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In order to test the feasibility of transplantation of the whip black coral species Cirrhipathes anguina (Dana, 1846) from Madagascar, transplants were installed on cultivation tables in two sites (the North Pass and the Grande Vasque) characterized by distinct environmental conditions. Following transplantation, the transplants were followed for short-term (20 days) healing capacities and medium-term (200 days) mortality and growth rates. Results show a successful transplantation in both sites with 0% mortality (except in the form of missing fragments) and a certain growth over 200 days. Maximum growth rates were 3.4 cm/month and 2.0 cm/month in the North Pass and in the Grande Vasque, respectively. In addition, mean time to total healing was delayed in the Grande Vasque compared to the transplants in the North Pass (10 days). Differences between sites are likely to be related to differences in environmental parameters. Altogether, the promising results obtained with the easy protocol used in this study encourage the use of black coral transplants in further in situ experiments and restoration projects. • C. anguina can be easily grown from fragments on a table • Environmental conditions of transplantation and collection sites should be similar • Maximum apical growth rates for C. anguina were 3.4 cm/month • Naturally or externally caused breakage is part of the life-cycle of C. anguina [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Here, we report a new broad approach to investigating the presence and density of Symbiodiniaceae cells in corals of the order Antipatharia subclass Hexacorallia, commonly known as black corals. Antipatharians are understudied ecosystem engineers of shallow (<30 m depth), mesophotic (30–150 m) and deep-sea (>200 m) reefs. They provide habitat to numerous organisms, enhancing and supporting coral reef biodiversity globally. Nonetheless, little biological and ecological information exists on antipatharians, including the extent to which global change disturbances are threatening their health. The previous assumption that they were exempted from threats related to the phenomenon known as bleaching was challenged by the recent findings of high densities of dinoflagellates within three antipatharian colonies. Further studies were thus necessary to investigate the broader uniformity of these findings. Here we report results of an integrated methodology combining microscopy and molecular techniques to investigate the presence and estimate the density of Symbiodiniaceae cells within two antipatharians species—Cupressopathes abies and Stichopathes maldivensis—from both shallow and mesophotic reefs of SW Madagascar. We found that Symbiodiniaceae-like cells were present within samples of both species collected from both shallow and mesophotic reefs, although the overall cell density was very low (0–4 cell mm−3). These findings suggest that presence or high abundance of Symbiodiniaceae is not characteristic of all antipatharians, which is relevant considering the bleaching phenomenon affecting other corals. However, the possibility of higher densities of dinoflagellates in other antipatharians or in colonies exposed to higher light irradiance deserves further investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]