Coral reefs have entered an era of ‘ecological crisis’ as climate change drives catastrophic reef loss worldwide. Coral growth and stress susceptibility are regulated by their endosymbiotic dinoflagellates (genus Symbiodinium). The phylogenetic diversity of Symbiodinium frequently corresponds to patterns of coral health and survival, but knowledge of functional diversity is ultimately necessary to reconcile broader ecological success over space and time. We explore here functional traits underpinning the complex biology of Symbiodinium that spans free-living algae to coral endosymbionts. In doing so we propose a mechanistic framework integrating the primary traits of resource acquisition and utilisation as a means to explain Symbiodinium functional diversity and to resolve the role of Symbiodinium in driving the stability of coral reefs under an uncertain future.

随着气候变化在全球范围内造成灾难性的珊瑚礁损失，珊瑚礁已进入“生态危机”时代。珊瑚的生长和易感性受其内共生鞭毛鞭毛藻（Symbiodinium属）的调节。共生植物的系统发育多样性通常与珊瑚健康和生存模式相对应，但是功能多样性的知识最终对于调和更广泛的生态成功在空间和时间上必不可少。我们在这里探索功能性特征，这些特征支撑着Symbiodinium的复杂生物学，该生物学跨越了自由生存的藻类到珊瑚共生共生体。为此，我们提出了一个整合资源获取和利用的主要特征的机制框架，作为解释共生体的一种方法功能多样性并解决共生素在不确定的未来中在驱动珊瑚礁稳定中的作用。