A survey on the presence of Acropora clathrata (Brook, 1891) in the north of the Persian Gulf based on morphologic, morphometric, and genetic analyses
Because of the morphological plasticity of corals, especially in Acropora, in response to environmental variations, the taxonomical studies of this genus have always been difficult. That was the main reason behind the introduction of ectomorphs as species in many instances. One of these misidentified cases is that of the Acropora clathrate, which has been reported from the northern and northeastern parts of the Persian Gulf several times. But the presence of this species in the Persian Gulf has been questioned for many years by researchers. To answer this question once and for all, 74 colonies of both forms of Acropora downingi, or the two supposed species, A. downingi and A. clathrata, were sampled from three islands, namely Larak, Farur and Khark, located along the east–west axis of the Persian Gulf, and studied from both a morphological and molecular point of view. The results of the morphological studies demonstrated that the observed variations in the studied characteristics were indeed intraspecific variations and all of the specimens belonged to the same species, i.e. A. downingi. The results were also confirmed by molecular studies, signifying the absence of A. clathrata in, at least, the northern and northeastern parts of the Persian Gulf, if not in the Persian Gulf in general. Therefore, it was the other form of A. downingi which had been misidentified as A. clathrata.
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Journal Contribution biblioteca |
| Language: | Persian |
| Published: |
2017
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| Subjects: | Acropora downingi, Intraspecific diversity, Staghorn corals, Coral reefs, Microsatellite, Survey, Morphological, Morphometric, Genetic, Morphologic, |
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/1834/13489 |
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