marine biogeographical barriers: Topics by WorldWideScience.org

Sample records for marine biogeographical barriers

Congruent biogeographical disjunctions at a continent-wide scale: Quantifying and clarifying the role of biogeographic barriers in the Australian tropics

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Crisp, Michael D.; Cook, Dianne H.; Cook, Lyn G.

2017-01-01

Aim To test whether novel and previously hypothesized biogeogaphic barriers in the Australian Tropics represent significant disjunction points or hard barriers, or both, to the distribution of plants. Location Australian tropics: Australian Monsoon Tropics and Australian Wet Tropics. Methods The presence or absence of 6,861 plant species was scored across 13 putative biogeographic barriers in the Australian Tropics, including two that have not previously been recognised. Randomizations of these data were used to test whether more species showed disjunctions (gaps in distribution) or likely barriers (range limits) at these points than expected by chance. Results Two novel disjunctions in the Australian Tropics flora are identified in addition to eleven putative barriers previously recognized for animals. Of these, eleven disjunction points (all within the Australian Monsoon Tropics) were found to correspond to range-ending barriers to a significant number of species, while neither of the two disjunctions found within the Australian Wet Tropics limited a significant number of species’ ranges. Main conclusions Biogeographic barriers present significant distributional limits to native plant species in the Australian Monsoon Tropics but not in the Australian Wet Tropics. PMID:28376094
Biogeographic Characterization of Benthic Composition within the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary (2006 - 2007)

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National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The overarching goal of this collaboration was to provide the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary (FGBNMS) staff with information on biogeographic patterns...
Biogeographic Characterization of Fish Communities within the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary (2006 - 2007)

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National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The overarching goal of this collaboration was to provide the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary (FGBNMS) staff with information on biogeographic patterns...
Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS) - USA all Marine Biogeographic Records collected from 1843-01-01 to 2013-11-22, version as of 2015-01-16 (NCEI Accession 0140482)

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National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This dataset is a dump file from the PostreSQL database of the all Marine Biogeographic Records available as of 2015-01-16. The NCEI personnel prepared the subsets...
Biogeographic Characterization of Fish Communities within the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary (2006 - 2007) (NODC Accession 0118358)

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National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The overarching goal of this collaboration was to provide the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary (FGBNMS) staff with information on biogeographic patterns...
Location, Location, Location: Management Uses of Marine Benthic Biogeographical Information in Coastal Waters of the Northeastern USA

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Ecosystem-based management practices, along with coastal and marine spatial planning, have been adopted as foundational principles for ocean management in the United States. The success of these practices depends in large measure on a solid foundation of biogeographical informati...
When biogeographical provinces collide: Hybridization of reef fishes at the crossroads of marine biogeographical provinces in the Arabian Sea

KAUST Repository

DiBattista, Joseph

2015-04-01

Aim: Suture zones are areas where closely related species from different biogeographical regions come into contact and interbreed. This concept originated from the study of terrestrial ecosystems but it remains unclear whether a similar phenomenon occurs in the marine environment. Here we investigate a potential suture zone from a previously unknown hybrid hotspot at the Socotra Archipelago (Yemen), located in the Arabian Sea, where fauna from the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Arabian Sea, western Indian Ocean and greater Indo-Polynesian Province intersect. Location: Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean. Methods: Putative hybrid reef fish were identified based on intermediate coloration and morphology. Underwater observations and collections were conducted to determine: (1) whether parent species form heterospecific social groups or breeding pairs; (2) the sex and reproductive status of morphologically intermediate individuals; and (3) whether parent species were forming mixed species associations owing to a dearth of conspecific partners. To support hybrid status, morphologically intermediate and parental individuals were genotyped using mitochondrial DNA cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI), nuclear recombination-activating gene 2 (RAG2) and the nuclear TMO-4C4 (TMO) gene. Results: We observed putative hybrids involving 14 species from four reef fish families at Socotra. Most cases involved a parental species with a restricted distribution (e.g. Red Sea or Arabian Sea) and a broadly distributed Indo-Pacific species. In most cases, at least one of the parent species was rare at Socotra. Hybrid gene flow was largely unidirectional, and although introgression was rare, we found evidence that some butterflyfish and surgeonfish hybrids were fertile and formed breeding groups with parental species. Main conclusions: The rate of hybrid discovery at Socotra is much greater than that recorded elsewhere in the marine environment and involved both allopatric and
Spatial analyses of benthic habitats to define coral reef ecosystem regions and potential biogeographic boundaries along a latitudinal gradient.

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Brian K Walker

Full Text Available Marine organism diversity typically attenuates latitudinally from tropical to colder climate regimes. Since the distribution of many marine species relates to certain habitats and depth regimes, mapping data provide valuable information in the absence of detailed ecological data that can be used to identify and spatially quantify smaller scale (10 s km coral reef ecosystem regions and potential physical biogeographic barriers. This study focused on the southeast Florida coast due to a recognized, but understudied, tropical to subtropical biogeographic gradient. GIS spatial analyses were conducted on recent, accurate, shallow-water (0-30 m benthic habitat maps to identify and quantify specific regions along the coast that were statistically distinct in the number and amount of major benthic habitat types. Habitat type and width were measured for 209 evenly-spaced cross-shelf transects. Evaluation of groupings from a cluster analysis at 75% similarity yielded five distinct regions. The number of benthic habitats and their area, width, distance from shore, distance from each other, and LIDAR depths were calculated in GIS and examined to determine regional statistical differences. The number of benthic habitats decreased with increasing latitude from 9 in the south to 4 in the north and many of the habitat metrics statistically differed between regions. Three potential biogeographic barriers were found at the Boca, Hillsboro, and Biscayne boundaries, where specific shallow-water habitats were absent further north; Middle Reef, Inner Reef, and oceanic seagrass beds respectively. The Bahamas Fault Zone boundary was also noted where changes in coastal morphologies occurred that could relate to subtle ecological changes. The analyses defined regions on a smaller scale more appropriate to regional management decisions, hence strengthening marine conservation planning with an objective, scientific foundation for decision making. They provide a framework
Checklists of Crustacea Decapoda from the Canary and Cape Verde Islands, with an assessment of Macaronesian and Cape Verde biogeographic marine ecoregions.

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GonzÁlez, JosÉ A

2018-04-23

The complete list of Canarian marine decapods (last update by González Quiles 2003, popular book) currently comprises 374 species/subspecies, grouped in 198 genera and 82 families; whereas the Cape Verdean marine decapods (now fully listed for the first time) are represented by 343 species/subspecies with 201 genera and 80 families. Due to changing environmental conditions, in the last decades many subtropical/tropical taxa have reached the coasts of the Canary Islands. Comparing the carcinofaunal composition and their biogeographic components between the Canary and Cape Verde archipelagos would aid in: validating the appropriateness in separating both archipelagos into different ecoregions (Spalding et al. 2007), and understanding faunal movements between areas of benthic habitat. The consistency of both ecoregions is here compared and validated by assembling their decapod crustacean checklists, analysing their taxa composition, gathering their bathymetric data, and comparing their biogeographic patterns. Four main evidences (i.e. different taxa; divergent taxa composition; different composition of biogeographic patterns; different endemicity rates) support that separation, especially in coastal benthic decapods; and these parametres combined would be used as a valuable tool at comparing biotas from oceanic archipelagos. To understand/predict south-north faunal movements in a scenario of regional tropicalization, special attention is paid to species having at the Canaries their southernmost occurrence, and also to tropical African warm-affinity species.
Marine Biogeographic Assessment of the Main Hawaiian Islands: Synthesized physical and biological data offshore of the Main Hawaiian Islands from 1891-01-01 to 2015-03-01 (NCEI Accession 0155189)

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National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This accession contains analyses and data products used in a marine biogeographic assessment of the main Hawaiian Islands. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management...
Inferring ecological explanations for biogeographic boundaries of parapatric Asian mountain frogs.

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Hu, Junhua; Jiang, Jianping

2018-02-02

Identifying and understanding the mechanisms that shape barriers to dispersal and resulting biogeographic boundaries has been a longstanding, yet challenging, goal in ecology, evolution and biogeography. Characterized by stable, adjacent ranges, without any intervening physical barriers, and limited, if any, range overlap in a narrow contact zone, parapatric species are an interesting system for studying biogeographic boundaries. The geographic ranges of two parapatric frog species, Feirana quadranus and F. taihangnica, meet in a contact zone within the Qinling Mountains, an important watershed for East Asia. To identify possible ecological determinants of the parapatric range boundaries for two closely related frog species, we quantified the extent of their niche differentiation in both geographical and environmental space combining ecological niche models with an ordination technique. We tested two alternative null hypotheses (sharp environmental gradients versus a ribbon of unsuitable habitat dividing two highly suitable regions) for biogeographic boundaries, against the null expectation that environmental variation across a given boundary is no greater than expected by chance. We found that the niches of these two parapatric species are more similar than expected by chance, but not equivalent. No sharp environmental gradient was found, while a ribbon of unsuitable habitat did act as a barrier for F. quadranus, but not for F. taihangnica. Integrating our findings with historical biogeographic information, our results suggest that at a contact zone, environmental tolerance restricted F. quadranus from dispersing further north, while interspecific competition most likely prevented the southward expansion of F. taihangnica. This study highlights the importance of both climate and competition in exploring ecological explanations for parapatric range boundaries between ecologically similar frog species, in particular under the effects of changing climate.
A global biogeographic classification of the mesopelagic zone

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Sutton, Tracey T.; Clark, Malcolm R.; Dunn, Daniel C.; Halpin, Patrick N.; Rogers, Alex D.; Guinotte, John; Bograd, Steven J.; Angel, Martin V.; Perez, Jose Angel A.; Wishner, Karen; Haedrich, Richard L.; Lindsay, Dhugal J.; Drazen, Jeffrey C.; Vereshchaka, Alexander; Piatkowski, Uwe; Morato, Telmo; Błachowiak-Samołyk, Katarzyna; Robison, Bruce H.; Gjerde, Kristina M.; Pierrot-Bults, Annelies; Bernal, Patricio; Reygondeau, Gabriel; Heino, Mikko

2017-08-01

We have developed a global biogeographic classification of the mesopelagic zone to reflect the regional scales over which the ocean interior varies in terms of biodiversity and function. An integrated approach was necessary, as global gaps in information and variable sampling methods preclude strictly statistical approaches. A panel combining expertise in oceanography, geospatial mapping, and deep-sea biology convened to collate expert opinion on the distributional patterns of pelagic fauna relative to environmental proxies (temperature, salinity, and dissolved oxygen at mesopelagic depths). An iterative Delphi Method integrating additional biological and physical data was used to classify biogeographic ecoregions and to identify the location of ecoregion boundaries or inter-regions gradients. We define 33 global mesopelagic ecoregions. Of these, 20 are oceanic while 13 are 'distant neritic.' While each is driven by a complex of controlling factors, the putative primary driver of each ecoregion was identified. While work remains to be done to produce a comprehensive and robust mesopelagic biogeography (i.e., reflecting temporal variation), we believe that the classification set forth in this study will prove to be a useful and timely input to policy planning and management for conservation of deep-pelagic marine resources. In particular, it gives an indication of the spatial scale at which faunal communities are expected to be broadly similar in composition, and hence can inform application of ecosystem-based management approaches, marine spatial planning and the distribution and spacing of networks of representative protected areas.
A swath across the great divide: Kelp forests across the Samalga Pass biogeographic break

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Konar, Brenda H.; Edwards, Matthew S.; Bland, Aaron; Metzger, Jacob; Ravelo, Alexandra; Traiger, Sarah; Weitzman, Ben P.

2017-01-01

Biogeographic breaks are often described as locations where a large number of species reach their geographic range limits. Samalga Pass, in the eastern Aleutian Archipelago, is a known biogeographic break for the spatial distribution of several species of offshore-pelagic communities, including numerous species of cold-water corals, zooplankton, fish, marine mammals, and seabirds. However, it remains unclear whether Samalga Pass also serves as a biogeographic break for nearshore benthic communities. The occurrence of biogeographic breaks across multiple habitats has not often been described. In this study, we examined if the biogeographic break for offshore-pelagic communities applies to nearshore kelp forests. To examine whether Samalga Pass serves as a biogeographic break for kelp forest communities, this study compared abundance, biomass and percent bottom cover of species associated with kelp forests on either side of the pass. We observed marked differences in kelp forest community structure, with some species reaching their geographic range limits on the opposing sides of the pass. In particular, the habitat-forming kelp Nereocystis luetkeana, and the predatory sea stars Pycnopodia helianthoides and Orthasterias koehleri all occurred on the eastern side of Samalga Pass but were not observed west of the pass. In contrast, the sea star Leptasterias camtschatica dispar was observed only on the western side of the pass. We also observed differences in overall abundance and biomass of numerous associated fish, invertebrate and macroalgal species on opposing sides of the pass. We conclude that Samalga Pass is important biogeographic break for kelp forest communities in the Aleutian Archipelago and may demark the geographic range limits of several ecologically important species.
Biogeographic patterns of bacterial microdiversity in Arctic deep-sea sediments (HAUSGARTEN, Fram Strait).

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Buttigieg, Pier Luigi; Ramette, Alban

2014-01-01

Marine bacteria colonizing deep-sea sediments beneath the Arctic ocean, a rapidly changing ecosystem, have been shown to exhibit significant biogeographic patterns along transects spanning tens of kilometers and across water depths of several thousand meters (Jacob et al., 2013). Jacob et al. (2013) adopted what has become a classical view of microbial diversity - based on operational taxonomic units clustered at the 97% sequence identity level of the 16S rRNA gene - and observed a very large microbial community replacement at the HAUSGARTEN Long Term Ecological Research station (Eastern Fram Strait). Here, we revisited these data using the oligotyping approach and aimed to obtain new insight into ecological and biogeographic patterns associated with bacterial microdiversity in marine sediments. We also assessed the level of concordance of these insights with previously obtained results. Variation in oligotype dispersal range, relative abundance, co-occurrence, and taxonomic identity were related to environmental parameters such as water depth, biomass, and sedimentary pigment concentration. This study assesses ecological implications of the new microdiversity-based technique using a well-characterized dataset of high relevance for global change biology.
Micro-Mar: a database for dynamic representation of marine microbial biodiversity

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Rodríguez-Valera Francisco

2005-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The cataloging of marine prokaryotic DNA sequences is a fundamental aspect for bioprospecting and also for the development of evolutionary and speciation models. However, large amount of DNA sequences used to quantify prokaryotic biodiversity requires proper tools for storing, managing and analyzing these data for research purposes. Description The Micro-Mar database has been created to collect DNA diversity information from marine prokaryotes for biogeographical and ecological analyses. The database currently includes 11874 sequences corresponding to high resolution taxonomic genes (16S rRNA, ITS and 23S rRNA and many other genes including CDS of marine prokaryotes together with available biogeographical and ecological information. Conclusion The database aims to integrate molecular data and taxonomic affiliation with biogeographical and ecological features that will allow to have a dynamic representation of the marine microbial diversity embedded in a user friendly web interface. It is available online at http://egg.umh.es/micromar/.
The dynamics of biogeographic ranges in the deep sea.

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McClain, Craig R; Hardy, Sarah Mincks

2010-12-07

Anthropogenic disturbances such as fishing, mining, oil drilling, bioprospecting, warming, and acidification in the deep sea are increasing, yet generalities about deep-sea biogeography remain elusive. Owing to the lack of perceived environmental variability and geographical barriers, ranges of deep-sea species were traditionally assumed to be exceedingly large. In contrast, seamount and chemosynthetic habitats with reported high endemicity challenge the broad applicability of a single biogeographic paradigm for the deep sea. New research benefiting from higher resolution sampling, molecular methods and public databases can now more rigorously examine dispersal distances and species ranges on the vast ocean floor. Here, we explore the major outstanding questions in deep-sea biogeography. Based on current evidence, many taxa appear broadly distributed across the deep sea, a pattern replicated in both the abyssal plains and specialized environments such as hydrothermal vents. Cold waters may slow larval metabolism and development augmenting the great intrinsic ability for dispersal among many deep-sea species. Currents, environmental shifts, and topography can prove to be dispersal barriers but are often semipermeable. Evidence of historical events such as points of faunal origin and climatic fluctuations are also evident in contemporary biogeographic ranges. Continued synthetic analysis, database construction, theoretical advancement and field sampling will be required to further refine hypotheses regarding deep-sea biogeography.
Soils on exposed Sunda Shelf shaped biogeographic patterns in the equatorial forests of Southeast Asia

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Slik, J. W. Ferry; Aiba, Shin-Ichiro; Bastian, Meredith; Brearley, Francis Q.; Cannon, Charles H.; Eichhorn, Karl A. O.; Fredriksson, Gabriella; Kartawinata, Kuswata; Laumonier, Yves; Mansor, Asyraf; Marjokorpi, Antti; Meijaard, Erik; Morley, Robert J.; Nagamasu, Hidetoshi; Nilus, Reuben; Nurtjahya, Eddy; Payne, John; Permana, Andrea; Poulsen, Axel D.; Raes, Niels; Riswan, Soedarsono; van Schaik, Carel P.; Sheil, Douglas; Sidiyasa, Kade; Suzuki, Eizi; van Valkenburg, Johan L. C. H.; Webb, Campbell O.; Wich, Serge; Yoneda, Tsuyoshi; Zakaria, Rahmad; Zweifel, Nicole

2011-01-01

The marked biogeographic difference between western (Malay Peninsula and Sumatra) and eastern (Borneo) Sundaland is surprising given the long time that these areas have formed a single landmass. A dispersal barrier in the form of a dry savanna corridor during glacial maxima has been proposed to explain this disparity. However, the short duration of these dry savanna conditions make it an unlikely sole cause for the biogeographic pattern. An additional explanation might be related to the coarse sandy soils of central Sundaland. To test these two nonexclusive hypotheses, we performed a floristic cluster analysis based on 111 tree inventories from Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, and Borneo. We then identified the indicator genera for clusters that crossed the central Sundaland biogeographic boundary and those that did not cross and tested whether drought and coarse-soil tolerance of the indicator genera differed between them. We found 11 terminal floristic clusters, 10 occurring in Borneo, 5 in Sumatra, and 3 in Peninsular Malaysia. Indicator taxa of clusters that occurred across Sundaland had significantly higher coarse-soil tolerance than did those from clusters that occurred east or west of central Sundaland. For drought tolerance, no such pattern was detected. These results strongly suggest that exposed sandy sea-bed soils acted as a dispersal barrier in central Sundaland. However, we could not confirm the presence of a savanna corridor. This finding makes it clear that proposed biogeographic explanations for plant and animal distributions within Sundaland, including possible migration routes for early humans, need to be reevaluated. PMID:21746913
Round herring (genus Etrumeus) contain distinct evolutionary lineages coincident with a biogeographic barrier along Australia’s southern temperate coastline

KAUST Repository

DiBattista, Joseph

2014-08-28

Molecular genetic surveys of marine fishes have revealed that some widely distributed species are actually a composite of multiple evolutionary lineages. This is apparent in the round herrings (genus Etrumeus), wherein a globally distributed taxon (Etrumeus sadina Mitchill 1814) has proven to contain at least seven valid taxa, with more likely awaiting discovery. Here, we survey evolutionary lineages of the nominal E. sadina (formerly E. teres, a junior synonym) across the southern temperate zone of Australia, a marine region divided into three biogeographic provinces based primarily on the distribution of intertidal faunas. Results from morphological and mitochondrial DNA data reveal two evolutionary lineages corresponding to eastern and southwestern provinces (d = 0.007 for cytochrome c oxidase subunit I and d = 0.017 for cytochrome b), possibly initiated by the Bassian Isthmus between Australia and Tasmania during low sea-level stands. The Australian round herring is also genetically distinct from the nearest congeneric forms in the Indian and Pacific Oceans, with a corresponding modal difference in gill-raker counts in most cases. Based on these data, we resurrect the title Etrumeus jacksoniensis for the Australian round herring. While the Bassian Isthmus may have initiated the partition of evolutionary lineages within Australia, additional oceanographic and ecological factors must reinforce this separation in order to maintain diagnostic genetic differences along a continuous temperate coastline. © 2014 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.
Round herring (genus Etrumeus) contain distinct evolutionary lineages coincident with a biogeographic barrier along Australia’s southern temperate coastline

KAUST Repository

DiBattista, Joseph; Randall, John E.; Newman, Stephen J.; Bowen, Brian W.

2014-01-01

Molecular genetic surveys of marine fishes have revealed that some widely distributed species are actually a composite of multiple evolutionary lineages. This is apparent in the round herrings (genus Etrumeus), wherein a globally distributed taxon (Etrumeus sadina Mitchill 1814) has proven to contain at least seven valid taxa, with more likely awaiting discovery. Here, we survey evolutionary lineages of the nominal E. sadina (formerly E. teres, a junior synonym) across the southern temperate zone of Australia, a marine region divided into three biogeographic provinces based primarily on the distribution of intertidal faunas. Results from morphological and mitochondrial DNA data reveal two evolutionary lineages corresponding to eastern and southwestern provinces (d = 0.007 for cytochrome c oxidase subunit I and d = 0.017 for cytochrome b), possibly initiated by the Bassian Isthmus between Australia and Tasmania during low sea-level stands. The Australian round herring is also genetically distinct from the nearest congeneric forms in the Indian and Pacific Oceans, with a corresponding modal difference in gill-raker counts in most cases. Based on these data, we resurrect the title Etrumeus jacksoniensis for the Australian round herring. While the Bassian Isthmus may have initiated the partition of evolutionary lineages within Australia, additional oceanographic and ecological factors must reinforce this separation in order to maintain diagnostic genetic differences along a continuous temperate coastline. © 2014 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.
Biogeographic patterns of bacterial microdiversity in Arctic deep-sea sediments (Hausgarten, Fram Strait

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Pier Luigi eButtigieg

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Marine bacteria colonising deep-sea sediments beneath the Arctic ocean, a rapidly changing ecosystem, have been shown to exhibit significant biogeographic patterns along transects spanning tens of kilometres and across water depths reaching several thousands of metres (Jacob et al., 2013. Jacob et al. adopted what has become a classical view of microbial diversity based on operational taxonomic units clustered at the 97% sequence identity level of the 16S rRNA gene and observed a very large microbial community replacement at the Hausgarten Long-Term Ecological Research station (Eastern Fram Strait. Here, we revisited these data using the oligotyping approach with the aims of obtaining new insights into ecological and biogeographic patterns associated with bacterial microdiversity in marine sediments and of assessing the level of concordance of these insights with previously obtained results. Variation in oligotype dispersal range, relative abundance, co-occurrence, and taxonomic identity were related to environmental parameters such as water depth, biomass, and sedimentary pigment concentration. This study assesses ecological implications of the new microdiversity-based technique using a well-characterised dataset of high relevance for global change biology.

World Register of marine Cave Species (WoRCS: a new Thematic Species Database for marine and anchialine cave biodiversity

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Vasilis Gerovasileiou

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Scientific exploration of marine cave environments and anchialine ecosystems over recent decades has led to outstanding discoveries of novel taxa, increasing our knowledge of biodiversity. However, biological research on underwater caves has taken place only in a few areas of the world and relevant information remains fragmented in isolated publications and databases. This fragmentation makes assessing the conservation status of marine cave species especially problematic, and this issue should be addressed urgently given the stresses resulting from planned and rampant development in the coastal zone worldwide. The goal of the World Register of marine Cave Species (WoRCS initiative is to create a comprehensive taxonomic and ecological database of known species from marine caves and anchialine systems worldwide and to present this as a Thematic Species Database (TSD of the World Register of marine Species (WoRMS. WoRCS will incorporate ecological data (e.g., type of environment, salinity regimes, and cave zone as well as geographical information on the distribution of species in cave and anchialine environments. Biodiversity data will be progressively assembled from individual database sources at regional, national or local levels, as well as from literature sources (estimate: >20,000 existing records of cave-dwelling species scattered in several databases. Information will be organized in the WoRCS database following a standard glossary based on existing terminology. Cave-related information will be managed by the WoRCS thematic editors with all data dynamically linked to WoRMS and its team of taxonomic editors. In order to mobilize data into global biogeographic databases, a Gazetteer of the Marine and Anchialine Caves of the World will be established. The presence records of species could be eventually georeferenced for submission to the Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS and constitute an important dataset for biogeographical and
Phylogeography in Galaxias maculatus (Jenyns, 1848 along Two Biogeographical Provinces in the Chilean Coast.

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Claudio A González-Wevar

Full Text Available Major geologic and climatic changes during the Quaternary exerted a major role in shaping past and contemporary distribution of genetic diversity and structure of aquatic organisms in southern South America. In fact, the northern glacial limit along the Pacific coast, an area of major environmental changes in terms of topography, currents, and water salinity, represents a major biogeographic transition for marine and freshwater species. We used mitochondrial DNA sequences (D-loop to investigate the consequences of Quaternary glacial cycles over the pattern of genetic diversity and structure of G. maculatus (Pisces: Galaxiidae along two biogeographical provinces in the Chilean coast. Extreme levels of genetic diversity and strong phylogeographic structure characterize the species suggesting a low amount of influence of the last glacial cycle over its demography. However, we recognized contrasting patterns of genetic diversity and structure between main biogeographical areas here analyzed. Along the Intermediate Area (38°-41° S each estuarine population constitutes a different unit. In contrast, Magellanic populations (43°-53° S exhibited low levels of genetic differentiation. Contrasting patterns of genetic diversity and structure recorded in the species between the analyzed biogeographic areas are consistent with the marked differences in abiotic factors (i.e., different coastal configurations, Quaternary glacial histories, and oceanographic regimes and to inherent characteristics of the species (i.e., salt-tolerance, physiology, and reproductive behavior.
Phylogeography in Galaxias maculatus (Jenyns, 1848) along Two Biogeographical Provinces in the Chilean Coast

Science.gov (United States)

González-Wevar, Claudio A.; Salinas, Pilar; Hüne, Mathias; Segovia, Nicolás I.; Vargas-Chacoff, Luis; Astorga, Marcela; Cañete, Juan I.; Poulin, Elie

2015-01-01

Major geologic and climatic changes during the Quaternary exerted a major role in shaping past and contemporary distribution of genetic diversity and structure of aquatic organisms in southern South America. In fact, the northern glacial limit along the Pacific coast, an area of major environmental changes in terms of topography, currents, and water salinity, represents a major biogeographic transition for marine and freshwater species. We used mitochondrial DNA sequences (D-loop) to investigate the consequences of Quaternary glacial cycles over the pattern of genetic diversity and structure of G. maculatus (Pisces: Galaxiidae) along two biogeographical provinces in the Chilean coast. Extreme levels of genetic diversity and strong phylogeographic structure characterize the species suggesting a low amount of influence of the last glacial cycle over its demography. However, we recognized contrasting patterns of genetic diversity and structure between main biogeographical areas here analyzed. Along the Intermediate Area (38°–41° S) each estuarine population constitutes a different unit. In contrast, Magellanic populations (43°–53° S) exhibited low levels of genetic differentiation. Contrasting patterns of genetic diversity and structure recorded in the species between the analyzed biogeographic areas are consistent with the marked differences in abiotic factors (i.e., different coastal configurations, Quaternary glacial histories, and oceanographic regimes) and to inherent characteristics of the species (i.e., salt-tolerance, physiology, and reproductive behavior). PMID:26161896
Israel Marine Bio-geographic Database (ISRAMAR-BIO)

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Greengrass, Eyal; Krivenko, Yevgeniya; Ozer, Tal; Ben Yosef, Dafna; Tom, Moshe; Gertman, Isaac

2015-04-01

The knowledge of the space/time variations of species is the basis for any ecological investigations. While historical observations containing integral concentrations of biological parameters (chlorophyll, abundance, biomass…) are organized partly in ISRAMAR Cast Database, the taxon-specific data collected in Israel has not been sufficiently organized. This has been hindered by the lack of standards, variability of methods and complexity of biological data formalization. The ISRAMAR-BIO DB was developed to store various types of historical and future available information related to marine species observations and related metadata. Currently the DB allows to store biological data acquired by the following sampling devices such as: van veer grab, box corer, sampling bottles, nets (plankton, trawls and fish), quadrates, and cameras. The DB's logical unit is information regarding a specimen (taxa name, barcode, image), related attributes (abundance, size, age, contaminants…), habitat description, sampling device and method, time and space of sampling, responsible organization and scientist, source of information (cruise, project and publication). The following standardization of specimen and attributes naming were implemented: Taxonomy according to World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS: http://www.marinespecies.org). Habitat description according to Coastal and Marine Ecological Classification Standards (CMECS: http://www.cmecscatalog.org) Parameter name; Unit; Device name; Developmental stage; Institution name; Country name; Marine region according to SeaDataNet Vocabularies (http://www.seadatanet.org/Standards-Software/Common-Vocabularies). This system supports two types of data submission procedures, which support the above stated data structure. The first is a downloadable excel file with drop-down fields based on the ISRAMAR-BIO vocabularies. The file is filled and uploaded online by the data contributor. Alternatively, the same dataset can be assembled by
Biogeographic patterns in ocean microbes emerge in a neutral agent-based model.

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Hellweger, Ferdi L; van Sebille, Erik; Fredrick, Neil D

2014-09-12

A key question in ecology and evolution is the relative role of natural selection and neutral evolution in producing biogeographic patterns. We quantify the role of neutral processes by simulating division, mutation, and death of 100,000 individual marine bacteria cells with full 1 million-base-pair genomes in a global surface ocean circulation model. The model is run for up to 100,000 years and output is analyzed using BLAST (Basic Local Alignment Search Tool) alignment and metagenomics fragment recruitment. Simulations show the production and maintenance of biogeographic patterns, characterized by distinct provinces subject to mixing and periodic takeovers by neighbors (coalescence), after which neutral evolution reestablishes the province and the patterns reorganize. The emergent patterns are substantial (e.g., down to 99.5% DNA identity between North and Central Pacific provinces) and suggest that microbes evolve faster than ocean currents can disperse them. This approach can also be used to explore environmental selection. Copyright © 2014, American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Development of the Red Sea Biogeographic Information System

KAUST Repository

Machda, Fahmi

2010-05-01

Marine studies, surveys, and observational activities are continuously generating new and diverse data, which are hard to keep track of with tables and spreadsheets. Integrated data and information management systems that collect, analyze, and combine data are needed in order to provide a comprehensive picture of marine environments under study. For these reasons, we started to develop the Red Sea Biogeographic Information System (RBIS) at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) as a web application utilizing the most updated Web 2.0 technologies. RBIS is designed to have an easily accessible interface that is able to host and display research activities conducted in the Red Sea. Its data model is designed to deal with any kind of marine data. For its data structure, RBIS is organizing the data into three main categories: biological data, physicochemical data, and human activities. Spatial distribution of these data is visualized on a Google-Maps mashup. Dynamic charts are used to visualize the statistics of the data. With these functionalities, data model, and data structure, RBIS is able to organize, visualize, and do instantly combined analyses of research data from the Red Sea. The current version is accessible at http://www.kaust.edu.sa/rbis. © 2010 IEEE.
Phylogeographic patterning among two codistributed shrimp species (Crustacea: Decapoda: Palaemonidae reveals high levels of connectivity across biogeographic regions along the South African coast.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Louisa E Wood

Full Text Available We compare the genetic structuring and demographic history of two sympatric caridean shrimp species with distinct life history traits, one amphidromous species Palaemon capensis and one marine/estuarine species Palaemon peringueyi, in the historical biogeographical context of South Africa. A total of 103 specimens of P. capensis collected from 12 localities and 217 specimens of P. peringueyi collected from 24 localities were sequenced for the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase one (CO1 locus. Results from analyses of molecular variance (AMOVA, pairwise ΦST comparisons and haplotype networks demonstrate weak to moderate genetic differentiation in P. capensis and P. peringueyi respectively. P. peringueyi exhibits partial isolation between populations associated with distinct biogeographic regions, likely driven by the region's oceanography. However, there is minimal evidence for the occurrence of discrete regional evolutionary lineages. This demonstrated lack of genetic differentiation is consistent with a marine, highly dispersive planktonic phase in both the amphidromous P. capensis and the marine/estuarine P. peringueyi. Bayesian skyline plots, mismatch expansions and time since expansion indicate that both species maintained stable populations during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM, unlike other southern African aquatic species.
Internationalization as a strategy to overcome industry barriers-An assessment of the marine energy industry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lovdal, Nicolai; Neumann, Frank

2011-01-01

Research on conditions to develop new innovations within emerging renewable energy industries is often done with a national focus. However, recent research on international entrepreneurship has revealed that firms operate on international levels very early in their life time. Thus, based on former research on international entrepreneurship and case examples, we build the propositions that firms in the marine energy industry use internationalization as a strategy to overcome industry barriers. Our primary source of data is a unique dataset from a global survey of all the companies in the marine energy industry who are aiming to commercialize a wave or tidal energy device. This paper is organized in two steps: first we identified the most challenging industry barriers perceived by companies. Second we use these to form propositions which we assess through empirical data. The two most challenging barriers perceived by the companies are need for capital and need for supportive political schemes. Our findings reveal that internationalization certainly is a common strategy to access capital and attractive support schemes in foreign countries. The early internationalization has implications for researchers, managers and policy makers. - Research highlights: → Industry barriers identified as access to capital and supportive political schemes. → International entrepreneurship is used to overcome industry barriers. → Start-ups in emerging energy industries 'shop' national support schemes. → Future research to provide policy advice should adapt to the international reality. → Research based on a worldwide survey of wave and tidal energy device developers.
Internationalization as a strategy to overcome industry barriers-An assessment of the marine energy industry

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lovdal, Nicolai, E-mail: nicolai.lovdal@iot.ntnu.n [Industrial Economics and Technology Management, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, 7491 Trondheim (Norway); Neumann, Frank, E-mail: frank@wave-energy-centre.or [Wave Energy Centre, Av. Manuel Maia, 36, r/c Dto., 1000-201 Lisboa (Portugal)

2011-03-15

Research on conditions to develop new innovations within emerging renewable energy industries is often done with a national focus. However, recent research on international entrepreneurship has revealed that firms operate on international levels very early in their life time. Thus, based on former research on international entrepreneurship and case examples, we build the propositions that firms in the marine energy industry use internationalization as a strategy to overcome industry barriers. Our primary source of data is a unique dataset from a global survey of all the companies in the marine energy industry who are aiming to commercialize a wave or tidal energy device. This paper is organized in two steps: first we identified the most challenging industry barriers perceived by companies. Second we use these to form propositions which we assess through empirical data. The two most challenging barriers perceived by the companies are need for capital and need for supportive political schemes. Our findings reveal that internationalization certainly is a common strategy to access capital and attractive support schemes in foreign countries. The early internationalization has implications for researchers, managers and policy makers. - Research highlights: {yields} Industry barriers identified as access to capital and supportive political schemes. {yields} International entrepreneurship is used to overcome industry barriers. {yields} Start-ups in emerging energy industries 'shop' national support schemes. {yields} Future research to provide policy advice should adapt to the international reality. {yields} Research based on a worldwide survey of wave and tidal energy device developers.
Phylogenetic and morphologic analyses of a coastal fish reveals a marine biogeographic break of terrestrial origin in the southern Caribbean.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ricardo Betancur-R

2010-07-01

Full Text Available Marine allopatric speciation involves interplay between intrinsic organismal properties and extrinsic factors. However, the relative contribution of each depends on the taxon under study and its geographic context. Utilizing sea catfishes in the Cathorops mapale species group, this study tests the hypothesis that both reproductive strategies conferring limited dispersal opportunities and an apparent geomorphologic barrier in the Southern Caribbean have promoted speciation in this group from a little studied area of the world.Mitochondrial gene sequences were obtained from representatives of the Cathorops mapale species group across its distributional range from Colombia to Venezuela. Morphometric and meristic analyses were also done to assess morphologic variation. Along a approximately 2000 km transect, two major lineages, Cathorops sp. and C. mapale, were identified by levels of genetic differentiation, phylogenetic reconstructions, and morphological analyses. The lineages are separated by approximately 150 km at the Santa Marta Massif (SMM in Colombia. The northward displacement of the SMM into the Caribbean in the early Pleistocene altered the geomorphology of the continental margin, ultimately disrupting the natural habitat of C. mapale. The estimated approximately 0.86 my divergence of the lineages from a common ancestor coincides with the timing of the SMM displacement at approximately 0.78 my.Results presented here support the hypothesis that organismal properties as well as extrinsic factors lead to diversification of the Cathorops mapale group along the northern coast of South America. While a lack of pelagic larval stages and ecological specialization are forces impacting this process, the identification of the SMM as contributing to allopatric speciation in marine organisms adds to the list of recognized barriers in the Caribbean. Comparative examination of additional Southern Caribbean taxa, particularly those with varying life
Did biogeographical processes shape the monogenean community of butterflyfishes in the tropical Indo-west Pacific region?

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Reverter, M; Cribb, T H; Cutmore, S C; Bray, R A; Parravicini, V; Sasal, P

2017-07-01

Geographical distribution of parasite species can provide insights into the evolution and diversity of parasitic communities. Biogeography of marine parasites is poorly known, especially because it requires an understanding of host-parasite interactions, information that is rare, especially over large spatial scales. Here, we have studied the biogeographical patterns of dactylogyrid parasites of chaetodontids, one of the most well-studied fish families, in the tropical Indo-west Pacific region. Dactylogyrid parasites were collected from gills of 34 butterflyfish species (n=560) at nine localities within an approximate area of 62millionkm 2 . Thirteen dactylogyrid species were identified, with richness ranging from 6 to 12 species at individual localities. Most dactylogyrid communities were dominated by Haliotrema angelopterum or Haliotrema aurigae, for which relative abundance was negatively correlated (ρ=-0.59). Parasite richness and diversity were highest in French Polynesia and the Great Barrier Reef (Australia) and lowest in Palau. Three biogeographic regions were identified based on dactylogyrid dissimilarities: French Polynesia, characterised by the dominance of H. angelopterum, the western Pacific region dominated by H. aurigae, and Ningaloo Reef (Australia), dominated by Euryhaliotrema berenguelae. Structure of host assemblages was the main factor explaining the dissimilarity (turnover and nestedness components of the Bray-Curtis dissimilarity and overall Bray-Curtis dissimilarity) of parasite communities between localities, while environment was only significant in the turnover of parasite communities and overall dissimilarity. Spatial structure of localities explained only 10% of the turnover of parasite communities. The interaction of the three factors (host assemblages, environment and spatial structure), however, explained the highest amounts of variance of the dactylogyrid communities, indicating a strong colinearity between the factors. Our findings
A biogeographical perspective on species abundance distributions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Matthews, Thomas J.; Borges, Paulo A. V.; de Azevedo, Eduardo Brito

2017-01-01

It has become increasingly recognized that multiple processes can generate similar shapes of species abundance distributions (SADs), with the result that the fit of a given SAD model cannot unambiguously provide evidence in support of a given theory or model. An alternative approach to comparing...... the fit of different SAD models to data from a single site is to collect abundance data from a variety of sites, and then build models to analyse how different SAD properties (e.g. form, skewness) vary with different predictor variables. Such a biogeographical approach to SAD research is potentially very...... revealing, yet there has been a general lack of interest in SADs in the biogeographical literature. In this Perspective, we address this issue by highlighting findings of recent analyses of SADs that we consider to be of intrinsic biogeographical interest. We use arthropod data drawn from the Azorean...
Cranial and mandibular shape variation in the genus Carollia (Mammalia: Chiroptera from Colombia: biogeographic patterns and morphological modularity

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Camilo López-Aguirre

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Neotropical bats of the genus Carollia are widely studied due to their abundance, distribution and relevance for ecosystems. However, the ecomorphological boundaries of these species are poorly differentiated, and consequently correspondence between their geographic distribution, ecological plasticity and morphological variation remains unclear. In this study, patterns of cranial and mandibular morphological variation were assessed for Carollia brevicauda, C. castanea and C. perspicillata from Colombia. Using geometric morphometrics, morphological variation was examined with respect to: differences in intraspecific variation, morphological modularity and integration, and biogeographic patterns. Patterns of intraspecific variation were different for each species in both cranial and mandibular morphology, with functional differences apparent according to diet. Cranial modularity varied between species whereas mandibular modularity did not. High cranial and mandibular correlation reflects Cranium-Mandible integration as a functional unit. Similarity between the biogeographic patterns in C. brevicauda and C. perspicillata indicates that the Andes do not act as a barrier but rather as an independent region, isolating the morphology of Andean populations of larger-bodied species. The biogeographic pattern for C. castanea was not associated with the physiography of the Andes, suggesting that large body size does not benefit C. brevicauda and C. perspicillata in maintaining homogeneous morphologies among populations.
Cranial and mandibular shape variation in the genus Carollia (Mammalia: Chiroptera) from Colombia: biogeographic patterns and morphological modularity.

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López-Aguirre, Camilo; Pérez-Torres, Jairo; Wilson, Laura A B

2015-01-01

Neotropical bats of the genus Carollia are widely studied due to their abundance, distribution and relevance for ecosystems. However, the ecomorphological boundaries of these species are poorly differentiated, and consequently correspondence between their geographic distribution, ecological plasticity and morphological variation remains unclear. In this study, patterns of cranial and mandibular morphological variation were assessed for Carollia brevicauda, C. castanea and C. perspicillata from Colombia. Using geometric morphometrics, morphological variation was examined with respect to: differences in intraspecific variation, morphological modularity and integration, and biogeographic patterns. Patterns of intraspecific variation were different for each species in both cranial and mandibular morphology, with functional differences apparent according to diet. Cranial modularity varied between species whereas mandibular modularity did not. High cranial and mandibular correlation reflects Cranium-Mandible integration as a functional unit. Similarity between the biogeographic patterns in C. brevicauda and C. perspicillata indicates that the Andes do not act as a barrier but rather as an independent region, isolating the morphology of Andean populations of larger-bodied species. The biogeographic pattern for C. castanea was not associated with the physiography of the Andes, suggesting that large body size does not benefit C. brevicauda and C. perspicillata in maintaining homogeneous morphologies among populations.
The Hawaiian freshwater algae biodiversity survey (2009–2014): systematic and biogeographic trends with an emphasis on the macroalgae

Science.gov (United States)

2014-01-01

Background A remarkable range of environmental conditions is present in the Hawaiian Islands due to their gradients of elevation, rainfall and island age. Despite being well known as a location for the study of evolutionary processes and island biogeography, little is known about the composition of the non-marine algal flora of the archipelago, its degree of endemism, or affinities with other floras. We conducted a biodiversity survey of the non-marine macroalgae of the six largest main Hawaiian Islands using molecular and microscopic assessment techniques. We aimed to evaluate whether endemism or cosmopolitanism better explain freshwater algal distribution patterns, and provide a baseline data set for monitoring future biodiversity changes in the Hawaiian Islands. Results 1,786 aquatic and terrestrial habitats and 1,407 distinct collections of non-marine macroalgae were collected from the islands of Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Maui, Lanai and Hawaii from the years 2009–2014. Targeted habitats included streams, wet walls, high elevation bogs, taro fields, ditches and flumes, lakes/reservoirs, cave walls and terrestrial areas. Sites that lacked freshwater macroalgae were typically terrestrial or wet wall habitats that were sampled for diatoms and other microalgae. Approximately 50% of the identifications were of green algae, with lesser proportions of diatoms, red algae, cyanobacteria, xanthophytes and euglenoids. 898 DNA sequences were generated representing eight different markers, which enabled an assessment of the number of taxonomic entities for genera collected as part of the survey. Forty-four well-characterized taxa were assessed for global distribution patterns. This analysis revealed no clear biogeographic affinities of the flora, with 27.3% characterized as “cosmopolitan”, 11.4% “endemic”, and 61.3% as intermediate. Conclusions The Hawaiian freshwater algal biodiversity survey represents the first comprehensive effort to characterize the non-marine
Ocean currents modify the coupling between climate change and biogeographical shifts.

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García Molinos, J; Burrows, M T; Poloczanska, E S

2017-05-02

Biogeographical shifts are a ubiquitous global response to climate change. However, observed shifts across taxa and geographical locations are highly variable and only partially attributable to climatic conditions. Such variable outcomes result from the interaction between local climatic changes and other abiotic and biotic factors operating across species ranges. Among them, external directional forces such as ocean and air currents influence the dispersal of nearly all marine and many terrestrial organisms. Here, using a global meta-dataset of observed range shifts of marine species, we show that incorporating directional agreement between flow and climate significantly increases the proportion of explained variance. We propose a simple metric that measures the degrees of directional agreement of ocean (or air) currents with thermal gradients and considers the effects of directional forces in predictions of climate-driven range shifts. Ocean flows are found to both facilitate and hinder shifts depending on their directional agreement with spatial gradients of temperature. Further, effects are shaped by the locations of shifts in the range (trailing, leading or centroid) and taxonomic identity of species. These results support the global effects of climatic changes on distribution shifts and stress the importance of framing climate expectations in reference to other non-climatic interacting factors.
Genetic diversity and biogeographical patterns of Caulerpa prolifera across the Mediterranean and Mediterranean/Atlantic transition zone

KAUST Repository

Varela-Á lvarez, Elena; Balau, Ana C.; Marbà , Nú rià N.; Afonso-Carrillo, Julio; Duarte, Carlos M.; Serrã o, Ester Á lvares

2015-01-01

Knowledge of spatial patterns of genetic differentiation between populations is key to understanding processes in evolutionary history of biological species. Caulerpa is a genus of marine green algae, which has attracted much public attention, mainly because of the impacts of invasive species in the Mediterranean. However, very little is known about the ecological and evolutionary history of the Mediterranean native Caulerpa prolifera, a species which is currently found at sites distributed worldwide. C. prolifera provides a good model to explore the patterns of genetic diversity at different scales across the Mediterranean and Atlantic area. This study aims to investigate the biogeographical patterns of diversity and differentiation of C. prolifera in the Mediterranean, with special focus on the Mediterranean/Atlantic transition zone. We used two nuclear (ITS rDNA and the hypervariable microsatellite locus CaPr_J2) and one chloroplast (tufA) DNA markers on samples of C. prolifera from its entire range. Analyses of 51 sequences of the cpDNA tufA of C. prolifera, 87 ITS2 sequences and genotypes of 788 ramets of C. prolifera for the locus CaPr_J2 revealed three different biogeographical areas: West Atlantic, East Atlantic and a larger area representing the Mediterranean, the Mediterranean/Atlantic transition zone and a Pacific site (Bali). It was found out that the Mediterranean/Atlantic transition zone is a biogeographical boundary for C. prolifera. A lack of connectivity was revealed between Atlantic and Mediterranean types, and identical sequences found in the Mediterranean and Indo-Pacific suggest either recent gene flow along the Red Sea connection or a possible ancient Indo-Pacific origin.
Genetic diversity and biogeographical patterns of Caulerpa prolifera across the Mediterranean and Mediterranean/Atlantic transition zone

KAUST Repository

Varela-Álvarez, Elena

2015-01-11

Knowledge of spatial patterns of genetic differentiation between populations is key to understanding processes in evolutionary history of biological species. Caulerpa is a genus of marine green algae, which has attracted much public attention, mainly because of the impacts of invasive species in the Mediterranean. However, very little is known about the ecological and evolutionary history of the Mediterranean native Caulerpa prolifera, a species which is currently found at sites distributed worldwide. C. prolifera provides a good model to explore the patterns of genetic diversity at different scales across the Mediterranean and Atlantic area. This study aims to investigate the biogeographical patterns of diversity and differentiation of C. prolifera in the Mediterranean, with special focus on the Mediterranean/Atlantic transition zone. We used two nuclear (ITS rDNA and the hypervariable microsatellite locus CaPr_J2) and one chloroplast (tufA) DNA markers on samples of C. prolifera from its entire range. Analyses of 51 sequences of the cpDNA tufA of C. prolifera, 87 ITS2 sequences and genotypes of 788 ramets of C. prolifera for the locus CaPr_J2 revealed three different biogeographical areas: West Atlantic, East Atlantic and a larger area representing the Mediterranean, the Mediterranean/Atlantic transition zone and a Pacific site (Bali). It was found out that the Mediterranean/Atlantic transition zone is a biogeographical boundary for C. prolifera. A lack of connectivity was revealed between Atlantic and Mediterranean types, and identical sequences found in the Mediterranean and Indo-Pacific suggest either recent gene flow along the Red Sea connection or a possible ancient Indo-Pacific origin.
Mapping the environmental and biogeographic complexity of the Amazon basin using remote sensing methods

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Streher, A. S.; Cordeiro, C. L. O.; Silva, T. S. F.

2017-12-01

Mapping environmental envelopes onto geographical space has been classically important for understanding biogeographical patterns. Knowing the biotic and abiotic limits defining these envelopes, we can better understand the requirements limiting species distributions. Most present efforts in this regard have focused on single-species distribution models, but the current breadth and accessibility of quantitative, spatially explicit environmental information can also be explored from an environment-first perspective. We thus used remote sensing to determine the occurrence of environmental discontinuities in the Amazon region and evaluated if such discontinuities may act as barriers to determine species distribution and range limits, forming clear environmental envelopes. We combined data on topography (SRTM), precipitation (CHIRPS), vegetation descriptors (PALSAR-1 backscattering, biomass, NDVI) and temperature (MODIS), using object-based image analysis and unsupervised learning to map environmental envelopes. We identified 14 environmental envelopes for the Amazon sensu latissimo region, mainly delimited by changes in vegetation, topography and precipitation. The resulting envelopes were compared to the distribution of 120 species of Trogonidae, Galbulidae, Bucconidae, Cebidae, Hylidae and Lecythidaceae, amounting to 22,649 occurrence records within the Amazonregion. We determined species prevalence in each envelope by calculating the ratio between species relative frequency per envelope and envelope relative frequency (area) in the complete map. Values closer to 1 indicate a high degree of prevalence. We found strong envelope associations (prevalence > 0.5) for 20 species (17% of analyzed taxa). Although several biogeographical and ecological factors will influence the distribution of a species, our results show that not only geographical barriers, but also modern environmental discontinuities may limit the distribution of some species., and may have also done so
Trait-Dependent Biogeography: (Re)Integrating Biology into Probabilistic Historical Biogeographical Models.

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Sukumaran, Jeet; Knowles, L Lacey

2018-04-20

The development of process-based probabilistic models for historical biogeography has transformed the field by grounding it in modern statistical hypothesis testing. However, most of these models abstract away biological differences, reducing species to interchangeable lineages. We present here the case for reintegration of biology into probabilistic historical biogeographical models, allowing a broader range of questions about biogeographical processes beyond ancestral range estimation or simple correlation between a trait and a distribution pattern, as well as allowing us to assess how inferences about ancestral ranges themselves might be impacted by differential biological traits. We show how new approaches to inference might cope with the computational challenges resulting from the increased complexity of these trait-based historical biogeographical models. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Biogeography of speciation in Cenozoic marine ostracoda: the role of climatic change

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cronin, T.M.

1985-01-01

Evolutionary theory holds that geographic isolation of populations with its resultant reproductive isolation is an important factor in the origin of new species. Climatic change alters species' biogeography by creating and eliminating barriers that affect gene flow between populations. For benthic organisms such as shallow marine ostracodes, thermal gradients at biogeographic province boundaries and the area of continental shelf are factors affected by climatic and associated sea level changes. Studies of Cenozoic marine ostracodes show that allopatric speciation does not account for paleobiogeographic patterns of species subjected to climatic change. Studies of 127 endemic species from middle latitudes of the western Atlantic show that most speciation events in temperature and subtropical taxa are, in the zoogeographic sense, sympatric or parapatric-clinal and are induced by oceanographic changes related to climatic events rather than geographic isolation of populations. Most ostracode species in middle latitudes are adapted to frequent, cyclical climatic changes typical of these regions and originated during rare periods of major climatic transition. High-latitude arctic-subarctic genera such as Finmarchinella have circumpolar distributions. A parapatric-clinal model accounts for speciation patterns observed in some high-latitude and tropical taxa. However the dynamic nature of thermal gradients and species' biogeography during climatic change renders questionable the controversial distinction between parapatric and allopatric-peripatric speciation models.
Arctic biogeography: The paradox of the marine benthic fauna and flora.

Science.gov (United States)

Dunton, K

1992-06-01

The marine benthic fauna and flora that inhabit the shallow arctic sublittoral zone comprise a relatively young marine assemblage characterized by species of either Pacific or Atlantic affinity and notably few endemics. The young character of nearshore arctic communities, as well as their biogeographical composition, is largely a product of the Pleistocene glaciation. However, analysis of more recent collections and comparison between the origins of the benthic fauna and flora present some interesting paradoxes to biogeographers. One enigma is the low frequency of algal species with Pacific affinities in the Arctic, especially in the Chukchi, Beaufort and East Siberian Seas of the Eastern Arctic, which receive direct inputs of northward-flowing Pacific waters. In contrast, animal species with Pacific affinities are found throughout the nearshore regions of the Arctic, reaching their highest frequency in the marginal seas between the New Siberian Islands and the Canadian Archipelago. Organization of published and unpublished data, additional field collections, and the use of cladistics and molecular DNA techniques by systematists are a high priority for future research in reconstructing the evolution of the arctic biotic assemblage. Copyright © 1992. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Volcanic calderas delineate biogeographic provinces among Yellowstone thermophiles.

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Takacs-Vesbach, Cristina; Mitchell, Kendra; Jackson-Weaver, Olan; Reysenbach, Anna-Louise

2008-07-01

It has been suggested that the distribution of microorganisms should be cosmopolitan because of their enormous capacity for dispersal. However, recent studies have revealed that geographically isolated microbial populations do exist. Geographic distance as a barrier to dispersal is most often invoked to explain these distributions. Here we show that unique and diverse sequences of the bacterial genus Sulfurihydrogenibium exist in Yellowstone thermal springs, indicating that these sites are geographically isolated. Although there was no correlation with geographic distance or the associated geochemistry of the springs, there was a strong historical signal. We found that the Yellowstone calderas, remnants of prehistoric volcanic eruptions, delineate biogeographical provinces for the Sulfurihydrogenibium within Yellowstone (chi(2): 9.7, P = 0.002). The pattern of distribution that we have detected suggests that major geological events in the past 2 million years explain more of the variation in sequence diversity in this system than do contemporary factors such as habitat or geographic distance. These findings highlight the importance of historical legacies in determining contemporary microbial distributions and suggest that the same factors that determine the biogeography of macroorganisms are also evident among bacteria.
From nitrogen enrichment to oxygen depletion: a mechanistic model of coastal marine ecosystems response

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cosme, Nuno Miguel Dias; Koski, Marja; Hauschild, Michael Zwicky

Nitrogen (N) emissions from anthropogenic sources may enrich coastal waters and lead to marine eutrophication impacts. Processes describing N-limited primary production (PP), zooplankton grazing, and bacterial respiration of sinking organic carbon, were modelled to quantify the potential dissolved...... oxygen (DO) consumption as a function of N input. Such indicator is the basis for an eXposure Factor (XF) applied in Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) to estimate impacts from N enrichment. The Large Marine Ecosystems (LME) biogeographical classification system was adopted to address the spatial...
Plastic Beaches: occurrence and accumulation of marine debris on barrier islands in the Gulf of Mexico

Science.gov (United States)

Wessel, C.; Albins, K.; Cebrian, J.

2016-02-01

Marine debris is any persistent solid material that is manufactured or processed and directly or indirectly, intentionally or unintentionally, disposed of or abandoned into the marine environment (33USC§1951). Marine debris is an economic, environmental, human health and aesthetic problem posing a complex challenge. Coastal communities are among the most seriously affected because of increased expenses for beach cleaning, public health and waste disposal, as well as a loss of income from decreased tourism. To better document this problem we are monitoring the occurrence and accumulation rate of marine debris on 6 barrier islands in the northern Gulf of Mexico (nGoM). Surveys are conducted at low tide and consist of 100m-long transects along the shoreline extending from the water edge to the upland shoreline limit. All debris larger than 5 mm is collected and recorded. Debris is then sorted by material, and dry mass is recorded. With this information we are investigating four specific questions: (1) what are the major types and possible sources (land or ocean based) of shoreline debris; (2) does the rate of debris deposition onto the shoreline show seasonal oscillations; (3) how does debris deposition change from east to west in the nGoM; and (4) what are the possible causes of the temporal and spatial trends found (e.g. rainfall and runoff, human population, boat traffic)? During the first year of sampling we are beginning to see trends emerge. More trash consistently washes up on the ocean side versus the sound side of the barrier islands, which suggests either large amounts of trash in the nGoM is ocean-based debris, or it is driven by beach goers, or both. In addition, we have found a significant increase in the amount of trash on the shoreline during tourist/boating season (May to September), although trash items tend to be smaller in size during that season. At the presentation we will discuss these and other trends that emerge with a more complete data set.
Barriers to gene flow in the marine environment: insights from two common intertidal limpet species of the Atlantic and Mediterranean.

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Alexandra Sá-Pinto

Full Text Available Knowledge of the scale of dispersal and the mechanisms governing gene flow in marine environments remains fragmentary despite being essential for understanding evolution of marine biota and to design management plans. We use the limpets Patella ulyssiponensis and Patella rustica as models for identifying factors affecting gene flow in marine organisms across the North-East Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea. A set of allozyme loci and a fragment of the mitochondrial gene cytochrome C oxidase subunit I were screened for genetic variation through starch gel electrophoresis and DNA sequencing, respectively. An approach combining clustering algorithms with clinal analyses was used to test for the existence of barriers to gene flow and estimate their geographic location and abruptness. Sharp breaks in the genetic composition of individuals were observed in the transitions between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean and across southern Italian shores. An additional break within the Atlantic cluster separates samples from the Alboran Sea and Atlantic African shores from those of the Iberian Atlantic shores. The geographic congruence of the genetic breaks detected in these two limpet species strongly supports the existence of transpecific barriers to gene flow in the Mediterranean Sea and Northeastern Atlantic. This leads to testable hypotheses regarding factors restricting gene flow across the study area.
Biodiversity, molecular ecology and phylogeography of marine sponges: patterns, implications and outlooks.

Science.gov (United States)

Wörheide, Gert; Solé-Cava, Antonio M; Hooper, John N A

2005-04-01

Marine sponges are an ecologically important and highly diverse component of marine benthic communities, found in all the world's oceans, at all depths. Although their commercial potential and evolutionary importance is increasingly recognized, many pivotal aspects of their basic biology remain enigmatic. Knowledge of historical biogeographic affinities and biodiversity patterns is rudimentary, and there are still few data about genetic variation among sponge populations and spatial patterns of this variation. Biodiversity analyses of tropical Australasian sponges revealed spatial trends not universally reflected in the distributions of other marine phyla within the Indo-West Pacific region. At smaller spatial scales sponges frequently form heterogeneous, spatially patchy assemblages, with some empirical evidence suggesting that environmental variables such as light and/or turbidity strongly contribute to local distributions. There are no apparent latitudinal diversity gradients at larger spatial scales but stochastic processes, such as changing current patterns, the presence or absence of major carbonate platforms and historical biogeography, may determine modern day distributions. Studies on Caribbean oceanic reefs have revealed similar patterns, only weakly correlated with environmental factors. However, several questions remain where molecular approaches promise great potential, e.g., concerning connectivity and biogeographic relationships. Studies to date have helped to reveal that sponge populations are genetically highly structured and that historical processes might play an important role in determining such structure. Increasingly sophisticated molecular tools are now being applied, with results contributing significantly to a better understanding of poriferan microevolutionary processes and molecular ecology.
A coastal seawater temperature dataset for biogeographical studies: large biases between in situ and remotely-sensed data sets around the Coast of South Africa.

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Albertus J Smit

Full Text Available Gridded SST products developed particularly for offshore regions are increasingly being applied close to the coast for biogeographical applications. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the dangers of doing so through a comparison of reprocessed MODIS Terra and Pathfinder v5.2 SSTs, both at 4 km resolution, with instrumental in situ temperatures taken within 400 m from the coast. We report large biases of up to +6°C in places between satellite-derived and in situ climatological temperatures for 87 sites spanning the entire ca. 2 700 km of the South African coastline. Although biases are predominantly warm (i.e. the satellite SSTs being higher, smaller or even cold biases also appear in places, especially along the southern and western coasts of the country. We also demonstrate the presence of gradients in temperature biases along shore-normal transects - generally SSTs extracted close to the shore demonstrate a smaller bias with respect to the in situ temperatures. Contributing towards the magnitude of the biases are factors such as SST data source, proximity to the shore, the presence/absence of upwelling cells or coastal embayments. Despite the generally large biases, from a biogeographical perspective, species distribution retains a correlative relationship with underlying spatial patterns in SST, but in order to arrive at a causal understanding of the determinants of biogeographical patterns we suggest that in shallow, inshore marine habitats, temperature is best measured directly.
A Coastal Seawater Temperature Dataset for Biogeographical Studies: Large Biases between In Situ and Remotely-Sensed Data Sets around the Coast of South Africa

Science.gov (United States)

Smit, Albertus J.; Roberts, Michael; Anderson, Robert J.; Dufois, Francois; Dudley, Sheldon F. J.; Bornman, Thomas G.; Olbers, Jennifer; Bolton, John J.

2013-01-01

Gridded SST products developed particularly for offshore regions are increasingly being applied close to the coast for biogeographical applications. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the dangers of doing so through a comparison of reprocessed MODIS Terra and Pathfinder v5.2 SSTs, both at 4 km resolution, with instrumental in situ temperatures taken within 400 m from the coast. We report large biases of up to +6°C in places between satellite-derived and in situ climatological temperatures for 87 sites spanning the entire ca. 2 700 km of the South African coastline. Although biases are predominantly warm (i.e. the satellite SSTs being higher), smaller or even cold biases also appear in places, especially along the southern and western coasts of the country. We also demonstrate the presence of gradients in temperature biases along shore-normal transects — generally SSTs extracted close to the shore demonstrate a smaller bias with respect to the in situ temperatures. Contributing towards the magnitude of the biases are factors such as SST data source, proximity to the shore, the presence/absence of upwelling cells or coastal embayments. Despite the generally large biases, from a biogeographical perspective, species distribution retains a correlative relationship with underlying spatial patterns in SST, but in order to arrive at a causal understanding of the determinants of biogeographical patterns we suggest that in shallow, inshore marine habitats, temperature is best measured directly. PMID:24312609
White abalone habitat suitability model for Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary Biogeographic Assessment

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The National Marine Sanctuary Program (NMSP) updates and revises the management plans for each of its 13 sanctuaries. This process, which is open to the public,...
Spot shrimp habitat suitability model for Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary Biogeographic Assessment

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The National Marine Sanctuary Program (NMSP) updates and revises the management plans for each of its 13 sanctuaries. This process, which is open to the public,...
Sheep crab habitat suitability model for Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary Biogeographic Assessment

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The National Marine Sanctuary Program (NMSP) updates and revises the management plans for each of its 13 sanctuaries. This process, which is open to the public,...
Giant seabass habitat suitability model for Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary Biogeographic Assessment

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The National Marine Sanctuary Program (NMSP) updates and revises the management plans for each of its 13 sanctuaries. This process, which is open to the public,...
California sheephead habitat suitability model for Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary Biogeographic Assessment

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The National Marine Sanctuary Program (NMSP) updates and revises the management plans for each of its 13 sanctuaries. This process, which is open to the public,...
Red abalone habitat suitability model for Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary Biogeographic Assessment

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The National Marine Sanctuary Program (NMSP) updates and revises the management plans for each of its 13 sanctuaries. This process, which is open to the public,...
Black abalone habitat suitability model for Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary Biogeographic Assessment

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Office of National Marine Sanctuaries (ONMS) updates and revises the management plans for each of its 13 sanctuaries. This process, which is open to the public,...
Herbicides: A new threat to the Great Barrier Reef

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lewis, Stephen E.; Brodie, Jon E.; Bainbridge, Zoe T.; Rohde, Ken W.; Davis, Aaron M.; Masters, Bronwyn L.; Maughan, Mirjam; Devlin, Michelle J.; Mueller, Jochen F.; Schaffelke, Britta

2009-01-01

The runoff of pesticides (insecticides, herbicides and fungicides) from agricultural lands is a key concern for the health of the iconic Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Relatively low levels of herbicide residues can reduce the productivity of marine plants and corals. However, the risk of these residues to Great Barrier Reef ecosystems has been poorly quantified due to a lack of large-scale datasets. Here we present results of a study tracing pesticide residues from rivers and creeks in three catchment regions to the adjacent marine environment. Several pesticides (mainly herbicides) were detected in both freshwater and coastal marine waters and were attributed to specific land uses in the catchment. Elevated herbicide concentrations were particularly associated with sugar cane cultivation in the adjacent catchment. We demonstrate that herbicides reach the Great Barrier Reef lagoon and may disturb sensitive marine ecosystems already affected by other pressures such as climate change. - Herbicide residues have been detected in Great Barrier Reef catchment waterways and river water plumes which may affect marine ecosystems.
Phylogenetic and biogeographic analysis of sphaerexochine trilobites.

