Mussismilia

''Mussismilia'' is a genus of stony corals in the subfamily Faviinae of the family Mussidae. This genus is restricted to the Atlantic Ocean off the coasts of Brazil.

Description

''Mussismilia'' is a colonial coral. Budding is always intracalicular, occurring inside the oral disc of the polyp, within the whorl of tentacles. The corallites are phaceloid or subplocoid, with one to three centres being linked. When coenosteum is present, there is a distinctive double wall. The columella is discontinuous. The septa are porous and have unique, multi-directional teeth formed of twisted threads. The columella is spongy, and the columellar teeth are different in size and shape from the septal teeth.

Species

The World Register of Marine Species lists the following three species :

*'' Mussismilia braziliensis'' (Verrill, 1868)
*'' Mussismilia harttii'' (Verrill, 1868)
*'' Mussismilia hispida'' (Verrill, 1901)

Bibliography

* Andrade Galvão de Medeiros, Seoane, J. C. S., Macedo de Mello Baptista, G., Leal, P. R., & Dekker, A. (2022). Effect of temperature and pH on the Millepora alcicornis and Mussismilia harttii corals in light of a spectral reflectance response. ''International Journal of Remote Sensing'', ''43''(7), 2475–2502.
** This article is peer reviewed and explains how our climate affects Mussismilia. This topic is very interesting and contributes to a broader discussion about the role that climate change plays in marine biology. It is also useful in establishing notability.
*Fernando, Wang, J., Sparling, K., Garcia, G. D., Francini-Filho, R. B., de Moura, R. L., Paranhos, R., Thompson, F. L., & Thompson, J. R. (2015). Microbiota of the Major South Atlantic Reef Building Coral Mussismilia. ''Microbial Ecology'', ''69''(2), 267–280.
** This article is peer reviewed and explains how Mussismilia is one of the main coral reef builders in the South Atlantic. It will be useful when explaining how Mussismilia contributes to the ecosystems it inhabits. It is also helpful when establishing notability.

* Godoy, Mies, M., Zilberberg, C., Pastrana, Y., Amaral, A., Cruz, N., Pereira, C. M., Garrido, A. G., Paris, A., Santos, L. F. A., & Pires, D. O. (2021). Southwestern Atlantic reef-building corals Mussismilia spp. are able to spawn while fully bleached. ''Marine Biology'', ''168''(2).
** This peer-reviewed article talks about coral bleaching and how it affects Mussismilia. Bleaching is an event that is occurring at a very high rate, so it is useful and interesting to understand how bleaching affects Mussismilia. Since it covers the topic in depth, it will be useful in establishing notability
* Nogueira, M.M., Neves, E. & Johnsson, R (2015). Effects of habitat structure on the epifaunal community in ''Mussismilia'' corals: does coral morphology influence the richness and abundance of associated crustacean fauna?. ''Helgol Mar Res'' 69, 221–229
** This is a scientific article published in Helgoland Marine Research, so it should be a reliable source. They compile research from many scientific articles to study how the distinct morphology of three species of Mussismilia influences their association with crustacean species. This article is helpful when discussing specific facts, but can’t be used to establish notability.
* Oigman-Pszczol, & Creed, J. C. (2004). Size Structure and Spatial Distribution of the Corals Mussismilia Hispida And Siderastrea Stellata (Scleractinia) at Armação Dos Búzios, Brazil. ''Bulletin of Marine Science'', ''74''(2), 433–448.
** This is a peer-reviewed article describing the population size structure and spatial distribution of corals on Brazilian rocky shores. This quantitative study looks at ''Mussismilia hispida'' and ''Siderastrea stellata''. It is important to understand the structure and distribution of these corals, and we can compare them to other coral found in the same area. Can be helpful in establishing notability as well.

References

Faviinae
Scleractinia genera

{{scleractinia-stub