The Atlantic Lionfish has a New Friend:\u00a0<\/p>\n
A new species of coral has been discovered on one of the oil platforms just
\nsouthwest of the mouth of the Mississippi River.\u00a0 It is Tubastraea
\nmicranthus, a western Indo-Pacific coral which has now gained a foot-hold in
\nthe Gulf of Mexico.\u00a0 It has been sighted in the Grand Isle lease area, off
\nthe Louisiana coast, southeast of Port Fourchon.\u00a0 What makes the sighting
\nparticularly alarming is that its sister species, Tubastraea coccinea, also
\ninvaded the southwestern Atlantic during the 1940s.\u00a0 Some fifty yrs later,
\nit had made its way to the northern Gulf of Mexico and has become the single
\nmost abundant coral there.\u00a0 It has been recorded from the Americas, the
\nAntilles, the northern Gulf of Mexico (GOM), and on many of oil and gas
\nplatforms in the northern Gulf – inhabiting a stretch from the Florida Keys
\nto Brazil.\u00a0 It is particularly successful on artificial substrata (bridges,
\noil and gas platforms, breakwaters, etc.).\u00a0 The northern Gulf of Mexico now
\nboasts millions of these coral colonies.\u00a0 The question arises as to whether
\nthis type of expansion will be repeated with Tubastraea micranthus, which
\nhas used a different geographic entry point into the Atlantic than its
\ncongener.<\/p>\n
Paul Sammarco (Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium – LUMCON), Scott
\nPorter (same; and EcoLogic Environmental), and Stephen Cairns (Smithsonian
\nInstitution, Washington, DC) have reported the first observation of this new
\nspecies – Tubastraea micranthus – in the western Atlantic.\u00a0 In a recently
\nreleased paper published in Aquatic Invasions1, they raise the question as
\nto whether this new introduction may pose a threat similar to that of its
\nsister species – Tubatraea coccinea.<\/p>\n
Sammarco and Scott, together and independently, surveyed a total of 83
\nplatforms, including deep-water, toppled, “Rigs-to-Reefs” structures, in the
\nnorthern Gulf of Mexico for coral colonization between 2000 and 2009.
\n(“Rigs-to-Reefs” platforms are those platforms which have been donated by
\nthe oil companies to the government and have been toppled either in place or
\ntowed elsewhere to be used as artificial reefs.)\u00a0 The surveys performed by
\nSCUBA divers stretched from Matagorda Island, Texas to Mobile, Alabama, USA,
\nbetween the depths of 7-37 m.\u00a0 Five platforms were surveyed by a Remotely
\nOperated Vehicle (ROV) to depths of up to 117 m.\u00a0 Tubastraea micranthus was
\nfound on only one platform – Grand Isle 93C (GI-93C), off Port Fourchon,
\nLouisiana, near the mouth of the Mississippi River.\u00a0 This location is
\nparticularly important because it occurs at the cross-roads of two major
\nshipping lanes (safety fairways) transited by large international commercial
\nships.\u00a0 For this species to occur only on this one platform indicates that
\nthe introduction is most likely recent.\u00a0 The coral probably invaded via
\nlarvae carried in the ballast water of a ship from the Indo-Pacific or from
\nan adult colony which “hitch-hiked” on the hull of a vessel.<\/p>\n
If the growth and reproductive rates of Tubastraea micranthus (sexual and
\nasexual) are similar to those of Tubastraea coccinea, it is possible that
\nthis species could similarly become a dominant in the western Atlantic.\u00a0 In
\naddition, if its ability to out-compete its sister species and other reef
\norganisms that live on these hard bottoms, it is possible that local species
\ncould be displaced.<\/p>\n
In a sister recent study, Sammarco has determined that Tubastraea coccinea
\nis an “opportunistic species”.\u00a0 That is, it takes advantage of new,
\ndisturbed, or unusual habitats and does not necessarily have the capability
\nof dominating natural, mature ecological communities, like well-developed,
\nwell established coral reefs.\u00a0 This trait has prevented its dominating
\nnatural reefs in western Atlantic.\u00a0 It is not yet known whether Tubastraea
\nmicranthus is similarly restricted in its growth patterns.<\/p>\n
The question is raised as to whether it might be possible to eradicate this
\nspecies.\u00a0 It is known that rapid eradication responses to new species
\nintroductions can be highly effective, as has been the case several times in
\nCalifornia.\u00a0 On the other hand, it is also known that waiting too long to
\nrespond can result in domination of the new species, as has happened with
\nTubastraea coccinea, the fire ant, Nutria, and the Volitan lionfish, are
\nineffective.\u00a0 Attempts at eradication long after integration of the new
\nspecies into the community can also cause more disturbance than the original
\nintroduction itself.\u00a0 This was demonstrated recently by the removal of
\nthousands of feral cats from the Australian National Heritage Site,
\nMacquarie Island.\u00a0 This resulted in a population explosion of rabbits which
\nhad otherwise been kept in check by the cats.\u00a0 This in turn resulted in the
\nloss of 40% of the vegetation on the island, which is now having negative
\neffects on nesting bird populations on the island.\u00a0 Eradication is more
\neffective sooner rather than later.<\/p>\n
The fate of benthic (hard-bottom) communities in the northern Gulf of Mexico
\nand the western Atlantic in this case remains to be seen.<\/p>\n
July 27, 2010<\/p>\n
1Sammarco, P.W., S.A. Porter, and S.D. Cairns.\u00a0 2010.\u00a0 New invasive coral
\nspecies for the Atlantic Ocean:\u00a0 Tubastraea micranthus (Cairns and Zibrowius
\n1997) (Colenterata, Anthozoa, Scleractinia):\u00a0 A potential major threat?
\nAquat. Invasions 5:\u00a0 131-140.<\/p>\n
Paul W. Sammarco\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Scott
\nPorter<\/p>\n
Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Ecologic
\nEnvironmental<\/p>\n
(LUMCON)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 & LUMCON<\/p>\n
psammarco@lumcon.edu<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 scottporter@ecorigs.org<\/a><\/p>\n Stephen D. Cairns<\/p>\n Smithsonian Institution<\/p>\n cairnss@si.edu<\/a><\/p>\n Paul W. Sammarco, Ph.D.<\/p>\n Executive Director<\/p>\n Association of Marine Laboratories of the Caribbean (AMLC)<\/p>\n and<\/p>\n Professor<\/p>\n Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium (LUMCON)<\/p>\n 8124 Hwy. 56<\/p>\n Chauvin, LA\u00a0 70344<\/p>\n USA<\/p>\n Tel:\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 1-985-851-2876<\/p>\n FAX:\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 1-985-851-2874<\/p>\n Email:\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 psammarco@lumcon.edu<\/a><\/p>\n Website:\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 www.lumcon.edu<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Atlantic Lionfish has a New Friend:\u00a0 A new species of coral has been discovered on one of the oil platforms just southwest of the mouth of the Mississippi River.\u00a0 It is Tubastraea micranthus, a western Indo-Pacific coral which has now gained a foot-hold in the Gulf of Mexico.\u00a0 It has been sighted in the … Continue reading Coral-list: Invasion of a New Scleractinian – Tubastraea micranthus<\/span>