Peculiar Morphology of <i>Montipora millepora</i> Reveals Interspecific Competition for Space Among Two Other Major Foundation Species in Jeju Waters, South Korea
An atypical surface shape was observed in encrusting coral colonies of <i>Montipora millepora</i>. Initial assumptions on their origin focused on the presence of epibiotic intermediate habitat formers, such as coral-dwelling and -boring organisms. However, further investigations revealed...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2025-06-01
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| Series: | Diversity |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1424-2818/17/6/398 |
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| Summary: | An atypical surface shape was observed in encrusting coral colonies of <i>Montipora millepora</i>. Initial assumptions on their origin focused on the presence of epibiotic intermediate habitat formers, such as coral-dwelling and -boring organisms. However, further investigations revealed their origin to also be substrate shape-related, prompted by overgrowing other foundation species. The unusual bumps stemmed from encrusting over specimens of the coral <i>Alveopora japonica</i>, and the forked, tube-like structures over holdfasts of the brown alga <i>Ecklonia cava</i>. Spatial distribution patterns and interspecific competition are briefly reviewed. Potential effects of morphological changes for <i>Montipora</i> species identification, as well as implications of altered topography in general, are mentioned. |
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| ISSN: | 1424-2818 |