1. ESPOL Polytechnic University, Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral, ESPOL. Centro Nacional de Acuacultura e Investigaciones Marinas, CENAIM. Campus Gustavo Galindo Km. 30.5 Vía Perimetral, P.O.

Box 09-01-5863, Guayaquil, Ecuador. 2. National University of Ireland Galway, School of Zoology, Ryan Institute, University Road, Galway, Ireland. 3. National University of Ireland Galway, School of Chemistry,

Ryan Institute, University Road, Galway, Ireland. 4. Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Museu Nacional, Departamento de Invertebrados, Quinta da Boa Vista, 20940-040, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.

El Pelado Marine Protected Area - Ecuador

diversity of sponges

INTRODUCTION

Fig. 4. In situ photographs of the nine species found at El Pelado Marine Protected Area (Ecuador).

SamplingFixation in 95% EtOH Spicules preparations

Morphological observations

Spicules measurements

METHODS

- Expand our investigations on sponges along the mainland coast of Ecuador.

- Assess the chemical diversity of some of these species to search bioactive compounds.

- Perform molecular systematics for these species.

- Use metabolomics to evaluate the ecological interaction between the sponge

Callyspongia cf. californica and the Pocillopora sp. coral.

PERSPECTIVESDISCUSSION

RESULTS

References:

OBJECTIVES

A FIRST ASSESSMENT OF SPONGE DIVERSITY

AT THE COAST OF MAINLAND ECUADOR

- The Ecuatorian coastline (Tropical Eastern Pacific) is influenced by the seasonal

fluctuations of the equatorial front, to which interannual oscillations known as El

Niño and La Niña are superimposed.

- The Pacific coast of South America has been the focus of extensive recent

inventories of its sponge biodiversity from the cold waters of Chile until Peru

(1‒7). The Peruvian inventory is still largely unpublished, and there is also a

strong gap in knowledge about the distribution and abundance of sponges along

the coast of Ecuador.

- A recent project was funded at the national level to assess for the first time the

biological and chemical diversity of marine invertebrates along the coast of

Ecuador. Indeed it became urgent to start the description of the marine biodiversity

but also ecological interactions and their possible applications in several fields of

research..

- Characterize the diversity of sponges present at El Pelado Marine Protected

Area by using first morphological data.

- Select sponge targets at El Pelado MPA on the basis of their abundance and

distribution for chemical diversity studies.

- In El Pelado MPA, sponges are an important component of the benthic fauna.

- The most abundant species are Aplysina spp., Callyspongia cf. californica, and Mycale cf. magnirhaphidifera.

- The less abundant species were Dysidea sp. and Chondrosia cf. reniformis, only found in small caves and crevices.

- The sponge-coral interaction was observed in all shallow water sites where colonies of the coral Pocillopora sp. occur.

- These first insights into the sponge biodiversity of the coast of mainland Ecuador revealed a significant sponge

diversity in a very small area that clearly deserves more detailed examination. Encrusting sponges were mostly

not studied yet.

- This work will give access to key data for the understanding of sponge distribution between the Southern and

the Northern coasts of South America.

- The interaction between the coral Pocillopora sp. and Callyspongia cf. californica, also reported from Mexico,

merits deeper studies to disclose its dynamics.

SENESCYT is financially supporting the Project of Marine Biodiversity PIC-001 and supported the travel of K. Jaramillo. A special thanks go to E. Hajdu for the training to K. Jaramillo in Sponge Taxonomy. Special thanks also go for CENAIM researchers

B. Chalén and C. Dominguez, for their precious help in the collection of the specimens.

(1) Azevedo et al. 2009 ― Zootaxa 2072, 1‒30; (2) 2015 ― Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 173(4), 787‒817; (3) Willenz et al. 2009, ― pp. 93‒170 in Marine Benthic Fauna of Chilean Patagonia. Nature in Focus; (4) Aguirre et al.

2011 ― Zootaxa 3085, 41‒54; (5) Lopes et al. 2012 ― Invertebrate Systematics 25(5): 407‒443; (6) Hajdu et al. 2013 ― Zootaxa 3744, 1‒64; (7) 2015 ― Zootaxa 3926, 87‒099.

c

Karla B. Jaramillo1,2, Christine Morrow 2, Olivier P. Thomas3, Jenny Rodriguez1, Grace McCormack2, Eduardo Hajdu4

Acknowledgements:

STUDY AREA

Fig. 1. Map of El Pelado

Marine Protected Area

Fig. 2. Map of Ecuadorian coast400 m

300 km

a b c

d e f

h i

Tedania sp. Clathria sp. Mycale cf. magnirhaphidifera .

Dysidea sp. Chondrosia cf. reniformis. Cliona sp.

Aplysina cf. revillagigedo Aplysina cf. gerardogreeni

Callyspongia cf. californica

Fig. 6. In situ photograph of Callyspongia cf. Californica, the sponge most

commonly found in direct interaction with the coral Pocillopora sp. at El

Pelado Marine Protected Area (Ecuador).

Fig. 5. Ecological interaction observed in the shallow waters of El Pelado

MPA (Ecuador) between the coral Pocillopora sp. and Callyspongia cf.

californica

Sponge – Coral interaction

Spicules observations

(optical and scanning microscope)

Literature review

and comparisons

g

Aplysina sp.

The El Pelado MPA was created in 2012, and covers 13005 marine

hectares and 96 on land. It is a preferred spot for recreational scuba

diving. Fig. 3. Map of South America highlighting

Ecuador