Godwin, J.R. (1995). Phylogenetic and habitat influences on mating systems in the damselfish genus Dascyllus(Pomacentridae, Teleostei).
Bulletin of Marine Science 57(3): 637-652.
The damselfish genus Dascyllus
contains nine species and exhibits protogynous sex change and/or functional
gonochorism with variation both interspecifically and possibly intraspecifically
between habitats. The genus can be divided into three species complexes
and along lines of both descent and body size: 1) five species in two species
complexes (complexes 1 & 2) are relatively small-bodied, closely associate
with branching coral throughout life, and commonly exhibit resource defense
polygyny and associated protogynous sex change, 2) three species in a third
species complex (complex 3) reach larger body size, closely associate with
branching coral only as juveniles, and do not exhibit resource defense
polygyny, and 3) D. flavicaudus, a large-bodied member of the otherwise
small-bodied species complex 2. Dascyllus flavicaudus and D.
albisella (complex 3) are both large bodied, but differ in their responses
to habitat type. Dascyllus flavicaudus shows differences in sex
ratio, space use and mating system between a discontinuous coral cover
habitat (female-biased sex ratio, resource defense polygyny) and continuous
coral cover habitat (non-biased sex ratio, no resource defense polygyny)
while D. albisella does not (non-biased sex ratio, no apparent resource
defense polygyny in either habitat type), suggesting that both ecological
factors and phylogenetic history influence these characters.