Life-history traits of a common Caribbean coral-excavating sponge, Cliona tenuis (Porifera: Hadromerida).

Manuel González-Rivero (1) , Alexander Ereskovsky (2) , Christine H L Schönberg (3) , Renata Ferrari (4) , Jane J Fromont (4) , Peter J Mumby (1)

1 University of Exeter
2 IMBE - Institut méditerranéen de biodiversité et d'écologie marine et continentale
3 UWA - The University of Western Australia
4 The University of Sydney

Clionaids are important competitors and bio-eroding agents on coral reefs; however , little is known of their biology. We studied aspects of life history of Cliona tenuis, in particular its sexual reproduction and growth. Temporal variations in these traits were studied over a year, in correlation with water temperature as a proxy for seasonality. Growth and sexual reproduction occurred at separate times and followed intra-annual variations in temperature. Growth increased during the warmest months of the year, reaching an average rate of 29.9 ± 6.7 mm during 286 days. Cliona tenuis is oviparous, and the results suggest gonochorism. Gametogenesis occurred between the coldest months and the period when temperature was increasing. Recruitment was constant throughout the year, possibly associated with post-settlement processes. Juvenile-size individuals were represented in the studied population, suggesting that processes like competition and mortality may control the population, whose size structure may be sustained by high recruitment rates.

Mots clés: Porifera; Cliona; bio-erosion; reproduction; life cycle; recruitment; growth; Glover's Atoll; Belize

Domaines: Sciences du Vivant [q-bio]

Manuel González-Rivero, Alexander Ereskovsky, Christine H L Schönberg, Renata Ferrari, Jane J Fromont, et al.. Life-history traits of a common Caribbean coral-excavating sponge, Cliona tenuis (Porifera: Hadromerida). . Journal of Natural History, 2013, 47, pp.2815 - 2834. ⟨10.1080/00222933.2013.802042⟩. ⟨hal-01456662⟩