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Coral tissue mortality of the coral Cladocora caespitosa caused by gastropod Coralliophila meyendorffi in the Mljet National Park (eastern Adriatic Sea)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 July 2013

Petar Kružić ,
Pavica Sršen ,
Katarina Cetinić  and
Dušan Zavodnik
Petar Kružić*
Affiliation:
Laboratory for Marine Biology, Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, Rooseveltov trg 6, HR-10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Pavica Sršen
Affiliation:
University of Hawaii at Manoa, 1000 Pope Road, Marine Sciences Building, Office 201Honolulu, Hawaii, 96822, USA
Katarina Cetinić
Affiliation:
Laboratory for Marine Biology, Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, Rooseveltov trg 6, HR-10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Dušan Zavodnik
Affiliation:
Ruđer Bošković Institute, Center for Marine Research, G. Paliaga 5, 52210 Rovinj, Croatia
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: P. Kružić, Laboratory for Marine Biology, Department of Zoology Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, Rooseveltov trg 6, HR-10000 Zagreb, Croatia email: pkruzic@zg.biol.pmf.hr
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Abstract

The corallivorous gastropod Coralliophila meyendorffi (family Coralliophilidae) is a well-known predator of the coral Cladocora caespitosa, particularly in the eastern Adriatic Sea, where population outbreaks can drastically reduce coral cover. Coralliophila meyendorffi ranges in size from 5 to 40 mm in shell total length, and smaller specimens are often found living with the coral C. caespitosa. Specimens of C. meyendorffi feed exclusively on live coral tissue, stripping it from the calcium carbonate skeleton. Recent outbreaks of the gastropod C. meyendorffi have caused considerable damage on a C. caespitosa bank in Veliko Jezero (the Mljet National Park, eastern Adriatic Sea). The bank occurs at depths between 6 and 18 m, covering a 65  m2 area. During summer of 2010, a substantial outbreak affected about 5%t of the coral colonies. The gastropods were highly aggregated in sheltered areas of the coral bank (up to 41 specimens/dm2) with smaller clusters (from 8 to 12 specimens/dm2) on coral colonies that were influenced by strong bottom currents (up to 1.23 ms−1).

Keywords

coral mortalityCladocora caespitosacorallivorous gastropodCoralliophila meyendorffiAdriatic Sea
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 93 , Issue 8 , December 2013 , pp. 2101 - 2108
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2013 

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