Center for Environment & Water, Research Institute, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM), P. B. No. 391, Dhahran, 31261, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
National Center for Wildlife, Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Sci Rep. 2020 Sep 18;10(1):15356. doi: 10.1038/s41598-020-72344-5.
This paper reports a deep-water coral framework (a single colonial bush or a larger bioconstruction of coral covering the sea bottom), formed entirely by the scleractinian coral Eguchipsammia fistula (Alcock, 1902) (Dendrophylliidae), in the northern Red Sea waters of Saudi Arabia at a depth of about 640 m. The framework consists of mostly live corals with a total area of about 10 m and the length of the individual coral branches range from 12 to 30 cm. Although E. fistula is ubiquitous, this discovery is the second record of a framework formed by this species and the first discovery of a large living reef in the Red Sea. The results of the genetic study indicate the potential existence of a genetic variation of E. fistula in the Red Sea. This discovery implies that the Red Sea has favorable habitats for framework-forming DWC species and highlights the need for conducting more systematic surveys for understanding their distribution, abundance, and ecology.
本文报道了在沙特阿拉伯红海北部水深约 640 米处发现的一种由石珊瑚 Eguchipsammia fistula（Alcock，1902）（Dendrophylliidae 科）完全形成的深海珊瑚骨架（单个珊瑚丛或覆盖海底的较大珊瑚生物构造）。该骨架主要由活体珊瑚组成，总面积约为 10 平方米，单个珊瑚枝的长度从 12 到 30 厘米不等。尽管 E. fistula 分布广泛，但这一发现是该物种形成的骨架的第二个记录，也是红海首次发现大型活珊瑚礁。遗传研究的结果表明，红海可能存在 E. fistula 的遗传变异。这一发现意味着红海拥有适合形成珊瑚骨架的深海水域物种的有利生境，并强调需要进行更系统的调查，以了解它们的分布、丰度和生态。
