Effect of oxygen on coral fanning by mutualistic fish

Coral branches partially block the flow of water through the colony, creating an inner zone of reduced water exchange where hypoxic conditions can develop during the night. Previous studies have shown that this oxygen deficiency is alleviated by the fanning behavior of mutualistic damselfish that sp...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Marine ecology (Berlin, West) West), 2015-12, Vol.36 (4), p.1171-1175
Main Authors: Berenshtein, Igal, Reuben, Yaela, Genin, Amatzia
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Branching corals
Corals
damselfish
Dascyllus marginatus
fanning
fin stroke frequency
Fins
Fish
Hypoxia
Marine
Marine fishes
mutualism
Night
Oxygen
oxygen concentration
Plastics
Water exchange
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Summary:Coral branches partially block the flow of water through the colony, creating an inner zone of reduced water exchange where hypoxic conditions can develop during the night. Previous studies have shown that this oxygen deficiency is alleviated by the fanning behavior of mutualistic damselfish that spend the night between the coral branches, constantly moving their fins. Our findings show that fin‐stroking frequency during fanning by the damselfish Dascyllus marginatus is moderately plastic, with lower frequency under higher oxygen concentration, and vice versa. The inter‐play between oxygen concentration and fin motion maintains nearly steady oxygen concentration between the coral branches during the night.
ISSN:0173-9565
1439-0485
DOI:10.1111/maec.12218