The abundance and frequency of coral diseases have increased significantly during recent decades. The Gulf of Mannar in India has well-established coral reefs that have been affected by various climatic and non-climatic issues. Coral diseases, predominantly growth anomalies and white syndromes, have been reported on these reefs, but here we report the first observations of the ciliate disease brown band (BrB) on reefs of the Gulf of Mannar. Colonies with BrB lesions were found at 2 of the 21 islands surveyed, namely Poovarasanpatti and Puluvinichalli. Microscopic analysis of coral lesions confirmed the presence of zooxanthellae within ciliates indicating active feeding of coral tissues. The overall prevalence of BrB disease was 0.8% in Poovarasanpatti and 0.3% in Puluvinichalli. We only found Porites and Platygyra colonies infected with BrB ciliates even though Acropora, which is usually targeted by BrB, was the most abundant coral in our transects. This study extends the geographic range of BrB to the Gulf of Mannar and the host range to include Platygyra spp.

中文翻译：

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印度马纳尔湾褐带病的观察

近几十年来，珊瑚病的数量和频率显着增加。印度马纳尔湾拥有完善的珊瑚礁，这些珊瑚礁受到各种气候和非气候问题的影响。这些珊瑚礁上已经报道了珊瑚病，主要是生长异常和白色综合征，但在这里我们报告了马纳尔湾珊瑚礁上纤毛虫病棕色带 (BrB) 的首次观察结果。在所调查的 21 个岛屿中的 2 个岛屿，即 Poovarasanpatti 和 Puluvinichalli，发现了具有 BrB 病变的菌落。珊瑚病变的显微分析证实了纤毛虫中存在虫黄藻，表明珊瑚组织正在积极觅食。BrB 病的总体患病率在 Poovarasanpatti 为 0.8%，在 Puluvinichalli 为 0.3%。我们只发现感染了 BrB 纤毛虫的 Porites 和 Platygyra 群落，尽管通常被 BrB 瞄准的 Acropora 是我们断层中最丰富的珊瑚。这项研究将 BrB 的地理范围扩展到马纳尔湾和宿主范围，包括 Platygyra spp。