. in Nat Clim Change 3:683-687, 2013). We observed a statistically significant reduction in Cladocopium diversity at the high pCO(2) site with only one Cladocopium lineage present, compared to at the control site with two lineages present. Our results demonstrate that higher pCO(2) can potentially negatively influence the diversity of host Symbiodiniaceae within anthozoan hosts, an important implication in the face of ongoing ocean acidification and climate change.

• Access this article

  DOI

After the long summer: Death and survival of coral communities in the shallow waters of Kume Island, from the Ryukyu Archipelago

Masucci G, P Biondi, E Negro, JD Reimer

Regional Studies in Marine Science ( Regional Studies in Marine Science )  28   2019.04 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Digging for DNA at depth: Rapid universal metabarcoding surveys (RUMS) as a tool to detect coral reef biodiversity across a depth gradient

DiBattista J, JD Reimer, M Stat, GD Masucci, P Biondi, M De Brauwer, M Bunce

PeerJ ( PeerJ )  2019 ( 2 )   2019.02 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Diversity of Saint Helena Island and zoogeography of zoantharians in the Atlantic Ocean: Jigsaw falling into place

Santos M.E.A.

Systematics and Biodiversity ( Systematics and Biodiversity )  17 ( 2 ) 165 - 178   2019.02 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Diversity surveys in isolated sites, such as oceanic islands, provide biogeographic data that can improve our analyses and knowledge of evolutionary processes in the oceans. Zoantharians (Cnidaria: Anthozoa) are common and widespread components of shallow-water reefs, but distributional analyses are scarce for this group. In this study, we collected Zoantharia specimens from around Saint Helena Island (STH) in the mid-Atlantic and identified species using external morphology and molecular data. Moreover, we compiled and analysed the most comprehensive distributional data for zoantharian species in the subtropical and tropical Atlantic Ocean to date. Our results show eight zoantharian species in STH, which includes seven new records for STH waters. Furthermore, all families and genera of the suborder Brachycnemina recorded are widespread in the Atlantic Ocean, including at least four amphi-Atlantic species. The Caribbean is the richness centre in the Atlantic Ocean for zoantharian species, a pattern similar to that observed for many other subtropical/tropical marine taxa. However, Zoantharia may have a lower endemism rate in some areas than other common reef animals, for example zooxanthellate scleractinian corals and reef fishes. Moreover, zoantharian species have a more extensive distribution than close-related taxa such as zooxanthellate scleractinian corals and hydrocorals in the Atlantic Ocean.

• Access this article

  DOI

Molecular phylogeny and diversity of sea pens (Cnidaria: Octocorallia: Pennatulacea) with a focus on shallow water species of the northwestern Pacific Ocean.

Kushida Y, Reimer JD

Molecular phylogenetics and evolution ( Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution )  131   233 - 244   2019.02 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

The order Pennatulacea, commonly known as sea pens, are colony-forming benthos belonging within subclass Octocorallia (Anthozoa, Cnidaria). Sea pens are found worldwide from shallow to deep waters, and they are important components in sandy and muddy environments. Thus far, there has been only one molecular study focusing on the phylogenetic relationships within the order Pennatulacea, which mainly treated deep-sea species, and thus information on shallow water species is still lacking. On a regional scale, the diversity of sea pens in the northwestern Pacific, including Japan and Palau, has not been well investigated. In this research, we aimed to: (1) more accurately resolve the phylogenetic relationships of sea pens with the inclusion of shallow water species, and (2) obtain a better understanding of the diversity of sea pens in Japan and Palau. Specimens were collected by SCUBA and dredging from the Ryukyu Islands in southern Japan, and from mainland Japan and Palau, and identified to at least the genus level by their morphological traits. Construction of phylogenetic trees with concatenated sequences including the mitochondrial mutS-like protein DNA mismatch repair gene mtMutS and the NADH dehydrogenase subunit 2 ND2 region were performed. The p-distances of mtMutS were calculated for estimation of species number following McFadden et al. (2011). Molecular data for 12 families and 20 genera of sea pens were used in this study. This most comprehensive study including shallow water taxa provided us with more knowledge of phylogenetic relationships. The resulting phylogenetic trees showed a topology distinguished by four large clades (clades 1-4). Families Veretillidae and Echinoptilidae are shown as not the earliest-diverging taxa. Virgulariidae and Scleroptilidae are shown as polyphyletic groups, and our results reconfirm that families Pennatulidae, Kophobelemnidae and Umbellulidae are not monophyletic groups. Overall, we collected and examined an estimated 18 species from the Ryukyu Islands, 16 species from mainland Japan, and five species from Palau. Some of these specimens represented new records from Ryukyu Islands and Palau. Previous records of these sea pens did not exist likely due to a lack of diversity research in sandy and muddy areas. These results demonstrate that many sea pens discoveries likely remain in shallow waters of the Pacific.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Low density populations of anemonefish with low replenishment rates on a reef edge with anthropogenic impacts

Hayashi K, K Tachihara, JD Reimer

Environmental Biology of Fishes ( Environmental Biology of Fishes )  102 ( 1 ) 41 - 54   2019.01 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

A phylogeny and the evolution of epizoism within the family Hydrozoanthidae with description of a new genus and two new species.

Kise H, Maeda T, Reimer JD

Molecular phylogenetics and evolution ( Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution )  130   304 - 314   2019.01 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Marine biodiversity research in the Ryukyu Islands, Japan: current status and trends.

Reimer JD, Biondi P, Lau YW, Masucci GD, Nguyen XH, Santos MEA, Wee HB

PeerJ   7   e6532   2019 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Global marine biodiversity in the context of achieving the Aichi Targets: ways forward and addressing data gaps.

Saeedi H, Reimer JD, Brandt MI, Dumais PO, Jażdżewska AM, Jeffery NW, Thielen PM, Costello MJ

PeerJ ( PeerJ )  7 ( 10 ) e7221   2019 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

In 2010, the Conference of the Parties of the Convention on Biological Diversity agreed on the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020 in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. As this plan approaches its end, we discussed whether marine biodiversity and prediction studies were nearing the Aichi Targets during the 4th World Conference on Marine Biodiversity held in Montreal, Canada in June 2018. This article summarises the outcome of a five-day group discussion on how global marine biodiversity studies should be focused further to better understand the patterns of biodiversity. We discussed and reviewed seven fundamental biodiversity priorities related to nine Aichi Targets focusing on global biodiversity discovery and predictions to improve and enhance biodiversity data standards (quantity and quality), tools and techniques, spatial and temporal scale framing, and stewardship and dissemination. We discuss how identifying biodiversity knowledge gaps and promoting efforts have and will reduce such gaps, including via the use of new databases, tools and technology, and how these resources could be improved in the future. The group recognised significant progress toward Target 19 in relation to scientific knowledge, but negligible progress with regard to Targets 6 to 13 which aimed to safeguard and reduce human impacts on biodiversity.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Exploring the biodiversity of understudied benthic taxa at mesophotic and deeper depths: Examples from the order Zoantharia (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia)

Reimer J.D.

Frontiers in Marine Science ( Frontiers in Marine Science )  6 ( JUN )   2019 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

© 2019 Reimer, Kise, Santos, Lindsay, Pyle, Copus, Bowen, Nonaka, Higashiji and Benayahu. Research on so-called "minor taxa" at mesophotic depths has lagged behind that of more commonly researched groups such as fish or hard corals. Exemplar taxa include species of the order Zoantharia, benthic colonial anemones that are cosmopolitan in distribution but understudied in many ecoregion and ecosystems. In this study, we examine the results of rare mesophotic to deep sea surveys (one rebreather, one remotely operated submersible (ROV) + net survey, two ROV surveys) from Japan and Israel. We examined the collected images and video data to provide a first estimate of Zoantharia diversity at mesophotic depths. Zoantharians were observed in all surveys, indicating their ubiquitous presence in mesophotic and deeper ecosystems. Additionally, specimens (n = 12) acquired via these surveys were phylogenetically analyzed with three DNA markers. Phylogenetic results showed the presence of undescribed species based on the uniqueness of acquired DNA sequences, including one specimen belonging to the family Abyssoanthidae, previously only reported from depths below 2000 m. Other specimens belong to groups that inhabit shallower and deeper depths (Antipathozoanthus, Epizoanthus, and Parazoanthidae). These results depart from surveys of mesophotic coral ecosystem fishes and crustaceans, which indicate affiliations almost exclusively with shallow genera and families. We hypothesize that mesophotic depths are an ecotone for zoantharian diversity, with links to both deeper and shallower ecosystem diversity. Future surveys in mesophotic depths should incorporate phylogenetic methods to better catalog so-called "minor taxa" (not only including Zoantharia) and enhance the scientific foundation for conserving the biodiversity of these threatened ecosystems.

• Access this article

  DOI

Expanding walls and shrinking beaches: Loss of natural coastline in Okinawa Island, Japan

Masucci G, JD Reimer

PeerJ ( PeerJ )  2019 ( 9 )   2019 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

A first phylogenetic study on stoloniferous octocorals off the coast of Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia, with the description of two new genera and five new species

Lau Y, Reimer JD

ZooKeys ( ZooKeys )  2019 ( 872 ) 127 - 158   2019 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Species and sexual differences in human-oriented behavior of anemonefish at Okinawa Island, Japan

Hayashi K, K Tachihara, JD Reimer

Marine Ecology Progress Series ( Marine Ecology Progress Series )  616   219 - 224   2019 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

The spotted cleaner shrimp, Periclimenes yucatanicus (Ives, 1891), on an unusual scleractinian host

González-Muñoz R, A Garese, FH Acuna, JD Reimer, N Simoes

Diversity ( Diversity )  11 ( 11 )   2019 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

The stoloniferous octocoral, Hanabira yukibana, gen. nov., sp. nov., of the southern Ryukyus has morphological and symbiont variation

Lau Y, FR Stokvis, Y Imahara, JD Reimer

Contributions to Zoology ( Contributions to Zoology )  88 ( 1 ) 54 - 77   2019 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Stoloniferan octocorals (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Octocorallia: Alcyonacea) are a relatively unexplored fauna in the Ryukyus (southern Japan), known to be a tropical marine region of high biodiversity and endemism of species. Specimens of stoloniferous octocorals were collected during fieldwork along the coasts of two islands (Okinawa and Iriomote) in the Okinawa Prefecture. Despite their phenotypic polyp variation, this study shows their morphological and molecular uniqueness, leading to the description of a new genus with a single species: <italic>Hanabira yukibana,</italic> gen. nov., sp. nov. They are placed within the Clavulariidae and form a sister clade basally to the genus <italic>Knopia</italic> Alderslade &amp; McFadden, 2007 and species of <italic>Clavularia</italic> Blainville, 1830. The polyps of this new species show morphological variation in both shape and sclerite density, but there is conformity in the typical overall petal shaped tentacles, which have fused pinnules (pseudopinnules). Depending on the densities of their sclerites and their photosynthetic endosymbiotic algae (zooxanthellae) of the family Symbiodiniaceae, there is a characteristic sheen present in the tentacles. Moreover, the zooxanthellae hosted by our specimens form a clear, small-scale biogeographic pattern; all <italic>H. yukibana</italic> specimens from Okinawa Island contained zooxanthellae of the genus <italic>Cladocopium</italic> Lajeunesse &amp; H.J. Jeong, 2018 (= former <italic>Symbiodinium</italic> ‘Clade C’) and all specimens from Iriomote Island hosted zooxanthellae of the genus <italic>Durusdinium</italic> LaJeunesse, 2018 (= former <italic>Symbiodinium</italic> ‘Clade D’). These results show the potential for variation among the Symbiodiniaceae floras within octocorals, something that has not yet been investigated for the large majority of zooxanthellate octocoral species.

• Access this article

  DOI

Theme session “Marine science researches of Okinawa Research Core for Highly Innovative Discipline Science (ORCHIDS) project"

NAKAMURA Takashi, REIMER James Davis, SHINJO Ryuichi, NAKAMURA Mamoru, TANAKA Atsuko, WEE Hin Boo

Journal of the Japanese Coral Reef Society ( The Japanese Coral Reef Society )  21 ( 1 ) 1 - 12   2019

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  CiNii Research

Zooxanthellate, Sclerite-Free, and Pseudopinnuled Octocoral Hadaka nudidomus gen. nov. et sp. nov. (Anthozoa, Octocorallia) from mesophotic reefs of the Southern Ryukyus Islands

Lau Y, Reimer JD

Diversity ( Diversity )  11 ( 10 )   2019 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Patterns of coexistence of six anemonefish species around subtropical Okinawa-jima Island, Japan

Hayashi K, K Tachihara, JD Reimer

Coral Reefs ( Coral Reefs )  37 ( 4 ) 1027 - 1038   2018.12 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Appearance of an anomalous black band disease at upper mesophotic depths after coral bleaching.

Kubomura T, Yamashiro H, Reimer JD

Diseases of aquatic organisms ( Diseases of Aquatic Organisms )  131 ( 3 ) 245 - 249   2018.11 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Zoantharia (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia) abundance and associations with Porifera and Hydrozoa across a depth gradient on the west coast of Curaçao

Reimer JD, HB Wee, JE Garcia-Hernandez, BW Hoeksema

Systematics and Biodiversity ( Systematics and Biodiversity )  16 ( 8 ) 820 - 830   2018.11 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Report of a Zoanthus Zone from the Cabo Verde Islands (Central Eastern Atlantic)

López C, R Freitas, E Magileviciute, SS Ratão, P Brehmer, JD Reimer

Thalassas ( Thalassas )  34 ( 2 ) 409 - 413   2018.10 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Urban coral reefs: Degradation and resilience of hard coral assemblages in coastal cities of East and Southeast Asia

EC Heery, BW Hoeksema, NK Browne, JD Reimer, PO Ang, D Huang, DA Friess, LM Chou, LHL Loke, P Saksena-Taylor, N Alsagoff, T Yeemin, M Sutthacheep, ST Vok, AR Bos, GS Gumanao, MAS Hussein, Z Waheed, DJW Lane, O Johan, A Kunzmann, J Jompar, Suharsono, D Taira, AG Bauman, PA Todd

Marine Pollution Bulletin ( Marine Pollution Bulletin )  135   654 - 681   2018.10 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

First record of sea urchin-associated Epizoanthus planus from Japanese waters and its morphology and molecular phylogeny

KISE HIROKI, DEWA NAOKO, REIMER JAMES DAVIS

日本ベントス研究会連絡誌 ( 日本プランクトン学会、日本ベントス学会 )  13 ( 3 ) 136 - 141   2018.08

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

&lt;p&gt;The species &lt;i&gt;Epizoanthus planus&lt;/i&gt; is the only known described zoantharian with an association with echinoderms, and it is known to live on the spines of living sea urchins from the family Cidaridae. This species has been reported from 741 to 1019 m in the Indian Ocean and the East China Sea. However, diagnostic characters are lacking in both the original description and subsequent studies. The present study reports the first record of &lt;i&gt;E. planus&lt;/i&gt; from Japanese waters (300–400 m) based on a newly collected specimen, and this record slightly extends the species distribution range in the northwest Pacific Ocean. This new record increases the number of &lt;i&gt;Epizoanthus&lt;/i&gt; species in Japanese waters to at least five species. Although many taxonomy and diversity studies have focused on specimens from SCUBA-based collections in Japanese waters, few studies have focused on zoantharians in deeper waters below SCUBA diving limits. The results of the present study highlight the importance of examining specimens from deeper waters to better understand the overall diversity of the order Zoantharia.&lt;/p&gt;

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  CiNii Research

Systematic Revision of Symbiodiniaceae Highlights the Antiquity and Diversity of Coral Endosymbionts.

LaJeunesse TC, Parkinson JE, Gabrielson PW, Jeong HJ, Reimer JD, Voolstra CR, Santos SR

Current biology : CB ( Current Biology )  28 ( 16 ) 2570 - 2580.e6   2018.08 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Population Connectivity in the Common Reef Zoantharian Zoanthus sansibaricus (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia) in Southern Japan.

Albinsky D, Wham D, Shinzato N, Reimer JD

Zoological science ( Zoological Science )  35 ( 4 ) 321 - 329   2018.08 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Tropical and subtropical shallow benthic marine communities are highly diverse and balanced systems that constitute an important natural resource. Knowledge of the genetic diversity, connectivity and reproduction mode of each population is critical to understanding the fate of whole assemblages in times of disturbances. Importantly, the capability of populations to adapt to environmental challenges will be crucial to determining their survival. Here, we report on the population structure of the common reef zoantharian Zoanthus sansibaricus in the northwestern Pacific, by examining populations at three different locations in southern Japan using five highly variable microsatellite markers. Analyses of a population at the species' northern distribution limit combined with analyses of two subtropical populations suggest that habitat characteristics and ocean currents influence the connectivity and genetic diversity of this species. Our findings emphasize the adaptive ability of Z. sansibaricus to different environmental conditions and may help explain the wide distribution and generalist nature of this species.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

First records of zooxanthellate Zoanthus (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia: Zoantharia) from Korea and Japan (East) Sea

Reimer J.D.

Marine Biodiversity ( Marine Biodiversity )  48 ( 2 ) 1269 - 1273   2018.06 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

This report presents the first records of the zooxanthellate species Zoanthus sansibaricus (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia: Zoantharia: Zoanthidae) from Jeju Island, Korea, in the East China Sea, and from Dogo-jima Island in the Oki Islands, Japan, in the Sea of Japan (= East Sea). Its discovery at Jeju Island also represents the first formal record of the order Zoantharia from Korea, while the record from Dogo-jima Island is the first from the Sea of Japan. These two records greatly expand the recorded range of this widespread species, suggesting that it is highly tolerant of winter sea surface temperatures as low as 11.5 °C. Additionally, these records will provide important range limit information to compare with future findings in the face of global warming and predicted northward expansion of benthic zooxanthellate species.

• Access this article

  DOI

KB343, a Cyclic Tris-guanidine Alkaloid from Palauan Zoantharian Epizoanthus illoricatus

Matsumura K.

Organic Letters ( Organic Letters )  20 ( 10 ) 3039 - 3043   2018.05 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

A new tris-guanidine alkaloid, KB343 (1), was isolated from the aqueous extract of a Palauan zoantharian, Epizoanthus illoricatus. The structure of 1 was determined on the basis of spectral analyses of 1 and its derivatives. The absolute configuration for 1 was determined upon comparison of the CD spectrum of 1 to those obtained from density functional theory calculations. The structure of 1 is highly unusual, as three guanidine groups are present in one ring system.

• Access this article

  DOI

Phylogenetic analyses of Symbiodinium isolated from Waminoa and their anthozoan hosts in the Ryukyu Archipelago, southern Japan

Kunihiro S.

Symbiosis ( Symbiosis )  76 ( 3 ) 1 - 12   2018.05 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

It is known that the genus Waminoa (order Acoela, Family Convolutidae) associates with anthozoans (Scleractinia, Octocorallia, Zoantharia) and feeds on the mucus of their host. Despite the close relationship between Waminoa and its host species, it is known from phylogenetic analyses of sequences of the internal transcribed spacer 2 of ribosomal DNA (ITS-2) that photosymbiotic Symbiodinium isolated from Waminoa are different from the Symbiodinium of their anthozoan hosts. Additionally, Waminoa inherit their Symbiodinium and Amphidinium via vertical transmission. In the current study, we looked for and collected Waminoa from different anthozoan hosts from the Ryukyu Archipelago in southern Japan, and then examined the Symbiodinium of Waminoa as well as hosts’ Symbiodinium, and utilized sequences of the hyper-variable non-coding region of the plastid minicircle (psbAncr) in order to re-examine the diversity of Symbiodinium within Waminoa. In the resulting psbAncr phylogenetic tree, all Symbiodinium within Waminoa comprised a unique group within Clade C, all with the same genotype in the psbAncr phylogenetic tree. Our results reconfirm that most Waminoa host their own lineage of Symbiodinium, and demonstrate that Waminoa are also found on azooxanthellate anthozoan hosts, as we found Waminoa on Siphonogorgia sp., expanding their potential known habitat. Additionally, two Symbiodinium from Waminoa from both shallow (4 m) and mesophotic (32 m) depths were not included in main group of Symbiodinium from Waminoa in the ITS-2 phylogenetic tree, although we could not acquire psbAncr sequences for these specimens. Therefore it is possible that undetected Symbiodinium diversity may yet exist within Waminoa, and future work at shallow to mesophotic depths examining both zooxanthellate and azooxanthellate hosts may find more Waminoa and Symbiodinium diversity.

• Access this article

  DOI

Rafting in Zoantharia: a hitchhiker's guide to dispersal?

Santos MEA, Reimer JD

Marine pollution bulletin ( Marine Pollution Bulletin )  130   307 - 310   2018.05 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

The increasing availability of human-made structure in the oceans coupled with climate changes may lead to the range expansion of species able to disperse by rafting. In this study, we report on zoantharian species of genera 'saurus, Palythoa, Umimayanthus and Zoanthus covering artificial substrates in locations in both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Moreover, we reviewed observations of additional zoantharians as macrofouling organisms, and discuss the possible role of rafting in the dispersal of this cosmopolitan group. Traits reported to some zoantharian species, such as hermaphroditism and resistance to desiccation, support their dispersal potential by drifting attached to floating objects. Further reports of zoantharian species covering floating artificial structures and natural debris are needed to increase our knowledge of dispersal mechanisms in the oceans. Additionally, this information is essential to monitor and manage possible exotic species invasions, especially for zoantharian species that are common in the aquarium trade.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Molecular Phylogeny Demonstrates the Need for Taxonomic Reconsideration of Species Diversity of the Hydrocoral Genus Millepora (Cnidaria: Hydrozoa) in the Pacific.

Takama O, Fernandez-Silva I, López C, Reimer JD

Zoological science ( Zoological Science )  35 ( 2 ) 123 - 133   2018.04 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Millepora (Cnidaria: Hydrozoa: Milleporidae) spp. are distributed throughout shallow subtropical and tropical marine environments in the Indo-Pacific and Caribbean-Atlantic, and have traditionally been identified using pore characteristics and colony form. Until now, representatives of Millepora spp. on the island of Okinawa-jima, Japan, have been divided into five species; three branching species (Millepora intricata, M. tenera, M. dichotoma), one species with plate-like morphology (M. platyphylla), and one encrusting species (M. exaesa). There have been only a few reports from the Indo-Pacific that have studied the genetic diversity within Millepora spp., although phylogenetic analyses in the Caribbean-Atlantic have proven useful in delimiting closely-related species, while demonstrating that morphologically-based identification systems may have problems. In the present study, we sought to clarify taxonomic confusion of Millepora spp. in the Pacific by using sequence data of the ribosomal internal transcribed spacer (ITS-rDNA) of specimens from Okinawa, Japan and other localities (Johnston Atoll, Great Barrier Reef). Four separate clades were recovered from the ITS-rDNA analyses. Although we examined specimens of all three branching Millepora spp. previously reported from Okinawa-jima Island, in our phylogenetic analyses they were concentrated within a single clade, with only three specimens in other clades. Encrusting Millepora specimens were found within all clades, although it should be noted all species initially start as encrusting forms, and plate-like specimens were found within three clades. Our data also point to the existence of a previously unknown lineage within Millepora characterized by its ability to overgrow live scleractinian corals.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Living fossil <em>Nanipora</em> (Anthozoa: Octocorallia) as the dominant calcifying benthos in a seagrass meadow in the South China Sea

James Reimer, Yee Wah Lau, Wee Hin Boo, Keryea Soong

Matters Select ( Sciencematters )    2018.02 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Speciation among sympatric lineages in the genus Palythoa (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Zoantharia) revealed by morphological comparison, phylogenetic analyses and investigation of spawning period

Mizuyama M

PeerJ ( PeerJ )  2018 ( 7 )   2018 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Stolonifera from shallow waters in the north-western Pacific: a description of a new genus and two new species within the Arulidae (Anthozoa, Octocorallia).

Lau YW, Stokvis FR, van Ofwegen LP, Reimer JD

ZooKeys ( ZooKeys )  2018 ( 790 ) 1 - 19   2018 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

The distribution of reef-dwelling Waminoa flatworms in bays and on capes of Okinawa Island

Biondi P.

Marine Biodiversity ( Marine Biodiversity )  49 ( 1 ) 1 - 9   2017.12 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Waminoa spp. are acoel worms living on the surface of anthozoans. Despite being potential parasites, there is still not much information available regarding the genus’ distribution or host selectivity. The aim of this study was to evaluate the distribution and occurrence of Waminoa on coral reefs along the west coast of Okinawa Main Island (26.5° N, 127.9° E) in southern Japan, comparing sites located on capes with sites located in bays and identifying associated hosts. Scuba surveys were conducted along eight coral reef sites on the west coast of the island, between June and October 2016. Seven out of eight sites showed the presence of Waminoa. Occurrence and associated hosts varied considerably from site to site, and between sites located within bays and those at capes facing the open ocean. Waminoa individuals were significantly more abundant close to the sandy bottom at the lower end of the reef slopes and were always absent in the shallowest 5 m of every site. Waminoa coverage varied depending on the host anthozoan species. No significant differences in coverage were observed within the same host species at different sites. Thus, in Okinawa, the distribution of Waminoa on coral reefs is not random, but has patterns specific to certain anthozoan host species, with the highest occurrences within 10 m in depth from the sandy bottom areas of reefs.

• Access this article

  DOI

Zooxanthellate zoantharians (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia: Zoantharia: Brachycnemina) in the northern Red Sea

Reimer J.D.

Marine Biodiversity ( Marine Biodiversity )  47 ( 4 ) 1079 - 1091   2017.12 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

The Red Sea was one of the first areas of the Indo-Pacific to be investigated by marine taxonomists, and the literature on suborder Brachycnemina (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia: Zoantharia) for this region dates from the early nineteenth century. However, in the last 100 years there has been only one focused study on this group in the Red Sea. In the present study, specimens collected from the Saudi Arabian coast of the northern half of the Red Sea were phylogenetically analyzed by sequencing nuclear internal transcribed spacer regions of ribosomal DNA (ITS-rDNA), mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI), and 16S ribosomal DNA (16S-rDNA). The new results were compared with historical data in the literature and recent results from the Persian Gulf and the southeastern coast of Africa. Results show the presence of six to seven potential Brachycnemina species in the Red Sea; five to six Palythoa species (Palythoa mutuki, P. tuberculosa, P. cf. heliodiscus, P. aff. heliodiscus, and one to two species within the P. sp. "sakurajimensis" group) together with Zoanthus sansibaricus. While P. mutuki, P. tuberculosa, and Z. sansibaricus are known to be widely distributed in the Indo-Pacific, P. cf. heliodiscus and P. sp. "sakurajimensis" have not been reported from the Persian Gulf or the southeastern coast of Africa, and the current results represent large range extensions for these two species. Only one of the observed species, P. aff. heliodiscus, is potentially endemic to the Red Sea, further demonstrating the generally wide distributions of most zooxanthellate Brachycnemina species.

• Access this article

  DOI

Diversity of microbial communities and quantitative chemodiversity in layers of marine sediment cores from a causeway (Kaichu-Doro) in Okinawa Island, Japan

Soliman T.

Frontiers in Microbiology ( Frontiers in Microbiology )  8 ( DEC )   2017.12 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Microbial community diversity and chemodiversity were investigated in marine sediments adjacent to the Okinawan " Kaichu-Doro" Causeway, which was constructed 46 years ago to connect a group of four islands (Henza-jima, Miyagi-jima, Ikei-jima, Hamahiga-jima) to the Okinawan main island. This causeway was not built on pilings, but by land reclamation; hence, it now acts as a long, thin peninsula. The construction of this causeway was previously shown to have influenced the surrounding marine ecosystem, causing ecosystemfragmentation and loss of water circulation. In this study, we collected sediment cores (n = 10) from five paired sites in 1m water depths. Each pair of sites consisted of one site each on the immediate north and south sides of the causeway. Originally the members of each pair were much closer to each other (&lt; 150m) than to other pairs, but now the members of each pair are isolated by the causeway. Each core was 60-80 cm long and was divided into 15-cm layers. We examined the vertical diversity of microbial communities and chemical compounds to determine the correlation between chemodiversity and microbial communities among marine sediment cores and layers. Principal coordinate analyses (PCoA) of detected compounds and of bacterial and archaeal operational taxonomic units (OTUs) revealed that the north and south sides of the causeway are relatively isolated, with each side having unique microbial OTUs. Additionally, some bacterial families (e.g., Acidaminobacteraceae, Rhizobiaceae, and Xanthomonadaceae) were found only on the south side of Kaichu-Doro. Interestingly, we found that the relative abundance of OTUs for some microbial families increased from top to bottom, but this was reversed in some other families. We conclude that the causeway has alteredmicrobial community composition andmetabolite profiles inmarine sediments.

• Access this article

  DOI

On the paraphyly of Cytaeididae and placement of Cytaeis within the suborder Filifera (Hydrozoa: Anthoathecata)

Prudkovsky A.A.

Marine Biodiversity ( Marine Biodiversity )  47 ( 4 ) 1057 - 1064   2017.12 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Identification of hydrozoans of the family Cytaeididae L. Agassiz, 1862 is confused due to their morphological similarity, to the shortage of morphological characteristics, and to a lack of molecular data. In this study, sequences of nuclear and mitochondrial DNA markers were analyzed from hydroids of Cytaeis Eschscholtz, 1829 collected in the southern Red Sea on shells of Nassarius Dum,ril, 1805 (Gastropoda: Nassariidae), along with sequences of Cytaeis and Perarella Stechow, 1922 from GenBank. Analyses revealed the paraphyly of the family Cytaeididae, and indicate that the genus Cytaeis may actually belong to the family Bougainvilliidae Lutken, 1850 (Hydrozoa: Anthoathecata). Perarella species grouped within different families and far from Cytaeis species within phylogenetic trees. Additional studies are necessary to confirm the phylogenetic position and formally revise the taxonomy of Perarella. These results demonstrate the need to utilize molecular sequences in re-assessing the taxonomy and phylogeny of filiferan hydrozoans.

• Access this article

  DOI

Description of the juvenile form of the sea cucumber Thelenota anax H. L. Clark, 1921

Soliman T.

Marine Biodiversity ( Marine Biodiversity )  49 ( 1 ) 1 - 8   2017.11 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Our knowledge of the ecology and habitat of juveniles of many sea cucumber species is limited, due to their cryptic habitats and differing color and shape from adults. In the present study, a juvenile specimen of the sea cucumber Thelenota anax H. L. Clark, 1921, collected from 30 m at Rukan Reef, Okinawa, Japan, is described. We confirmed specific identity using cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) sequences. We show that the pseudotable ossicles in Thelenota are table ossicles, and document synallactid-like ossicles not previously recorded in the Stichopodidae.

• Access this article

  DOI

Nanozoanthus (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Hexacorallia: Zoantharia: Nanozoanthidae) outside of tropical and subtropical waters

Reimer J.

Marine Biodiversity ( Marine Biodiversity )  47 ( 3 ) 965 - 969   2017.09 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Two specimens of the zooxanthellate zoantharian Nanozoanthus aff. harenaceus Fujii and Reimer, 2013 are reported from Hakamagoshi, Kagoshima, Japan (31A degrees 35'N, 135A degrees 35'E). They represent the first record for the genus from temperate waters and from Japan outside of the Ryukyu Islands. The collected specimens, although clearly Nanozoanthus, differ in coloration, number of tentacles, and Symbiodinium density in the tentacles, from the only described species of the genus, N. harenaceus Fujii and Reimer, 2013, which is known only from Okinawa-jima Island, Japan. Additionally, acquired cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) sequences from the two specimens were identical to previously reported sequences of Nanozoanthus sp. from western Australia. Based on these combined morphological and molecular results, the specimens were identified as an undescribed species, Nanozoanthus aff. harenaceus. This northward extension of Nanozoanthus' range demonstrates that this genus is not limited to subtropical and tropical waters as has been previously reported. They may also be found in a wider range of environments than assumed, as all earlier records are from carbonate substrate in coral reef environments and not from volcanic rock as in the current report. Due to its very small polyp size and somewhat cryptic nature, Nanozoanthus may be more widely spread than has been thought, and future research should examine other temperate locations in the Indo-Pacific.

• Access this article

  DOI

Case 3740 — Sphenopidae Hertwig, 1882 (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Hexacorallia: Zoantharia): proposed conservation by being given precedence over Palythoidae Duchassaing de Fombressin & Michelotti, 1860

James Davis Reimer, Martyn E. Y. Low

The Bulletin of Zoological Nomenclature ( The Bulletin of Zoological Nomenclature )  74 ( 1 ) 92 - 92   2017.08 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Shifting communities after typhoon damage on an upper mesophotic reef in Okinawa, Japan

White K.N.

PeerJ ( PeerJ )  5 ( 8 )   2017.08 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Very few studies have been conducted on the long-term effects of typhoon damage on mesophotic coral reefs. This study investigates the long-term community dynamics of damage from Typhoon 17 (Jelawat) in 2012 on the coral community of the upper mesophotic Ryugu Reef in Okinawa, Japan. A shift from foliose to bushy coral morphologies between December 2012 and August 2015 was documented, especially on the area of the reef that was previously recorded to be poor in scleractinian genera diversity and dominated by foliose corals. Comparatively, an area with higher diversity of scleractinian coral genera was observed to be less affected by typhoon damage with more stable community structure due to less change in dominant coral morphologies. Despite some changes in the composition of dominant genera, the generally high coverage of the mesophotic coral community is facilitating the recovery of Ryugu Reef after typhoon damage.

• Access this article

  DOI

Ascension Island shallow-water Zoantharia (Hexacorallia: Cnidaria) and their zooxanthellae (Symbiodinium)

Reimer J.

Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom ( Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom )  97 ( 4 ) 695 - 703   2017.06 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

This is the first report on the Zoantharia fauna (Cnidaria: Hexacorallia) of the isolated oceanic island of Ascension, southern Atlantic, where zoantharians are a dominant component of the shallow-water benthos. Specimens from two expeditions (1983, 2012) were examined regarding external morphology and molecular phylogeny using three DNA markers, which confirmed the presence of four zoantharian species: Palythoa caribaeorum; Palythoa aff. clavata; Parazoanthus swiftii; and Zoanthus sp. Two of these, Palythoa aff. clavata and Parazoanthus swiftii, were previously only known from the western Atlantic and Caribbean. Molecular examination of the zooxanthellae (=Symbiodinium spp.) of Palythoa specimens showed that they were in association with only one type, subclade C1.

• Access this article

  DOI

Rare zooxanthellate Nanipora octocoral (Helioporacea) in the Gulf of Thailand

Plaza P.U.

Marine Biodiversity ( Marine Biodiversity )  48 ( 4 ) 1 - 7   2017.04 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

The octocoral Nanipora kamurai is the fifth species of octocoral described with an aragonite skeleton. So far, it has only been known from a single location in Okinawa, Japan. Here, we report on the second recorded location of the genus Nanipora, in the Gulf of Thailand, where its colonies were found in relatively high densities. A total of 143 separate Nanipora colonies were counted in transects on a coral reef at Koh Tao, Thailand. They were found living on dead coral skeletons and on the shell of a living Tridacna squamosa clam. Phylogenetic analyses of cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 (COI) and mitochondrial mismatch repair protein (mtMutS) sequences showed that they belong to N. kamurai or to a close relative of this species. Additionally, a symbiotic relationship with Symbiodinium was observed for the first time in Nanipora, confirmed by sequences of the internal transcribed spacer region of ribosomal DNA (ITS-rDNA) of the dinoflagellate.

• Access this article

  DOI

Evolutionary history of the extant amphioxus lineage with shallow-branching diversification

Igawa T.

Scientific Reports ( Scientific Reports )  7 ( 1 )   2017.04 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Amphioxus or lancelets have been regarded as a key animal in understanding the origin of vertebrates. However, the evolutionary history within this lineage remains unexplored. As the amphioxus lineage has likely been separated from other chordates for a very long time and displays a marked left-right asymmetry, its evolutionary history is potentially helpful in better understanding chordate and vertebrate origins. We studied the phylogenetic relationships within the extant amphioxus lineage based on mitochondrial genomes incorporating new Asymmetron and Epigonichthys populations, and based on previously reported nuclear transcriptomes. The resulting tree patterns are consistent, showing the Asymmetron clade diverging first, followed by the Epigonichthys and Branchiostoma clades splitting. Divergence time estimates based on nuclear transcriptomes with vertebrate calibrations support a shallow diversification of the extant amphioxus lineage in the Tertiary. These estimates fit well with the closure of seaways between oceans by continental drift, ocean currents, and present geographical distributions, and suggest a long cryptic history from the origin of amphioxus to its most recent diversification. Deduced character polarities based on phylogenetic analyses suggest that the common ancestor of the extant amphioxus existed in a tiny epibenthic state with larva-like appearance of extant amphioxus, likely with ciliate epidermis.

