Sexual reproduction of the soft coral Dendronephthya castanea (Alcyonacea: Nephtheidae)

Abstract

Dendronephthya castanea Utinomi, 1952 is a member of the family Nephtheidae, and dominates shallow waters adjacent to the southern part of Jejudo Island, Korea. This species is a gonochoric internal brooder with a sex ratio of 1:1, and releases planulae around the time of the full and new moon from July to September, when the seawater temperature peaks. The gametogenic cycle is annual, and oogenesis (12 months) is longer than spermatogenesis (4-5 months). No difference in reproductive features including sexuality, sex ratio, gametogenesis and gametogenic cycles was found between the sympatric species D. castanea and D. gigantea, and there was no temporal reproductive isolation. Investigation of the morphological taxonomy and molecular biology of these species indicates that they have very similar or identical traits, suggesting an absence of speciation and a need for taxonomic reclassification. © 2012 Copyright Korean Society for Integrative Biology.