Data from: Species delimitation of common reef corals in the genus Pocillopora using nucleotide sequence phylogenies, population genetics, and symbiosis ecology

Stony corals in the genus Pocillopora are among the most common and widely
distributed of Indo-Pacific corals and, as such, are often the subject of
research. In the far Tropical Eastern Pacific (TEP), they are major
constituents of shallow coral communities, exhibiting considerable
variability in colony shape and branch morphology and marked differences
in response to thermal stress. Numerous intermediates occur between
morphospecies that may relate to extensive hybridization. The diversity of
the Pocillopora genus in the TEP was analyzed genetically using nuclear
ribosomal (ITS2) and mitochondrial (ORF) sequences, and population genetic
markers (7 microsatellite loci). The resident dinoflagellate endosymbiont
(Symbiodinium sp.) in each sample was also characterized using sequences
of the internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) rDNA and the non-coding region
of the chloroplast psbA minicircle. From these analyses, three
symbiotically distinct, reproductively isolated, non-hybridizing,
evolutionarily divergent animal lineages were identified. Designated types
1, 2, and 3, these groupings were incongruent with traditional
morphospecies' classification. Type 1 was abundant and widespread
throughout the TEP; type 2 was restricted to the Clipperton Atoll; and
type 3 was found only in Panama and the Galapagos Islands. Each type
harboured a different Symbiodinium 'species lineage' in Clade C,
and only type 1 associated with the 'stress-tolerant'
Symbiodinium glynni (D1). The accurate delineation of species and
implementation of a proper taxonomy may profoundly improve our assessment
of Pocillopora's reproductive biology, biogeographic distributions,
and resilience to climate warming, information that must be considered
when planning for the conservation of reef corals.