• Access this article

  DOI

Diversity of Zoantharia (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia) at Dongsha Atoll in the South China Sea

Reimer J.

Regional Studies in Marine Science ( Regional Studies in Marine Science )  12   49 - 57   2017.04 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Dongsha Atoll is the largest coral atoll in the South China Sea (SCS), and is expected to harbor high levels of biodiversity as the SCS is located adjacent to the recognized center of maximum marine biodiversity in the central Indo-Pacific (CIP). However, due to its relative isolation, the biodiversity of Dongsha Atoll has not yet been well investigated for most marine taxa. In this study, we report on findings from our survey in 2016 that focused on the order Zoantharia, for which only sporadic previous reports exist from the SCS. Our results indicate some species such as Palythoa tuberculosa are very common around Dongsha Atoll, as well as the presence of at least three undescribed species, including one species only found thus far at the atoll. Overall, we recorded 16 species of Zoantharia from Dongsha Atoll, bringing the total number of zoantharian species in the SCS to 22, close to numbers reported from the CIP (=24 spp.) and southern Japan (=28 spp.). These findings demonstrate the importance of protecting the biodiversity of Dongsha Atoll, and also, given the limited survey coverage, the potential for undiscovered biodiversity in the SCS. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

• Access this article

  DOI

Zoantharian abundance in coral reef benthic communities at Terengganu Islands, Malaysia

Wee H.B.

Regional Studies in Marine Science ( Regional Studies in Marine Science )  12   58 - 63   2017.04 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Zooxanthellate zoantharians of the genera Zoanthus and Palythoa are increasingly being studied in baseline work such as confirming distributions and long-term monitoring studies in shallow subtropical and tropical waters. There is some evidence that suggests that these genera increase in abundance as an ecological 'phase shift' response to ecological degradation. However, such studies have been limited to a few regions, including the Greater Caribbean, Brazil, and Japan, with little work performed in the waters of Southeast Asia and the central Indo-Pacific (CIP). We investigated changes in zoantharian cover within coral reef benthic communities around Terengganu, Malaysia, between July 2013 and September 2014, utilizing the Coral Video Transect method to survey the benthic communities of nine coral reefs. Zoantharian abundance was observed to be inversely proportionate to other major benthic groups (algae, dead corals, hard corals). Overall, zoantharians thrived in reefs with lower biological diversity of reef-building corals. Additionally, at one site (Pasir Akar) we documented a very sudden and large increase of zoantharian cover over two months from March to May 2014. This increase occurred after the reef was heavily damaged during monsoon season. Our results demonstrate that zoantharians are an understudied yet common major component of reefs in Southeast Asia, and that large changes in their abundance can occur very rapidly. Further research investigating longer-term trends of zoantharian abundance in Southeast Asia and the CIP are needed to ascertain if dramatic increases are part of a 'normal' recovery process or represent phase shifts in the benthic community structure of coral reefs. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

• Access this article

  DOI

Latitudinal variation in the symbiotic dinoflagellate Symbiodinium of the common reef zoantharian Palythoa tuberculosa on the Saudi Arabian coast of the Red Sea

Reimer J.D.

Journal of Biogeography ( Journal of Biogeography )  44 ( 3 ) 661 - 673   2017.03 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

AimThe Red Sea presents an ideal setting to explore the variability of Symbiodinium over environmental, latitudinal and geographical gradients. We used sequences from two molecular markers to examine genetic diversity of Symbiodinium associated with the widely distributed zoantharian Palythoa tuberculosa in the northern and central Red Sea. LocationNorthern and central Red Sea. MethodsSpecimens (n=329) were collected from 15 locations. Sequence data from nuclear ribosomal ITS2 (n=269) and chloroplast minicircle psbA(ncr) (n=173) were phylogenetically analysed (maximum likelihood, neighbour joining), and Symbiodinium types identified for each P. tuberculosa colony. To establish whether environment was a strong predictor of Symbiodinium psbA(ncr) lineage, SST, chlorophyll-a, salinity, and depth data were fit into a multinomial logistic regression using the package VGAM in the R statistical environment. ResultsBased on ITS2 and psbA(ncr) results, P. tuberculosa colonies were shown to be in symbioses with Symbiodinium clade C (n=172) and clade D (n=1). Within clade C, four psbA(ncr) lineages were observed; closely related lineages designated Pt-1-a and Pt-1-b, and closely related lineages Pt-3-a and Pt-3-b. By location, Pt-1-a dominated the sites within the Gulf of Aqaba (c.86%, 37/43 colonies). At the entrance to the Gulf of Aqaba, Pt-3-a dominated (c.88%, 15/17), while the more southern remaining sites in the Red Sea were dominated by Pt-3-b (c.78%, 89/113). Main conclusionsMultinomial logistic regression analyses established that predictions based on the combination of temperature, chlorophyll-a and salinity accurately reflected symbiont distributions in the central and northern Red Sea. Palythoa tuberculosa host Pt-1-a in the coldest region, the Gulf of Aqaba (annual average SST=24.5-25.0 degrees C), while immediately to the south Pt-3-a dominates (SST=26.0-26.5 degrees C), with warmest southern sites dominated by Pt-3-b (SST &gt;26.5 degrees C). The Gulf of Aqaba is a unique environment, and more research on Symbiodinium outside the Gulf is required to understand symbiont diversity patterns within the Red Sea.

• Access this article

  DOI

Editorial: biodiversity of Caribbean coral reefs (with a focus on the Dutch Caribbean)

Hoeksema B.W.

Marine Biodiversity ( Marine Biodiversity )  47 ( 1 ) 1 - 10   2017.03 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (other science council materials etc.)

• Access this article

  DOI

Investigating the effects of disturbed beaches on crustacean biota in Okinawa, Japan

Mottaghi A.

Regional Studies in Marine Science ( Regional Studies in Marine Science )  10   75 - 80   2017.02 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Subtropical Okinawa Island is known for its high marine biodiversity, yet relatively little work has been performed on examining the impacts of coastal development on its marine ecosystems. In this study, we examined three sandy disturbed beaches (including two artificial beaches) on three different sides of the island (artificial Ginowan Tropical Beach on the west coast, artificial Azama San-san Beach on the east coast, public Odo John Man Beach on the south coast) to investigate if differences exist in the environment and crustacean biota between paired disturbed and natural beaches. We conducted seasonal surveys (n = 4 surveys) by placing quadrats at three paired locations (artificial/disturbed and natural beaches at each location, to collect and record the diversity of infaunal crustacean (isopods and amphipods) taxa. Amphipods and isopods are basal parts of the food chain and therefore many marine creatures' diets contain them directly or indirectly, and they have been used in many studies as bioindicators. As well, environmental parameters including sand grain size, water temperature, and seawater quality (salinity, dissolved oxygen content, particulate organic matter, turbidity, conductivity, pH, phosphate, nitrite, nitrate, ammonium levels) were obtained from each site during each survey. The results showed that while water nutrients, sand composition, and water quality were very similar between paired disturbed and natural beaches, disturbed beaches had significantly less biodiversity. These results show that despite no obvious effects on water nutrients or quality, disturbed and artificial beaches influence the infaunal crustacean biodiversity/community in the classic manner of a disturbance. Furthermore, our results indicate that amphipods may be better indicators of disturbance compared to isopods, as the numbers of isopods were too low to be used in statistically robust analyses. With increasing tourism and corresponding development of artificial beaches in Okinawa Island, it is clear more research needs to be done on this subject. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

• Access this article

  DOI

Observations of coral-dwelling gall crabs (Cryptochiridae) in the intertidal zone of Odo Beach (Okinawa, Japan)

SET van, der Meij, BT Reijnen, JD Reimer

Fauna Ryukyuana   37   7 - 9   2017.01 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (other science council materials etc.)

Disappearance and return of an outbreak of the coral-killing cyanobacteriosponge terpios hoshinota in Southern Japan

Yomogida M.

Zoological Studies ( Zoological Studies )  56   2017 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Masashi Yomogida, Masaru Mizuyama, Toshiki Kubomura, and James Davis Reimer (2017) Terpios hoshinota is cyanobacteriosponge that can cause serious damage to coral reef ecosystems by undergoing rapid breakouts in which it smothers and encrusts hard substrates, killing living sessile benthic organisms and reducing biodiversity of the affected area. The reasons for these outbreaks are still unclear, as are long- term prognoses of affected reefs. Some reports have suggested outbreaks may not be permanent, but very little long- term monitoring information exists. In this study, we report on a T. hoshinota outbreak (similar to 24% coverage) at Yakomo, Okinoerabu-jima Island, Kagoshima, Japan between 2010 to 2014. In this period, the existing outbreak was seen to almost completely disappear (similar to 0%) after unusually severe Typhoon Songda passed by in early June 2011. After this, macroalgae and a cyanobacterial bloom became the dominant benthos, but by September 2014, T. hoshinota coverage had recovered to approximately half of its pre-Typhoon coverage, suggesting the conditions that had caused the outbreak still persisted at Yakomo. While the conditions promoting T. hoshinota growth at this site remain uncertain, it appears that subtropical typhoons could play an important role in the dynamics of T. hoshinota outbreaks and disappearances.

• Access this article

  DOI

A preliminary survey of zoantharian endosymbionts shows high genetic variation over small geographic scales on Okinawa-jima Island, Japan.

Noda H, Parkinson JE, Yang SY, Reimer JD

PeerJ ( PeerJ )  5 ( 10 ) e3740   2017 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Symbiotic dinoflagellates (genus Symbiodinium) shape the responses of their host reef organisms to environmental variability and climate change. To date, the biogeography of Symbiodinium has been investigated primarily through phylogenetic analyses of the ribosomal internal transcribed spacer 2 region. Although the marker can approximate species-level diversity, recent work has demonstrated that faster-evolving genes can resolve otherwise hidden species and population lineages, and that this diversity is often distributed over much finer geographical and environmental scales than previously recognized. Here, we use the noncoding region of the chloroplast psbA gene (psbA(ncr)) to examine genetic diversity among clade C Symbiodinium associating with the common reef zoantharian Palythoa tuberculosa on Okinawa-jima Island, Japan. We identify four closely related Symbiodinium psbA(ncr) lineages including one common generalist and two potential specialists that appear to be associated with particular microhabitats. The sea surface temperature differences that distinguish these habitats are smaller than those usually investigated, suggesting that future biogeographic surveys of Symbiodinium should incorporate fine scale environmental information as well as fine scale molecular data to accurately determine species diversity and their distributions.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Three new species and the molecular phylogeny of Antipathozoanthus from the Indo-Pacific Ocean (Anthozoa, Hexacorallia, Zoantharia).

Kise H, Fujii T, Masucci GD, Biondi P, Reimer JD

ZooKeys ( ZooKeys )  2017 ( 725 ) 97 - 122   2017 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

In this study, three new species of macrocnemic zoantharians (Hexacorallia, Zoantharia) are described from localities in the Indo-Pacific Ocean including the Red Sea, the Maldives, Palau, and southern Japan: Antipathozoanthus obscurus sp. n., A. remengesaui sp. n., and A. cavernus sp. n. Although the genus Antipathozoanthus is currently restricted to species living on antipatharians, A. obscurus sp. n. is not associated with any living substrate and instead is found on coral reef carbonate substrate within narrow caves or cracks. The two new species that have association with antipatharians, A. remengesaui sp. n. and A. cavernus sp. n., can be distinguished by their relative coenenchyme development and the antipatharian species that each uses as substrate. Additionally, all new species described in this study have unique nuclear internal transcribed spacer region of ribosomal DNA (ITS-rDNA) sequences. Our results indicate that more phylogenetic studies focusing on increasing the numbers of species examined within each of the genera of Parazoanthidae are required in order to better understand the evolutionary history of substrate specificity within the family Parazoanthidae.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Seasonal Abundance of Sphaeromatidae (Crustacea: Isopoda) from Sandy Beaches in Okinawa-jima Island, Japan.

