[Coral-List] Coral Polyps Rejecting/Ejecting Their Zooxanthellae

[Thomas Goreau]

Dunbar Steele and Nora Goreau found that degenerating and excess  
zooxanthellae are often expelled rather than absorbed.

This fits with most coelenterates being obligate carnivores in diet,  
even those with symbiotic algae. Sir Maurice Yonge pointed out in the  
1920s Reports of the Cambridge University Great Barrier Reef  
Expedition that corals spat out phytoplankton put in their gastric  
cavity but gobbled up zooplankton. In addition corals have many other  
heterotropic uptake pathways. For more on this see:

TF Goreau, 1956, A study of the biology and histochemistry of corals,  
227 p., Yale University

TF Goreau, NI Goreau, and CM Yonge, 1971, Reef corals: autotrophs or  
heterotrophs? Biol. Bull. 141:247-260

Thomas J. Goreau, PhD
President
Global Coral Reef Alliance
37 Pleasant Street, Cambridge MA 02139
617-864-4226
goreau at bestweb.net
http://www.globalcoral.org

On Jan 31, 2008, at 4:34 PM, James Cervino PhD. wrote:

> There was a great paper published by Roger Steele and Nora Goreau  
> in 1977 that
> discusses "farming of the alga". Here is the citation.
>
> Steele, R.D. and N. Goreau, (1977). The breakdown of symbiotic  
> zooxanthellae in
> the sea anemone Phyllactis (=Oulactis) flosculifera (Actiniara). J.  
> Zool. Lond.
> 181: 421-437.
>
>
> *************************************
> Dr. James M. Cervino
> Pace University & Visiting Scientist
> Woods Hole Oceanographic Inst.
> Department of Marine Chemistry
> Woods Hole MA.
> Cell: 917-620*5287
> ************************************
>
>
> Quoting Melissa Keyes <mekvinga at yahoo.com>:
>
> * Hello, Listers,
> *
> *   Do stressed Polyps eject their Zooxanthellae because the Zoox  
> are dying or
> * have died, and are beginning to rot?
> *
> *   Cheers,
> *
> *   Melissa E. Keyes
> *   Christiansted, St. Croix, USVI
> *   Caribbean Sea
> *
> *
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