Contrasting reproductive strategies of two Hawaiian Montipora corals

Abstract

Sessile invertebrates often engage in synchronized spawning events to increase likelihood of fertilization. Although coral reefs are well studied, the reproductive behavior of most species and the relative influence of various environmental cues that drive reproduction are not well understood. We conducted a comparative examination of the reproduction of the well-studied Hawaiian coral Montipora capitata and the relatively unknown reproduction of its congener, Montipora flabellata. Both are simultaneous hermaphroditic broadcast spawners that release egg-sperm bundles with external fertilization. Montipora capitata had a distinct reproductive pattern that resulted in coordinated gamete maturation and the synchronized release of thousands of egg-sperm bundles across two spawning pulses tightly coupled to consecutive new moon phases in June and July. Montipora flabellata exhibited a four month reproductive season with spawning that was four-fold less synchronous than M. capitata; its spawning was aperiodic with little linkage to moon phase, a broadly distributed release of only dozens or hundreds of bundles over multiple nights, and a spawning period that ranged from late June through September. The reproductive strategy of M. flabellata might prove detrimental under climate change if increased frequency and severity of bleaching events leave it sparsely populated and local stressors continue to degrade its habitat.