Abstract
Echinoderms are a conspicuous assemblage associated with coral communities, which provides them with food, shelter, and nursery areas. Temporal and spatial changes in environmental conditions may modify their density and composition, which furthermore may affect the structure of the coral community. In order to identify the response of echinoderm composition to environmental fluctuations, variations in the density were evaluated at spatial and temporal levels from 2011–2014 in Islas Marietas National Park, a National Protected Area located off the Mexican Pacific coast, which harbors the most important coral and echinoderm community in the region. The results showed that the species Diadema mexicanum, Centrostephanus coronatus, and Eucidaris thouarsii, were dominant. Differences between areas off the islands were observed, as Isla Redonda showed the highest values (1.31 ± 0.15 in. m2, \( \overline{S} \) = 7.74 ± 0.17) associated with high heterogeneity and availability of food resources. Isla Larga had the lowest density (0.89 ± 0.7 in. m2) and richness (\( \overline{S} \) = 6.49 ± 0.24). This was associated with the presence of high coverage of branching corals (16.34%) which can be considered a space competitor for echinoderms. Moreover, during cold seasons, density (17.44%) and richness (12.6%) increased, with a positive relation with the food supply. During the 2011/La Niña, a partial coral mortality resulted in the proliferation of turf and contributed to the highest abundance of grazer echinoderms. Abundance decreased during the following years, due to the loss of turf coverage. The assemblage of echinoderms maintained their species composition over the years, showing that the coral community of the Central Mexican Pacific has a singular auto-regulatory capacity that allows their long-term maintenance in response to environmental anomalies.
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Acknowledgements
RCSC’s work was supported by the doctoral fellowship No. 291281sponsored by the National Council of Science and Technology (CONACYT by its Spanish acronym). The authors thank the authorities of Islas Marietas National Park-National Commission of Natural Protected Areas (CONANP by its Spanish acronym) for assistance and use of facilities during the sampling periods. Also, the authors would like to thank LC Alarcón-Ortega and JJA Tortolero-Langarica who contributed to the field work. We thank Dr. John Lawrence, who proofread the English.
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The present work was supported by the project 226205 from the Program to Improve Teaching (PROMEP by its Spanish acronym) and the project P/ Integral Institutional Strengthening Program (PIFI by its Spanish acronym)-2010-14MSU0010Z-10 to ACM
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Table S1
Taxonomic list and mean density of echinoderm species, by sampling site, in Islas Marietas National Park. Data are presented as mean ± standard error. Codes: CM = Cueva del Muerto, ZS = Zona de Restauración Sur, ZR = Zona de Restauración; TA = Túnel-Amarradero, PP = Plataforma Pavonas, PA = Playa del Amor. IL = Isla Larga. IR: Isla Redonda. (DOCX 43 kb)
Table S2
One-way SIMPER results (% of contribution) of average dissimilarity among factors (years, seasons, islands, sites) at Islas Marietas National Park, with a cut-off to 90% of contribution. Codes: CM = Cueva del Muerto, ZS = Zona de Restauración Sur, ZR = Zona de Restauración; TA = Túnel-Amarradero, PP = Plataforma Pavonas, PA = Playa del Amor. (DOCX 43 kb)
Fig. S1
Observed and estimated species richness curves versus sampling effort for the site at Islas Marietas National Park. Codes: CM = Cueva del Muerto, ZS = Zona de Restauración Sur, ZR = Zona de Restauración, TA = Túnel-Amarradero, PP = Plataforma Pavonas, PA = Playa del Amor, S obs = observed species, Jack 1 = Jackknife 1, Jack 2 = Jackknife 2. (GIF 42 kb)
Fig. S2
Comparison of observed echinoderm species richness using pairwise rarefaction curves versus individuals. The dotted line showed the confidence interval of 95%. Codes: CM = Cueva del Muerto, ZS = Zona de Restauración Sur, ZR = Zona de Restauración, TA = Túnel-Amarradero, PP = Plataforma Pavonas, PA = Playa del Amor. (GIF 81 kb)
Fig. S3
Average species richness by season from 2011 to 2013. Codes, C = Cold season. W = Warm season. (GIF 28 kb)
Fig. S4
Diversity indexes calculated by year at each site of two islands. Codes, Sites: CM = Cueva del Muerto, ZS = Zona de Restauración Sur, ZR = Zona de Restauración, TA = Tunel-Amarradero, PP = Plataforma Pavonas, PA = Playa del Amor. Islands: IL = Isla Larga, IR = Isla Redonda. (GIF 1403 kb)
Fig. S5
Linear regression between temperature (° C) and Shannon diversity. (GIF 22 kb)
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Sotelo-Casas, R.C., Cupul-Magaña, A.L., Rodríguez-Zaragoza, F.A. et al. Structural and environmental effects on an assemblage of echinoderms associated with a coral community. Mar Biodiv 48, 1401–1411 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12526-016-0622-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12526-016-0622-y