Pelagodinium bei was originally described as
Gymnodinium béii by marine isotope geochemist Howard Spero in 1987, after being discovered in the eastern
Pacific Ocean. It was redefined as
P. bei in 2010 after its
Ribosomal RNA was characterized, revealing it to be a relative of the genus
Symbiodinium.
Symbiodinium is a well-studied endosymbiont of deep water invertebrates, protists and foraminifera, found especially alongside reef-dwelling organisms. ==Ecology==