Effect of the alien octocoral Carijoa riisei on benthic fauna assemblages on natural and artificial substrates

Effect of the alien octocoral Carijoa riisei on benthic fauna assemblages on natural and artificial substrates

Carijoa riisei is an invasive octocoral whose dispersal in the tropics has increased considerably in recent years. This study evaluated the changes in the benthic fauna assemblages associated with C. riisei growing on rocks from a sea port and on the metal of a submerged shipwreck in the bays of Man...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Marine ecology (Berlin, West) Vol. 44; no. 4
Main Authors: Galván‐Villa, Cristian M., Tovar‐Hernández, María A., Rodríguez‐Zaragoza, Fabián A., Esqueda‐González, María del C., Sánchez‐Rodríguez, Judith, Ríos‐Jara, Eduardo
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Berlin Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01-08-2023
Subjects:
Artificial substrata
Benthic communities
Benthic fauna
Benthos
Biodiversity
Carijoa riisei
communities
Community composition
Dispersal
exotic species
Fauna
Genera
Invasive species
Manzanillo
Metals
Mexican Central Pacific
Mollusks
richness
Shipwrecks
snowflake coral
Species composition
Substrates
Taxa
Tropical environments
Zoobenthos
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Summary:Carijoa riisei is an invasive octocoral whose dispersal in the tropics has increased considerably in recent years. This study evaluated the changes in the benthic fauna assemblages associated with C. riisei growing on rocks from a sea port and on the metal of a submerged shipwreck in the bays of Manzanillo, Colima, in the Mexican Central Pacific. Quarterly samples were collected between April 2021 and January 2022, with the presence or absence of C. riisei. The effect of C. riisei on the benthic fauna according to the type of substrate was evaluated with PERMANOVA models. The presence of C. riisei was found to affect taxonomic diversity. In the absence of the octocoral, 209 species were recorded, whereas in its presence, 190 were found. The decline of taxa occurred at the level of families, genera, and species. The interaction of the presence/absence of C. riisei and substrate generated significant changes in the Shannon (1D) and Simpson (2D) diversity indexes. However, the presence of C. riisei coincided with higher abundances of Ophiothela mirabilis, Ericthonius brasiliensis, and Pseudobranchiomma schizogenica. In conclusion, the snowflake coral favors the dominance of some species and reduces the biological diversity of several taxa, mainly mollusks, polychaetes, sipunculids, and anthozoans, generating significant changes in the structure of benthic communities. This study highlights the need to evaluate species composition in areas where the octocoral grows, to determine whether its presence has an ecological impact and whether control measures are required.
ISSN:0173-9565
1439-0485
DOI:10.1111/maec.12756