Peer Aquatic Biology
Info
Phyllogorgia dilatata is a particularly conspicuous species that forms dense leaves on the rocky reefs in the north of the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro
Phillogorgia dilatata is a particular species because of its colonial structure, anastomosing axes that form a reticulum, and the coenenchyma that separates the spaces between the axes so that they form a more or less continuous leaf.
However, there are also aberrant colonies in which there is no anastomosis or leaf formation.
The continuity of leaf laminae may be related to the environment, such as current, direction, and uniformity.
Colonies from in the same location appear to have a similar degree of leaf continuity, but sometimes severely dissected colonies are juxtaposed with colonies with more continuous laminae.
Colonies of Phyllogorgia dilatata can exceed 50 cm in height, and the coral settles in the infralittoral, often in shallow-water coral reefs and environments
The non-native soft coral Chromonephthea braziliensis chemically damages the tissue of Phyllogorgia dilatata.
Phyllogorgia dilatata itself develops chemicals that push back other corals as space competitors (result of study with Palythoa caribaeorum), make colonization by benthic organisms difficult (chemotactic responses of the non-native brittle star Ophiothela mirabilis), and repel other predators such as fish and snails.
Recommendation - the coral should be kept in a species-specific tank.
Feeding
The majority of gorgonians do not have zooxanthellae and do not live off light. Azooxanthellate gorgonians do not host symbiotic algae that produce nutrients and energy through photosynthesis.
The pumps should be switched off before feeding. In order for the gorgonian to survive in the aquarium, each individual polyp must be fed sufficiently, i.e. daily or 3-4 times a week. Without feeding, the gorgonian will not survive in the aquarium. The polyps need a certain amount of time to absorb the food (granules or dust food (Ultramarin, Cyclop Eeze) or frozen food (lobster eggs, mysis)). If shrimp and fish are present, they will try to steal the food, so it is essential to feed these cohabitants beforehand.
Newly introduced gorgonian sticks can be stimulated with a liquid food, e.g., PolypLab Polyp, to encourage the individual polyps to open. Only then can feeding be carried out.
The better the individual polyps take up the food provided, the better the growth and reproduction rates will be.
Azooxanthellate corals eat suspensions, marine snow, microplankton, and other organic matter, which is their natural food.
Several specialized consumers of gorgonians are not affected by these chemicals, such as the snail Cyphoma gibbosum (Harvell & Suchanek, 1987), the butterflyfish, Chaetodon capistratus (Lasker, 1985), the nudibranch, Tritonia hamnerorum (Cronin et al., 1995), and the bristle worm, Hermodice carunculata (Vreeland & Lasker, 1989).
These predators generally inflict small-scale, localized damage to gorgonian colonies.
In addition, there is a specialized nudibranch, Tritonia hamnerorum, which occurs in high densities on the sea fan Gorgonia ventalina, capable of storing sesquiterpenes from this host in its tissues, which deters the common predatory wrasse Thalassoma bifasciatum (bluehead wrasse).
Synonyms:
Gorgonia dilatata Esper, 1806
Hymenogorgia dilatata (Esper, 1806)
Hymenogorgia quercifolia Valenciennes, 1855
Phyllogorgia foliata Verrill, 1912
Phyllogorgia frondosa Verrill, 1912
Phyllogorgia quercifolia (Valenciennes, 1855)
Phillogorgia dilatata is a particular species because of its colonial structure, anastomosing axes that form a reticulum, and the coenenchyma that separates the spaces between the axes so that they form a more or less continuous leaf.
However, there are also aberrant colonies in which there is no anastomosis or leaf formation.
The continuity of leaf laminae may be related to the environment, such as current, direction, and uniformity.
Colonies from in the same location appear to have a similar degree of leaf continuity, but sometimes severely dissected colonies are juxtaposed with colonies with more continuous laminae.
Colonies of Phyllogorgia dilatata can exceed 50 cm in height, and the coral settles in the infralittoral, often in shallow-water coral reefs and environments
The non-native soft coral Chromonephthea braziliensis chemically damages the tissue of Phyllogorgia dilatata.
Phyllogorgia dilatata itself develops chemicals that push back other corals as space competitors (result of study with Palythoa caribaeorum), make colonization by benthic organisms difficult (chemotactic responses of the non-native brittle star Ophiothela mirabilis), and repel other predators such as fish and snails.
Recommendation - the coral should be kept in a species-specific tank.
Feeding
The majority of gorgonians do not have zooxanthellae and do not live off light. Azooxanthellate gorgonians do not host symbiotic algae that produce nutrients and energy through photosynthesis.
The pumps should be switched off before feeding. In order for the gorgonian to survive in the aquarium, each individual polyp must be fed sufficiently, i.e. daily or 3-4 times a week. Without feeding, the gorgonian will not survive in the aquarium. The polyps need a certain amount of time to absorb the food (granules or dust food (Ultramarin, Cyclop Eeze) or frozen food (lobster eggs, mysis)). If shrimp and fish are present, they will try to steal the food, so it is essential to feed these cohabitants beforehand.
Newly introduced gorgonian sticks can be stimulated with a liquid food, e.g., PolypLab Polyp, to encourage the individual polyps to open. Only then can feeding be carried out.
The better the individual polyps take up the food provided, the better the growth and reproduction rates will be.
Azooxanthellate corals eat suspensions, marine snow, microplankton, and other organic matter, which is their natural food.
Several specialized consumers of gorgonians are not affected by these chemicals, such as the snail Cyphoma gibbosum (Harvell & Suchanek, 1987), the butterflyfish, Chaetodon capistratus (Lasker, 1985), the nudibranch, Tritonia hamnerorum (Cronin et al., 1995), and the bristle worm, Hermodice carunculata (Vreeland & Lasker, 1989).
These predators generally inflict small-scale, localized damage to gorgonian colonies.
In addition, there is a specialized nudibranch, Tritonia hamnerorum, which occurs in high densities on the sea fan Gorgonia ventalina, capable of storing sesquiterpenes from this host in its tissues, which deters the common predatory wrasse Thalassoma bifasciatum (bluehead wrasse).
Synonyms:
Gorgonia dilatata Esper, 1806
Hymenogorgia dilatata (Esper, 1806)
Hymenogorgia quercifolia Valenciennes, 1855
Phyllogorgia foliata Verrill, 1912
Phyllogorgia frondosa Verrill, 1912
Phyllogorgia quercifolia (Valenciennes, 1855)
