Abstract
Many crustacean species are obligate associates of pocilloporid corals, where they feed, reproduce, and find shelter. However, these coral-associated crustaceans have been poorly studied in the eastern tropical Pacific. Determining the crustacean richness and taxonomic distinctness could help in comparing different coral reefs and the potential effects of degradation. This study evaluated the spatio–temporal variation of the taxonomic diversity and distinctness of coral-associated crustaceans in four ecosystems of the Central Mexican Pacific (CMP) with different conditions and coral cover. In all ecosystems, 48 quadrants were sampled during the summer and winter for two years. A total of 12,647 individuals belonging to 88 species, 43 genera, and 21 families were recorded. The sampling effort yielded 79.6% of the expected species richness in the study area. Species rarity had 19% singletons, 4% doubletons, 22% unique, and 9% duplicate species; two species represented new records for the Mexican Pacific, and six were new to the CMP. This study recorded most of the symbiotic crustacean species in pocilloporid corals previously reported in the CMP. The taxonomic diversity and distinctness differed significantly between coral ecosystems and seasons, which was also visualized by nMDS ordination, showing an evident spatio–temporal variation in the taxonomic beta diversity.
Highlights
This study recorded most of the Pocillopora obligate symbiotic crustacean species restudy recorded of the Trapezia
This study recorded most of the Pocillopora obligate symbiotic crustacean species reported by previous studies, including Trapezia bidentata, T. corallina, T. digitalis, T. formosa, Alpheus lottini, Hapalocarcinus marsupialis, and some species of Synalpheus
We did not find some species known to be associated with Pocillopora, such as Fennera chacei, Alpheus sulcatus, Palaemonella holmesi, Stenorhynchus debilis, Thor algicola, and Petrolisthes galathinus, which had been previously reported in the study area [24,25]
Summary
AyónParente et al [25] formulated an inventory of 19 species of caridean shrimps associated with the Pocillopora from Chamela Bay, Jalisco Both studies contributed to the inventories of the crustaceans associated with pocilloporid corals of the CMP, they did not offer evidence of possible spatio–temporal changes in their species richness and abundance, nor did they evaluate the contribution of the different taxonomic categories to diversity. Knowing this information could help us understand the potential effects of coral reef degradation [7].
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