Quantification of coral sperm collected during a synchronous spawning event
Most studies of coral reproductive biology to date have focused on oocyte numbers and sizes. Only one (ex situ) study has enumerated sperm numbers, even though these data have multiple potential applications. We quantified total coral sperm and eggs per gamete bundle collected from six species in si...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
PeerJ Inc.
2016-07-01
|
| Series: | PeerJ |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://peerj.com/articles/2180.pdf |
| _version_ | 1827606526406164480 |
|---|---|
| author | Aaron Teo James R. Guest Mei Lin Neo Kareen Vicentuan Peter A. Todd |
| author_facet | Aaron Teo James R. Guest Mei Lin Neo Kareen Vicentuan Peter A. Todd |
| author_sort | Aaron Teo |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Most studies of coral reproductive biology to date have focused on oocyte numbers and sizes. Only one (ex situ) study has enumerated sperm numbers, even though these data have multiple potential applications. We quantified total coral sperm and eggs per gamete bundle collected from six species in situ during a synchronous spawning event in Singapore. Egg-sperm bundles were captured midwater as they floated towards the surface after being released by the colony. For each sample, a semi-transparent soft plastic bottle was squeezed and released to create a small suction force that was used to ‘catch’ the bundles. This technique provided several advantages over traditional methods, including low cost, ease of use, no diving prior to the night of collection needed, and the ability to target specific areas of the colony. The six species sampled were Echinophyllia aspera, Favites abdita, F. chinensis, Merulina ampliata, M. scabricula and Platygyra pini. The mean number of sperm packaged within one egg-sperm bundle ranged from 2.04 × 106 to 1.93 × 107. The mean number of eggs per egg-sperm bundle ranged from 26.67 (SE ± 3.27) to 85.33 (SE ± 17.79). These data are critical for fertilisation success models, but the collection technique described could also be applied to studies requiring in situ spawning data at the polyp level. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T06:39:32Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-b68bf667d7974ad2951f6aeb7413bf6a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2167-8359 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T06:39:32Z |
| publishDate | 2016-07-01 |
| publisher | PeerJ Inc. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PeerJ |
| spelling | doaj.art-b68bf667d7974ad2951f6aeb7413bf6a2023-12-03T10:54:00ZengPeerJ Inc.PeerJ2167-83592016-07-014e218010.7717/peerj.2180Quantification of coral sperm collected during a synchronous spawning eventAaron Teo0James R. Guest1Mei Lin Neo2Kareen Vicentuan3Peter A. Todd4Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, SingaporeSECORE International, Johor, MalaysiaTropical Marine Science Institute, National University of Singapore, SingaporeTropical Marine Science Institute, National University of Singapore, SingaporeDepartment of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, SingaporeMost studies of coral reproductive biology to date have focused on oocyte numbers and sizes. Only one (ex situ) study has enumerated sperm numbers, even though these data have multiple potential applications. We quantified total coral sperm and eggs per gamete bundle collected from six species in situ during a synchronous spawning event in Singapore. Egg-sperm bundles were captured midwater as they floated towards the surface after being released by the colony. For each sample, a semi-transparent soft plastic bottle was squeezed and released to create a small suction force that was used to ‘catch’ the bundles. This technique provided several advantages over traditional methods, including low cost, ease of use, no diving prior to the night of collection needed, and the ability to target specific areas of the colony. The six species sampled were Echinophyllia aspera, Favites abdita, F. chinensis, Merulina ampliata, M. scabricula and Platygyra pini. The mean number of sperm packaged within one egg-sperm bundle ranged from 2.04 × 106 to 1.93 × 107. The mean number of eggs per egg-sperm bundle ranged from 26.67 (SE ± 3.27) to 85.33 (SE ± 17.79). These data are critical for fertilisation success models, but the collection technique described could also be applied to studies requiring in situ spawning data at the polyp level.https://peerj.com/articles/2180.pdfEggsCoralGametesModelSpermReproduction |
| spellingShingle | Aaron Teo James R. Guest Mei Lin Neo Kareen Vicentuan Peter A. Todd Quantification of coral sperm collected during a synchronous spawning event PeerJ Eggs Coral Gametes Model Sperm Reproduction |
| title | Quantification of coral sperm collected during a synchronous spawning event |
| title_full | Quantification of coral sperm collected during a synchronous spawning event |
| title_fullStr | Quantification of coral sperm collected during a synchronous spawning event |
| title_full_unstemmed | Quantification of coral sperm collected during a synchronous spawning event |
| title_short | Quantification of coral sperm collected during a synchronous spawning event |
| title_sort | quantification of coral sperm collected during a synchronous spawning event |
| topic | Eggs Coral Gametes Model Sperm Reproduction |
| url | https://peerj.com/articles/2180.pdf |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT aaronteo quantificationofcoralspermcollectedduringasynchronousspawningevent AT jamesrguest quantificationofcoralspermcollectedduringasynchronousspawningevent AT meilinneo quantificationofcoralspermcollectedduringasynchronousspawningevent AT kareenvicentuan quantificationofcoralspermcollectedduringasynchronousspawningevent AT peteratodd quantificationofcoralspermcollectedduringasynchronousspawningevent |