Mottaghi, A, Shimomura, M, Reimer, J. D

South Pacific Studies   38 ( 1 ) 23 - 29   2017 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

Rarity of Nanipora kamurai (Anthozoa: Octocorallia: Helioporacea) at its type locality

Miyazaki Y.

Marine Biodiversity ( Marine Biodiversity )  46 ( 4 ) 917 - 921   2016.12 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

The recently described aragonite skeleton-forming octocoral species Nanipora kamurai (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Octocorallia: Helioporacea) is known from only one locality in Okinawa, Japan. This locality, Ama Beach on Zamami Island, is a shallow (1 to 1.5 m deep) sandy reef moat popular with recreational swimmers and snorkelers during summer months. Additionally, the species has been reported to be rare at this site, although no concrete survey data existed. This study quantitatively investigated the rarity of N. kamurai at this site via examining all rocks and rubble within a transect survey (n = 6) of 2400 m(2). Our results show that N. kamurai is indeed low in number, with only eight colonies found over the entire survey area. Of coral rubble and rocks examined, only slightly more than 1 % of rocks had N. kamurai colonies (8/739 rocks), for a density of 0.003 colonies per m(2). As this species is low in abundance and known from only Ama Beach, local management to ensure the designated recreational swimming area at this location should be undertaken.

• Access this article

  DOI

Amphioxus mouth after dorso-ventral inversion

Takao Kaji, James D. Reimer, Arseniy R. Morov, Shigeru Kuratani, Kinya Yasui

Zoological Letters ( Springer Science and Business Media LLC )  2 ( 1 )   2016.12 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

An aquarium hobbyist poisoning: Identification of new palytoxins in Palythoa cf. toxica and complete detoxification of the aquarium water by activated carbon.

Tartaglione L, Pelin M, Morpurgo M, Dell'Aversano C, Montenegro J, Sacco G, Sosa S, Reimer JD, Ciminiello P, Tubaro A

Toxicon : official journal of the International Society on Toxinology ( Toxicon )  121   41 - 50   2016.10 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Palytoxin (PLTX) is a lethal natural toxin often found in Palythoa zoantharians that, together with its congeners, may induce adverse effects in humans after inhalation of toxic aerosols both in open-air and domestic environments, namely in the vicinity of public and private aquaria. In this study, we describe a poisoning of an aquarium hobbyist who was hospitalized after handling a PLTXs-containing zoantharian hexacoral. Furthermore, we provide evidence for water detoxification. The zoantharian was morphologically and genetically identified as Palythoa cf. toxica (Cnidaria: Anthozoa). Palytoxin itself and two new PLTX congeners, a hydroxyPLTX and a deoxyPLTX, were detected and structurally identified by liquid chromatography high resolution multiple stage mass spectrometry (LC-HRMSn, n = 1, 2). Total and individual toxins were quantified by LC-HRMS and sandwich ELISA both in the zoantharian (93.4 and 96.80 mu g/g, respectively) and in the transport water (48.3 and 42.56 mu g/mL, respectively), with an excellent mean bias of 1.3% between the techniques. Activated carbon adsorbed 99.7% of PLTXs contained in the seawater and this represents a good strategy for preventing aquarium hobbyist poisonings. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Extremely low genetic variability within and among locations of the greenfish holothurian Stichopus chloronotus Brandt, 1835 in Okinawa, Japan

Soliman T.

PeerJ ( PeerJ )  4 ( 9 )   2016.09 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

The greenfish sea cucumber Stichopus chloronotus is an economically and ecologically important sea cucumber species throughout its range. This species is widely distributed, inhabiting coral reefs of the Indo-Pacific Ocean. Our study evaluated population genetic structure and levels of genetic diversity in southern Japan. A total of 180 individuals were collected frorn eight locations from Okinawa and Okinoerabu Islands and sequenced using mitochondria' 16S ribosomal DNA (16S) and nuclear histone H3 (H3) gene. Only three 16S haplotypes were detected (518 bp) with haplotype diversity ranging from 0 to 0.56 and nucleotide diversity from 0 to 0.1%. H3 showed no variation among the studied locations. It is plausible that such results could be due to a shift to asexual reproduction. Additionally, the presence of the species on the east coast of Okinawa could only be detected in one location arid all individuals consisted of a single haplotype. Genetic differences between the east and west coasts of Okinawa have been noticed in other coral reef organisms, and attributed to either ecological or biogeographical historical differences between the coasts due to differing levels of isolation during Pleistocene ice ages. Results from the present study should inform management and conservation policies of S. chloronotus in southern Japan.

• Access this article

  DOI

Overview of the order Zoantharia (Cnidaria: Anthozoa) in Brazil

Santos M.E.A.

Marine Biodiversity ( Marine Biodiversity )  46 ( 3 ) 547 - 559   2016.09 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Zoantharia (Hexacorallia) is an order of benthic cnidarians, which are known to play an important ecological role in many marine ecosystems. Although the order has a cosmopolitan distribution, including the tropical southwestern Atlantic, research on Brazilian zoantharian species diversity and distribution patterns is lacking. In order to start addressing this gap, we conducted shallow-water coastal and oceanic island sampling in parallel with an extensive literature review to summarize the knowledge of the order Zoantharia from Brazil. Additionally, mitochondrial 16S ribosomal DNA and cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) sequences from specimens were determined to confirm their identity and phylogenetic position within the order. Our results show the presence of at least 13 zoantharian species in Brazilian waters, including first records of Palythoa aff. clavata and Zoanthus aff. pulchellus. Moreover, range extensions were confirmed for Palythoa caribaeorum, P. grandiflora, P. variabilis, Zoanthus pulchellus, and Parazoanthus swiftii. We also present the first report on the distribution patterns for all studied species in Brazil. The current study is expected to provide a baseline for further surveys in the tropical southwestern Atlantic, where Zoantharia species richness is still understudied and therefore very likely underestimated.

• Access this article

  DOI

Genetic population structure and low genetic diversity in the over-exploited sea cucumber Holothuria edulis Lesson, 1830 (Echinodermata: Holothuroidea) in Okinawa Island

Soliman T.

Conservation Genetics ( Conservation Genetics )  17 ( 4 ) 811 - 821   2016.08 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Understanding genetic connectivity is fundamental for ecosystem-based management of marine resources. Here we investigate the metapopulation structure of the edible sea cucumber Holothuria edulis Lesson, 1830 across Okinawa Island, Japan. This species is of economic and ecological importance and is distributed from the Red Sea to Hawai'i. We examined sequence variation in fragments of mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) and 16S ribosomal RNA (16S), and nuclear histone (H3) at six locations across Okinawa Island. We found higher haplotype diversity for mtDNA (COI: Hd = 0.69 and 16S: Hd = 0.67) and higher heterozygosity of nDNA (H3: H (E) = 0.39) in populations from the west coast of Okinawa compared to individuals from populations on the east coast (COI: Hd = 0.40; 16S: Hd = 0.21; H3: H (E) = 0.14). Overall population structure was significant (AMOVA results for COI: I broken vertical bar (ST) = 0.49, P < 0.0001; 16S: I broken vertical bar (ST) = 0.34, P < 0.0001; H3: I broken vertical bar (ST) = 0.12, P < 0.0001). One population in the east, Uruma, showed elevated pairwise I broken vertical bar (ST) values in comparisons with all other sites and a marked reduction of genetic diversity (COI: Hd = 0.25 and 16S: Hd = 0.24), possibly as a consequence of a shift to a more dominant asexual reproduction mode. Recent reports have indicated that coastal development in this area influences many marine organisms, and ecosystem degradation in this location could cause the observed decrease of genetic diversity and isolation of H. edulis in Uruma. Our study should provide valuable data to help with the urgently needed management of sea cucumber populations in Okinawa, and indicates particular attention needs to be paid to vulnerable locations.

• Access this article

  DOI

Palythoa heideri Carlgren, 1954, objective synonym and valid name for the zoantharian currently known as Palythoa singaporensis Pax & Müller, 1956 (Cnidaria: Hexacorallia: Zoantharia: Sphenopidae)

MEY Low, JD Reimer

  9   47 - 48   2016.06 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (other science council materials etc.)

The Automated Recovery Timer (ART): An alternative to traditional `burnwire'- based subsea instrument recovery devices

GB Johnson, J Hess, JD Reimer

SOJ Aquatic Research   1   1 - 4   2016.05 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (other science council materials etc.)

Sponges hosting the zoantharia-associated crab Platypodiella spectabilis at St. Eustatius, Dutch Caribbean

Garcia-Hernandez J.

Coral Reefs ( Coral Reefs )  35 ( 1 ) 209 - 209   2016.03 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Distribution of palytoxin in coral reef organisms living in close proximity to an aggregation of Palythoa tuberculosa

Aratake S.

Toxicon ( Toxicon )  111   86 - 90   2016.03 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Palytoxin is a strong marine toxin that was first isolated from the zoantharian Palythoa toxica and later from other species of the genus Palythoa. How the toxin gets into the animal remains an unsolved question. To study the specificity of palytoxin distribution, the toxin content of Palythoa tuberculosa and other organisms living in close association on a coral reef in Okinawa were analysed by mass spectrometry. In contrast to earlier reports, palytoxin was only detected in P. tuberculosa colonies. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

• Access this article

  DOI

Green fluorescence of Cytaeis hydroids living in association with Nassarius gastropods in the red sea

Prudkovsky A.A.

PLoS ONE ( PLoS ONE )  11 ( 2 )   2016.02 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Green Fluorescent Proteins (GFPs) have been reported from a wide diversity of medusae, but only a few observations of green fluorescence have been reported for hydroid colonies. In this study, we report on fluorescence displayed by hydroid polyps of the genus Cytaeis Eschscholtz, 1829 (Hydrozoa: Anthoathecata: Filifera) found at night time in the southern Red Sea (Saudi Arabia) living on shells of the gastropod Nassarius margaritifer (Dunker, 1847) (Neogastropoda: Buccinoidea: Nassariidae). We examined the fluorescence of these polyps and compare with previously reported data. Intensive green fluorescence with a spectral peak at 518 nm was detected in the hypostome of the Cytaeis polyps, unlike in previous reports that reported fluorescence either in the basal parts of polyps or in other locations on hydroid colonies. These results suggest that fluorescence may be widespread not only in medusae, but also in polyps, and also suggests that the patterns of fluorescence localization can vary in closely related species. The fluorescence of polyps may be potentially useful for field identification of cryptic species and study of geographical distributions of such hydroids and their hosts.

• Access this article

  DOI

The resurrection of the genus Bergia (Anthozoa, Zoantharia, Parazoanthidae)

Montenegro J.

Systematics and Biodiversity ( Systematics and Biodiversity )  14 ( 1 ) 63 - 73   2016.01 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

The genus Bergia was established by Duchassaing de Fonbressin and Michelotti in 1860, for two species, Bergia catelunaris and B. vialactea. Subsequently, in 1903 Duerden recognized these two species as conspecific, and used B. catelunaris in favour of B. vialactea, and transferred B. catelunaris to the genus Parazoanthus. However, over the last decade, it has been found that the genus Parazoanthus is actually polyphyletic and therefore it has gradually been divided and redefined. Based on phylogenetic analyses, Parazoanthus sensu stricto was recently limited to species which form associations with sponges, but it still comprised of three distinctive and monophyletic subclades. Of these clades, one Parazoanthus clade contains the type species for Parazoanthus, P. axinellae, while another clade was recently described as the genus Umimayanthus based on mitochondrial 16S-rDNA sequences. However, the other remaining Parazoanthus clade contains P. catenularis, the original type species of the genus Bergia. Based on a concatenated set of published data for five molecular markers (18S-rDNA, 28S-rDNA, ITS1/5.8S/ITS2-rDNA, 16S-rDNA and COI-DNA), this study confirms the monophyly of Bergia in the context of Parazoanthidae. The phylogenetic analyses strongly support the resurrection of the genus Bergia as a valid taxonomic unit.

