| Summary: | 博士 === 國立臺灣大學 === 海洋學系 === 84 === The sexual reproduction, life histories and population dynamics
of four species of foliaceous corals, Echinopora lamellosa,
Echinophyllia aspera, Mycedium elephantotus, and Merulina
ampliata, in Yenliao Bay northern Taiwan and Nanwan Bay
southern Taiwan were studied. The four coral species are
hermaphroditic broadcast spawners. Colony size at sexual
maturity was about 5-10 cm in diameter. Mature colonies have
an annual gametogenic cycle that culminates in a brief period
of spawning. The timing of gametogenesis and spawning of four
species at the lower latitude (Nanwan Bay) was later than that
at the higher latitude (Yenliao Bay). It suggests that the
timing of reproductive activities may be not simply controlled
by sea temperature and photoperiod. The spawning of
transplanted colonies of Echinopora lamellosa and Echinophyllia
aspera in Yenliao Bay, as well as E. lamellosa and Mycedium
elephantotus in Nanwan Bay occurred at the time different from
original populations. However, the spawning of transplanted
colonies of E. aspera in Nanwan Bay remained unchanged after
being transplanted for 3 years. The inconsistency among
transplanted colonies of different species and between native
populations and transplanted colonies suggests that the long-
term and short-term effects of environmental factors on the
reproductive timing of these coral species may vary among sites
and species. The relative cover of population and percentage of
colony in larger size classes of Echinopora lamellosa and
Echinophyllia aspera at Maoao in Yenliao Bay were larger than
those at Tiaoshi in Nanwan Bay.
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