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Eagle Eye zooanthid coral, propagated in captivity. Zooanthids and Palythoa are propagated in captivity by cutting the polyps apart using a scalpel or scissors then attaching to a surface with cyanoacrylate glue. Care must be taken when cutting zooanthids because, if the palytoxin gets in the bloodstream a person will become very ill.
Zooxanthellae (/ ˌ z oʊ ə z æ n ˈ θ ɛ l iː /; sg. zooxanthella) is a colloquial term for single-celled dinoflagellates that are able to live in symbiosis with diverse marine invertebrates including demosponges, corals, jellyfish, and nudibranchs.
The zooxanthellae live inside the tissues of the coral, and provide the coral with food, which they produce through photosynthesis, so require sunlight. In return, the coral provides the algae with protection and access to sunlight. The hollow tubes in fire coral can also be used to store oxygen to offset any organism that bumps into it. [3]
However, the majority of coral without zooxanthellae starve. [15] Normally, coral polyps live in an endosymbiotic relationship with zooxanthellae. [18] This relationship is crucial for the health of the coral and the reef, [18] which provide shelter for approximately 25% of all marine life. [19] In this relationship, the coral provides the ...
The coral can has a symbiotic relationship with zooxanthellae living inside of the coral. [5] Colonies of G. astreata are either sub-massive, columnar, or encrusting, meaning they can either be irregularly shaped, growing upward like columns, or impinging on a hard substrate. Colonies can grow to be over two meters long.
The individual polyps are large and sit in stony cups known as corallites. The polyps are translucent and the colony has a furry appearance when they are expanded. In warm water and with high levels of light, this coral often houses photosynthesizing symbiotic protists known as zooxanthellae in its tissues, and then the coral appears brown. In ...
Zooxanthellae, or coral symbionts, serve in a mutualistic relationship as a source of energy for coral colonies, while also receiving shelter between coral polyps. [5] Zooxanthellae photosynthesize and transfer sugars to the coral polyp, but azooxanthellate, or aposymbiotic, coral colonies rely on obtaining energy through heterotrophy .
Organ pipe corals contain polyps that only live in the tops of the colony's tubes. [1] These polyps contain zooxanthellae, which are a symbiotic type of phytoplankton [1] that provide energy for the coral. Furthermore, the polyps also have eight feathery tentacles branching off, which are what give the colony its color. [1]