• Access this article

  DOI

Preliminary analyses reveal strong genetic structure in populations of Leucothoe vulgaris (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Leucothoidae) from Okinawa, Japan

White K.

Systematics and Biodiversity ( Systematics and Biodiversity )  14 ( 1 ) 55 - 62   2016.01 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Preliminary phylogenetic analyses of specimens of a leucothoid amphipod, Leucothoe vulgaris, collected from sponges, ascidians, and coral rubble from Okinawa, Japan, were completed using mitochondrial COI and nuclear 18S ribosomal DNA sequences. Analyses of sequences from 83 specimens demonstrate that populations of L. vulgaris likely entail at least two cryptic species, which are reciprocally monophyletic and reproductively isolated. These two potentially cryptic species live in sympatry but are apparently morphologically identical, suggesting a geographically driven divergence process and secondary contact. Within each clade, two major subclades corresponding to the east and west coast of Okinawa Island were present, with divergence times of approximately 1.61-1.83 mya. This last result suggests a role of Pleistocene sea level changes in the current patterns of intra-specific genetic structure and highlights the need for a more comprehensive sampling of L. vulgaris throughout the Indo-west Pacific.

• Access this article

  DOI

First record of the genus Sphenopus (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia: Zoantharia) from Japan

JD Reimer, T Higashiji, M Nonaka

Fauna Ryukyuana   29   37 - 40   2016.01 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (other science council materials etc.)

Unexpected diversity and a new species of Epizoanthus (Anthozoa, Hexacorallia) attached to eunicid worm tubes from the Pacific Ocean.

Kise H, Reimer JD

ZooKeys ( ZooKeys )  2016 ( 562 ) 49 - 71   2016 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Epizoanthus species are generally found in association with other marine invertebrates such as hermit crabs and gastropods. Although Epizoanthus spp. are relatively common, there is limited information about their diversity and ecology due to their habitats or hosts, often being below the depths of SCUBA diving (&gt;similar to 50 m). In particular, the Epizoanthus fauna of the Indo-Pacific Ocean remains poorly understood. In this study, the diversity of Epizoanthus species associated with eunicid worm tubes from shallow waters in the Pacific Ocean we investigated using molecular analyses (mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 = COI, mitochondrial 16S ribosomal DNA = mt 16S-rDNA, nuclear internal transcribed spacer region of ribosomal DNA = ITS-rDNA) combined with morphological and ecological data. The combined data set leads us to describe two new species; Epizoanthus inazuma sp. n. and Epizoanthus beriber sp. n. Both new species are found in low-light environments: E. inazuma sp. n. on mesophotic coral reef slopes and reef floors, or on the sides of overhangs; E. beriber sp. n. has only been found in caves. Morphological characteristics of these two new species are very similar to E. illoricatus Tischbierek, 1930 but the two new species are genetically distinct. Mesentery numbers and coloration of polyps may be useful diagnostic characteristics among eunicid-associated Epizoanthus species. These results demonstrate that there is high potential for other potentially undescribed zoantharian species, particularly in underwater cave habitats.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

A new solitary free-living species of the genus Sphenopus (Cnidaria, Anthozoa, Zoantharia, Sphenopidae) from Okinawa-jima Island, Japan.

Fujii T, Reimer JD

ZooKeys ( ZooKeys )  2016 ( 606 ) 11 - 24   2016 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

A new species of free-living solitary zoantharian is described from Okinawa, Japan. Sphenopus exilis sp. n. occurs on silty seafloors in Kin Bay and Oura Bay on the east coast of Okinawa-jima Island. Sphenopus exilis sp. n. is easily distinguished from other Sphenopus species by its small polyp size and slender shape, although there were relatively few differences between Sphenopus exilis sp. n. and S. marsupialis in the molecular phylogenetic analyses. Currently, very little is known about the ecology and diversity of Sphenopus species. Thus, reviewing each species carefully via combined morphological and molecular analyses by using newly obtained specimens from type localities is required to clearly understand and distinguish the species within the genus Sphenopus.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

A citizen science approach to monitoring bleaching in the zoantharian Palythoa tuberculosa.

Parkinson JE, Yang SY, Kawamura I, Byron G, Todd PA, Reimer JD

PeerJ ( PeerJ )  4 ( 3 ) e1815   2016 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Coral reef bleaching events are expected to become more frequent and severe in the near future as climate changes. The zoantharian Palythoa tuberculosa bleaches earlier than many scleractinian corals and may serve as an indicator species. Basic monitoring of such species could help to detect and even anticipate bleaching events, especially in areas where more sophisticated approaches that rely on buoy or satellite measurements of sea surface temperature are unavailable or too coarse. One simple and inexpensive monitoring method involves training volunteers to record observations of host color as a proxy for symbiosis quality. Here, we trained university students to take the 'color fingerprint' of a reef by assessing the color of multiple randomly selected colonies of P. tuberculosa at one time point in Okinawa Island, Japan. We tested the reliability of the students' color scores and whether they matched expectations based on previous monthly monitoring of tagged colonies at the same locations. We also measured three traditional metrics of symbiosis quality for comparison: symbiont morphological condition, cell density, and chlorophyll a content. We found that P. tuberculosa color score, although highly correlated among observers, provided little predictive power for the other variables. This was likely due to inherent variation in colony color among generally healthy zoantharians in midwinter, as well as low sample size and brief training owing to the course structure. Despite certain limitations of P. tuberculosa as a focal organism, the citizen science approach to color monitoring has promise, and we outline steps that could improve similar efforts in the future.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

The order Zoantharia Rafinesque, 1815 (Cnidaria, Anthozoa: Hexacorallia): supraspecific classification and nomenclature.

Low ME, Sinniger F, Reimer JD

ZooKeys ( ZooKeys )  2016 ( 641 ) 1 - 80   2016 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Many supraspecific zoantharian names have long and complicated histories. The present list is provided to advise researchers on the current state of supraspecific nomenclature of the zoantharians, particularly given the recent attention paid to the taxonomy, phylogeny, and biodiversity of this order. At the same time, several taxonomic issues brought to light by recent research are resolved. Details on the taxonomic and nomenclatural history of most groups are provided, along with appendices of invalid supraspecific names.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

沖縄島西海岸における中深度サンゴ礁生態系に関する研究

水山克, 大原拓, 大原拓, WEINSTEIN David, 藤井琢磨, 藤井琢磨, MCCLELLAND Ty, MONTENEGRO Javier, 式場はるか, 浅海竜司, YANG Sung‐yin, 河村伊織, REIMER James Davis

沖縄生物学会誌   ( 54 ) 54 - 55   2016

Type of publication: Research paper (other science council materials etc.)

Phylogenetic characterization of two echinoid species of the southeastern Mediterranean, off Egypt

Soliman T.

Egyptian Journal of Aquatic Research ( Egyptian Journal of Aquatic Research )  41 ( 4 ) 359 - 365   2015.12 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

In this study we investigated the phylogenetics of two sea urchin species, Arbacia lixula and Paracentrotus lividus from the Mediterranean Sea. Specimens were collected from the east coast of Alexandria City, Egypt. Pigmentation examination showed four sympatric color morphotypes (black, purple, reddish brown, and olive green). Mitochondrial DNA was extracted from specimens and mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) and 16S ribosomal RNA (16S) were sequenced. The results showed that all black specimens constituted the species A. lixula. All other colors belonged to P. lividus, with no apparent differentiation between color morphotypes. Moreover, P. lividus showed high haplotype diversity (COI H = 0.9500 and 16S H = 0.8580) and low values of nucleotide diversity (COI π = 0.0075 and 16S π = 0.0049), indicating a high degree of polymorphism within this species. This study represents the first attempt at DNA barcoding of echinoid species in the southeast Mediterranean off the Egyptian coast, and will provide a base for future phylogenetic analyses.

• Access this article

  DOI

Yellow tails in the Red Sea: Phylogeography of the Indo-Pacific goatfish Mulloidichthys flavolineatus reveals isolation in peripheral provinces and cryptic evolutionary lineages

Fernandez-Silva I.

Journal of Biogeography ( Journal of Biogeography )  42 ( 12 ) 2402 - 2413   2015.12 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Aim Broadly distributed reef fishes tend to have high gene flow mediated by a pelagic larval phase. Here, we survey a reef-associated fish distributed across half the tropical oceans, from the Red Sea to the central Pacific. Our goal is to determine whether genetic structure of the broadly distributed Yellowstripe Goatfish (Mulloidichthys flavolineatus) is defined by biogeographical barriers, or facilitated via larval dispersal. Location Red Sea, Indian Ocean, Pacific Ocean Methods Specimens were obtained at 19 locations from the Red Sea to Hawai'i. Genetic data include mtDNA cytochrome b (n = 217) and 12 microsatellite loci (n = 185). Analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA), structure, a parsimony network and coalescence analyses were used to resolve recent population history and connectivity. Results Population structure was significant (mtDNA Phi(ST) = 0.68, P &lt; 0.001; microsatellite F-ST = 0.08, P &lt; 0.001), but mostly driven by samples from the North-western (NW) Indian Ocean (including the Red Sea) and Hawai'i. There was little population structure across the Indian Ocean to the central Pacific. Hawai'i was distinguished as an isolated population (mtDNA Phi(ST) = 0.03-0.08, P = n.s.; microsatellites F-ST = 0.05-0.10, P &lt; 0.001). Specimens from the NW Indian Ocean clustered as a distinct phylogenetic lineage that diverged approximately 493 ka (d = 1.7%), which indicates that these fish persisted in isolation through several Pleistocene glacial cycles. Main conclusions These data reinforce the emerging themes that: (1) phylogeographical breaks within species often coincide with biogeographical breaks based on species distributions, and (2) populations on the periphery of the range (NW Indian Ocean and Hawai'i) are isolated and may be evolutionary incubators producing new species.

• Access this article

  DOI

Zoantharia (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Hexacorallia) of the south china sea and gulf of thailand: A species list based on past reports and new photographic records

Reimer J.

Raffles Bulletin of Zoology ( Raffles Bulletin of Zoology )  63   334 - 356   2015.09

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

Zoantharia (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Hexacorallia) of the south china sea and gulf of thailand: A species list based on past reports and new photographic records

Reimer JD, HB Wee, A Put Jr, BW Hoeksema

Raffles Bulletin of Zoology ( Raffles Bulletin of Zoology )  63   334 - 356   2015.09 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

Colony-specific investigations reveal highly variable responses among individual corals to ocean acidification and warming.

Kavousi J, Reimer JD, Tanaka Y, Nakamura T

Marine environmental research ( Marine Environmental Research )  109   9 - 20   2015.08 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

As anthropogenic climate change is an ongoing concern, scientific investigations on its impacts on coral reefs are increasing. Although impacts of combined ocean acidification (OA) and temperature stress (T) on reef-building scleractinian corals have been studied at the genus, species and population levels, there are little data available on how individual corals respond to combined OA and anomalous temperatures. In this study, we exposed individual colonies of Acropora digitifera, Montipora digitata and Porites cylindrica to four pCO(2)-temperature treatments including 400 mu atm-28 degrees C, 400 mu atm-31 degrees C, 1000 mu atm-28 degrees C and 1000 mu atm-31 degrees C for 26 days. Physiological parameters including calcification, protein content, maximum photosynthetic efficiency, Symbiodinium density, and chlorophyll content along with Symbiodinium type of each colony were examined. Along with intercolonial responses, responses of individual colonies versus pooled data to the treatments were investigated. The main results were: 1) responses to either OA or T or their combination were different between individual colonies when considering physiological functions; 2) tolerance to either OA or T was not synonymous with tolerance to the other parameter; 3) tolerance to both OA and T did not necessarily lead to tolerance of OA and T combined (OAT) at the same time; 4) OAT had negative, positive or no impacts on physiological functions of coral colonies; and 5) pooled data were not representative of responses of all individual colonies. Indeed, the pooled data obscured actual responses of individual colonies or presented a response that was not observed in any individual. From the results of this study we recommend improving experimental designs of studies investigating physiological responses of corals to climate change by complementing them with colony-specific examinations. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Unexpected diversity and new species in the sponge-Parazoanthidae association in southern Japan.

Montenegro J, Sinniger F, Reimer JD

Molecular phylogenetics and evolution ( Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution )  89   73 - 90   2015.08 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Currently the genera Parazoanthus (family Parazoanthidae) and Epizoanthus (family Epizoanthidae) are the only sponge-associated zoantharians (Cnidaria, Anthozoa). The Parazoanthidae-sponge associations are widely distributed in tropical and subtropical waters from the intertidal to the deep sea in the Atlantic and Indo-Pacific Oceans. However, the taxonomic identification of both parties is often confused due to variable morphology and wide ecological ranges. In particular, Parazoanthidae species diversity remains poorly understood in the Indo-Pacific. In the present study, the diversity of the sponge-zoanthid association in the Indo-Pacific was investigated with 71 Parazoanthidae specimens collected from 29 different locations in Japan (n = 22), Australia (n = 6) and Florida, USA (n = 1). For all specimens morphological analyses were performed and total DNA was extracted and amplified for four DNA markers (COI-mtDNA, mt 16S-rDNA, ITS-rDNA and ALG11-nuDNA). The combined data demonstrate that the specimens of this study are clearly different from those of all described Parazoanthus species, and lead us to erect Umimayanthus gen. n., within family Parazoanthidae, containing the three newly described species U. chanpuru sp. n., U. miyabi sp. n., U. nakama sp. n. The new genus also includes the previously described species U. parasiticus (Duchassaing and Michelotti, 1860; comb. nov.), previously belonging to the genus Parazoanthus. Neighbor joining, maximum likelihood and Bayesian posterior probability phylogenetic trees clearly demonstrate the monophyly of Umimayanthus gen. n. to the exclusion of all outgroup sequences. The phylogenetic results were also compared to morphological features, and polyp sizes, amount of sand content in tissues, types of connections between polyps, and cnidae data, in particular holotrichs-1, were useful in distinguishing the different species within this new genus. This new genus can be distinguished from all other Zoantharia by a unique and conserved 9 bp insertion and a 14 bp deletion in the mt 16S-rDNA region. Additionally, compared to Parazoanthus sensu stricto (i.e. P. axinellae [Schmidt, 1862]), Umimayanthus spp. are only found associated to sponges, and have a coenenchyme much less developed than Parazoanthus sensu strict. Each new species can be distinguished from other congeners by a unique DNA sequence, numbers of tentacle, maximum sizes of holotrichs, associated sponge morphology, and colony morphology. The identification of the host sponge species is the next logical step in this research as this may also aid in the distinction of Umimayanthus species. (C) 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

Effects of causeway construction on environment and biota of subtropical tidal flats in Okinawa, Japan.

Reimer JD, Yang SY, White KN, Asami R, Fujita K, Hongo C, Ito S, Kawamura I, Maeda I, Mizuyama M, Obuchi M, Sakamaki T, Tachihara K, Tamura M, Tanahara A, Yamaguchi A, Jenke-Kodama H

Marine pollution bulletin ( Marine Pollution Bulletin )  94 ( 1-2 ) 153 - 67   2015.05 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Okinawa, Japan is known for its high marine biodiversity, yet little work has been performed on examining impacts of numerous large-scale coastal development projects on its marine ecosystems. Here, we examine apparent impacts of the construction of the Kaichu-Doro causeway, which was built over 40 years ago. The causeway is a 4.75 km long embankment that divides a large tidal flat and has only two points of water exchange along its entire length. We employed quadrats, transects, sampling, visual surveys, and microbial community analyses combined with environmental, water quality data, and 1 m cores, at five stations of two paired sites each (one on each side of Kaichu-Doro) to investigate how the environment and biota have changed since the Kaichu-Doro was built. Results indicate reduction in water flow, and site S1 was particularly heavily impacted by poor water quality, with low diversity and disturbed biotic communities. (C) 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

First record of Nanozoanthidae from the Red Sea

Reimer J.D.

Marine Biodiversity Records ( Marine Biodiversity Records )  8   2015.04 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Here we report on the first finding of Nanozoanthidae (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia: Zoantharia) in the Red Sea and the first record west of Western Australia. A single specimen of Nanozoanthus sp. was found at a depth of 13 m off Dumsuq Island, the Farasan Islands, Saudi Arabia (16�33.846′N 42�03.510′E) during SCUBA surveys. Previous research had hypothesized that the genus could potentially be widespread in the Indo-Pacific and was simply undetected due to its small and cryptic nature, and the current specimen provides support for this idea. Such findings demonstrate the importance of biodiversity surveys by taxonomic specialists in understudied marine regions.

• Access this article

  DOI

First record of the genus Umimayanthus from Palau and Micronesia

Montenegro J.

Marine Biodiversity Records ( Marine Biodiversity Records )  8   2015.04 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Until recently, the only sponge-associated genera in the order Zoantharia were Parazoanthus (family Parazoanthidae), Epizoanthus and Thoracactis (family Epizoanthidae), both within the suborder Macrocnemina. The taxonomy of the genus Parazoanthus, as originally described, has been undergoing revision since 2010, with several species, genera and even families described. In 2015, multiple molecular markers were used in combination with morphological characteristics to erect the genus Umimayanthus inside the family Parazoanthidae. It included three species described from southern Japan, with other records for some of the species from the Great Barrier Reef, New Caledonia and the Red Sea. However, little is known of its distribution in the Pacific Islands. Here we report on the finding of Umimayanthus specimens in Palau, Micronesia, representing the first records for this region. A total of 32 specimens of Umimayanthus were collected from seven different locations eight of the specimens were identified as Umimayanthus chanpuru, while the remaining 24 colonies were only identified to genus level.

• Access this article

  DOI

Effect of phase shift from corals to zoantharia on reef fish assemblages

Cruz I.C.S.

PLoS ONE ( PLoS ONE )  10 ( 1 )   2015.01 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Consequences of reef phase shifts on fish communities remain poorly understood. Studies on the causes, effects and consequences of phase shifts on reef fish communities have only been considered for coral-to-macroalgae shifts. Therefore, there is a large information gap regarding the consequences of novel phase shifts and how these kinds of phase shifts impact on fish assemblages. This study aimed to compare the fish assemblages on reefs under normal conditions (relatively high cover of corals) to those which have shifted to a dominance of the zoantharian Palythoa cf. variabilis on coral reefs in Todos os Santos Bay (TSB), Brazilian eastern coast. We examined eight reefs, where we estimated cover of corals and P. cf. variabilis and coral reef fish richness, abundance and body size. Fish richness differed significantly between normal reefs (48 species) and phase-shift reefs (38 species), a 20% reduction in species. However there was no difference in fish abundance between normal and phase shift reefs. One fish species, Chaetodon striatus, was significantly less abundant on normal reefs. The differences in fish assemblages between different reef phases was due to differences in trophic groups of fish; on normal reefs carnivorous fishes were more abundant, while on phase shift reefs mobile invertivores dominated.

• Access this article

  DOI

First record of the coral-killing sponge Terpios hoshinota in the Maldives and Indian Ocean

Montano S.

Bulletin of Marine Science ( Bulletin of Marine Science )  91 ( 1 ) 97 - 98   2015.01 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (other science council materials etc.)

• Access this article

  DOI

Descriptions of two azooxanthellate Palythoa species (Subclass Hexacorallia, Order Zoantharia) from the Ryukyu Archipelago, southern Japan.

Irei Y, Sinniger F, Reimer JD

ZooKeys ( ZooKeys )  ( 478 ) 1 - 26   2015 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Two new species of zoantharians (Hexacorallia, Zoantharia, Sphenopidae), Palythoa mizigama sp. n. and P. umbrosa sp. n., are described from the Ryukyu Archipelago, southern Japan. Unlike almost all other known Palythoa spp., both species are azooxanthellate and inhabit low-light environments such as floors or sides of caves, crevasses, or hollows of shallow coral reefs. The two species were initially considered to be the same species from their similar habitat environments and highly similar morphological features. However, phylogenetic analyses of nuclear internal transcribed spacer (ITS) ribosomal DNA, mitochondrial 16S ribosomal DNA, and cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) sequences revealed that these two species have a genetically distant relationship within the genus Palythoa. Morphological characteristics, including polyp size, tentacle number, external/internal coloration, and types and sizes of cnidae were examined in this study. As a result, only tentacle coloration was found to be useful for the morphological distinction between the two species. Palythoa mizigama possesses white tentacles with black horizontal stripes while P. umbrosa possesses white tentacles without any stripe patterns. Considering their distant phylogenetic relationship, it can be assumed that their unique yet similar morphological and ecological characteristics developed independently in each species as an example of parallel evolution.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

A new genus and species of octocoral with aragonite calcium-carbonate skeleton (Octocorallia, Helioporacea) from Okinawa, Japan.

Miyazaki Y, Reimer JD

ZooKeys ( ZooKeys )  2015 ( 511 ) 1 - 23   2015 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

A new genus and species of octocoral with a calcium-carbonate skeleton, Nanipora kamurai sp. n., is described from a shallow coral reef in Okinawa, Japan. Contrary to most octocorals, the skeleton is composed of crystalline aragonite as in blue coral Heliopora. The results of molecular phylogenetic analyses of sequences of mtMutS, COI, and ITS1-5.8s-ITS2-28S region suggest Nanipora gen. n. specimens should be included in order Helioporacea. Based on morphological results compared with other Helioporacea including the genus Epiphaxum (family Lithotelestidae), we establish the new genus Nanipora within Lithotelestidae. This is the first time that a close molecular phylogenetic relationship between Heliopora and a related genus within Helioporacea has been revealed.

• Access this article

  DOI
• Search related information
  PubMed

New records of the rare calcareous sponge Paragrantia waguensis Hôzawa, 1940

Van Soest R

ZooKeys ( ZooKeys )  2015 ( 546 ) 1 - 20   2015 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

　View Summary

Paragrantia waguensis Hozawa is reported from coastal reefs of the island of Okinawa. This rare species was previously known only from Central Japan, Mie Prefecture. It has peculiar apopylar tetractine spicules, so far unique among Calcarea. We present in situ images of the species and a full description including SEM images of skeletal structure and spicule complement. The status of Paragrantia as a separate genus of the family Grantiidae distinct from Grantia Fleming is confirmed on the basis of a morphological and molecular comparison with the European type species of Grantia, G. compressa (Fabricius).

• Access this article

  DOI

Buried fossil microatolls off the Kaichu-Doro Causeway, between Okinawa and Henza Islands

Fujita K, Hongo C, Koutoku M, Ito S, Asami R, Reimer JD

Fauna Ryuykuana   24   13 - 15   2015 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (other science council materials etc.)

Vertical distribution of zooxanthellate zoantharians on coral reefs of Terengganu Islands, Malaysia

HB Wee, HC Liew, Z Bachok, JD Reimer

Plateaux   12   29 - 37   2015 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (other science council materials etc.)

Four new species and one new genus of zoanthids (Cnidaria: Hexacorallia) from the Galápagos

James Davis Reimer, Takuma Fujii

ZooKeys ( その他の出版社 )  42   1 - 36   2010.03 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

Investigations into the reproductive patterns, ecology and morphology in the zoanthid genus Palythoa (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Hexacorallia) in Okinawa, Japan

Eriko Shiroma, James Davis Reimer

Zoological Studies ( その他の出版社 )  49   182 - 194   2010.01 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

The Parazoanthidae (Hexacorallia: Zoantharia) DNA taxonomy: description of two new genera

Frederic Sinniger, James Davis Reimer, Jan Pawlowski

Marine Biodiversity ( その他の出版社 )  40   57 - 70   2010.01 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Presence of Abyssoanthus sp. in the Mediterranean Sea: indication of a new cold seep or of ecological tolerance of Abyssoanthus to non-chemotrophic environments?

