Based on DNA barcoding, researchers report that although coralline algae are far more abundant in urchin barrens--sites without sea otters where sea urchin grazing is intense--coralline communities are less diverse and dominated by only a few species, compared with kelp forest sites with sea otters and low urchin grazing, suggesting that identification of cryptic species may alter perception of ecological patterns and reveal otherwise disguised ecosystem dynamics.
Article #19-00506: "Trophic control of cryptic coralline algal diversity," by Katharine R. Hind et al.
MEDIA CONTACT: Patrick T. Martone, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, CANADA; tel: 604-822-9338, 778-316-6033; e-mail: pmartone@mail.ubc.ca
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Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences