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Genetic and morphometric evidence for unresolved species boundaries in the coral genus Psammocora (Cnidaria; Scleractinia)

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Abstract

A comparative morphological and molecular characterization of species boundaries between four species of the Scleractinian genus Psammocora, namely P. digitata, P. haimeana, P. profundacella and P. contigua was conducted. The definition of species boundaries in this genus has been the subject of few studies, in spite of the presence of ambiguous taxonomic distinction, and a revision of the genus has never been undertaken. The multivariate analyses of both descriptive and morphometric characters confirmed the distinction of P. digitata and P. contigua, conversely P. haimeana, P. profundacella and their intermediate morph differentiated on the basis of descriptive morphologic characters only. Morphometric characters alone allowed a less defined distinction between morphs, and morphological boundaries essentially intergraded in a gradient driven by enclosed corallite series characters.

The phylogenetic analysis of a portion of the rDNA confirmed the morphological inferences, as P. digitata appears to be a distinct evolutionary lineage. Conversely, the other four morphs, P. contigua, P. haimeana, P. profundacella and their intermediate constitute a polytomic gene pool significantly distinct from P. digitata. Yet, P. contigua is significantly distinct from the other three morphs. Both morphological and molecular approaches suggested that P. haimeana, P. profundacella and their intermediate cannot be considered clearly distinct entities. Hybridization with other species of this genus not included in this study, or recent origin may have contributed to the polyphyly and lack of phylogenetic resolution of P. haimeana, P. profundacella and their intermediate morph. They appear to constitute a single gene pool showing morphological characters encompassing a gradient from the P. haimeana to the P. profundacella morphs. Such morphological variability possibly depends on environmental factors such as light conditions.

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Acknowledgements

The authors wish to acknowledge M. Sandrini (Verbania) and Albatros Top Boat and Diving for logistic support in the Maldives, P. Tisseyre (Perpignan) for sequencing, P. Colantoni (Urbino), the Centre for the Ecology of Marine Tropical environments (CEMT) and the Fédération de Recherche “Biologie et Ecologie Tropicale et Mediterranéenne” (FR 2577 CNRS) Université de Perpignan for supporting this study. We also thank C. N. Bianchi and C. Morri (Genova) for useful suggestions on morphometric analysis, M. Casiraghi (Milano) for his help in the initial phase of the molecular work, and A. Geraci (Milano) for field assistance. Finally, we thank two anonymous referees for their helpful suggestion which have improved our work.

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  1. Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca, Piazza della Scienza, 2, 20126, Milano, Italy

    Fabrizio Stefani, Francesca Benzoni & Paolo Galli

  2. Laboratoire de Ecosystèmes Aquatiques Tropicaux et Méditerranéens, UMR 8046 CNRS, Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, Perpignan, France

    Michel Pichon

  3. Laboratoire de Parasitologie Fonctionnelle et Évolutive, UMR 5555 CNRS, Université de Perpignan, Perpignan, France

    Guillaume Mitta

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  1. Fabrizio Stefani
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Correspondence to Fabrizio Stefani.

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Stefani, F., Benzoni, F., Pichon, M. et al. Genetic and morphometric evidence for unresolved species boundaries in the coral genus Psammocora (Cnidaria; Scleractinia). Hydrobiologia 596, 153–172 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-007-9092-3

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