Frederic Sinniger, Kevin Zelnio, Marco Taviani, James Davis Reimer

Cahiers de Biologie Marine ( その他の出版社 )  in press   2010 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

Domination and disappearance of the black sponge: a quarter century after the initial Terpios outbreak in southern Japan

James Davis Reimer, Yoko Nozawa, Euichi Hirose

Zoological Studies ( その他の出版社 )  in press   2010 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

Unexpected diversity in Canadian Pacific zoanthids (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Hexacorallia): a molecular examination and description of a new species from the waters of British Columbia

James Davis Reimer, Frederic Sinniger

Marine Biodiversity ( その他の出版社 )  in press   2010 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Epizoanthus spp. associations revealed using DNA markers: a case study from Kochi, Japan

James Davis Reimer, Mamiko Hirose, Taiki Nishisaka, Frederic Sinniger, Gyo Itani

Zoological Science ( その他の出版社 )  in press   2010 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Preliminary analyses of cultured Symbiodinium isolated from sand in the oceanic Ogasawara Islands, Japan

James Davis Reimer, MD Mafuzur Rahman Shah, Frederic Sinniger, Kensuke Yanagi, Shoichiro Suda

Marine Biodiversity ( その他の出版社 )  in press   2010 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Molecular phylogenetic hypotheses of Zoanthus species (Anthozoa:Hexacorallia) using RNA secondary structure of the internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2)

Catalina Aguilar, James Davis Reimer

Marine Biodiversity ( その他の出版社 )  in press   2010 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Diversity of dinoflagellate blooms in reef flat tide pools at Okinawa, Japan

MDMR Shah, JD Reimer, T Horiguchi, S Suda

Galaxea JCRS ( その他の出版社 )  in press   2010 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Long-term changes of infra-littoral zone zooxanthellate cnidarians in the Taisho Lava Field, Sakurajima, Kagoshima, Japan

Shusuke Ono, James Davis Reimer, Yoko Nozawa, Junzo Tsukahara

Galaxea JCRS ( その他の出版社 )  in press   2010 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Using hydrofluoric acid for morphological investigations of zoanthids (Cnidaria: Anthozoa): a critical assessment of methodology and necessity

James Davis Reimer, Shu Nakachi, Mamiko Hirose, Euichi Hirose, Shinji Hashiguchi

Marine Biotechnology ( その他の出版社 )  in press   2010 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Key to field identification of shallow water brachycnemic zoanthids (Order Zoantharia: Suborder Brachycnemina) present in Okinawa

James Davis Reimer

Galaxea JCRS ( その他の出版社 )  in press   2010 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Preliminary survey of zooxanthellate zoanthids (Cnidaria: Hexacorallia) of the Galápagos and associated symbiotic dinoflagellates (Symbiodinium spp.).

James Davis Reimer, Cleveland Hickman

Galápagos Research ( その他の出版社 )  66   14 - 19   2009.01 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

Effect of ciliates on the branching coral Acropora formosa: laboratory experiment and microscopic observations

Keshavmurthy Shashank, Kimio Fukami, James Davis Reimer

Kuroshio Biosphere ( その他の出版社 )  5   1 - 7   2009

Type of publication: Research paper (bulletin of university, research institution)

Non-invasive internal morphological examination of epizoic zoanthids utilizing CT scanners

James Davis Reimer, Frederic Sinniger, Senzo Uchida, Masanori Nonaka

Coral Reefs ( その他の出版社 )  28   621   2009 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Preliminary examination of zooxanthellate zoanthid (Hexacorallia, Zoantharia) and associated zooxanthellae (Symbiodinium spp.) diversity in Singapore

James Davis Reimer, Peter A. Todd

Raffles Bulletin of Zoology ( その他の出版社 )  22   103 - 120   2009 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

Molecular characterization of the zoanthid genus Isaurus (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia) and associated zooxanthellae ( Symbiodinium spp.) from Japan

James Davis Reimer, Shusuke Ono, Junzo Tsukahara, Fumihito Iwase

Marine Biology ( その他の出版社 )  153   351 - 363   2008.03 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Genome reduction in chemoautotrophic endosymbionts of deep-sea Calyptogena clams

Hirokazu Kuwahara, Yoshihiro Takaki, Takao Yoshida, Shigeru Shimamura, Kiyotaka Takishita, James Davis Reimer, Chiaki Kato, Tadashi Maruyama

Extremophiles ( その他の出版社 )  12   365 - 374   2008 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

Survey of zooxanthellate zoanthid diversity in Kagoshima, Japan

Shusuke Ono, James Davis Reimer, Junzo Tsukahara

Kuroshio Biosphere ( その他の出版社 )  4   1 - 16   2008

Type of publication: Research paper (bulletin of university, research institution)

Distribution of zooxanthellate zoanthid species (Zoantharia: Anthozoa: Hexacorallia) in southern Japan limited by cold temperatures

James Davis Reimer, Shusuke Ono, Frederic Sinniger, Junzo Tsukahara

Galaxea JCRS ( その他の出版社 )  10   57 - 67   2008 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Potential of DNA sequences to identify zoanthids (Cnidaria: Zoantharia)

Frederic Sinniger, James Davis Reimer, Jan Pawlowski

Zoological Science ( その他の出版社 )  25   1253 - 1260   2008 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Phylogenetic analyses of potentially free-living Symbiodinium spp. isolated from coral reef sand in Okinawa, Japan

Mamiko Hirose, James Davis Reimer, Michio Hidaka, Soichiro Suda

Marine Biology ( その他の出版社 )  155   105 - 112   2008 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Morphological and molecular characterization of a new genus and new species of parazoanthid (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia: Zoantharia) associated with Japanese red coral (Paracorallium japonicum) in southern Japan

James Davis Reimer, Masanori Nonaka, Frederic Sinniger, Fumihito Iwase

Coral Reefs ( その他の出版社 )  27   935 - 949   2008 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

Zoanthid diversity (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia) in the Galapagos Islands: a molecular examination

James Davis Reimer, Frederic Sinniger, Cleveland Hickman

Coral Reefs ( その他の出版社 )  27   641 - 654   2008 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Implications for different diversity levels of Symbiodinium spp. (Dinophyceae, Suessiales) within closely related hosts: zoanthids (Cnidaria: Hexacorallia: Anthozoa) as a case study

James Davis Reimer

Galaxea JCRS ( その他の出版社 )  10   3 - 13   2008 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Morphological and molecular characterization of Abyssoanthus nankaiensis, a new family, new genus and new species of deep-sea zoanthid (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia: Zoantharia) from a northwest Pacific methane cold seep.

James Davis Reimer, Satoshi Hirano, Yoshihiro Fujiwara, Frederic Sinniger, Tadashi Maruyama

Invertebrate Systematics ( その他の出版社 )  21 ( 3 ) 255 - 262   2007.12 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

Molecular Evidence Suggesting Interspecific Hybridization in Zoanthus spp. (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia)

James Davis Reimer, Kiyotaka Takishita, Shusuke Ono, Junzo Tsukahara, Tadashi Maruyama

Zoological Science ( その他の出版社 )  24 ( 5 ) 346 - 359   2007.05 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Thriving cnidarian community on the volcanic coastline of Sakurajima Taisho Lava Field, southern Japan

Shusuke Ono, James Davis Reimer, Junzo Tsukahara

Coral Reefs ( その他の出版社 )  26 ( 1 ) 95   2007.01 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Non-seasonal clade-specificity and subclade microvariation in symbiotic dinoflagellates (Symbiodinium spp.) in Zoanthus sansibaricus (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia) at Kagoshima Bay, Japan

James Davis Reimer, Shusuke Ono, Junzo Tsukahara, Kiyotaka Takishita, and Tadashi Maruyama

Phycological Research ( その他の出版社 )  55 ( 1 ) 58 - 65   2007.01 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

Seasonal Changes in Morphological Condition of Symbotic Dinoflagellates (Symbiodinium spp.) in Zoanthus sansibaricus (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia) in Southern Japan

James Davis Reimer, Shusuke Ono, Yasuo Furushima, Junzo Tsukahara

South Pacific Study ( その他の出版社 )  27 ( 2 ) 1 - 24   2007 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

Preliminary survey of zooxanthellate zoanthid diversity (Hexacorallia: Zoantharia) from southern Shikoku, Japan

James Davis Reimer

Kuroshio Biosphere ( その他の出版社 )  3   1 - 16   2007

Type of publication: Research paper (bulletin of university, research institution)

Diversity and evolution in the zoanthid genus Palythoa (Cnidaria: Hexacorallia) based on nuclear ITS-rDNA

James Davis Reimer, Kiyotaka Takishita, Shusuke Ono, Tadashi Maruyama

Coral Reefs ( その他の出版社 )  26   399 - 410   2007 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

High levels of morphological variation despite close genetic relatedness between Zoanthus aff. vietnamensis and Zoanthus kuroshio (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia).

James Davis Reimer, Shusuke Ono, Atsushi Iwama, Junzo Tsukahara, and Tadashi Maruyama

Zoological Science ( その他の出版社 )  23 ( 9 ) 755 - 761   2006.09 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Morphological and Molecular Revision of Zoanthus (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia) from Southwestern Japan, with Descriptions of Two New Species

James Davis Reimer, Shusuke Ono, Atsushi Iwama, Junzo Tsukahara, Kiyotaka Takishita, Tadashi Maruyama

Zoological Science ( その他の出版社 )  23 ( 3 ) 261 - 275   2006.03 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Latitudinal and intracolony ITS-rDNA sequence variation in the symbiotic dinoflagellate genus Symbiodinium (Dinophyceae) in Zoanthus sansibaricus (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia

James Davis Reimer, Kiyotaka Takishita, Shusuke Ono, Tadashi Maruyama, Junzo Tsukahara

Phycological Research ( その他の出版社 )  54   122 - 132   2006.02 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

Molecular evidence suggesting species in the zoanthid genera Palythoa and Protopalythoa (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia) are congeneric

James Davis Reimer, Shusuke Ono, Kiyotaka Takishita, Junzo Tsukahara, Tadashi Maruyama

Zoological Science ( その他の出版社 )  23 ( 1 ) 87 - 94   2006.01 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Molecular identification of symbiotic dinoflagellates (Symbiodinium spp.) from Palythoa spp. (Anthozoa: Hexacorallia) in Japan

James Davis Reimer, Kiyotaka Takishita, Tadashi Maruyama

Coral Reefs ( その他の出版社 )  25 ( 4 ) 521 - 527   2006 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Reproduction of Zoanthus sansibaricus in the Infra-Littoral Zone at Taisho Lava Field, Sakurajima, Kagoshima, Japan

Shusuke Ono, James Davis Reimer, Junzo Tsukahara

Zoological Science ( その他の出版社 )  22 ( 2 ) 247 - 255   2005.03 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Molecular evidence demonstrating the basidiomycetous fungus Cryptococcus curvatus is the dominant microbial eukaryote in sediment at the Kuroshima Knoll methane seep

Kiyotaka Takishita, Masashi Tsuchiya, James D. Reimer, Tadashi Maruyama

Extremophiles ( その他の出版社 )  10   165 - 169   2005 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

Reconsidering Zoanthus spp. Diversity : Molecular Evidence of Conspecifity Within Four Previously Presumed Species(Genetics)

James Davis Reimer, Shusuke Ono, Kiyotaka Takishita, Yoshihiro Fujiwara, Junzo Tsukahara

Zoological Science ( その他の出版社 )  21 ( 5 ) 517 - 525   2004 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

• Access this article

  DOI

Long-term changes of Zoanthus spp. in the infra-littoral zone at Taisho Lava Field, Sakurajima, Kagoshima, Japan

Shusuke Ono, James Davis Reimer, Junzo Tsukahara

Galaxea JCRS ( その他の出版社 )  5   21 - 32   2003 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)

A transect study in the infra-littoral zone of Hakamagoshi : an assessment of the impact of construction of a man-made sand beach

Shusuke Ono, James Davis Reimer, Junzo Tsukahara

Kagoshima University Research Center for the Pacific Islands Occasional Papers ( その他の出版社 )  38   69 - 74   2003

Type of publication: Research paper (bulletin of university, research institution)

Evidence of seasonal and geographical variations in Zoanthus pacificus and its endosymbiotic zooxanthellae due to environmental factors

James Davis Reimer, Shusuke Ono, Junzo Tsukahara

Kagoshima University Research Center for the Pacific Islands Occasional Papers ( その他の出版社 )  38   23 - 30   2003

Type of publication: Research paper (bulletin of university, research institution)

Seasonal changes in Zoanthus spp. in the infra-littoral zone at Taisho Lava Field, Sakurajima, Kagoshima, Japan

Shusuke Ono, James Davis Reimer, Junzo Tsukahara

South Pacific Study ( その他の出版社 )  22 ( 2 ) 41 - 52   2002 [ Peer Review Accepted ]

Type of publication: Research paper (scientific journal)