Asexual reproduction in bad times? The case of Cladocora caespitosa in the eastern Mediterranean Sea.

ABSTRACT: We analysed the patterns of genetic variability of eastern Mediterranean populations of the scleractinian coral Cladocora caespitosa, from the Aegean and Levantine seas, using 19 polymorphic microsatellite loci, 11 of which were newly characterized. The observed genetic pattern reflects a scenario of isolation by environment: F _ST comparisons showed a higher degree of genetic differentiation between the two Cypriot populations that are separated by only 11 km than between these two Levantine populations and the Aegean population in Greece, which are separated by 1300 km. We hypothesize that local-scale oceanographic factors influenced the dispersal of planulae between the geographically close populations, playing a crucial role in the genetic structure of this coas

SUBMITTER: Lopez-Marquez V 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7791332 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature