Abstract
The rates at which some sedentary coelenterates move across substrates, spread by asexual reproduction, and competitively damage their neighbors may greatly affect their ability to survive on hard marine substrates. However, almost nothing is known about these processes in the Corallimorpharia. In this study, locomotory rates varied widely between members of a single clone of the corallimorpharian Corynactis californica. Polyp movement rates (0–14 mm month−1) were slower than those of many Actiniaria, possibly due to the lack of basilar muscles in corallimorpharians. Rates of asexual reproduction by C. californica polyps in the laboratory varied 10-fold among 8 clones. The minimal time to double the number of polyps per clone (2 months) was intermediate to doubling times known for Actiniaria and Scleractinia. The rate at which polyps killed individuals of the scleractinian Astrangia lajollaensis also varied widely within and between clones. Asexual reproductive rate correlated positively with coral killing rate.
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Chadwick, N.E., Adams, C. (1991). Locomotion, asexual reproduction, and killing of corals by the corallimorpharian Corynactis californica . In: Williams, R.B., Cornelius, P.F.S., Hughes, R.G., Robson, E.A. (eds) Coelenterate Biology: Recent Research on Cnidaria and Ctenophora. Developments in Hydrobiology, vol 66. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-3240-4_38
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-3240-4_38
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