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Curtis R Congreve

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Sphaerexochinae is a speciose and widely distributed group of cheirurid trilobites. Their temporal range extends from the earliest Ordovician through the Silurian, and they survived the end Ordovician mass extinction event (the second largest mass extinction in Earth history. Prior to this study, the individual evolutionary relationships within the group had yet to be determined utilizing rigorous phylogenetic methods. Understanding these evolutionary relationships is important for producing a stable classification of the group, and will be useful in elucidating the effects the end Ordovician mass extinction had on the evolutionary and biogeographic history of the group. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Cladistic parsimony analysis of cheirurid trilobites assigned to the subfamily Sphaerexochinae was conducted to evaluate phylogenetic patterns and produce a hypothesis of relationship for the group. This study utilized the program TNT, and the analysis included thirty-one taxa and thirty-nine characters. The results of this analysis were then used in a Lieberman-modified Brooks Parsimony Analysis to analyze biogeographic patterns during the Ordovician-Silurian. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The genus Sphaerexochus was found to be monophyletic, consisting of two smaller clades (one composed entirely of Ordovician species and another composed of Silurian and Ordovician species. By contrast, the genus Kawina was found to be paraphyletic. It is a basal grade that also contains taxa formerly assigned to Cydonocephalus. Phylogenetic patterns suggest Sphaerexochinae is a relatively distinctive trilobite clade because it appears to have been largely unaffected by the end Ordovician mass extinction. Finally, the biogeographic analysis yields two major conclusions about Sphaerexochus biogeography: Bohemia and Avalonia were close enough during the Silurian to exchange taxa; and during the Ordovician there was dispersal between Eastern Laurentia and
Modelling and predicting biogeographical patterns in river networks

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Sabela Lois

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Statistical analysis and interpretation of biogeographical phenomena in rivers is now possible using a spatially explicit modelling framework, which has seen significant developments in the past decade. I used this approach to identify a spatial extent (geostatistical range in which the abundance of the parasitic freshwater pearl mussel (Margaritifera margaritifera L. is spatially autocorrelated in river networks. I show that biomass and abundance of host fish are a likely explanation for the autocorrelation in mussel abundance within a 15-km spatial extent. The application of universal kriging with the empirical model enabled precise prediction of mussel abundance within segments of river networks, something that has the potential to inform conservation biogeography. Although I used a variety of modelling approaches in my thesis, I focus here on the details of this relatively new spatial stream network model, thus advancing the study of biogeographical patterns in river networks.
Phenological patterns of flowering across biogeographical regions of Europe

Science.gov (United States)

Templ, Barbara; Templ, Matthias; Filzmoser, Peter; Lehoczky, Annamária; Bakšienè, Eugenija; Fleck, Stefan; Gregow, Hilppa; Hodzic, Sabina; Kalvane, Gunta; Kubin, Eero; Palm, Vello; Romanovskaja, Danuta; Vucˇ´, Višnja; žust, Ana; Czúcz, Bálint

2017-07-01

Long-term changes of plant phenological phases determined by complex interactions of environmental factors are in the focus of recent climate impact research. There is a lack of studies on the comparison of biogeographical regions in Europe in terms of plant responses to climate. We examined the flowering phenology of plant species to identify the spatio-temporal patterns in their responses to environmental variables over the period 1970-2010. Data were collected from 12 countries along a 3000-km-long, North-South transect from northern to eastern Central Europe. Biogeographical regions of Europe were covered from Finland to Macedonia. Robust statistical methods were used to determine the most influential factors driving the changes of the beginning of flowering dates. Significant species-specific advancements in plant flowering onsets within the Continental (3 to 8.3 days), Alpine (2 to 3.8 days) and by highest magnitude in the Boreal biogeographical regions (2.2 to 9.6 days per decades) were found, while less pronounced responses were detected in the Pannonian and Mediterranean regions. While most of the other studies only use mean temperature in the models, we show that also the distribution of minimum and maximum temperatures are reasonable to consider as explanatory variable. Not just local (e.g. temperature) but large scale (e.g. North Atlantic Oscillation) climate factors, as well as altitude and latitude play significant role in the timing of flowering across biogeographical regions of Europe. Our analysis gave evidences that species show a delay in the timing of flowering with an increase in latitude (between the geographical coordinates of 40.9 and 67.9), and an advance with changing climate. The woody species (black locust and small-leaved lime) showed stronger advancements in their timing of flowering than the herbaceous species (dandelion, lily of the valley). In later decades (1991-2010), more pronounced phenological change was detected than during

Phenological patterns of flowering across biogeographical regions of Europe.

Science.gov (United States)

Templ, Barbara; Templ, Matthias; Filzmoser, Peter; Lehoczky, Annamária; Bakšienè, Eugenija; Fleck, Stefan; Gregow, Hilppa; Hodzic, Sabina; Kalvane, Gunta; Kubin, Eero; Palm, Vello; Romanovskaja, Danuta; Vucˇetic, Višnja; Žust, Ana; Czúcz, Bálint

2017-07-01

Long-term changes of plant phenological phases determined by complex interactions of environmental factors are in the focus of recent climate impact research. There is a lack of studies on the comparison of biogeographical regions in Europe in terms of plant responses to climate. We examined the flowering phenology of plant species to identify the spatio-temporal patterns in their responses to environmental variables over the period 1970-2010. Data were collected from 12 countries along a 3000-km-long, North-South transect from northern to eastern Central Europe.Biogeographical regions of Europe were covered from Finland to Macedonia. Robust statistical methods were used to determine the most influential factors driving the changes of the beginning of flowering dates. Significant species-specific advancements in plant flowering onsets within the Continental (3 to 8.3 days), Alpine (2 to 3.8 days) and by highest magnitude in the Boreal biogeographical regions (2.2 to 9.6 days per decades) were found, while less pronounced responses were detected in the Pannonian and Mediterranean regions. While most of the other studies only use mean temperature in the models, we show that also the distribution of minimum and maximum temperatures are reasonable to consider as explanatory variable. Not just local (e.g. temperature) but large scale (e.g. North Atlantic Oscillation) climate factors, as well as altitude and latitude play significant role in the timing of flowering across biogeographical regions of Europe. Our analysis gave evidences that species show a delay in the timing of flowering with an increase in latitude (between the geographical coordinates of 40.9 and 67.9), and an advance with changing climate. The woody species (black locust and small-leaved lime) showed stronger advancements in their timing of flowering than the herbaceous species (dandelion, lily of the valley). In later decades (1991-2010), more pronounced phenological change was detected than during the
How the marine biotoxins affect human health.

Science.gov (United States)

Morabito, Silvia; Silvestro, Serena; Faggio, Caterina

2018-03-01

Several marine microalgae produce dangerous toxins very damaging to human health, aquatic ecosystems and coastal resources. These Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs) in recent decades seem greatly increased regarding frequency, severity and biogeographical level, causing serious health risks as a consequence of the consumption of contaminated seafood. Toxins can cause various clinically described syndromes, characterised by a wide range of symptoms: amnesic (ASP), diarrhoetic (DSP), azaspirazid (AZP), neurotoxic (NSP) and paralytic (PSP) shellfish poisonings and ciguatera fish poisoning. The spread of HABs is probably a result of anthropogenic activities and climate change, that influence marine planktonic systems, including global warming, habitat modification, eutrophication and growth of exogenous species in response to human pressures. HABs are a worldwide matter that requests local solutions and international cooperation. This review supplies an overview of HAB phenomena, and, in particular, we describe the major consequences of HABs on human health.
Keeping the ‘Great’ in the Great Barrier Reef: large-scale governance of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park

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Louisa S. Evans

2014-08-01

Full Text Available As part of an international collaboration to compare large-scale commons, we used the Social-Ecological Systems Meta-Analysis Database (SESMAD to systematically map out attributes of and changes in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park (GBRMP in Australia. We focus on eight design principles from common-pool resource (CPR theory and other key social-ecological systems governance variables, and explore to what extent they help explain the social and ecological outcomes of park management through time. Our analysis showed that commercial fisheries management and the re-zoning of the GBRMP in 2004 led to improvements in ecological condition of the reef, particularly fisheries. These boundary and rights changes were supported by effective monitoring, sanctioning and conflict resolution. Moderate biophysical connectivity was also important for improved outcomes. However, our analysis also highlighted that continued challenges to improved ecological health in terms of coral cover and biodiversity can be explained by fuzzy boundaries between land and sea, and the significance of external drivers to even large-scale social-ecological systems (SES. While ecological and institutional fit in the marine SES was high, this was not the case when considering the coastal SES. Nested governance arrangements become even more important at this larger scale. To our knowledge, our paper provides the first analysis linking the re-zoning of the GBRMP to CPR and SES theory. We discuss important challenges to coding large-scale systems for meta-analysis.
Biogeographical Interpretation of Elevational Patterns of Genus Diversity of Seed Plants in Nepal.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Miao; Feng, Jianmeng

2015-01-01

This study tests if the biogeographical affinities of genera are relevant for explaining elevational plant diversity patterns in Nepal. We used simultaneous autoregressive (SAR) models to investigate the explanatory power of several predictors in explaining the diversity-elevation relationships shown in genera with different biogeographical affinities. Delta akaike information criterion (ΔAIC) was used for multi-model inferences and selections. Our results showed that both the total and tropical genus diversity peaked below the mid-point of the elevational gradient, whereas that of temperate genera had a nearly symmetrical, unimodal relationship with elevation. The proportion of temperate genera increased markedly with elevation, while that of tropical genera declined. Compared to tropical genera, temperate genera had wider elevational ranges and were observed at higher elevations. Water-related variables, rather than mid-domain effects (MDE), were the most significant predictors of elevational patterns of tropical genus diversity. The temperate genus diversity was influenced by energy availability, but only in quadratic terms of the models. Though climatic factors and mid-domain effects jointly explained most of the variation in the diversity of temperate genera with elevation, the former played stronger roles. Total genus diversity was most strongly influenced by climate and the floristic overlap of tropical and temperate floras, while the influences of mid-domain effects were relatively weak. The influences of water-related and energy-related variables may vary with biogeographical affinities. The elevational patterns may be most closely related to climatic factors, while MDE may somewhat modify the patterns. Caution is needed when investigating the causal factors underlying diversity patterns for large taxonomic groups composed of taxa of different biogeographical affinities. Right-skewed diversity-elevation patterns may be produced by the differential
California spiny lobster habitat suitability model for Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary Biogeographic Assessment

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The National Marine Sanctuary Program (NMSP) updates and revises the management plans for each of its 13 sanctuaries. This process, which is open to the public,...
Red sea urchin habitat suitability model for Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary Biogeographic Assessment

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The National Marine Sanctuary Program (NMSP) updates and revises the management plans for each of its 13 sanctuaries. This process, which is open to the public,...
Warty sea cucumber habitat suitability model for Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary Biogeographic Assessment

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The National Marine Sanctuary Program (NMSP) updates and revises the management plans for each of its 13 sanctuaries. This process, which is open to the public,...
Ridgeback rock shrimp habitat suitability model for Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary Biogeographic Assessment

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The National Marine Sanctuary Program (NMSP) updates and revises the management plans for each of its 13 sanctuaries. This process, which is open to the public,...
Juvenile thresher shark habitat suitability model for Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary Biogeographic Assessment

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The National Marine Sanctuary Program (NMSP) updates and revises the management plans for each of its 13 sanctuaries. This process, which is open to the public,...
California market squid habitat suitability model for Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary Biogeographic Assessment

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The National Marine Sanctuary Program (NMSP) updates and revises the management plans for each of its 13 sanctuaries. This process, which is open to the public,...
Adult thresher shark habitat suitability model for Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary Biogeographic Assessment

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The National Marine Sanctuary Program (NMSP) updates and revises the management plans for each of its 13 sanctuaries. This process, which is open to the public,...
Pacific angel shark habitat suitability model for Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary Biogeographic Assessment

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The National Marine Sanctuary Program (NMSP) updates and revises the management plans for each of its 13 sanctuaries. This process, which is open to the public,...
California sea cucumber habitat suitability model for Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary Biogeographic Assessment

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Office of National Marine Sanctuary Program (ONMS) updates and revises the management plans for each of its 13 sanctuaries. This process, which is open to the...
No gene flow across the Eastern Pacific Barrier in the reef-building coral Porites lobata.

Science.gov (United States)

Baums, Iliana B; Boulay, Jennifer N; Polato, Nicholas R; Hellberg, Michael E

2012-11-01

The expanse of deep water between the central Pacific islands and the continental shelf of the Eastern Tropical Pacific is regarded as the world's most potent marine biogeographic barrier. During recurrent climatic fluctuations (ENSO, El Niño Southern Oscillation), however, changes in water temperature and the speed and direction of currents become favourable for trans-oceanic dispersal of larvae from central Pacific to marginal eastern Pacific reefs. Here, we investigate the population connectivity of the reef-building coral Porites lobata across the Eastern Pacific Barrier (EPB). Patterns of recent gene flow in samples (n = 1173) from the central Pacific and the Eastern Tropical Pacific (ETP) were analysed with 12 microsatellite loci. Results indicated that P. lobata from the ETP are strongly isolated from those in the central Pacific and Hawaii (F(ct) ' = 0.509; P Clipperton Atoll, an oceanic island on the eastern side of the EPB, grouped with the central Pacific. Within the central Pacific, Hawaiian populations were strongly isolated from three co-occurring clusters found throughout the remainder of the central Pacific. No further substructure was evident in the ETP. Changes in oceanographic conditions during ENSO over the past several thousand years thus appear insufficient to support larval deliveries from the central Pacific to the ETP or strong postsettlement selection acts on ETP settlers from the central Pacific. Recovery of P. lobata populations in the frequently disturbed ETP thus must depend on local larval sources. © 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
Southern limits of distribution of the intertidal gobies Chaenogobius annularis and C. gulosus support the existence of a biogeographic boundary in southern Japan (Teleostei, Perciformes, Gobiidae

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Atsunobu Murase

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Understanding the distributional patterns of individual animal groups with respect to coastal topology and the local physical environment provides essential foundational frameworks for marine zoogeography. In the northwestern Pacific waters of Japan, the distributional pattern of some cool-temperate species of marine fishes suggests the existence of a biogeographic boundary corresponding to a long sandy shore on the eastern coast of Kyushu, southern Japan. The existence of this hypothetical biogeographic boundary was tested by mapping the southern distributional limit of two species of cool-temperate intertidal gobies, Chaenogobius annularis and C. gulosus, which are endemic to East Asia and common in rock pools within their range in the Japanese Archipelago. Distribution and abundance were assessed by survey of museum collections from south-east Kyushu (i.e., the entire coasts of Kagoshima and Miyazaki prefectures; and a quantitative survey of the abundance of these gobies in rock pools at various sites around the hypothesized boundary on the eastern coast of Kyushu, including the subtropical Tanega-shima Island. The museum collection survey showed different distribution patterns between the two species: C. annularis was distributed along the entire coasts of south-east Kyushu including subtropical islands, whereas C. gulosus was distributed along these coasts, including one site on a subtropical island, except for an area south of the hypothesized boundary on the eastern coast of Kyushu. The density and occurrence rates of C. annularis in rock pools decreased with latitude, it being absent from a subtropical island, and C. gulosus was not detected from sites south of the hypothesized boundary. The qualitative survey showed that the southernmost records of C. annularis and C. gulosus were the adjacent subtropical islands (Yaku-shima and Tanega-shima islands respectively, although the quantitative survey suggested that their normal range of
Biogeographic patterns of Chilean littoral fishes Patrones biogeográficos de los peces litorales de Chile

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F. PATRICIO OJEDA

2000-12-01

Full Text Available In this study, we analyzed the biogeographic patterns of the Chilean littoral fish fauna, including latitudinal trends in teleost and chondrichthyan fish species richness, their distribution range patterns, and their level of endemism, both to the Chilean coast and the Southeastern Pacific. We determined the number and percentage of fish taxa within four different groups based on their biogeographic affinities. This was done, both for teleost and chondrichthyan fishes, at the species, genus and family level. In order to recognise the existence of biogeographic regions, we applied cluster and ordination analyses to the distribution data, using objective bootstrapping techniques at the three taxonomic levels used. We found that littoral fish diversity remains fairly constant along the coast down to around 40º S, declining south of this latitude. We detected two biogeographic regions along the Chilean coast, with a break between them at 40º S. These results lend support to previously recognized biogeographic provinces or faunistic units. These two biogeographic regions are a reflection of the mixed origin of the Chilean littoral ichthyofauna, consisting of northern warm-temperate fishes of subtropical origin and southern cold-temperate fishes of subantarctic origin. While the percentage of fishes endemic to the Chilean coast is not high (18%, a large percentage of teleost species inhabiting Chilean littoral waters are endemic to the Southeastern Pacific (44%. Dispersal and evolutionary history, rather that other factors, seem to explain the observed patterns of distribution of this particular fish fauna. This study represents a necessary first step towards understanding the biogeography of Southeastern Pacific marine fishesEn este estudio, analizamos los patrones biogeográficos de los peces litorales chilenos, incluyendo las tendencias latitudinales en riqueza de especies de peces teleosteos y condrictios, sus rangos de distribución, y nivel de
Marine Biodiversity in Juan Fernández and Desventuradas Islands, Chile: Global Endemism Hotspots.

Science.gov (United States)

Friedlander, Alan M; Ballesteros, Enric; Caselle, Jennifer E; Gaymer, Carlos F; Palma, Alvaro T; Petit, Ignacio; Varas, Eduardo; Muñoz Wilson, Alex; Sala, Enric

2016-01-01

The Juan Fernández and Desventuradas islands are among the few oceanic islands belonging to Chile. They possess a unique mix of tropical, subtropical, and temperate marine species, and although close to continental South America, elements of the biota have greater affinities with the central and south Pacific owing to the Humboldt Current, which creates a strong biogeographic barrier between these islands and the continent. The Juan Fernández Archipelago has ~700 people, with the major industry being the fishery for the endemic lobster, Jasus frontalis. The Desventuradas Islands are uninhabited except for a small Chilean military garrison on San Félix Island. We compared the marine biodiversity of these islands across multiple taxonomic groups. At San Ambrosio Island (SA), in Desventuradas, the laminarian kelp (Eisenia cokeri), which is limited to Desventuradas in Chile, accounted for >50% of the benthic cover at wave exposed areas, while more sheltered sites were dominated by sea urchin barrens. The benthos at Robinson Crusoe Island (RC), in the Juan Fernández Archipelago, comprised a diverse mix of macroalgae and invertebrates, a number of which are endemic to the region. The biomass of commercially targeted fishes was >2 times higher in remote sites around RC compared to sheltered locations closest to port, and overall biomass was 35% higher around SA compared to RC, likely reflecting fishing effects around RC. The number of endemic fish species was extremely high at both islands, with 87.5% of the species surveyed at RC and 72% at SA consisting of regional endemics. Remarkably, endemics accounted for 99% of the numerical abundance of fishes surveyed at RC and 96% at SA, which is the highest assemblage-level endemism known for any individual marine ecosystem on earth. Our results highlight the uniqueness and global significance of these biodiversity hotspots exposed to very different fishing pressures.
Marine Biodiversity in Juan Fernández and Desventuradas Islands, Chile: Global Endemism Hotspots

Science.gov (United States)

Friedlander, Alan M.; Ballesteros, Enric; Caselle, Jennifer E.; Gaymer, Carlos F.; Palma, Alvaro T.; Petit, Ignacio; Varas, Eduardo; Muñoz Wilson, Alex; Sala, Enric

2016-01-01

The Juan Fernández and Desventuradas islands are among the few oceanic islands belonging to Chile. They possess a unique mix of tropical, subtropical, and temperate marine species, and although close to continental South America, elements of the biota have greater affinities with the central and south Pacific owing to the Humboldt Current, which creates a strong biogeographic barrier between these islands and the continent. The Juan Fernández Archipelago has ~700 people, with the major industry being the fishery for the endemic lobster, Jasus frontalis. The Desventuradas Islands are uninhabited except for a small Chilean military garrison on San Félix Island. We compared the marine biodiversity of these islands across multiple taxonomic groups. At San Ambrosio Island (SA), in Desventuradas, the laminarian kelp (Eisenia cokeri), which is limited to Desventuradas in Chile, accounted for >50% of the benthic cover at wave exposed areas, while more sheltered sites were dominated by sea urchin barrens. The benthos at Robinson Crusoe Island (RC), in the Juan Fernández Archipelago, comprised a diverse mix of macroalgae and invertebrates, a number of which are endemic to the region. The biomass of commercially targeted fishes was >2 times higher in remote sites around RC compared to sheltered locations closest to port, and overall biomass was 35% higher around SA compared to RC, likely reflecting fishing effects around RC. The number of endemic fish species was extremely high at both islands, with 87.5% of the species surveyed at RC and 72% at SA consisting of regional endemics. Remarkably, endemics accounted for 99% of the numerical abundance of fishes surveyed at RC and 96% at SA, which is the highest assemblage-level endemism known for any individual marine ecosystem on earth. Our results highlight the uniqueness and global significance of these biodiversity hotspots exposed to very different fishing pressures. PMID:26734732
Book reviews:Bats of Southern and Central Africa: A Biogeographic ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Book reviews:Bats of Southern and Central Africa: A Biogeographic and Taxonomic Synthesis by Ara Monadjem, Peter John Taylor, F.P.D. (Woody) Cotterill & M. Corrie Schoeman. Wits University Press, Johannesburg. 2010. Pp. 564. Price R591.00 (paperback).ISBN.
Using Network Analysis to Characterize Biogeographic Data in a Community Archive

Science.gov (United States)

Wellman, T. P.; Bristol, S.

2017-12-01

Informative measures are needed to evaluate and compare data from multiple providers in a community-driven data archive. This study explores insights from network theory and other descriptive and inferential statistics to examine data content and application across an assemblage of publically available biogeographic data sets. The data are archived in ScienceBase, a collaborative catalog of scientific data supported by the U.S Geological Survey to enhance scientific inquiry and acuity. In gaining understanding through this investigation and other scientific venues our goal is to improve scientific insight and data use across a spectrum of scientific applications. Network analysis is a tool to reveal patterns of non-trivial topological features in the data that do not exhibit complete regularity or randomness. In this work, network analyses are used to explore shared events and dependencies between measures of data content and application derived from metadata and catalog information and measures relevant to biogeographic study. Descriptive statistical tools are used to explore relations between network analysis properties, while inferential statistics are used to evaluate the degree of confidence in these assessments. Network analyses have been used successfully in related fields to examine social awareness of scientific issues, taxonomic structures of biological organisms, and ecosystem resilience to environmental change. Use of network analysis also shows promising potential to identify relationships in biogeographic data that inform programmatic goals and scientific interests.

Understanding Recreational Fishers' Compliance with No-take Zones in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park

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Adrian Arias

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Understanding fishers' compliance is essential for the successful management of marine protected areas. We used the random response technique (RRT to assess recreational fishers' compliance with no-take zones in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park (GBRMP. The RRT allowed the asking of a sensitive question, i.e., "Did you, knowingly, fish within in a Green Zone during the last 12 months?" while protecting respondents' confidentiality. Application of the RRT through a survey of recreational fishers indicated that the majority of recreational fishers, 90%, comply with no-take zones. Likewise, most fishers, 92%, reported not personally knowing anyone who had intentionally fished in a no-take zone, indicating that fishers' perceive high levels of compliance among their peers. Fishers were motivated to comply with no-take zones primarily by their beliefs about penalties for noncompliance, followed by beliefs about the fishery benefits of no-take zones. Results suggest that compliance-related communication efforts by the managing authority have partially succeeded in maintaining appropriate compliance levels and that future efforts should accentuate normative compliance drivers that will encourage voluntary compliance. We conclude that compliance monitoring should be integrated into the adaptive management of the GBRMP and other protected areas; in this case social surveys using the RRT are effective tools.
Biogeographical boundaries, functional group structure and diversity of Rocky Shore communities along the Argentinean coast.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Evie A Wieters

Full Text Available We investigate the extent to which functional structure and spatial variability of intertidal communities coincide with major biogeographical boundaries, areas where extensive compositional changes in the biota are observed over a limited geographic extension. We then investigate whether spatial variation in the biomass of functional groups, over geographic (10's km and local (10's m scales, could be associated to species diversity within and among these groups. Functional community structure expressed as abundance (density, cover and biomass and composition of major functional groups was quantified through field surveys at 20 rocky intertidal shores spanning six degrees of latitude along the southwest Atlantic coast of Argentina and extending across the boundaries between the Argentinean and Magellanic Provinces. Patterns of abundance of individual functional groups were not uniformly matched with biogeographical regions. Only ephemeral algae showed an abrupt geographical discontinuity coincident with changes in biogeographic boundaries, and this was limited to the mid intertidal zone. We identified 3-4 main 'groups' of sites in terms of the total and relative abundance of the major functional groups, but these did not coincide with biogeographical boundaries, nor did they follow latitudinal arrangement. Thus, processes that determine the functional structure of these intertidal communities are insensitive to biogeographical boundaries. Over both geographical and local spatial scales, and for most functional groups and tidal levels, increases in species richness within the functional group was significantly associated to increased total biomass and reduced spatial variability of the group. These results suggest that species belonging to the same functional group are sufficiently uncorrelated over space (i.e. metres and site-to-site to stabilize patterns of biomass variability and, in this manner, provide a buffer, or "insurance", against
Modeling species distributions from heterogeneous data for the biogeographic regionalization of the European bryophyte flora.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rubén G Mateo

Full Text Available The definition of biogeographic regions provides a fundamental framework for a range of basic and applied questions in biogeography, evolutionary biology, systematics and conservation. Previous research suggested that environmental forcing results in highly congruent regionalization patterns across taxa, but that the size and number of regions depends on the dispersal ability of the taxa considered. We produced a biogeographic regionalization of European bryophytes and hypothesized that (1 regions defined for bryophytes would differ from those defined for other taxa due to the highly specific eco-physiology of the group and (2 their high dispersal ability would result in the resolution of few, large regions. Species distributions were recorded using 10,000 km2 MGRS pixels. Because of the lack of data across large portions of the area, species distribution models employing macroclimatic variables as predictors were used to determine the potential composition of empty pixels. K-means clustering analyses of the pixels based on their potential species composition were employed to define biogeographic regions. The optimal number of regions was determined by v-fold cross-validation and Moran's I statistic. The spatial congruence of the regions identified from their potential bryophyte assemblages with large-scale vegetation patterns is at odds with our primary hypothesis. This reinforces the notion that post-glacial migration patterns might have been much more similar in bryophytes and vascular plants than previously thought. The substantially lower optimal number of clusters and the absence of nested patterns within the main biogeographic regions, as compared to identical analyses in vascular plants, support our second hypothesis. The modelling approach implemented here is, however, based on many assumptions that are discussed but can only be tested when additional data on species distributions become available, highlighting the substantial
Marine research in Greece and the additional Greek marine research centres: Progress and present situation

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Haritonidis, S.

1995-03-01

Greece, as is known, has a coastline of 17 000 km, and over 2000 small and large islands. As expected, the quest of humankind for new sources of matter and energy has been focussed on the sea, with fishery being its primary interest. A number of philosophers and scientists have been involved in the study of this vast ecosystem since ancient times (Aristotle). The political, social and geographical upheavals witnessed in the Greek area, have, however resulted in bringing all these activities to a halt. The first contemporary research work commenced at the end of the 18th century/beginning of the 19th — with marine flora and fauna as its starting point. The first investigations had, of course, been limited to random collections of marine material done in the frame of international exploratory expeditions. Studies became more systematic by the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century, with priority being given to the animal kingdom (fish, molluscs, etc.). Investigation of the marine phytobenthos (macrophyceae, phytoplankton) was to follow. The past 40 years research has been more extensive, not limited only to biogeographical evaluations, but also having expanded to physiological and ecological levels. The relevant institutes of Greek universities have all the while watched and contributed to this effort. Today, this kind of research is being supported by the N.M.R.C., the Center of Marine Research, University of Crete, and two research boats which sail the Greek seas. In the ever-changing world, the study of marine flora and fauna has certainly made great progress; however, there are still two big problems to be faced. The first deals with increasing pollution of the seas, the second, with the difficulties in finding and affording adequate financial resources that would enable a more detailed and complete execution of this research work.
A Demonstration Marine Biodiversity Observation Network (MBON): Understanding Marine Life and its Role in Maintaining Ecosystem Services

Science.gov (United States)

Muller-Karger, F. E.; Iken, K.; Miller, R. J.; Duffy, J. E.; Chavez, F.; Montes, E.

2016-02-01

The U.S. Federal government (NOAA, NASA, BOEM, and the Smithsonian Institution), academic researchers, and private partners are laying the foundation for a Marine Biodiversity Observation Network (MBON). The goals of the network are to: 1) Observe and understand life, from microbes to whales, in different coastal and continental shelf habitats; 2) Define an efficient set of observations required for implementing a useful MBON; 3) Develop technology for biodiversity assessments including emerging environmental DNA (eDNA), remote sensing, and image analysis methods to coordinate with classical sampling; 4) Integrate and synthesize information in coordination with the Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS), the international Group on Earth Observations Biodiversity Observation Network(GEO BON), and the Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS) sponsored by UNESCO's Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC); and 5) Understand the linkages between marine biodiversity, ecosystem processes, and the social-economic context of a region. Pilot projects have been implemented within three NOAA National Marine Sanctuaries (Florida Keys, Monterey Bay, and Channel Islands), the wider Santa Barbara Channel, in the Chukchi Sea, and through the Smithsonian's Tennenbaum Marine Observatories Network (TMON) at several sites in the U.S. and collaborating countries. Together, these MBON sites encompass a wide range of marine environments, including deep sea, continental shelves, and coastal habitats including estuaries, wetlands, and coral reefs. The present MBON partners are open to growth of the MBON through additional collaborations. Given these initiatives, GEO BON is proposing an MBON effort that spans from pole to pole, with a pathfinder effort among countries in the Americas. By specializing in coastal ecosystems—where marine biodiversity and people are concentrated and interact most—the MBON and TMON initiatives aim to provide policymakers with the science to
[Biogeographic regionalization of the mammals of tropical evergreen forests in Mesoamerica].

Science.gov (United States)

Olguin-Monroy, Hector C; Gutiérrez-Blando, Cirene; Rios-Muñoz, César A; León-Paniagua, Livia; Navarro-Sigüenza, Adolfo G

2013-06-01

Mesoamerica is a biologically complex zone that expands from Southern Mexico to extreme Northern Colombia. The biogeographical patterns and relationships of the mammalian fauna associated to the Mesoamerican Tropical Evergreen Forest (MTEF) are poorly understood, in spite of the wide distribution of this kind of habitat in the region. We compiled a complete georeferenced database of mammalian species distributed in the MTEF of specimens from museum collections and scientific literature. This database was used to create potential distribution maps through the use of environmental niche models (ENMs) by using the Genetic Algorithm for Rule-Set Production (GARP) using 22 climatic and topographic layers. Each map was used as a representation of the geographic distribution of the species and all available maps were summed to obtain general patterns of species richness in the region. Also, the maps were used to construct a presence-absence matrix in a grid of squares of 0.5 degrees of side, that was analyzed in a Parsimony Analysis of Endemicity (PAE), which resulted in a hypothesis of the biogeographic scheme in the region. We compiled a total of 41 527 records of 233 species of mammals associated to the MTEF. The maximum concentration of species richness (104-138 species) is located in the areas around the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, Northeastern Chiapas-Western Guatemala, Western Honduras, Central Nicaragua to Northwestern Costa Rica and Western Panama. The proposed regionalization indicates that mammalian faunas associated to these forests are composed of two main groups that are divided by the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in Oaxaca in: a) a Northern group that includes Sierra Madre of Chiapas-Guatemala and Yucatan Peninsula; and b) an austral group, that contains the Pacific slope of Chiapas towards the South including Central America. Some individual phylogenetic studies of mammal species in the region support the relationships between the areas of endemism proposed, which
Rockcrabs of the genus Cancer habitat suitability model for Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary Biogeographic Assessment

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The National Marine Sanctuary Program (NMSP) updates and revises the management plans for each of its 13 sanctuaries. This process, which is open to the public,...
Contrasting biogeographic and diversification patterns in two Mediterranean-type ecosystems.

Science.gov (United States)

Buerki, Sven; Jose, Sarah; Yadav, Shrirang R; Goldblatt, Peter; Manning, John C; Forest, Félix

2012-01-01

The five Mediterranean regions of the world comprise almost 50,000 plant species (ca 20% of the known vascular plants) despite accounting for less than 5% of the world's land surface. The ecology and evolutionary history of two of these regions, the Cape Floristic Region and the Mediterranean Basin, have been extensively investigated, but there have been few studies aimed at understanding the historical relationships between them. Here, we examine the biogeographic and diversification processes that shaped the evolution of plant diversity in the Cape and the Mediterranean Basin using a large plastid data set for the geophyte family Hyacinthaceae (comprising ca. 25% of the total diversity of the group), a group found mainly throughout Africa and Eurasia. Hyacinthaceae is a predominant group in the Cape and the Mediterranean Basin both in terms of number of species and their morphological and ecological variability. Using state-of-the-art methods in biogeography and diversification, we found that the Old World members of the family originated in sub-Saharan Africa at the Paleocene-Eocene boundary and that the two Mediterranean regions both have high diversification rates, but contrasting biogeographic histories. While the Cape diversity has been greatly influenced by its relationship with sub-Saharan Africa throughout the history of the family, the Mediterranean Basin had no connection with the latter after the onset of the Mediterranean climate in the region and the aridification of the Sahara. The Mediterranean Basin subsequently contributed significantly to the diversity of neighbouring areas, especially Northern Europe and the Middle East, whereas the Cape can be seen as a biogeographical cul-de-sac, with only a few dispersals toward sub-Saharan Africa. The understanding of the evolutionary history of these two important repositories of biodiversity would benefit from the application of the framework developed here to other groups of plants present in the two
Contrasting biogeographic and diversification patterns in two Mediterranean-type ecosystems.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sven Buerki

Full Text Available The five Mediterranean regions of the world comprise almost 50,000 plant species (ca 20% of the known vascular plants despite accounting for less than 5% of the world's land surface. The ecology and evolutionary history of two of these regions, the Cape Floristic Region and the Mediterranean Basin, have been extensively investigated, but there have been few studies aimed at understanding the historical relationships between them. Here, we examine the biogeographic and diversification processes that shaped the evolution of plant diversity in the Cape and the Mediterranean Basin using a large plastid data set for the geophyte family Hyacinthaceae (comprising ca. 25% of the total diversity of the group, a group found mainly throughout Africa and Eurasia. Hyacinthaceae is a predominant group in the Cape and the Mediterranean Basin both in terms of number of species and their morphological and ecological variability. Using state-of-the-art methods in biogeography and diversification, we found that the Old World members of the family originated in sub-Saharan Africa at the Paleocene-Eocene boundary and that the two Mediterranean regions both have high diversification rates, but contrasting biogeographic histories. While the Cape diversity has been greatly influenced by its relationship with sub-Saharan Africa throughout the history of the family, the Mediterranean Basin had no connection with the latter after the onset of the Mediterranean climate in the region and the aridification of the Sahara. The Mediterranean Basin subsequently contributed significantly to the diversity of neighbouring areas, especially Northern Europe and the Middle East, whereas the Cape can be seen as a biogeographical cul-de-sac, with only a few dispersals toward sub-Saharan Africa. The understanding of the evolutionary history of these two important repositories of biodiversity would benefit from the application of the framework developed here to other groups of plants
Breaking Through Barriers for Participatory Marine Conservation

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Dustan, P.; Wheeler, L.

2016-02-01

Marine scientists and influential members of the diving community are realizing that ecology, like politics, is local and we need to be more proactive to promote conservation where we live and wherever we go in the marine world. Scientists can no longer simply pursue pure "loading dock" science because ocean degradation is accelerating and soon there may be little or nothing to study. This is especially acute in the tropics where fragile terrestrial and marine landscapes are coming under increasing anthropogenic pressures. Clearly it is in everyone's best interests to do what we can to protect and restore tropical ecosystems. We work to create a growing community of eco-divers and land-based members who are actively involved in local watershed and coral reef cleanup dives, international outreach expeditions, and watershed awareness. Our operating principle is based on the concept that people feel connected when they get involved in a cause they are passionate about. The transcending simplicity of active participation, working together for a cause beyond an immediate goal, empowers people to change the world. Our activities strive to inspire K-12 and beyond to become stewards of the ocean, which translates to the planet. We will describe three active projects in Bali, Belize, and Hawaii that blend science and sociology. This fusion of scientific and sport diving for reef conservation based on the tenets that: 1. Local actions can help prevent losses from local threats, which builds resilience to larger scale stress. 2. The action plan must be guided by good scientific knowledge and the Precautionary Principle. 3. There must be clear solutions that are economically viable without depleting the "resource". 4. The knowledge must be shared with locals who can effect real sociological changes. 5. Cultural sustainability means that "progress" cannot destroy culture and intergenerational equity. 6. Allow the ecological infrastructure to function in a near-intact condition.
On the distribution of decapod crustaceans from the Magellan Biogeographic Province and the Antarctic region

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Enrique E. Boschi

2005-12-01

Full Text Available The distribution of decapod crustaceans in the southernmost areas of South America and the Antarctic is assessed considering the Magellan Biogeographic Province instead of the antiboreal region. Possible associations between decapod crustaceans from the Magellan Biogeographic Province and those from the Antarctic region are analysed. Species records were assigned to seven geographic regions that were clustered using multivariate analyses based on species presence/absence and Bray-Curtis similarity. The results showed two well-established clusters, one of which included the Pacific and Atlantic areas of the Magellan Province, the southern tip of South America and the Kerguelen Arc islands, with the highest similarity between the southern tip and the Atlantic area. Another cluster was well separated and included the Antarctic and South Georgia with the highest similarity index. Earlier studies and results obtained here suggest that the faunas of southern Chile and southern Argentina are biogeographically related. There is a low level of association among decapod species from the circum-Antarctic region and the Magellan Province.
Extremophiles in an Antarctic Marine Ecosystem

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Iain Dickinson

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Recent attempts to explore marine microbial diversity and the global marine microbiome have indicated a large proportion of previously unknown diversity. However, sequencing alone does not tell the whole story, as it relies heavily upon information that is already contained within sequence databases. In addition, microorganisms have been shown to present small-to-large scale biogeographical patterns worldwide, potentially making regional combinations of selection pressures unique. Here, we focus on the extremophile community in the boundary region located between the Polar Front and the Southern Antarctic Circumpolar Current in the Southern Ocean, to explore the potential of metagenomic approaches as a tool for bioprospecting in the search for novel functional activity based on targeted sampling efforts. We assessed the microbial composition and diversity from a region north of the current limit for winter sea ice, north of the Southern Antarctic Circumpolar Front (SACCF but south of the Polar Front. Although, most of the more frequently encountered sequences were derived from common marine microorganisms, within these dominant groups, we found a proportion of genes related to secondary metabolism of potential interest in bioprospecting. Extremophiles were rare by comparison but belonged to a range of genera. Hence, they represented interesting targets from which to identify rare or novel functions. Ultimately, future shifts in environmental conditions favoring more cosmopolitan groups could have an unpredictable effect on microbial diversity and function in the Southern Ocean, perhaps excluding the rarer extremophiles.
Ecological and biogeographical observations on Cerambycidae (Coleoptera) from California, USA

OpenAIRE

Swift, Ian

2009-01-01

New ecological and biogeographical observations are presented for the following 32 species of Cerambycidae from California: Atimia confusa dorsalis LeConte, Anelaphus albofasciatus (Linell), Aneflus prolixus prolixus LeConte, Anoplocurius incompletus Linsley, Brothylus conspersus LeConte, Callidiellum virescens Chemsak and Linsley, Calloides lorquini (Buquet), Clytus chemsaki Hovore and Giesbert, Enaphalodes hispicornis (Linnaeus), Methia brevis Fall, Neaneflus fuchsi (Wickham), Neoclytus bal...
Phylogeography of Cuban Rivulus: evidence for allopatric speciation and secondary dispersal across a marine barrier.

Science.gov (United States)

Ponce de León, José Luis; León, Gunnary; Rodríguez, Rodet; Metcalfe, Cushla J; Hernández, Damir; Casane, Didier; García-Machado, Erik

2014-10-01

The genus Rivulus is currently comprised of two species, R. cylindraceus and R. insulaepinorum, which are endemic to Cuba. However, the taxonomic status of the latter species remains dubious because of the poor quality of the original description. In addition, a recent barcoding survey suggests that the two species may be conspecific. The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that the two species represent a single evolutionary clade. To delimit the species and their evolutionary history, we used a combination of molecular phylogenetic analyses, with both mitochondrial and nuclear sequences, tests of phylogeographic hypotheses, combined with morphological measurements and information on known dispersal barriers and species distribution. None of the data sets support R. insulaepinorum and R. cylindraceus as separate taxa. However, a new species, restricted to the northwestern part of the main island, was identified by phylogenetic analyses, body colour pattern and geographical distribution. The evolutionary distance between the two lineages (cytb, d=15%; CAM-4, d=2.5%) indicates a long period of divergence. Phylogeographic analyses shed light on the dispersal history of R. cylindraceus, which probably originated on the Isla de la Juventud. They also suggest that each lineage had contrasting histories; Rivulus sp. is restricted to a relatively small geographic area whereas R. cylindraceus has dispersed considerably and more than once from its centre of origin, probably facilitated by sea level fluctuations. These results strengthen previous findings, i.e. that the diversity of Cuban freshwater fishes is far from well-known and deserves more in-depth studies, and that vicariance and dispersal events have resulted in a complex biogeographical landscape which has had a significant impact on the freshwater fishes of the Caribbean islands. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Bacterial assemblages of the eastern Atlantic Ocean reveal both vertical and latitudinal biogeographic signatures

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C. J. Friedline

2012-06-01

Full Text Available Microbial communities are recognized as major drivers of the biogeochemical processes in the oceans. However, the genetic diversity and composition of those communities is poorly understood. The aim of this study is to investigate the composition of bacterial assemblages in three different water layer habitats: surface (2–20 m, deep chlorophyll maximum (DCM; 28–90 m, and deep (100–4600 m at nine stations along the eastern Atlantic Ocean from 42.8° N to 23.7° S. The sampling of three discrete, predefined habitat types from different depths, Longhurstian provinces, and geographical locations allowed us to investigate whether marine bacterial assemblages show spatial variation and to determine if the observed spatial variation is influenced by current environmental conditions, historical/geographical contingencies, or both. The PCR amplicons of the V6 region of the 16S rRNA from 16 microbial assemblages were pyrosequenced, generating a total of 352 029 sequences; after quality filtering and processing, 257 260 sequences were clustered into 2871 normalized operational taxonomic units (OTU using a definition of 97% sequence identity. Community ecology statistical analyses demonstrate that the eastern Atlantic Ocean bacterial assemblages are vertically stratified and associated with water layers characterized by unique environmental signals (e.g., temperature, salinity, and nutrients. Genetic compositions of bacterial assemblages from the same water layer are more similar to each other than to assemblages from different water layers. The observed clustering of samples by water layer allows us to conclude that contemporary environments are influencing the observed biogeographic patterns. Moreover, the implementation of a novel Bayesian inference approach that allows a more efficient and explicit use of all the OTU abundance data shows a distance effect suggesting the influence of historical contingencies on the composition of bacterial
Bacterial assemblages of the eastern Atlantic Ocean reveal both vertical and latitudinal biogeographic signatures

Science.gov (United States)

Friedline, C. J.; Franklin, R. B.; McCallister, S. L.; Rivera, M. C.

2012-06-01

Microbial communities are recognized as major drivers of the biogeochemical processes in the oceans. However, the genetic diversity and composition of those communities is poorly understood. The aim of this study is to investigate the composition of bacterial assemblages in three different water layer habitats: surface (2-20 m), deep chlorophyll maximum (DCM; 28-90 m), and deep (100-4600 m) at nine stations along the eastern Atlantic Ocean from 42.8° N to 23.7° S. The sampling of three discrete, predefined habitat types from different depths, Longhurstian provinces, and geographical locations allowed us to investigate whether marine bacterial assemblages show spatial variation and to determine if the observed spatial variation is influenced by current environmental conditions, historical/geographical contingencies, or both. The PCR amplicons of the V6 region of the 16S rRNA from 16 microbial assemblages were pyrosequenced, generating a total of 352 029 sequences; after quality filtering and processing, 257 260 sequences were clustered into 2871 normalized operational taxonomic units (OTU) using a definition of 97% sequence identity. Community ecology statistical analyses demonstrate that the eastern Atlantic Ocean bacterial assemblages are vertically stratified and associated with water layers characterized by unique environmental signals (e.g., temperature, salinity, and nutrients). Genetic compositions of bacterial assemblages from the same water layer are more similar to each other than to assemblages from different water layers. The observed clustering of samples by water layer allows us to conclude that contemporary environments are influencing the observed biogeographic patterns. Moreover, the implementation of a novel Bayesian inference approach that allows a more efficient and explicit use of all the OTU abundance data shows a distance effect suggesting the influence of historical contingencies on the composition of bacterial assemblages. Surface
Biogeographic Zoning of Russia's Far Eastern Seas and Adjacent Waters Based on Nekton Trawling Samples

Science.gov (United States)

Ivanov, O. A.; Sukhanov, V. V.

2017-11-01

The article presents the results of biogeographic zoning of the epi- and mesopelagic region based on nekton areas using a new modification of the Shorygin method. It is shown that the position and boundaries of biogeographic areas are related to real relatively stable elements of the biotope (water masses, currents, frontal zones, eddies, and rings). A pronounced latitudinal pattern of the areas of natural zones is not always seen. Zoning becomes less detailed from the top layer of the epipelagic to mesopelagic region, and the zonalities of mesopelagic and epipelagic areas are not similar. We propose a new zoning approach to solve dynamic biogeography problems.
Marine biogeography, climate change and societal needs

Science.gov (United States)

Krause, Dale C.; Angel, Martin V.

Pelagic biogeography deals with the large scale distributional patterns of pelagic organisms in the world's oceans, their origins through evolution and the changes in ocean morphology during the geological past, and the factors which currently control and maintain them. The knowledge it generates has a wide variety of uses in science, both basic and applied, and in socio-economics. Its products include: (1) Distributional data compiled in data bases, maps and atlases; (2) Explanatory scientific and non-scientific publications on the distributions and their implications; (3) Standardisation of methodologies; (4) Trained specialists; (5) Advice to society on oceanic aspects of global resource management; and (6) Assessments of oceanic biodiversity in relation to the Biodiversity Convention. The immediate users of this knowledge include oceanographers in other disciplines, ecologists, applied scientists and engineers, resource managers, fishermen, environmentalists, teachers, international lawuers and policy-makers. At present the largest users are the natural resource managers seeking to optimise and to sustain the resource for which they are responsible. There is a considerable body of national and international legislation which is underpinned by biogeographical information. Similarly much of our understanding about past climate which is being used to predict future trends, is based on applying information on present-day distributional patterns to the interpretation of the fossil record in marine sediments. Global change, in the ocean, the atmosphere and on land, is strongly modulated by the feedback between marine organisms, nutrients and greenhouse gases. The marked coherence observed between the distributions of physical, chemical and biological patterns suggest that the process involved in this feedback are linked with pelagic community structure. Remote sensing of sea-surface properties and the heat content of the mixed-layer, offer considerable potential for
Towards the spatial coherence of biogeographical regionalizations at subcontinental and landscape scales

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Divíšek, Jan; Storch, D.; Zelený, D.; Culek, M.

2016-01-01

Roč. 43, č. 43 (2016), s. 2489-2501 ISSN 0305-0270 Institutional support: RVO:68145535 Keywords : beta diversity * biogeographical regions * spatial scale Subject RIV: DE - Earth Magnetism, Geodesy, Geography Impact factor: 4.248, year: 2016 http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jbi.12832/full
Biogeographic patterns of microbial communities from different oil-contaminated fields in China

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Liang, Yuting; Li, Guanghe [School of Environment, Tsinghua University (China); Zhou, Ji zhong [Institute for Environmental Genomics, Department of Botany and Microbiology, University of Oklahoma (United States)], email: jzhou@ou.edu

2011-07-01

Some striking biological challenges of the 21st century include linking biodiversity to ecosystem functions, information scaling, and linking genomics to ecology. This paper discusses the biogeographic patterns of microbial communities from various oil-contaminated fields in China. Two kinds of high throughput approaches are used, open format and closed format. Key differences between them are outlined. The GeoChip, or functional gene array (FGA) approach is presented. This is a high throughput tool for linking community structure to functions. Its main advantages are its high resolution and detecting functions. This approach was applied to soils, bioreactors and ground waters, among others. Issues related to specificity, sensitivity and quantification are listed. An overview of the microarray analysis is given. This is applied to the BP oil spill. 100 samples were chosen from representative oil fields to study the biogeographic patterns of microbial communities in China. The complete study is presented with the results.

Diversity of two widespread Indo-Pacific demosponge species revisited

OpenAIRE

Erpenbeck, D.; Aryasari, R.; Benning, S.; Debitus, Cécile; Kaltenbacher, E.; Al-Aidaroos, A. M.; Schupp, P.; Hall, K.; Hooper, J. N. A.; Voigt, O.; de Voogd, N. J.; Worheide, G.

2017-01-01

The Indo-Pacific is the world's largest marine biogeographic region, covering the tropical and subtropical waters from the Red Sea in the Western Indian Ocean to the Easter Islands in the Pacific. It is characterized by a vast degree of biogeographic connectivity in particular in its marine realm. So far, usage of molecular tools rejected the presence of cosmopolitan or very widespread sponge species in several cases, supporting hypotheses on a higher level of endemism among marine invertebra...
Biodiversity's big wet secret: the global distribution of marine biological records reveals chronic under-exploration of the deep pelagic ocean.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thomas J Webb

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Understanding the distribution of marine biodiversity is a crucial first step towards the effective and sustainable management of marine ecosystems. Recent efforts to collate location records from marine surveys enable us to assemble a global picture of recorded marine biodiversity. They also effectively highlight gaps in our knowledge of particular marine regions. In particular, the deep pelagic ocean--the largest biome on Earth--is chronically under-represented in global databases of marine biodiversity. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We use data from the Ocean Biogeographic Information System to plot the position in the water column of ca 7 million records of marine species occurrences. Records from relatively shallow waters dominate this global picture of recorded marine biodiversity. In addition, standardising the number of records from regions of the ocean differing in depth reveals that regardless of ocean depth, most records come either from surface waters or the sea bed. Midwater biodiversity is drastically under-represented. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The deep pelagic ocean is the largest habitat by volume on Earth, yet it remains biodiversity's big wet secret, as it is hugely under-represented in global databases of marine biological records. Given both its value in the provision of a range of ecosystem services, and its vulnerability to threats including overfishing and climate change, there is a pressing need to increase our knowledge of Earth's largest ecosystem.
Large-scale, multidirectional larval connectivity among coral reef fish populations in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park

KAUST Repository

Williamson, David H.; Harrison, Hugo B.; Almany, Glenn R.; Berumen, Michael L.; Bode, Michael; Bonin, Mary C.; Choukroun, Severine; Doherty, Peter J.; Frisch, Ashley J.; Saenz-Agudelo, Pablo; Jones, Geoffrey P.

2016-01-01

Larval dispersal is the key process by which populations of most marine fishes and invertebrates are connected and replenished. Advances in larval tagging and genetics have enhanced our capacity to track larval dispersal, assess scales of population connectivity, and quantify larval exchange among no-take marine reserves and fished areas. Recent studies have found that reserves can be a significant source of recruits for populations up to 40 km away, but the scale and direction of larval connectivity across larger seascapes remain unknown. Here, we apply genetic parentage analysis to investigate larval dispersal patterns for two exploited coral reef groupers (Plectropomus maculatus and Plectropomus leopardus) within and among three clusters of reefs separated by 60–220 km within the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, Australia. A total of 69 juvenile P. maculatus and 17 juvenile P. leopardus (representing 6% and 9% of the total juveniles sampled, respectively) were genetically assigned to parent individuals on reefs within the study area. We identified both short-distance larval dispersal within regions (200 m to 50 km) and long-distance, multidirectional dispersal of up to ~250 km among regions. Dispersal strength declined significantly with distance, with best-fit dispersal kernels estimating median dispersal distances of ~110 km for P. maculatus and ~190 km for P. leopardus. Larval exchange among reefs demonstrates that established reserves form a highly connected network and contribute larvae for the replenishment of fished reefs at multiple spatial scales. Our findings highlight the potential for long-distance dispersal in an important group of reef fishes, and provide further evidence that effectively protected reserves can yield recruitment and sustainability benefits for exploited fish populations.
Large-scale, multidirectional larval connectivity among coral reef fish populations in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park

KAUST Repository

Williamson, David H.

2016-11-15

Larval dispersal is the key process by which populations of most marine fishes and invertebrates are connected and replenished. Advances in larval tagging and genetics have enhanced our capacity to track larval dispersal, assess scales of population connectivity, and quantify larval exchange among no-take marine reserves and fished areas. Recent studies have found that reserves can be a significant source of recruits for populations up to 40 km away, but the scale and direction of larval connectivity across larger seascapes remain unknown. Here, we apply genetic parentage analysis to investigate larval dispersal patterns for two exploited coral reef groupers (Plectropomus maculatus and Plectropomus leopardus) within and among three clusters of reefs separated by 60–220 km within the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, Australia. A total of 69 juvenile P. maculatus and 17 juvenile P. leopardus (representing 6% and 9% of the total juveniles sampled, respectively) were genetically assigned to parent individuals on reefs within the study area. We identified both short-distance larval dispersal within regions (200 m to 50 km) and long-distance, multidirectional dispersal of up to ~250 km among regions. Dispersal strength declined significantly with distance, with best-fit dispersal kernels estimating median dispersal distances of ~110 km for P. maculatus and ~190 km for P. leopardus. Larval exchange among reefs demonstrates that established reserves form a highly connected network and contribute larvae for the replenishment of fished reefs at multiple spatial scales. Our findings highlight the potential for long-distance dispersal in an important group of reef fishes, and provide further evidence that effectively protected reserves can yield recruitment and sustainability benefits for exploited fish populations.
Quorum sensing antagonism from marine organisms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Skindersø, Mette Elena; Ettinger-Epstein, P.; Rasmussen, Thomas Bovbjerg

2008-01-01

target for the control of infectious bacteria. We present the results of screening of 284 extracts of marine organisms from the Great Barrier Reef, Australia, for their inhibition of QS. Of the 284 extracts, 64 (23%) were active in a general, LuxR-derived QS screen, and of these 36 (56%) were also active...... in a specific Pseudomonas aeruginosa QS screen. Extracts of the marine sponge Luffariella variabilis proved active in both systems. The secondary metabolites manoalide, manoalide monoacetate, and secomanoalide isolated from the sponge showed strong QS inhibition of a lasB::gfp(ASV) fusion, demonstrating...... the potential for further identification of specific QS antagonists from marine organisms....
BIOGEOGRAPHICAL IMPLICATIONS OF SOME PLANT SPECIES FROM A TROPICAL MONTANE RAIN FOREST IN SOUTHERN YUNNAN

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

ZHU Hua

2004-01-01

A pristine montane rain forest was recently discovered from Mengsong of Xishuangbanna in the southern Yunnan.It attracts botanists that many primitive plant taxa across various life forms were co-existed in the montane rain forest.In order to know the biogeography of the montane rain forest,distribution patterns of some species of biogeographical importance from the montane forest were enumerated and their biogeographical implications were discussed with geological explanation.It was concluded that the montane rain forest in the southern Yunnan has strong affinity to montane rain forests in Sumatra or Southeast Asia in broad sense.It was tentatively suggested that Sumatra could be once connected to Myanmar and drifted away due to northward movement of continental Asia by bumping of India plate.
The Census of Marine Life: goals, scope and strategy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kristen Yarincik

2005-06-01

Full Text Available The Census of Marine Life aims to assess and explain the changing diversity, distribution, and abundance of marine species from the past to the present, and to project future ocean life. It assembles known historical data back to 1500 in an online Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS and has over 1000 scientists from 70 countries using advanced technologies to quantify and discover unknown life in under-explored ocean realms. Over 99% of the 6 million records now in OBIS are from the top 1000m of the water column, so the mid-waters and floor of the open ocean and the polar ice oceans are special targets. Even where the species are known, their distributions and abundance are largely speculative. This report outlines the strategies of COML projects to efficiently reveal the 95% of the biosphere beneath the waves, from microbes to whales. Open access to the OBIS data set will improve capacity to predict future impacts of climate and human activity. The baseline created by 2010 and the calibrated techniques developed will become important tools for monitoring and managing future ocean ecosystems to maintain their capacity to provide crucial services to our blue planet.
Marine disease impacts, diagnosis, forecasting, management and policy

Science.gov (United States)

Lafferty, Kevin D.; Hofmann, Eileen E.

2016-01-01

As Australians were spending millions of dollars in 2014 to remove the coral-eating crown of thorns sea star from the Great Barrier Reef, sea stars started washing up dead for free along North America's Pacific Coast. Because North American sea stars are important and iconic predators in marine communities, locals and marine scientists alike were alarmed by what proved to be the world's most widespread marine mass mortality in geographical extent and species affected, especially given its mysterious cause. Investigative research using modern diagnostic techniques implicated a never-before-seen virus [1]. The virus inspired international attention to marine diseases, including this theme issue.
Phylogeography of a Marine Insular Endemic in the Atlantic Macaronesia: The Azorean Barnacle, Megabalanus azoricus (Pilsbry, 1916)

Science.gov (United States)

González, José A.; Almeida, Corrine; Lopes, Evandro; Araújo, Ricardo; Carreira, Gilberto P.

2015-01-01

The Azorean barnacle, Megabalanus azoricus (Pilsbry, 1916), is a Macaronesian endemic whose obscure taxonomy and the unknown relationships among forms inhabiting isolated Northern Atlantic oceanic islands is investigated by means of molecular analysis herein. Mitochondrial data from the 16S rRNA and COX1 genes support its current species status, tropical ancestry, and the taxonomic homogeneity throughout its distribution range. In contrast, at the intraspecific level and based on control region sequences, we detected an overall low level of genetic diversity and three divergent lineages. The haplogroups α and γ were sampled in the Azores, Madeira, Canary, and Cabo Verde archipelagos; whereas haplogroup β was absent from Cabo Verde. Consequently, population analysis suggested a differentiation of the Cabo Verde population with respect to the genetically homogenous northern archipelagos generated by current oceanographic barriers. Furthermore, haplogroup α, β, and γ demographic expansions occurred during the interglacial periods MIS5 (130 Kya - thousands years ago -), MIS3 (60 Kya), and MIS7 (240 Kya), respectively. The evolutionary origin of these lineages is related to its survival in the stable southern refugia and its demographic expansion dynamics are associated with the glacial-interglacial cycles. This phylogeographic pattern suggests the occurrence of genetic discontinuity informative to the delimitation of an informally defined biogeographic entity, Macaronesia, and its generation by processes that delineate genetic diversity of marine taxa in this area. PMID:25919141
Construction and screening of marine metagenomic libraries.

Science.gov (United States)

Weiland, Nancy; Löscher, Carolin; Metzger, Rebekka; Schmitz, Ruth

2010-01-01

Marine microbial communities are highly diverse and have evolved during extended evolutionary processes of physiological adaptations under the influence of a variety of ecological conditions and selection pressures. They harbor an enormous diversity of microbes with still unknown and probably new physiological characteristics. Besides, the surfaces of marine multicellular organisms are typically covered by a consortium of epibiotic bacteria and act as barriers, where diverse interactions between microorganisms and hosts take place. Thus, microbial diversity in the water column of the oceans and the microbial consortia on marine tissues of multicellular organisms are rich sources for isolating novel bioactive compounds and genes. Here we describe the sampling, construction of large-insert metagenomic libraries from marine habitats and exemplarily one function based screen of metagenomic clones.
When Indian crabs were not yet Asian - biogeographic evidence for Eocene proximity of India and Southeast Asia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Klaus Sebastian

2010-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The faunal and floral relationship of northward-drifting India with its neighboring continents is of general biogeographic interest as an important driver of regional biodiversity. However, direct biogeographic connectivity of India and Southeast Asia during the Cenozoic remains largely unexplored. We investigate timing, direction and mechanisms of faunal exchange between India and Southeast Asia, based on a molecular phylogeny, molecular clock-derived time estimates and biogeographic reconstructions of the Asian freshwater crab family Gecarcinucidae. Results Although the Gecarcinucidae are not an element of an ancient Gondwana fauna, their subfamily Gecarcinucinae, and probably also the Liotelphusinae, evolved on the Indian Subcontinent and subsequently dispersed to Southeast Asia. Estimated by a model testing approach, this dispersal event took place during the Middle Eocene, and thus before the final collision of India and the Tibet-part of Eurasia. Conclusions We postulate that the India and Southeast Asia were close enough for exchange of freshwater organisms during the Middle Eocene, before the final Indian-Eurasian collision. Our data support geological models that assume the Indian plate having tracked along Southeast Asia during its move northwards.
Community Impacts of Prosopis juliflora Invasion: Biogeographic and Congeneric Comparisons

OpenAIRE

Kaur, Rajwant; Gonzáles, Wilfredo L.; Llambi, Luis Daniel; Soriano, Pascual J.; Callaway, Ragan M.; Rout, Marnie E.; Gallaher, Timothy J.; Inderjit,

2012-01-01

We coordinated biogeographical comparisons of the impacts of an exotic invasive tree in its native and non-native ranges with a congeneric comparison in the non-native range. Prosopis juliflora is taxonomically complicated and with P. pallida forms the P. juliflora complex. Thus we sampled P. juliflora in its native Venezuela, and also located two field sites in Peru, the native range of Prosopis pallida. Canopies of Prosopis juliflora, a native of the New World but an invader in many other r...
Inferring the biogeographic origins of inter-continental disjunct endemics using a Bayes-DIVA approach

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

AJ HARRIS; Jun WEN; Qiu-Yun (Jenny) XIANG

2013-01-01

The arcto-Tertiary relictual flora is comprised of many genera that occur non-contiguously in the temperate zones of eastern Asia,Europe,eastern North America,and westem North America.Within each distributional area,species are typically endemic and may thus be widely separated from closely related species within the other areas.It is widely accepted that this common pattern of distribution resulted from of the fragmentation of a once morecontinuous arcto-Tertiary forest.The historical biogeographic events leading to the present-day disjunction have often been investigated using a phylogenetic approach.Limitations to these previous studies have included phylogenetic uncertainty and uncertainty in ancestral range reconstructions.However,the recently described Bayes-DIVA method handles both types of uncertainty.Thus,we used Bayes-DIVA analysis to reconstruct the stem lineage distributions for 185 endemic lineages from 23 disjunct genera representing 17 vascular plant families.In particular,we asked whether endemic lineages within each of the four distributional areas more often evolved from (1) widespread ancestors,(2) ancestors dispersed from other areas,or (3) endemic ancestors.We also considered which of these three biogeographic mechanisms may best explain the origins of arcto-Tertiary disjunct endemics in the neotropics.Our results show that eastern Asian endemics more often evolved from endemic ancestors compared to endemics in Europe and eastern and western North America.Present-day endemic lineages in the latter areas more often arose from widespread ancestors.Our results also provide anecdotal evidence for the importance of dispersal in the biogeographic origins of arcto-Tertiary species endemic in the neotropics.
Deep-water chemosynthetic ecosystem research during the census of marine life decade and beyond: a proposed deep-ocean road map.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christopher R German

Full Text Available The ChEss project of the Census of Marine Life (2002-2010 helped foster internationally-coordinated studies worldwide focusing on exploration for, and characterization of new deep-sea chemosynthetic ecosystem sites. This work has advanced our understanding of the nature and factors controlling the biogeography and biodiversity of these ecosystems in four geographic locations: the Atlantic Equatorial Belt (AEB, the New Zealand region, the Arctic and Antarctic and the SE Pacific off Chile. In the AEB, major discoveries include hydrothermal seeps on the Costa Rica margin, deepest vents found on the Mid-Cayman Rise and the hottest vents found on the Southern Mid-Atlantic Ridge. It was also shown that the major fracture zones on the MAR do not create barriers for the dispersal but may act as trans-Atlantic conduits for larvae. In New Zealand, investigations of a newly found large cold-seep area suggest that this region may be a new biogeographic province. In the Arctic, the newly discovered sites on the Mohns Ridge (71 °N showed extensive mats of sulfur-oxidisng bacteria, but only one gastropod potentially bears chemosynthetic symbionts, while cold seeps on the Haakon Mossby Mud Volcano (72 °N are dominated by siboglinid worms. In the Antarctic region, the first hydrothermal vents south of the Polar Front were located and biological results indicate that they may represent a new biogeographic province. The recent exploration of the South Pacific region has provided evidence for a sediment hosted hydrothermal source near a methane-rich cold-seep area. Based on our 8 years of investigations of deep-water chemosynthetic ecosystems worldwide, we suggest highest priorities for future research: (i continued exploration of the deep-ocean ridge-crest; (ii increased focus on anthropogenic impacts; (iii concerted effort to coordinate a major investigation of the deep South Pacific Ocean - the largest contiguous habitat for life within Earth's biosphere, but
Deep-water chemosynthetic ecosystem research during the census of marine life decade and beyond: a proposed deep-ocean road map.

Science.gov (United States)

German, Christopher R; Ramirez-Llodra, Eva; Baker, Maria C; Tyler, Paul A

2011-01-01

The ChEss project of the Census of Marine Life (2002-2010) helped foster internationally-coordinated studies worldwide focusing on exploration for, and characterization of new deep-sea chemosynthetic ecosystem sites. This work has advanced our understanding of the nature and factors controlling the biogeography and biodiversity of these ecosystems in four geographic locations: the Atlantic Equatorial Belt (AEB), the New Zealand region, the Arctic and Antarctic and the SE Pacific off Chile. In the AEB, major discoveries include hydrothermal seeps on the Costa Rica margin, deepest vents found on the Mid-Cayman Rise and the hottest vents found on the Southern Mid-Atlantic Ridge. It was also shown that the major fracture zones on the MAR do not create barriers for the dispersal but may act as trans-Atlantic conduits for larvae. In New Zealand, investigations of a newly found large cold-seep area suggest that this region may be a new biogeographic province. In the Arctic, the newly discovered sites on the Mohns Ridge (71 °N) showed extensive mats of sulfur-oxidisng bacteria, but only one gastropod potentially bears chemosynthetic symbionts, while cold seeps on the Haakon Mossby Mud Volcano (72 °N) are dominated by siboglinid worms. In the Antarctic region, the first hydrothermal vents south of the Polar Front were located and biological results indicate that they may represent a new biogeographic province. The recent exploration of the South Pacific region has provided evidence for a sediment hosted hydrothermal source near a methane-rich cold-seep area. Based on our 8 years of investigations of deep-water chemosynthetic ecosystems worldwide, we suggest highest priorities for future research: (i) continued exploration of the deep-ocean ridge-crest; (ii) increased focus on anthropogenic impacts; (iii) concerted effort to coordinate a major investigation of the deep South Pacific Ocean - the largest contiguous habitat for life within Earth's biosphere, but also the
Monorchiids (Platyhelminthes: Digenea) of chaetodontid fishes (Perciformes): biogeographical patterns in the tropical Indo-West Pacific.

