Table 1 List of peer-review publication aimed at testing the effect of potential vectors on coral disease transmission; listed by main finding, disease type, vector organism, pathogen species, transmission mechanism and source.

Vector transmitted parasite

Trematodiasis

Chaetodon multicinctus

Podocotyloides stenometra

P. stenometra has a complex life cycle involving a molluscan first intermediate host, Porites coral as the second intermediate host, and coral-feeding fish as the final host

Aeby^{35,36,37,38,39}

Pathogen detected within the vector’s body

Vibrio shiloi Bleaching

Hermodice carunculata

Vibrio shiloi

Worms contained viable V. shiloi bacteria and transmitted bleaching to healthy Oculina patagonica

Sussman et al.²⁶

Aspergillosis

Cyphoma gibbosum

Aspergillus syndowii

A. syndowii was found to survive through the digestive track of the snail. Viable spores and hyphae in snail faeces.

Rypien & Baker⁴⁰

Acroporid Serratiosis

Coralliophila abbreviata

Serratia marcescens

Bacterial strains from C. abbreviate successfully infected Acropora palamata in aquaria

Sutherland et al.¹⁹

Vector transmitted disease in controlled experiments

Unknown Disease

Coralliophila abbreviata

Unknown

Snails feeding on infected colonies transmitted disease to healthy nubbins

Williams & Miller²⁷

White Band Disease

Coralliophila abbreviata

Vibrio and Rickettsiales bacteria

Snails collected from the field transmitted WBD to healthy nubbins in aquaria

Gignoux-Wolfsohn et al.⁴¹

Brown Band Disease

Drupella sp.

Philaster guamensis

Snails collected on infected colonies in the field transmitted BrB to healthy nubbins in the laboratory

Nicolet et al.²⁸

Correlation between disease onset and either presence of or predation by vector

Coral Diseases

Drupella cornus

Various

 Correlation between abundance of snail and diseases prevalence

Antonius & Riegl⁴²

Unknown Disease

Phestilla sp

Unknown

 One nudibranch was placed on 7 coral fragments and progressive coral tissue mortality followed predation

Dalton & Godwin⁴³

Unknown Disease

Hermodice carunculata

Unknown

 H. carunculata commonly observed feeding on disease margin

Miller & Williams⁴⁴

Coral Diseases

Chaetodontids

Various

 Correlation between chaetodontids density and coral disease prevalence

Raymundo et al.²⁹

Black Band, Brown Band Disease

Chaetodontids

P. guamensis, bacterial consortium

 Chaetodon aureofasciatus, C. baronessa, C. lunulatus, C. plebeius and C. trifascialis selectively targeted disease lesions over adjacent healthy coral tissues.

Cole et al.³², Chong-Seng et al.³³

Brown Band Disease

Acanthaster planci

Philaster guamensis

 Feeding scars of crown-of-thrones starfish became the origin of BrB infections

Nugues & Bak³⁰, Katz et al.³¹

Corallivore not found to transmit disease in controlled experiments

Black Band Disease

Chaetodon capistratus

Bacterial consortium

 Feeding behaviour of the fish did not increase Phormidium corallyticum transmission

Aeby & Santavy³⁴

White Band Disease

Coralliophila caribaea

Vibrio and Rickettsiales

 C. caribaea feeding behaviour did not transmit WBD in aquarium-based infection experiment

Gignoux-Wolfsohn et al.⁴¹

White Syndrome

Cyamo melanodactylus

Unknown

 Transplanting crabs from infected colonies onto healthy corals does not result in disease transmission

Pollock et al.⁴⁵

Brown Band Disease

Chaetodon aureofasciatus

Philaster guamensis

 The fish neither aided nor hindered the transmission of BrB from infected to uninfected corals

Nicolet et al.²⁸