The eastern tropical Pacific (ETP) is an isolated oceanic region exposed to extreme oceanographic conditions, including low salinity, low pH, high temperatures during El Nino, and low temperatures during La Nina and seasonal upwelling. The coral reefs in this region have a relatively limited suite of species compared to other coral reef areas of the world, but much like more diverse reefs the species present interact in complex ways. Here we synthezise the knowledge of taxonomic groups of reef organisms from prokaryotes to vertebrates, including algae, sponges, cnidarians, annelids and other worms, molluscs, crustaceans, echinoderms and fishes. We also present summaries on the biodiversity of associated functional groups and habitats, including (a) reef zooplankton and cryptic fauna, and (b) soft benthic environments, rhodolith beds and mesophotic environments. Several factors that structure the biodiversity of ETP coral reefs are explored, including biological, physical and chemical controls. ETP coral reefs are relatively simple systems that can be used as models for studying biodiversity and interactions among species. We conclude this review by highlighting pressing research needs, from very basic inventories to more sophisticated studies of cryptic assemblages, and to investigations on the impacts of natural and anthropogenic effects on ETP coral reef biodiversity.

Marine Biodiversity of Eastern Tropical Pacific Coral Reefs

The Early Miocene Pirabas Formation represents extensive carbonate and siliciclastic belts deposited in marine coastal environments along the Eastern Amazon coast. This Formation was studied in its palynological, palaeocarcinological and sedimentary facies, in order to develop a model of its depositional processes, faunal and floral assemblages and the sedimentary environments, as observed in the B17 mine (Capanema, Para). The sedimentary records consist mostly of light gray to greenish gray mudstones with tidal bedding, calciferous sandstones, stratified biocalcirudites and levels with conglomerates deposited in a carbonate/siliciclastic transitional system with lagoon, tidal flat, flood-tide delta and foreshore environments. Eighteen palynomorph species were identified in the tidal flat deposits including 1 alga, 3 fungi, 5 pteridophytes, and 9 angiosperms. Among the latter, mangrove pollen and spores of Zonocostites ramonae, Zonocostites minor, and Deltoidospora adriennis are reported. Nine species of crustacean decapods were recognized in the foreshore deposits, comprising 1 Callianassoidae, 2 Calappidae, and 6 Portunidae, represented by Euphylax, †Necronectes, Portunus, and Scylla, the ecology of which is associated with beaches of marginal lagoons. The main factor of the formation of these carbonate environments is assumed to have been related to the lack of a large-scale drainage system such as the Amazon River basin in the transition Oligocene–Miocene, which may also have influenced carbonate production and resulted in a strong decrease of palaeodischarges from incipient river systems along the Amazon coast.

https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007%2Fs13358-013-0051-5.pdf

Neogene Eastern Amazon carbonate platform and the palaeoenvironmental interpretation

The reef-associated echinoderm cryptofauna has received scarce attention notwithstanding its large-scale effects on reef community structures and ecosystem functioning world-wide. In the present study, a spatially hierarchical quantitative sampling protocol was designed to address Pocillopora damicornis-associated echinoderm diversity within and across southern Mexican Pacific reef localities. It was also aimed to evaluate if species composition and abundance varies across several spatial scales. The number of sampled echinoderm species from 36 P. damicornis coral heads was 24, which fell inside the 95 % confidence interval of the Chao1 species richness estimator, while as many as 42 species were expected to occur. The analysis indicated that the echinoderm diversity was not particularly large among the samples (4–6 species) or across localities (5–12 species). Nevertheless, the observed associated echinoderm richness resulted from a small, although significant, species replacement among the coral heads and reef localities across the southern Mexican Pacific. The relative large number of echinoderms associated with P. damicornis may serve as a proxy for predicting potential biodiversity loss caused by the coral reef degradation currently observed in the study area.