Science.gov (United States)

McNamara, M K A; Adlard, R D; Bray, R A; Sasal, P; Cribb, T H

2012-06-01

biogeographical barriers, such as that between the Indian and Pacific Oceans. In contrast, monorchiids have no obvious dispersal stage, and vast distances have the capacity to act as effective barriers to dispersal. We conclude that the present distributions of species of Hurleytrematoides in the Indo-Pacific are driven by historical opportunity and capacity to disperse, and that some disjunct distributions are sculpted by stochasticity. Copyright Â© 2011. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.
Investment barriers and incentives for marine renewable energy in the UK: An analysis of investor preferences

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leete, Simeon; Xu, Jingjing; Wheeler, David

2013-01-01

Deployment of marine renewable energy (MRE) in the UK is desirable in order to address climate change, meet mandatory EU renewable energy targets and provide significant economic development opportunities, including new export markets. Public funding constraints in the UK mean that substantial investment is required from the private sector to commercialize the industry. By focussing on investor attitudes and behaviours towards wave and tidal technologies, this paper reveals significant observations from the investment community with serious implications for the future of the MRE industry. Through a series of in-depth interviews with individuals from the investment community, device developers and industry support, the research seeks to identify common barriers and incentives to investment. The paper demonstrates that although investors' attitudes are generally aligned, they do appear to have changed over time. Of the participants that had previously invested in early stage MRE device development, none were likely to do so again. It is concluded that this is a function of investors' greater understanding of the scale, and unpredictability of the costs, and the length of time required to develop these technologies. This presents a significant policy challenge for all actors interested in the commercialization of wave and tidal technologies. - Highlights: • Performed a series of in-depth interviews with senior finance and industry actors. • Examined investor attitudes and policy preferences that may encourage investment. • VC investors are currently disinclined to invest in early stage device development. • Policy instability, level of capital and revenue support are key investment barriers. • Commercialization requires strategic government and industrial partner investment
Advancing global marine biogeography research with open-source GIS software and cloud-computing

Science.gov (United States)

Fujioka, Ei; Vanden Berghe, Edward; Donnelly, Ben; Castillo, Julio; Cleary, Jesse; Holmes, Chris; McKnight, Sean; Halpin, patrick

2012-01-01

Across many scientific domains, the ability to aggregate disparate datasets enables more meaningful global analyses. Within marine biology, the Census of Marine Life served as the catalyst for such a global data aggregation effort. Under the Census framework, the Ocean Biogeographic Information System was established to coordinate an unprecedented aggregation of global marine biogeography data. The OBIS data system now contains 31.3 million observations, freely accessible through a geospatial portal. The challenges of storing, querying, disseminating, and mapping a global data collection of this complexity and magnitude are significant. In the face of declining performance and expanding feature requests, a redevelopment of the OBIS data system was undertaken. Following an Open Source philosophy, the OBIS technology stack was rebuilt using PostgreSQL, PostGIS, GeoServer and OpenLayers. This approach has markedly improved the performance and online user experience while maintaining a standards-compliant and interoperable framework. Due to the distributed nature of the project and increasing needs for storage, scalability and deployment flexibility, the entire hardware and software stack was built on a Cloud Computing environment. The flexibility of the platform, combined with the power of the application stack, enabled rapid re-development of the OBIS infrastructure, and ensured complete standards-compliance.
Global diffusive fluxes of methane in marine sediments

Science.gov (United States)

Egger, Matthias; Riedinger, Natascha; Mogollón, José M.; Jørgensen, Bo Barker

2018-06-01

Anaerobic oxidation of methane provides a globally important, yet poorly constrained barrier for the vast amounts of methane produced in the subseafloor. Here we provide a global map and budget of the methane flux and degradation in diffusion-controlled marine sediments in relation to the depth of the methane oxidation barrier. Our new budget suggests that 45-61 Tg of methane are oxidized with sulfate annually, with approximately 80% of this oxidation occurring in continental shelf sediments (methane in steady-state diffusive sediments, we calculate that 3-4% of the global organic carbon flux to the seafloor is converted to methane. We further report a global imbalance of diffusive methane and sulfate fluxes into the sulfate-methane transition with no clear trend with respect to the corresponding depth of the methane oxidation barrier. The observed global mean net flux ratio between sulfate and methane of 1.4:1 indicates that, on average, the methane flux to the sulfate-methane transition accounts for only 70% of the sulfate consumption in the sulfate-methane transition zone of marine sediments.
Hybridization at an ecotone: ecological and genetic barriers between three Iberian vipers.

Science.gov (United States)

Tarroso, Pedro; Pereira, Ricardo J; Martínez-Freiría, Fernando; Godinho, Raquel; Brito, José C

2014-03-01

The formation of stable genetic boundaries between emerging species is often diagnosed by reduced hybrid fitness relative to parental taxa. This reduced fitness can arise from endogenous and/or exogenous barriers to gene flow. Although detecting exogenous barriers in nature is difficult, we can estimate the role of ecological divergence in driving species boundaries by integrating molecular and ecological niche modelling tools. Here, we focus on a three-way secondary contact zone between three viper species (Vipera aspis, V. latastei and V. seoanei) to test for the contribution of ecological divergence to the development of reproductive barriers at several species traits (morphology, nuclear DNA and mitochondrial DNA). Both the nuclear and mitochondrial data show that all taxa are genetically distinct and that the sister species V. aspis and V. latastei hybridize frequently and backcross over several generations. We find that the three taxa have diverged ecologically and meet at a hybrid zone coincident with a steep ecotone between the Atlantic and Mediterranean biogeographical provinces. Integrating landscape and genetic approaches, we show that hybridization is spatially restricted to habitats that are suboptimal for parental taxa. Together, these results suggest that niche separation and adaptation to an ecological gradient confer an important barrier to gene flow among taxa that have not achieved complete reproductive isolation. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Life history and biogeographic diversification of an endemic western North American freshwater fish clade using a comparative species tree approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Baumsteiger, Jason; Kinziger, Andrew P; Aguilar, Andres

2012-12-01

The west coast of North America contains a number of biogeographic freshwater provinces which reflect an ever-changing aquatic landscape. Clues to understanding this complex structure are often encapsulated genetically in the ichthyofauna, though frequently as unresolved evolutionary relationships and putative cryptic species. Advances in molecular phylogenetics through species tree analyses now allow for improved exploration of these relationships. Using a comprehensive approach, we analyzed two mitochondrial and nine nuclear loci for a group of endemic freshwater fish (sculpin-Cottus) known for a wide ranging distribution and complex species structure in this region. Species delimitation techniques identified three novel cryptic lineages, all well supported by phylogenetic analyses. Comparative phylogenetic analyses consistently found five distinct clades reflecting a number of unique biogeographic provinces. Some internal node relationships varied by species tree reconstruction method, and were associated with either Bayesian or maximum likelihood statistical approaches or between mitochondrial, nuclear, and combined datasets. Limited cases of mitochondrial capture were also evident, suggestive of putative ancestral hybridization between species. Biogeographic diversification was associated with four major regions and revealed historical faunal exchanges across regions. Mapping of an important life-history character (amphidromy) revealed two separate instances of trait evolution, a transition that has occurred repeatedly in Cottus. This study demonstrates the power of current phylogenetic methods, the need for a comprehensive phylogenetic approach, and the potential for sculpin to serve as an indicator of biogeographic history for native ichthyofauna in the region. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Changes in latitude, changes in attitude - emerging biogeographic patterns of invasion in the Northeast Pacific

Science.gov (United States)

Biogeographic patterns of invasion of near-coastal and estuarine species in the Northeastern Pacific (NEP) are beginning to emerge based on surveys by U.S. EPA’s Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program (EMAP) and the EPA/USGS synthesis of native and nonindigenous species ...
Hierarchical, quantitative biogeographic provinces for all North American turtles and their contribution to the biogeography of turtles and the continent

Science.gov (United States)

Ennen, Joshua R.; Matamoros, Wilfredo A.; Agha, Mickey; Lovich, Jeffrey E.; Sweat, Sarah C.; Hoagstrom, Christopher W.

2017-01-01

Our study represents the first attempt to describe biogeographic provinces for North American (México, United States, and Canada) turtles. We analyzed three nested data sets separately: (1) all turtles, (2) freshwater turtles, and (3) aquatic turtles. We georeferenced North American turtle distributions, then we created presence–absence matrices for each of the three data sets. We used watershed unit as biogeographic units. We conducted an unweighted pair-group method with arithmetic mean clustering analysis on each Jaccard index distance matrix from our watershed species matrices to delineate biogeographic provinces. Provinces were then tested for significant differences in species compositions in a global model with the use of a one-way analysis of similarity. We conducted a best subset of environmental variables with maximum (rank) correlation with community dissimilarities that determined the best model of abiotic variables explaining province delineation (i.e., climate, topography, and stream channel). To identify which species contributed the most to province delineations, we conducted an indicator species analysis and a similarity-percentage analysis. There were 16 all-turtle provinces, 15 freshwater provinces, and 13 aquatic provinces. Species compositions delineating the provinces were explained by abiotic variables, including mean annual precipitation, mean precipitation seasonality, and diversity of streams. Province delineations correspond closely with geographical boundaries, many of which have Pleistocene origins. For example, rivers with a history of carrying glacial runoff (e.g., Arkansas, Mississippi) sometimes dissect upland provinces, especially for aquatic and semiaquatic turtles. Compared with freshwater fishes, turtles show greater sensitivity to decreased temperature with restriction of most taxa south of the last permafrost maximum. Turtles also exhibit higher sensitivity to climatic, geomorphic, and tectonic instability, with richness
Diversity and Inclusion in Conservation: A Proposal for a Marine Diversity Network

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nicola S. Smith

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Low diversity among scientists and practitioners is rampant in conservation. Currently, conservation professionals do not reflect the same diversity of perspectives and experiences of the world as the communities who bear the largest burden for implementing—or adverse consequences for failing to implement—conservation action. Acknowledging and describing the problem is important. But policies and programmes must also be put in place to correct it. Here, we highlight some measurable benefits of workforce diversity, and give an overview of some of the barriers to inclusion in marine conservation that help perpetuate low workforce diversity. Importantly, we underscore actions that both individuals and groups can take to alleviate such barriers. In particular, we describe the establishment of an online Marine Diversity Network, which conference participants proposed during a focus group meeting at the 4th International Marine Conservation Congress. The network will serve to bring together people from across the globe, from a variety of backgrounds, and from all career stages, to share knowledge, experiences and ideas, to provide and receive mentorship in marine conservation, and to forge new collaborations. Removing barriers to diverse participation requires coordinated, mindful actions by individuals and organizations. We hope that the proposed network and other actions presented in this paper find widespread support, and that they might serve both as inspiration and guide to other groups concerned with increasing diversity and inclusivity.
Patterns of DNA barcode variation in Canadian marine molluscs.

Science.gov (United States)

Layton, Kara K S; Martel, André L; Hebert, Paul D N

2014-01-01

Molluscs are the most diverse marine phylum and this high diversity has resulted in considerable taxonomic problems. Because the number of species in Canadian oceans remains uncertain, there is a need to incorporate molecular methods into species identifications. A 648 base pair segment of the cytochrome c oxidase subunit I gene has proven useful for the identification and discovery of species in many animal lineages. While the utility of DNA barcoding in molluscs has been demonstrated in other studies, this is the first effort to construct a DNA barcode registry for marine molluscs across such a large geographic area. This study examines patterns of DNA barcode variation in 227 species of Canadian marine molluscs. Intraspecific sequence divergences ranged from 0-26.4% and a barcode gap existed for most taxa. Eleven cases of relatively deep (>2%) intraspecific divergence were detected, suggesting the possible presence of overlooked species. Structural variation was detected in COI with indels found in 37 species, mostly bivalves. Some indels were present in divergent lineages, primarily in the region of the first external loop, suggesting certain areas are hotspots for change. Lastly, mean GC content varied substantially among orders (24.5%-46.5%), and showed a significant positive correlation with nearest neighbour distances. DNA barcoding is an effective tool for the identification of Canadian marine molluscs and for revealing possible cases of overlooked species. Some species with deep intraspecific divergence showed a biogeographic partition between lineages on the Atlantic, Arctic and Pacific coasts, suggesting the role of Pleistocene glaciations in the subdivision of their populations. Indels were prevalent in the barcode region of the COI gene in bivalves and gastropods. This study highlights the efficacy of DNA barcoding for providing insights into sequence variation across a broad taxonomic group on a large geographic scale.
Biogeographical disparity in the functional diversity and redundancy of corals.

Science.gov (United States)

McWilliam, Mike; Hoogenboom, Mia O; Baird, Andrew H; Kuo, Chao-Yang; Madin, Joshua S; Hughes, Terry P

2018-03-20

Corals are major contributors to a range of key ecosystem functions on tropical reefs, including calcification, photosynthesis, nutrient cycling, and the provision of habitat structure. The abundance of corals is declining at multiple scales, and the species composition of assemblages is responding to escalating human pressures, including anthropogenic global warming. An urgent challenge is to understand the functional consequences of these shifts in abundance and composition in different biogeographical contexts. While global patterns of coral species richness are well known, the biogeography of coral functions in provinces and domains with high and low redundancy is poorly understood. Here, we quantify the functional traits of all currently recognized zooxanthellate coral species ( n = 821) in both the Indo-Pacific and Atlantic domains to examine the relationships between species richness and the diversity and redundancy of functional trait space. We find that trait diversity is remarkably conserved (>75% of the global total) along latitudinal and longitudinal gradients in species richness, falling away only in species-poor provinces ( n < 200), such as the Persian Gulf (52% of the global total), Hawaii (37%), the Caribbean (26%), and the East-Pacific (20%), where redundancy is also diminished. In the more species-poor provinces, large and ecologically important areas of trait space are empty, or occupied by just a few, highly distinctive species. These striking biogeographical differences in redundancy could affect the resilience of critical reef functions and highlight the vulnerability of relatively depauperate, peripheral locations, which are often a low priority for targeted conservation efforts.
The curious case of Neotroglocarcinus dawydoffi (Decapoda, Cryptochiridae): unforeseen biogeographic patterns resulting from isolation

KAUST Repository

Van Der Meij, Sancia E.T.; Reijnen, Bastian T.

2014-01-01

© 2014 The Trustees of the Natural History Museum, London. Coral gall crabs form a commonly overlooked component of the associated fauna of shallow-water reef corals and therefore little is known about their ecology and biogeography. This study investigated the biogeography and phylogenetic position of the informal Detocarcini species group within the Cryptochiridae. We used molecular data for two mitochondrial markers (COI and 16S) obtained from gall crabs covering (part of) a wide geographic range: the Red Sea, Malaysia, Indonesia and New Caledonia. Our phylogeny reconstructions portrayed the Detocarcini as paraphyletic within the monophyletic Cryptochiridae. A phylogeographic clustering was noticed in Neotroglocarcinus dawydoffi that was absent in its sister species, N. hongkongensis, and the closely related species Pseudocryptochirus viridis. A Neighbour Network was estimated for the N. dawydoffi dataset to visualize the similarity between sequences from different biogeographic areas, resulting in three groupings: (1) New Caledonia with Lembeh/Ternate (eastern Indonesia), (2) Semporna/Kudat (eastern Malaysia), and (3) Red Sea (Saudi Arabia). Cryptic speciation rather than isolation is discussed and rejected as an alternative explanation for the observed biogeographic pattern.
The curious case of Neotroglocarcinus dawydoffi (Decapoda, Cryptochiridae): unforeseen biogeographic patterns resulting from isolation

KAUST Repository

Van Der Meij, Sancia E.T.

2014-09-09

© 2014 The Trustees of the Natural History Museum, London. Coral gall crabs form a commonly overlooked component of the associated fauna of shallow-water reef corals and therefore little is known about their ecology and biogeography. This study investigated the biogeography and phylogenetic position of the informal Detocarcini species group within the Cryptochiridae. We used molecular data for two mitochondrial markers (COI and 16S) obtained from gall crabs covering (part of) a wide geographic range: the Red Sea, Malaysia, Indonesia and New Caledonia. Our phylogeny reconstructions portrayed the Detocarcini as paraphyletic within the monophyletic Cryptochiridae. A phylogeographic clustering was noticed in Neotroglocarcinus dawydoffi that was absent in its sister species, N. hongkongensis, and the closely related species Pseudocryptochirus viridis. A Neighbour Network was estimated for the N. dawydoffi dataset to visualize the similarity between sequences from different biogeographic areas, resulting in three groupings: (1) New Caledonia with Lembeh/Ternate (eastern Indonesia), (2) Semporna/Kudat (eastern Malaysia), and (3) Red Sea (Saudi Arabia). Cryptic speciation rather than isolation is discussed and rejected as an alternative explanation for the observed biogeographic pattern.
Implications of Sponge Biodiversity Patterns for the Management of a Marine Reserve in Northern Australia.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rachel Przeslawski

Full Text Available Marine reserves are becoming progressively more important as anthropogenic impacts continue to increase, but we have little baseline information for most marine environments. In this study, we focus on the Oceanic Shoals Commonwealth Marine Reserve (CMR in northern Australia, particularly the carbonate banks and terraces of the Sahul Shelf and Van Diemen Rise which have been designated a Key Ecological Feature (KEF. We use a species-level inventory compiled from three marine surveys to the CMR to address several questions relevant to marine management: 1 Are carbonate banks and other raised geomorphic features associated with biodiversity hotspots? 2 Can environmental (depth, substrate hardness, slope or biogeographic (east vs west variables help explain local and regional differences in community structure? 3 Do sponge communities differ among individual raised geomorphic features? Approximately 750 sponge specimens were collected in the Oceanic Shoals CMR and assigned to 348 species, of which only 18% included taxonomically described species. Between eastern and western areas of the CMR, there was no difference between sponge species richness or assemblages on raised geomorphic features. Among individual raised geomorphic features, sponge assemblages were significantly different, but species richness was not. Species richness showed no linear relationships with measured environmental factors, but sponge assemblages were weakly associated with several environmental variables including mean depth and mean backscatter (east and west and mean slope (east only. These patterns of sponge diversity are applied to support the future management and monitoring of this region, particularly noting the importance of spatial scale in biodiversity assessments and associated management strategies.
Implications of Sponge Biodiversity Patterns for the Management of a Marine Reserve in Northern Australia

Science.gov (United States)

Przeslawski, Rachel; Alvarez, Belinda; Kool, Johnathan; Bridge, Tom; Caley, M. Julian; Nichol, Scott

2015-01-01

Marine reserves are becoming progressively more important as anthropogenic impacts continue to increase, but we have little baseline information for most marine environments. In this study, we focus on the Oceanic Shoals Commonwealth Marine Reserve (CMR) in northern Australia, particularly the carbonate banks and terraces of the Sahul Shelf and Van Diemen Rise which have been designated a Key Ecological Feature (KEF). We use a species-level inventory compiled from three marine surveys to the CMR to address several questions relevant to marine management: 1) Are carbonate banks and other raised geomorphic features associated with biodiversity hotspots? 2) Can environmental (depth, substrate hardness, slope) or biogeographic (east vs west) variables help explain local and regional differences in community structure? 3) Do sponge communities differ among individual raised geomorphic features? Approximately 750 sponge specimens were collected in the Oceanic Shoals CMR and assigned to 348 species, of which only 18% included taxonomically described species. Between eastern and western areas of the CMR, there was no difference between sponge species richness or assemblages on raised geomorphic features. Among individual raised geomorphic features, sponge assemblages were significantly different, but species richness was not. Species richness showed no linear relationships with measured environmental factors, but sponge assemblages were weakly associated with several environmental variables including mean depth and mean backscatter (east and west) and mean slope (east only). These patterns of sponge diversity are applied to support the future management and monitoring of this region, particularly noting the importance of spatial scale in biodiversity assessments and associated management strategies. PMID:26606745
The ugly face of tourism: Marine debris pollution linked to visitation in the southern Great Barrier Reef, Australia.

Science.gov (United States)

Wilson, Scott P; Verlis, Krista M

2017-04-15

Marine debris is one of the most significant issues facing oceans worldwide. The sources of this debris vary depending on proximity to urban centres and the nature of activities within an area. This paper examines the influence of tourism in the southern Great Barrier Reef (GBR), and its contribution to litter levels in the region. By conducting beach debris surveys on occupied and unoccupied islands, this study found that debris was prevalent throughout the region with significant differences in material types between locations. The greatest source of debris from publically accessible islands was tourist-related, with this source also influencing debris loads on nearby uninhabited islands. A focus on debris at Heron Island, showed that sites close to amenities had greater levels of tourist-sourced items like cigarette butts. These findings indicate the contribution of tourists to this problem and that working with operators and managers is needed to minimise visitor impacts. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Anthropogenic contaminants in Indo-Pacific humpback and Australian snubfin dolphins from the central and southern Great Barrier Reef

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cagnazzi, Daniele; Fossi, Maria Cristina; Parra, Guido J.; Harrison, Peter L.; Maltese, Silvia; Coppola, Daniele; Soccodato, Alice; Bent, Michael; Marsili, Letizia

2013-01-01

We present the first evidence of accumulation of organochlorine compounds (DDTs, PCBs, HCB) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Indo-Pacific humpback and Australian snubfin dolphins from the central and southern Great Barrier Reef. These dolphins are considered by the Great Barrier Marine Park Authority to be high priority species for management. Analyses of biopsy samples, collected from free ranging individuals, showed PAHs levels comparable to those reported from highly industrialized countries. DDTs and HCB were found at low levels, while in some individuals, PCBs were above thresholds over which immunosuppression and reproductive anomalies occur. These results highlight the need for ongoing monitoring of these and other contaminants, and their potential adverse effects on dolphins and other marine fauna. This is particularly important given the current strategic assessment of the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area being undertaken by the Australian Government and the Queensland Government. -- Potentially hazardous levels of some coastal contaminants were found in two species of dolphins inhabiting the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park coastal region
Preliminary assessment of biogeographic affinities of selected insect taxa of the state of Sonora, Mexico

Science.gov (United States)

Robert W. Jones; Alejandro Obregon-Zuniga; Sandra Guzman-Rodriguez

2013-01-01

The biogeographic affinites of butterflies (Lepidoptera: Papilionoidea and Hesperidae), damsel and dragonflies (Odonata), and ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) reported from the State of Sonora, Mexico were analyzed using published species lists. The combined distribution of these taxa was proportionally greater (47.4%) for those species within the Mega-Mexico3...
Geochronologic evidence for a possible MIS-11 emergent barrier/beach-ridge in southeastern Georgia, USA

Science.gov (United States)

Markewich, H.W.; Pavich, M.J.; Schultz, A.P.; Mahan, S.A.; Aleman-Gonzalez, W. B.; Bierman, P.R.

2013-01-01

Predominantly clastic, off-lapping, transgressive, near-shore marine sediment packages that are morphologically expressed as subparallel NE-trending barriers, beach ridges, and associated back-barrier areas, characterize the near-surface stratigraphic section between the Savannah and the Ogeechee Rivers in Effingham County, southeastern Georgia. Each barrier/back-barrier (shoreline) complex is lower than and cut into a higher/older complex. Each barrier or shoreline complex overlies Miocene strata. No direct age data are available for these deposits. Previous researchers have disagreed on their age and provenance. Using luminescence and meteoric beryllium-10 (10Be) inventory analyses, we estimated a minimum age for the largest, westernmost, morphologically identifiable, and topographically-highest, barrier/beach-ridge (the Wicomico shoreline barrier) and constrained the age of a suite of younger barrier/beach-ridges that lie adjacent and seaward of the Wicomico shoreline barrier. At the study site, the near-shore marine/estuarine deposits underlying the Wicomico shoreline barrier are overlain by eolian sand and an intervening zone-of-mixing. Optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) data indicate ages of ≤43 ka for the eolian sand and 116 ka for the zone-of-mixing. Meteoric 10Be and pedostratigraphic data indicate minimum residence times of 33.4 ka for the eolian sand, 80.6 ka for the zone-of-mixing, and 247 ka for the paleosol. The combined OSL and 10Be age data indicate that, at this locality, the barrier/beach ridge has a minimum age of about 360 ka. This age for the Wicomico shoreline-barrier deposit is the first for any Pleistocene near-shore marine/estuarine deposit in southeast Georgia that is conclusively older than 80 ka. The 360-ka minimum age is in agreement with other geochronologic data for near-coastline deposits in Georgia and South Carolina. The geomorphic position of this barrier/beach-ridge is similar to deposits in South Carolina considered to be
Biogeographic patterns and diversification dynamics of the genus Cardiodactylus Saussure (Orthoptera, Grylloidea, Eneopterinae) in Southeast Asia.

Science.gov (United States)

Dong, Jiajia; Kergoat, Gael J; Vicente, Natállia; Rahmadi, Cahyo; Xu, Shengquan; Robillard, Tony

2018-06-07

Southeast Asia harbors an extraordinary species richness and endemism. While only covering 4% of the Earth's landmass, this region includes four of the planet's 34 biodiversity hotspots. Its complex geological history generated a megadiverse and highly endemic biota, attracting a lot of attention, especially in the field of island biogeography. Here we used the cricket genus Cardiodactylus as a model system to study biogeographic patterns in Southeast Asia. We carried out molecular analyses to: (1) infer phylogenetic relationships based on five mitochondrial and four nuclear markers, (2) estimate divergence times and infer biogeographical ancestral areas, (3) depict colonization routes, and summarize emigration and immigration events, as well as in situ diversification, and (4) determine whether shifts in species diversification occurred during the course of Cardiodactylus evolution. Our results support the monophyly of the genus and of one of its species groups. Dating and biogeographical analyses suggest that Cardiodactylus originated in the Southwest Pacific during the Middle Eocene. Our reconstructions indicate that Southeast Asia was independently colonized twice during the Early Miocene (ca. 19-16 Million years ago), and once during the Middle Miocene (ca. 13 Million years ago), with New Guinea acting as a corridor allowing westward dispersal through four different passageways: Sulawesi, the Philippines, Java and the Lesser Sunda Islands. Sulawesi also served as a diversification hub for Cardiodactylus through a combination of high immigration and in situ diversification events, which can be accounted for by the complex geological history of the Wallacea region. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.
Toward a new data standard for combined marine biological and environmental datasets - expanding OBIS beyond species occurrences

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Daphnis De Pooter

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS is the world’s most comprehensive online, open-access database of marine species distributions. OBIS grows with millions of new species observations every year. Contributions come from a network of hundreds of institutions, projects and individuals with common goals: to build a scientific knowledge base that is open to the public for scientific discovery and exploration and to detect trends and changes that inform society as essential elements in conservation management and sustainable development. Until now, OBIS has focused solely on the collection of biogeographic data (the presence of marine species in space and time and operated with optimized data flows, quality control procedures and data standards specifically targeted to these data. Based on requirements from the growing OBIS community to manage datasets that combine biological, physical and chemical measurements, the OBIS-ENV-DATA pilot project was launched to develop a proposed standard and guidelines to make sure these combined datasets can stay together and are not, as is often the case, split and sent to different repositories. The proposal in this paper allows for the management of sampling methodology, animal tracking and telemetry data, biological measurements (e.g., body length, percent live cover, ... as well as environmental measurements such as nutrient concentrations, sediment characteristics or other abiotic parameters measured during sampling to characterize the environment from which biogeographic data was collected. The recommended practice builds on the Darwin Core Archive (DwC-A standard and on practices adopted by the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF. It consists of a DwC Event Core in combination with a DwC Occurrence Extension and a proposed enhancement to the DwC MeasurementOrFact Extension. This new structure enables the linkage of measurements or facts - quantitative and qualitative properties - to
Marine protected area restricts demographic connectivity: Dissimilarity in a marine environment can function as a biological barrier.

Science.gov (United States)

Sato, Masaaki; Honda, Kentaro; Uy, Wilfredo H; Baslot, Darwin I; Genovia, Tom G; Nakamura, Yohei; Bernardo, Lawrence Patrick C; Kurokochi, Hiroyuki; Pantallano, Allyn Duvin S; Lian, Chunlan; Nadaoka, Kazuo; Nakaoka, Masahiro

2017-10-01

The establishment of marine protected areas (MPAs) can often lead to environmental differences between MPAs and fishing zones. To determine the effects on marine dispersal of environmental dissimilarity between an MPA and fishing zone, we examined the abundance and recruitment patterns of two anemonefishes ( Amphiprion frenatus and A. perideraion ) that inhabit sea anemones in different management zones (i.e., an MPA and two fishing zones) by performing a field survey and a genetic parentage analysis. We found lower levels of abundance per anemone in the MPA compared to the fishing zones for both species ( n = 1,525 anemones, p = .032). The parentage analysis also showed that lower numbers of fishes were recruited from the fishing zones and outside of the study area into each anemone in the MPA than into each anemone in the fishing zones ( n = 1,525 anemones, p fishing zones ( n = 384 females, p = .516). Because the ocean currents around the study site were unlikely to cause a lower settlement intensity of larvae in the MPA, the ocean circulation was not considered crucial to the observed abundance and recruitment patterns. Instead, stronger top-down control and/or a lower density of host anemones in the MPA were potential factors for such patterns. Our results highlight the importance of dissimilarity in a marine environment as a factor that affects connectivity.
Spintharus flavidus in the Caribbean-a 30 million year biogeographical history and radiation of a 'widespread species'.

Science.gov (United States)

Dziki, Austin; Binford, Greta J; Coddington, Jonathan A; Agnarsson, Ingi

2015-01-01

The Caribbean island biota is characterized by high levels of endemism, the result of an interplay between colonization opportunities on islands and effective oceanic barriers among them. A relatively small percentage of the biota is represented by 'widespread species,' presumably taxa for which oceanic barriers are ineffective. Few studies have explored in detail the genetic structure of widespread Caribbean taxa. The cobweb spider Spintharus flavidus Hentz, 1850 (Theridiidae) is one of two described Spintharus species and is unique in being widely distributed from northern N. America to Brazil and throughout the Caribbean. As a taxonomic hypothesis, Spintharus "flavidus" predicts maintenance of gene flow among Caribbean islands, a prediction that seems contradicted by known S. flavidus biology, which suggests limited dispersal ability. As part of an extensive survey of Caribbean arachnids (project CarBio), we conducted the first molecular phylogenetic analysis of S. flavidus with the primary goal of testing the 'widespread species' hypothesis. Our results, while limited to three molecular loci, reject the hypothesis of a single widespread species. Instead this lineage seems to represent a radiation with at least 16 species in the Caribbean region. Nearly all are short range endemics with several distinct mainland groups and others are single island endemics. While limited taxon sampling, with a single specimen from S. America, constrains what we can infer about the biogeographical history of the lineage, clear patterns still emerge. Consistent with limited overwater dispersal, we find evidence for a single colonization of the Caribbean about 30 million years ago, coinciding with the timing of the GAARLandia landbridge hypothesis. In sum, S. "flavidus" is not a single species capable of frequent overwater dispersal, but rather a 30 my old radiation of single island endemics that provides preliminary support for a complex and contested geological hypothesis.
Global diffusive fluxes of methane in marine sediments

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Egger, M.; Riedinger, N.; Mogollón, J.M.; Jørgensen, B.B.

2018-01-01

Anaerobic oxidation of methane provides a globally important, yet poorly constrained barrier for the vast amounts of methane produced in the subseafloor. Here we provide a global map and budget of the methane flux and degradation in diffusion-controlled marine sediments in relation to the depth of
The deep subterranean environment as a potential model system in ecological, biogeographical and evolutionary research

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David Sánchez-Fernández

2018-01-01

Full Text Available One of the main challenges in ecology, biogeography and evolution is to understand and predict how species may respond to environmental changes. Here we focus on the deep subterranean environment, a system that minimizes most of the typical uncertainties of studies on epigean (surface environments. Caves are relatively homogeneous habitats with nearly constant environmental conditions and simplified biological communities, allowing to control for biotic interactions. Thus, this particular system could be considered a natural habitat whose environmental conditions are similar to what can be reproduced in a laboratory, being an ideal model system for ecological, biogeographical and evolutionary studies. Subterranean species may potentially be used to assess the capability to persist in situ in a global change scenario, as they cannot accommodate to drastic changing conditions by behavioural plasticity, microhabitat use or by migrating to distant, more suitable areas, something frequent in epigean environments. In order to provide accurate predictions of the response of the subterranean biodiversity to climate change, we encourage evolutionary biologist, biogeographers and conservation biologist to work in this interesting ecosystem.

A new biogeographically disjunct giant gecko (Gehyra: Gekkonidae: Reptilia) from the East Melanesian Islands

Science.gov (United States)

Oliver, Paul M.; Clegg, Jonathan R.; Fisher, Robert N.; Richards, Stephen J.; Taylor, Peter N.; Jocque, Merlijn M. T.

2016-01-01

The East Melanesian Islands have been a focal area for research into island biogeography and community ecology. However, previously undescribed and biogeographically significant new species endemic to this region continue to be discovered. Here we describe a phylogenetically distinct (~20% divergence at the mitochondrial ND2 gene) and biogeographically disjunct new species of gecko in the genus Gehyra, from the Admiralty and St Matthias Islands. Gehyra rohan sp. nov. can be distinguished from all congeners by the combination of its very large size, ring of bright orange scales around the eye, moderate degree of lateral folding on the limbs and body, and aspects of head, body and tail scalation. Molecular data indicate mid to late Miocene divergence of the new species from nearest relatives occurring nearly 2000 kilometres away in Vanuatu and Fiji. Large Gehyra have not been recorded on the intervening large islands of the Bismark Archipelago (New Britain and New Ireland) and the Solomon Islands, suggesting this dispersal pre-dated the current configuration of these islands, extinction in intervening regions, or potentially elements of both. Conversely, low genetic divergence between disjunct samples on Manus and Mussau implies recent overseas dispersal via either natural or anthropogenic means.
From Microhabitat of Floral Nectar Up to Biogeographic Scale: Novel Insights on Neutral and Niche Bacterial Assemblies.

Science.gov (United States)

Aizenberg-Gershtein, Yana; Izhaki, Ido; Halpern, Malka

2017-07-01

Microbial model systems are very useful in addressing macro-ecological questions. Two major theories exist to date, to explain the community structure of organisms: (1) the dispersal (neutral) assembly theory which predicts that community similarity decreases with increasing geographic distance, independent of any environmental variables, and (2) the niche assembly theory which predicts that the communities' compositions are more homogeneous among sites characterized by similar environmental conditions. Our study system offered a unique opportunity to investigate the relative role of environmental conditions and spatial factors in shaping community composition. We explored the bacterial community composition (BCC) of Nicotiana glauca floral nectar using the Illumina MiSeq technique at three spatial scales (plants, site, and region) and two taxonomic levels. Floral nectar samples were collected from 69 N. glauca plants at 11 different sites along a 200-km transect in Israel, along three biogeographic regions. A distance decay of BCC was found among all plants throughout Israel, but such pattern was not found among either sites or biogeographical regions. The BCC was also governed by environmental conditions in all examined scales (from the plant up to the biogeographical region). We also found that taxonomic resolution (89 and 97% sequence identity for clustering operational taxonomic units) affected the results of these BCC analyses. Hence, our study revealed that the BCC in N. glauca floral nectar is shaped by both the environmental conditions and the distance between plants, depending on the sampling scale under examination as well as by taxonomic resolution.
The future distribution of the savannah biome: model-based and biogeographic contingency.

Science.gov (United States)

Moncrieff, Glenn R; Scheiter, Simon; Langan, Liam; Trabucco, Antonio; Higgins, Steven I

2016-09-19

The extent of the savannah biome is expected to be profoundly altered by climatic change and increasing atmospheric CO2 concentrations. Contrasting projections are given when using different modelling approaches to estimate future distributions. Furthermore, biogeographic variation within savannahs in plant function and structure is expected to lead to divergent responses to global change. Hence the use of a single model with a single savannah tree type will likely lead to biased projections. Here we compare and contrast projections of South American, African and Australian savannah distributions from the physiologically based Thornley transport resistance statistical distribution model (TTR-SDM)-and three versions of a dynamic vegetation model (DVM) designed and parametrized separately for specific continents. We show that attempting to extrapolate any continent-specific model globally biases projections. By 2070, all DVMs generally project a decrease in the extent of savannahs at their boundary with forests, whereas the TTR-SDM projects a decrease in savannahs at their boundary with aridlands and grasslands. This difference is driven by forest and woodland expansion in response to rising atmospheric CO2 concentrations in DVMs, unaccounted for by the TTR-SDM. We suggest that the most suitable models of the savannah biome for future development are individual-based dynamic vegetation models designed for specific biogeographic regions.This article is part of the themed issue 'Tropical grassy biomes: linking ecology, human use and conservation'. © 2016 The Author(s).
The most vagile host as the main determinant of population connectivity in marine macroparasites

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Feis, Marieke; Thieltges, David W.; Jensen, K.T.

2015-01-01

in the sea. Here, we tested whether a marine trematode parasite that utilises migratory birds exhibited weaker population genetic structure than those whose life cycle utilises marine fish as the vagile host. Part of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase 1 (COI) gene was sequenced from individual sporocysts...... that populations of parasites with only freshwater hosts are more structured than those with terrestrial or airborne hosts. Until now, the same has not been tested for marine systems, where, in theory, a fully marine life cycle might sustain high dispersal rates because of the absence of obvious physical barriers...
Biogeography of photosynthetic light-harvesting genes in marine phytoplankton.

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Thomas S Bibby

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Photosynthetic light-harvesting proteins are the mechanism by which energy enters the marine ecosystem. The dominant prokaryotic photoautotrophs are the cyanobacterial genera Prochlorococcus and Synechococcus that are defined by two distinct light-harvesting systems, chlorophyll-bound protein complexes or phycobilin-bound protein complexes, respectively. Here, we use the Global Ocean Sampling (GOS Project as a unique and powerful tool to analyze the environmental diversity of photosynthetic light-harvesting genes in relation to available metadata including geographical location and physical and chemical environmental parameters. METHODS: All light-harvesting gene fragments and their metadata were obtained from the GOS database, aligned using ClustalX and classified phylogenetically. Each sequence has a name indicative of its geographic location; subsequent biogeographical analysis was performed by correlating light-harvesting gene budgets for each GOS station with surface chlorophyll concentration. CONCLUSION/SIGNIFICANCE: Using the GOS data, we have mapped the biogeography of light-harvesting genes in marine cyanobacteria on ocean-basin scales and show that an environmental gradient exists in which chlorophyll concentration is correlated to diversity of light-harvesting systems. Three functionally distinct types of light-harvesting genes are defined: (1 the phycobilisome (PBS genes of Synechococcus; (2 the pcb genes of Prochlorococcus; and (3 the iron-stress-induced (isiA genes present in some marine Synechococcus. At low chlorophyll concentrations, where nutrients are limited, the Pcb-type light-harvesting system shows greater genetic diversity; whereas at high chlorophyll concentrations, where nutrients are abundant, the PBS-type light-harvesting system shows higher genetic diversity. We interpret this as an environmental selection of specific photosynthetic strategy. Importantly, the unique light-harvesting system isiA is found
Biogeographic distribution patterns and their correlates in the diverse frog fauna of the Atlantic Forest hotspot.

Science.gov (United States)

Vasconcelos, Tiago S; Prado, Vitor H M; da Silva, Fernando R; Haddad, Célio F B

2014-01-01

Anurans are a highly diverse group in the Atlantic Forest hotspot (AF), yet distribution patterns and species richness gradients are not randomly distributed throughout the biome. Thus, we explore how anuran species are distributed in this complex and biodiverse hotspot, and hypothesize that this group can be distinguished by different cohesive regions. We used range maps of 497 species to obtain a presence/absence data grid, resolved to 50×50 km grain size, which was submitted to k-means clustering with v-fold cross-validation to determine the biogeographic regions. We also explored the extent to which current environmental variables, topography, and floristic structure of the AF are expected to identify the cluster patterns recognized by the k-means clustering. The biogeographic patterns found for amphibians are broadly congruent with ecoregions identified in the AF, but their edges, and sometimes the whole extent of some clusters, present much less resolved pattern compared to previous classification. We also identified that climate, topography, and vegetation structure of the AF explained a high percentage of variance of the cluster patterns identified, but the magnitude of the regression coefficients shifted regarding their importance in explaining the variance for each cluster. Specifically, we propose that the anuran fauna of the AF can be split into four biogeographic regions: a) less diverse and widely-ranged species that predominantly occur in the inland semideciduous forests; b) northern small-ranged species that presumably evolved within the Pleistocene forest refugia; c) highly diverse and small-ranged species from the southeastern Brazilian mountain chain and its adjacent semideciduous forest; and d) southern species from the Araucaria forest. Finally, the high congruence among the cluster patterns and previous eco-regions identified for the AF suggests that preserving the underlying habitat structure helps to preserve the historical and ecological
Safety performance monitoring of autonomous marine systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thieme, Christoph A.; Utne, Ingrid B.

2017-01-01

The marine environment is vast, harsh, and challenging. Unanticipated faults and events might lead to loss of vessels, transported goods, collected scientific data, and business reputation. Hence, systems have to be in place that monitor the safety performance of operation and indicate if it drifts into an intolerable safety level. This article proposes a process for developing safety indicators for the operation of autonomous marine systems (AMS). The condition of safety barriers and resilience engineering form the basis for the development of safety indicators, synthesizing and further adjusting the dual assurance and the resilience based early warning indicator (REWI) approaches. The article locates the process for developing safety indicators in the system life cycle emphasizing a timely implementation of the safety indicators. The resulting safety indicators reflect safety in AMS operation and can assist in planning of operations, in daily operational decision-making, and identification of improvements. Operation of an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) exemplifies the process for developing safety indicators and their implementation. The case study shows that the proposed process leads to a comprehensive set of safety indicators. It is expected that application of the resulting safety indicators consequently will contribute to safer operation of current and future AMS. - Highlights: • Process for developing safety indicators for autonomous marine systems. • Safety indicators based on safety barriers and resilience thinking. • Location of the development process in the system lifecycle. • Case study on AUV demonstrating applicability of the process.
Biogeographical patterns of Myrcia s.l. (Myrtaceae) and their correlation with geological and climatic history in the Neotropics.

Science.gov (United States)

Santos, Matheus Fortes; Lucas, Eve; Sano, Paulo Takeo; Buerki, Sven; Staggemeier, Vanessa Graziele; Forest, Félix

2017-03-01

Many recent studies discuss the influence of climatic and geological events in the evolution of Neotropical biota by correlating these events with dated phylogenetic hypotheses. Myrtaceae is one of the most diverse Neotropical groups and it therefore a good proxy of plant diversity in the region. However, biogeographic studies on Neotropical Myrtaceae are still very limited. Myrcia s.l. is an informal group comprising three accepted genera (Calyptranthes, Marlierea and Myrcia) making up the second largest Neotropical group of Myrtaceae, totalling about 700 species distributed in nine subgroups. Exclusively Neotropical, the group occurs along the whole of the Neotropics with diversity centres in the Caribbean, the Guiana Highlands and the central-eastern Brazil. This study aims to identify the time and place of divergence of Myrcia s.l. lineages, to examine the correlation in light of geological and climatic events in the Neotropics, and to explore relationships among Neotropical biogeographic areas. A dated phylogenetic hypothesis was produced using BEAST and calibrated by placing Paleomyrtinaea princetonensis (56Ma) at the root of the tree; biogeographic analysis used the DEC model with dispersal probabilities between areas based on distance and floristic affinities. Myrcia s.l. originated in the Montane Atlantic Forest between the end of Eocene and early Miocene and this region acted as a secondary cradle for several lineages during the evolution of this group. The Caribbean region was important in the diversification of the Calyptranthes clade while the Guayana shield appears as ancestral area for an older subgroup of Myrcia s.l. The Amazon Forest has relatively low diversity of Myrcia s.l. species but appears to have been important in the initial biogeographic history of old lineages. Lowland Atlantic Forest has high species diversity but species rich lineages did not originate in the area. Diversification of most subgroups of Myrcia s.l. occurred throughout
Biogeographical region and host trophic level determine carnivore endoparasite richness in the Iberian Peninsula.

Science.gov (United States)

Rosalino, L M; Santos, M J; Fernandes, C; Santos-Reis, M

2011-05-01

We address the question of whether host and/or environmental factors might affect endoparasite richness and distribution, using carnivores as a model. We reviewed studies published in international peer-reviewed journals (34 areas in the Iberian Peninsula), describing parasite prevalence and richness in carnivores, and collected information on site location, host bio-ecology, climate and detected taxa (Helminths, Protozoa and Mycobacterium spp.). Three hypotheses were tested (i) host based, (ii) environmentally based, and (iii) hybrid (combination of environmental and host). Multicollinearity reduced candidate variable number for modelling to 5: host weight, phylogenetic independent contrasts (host weight), mean annual temperature, host trophic level and biogeographical region. General Linear Mixed Modelling was used and the best model was a hybrid model that included biogeographical region and host trophic level. Results revealed that endoparasite richness is higher in Mediterranean areas, especially for the top predators. We suggest that the detected parasites may benefit from mild environmental conditions that occur in southern regions. Top predators have larger home ranges and are likely to be subjected to cascading effects throughout the food web, resulting in more infestation opportunities and potentially higher endoparasite richness. This study suggests that richness may be more affected by historical and regional processes (including climate) than by host ecological processes.
Biogeographical distribution and diversity of bacterial communities in surface sediments of the South China Sea.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Tao; Wang, Peng

2013-05-01

This paper aims at an investigation of the features of bacterial communities in surface sediments of the South China Sea (SCS). In particular, biogeographical distribution patterns and the phylogenetic diversity of bacteria found in sediments collected from a coral reef platform, a continental slope, and a deep-sea basin were determined. Bacterial diversity was measured by an observation of 16S rRNA genes, and 18 phylogenetic groups were identified in the bacterial clone library. Planctomycetes, Deltaproteobacteria, candidate division OP11, and Alphaproteobacteria made up the majority of the bacteria in the samples, with their mean bacterial clones being 16%, 15%, 12%, and 9%, respectively. By comparison, the bacterial communities found in the SCS surface sediments were significantly different from other previously observed deep-sea bacterial communities. This research also emphasizes the fact that geographical factors have an impact on the biogeographical distribution patterns of bacterial communities. For instance, canonical correspondence analyses illustrated that the percentage of sand weight and water depth are important factors affecting the bacterial community composition. Therefore, this study highlights the importance of adequately determining the relationship between geographical factors and the distribution of bacteria in the world's seas and oceans.
A sea water barrier to coral gene flow.

Science.gov (United States)

Lessios, H A

2012-11-01

Land is not the only barrier to dispersal encountered by marine organisms. For sedentary shallow water species, there is an additional, marine barrier, 5000 km of uninterrupted deep-water stretch between the central and the eastern Pacific. This expanse of water, known as the ‘Eastern Pacific Barrier’, has been separating faunas of the two oceanic regions since the beginning of the Cenozoic. Species with larvae that cannot stay in the plankton for the time it takes to cross between the two sides have been evolving independently. That the eastern Pacific does not share species with the rest of the Pacific was obvious to naturalists two centuries ago (Darwin 1860). Yet, this rule has exceptions. A small minority of species are known to straddle the Eastern Pacific Barrier. One such exception is the scleractinian coral Porites lobata (Fig. 1). This species is spread widely throughout the Indo-Pacific, where it is one of the major reef-builders, but it is also encountered in the eastern Pacific. Are eastern and central Pacific populations of this coral connected by gene flow? In this issue of Molecular Ecology, Baums et al. (2012) use microsatellite data to answer this question. They show that P. lobata populations in the eastern Pacific are cut off from genetic influx from the rest of the Pacific. Populations within each of the two oceanic regions are genetically connected (though those in the Hawaiian islands are also isolated). Significantly, the population in the Clipperton Atoll, the westernmost island in the eastern Pacific, genetically groups with populations from the central Pacific, suggesting that crossing the Eastern Pacific Barrier by P. lobata propagules does occasionally occur.
Biogeografía marina de Chile continental Marine biogeography of continental Chile

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

PATRICIO A. CAMUS

2001-09-01

ámica de distribución de biotas en la costa chilena, con énfasis en la identificación y naturaleza biogeográfica de las principales unidades espaciales. A partir de la información anterior, se propone una hipótesis de clasificación biogeográfica al nivel de biotas, no necesariamente concordante con estudios previos al nivel de fauna o flora. Esta clasificación identifica tres unidades espaciales mayores: un área sur que incluye a una biota austral (Provincia Magallánica, un área norte que incluye una biota templada-cálida (Provincia Peruana, y un área Intermedia extensa (no transicional que incluye componentes mixtos de biota sin carácter ni rango biogeográfico definido. Se discute además la diferente naturaleza de dos zonas transicionales situadas en los límites del área Intermedia, una transición de contacto hacia el norte y una transición inducida hacia el sur, que se habrían generado por migraciones de biota y eventos glacio-tectónicos respectivamenteFor almost a century, a number of authors have analyzed the distribution patterns of the marine fauna and flora in the South American Pacific and particularly along the coast of Chile, with the purpose of determining the number of existing biogeographical units. Although the general, present day patterns are relatively well known, most studies have focused on distributional breaks and classification proposals rather than on the factors and dynamic processes that formed the identified spatial units. Even in the case of biogeographical classifications, published conclusions are based mainly on the analysis of one or few selected groups, exhibiting important differences in their criteria for selecting groups, the number of species involved, and their methodology. On the other hand, diverging conclusions among particular studies tend to obscure the more relevant, large-scale phenomenon of biota dynamics, one of the less known biogeographic aspects in Chile. Within that context, this paper presents a
Dispersal similarly shapes both population genetics and community patterns in the marine realm

KAUST Repository

Chust, Guillem

2016-06-27

Dispersal plays a key role to connect populations and, if limited, is one of the main processes to maintain and generate regional biodiversity. According to neutral theories of molecular evolution and biodiversity, dispersal limitation of propagules and population stochasticity are integral to shaping both genetic and community structure. We conducted a parallel analysis of biological connectivity at genetic and community levels in marine groups with different dispersal traits. We compiled large data sets of population genetic structure (98 benthic macroinvertebrate and 35 planktonic species) and biogeographic data (2193 benthic macroinvertebrate and 734 planktonic species). We estimated dispersal distances from population genetic data (i.e., FST vs. geographic distance) and from β-diversity at the community level. Dispersal distances ranked the biological groups in the same order at both genetic and community levels, as predicted by organism dispersal ability and seascape connectivity: macrozoobenthic species without dispersing larvae, followed by macrozoobenthic species with dispersing larvae and plankton (phyto- and zooplankton). This ranking order is associated with constraints to the movement of macrozoobenthos within the seabed compared with the pelagic habitat. We showed that dispersal limitation similarly determines the connectivity degree of communities and populations, supporting the predictions of neutral theories in marine biodiversity patterns.
Dispersal similarly shapes both population genetics and community patterns in the marine realm

Science.gov (United States)

Chust, Guillem; Villarino, Ernesto; Chenuil, Anne; Irigoien, Xabier; Bizsel, Nihayet; Bode, Antonio; Broms, Cecilie; Claus, Simon; Fernández de Puelles, María L.; Fonda-Umani, Serena; Hoarau, Galice; Mazzocchi, Maria G.; Mozetič, Patricija; Vandepitte, Leen; Veríssimo, Helena; Zervoudaki, Soultana; Borja, Angel

2016-06-01

Dispersal plays a key role to connect populations and, if limited, is one of the main processes to maintain and generate regional biodiversity. According to neutral theories of molecular evolution and biodiversity, dispersal limitation of propagules and population stochasticity are integral to shaping both genetic and community structure. We conducted a parallel analysis of biological connectivity at genetic and community levels in marine groups with different dispersal traits. We compiled large data sets of population genetic structure (98 benthic macroinvertebrate and 35 planktonic species) and biogeographic data (2193 benthic macroinvertebrate and 734 planktonic species). We estimated dispersal distances from population genetic data (i.e., FST vs. geographic distance) and from β-diversity at the community level. Dispersal distances ranked the biological groups in the same order at both genetic and community levels, as predicted by organism dispersal ability and seascape connectivity: macrozoobenthic species without dispersing larvae, followed by macrozoobenthic species with dispersing larvae and plankton (phyto- and zooplankton). This ranking order is associated with constraints to the movement of macrozoobenthos within the seabed compared with the pelagic habitat. We showed that dispersal limitation similarly determines the connectivity degree of communities and populations, supporting the predictions of neutral theories in marine biodiversity patterns.
Dispersal similarly shapes both population genetics and community patterns in the marine realm

KAUST Repository

Chust, Guillem; Villarino, Ernesto; Chenuil, Anne; Irigoien, Xabier; Bizsel, Nihayet; Bode, Antonio; Broms, Cecilie; Claus, Simon; Ferná ndez de Puelles, Marí a L.; Fonda-Umani, Serena; Hoarau, Galice; Mazzocchi, Maria G.; Mozetič, Patricija; Vandepitte, Leen; Verí ssimo, Helena; Zervoudaki, Soultana; Borja, Angel

2016-01-01

Dispersal plays a key role to connect populations and, if limited, is one of the main processes to maintain and generate regional biodiversity. According to neutral theories of molecular evolution and biodiversity, dispersal limitation of propagules and population stochasticity are integral to shaping both genetic and community structure. We conducted a parallel analysis of biological connectivity at genetic and community levels in marine groups with different dispersal traits. We compiled large data sets of population genetic structure (98 benthic macroinvertebrate and 35 planktonic species) and biogeographic data (2193 benthic macroinvertebrate and 734 planktonic species). We estimated dispersal distances from population genetic data (i.e., FST vs. geographic distance) and from β-diversity at the community level. Dispersal distances ranked the biological groups in the same order at both genetic and community levels, as predicted by organism dispersal ability and seascape connectivity: macrozoobenthic species without dispersing larvae, followed by macrozoobenthic species with dispersing larvae and plankton (phyto- and zooplankton). This ranking order is associated with constraints to the movement of macrozoobenthos within the seabed compared with the pelagic habitat. We showed that dispersal limitation similarly determines the connectivity degree of communities and populations, supporting the predictions of neutral theories in marine biodiversity patterns.
Marine protected areas increase resilience among coral reef communities.

Science.gov (United States)

Mellin, Camille; Aaron MacNeil, M; Cheal, Alistair J; Emslie, Michael J; Julian Caley, M

2016-06-01

With marine biodiversity declining globally at accelerating rates, maximising the effectiveness of conservation has become a key goal for local, national and international regulators. Marine protected areas (MPAs) have been widely advocated for conserving and managing marine biodiversity yet, despite extensive research, their benefits for conserving non-target species and wider ecosystem functions remain unclear. Here, we demonstrate that MPAs can increase the resilience of coral reef communities to natural disturbances, including coral bleaching, coral diseases, Acanthaster planci outbreaks and storms. Using a 20-year time series from Australia's Great Barrier Reef, we show that within MPAs, (1) reef community composition was 21-38% more stable; (2) the magnitude of disturbance impacts was 30% lower and (3) subsequent recovery was 20% faster that in adjacent unprotected habitats. Our results demonstrate that MPAs can increase the resilience of marine communities to natural disturbance possibly through herbivory, trophic cascades and portfolio effects. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd/CNRS.
Biodiversity and biogeographic relationships of the polychaete fauna in French Atlantic and Mediterranean waters

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jean-Claude Dauvin

2006-12-01

Full Text Available A survey of the literature, including the recent systematic reviews, reveals that 934 polychaete species have been recorded in French Atlantic (including the English Channel and Mediterranean marine waters, including 818 species living on the continental shelf and 116 species that are strictly bathyal. These 934 species belong to 71 families, among which the Syllidae is the most diverse (97 species, followed by the Serpulidae (69 species, Spionidae and Phyllodocidae, each with more than 40 species. Forty-four families have fewer than 10 species recorded in each. The total number of species is spread over 11 continental shelf areas as well as the Atlantic and Mediterranean bathyal depths. In terms of species diversity, the richest areas are the Mediterranean coasts of Provence-Côte d’Azur (507 species and Languedoc-Roussillon (483 species, the western part of the English Channel (402 species, and the southern part of the Bay of Biscay (343 species. The lowest numbers of species were recorded in the eastern English Channel, due to an impoverishment of all the fauna in this part of the Channel. Other areas—for example, the Iroise Sea, the coast of Corsica and Mediterranean bathyal depths—also show low numbers, but this may only reflect the fact that insufficient information about these areas is available. A similarity analysis of 13 areas distinguishes four distinct faunal groups, each specific to one of four general locations: (1 the bathyal Atlantic and Mediterranean zones, including the coast of Corsica, (2 the two Mediterranean coastal areas (Provence-Côte d’Azur and Languedoc-Roussillon, (3 the four zones of the Atlantic continental shelf, and (4 the English Channel. The combined species can be separated into 17 different biogeographic groups.
Forensic genetic analysis of bio-geographical ancestry.

Science.gov (United States)

Phillips, Chris

2015-09-01

With the great strides made in the last ten years in the understanding of human population variation and the detailed characterization of the genome, it is now possible to identify sets of ancestry informative markers suitable for relatively small-scale PCR-based assays and use them to analyze the ancestry of an individual from forensic DNA. This review outlines some of the current understanding of past human population structure and how it may have influenced the complex distribution of contemporary human diversity. A simplified description of human diversity can provide a suitable basis for choosing the best ancestry-informative markers, which is important given the constraints of multiplex sizes in forensic DNA tests. It is also important to decide the level of geographic resolution that is realistic to ensure the balance between informativeness and an over-simplification of complex human diversity patterns. A detailed comparison is made of the most informative ancestry markers suitable for forensic use and assessments are made of the data analysis regimes that can provide statistical inferences of a DNA donor's bio-geographical ancestry. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
Using phylogenomics to understand the link between biogeographic origins and regional diversification in ratsnakes.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Xin; Lemmon, Alan R; Lemmon, Emily Moriarty; Pyron, R Alexander; Burbrink, Frank T

2017-06-01

Globally distributed groups may show regionally distinct rates of diversification, where speciation is elevated given timing and sources of ecological opportunity. However, for most organisms, nearly complete sampling at genomic-data scales to reduce topological error in all regions is unattainable, thus hampering conclusions related to biogeographic origins and rates of diversification. We explore processes leading to the diversity of global ratsnakes and test several important hypotheses related to areas of origin and enhanced diversification upon colonizing new continents. We estimate species trees inferred from phylogenomic scale data (304 loci) while exploring several strategies that consider topological error from each individual gene tree. With a dated species tree, we examine taxonomy and test previous hypotheses that suggest the ratsnakes originated in the Old World (OW) and dispersed to New World (NW). Furthermore, we determine if dispersal to the NW represented a source of ecological opportunity, which should show elevated rates of species diversification. We show that ratsnakes originated in the OW during the mid-Oligocene and subsequently dispersed to the NW by the mid-Miocene; diversification was also elevated in a subclade of NW taxa. Finally, the optimal biogeographic region-dependent speciation model shows that the uptick in ratsnake diversification was associated with colonization of the NW. We consider several alternative explanations that account for regionally distinct diversification rates. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
The Biogeographic Pattern of Microbial Functional Genes along an Altitudinal Gradient of the Tibetan Pasture

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Qi, Qi; Zhao, Mengxin; Wang, Shiping; Ma, Xingyu; Wang, Yuxuan; Gao, Ying; Lin, Qiaoyan; Li, Xiangzhen; Gu, Baohua; Li, Guoxue; Zhou, Jizhong; Yang, Yunfeng

2017-06-13

As the highest place of the world, the Tibetan plateau is a fragile ecosystem. Given the importance of microbial communities in driving soil nutrient cycling, it is of interest to document the microbial biogeographic pattern here. We adopted a microarray-based tool named GeoChip 4.0 to investigate grassland microbial functional genes along an elevation gradient from 3200 to 3800 m above sea level open to free grazing by local herdsmen and wild animals. Interestingly, microbial functional diversities increase with elevation, so does the relative abundances of genes associated with carbon degradation, nitrogen cycling, methane production, cold shock and oxygen limitation. The range of Shannon diversities (10.27–10.58) showed considerably smaller variation than what was previously observed at ungrazed sites nearby (9.95–10.65), suggesting the important role of livestock grazing on microbial diversities. Closer examination showed that the dissimilarity of microbial community at our study sites increased with elevations, revealing an elevation-decay relationship of microbial functional genes. Both microbial functional diversity and the number of unique genes increased with elevations. Furthermore, we detected a tight linkage of greenhouse gas (CO2) and relative abundances of carbon cycling genes. Our biogeographic study provides insights on microbial functional diversity and soil biogeochemical cycling in Tibetan pastures.

The Biogeographic Pattern of Microbial Functional Genes along an Altitudinal Gradient of the Tibetan Pasture

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Qi Qi

2017-06-01

Full Text Available As the highest place of the world, the Tibetan plateau is a fragile ecosystem. Given the importance of microbial communities in driving soil nutrient cycling, it is of interest to document the microbial biogeographic pattern here. We adopted a microarray-based tool named GeoChip 4.0 to investigate grassland microbial functional genes along an elevation gradient from 3200 to 3800 m above sea level open to free grazing by local herdsmen and wild animals. Interestingly, microbial functional diversities increase with elevation, so does the relative abundances of genes associated with carbon degradation, nitrogen cycling, methane production, cold shock and oxygen limitation. The range of Shannon diversities (10.27–10.58 showed considerably smaller variation than what was previously observed at ungrazed sites nearby (9.95–10.65, suggesting the important role of livestock grazing on microbial diversities. Closer examination showed that the dissimilarity of microbial community at our study sites increased with elevations, revealing an elevation-decay relationship of microbial functional genes. Both microbial functional diversity and the number of unique genes increased with elevations. Furthermore, we detected a tight linkage of greenhouse gas (CO2 and relative abundances of carbon cycling genes. Our biogeographic study provides insights on microbial functional diversity and soil biogeochemical cycling in Tibetan pastures.
Lower Mesophotic Coral Communities (60-125 m Depth of the Northern Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Norbert Englebert

Full Text Available Mesophotic coral ecosystems in the Indo-Pacific remain relatively unexplored, particularly at lower mesophotic depths (≥60 m, despite their potentially large spatial extent. Here, we used a remotely operated vehicle to conduct a qualitative assessment of the zooxanthellate coral community at lower mesophotic depths (60-125 m at 10 different locations in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park and the Coral Sea Commonwealth Marine Reserve. Lower mesophotic coral communities were present at all 10 locations, with zooxanthellate scleractinian corals extending down to ~100 metres on walls and ~125 m on steep slopes. Lower mesophotic coral communities were most diverse in the 60-80 m zone, while at depths of ≥100 m the coral community consisted almost exclusively of the genus Leptoseris. Collections of coral specimens (n = 213 between 60 and 125 m depth confirmed the presence of at least 29 different species belonging to 18 genera, including several potential new species and geographic/depth range extensions. Overall, this study highlights that lower mesophotic coral ecosystems are likely to be ubiquitous features on the outer reefs of the Great Barrier Reef and atolls of the Coral Sea, and harbour a generic and species richness of corals that is much higher than thus far reported. Further research efforts are urgently required to better understand and manage these ecosystems as part of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park and Coral Sea Commonwealth Marine Reserve.
Changes in latitude, changes in attitude - biogeographic patterns of nonindigenous estuarine and near-coastal species in the Northeast Pacific

Science.gov (United States)

Biogeographic patterns of estuarine and near-coastal invaders in the Northeast Pacific (NEP) are beginning to emerge based on regional surveys by U.S. EPA’s Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program (EMAP) and the EPA/USGS synthesis of native and nonindigenous species in th...
Genome and metagenome enabled analyses reveal new insight into the global biogeography and potential urea utilization in marine Thaumarchaeota.

Science.gov (United States)

Ahlgren, N.; Parada, A. E.; Fuhrman, J. A.

2016-02-01

Marine Thaumarchaea are an abundant, important group of marine microbial communities as they fix carbon, oxidize ammonium, and thus contribute to key N and C cycles in the oceans. From an enrichment culture, we have sequenced the complete genome of a new Thaumarchaeota strain, SPOT01. Analysis of this genome and other Thaumarchaeal genomes contributes new insight into its role in N cycling and clarifies the broader biogeography of marine Thaumarchaeal genera. Phylogenomics of Thaumarchaeota genomes reveal coherent separation into clusters roughly equivalent to the genus level, and SPOT01 represents a new genus of marine Thaumarchaea. Competitive fragment recruitment of globally distributed metagenomes from TARA, Ocean Sampling Day, and those generated from a station off California shows that the SPOT01 genus is often the most abundant genus, especially where total Thaumarchaea are most abundant in the overall community. The SPOT01 genome contains urease genes allowing it to use an alternative form of N. Genomic and metagenomic analysis also reveal that among planktonic genomes and populations, the urease genes in general are more frequently found in members of the SPOT01 genus and another genus dominant in deep waters, thus we predict these two genera contribute most significantly to urea utilization among marine Thaumarchaea. Recruitment also revealed broader biogeographic and ecological patterns of the putative genera. The SPOT01 genus was most abundant at colder temperatures (45 degrees). The genus containing Nitrosopumilus maritimus had the highest temperature range, and the genus containing Candidatus Nitrosopelagicus brevis was typically most abundant at intermediate temperatures and intermediate latitudes ( 35-45 degrees). Together these genome and metagenome enabled analyses provide significant new insight into the ecology and biogeochemical contributions of marine archaea.
Barrier displacement on a neutral landscape: Towards a theory of continental biogeography

Science.gov (United States)

Albert, James S.; Schoolmaster, Donald; Tagliacollo, Victor; Duke-Sylvester, Scott M.

2017-01-01

Macroevolutionary theory posits three processes leading to lineage diversification and the formation of regional biotas: dispersal (species geographic range expansion), speciation (species lineage splitting), and extinction (species lineage termination). The Theory of Island Biogeography (TIB) predicts species richness values using just two of these processes; dispersal and extinction. Yet most species on Earth live on continents or continental shelves, and the dynamics of evolutionary diversification at regional and continental scales are qualitatively different from those that govern the formation of species richness on biogeographic islands. Certain geomorphological processes operating perennially on continental platforms displace barriers to gene flow and organismal dispersal, and affect all three terms of macroevolutionary diversification. For example, uplift of a dissected landscape and river capture both merge and separate portions of adjacent areas, allowing dispersal and larger geographic ranges, vicariant speciation and smaller geographic ranges, and extinction when range sizes are subdivided below a minimum persistence threshold.
High rates of hybridisation reveal fragile reproductive barriers between endangered Australian sea snakes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sanders, Kate L; Redsted Rasmussen, Arne; Guinea, Michael L.

2014-01-01

designations, but revealed high frequencies of hybrids on all four reefs and individuals of pure A. fuscus ancestry only at Scott and (historically) Ashmore. Most unexpectedly, 95% of snakes sampled at Hibernia were hybrids that resembled A. laevis in phenotype, revealing a collapse of reproductive barriers...... (‘reverse speciation’) at this reef. These results have dire implications for the conservation status of A. fuscus, and highlight the fragility of reproductive barriers in a recent marine radiation....
Limits to gene flow in a cosmopolitan marine planktonic diatom.

