Salpivory by Colonial Reef Corals at Curaçao, Southern Caribbean

A salp swarm was observed in Director’s Bay, Curaçao in July 2021, where salps were caught and consumed by three scleractinian colonial reef corals: Madracis auretenra, Locke, Weil & Coates, 2017; Meandrina meandrites (Linnaeus, 1758), and Montastraea cavernosa (Linnaeus, 1767). The first two sc...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Lars J. V. ter Horst, Bert W. Hoeksema
Format: article
Language:EN
Published: MDPI AG 2021
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Online Access:https://doaj.org/article/53d511e836b943ef9dc943e49c566838
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Summary:A salp swarm was observed in Director’s Bay, Curaçao in July 2021, where salps were caught and consumed by three scleractinian colonial reef corals: Madracis auretenra, Locke, Weil & Coates, 2017; Meandrina meandrites (Linnaeus, 1758), and Montastraea cavernosa (Linnaeus, 1767). The first two scleractinians are newly recorded salpivores. Since the coral polyps were collaborating, predation was not restricted by polyp size. This is the first detailed report on salpivorous corals in the Caribbean.