MotivationHistorical changes in sea level caused shifting coastlines that affected the distributi... more MotivationHistorical changes in sea level caused shifting coastlines that affected the distribution and evolution of marine and terrestrial biota. At the onset of the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) 26 ka, sea levels were >130 m lower than at present, resulting in seaward‐shifted coastlines and shallow shelf seas, with emerging land bridges leading to the isolation of marine biota and the connection of land‐bridge islands to the continents. At the end of the last ice age, sea levels started to rise at unprecedented rates, leading to coastal retreat, drowning of land bridges and contraction of island areas. Although a growing number of studies take historical coastline dynamics into consideration, they are mostly based on past global sea‐level stands and present‐day water depths and neglect the influence of global geophysical changes on historical coastline positions. Here, we present a novel geophysically corrected global historical coastline position raster for the period from 26 ka ...
Freeliving corals capable of automobility (e.g., lateral migration) were rare during Paleozoic ti... more Freeliving corals capable of automobility (e.g., lateral migration) were rare during Paleozoic time, but some species within the tabulate generaProcterodictyum, Procteria(Granulidictyum),P.(Pachyprocteria),PalaeacisandSmythina, and the rugose generaCombophyllum, andBaryphyllum, have morphologic characters that suggest they were capable of such self-directed movement. The rugose coralsGymnophyllumandHadrophyllum, sensu stricto may have exhumed and righted themselves. No single morphological character is diagnostic for an automobile habit, but the following characters appear to be important indicators: 1) lack of an external attachment surface; 2) concentric skeletal accretion; 3) discoid corallum shape; 4) concavo-convex, plano-convex, and, less commonly, biconvex corallum profile; and 5) small, lightweight corallum. Additionally, the occurrence of corallites on the base of the corallum (hypocorallites) is a good indicator of automobility in freeliving corals, but the character is so...
Coral reefs in the Caribbean are known to be affected by many coral diseases, yet the ecology and... more Coral reefs in the Caribbean are known to be affected by many coral diseases, yet the ecology and etiology of most diseases remain understudied. The Caribbean ciliate infection (CCI) caused by ciliates belonging to the genus Halofolliculina is a common disease on Caribbean reefs, with direct contact considered the most likely way through which the ciliates can be transmitted between infected and healthy colonies. Here we report an observation regarding a Coralliophila sp. snail feeding in proximity to a cluster of ciliates forming the typical disease band of CCI. The result of this observation is twofold. The feeding behavior of the snail may allow the passive attachment of ciliates on the body or shell of the snail resulting in indirect transport of the ciliates among colonies, which makes it eligible as a possible disease vector. Alternatively, the lesions created from snail feeding may enhance the progression of the ciliates already present on the coral as well as promoting addit...
MotivationHistorical changes in sea level caused shifting coastlines that affected the distributi... more MotivationHistorical changes in sea level caused shifting coastlines that affected the distribution and evolution of marine and terrestrial biota. At the onset of the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) 26 ka, sea levels were >130 m lower than at present, resulting in seaward‐shifted coastlines and shallow shelf seas, with emerging land bridges leading to the isolation of marine biota and the connection of land‐bridge islands to the continents. At the end of the last ice age, sea levels started to rise at unprecedented rates, leading to coastal retreat, drowning of land bridges and contraction of island areas. Although a growing number of studies take historical coastline dynamics into consideration, they are mostly based on past global sea‐level stands and present‐day water depths and neglect the influence of global geophysical changes on historical coastline positions. Here, we present a novel geophysically corrected global historical coastline position raster for the period from 26 ka ...
Freeliving corals capable of automobility (e.g., lateral migration) were rare during Paleozoic ti... more Freeliving corals capable of automobility (e.g., lateral migration) were rare during Paleozoic time, but some species within the tabulate generaProcterodictyum, Procteria(Granulidictyum),P.(Pachyprocteria),PalaeacisandSmythina, and the rugose generaCombophyllum, andBaryphyllum, have morphologic characters that suggest they were capable of such self-directed movement. The rugose coralsGymnophyllumandHadrophyllum, sensu stricto may have exhumed and righted themselves. No single morphological character is diagnostic for an automobile habit, but the following characters appear to be important indicators: 1) lack of an external attachment surface; 2) concentric skeletal accretion; 3) discoid corallum shape; 4) concavo-convex, plano-convex, and, less commonly, biconvex corallum profile; and 5) small, lightweight corallum. Additionally, the occurrence of corallites on the base of the corallum (hypocorallites) is a good indicator of automobility in freeliving corals, but the character is so...
Coral reefs in the Caribbean are known to be affected by many coral diseases, yet the ecology and... more Coral reefs in the Caribbean are known to be affected by many coral diseases, yet the ecology and etiology of most diseases remain understudied. The Caribbean ciliate infection (CCI) caused by ciliates belonging to the genus Halofolliculina is a common disease on Caribbean reefs, with direct contact considered the most likely way through which the ciliates can be transmitted between infected and healthy colonies. Here we report an observation regarding a Coralliophila sp. snail feeding in proximity to a cluster of ciliates forming the typical disease band of CCI. The result of this observation is twofold. The feeding behavior of the snail may allow the passive attachment of ciliates on the body or shell of the snail resulting in indirect transport of the ciliates among colonies, which makes it eligible as a possible disease vector. Alternatively, the lesions created from snail feeding may enhance the progression of the ciliates already present on the coral as well as promoting addit...
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