Pocillopora damicornis -associated echinoderm fauna: richness and community structure across the southern Mexican Pacific

The aim of this study was to compile and analyse available historical information on echinoderms in the southwestern Atlantic Ocean in order to make a synthesis of present taxonomical knowledge, to identify patterns of geographical distribution of echinoderm assemblages and to test the validity of the current zoogeographic scheme for this group. This study was conducted on the Argentinean continental shelf, southwestern Atlantic Ocean (34-56°S). An intensive research on geo-referenced data was carried out to make a knowledge synthesis on echinoderm species and thus create a historical database. Multivariate analysis was used to analyse the faunal composition through latitudinal and bathymetric gradients as well as echinoderm associations. The results confirmed the existence of two faunal associations that correspond to the traditional zoogeographic scheme established for the Argentine Sea: the Argentinean and Magellan Provinces. The Argentinean Province had 46 widely distributed species. Of the 86 species recorded in the Magellan Province, a high percentage (25%) were also found in Antarctic waters, suggesting a strong connection between the echinoderm fauna of this province and the Antarctic Region. The species richness between 34 and 56°S in the Atlantic Ocean showed a significant increase in reference to latitude, with the highest values being recorded between 46 and 56°S. In view of the high percentage of shared species with Antarctica, considered a hot-spot region in terms of echinoderm diversity, the pattern of distribution of species richness observed in our study area could correspond to a dispersion of this species from Antarctic to sub-Antarctic regions.

/pdf/species-richness-and-distribution-patterns-of-echinoderms-in-4akdt7l3mg.pdf

Species richness and distribution patterns of echinoderms in the southwestern Atlantic Ocean (34-56°S)

Echinoderms are often of ecological importance in intertidal and subtidal waters, especially as predators and herbivores but also as prey. Several groups of echinoderms respond in a different way to environmental variables, contributing to some of the biodiversity patterns found along latitudinal gradient. This work listed the echinoderms species of San Matias Gulf surrounding the coast of Rio Negro Province and analyzed the current state of knowledge of this group by previous works, collection items of the Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales “Bernardino Rivadavia,” and from samples taken since 2009 to the present. A total of 35 species of echinoderms corresponding to four classes were recorded. The 34.29 % corresponds to Asteroidea, 31.43 % to Ophiuroidea, 20 % to Echinoidea, and 14.28 % to Holothuroidea. Crinoidea has not been reported for San Matias Gulf. Asteroidea and Ophiuroidea were the most representative groups followed by Echinoidea and Holothuroidea, with only five species in the last class. About 30 % of the country’s species are present in Rio Negro Province. This high number of species may be due to the heterogeneity of environments that are possible to find in San Matias Gulf and a transition zone between the Magellanic and Argentine biogeographic provinces that can provide particular physical and climatic characteristics explaining as consequence the faunal composition.

Echinoderms in San Matías Gulf, Southwestern Atlantic Ocean

We investigated the current patterns of diversity by country and by class of echinoderms, and analyzed their biogeographical, depth, and habitat or substratum affinities, using the database of the appendix of this book. Traditionally, the area has been divided into five biogeographical Regions and nine Provinces that cover a wide climate range. Currently, the echinoderm fauna of Latin America and Canary islands is constituted by 1,539 species, with 82 species of Crinoidea, 392 species of Asteroidea, 521 species of Ophiuroidea, 242 species of Echinoidea and 302 species of Holothuroidea. Species richness is highly variable among the different countries. The number of species for the countries is highly dependent on its coast length. The echinoderm fauna of the Panamic, Galapagos and the Chilean regions are biogeographically related. Other regions that are closely related are the Caribbean, West Indian, Lusitania and Brazilian. Cosmopolitan species are an important component in all the regions. Affinities between faunas are a consequence of the combination of climatic and trophic factors, connectivity as a function of distance, currents patterns and historical processes. Moreover, different environmental factors would be responsible for the faunal composition and species distribution at different spatial scales. The bathymetrical distribution of the echinoderm classes and the species richness varies according to the depth range and the ocean. Most species occurred at depths between 20 and 200 m. The Caribbean-Atlantic regions are richest in shallow depths, while the Pacific coast has higher values in deeper waters. The domination of each class in each substrate and habitat categories also varies differentially along each coast.

Latin America Echinoderm Biodiversity and Biogeography: Patterns and Affinities

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Latin America Echinoderm Biodiversity and Biogeography: Patterns and Affinities