Knowledge of a species’ population genetic structure can provide insight into fundamental ecological and evolutionary processes including gene flow, genetic drift and adaptive evolution. Such inference is of particular importance for parasites, as an understanding of their population structure can illuminate epidemiological and coevolutionary dynamics. Here, we describe the population genetic structure of the bacterium Pasteur...

The population structure of benthic marine organisms is of central relevance to the conservation and management of these often threatened species, as well as to the accurate understanding of their ecological and evolutionary dynamics. A growing body of evidence suggests that marine populations can be structured over short distances despite theoretically high dispersal potential. Yet the proposed mechanisms governing this struc...

Numerous marine invertebrates form endosymbiotic relationships with dinoflagellates of the genus Symbiodinium , yet few studies have examined the population structure of these symbionts. Here, we elucidate the population genetic structure of Symbiodinium harboured by the Caribbean octocoral Gorgonia ventalina throughout the entire range of the host. We used ten microsatellite loci to survey 35 localities spanning 3124 km acros...

Recent outbreaks of new diseases in many ecosystems are caused by novel pathogens, impaired host immunity, or changing environmental conditions. Identifying the source of emergent pathogens is critical for mitigating the impacts of diseases, and understanding the cause of their recent appearances. One ecosystem suffering outbreaks of disease in the past decades is coral reefs, where pathogens such as the fungus Aspergillus syd...

The slow rate of change in hydrocarbon seep communities on the upper ­Louisiana slope prevents the use of direct observation in studying successional trends. We used a chronosequence consisting of three presumed stages – juvenile, adult and senescent – to test a previous model which proposed that sulfide availability and vestimentiferan growth and physiological health decline over the lifespan of a vestimenti­feran aggregation...