10.5061/DRYAD.B6K0275
Eyal, Gal
Tel Aviv University
Cohen, Itay
Interuniversity Institute for Marine Sciences in Eilat
Eyal-Shaham, Lee
Tel Aviv University
Ben-Zvi, Or
Tel Aviv University
Tikochinski, Yaron
Ruppin Academic Center
Loya, Yossi
Tel Aviv University
Data from: Photoacclimation and induction of light-enhanced calcification
in the mesophotic coral Euphyllia paradivisa
Dryad
dataset
2019
Mesophotic Coral Ecosystems (MCEs)
Twilight Zone
Euphyllia paradivisa
Light-Enhanced Calcification (LEC)
Red Sea
Photosynthesis
2019-01-10T15:53:06Z
2019-01-10T15:53:06Z
en
https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.180527
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CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication
Corals and their photosymbionts experience inherent changes in light along
depth gradients, leading them to have evolved several well-investigated
photoacclimation strategies. As coral calcification is influenced by light
(a process described as LEC-“light enhanced calcification”), studies have
sought to determine the link between photosynthesis and calcification, but
many puzzling aspects still persist. Here we examine the physiology of
Euphyllia paradivisa, a coral species found at a wide range of depths but
that is strictly mesophotic in the Red Sea; and also examines the coupling
between photosynthesis and light-enhanced calcification by investigating
the response of the coral under several controlled light regimes during a
long-term experiment. E. paradivisa specimens were collected from 40-50 m
depth and incubated under three light conditions for a period of one year:
full-spectrum shallow-water light (~3 m, e.g. shallow-light treatment);
blue deep-water light (~40 m, e.g. mesophotic-light treatment); or total
darkness (e.g. dark treatment). Net photosynthesis remained similar in the
shallow-light treated corals compared to the mesophotic-light treated
corals, under both low and high light. However, calcification increased
dramatically with increasing light intensity in the shallow-light treated
corals suggesting a decoupling between these processes. Photoacclimation
to shallow-water conditions was indicated by enhanced respiration, a
higher density of zooxanthellae per polyp, and lower chlorophyll a content
per cell. The dark-treated corals became completely bleached but did not
lower their metabolism below that of the mesophotic-light treated corals.
No Symbiodinium clade shift was found following the year-long light
treatments. We conclude that E. paradivisa, and its original symbiont
clade, can adapt to various light conditions by controlling its metabolic
rate and growth energy investment, and consequently induce LEC.
ESM 2 - Photosynthesis and calcificationSupporting data
Gulf of Eilat
Red Sea
Gulf of Aqaba