Science.gov (United States)

Casteleyn, Griet; Leliaert, Frederik; Backeljau, Thierry; Debeer, Ann-Eline; Kotaki, Yuichi; Rhodes, Lesley; Lundholm, Nina; Sabbe, Koen; Vyverman, Wim

2010-07-20

The role of geographic isolation in marine microbial speciation is hotly debated because of the high dispersal potential and large population sizes of planktonic microorganisms and the apparent lack of strong dispersal barriers in the open sea. Here, we show that gene flow between distant populations of the globally distributed, bloom-forming diatom species Pseudo-nitzschia pungens (clade I) is limited and follows a strong isolation by distance pattern. Furthermore, phylogenetic analysis implies that under appropriate geographic and environmental circumstances, like the pronounced climatic changes in the Pleistocene, population structuring may lead to speciation and hence may play an important role in diversification of marine planktonic microorganisms. A better understanding of the factors that control population structuring is thus essential to reveal the role of allopatric speciation in marine microorganisms.
Molecular and morphological analysis of the critically endangered Fijian iguanas reveals cryptic diversity and a complex biogeographic history

Science.gov (United States)

Keogh, J.S.; Edwards, D.L.; Fisher, R.N.; Harlow, P.S.

2008-01-01

The Pacific iguanas of the Fijian and Tongan archipelagos are a biogeographic enigma in that their closest relatives are found only in the New World. They currently comprise two genera and four species of extinct and extant taxa. The two extant species, Brachylophus fasciatus from Fiji, Tonga, and Vanuatu and Brachylophus vitiensis from western Fiji, are of considerable conservation concern with B. vitiensis listed as critically endangered. A recent molecular study has shown that Brachylophus comprised three evolutionarily significant units. To test these conclusions and to reevaluate the phylogenetic and biogeographic relationships within Brachylophus, we generated an mtDNA dataset consisting of 1462 base pairs for 61 individuals from 13 islands, representing both Brachylophus species. Unweighted parsimony analyses and Bayesian analyses produced a well-resolved phylogenetic hypothesis supported by high bootstrap values and posterior probabilities within Brachylophus. Our data reject the monophyly of specimens previously believed to comprise B. fasciatus. Instead, our data demonstrate that living Brachylophus comprise three robust and well-supported clades that do not correspond to current taxonomy. One of these clades comprises B. fasciatus from the Lau group of Fiji and Tonga (type locality for B. fasciatus), while a second comprises putative B. fasciatus from the central regions of Fiji, which we refer to here as B. n. sp. Animals in this clade form the sister group to B. vitiensis rather than other B. fasciatus. We herein describe this clade as a new species of Brachylophus based on molecular and morphological data. With only one exception, every island is home to one or more unique haplotypes. We discuss alternative biogeographic hypotheses to explain their distribution in the Pacific and the difficulties of distinguishing these. Together, our molecular and taxonomic results have important implications for future conservation initiatives for the Pacific
Molecular and morphological analysis of the critically endangered Fijian iguanas reveals cryptic diversity and a complex biogeographic history.

Science.gov (United States)

Keogh, J Scott; Edwards, Danielle L; Fisher, Robert N; Harlow, Peter S

2008-10-27

The Pacific iguanas of the Fijian and Tongan archipelagos are a biogeographic enigma in that their closest relatives are found only in the New World. They currently comprise two genera and four species of extinct and extant taxa. The two extant species, Brachylophus fasciatus from Fiji, Tonga, and Vanuatu and Brachylophus vitiensis from western Fiji, are of considerable conservation concern with B. vitiensis listed as critically endangered. A recent molecular study has shown that Brachylophus comprised three evolutionarily significant units. To test these conclusions and to reevaluate the phylogenetic and biogeographic relationships within Brachylophus, we generated an mtDNA dataset consisting of 1462 base pairs for 61 individuals from 13 islands, representing both Brachylophus species. Unweighted parsimony analyses and Bayesian analyses produced a well-resolved phylogenetic hypothesis supported by high bootstrap values and posterior probabilities within Brachylophus. Our data reject the monophyly of specimens previously believed to comprise B. fasciatus. Instead, our data demonstrate that living Brachylophus comprise three robust and well-supported clades that do not correspond to current taxonomy. One of these clades comprises B. fasciatus from the Lau group of Fiji and Tonga (type locality for B. fasciatus), while a second comprises putative B. fasciatus from the central regions of Fiji, which we refer to here as B. n. sp. Animals in this clade form the sister group to B. vitiensis rather than other B. fasciatus. We herein describe this clade as a new species of Brachylophus based on molecular and morphological data. With only one exception, every island is home to one or more unique haplotypes. We discuss alternative biogeographic hypotheses to explain their distribution in the Pacific and the difficulties of distinguishing these. Together, our molecular and taxonomic results have important implications for future conservation initiatives for the Pacific
Submarine canyons represent an essential habitat network for krill hotspots in a Large Marine Ecosystem.

Science.gov (United States)

Santora, Jarrod A; Zeno, Ramona; Dorman, Jeffrey G; Sydeman, William J

2018-05-15

Submarine canyon systems are ubiquitous features of marine ecosystems, known to support high levels of biodiversity. Canyons may be important to benthic-pelagic ecosystem coupling, but their role in concentrating plankton and structuring pelagic communities is not well known. We hypothesize that at the scale of a large marine ecosystem, canyons provide a critical habitat network, which maintain energy flow and trophic interactions. We evaluate canyon characteristics relative to the distribution and abundance of krill, critically important prey in the California Current Ecosystem. Using a geological database, we conducted a census of canyon locations, evaluated their dimensions, and quantified functional relationships with krill hotspots (i.e., sites of persistently elevated abundance) derived from hydro-acoustic surveys. We found that 76% of krill hotspots occurred within and adjacent to canyons. Most krill hotspots were associated with large shelf-incising canyons. Krill hotspots and canyon dimensions displayed similar coherence as a function of latitude and indicate a potential regional habitat network. The latitudinal migration of many fish, seabirds and mammals may be enhanced by using this canyon-krill network to maintain foraging opportunities. Biogeographic assessments and predictions of krill and krill-predator distributions under climate change may be improved by accounting for canyons in habitat models.
Biogeographical patterns in vertebrate assemblages of the Czech Republic: regional division in the context of species’ distributions in Europe

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Divíšek, Jan; Culek, M.; Šťastný, K.; Anděra, M.

2016-01-01

Roč. 65, č. 3 (2016), s. 169-182 ISSN 0139-7893 Institutional support: RVO:68145535 Keywords : beta diversity * biogeographical regions * terrestrial vertebrates Subject RIV: DE - Earth Magnetism, Geodesy, Geography Impact factor: 0.739, year: 2016 http://www.ivb.cz/folia-zoologica-archive.html?vol=65&no=3
A bridge too far: dispersal barriers and cryptic speciation in an Arabian Peninsula grouper (Cephalopholis hemistiktos)

KAUST Repository

Priest, Mark; DiBattista, Joseph; McIlwain, Jennifer L.; Taylor, Brett M.; Hussey, Nigel E.; Berumen, Michael L.

2015-01-01

Aim: We use genetic and age-based analyses to assess the evidence for a biogeographical barrier to larval dispersal in the yellowfin hind, Cephalopholis hemistiktos, a commercially important species found across the Arabian Peninsula. Location: Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Gulf of Oman and Arabian Gulf. Methods: Mitochondrial DNA cytochrome-c oxidase subunit-I and nuclear DNA (S7) sequences were obtained for C. hemistiktos sampled throughout its distributional range. Phylogeographical and population-level analyses were used to assess patterns of genetic structure and to identify barriers to dispersal. Concurrently, age-based demographic analyses using otoliths determined differences in growth and longevity between regions. Results: Our analyses revealed significant genetic structure congruent with growth parameter differences observed across sampling sites, suggesting cryptic speciation between populations in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden versus the Gulf of Oman and Arabian Gulf. Coalescence analyses indicated these two regions have been isolated for > 800,000 years. Main conclusions: Our results indicate historical disruption to gene flow and a contemporary dispersal barrier in the Arabian Sea, which C. hemistiktos larvae are unable to effectively traverse. This provides yet another example of a (cryptic) species with high dispersive potential whose range is delimited by a lack of suitable habitat between locations or an inability to successfully recruit at the range edge. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
A bridge too far: dispersal barriers and cryptic speciation in an Arabian Peninsula grouper (Cephalopholis hemistiktos)

KAUST Repository

Priest, Mark

2015-12-12

Aim: We use genetic and age-based analyses to assess the evidence for a biogeographical barrier to larval dispersal in the yellowfin hind, Cephalopholis hemistiktos, a commercially important species found across the Arabian Peninsula. Location: Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Gulf of Oman and Arabian Gulf. Methods: Mitochondrial DNA cytochrome-c oxidase subunit-I and nuclear DNA (S7) sequences were obtained for C. hemistiktos sampled throughout its distributional range. Phylogeographical and population-level analyses were used to assess patterns of genetic structure and to identify barriers to dispersal. Concurrently, age-based demographic analyses using otoliths determined differences in growth and longevity between regions. Results: Our analyses revealed significant genetic structure congruent with growth parameter differences observed across sampling sites, suggesting cryptic speciation between populations in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden versus the Gulf of Oman and Arabian Gulf. Coalescence analyses indicated these two regions have been isolated for > 800,000 years. Main conclusions: Our results indicate historical disruption to gene flow and a contemporary dispersal barrier in the Arabian Sea, which C. hemistiktos larvae are unable to effectively traverse. This provides yet another example of a (cryptic) species with high dispersive potential whose range is delimited by a lack of suitable habitat between locations or an inability to successfully recruit at the range edge. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Predictable pollution: an assessment of weather balloons and associated impacts on the marine environment--an example for the Great Barrier Reef, Australia.

Science.gov (United States)

O'Shea, Owen R; Hamann, Mark; Smith, Walter; Taylor, Heidi

2014-02-15

Efforts to curb pollution in the marine environment are covered by national and international legislation, yet weather balloons are released into the environment with no salvage agenda. Here, we assess impacts associated with weather balloons in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area (GBRWHA). We use modeling to assess the probability of ocean endpoints for released weather balloons and predict pathways post-release. In addition, we use 21 months of data from beach cleanup events to validate our results and assess the abundance and frequency of weather balloon fragments in the GBRWHA. We found between 65% and 70% of balloons land in the ocean and ocean currents largely determine final endpoints. Beach cleanup data revealed 2460 weather balloon fragments were recovered from 24 sites within the GBRWHA. This is the first attempt to quantify this problem and these data will add support to a much-needed mitigation strategy for weather balloon waste. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Comparative analysis of marine paleogene sections and biota from West Siberia and the Arctic Region

Science.gov (United States)

Akhmet'ev, M. A.; Zaporozhets, N. I.; Iakovleva, A. I.; Aleksandrova, G. N.; Beniamovsky, V. N.; Oreshkina, T. V.; Gnibidenko, Z. N.; Dolya, Zh. A.

2010-12-01

The analysis of the main biospheric events that took place in West Siberia and the Arctic region during the Early Paleogene revealed the paleogeographic and paleobiogeographic unity of marine sedimentation basins and close biogeographic relations between their separate parts. Most biotic and abiotic events of the first half of the Paleogene in the Arctic region and West Siberia were synchronous, unidirectional, and interrelated. Shelf settings, sedimentation breaks, and microfaunal assemblages characteristic of these basins during the Paleogene are compared. The comparative analysis primarily concerned events of the Paleocene-Eocene thermal maximum (PETM) and beds with Azolla (aquatic fern). The formation of the Eocene Azolla Beds in the Arctic region and West Siberia was asynchronous, although it proceeded in line with a common scenario related to the development of a system of estuarine-type currents in a sea basin partly isolated from the World Ocean.
User's Guide and Metadata to Coastal Biodiversity Risk Analysis Tool (CBRAT): Framework for the Systemization of Life History and Biogeographic Information

Science.gov (United States)

ABSTRACTUser’s Guide & Metadata to Coastal Biodiversity Risk Analysis Tool (CBRAT): Framework for the Systemization of Life History and Biogeographic Information(EPA/601/B-15/001, 2015, 123 pages)Henry Lee II, U.S. EPA, Western Ecology DivisionKatharine Marko, U.S. EPA,...
Reef Sharks Exhibit Site-Fidelity and Higher Relative Abundance in Marine Reserves on the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef

Science.gov (United States)

Bond, Mark E.; Babcock, Elizabeth A.; Pikitch, Ellen K.; Abercrombie, Debra L.; Lamb, Norlan F.; Chapman, Demian D.

2012-01-01

Carcharhinid sharks can make up a large fraction of the top predators inhabiting tropical marine ecosystems and have declined in many regions due to intense fishing pressure. There is some support for the hypothesis that carcharhinid species that complete their life-cycle within coral reef ecosystems, hereafter referred to as “reef sharks”, are more abundant inside no-take marine reserves due to a reduction in fishing pressure (i.e., they benefit from marine reserves). Key predictions of this hypothesis are that (a) individual reef sharks exhibit high site-fidelity to these protected areas and (b) their relative abundance will generally be higher in these areas compared to fished reefs. To test this hypothesis for the first time in Caribbean coral reef ecosystems we combined acoustic monitoring and baited remote underwater video (BRUV) surveys to measure reef shark site-fidelity and relative abundance, respectively. We focused on the Caribbean reef shark (Carcharhinus perezi), the most common reef shark in the Western Atlantic, at Glover's Reef Marine Reserve (GRMR), Belize. Acoustically tagged sharks (N = 34) were detected throughout the year at this location and exhibited strong site-fidelity. Shark presence or absence on 200 BRUVs deployed at GRMR and three other sites (another reserve site and two fished reefs) showed that the factor “marine reserve” had a significant positive effect on reef shark presence. We rejected environmental factors or site-environment interactions as predominant drivers of this pattern. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that marine reserves can benefit reef shark populations and we suggest new hypotheses to determine the underlying mechanism(s) involved: reduced fishing mortality or enhanced prey availability. PMID:22412965
Regional differentiation and post-glacial expansion of the Atlantic silverside, Menidia menidia, an annual fish with high dispersal potential

OpenAIRE

Mach, Megan E.; Sbrocco, Elizabeth J.; Hice, Lyndie A.; Duffy, Tara A.; Conover, David O.; Barber, Paul H.

2010-01-01

The coastal marine environment of the Northwest Atlantic contains strong environmental gradients that create distinct marine biogeographic provinces by limiting dispersal, recruitment, and survival. This region has also been subjected to numerous Pleistocene glacial cycles, resulting in repeated extirpations and recolonizations in northern populations of marine organisms. In this study, we examined patterns of genetic structure and historical demography in the Atlantic silverside, Menidia men...
Community Structure of Leaf-Litter Ants in a Neotropical Dry Forest: A Biogeographic Approach to Explain Betadiversity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rogério Silvestre

2012-01-01

Full Text Available This paper describes habitat and geographic correlates of ant diversity in Serra da Bodoquena, a poorly surveyed region of central-western Brazil. We discuss leaf-litter ant diversity on a regional scale, with emphasis on the contribution of each of the processes that form the evolutionary basis of contemporary beta diversity. The diversity of leaf-litter ants was assessed from a series of 262 Winkler samples conducted in two microbasins within a deciduous forest domain. A total of 170 litter-dwelling ant species in 45 genera and 11 subfamilies was identified. The data showed that the study areas exhibited different arrangements of ant fauna, with a high turnover in species composition between sites, indicating high beta diversity. Our analysis suggests that the biogeographic history of this tropical dry forest in the centre of South America could explain ant assemblage structure more than competitive dominance. The co-occurrence analysis showed that species co-occur less often than expected by chance in only two of the localities, suggesting that, for most of the species, co-occurrences are random. The assessment of the structure of the diversity of litter-dwelling ants is the first step in understanding the beta diversity patterns in this region of great biogeographic importance.
The potential for a fish ladder to mitigate against the loss of marine ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2013-05-21

May 21, 2013 ... These often form impenetrable barriers to free movement of aquatic fauna in rivers, with consequent ecological implica- tions. Impacts on migratory fish species are the most studied. Best documented are cases involving anadromous salmonids which undergo mass migrations from marine waters to spawn-.

Scenarios for potential radionuclide release from marine reactors dumped in the Kara Sea

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lynn, N.; Mount, M.; Gussgard, K.

1995-01-01

The largest inventory of radioactive materials dumped in the Kara Sea by the former Soviet Union comes from the spent nuclear fuel (SNF) of seven marine reactors, the current (1994) inventory of which makes a total of approximately 4.7x10 15 Bq. In progressing its work for the International Arctic Seas Assessment Project, under the auspices of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the Source Term Working Group has analysed the Source Term and subsequently developed a number of model scenarios for the potential release patterns of radionuclides into the Kara Sea from the SNF and activated components dumped within the marine reactors.These models are based on the present and future conditions of the barrier materials and their configuration within the dumped objects. They account for progressive corrosion of the outer and inner steel barriers, breakdown of the organic fillers, and degradation and leaching from the SNFs. Annual release rates are predicted to four thousand years into the future. 5 refs., 1 fig., 1 tab
The “potato road” and biogeographic history of potato cyst nematode populations from different continents

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Or Violeta

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The general opinion about the introduction of potato in Europe is the one regarding the direction from South America to Spain and subsequent distribution to other continents. Some historical data point out an alternative road. The potato spread from its place of origin to other continents in the light of parasite-host relationship, relying on nematode molecular data, is discussed in the present work. Biogeographic history of potato cyst nematode populations from different continents is in congruence with historical records. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. TR 31018 i br. III 46007
Global change and marine communities: Alien species and climate change

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Occhipinti-Ambrogi, Anna

2007-01-01

Anthropogenic influences on the biosphere since the advent of the industrial age are increasingly causing global changes. Climatic change and the rising concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere are ranking high in scientific and public agendas, and other components of global change are also frequently addressed, among which are the introductions of non indigenous species (NIS) in biogeographic regions well separated from the donor region, often followed by spectacular invasions. In the marine environment, both climatic change and spread of alien species have been studied extensively; this review is aimed at examining the main responses of ecosystems to climatic change, taking into account the increasing importance of biological invasions. Some general principles on NIS introductions in the marine environment are recalled, such as the importance of propagule pressure and of development stages during the time course of an invasion. Climatic change is known to affect many ecological properties; it interacts also with NIS in many possible ways. Direct (proximate) effects on individuals and populations of altered physical-chemical conditions are distinguished from indirect effects on emergent properties (species distribution, diversity, and production). Climatically driven changes may affect both local dispersal mechanisms, due to the alteration of current patterns, and competitive interactions between NIS and native species, due to the onset of new thermal optima and/or different carbonate chemistry. As well as latitudinal range expansions of species correlated with changing temperature conditions, and effects on species richness and the correlated extinction of native species, some invasions may provoke multiple effects which involve overall ecosystem functioning (material flow between trophic groups, primary production, relative extent of organic material decomposition, extent of benthic-pelagic coupling). Some examples are given, including a special
Climate-driven changes in functional biogeography of Arctic marine fish communities.

Science.gov (United States)

Frainer, André; Primicerio, Raul; Kortsch, Susanne; Aune, Magnus; Dolgov, Andrey V; Fossheim, Maria; Aschan, Michaela M

2017-11-14

Climate change triggers poleward shifts in species distribution leading to changes in biogeography. In the marine environment, fish respond quickly to warming, causing community-wide reorganizations, which result in profound changes in ecosystem functioning. Functional biogeography provides a framework to address how ecosystem functioning may be affected by climate change over large spatial scales. However, there are few studies on functional biogeography in the marine environment, and none in the Arctic, where climate-driven changes are most rapid and extensive. We investigated the impact of climate warming on the functional biogeography of the Barents Sea, which is characterized by a sharp zoogeographic divide separating boreal from Arctic species. Our unique dataset covered 52 fish species, 15 functional traits, and 3,660 stations sampled during the recent warming period. We found that the functional traits characterizing Arctic fish communities, mainly composed of small-sized bottom-dwelling benthivores, are being rapidly replaced by traits of incoming boreal species, particularly the larger, longer lived, and more piscivorous species. The changes in functional traits detected in the Arctic can be predicted based on the characteristics of species expected to undergo quick poleward shifts in response to warming. These are the large, generalist, motile species, such as cod and haddock. We show how functional biogeography can provide important insights into the relationship between species composition, diversity, ecosystem functioning, and environmental drivers. This represents invaluable knowledge in a period when communities and ecosystems experience rapid climate-driven changes across biogeographical regions. Copyright © 2017 the Author(s). Published by PNAS.
Dominance has a biogeographical component: do plants tend to exert stronger impacts in their invaded rather than native range?

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Hejda, Martin; Štajerová, Kateřina; Pyšek, Petr

2017-01-01

Roč. 44, č. 1 (2017), s. 18-27 ISSN 0305-0270 R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GAP505/11/1112 Grant - others:AV ČR(CZ) AP1002 Program:Akademická prémie - Praemium Academiae Institutional support: RVO:67985939 Keywords : dominance * biogeographic approach * invasion Subject RIV: EH - Ecology, Behaviour OBOR OECD: Ecology Impact factor: 4.248, year: 2016
Mind the Gap: furthering the development of EU-US collaboration in marine geoscience.

Science.gov (United States)

Glaves, H.; Miller, S.; Schaap, D.

2012-04-01

There is a large and ever increasing amount of marine geological and geophysical data available throughout Europe, the USA and beyond. The challenges associated with the acquisition of this data mean that the cost of collecting it is very high and there is therefore a need to maximise the potential re-use of this data wherever possible. Facilitating this is becoming an increasingly important aspect of marine geosciences data management as the need for marine data increases at a time when the financial resources for data acquisition are being dramatically reduced. A significant barrier to the re-use of marine geoscience data is the variety of different formats, standards, vocabularies etc which have been used by the various organisations engaged with the collection and management of marine geosciences data at a regional, national and international scale. This is also proving to be a barrier to the development of interoperability with other data types at a time when there is a need to develop a more holistic approach to marine research. These challenges are currently being addressed within Europe by a number of EU funded initiatives, the objectives of which are an improvement in the discovery and access to marine data. The Geo-Seas project is just one of these initiatives, the focus of which is the development of an e-infrastructure for the delivery of standardised marine geological and geophysical data across Europe. The project is developing this e-infrastructure by adopting and adapting the methodologies of the SeaDataNet project which currently provides an e-infrastructure for the management of oceanographic data. This re-use of the existing technologies has lead to the development a joint multidisciplinary e-infrastructure for the delivery or both geoscientific and oceanographic data. In order to expand these initiatives further and bridge the gap between these European projects and those being undertaken by colleagues in both the US and elsewhere a number of
Improving the implementation of marine monitoring in the northeast Atlantic.

Science.gov (United States)

Turrell, W R

2018-03-01

Marine monitoring in the northeast Atlantic is delivered within identifiable monitoring themes, established through time and defined by the geographical area and policy drivers they serve, the sampling methodologies they use, their assessment methodologies, their funding and governance structures and the people or organisations involved in their implementation. Within a monitoring theme, essential components for effective monitoring are governance, strategy and work plan, sampling protocols, quality assurance, and data and assessment structures. This simple framework is used to analyse two monitoring theme case studies; national ecosystem health monitoring, and regional fish stock monitoring. Such essential component analyses, within marine monitoring themes, can help improve monitoring implementation by identifying gaps and overlaps. Once monitoring themes are recognised, explicitly defined and streamlined, travel towards integrated monitoring may be made easier as the current lack of clarity in thematic marine monitoring implementation is one barrier to integration at both national and regional scales. Copyright © 2018 The Author. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.
Deconstructing the mammal species richness pattern in Europe - towards and understanding of the relative importance of climate, biogeographic history, habitat heterogeneity and humans

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fløjgaard, Camilla; Normand, Signe; Skov, Flemming

2011-01-01

partitioning to assess the importance of macroclimate and HHH variables. The HHH variables included two historical factors, estimated by novel methodologies: (1) ice-age-driven dynamics, represented by accessibility to recolonization from hindcasting-estimated glacial refugia, and (2) biogeographic peninsular...
The potential for a fish ladder to mitigate against the loss of marine ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Increasing water demand in coastal regions has resulted in the construction of weirs and barrages in coastal freshwaters. These form barriers to migrations of estuarine and euryhaline marine fishes and crustaceans. This study assessed the impact of loss of marine–estuarine–freshwater connectivity caused by a weir at the ...
Decadal-Scale Forecasting of Climate Drivers for Marine Applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Salinger, J; Hobday, A J; Matear, R J; O'Kane, T J; Risbey, J S; Dunstan, P; Eveson, J P; Fulton, E A; Feng, M; Plagányi, É E; Poloczanska, E S; Marshall, A G; Thompson, P A

Climate influences marine ecosystems on a range of time scales, from weather-scale (days) through to climate-scale (hundreds of years). Understanding of interannual to decadal climate variability and impacts on marine industries has received less attention. Predictability up to 10 years ahead may come from large-scale climate modes in the ocean that can persist over these time scales. In Australia the key drivers of climate variability affecting the marine environment are the Southern Annular Mode, the Indian Ocean Dipole, the El Niño/Southern Oscillation, and the Interdecadal Pacific Oscillation, each has phases that are associated with different ocean circulation patterns and regional environmental variables. The roles of these drivers are illustrated with three case studies of extreme events-a marine heatwave in Western Australia, a coral bleaching of the Great Barrier Reef, and flooding in Queensland. Statistical and dynamical approaches are described to generate forecasts of climate drivers that can subsequently be translated to useful information for marine end users making decisions at these time scales. Considerable investment is still needed to support decadal forecasting including improvement of ocean-atmosphere models, enhancement of observing systems on all scales to support initiation of forecasting models, collection of important biological data, and integration of forecasts into decision support tools. Collaboration between forecast developers and marine resource sectors-fisheries, aquaculture, tourism, biodiversity management, infrastructure-is needed to support forecast-based tactical and strategic decisions that reduce environmental risk over annual to decadal time scales. © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Modelling the fate of marine debris along a complex shoreline: Lessons from the Great Barrier Reef

Science.gov (United States)

Critchell, K.; Grech, A.; Schlaefer, J.; Andutta, F. P.; Lambrechts, J.; Wolanski, E.; Hamann, M.

2015-12-01

The accumulation of floating anthropogenic debris in marine and coastal areas has environmental, economic, aesthetic, and human health impacts. Until now, modelling the transport of such debris has largely been restricted to the large-scales of open seas. We used oceanographic modelling to identify potential sites of debris accumulation along a rugged coastline with headlands, islands, rocky coasts and beaches. Our study site was the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area that has an emerging problem with debris accumulation. We found that the classical techniques of modelling the transport of floating debris models are only moderately successful due to a number of unknowns or assumptions, such as the value of the wind drift coefficient, the variability of the oceanic forcing and of the wind, the resuspension of some floating debris by waves, and the poorly known relative contribution of floating debris from urban rivers and commercial and recreational shipping. Nevertheless the model was successful in reproducing a number of observations such as the existence of hot spots of accumulation. The orientation of beaches to the prevailing wind direction affected the accumulation rate of debris. The wind drift coefficient and the exact timing of the release of the debris at sea affected little the movement of debris originating from rivers but it affected measurably that of debris originating from ships. It was thus possible to produce local hotspot maps for floating debris, especially those originating from rivers. Such modelling can be used to inform local management decisions, and it also identifies likely priority research areas to more reliably predict the trajectory and landing points of floating debris.
Relative sea level and coastal environments in arctic Alaska during Marine Isotope Stage 5

Science.gov (United States)

Farquharson, L. M.; Mann, D. H.; Jones, B. M.; Rittenour, T. M.; Grosse, G.; Groves, P.

2015-12-01

Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 5 was characterized by marked fluctuations in climate, the warmest being MIS 5e (124-119 ka) when relative sea level (RSL) stood 2-10 m higher than today along many coastlines. In northern Alaska, marine deposits now 5-10 m above modern sea level are assigned to this time period and termed the Pelukian transgression (PT). Complicating this interpretation is the possibility that an intra-Stage 5 ice shelf extended along the Alaskan coast, causing isostatic depression along its grounded margins, which caused RSL highs even during periods of low, global RSL. Here we use optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) to date inferred PT deposits on the Beaufort Sea coastal plain. A transition from what we interpret to be lagoonal mud to sandy tidal flat deposits lying ~ 2.75 m asl dates to 113+/-18 ka. Above this, a 5-m thick gravelly barrier beach dates to 95 +/- 20 ka. This beach contains well-preserved marine molluscs, whale vertebrae, and walrus tusks. Pleistocene-aged ice-rich eolian silt (yedoma) blanket the marine deposits and date to 57.6 +/-10.9 ka. Our interpretation of this chronostratigraphy is that RSL was several meters higher than today during MIS 5e, and lagoons or brackish lakes were prevalent. Gravel barrier beaches moved onshore as local RSL rose further after MIS 5e. The error range of the OSL age of the barrier-beach unit spans the remaining four substages of MIS 5; however, the highstand of RSL on this arctic coastline appears to occurr after the warmest part of the last interglacial and appears not to be coeval with the eustatic maximum reached at lower latitudes during MIS 5. One possibility is that RSL along the Beaufort Sea coast was affected by isostatic depression caused by an ice shelf associated with widespread, intra-Stage 5 glaciation that was out of phase with lower latitude glaciation and whose extent and timing remains enigmatic.
Why do we need to integrate population genetics into South African ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

South Africa is home to a wide variety of marine flora and fauna distributed over at least three biogeographic provinces. Currently, 9% of the coastline is protected by 'no-take' marine protected areas (MPAs), but the distribution of MPAs is uneven between regions. This paper argues that in order for an MPA network to be ...
Marine biodiversity in South Africa: an evaluation of current states of knowledge.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Charles L Griffiths

Full Text Available Continental South Africa has a coastline of some 3,650 km and an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ of just over 1 million km(2. Waters in the EEZ extend to a depth of 5,700 m, with more than 65% deeper than 2,000 m. Despite its status as a developing nation, South Africa has a relatively strong history of marine taxonomic research and maintains comprehensive and well-curated museum collections totaling over 291,000 records. Over 3 million locality records from more than 23,000 species have been lodged in the regional AfrOBIS (African Ocean Biogeographic Information System data center (which stores data from a wider African region. A large number of regional guides to the marine fauna and flora are also available and are listed. The currently recorded marine biota of South Africa numbers at least 12,914 species, although many taxa, particularly those of small body size, remain poorly documented. The coastal zone is relatively well sampled with some 2,500 samples of benthic invertebrate communities have been taken by grab, dredge, or trawl. Almost none of these samples, however, were collected after 1980, and over 99% of existing samples are from depths shallower than 1,000 m--indeed 83% are from less than 100 m. The abyssal zone thus remains almost completely unexplored. South Africa has a fairly large industrial fishing industry, of which the largest fisheries are the pelagic (pilchard and anchovy and demersal (hake sectors, both focused on the west and south coasts. The east coast has fewer, smaller commercial fisheries, but a high coastal population density, resulting in intense exploitation of inshore resources by recreational and subsistence fishers, and this has resulted in the overexploitation of many coastal fish and invertebrate stocks. South Africa has a small aquaculture industry rearing mussels, oysters, prawns, and abalone-the latter two in land-based facilities. Compared with many other developing countries, South Africa has a well
Marine alien species as an aspect of global change

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anna Occhipinti-Ambrogi

2010-06-01

Full Text Available The transport of organisms across oceans is an anthropogenic agent of global change that has profoundly affected the natural distribution of littoral biota and altered the makeup of biogeographic regions. The homogenization of marine biotas is a phenomenon especially affecting coastal regions and is spearheaded by a suite of opportunistic species at the expense of native species. Climate change may exacerbate the trend: sea surface temperatures, hydrodynamics, pH and carbonate cycles, already show marked fluctuations compared to the past. Alien invasive species are impacted by the change of marine climate in a variety of ways, which are we have just begun to notice, observe and interpret. A conceptual framework has yet to be conceived that links theories on biological introductions and invasions with the physical aspects of global change. Therefore predicting the scale of invasions or their impact on biodiversity is a daunting task. Integration of biological and environmental information systems, niche models, and climate projections would improve management of aquatic ecosystems under the dual threats of biotic invasions and climate change. The recorded spread of alien species and analysis of patterns of invasions may serve as the starting point for searching connections with climate change descriptors. The Mediterranean Sea is home to an exceptionally large number of alien species, resulting from its exceptional history and multiple vectors. For much of the twentieth century alien thermophilic species, which had entered the Mediterranean through the Suez Canal, have been confined to the Levantine Basin. In recent years climate driven hydrographic changes have coincided with a pronounced expansion of alien thermophilic biota to the central and western basins of the Mediterranean. We discuss some changes in emergent functions and services in Mediterranean ecosystems under the combined effect of invasive species and climate changes.
Macroevolutionary patterns in the Aphidini aphids (Hemiptera: Aphididae: diversification, host association, and biogeographic origins.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hyojoong Kim

Full Text Available Due to its biogeographic origins and rapid diversification, understanding the tribe Aphidini is key to understanding aphid evolution. Major questions about aphid evolution include origins of host alternation as well as age and patterns of diversification in relation to host plants. To address these questions, we reconstructed the phylogeny of the Aphidini which contains Aphis, the most diverse genus in the family. We used a combined dataset of one nuclear and four mitochondrial DNA regions. A molecular dating approach, calibrated with fossil records, was used to estimate divergence times of these taxa.Most generic divergences in Aphidini occurred in the Middle Tertiary, and species-level divergences occurred between the Middle and Late Tertiary. The ancestral state of host use for Aphidini was equivocal with respect to three states: monoecy on trees, heteroecy, and monoecy on grasses. The ancestral state of Rhopalosiphina likely included both heteroecy and monoecy, whereas that of Aphidina was most likely monoecy. The divergence times of aphid lineages at the generic or subgeneric levels are close to those of their primary hosts. The species-level divergences in aphids are consistent with the diversification of the secondary hosts, as a few examples suggest. The biogeographic origin of Aphidini as a whole was equivocal, but the major lineages within Aphidina likely separated into Nearctic, Western Palearctic, and Eastern Palearctic regions.Most generic divergences in Aphidini occurred in the Middle Tertiary when primary hosts, mainly in the Rosaceae, were diverging, whereas species-level divergences were contemporaneous with diversification of the secondary hosts such as Poaceae in the Middle to Late Tertiary. Our results suggest that evolution of host alternation within Aphidini may have occurred during the Middle Tertiary (Oligocene when the secondary hosts emerged.
An extinct Eocene taxon of the daisy family (Asteraceae): evolutionary, ecological and biogeographical implications.

Science.gov (United States)

Barreda, Viviana D; Palazzesi, Luis; Katinas, Liliana; Crisci, Jorge V; Tellería, María C; Bremer, Kåre; Passalia, Mauro G; Passala, Mauro G; Bechis, Florencia; Corsolini, Rodolfo

2012-01-01

Morphological, molecular and biogeographical information bearing on early evolution of the sunflower alliance of families suggests that the clade containing the extant daisy family (Asteraceae) differentiated in South America during the Eocene, although palaeontological studies on this continent failed to reveal conclusive support for this hypothesis. Here we describe in detail Raiguenrayun cura gen. & sp. nov., an exceptionally well preserved capitulescence of Asteraceae recovered from Eocene deposits of northwestern Patagonia, Argentina. The fossil was collected from the 47·5 million-year-old Huitrera Formation at the Estancia Don Hipólito locality, Río Negro Province, Argentina. The arrangement of the capitula in a cymose capitulescence, the many-flowered capitula with multiseriate-imbricate involucral bracts and the pappus-like structures indicate a close morphological relationship with Asteraceae. Raiguenrayun cura and the associated pollen Mutisiapollis telleriae do not match exactly any living member of the family, and clearly represent extinct taxa. They share a mosaic of morphological features today recognized in taxa phylogenetically close to the root of Asteraceae, such as Stifftieae, Wunderlichioideae and Gochnatieae (Mutisioideae sensu lato) and Dicomeae and Oldenburgieae (Carduoideae), today endemic to or mainly distributed in South America and Africa, respectively. This is the first fossil genus of Asteraceae based on an outstandingly preserved capitulescence that might represent the ancestor of Mutisioideae-Carduoideae. It might have evolved in southern South America some time during the early Palaeogene and subsequently entered Africa, before the biogeographical isolation of these continents became much more pronounced. The new fossil represents the first reliable point for calibration, favouring an earlier date to the split between Barnadesioideae and the rest of Asteraceae than previously thought, which can be traced back at least 47·5
Port Blair declaration pledged to establish and develop Andaman and Nicobar Ocean Biogeographic Information System - Meeting report

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Chavan, V.S.; Achuthankutty, C.T.; Nazar, A.K.A.

to implement such an inform a tion system, and monitor the progress of ANOBIS. The task force would comprise of techn i cal and da ta - management representatives from pa r - ticipating institutions, and would ensure seamless establishment and development... Declaration pledged to establish and develop Andaman and Nicobar Ocean Biogeographic Information Sy s tem* T he Andaman and Nicobar (A&N) I s- lands are located in the Indian Ocean, in the southern reaches of the Bay of Be n gal. The Andaman Sea...
Development of the Red Sea Biogeographic Information System

KAUST Repository

Machda, Fahmi; Ichim-Moreno, Norú ; Utomo, Chandra Prasetyo; Voolstra, Christian R.

2010-01-01

Marine studies, surveys, and observational activities are continuously generating new and diverse data, which are hard to keep track of with tables and spreadsheets. Integrated data and information management systems that collect, analyze
Social Resilience and Commercial Fishers' Responses to Management Changes in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stephen G. Sutton

2012-09-01

Full Text Available Understanding how social resilience influences resource users' responses to policy change is important for ensuring the sustainability of social-ecological systems and resource-dependent communities. We use the conceptualization and operationalization of social resilience proposed by Marshall and Marshall (2007 to investigate how resilience level influenced commercial fishers' perceptions about and adaptation to the 2004 rezoning of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. We conducted face-to-face interviews with 114 commercial and charter fishers to measure their social resilience level and their responses and adaptation strategies to the 2004 zoning plan. Fishers with higher resilience were more likely to believe that the zoning plan was necessary, more likely to be supportive of the plan, and more likely to have adapted their fishing business and fishing activity to the plan than were fishers with lower social resilience. High-resilience fishers were also less likely to perceive negative impacts of the plan on their fishing business, less likely to have negative attitudes toward the consultation process used to develop and implement the plan, and less likely to have applied for financial compensation under the structural adjustment program. Results confirm the utility of the social resilience construct for identifying fishers who are likely to be vulnerable to changes, and those who are struggling to cope with change events. We conclude that managing for social resilience in the GBR would aid in the design and implementation of policies that minimize the impacts on resource users and lead to more inclusive and sustainable management, but that further research is necessary to better understand social resilience, how it can be fostered and sustained, and how it can be effectively incorporated into management.

Latitudinal variation in the reproductive cycle of two bivalves with contrasting biogeographical origin along the Humboldt Current Upwelling Ecosystem

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roberto A. Uribe

2012-10-01

Full Text Available Argopecten purpuratus (Lamarck, 1819 and Mesodesma donacium (Lamarck, 1818 are bivalves that inhabit the Humboldt Current Upwelling Ecosystem. They have contrasting biogeographical origins, suggesting that their responses to exogenous factors should differ. Using circular statistics, we examine synchrony/asynchrony in the reproductive cycle between populations of each species. The results indicate that there is reproductive asynchrony in both species along their distributional range. However, there was synchrony for A. purpuratus in several location-pairs, including Paita-Chimbote, Chimbote-Callao, Callao-Pisco and Pisco-Antofagasta. For M. donacium, there were only two synchronic groups: Camaná-Capellanía-Mehuín and Hornitos-Peñuelas-Longotoma-La Ligua-Cucao-Quilanlar. A. purpuratus showed gametogenenic activity throughout the year. In contrast, M. donacium showed strong seasonality, with gametogenesis in winter and spawning in spring/summer. In conclusion, the patterns observed for these sympatric species suggest that on a large scale the reproductive cycles follow the expected patterns for the contrasting biogeographic origin of each species, so it could be argued that they are modulated by endogenous factors. However, at a local scale, the reproductive cycles of these species show variation, likely determined by local oceanographic or hydrographic processes.
The biogeographic origin of a radiation of trees in Madagascar: implications for the assembly of a tropical forest biome.

Science.gov (United States)

Federman, Sarah; Dornburg, Alex; Downie, Alexander; Richard, Alison F; Daly, Douglas C; Donoghue, Michael J

2015-10-05

Madagascar's rain forests are characterized by extreme and uneven patterns of species richness and endemicity, the biogeographic and evolutionary origins of which are poorly understood. Here we use a time-calibrated phylogeny of a dominant group of trees in Madagascar's eastern rain forests, Canarium, and related Burseraceae (Canarieae), to test biogeographic hypotheses regarding the origin and radiation of the flora of this unique biome. Our findings strongly support the monophyly of Malagasy Canarium, suggesting that this clade represents a previously undocumented in situ radiation. Contrary to expectations of dispersal from Africa during the Oligocene, concurrent with the formation of Madagascar's rain forest biome, our analyses support a late Miocene origin for Malagasy Canarium, probably by long distance dispersal from Southeast Asia. Our study illustrates the importance of considering long distance dispersal as a viable explanation for clades with pantropical distributions diversifying subsequent to the Oligocene, and it highlights the formation of the Indo-Australian Archipelago and associated fast-moving equatorial surface currents, suggesting an under-appreciated evolutionary link among tropical centers of endemism. We postulate that the relatively recent establishment and radiation of Canarium in Madagascar may have been facilitated by the highly stochastic climates associated with these forest ecosystems.
Prezygotic barriers to hybridization in marine broadcast spawners: reproductive timing and mating system variation.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carla A Monteiro

Full Text Available Sympatric assemblages of congeners with incomplete reproductive barriers offer the opportunity to study the roles that ecological and non-ecological factors play in reproductive isolation. While interspecific asynchrony in gamete release and gametic incompatibility are known prezygotic barriers to hybridization, the role of mating system variation has been emphasized in plants. Reproductive isolation between the sibling brown algal species Fucus spiralis, Fucus guiryi (selfing hermaphrodite and Fucus vesiculosus (dioecious was studied because they form hybrids in parapatry in the rocky intertidal zone, maintain species integrity over a broad geographic range, and have contrasting mating systems. We compared reproductive synchrony (spawning overlap between the three species at several temporal scales (yearly/seasonal, semilunar/tidal, and hourly during single tides. Interspecific patterns of egg release were coincident at seasonal (single peak in spring to early summer to semilunar timescales. Synthesis of available data indicated that spawning is controlled by semidiurnal tidal and daily light-dark cues, and not directly by semilunar cycles. Importantly, interspecific shifts in timing detected at the hourly scale during single tides were consistent with a partial ecological prezygotic hybridization barrier. The species displayed patterns of gamete release consistent with a power law distribution, indicating a high degree of reproductive synchrony, while the hypothesis of weaker selective constraints for synchrony in selfing versus outcrossing species was supported by observed spawning in hermaphrodites over a broader range of tidal phase than in outcrossers. Synchronous gamete release is critical to the success of external fertilization, while high-energy intertidal environments may offer only limited windows of reproductive opportunity. Within these windows, however, subtle variations in reproductive timing have evolved with the potential to
Investigating biogeographic boundaries of the Sunda shelf: A phylogenetic analysis of two island populations of Macaca fascicularis.

Science.gov (United States)

Klegarth, A R; Sanders, S A; Gloss, A D; Lane-deGraaf, K E; Jones-Engel, L; Fuentes, A; Hollocher, H

2017-08-01

Cyclical submergence and re-emergence of the Sunda Shelf throughout the Pleistocene served as a dynamic biogeographic landscape, across which long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis) have migrated and evolved. Here, we tested the integrity of the previously reported continental-insular haplotype divide reported among Y and mitochondrial DNA lineages across multiple studies. The continental-insular haplotype divide was tested by heavily sampling wild macaques from two important biogeographic regions within Sundaland: (1) Singapore, the southernmost tip of continental Asia and (2) Bali, Indonesia, the southeastern edge of the Indonesian archipelago, immediately west of Wallace's line. Y DNA was haplotyped for samples from Bali, deep within the Indonesian archipelago. Mitochondrial D-loop from both islands was analyzed against existing data using Maximum Likelihood and Bayesian approaches. We uncovered both "continental" and "insular" Y DNA haplotypes in Bali. Between Singapore and Bali we found 52 unique mitochondrial haplotypes, none of which had been previously described. Phylogenetic analyses confirmed a major haplogroup division within Singapore and identified five new Singapore subclades and two primary subclades in Bali. While we confirmed the continental-insular divide among mtDNA haplotypes, maintenance of both Y DNA haplotypes on Bali, deep within the Indonesian archipelago calls into question the mechanism by which Y DNA diversity has been maintained. It also suggests the continental-insular designation is less appropriate for Y DNA, leading us to propose geographically neutral Y haplotype designations. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Epilithic Cyanobacterial Communities of a Marine Tropical Beach Rock (Heron Island, Great Barrier Reef): Diversity and Diazotrophy▿

Science.gov (United States)

Díez, Beatriz; Bauer, Karolina; Bergman, Birgitta

2007-01-01

The diversity and nitrogenase activity of epilithic marine microbes in a Holocene beach rock (Heron Island, Great Barrier Reef, Australia) with a proposed biological calcification “microbialite” origin were examined. Partial 16S rRNA gene sequences from the dominant mat (a coherent and layered pink-pigmented community spread over the beach rock) and biofilms (nonstratified, differently pigmented microbial communities of small shallow depressions) were retrieved using denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE), and a clone library was retrieved from the dominant mat. The 16S rRNA gene sequences and morphological analyses revealed heterogeneity in the cyanobacterial distribution patterns. The nonheterocystous filamentous genus Blennothrix sp., phylogenetically related to Lyngbya, dominated the mat together with unidentified nonheterocystous filaments of members of the Pseudanabaenaceae and the unicellular genus Chroococcidiopsis. The dominance and three-dimensional intertwined distribution of these organisms were confirmed by nonintrusive scanning microscopy. In contrast, the less pronounced biofilms were dominated by the heterocystous cyanobacterial genus Calothrix, two unicellular Entophysalis morphotypes, Lyngbya spp., and members of the Pseudanabaenaceae family. Cytophaga-Flavobacterium-Bacteroides and Alphaproteobacteria phylotypes were also retrieved from the beach rock. The microbial diversity of the dominant mat was accompanied by high nocturnal nitrogenase activities (as determined by in situ acetylene reduction assays). A new DGGE nifH gene optimization approach for cyanobacterial nitrogen fixers showed that the sequences retrieved from the dominant mat were related to nonheterocystous uncultured cyanobacterial phylotypes, only distantly related to sequences of nitrogen-fixing cultured cyanobacteria. These data stress the occurrence and importance of nonheterocystous epilithic cyanobacteria, and it is hypothesized that such epilithic cyanobacteria
The Australian Integrated Marine Observing System

Science.gov (United States)

Proctor, R.; Meyers, G.; Roughan, M.; Operators, I.

2008-12-01

currents and water properties (Moorings, Ocean Gliders and HF Radar) and three for coastal ecosystems (Acoustic Tagging and Tracking, Autonomous Underwater Vehicle and a biophysical sensor network on the Great Barrier Reef). The value from this infrastructure investment lies in the coordinated deployment of a wide range of equipment aimed at deriving critical data sets that serve multiple applications. Additional information on IMOS is available at the website (http://www.imos.org.au). The IMOS Operators are Australian Institute of Marine Science, James Cook University, Sydney Institute of Marine Science, Geoscience Australia, Bureau of Meteorology, South Australia Research and Development Institute, University of Western Australia, Curtin University of Technology, CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research, University of Tasmania.
Phylogenetic structure in tropical hummingbird communities

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Graham, Catherine H; Parra, Juan L; Rahbek, Carsten

2009-01-01

How biotic interactions, current and historical environment, and biogeographic barriers determine community structure is a fundamental question in ecology and evolution, especially in diverse tropical regions. To evaluate patterns of local and regional diversity, we quantified the phylogenetic...... composition of 189 hummingbird communities in Ecuador. We assessed how species and phylogenetic composition changed along environmental gradients and across biogeographic barriers. We show that humid, low-elevation communities are phylogenetically overdispersed (coexistence of distant relatives), a pattern...... that is consistent with the idea that competition influences the local composition of hummingbirds. At higher elevations communities are phylogenetically clustered (coexistence of close relatives), consistent with the expectation of environmental filtering, which may result from the challenge of sustaining...
Nanostructured superhydrophobic polysiloxane coating for high barrier and anticorrosion applications in marine environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Arukalam, Innocent O; Oguzie, Emeka E; Li, Ying

2018-02-15

The use of epoxy and polyurethane coatings as marine topcoats, have been influenced by their inherent high surface energy property which increases their affinity to water and microorganisms. Thus, their susceptibility to degradation is enhanced. Because of this defect, recently, nanostructured hydrophobic and superhydrophobic polysiloxane coatings are being preferred as topcoats. But the appropriate nanoparticle size and matrix:filler ratio which provide guide for the design of desired topcoats are scarcely available. In view of this, a series of hydrophobic and superhydrophobic coatings were prepared by sol-gel process based on perfluorodecyltrichlorosilane (FDTS), different nanoZnO particles and poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS):nanoZnO ratios. The liquid repellency, surface morphology and roughness of the coatings were conducted by use of contact angle goniometer, field emission scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy, respectively. Additionally, the electrochemical and salt spray corrosion tests were conducted. According to the results, modifications of the coatings showed that anticorrosion performance was considerably influenced by the surface properties which were dependent on nanoZnO size and PDMS:nanoZnO ratio. Remarkably, the optimum effect was observed on the superhydrophobic coating based on 30 nm ZnO and 1:1 ratio. This displayed highest anticorrosion performance, and is therefore recommended as a guide for the design of marine topcoats. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Biogeographical ancestry is associated with socioenvironmental conditions and infections in a Latin American urban population

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thiago Magalhães da Silva

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Racial inequalities are observed for different diseases and are mainly caused by differences in socioeconomic status between ethnoracial groups. Genetic factors have also been implicated, and recently, several studies have investigated the association between biogeographical ancestry (BGA and complex diseases. However, the role of BGA as a proxy for non-genetic health determinants has been little investigated. Similarly, studies comparing the association of BGA and self-reported skin colour with these determinants are scarce. Here, we report the association of BGA and self-reported skin colour with socioenvironmental conditions and infections. We studied 1246 children living in a Brazilian urban poor area. The BGA was estimated using 370,539 genome-wide autosomal markers. Standardised questionnaires were administered to the children’s guardians to evaluate socioenvironmental conditions. Infection (or pathogen exposure was defined by the presence of positive serologic test results for IgG to seven pathogens (Toxocara spp, Toxoplasma gondii, Helicobacter pylori, and hepatitis A, herpes simplex, herpes zoster and Epstein-Barr viruses and the presence of intestinal helminth eggs in stool samples (Ascaris lumbricoides and Trichiuris trichiura. African ancestry was negatively associated with maternal education and household income and positively associated with infections and variables, indicating poorer housing and living conditions. The self-reported skin colour was associated with infections only. In stratified analyses, the proportion of African ancestry was associated with most of the outcomes investigated, particularly among admixed individuals. In conclusion, BGA was associated with socioenvironmental conditions and infections even in a low-income and highly admixed population, capturing differences that self-reported skin colour miss. Importantly, our findings suggest caution in interpreting significant associations between BGA and diseases
CRABS IN CRISIS:BIOGEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTIONS, ABUNDANCES, AND VULNERABILITIES TO CLIMATE CHANGE OF BRACHYURAN AND LITHODID CRABS FROM THE GULF OF CALIFORNIA TO THE BEAUFORT SEA

Science.gov (United States)

To predict the relative vulnerability of near-coastal species to climate change we analyzed the biogeographic and abundance patterns of the brachyuran or ‘True’ crabs (n=368) and lithodid or ‘King’ crabs (n=20) that are found in the twelve MEOW (“Mar...
Chromosomal stasis in distinct families of marine Percomorpharia from South Atlantic.

Science.gov (United States)

Paim, Fabilene Gomes; Almeida, Leandro Aragão da Hora; Affonso, Paulo Roberto Antunes de Mello; Sobrinho-Scudeler, Patrícia Elda; Oliveira, Claudio; Diniz, Débora

2017-01-01

The weakness of physical barriers in the marine environment and the dispersal potential of fish populations have been invoked as explanations of the apparent karyotype stasis of marine Percomorpha, but several taxa remain poorly studied cytogenetically. To increase the chromosomal data in this fish group, we analyzed cytogenetically three widespread Atlantic species from distinct families: Chaetodipterus faber Broussonet, 1782 (Ephippidae), Lutjanus synagris Linnaeus, 1758 (Lutjanidae) and Rypticus randalli Courtenay, 1967 (Serranidae). The three species shared a karyotype composed of 2n=48 acrocentric chromosomes, single nucleolus organizer regions (NORs) and reduced amounts of centromeric heterochromatin. A single NOR-bearing pair was identified in all species by physical mapping of 18S rDNA while non-syntenic 5S rRNA genes were located at centromeric region of a single pair. The similar karyotypic macrostructure observed in unrelated groups of Percomorpharia reinforces the conservative karyoevolution of marine teleosteans. Nonetheless, the species could be differentiated based on the pair bearing ribosomal cistrons, revealing the importance of microstructural analyses in species with symmetric and stable karyotypes.
Advancing Marine Biological Observations and Data Requirements of the Complementary Essential Ocean Variables (EOVs and Essential Biodiversity Variables (EBVs Frameworks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Frank E. Muller-Karger

2018-06-01

Full Text Available Measurements of the status and trends of key indicators for the ocean and marine life are required to inform policy and management in the context of growing human uses of marine resources, coastal development, and climate change. Two synergistic efforts identify specific priority variables for monitoring: Essential Ocean Variables (EOVs through the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS, and Essential Biodiversity Variables (EBVs from the Group on Earth Observations Biodiversity Observation Network (GEO BON (see Data Sheet 1 in Supplementary Materials for a glossary of acronyms. Both systems support reporting against internationally agreed conventions and treaties. GOOS, established under the auspices of the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC, plays a leading role in coordinating global monitoring of the ocean and in the definition of EOVs. GEO BON is a global biodiversity observation network that coordinates observations to enhance management of the world's biodiversity and promote both the awareness and accounting of ecosystem services. Convergence and agreement between these two efforts are required to streamline existing and new marine observation programs to advance scientific knowledge effectively and to support the sustainable use and management of ocean spaces and resources. In this context, the Marine Biodiversity Observation Network (MBON, a thematic component of GEO BON, is collaborating with GOOS, the Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS, and the Integrated Marine Biosphere Research (IMBeR project to ensure that EBVs and EOVs are complementary, representing alternative uses of a common set of scientific measurements. This work is informed by the Joint Technical Commission for Oceanography and Marine Meteorology (JCOMM, an intergovernmental body of technical experts that helps international coordination on best practices for observing, data management and services, combined with capacity development expertise
Island biogeography

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Whittaker, Robert James; Fernández-Palacios, José María; Matthews, Thomas J.

2017-01-01

Islands provide classic model biological systems. We review how growing appreciation of geoenvironmental dynamics of marine islands has led to advances in island biogeographic theory accommodating both evolutionary and ecological phenomena. Recognition of distinct island geodynamics permits gener...
Geographic population structure analysis of worldwide human populations infers their biogeographical origins

Science.gov (United States)

Elhaik, Eran; Tatarinova, Tatiana; Chebotarev, Dmitri; Piras, Ignazio S.; Maria Calò, Carla; De Montis, Antonella; Atzori, Manuela; Marini, Monica; Tofanelli, Sergio; Francalacci, Paolo; Pagani, Luca; Tyler-Smith, Chris; Xue, Yali; Cucca, Francesco; Schurr, Theodore G.; Gaieski, Jill B.; Melendez, Carlalynne; Vilar, Miguel G.; Owings, Amanda C.; Gómez, Rocío; Fujita, Ricardo; Santos, Fabrício R.; Comas, David; Balanovsky, Oleg; Balanovska, Elena; Zalloua, Pierre; Soodyall, Himla; Pitchappan, Ramasamy; GaneshPrasad, ArunKumar; Hammer, Michael; Matisoo-Smith, Lisa; Wells, R. Spencer; Acosta, Oscar; Adhikarla, Syama; Adler, Christina J.; Bertranpetit, Jaume; Clarke, Andrew C.; Cooper, Alan; Der Sarkissian, Clio S. I.; Haak, Wolfgang; Haber, Marc; Jin, Li; Kaplan, Matthew E.; Li, Hui; Li, Shilin; Martínez-Cruz, Begoña; Merchant, Nirav C.; Mitchell, John R.; Parida, Laxmi; Platt, Daniel E.; Quintana-Murci, Lluis; Renfrew, Colin; Lacerda, Daniela R.; Royyuru, Ajay K.; Sandoval, Jose Raul; Santhakumari, Arun Varatharajan; Soria Hernanz, David F.; Swamikrishnan, Pandikumar; Ziegle, Janet S.

2014-01-01

The search for a method that utilizes biological information to predict humans’ place of origin has occupied scientists for millennia. Over the past four decades, scientists have employed genetic data in an effort to achieve this goal but with limited success. While biogeographical algorithms using next-generation sequencing data have achieved an accuracy of 700 km in Europe, they were inaccurate elsewhere. Here we describe the Geographic Population Structure (GPS) algorithm and demonstrate its accuracy with three data sets using 40,000–130,000 SNPs. GPS placed 83% of worldwide individuals in their country of origin. Applied to over 200 Sardinians villagers, GPS placed a quarter of them in their villages and most of the rest within 50 km of their villages. GPS’s accuracy and power to infer the biogeography of worldwide individuals down to their country or, in some cases, village, of origin, underscores the promise of admixture-based methods for biogeography and has ramifications for genetic ancestry testing. PMID:24781250
Four new species and new records of Atopsyche Banks (Trichoptera: Hydrobiosidae) from Pantepui biogeographical region (Venezuela).

Science.gov (United States)

Zamora-Muñoz, Carmen; Derka, Tomáš; Múrria, Cesc

2017-05-29

Four new species of the genus Atopsyche Banks (Hydrobiosidae) from Pantepui biogeographical region (Venezuela) are described and illustrated: Atopsyche (Atopsaura) inmae n. sp., Atopsyche (Atopsaura) cristinae n. sp., Atopsyche (Atopsaura) svitoki n. sp., and Atopsyche (Atopsaura) carmenae n. sp. Molecular analyses (cox1 sequences) allowed larva-adult associations and the morphological description of larvae of two of the new species (A. inmae and A. cristinae). A phylogenetic tree is performed to assess the molecular validity of the species, establish evolutionary relation among them and interpret historical biogeography of tepuis. Finally, two new distributional records for A. (Atopsaura) atahuallpa are included, which up to now was known only from the type locality.
Sorption kinetics of TNT and RDX in anaerobic freshwater and marine sediments: Batch studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Ariyarathna, Thivanka; Vlahos, Penny; Tobias, Craig; Smith, Richard

2016-01-01

Examination of the partitioning of explosives onto sediment in marine environments is critical to predict the toxicological impacts of worldwide explosive-contaminated sites adjacent to estuaries, wetlands, and the coastal ocean. Marine sediments have been identified as sites of enhanced munitions removal, yet most studies addressing these interactions focus on soils and freshwater sediments. The present study measured the kinetics of 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) and hexahydro-1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazine (RDX) sorption onto 2 marine sediments of varying grain sizes (silt vs sand) and organic carbon (OC) content. Abiotic sediment sorption tests were performed at 23 °C, 15 °C, and 4 °C by spiking TNT and RDX solutions directly into anaerobic sediment slurries. Marine sediments showed significantly higher compound uptake rates (0.30-0.80 h(-1) ) than freshwater silt (0.0046-0.0065 h(-1) ) for both compounds, probably because of lower compound solubilities and a higher pH in marine systems. Equilibrium partition constants are on the same order of magnitude for marine silt (1.1-2.0 L kg(-1) sediment) and freshwater silt (1.4-3.1 L kg(-1) sediment) but lower for marine sand (0.72-0.92 L kg(-1) sediment). Total organic carbon content in marine sediments varied linearly with equilibrium partition constants for TNT and was moderately linear for RDX. Uptake rates and equilibrium constants of explosives are inversely correlated to temperature regardless of sediment type because of kinetic barriers associated with low temperatures. © 2015 SETAC.
Patterns of diversity in soft-bodied meiofauna

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Curini-Galletti, Marco; Artois, Tom; Delogu, Valentina

2012-01-01

Biogeographical and macroecological principles are derived from patterns of distribution in large organisms, whereas microscopic ones have often been considered uninteresting, because of their supposed wide distribution. Here, after reporting the results of an intensive faunistic survey of marine...
Marine Language Exchange Program: A 21st Century International and Interdisciplinary Partnership

Science.gov (United States)

Robigou, V.; Nichols-Pecceu, M.

2001-12-01

The ability of scientists to communicate across cultural and linguistic barriers is crucial for the global economic sustainability and protection of the world\\'{}s oceans. Yet students with majors in the sciences and engineering constitute less than 2% of those who study abroad each year. And even rarer are students who study in countries where English is not the first language. The Marine Language Exchange program is a case study of an international and interdisciplinary collaboration between faculties in the languages and the sciences who address this gap. A consortium of U.S. and European institutions including Eckerd College (Florida), University of Washington (Washington), University of Hilo (Hawaii), Université de la Rochelle (France), Université de Liège (Belgium), and Universidad de Las Palmas (Spain) is developing a multilingual, marine sciences exchange program in an effort to internationalize their Marine Sciences departments. The program includes a three-week, intensive "bridge" course designed to reinforce second language skills in the context of marine sciences, and prepare undergraduate students for the cultural and educational differences of their host country. Following this immersion experience students from each institution enroll in courses abroad including marine sciences specialization for full academic credit. This session will review the Marine Language Exchange program activities since 2000 and will discuss the ideological and practical aspects of the program. The program successes, difficulties and future directions will also be presented. Different disciplinary approaches -Second Language Acquisition, English as a Second Language and Marine Science- prepare science students to contribute to the study and the management of the world\\'{}s oceans with an awareness of the cultural issues reflected by national marine policies. Based on this case study, other universities could initiate their own international and interdisciplinary
The role of the sediment barrier

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Freeman, T.J.; Schultheiss, P.J.; Searle, R.C.; Sills, G.C.; Toolan, F.E.

1989-01-01

The conference 'Disposal of radioactive wastes in seabed sediments' was organized by the Society for Underwater Technology to review the potential of certain seabed sediments to provide a long-term containment for radioactive wastes. Its objectives were to assess: (1) what has been learned about the properties and nature of the sediments of the deep ocean; (2) the merits and demerits of the conceptual techniques that have been developed to dispose of waste; and (3) whether what has been learned about deep ocean disposal has any relevance to other areas of marine science. This chapter introduces the subject matter of the conference in the framework of the international research programme and discusses what has been learned about the role of the sediment barrier. (author)
Evaluating Effects of Marine Energy Devices on the Marine Environment - A Risk-Based and In-Water Testing Approach

Science.gov (United States)

Harker-Klimes, G.; Copping, A. E.

2016-02-01

The portfolio of emerging renewables includes generating power from offshore winds, tides, waves, and ocean currents, as well as seawater temperature and salinity differentials. These new systems are collectively known as marine renewable energy (MRE). MRE development worldwide is in the early stages of design, deployment, and commercialization. A major barrier to bringing these systems into commercial use is the need to overcome uncertainties in environmental effects that slow siting and permitting of devices. Using a risk-based approach, this paper will discuss pathways for evaluating potential effects of tidal turbines and wave energy converters (WECs) on marine animals, habitats, and ecosystem processes. Using basic biological principles and knowledge of specific MRE technologies, the Environmental Risk Evaluation System has been used to narrow pertinent risks from devices, enabling laboratory and field studies to focus on the most important interactions. These interactions, include: potential collisions and behavioral disturbances of marine mammals, fish and other organisms; effects of underwater sound on animal communication and navigation; changes in sediment transport, benthic habitats, and water quality constituents; and effects of electromagnetic fields on animals. It is then necessary to apply these findings to the projects themselves. Another uncertainty is how to measure these key interactions in high-energy locations where MRE deployment is desirable. Consequently, new systems are being developed: instrumentation, innovative platforms for deployment, and new management strategies for collecting and analyzing very large data streams. Inherent in this development pathway is the need to test, deploy, and calibrate these monitoring systems. The Triton initiative is designed to enable this development, and has initiated testing of devices in Washington State to move the MRE industry forward while protecting marine animals, habitats and processes.

Phylogeography of Indo-Pacific reef fishes: sister wrassesCoris gaimardandC. cuvieriin the Red Sea, Indian Ocean and Pacific Ocean

KAUST Repository

Ahti, Pauliina A.; Coleman, Richard R.; DiBattista, Joseph; Berumen, Michael L.; Rocha, Luiz A.; Bowen, Brian W.

2016-01-01

Aim: The aim of this study was to resolve the evolutionary history, biogeographical barriers and population histories for sister species of wrasses, the African Coris (Coris cuvieri) in the Indian Ocean and Red Sea, and the Yellowtail Coris (Coris gaimard) in the Pacific Ocean. Glacial sea level fluctuations during the Pleistocene have shaped the evolutionary trajectories of Indo-Pacific marine fauna, primarily by creating barriers between the Red Sea, Indian Ocean and Pacific Ocean. Here, we evaluate the influence of these episodic glacial barriers on sister species C. cuvieri and C. gaimard. Location: Red Sea, Indian Ocean, Pacific Ocean. Methods: Sequences from mitochondrial DNA cytochrome oxidase c subunit I (COI), and nuclear introns gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) and ribosomal S7 protein were analysed in 426 individuals from across the range of both species. Median-joining networks, analysis of molecular variance and Bayesian estimates of the time since most recent common ancestor were used to resolve recent population history and connectivity. Results: Cytochrome oxidase c subunit I haplotypes showed a divergence of 0.97% between species, and nuclear alleles were shared between species. No population structure was detected between the Indian Ocean and Red Sea. The strongest signal of population structure was in C. gaimard between the Hawaiian biogeographical province and other Pacific locations (COI ϕ(symbol)ST = 0.040-0.173, P < 0.006; S7 ϕ(symbol)ST = 0.046, P < 0.001; GnRH ϕ(symbol)ST = 0.022, P < 0.005). Time to most recent common ancestor is c. 2.12 Ma for C. cuvieri and 1.76 Ma for C. gaimard. Main conclusions: We demonstrate an Indian-Pacific divergence of c. 2 Myr and high contemporary gene flow between the Red Sea and Indian Ocean, mediated in part by the long pelagic larval stage. The discovery of hybrids at Christmas Island indicates that Indian and Pacific lineages have come into secondary contact after allopatric isolation. Subspecies
Phylogeography of Indo-Pacific reef fishes: sister wrassesCoris gaimardandC. cuvieriin the Red Sea, Indian Ocean and Pacific Ocean

KAUST Repository

Ahti, Pauliina A.

2016-02-01

Aim: The aim of this study was to resolve the evolutionary history, biogeographical barriers and population histories for sister species of wrasses, the African Coris (Coris cuvieri) in the Indian Ocean and Red Sea, and the Yellowtail Coris (Coris gaimard) in the Pacific Ocean. Glacial sea level fluctuations during the Pleistocene have shaped the evolutionary trajectories of Indo-Pacific marine fauna, primarily by creating barriers between the Red Sea, Indian Ocean and Pacific Ocean. Here, we evaluate the influence of these episodic glacial barriers on sister species C. cuvieri and C. gaimard. Location: Red Sea, Indian Ocean, Pacific Ocean. Methods: Sequences from mitochondrial DNA cytochrome oxidase c subunit I (COI), and nuclear introns gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) and ribosomal S7 protein were analysed in 426 individuals from across the range of both species. Median-joining networks, analysis of molecular variance and Bayesian estimates of the time since most recent common ancestor were used to resolve recent population history and connectivity. Results: Cytochrome oxidase c subunit I haplotypes showed a divergence of 0.97% between species, and nuclear alleles were shared between species. No population structure was detected between the Indian Ocean and Red Sea. The strongest signal of population structure was in C. gaimard between the Hawaiian biogeographical province and other Pacific locations (COI ϕ(symbol)ST = 0.040-0.173, P < 0.006; S7 ϕ(symbol)ST = 0.046, P < 0.001; GnRH ϕ(symbol)ST = 0.022, P < 0.005). Time to most recent common ancestor is c. 2.12 Ma for C. cuvieri and 1.76 Ma for C. gaimard. Main conclusions: We demonstrate an Indian-Pacific divergence of c. 2 Myr and high contemporary gene flow between the Red Sea and Indian Ocean, mediated in part by the long pelagic larval stage. The discovery of hybrids at Christmas Island indicates that Indian and Pacific lineages have come into secondary contact after allopatric isolation. Subspecies
Population structure and phylogeography reveal pathways of colonization by a migratory marine reptile (Chelonia mydas) in the central and eastern Pacific.

Science.gov (United States)

Dutton, Peter H; Jensen, Michael P; Frey, Amy; LaCasella, Erin; Balazs, George H; Zárate, Patricia; Chassin-Noria, Omar; Sarti-Martinez, Adriana Laura; Velez, Elizabeth

2014-11-01

Climate, behavior, ecology, and oceanography shape patterns of biodiversity in marine faunas in the absence of obvious geographic barriers. Marine turtles are an example of highly migratory creatures with deep evolutionary lineages and complex life histories that span both terrestrial and marine environments. Previous studies have focused on the deep isolation of evolutionary lineages (>3 mya) through vicariance; however, little attention has been given to the pathways of colonization of the eastern Pacific and the processes that have shaped diversity within the most recent evolutionary time. We sequenced 770 bp of the mtDNA control region to examine the stock structure and phylogeography of 545 green turtles from eight different rookeries in the central and eastern Pacific. We found significant differentiation between the geographically separated nesting populations and identified five distinct stocks (F ST = 0.08-0.44, P eastern Pacific Chelonia mydas form a monophyletic group containing 3 subclades, with Hawaii more closely related to the eastern Pacific than western Pacific populations. The split between sampled central/eastern and western Pacific haplotypes was estimated at around 0.34 mya, suggesting that the Pacific region west of Hawaii has been a more formidable barrier to gene flow in C. mydas than the East Pacific Barrier. Our results suggest that the eastern Pacific was colonized from the western Pacific via the Central North Pacific and that the Revillagigedos Islands provided a stepping-stone for radiation of green turtles from the Hawaiian Archipelago to the eastern Pacific. Our results fit with a broader paradigm that has been described for marine biodiversity, where oceanic islands, such as Hawaii and Revillagigedo, rather than being peripheral evolutionary "graveyards", serve as sources and recipients of diversity and provide a mechanism for further radiation.
The potential for a fish ladder to mitigate against the loss of marine-estuarine-freshwater connectivity in a subtropical coastal lake

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Weerts, Steven P

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Increasing water demand in coastal regions has resulted in the construction of weirs and barrages in coastal freshwaters. These form barriers to migrations of estuarine and euryhaline marine fishes and crustaceans. This study assessed the impact...
Marine biology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thurman, H.V.; Webber, H.H.

1984-01-01

This book discusses both taxonomic and ecological topics on marine biology. Full coverage of marine organisms of all five kingdoms is provided, along with interesting and thorough discussion of all major marine habitats. Organization into six major parts allows flexibility. It also provides insight into important topics such as disposal of nuclear waste at sea, the idea that life began on the ocean floor, and how whales, krill, and people interact. A full-color photo chapter reviews questions, and exercises. The contents are: an overview marine biology: fundamental concepts/investigating life in the ocean; the physical ocean, the ocean floor, the nature of water, the nature and motion of ocean water; general ecology, conditions for life in the sea, biological productivity and energy transfer; marine organisms; monera, protista, mycota and metaphyta; the smaller marine animals, the large animals marine habitats, the intertidal zone/benthos of the continental shelf, the photic zone, the deep ocean, the ocean under stress, marine pollution, appendix a: the metric system and conversion factors/ appendix b: prefixes and suffixes/ appendix c: taxonomic classification of common marine organisms, and glossary, and index
Does the colonization of new biogeographic regions influence the diversification and accumulation of clade richness among the Corvides (Aves: Passeriformes)?

Science.gov (United States)

Kennedy, Jonathan D; Borregaard, Michael K; Jønsson, Knud A; Holt, Ben; Fjeldså, Jon; Rahbek, Carsten

2017-01-01

Regional variation in clade richness can be vast, reflecting differences in the dynamics of historical dispersal and diversification among lineages. Although it has been proposed that dispersal into new biogeographic regions may facilitate diversification, to date there has been limited assessment of the importance of this process in the generation, and maintenance, of broad-scale biodiversity gradients. To address this issue, we analytically derive biogeographic regions for a global radiation of passerine birds (the Corvides, c. 790 species) that are highly variable in the geographic and taxonomic distribution of species. Subsequently, we determine rates of historical dispersal between regions, the dynamics of diversification following regional colonization, and spatial variation in the distribution of species that differ in their rates of lineage diversification. The results of these analyses reveal spatiotemporal differences in the build-up of lineages across regions. The number of regions occupied and the rate of transition between regions both predict family richness well, indicating that the accumulation of high clade richness is associated with repeated expansion into new geographic areas. However, only the largest family (the Corvidae) had significantly heightened rates of both speciation and regional transition, implying that repeated regional colonization is not a general mechanism promoting lineage diversification among the Corvides. © 2016 The Author(s). Evolution © 2016 The Society for the Study of Evolution.
Plant endemism in the Sierras of Córdoba and San Luis (Argentina): understanding links between phylogeny and regional biogeographical patterns.

Science.gov (United States)

Chiapella, Jorge O; Demaio, Pablo H

2015-01-01

We compiled a checklist with all known endemic plants occurring in the Sierras of Córdoba and San Luis, an isolated mountainous range located in central Argentina. In order to obtain a better understanding of the evolutionary history, relationships and age of the regional flora, we gathered basic information on the biogeographical and floristic affinities of the endemics, and documented the inclusion of each taxon in molecular phylogenies. We listed 89 taxa (including 69 species and 20 infraspecific taxa) belonging to 53 genera and 29 families. The endemics are not distributed evenly, being more abundant in the lower than in the middle and upper vegetation belts. Thirty-two genera (60.3%) have been included in phylogenetic analyses, but only ten (18.8%) included local endemic taxa. A total of 28 endemic taxa of the Sierras CSL have a clear relationship with a widespread species of the same genus, or with one found close to the area. Available phylogenies for some taxa show divergence times between 7.0 - 1.8 Ma; all endemic taxa are most probably neoendemics sensu Stebbins and Major. Our analysis was specifically aimed at a particular geographic area, but the approach of analyzing phylogenetic patterns together with floristic or biogeographical relationships of the endemic taxa of an area, delimited by clear geomorphological features, could reveal evolutionary trends shaping the area.
Phylogeography of the sponge Suberites diversicolor in Indonesia: insights into the evolution of marine lake populations.

Science.gov (United States)

Becking, Leontine E; Erpenbeck, Dirk; Peijnenburg, Katja T C A; de Voogd, Nicole J

2013-01-01

The existence of multiple independently derived populations in landlocked marine lakes provides an opportunity for fundamental research into the role of isolation in population divergence and speciation in marine taxa. Marine lakes are landlocked water bodies that maintain a marine character through narrow submarine connections to the sea and could be regarded as the marine equivalents of terrestrial islands. The sponge Suberites diversicolor (Porifera: Demospongiae: Suberitidae) is typical of marine lake habitats in the Indo-Australian Archipelago. Four molecular markers (two mitochondrial and two nuclear) were employed to study genetic structure of populations within and between marine lakes in Indonesia and three coastal locations in Indonesia, Singapore and Australia. Within populations of S. diversicolor two strongly divergent lineages (A & B) (COI: p = 0.4% and ITS: p = 7.3%) were found, that may constitute cryptic species. Lineage A only occurred in Kakaban lake (East Kalimantan), while lineage B was present in all sampled populations. Within lineage B, we found low levels of genetic diversity in lakes, though there was spatial genetic population structuring. The Australian population is genetically differentiated from the Indonesian populations. Within Indonesia we did not record an East-West barrier, which has frequently been reported for other marine invertebrates. Kakaban lake is the largest and most isolated marine lake in Indonesia and contains the highest genetic diversity with genetic variants not observed elsewhere. Kakaban lake may be an area where multiple putative refugia populations have come into secondary contact, resulting in high levels of genetic diversity and a high number of endemic species.
Phylogeography of the Sponge Suberites diversicolor in Indonesia: Insights into the Evolution of Marine Lake Populations

Science.gov (United States)

Becking, Leontine E.; Erpenbeck, Dirk; Peijnenburg, Katja T. C. A.; de Voogd, Nicole J.

2013-01-01

The existence of multiple independently derived populations in landlocked marine lakes provides an opportunity for fundamental research into the role of isolation in population divergence and speciation in marine taxa. Marine lakes are landlocked water bodies that maintain a marine character through narrow submarine connections to the sea and could be regarded as the marine equivalents of terrestrial islands. The sponge Suberites diversicolor (Porifera: Demospongiae: Suberitidae) is typical of marine lake habitats in the Indo-Australian Archipelago. Four molecular markers (two mitochondrial and two nuclear) were employed to study genetic structure of populations within and between marine lakes in Indonesia and three coastal locations in Indonesia, Singapore and Australia. Within populations of S. diversicolor two strongly divergent lineages (A & B) (COI: p = 0.4% and ITS: p = 7.3%) were found, that may constitute cryptic species. Lineage A only occurred in Kakaban lake (East Kalimantan), while lineage B was present in all sampled populations. Within lineage B, we found low levels of genetic diversity in lakes, though there was spatial genetic population structuring. The Australian population is genetically differentiated from the Indonesian populations. Within Indonesia we did not record an East-West barrier, which has frequently been reported for other marine invertebrates. Kakaban lake is the largest and most isolated marine lake in Indonesia and contains the highest genetic diversity with genetic variants not observed elsewhere. Kakaban lake may be an area where multiple putative refugia populations have come into secondary contact, resulting in high levels of genetic diversity and a high number of endemic species. PMID:24098416
Preliminary Marine Safety Risk Assessment, Brandon Road Lock and Dam Invasive Species Control Measures

Science.gov (United States)

2016-12-01

Decision makers must include control-measure monitoring and emergency “interventions” to insure safety. The Coast Guard operational commanders...system” incorporates a travelling car on a rail above the barge-loading wharf to prevent loading personnel, cargo surveyors, or others from falling...to the Gulf of Mexico . As “Loopers”, they will have already transited the CSSC electric barriers. Preliminary Marine Safety Risk Assessment, BRLD
Latitudinal variation of a defensive symbiosis in the Bugula neritina (Bryozoa sibling species complex.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jonathan Linneman

Full Text Available Mutualistic relationships are beneficial for both partners and are often studied within a single environment. However, when the range of the partners is large, geographical differences in selective pressure may shift the relationship outcome from positive to negative. The marine bryozoan Bugula neritina is a colonial invertebrate common in temperate waters worldwide. It is the source of bioactive polyketide metabolites, the bryostatins. Evidence suggests that an uncultured vertically transmitted symbiont, "Candidatus Endobugula sertula", hosted by B. neritina produces the bryostatins, which protect the vulnerable larvae from predation. Studies of B. neritina along the North American Atlantic coast revealed a complex of two morphologically similar sibling species separated by an apparent biogeographic barrier: the Type S sibling species was found below Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, while Type N was found above. Interestingly, the Type N colonies lack "Ca. Endobugula sertula" and, subsequently, defensive bryostatins; their documented northern distribution was consistent with traditional biogeographical paradigms of latitudinal variation in predation pressure. Upon further sampling of B. neritina populations, we found that both host types occur in wider distribution, with Type N colonies living south of Cape Hatteras, and Type S to the north. Distribution of the symbiont, however, was not restricted to Type S hosts. Genetic and microscopic evidence demonstrates the presence of the symbiont in some Type N colonies, and larvae from these colonies are endowed with defensive bryostatins and contain "Ca. Endobugula sertula". Molecular analysis of the symbiont from Type N colonies suggests an evolutionarily recent acquisition, which is remarkable for a symbiont thought to be transmitted only vertically. Furthermore, most Type S colonies found at higher latitudes lack the symbiont, suggesting that this host-symbiont relationship is more flexible than
Low temperature delays timing and enhances the cost of nitrogen fixation in the unicellular cyanobacterium Cyanothece

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Brauer, V.S.; Stomp, M.; Rosso, C.; van Beusekom, S.A.M.; Emmerich, B.; Stal, L.J.; Huisman, J.

2013-01-01

Marine nitrogen-fixing cyanobacteria are largely confined to the tropical and subtropical ocean. It has been argued that their global biogeographical distribution reflects the physiologically feasible temperature range at which they can perform nitrogen fixation. In this study we refine this line of
Phylogeny, biogeography and diversification patterns of side-necked turtles (Testudines: Pleurodira)

Science.gov (United States)

Langer, Max C.; Sterli, Juliana

2018-01-01

Pleurodires or side-necked turtles are today restricted to freshwater environments of South America, Africa–Madagascar and Australia, but in the past they were distributed much more broadly, being found also on Eurasia, India and North America, and marine environments. Two hypotheses were proposed to explain this distribution; in the first, vicariance would have shaped the current geographical distribution and, in the second, extinctions constrained a previously widespread distribution. Here, we aim to reconstruct pleurodiran biogeographic history and diversification patterns based on a new phylogenetic hypothesis recovered from the analysis of the largest morphological dataset yet compiled for the lineage, testing which biogeographical process prevailed during its evolutionary history. The resulting topology generally agrees with previous hypotheses of the group and shows that most diversification shifts were related to the exploration of new niches, e.g. littoral or marine radiations. In addition, as other turtles, pleurodires do not seem to have been much affected by either the Cretaceous–Palaeogene or the Eocene–Oligocene mass extinctions. The biogeographic analyses highlight the predominance of both anagenetic and cladogenetic dispersal events and support the importance of transoceanic dispersals as a more common driver of area changes than previously thought, agreeing with previous studies with other non-turtle lineages. PMID:29657780
Monitoring Seabirds and Marine Mammals by Georeferenced Aerial Photography

Science.gov (United States)

Kemper, G.; Weidauer, A.; Coppack, T.

2016-06-01

The assessment of anthropogenic impacts on the marine environment is challenged by the accessibility, accuracy and validity of biogeographical information. Offshore wind farm projects require large-scale ecological surveys before, during and after construction, in order to assess potential effects on the distribution and abundance of protected species. The robustness of site-specific population estimates depends largely on the extent and design of spatial coverage and the accuracy of the applied census technique. Standard environmental assessment studies in Germany have so far included aerial visual surveys to evaluate potential impacts of offshore wind farms on seabirds and marine mammals. However, low flight altitudes, necessary for the visual classification of species, disturb sensitive bird species and also hold significant safety risks for the observers. Thus, aerial surveys based on high-resolution digital imagery, which can be carried out at higher (safer) flight altitudes (beyond the rotor-swept zone of the wind turbines) have become a mandatory requirement, technically solving the problem of distant-related observation bias. A purpose-assembled imagery system including medium-format cameras in conjunction with a dedicated geo-positioning platform delivers series of orthogonal digital images that meet the current technical requirements of authorities for surveying marine wildlife at a comparatively low cost. At a flight altitude of 425 m, a focal length of 110 mm, implemented forward motion compensation (FMC) and exposure times ranging between 1/1600 and 1/1000 s, the twin-camera system generates high quality 16 bit RGB images with a ground sampling distance (GSD) of 2 cm and an image footprint of 155 x 410 m. The image files are readily transferrable to a GIS environment for further editing, taking overlapping image areas and areas affected by glare into account. The imagery can be routinely screened by the human eye guided by purpose-programmed software
MONITORING SEABIRDS AND MARINE MAMMALS BY GEOREFERENCED AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

G. Kemper

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The assessment of anthropogenic impacts on the marine environment is challenged by the accessibility, accuracy and validity of biogeographical information. Offshore wind farm projects require large-scale ecological surveys before, during and after construction, in order to assess potential effects on the distribution and abundance of protected species. The robustness of site-specific population estimates depends largely on the extent and design of spatial coverage and the accuracy of the applied census technique. Standard environmental assessment studies in Germany have so far included aerial visual surveys to evaluate potential impacts of offshore wind farms on seabirds and marine mammals. However, low flight altitudes, necessary for the visual classification of species, disturb sensitive bird species and also hold significant safety risks for the observers. Thus, aerial surveys based on high-resolution digital imagery, which can be carried out at higher (safer flight altitudes (beyond the rotor-swept zone of the wind turbines have become a mandatory requirement, technically solving the problem of distant-related observation bias. A purpose-assembled imagery system including medium-format cameras in conjunction with a dedicated geo-positioning platform delivers series of orthogonal digital images that meet the current technical requirements of authorities for surveying marine wildlife at a comparatively low cost. At a flight altitude of 425 m, a focal length of 110 mm, implemented forward motion compensation (FMC and exposure times ranging between 1/1600 and 1/1000 s, the twin-camera system generates high quality 16 bit RGB images with a ground sampling distance (GSD of 2 cm and an image footprint of 155 x 410 m. The image files are readily transferrable to a GIS environment for further editing, taking overlapping image areas and areas affected by glare into account. The imagery can be routinely screened by the human eye guided by
Plio-Pleistocene phylogeography of the Southeast Asian Blue Panchax killifish, Aplocheilus panchax

Science.gov (United States)

Carvalho, Gary R.; Barlow, Axel; Rüber, Lukas; Hui Tan, Heok; Nugroho, Estu; Wowor, Daisy; Mohd Nor, Siti Azizah; Herder, Fabian; Muchlisin, Zainal A.; de Bruyn, Mark

2017-01-01

The complex climatic and geological history of Southeast Asia has shaped this region’s high biodiversity. In particular, sea level fluctuations associated with repeated glacial cycles during the Pleistocene both facilitated, and limited, connectivity between populations. In this study, we used data from two mitochondrial and three anonymous nuclear markers to determine whether a fresh/brackish water killifish, Aplocheilus panchax, Hamilton, 1822, could be used to further understand how climatic oscillations and associated sea level fluctuations have shaped the distribution of biota within this region, and whether such patterns show evidence of isolation within palaeodrainage basins. Our analyses revealed three major mitochondrial clades within A. panchax. The basal divergence of A. panchax mitochondrial lineages was approximately 3.5 Ma, whilst the subsequent divergence timings of these clades occurred early Pleistocene (~2.6 Ma), proceeding through the Pleistocene. Continuous phylogeographic analysis showed a clear west-east dispersal followed by rapid radiation across Southeast Asia. Individuals from Krabi, just north of the Isthmus of Kra, were more closely related to the Indian lineages, providing further evidence for a freshwater faunal disjunction at the Isthmus of Kra biogeographic barrier. Our results suggest that Sulawesi, across the Wallace Line, was colonised relatively recently (~30 ka). Nuclear DNA is less geographically structured, although Mantel tests indicated that nuclear genetic distances were correlated with geographic proximity. Overall, these results imply that recent gene flow, as opposed to historical isolation, has been the key factor determining patterns of nuclear genetic variation in A. panchax, however, some evidence of historical isolation is retained within the mitochondrial genome. Our study further validates the existence of a major biogeographic boundary at the Kra Isthmus, and also demonstrates the use of widely distributed
Events Calendar: Smithsonian Marine Ecosystems Exhibit: Smithsonian Marine

Science.gov (United States)

current Smithsonian research on the plants and animals of the Indian River Lagoon and marine environments Station (SMS) at Fort Pierce Smithsonian Marine Station at Fort Pierce Website Search Box History Modeling Ecosystems Virtual Tour Facebook Instagram Twitter SMS Home âº Smithsonian Marine
Biogeographic evaluation of the dragonflies and damselflies in the Eastern Iberian Peninsula

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fontana-Bria, L.

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Insects are one of the most diverse groups of animals in terrestrial ecosystems, and are thus a good model system to study macrogeographic patterns in species’ distributions. Here we perform a biogeographical analysis of the dragonflies and damselflies in the Valencian Country (Eastern Iberian Peninsula. We also compare the species present in this territory with those in the adjacent territories of Catalonia and Aragon, and with those present in the whole Iberian Peninsula. Furthermore, we update the list of species of dragonflies and damselflies in the Valencian territory (65 species, and discuss the current status of two of them: Macromia splendens and Lindenia tetraphylla. Our results highlight that the Valencian Country has a higher proportion of Ethiopian elements but a lower proportion of Eurosiberian elements than Catalonia and Aragon. We also emphasize the importance of volunteer work in providing new knowledge on this group of iconic insects, and the relevance of museum collections in preserving them. The role of climate change in the distribution of Odonata is also discussed.
Ecological roulette: the global transport of nonindigenous marine organisms.

Science.gov (United States)

Cariton, J T; Geller, J B

1993-07-02

Ocean-going ships carry, as ballast, seawater that is taken on in port and released at subsequent ports of call. Plankton samples from Japanese ballast water released in Oregon contained 367 taxa. Most taxa with a planktonic phase in their life cycle were found in ballast water, as were all major marine habitat and trophic groups. Transport of entire coastal planktonic assemblages across oceanic barriers to similar habitats renders bays, estuaries, and inland waters among the most threatened ecosystems in the world. Presence of taxonomically difficult or inconspicuous taxa in these samples suggests that ballast water invasions are already pervasive.
Marine genomics

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Oliveira Ribeiro, Ângela Maria; Foote, Andrew David; Kupczok, Anne

2017-01-01

Marine ecosystems occupy 71% of the surface of our planet, yet we know little about their diversity. Although the inventory of species is continually increasing, as registered by the Census of Marine Life program, only about 10% of the estimated two million marine species are known. This lag......-throughput sequencing approaches have been helping to improve our knowledge of marine biodiversity, from the rich microbial biota that forms the base of the tree of life to a wealth of plant and animal species. In this review, we present an overview of the applications of genomics to the study of marine life, from...

A toothed turtle from the Late Jurassic of China and the global biogeographic history of turtles.

Science.gov (United States)

Joyce, Walter G; Rabi, Márton; Clark, James M; Xu, Xing

2016-10-28

Turtles (Testudinata) are a successful lineage of vertebrates with about 350 extant species that inhabit all major oceans and landmasses with tropical to temperate climates. The rich fossil record of turtles documents the adaptation of various sub-lineages to a broad range of habitat preferences, but a synthetic biogeographic model is still lacking for the group. We herein describe a new species of fossil turtle from the Late Jurassic of Xinjiang, China, Sichuanchelys palatodentata sp. nov., that is highly unusual by plesiomorphically exhibiting palatal teeth. Phylogenetic analysis places the Late Jurassic Sichuanchelys palatodentata in a clade with the Late Cretaceous Mongolochelys efremovi outside crown group Testudines thereby establishing the prolonged presence of a previously unrecognized clade of turtles in Asia, herein named Sichuanchelyidae. In contrast to previous hypotheses, M. efremovi and Kallokibotion bajazidi are not found within Meiolaniformes, a clade that is here reinterpreted as being restricted to Gondwana. A revision of the global distribution of fossil and recent turtle reveals that the three primary lineages of derived, aquatic turtles, including the crown, Paracryptodira, Pan-Pleurodira, and Pan-Cryptodira can be traced back to the Middle Jurassic of Euramerica, Gondwana, and Asia, respectively, which resulted from the primary break up of Pangaea at that time. The two primary lineages of Pleurodira, Pan-Pelomedusoides and Pan-Chelidae, can similarly be traced back to the Cretaceous of northern and southern Gondwana, respectively, which were separated from one another by a large desert zone during that time. The primary divergence of crown turtles was therefore driven by vicariance to the primary freshwater aquatic habitat of these lineages. The temporally persistent lineages of basal turtles, Helochelydridae, Meiolaniformes, Sichuanchelyidae, can similarly be traced back to the Late Mesozoic of Euramerica, southern Gondwana, and Asia. Given
Evolution in Australia's mesic biome under past and future climates: Insights from a phylogenetic study of the Australian Rock Orchids (Dendrobium speciosum complex, Orchidaceae).

Science.gov (United States)

Simpson, Lalita; Clements, Mark A; Crayn, Darren M; Nargar, Katharina

2018-01-01

The Australian mesic biome spans c. 33° of latitude along Australia's east coast and ranges and is dissected by historical and contemporary biogeographical barriers. To investigate the impact of these barriers on evolutionary diversification and to predict the impact of future climate change on the distribution of species and genetic diversity within this biome, we inferred phylogenetic relationships within the Dendrobium speciosum complex (Orchidaceae) across its distribution and undertook environmental niche modelling (ENM) under past, contemporary and projected future climates. Neighbor Joining tree inference, NeighborNet and Structure analyses of Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism (AFLP) profiles for D. speciosum sampled from across its distribution showed that the complex consists of two highly supported main groups that are geographically separated by the St. Lawrence gap, an area of dry sclerophyll forest and woodland. The presence of several highly admixed individuals identified by the Structure analysis provided evidence of genetic exchange between the two groups across this gap. Whereas previous treatments have recognised between one to eleven species, the molecular results support the taxonomic treatment of the complex as a single species with two subspecies. The ENM analysis supported the hypothesis that lineage divergence within the complex was driven by past climatic changes. The St. Lawrence gap represented a stronger biogeographic barrier for the D. speciosum complex during the cool and dry glacial climatic conditions of the Pleistocene than under today's interglacial conditions. Shallow genetic divergence was found within the two lineages, which mainly corresponded to three other biogeographic barriers: the Black Mountain Corridor, Glass House Mountains and the Hunter Valley. Our ENM analyses provide further support for the hypothesis that biogeographic barriers along Australia's east coast were somewhat permeable to genetic exchange due to
Experience in organization of soil science–biogeographical part of educational natural science practical work of students-geographers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Юлія Прасул

2016-10-01

Full Text Available The article considers the experience of practical field training of students- geographers, defines its role in training geographers, looks at the ways of rational organization of soil science, biogeographic section of natural science educational practices in terms of training at high school stationary practice grounds. The educational natural science practice of the 1st year-students-geographers of V.N. Karazin Kharkiv National University takes place on the educational and scientific geographical grounds «Gaidary» in Zmiiv district, Kharkiv region. The location of the base allows to explore a typical structure of the Siversky Donets river valley, select a variety of elements and components to form an understanding in students of both the knowledge of the individual components of nature, and the processes of natural complexes functioning as a whole, to introduce the elements of environmental knowledge and factors of anthropogenic impact on the environment. The soil-biogeographical section of practical work focuses on acquiring skills of field research methods of soil and ecological communities by the students; planning of the routes, taking into account the conditions and landscape features of the territory; cameral treatment of the data and samples collected in the field; identification of cause-and-effect relationships of soil and vegetation development. Landscape diversity of the territory in the area of practice allows to study the soil and vegetation within the natural systems of the watershed, its slopes, gullies and gully areas of the floodplain, the first floodplain terrace during 5-6 days of soil-biogeographic section of the practical work through the daily radial routes. During the practice traditional classical techniques of field studies of soils and ecological communities (primarily tab and a description of soil profiles and geo-botanical areas are combined with new, present-day approaches (use of GPS-navigators, GIS
Rhodocomatulin-Type Anthraquinones from the Australian Marine Invertebrates Clathria hirsuta and Comatula rotalaria.

Science.gov (United States)

Khokhar, Shahan; Pierens, Gregory K; Hooper, John N A; Ekins, Merrick G; Feng, Yunjiang; Davis, Rohan A

2016-04-22

Chemical investigations of an Australian sponge, Clathria hirsuta, from the Great Barrier Reef, have resulted in the isolation of two known anthraquinones, rhodocomatulin 5,7-dimethyl ether (1) and rhodocomatulin 7-methyl ether (2). Additionally, four new anthraquinone metabolites, 6-methoxyrhodocomatulin 7-methyl ether, 3-bromo-6-methoxy-12-desethylrhodocomatulin 7-methyl ether, 3-bromo-6-methoxyrhodocomatulin 7-methyl ether, and 3-bromorhodocomatulin 7-methyl ether (3-6), were also isolated and characterized. This is the first report of the rhodocomatulin-type anthraquinones from a marine sponge, as 1 and 2 were previously isolated from the marine crinoid genus Comatula. An additional chemical investigation of the marine crinoid Comatula rotalaria enabled the isolation of further quantities of 1 and 2, as well as two additional new crinoid metabolites, 12-desethylrhodocomatulin 5,7-dimethyl ether and 12-desethylrhodocomatulin 7-methyl ether (7 and 8). An NMR spectroscopic analysis of compounds 7 and 8 provided further insight into the rhodocomatulin planar structure and, together with the successful implementation of DFT-NMR calculations, confirmed that the rhodocomatulin metabolites existed as para rather than ortho quinones.
Global patterns of extinction risk in marine and non-marine systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Webb, Thomas J; Mindel, Beth L

2015-02-16

Despite increasing concern over the effects of human activities on marine ecosystems, extinction in the sea remains scarce: 19-24 out of a total of >850 recorded extinctions implies a 9-fold lower marine extinction rate compared to non-marine systems. The extent of threats faced by marine systems, and their resilience to them, receive considerable attention, but the detectability of marine extinctions is less well understood. Before its extinction or threat status is recorded, a species must be both taxonomically described and then formally assessed; lower rates of either process for marine species could thus impact patterns of extinction risk, especially as species missing from taxonomic inventories may often be more vulnerable than described species. We combine data on taxonomic description with conservation assessments from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) to test these possibilities across almost all marine and non-marine eukaryotes. We find that the 9-fold lower rate of recorded extinctions and 4-fold lower rate of ongoing extinction risk across marine species can be explained in part by differences in the proportion of species assessed by the IUCN (3% cf. 4% of non-marine species). Furthermore, once taxonomic knowledge and conservation assessments pass a threshold level, differences in extinction risk between marine and non-marine groups largely disappear. Indeed, across the best-studied taxonomic groups, there is no difference between marine and non-marine systems, with on average between 20% and 25% of species being threatened with extinction, regardless of realm. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Plant endemism in the Sierras of Córdoba and San Luis (Argentina): understanding links between phylogeny and regional biogeographical patterns1

Science.gov (United States)

Chiapella, Jorge O.; Demaio, Pablo H.

2015-01-01

Abstract We compiled a checklist with all known endemic plants occurring in the Sierras of Córdoba and San Luis, an isolated mountainous range located in central Argentina. In order to obtain a better understanding of the evolutionary history, relationships and age of the regional flora, we gathered basic information on the biogeographical and floristic affinities of the endemics, and documented the inclusion of each taxon in molecular phylogenies. We listed 89 taxa (including 69 species and 20 infraspecific taxa) belonging to 53 genera and 29 families. The endemics are not distributed evenly, being more abundant in the lower than in the middle and upper vegetation belts. Thirty-two genera (60.3%) have been included in phylogenetic analyses, but only ten (18.8%) included local endemic taxa. A total of 28 endemic taxa of the Sierras CSL have a clear relationship with a widespread species of the same genus, or with one found close to the area. Available phylogenies for some taxa show divergence times between 7.0 – 1.8 Ma; all endemic taxa are most probably neoendemics sensu Stebbins and Major. Our analysis was specifically aimed at a particular geographic area, but the approach of analyzing phylogenetic patterns together with floristic or biogeographical relationships of the endemic taxa of an area, delimited by clear geomorphological features, could reveal evolutionary trends shaping the area. PMID:25878555
The role of marine reserves in the replenishment of a locally-impacted population of anemonefish on the Great Barrier Reef

KAUST Repository

Bonin, Mary C.; Harrison, Hugo B.; Williamson, David H.; Frisch, Ashley J.; Saenz Agudelo, Pablo; Berumen, Michael L.; Jones, Geoffrey P.

2015-01-01

The development of parentage analysis to track the dispersal of juvenile offspring has given us unprecedented insight into the population dynamics of coral reef fishes. These tools now have the potential to inform fisheries management and species conservation, particularly for small fragmented populations under threat from exploitation and disturbance. In this study we resolve patterns of larval dispersal for a population of the anemonefish Amphiprion melanopus in the Keppel Islands (southern Great Barrier Reef). Habitat loss and fishing appear to have impacted this population and a network of no-take marine reserves currently protects 75% of the potential breeders. Using parentage analysis, we estimate that 21% of recruitment in the island group was generated locally, and that breeding adults living in reserves were responsible for 79% (31 out of 39) of these of locally-produced juveniles. Overall, the network of reserves was fully connected via larval dispersal; however one reserve was identified as a critical source of larvae for the island group. The population in the Keppel Islands also appears to be well-connected to other source populations at least 60 km away, given that 79% (145 out of 184) of the juveniles sampled remained unassigned in the parentage analysis. We estimated the effective size of the A. melanopus metapopulation to be 745 (582-993 95% CI) and recommend continued monitoring of its genetic status. Maintaining connectivity with populations beyond the Keppel Islands and recovery of local recruitment habitat, potentially through active restoration of host anemone populations, will be important for its long-term persistence.
The role of marine reserves in the replenishment of a locally-impacted population of anemonefish on the Great Barrier Reef

KAUST Repository

Bonin, Mary C.

2015-11-21

The development of parentage analysis to track the dispersal of juvenile offspring has given us unprecedented insight into the population dynamics of coral reef fishes. These tools now have the potential to inform fisheries management and species conservation, particularly for small fragmented populations under threat from exploitation and disturbance. In this study we resolve patterns of larval dispersal for a population of the anemonefish Amphiprion melanopus in the Keppel Islands (southern Great Barrier Reef). Habitat loss and fishing appear to have impacted this population and a network of no-take marine reserves currently protects 75% of the potential breeders. Using parentage analysis, we estimate that 21% of recruitment in the island group was generated locally, and that breeding adults living in reserves were responsible for 79% (31 out of 39) of these of locally-produced juveniles. Overall, the network of reserves was fully connected via larval dispersal; however one reserve was identified as a critical source of larvae for the island group. The population in the Keppel Islands also appears to be well-connected to other source populations at least 60 km away, given that 79% (145 out of 184) of the juveniles sampled remained unassigned in the parentage analysis. We estimated the effective size of the A. melanopus metapopulation to be 745 (582-993 95% CI) and recommend continued monitoring of its genetic status. Maintaining connectivity with populations beyond the Keppel Islands and recovery of local recruitment habitat, potentially through active restoration of host anemone populations, will be important for its long-term persistence.
Effects of Biodiesel Blend on Marine Fuel Characteristics for Marine Vessels

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cherng-Yuan Lin

2013-09-01

Full Text Available Biodiesel produced from vegetable oils, animal fats and algae oil is a renewable, environmentally friendly and clean alternative fuel that reduces pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions in marine applications. This study investigates the influence of biodiesel blend on the characteristics of residual and distillate marine fuels. Adequate correlation equations are applied to calculate the fuel properties of the blended marine fuels with biodiesel. Residual marine fuel RMA has inferior fuel characteristics compared with distillate marine fuel DMA and biodiesel. The flash point of marine fuel RMA could be increased by 20% if blended with 20 vol% biodiesel. The sulfur content of residual marine fuel could meet the requirement of the 2008 MARPOL Annex VI Amendment by blending it with 23.0 vol% biodiesel. In addition, the kinematic viscosity of residual marine fuel could be reduced by 12.9% and the carbon residue by 23.6% if 20 vol% and 25 vol% biodiesel are used, respectively. Residual marine fuel blended with 20 vol% biodiesel decreases its lower heating value by 1.9%. Moreover, the fuel properties of residual marine fuel are found to improve more significantly with biodiesel blending than those of distillate marine fuel.
Marine ecology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1977-01-01

Studies on marine ecology included marine pollution; distribution patterns of Pu and Am in the marine waters, sediments, and organisms of Bikini Atoll and the influence of physical, chemical, and biological factors on their movements through marine biogeochemical systems; transfer and dispersion of organic pollutants from an oil refinery through coastal waters; transfer of particulate pollutants, including sediments dispersed during construction of offshore power plants; and raft culture of the mangrove oysters
The Glass Ceiling Effect and Its Impact on Mid-Level Female Military Officer Career Progression in the United States Marine Corps and Air Force

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Evertson, Adrienne

2004-01-01

...%), while the Marine Corps has the smallest proportion (6%). Multiple Defense organizations have expressed concern about the progression of women officers into senior leadership positions and if they face barriers to their continued success in the military...
Local-scale models reveal ecological niche variability in amphibian and reptile communities from two contrasting biogeographic regions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alberto Muñoz

2016-10-01

Full Text Available Ecological Niche Models (ENMs are widely used to describe how environmental factors influence species distribution. Modelling at a local scale, compared to a large scale within a high environmental gradient, can improve our understanding of ecological species niches. The main goal of this study is to assess and compare the contribution of environmental variables to amphibian and reptile ENMs in two Spanish national parks located in contrasting biogeographic regions, i.e., the Mediterranean and the Atlantic area. The ENMs were built with maximum entropy modelling using 11 environmental variables in each territory. The contributions of these variables to the models were analysed and classified using various statistical procedures (Mann–Whitney U tests, Principal Components Analysis and General Linear Models. Distance to the hydrological network was consistently the most relevant variable for both parks and taxonomic classes. Topographic variables (i.e., slope and altitude were the second most predictive variables, followed by climatic variables. Differences in variable contribution were observed between parks and taxonomic classes. Variables related to water availability had the larger contribution to the models in the Mediterranean park, while topography variables were decisive in the Atlantic park. Specific response curves to environmental variables were in accordance with the biogeographic affinity of species (Mediterranean and non-Mediterranean species and taxonomy (amphibians and reptiles. Interestingly, these results were observed for species located in both parks, particularly those situated at their range limits. Our findings show that ecological niche models built at local scale reveal differences in habitat preferences within a wide environmental gradient. Therefore, modelling at local scales rather than assuming large-scale models could be preferable for the establishment of conservation strategies for herptile species in natural
Local-scale models reveal ecological niche variability in amphibian and reptile communities from two contrasting biogeographic regions

Science.gov (United States)

Santos, Xavier; Felicísimo, Ángel M.

2016-01-01

Ecological Niche Models (ENMs) are widely used to describe how environmental factors influence species distribution. Modelling at a local scale, compared to a large scale within a high environmental gradient, can improve our understanding of ecological species niches. The main goal of this study is to assess and compare the contribution of environmental variables to amphibian and reptile ENMs in two Spanish national parks located in contrasting biogeographic regions, i.e., the Mediterranean and the Atlantic area. The ENMs were built with maximum entropy modelling using 11 environmental variables in each territory. The contributions of these variables to the models were analysed and classified using various statistical procedures (Mann–Whitney U tests, Principal Components Analysis and General Linear Models). Distance to the hydrological network was consistently the most relevant variable for both parks and taxonomic classes. Topographic variables (i.e., slope and altitude) were the second most predictive variables, followed by climatic variables. Differences in variable contribution were observed between parks and taxonomic classes. Variables related to water availability had the larger contribution to the models in the Mediterranean park, while topography variables were decisive in the Atlantic park. Specific response curves to environmental variables were in accordance with the biogeographic affinity of species (Mediterranean and non-Mediterranean species) and taxonomy (amphibians and reptiles). Interestingly, these results were observed for species located in both parks, particularly those situated at their range limits. Our findings show that ecological niche models built at local scale reveal differences in habitat preferences within a wide environmental gradient. Therefore, modelling at local scales rather than assuming large-scale models could be preferable for the establishment of conservation strategies for herptile species in natural parks. PMID
Repeated mass strandings of Miocene marine mammals from Atacama Region of Chile point to sudden death at sea.

Science.gov (United States)

Pyenson, Nicholas D; Gutstein, Carolina S; Parham, James F; Le Roux, Jacobus P; Chavarría, Catalina Carreño; Little, Holly; Metallo, Adam; Rossi, Vincent; Valenzuela-Toro, Ana M; Velez-Juarbe, Jorge; Santelli, Cara M; Rogers, David Rubilar; Cozzuol, Mario A; Suárez, Mario E

2014-04-22

Marine mammal mass strandings have occurred for millions of years, but their origins defy singular explanations. Beyond human causes, mass strandings have been attributed to herding behaviour, large-scale oceanographic fronts and harmful algal blooms (HABs). Because algal toxins cause organ failure in marine mammals, HABs are the most common mass stranding agent with broad geographical and widespread taxonomic impact. Toxin-mediated mortalities in marine food webs have the potential to occur over geological timescales, but direct evidence for their antiquity has been lacking. Here, we describe an unusually dense accumulation of fossil marine vertebrates from Cerro Ballena, a Late Miocene locality in Atacama Region of Chile, preserving over 40 skeletons of rorqual whales, sperm whales, seals, aquatic sloths, walrus-whales and predatory bony fish. Marine mammal skeletons are distributed in four discrete horizons at the site, representing a recurring accumulation mechanism. Taphonomic analysis points to strong spatial focusing with a rapid death mechanism at sea, before being buried on a barrier-protected supratidal flat. In modern settings, HABs are the only known natural cause for such repeated, multispecies accumulations. This proposed agent suggests that upwelling zones elsewhere in the world should preserve fossil marine vertebrate accumulations in similar modes and densities.
Repeated mass strandings of Miocene marine mammals from Atacama Region of Chile point to sudden death at sea

Science.gov (United States)

Pyenson, Nicholas D.; Gutstein, Carolina S.; Parham, James F.; Le Roux, Jacobus P.; Chavarría, Catalina Carreño; Little, Holly; Metallo, Adam; Rossi, Vincent; Valenzuela-Toro, Ana M.; Velez-Juarbe, Jorge; Santelli, Cara M.; Rogers, David Rubilar; Cozzuol, Mario A.; Suárez, Mario E.

2014-01-01

Marine mammal mass strandings have occurred for millions of years, but their origins defy singular explanations. Beyond human causes, mass strandings have been attributed to herding behaviour, large-scale oceanographic fronts and harmful algal blooms (HABs). Because algal toxins cause organ failure in marine mammals, HABs are the most common mass stranding agent with broad geographical and widespread taxonomic impact. Toxin-mediated mortalities in marine food webs have the potential to occur over geological timescales, but direct evidence for their antiquity has been lacking. Here, we describe an unusually dense accumulation of fossil marine vertebrates from Cerro Ballena, a Late Miocene locality in Atacama Region of Chile, preserving over 40 skeletons of rorqual whales, sperm whales, seals, aquatic sloths, walrus-whales and predatory bony fish. Marine mammal skeletons are distributed in four discrete horizons at the site, representing a recurring accumulation mechanism. Taphonomic analysis points to strong spatial focusing with a rapid death mechanism at sea, before being buried on a barrier-protected supratidal flat. In modern settings, HABs are the only known natural cause for such repeated, multispecies accumulations. This proposed agent suggests that upwelling zones elsewhere in the world should preserve fossil marine vertebrate accumulations in similar modes and densities. PMID:24573855
The role of pioneers as indicators of biogeographic range expansion caused by global change in southern African coastal waters

Science.gov (United States)

Whitfield, Alan K.; James, Nicola C.; Lamberth, Stephen J.; Adams, Janine B.; Perissinotto, Renzo; Rajkaran, Anusha; Bornman, Thomas G.

2016-04-01

The South African coastline is just over 3000 km in length yet it covers three major biogeographic regions, namely subtropical, warm temperate and cool temperate. In this review we examine published information to assess the possible role of climate change in driving distributional changes of a wide variety of organisms around the subcontinent. In particular we focus on harmful algal blooms, seaweeds, eelgrass, mangroves, salt marsh plants, foraminiferans, stromatolites, corals, squid, zooplankton, zoobenthos, fish, birds, crocodiles and hippopotamus, but also refer to biota such as pathogens, coralline algae, jellyfish and otters. The role of pioneers or propagules as indicators of an incipient range expansion are discussed, with mangroves, zoobenthos, fishes and birds providing the best examples of actual and imminent distributional changes. The contraction of the warm temperate biogeographic region, arising from the intrusion of cool upwelled waters along the Western Cape shores, and increasingly warm Agulhas Current waters penetrating along the eastern parts of the subcontinent, are highlighted. The above features provide an ideal setting for the monitoring of biotic drivers and responses to global climate change over different spatial and temporal scales, and have direct relevance to similar studies being conducted elsewhere in the world. We conclude that, although this review focuses mainly on the impact of global climate change on South African coastal biodiversity, other anthropogenic drivers of change such as introduced alien invasive species may act synergistically with climate change, thereby compounding both short and long-term changes in the distribution and abundance of indigenous species.
Continental-scale variation in seaweed host-associated bacterial communities is a function of host condition, not geography.

Science.gov (United States)

Marzinelli, Ezequiel M; Campbell, Alexandra H; Zozaya Valdes, Enrique; Vergés, Adriana; Nielsen, Shaun; Wernberg, Thomas; de Bettignies, Thibaut; Bennett, Scott; Caporaso, J Gregory; Thomas, Torsten; Steinberg, Peter D

2015-10-01

Interactions between hosts and associated microbial communities can fundamentally shape the development and ecology of 'holobionts', from humans to marine habitat-forming organisms such as seaweeds. In marine systems, planktonic microbial community structure is mainly driven by geography and related environmental factors, but the large-scale drivers of host-associated microbial communities are largely unknown. Using 16S-rRNA gene sequencing, we characterized 260 seaweed-associated bacterial and archaeal communities on the kelp Ecklonia radiata from three biogeographical provinces spanning 10° of latitude and 35° of longitude across the Australian continent. These phylogenetically and taxonomically diverse communities were more strongly and consistently associated with host condition than geographical location or environmental variables, and a 'core' microbial community characteristic of healthy kelps appears to be lost when hosts become stressed. Microbial communities on stressed individuals were more similar to each other among locations than those on healthy hosts. In contrast to biogeographical patterns of planktonic marine microbial communities, host traits emerge as critical determinants of associated microbial community structure of these holobionts, even at a continental scale. © 2015 Society for Applied Microbiology and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Fundamentals of ecology. Vol. 2. Grundlagen der Oekologie. Bd. 2. Standorte und Anwendung

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Odum, E P

1980-01-01

The following topics are discussed: freshwater flora and fauna; marine ecosystems; shelf, krill, mangroves, and coral reefs; terrestrial biota and biogeographic regions; deciduous wood, grassland, desert; microbial-ecological perspectives: taxonomy, efficiency, turnover; aquaculture, agriculture, forestry; types, cost, and phases of environmental pollution; specific population ecology of humans.
Rapid assessment of risks to a mobile marine mammal in an ecosystem-scale marine protected area.

Science.gov (United States)

Grech, A; Marsh, H

2008-06-01

Ecosystem-scale networks of marine protected areas (MPAs) are important conservation tools, but their effectiveness is difficult to quantify in a time frame appropriate to species conservation because of uncertainties in the data available. The dugong (Dugong dugon) is a mobile marine species that occurs in shallow inshore waters of an ecosystem-scale network of MPAs (the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area [GBRWHA]). We developed a rapid approach to assess risk to dugongs in the region and evaluate options to ameliorate that risk. We used expert opinion and a Delphi technique to identify and rank 5 human factors with the potential to adversely affect dugongs and their sea grass habitats: netting, indigenous hunting, trawling, vessel traffic, and poor-quality terrestrial runoff. We then quantified and compared the distribution of these factors with a spatially explicit model of dugong distribution. We estimated that approximately 96% of habitat of high conservation value for dugongs in the GBRWHA is at low risk from human activities. Using a sensitivity analysis, we found that to decrease risk, commercial netting or indigenous hunting had to be reduced in remote areas and the effects of vessel traffic, terrestrial runoff, and commercial netting had to be reduced in urban areas. This approach enabled us to compare and rank risks so as to identify the most severe risks and locate specific sites that require further management attention.
Marine pollution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Albaiges, J.

1989-01-01

This book covers the following topics: Transport of marine pollutants; Transformation of pollutants in the marine environment; Biological effects of marine pollutants; Sources and transport of oil pollutants in the Persian Gulf; Trace metals and hydrocarbons in Syrian coastal waters; and Techniques for analysis of trace pollutants

Molecular phylogenetic analysis supports a Gondwanan origin of the Hyriidae (Mollusca: Bivalvia: Unionida) and the paraphyly of Australasian taxa.

Science.gov (United States)

Graf, Daniel L; Jones, Hugh; Geneva, Anthony J; Pfeiffer, John M; Klunzinger, Michael W

2015-04-01

The freshwater mussel family Hyriidae (Mollusca: Bivalvia: Unionida) has a disjunct trans-Pacific distribution in Australasia and South America. Previous phylogenetic analyses have estimated the evolutionary relationships of the family and the major infra-familial taxa (Velesunioninae and Hyriinae: Hyridellini in Australia; Hyriinae: Hyriini, Castaliini, and Rhipidodontini in South America), but taxon and character sampling have been too incomplete to support a predictive classification or allow testing of biogeographical hypotheses. We sampled 30 freshwater mussel individuals representing the aforementioned hyriid taxa, as well as outgroup species representing the five other freshwater mussel families and their marine sister group (order Trigoniida). Our ingroup included representatives of all Australian genera. Phylogenetic relationships were estimated from three gene fragments (nuclear 28S, COI and 16S mtDNA) using maximum parsimony, maximum likelihood, and Bayesian inference, and we applied a Bayesian relaxed clock model calibrated with fossil dates to estimate node ages. Our analyses found good support for monophyly of the Hyriidae and the subfamilies and tribes, as well as the paraphyly of the Australasian taxa (Velesunioninae, (Hyridellini, (Rhipidodontini, (Castaliini, Hyriini)))). The Hyriidae was recovered as sister to a clade comprised of all other Recent freshwater mussel families. Our molecular date estimation supported Cretaceous origins of the major hyriid clades, pre-dating the Tertiary isolation of South America from Antarctica/Australia. We hypothesize that early diversification of the Hyriidae was driven by terrestrial barriers on Gondwana rather than marine barriers following disintegration of the super-continent. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Interpreting forest and grassland biome productivity utilizing nested scales of image resolution and biogeographical analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Iverson, Louis R.; Cook, Elizabeth A.; Graham, Robin L.; Olson, Jerry S.; Frank, Thomas; Ke, Ying; Treworgy, Colin; Risser, Paul G.

1987-01-01

This report summarizes progress made in our investigation of forest productivity assessment using TM and other biogeographical data during the third six-month period of the grant. Data acquisition and methodology hurdles are largely complete. Four study areas for which the appropriate TM and ancillary data were available are currently being intensively analyzed. Significant relationships have been found on a site by site basis to suggest that forest productivity can be qualitatively assessed using TM band values and site characteristics. Perhaps the most promising results relate TM unsupervised classes to forest productivity, with enhancement from elevation data. During the final phases of the research, multi-temporal and regional comparisons of results will be addressed, as well as the predictability of forest productivity patterns over a large region using TM data and/or TM nested within AVHRR data.
Diversity and community structure of marine microbes around the Benham Rise underwater plateau, northeastern Philippines.

Science.gov (United States)

Gajigan, Andrian P; Yñiguez, Aletta T; Villanoy, Cesar L; San Diego-McGlone, Maria Lourdes; Jacinto, Gil S; Conaco, Cecilia

2018-01-01

Microbes are central to the structuring and functioning of marine ecosystems. Given the remarkable diversity of the ocean microbiome, uncovering marine microbial taxa remains a fundamental challenge in microbial ecology. However, there has been little effort, thus far, to describe the diversity of marine microorganisms in the region of high marine biodiversity around the Philippines. Here, we present data on the taxonomic diversity of bacteria and archaea in Benham Rise, Philippines, Western Pacific Ocean, using 16S V4 rRNA gene sequencing. The major bacterial and archaeal phyla identified in the Benham Rise are Proteobacteria, Cyanobacteria, Actinobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Marinimicrobia, Thaumarchaeota and, Euryarchaeota. The upper mesopelagic layer exhibited greater microbial diversity and richness compared to surface waters. Vertical zonation of the microbial community is evident and may be attributed to physical stratification of the water column acting as a dispersal barrier. Canonical Correspondence Analysis (CCA) recapitulated previously known associations of taxa and physicochemical parameters in the environment, such as the association of oligotrophic clades with low nutrient surface water and deep water clades that have the capacity to oxidize ammonia or nitrite at the upper mesopelagic layer. These findings provide foundational information on the diversity of marine microbes in Philippine waters. Further studies are warranted to gain a more comprehensive picture of microbial diversity within the region.
Effect of Flow Velocity on Corrosion Rate and Corrosion Protection Current of Marine Material

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Seong Jong [Kunsan National University, Kunsan (Korea, Republic of); Han, Min Su; Jang, Seok Ki; Kim, Seong Jong [Mokpo National Maritime University, Mokpo (Korea, Republic of)

2015-10-15

In spite of highly advanced paint coating techniques, corrosion damage of marine metal and alloys increase more and more due to inherent micro-cracks and porosities in coatings formed during the coating process. Furthermore, flowing seawater conditions promote the breakdown of the protective oxide of the materials introducing more oxygen into marine environments, leading to the acceleration of corrosion. Various corrosion protection methods are available to prevent steel from marine corrosion. Cathodic protection is one of the useful corrosion protection methods by which the potential of the corroded metal is intentionally lowered to an immune state having the advantage of providing additional protection barriers to steel exposed to aqueous corrosion or soil corrosion, in addition to the coating. In the present investigation, the effect of flow velocity was examined for the determination of the optimum corrosion protection current density in cathodic protection as well as the corrosion rate of the steel. It is demonstrated from the result that the material corrosion under dynamic flowing conditions seems more prone to corrosion than under static conditions.
A biogeographical study on tropical flora of southern China.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, Hua

2017-12-01

The tropical climate in China exists in southeastern Xizang (Tibet), southwestern to southeastern Yunnan, southwestern Guangxi, southern Guangdon, southern Taiwan, and Hainan, and these southern Chinese areas contain tropical floras. I checked and synonymized native seed plants from these tropical areas in China and recognized 12,844 species of seed plants included in 2,181 genera and 227 families. In the tropical flora of southern China, the families are mainly distributed in tropical areas and extend into temperate zones and contribute to the majority of the taxa present. The genera with tropical distributions also make up the most of the total flora. In terms of geographical elements, the genera with tropical Asian distribution constitute the highest proportion, which implies tropical Asian or Indo-Malaysia affinity. Floristic composition and geographical elements are conspicuous from region to region due to different geological history and ecological environments, although floristic similarities from these regions are more than 90% and 64% at the family and generic levels, respectively, but lower than 50% at specific level. These differences in the regional floras could be influenced by historical events associated with the uplift of the Himalayas, such as the southeastward extrusion of the Indochina geoblock, clockwise rotation and southeastward movement of Lanping-Simao geoblock, and southeastward movement of Hainan Island. The similarity coefficients between the flora of southern China and those of Indochina countries are more than 96% and 80% at family and generic levels, indicating their close floristic affinity and inclusion in the same biogeographically floristic unit.
New Waves in Marine Science Symposium: Marine Animal Communication.

Science.gov (United States)

Allen, Betty, Comp.

1989-01-01

Presented are the abstracts from three research projects on marine social systems which were a part of a marine science symposium. Five sets of activities on marine animal communication are included, one each for grades K-2, 3-5, 6-8 and 9-12, and informal education. (CW)
Sprache als Barriere (Language as a Barrier)

Science.gov (United States)

Mattheier, Klaus

1974-01-01

The concept of language barrier has its derivations in the fields of dialectology, sociology and psychology. In contemporary usage however, the concept has two meanings i.e. regional-cultural barrier and socio-cultural barrier. (Text is in German.) (DS)
Geo-Seas: delivering harmonised marine geoscience data on a European scale

Science.gov (United States)

Glaves, Helen; Schaap, Dick

2013-04-01

A large amount of both raw and interpreted marine geoscience data is held by an array of European organisations but its discovery and re-use can be very difficult. The data is stored in a variety of different formats and a range of different nomenclatures, scales and co-ordinate systems are used at the organisational, national and international level. This lack of standardisation hinders the user's ability to locate and access these datasets or to use them in an integrated way. The Geo-Seas project, an EU funded Framework 7 initiative, has addressed these barriers to the re-use of marine geological and geophysical data through the development of an on-line data discovery and access service (http://www.geo-seas.eu). It allows the end user to identify, evaluate and download a range of standardised marine geoscience data sets from 26 federated data centres across 17 European maritime countries. The dedicated portal, which currently provides access to more than 100,000 datasets, has been developed by adopting and adapting the existing technologies, standards and methodologies developed by the SeaDataNet project for the management and delivery of oceanographic data. Through the re-use of this pre-existing architecture including the associated common standards and vocabularies a joint infrastructure for both marine geoscientific and oceanographic data has been created which supports the development of multidisciplinary ocean science. The Geo-Seas project has also brought together and incorporated the metadata services developed by previous EU-funded projects such as EUSeaSed and SEISCAN. The formats of this legacy metadata have not only been used as the basis for developing the Geo-Seas metadatabase but it has also lead to these pre-existing metadata catalogues being upgraded to current international standards. The Geo-Seas initiative has lead to a major improvement in the availability of standardised marine geoscientific data throughout Europe allowing end users better
Marine Robot Autonomy

CERN Document Server

2013-01-01

Autonomy for Marine Robots provides a timely and insightful overview of intelligent autonomy in marine robots. A brief history of this emerging field is provided, along with a discussion of the challenges unique to the underwater environment and their impact on the level of intelligent autonomy required. Topics covered at length examine advanced frameworks, path-planning, fault tolerance, machine learning, and cooperation as relevant to marine robots that need intelligent autonomy. This book also: Discusses and offers solutions for the unique challenges presented by more complex missions and the dynamic underwater environment when operating autonomous marine robots Includes case studies that demonstrate intelligent autonomy in marine robots to perform underwater simultaneous localization and mapping Autonomy for Marine Robots is an ideal book for researchers and engineers interested in the field of marine robots.
Linking the Local and the Global. What Today’s Environmental Humanities Movement Can Learn from Their Predecessor’s Successful Leadership of the 1965–1975 War to Save the Great Barrier Reef

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Iain McCalman

2017-10-01

Full Text Available For a decade from 1965–1975, an Australian poet, Judith Wright, and a Reef artist, John Busst, played a major role in helping to save the Great Barrier Reef. The Queensland State Government had declared its intention of mining up to eighty percent of the Reef’s corals for oil, gas, fertiliser and cement. The campaign of resistance led by these two humanists, in alliance with a forester, Dr. Len Webb, contributed substantively to the establishment of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park in 1975 and to then to the Reef’s World Heritage listing in 1983 as ‘the most impressive marine environment in the world’. This paper explains the challenges facing today’s environmental scholars and activists as they attempt to replicate the success of their 1970s predecessors in helping to save the Great Barrier Reef from even graver and more immediate threats to its survival.
Marine habitat mapping at Labuan Marine Park, Federal Territory of Labuan, Malaysia

Science.gov (United States)

Mustajap, Fazliana; Saleh, Ejria; Madin, John; Hamid, Shahimah Abdul

2015-06-01

Marine habitat mapping has recently become essential in coastal marine science research. It is one of the efforts to understand marine ecosystems, and thus to protect them. Habitat mapping is integral to marine-related industries such as fisheries, aquaculture, forestry and tourism. An assessment of marine habitat mapping was conducted at Labuan Marine Park (LMP), a marine protected area in the Federal Territory of Labuan. It is surrounded by shallow water within its islands (Kuraman, Rusukan Kecil and Rusukan Besar) with an area of 39.7 km2. The objectives of the study are to identify the substrate and types of marine habitat present within the park. Side scan sonar (SSS) (Aquascan TM) was used to determine the substrates and habitat while ground truthings were done through field observation and SCUBA diving survey. Seabed classification and marine habitat was based on NOAA's biogeography program. Three substrate types (sand, rock, silt) were identified in this area. The major marine habitats identified are corals, macro algae and small patches of sea grass. The study area is an important refuge for spawning and juvenile fish and supports the livelihood of the coastal communities on Labuan Island. Therefore, proper management is crucial in order to better maintain the marine protected area. The findings are significant and provide detailed baseline information on marine habitat for conservation, protection and future management in LMP.
Thermal barrier coatings application in diesel engines

Science.gov (United States)

Fairbanks, J. W.

1995-01-01

Commercial use of thermal barrier coatings in diesel engines began in the mid 70's by Dr. Ingard Kvernes at the Central Institute for Industrial Research in Oslo, Norway. Dr. Kvernes attributed attack on diesel engine valves and piston crowns encountered in marine diesel engines in Norwegian ships as hot-corrosion attributed to a reduced quality of residual fuel. His solution was to coat these components to reduce metal temperature below the threshold of aggressive hot-corrosion and also provide protection. Roy Kamo introduced thermal barrier coatings in his 'Adiabatic Diesel Engine' in the late 70's. Kamo's concept was to eliminate the engine block water cooling system and reduce heat losses. Roy reported significant performance improvements in his thermally insulated engine at the SAE Congress in 1982. Kamo's work stimulates major programs with insulated engines, particularly in Europe. Most of the major diesel engine manufacturers conducted some level of test with insulated combustion chamber components. They initially ran into increased fuel consumption. The German engine consortium had Prof. Woschni of the Technical Institute in Munich. Woschni conducted testing with pistons with air gaps to provide the insulation effects. Woschni indicated the hot walls of the insulated engine created a major increase in heat transfer he refers to as 'convection vive.' Woschni's work was a major factor in the abrupt curtailment of insulated diesel engine work in continental Europe. Ricardo in the UK suggested that combustion should be reoptimized for the hot-wall effects of the insulated combustion chamber and showed under a narrow range of conditions fuel economy could be improved. The Department of Energy has supported thermal barrier coating development for diesel engine applications. In the Clean Diesel - 50 Percent Efficient (CD-50) engine for the year 2000, thermal barrier coatings will be used on piston crowns and possibly other components. The primary purpose of the
Environmental predictors of habitat suitability and biogeographical range of Franciscana dolphins (Pontoporia blainvillei

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jonatan J. Gomez

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to use species distribution models to estimate the effects of environmental variables on the habitat suitability of river dolphins Pontoporia blainvillei (franciscanas along their overall biogeographical distribution. Based on the literature, we selected six environmental variables to be included in the models; four climatic factors (surface sea temperature, salinity, turbidity and productivity and two biotic factors (prey availability and fishing effort. We determined that the biographic range is under the following limits: temperature less than 19°C, a salinity of 36 psu and a minimal probability of the occurrence of fish C. guatucupa of 0.297. In the discussion, we postulate hypotheses on the behavioural and physiological mechanisms that cause these associations between environmental predictors and Franciscanas distribution. There was a good fit between the distribution predicted by the species distribution model and the one proposed by the experts of the International Union for Conservation of Nature; however, our analysis failed to highlight the fundamental role of bycatch as the main threat to this dolphin species.
Dynamics of autotrophic marine planktonic thaumarchaeota in the East China Sea.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anyi Hu

Full Text Available The ubiquitous and abundant distribution of ammonia-oxidizing Thaumarchaeota in marine environments is now well documented, and their crucial role in the global nitrogen cycle has been highlighted. However, the potential contribution of Thaumarchaeota in the carbon cycle remains poorly understood. Here we present for the first time a seasonal investigation on the shelf region (bathymetry≤200 m of the East China Sea (ECS involving analysis of both thaumarchaeal 16S rRNA and autotrophy-related genes (acetyl-CoA carboxylase gene, accA. Quantitative PCR results clearly showed a higher abundance of thaumarchaeal 16S and accA genes in late-autumn (November than summer (August, whereas the diversity and community structure of autotrophic Thaumarchaeota showed no statistically significant difference between different seasons as revealed by thaumarchaeal accA gene clone libraries. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that shallow ecotypes dominated the autotrophic Thaumarchaeota in the ECS shelf (86.3% of total sequences, while a novel non-marine thaumarchaeal accA lineage was identified in the Changjiang estuary in summer (when freshwater plumes become larger but not in autumn, implying that Changjiang freshwater discharge played a certain role in transporting terrestrial microorganisms to the ECS. Multivariate statistical analysis indicated that the biogeography of the autotrophic Thaumarchaeota in the shelf water of the ECS was influenced by complex hydrographic conditions. However, an in silico comparative analysis suggested that the diversity and abundance of the autotrophic Thaumarchaeota might be biased by the 'universal' thaumarchaeal accA gene primers Cren529F/Cren981R since this primer set is likely to miss some members within particular phylogenetic groups. Collectively, this study improved our understanding of the biogeographic patterns of the autotrophic Thaumarchaeota in temperate coastal waters, and suggested that new accA primers with
Dynamics of autotrophic marine planktonic thaumarchaeota in the East China Sea.

