When forms meet genes: revision of the scleractinian genera Micromussa and Homophyllia (Lobophylliidae) with a description of two new species and one new genus

Type Article
Date 2016
Language English
Author(s) Arrigoni Roberto1, 2, Benzoni FrancescaORCID2, 3, Huang Danwei4, 5, 6, Fukami Hironobu7, Chen Chaolun Allen8, 9, Berumen Michael L.1, Hoogenboom Mia10, 11, Thomson Damian P.12, Hoeksema Bert W.13, Budd Ann F.6, Zayasu Yuna14, Terraneo Tullia I.1, Kitano Yuko F.15, Baird Andrew H.11
Affiliation(s) 1 : King Abdullah Univ Sci & Technol, Div Biol & Environm Sci & Engn, Red Sea Res Ctr, Thuwal 239556900, Saudi Arabia.
2 : Univ Milano Bicocca, Dept Biotechnol & Biosci, Piazza Sci 2, I-20126 Milan, Italy.
3 : Univ La Reunion, Lab Excellence CORAIL, Ctr IRD Noumea, UMR ENTROPIE,IRD,CNRS, 101 Promenade Roger Laroque,BP A5, Noumea 98848, New Caledonia.
4 : Natl Univ Singapore, Dept Biol Sci, Singapore 117543, Singapore.
5 : Natl Univ Singapore, Trop Marine Sci Inst, Singapore 117543, Singapore.
6 : Univ Iowa, Dept Earth & Environm Sci, Iowa City, IA 52242 USA.
7 : Miyazaki Univ, Fac Agr, 1-1 Gakuenkibanadai Nishi, Miyazaki 8892192, Japan.
8 : Acad Sinica, Biodivers Res Ctr, Taipei 115, Taiwan.
9 : Natl Taiwan Univ, Inst Oceanog, Taipei 106, Taiwan.
10 : James Cook Univ, Coll Marine & Environm Sci, Townsville, Qld 4811, Australia.
11 : James Cook Univ, ARC Ctr Excellence Coral Reef Studies, Townsville, Qld 4811, Australia.
12 : CSIRO Oceans & Atmosphere, Floreat, WA 6014, Australia.
13 : Nat Biodivers Ctr, POB 9517, NL-2300 RA Leiden, Netherlands.
14 : Grad Univ, Okinawa Inst Sci & Technol, Marine Genom Unit, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna Son, Okinawa 9040495, Japan.
15 : Miyazaki Univ, Org Promot Tenure Track, Miyazaki 8892192, Japan.
Source Contributions To Zoology (1383-4517) (Naturalis Biodiversity Center), 2016 , Vol. 85 , N. 4 , P. 387-422
DOI 10.1163/18759866-08504002
WOS© Times Cited 23
Keyword(s) coral, evolution, phylogeny, systematics, taxonomy
Abstract

The scleractinian family Lobophylliidae is undergoing a major taxonomic revision thanks to the combination of molecular and morphological data. In this study, we investigate the evolutionary relationships and the macro- and micromorphology of six nominal coral species belonging to two of the nine molecular clades of the Lobophylliidae, clades A and B, and of Symphyllia wilsoni, a lobophylliid species analyzed from a molecular point of view for the first time. Sequence data from mitochondrial DNA (COI and the intergenic spacer between COI and l-rRNA), and nuclear DNA (histone H3 and ITS region) are used to generate robust molecular phylogenies and a median-joining haplotype network. Molecular results are strongly in agreement with detailed observations of gross-and fine-scale morphology of skeletons, leading to the formal revision of the genera Micro-mussa and Homophyllia and the description of two newly discovered zooxanthellate shallow-water species, Micromussa pacifica sp. nov. Benzoni & Arrigoni and Micromussa indiana sp. nov. Benzoni & Arrigoni, and a new genus, Australophyllia gen. nov. Benzoni & Arrigoni. In particular, Acanthastrea lord-howensis and Montastraea multipunctata are moved into Micromussa, A. hillae is synonymized with A. bowerbanki and is transferred to Homophyllia, and a revised diagnosis for both genera is provided. Micromussa pacifica sp. nov. is described from the Gambier Islands with its distribution spanning New Caledonia and eastern Australia. Despite a superficial resemblance with Homophyllia australis, it has distinctive macroand micromorphological septal features. Micromussa indiana sp. nov., previously identified as M. amakusensis, is here described from the Gulf of Aden and the southern Red Sea as a distinct species that is genetically separated from M. amakusensis and is morphologically distinct from the latter due to its smaller corallite size and lower number of septa. Finally, molecular trees show that S. wilsoni is closely related, but molecularly separated from clades A and B, and, also based on a unique combination of corallite and sub-corallite characters, the species is moved into Australophyllia gen. nov. These findings confirm the need for using both genetic and morphological datasets for the ongoing taxonomic revision of scleractinian corals.

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Arrigoni Roberto, Benzoni Francesca, Huang Danwei, Fukami Hironobu, Chen Chaolun Allen, Berumen Michael L., Hoogenboom Mia, Thomson Damian P., Hoeksema Bert W., Budd Ann F., Zayasu Yuna, Terraneo Tullia I., Kitano Yuko F., Baird Andrew H. (2016). When forms meet genes: revision of the scleractinian genera Micromussa and Homophyllia (Lobophylliidae) with a description of two new species and one new genus. Contributions To Zoology, 85(4), 387-422. Publisher's official version : https://doi.org/10.1163/18759866-08504002 , Open Access version : https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00585/69699/