Hostname: page-component-7b9c58cd5d-9klzr Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-03-16T00:48:12.992Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Differences in photosynthetic activity between coral sections infested and not infested by boring spionid polychaetes

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 June 2006

Jeffrey Wielgus
Affiliation:
Faculty of Life Sciences, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel Interuniversity Institute for Marine Science, PO Box 469, Eilat, Israel Faculty of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona 85287-4501, USA
Oren Levy
Affiliation:
Faculty of Life Sciences, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel Centre for Marine Studies, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, Queensland, Australia
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

A SCUBA-based fast repetition rate fluorometer (FRRF) was used to study differences in the functional absorption cross-section of Photosystem II (σPSII) between areas of a coral colony of Astreoporamyriophthalma that were infested with spionid polychaetes vs areas lacking worms. The mean value of σPSII in infested areas (mean±SD=347.62±30.67 Å2) was significantly higher than in the areas that were not infested (316.32±17.49 Å2; P<0.0001). Several physiological mechanisms are discussed that may contribute to the observed differences.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
2006 Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom