A survey of the epibiota of Eretmochelys imbricata (Testudines: Cheloniidae) of Mona Island, Puerto Rico

 

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor: Schärer, Michelle T.
Formato: artículo original
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de Publicación:2003
Descripción:Epibiotic organisms inhabiting non-nesting hawksbill sea turtles, Eretmochelys imbricata (Linnaeus, 1766), are described from Mona and Monito Islands, Puerto Rico. Epibiont samples from 105 turtles of shallow (< 40 m) water foraging habitats were collected and identified to the lowest possible taxon. This epibiotic assemblage consisting of at least 4 algal functional groups and 12 animal phyla represents the greatest phylogenetic diversity for marine turtle epibiota. Six groups are considered new reports for marine turtles. Most epibiont colonization was found on posterior marginal scutes and under overlapping scutes. Ecological attributes of epibiota and their symbiosis with E. imbricata provide a tool to understand basi and epibiont populations.
País:Portal de Revistas UCR
Institución:Universidad de Costa Rica
Repositorio:Portal de Revistas UCR
Lenguaje:Inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:portal.ucr.ac.cr:article/26433
Acceso en línea:https://revistas.ucr.ac.cr/index.php/rbt/article/view/26433
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Epibiota
Eretmochelys imbricata
epibiont
ecology
Mona Island
Puerto Rico