Host Range of the Coral-Associated Worm Snail Petaloconchus sp. (Gastropoda: Vermetidae), a Newly Discovered Cryptogenic Pest Species in the Southern Caribbean

Bert Hoeksema,Roselle Spaargaren,Annabel Smith-Moorhouse,Roel Van Der Schoot,Sean Langdon-Down,Charlotte Harper,Rosalie Timmerman

doi:10.3390/d14030196

Bert Hoeksema, Roselle Spaargaren + Show 5 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/d14030196

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Abstract

The presence of associated endofauna can have an impact on the health of corals. During fieldwork on the southern Caribbean island of Curaçao in 2021, the presence of an unknown coral-dwelling worm snail was discovered, which appeared to cause damage to its hosts. A study of photo archives revealed that the species was already present during earlier surveys at Curaçao since 2014 and also in the southern Caribbean island of Bonaire in 2019. It was not found in St. Eustatius, an island in the eastern Caribbean, during an expedition in 2015. The vermetid snail was preliminarily identified as Petaloconchus sp. Its habitat choice resembles that of P. keenae, a West Pacific coral symbiont. The Caribbean species was observed in 21 host coral species, more than reported for any other vermetid. Because Petaloconchus sp. is a habitat generalist, it is possible that it was introduced from an area with another host-coral fauna. The unknown vermetid is considered to be cryptogenic until future studies reveal its actual identity and its native range.

Highlights

Worm snails of the family Vermetidae are common inhabitants of coral reefs and rocky shores in tropical to warm–temperate marine coastal waters, where they live embedded in dead or live corals or attached to other hard substrata [1]
The history of Vermetidae systematics is complex, which is partly due to the confusion of their calcareous tubes with those of other organisms, such as serpulid worms [9]
A total of 21 host-coral species—19 scleractinians (Anthozoa) two mil worm snail specimens were found on dead unidentified coral

Summary

Introduction

Worm snails of the family Vermetidae are common inhabitants of coral reefs and rocky shores in tropical to warm–temperate marine coastal waters, where they live embedded in dead or live corals or attached to other hard substrata [1]. There is much literature on coral-associated fauna in the Caribbean, vermetid snails are usually not included [10–13].

Results

Conclusion