Symbiodinium Communities in American Samoa Reef Pools

Data from a study comparing Symbiodinium algae communities in waters, sediments, and ten coral species between two thermally distinct reef pools in American Samoa. The analysis, conducted by Ross Cunning, used pyrosequencing to examine clades A, C, D, F, and G across different habitat compartments. It reveals distinct assemblages and altered habitat distributions linked to thermal environments.

Use Cases

• Compare Symbiodinium clade abundance (e.g., clades A, C, D) between thermally distinct reef pools using pyrosequencing data.
• Analyze compartmental assemblages of Symbiodinium types across water, sediment, and coral species like Pavona venosa and Porites.
• Investigate potential linkages in Symbiodinium composition among water, sediment, and coral host compartments within a reef ecosystem.
• Assess within-pool spatial structure of Symbiodinium communities in reef waters and sediments from American Samoa.

Strengths

• Data covers ten distinct coral species, including Favia matthaii, Psammacora contigua, and Acropora austera.
• Pyrosequencing provides detailed genetic identification of Symbiodinium across multiple clades (A, C, D, F, G).
• Comparative design includes two reef pools with documented contrasting thermal environments.

Limitations

• Sample size and number of rows are unknown, limiting statistical power assessment.
• Data is from a single study location (American Samoa backreef pools), restricting geographic generalizability.
• The underlying environmental drivers and functional consequences of observed plasticity require further testing, as noted by the authors.

Provenance

Source

Ross Cunning via Dryad

Collection Method

Pyrosequencing of Symbiodinium from water, sediment, and coral tissue samples.

Freshness

2020-06-24

Geography

Two backreef pools in American Samoa