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Hu, Anyi; Yang, Zao; Yu, Chang-Ping; Jiao, Nianzhi

2013-01-01

The ubiquitous and abundant distribution of ammonia-oxidizing Thaumarchaeota in marine environments is now well documented, and their crucial role in the global nitrogen cycle has been highlighted. However, the potential contribution of Thaumarchaeota in the carbon cycle remains poorly understood. Here we present for the first time a seasonal investigation on the shelf region (bathymetry≤200 m) of the East China Sea (ECS) involving analysis of both thaumarchaeal 16S rRNA and autotrophy-related genes (acetyl-CoA carboxylase gene, accA). Quantitative PCR results clearly showed a higher abundance of thaumarchaeal 16S and accA genes in late-autumn (November) than summer (August), whereas the diversity and community structure of autotrophic Thaumarchaeota showed no statistically significant difference between different seasons as revealed by thaumarchaeal accA gene clone libraries. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that shallow ecotypes dominated the autotrophic Thaumarchaeota in the ECS shelf (86.3% of total sequences), while a novel non-marine thaumarchaeal accA lineage was identified in the Changjiang estuary in summer (when freshwater plumes become larger) but not in autumn, implying that Changjiang freshwater discharge played a certain role in transporting terrestrial microorganisms to the ECS. Multivariate statistical analysis indicated that the biogeography of the autotrophic Thaumarchaeota in the shelf water of the ECS was influenced by complex hydrographic conditions. However, an in silico comparative analysis suggested that the diversity and abundance of the autotrophic Thaumarchaeota might be biased by the 'universal' thaumarchaeal accA gene primers Cren529F/Cren981R since this primer set is likely to miss some members within particular phylogenetic groups. Collectively, this study improved our understanding of the biogeographic patterns of the autotrophic Thaumarchaeota in temperate coastal waters, and suggested that new accA primers with improved coverage
Phylogenomics of Rhodobacteraceae reveals evolutionary adaptation to marine and non-marine habitats.

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Simon, Meinhard; Scheuner, Carmen; Meier-Kolthoff, Jan P; Brinkhoff, Thorsten; Wagner-Döbler, Irene; Ulbrich, Marcus; Klenk, Hans-Peter; Schomburg, Dietmar; Petersen, Jörn; Göker, Markus

2017-06-01

Marine Rhodobacteraceae (Alphaproteobacteria) are key players of biogeochemical cycling, comprise up to 30% of bacterial communities in pelagic environments and are often mutualists of eukaryotes. As 'Roseobacter clade', these 'roseobacters' are assumed to be monophyletic, but non-marine Rhodobacteraceae have not yet been included in phylogenomic analyses. Therefore, we analysed 106 genome sequences, particularly emphasizing gene sampling and its effect on phylogenetic stability, and investigated relationships between marine versus non-marine habitat, evolutionary origin and genomic adaptations. Our analyses, providing no unequivocal evidence for the monophyly of roseobacters, indicate several shifts between marine and non-marine habitats that occurred independently and were accompanied by characteristic changes in genomic content of orthologs, enzymes and metabolic pathways. Non-marine Rhodobacteraceae gained high-affinity transporters to cope with much lower sulphate concentrations and lost genes related to the reduced sodium chloride and organohalogen concentrations in their habitats. Marine Rhodobacteraceae gained genes required for fucoidan desulphonation and synthesis of the plant hormone indole 3-acetic acid and the compatible solutes ectoin and carnitin. However, neither plasmid composition, even though typical for the family, nor the degree of oligotrophy shows a systematic difference between marine and non-marine Rhodobacteraceae. We suggest the operational term 'Roseobacter group' for the marine Rhodobacteraceae strains.
Concordance between phylogeographical and biogeographical patterns in the Brazilian Cerrado: diversification of the endemic tree Dalbergia miscolobium (Fabaceae).

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Novaes, Renan Milagres Lage; Ribeiro, Renata Acácio; Lemos-Filho, José Pires; Lovato, Maria Bernadete

2013-01-01

Few studies have addressed the phylogeography of species of the Cerrado, the largest savanna biome of South America. Here we aimed to investigate the phylogeographical structure of Dalbergia miscolobium, a widespread tree from the Cerrado, and to verify its concordance with plant phylogeographical and biogeographical patterns so far described. A total of 287 individuals from 32 populations were analyzed by sequencing the trnL intron of the chloroplast DNA and the internal transcribed spacer of the nuclear ribosomal DNA. Analysis of population structure and tests of population expansion were performed and the time of divergence of haplotypes was estimated. Twelve and 27 haplotypes were identified in the cpDNA and nrDNA data, respectively. The star-like network configuration and the mismatch distributions indicated a recent spatial and demographic expansion of the species. Consistent with previous tree phylogeographical studies of Cerrado trees, the cpDNA also suggested a recent expansion towards the southern Cerrado. The diversity of D. miscolobium was widespread but high levels of genetic diversity were found in the Central Eastern and in the southern portion of Central Western Cerrado. The combined analysis of cpDNA and nrDNA supported a phylogeographic structure into seven groups. The phylogeographical pattern showed many concordances with biogeographical and phylogeographical studies in the Cerrado, mainly with the Cerrado phytogeographic provinces superimposed to our sampling area. The data reinforced the uniqueness of Northeastern and Southeastern Cerrados and the differentiation between Eastern and Western Central Cerrados. The recent diversification of the species (estimated between the Pliocene and the Pleistocene) and the 'genealogical concordances' suggest that a shared and persistent pattern of species diversification might have been present in the Cerrado over time. This is the first time that an extensive 'genealogical concordance' between
Marine nitrogen cycle

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Naqvi, S.W.A.

) such as the Marine nitrogen cycle The marine nitrogen cycle. ‘X’ and ‘Y’ are intra-cellular intermediates that do not accumulate in water column. (Source: Codispoti et al., 2001) Page 1 of 3Marine nitrogen cycle - Encyclopedia of Earth 11/20/2006http://www... and nitrous oxide budgets: Moving targets as we enter the anthropocene?, Sci. Mar., 65, 85-105, 2001. Page 2 of 3Marine nitrogen cycle - Encyclopedia of Earth 11/20/2006http://www.eoearth.org/article/Marine_nitrogen_cycle square6 Gruber, N.: The dynamics...
Diet of otters (Lutra lutra in various habitat types in the Pannonian biogeographical region compared to other regions of Europe

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József Lanszki

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Knowledge of the effect of habitat type and region on diet and feeding behaviours of a species facilitates a better understanding of factors impacting populations, which contributes to effective conservation management. Using spraint analysis and relative frequency of occurrence data from the literature, we described the dietary patterns of Eurasian otters (Lutra lutra in 23 study sites within the Pannonian biogeographical region in Hungary. Our results indicated that diet composition varied by habitat type and is therefore context dependant. The differences among habitat types were however lower than expected. We noticed a decline in the fish consumption with a concomitant increase in trophic niche breadth and amphibian consumption in rivers, ponds (fish farms, backwaters, marshes and small watercourses. The main differences in diet were not attributed to the consumption of primary and secondary food types (fish and amphibians, but rather to differences in other, less important food types (mammals, birds. Using hierarchical cluster analysis, rivers and ponds could clearly be separated from other habitat types. We found the main fish diet of otters in most of these areas consisted of small (<100 g, eurytopic, littoral and non-native, mostly invasive species. Dietary studies from 91 sites in six European biogeographical regions showed that fish are consumed most frequently in the Atlantic and Boreal, less in the Continental and Pannonian, and least in the Alpine and Mediterranean regions. Comparative analysis indicated that the Mediterranean region (with frequent crayfish consumption and Alpine region (frequent amphibian consumption cluster separate from the other regions.
Barrier mechanisms in the Drosophila blood-brain barrier

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Samantha Jane Hindle

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The invertebrate blood-brain barrier field is growing at a rapid pace and, in recent years, studies have shown a physiologic and molecular complexity that has begun to rival its vertebrate counterpart. Novel mechanisms of paracellular barrier maintenance through GPCR signaling were the first demonstrations of the complex adaptive mechanisms of barrier physiology. Building upon this work, the integrity of the invertebrate blood-brain barrier has recently been shown to require coordinated function of all layers of the compound barrier structure, analogous to signaling between the layers of the vertebrate neurovascular unit. These findings strengthen the notion that many blood-brain barrier mechanisms are conserved between vertebrates and invertebrates, and suggest that novel findings in invertebrate model organisms will have a significant impact on the understanding of vertebrate BBB functions. In this vein, important roles in coordinating localized and systemic signaling to dictate organism development and growth are beginning to show how the blood-brain barrier can govern whole animal physiologies. This includes novel functions of blood-brain barrier gap junctions in orchestrating synchronized neuroblast proliferation, and of blood-brain barrier secreted antagonists of insulin receptor signaling. These advancements and others are pushing the field forward in exciting new directions. In this review, we provide a synopsis of invertebrate blood-brain barrier anatomy and physiology, with a focus on insights from the past 5 years, and highlight important areas for future study.

The Fisheries and Marine Renewable Energy Working Group: creating an agenda for improved co-existence.

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Campbell, M. S.; De Groot, J.; Ashley, M.; Rodwell, L.

2014-12-01

As an emerging industry, Marine Renewable Energy (MRE) is expected to play a major contributory role if the UK is to successfully reach its desired target of renewable energy production by 2020. However, due to the competing objectives and priorities of MRE and other industries, for example fisheries, and in the delivering of conservation measures, the demand for space within our marine landscape is increasing, and interactions are inevitable. In order to promote better understanding of the challenges in resolving interactions between these industries, a Fisheries and Marine Renewable Energy Working Group was set up under the Natural Environment Research Council Marine Renewable Energy Knowledge Exchange Programme (NERC MREKEP). The Working Group carried out an initial scoping survey in order to summarise recent and current research activities and identify key issues and topics in the fields of fisheries and MRE interactions. Mixed stakeholder groups discussed four primary topics: priority issues; barriers to progress; problem mitigation; and thoughts on the consultation process. Points of discussion were categorized into themes to aid analysis and protocol development. These themes were: culture, community and economy; legislation and rights; data and information; and collaboration and communication. Subsequent invited stakeholder and expert panel workshops were held to facilitate knowledge exchange between fisheries and development of MRE in order to identify priority research issues, knowledge gaps and collaboration needs. Four group sessions identified: practical steps to aid interaction between industries; barriers, opportunities and solutions; an agenda for action, timescales and partners; and action points carried forward by each stakeholder group. This Working Group, guided under the MREKEP banner, is the first of its kind in the UK, bringing together individuals from a nationally diverse group of academics, regulators, policy makers and representatives
Ecological partitioning and diversity in tropical planktonic foraminifera

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Seears Heidi A

2012-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Ecological processes are increasingly being viewed as an important mode of diversification in the marine environment, where the high dispersal potential of pelagic organisms, and a lack of absolute barriers to gene flow may limit the occurrence of allopatric speciation through vicariance. Here we focus on the potential role of ecological partitioning in the diversification of a widely distributed group of marine protists, the planktonic foraminifera. Sampling was conducted in the tropical Arabian Sea, during the southwest (summer monsoon, when pronounced environmental conditions result in a strong disparity in temperature, salinity and productivity between distinct northern and southern water masses. Results We uncovered extensive genetic diversity within the Arabian Sea planktonic foraminifera, identifying 13 morphospecies, represented by 20 distinct SSU rRNA genetic types. Several morphospecies/genetic types displayed non-random biogeographical distributions, partitioning between the northern and southern water masses, giving a strong indication of independent ecological adaptations. Conclusions We propose sea-surface primary productivity as the main factor driving the geographical segregation of Arabian Sea planktonic foraminifera, during the SW monsoon, with variations in symbiotic associations possibly playing a role in the specific ecological adaptations observed. Our findings suggest that ecological partitioning could be contributing to the high levels of 'cryptic' genetic diversity observed within the planktonic foraminifera, and support the view that ecological processes may play a key role in the diversification of marine pelagic organisms.
Estimating the Values of Conservation Area for Recreational Use

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Emang, Diana

Sipadan is a popular scuba diving site in Malaysia and has received a large number of visitors annually. The coral reefs of this area grow abundantly, making it one of the richest marine habitats in the world, especially in the Indo-Pacific biogeographic sea region. Sipadan is challenged by many...
Inference of biogeographical ancestry across central regions of Eurasia.

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Bulbul, O; Filoglu, G; Zorlu, T; Altuncul, H; Freire-Aradas, A; Söchtig, J; Ruiz, Y; Klintschar, M; Triki-Fendri, S; Rebai, A; Phillips, C; Lareu, M V; Carracedo, Á; Schneider, P M

2016-01-01

The inference of biogeographical ancestry (BGA) can provide useful information for forensic investigators when there are no suspects to be compared with DNA collected at the crime scene or when no DNA database matches exist. Although public databases are increasing in size and population scope, there is a lack of information regarding genetic variation in Eurasian populations, especially in central regions such as the Middle East. Inhabitants of these regions show a high degree of genetic admixture, characterized by an allele frequency cline running from NW Europe to East Asia. Although a proper differentiation has been established between the cline extremes of western Europe and South Asia, populations geographically located in between, i.e, Middle East and Mediterranean populations, require more detailed study in order to characterize their genetic background as well as to further understand their demographic histories. To initiate these studies, three ancestry informative SNP (AI-SNP) multiplex panels: the SNPforID 34-plex, Eurasiaplex and a novel 33-plex assay were used to describe the ancestry patterns of a total of 24 populations ranging across the longitudinal axis from NW Europe to East Asia. Different ancestry inference approaches, including STRUCTURE, PCA, DAPC and Snipper Bayes analysis, were applied to determine relationships among populations. The structure results show differentiation between continental groups and a NW to SE allele frequency cline running across Eurasian populations. This study adds useful population data that could be used as reference genotypes for future ancestry investigations in forensic cases. The 33-plex assay also includes pigmentation predictive SNPs, but this study primarily focused on Eurasian population differentiation using 33-plex and its combination with the other two AI-SNP sets.
Low calcification in corals in the Great Barrier Reef

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Bhattacharya, Atreyee

2012-10-01

Reef-building coral communities in the Great Barrier Reef—the world's largest coral reef—may now be calcifying at only about half the rate that they did during the 1970s, even though live coral cover may not have changed over the past 40 years, a new study finds. In recent decades, coral reefs around the world, home to large numbers of fish and other marine species, have been threatened by such human activities as pollution, overfishing, global warming, and ocean acidification; the latter affects ambient water chemistry and availability of calcium ions, which are critical for coral communities to calcify, build, and maintain reefs. Comparing data from reef surveys during the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s with present-day (2009) measurements of calcification rates in One Tree Island, a coral reef covering 13 square kilometers in the southern part of the Great Barrier Reef, Silverman et al. show that the total calcification rates (the rate of calcification minus the rate of dissolution) in these coral communities have decreased by 44% over the past 40 years; the decrease appears to stem from a threefold reduction in calcification rates during nighttime.
Marine Environmental History

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Poulsen, Bo

2012-01-01

human society and natural marine resources. Within this broad topic, several trends and objectives are discernable. The essay argue that the so-called material marine environmental history has its main focus on trying to reconstruct the presence, development and environmental impact of past fisheries......This essay provides an overview of recent trends in the historiography of marine environmental history, a sub-field of environmental history which has grown tremendously in scope and size over the last c. 15 years. The object of marine environmental history is the changing relationship between...... and whaling operations. This ambition often entails a reconstruction also of how marine life has changed over time. The time frame rages from Paleolithicum to the present era. The field of marine environmental history also includes a more culturally oriented environmental history, which mainly has come...
Molecular Phylogeny and Biogeography of Adenocaulon Highlight the Biogeographic Links between New World and Old World

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Tao Deng

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Adenocaulon (Asteraceae is a small genus with only five species but has a broad amphi-Pacific distribution pattern with three species distributed disjunctly in South America, Central America, and North America and two endemic species spanning from eastern Asia to the Himalayas. To trace the biogeographic pattern of the genus, we reconstructed its phylogenetic relationships and diversification history based on one nuclear and eight plastid gene regions. Our results showed that Adenocaulon is monophyletic and may have originated in Central America during the Miocene, dispersed into North America and finally reached the Himalayas via the Bering Land Bridge. The hypothesized trajectory implies that long-distance dispersal may have played an important role in the formation of the distribution of this group of species. This hypothesis seems to have gained support from the special morphological structure of fruits of the genus.
Sediment lithology and radiochemistry from the back-barrier environments along the northern Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana—March 2012

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Marot, Marci E.; Smith, Christopher G.; Adams, C. Scott; Richwine, Kathryn A.

2017-04-11

Scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center collected a set of 8 sediment cores from the back-barrier environments along the northern Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana, in March 2012. The sampling efforts were part of a larger USGS study to evaluate effects on the geomorphology of the Chandeleur Islands following the construction of an artificial sand berm to reduce oil transport onto federally managed lands. The objective of this study was to evaluate the response of the back-barrier tidal and wetland environments to the berm. This report serves as an archive for sedimentological and radiochemical data derived from the sediment cores. The data described in this report are available for download on the data downloads page.
Can human activities alter the drowning fate of barrier islands?

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Lorenzo-Trueba, J.; Ashton, A. D.; Jin, D.; Hoagland, P.; Kite-Powell, H.

2012-12-01

Low-lying coastal barriers face an uncertain future over the coming century and beyond as sea levels rise, with many projections suggesting end-of-century rates of sea-level rise as high or higher than 1 cm/yr. Geologically, such rates of sea-level rise have been experienced several thousand years ago and we can use our understanding of geological processes and sedimentary evidence to help unravel the dynamics of natural barriers experiencing sea-level rise. Along many modern coastal barriers, however, anthropic change, such as beach nourishment, dune construction, and emplacement of hard structures, plays a dominant role in coastline dynamics. A fundamental question to be addressed is whether human activities intended to preserve infrastructure and beach recreation may make wholesale collapse, or 'drowning,' of barrier systems more likely. Here we present a numerical modeling tool that couples natural processes and the human responses to these changes (and the subsequent of human responses on natural processes). Recent theoretical model development suggests that barriers are intrinsically morphodynamic features, responding to sea-level rise in complex ways through the interactions of marine processes and barrier overwash. Undeveloped coastal barriers would therefore respond to an accelerated sea-level rise in complex, less predictable manners than suggested by existing long-term models. We have developed a model that examines non-equilibrium cross-shore evolution of barrier systems at decadal to centennial temporal scales, focusing on the interactions between processes of shoreface evolution and overwash deposition. Model responses demonstrate two means of barrier collapse during sea-level rise: 'height drowning', which occurs when overwash fluxes are insufficient to maintain the landward migration rate required to keep in pace with sea-level rise, and 'width drowning', which occurs when the shoreface response is insufficient to maintain the barrier geometry
Documenting biogeographical patterns of African timber species using herbarium records: a conservation perspective based on native trees from Angola.

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Maria M Romeiras

Full Text Available In many tropical regions the development of informed conservation strategies is hindered by a dearth of biodiversity information. Biological collections can help to overcome this problem, by providing baseline information to guide research and conservation efforts. This study focuses on the timber trees of Angola, combining herbarium (2670 records and bibliographic data to identify the main timber species, document biogeographic patterns and identify conservation priorities. The study recognized 18 key species, most of which are threatened or near-threatened globally, or lack formal conservation assessments. Biogeographical analysis reveals three groups of species associated with the enclave of Cabinda and northwest Angola, which occur primarily in Guineo-Congolian rainforests, and evergreen forests and woodlands. The fourth group is widespread across the country, and is mostly associated with dry forests. There is little correspondence between the spatial pattern of species groups and the ecoregions adopted by WWF, suggesting that these may not provide an adequate basis for conservation planning for Angolan timber trees. Eight of the species evaluated should be given high conservation priority since they are of global conservation concern, they have very restricted distributions in Angola, their historical collection localities are largely outside protected areas and they may be under increasing logging pressure. High conservation priority was also attributed to another three species that have a large proportion of their global range concentrated in Angola and that occur in dry forests where deforestation rates are high. Our results suggest that timber tree species in Angola may be under increasing risk, thus calling for efforts to promote their conservation and sustainable exploitation. The study also highlights the importance of studying historic herbarium collections in poorly explored regions of the tropics, though new field surveys remain
Documenting biogeographical patterns of African timber species using herbarium records: a conservation perspective based on native trees from Angola.

Science.gov (United States)

Romeiras, Maria M; Figueira, Rui; Duarte, Maria Cristina; Beja, Pedro; Darbyshire, Iain

2014-01-01

In many tropical regions the development of informed conservation strategies is hindered by a dearth of biodiversity information. Biological collections can help to overcome this problem, by providing baseline information to guide research and conservation efforts. This study focuses on the timber trees of Angola, combining herbarium (2670 records) and bibliographic data to identify the main timber species, document biogeographic patterns and identify conservation priorities. The study recognized 18 key species, most of which are threatened or near-threatened globally, or lack formal conservation assessments. Biogeographical analysis reveals three groups of species associated with the enclave of Cabinda and northwest Angola, which occur primarily in Guineo-Congolian rainforests, and evergreen forests and woodlands. The fourth group is widespread across the country, and is mostly associated with dry forests. There is little correspondence between the spatial pattern of species groups and the ecoregions adopted by WWF, suggesting that these may not provide an adequate basis for conservation planning for Angolan timber trees. Eight of the species evaluated should be given high conservation priority since they are of global conservation concern, they have very restricted distributions in Angola, their historical collection localities are largely outside protected areas and they may be under increasing logging pressure. High conservation priority was also attributed to another three species that have a large proportion of their global range concentrated in Angola and that occur in dry forests where deforestation rates are high. Our results suggest that timber tree species in Angola may be under increasing risk, thus calling for efforts to promote their conservation and sustainable exploitation. The study also highlights the importance of studying historic herbarium collections in poorly explored regions of the tropics, though new field surveys remain a priority to
Regional management units for marine turtles: a novel framework for prioritizing conservation and research across multiple scales.

Science.gov (United States)

Wallace, Bryan P; DiMatteo, Andrew D; Hurley, Brendan J; Finkbeiner, Elena M; Bolten, Alan B; Chaloupka, Milani Y; Hutchinson, Brian J; Abreu-Grobois, F Alberto; Amorocho, Diego; Bjorndal, Karen A; Bourjea, Jerome; Bowen, Brian W; Dueñas, Raquel Briseño; Casale, Paolo; Choudhury, B C; Costa, Alice; Dutton, Peter H; Fallabrino, Alejandro; Girard, Alexandre; Girondot, Marc; Godfrey, Matthew H; Hamann, Mark; López-Mendilaharsu, Milagros; Marcovaldi, Maria Angela; Mortimer, Jeanne A; Musick, John A; Nel, Ronel; Pilcher, Nicolas J; Seminoff, Jeffrey A; Troëng, Sebastian; Witherington, Blair; Mast, Roderic B

2010-12-17

Resolving threats to widely distributed marine megafauna requires definition of the geographic distributions of both the threats as well as the population unit(s) of interest. In turn, because individual threats can operate on varying spatial scales, their impacts can affect different segments of a population of the same species. Therefore, integration of multiple tools and techniques--including site-based monitoring, genetic analyses, mark-recapture studies and telemetry--can facilitate robust definitions of population segments at multiple biological and spatial scales to address different management and research challenges. To address these issues for marine turtles, we collated all available studies on marine turtle biogeography, including nesting sites, population abundances and trends, population genetics, and satellite telemetry. We georeferenced this information to generate separate layers for nesting sites, genetic stocks, and core distributions of population segments of all marine turtle species. We then spatially integrated this information from fine- to coarse-spatial scales to develop nested envelope models, or Regional Management Units (RMUs), for marine turtles globally. The RMU framework is a solution to the challenge of how to organize marine turtles into units of protection above the level of nesting populations, but below the level of species, within regional entities that might be on independent evolutionary trajectories. Among many potential applications, RMUs provide a framework for identifying data gaps, assessing high diversity areas for multiple species and genetic stocks, and evaluating conservation status of marine turtles. Furthermore, RMUs allow for identification of geographic barriers to gene flow, and can provide valuable guidance to marine spatial planning initiatives that integrate spatial distributions of protected species and human activities. In addition, the RMU framework--including maps and supporting metadata--will be an
Regional Management Units for Marine Turtles: A Novel Framework for Prioritizing Conservation and Research across Multiple Scales

Science.gov (United States)

Wallace, Bryan P.; DiMatteo, Andrew D.; Hurley, Brendan J.; Finkbeiner, Elena M.; Bolten, Alan B.; Chaloupka, Milani Y.; Hutchinson, Brian J.; Abreu-Grobois, F. Alberto; Amorocho, Diego; Bjorndal, Karen A.; Bourjea, Jerome; Bowen, Brian W.; Dueñas, Raquel Briseño; Casale, Paolo; Choudhury, B. C.; Costa, Alice; Dutton, Peter H.; Fallabrino, Alejandro; Girard, Alexandre; Girondot, Marc; Godfrey, Matthew H.; Hamann, Mark; López-Mendilaharsu, Milagros; Marcovaldi, Maria Angela; Mortimer, Jeanne A.; Musick, John A.; Nel, Ronel; Pilcher, Nicolas J.; Seminoff, Jeffrey A.; Troëng, Sebastian; Witherington, Blair; Mast, Roderic B.

2010-01-01

Background Resolving threats to widely distributed marine megafauna requires definition of the geographic distributions of both the threats as well as the population unit(s) of interest. In turn, because individual threats can operate on varying spatial scales, their impacts can affect different segments of a population of the same species. Therefore, integration of multiple tools and techniques — including site-based monitoring, genetic analyses, mark-recapture studies and telemetry — can facilitate robust definitions of population segments at multiple biological and spatial scales to address different management and research challenges. Methodology/Principal Findings To address these issues for marine turtles, we collated all available studies on marine turtle biogeography, including nesting sites, population abundances and trends, population genetics, and satellite telemetry. We georeferenced this information to generate separate layers for nesting sites, genetic stocks, and core distributions of population segments of all marine turtle species. We then spatially integrated this information from fine- to coarse-spatial scales to develop nested envelope models, or Regional Management Units (RMUs), for marine turtles globally. Conclusions/Significance The RMU framework is a solution to the challenge of how to organize marine turtles into units of protection above the level of nesting populations, but below the level of species, within regional entities that might be on independent evolutionary trajectories. Among many potential applications, RMUs provide a framework for identifying data gaps, assessing high diversity areas for multiple species and genetic stocks, and evaluating conservation status of marine turtles. Furthermore, RMUs allow for identification of geographic barriers to gene flow, and can provide valuable guidance to marine spatial planning initiatives that integrate spatial distributions of protected species and human activities. In addition
Reproductive protein evolution in two cryptic species of marine chordate

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-01

Background Reproductive character displacement (RCD) is a common and taxonomically widespread pattern. In marine broadcast spawning organisms, behavioral and mechanical isolation are absent and prezygotic barriers between species often operate only during the fertilization process. Such barriers are usually a consequence of differences in the way in which sperm and egg proteins interact, so RCD can be manifest as faster evolution of these proteins between species in sympatry than allopatry. Rapid evolution of these proteins often appears to be a consequence of positive (directional) selection. Here, we identify a set of candidate gamete recognition proteins (GRPs) in the ascidian Ciona intestinalis and showed that these GRPs evolve more rapidly than control proteins (those not involved in gamete recognition). Choosing a subset of these gamete recognition proteins that show evidence of positive selection (CIPRO37.40.1, CIPRO60.5.1, CIPRO100.7.1), we then directly test the RCD hypothesis by comparing divergence (omega) and polymorphism (McDonald-Kreitman, Tajima's D, Fu and Li's D and F, Fay and Wu's H) statistics in sympatric and allopatric populations of two distinct forms of C. intestinalis (Types A and B) between which there are strong post-zygotic barriers. Results Candidate gamete recognition proteins from two lineages of C. intestinalis (Type A and B) are evolving more rapidly than control proteins, consistent with patterns seen in insects and mammals. However, ω (dN/dS) is not significantly different between the sympatric and allopatric populations, and none of the polymorphism statistics show significant differences between sympatric and allopatric populations. Conclusions Enhanced prezygotic isolation in sympatry has become a well-known feature of gamete recognition proteins in marine broadcast spawners. But in most cases the evolutionary process or processes responsible for this pattern have not been identified. Although gamete recognition proteins in C
Reproductive protein evolution in two cryptic species of marine chordate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Harrison Richard G

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Reproductive character displacement (RCD is a common and taxonomically widespread pattern. In marine broadcast spawning organisms, behavioral and mechanical isolation are absent and prezygotic barriers between species often operate only during the fertilization process. Such barriers are usually a consequence of differences in the way in which sperm and egg proteins interact, so RCD can be manifest as faster evolution of these proteins between species in sympatry than allopatry. Rapid evolution of these proteins often appears to be a consequence of positive (directional selection. Here, we identify a set of candidate gamete recognition proteins (GRPs in the ascidian Ciona intestinalis and showed that these GRPs evolve more rapidly than control proteins (those not involved in gamete recognition. Choosing a subset of these gamete recognition proteins that show evidence of positive selection (CIPRO37.40.1, CIPRO60.5.1, CIPRO100.7.1, we then directly test the RCD hypothesis by comparing divergence (omega and polymorphism (McDonald-Kreitman, Tajima's D, Fu and Li's D and F, Fay and Wu's H statistics in sympatric and allopatric populations of two distinct forms of C. intestinalis (Types A and B between which there are strong post-zygotic barriers. Results Candidate gamete recognition proteins from two lineages of C. intestinalis (Type A and B are evolving more rapidly than control proteins, consistent with patterns seen in insects and mammals. However, ω (dN/dS is not significantly different between the sympatric and allopatric populations, and none of the polymorphism statistics show significant differences between sympatric and allopatric populations. Conclusions Enhanced prezygotic isolation in sympatry has become a well-known feature of gamete recognition proteins in marine broadcast spawners. But in most cases the evolutionary process or processes responsible for this pattern have not been identified. Although gamete
Methylotrophic bacteria on the surfaces of field-grown sunflower plants: a biogeographic perspective.

Science.gov (United States)

Schauer, S; Kutschera, U

2008-03-01

Plant-associated methylobacteria of the genus Methylobacterium colonize the foliage and roots of embryophytes, living on the volatile compound methanol emitted from the cells of their host organism. In this study we analyzed these surface-dwelling pink-pigmented epiphytes in three contrasting habitats of field-grown sunflower plants (Helianthus annuus). Using the methanol-ammonium salts agar surface impression method and a polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based assay, we document the occurrence and characterize the composition of the methylobacteria in these epiphytic habitats. In both the sun-exposed phylloplane (yellow ligulate florets; green leaves) and the moist, dark rhizoplane pink-pigmented methylobacteria were detected that are assigned to the taxa M. mesophilicum, M. extorquens, M. radiotolerans and M. sp. (un-identifiable by our methods). Considerable differences in relative species compositions were found. These data are discussed with respect to a biogeographic model of the plant surface and microbial population dynamics on leaves. In addition, methylobacteria were analyzed by microscopic techniques. We document that in sedentary colonies extracellular polymers are secreted. However, flagella, which were observed in single cells maintained in liquid cultures, are absent in these bacterial aggregates.
Biogeographic classification of the Caspian Sea

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fendereski, F.; Vogt, M.; Payne, Mark

2014-01-01

Like other inland seas, the Caspian Sea (CS) has been influenced by climate change and anthropogenic disturbance during recent decades, yet the scientific understanding of this water body remains poor. In this study, an eco-geographical classification of the CS based on physical information deriv...... confirms the relevance of the ecoregions as proxies for habitats with common biological characteristics....... from space and in-situ data is developed and tested against a set of biological observations. We used a two-step classification procedure, consisting of (i) a data reduction with self-organizing maps (SOMs) and (ii) a synthesis of the most relevant features into a reduced number of marine ecoregions...... in phytoplankton phenology, with differences in the date of bloom initiation, its duration and amplitude between ecoregions. A first qualitative evaluation of differences in community composition based on recorded presence-absence patterns of 27 different species of plankton, fish and benthic invertebrate also...
Marine polar steroids

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stonik, Valentin A

2001-01-01

Structures, taxonomic distribution and biological activities of polar steroids isolated from various marine organisms over the last 8-10 years are considered. The peculiarities of steroid biogenesis in the marine biota and their possible biological functions are discussed. Syntheses of some highly active marine polar steroids are described. The bibliography includes 254 references.
Alternative Liquid Fuel Effects on Cooled Silicon Nitride Marine Gas Turbine Airfoils

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Holowczak, J.

2002-03-01

With prior support from the Office of Naval Research, DARPA, and U.S. Department of Energy, United Technologies is developing and engine environment testing what we believe to be the first internally cooled silicon nitride ceramic turbine vane in the United States. The vanes are being developed for the FT8, an aeroderivative stationary/marine gas turbine. The current effort resulted in further manufacturing and development and prototyping by two U.S. based gas turbine grade silicon nitride component manufacturers, preliminary development of both alumina, and YTRIA based environmental barrier coatings (EBC's) and testing or ceramic vanes with an EBC coating.
Phylogeography of the tropical planktonic foraminifera lineage globigerinella reveals isolation inconsistent with passive dispersal by ocean currents.

Science.gov (United States)

Weiner, Agnes K M; Weinkauf, Manuel F G; Kurasawa, Atsushi; Darling, Kate F; Kucera, Michal; Grimm, Guido W

2014-01-01

Morphologically defined species of marine plankton often harbor a considerable level of cryptic diversity. Since many morphospecies show cosmopolitan distribution, an understanding of biogeographic and evolutionary processes at the level of genetic diversity requires global sampling. We use a database of 387 single-specimen sequences of the SSU rDNA of the planktonic foraminifera Globigerinella as a model to assess the biogeographic and phylogenetic distributions of cryptic diversity in marine microplankton on a global scale. Our data confirm the existence of multiple, well isolated genetic lineages. An analysis of their abundance and distribution indicates that our sampling is likely to approximate the actual total diversity. Unexpectedly, we observe an uneven allocation of cryptic diversity among the phylogenetic lineages. We show that this pattern is neither an artifact of sampling intensity nor a function of lineage age. Instead, we argue that it reflects an ongoing speciation process in one of the three major lineages. Surprisingly, four of the six genetic types in the hyperdiverse lineage are biogeographically restricted to the Indopacific. Their mutual co-occurrence and their hierarchical phylogenetic structure provide no evidence for an origin through sudden habitat fragmentation and their limitation to the Indopacific challenges the view of a global gene flow within the warm-water provinces. This phenomenon shows that passive dispersal is not sufficient to describe the distribution of plankton diversity. Rather, these organisms show differentiated distribution patterns shaped by species interactions and reflecting phylogenetic contingency with unique histories of diversification rates.

Smart parking barrier

KAUST Repository

Alharbi, Abdulrazaq M.

2016-05-06

Various methods and systems are provided for smart parking barriers. In one example, among others, a smart parking barrier system includes a movable parking barrier located at one end of a parking space, a barrier drive configured to control positioning of the movable parking barrier, and a parking controller configured to initiate movement of the parking barrier, via the barrier drive. The movable parking barrier can be positioned between a first position that restricts access to the parking space and a second position that allows access to the parking space. The parking controller can initiate movement of the movable parking barrier in response to a positive identification of an individual allowed to use the parking space. The parking controller can identify the individual through, e.g., a RFID tag, a mobile device (e.g., a remote control, smartphone, tablet, etc.), an access card, biometric information, or other appropriate identifier.
Rapid divergence of mussel populations despite incomplete barriers to dispersal.

Science.gov (United States)

Maas, Diede L; Prost, Stefan; Bi, Ke; Smith, Lydia L; Armstrong, Ellie E; Aji, Ludi P; Toha, Abdul Hamid A; Gillespie, Rosemary G; Becking, Leontine E

2018-04-01

Striking genetic structure among marine populations at small spatial scales is becoming evident with extensive molecular studies. Such observations suggest isolation at small scales may play an important role in forming patterns of genetic diversity within species. Isolation-by-distance, isolation-by-environment and historical priority effects are umbrella terms for a suite of processes that underlie genetic structure, but their relative importance at different spatial and temporal scales remains elusive. Here, we use marine lakes in Indonesia to assess genetic structure and assess the relative roles of the processes in shaping genetic differentiation in populations of a bivalve mussel (Brachidontes sp.). Marine lakes are landlocked waterbodies of similar age (6,000-10,000 years), but with heterogeneous environments and varying degrees of connection to the sea. Using a population genomic approach (double-digest restriction-site-associated DNA sequencing), we show strong genetic structuring across populations (range F ST : 0.07-0.24) and find limited gene flow through admixture plots. At large spatial scales (>1,400 km), a clear isolation-by-distance pattern was detected. At smaller spatial scales (connection. We hypothesize that (incomplete) dispersal barriers can cause initial isolation, allowing priority effects to give the numerical advantage necessary to initiate strong genetic structure. Priority effects may be strengthened by local adaptation, which the data may corroborate by showing a high correlation between mussel genotypes and temperature. Our study indicates an often-neglected role of (evolution-mediated) priority effects in shaping population divergence. © 2018 The Authors. Molecular Ecology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
An assessment of natural product discovery from marine (sensu strictu) and marine-derived fungi

Science.gov (United States)

Overy, David P.; Bayman, Paul; Kerr, Russell G.; Bills, Gerald F.

2014-01-01

The natural products community has been investigating secondary metabolites from marine fungi for several decades, but when one attempts to search for validated reports of new natural products from marine fungi, one encounters a literature saturated with reports from ‘marine-derived’ fungi. Of the 1000+ metabolites that have been characterized to date, only approximately 80 of these have been isolated from species from exclusively marine lineages. These metabolites are summarized here along with the lifestyle and habitats of their producing organisms. Furthermore, we address some of the reasons for the apparent disconnect between the stated objectives of discovering new chemistry from marine organisms and the apparent neglect of the truly exceptional obligate marine fungi. We also offer suggestions on how to reinvigorate enthusiasm for marine natural products discovery from fungi from exclusive marine lineages and highlight the need for critically assessing the role of apparently terrestrial fungi in the marine environment. PMID:25379338
Ring distributions leading to species formation: a global topographic analysis of geographic barriers associated with ring species.

Science.gov (United States)

Monahan, William B; Pereira, Ricardo J; Wake, David B

2012-03-12

In the mid 20th century, Ernst Mayr and Theodosius Dobzhansky championed the significance of circular overlaps or ring species as the perfect demonstration of speciation, yet in the over 50 years since, only a handful of such taxa are known. We developed a topographic model to evaluate whether the geographic barriers that favor processes leading to ring species are common or rare, and to predict where other candidate ring barriers might be found. Of the 952,147 geographic barriers identified on the planet, only about 1% are topographically similar to barriers associated with known ring taxa, with most of the likely candidates occurring in under-studied parts of the world (for example, marine environments, tropical latitudes). Predicted barriers separate into two distinct categories: (i) single cohesive barriers (barriers - formed by groups of barriers (each 184,000 to 1.7 million km2) in close geographic proximity (totaling 1.9 to 2.3 million km2) - associated with taxa that differentiate at larger spatial scales (birds: Phylloscopus trochiloides and Larus (sp. argentatus and fuscus)). When evaluated globally, we find a large number of cohesive barriers that are topographically similar to those associated with known ring taxa. Yet, compared to cohesive barriers, an order of magnitude fewer composite barriers are similar to those that favor ring divergence in species with higher dispersal. While these findings confirm that the topographic conditions that favor evolutionary processes leading to ring speciation are, in fact, rare, they also suggest that many understudied natural systems could provide valuable demonstrations of continuous divergence towards the formation of new species. Distinct advantages of the model are that it (i) requires no a priori information on the relative importance of features that define barriers, (ii) can be replicated using any kind of continuously distributed environmental variable, and (iii) generates spatially explicit hypotheses of
Chaotic correlations in barrier billiards with arbitrary barriers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Osbaldestin, A H; Adamson, L N C

2013-01-01

We study autocorrelation functions in symmetric barrier billiards for golden mean trajectories with arbitrary barriers. Renormalization analysis reveals the presence of a chaotic invariant set and thus that, for a typical barrier, there are chaotic correlations. The chaotic renormalization set is the analogue of the so-called orchid that arises in a generalized Harper equation. (paper)
Biogeographical role of the Kuroshio Current in the amphibious mudskipper Periophthalmus modestus indicated by mitochondrial DNA data

Science.gov (United States)

He, Lijun; Mukai, Takahiko; Hou Chu, Ka; Ma, Qiang; Zhang, Jing

2015-10-01

Quaternary climatic cycles have influenced marine organisms’ spatial distribution and population dynamics. This study aimed to elucidate the evolutionary influences of contemporary and glacial physical barriers on the population structure, demography and colonization history of the mudskipper (Periophthalmus modestus) based on a mitochondrial gene segment (ND5) from 131 individual fish sampled in the northwestern Pacific Ocean. The current Kuroshio Current and the glacial exposure of the Taiwan Strait appeared to have restricted migration among the South China Sea, coastal East China and Japan. However, genetic homogeneity (Nm>1) also suggested contemporary larval transportation by sea circulation between the East China Sea and the South China Sea or historical dispersal along the glacial exposed shoreline among China, Japan and the Ryukyu Islands. Evolutionary signals of the strengthened East Asian Summer Monsoon in the mid-Pleistocene and regional difference in intertidal primary productions were indicated by a late-Pleistocene population expansion of P. modestus with a higher effective population size in the South China Sea than in the East China Sea. Furthermore, a potential colonization origin from the South China Sea was consistently inferred by different clues, including the populations’ coalescence times, the ancestral haplotype distribution, the number of private haplotypes and species/genetic diversity.
Machine Learning Biogeographic Processes from Biotic Patterns: A New Trait-Dependent Dispersal and Diversification Model with Model Choice By Simulation-Trained Discriminant Analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Sukumaran, Jeet; Economo, Evan P; Lacey Knowles, L

2016-05-01

Current statistical biogeographical analysis methods are limited in the ways ecology can be related to the processes of diversification and geographical range evolution, requiring conflation of geography and ecology, and/or assuming ecologies that are uniform across all lineages and invariant in time. This precludes the possibility of studying a broad class of macroevolutionary biogeographical theories that relate geographical and species histories through lineage-specific ecological and evolutionary dynamics, such as taxon cycle theory. Here we present a new model that generates phylogenies under a complex of superpositioned geographical range evolution, trait evolution, and diversification processes that can communicate with each other. We present a likelihood-free method of inference under our model using discriminant analysis of principal components of summary statistics calculated on phylogenies, with the discriminant functions trained on data generated by simulations under our model. This approach of model selection by classification of empirical data with respect to data generated under training models is shown to be efficient, robust, and performs well over a broad range of parameter space defined by the relative rates of dispersal, trait evolution, and diversification processes. We apply our method to a case study of the taxon cycle, that is testing for habitat and trophic level constraints in the dispersal regimes of the Wallacean avifaunal radiation. ©The Author(s) 2015. Published by Oxford University Press, on behalf of the Society of Systematic Biologists. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.
Ubiquity and diversity of heterotrophic bacterial nasA genes in diverse marine environments.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xuexia Jiang

Full Text Available Nitrate uptake by heterotrophic bacteria plays an important role in marine N cycling. However, few studies have investigated the diversity of environmental nitrate assimilating bacteria (NAB. In this study, the diversity and biogeographical distribution of NAB in several global oceans and particularly in the western Pacific marginal seas were investigated using both cultivation and culture-independent molecular approaches. Phylogenetic analyses based on 16S rRNA and nasA (encoding the large subunit of the assimilatory nitrate reductase gene sequences indicated that the cultivable NAB in South China Sea belonged to the α-Proteobacteria, γ-Proteobacteria and CFB (Cytophaga-Flavobacteria-Bacteroides bacterial groups. In all the environmental samples of the present study, α-Proteobacteria, γ-Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes were found to be the dominant nasA-harboring bacteria. Almost all of the α-Proteobacteria OTUs were classified into three Roseobacter-like groups (I to III. Clone library analysis revealed previously underestimated nasA diversity; e.g. the nasA gene sequences affiliated with β-Proteobacteria, ε-Proteobacteria and Lentisphaerae were observed in the field investigation for the first time, to the best of our knowledge. The geographical and vertical distributions of seawater nasA-harboring bacteria indicated that NAB were highly diverse and ubiquitously distributed in the studied marginal seas and world oceans. Niche adaptation and separation and/or limited dispersal might mediate the NAB composition and community structure in different water bodies. In the shallow-water Kueishantao hydrothermal vent environment, chemolithoautotrophic sulfur-oxidizing bacteria were the primary NAB, indicating a unique nitrate-assimilating community in this extreme environment. In the coastal water of the East China Sea, the relative abundance of Alteromonas and Roseobacter-like nasA gene sequences responded closely to algal blooms, indicating
Resource Supply Overrides Temperature as a Controlling Factor of Marine Phytoplankton Growth

Science.gov (United States)

Marañón, Emilio; Cermeño, Pedro; Huete-Ortega, María; López-Sandoval, Daffne C.; Mouriño-Carballido, Beatriz; Rodríguez-Ramos, Tamara

2014-01-01

The universal temperature dependence of metabolic rates has been used to predict how ocean biology will respond to ocean warming. Determining the temperature sensitivity of phytoplankton metabolism and growth is of special importance because this group of organisms is responsible for nearly half of global primary production, sustains most marine food webs, and contributes to regulate the exchange of CO2 between the ocean and the atmosphere. Phytoplankton growth rates increase with temperature under optimal growth conditions in the laboratory, but it is unclear whether the same degree of temperature dependence exists in nature, where resources are often limiting. Here we use concurrent measurements of phytoplankton biomass and carbon fixation rates in polar, temperate and tropical regions to determine the role of temperature and resource supply in controlling the large-scale variability of in situ metabolic rates. We identify a biogeographic pattern in phytoplankton metabolic rates, which increase from the oligotrophic subtropical gyres to temperate regions and then coastal waters. Variability in phytoplankton growth is driven by changes in resource supply and appears to be independent of seawater temperature. The lack of temperature sensitivity of realized phytoplankton growth is consistent with the limited applicability of Arrhenius enzymatic kinetics when substrate concentrations are low. Our results suggest that, due to widespread resource limitation in the ocean, the direct effect of sea surface warming upon phytoplankton growth and productivity may be smaller than anticipated. PMID:24921945
Smart parking barrier

KAUST Repository

Alharbi, Abdulrazaq M.

2016-01-01

positioning of the movable parking barrier, and a parking controller configured to initiate movement of the parking barrier, via the barrier drive. The movable parking barrier can be positioned between a first position that restricts access to the parking
Molecular evidence on the evolutionary and biogeographical patterns of European cyprinids.

Science.gov (United States)

Zardoya, R; Doadrio, I

1999-08-01

The phylogenetic relationships of 106 European cyprinid taxa were determined based on the complete nucleotide sequence (1140 bp) of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene. The molecular phylogeny was used (1) to revise the current systematics of European cyprinids, (2) to establish the phylogenetic utility of traditional morphological characters that are widely used in Cyprinidae systematics, and (3) to discuss alternative hypotheses on the biogeography of the family in Europe. The age of the major lineages within European cyprinids was tentatively estimated with a molecular clock and showed full agreement with the fossil record of the group. Moreover, the results provided unambiguous evidence for a close phylogenetic affinity of some Caucasian and Greek endemic cyprinid taxa (e.g., B. capito and B. brachycephalus and Leuciscus keadicus, Barbus graecus, and B. albanicus, respectively) to Iberian and North African, but not Central European, cyprinids. The existence of such unexpected phylogenetic relationships refutes the classical hypothesis on the biogeography of European cyprinids, which assumes a dispersal of the cyprinid fauna from central Europe to southern Europe and northern Africa during the Miocene (and, hence, predicts a close phylogenetic relationship of all Caucasian, Greek, Iberian, and North African cyprinids to central European taxa). Instead, the existence of a Mediterranean realm independent of the central European route seems plausible based on the molecular evidence. It is likely that the new biogeographical scenario proposed here might apply to other primary freshwater European animals with low dispersal abilities, including fish, amphibians, and invertebrates.
Dispersals of Hyoscyameae and Mandragoreae (Solanaceae) from the New World to Eurasia in the early Miocene and their biogeographic diversification within Eurasia.

Science.gov (United States)

Tu, Tieyao; Volis, Sergei; Dillon, Michael O; Sun, Hang; Wen, Jun

2010-12-01

The cosmopolitan Solanaceae contains 21 tribes and has the greatest diversity in South America. Hyoscyameae and Mandragoreae are the only tribes of this family distributed exclusively in Eurasia with two centers of diversity: the Mediterranean-Turanian (MT) region and the Tibetan Plateau (TP). In this study, we examined the origins and biogeographical diversifications of the two tribes based on the phylogenetic framework and chronogram inferred from a combined data set of six plastid DNA regions (the atpB gene, the ndhF gene, the rps16-trnK intergenic spacer, the rbcL gene, the trnC-psbM region and the psbA-trnH intergenic spacer) with two fossil calibration points. Our data suggest that Hyoscyameae and Mandragoreae each forms a monophyletic group independently derived from different New World lineages in the early Miocene. Phylogenetic relationships within both tribes are generally well resolved. All genera of Hyoscyameae are found to be monophyletic and they diversified in middle to late Miocene. At nearly the same time, Mandragoreae split into two clades, corresponding to the MT region and the TP region, respectively. Both the phylogenetic relationships and the estimated ages of Hyoscyameae and Mandragoreae support two independent dispersal events of their ancestors from the New World into Eurasia. After their arrivals in Eurasia, the two tribes diversified primarily in the MT region and in the TP region via multiple biogeographic processes including vicariance, dispersal, recolonization or being preserved as relicts, from the mid Miocene to the late Quaternary. Published by Elsevier Inc.
Co-existence of Fisheries and Marine Renewable Energy: The Spotlight on Fishers and Fishers' Knowledge (FK)

Science.gov (United States)

Campbell, M. S.; Ashley, M.; De Groot, J.; Rodwell, L.

2016-02-01

As an emerging industry, Marine Renewable Energy (MRE) is expected to play a major contributory role if the UK is to successfully reach it's desired target of renewable energy production by 2020. However, due to the competing objectives and priorities of MRE and other industries, for example fisheries, and in the delivering of conservation measures, the demand for space within our marine landscape is increasing, and interactions are inevitable. A semi structured interview was conducted with forty fishers across the UK to elicit further information on the challenges, barriers to progress and priority issues these fishers face in relation to MRE development. The questionnaire also included a fisher assessment of the mitigation agenda developed by de Groot et al. (2014) under the Natural Environment Research Council Marine Renewable Energy Knowledge Exchange Programme ( NERC MREKEP). Qualitative data were extracted and analysed using the text analysis software NVivo8. Fishers identified barriers to progress, and in order of the most important themes included; policy, consultation, trust, lack of knowledge, true representation of all fishers, science vs. fisher observation mismatch and timescales. Priority issues identified in order of importance were; displacement or loss of access, cable disturbance, timings of installation/repairs, effects on the seabed and specifically offshore windfarm (OWF) sitting. The consultation process caused discontent among all fishers interviewed. In relation to working towards a collaborative mitigation agenda, fishers highlighted issues of trust in relation to; trans-boundary management, data management and the consultation process. At all stages of the research, the response rate of the importance of gathering fishers' knowledge (FK) was high. Fishers underlined the importance of this data source in assessing the impacts of MRE on the sectors of the UK fleet. Thus, although at an early stage of development, an initial framework for the
Integrated fossil and molecular data reveal the biogeographic diversification of the eastern Asian-eastern North American disjunct hickory genus (Carya Nutt.).

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Jing-Bo; Li, Rui-Qi; Xiang, Xiao-Guo; Manchester, Steven R; Lin, Li; Wang, Wei; Wen, Jun; Chen, Zhi-Duan

2013-01-01

The hickory genus (Carya) contains ca. 17 species distributed in subtropical and tropical regions of eastern Asia and subtropical to temperate regions of eastern North America. Previously, the phylogenetic relationships between eastern Asian and eastern North American species of Carya were not fully confirmed even with an extensive sampling, biogeographic and diversification patterns had thus never been investigated in a phylogenetic context. We sampled 17 species of Carya and 15 species representing all other genera of the Juglandaceae as outgroups, with eight nuclear and plastid loci to reconstruct the phylogeny of Carya. The phylogenetic positions of seven extinct genera of the Juglandaceae were inferred using morphological characters and the molecular phylogeny as a backbone constraint. Divergence times within Carya were estimated with relaxed Bayesian dating. Biogeographic analyses were performed in DIVA and LAGRANGE. Diversification rates were inferred by LASER and APE packages. Our results support two major clades within Carya, corresponding to the lineages of eastern Asia and eastern North America. The split between the two disjunct clades is estimated to be 21.58 (95% HPD 11.07-35.51) Ma. Genus-level DIVA and LAGRANGE analyses incorporating both extant and extinct genera of the Juglandaceae suggested that Carya originated in North America, and migrated to Eurasia during the early Tertiary via the North Atlantic land bridge. Fragmentation of the distribution caused by global cooling in the late Tertiary resulted in the current disjunction. The diversification rate of hickories in eastern North America appeared to be higher than that in eastern Asia, which is ascribed to greater ecological opportunities, key morphological innovations, and polyploidy.
Integrated fossil and molecular data reveal the biogeographic diversification of the eastern Asian-eastern North American disjunct hickory genus (Carya Nutt..

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jing-Bo Zhang

Full Text Available The hickory genus (Carya contains ca. 17 species distributed in subtropical and tropical regions of eastern Asia and subtropical to temperate regions of eastern North America. Previously, the phylogenetic relationships between eastern Asian and eastern North American species of Carya were not fully confirmed even with an extensive sampling, biogeographic and diversification patterns had thus never been investigated in a phylogenetic context. We sampled 17 species of Carya and 15 species representing all other genera of the Juglandaceae as outgroups, with eight nuclear and plastid loci to reconstruct the phylogeny of Carya. The phylogenetic positions of seven extinct genera of the Juglandaceae were inferred using morphological characters and the molecular phylogeny as a backbone constraint. Divergence times within Carya were estimated with relaxed Bayesian dating. Biogeographic analyses were performed in DIVA and LAGRANGE. Diversification rates were inferred by LASER and APE packages. Our results support two major clades within Carya, corresponding to the lineages of eastern Asia and eastern North America. The split between the two disjunct clades is estimated to be 21.58 (95% HPD 11.07-35.51 Ma. Genus-level DIVA and LAGRANGE analyses incorporating both extant and extinct genera of the Juglandaceae suggested that Carya originated in North America, and migrated to Eurasia during the early Tertiary via the North Atlantic land bridge. Fragmentation of the distribution caused by global cooling in the late Tertiary resulted in the current disjunction. The diversification rate of hickories in eastern North America appeared to be higher than that in eastern Asia, which is ascribed to greater ecological opportunities, key morphological innovations, and polyploidy.
Carotenoids in Marine Animals

Science.gov (United States)

Maoka, Takashi

2011-01-01

Marine animals contain various carotenoids that show structural diversity. These marine animals accumulate carotenoids from foods such as algae and other animals and modify them through metabolic reactions. Many of the carotenoids present in marine animals are metabolites of β-carotene, fucoxanthin, peridinin, diatoxanthin, alloxanthin, and astaxanthin, etc. Carotenoids found in these animals provide the food chain as well as metabolic pathways. In the present review, I will describe marine animal carotenoids from natural product chemistry, metabolism, food chain, and chemosystematic viewpoints, and also describe new structural carotenoids isolated from marine animals over the last decade. PMID:21566799
Modelling the occurrence of postflexion stages of a marine estuarine-dependent fish in temperate South African estuaries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yanasivan Kisten

2017-03-01

Full Text Available The movement of postflexion larvae of marine estuarine-dependent species into estuaries is critical for the survival of fishes reliant on estuaries as nurseries. However, detailed studies focused on environmental variability experienced by postflexion larvae entering a range of estuary types under varying conditions are rare. This study assessed the in situ conditions (temperature, salinity and water clarity under which the southern African endemic fish Rhabdosargus holubi (Sparidae recruits into estuaries. Postflexion larvae were sampled in three biogeographic regions (cool temperate, warm temperate and subtropical boundary, which included three estuary types (permanently open estuaries (POEs, temporarily open/closed estuaries and estuarine lake systems on a seasonal basis, independent of each other. Rhabdosargus holubi larvae were more abundant in spring and summer, in POEs in the warm temperate region. Models predicted that higher larval occurrence in estuaries is a function of lower salinity (e.g. mesohaline zones of 5-17.9 salinity and lower water clarity (e.g. 0-0.2 Kd, light extinction coefficient, particularly for warm, temperate POEs. This re-emphasizes the importance of freshwater for optimal nursery functioning, which may be compromised by impoundments, abstraction and climate change in water-short countries like South Africa.
Marine Biomedicine

Science.gov (United States)

Bang, Frederik B.

1977-01-01

Describes early scientific research involving marine invertebrate pathologic processes that may have led to new insights into human disease. Discussed are inquiries of Metchnikoff, Loeb, and Cantacuzene (immunolgic responses in sea stars, horseshoe crabs, and marine worms, respectively). Describes current research stemming from these early…
Marine Biology

Science.gov (United States)

Dewees, Christopher M.; Hooper, Jon K.

1976-01-01

A variety of informational material for a course in marine biology or oceanology at the secondary level is presented. Among the topics discussed are: food webs and pyramids, planktonic blooms, marine life, plankton nets, food chains, phytoplankton, zooplankton, larval plankton and filter feeders. (BT)
Active Marine Station Metadata

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Active Marine Station Metadata is a daily metadata report for active marine bouy and C-MAN (Coastal Marine Automated Network) platforms from the National Data...

Characterizing Marine Soundscapes.

Science.gov (United States)

Erbe, Christine; McCauley, Robert; Gavrilov, Alexander

2016-01-01

The study of marine soundscapes is becoming widespread and the amount of data collected is increasing rapidly. Data owners (typically academia, industry, government, and defense) are negotiating data sharing and generating potential for data syntheses, comparative studies, analyses of trends, and large-scale and long-term acoustic ecology research. A problem is the lack of standards and commonly agreed protocols for the recording of marine soundscapes, data analysis, and reporting that make a synthesis and comparison of results difficult. We provide a brief overview of the components in a marine soundscape, the hard- and software tools for recording and analyzing marine soundscapes, and common reporting formats.
The role of social marketing, marine turtles and sustainable tourism in reducing plastic pollution.

Science.gov (United States)

Eagle, Lynne; Hamann, Mark; Low, David R

2016-06-15

Environmental plastic pollution constitutes a significant hazard to marine turtles, human health and well-being. We describe a transdisciplinary approach to draw together findings from diverse disciplines in order to highlight key environmental pollution problems and their consequences, together with social marketing-based strategies to address the problems. The example of plastic pollution and impacts to marine turtles illustrates the severity of the problem. Wildlife tourism and sustainable tourism activity have not focussed on specific behaviours to change and have had minimal impact on subsequent human behaviour regarding environmental issues, indicating the need for new strategies. Social marketing principles offer promise, but there is a need to investigate the utility of various theoretical foundations to aid the design and implementation of interventions. We offer insight towards using sophisticated multi-method research to develop insights into behaviours and segmentation-based strategies, that can aid the identification of barriers to, and enablers of, sustained behaviour change. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Carotenoids in Marine Animals

OpenAIRE

Maoka, Takashi

2011-01-01

Marine animals contain various carotenoids that show structural diversity. These marine animals accumulate carotenoids from foods such as algae and other animals and modify them through metabolic reactions. Many of the carotenoids present in marine animals are metabolites of β-carotene, fucoxanthin, peridinin, diatoxanthin, alloxanthin, and astaxanthin, etc. Carotenoids found in these animals provide the food chain as well as metabolic pathways. In the present review, I will describe marine a...
Guiding principles for the improved governance of port and shipping impacts in the Great Barrier Reef.

Science.gov (United States)

Grech, A; Bos, M; Brodie, J; Coles, R; Dale, A; Gilbert, R; Hamann, M; Marsh, H; Neil, K; Pressey, R L; Rasheed, M A; Sheaves, M; Smith, A

2013-10-15

The Great Barrier Reef (GBR) region of Queensland, Australia, encompasses a complex and diverse array of tropical marine ecosystems of global significance. The region is also a World Heritage Area and largely within one of the world's best managed marine protected areas. However, a recent World Heritage Committee report drew attention to serious governance problems associated with the management of ports and shipping. We review the impacts of ports and shipping on biodiversity in the GBR, and propose a series of guiding principles to improve the current governance arrangements. Implementing these principles will increase the capacity of decision makers to minimize the impacts of ports and shipping on biodiversity, and will provide certainty and clarity to port operators and developers. A 'business as usual' approach could lead to the GBR's inclusion on the List of World Heritage in Danger in 2014. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Marine Science

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Aims and scope: The Western Indian Ocean Journal of Marine Science provides an avenue for the wide dissem- ination of high ... or by any means without permission in writing from the copyright holder. ..... Journal of Chemical Engineering Research and Design 82 ... Indian Ocean Marine Science Association Technical.
Marine animal stings or bites

Science.gov (United States)

Stings - marine animals; Bites - marine animals ... Things you can do to prevent a marine animal sting or bite include: Swim near a lifeguard. Observe posted signs that may warn of danger from jellyfish or other hazardous marine life. ...
Implementing and Innovating Marine Monitoring Approaches for Assessing Marine Environmental Status

KAUST Repository

Danovaro, Roberto; Carugati, Laura; Berzano, Marco; Cahill, Abigail E.; Carvalho, Susana; Chenuil, Anne; Corinaldesi, Cinzia; Cristina, Sonia; David, Romain; Dell'Anno, Antonio; Dzhembekova, Nina; Garcé s, Esther; Gasol, Joseph M.; Goela, Priscila; Fé ral, Jean-Pierre; Ferrera, Isabel; Forster, Rodney M.; Kurekin, Andrey A.; Rastelli, Eugenio; Marinova, Veselka; Miller, Peter I.; Moncheva, Snejana; Newton, Alice; Pearman, John K.; Pitois, Sophie G.; Reñ é , Albert; Rodrí guez-Ezpeleta, Naiara; Saggiomo, Vincenzo; Simis, Stefan G. H.; Stefanova, Kremena; Wilson, Christian; Lo Martire, Marco; Greco, Silvestro; Cochrane, Sabine K. J.; Mangoni, Olga; Borja, Angel

2016-01-01

Marine environmental monitoring has tended to focus on site-specific methods of investigation. These traditional methods have low spatial and temporal resolution and are relatively labor intensive per unit area/time that they cover. To implement the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD), European Member States are required to improve marine monitoring and design monitoring networks. This can be achieved by developing and testing innovative and cost-effective monitoring systems, as well as indicators of environmental status. Here, we present several recently developed methodologies and technologies to improve marine biodiversity indicators and monitoring methods. The innovative tools are discussed concerning the technologies presently utilized as well as the advantages and disadvantages of their use in routine monitoring. In particular, the present analysis focuses on: (i) molecular approaches, including microarray, Real Time quantitative PCR (qPCR), and metagenetic (metabarcoding) tools; (ii) optical (remote) sensing and acoustic methods; and (iii) in situ monitoring instruments. We also discuss their applications in marine monitoring within the MSFD through the analysis of case studies in order to evaluate their potential utilization in future routine marine monitoring. We show that these recently-developed technologies can present clear advantages in accuracy, efficiency and cost.
Implementing and Innovating Marine Monitoring Approaches for Assessing Marine Environmental Status

KAUST Repository

Danovaro, Roberto

2016-11-23

Marine environmental monitoring has tended to focus on site-specific methods of investigation. These traditional methods have low spatial and temporal resolution and are relatively labor intensive per unit area/time that they cover. To implement the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD), European Member States are required to improve marine monitoring and design monitoring networks. This can be achieved by developing and testing innovative and cost-effective monitoring systems, as well as indicators of environmental status. Here, we present several recently developed methodologies and technologies to improve marine biodiversity indicators and monitoring methods. The innovative tools are discussed concerning the technologies presently utilized as well as the advantages and disadvantages of their use in routine monitoring. In particular, the present analysis focuses on: (i) molecular approaches, including microarray, Real Time quantitative PCR (qPCR), and metagenetic (metabarcoding) tools; (ii) optical (remote) sensing and acoustic methods; and (iii) in situ monitoring instruments. We also discuss their applications in marine monitoring within the MSFD through the analysis of case studies in order to evaluate their potential utilization in future routine marine monitoring. We show that these recently-developed technologies can present clear advantages in accuracy, efficiency and cost.
Back-Island and Open-Ocean Shorelines, and Sand Areas of the Undeveloped Areas of New Jersey Barrier Islands, March 9, 1991, to July 30, 2013

Science.gov (United States)

Guy, Kristy K.

2015-11-09

Assessing the physical change to shorelines and wetlands is critical for determining the resiliency of wetland systems that protect adjacent habitat and communities. The wetland and back-barrier shorelines of the New Jersey barrier islands were changed by wave action and storm surge from Hurricane Sandy in 2012. The U.S. Geological Survey Coastal and Marine Geology Program is assessing the impact of Hurricane Sandy to understand its historical context and the vulnerability of wetland systems. These assessments require data that document physical changes over time, such as maps, aerial photographs, satellite imagery, and lidar elevation data.
Stability of barrier buckets with zero RF-barrier separations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ng, K.Y.; /Fermilab

2005-03-01

A barrier bucket with very small separation between the rf barriers (relative to the barrier widths) or even zero separation has its synchrotron tune decreasing rather slowly from a large value towards the boundary of the bucket. As a result, large area at the bucket edges can become unstable under the modulation of rf voltage and/or rf phase. In addition, chaotic regions may form near the bucket center and extend outward under increasing modulation. Application is made to those barrier buckets used in the process of momentum mining at the Fermilab Recycler Ring.
Otters, Marine

Science.gov (United States)

Estes, James A.; Bodkin, James L.; Ben-David, M.; Perrin, William F.; Würsing, Bernd; Thewissen, J.G.M.

2009-01-01

The otters (Mustelidae; Lutrinae) provide an exceptional perspective into the evolution of marine living by mammals. Most extant marine mammals (e.g. the cetaceans, pinnipeds, and sirenians) have been so highly modified by long periods of selection for life in the sea that they bear little resemblance to their terrestrial ancestors. Marine otters, in contrast, are more recent expatriates from freshwater habitats and some species still live in both environments. Contrasts among species within the otters, and among the otters, terrestrial mammals, and the more highly adapted pinnipeds and cetaceans provide powerful insights into mammalian adaptations to life in the sea (Estes, 1989). Among the marine mammals, sea otters (Enhydra lutris, Fig. 1) provide the clearest understanding of consumer-induced effects on ecosystem function. This is due in part to opportunities provided by history and in part to the relative ease with which shallow coastal systems where sea otters live can be observed and studied. Although more difficult to study than sea otters, other otter species reveal the connectivity among the marine, freshwater, and terrestrial systems. These three qualities of the otters – their comparative biology, their role as predators, and their role as agents of ecosystem connectivity – are what make them interesting to marine mammalogy.The following account provides a broad overview of the comparative biology and ecology of the otters, with particular emphasis on those species or populations that live in the sea. Sea otters are features prominently, in part because they live exclusively in the sea whereas other otters have obligate associations with freshwater and terrestrial environments (Kenyon, 1969; Riedman and Estes, 1990).
Healing of corneal epithelial wounds in marine and freshwater fish.

Science.gov (United States)

Ubels, J L; Edelhauser, H F

The corneal epithelium of a fish is in direct contact with the aquatic environment and is a barrier to movement of ions and water into and through the cornea. This tissue layer is thus important in maintenance of corneal transparency. When the epithelium is wounded, its protective function is lost and corneal transparency remains compromised until the epithelial barrier is re-established. This study was undertaken to investigate the healing response of the fish cornea to epithelial abrasion. Wounds were stained with fluorescein and photographed during healing. Wound areas were measured by planimetry. The cornea of the sculpin, a marine teleost, becomes edematous after wounding and heals at 2.54 to 3.42 mm2/hr. Nonswelling corneas of the elasmobranchs--dogfish shark and skate--heal at 1.29 mm2/hr, respectively. The wounded eye of the rainbow trout, a freshwater teleost, is stressed by the low osmolality of the environment. Severe corneal edema and cataracts develop following epithelial wounding, and the cornea heals at 0.64 mm2/hr. Although the healing rates in teleosts differ from those in mammals, histology shows that the corneal healing mechanism is essentially the same in fish and mammals.
Diversification of Scrophularia (Scrophulariaceae) in the Western Mediterranean and Macaronesia--phylogenetic relationships, reticulate evolution and biogeographic patterns.

Science.gov (United States)

Scheunert, Agnes; Heubl, Günther

2014-01-01

The flora of the Mediterranean region and Macaronesia is characterized by high levels of species diversity and endemism. We examined phylogenetic relationships of Scrophularia within one of its secondary centers of diversity located in the Iberian Peninsula and adjacent Macaronesia. In total, 65 ingroup accessions from 45 species, representing an almost complete sampling of the region, were analyzed using sequences from the internal transcribed spacer region (ITS) and the plastid trnQ-rps16 intergenic spacer. Phylogenetic relationships were inferred using Bayesian inference, maximum likelihood and statistical parsimony networking. Incongruence between datasets was assessed with statistical tests and displayed by split networks. Biogeographic inferences incorporating information from both markers (despite low resolution in some parts of the trees) and all incongruent taxa were accomplished with a novel combination of methods, using trees generated with the taxon duplication approach as input for Bayesian binary MCMC (BBM) analysis as implemented in RASP. Nuclear and chloroplast markers support a clade which comprises the majority of Iberian and Macaronesian species and consists of three subclades. Analyses of the substantial incongruence observed among markers indicate reticulate evolution and suggest that Scrophularia species diversity in this region is largely attributable to hybridization; a combination of both polyploidy and dysploidy in the karyotypic evolution of Western Mediterranean Scrophularia taxa is proposed. Our results provide support for an ancient hybridization event between two widespread lineages, which resulted in an allopolyploid ancestor of the Iberian - Macaronesian group with 2n=58 chromosomes. The ancestor then diverged into the three main lineages present in the Iberian Peninsula, Northern Africa and Macaronesia today. Subsequent interspecific hybridizations at different ploidy levels additionally generated new species. Presumably
Seashore marine table quiz

OpenAIRE

Institute, Marine

2013-01-01

Develop an increasing awareness of plants and animals that live in local marine environments including the seashore, seas and oceans of Ireland. After learning all about the seashore and other marine related lessons, this quiz can be used to evaluate the student’s knowledge of the marine related living things and natural environments. The table quiz can be used as a guide, highlighting facts about the marine environment and some of the animals that live there.
Marine bioacoustics and technology: The new world of marine acoustic ecology

Science.gov (United States)

Hastings, Mardi C.; Au, Whitlow W. L.

2012-11-01

Marine animals use sound for communication, navigation, predator avoidance, and prey detection. Thus the rise in acoustic energy associated with increasing human activity in the ocean has potential to impact the lives of marine animals. Thirty years ago marine bioacoustics primarily focused on evaluating effects of human-generated sound on hearing and behavior by testing captive animals and visually observing wild animals. Since that time rapidly changing electronic and computing technologies have yielded three tools that revolutionized how bioacousticians study marine animals. These tools are (1) portable systems for measuring electrophysiological auditory evoked potentials, (2) miniaturized tags equipped with positioning sensors and acoustic recording devices for continuous short-term acoustical observation rather than intermittent visual observation, and (3) passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) systems for remote long-term acoustic observations at specific locations. The beauty of these breakthroughs is their direct applicability to wild animals in natural habitats rather than only to animals held in captivity. Hearing capabilities of many wild species including polar bears, beaked whales, and reef fishes have now been assessed by measuring their auditory evoked potentials. Miniaturized acoustic tags temporarily attached to an animal to record its movements and acoustic environment have revealed the acoustic foraging behavior of sperm and beaked whales. Now tags are being adapted to fishes in effort to understand their behavior in the presence of noise. Moving and static PAM systems automatically detect and characterize biological and physical features of an ocean area without adding any acoustic energy to the environment. PAM is becoming a powerful technique for understanding and managing marine habitats. This paper will review the influence of these transformative tools on the knowledge base of marine bioacoustics and elucidation of relationships between marine
Salmonella strains isolated from Galápagos iguanas show spatial structuring of serovar and genomic diversity.

Science.gov (United States)

Lankau, Emily W; Cruz Bedon, Lenin; Mackie, Roderick I

2012-01-01

It is thought that dispersal limitation primarily structures host-associated bacterial populations because host distributions inherently limit transmission opportunities. However, enteric bacteria may disperse great distances during food-borne outbreaks. It is unclear if such rapid long-distance dispersal events happen regularly in natural systems or if these events represent an anthropogenic exception. We characterized Salmonella enterica isolates from the feces of free-living Galápagos land and marine iguanas from five sites on four islands using serotyping and genomic fingerprinting. Each site hosted unique and nearly exclusive serovar assemblages. Genomic fingerprint analysis offered a more complex model of S. enterica biogeography, with evidence of both unique strain pools and of spatial population structuring along a geographic gradient. These findings suggest that even relatively generalist enteric bacteria may be strongly dispersal limited in a natural system with strong barriers, such as oceanic divides. Yet, these differing results seen on two typing methods also suggests that genomic variation is less dispersal limited, allowing for different ecological processes to shape biogeographical patterns of the core and flexible portions of this bacterial species' genome.
The flight of the Passenger Pigeon: phylogenetics and biogeographic history of an extinct species.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, Kevin P; Clayton, Dale H; Dumbacher, John P; Fleischer, Robert C

2010-10-01

The human-caused extinction of the Passenger Pigeon (Ectopistes migratorius) is one of the best known and documented of any bird. This event was particularly alarming because the Passenger Pigeon went from being one of the most numerous avian species in the world to extinct in a period of decades, when the last individual died in captivity in a Cincinnati Zoo in 1914. While a great deal of information exists on the likely direct and indirect causes of its demise, as well as information on life-history, the phylogenetic relationships of this species have been subject to considerable speculation. Here we use DNA sequences obtained from museum specimens to resolve the phylogenetic position of this species with respect to other pigeons and doves (Columbiformes). We show that the Passenger Pigeon is not related to the New World mourning doves (Zenaida) as many authors have suggested, but is the sister taxon of all other New World pigeons (Patagioenas). Biogeographic analysis suggests the Passenger Pigeon lineage may have colonized North America from Asia, and subsequently dispersed into South America, leading to a more extensive radiation of New World pigeons. Copyright 2010. Published by Elsevier Inc.
On the origin of the marine zinc-silicon correlation

Science.gov (United States)

de Souza, Gregory F.; Khatiwala, Samar P.; Hain, Mathis P.; Little, Susan H.; Vance, Derek

2018-06-01

The close linear correlation between the distributions of dissolved zinc (Zn) and silicon (Si) in seawater has puzzled chemical oceanographers since its discovery almost forty years ago, due to the apparent lack of a mechanism for coupling these two nutrient elements. Recent research has shown that such a correlation can be produced in an ocean model without any explicit coupling between Zn and Si, via the export of Zn-rich biogenic particles in the Southern Ocean, consistent with the observation of elevated Zn quotas in Southern Ocean diatoms. Here, we investigate the physical and biological mechanisms by which Southern Ocean uptake and export control the large-scale marine Zn distribution, using suites of sensitivity simulations in an ocean general circulation model (OGCM) and a box-model ensemble. These simulations focus on the sensitivity of the Zn distribution to the stoichiometry of Zn uptake relative to phosphate (PO4), drawing directly on observations in culture. Our analysis reveals that OGCM model variants that produce a well-defined step between relatively constant, high Zn:PO4 uptake ratios in the Southern Ocean and low Zn:PO4 ratios at lower latitudes fare best in reproducing the marine Zn-Si correlation at both the global and the regional Southern Ocean scale, suggesting the presence of distinct Zn-biogeochemical regimes in the high- and low-latitude oceans that may relate to differences in physiology, ecology or (micro-)nutrient status. Furthermore, a study of the systematics of both the box model and the OGCM reveals that regional Southern Ocean Zn uptake exerts control over the global Zn distribution via its modulation of the biogeochemical characteristics of the surface Southern Ocean. Specifically, model variants with elevated Southern Ocean Zn:PO4 uptake ratios produce near-complete Zn depletion in the Si-poor surface Subantarctic Zone, where upper-ocean water masses with key roles in the global oceanic circulation are formed. By setting the
Marine Jurisdiction Boundaries

Data.gov (United States)

Department of Homeland Security — The NOAA Coastal Services Center's Marine Jurisdiction dataset was created to assist in marine spatial planning and offshore alternative energy sitting. This is a...
75 FR 68605 - Marine Mammals

Science.gov (United States)

2010-11-08

...-XX23 Marine Mammals AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric... permit to conduct research on marine mammals. ADDRESSES: The permit and related documents are available... applicant. The requested permit has been issued under the authority of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of...

77 FR 2512 - Marine Mammals

Science.gov (United States)

2012-01-18

...-XA905 Marine Mammals AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric... Dorian Houser, Ph.D., National Marine Mammal Foundation, 2240 Shelter Island Drive, 200, San Diego, CA... subject permit is requested under the authority of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, as amended...
Safety- barrier diagrams

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Duijm, Nijs Jan

2008-01-01

Safety-barrier diagrams and the related so-called 'bow-tie' diagrams have become popular methods in risk analysis. This paper describes the syntax and principles for constructing consistent and valid safety-barrier diagrams. The relation of safety-barrier diagrams to other methods such as fault...... trees and Bayesian networks is discussed. A simple method for quantification of safety-barrier diagrams is proposed. It is concluded that safety-barrier diagrams provide a useful framework for an electronic data structure that integrates information from risk analysis with operational safety management....
Safety-barrier diagrams

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Duijm, Nijs Jan

2007-01-01

Safety-barrier diagrams and the related so-called "bow-tie" diagrams have become popular methods in risk analysis. This paper describes the syntax and principles for constructing consistent and valid safety-barrier diagrams. The relation with other methods such as fault trees and Bayesian networks...... are discussed. A simple method for quantification of safety-barrier diagrams is proposed, including situations where safety barriers depend on shared common elements. It is concluded that safety-barrier diagrams provide a useful framework for an electronic data structure that integrates information from risk...... analysis with operational safety management....
77 FR 17033 - Taking and Importing Marine Mammals: Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Navy's Training...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-03-23

... take marine mammals by harassment incidental to its training activities at the Gulf of Mexico (GOMEX... Importing Marine Mammals: Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Navy's Training Activities at the Gulf of Mexico Range Complex AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric...
Marine biodiversity and fishery sustainability.

Science.gov (United States)

Shao, Kwang-Tsao

2009-01-01

Marine fish is one of the most important sources of animal protein for human use, especially in developing countries with coastlines. Marine fishery is also an important industry in many countries. Fifty years ago, many people believed that the ocean was so vast and so resilient that there was no way the marine environment could be changed, nor could marine fishery resources be depleted. Half a century later, we all agree that the depletion of fishery resources is happening mainly due to anthropogenic factors such as overfishing, habitat destruction, pollution, invasive species introduction, and climate change. Since overfishing can cause chain reactions that decrease marine biodiversity drastically, there will be no seafood left after 40 years if we take no action. The most effective ways to reverse this downward trend and restore fishery resources are to promote fishery conservation, establish marine-protected areas, adopt ecosystem-based management, and implement a "precautionary principle." Additionally, enhancing public awareness of marine conservation, which includes eco-labeling, fishery ban or enclosure, slow fishing, and MPA (marine protected areas) enforcement is important and effective. In this paper, we use Taiwan as an example to discuss the problems facing marine biodiversity and sustainable fisheries.
Marine electrical practice

CERN Document Server

Watson, G O

1991-01-01

Marine Engineering Series: Marine Electrical Practice, Sixth Edition focuses on changes in the marine industry, including the application of programmable electronic systems, generators, and motors. The publication first ponders on insulation and temperature ratings of equipment, protection and discrimination, and AC generators. Discussions focus on construction, shaft-drive generators, effect of unbalanced loading, subtransient and transient reactance, protection discrimination, fault current, measurement of ambient air temperature, and basis of machine ratings. The text then examines AC switc
Mariners Weather Log

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Mariners Weather Log (MWL) is a publication containing articles, news and information about marine weather events and phenomena, worldwide environmental impact...
Marine Genomics: A clearing-house for genomic and transcriptomic data of marine organisms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Trent Harold F

2005-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The Marine Genomics project is a functional genomics initiative developed to provide a pipeline for the curation of Expressed Sequence Tags (ESTs and gene expression microarray data for marine organisms. It provides a unique clearing-house for marine specific EST and microarray data and is currently available at http://www.marinegenomics.org. Description The Marine Genomics pipeline automates the processing, maintenance, storage and analysis of EST and microarray data for an increasing number of marine species. It currently contains 19 species databases (over 46,000 EST sequences that are maintained by registered users from local and remote locations in Europe and South America in addition to the USA. A collection of analysis tools are implemented. These include a pipeline upload tool for EST FASTA file, sequence trace file and microarray data, an annotative text search, automated sequence trimming, sequence quality control (QA/QC editing, sequence BLAST capabilities and a tool for interactive submission to GenBank. Another feature of this resource is the integration with a scientific computing analysis environment implemented by MATLAB. Conclusion The conglomeration of multiple marine organisms with integrated analysis tools enables users to focus on the comprehensive descriptions of transcriptomic responses to typical marine stresses. This cross species data comparison and integration enables users to contain their research within a marine-oriented data management and analysis environment.
Vehicle barrier systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sena, P.A.

1986-01-01

The ground vehicle is one of the most effective tools available to an adversary force. Vehicles can be used to penetrate many types of perimeter barriers, transport equipment and personnel rapidly over long distances, and deliver large amounts of explosives directly to facilities in suicide missions. The function of a vehicle barrier system is to detain or disable a defined threat vehicle at a selected distance from a protected facility. Numerous facilities are installing, or planning to install, vehicle barrier systems and many of these facilities are requesting guidance to do so adequately. Therefore, vehicle barriers are being evaluated to determine their stopping capabilities so that systems can be designed that are both balanced and capable of providing a desired degree of protection. Equally important, many of the considerations that should be taken into account when establishing a vehicle barrier system have been identified. These considerations which pertain to site preparation, barrier selection, system integration and operation, and vehicle/barrier interaction, are discussed in this paper
76 FR 76949 - Marine Mammals

Science.gov (United States)

2011-12-09

...-XR52 Marine Mammals AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric.... 14534 is requested under the authority of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.), the regulations governing the taking and importing of marine mammals (50 CFR part 216...
77 FR 14352 - Marine Mammals

Science.gov (United States)

2012-03-09

...-XB065 Marine Mammals AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric... Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.), the regulations governing the taking and importing of marine mammals (50 CFR part 216), the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended...
75 FR 77616 - Marine Mammals

Science.gov (United States)

2010-12-13

.... 14334] Marine Mammals AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric... Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.), the regulations governing the taking and importing of marine mammals (50 CFR part 216), the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended...
European wildcat populations are subdivided into five main biogeographic groups: consequences of Pleistocene climate changes or recent anthropogenic fragmentation?

Science.gov (United States)

Mattucci, Federica; Oliveira, Rita; Lyons, Leslie A; Alves, Paulo C; Randi, Ettore

2016-01-01

Extant populations of the European wildcat are fragmented across the continent, the likely consequence of recent extirpations due to habitat loss and over-hunting. However, their underlying phylogeographic history has never been reconstructed. For testing the hypothesis that the European wildcat survived the Ice Age fragmented in Mediterranean refuges, we assayed the genetic variation at 31 microsatellites in 668 presumptive European wildcats sampled in 15 European countries. Moreover, to evaluate the extent of subspecies/population divergence and identify eventual wild × domestic cat hybrids, we genotyped 26 African wildcats from Sardinia and North Africa and 294 random-bred domestic cats. Results of multivariate analyses and Bayesian clustering confirmed that the European wild and the domestic cats (plus the African wildcats) belong to two well-differentiated clusters (average Ф ST = 0.159, r st = 0.392, P > 0.001; Analysis of molecular variance [AMOVA]). We identified from c. 5% to 10% cryptic hybrids in southern and central European populations. In contrast, wild-living cats in Hungary and Scotland showed deep signatures of genetic admixture and introgression with domestic cats. The European wildcats are subdivided into five main genetic clusters (average Ф ST = 0.103, r st = 0.143, P > 0.001; AMOVA) corresponding to five biogeographic groups, respectively, distributed in the Iberian Peninsula, central Europe, central Germany, Italian Peninsula and the island of Sicily, and in north-eastern Italy and northern Balkan regions (Dinaric Alps). Approximate Bayesian Computation simulations supported late Pleistocene-early Holocene population splittings (from c. 60 k to 10 k years ago), contemporary to the last Ice Age climatic changes. These results provide evidences for wildcat Mediterranean refuges in southwestern Europe, but the evolution history of eastern wildcat populations remains to be clarified. Historical genetic subdivisions suggest
MarineCadastre.gov

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — MarineCadastre.gov is a marine information system that provides authoritative ocean data, offshore planning tools, and technical support to the offshore renewable...
Marine actinobacteria associated with marine organisms and their potentials in producing pharmaceutical natural products.

Science.gov (United States)

Valliappan, Karuppiah; Sun, Wei; Li, Zhiyong

2014-09-01

Actinobacteria are ubiquitous in the marine environment, playing an important ecological role in the recycling of refractory biomaterials and producing novel natural products with pharmic applications. Actinobacteria have been detected or isolated from the marine creatures such as sponges, corals, mollusks, ascidians, seaweeds, and seagrass. Marine organism-associated actinobacterial 16S rRNA gene sequences, i.e., 3,003 sequences, deposited in the NCBI database clearly revealed enormous numbers of actinobacteria associated with marine organisms. For example, RDP classification of these sequences showed that 112 and 62 actinobacterial genera were associated with the sponges and corals, respectively. In most cases, it is expected that these actinobacteria protect the host against pathogens by producing bioactive compounds. Natural products investigation and functional gene screening of the actinobacteria associated with the marine organisms revealed that they can synthesize numerous natural products including polyketides, isoprenoids, phenazines, peptides, indolocarbazoles, sterols, and others. These compounds showed anticancer, antimicrobial, antiparasitic, neurological, antioxidant, and anti-HIV activities. Therefore, marine organism-associated actinobacteria represent an important resource for marine drugs. It is an upcoming field of research to search for novel actinobacteria and pharmaceutical natural products from actinobacteria associated with the marine organisms. In this review, we attempt to summarize the present knowledge on the diversity and natural products production of actinobacteria associated with the marine organisms, based on the publications from 1991 to 2013.
Ring distributions leading to species formation: a global topographic analysis of geographic barriers associated with ring species

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Monahan William B

2012-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background In the mid 20th century, Ernst Mayr and Theodosius Dobzhansky championed the significance of circular overlaps or ring species as the perfect demonstration of speciation, yet in the over 50 years since, only a handful of such taxa are known. We developed a topographic model to evaluate whether the geographic barriers that favor processes leading to ring species are common or rare, and to predict where other candidate ring barriers might be found. Results Of the 952,147 geographic barriers identified on the planet, only about 1% are topographically similar to barriers associated with known ring taxa, with most of the likely candidates occurring in under-studied parts of the world (for example, marine environments, tropical latitudes. Predicted barriers separate into two distinct categories: (i single cohesive barriers (2, associated with taxa that differentiate at smaller spatial scales (salamander: Ensatina eschscholtzii; tree: Acacia karroo; and (ii composite barriers - formed by groups of barriers (each 184,000 to 1.7 million km2 in close geographic proximity (totaling 1.9 to 2.3 million km2 - associated with taxa that differentiate at larger spatial scales (birds: Phylloscopus trochiloides and Larus (sp. argentatus and fuscus. When evaluated globally, we find a large number of cohesive barriers that are topographically similar to those associated with known ring taxa. Yet, compared to cohesive barriers, an order of magnitude fewer composite barriers are similar to those that favor ring divergence in species with higher dispersal. Conclusions While these findings confirm that the topographic conditions that favor evolutionary processes leading to ring speciation are, in fact, rare, they also suggest that many understudied natural systems could provide valuable demonstrations of continuous divergence towards the formation of new species. Distinct advantages of the model are that it (i requires no a priori information on the
Canadian boreal forest greening and browning trends: an analysis of biogeographic patterns and the relative roles of disturbance versus climate drivers

Science.gov (United States)

Sulla-Menashe, Damien; Woodcock, Curtis E.; Friedl, Mark A.

2018-01-01

Recent studies have used satellite-derived normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) time series to explore geographic patterns in boreal forest greening and browning. A number of these studies indicate that boreal forests are experiencing widespread browning, and have suggested that these patterns reflect decreases in forest productivity induced by climate change. Here we use NDVI time series from Landsat, which has much higher quality and spatial resolution than imagery used in most previous studies, to characterize biogeographic patterns in greening and browning across Canada’s boreal forest and to explore the drivers behind observed trends. Our results show that the majority of NDVI changes in Canada’s boreal forest reflect disturbance-recovery dynamics not climate change impacts, that greening and browning trends outside of disturbed forests are consistent with expected ecological responses to regional changes in climate, and that observed NDVI changes are geographically limited and relatively small in magnitude. By examining covariance between changes in NDVI and temperature and precipitation in locations not affected by disturbance, our results isolate and characterize the nature and magnitude of greening and browning directly associated with climate change. Consistent with biogeographic theory, greening and browning unrelated to disturbance tended to be located in ecotones near boundaries of the boreal forest bioclimatic envelope. We observed greening to be most prevalent in Eastern Canada, which is more humid, and browning to be most prevalent in Western Canada, where forests are more prone to moisture stress. We conclude that continued long-term climate change has the potential to significantly alter the character and function of Canada’s boreal forest, but recent changes have been modest and near-term impacts are likely to be focused in or near ecotones.
76 FR 41463 - Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to a...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-07-14

... requirements, many marine animals may need to remain in areas where they are exposed to chronic stimuli... Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to a Marine... Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). ACTION: Notice; proposed...
[Analysis on sustainable development of marine economy in Jiangsu Province based on marine ecological footprint correction model].

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Shan; Wang, Yu-ting

2011-03-01

Based on the theories and methods of ecological footprint, the concept of marine ecological footprint was proposed. According to the characteristics of marine environment in Jiangsu Province, five sub-models of marine ecological footprints, including fishery, transporation, marine engineering construction, marine energy, and tidal flat, were constructed. The equilibrium factors of the five marine types were determined by using improved entropy method, and the marine footprints and capacities in Jiangsu Province from 2000 to 2008 were calculated and analyzed. In 2000-2008, the marine ecology footprint per capita in Jiangsu Province increased nearly seven times, from 36.90 hm2 to 252.94 hm2, and the ecological capacity per capita grew steadily, from 105.01 hm2 to 185.49 hm2. In 2000, the marine environment in the Province was in a state of ecological surplus, and the marine economy was in a weak sustainable development state. Since 2004, the marine ecological environment deteriorated sharply, with ecological deficit up to 109660.5 hm2, and the sustainability of marine economy declined. The high ecological footprint of fishery was the main reason for the ecological deficit. Tidal flat was the important reserve resource for the sustainable development of marine economy in Jiangsu Province.
Marine Education Knowledge Inventory.

Science.gov (United States)

Hounshell, Paul B.; Hampton, Carolyn

This 35-item, multiple-choice Marine Education Knowledge Inventory was developed for use in upper elementary/middle schools to measure a student's knowledge of marine science. Content of test items is drawn from oceanography, ecology, earth science, navigation, and the biological sciences (focusing on marine animals). Steps in the construction of…

Factors controlling the compositional variations among the marine and non-marine black shales from Egypt

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Baioumy, Hassan M. [Central Metallurgical R and D Institute, PO Box 87 Helwan, Cairo (Egypt); Ismael, Ismael S. [Faculty of Science, Suez Canal University, Suez (Egypt)

2010-07-01

Non-marine (Jurassic) and marine (Cretaceous) black shales from Egypt were subjected to mineralogical and geochemical analyses to examine the controlling factors of their compositional variations. Non-marine black shales are composed of kaolinite and quartz with traces of gypsum, illite, calcite, feldspars, and dolomite, while marine black shales from the Red Sea area are composed of smectite, kaolinite, quartz, calcite, and dolomite with traces of feldspars. Abu Tartur marine black shales are composed of smectite and quartz with traces of feldspars and gypsum. Non-marine black shales show considerably higher Nb, Ta, Hf, and Zr contents and Th/Yb ratios compared to the marine black shales. On the other hand, marine black shales show considerably higher Cr, V, and Zn contents with positive correlations between these elements and organic carbon (C{sub org.}){sub .} Red Sea black shales have higher Ni/Co, V/Cr, and U/Al ratios. Chondrite normalized values of the medium and heavy rare earth elements (MREEs and HREEs, respectively) are higher in the non-marine black shales compared to the marine black shales. Pyrite from non-marine black shales is characterized by high positive {delta}{sup 34}S isotope values (average of + 9.3 permille). Pyrite from Red Sea black shales has low negative {delta}{sup 34}S values (average of -16.7 permille), pyrite from black shales of the lower member of the Duwi Formation has positive {delta}{sup 34}S values (average of 5.8 permille), while pyrite from marine black shales of the middle member has negative {delta}{sup 34}S values (average of -0.83 permille). Source area composition, weathering conditions, depositional environments, and type of organic matter are considered to be the probable controlling factors of these variations. The more felsic constituents in the source area of non-marine black shales is responsible for the relatively high Nb, Ta, Hf, and Zr contents and Th/Yb ratio. Relatively high kaolinite contents and Chemical
78 FR 30870 - Nomination of Existing Marine Protected Areas to the National System of Marine Protected Areas

Science.gov (United States)

2013-05-23

... Marine Protected Areas to the National System of Marine Protected Areas AGENCY: National Marine Protected...) invited federal, state, commonwealth, and territorial marine protected area (MPA) programs with... of Marine Protected Areas of the United States (Framework), developed in response to Executive Order...
Plastics in the Marine Environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Law, Kara Lavender

2017-01-03

Plastics contamination in the marine environment was first reported nearly 50 years ago, less than two decades after the rise of commercial plastics production, when less than 50 million metric tons were produced per year. In 2014, global plastics production surpassed 300 million metric tons per year. Plastic debris has been detected worldwide in all major marine habitats, in sizes from microns to meters. In response, concerns about risks to marine wildlife upon exposure to the varied forms of plastic debris have increased, stimulating new research into the extent and consequences of plastics contamination in the marine environment. Here, I present a framework to evaluate the current understanding of the sources, distribution, fate, and impacts of marine plastics. Despite remaining knowledge gaps in mass budgeting and challenges in investigating ecological impacts, the increasing evidence of the ubiquity of plastics contamination in the marine environment, the continued rapid growth in plastics production, and the evidence-albeit limited-of demonstrated impacts to marine wildlife support immediate implementation of source-reducing measures to decrease the potential risks of plastics in the marine ecosystem.
Plastics in the Marine Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Law, Kara Lavender

2017-01-01

Plastics contamination in the marine environment was first reported nearly 50 years ago, less than two decades after the rise of commercial plastics production, when less than 50 million metric tons were produced per year. In 2014, global plastics production surpassed 300 million metric tons per year. Plastic debris has been detected worldwide in all major marine habitats, in sizes from microns to meters. In response, concerns about risks to marine wildlife upon exposure to the varied forms of plastic debris have increased, stimulating new research into the extent and consequences of plastics contamination in the marine environment. Here, I present a framework to evaluate the current understanding of the sources, distribution, fate, and impacts of marine plastics. Despite remaining knowledge gaps in mass budgeting and challenges in investigating ecological impacts, the increasing evidence of the ubiquity of plastics contamination in the marine environment, the continued rapid growth in plastics production, and the evidence—albeit limited—of demonstrated impacts to marine wildlife support immediate implementation of source-reducing measures to decrease the potential risks of plastics in the marine ecosystem.
Biosurfactants from marine microorganisms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Suppasil Maneerat

2005-11-01

Full Text Available Biosurfactants are the surface-active molecules synthesized by microorganisms. With the advantage of environmental compatibility, the demand for biosurfactants has been steadily increasing and may eventually replace their chemically synthesized counterparts. Marine biosurfactants produced by some marine microorganisms have been paid more attention, particularly for the bioremediation of the sea polluted by crude oil. This review describes screening of biosurfactant-producing microorganisms, the determination of biosurfactant activity as well as the recovery of marine surfactant. The uses of marine biosurfactants for bioremediation are also discussed.
General trends in world biogeographic literature: a preliminary bibliometric analysis Tendencias generales en la literatura biogeografica mundial: un análisis bibliométrico preliminar

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Juan J. Morrone

2008-01-01

Full Text Available Records with the search string biogeograph* were collected from the Science Citation Index (SCI. A total of 3456 records were downloaded for the 1945-2006 period from titles of articles and reviews, and 10,543 records were downloaded for 1991-2006, taking into consideration also abstracts and keywords. Temporal trends of publications, geographical and institutional distribution of the research output, authorship, and core journals were evaluated. There were as many as 122 countries carrying out biogeographic research; in the most recent period, USA is the top producing country, followed by the United Kingdom, Australia, France, Germany, Spain, and Canada. There were 17,493 authors contributing to the field. During 1991-2006 there were 4098 organizations with authors involved in biogeographic research; institutions with higher number of papers are the Natural History Museum (United Kingdom, the University of California, Berkeley (USA, the Museum National d'Histoire Naturelle (France, the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (Mexico, the American Museum of Natural History (USA and the Russian Academy of Sciences (Russia. Research articles are spread over a variety of journals, with the Journal of Biogeography, Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, Molecular Ecology, and Biological Journal of the Linnean Society being the core journals. From 28,759 keywords retrieved those with the highest frequency were evolution, phylogeny, diversity, mitochondrial DNA, pattern(s, systematics, and population(s. We conclude that publications on biogeography have increased substantially during the last years, especially since 1998. The preferred journal for biogeographic papers is the Journal of Biogeography. Most frequent keywords seem to indicate that biogeography fits well within both evolutionary biology and ecology, with molecular biology and phylogenetics being important factors that drive their current development.Se recolectaron registros con la
Phylogeography of the tropical planktonic foraminifera lineage globigerinella reveals isolation inconsistent with passive dispersal by ocean currents.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Agnes K M Weiner

Full Text Available Morphologically defined species of marine plankton often harbor a considerable level of cryptic diversity. Since many morphospecies show cosmopolitan distribution, an understanding of biogeographic and evolutionary processes at the level of genetic diversity requires global sampling. We use a database of 387 single-specimen sequences of the SSU rDNA of the planktonic foraminifera Globigerinella as a model to assess the biogeographic and phylogenetic distributions of cryptic diversity in marine microplankton on a global scale. Our data confirm the existence of multiple, well isolated genetic lineages. An analysis of their abundance and distribution indicates that our sampling is likely to approximate the actual total diversity. Unexpectedly, we observe an uneven allocation of cryptic diversity among the phylogenetic lineages. We show that this pattern is neither an artifact of sampling intensity nor a function of lineage age. Instead, we argue that it reflects an ongoing speciation process in one of the three major lineages. Surprisingly, four of the six genetic types in the hyperdiverse lineage are biogeographically restricted to the Indopacific. Their mutual co-occurrence and their hierarchical phylogenetic structure provide no evidence for an origin through sudden habitat fragmentation and their limitation to the Indopacific challenges the view of a global gene flow within the warm-water provinces. This phenomenon shows that passive dispersal is not sufficient to describe the distribution of plankton diversity. Rather, these organisms show differentiated distribution patterns shaped by species interactions and reflecting phylogenetic contingency with unique histories of diversification rates.
When biogeographical provinces collide: Hybridization of reef fishes at the crossroads of marine biogeographical provinces in the Arabian Sea

KAUST Repository

DiBattista, Joseph; Rocha, Luiz A.; Hobbs, Jean Paul Adrian; He, Song; Priest, Mark; Sinclair-Taylor, Tane; Bowen, Brian W.; Berumen, Michael L.

2015-01-01

and collections were conducted to determine: (1) whether parent species form heterospecific social groups or breeding pairs; (2) the sex and reproductive status of morphologically intermediate individuals; and (3) whether parent species were forming mixed species
Degradation of Herbicides in the Tropical Marine Environment: Influence of Light and Sediment.

Science.gov (United States)

Mercurio, Philip; Mueller, Jochen F; Eaglesham, Geoff; O'Brien, Jake; Flores, Florita; Negri, Andrew P

2016-01-01

Widespread contamination of nearshore marine systems, including the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) lagoon, with agricultural herbicides has long been recognised. The fate of these contaminants in the marine environment is poorly understood but the detection of photosystem II (PSII) herbicides in the GBR year-round suggests very slow degradation rates. Here, we evaluated the persistence of a range of commonly detected herbicides in marine water under field-relevant concentrations and conditions. Twelve-month degradation experiments were conducted in large open tanks, under different light scenarios and in the presence and absence of natural sediments. All PSII herbicides were persistent under control conditions (dark, no sediments) with half-lives of 300 d for atrazine, 499 d diuron, 1994 d hexazinone, 1766 d tebuthiuron, while the non-PSII herbicides were less persistent at 147 d for metolachlor and 59 d for 2,4-D. The degradation of herbicides was 2-10 fold more rapid in the presence of a diurnal light cycle and coastal sediments; apart from 2,4-D which degraded more slowly in the presence of light. Despite the more rapid degradation observed for most herbicides in the presence of light and sediments, the half-lives remained > 100 d for the PS II herbicides. The effects of light and sediments on herbicide persistence were likely due to their influence on microbial community composition and its ability to utilise the herbicides as a carbon source. These results help explain the year-round presence of PSII herbicides in marine systems, including the GBR, but more research on the transport, degradation and toxicity on a wider range of pesticides and their transformation products is needed to improve their regulation in sensitive environments.
75 FR 54095 - Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Low-Energy Marine Seismic Survey in...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-09-03

... Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Low- Energy Marine Seismic Survey in the Eastern... low-energy marine seismic survey. Pursuant to the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is... funding provided by the National Science Foundation, a low-energy marine seismic survey. NMFS reviewed SIO...
Community impacts of Prosopis juliflora invasion: biogeographic and congeneric comparisons.

Science.gov (United States)

Kaur, Rajwant; Gonzáles, Wilfredo L; Llambi, Luis Daniel; Soriano, Pascual J; Callaway, Ragan M; Rout, Marnie E; Gallaher, Timothy J; Inderjit

2012-01-01

We coordinated biogeographical comparisons of the impacts of an exotic invasive tree in its native and non-native ranges with a congeneric comparison in the non-native range. Prosopis juliflora is taxonomically complicated and with P. pallida forms the P. juliflora complex. Thus we sampled P. juliflora in its native Venezuela, and also located two field sites in Peru, the native range of Prosopis pallida. Canopies of Prosopis juliflora, a native of the New World but an invader in many other regions, had facilitative effects on the diversity of other species in its native Venezuela, and P. pallida had both negative and positive effects depending on the year, (overall neutral effects) in its native Peru. However, in India and Hawaii, USA, where P. juliflora is an aggressive invader, canopy effects were consistently and strongly negative on species richness. Prosopis cineraria, a native to India, had much weaker effects on species richness in India than P. juliflora. We carried out multiple congeneric comparisons between P. juliflora and P. cineraria, and found that soil from the rhizosphere of P. juliflora had higher extractable phosphorus, soluble salts and total phenolics than P. cineraria rhizosphere soils. Experimentally applied P. juliflora litter caused far greater mortality of native Indian species than litter from P. cineraria. Prosopis juliflora leaf leachate had neutral to negative effects on root growth of three common crop species of north-west India whereas P. cineraria leaf leachate had positive effects. Prosopis juliflora leaf leachate also had higher concentrations of total phenolics and L-tryptophan than P. cineraria, suggesting a potential allelopathic mechanism for the congeneric differences. Our results also suggest the possibility of regional evolutionary trajectories among competitors and that recent mixing of species from different trajectories has the potential to disrupt evolved interactions among native species.
Linking Marine Ecosystem Services to the North Sea’s Energy Fields in Transnational Marine Spatial Planning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christina Vogel

2018-06-01

Full Text Available Marine spatial planning temporally and spatially allocates marine resources to different users. The ecosystem approach aims at optimising the social and economic benefits people derive from marine resources while preserving the ecosystem’s health. Marine ecosystem services are defined as the benefits people obtain from marine ecosystems. The aim of this study is to determine which interrelations between marine ecosystem services and the marine energy industry can be identified for use in transnational marine spatial planning exemplified in the North Sea region. As the North Sea is one of the busiest seas worldwide, the risk of impairing the ecosystems through anthropogenic pressures is high. Drawing on a literature-based review, 23 marine ecosystem services provided by the North Sea region were defined and linked to seven offshore energy fields comprising oil and natural gas, wind, tides and currents, waves, salinity gradients, algal biomass, and geothermal heat. The interactions were divided into four categories: dependence, impact, bidirectional, or no interaction. Oil and natural gas, as well as algae biomass, are the fields with the most relations with marine ecosystem services while waves and salinity gradients exhibit the least. Some marine ecosystem services (Conditions for Infrastructure, Regulation of Water Flows, and Cognitive Development are needed for all fields; Recreation and Tourism, Aesthetic and Cultural Perceptions and Traditions, Cognitive Development, and Sea Scape are impacted by all fields. The results of this research provide an improved basis for an ecosystem approach in transnational marine spatial planning.
Atmospheric Corrosion Behavior of 2A12 Aluminum Alloy in a Tropical Marine Environment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhongyu Cui

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Atmospheric corrosion behavior of 2A12 aluminum alloy exposed to a tropical marine environment for 4 years was investigated. Weight loss of 2A12 alloy in the log-log coordinates can be well fitted with two linear segments, attributing to the evolution of the corrosion products. EIS results indicate that the corrosion product layer formed on the specimens exposed for 12 months or longer presents a good barrier effect. Corrosion morphology changes from pitting corrosion to severe intergranular corrosion with the extension of exposure time, resulting in the reduction of the mechanical properties.
Whale Multi-Disciplinary Studies: A Marine Education Infusion Unit. Northern New England Marine Education Project.

Science.gov (United States)

Maine Univ., Orono. Coll. of Education.

This multidisciplinary unit deals with whales, whaling lore and history, and the interaction of the whale with the complex marine ecosystem. It seeks to teach adaptation of marine organisms. It portrays the concept that man is part of the marine ecosystem and man's activities can deplete and degrade marine ecosystems, endangering the survival of…
In hot water: the future of Australia's coastal and marine ecosystems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Richardson, Anthony J; Poloczanska, Elvira

2007-01-01

Full text: Full text: Marine ecosystems are extremely important economically and ecologically to Australia in terms of tourism, coastal defence, resources, and ecosystem services such as nutrient cycling and waste disposal. Australia is also a globally important repository of biodiversity. Here we describe the observed and potential future impacts of climate change on Australia's marine diversity. Climate simulations project oceanic warming, an increase in stratification, a strengthening of the Eastern Australian Current, increased ocean acidification, a rise in sea level, and altered storm and rainfall regimes, which taken collectively will fundamentally change marine ecosystems. There has already been widespread bleaching of tropical corals, poleward shifts of temperate fish and plankton populations, and a decline in cold-water giant kelp off Tasmania. Future changes are likely to be even more dramatic and have considerable economic and ecological consequences, especially in 'hot spots' of climate change such as theTasman Sea and the Great Barrier Reef area. Corals are likely to bleach more frequently and decline in abundance in response to both warming and ocean acidification. Planktonic animals with calcium carbonate shells, such as winged pteropod snails and coccolithophorid phytoplankton, are likely to decline as increased ocean acidification impairs their ability to maintain carbonate body structures. The projected high warming off south-east Australia is of particular concern. Marine ecosystems in this region are already stressed by high metal concentrations, sewage pollution, and overfishing, and climate models project that this region will warm more than anywhere else in the Southern Hemisphere this century because of enhanced southerly penetration of the East Australian Current. Venomous jellyfish and harmful algal blooms, which are major threats to human health, will potentially extend further south and occur more frequently. Temperate species
Barriers to fusion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Berriman, A.C.; Butt, R.D.; Dasgupta, M.; Hinde, D.J.; Morton, C.R.; Newton, J.O.

1999-01-01

The fusion barrier is formed by the combination of the repulsive Coulomb and attractive nuclear forces. Recent research at the Australian National University has shown that when heavy nuclei collide, instead of a single fusion barrier, there is a set of fusion barriers. These arise due to intrinsic properties of the interacting nuclei such deformation, rotations and vibrations. Thus the range of barrier energies depends on the properties of both nuclei. The transfer of matter between nuclei, forming a neck, can also affect the fusion process. High precision data have been used to determine fusion barrier distributions for many nuclear reactions, leading to new insights into the fusion process
Extremal surface barriers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Engelhardt, Netta; Wall, Aron C.

2014-01-01

We present a generic condition for Lorentzian manifolds to have a barrier that limits the reach of boundary-anchored extremal surfaces of arbitrary dimension. We show that any surface with nonpositive extrinsic curvature is a barrier, in the sense that extremal surfaces cannot be continuously deformed past it. Furthermore, the outermost barrier surface has nonnegative extrinsic curvature. Under certain conditions, we show that the existence of trapped surfaces implies a barrier, and conversely. In the context of AdS/CFT, these barriers imply that it is impossible to reconstruct the entire bulk using extremal surfaces. We comment on the implications for the firewall controversy
Supermarket Marine Biology.

Science.gov (United States)

Colby, Jennifer A.; And Others

1995-01-01

Describes a survey used to determine the availability of intact marine vertebrates and live invertebrates in supermarkets. Results shows that local supermarkets frequently provide a variety of intact marine organisms suitable for demonstrations, experiments, or dissections. (ZWH)
76 FR 77782 - Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Marine Geophysical Survey in the...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-12-14

..., 1963), but because of ecological or physiological requirements, many marine animals may need to remain... Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Marine Geophysical Survey in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, February to March 2012 AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National...
78 FR 17359 - Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Marine Geophysical Survey in the...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-03-21

..., 1963), but because of ecological or physiological requirements, many marine animals may need to remain... Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Marine Geophysical Survey in the Northeast Atlantic Ocean, June to July, 2013 AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and...

76 FR 33246 - Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Marine Geophysical Survey in the...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-06-08

... ecological or physiological requirements, many marine animals may need to remain in areas where they are... Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Marine Geophysical Survey in the Central-Western Bering Sea, August 2011 AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and...
75 FR 8652 - Incidental Takes of Marine Mammals During Specified Activities; Marine Geophysical Survey in the...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-02-25

... for marine animals before and during airgun operations. NMFS believes that the realistic possibility... Takes of Marine Mammals During Specified Activities; Marine Geophysical Survey in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, April to June 2010 AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS...
77 FR 19242 - Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Low-Energy Marine Geophysical Survey...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-03-30

...., 1995; Thorpe, 1963), but because of ecological or physiological requirements, many marine animals may... Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Low- Energy Marine Geophysical Survey in the Central Pacific Ocean, May Through June, 2012 AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic...
77 FR 25966 - Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Three Marine Geophysical Surveys in...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-05-02

..., 1963), but because of ecological or physiological requirements, many marine animals may need to remain... Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Three Marine Geophysical Surveys in the Northeast Pacific Ocean, June Through July 2012 AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and...
Emerging biopharmaceuticals from marine actinobacteria.

Science.gov (United States)

Hassan, Syed Shams Ul; Anjum, Komal; Abbas, Syed Qamar; Akhter, Najeeb; Shagufta, Bibi Ibtesam; Shah, Sayed Asmat Ali; Tasneem, Umber

2017-01-01

Actinobacteria are quotidian microorganisms in the marine world, playing a crucial ecological role in the recycling of refractory biomaterials and producing novel secondary metabolites with pharmaceutical applications. Actinobacteria have been isolated from the huge area of marine organisms including sponges, tunicates, corals, mollusks, crabs, mangroves and seaweeds. Natural products investigation of the marine actinobacteria revealed that they can synthesize numerous natural products including alkaloids, polyketides, peptides, isoprenoids, phenazines, sterols, and others. These natural products have a potential to provide future drugs against crucial diseases like cancer, HIV, microbial and protozoal infections and severe inflammations. Therefore, marine actinobacteria portray as a pivotal resource for marine drugs. It is an upcoming field of research to probe a novel and pharmaceutically important secondary metabolites from marine actinobacteria. In this review, we attempt to summarize the present knowledge on the diversity, chemistry and mechanism of action of marine actinobacteria-derived secondary metabolites from 2007 to 2016. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Planaxidae (Mollusca, Gastropoda) from the South China Sea

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Zhiyun; Zhang, Junlong; Lian, Xiping; Tan, Yehui

2018-03-01

Planaxidae is a family of tropical and subtropical marine gastropods that are adapted to an intertidal, rocky environment. The present study deals with three species in the family Planaxidae from the South China Sea: Planaxis sulcatus (von Born, 1778), Angiola longispira (Smith, 1872), and Supplanaxis niger (Quoy and Gaimard, 1833), based on specimens deposited in the Marine Biodiversity Collections of the South China Sea, Chinese Academy of Sciences. The taxonomic status, main morphological characteristics of the shell and radula, distribution, and habitat of these three planaxid species are presented. We also briefly discuss their morphological differences and the biogeographic distribution.
Marine Mineral Exploration

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

in EEZ areas are fairly unknown; many areas need detailed mapping and mineral exploration, and the majority of coastal or island states with large EEZ areas have little experience in exploration for marine hard minerals. This book describes the systematic steps in marine mineral exploration....... Such exploration requires knowledge of mineral deposits and models of their formation, of geophysical and geochemical exploration methods, and of data evaluation and interpretation methods. These topics are described in detail by an international group of authors. A short description is also given of marine...
Multilayer moisture barrier

Science.gov (United States)

Pankow, Joel W; Jorgensen, Gary J; Terwilliger, Kent M; Glick, Stephen H; Isomaki, Nora; Harkonen, Kari; Turkulainen, Tommy

2015-04-21

A moisture barrier, device or product having a moisture barrier or a method of fabricating a moisture barrier having at least a polymer layer, and interfacial layer, and a barrier layer. The polymer layer may be fabricated from any suitable polymer including, but not limited to, fluoropolymers such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET) or polyethylene naphthalate (PEN), or ethylene-tetrafluoroethylene (ETFE). The interfacial layer may be formed by atomic layer deposition (ALD). In embodiments featuring an ALD interfacial layer, the deposited interfacial substance may be, but is not limited to, Al.sub.2O.sub.3, AlSiO.sub.x, TiO.sub.2, and an Al.sub.2O.sub.3/TiO.sub.2 laminate. The barrier layer associated with the interfacial layer may be deposited by plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD). The barrier layer may be a SiO.sub.xN.sub.y film.
76 FR 68720 - Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Low-Energy Marine Geophysical Survey...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-11-07

... Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Low- Energy Marine Geophysical Survey in the Western... conducting a low-energy marine geophysical (i.e., seismic) survey in the western tropical Pacific Ocean... Science Foundation (NSF), and ``Environmental Assessment of a Low-Energy Marine Geophysical Survey by the...
76 FR 18167 - Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Marine Geophysical Survey in the...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-04-01

..., many marine animals may need to remain in areas where they are exposed to chronic stimuli (Richardson... Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Marine Geophysical Survey in the Central Gulf of Alaska, June, 2011 AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric...
76 FR 6430 - Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Marine Geophysical Survey in the...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-02-04

..., many marine animals may need to remain in areas where they are exposed to chronic stimuli (Richardson... Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Marine Geophysical Survey in the Pacific Ocean off Costa Rica, April Through May, 2011 AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic...
76 FR 57959 - Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Marine Geophysical Survey in the...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-09-19

..., many marine animals may need to remain in areas where they are exposed to chronic stimuli (Richardson... Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Marine Geophysical Survey in the Central Pacific Ocean, November, 2011 Through January, 2012 AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and...
78 FR 33357 - Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-06-04

... confidence in these values is unknown. Table 3--Marine Mammal Density Estimates Density Species (animals/km\\2... unintentional taking of marine animals occurring incidental to the shock testing which involved large explosives... Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Conducting...
76 FR 7548 - Taking and Importing Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to Conducting Precision...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-02-10

... Importing Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to Conducting Precision Strike Weapons Testing and Training by Eglin Air Force Base in the Gulf of Mexico AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service... a Letter of Authorization. SUMMARY: In accordance with provisions of the Marine Mammal Protection...
75 FR 16754 - Taking and Importing Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to Conducting Precision...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-02

... Importing Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to Conducting Precision Strike Weapons Testing and Training by Eglin Air Force Base in the Gulf of Mexico AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service... a Letter of Authorization. SUMMARY: In accordance with provisions of the Marine Mammal Protection...
Recent human history governs global ant invasion dynamics

Science.gov (United States)

Cleo Bertelsmeier; Sébastien Ollier; Andrew Liebhold; Laurent Keller

2017-01-01

Human trade and travel are breaking down biogeographic barriers, resulting in shifts in the geographical distribution of organisms, yet it remains largely unknown whether different alien species generally follow similar spatiotemporal colonization patterns and how such patterns are driven by trends in global trade. Here, we analyse the global distribution of 241 alien...
77 FR 4765 - Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Marine Geophysical Survey in the...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-01-31

... physiological requirements, many marine animals may need to remain in areas where they are exposed to chronic... readily audible to the animals based on measured received levels and the hearing sensitivity of the marine... Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Marine Geophysical Survey in the Northwest Pacific...
Using collective intelligence to identify barriers to teaching 12–19 year olds about the ocean in Europe

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fauville, Géraldine; McHugh, Patricia; Domegan, Christine

2018-01-01

Since the degradation of the marine environment is strongly linked to human activities, having citizens who appreciate the ocean's influence on them and their influence on the ocean is important. Research has shown that citizens have a limited understanding of the ocean and it is this lack of ocean...... the ocean, highlighting how these barriers are interconnected and influence one another in a European Influence Map. The influence map shows 8 themes: Awareness and Perceived knowledge; Policies and Strategies; Engagement, formal education sector; the Ocean itself; Collaboration; Connections between humans...... and the ocean and the Blue Economy, having the greatest influence and impact on marine education. “Awareness and Perceived knowledge” in Stage 1, exerts the highest level of overall influence in teaching 12–19 year olds about the ocean. This map and study serves as a roadmap for policy makers to implement...
Geo-Seas - building a unified e-infrastructure for marine geoscientific data management in Europe

Science.gov (United States)

Glaves, H.; Schaap, D.

2012-04-01

A significant barrier to marine geoscientific research in Europe is the lack of standardised marine geological and geophysical data and data products which could potentially facilitate multidisciplinary marine research extending across national and international boundaries. Although there are large volumes of geological and geophysical data available for the marine environment it is currently very difficult to use these datasets in an integrated way due to different nomenclatures, formats, scales and coordinate systems being used within different organisations as well as between countries. This makes the direct use of primary data very difficult and also hampers use of the data to produce integrated multidisciplinary data products and services. The Geo-Seas project, an EU Framework 7 funded initiative, is developing a unified e-infrastructure to facilitate the sharing of marine geoscientific data within Europe. This e-infrastructure is providing on-line access to both discovery metadata and the associated federated data sets from 26 European data centres via a dedicated portal. The implementation of the Geo-Seas portal is allowing a range of end users to locate, assess and access standardised geoscientific data from multiple sources which is interoperable with other marine data types. Geo-Seas is building on the work already done by the existing SeaDataNet project which currently provides a data management e-infrastructure for oceanographic data which allows users to locate and access federated oceanographic data sets. By adopting and adapting the SeaDataNet methodologies and technologies the Geo-Seas project has not only avoid unnecessary duplication of effort by reusing existing and proven technologies but also contributed to the development of a multidisciplinary approach to ocean science across Europe through the creation of a joint infrastructure for both marine geoscientific and oceanographic data. This approach is also leading to the development of
Impacts of biogeographic history and marginal population genetics on species range limits: a case study of Liriodendron chinense.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Aihong; Dick, Christopher W; Yao, Xiaohong; Huang, Hongwen

2016-05-10

Species ranges are influenced by past climate oscillations, geographical constraints, and adaptive potential to colonize novel habitats at range limits. This study used Liriodendron chinense, an important temperate Asian tree species, as a model system to evaluate the roles of biogeographic history and marginal population genetics in determining range limits. We examined the demographic history and genetic diversity of 29 L. chinense populations using both chloroplast and nuclear microsatellite loci. Significant phylogeographic structure was recovered with haplotype clusters coinciding with major mountain regions. Long-term demographical stability was suggested by mismatch distribution analyses, neutrality tests, and ecological niche models (ENM) and suggested the existence of LGM refuges within mountain regions. Differences in genetic diversity between central and marginal populations were not significant for either genomic region. However, asymmetrical gene flow was inferred from central populations to marginal populations, which could potentially limit range adaptation and expansion of L. chinense.

Global diversity of marine isopods (except Asellota and crustacean symbionts.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gary C B Poore

Full Text Available The crustacean order Isopoda (excluding Asellota, crustacean symbionts and freshwater taxa comprise 3154 described marine species in 379 genera in 37 families according to the WoRMS catalogue. The history of taxonomic discovery over the last two centuries is reviewed. Although a well defined order with the Peracarida, their relationship to other orders is not yet resolved but systematics of the major subordinal taxa is relatively well understood. Isopods range in size from less than 1 mm to Bathynomus giganteus at 365 mm long. They inhabit all marine habitats down to 7280 m depth but with few doubtful exceptions species have restricted biogeographic and bathymetric ranges. Four feeding categories are recognised as much on the basis of anecdotal evidence as hard data: detritus feeders and browsers, carnivores, parasites, and filter feeders. Notable among these are the Cymothooidea that range from predators and scavengers to external blood-sucking micropredators and parasites. Isopods brood 10-1600 eggs depending on individual species. Strong sexual dimorphism is characteristic of several families, notably in Gnathiidae where sessile males live with a harem of females while juvenile praniza stages are ectoparasites of fish. Protandry is known in Cymothoidae and protogyny in Anthuroidea. Some Paranthuridae are neotenous. About half of all coastal, shelf and upper bathyal species have been recorded in the MEOW temperate realms, 40% in tropical regions and the remainder in polar seas. The greatest concentration of temperate species is in Australasia; more have been recorded from temperate North Pacific than the North Atlantic. Of tropical regions, the Central Indo-Pacific is home to more species any other region. Isopods are decidedly asymmetrical latitudinally with 1.35 times as many species in temperate Southern Hemisphere than the temperate North Atlantic and northern Pacific, and almost four times as many Antarctic as Arctic species. More species
Biogeographic distribution and metric dental variation of fossil and living orangutans (Pongo spp.).

Science.gov (United States)

Tshen, Lim Tze

2016-01-01

The genus Pongo has a relatively richer Quaternary fossil record than those of the African great apes. Fossil materials are patchy in terms of anatomical parts represented, limited almost exclusively to isolated teeth, jaw and bone fragments. Fossil evidence indicates that the genus Pongo had a broadly continuous distribution across the southern part of the Indomalayan biogeographic region, ranging in time from Early Pleistocene to Holocene: southern China (77 fossil sites), Vietnam (15), Laos (6), Cambodia (2), Thailand (4), Peninsular Malaysia (6), Sumatra (4), Borneo (6) and Java (4). Within this distribution range, there are major geographical gaps with no known orangutan fossils, notably central and southern Indochina, central and southern Thailand, eastern Peninsular Malaysia, northern and southern Sumatra, and Kalimantan. The geological time and place of origin of the genus remain unresolved. Fossil orangutan assemblages usually show greater extent of dental metrical variation than those of modern-day populations. Such variability shown in prehistoric populations has partially contributed to confusion regarding past taxonomic diversity and systematic relationships among extinct and living forms. To date, no fewer than 14 distinct taxa have been identified and named for Pleistocene orangutans. Clear cases suggestive of predation by prehistoric human are few in number, and limited to terminal Pleistocene-Early Holocene sites in Borneo and a Late Pleistocene site in Vietnam.
Marine medicinal glycomics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vitor Hugo Pomin

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Glycomics is an international initiative aimed to understand the structure and function of the glycans from a given type of cell, tissue, organism, kingdom or even environment, as found under certain conditions. Glycomics is one of the latest areas of intense biological research. Glycans of marine sources are unique in terms of structure and function. They differ considerably from those of terrestrial origin. This review discusses the most known marine glycans of potential therapeutic properties. They are chitin, chitosan, and sulfated polysaccharides named glycosaminoglycans, sulfated fucans and sulfated galactans. Their medical actions are very broad. When certain structural requirements are found, these glycans can exhibit beneficial effects in inflammation, coagulation, thrombosis, cancer growth/metastasis and vascular biology. Both structure and therapeutic mechanisms of action of these marine glycans are discussed here in straight context with the current glycomic age through a project suggestively named Marine Medicinal Glycomics.
75 FR 19670 - Marine Highway Projects

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-15

... DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION Maritime Administration Marine Highway Projects ACTION: Solicitation of applications for Marine highway projects. SUMMARY: The Department of Transportation is soliciting applications for Marine Highway Projects as specified in the America's Marine Highway Program Final Rule, MARAD...
A multi-locus plastid phylogenetic analysis of the pantropical genus Diospyros (Ebenaceae), with an emphasis on the radiation and biogeographic origins of the New Caledonian endemic species

OpenAIRE

Duangjai, S.; Samuel, R.; Munzinger, Jérôme; Forest, F.; Wallnofer, B.; Barfuss, M.H.J.; Fischer, G.; Chase, M. W.

2009-01-01

We aimed to clarify phylogenetic relationships within the pantropical genus Diospyros (Ebenaceae sensu lato), and ascertain biogeographical patterns in the New Caledonian endemic species. We used DNA sequences from eight plastid regions (rbcL, atpB, matK, ndhF, trnK intron, trnL intron, trnL-trnF spacer, and trnS-trnG spacer) and included 149 accessions representing 119 Diospyros species in our analysis. Results from this study confirmed the monophyly of Diospyros with good support and provid...
The influence of biogeographic history on the functional and phylogenetic diversity of passerine birds in savannas and forests of the Brazilian Amazon.

Science.gov (United States)

Almeida, Sara Miranda; Juen, Leandro; Sobral, Fernando Landa; Santos, Marcos Pérsio Dantas

2018-04-01

Passeriformes is the largest and most diverse avian order in the world and comprises the Passeri and Tyranni suborders. These suborders constitute a monophyletic group, but differ in their ecology and history of occupation of South America. We investigated the influence of biogeographic history on functional and phylogenetic diversities of Passeri and Tyranni in forest and savanna habitats in the Brazilian Amazon. We compiled species composition data for 34 Passeriformes assemblages, 12 in savannas and 22 in forests. We calculated the functional (Rao's quadratic entropy, FD Q ) and phylogenetic diversities (mean pairwise distance, MPD, and mean nearest taxon distance, MNTD), and the functional beta diversity to investigate the potential role of biogeographic history in shaping ecological traits and species lineages of both suborders. The functional diversity of Passeri was higher than for Tyranni in both habitats. The MPD for Tyranni was higher than for Passeri in forests; however, there was no difference between the suborders in savannas. In savannas, Passeri presented higher MNTD than Tyranni, while in forest areas, Tyranni assemblages showed higher MNTD than Passeri. We found a high functional turnover (~75%) between Passeri and Tyranni in both habitats. The high functional diversity of Passeri in both habitats is due to the high diversity of ecological traits exhibited by species of this group, which enables the exploitation of a wide variety of resources and foraging strategies. The higher Tyranni MPD and MNTD in forests is likely due to Tyranni being older settlers in this habitat, resulting in the emergence and persistence of more lineages. The higher Passeri MNTD in savannas can be explained by the existence of a larger number of different Passeri lineages adapted to this severe habitat. The high functional turnover between the suborders in both habitats suggests an ecological strategy to avoid niche overlap.
Marine reactor pressure vessels dumped in the Kara Sea

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mount, M.E.

1997-01-01

Between 1965 and 1988, 16 marine reactors from seven Russian submarines and the icebreaker Lenin, each of which suffered some form of reactor accident, were dumped in a variety of containments, using a number of sealing methods, at five sites in the Kara Sea. All reactors were dumped at sites that varied in depth from 12 to 300 m and six contained their spent nuclear fuel (SNF). This paper examines the breakdown of the reactor pressure vessel (RPV) barriers due to corrosion, with specific emphasis on those RPVs containing SNF. Included are discussions of the structural aspects of the steam generating installations and their associated RPVs, a summary of the disposal operations, assumptions on corrosion rates of structural and filler materials, and an estimate of the structural integrity of the RPVs at the present time (1996) and in the year 2015
Molecular Phylogeny of Gueldenstaedtia and Tibetia (Fabaceae) and Their Biogeographic Differentiation within Eastern Asia.

Science.gov (United States)

Xie, Yan-Ping; Meng, Ying; Sun, Hang; Nie, Ze-Long

2016-01-01

Tibetia and Gueldenstaedtia are two morphologically similar and small genera in Fabaceae, with distributions largely corresponding to the Sino-Himalayan and Sino-Japanese subkingdoms in eastern Asia, respectively. These two genera have confusing relationships based on morphology; therefore, we aimed to provide a clear understanding of their phylogenetic and biogeographic evolution within eastern Asia. In our investigations we included 88 samples representing five Gueldenstaedtia species, five Tibetia species, and outgroup species were sequenced using five markers (nuclear: ITS; chloroplast: matK, trnL-F, psbA-trnH and rbcL). Our phylogenetic results support (1) the monophyly of Tibetia and of Gueldenstaedtia, respectively; and (2) that Tibetia and Gueldenstaedtia are sister genera. Additionally, our data identified that Tibetia species had much higher sequence variation than Gueldenstaedtia species. Our results suggest that the two genera were separated from each other about 17.23 million years ago, which is congruent with the Himalayan orogeny and the uplift of the Tibetan Plateau in the mid Miocene. The divergence of Tibetia and Gueldenstaedtia is strongly supported by the separation of the Sino-Himalayan and Sino-Japanese region within eastern Asia. In addition, the habitat heterogeneity may accelerate the molecular divergence of Tibetia in the Sino-Himalayan region.
Molecular Phylogeny of Gueldenstaedtia and Tibetia (Fabaceae) and Their Biogeographic Differentiation within Eastern Asia

Science.gov (United States)

Xie, Yan-Ping; Meng, Ying; Sun, Hang; Nie, Ze-Long

2016-01-01

Tibetia and Gueldenstaedtia are two morphologically similar and small genera in Fabaceae, with distributions largely corresponding to the Sino-Himalayan and Sino-Japanese subkingdoms in eastern Asia, respectively. These two genera have confusing relationships based on morphology; therefore, we aimed to provide a clear understanding of their phylogenetic and biogeographic evolution within eastern Asia. In our investigations we included 88 samples representing five Gueldenstaedtia species, five Tibetia species, and outgroup species were sequenced using five markers (nuclear: ITS; chloroplast: matK, trnL-F, psbA-trnH and rbcL). Our phylogenetic results support (1) the monophyly of Tibetia and of Gueldenstaedtia, respectively; and (2) that Tibetia and Gueldenstaedtia are sister genera. Additionally, our data identified that Tibetia species had much higher sequence variation than Gueldenstaedtia species. Our results suggest that the two genera were separated from each other about 17.23 million years ago, which is congruent with the Himalayan orogeny and the uplift of the Tibetan Plateau in the mid Miocene. The divergence of Tibetia and Gueldenstaedtia is strongly supported by the separation of the Sino-Himalayan and Sino-Japanese region within eastern Asia. In addition, the habitat heterogeneity may accelerate the molecular divergence of Tibetia in the Sino-Himalayan region. PMID:27632535
77 FR 841 - Taking and Importing Marine Mammals: Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to U.S. Navy Operations of...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-01-06

... and the Single Ping Equivalent (SPE) To model potential impacts to marine animals from exposure to... Atmospheric Administration 50 CFR Part 218 Taking and Importing Marine Mammals: Taking Marine Mammals... [Docket No. 110808485-1534-01] RIN 0648-BB14 Taking and Importing Marine Mammals: Taking Marine Mammals...
Identifying Sources of Marine Litter

OpenAIRE

VEIGA Joana Mira; FLEET David; KINSEY Sue; NILSSON Per; VLACHOGIANNI Thomais; WERNER Stefanie; GALGANI Francois; THOMPSON Richard; DAGEVOS Jeroen; GAGO Jesus; SOBRAL Paula; CRONIN Richard

2016-01-01

Marine litter is a global problem causing harm to marine wildlife, coastal communities and maritime activities. It also embodies an emerging concern for human health and safety. The reduction of marine litter pollution poses a complex challenge for humankind, requiring adjustments in human behaviour as well as in the different phases of the life-cycle of products and across multiple economic sectors. The Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) requires European Member States to monitor...
Chemical Investigations of Marine Filamentous and Zoosporic Fungi and Studies in Marine Microbial Chemical Ecology

OpenAIRE

Jenkins, Kelly M.

1998-01-01

The natural products chemistry of marine microorganisms is an emerging area of organic chemistry with the aim of discovering novel secondary metabolites exhibiting both biomedical and ecological activities. While marine bacteria have proven to be a productive source of new natural products, there are many groups of marine microorganisms which have not been fully investigated. In particular, marine fungi represent an untapped and potentially novel source of bioactive secondary metabolites. Whi...
Biogeographical distribution of the benthic thecate hydroids collected during the Spanish Antartida 8611 expedition and comparison between Antarctic and Magellan benthic hydroid faunas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. L. Peña Cantero

1999-12-01

Full Text Available The biogeographical distribution of the benthic hydroid species collected during the Spanish Antarctic expedition Antártida 8611 has been studied. An inventory of the Antarctic and Magellan benthic thecate hydroid faunas, along with a comparison between the two, have been also carried out. 104 and 126 species of thecate hydroids have been considered in the Antarctic and Magellan areas, respectively. 72 species (69% of the Antarctic species and 49 (39% of the Magellan species are endemic. 23 species are present both in the Antarctic Region and in the Magellan area, representing 22% and 18% respectively, and indicating an important relationship between both faunas.
The changing form of Antarctic biodiversity

OpenAIRE

Chown, Steven L.; Clarke, Andrew; Fraser, Ceridwen I.; Cary, S. Craig; Moon, Katherine L.; McGeoch, Melodie A.

2015-01-01

Antarctic biodiversity is much more extensive, ecologically diverse and biogeographically structured than previously thought. Understanding of how this diversity is distributed in marine and terrestrial systems, the mechanisms underlying its spatial variation, and the significance of the microbiota is growing rapidly. Broadly recognizable drivers of diversity variation include energy availability and historical refugia. The impacts of local human activities and global environmental change non...
Oceanic processes in marine pollution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baumgartner, D.J.; Duedall, I.W.

1990-01-01

This book covers the following areas: bioaccumulation of Polycyclic Aromatic hydrocarbons in marine environments; behavior of drilling fluid discharges off the coast of California; effects of drilling fluids on marine organisms; and the effects of radioactive waste disposal on marine amphipods
Influence of marine current on vertical migration of Pb in marine bay

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Chen; Hong, Ai; Danfeng, Yang; Huijuan, Zhao; Dongfang, Yang

2018-02-01

This paper analyzed that vertical migration of Pb contents waters in Jiaozhou Bay, and revealed the influence of marine current on vertical migration process. Results showed that Pb contents in bottom waters of Jiaozhou Bay in April and July 1988 were 1.49-18.53 μg L-1 and 12.68/-27.64 μg L-1, respectively. The pollution level of Pb in bottom waters was moderate to heavy, and were showing temporal variations and spatial heterogeneity. The vertical migration process of Pb in April 1988 included a drifting process from the southwest to the north by means of the marine current was rapid in this region. The vertical migration process of Pb in July 1988 in the open waters included no drifting process since the flow rate of marine current was relative low in this region. The vertical migration process of Pb was jointly determined by vertical water’s effect, source input and water exchange, and the influence of marine current on the vertical migration of Pb in marine bay was significant.
High Performance Marine Vessels

CERN Document Server

Yun, Liang

2012-01-01

High Performance Marine Vessels (HPMVs) range from the Fast Ferries to the latest high speed Navy Craft, including competition power boats and hydroplanes, hydrofoils, hovercraft, catamarans and other multi-hull craft. High Performance Marine Vessels covers the main concepts of HPMVs and discusses historical background, design features, services that have been successful and not so successful, and some sample data of the range of HPMVs to date. Included is a comparison of all HPMVs craft and the differences between them and descriptions of performance (hydrodynamics and aerodynamics). Readers will find a comprehensive overview of the design, development and building of HPMVs. In summary, this book: Focuses on technology at the aero-marine interface Covers the full range of high performance marine vessel concepts Explains the historical development of various HPMVs Discusses ferries, racing and pleasure craft, as well as utility and military missions High Performance Marine Vessels is an ideal book for student...
Thames barrier (flood protection barriers on the Thames)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ilkovic, J.

2005-01-01

In this paper the flood protection barriers on the Thames are presented. The flood protection system on the Thames in 1984 was commissioned. During two decades this barrier was used 54 times against to the high water and 34 times against storm-sewage. There is installed buttress type hydroelectric power plant
76 FR 12070 - Incidental Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-03-04

... Energy's EROS operations in 2010: Marine mammals Biological impacts Company Structure Dates sighted... Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal of Offshore Structures in the Gulf of Mexico AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and...
77 FR 45341 - Incidental Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-07-31

... Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal of Offshore Structures in the Gulf of Mexico AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and...). SUMMARY: In accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and implementing regulations...

77 FR 16539 - Incidental Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-03-21

... Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal of Offshore Structures in the Gulf of Mexico AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and...). SUMMARY: In accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and implementing regulations...
78 FR 22517 - Incidental Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-04-16

... Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal of Offshore Structures in the Gulf of Mexico AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and...). SUMMARY: In accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and implementing regulations...
75 FR 31423 - Incidental Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-06-03

... Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal of Offshore Structures in the Gulf of Mexico AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and...: In accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and implementing regulations, notification...
78 FR 13865 - Incidental Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-03-01

... Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal of Offshore Structures in the Gulf of Mexico AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and...). SUMMARY: In accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and implementing regulations...
77 FR 39485 - Incidental Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-07-03

... Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal of Offshore Structures in the Gulf of Mexico AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and...). SUMMARY: In accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and implementing regulations...
Marine Fish Hybridization

KAUST Repository

He, Song

2017-04-01

Natural hybridization is reproduction (without artificial influence) between two or more species/populations which are distinguishable from each other by heritable characters. Natural hybridizations among marine fishes were highly underappreciated due to limited research effort; it seems that this phenomenon occurs more often than is commonly recognized. As hybridization plays an important role in biodiversity processes in the marine environment, detecting hybridization events and investigating hybridization is important to understand and protect biodiversity. The first chapter sets the framework for this disseration study. The Cohesion Species Concept was selected as the working definition of a species for this study as it can handle marine fish hybridization events. The concept does not require restrictive species boundaries. A general history and background of natural hybridization in marine fishes is reviewed during in chapter as well. Four marine fish hybridization cases were examed and documented in Chapters 2 to 5. In each case study, at least one diagnostic nuclear marker, screened from among ~14 candidate markers, was found to discriminate the putative hybridizing parent species. To further investigate genetic evidence to support the hybrid status for each hybrid offspring in each case, haploweb analysis on diagnostic markers (nuclear and/or mitochondrial) and the DAPC/PCA analysis on microsatellite data were used. By combining the genetic evidences, morphological traits, and ecological observations together, the potential reasons that triggered each hybridization events and the potential genetic/ecology effects could be discussed. In the last chapter, sequences from 82 pairs of hybridizing parents species (for which COI barcoding sequences were available either on GenBank or in our lab) were collected. By comparing the COI fragment p-distance between each hybridizing parent species, some general questions about marine fish hybridization were discussed: Is
77 FR 50289 - Taking and Importing Marine Mammals: Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to U.S. Navy Operations of...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-08-20

... areas of high marine animal densities, we believe that the incidental take of marine mammals would... response, tagging of free-ranging marine animals at-sea, and radar-based detection of marine mammals from... effects of sonar use will not be greater on animals listed under the ESA than the effects on other marine...
75 FR 972 - Nomination of Existing Marine Protected Areas to the National System of Marine Protected Areas

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-07

... Marine Protected Areas to the National System of Marine Protected Areas AGENCY: NOAA, Department of... Federal, State and territorial marine protected area programs to join the National System of Marine Protected Areas. SUMMARY: NOAA and the Department of the Interior (DOI) invited Federal, State, commonwealth...
76 FR 35856 - Incidental Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-06-20

... Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal of Offshore Structures in the Gulf of Mexico AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and... accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and implementing regulations, notification is hereby...
75 FR 8921 - Incidental Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-02-26

... Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal of Offshore Structures in the Gulf of Mexico AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and... accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and implementing regulations, notification is hereby...
76 FR 33704 - Incidental Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-06-09

... Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal of Offshore Structures in the Gulf of Mexico AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and... accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and implementing regulations, notification is hereby...
77 FR 10481 - Incidental Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-02-22

... Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal of Offshore Structures in the Gulf of Mexico AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and... accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and implementing regulations, notification is hereby...
76 FR 23570 - Incidental Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-04-27

... Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal of Offshore Structures in the Gulf of Mexico AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and... accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and implementing regulations, notification is hereby...
75 FR 28566 - Incidental Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-05-21

... Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal of Offshore Structures in the Gulf of Mexico AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and... accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and implementing regulations, notification is hereby...
75 FR 54851 - Incidental Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-09-09

... Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal of Offshore Structures in the Gulf of Mexico AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and... accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and implementing regulations, notification is hereby...
75 FR 38078 - Incidental Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal of Offshore Structures in the Gulf of Mexico AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and... accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and implementing regulations, notification is hereby...
Exposure and potential risks of dioxins to the marine mammal Dugong

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gaus, C.; Mueller, J. [Univ. of Queensland, EnTox, Brisbane (Australia); Donohue, M.O. [South East Queensland Water Corp., Brisbane (Australia); Connell, D. [School of Public Health, Griffith Univ., Brisbane (Australia); Haynes, D. [Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, Townsville (Australia); Paepke, O. [ERGO Forschungsgesellschaft mbH, Hamburg (Germany)

2004-09-15

Atmospheric transport and subsequent deposition is considered a key pathway of PCDD/F input into marine systems. However, their strong affinity for particulates can result in significant sediment/soil associated PCDD/F transport from local emissions, in particular within riverine systems. In the subtropical/tropical coastal zone of Queensland, Australia, numerous large-scale tributaries feed into shallow embayments of the near shore marine environment. This environment sustains diverse and unique ecosystems associated with the world heritage Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. These include extensive seagrass habitats providing the food source for the only strictly herbivorous marine mammal dugong (Dugong dugon). Dugongs represent the last extant species in the family Dugongidae of the order Sirenia (the latter also including three species of manatee) and are listed as vulnerable to extinction by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. While Australia supports the most significant portion of the worlds remaining dugong populations, surveys have indicted a strong decline to only 3% of the population estimated in the 1960s. Dugongs frequent coastal waters with habitats predominantly in wide shallow protected bays with a relatively small home range, varying from 5 to 64 km{sup 2}. Dugongs have a long life-span ({proportional_to}70 years), low reproductive rate and relatively long gestation and lactation periods. They are hindgut fermenters with highly specialized dietary requirements, uprooting whole seagrass plants and often selectively foraging on a few pioneer seagrass species. Low metabolic rates, high seagrass consumption rates and inordinately long passage times of digesta through the gut ({proportional_to}6-7 days), compensate for the low nutrient containing seagrass diet. Long life span, high fat repositories, narrow home ranges and highly specialized food requirements render the dugong potentially vulnerable to the regional PCDD/F contamination observed in
Enzymatic Processes in Marine Biotechnology.

Science.gov (United States)

Trincone, Antonio

2017-03-25

In previous review articles the attention of the biocatalytically oriented scientific community towards the marine environment as a source of biocatalysts focused on the habitat-related properties of marine enzymes. Updates have already appeared in the literature, including marine examples of oxidoreductases, hydrolases, transferases, isomerases, ligases, and lyases ready for food and pharmaceutical applications. Here a new approach for searching the literature and presenting a more refined analysis is adopted with respect to previous surveys, centering the attention on the enzymatic process rather than on a single novel activity. Fields of applications are easily individuated: (i) the biorefinery value-chain, where the provision of biomass is one of the most important aspects, with aquaculture as the prominent sector; (ii) the food industry, where the interest in the marine domain is similarly developed to deal with the enzymatic procedures adopted in food manipulation; (iii) the selective and easy extraction/modification of structurally complex marine molecules, where enzymatic treatments are a recognized tool to improve efficiency and selectivity; and (iv) marine biomarkers and derived applications (bioremediation) in pollution monitoring are also included in that these studies could be of high significance for the appreciation of marine bioprocesses.
75 FR 72655 - Marine Sanitation Device Discharge Regulations for the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary

Science.gov (United States)

2010-11-26

... National Marine Sanctuary AGENCY: Office of National Marine Sanctuaries (ONMS), National Oceanic and... the regulations for the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (FKNMS or sanctuary) by eliminating the exemption that allows discharges from within the boundary of the sanctuary of biodegradable effluent...
Prevalence of marine debris in marine birds from the North Atlantic.

Science.gov (United States)

Provencher, Jennifer F; Bond, Alexander L; Hedd, April; Montevecchi, William A; Muzaffar, Sabir Bin; Courchesne, Sarah J; Gilchrist, H Grant; Jamieson, Sarah E; Merkel, Flemming R; Falk, Knud; Durinck, Jan; Mallory, Mark L

2014-07-15

Marine birds have been found to ingest plastic debris in many of the world's oceans. Plastic accumulation data from necropsies findings and regurgitation studies are presented on 13 species of marine birds in the North Atlantic, from Georgia, USA to Nunavut, Canada and east to southwest Greenland and the Norwegian Sea. Of the species examined, the two surface plungers (great shearwaters Puffinus gravis; northern fulmars Fulmarus glacialis) had the highest prevalence of ingested plastic (71% and 51%, respectively). Great shearwaters also had the most pieces of plastics in their stomachs, with some individuals containing as many of 36 items. Seven species contained no evidence of plastic debris. Reporting of baseline data as done here is needed to ensure that data are available for marine birds over time and space scales in which we see changes in historical debris patterns in marine environments (i.e. decades) and among oceanographic regions. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Prey preference follows phylogeny: evolutionary dietary patterns within the marine gastropod group Cladobranchia (Gastropoda: Heterobranchia: Nudibranchia).

Science.gov (United States)

Goodheart, Jessica A; Bazinet, Adam L; Valdés, Ángel; Collins, Allen G; Cummings, Michael P

2017-10-26

The impact of predator-prey interactions on the evolution of many marine invertebrates is poorly understood. Since barriers to genetic exchange are less obvious in the marine realm than in terrestrial or freshwater systems, non-allopatric divergence may play a fundamental role in the generation of biodiversity. In this context, shifts between major prey types could constitute important factors explaining the biodiversity of marine taxa, particularly in groups with highly specialized diets. However, the scarcity of marine specialized consumers for which reliable phylogenies exist hampers attempts to test the role of trophic specialization in evolution. In this study, RNA-Seq data is used to produce a phylogeny of Cladobranchia, a group of marine invertebrates that feed on a diverse array of prey taxa but mostly specialize on cnidarians. The broad range of prey type preferences allegedly present in two major groups within Cladobranchia suggest that prey type shifts are relatively common over evolutionary timescales. In the present study, we generated a well-supported phylogeny of the major lineages within Cladobranchia using RNA-Seq data, and used ancestral state reconstruction analyses to better understand the evolution of prey preference. These analyses answered several fundamental questions regarding the evolutionary relationships within Cladobranchia, including support for a clade of species from Arminidae as sister to Tritoniidae (which both preferentially prey on Octocorallia). Ancestral state reconstruction analyses supported a cladobranchian ancestor with a preference for Hydrozoa and show that the few transitions identified only occur from lineages that prey on Hydrozoa to those that feed on other types of prey. There is strong phylogenetic correlation with prey preference within Cladobranchia, suggesting that prey type specialization within this group has inertia. Shifts between different types of prey have occurred rarely throughout the evolution of
Skin barrier function

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2016-01-01

Renowned experts present the latest knowledge Although a very fragile structure, the skin barrier is probably one of the most important organs of the body. Inward/out it is responsible for body integrity and outward/in for keeping microbes, chemicals, and allergens from penetrating the skin. Since...... the role of barrier integrity in atopic dermatitis and the relationship to filaggrin mutations was discovered a decade ago, research focus has been on the skin barrier, and numerous new publications have become available. This book is an interdisciplinary update offering a wide range of information...... on the subject. It covers new basic research on skin markers, including results on filaggrin and on methods for the assessment of the barrier function. Biological variation and aspects of skin barrier function restoration are discussed as well. Further sections are dedicated to clinical implications of skin...
Ocean Data Interoperability Platform: developing a common global framework for marine data management

Science.gov (United States)

Glaves, Helen; Schaap, Dick

2017-04-01

In recent years there has been a paradigm shift in marine research moving from the traditional discipline based methodology employed at the national level by one or more organizations, to a multidisciplinary, ecosystem level approach conducted on an international scale. This increasingly holistic approach to marine research is in part being driven by policy and legislation. For example, the European Commission's Blue Growth strategy promotes sustainable growth in the marine environment including the development of sea-basin strategies (European Commission 2014). As well as this policy driven shift to ecosystem level marine research there are also scientific and economic drivers for a basin level approach. Marine monitoring is essential for assessing the health of an ecosystem and determining the impacts of specific factors and activities on it. The availability of large volumes of good quality data is fundamental to this increasingly holistic approach to ocean research but there are significant barriers to its re-use. These are due to the heterogeneity of the data resulting from having been collected by many organizations around the globe using a variety of sensors mounted on a range of different platforms. The data is then delivered and archived in a range of formats, using various spatial coordinate systems and aligned with different standards. This heterogeneity coupled with organizational and national policies on data sharing make access and re-use of marine data problematic. In response to the need for greater sharing of marine data a number of e-infrastructures have been developed but these have different levels of granularity with the majority having been developed at the regional level to address specific requirements for data e.g. SeaDataNet in Europe, the Australian Ocean Data Network (AODN). These data infrastructures are also frequently aligned with the priorities of the local funding agencies and have been created in isolation from those developed
Coexistence dilemmas in European marine spatial planning practices. The case of marine renewables and marine protected areas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kyriazi, Zacharoula; Maes, Frank; Degraer, Steven

2016-01-01

The question whether coexistence of marine renewable energy (MRE) projects and marine protected areas (MPAs) is a common spatial policy in Europe and how a number of factors can affect it, has been addressed by empirical research undertaken in eleven European marine areas. Policy drivers and objectives that are assumed to affect coexistence, such as the fulfillment of conservation objectives and the prioritization of other competing marine uses, were scored by experts and predictions were crosschecked with state practice. While in most areas MRE-MPA coexistence is not prohibited by law, practice indicates resistance towards it. Furthermore expert judgment demonstrated that a number of additional factors, such as the lack of suitable space for MRE projects and the uncertainty about the extent of damage by MRE to the MPA, might influence the intentions of the two major parties involved (i.e. the MRE developer and the MPA authority) to pursue or avoid coexistence. Based on these findings, the interactions of these two players are further interpreted, their policy implications are discussed, while the need towards efficient, fair and acceptable MRE-MPA coexistence is highlighted.
Bioprospecting Marine Plankton

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chris Bowler

2013-11-01

Full Text Available The ocean dominates the surface of our planet and plays a major role in regulating the biosphere. For example, the microscopic photosynthetic organisms living within provide 50% of the oxygen we breathe, and much of our food and mineral resources are extracted from the ocean. In a time of ecological crisis and major changes in our society, it is essential to turn our attention towards the sea to find additional solutions for a sustainable future. Remarkably, while we are overexploiting many marine resources, particularly the fisheries, the planktonic compartment composed of zooplankton, phytoplankton, bacteria and viruses, represents 95% of marine biomass and yet the extent of its diversity remains largely unknown and underexploited. Consequently, the potential of plankton as a bioresource for humanity is largely untapped. Due to their diverse evolutionary backgrounds, planktonic organisms offer immense opportunities: new resources for medicine, cosmetics and food, renewable energy, and long-term solutions to mitigate climate change. Research programs aiming to exploit culture collections of marine micro-organisms as well as to prospect the huge resources of marine planktonic biodiversity in the oceans are now underway, and several bioactive extracts and purified compounds have already been identified. This review will survey and assess the current state-of-the-art and will propose methodologies to better exploit the potential of marine plankton for drug discovery and for dermocosmetics.
Freshwater savings from marine protein consumption

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gephart, Jessica A; Pace, Michael L; D’Odorico, Paolo

2014-01-01

Marine fisheries provide an essential source of protein for many people around the world. Unlike alternative terrestrial sources of protein, marine fish production requires little to no freshwater inputs. Consuming marine fish protein instead of terrestrial protein therefore represents freshwater savings (equivalent to an avoided water cost) and contributes to a low water footprint diet. These water savings are realized by the producers of alternative protein sources, rather than the consumers of marine protein. This study quantifies freshwater savings from marine fish consumption around the world by estimating the water footprint of replacing marine fish with terrestrial protein based on current consumption patterns. An estimated 7 600 km 3 yr −1 of water is used for human food production. Replacing marine protein with terrestrial protein would require an additional 350 km 3 yr −1 of water, meaning that marine protein provides current water savings of 4.6%. The importance of these freshwater savings is highly uneven around the globe, with savings ranging from as little as 0 to as much as 50%. The largest savings as a per cent of current water footprints occur in Asia, Oceania, and several coastal African nations. The greatest national water savings from marine fish protein occur in Southeast Asia and the United States. As the human population increases, future water savings from marine fish consumption will be increasingly important to food and water security and depend on sustainable harvest of capture fisheries and low water footprint growth of marine aquaculture. (paper)
Smilax (Smilacaceae) from the Miocene of western Eurasia with Caribbean biogeographic affinities.

Science.gov (United States)

Denk, Thomas; Velitzelos, Dimitrios; Güner, H Tuncay; Ferrufino-Acosta, Lilian

2015-03-01

• Recent molecular studies provide a phylogenetic framework and some dated nodes for the monocot genus Smilax. The Caribbean Havanensis group of Smilax is part of a well-supported "New World clade" with a few disjunct taxa in the Old World. Although the fossil record of the genus is rich, it has been difficult to assign fossil taxa to extant groups based on their preserved morphological characters.• Leaf fossils from Europe and Asia Minor were studied comparatively and put into a phylogenetic and biogeographic context using a molecular phylogeny of the genus.• Fossils from the early Miocene of Anatolia represent a new species of Smilax with systematic affinities with the Havanensis group. The leaf type encountered in the fossil species is exclusively found in species of the Havanensis group among all modern Smilax. Scattered fossils of this type from the Miocene of Greece and Austria, previously referred to Quercus (Fagaceae), Ilex (Aquifoliaceae), and Mahonia (Berberidaceae) also belong to the new species.• The new Smilax provides first fossil evidence of the Havanensis group and proves that this group had a western Eurasian distribution during the Miocene. The age of the fossils is in good agreement with the (molecular-based) purported split between the Havanensis and Hispida groups within Smilax. The Miocene Smilax provides evidence that all four subclades within the "New World clade" had a disjunct intercontinental distribution during parts of the Neogene involving trans-Atlantic crossings (via floating islands or the North Atlantic land bridge) and the Beringia land bridge. © 2015 Botanical Society of America, Inc.
Databases of the marine metagenomics

KAUST Repository

Mineta, Katsuhiko

2015-10-28

The metagenomic data obtained from marine environments is significantly useful for understanding marine microbial communities. In comparison with the conventional amplicon-based approach of metagenomics, the recent shotgun sequencing-based approach has become a powerful tool that provides an efficient way of grasping a diversity of the entire microbial community at a sampling point in the sea. However, this approach accelerates accumulation of the metagenome data as well as increase of data complexity. Moreover, when metagenomic approach is used for monitoring a time change of marine environments at multiple locations of the seawater, accumulation of metagenomics data will become tremendous with an enormous speed. Because this kind of situation has started becoming of reality at many marine research institutions and stations all over the world, it looks obvious that the data management and analysis will be confronted by the so-called Big Data issues such as how the database can be constructed in an efficient way and how useful knowledge should be extracted from a vast amount of the data. In this review, we summarize the outline of all the major databases of marine metagenome that are currently publically available, noting that database exclusively on marine metagenome is none but the number of metagenome databases including marine metagenome data are six, unexpectedly still small. We also extend our explanation to the databases, as reference database we call, that will be useful for constructing a marine metagenome database as well as complementing important information with the database. Then, we would point out a number of challenges to be conquered in constructing the marine metagenome database.
New insights into flavivirus evolution, taxonomy and biogeographic history, extended by analysis of canonical and alternative coding sequences.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gregory Moureau

Full Text Available To generate the most diverse phylogenetic dataset for the flaviviruses to date, we determined the genomic sequences and phylogenetic relationships of 14 flaviviruses, of which 10 are primarily associated with Culex spp. mosquitoes. We analyze these data, in conjunction with a comprehensive collection of flavivirus genomes, to characterize flavivirus evolutionary and biogeographic history in unprecedented detail and breadth. Based on the presumed introduction of yellow fever virus into the Americas via the transatlantic slave trade, we extrapolated a timescale for a relevant subset of flaviviruses whose evolutionary history, shows that different Culex-spp. associated flaviviruses have been introduced from the Old World to the New World on at least five separate occasions, with 2 different sets of factors likely to have contributed to the dispersal of the different viruses. We also discuss the significance of programmed ribosomal frameshifting in a central region of the polyprotein open reading frame in some mosquito-associated flaviviruses.
50 CFR 14.18 - Marine mammals.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 50 Wildlife and Fisheries 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Marine mammals. 14.18 Section 14.18....18 Marine mammals. Any person subject to the jurisdiction of the United States who has lawfully taken a marine mammal on the high seas and who is authorized to import such marine mammal in accordance...
76 FR 11205 - Taking and Importing Marine Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Construction and...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-03-01

... Importing Marine Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Construction and Operation of a Liquefied Natural Gas Deepwater Port in the Gulf of Mexico AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS... request from Port Dolphin Energy LLC (Port Dolphin) for authorization for the take, by Level B harassment...
The Development of Coastal and Marine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Suharto Widjojo

2004-01-01

Full Text Available Planning and development process of oastaland marine resources tends centralized and adopted top down policy, without any active participations from coastal and marine communities. In order to reach integrated and sustainable development in coastaland marine areas, people should have both complete and up to date information, so that planning and decision making for all aspect of the environment can be done easily. People should give a high attention of surveis, mappings, as well as science and technology of coastal and marine sectors, in order to change the paradigm of development from inland to coastal and marine. Moreover, people should give high attention of potential resources of coastal and marine areas.
Geophysical characterization of subsurface barriers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Borns, D.J.

1995-08-01

An option for controlling contaminant migration from plumes and buried waste sites is to construct a subsurface barrier of a low-permeability material. The successful application of subsurface barriers requires processes to verify the emplacement and effectiveness of barrier and to monitor the performance of a barrier after emplacement. Non destructive and remote sensing techniques, such as geophysical methods, are possible technologies to address these needs. The changes in mechanical, hydrologic and chemical properties associated with the emplacement of an engineered barrier will affect geophysical properties such a seismic velocity, electrical conductivity, and dielectric constant. Also, the barrier, once emplaced and interacting with the in situ geologic system, may affect the paths along which electrical current flows in the subsurface. These changes in properties and processes facilitate the detection and monitoring of the barrier. The approaches to characterizing and monitoring engineered barriers can be divided between (1) methods that directly image the barrier using the contrasts in physical properties between the barrier and the host soil or rock and (2) methods that reflect flow processes around or through the barrier. For example, seismic methods that delineate the changes in density and stiffness associated with the barrier represents a direct imaging method. Electrical self potential methods and flow probes based on heat flow methods represent techniques that can delineate the flow path or flow processes around and through a barrier
Global marine radioactivity database (GLOMARD)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Povinec, P.P.; Gayol, J.; Togawa, O.

1999-01-01

In response to the request of Member States and under the IAEA's mandate, the IAEA Marine Environment Laboratory (MEL) in Monaco has established and maintains a Global Marine Radioactivity Database (GLOMARD). It is a vast project compiling radionuclide measurements taken in the marine environment. It consists of systematic input of all radionuclide concentration data available for sea water, sediment, biota and suspended matter. The GLOMARD is therefore a powerful tool for the researchers of MEL as it integrates the results of analyses in most of the areas of the marine environment which have been investigated
Improved Marine Waters Monitoring

Science.gov (United States)

Palazov, Atanas; Yakushev, Evgeniy; Milkova, Tanya; Slabakova, Violeta; Hristova, Ognyana

2017-04-01

IMAMO - Improved Marine Waters Monitoring is a project under the Programme BG02: Improved monitoring of marine waters, managed by Bulgarian Ministry of environment and waters and co-financed by the Financial Mechanism of the European Economic Area (EEA FM) 2009 - 2014. Project Beneficiary is the Institute of oceanology - Bulgarian Academy of Sciences with two partners: Norwegian Institute for Water Research and Bulgarian Black Sea Basin Directorate. The Project aims to improve the monitoring capacity and expertise of the organizations responsible for marine waters monitoring in Bulgaria to meet the requirements of EU and national legislation. The main outcomes are to fill the gaps in information from the Initial assessment of the marine environment and to collect data to assess the current ecological status of marine waters including information as a base for revision of ecological targets established by the monitoring programme prepared in 2014 under Art. 11 of MSFD. Project activities are targeted to ensure data for Descriptors 5, 8 and 9. IMAMO aims to increase the institutional capacity of the Bulgarian partners related to the monitoring and assessment of the Black Sea environment. The main outputs are: establishment of real time monitoring and set up of accredited laboratory facilities for marine waters and sediments chemical analysis to ensure the ability of Bulgarian partners to monitor progress of subsequent measures undertaken.
Monaco and marine environmental protection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grimaldi, Albert II Prince

2006-01-01

The importance of the protection of the marine environment for sustainable development and economy of coastal countries, like Monaco, is well known. Sadly, this environment has been under continuous threats from development, tourism, urbanisation and demographic pressure. The semi-enclosed Mediterranean sea is challenged by new pollutant cocktails, problems of fresh water management, over-fishing, and now increasingly climate change impacts. Monaco has a long history in the investigation of the marine environment. Prince Albert I, was one of the pioneers in oceanographic exploration, organizer of European oceanographic research and founder of several international organizations including the Musee Oceanographique. The International Atomic Energy Agency established in 1961 its Marine Environment Laboratory in Monaco, the only marine laboratory in the United Nations system. More than 40 years ago the IAEA joined forces with the Grimaldi family and several interested governments to establish the Marine Environment Laboratory in Monaco. Their first purpose-built facilities, dedicated to marine research, launched a new era in the investigation of the marine environment using radioactive and stable isotopes as tracers for better understanding of processes in the oceans and seas, addressing their pollution and promoting wide international cooperation. The Government of the Principality of Monaco has been actively engaged in these developments and is continuously supporting activities of the Monaco Laboratory
A living fossil tale of Pangaean biogeography.

Science.gov (United States)

Murienne, Jerome; Daniels, Savel R; Buckley, Thomas R; Mayer, Georg; Giribet, Gonzalo

2014-01-22

The current distributions of widespread groups of terrestrial animals and plants are supposedly the result of a mixture of either vicariance owing to continental split or more recent trans-oceanic dispersal. For organisms exhibiting a vicariant biogeographic pattern-achieving their current distribution by riding on the plates of former supercontinents-this view is largely inspired by the belief that Pangaea lacked geographical or ecological barriers, or that extinctions and dispersal would have erased any biogeographic signal since the early Mesozoic. We here present a time-calibrated molecular phylogeny of Onychophora (velvet worms), an ancient and exclusively terrestrial panarthropod group distributed throughout former Pangaean landmasses. Our data not only demonstrate that trans-oceanic dispersal does not need be invoked to explain contemporary distributions, but also reveal that the early diversification of the group pre-dates the break-up of Pangaea, maintaining regionalization even in landmasses that have remained contiguous throughout the history of the group. These results corroborate a growing body of evidence from palaeontology, palaeogeography and palaeoclimatic modelling depicting ancient biogeographic regionalization over the continuous landmass of Pangaea.
Marine04 marine radiocarbon age calibration, 0-26 cal kyr BP

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hughen, Konrad A.; Baillie, Mike G.L.; Bard, Edouard; Beck, J. Warren; Bertrand, Chanda J.H.; Blackwell, Paul G.; Buck, Caitlin E.; Burr, George S.; Cutler, Kirsten B.; Damon, Paul E.; Edwards, Richard L.; Fairbanks, Richard G.; Friedrich, Michael; Guilderson, Thomas P.; Kromer, Bernd; McCormac, Gerry; Manning, Sturt; Bronk Ramsey, Christopher; Reimer, Paula J.; Reimer, Ron W.; Remmele, Sabine; Southon, John R.; Stuiver, Minze; Talamo, Sahra; Taylor, F.W.; Plicht, Johannes van der; Weyhenmeyer, Constanze E.

2004-01-01

New radiocarbon calibration curves, IntCal04 and Marine04, have been constructed and internationally ratified to replace the terrestrial and marine components of IntCal98. The new calibration data sets extend an additional 2000 yr, from 0–26 cal kyr BP (Before Present, 0 cal BP = AD 1950), and
Marine biodiversity in Japanese waters.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Katsunori Fujikura

Full Text Available To understand marine biodiversity in Japanese waters, we have compiled information on the marine biota in Japanese waters, including the number of described species (species richness, the history of marine biology research in Japan, the state of knowledge, the number of endemic species, the number of identified but undescribed species, the number of known introduced species, and the number of taxonomic experts and identification guides, with consideration of the general ocean environmental background, such as the physical and geological settings. A total of 33,629 species have been reported to occur in Japanese waters. The state of knowledge was extremely variable, with taxa containing many inconspicuous, smaller species tending to be less well known. The total number of identified but undescribed species was at least 121,913. The total number of described species combined with the number of identified but undescribed species reached 155,542. This is the best estimate of the total number of species in Japanese waters and indicates that more than 70% of Japan's marine biodiversity remains un-described. The number of species reported as introduced into Japanese waters was 39. This is the first attempt to estimate species richness for all marine species in Japanese waters. Although its marine biota can be considered relatively well known, at least within the Asian-Pacific region, considering the vast number of different marine environments such as coral reefs, ocean trenches, ice-bound waters, methane seeps, and hydrothermal vents, much work remains to be done. We expect global change to have a tremendous impact on marine biodiversity and ecosystems. Japan is in a particularly suitable geographic situation and has a lot of facilities for conducting marine science research. Japan has an important responsibility to contribute to our understanding of life in the oceans.
Using species abundance distribution models and diversity indices for biogeographical analyses

Science.gov (United States)

Fattorini, Simone; Rigal, François; Cardoso, Pedro; Borges, Paulo A. V.

2016-01-01

biogeographical purposes.

Marine Ecosystem Services

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hasler, Berit; Ahtiainen, Heini; Hasselström, Linus

MARECOS (Marine Ecosystem Services) er et tværfagligt studie, der har haft til formål at tilvejebringe information vedrørende kortlægning og værdisætning af økosystemtjenester, som kan anvendes i forbindelse med udformning af regulering på det marine område såvel nationalt, som regionalt og inter...
Consumer Preferences Toward Marine Tourism Area

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Silvy Fauziah

2012-09-01

Full Text Available The marine zone tourism is growing attracting more tourists. Pramuka Island is marine conservation area enriched with marine biodiversity in coral reefs and other natural resources. To develop this potential tourist destination, a customer-based marketing program is required to attract domestic and foreign tourists. The main vision is to understand tourist preferences for marine tourism activities and facilities. A research was conducted on Pramuka Island as a well-known marine tourism zone. The objective was to determine the key tourist preferences for marine tourism destination. Research methods utilized Cochran Q test and Conjoint analysis where the primary data were obtained from tourist respondents. The result showed that there was a tourist preference based on the five attributes considered most important, namely tourism activities, tourist attractions, types of accommodation, food and souvenirs types. This study provided marine tourism destination management with useful guidance for broader implications of the implementation of marketing programs and tourism attraction. Moreover, the results of this study consolidated the learning of a variety of academic and industrial research papers in particular for the measurement of customer preferences towards marine tourism destination.
Information barriers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fuller, J.L.; Wolford, J.

2001-01-01

Full text: An information barrier (IB) consists of procedures and technology that prevent the release of sensitive information during a joint inspection of a sensitive nuclear item, and provides confidence that the measurement system into which it has been integrated functions exactly as designed and constructed. Work in the U.S. on radiation detection system information barriers dates back at least to 1990, even though the terminology is more recent. In January 1999 the Joint DoD-DOE Information Barrier Working Group was formed in the United States to help coordinate technical efforts related to information barrier R and D. This paper presents an overview of the efforts of this group, by its Chairs, as well as recommendations for further information barrier R and D. Progress on the demonstration of monitoring systems containing IBs is also provided. From the U.S. perspective, the basic, top-level functional requirements for the information barrier portion of an integrated radiation signature-information barrier inspection system are twofold: The host must be assured that his classified information is protected from disclosure to the inspecting party; and The inspecting party must be confident that the integrated inspection system measures, processes, and presents the radiation-signature-based measurement conclusion in an accurate and reproducible manner. It is the position of the United States that in the absence of any agreement to share classified nuclear weapons design information in the conduct of an inspection regime, the requirement to protect host country classified warhead design information is paramount and admits no tradeoff versus the confidence provided to the inspecting party in the accuracy and reproducibility of the measurements. The U.S. has reached an internal consensus on several critical design elements that define a general standard for radiation signature information barrier design. These criteria have stood the test of time under intense
The Use of Stimulable Bioluminescence from Marine Dinoflagellates as a Means of Detecting Toxicity in the Marine Environment

Science.gov (United States)

1993-04-01

FROM MARINE PR: ME65 DINOFLAGELLATES AS A MEANS OF DETECTING TOXICITY IN THE PE: 060372N MARINE ENVIRONMENT WU: DN288604 6ý AUTHOR(S) Accesion For I...measure the acute and sublethal effects of heavy metals ( tributyltin , copper, and zinc) and storm drain effluent on the light output from marine...Grovhoug 3 THE USE OF STIM1ULABLE BIOLUMINESCENCE FROM MARINE DINOFLAGELLATES AS A MEANS OF DETECTING TOXICITY IN THE MARINE ENVIRONMENT. REFERENCE
Tritium/hydrogen barrier development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hollenberg, G.W.; Simonen, E.P.; Kalinen, G.; Terlain, A.

1994-06-01

A review of hydrogen permeation barriers that can be applied to structural metals used in fusion power plants is presented. Both implanted and chemically available hydrogen isotopes must be controlled in fusion plants. The need for permeation barriers appears strongest in Li17-Pb blanket designs, although barriers also appear necessary for other blanket and coolant systems. Barriers that provide greater than a 1000 fold reduction in the permeation of structural metals are desired. In laboratory experiments, aluminide and titanium ceramic coatings provide permeation reduction factors, PRFS, from 1000 to over 100,000 with a wide range of scatter. The rate-controlling mechanism for hydrogen permeation through these barriers may be related to the number and type of defects in the barriers. Although these barriers appear robust and resistant to liquid metal corrosion, irradiation tests which simulate blanket environments result in very low PRFs in comparison to laboratory experiments, i.e., <150. It is anticipated from fundamental research activities that the REID enhancement of hydrogen diffusion in oxides may contribute to the lower permeation reduction factors during in-reactor experiments
Barriers for realisation of energy savings in buildings; Barrierer for realisering af energibesparelser i bygninger

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jensen, O.M.

2004-07-01

Many years' efforts within the energy labelling area have shown large saving potentials in heating and use of electricity in buildings. At the same time it has been proved that these saving potentials, even when economically advantageous, only are cashed to a limited extent. The reason to this is ascribed to barriers that meet the individual building owner who wants to start saving energy. Most barriers are known and a lot of these have been sought overcome for some time. The questions are how many barriers still exist, have new barriers arisen and the character of these barriers. On this background the objective of this survey has been to concretize and study the barriers, which are blocking reasonable energy savings. Focus has especially been on barriers for realisation of heating savings, but through a general evaluation of energy savings of barriers other forms of energy saving methods have been taken into consideration. Special interest has been directed towards houses, typically one family houses, which are affected by the Energy Labelling Scheme. The concept barriers include all kinds of barriers, also barriers that not are acknowledged as barriers by the individual house owner, or that on closer inspection turn out to be something else than actual barriers. This note suggests an alternative inertia model, in order to create an idea of the inertness characteristic of the many house owners who understand the message but fail to act on it. (BA)
Systems study on engineered barriers: barrier performance analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stula, R.T.; Albert, T.E.; Kirstein, B.E.; Lester, D.H.

1980-09-01

A performance assessment model for multiple barrier packages containing unreprocessed spent fuel has been modified and applied to several package designs. The objective of the study was to develop information to be used in programmatic decision making concerning engineered barrier package design and development. The assessment model, BARIER, was developed in previous tasks of the System Study on Engineered Barriers (SSEB). The new version discussed in this report contains a refined and expanded corrosion rate data base which includes pitting, crack growth, and graphitization as well as bulk corrosion. Corrosion rates for oxic and anoxic conditions at each of the two temperature ranges are supplied. Other improvements include a rigorous treatment of radionuclide release after package failure which includes resistance of damaged barriers and backfill, refined temperature calculations that account for convection and radiation, a subroutine to calculate nuclear gamma radiation field at each barrier surface, refined stress calculations with reduced conservatism and various coding improvements to improve running time and core usage. This report also contains discussion of alternative scenarios to the assumed flooded repository as well as the impact of water exclusion backfills. The model was used to assess post repository closure performance for several designs which were all variation of basic designs from the Spent Unreprocessed Fuel (SURF) program. Many designs were found to delay the onset of leaching by at least a few hundreds of years in all geologic media. Long delay times for radionuclide release were found for packages with a few inches of sorption backfill. Release of uranium, plutonium, and americium was assessed
Systems study on engineered barriers: barrier performance analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stula, R.T.; Albert, T.E.; Kirstein, B.E.; Lester, D.H.

1980-09-01

A performance assessment model for multiple barrier packages containing unreprocessed spent fuel has been modified and applied to several package designs. The objective of the study was to develop information to be used in programmatic decision making concerning engineered barrier package design and development. The assessment model, BARIER, was developed in previous tasks of the System Study on Engineered Barriers (SSEB). The new version discussed in this report contains a refined and expanded corrosion rate data base which includes pitting, crack growth, and graphitization as well as bulk corrosion. Corrosion rates for oxic and anoxic conditions at each of the two temperature ranges are supplied. Other improvements include a rigorous treatment of radionuclide release after package failure which includes resistance of damaged barriers and backfill, refined temperature calculations that account for convection and radiation, a subroutine to calculate nuclear gamma radiation field at each barrier surface, refined stress calculations with reduced conservatism and various coding improvements to improve running time and core usage. This report also contains discussion of alternative scenarios to the assumed flooded repository as well as the impact of water exclusion backfills. The model was used to assess post repository closure performance for several designs which were all variation of basic designs from the Spent Unreprocessed Fuel (SURF) program. Many designs were found to delay the onset of leaching by at least a few hundreds of years in all geologic media. Long delay times for radionuclide release were found for packages with a few inches of sorption backfill. Release of uranium, plutonium, and americium was assessed.
NODC Standard Format Marine Mammals of Coastal Alaska Data (1975-1981): Marine Mammal Specimens (F025) (NODC Accession 0014150)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC maintains data in three NODC Standard Format Marine Mammal Data Sets: Marine Mammal Sighting and Census (F127); Marine Mammal Specimens (F025); Marine Mammal...
Barrier penetration database

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fainberg, A.; Bieber, A.M. Jr.

1978-11-01

This document is intended to supply the NRC and nuclear power plant licensees with basic data on the times required to penetrate forcibly the types of barriers commonly found in nuclear plants. These times are necessary for design and evaluation of the physical protection system required under 10CFR73.55. Each barrier listed is described in detail. Minor variations in basic barrier construction that result in the same penetration time, are also described
Molecular systematics and historical biogeography of tree boas (Corallus spp.).

Science.gov (United States)

Colston, Timothy J; Grazziotin, Felipe G; Shepard, Donald B; Vitt, Laurie J; Colli, Guarino R; Henderson, Robert W; Blair Hedges, S; Bonatto, Sandro; Zaher, Hussam; Noonan, Brice P; Burbrink, Frank T

2013-03-01

Inferring the evolutionary and biogeographic history of taxa occurring in a particular region is one way to determine the processes by which the biodiversity of that region originated. Tree boas of the genus Corallus are an ancient clade and occur throughout Central and South America and the Lesser Antilles, making it an excellent group for investigating Neotropical biogeography. Using sequenced portions of two mitochondrial and three nuclear loci for individuals of all recognized species of Corallus, we infer phylogenetic relationships, present the first molecular analysis of the phylogenetic placement of the enigmatic C. cropanii, develop a time-calibrated phylogeny, and explore the biogeographic history of the genus. We found that Corallus diversified within mainland South America, via over-water dispersals to the Lesser Antilles and Central America, and via the traditionally recognized Panamanian land bridge. Divergence time estimates reject the South American Caribbean-Track as a general biogeographic model for Corallus and implicate a role for events during the Oligocene and Miocene in diversification such as marine incursions and the uplift of the Andes. Our findings also suggest that recognition of the island endemic species, C. grenadensis and C. cookii, is questionable as they are nested within the widely distributed species, C. hortulanus. Our results highlight the importance of using widespread taxa when forming and testing biogeographic hypotheses in complex regions and further illustrate the difficulty of forming broadly applicable hypotheses regarding patterns of diversification in the Neotropical region. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Dietary Cerebroside from Sea Cucumber (Stichopus japonicus): Absorption and Effects on Skin Barrier and Cecal Short-Chain Fatty Acids.

Science.gov (United States)

Duan, Jingjing; Ishida, Marina; Aida, Kazuhiko; Tsuduki, Tsuyoshi; Zhang, Jin; Manabe, Yuki; Hirata, Takashi; Sugawara, Tatsuya

2016-09-21

Sphingolipids from marine sources have attracted more attention recently because of their distinctive structures and expected functions. In this study, the content and components of cerebroside from sea cucumber Stichopus japonicus were analyzed. The absorption of cerebroside from S. japonicus was investigated with an in vivo lipid absorption assay. The result revealed that S. japonicus is a rich source of cerebroside that contained considerable amounts of odd carbon chain sphingoid bases. The cumulative recoveries of d17:1- and d19:2-containing cerebrosides were 0.31 ± 0.16 and 0.32 ± 0.10%, respectively, for 24 h after administration. To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first work that shows sphingolipids from a marine source could be absorbed in vivo and incorporated into ceramides. In addition, dietary supplementation with sea cucumber cerebroside to hairless mouse improved the skin barrier function and increased short-chain fatty acids in cecal contents, which have shown beneficial effects on the host.
Marine-Design Education

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersen, Poul; Birmingham, R.; Sortland, B.

2006-01-01

This report addresses Marine-Design Education in view of present and forecasted demands of the maritime industry, determined by a drastically transforming economic and technological maritime environment. In this framework, this report discusses in depth IT-based Marine Design education (par. 4......) and reveals innovative educational concepts and initiatives, such as the EiT (Experts in a Team) concept (par. 3), the SFS (Student Friendly Software) initiative (par. 5), Education Driven Research (EDR, par. 6) and Research Based Education (RBE, par. 6). Nevertheless, the paper stresses the need...... for continuity between traditional and modern ways of teaching (par. 4) and points out that Marine Design education is not only about Design, but should also address project/business administration and decision making issues (par. 7)....
Prediction of calcite Cement Distribution in Shallow Marine Sandstone Reservoirs using Seismic Data

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bakke, N.E.

1996-12-31

This doctoral thesis investigates how calcite cemented layers can be detected by reflection seismic data and how seismic data combined with other methods can be used to predict lateral variation in calcite cementation in shallow marine sandstone reservoirs. Focus is on the geophysical aspects. Sequence stratigraphy and stochastic modelling aspects are only covered superficially. Possible sources of calcite in shallow marine sandstone are grouped into internal and external sources depending on their location relative to the presently cemented rock. Well data and seismic data from the Troll Field in the Norwegian North Sea have been analysed. Tuning amplitudes from stacks of thin calcite cemented layers are analysed. Tuning effects are constructive or destructive interference of pulses resulting from two or more closely spaced reflectors. The zero-offset tuning amplitude is shown to depend on calcite content in the stack and vertical stack size. The relationship is found by regression analysis based on extensive seismic modelling. The results are used to predict calcite distribution in a synthetic and a real data example. It is found that describing calcite cemented beds in shallow marine sandstone reservoirs is not a deterministic problem. Hence seismic inversion and sequence stratigraphy interpretation of well data have been combined in a probabilistic approach to produce models of calcite cemented barriers constrained by a maximum amount of information. It is concluded that seismic data can provide valuable information on distribution of calcite cemented beds in reservoirs where the background sandstones are relatively homogeneous. 63 refs., 78 figs., 10 tabs.
Design of engineered sorbent barriers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jones, E.O.; Freeman, H.D.

1988-01-01

A sorbent barrier uses sorbent material such as activated carbon or natural zeolites to prevent the migration of radionuclides from a low-level waste site to the aquifer. The sorbent barrier retards the movement of radioactive contaminants, thereby providing time for the radionuclides to decay. Sorbent barriers can be a simple, effective, and inexpensive method for reducing the migration of radionuclides to the environment. Designing a sorbent barrier consists of using soil and sorbent material properties and site conditions as input to a model which will determine the necessary sorbent barrier thickness to meet contaminant limits. The paper covers the following areas: techniques for measuring sorption properties of barrier materials and underlying soils, use of a radionuclide transport model to determine the required barrier thickness and performance under a variety of site conditions, and cost estimates for applying the barrier
Marine Mammal Protection Act

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA or Act) prohibits, with certain exceptions, the "take" of marine mammals in U.S. waters and by U.S. citizens on the high seas,...
Tsunamis and marine life

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Rao, D.V.S.; Ingole, B.S.; Tang, D.; Satyanarayan, B.; Zhao, H.

The 26 December 2004 tsunami in the Indian Ocean exerted far reaching temporal and spatial impacts on marine biota. Our synthesis was based on satellite data acquired by the Laboratory for Tropical Marine Environmental Dynamics (LED) of the South...
Barrier Data Base user's guide

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Worrell, R.B.; Gould, D.J.; Wall, D.W.

1977-06-01

A special purpose data base for physical security barriers has been developed. In addition to barriers, the entities accommodated by the Barrier Data Base (BDB) include threats and references. A threat is established as a configuration of people and equipment which has been employed to penetrate (or attempt to penetrate) a barrier. References are used to cite publications pertinent to the barriers and threats in the data base. Utilization and maintenance of the Barrier Data Base is achieved with LIST, QUERY, ENTER, DELETE, and CHANGE commands which are used to manipulate the data base entities
Marine Litter, Eutrophication and Noise Assessment Tools

Science.gov (United States)

Palazov, Atanas; Velcheva, Maya; Milkova, Tanya; Slabakova, Violeta; Marinova, Veselka

2017-04-01

MARLEN - Marine Litter, Eutrophication and Noise Assessment Tools is a project under the Programme BG02.03: Increased capacity for assessing and predicting environmental status in marine and inland waters, managed by Bulgarian Ministry of environment and waters and co-financed by the Financial Mechanism of the European Economic Area (EEA FM) 2009 - 2014. Project Beneficiary is the Institute of oceanology - Bulgarian Academy of Sciences with two partners: Burgas municipality and Bulgarian Black Sea Basin Directorate. Initial assessment of ecological state of Bulgarian marine waters showed lack of data for some descriptors of MSFD. The main goal of MARLEN is to build up tools for assessment of marine environment by implementing new technologies and best practices for addressing three main areas of interest with lack of marine data in particular: a) Marine litter detection and classification in coastal areas; b) Regular near real time surface water eutrophication monitoring on large aquatory; c) Underwater noise monitoring. Developed tools are an important source of real time, near real time and delay mode marine data for Bulgarian Black Sea waters. The partnership within the project increased capacity for environmental assessments and training of personnel and enhances collaboration between scientific institutes, regional and local authorities. Project results supported implementation of MSFD in Bulgarian marine waters for the benefit of coastal population, marine industry, tourism, marine research and marine spatial planning.
Antifoulant (butyltin and copper) concentrations in sediments from the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area, Australia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haynes, David; Loong, Dominica

2002-01-01

Antifoulant concentrations are generally low in the Great Barrier Reef, although ship grounding sites present a previously unidentified significant source of antifoulant pollutants in the Great Barrier Reef. - Antifoulant concentrations were determined in marine sediments collected from commercial harbours, marinas, mooring locations on mid-shelf continental islands, and outer reef sites in four regions within the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area in 1999. Highest copper concentrations were present in sediments collected from commercial harbour sampling sites (28-233 μg Cu g -1 dry wt.). In contrast, copper concentrations in sediments collected from boat mooring sites on mid-shelf continental islands and outer reef sites were at background concentrations (i.e. -1 dry wt.). Butyltin was only detectable in four of the 42 sediments sampled for analysis, and was only present in sediments collected from commercial harbours (18-1275 ng Sn g -1 dry wt.) and from marinas (4-5 ng Sn g -1 dry wt.). The detection of tributyltin at marina sites implies that this antifoulant may continue to be used illegally on the hulls of smaller recreational vessels. Sediment samples were also collected opportunistically from the site of a 22,000 t cargo ship grounding in May 1999 at Heath Reef, in the far northern Great Barrier Reef. Butyltin concentrations were grossly elevated (660-340,000 ng Sn g -1 dry wt.) at the grounding site. The impact of residual antifoulants at large ship grounding sites should be recognised as a significant, long-term environmental problem unless antfoulant clean-up strategies are undertaken

Marine Oil-Degrading Microorganisms and Biodegradation Process of Petroleum Hydrocarbon in Marine Environments: A Review.

Science.gov (United States)

Xue, Jianliang; Yu, Yang; Bai, Yu; Wang, Liping; Wu, Yanan

2015-08-01

Due to the toxicity of petroleum compounds, the increasing accidents of marine oil spills/leakages have had a significant impact on our environment. Recently, different remedial techniques for the treatment of marine petroleum pollution have been proposed, such as bioremediation, controlled burning, skimming, and solidifying. (Hedlund and Staley in Int J Syst Evol Microbiol 51:61-66, 2001). This review introduces an important remedial method for marine oil pollution treatment-bioremediation technique-which is considered as a reliable, efficient, cost-effective, and eco-friendly method. First, the necessity of bioremediation for marine oil pollution was discussed. Second, this paper discussed the species of oil-degrading microorganisms, degradation pathways and mechanisms, the degradation rate and reaction model, and the factors affecting the degradation. Last, several suggestions for the further research in the field of marine oil spill bioremediation were proposed.
77 FR 58255 - Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Marine Geophysical Survey off the...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-09-19

... requirements, many marine animals may need to remain in areas where they are exposed to chronic stimuli... Vol. 77 Wednesday, No. 182 September 19, 2012 Part III Department of Commerce Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Marine Geophysical Survey off the Central Coast of California...
78 FR 52135 - Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental To...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-08-22

...--Marine Mammal Density Estimates Density Species (animals/km \\2\\) Bottlenose dolphin \\1\\ 0.455 Atlantic... criteria and thresholds in a final rule on the unintentional taking of marine animals occurring incidental... analysis assumed the marine species populations were 100 percent small animals. The criterion with the...
Marine Battlefields

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Harðardóttir, Sara

as they are an important food source for various marine animals. For both phytoand zooplankton predation is a major cause of mortality, and strategies for protection or avoidance are important for survival. Diatoms of the genera Nitzschia and Pseudo-nitzschia are known to produce a neuro-toxin, domoic acid (DA). Despite......Phytoplankton species are photosynthetic organisms found in most aquatic habitats. In the ocean, phytoplankton are tremendously important because they produce the energy that forms the base of the marine food web. Zooplankton feed on phytoplankton and mediate the energy to higher trophic levels...
Marine debris removal: one year of effort by the Georgia Sea Turtle-Center-Marine Debris Initiative.

Science.gov (United States)

Martin, Jeannie Miller

2013-09-15

Once in the marine environment, debris poses a significant threat to marine life that can be prevented through the help of citizen science. Marine debris is any manufactured item that enters the ocean regardless of source, commonly plastics, metal, wood, glass, foam, cloth, or rubber. Citizen science is an effective way to engage volunteers in conservation initiatives and provide education and skill development. The Georgia Sea Turtle Center Marine Debris Initiative (GSTC-MDI) is a grant funded program developed to engage citizens in the removal of marine debris from the beaches of Jekyll Island, GA, USA and the surrounding areas. During the first year of effort, more than 200 volunteers donated over 460 h of service to the removal of marine debris. Of the debris removed, approximately 89% were plastics, with a significant portion being cigarette materials. Given the successful first year, the GSTC-MDI was funded again for a second year. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Economic growth and marine biodiversity: influence of human social structure on decline of marine trophic levels.

Science.gov (United States)

Clausen, Rebecca; York, Richard

2008-04-01

We assessed the effects of economic growth, urbanization, and human population size on marine biodiversity. We used the mean trophic level (MTL) of marine catch as an indicator of marine biodiversity and conducted cross-national time-series analyses (1960-2003) of 102 nations to investigate human social influences on fish catch and trends in MTL. We constructed path models to examine direct and indirect effects relating to marine catch and MTL. Nations' MTLs declined with increased economic growth, increased urbanization, and increased population size, in part because of associated increased catch. These findings contradict the environmental Kuznets curve hypothesis, which claims that economic modernization will reduce human impact on the environment. To make informed decisions on issues of marine resource management, policy makers, nonprofit entities, and professional societies must recognize the need to include social analyses in overall conservation-research strategies. The challenge is to utilize the socioeconomic and ecological research in the service of a comprehensive marine-conservation movement.
Strengthened enforcement enhances marine sanctuary performance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Brendan P. Kelaher

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Marine sanctuaries are areas where the extraction of biota is not permitted. Although most marine sanctuaries have a positive influence on biotic communities, not all sanctuaries are meeting their conservation objectives. Amidst possible explanations (e.g., size, age and isolation, insufficient enforcement is often speculated to be a key driver of marine sanctuary underperformance. Despite this, there are few studies directly linking quantitative enforcement data to changes in biotic communities within marine sanctuaries. Here, we used an asymmetrical-BACI experimental design from 2006–2012 to test whether new enforcement initiatives enhanced abundances of target fishes and threatened species in an existing large sub-tropical marine sanctuary relative to areas open to fishing. Implementation of the new enforcement initiatives in 2010 was associated with a 201% increase in annual fine rate and a significant increase in target fish and elasmobranch abundance, as well as sightings of a critically-endangered shark, in the marine sanctuary relative to areas open to fishing. Overall, these results demonstrate that strengthening enforcement can have a rapid positive influence on target fish and perhaps threatened species in a subtropical marine sanctuary. From this, we contend that increased enforcement guided by risk-based compliance planning and operations may be a useful first step for improving underperforming marine sanctuaries.
Marine spatial planning in Cyprus

Science.gov (United States)

Hadjimitsis, Diofantos; Agapiou, Athos; Mettas, Christodoulos; Themistocleous, Kyriacos; Evagorou, Evagoras; Cuca, Branka; Papoutsa, Christiana; Nisantzi, Argyro; Mamouri, Rodanthi-Elisavet; Soulis, George; Xagoraris, Zafiris; Lysandrou, Vasiliki; Aliouris, Kyriacos; Ioannou, Nicolas; Pavlogeorgatos, Gerasimos

2015-06-01

Marine Spatial Planning (MSP), which is in concept similar to land-use planning, is a public process by which the relevant Member State's authorities analyse and organise human activities in marine areas to achieve ecological, economic and social objectives. MSP aims to promote sustainable growth of maritime economies, sustainable development of marine areas and sustainable use of marine resources. This paper highlights the importance of MSP and provides basic outcomes of the main European marine development. The already successful MSP plans can provide useful feedback and guidelines for other countries that are in the process of implementation of an integrated MSP, such as Cyprus. This paper presents part of the MSP project, of which 80% funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and 20% from national contribution. An overview of the project is presented, including data acquisition, methodology and preliminary results for the implementation of MSP in Cyprus.
Descriptive sensory analysis of marinated and non-marinated wooden breast fillet portions.

Science.gov (United States)

Maxwell, A D; Bowker, B C; Zhuang, H; Chatterjee, D; Adhikari, K

2018-05-14

The wooden breast (WB) myopathy influences muscle composition and texture characteristics in broiler breast meat. It is unknown if marination reduces the negative influence of WB on meat sensory quality or if WB effects are uniform throughout the Pectoralis major. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of marination on the sensory attributes and instrumental shear force measurements of the ventral (skin-side) and dorsal (bone-side) portions of normal and severe WB meat. Sixty butterfly fillets (30 normal and 30 severe WB) were selected from the deboning line of a commercial processing plant. Individual fillets were portioned into ventral and dorsal halves. Portions from one side of each butterfly were used as non-marinated controls, and portions from the other side were vacuum-tumble marinated (16 rpm, -0.6 atm, 4°C, 20 min) with 20% (wt/wt) marinade to meat ratio. Marinade was formulated to target a concentration of 0.75% (w/v) salt and 0.45% (w/v) sodium tripolyphosphate in the final product. Descriptive sensory analysis (9 trained panelists) was conducted to evaluate visual, texture, and flavor attributes (0-15 point scale) of breast portions along with Warner-Bratzler shear force. Significant interaction effects between WB and marination were not observed for the sensory attributes. Greater springiness, cohesiveness, hardness, fibrousness, and chewiness scores were observed in WB samples (P sensory texture attributes were more apparent in the ventral portions of the breast fillets. Flavor attributes (salty and brothy) increased (P sensory quality is not uniform throughout the Pectoralis major and that WB-related differences in cooked meat sensory texture attributes are lessened but not eliminated by vacuum-tumbling marination.
Marine conservation strategies for Maharashtra Coast

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Untawale, A.G.; Dhargalkar, V.K.

, Wildlife Sanctuaries, Marine Parks and Protected Areas. Detailed studies of 37 sites along the Maharashtra Coast, for their marine biota and also the ecological conditions, were taken up. Out of these, seven most luxuriant areas in marine biodiversity have...
Design of engineered sorbent barriers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jones, E.O.; Freeman, H.D.

1988-08-01

A sorbent barrier uses sorbent material such as activated carbon or natural zeolites to prevent the migration of radionuclides from a low-level waste site to the aquifer. The sorbent barrier retards the movement of radioactive contaminants, thereby providing time for the radionuclides to decay. Sorbent barriers can be a simple, effective, and inexpensive method for reducing the migration of radionuclides to the environment. Designing a sorbent barrier consists of using soil and sorbent material properties and site conditions as input to a model which will determine the necessary sorbent barrier thickness to meet contaminant limits. The paper will cover the following areas: techniques for measuring sorption properties of barrier materials and underlying soils, use of a radionuclide transport model to determine the required barrier thickness and performance under a variety of site conditions, and cost estimates for applying the barrier. 8 refs., 6 figs., 1 tab
Promotion Factors For Enlisted Infantry Marines

Science.gov (United States)

2017-06-01

Marine Corps. However, due to periods of growth during two major conflicts , quality has given way to quantity to fulfill the needs of the Marine...Corps. As conflicts draw down, the Marine Corps shifts from promoting and retaining quantity to high-quality Marines. Throughout this thesis, we use...historically possessed an innate drive to succeed, to excel in all that they do, including winning in combat. We will sustain this trait and ensure this
Regionalización biogeográfica de la mastofauna de los bosques tropicales perennifolios de Mesoamérica Biogeographic regionalization of the mammals of tropical evergreen forests in Mesoamerica

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Héctor C. Olguín-Monroy

2013-06-01

Full Text Available Este trabajo presenta una propuesta de regionalización biogeográfica de los bosques tropicales perennifolios de Mesoamérica, resultado de un análisis de parsimonia de endemismos (PAE, utilizando modelos de nicho ecológico (GARP con mamíferos terrestres, usando 41 527 registros para las 233 especies de mamíferos reconocidas. La regionalización propuesta muestra que los bosques tropicales perennifolios de Mesoamérica se dividen por el istmo de Tehuantepec en Oaxaca en: a un grupo septentrional que comprende la Sierra Madre de Chiapas-Guatemala y la Península de Yucatán, y b un grupo austral, que contiene la vertiente pacífica hacia el sur incluyendo Centroamérica. Además se encontró congruencia con trabajos filogenéticos, lo que sugiere una historia biogeográfica común.Mesoamerica is a biologically complex zone that expands from Southern Mexico to extreme Northern Colombia. The biogeographical patterns and relationships of the mammalian fauna associated to the Mesoamerican Tropical Evergreen Forest (MTEF are poorly understood, in spite of the wide distribution of this kind of habitat in the region. We compiled a complete georeferenced database of mammalian species distributed in the MTEF of specimens from museum collections and scientific literature. This database was used to create potential distribution maps through the use of environmental niche models (ENMs by using the Genetic Algorithm for Rule-Set Production (GARP using 22 climatic and topographic layers. Each map was used as a representation of the geographic distribution of the species and all available maps were summed to obtain general patterns of species richness in the region. Also, the maps were used to construct a presence-absence matrix in a grid of squares of 0.5 degrees of side, that was analyzed in a Parsimony Analysis of Endemicity (PAE, which resulted in a hypothesis of the biogeographic scheme in the region. We compiled a total of 41 527 records of 233
Marine Corps Amphibious Combat Vehicle (ACV) and Marine Personnel Carrier (MPC): Background and Issues for Congress

Science.gov (United States)

2017-03-08

the AAV, incorporating some EFV capabilities but in a more practical and cost-efficient manner . In concert with the ACV, the Marines were developing...EFV capabilities but in a more practical and cost-efficient manner . In concert with the ACV, the Marines were developing the Marine Personnel Carrier
A global census of marine microbes

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Amaral-Zettler, L.; Artigas, L.F.; Baross, J.; LokaBharathi, P.A; Boetius, A; Chandramohan, D.; Herndl, G.; Kogure, K.; Neal, P.; Pedros-Alio, C.; Ramette, A; Schouten, S.; Stal, L.; Thessen, A; De Leeuw, J.; Sogin, M.

In this chapter we provide a brief history of what is known about marine microbial diversity, summarize our achievements in performing a global census of marine microbes, and reflect on the questions and priorities for the future of the marine...
Marine cloud brightening

OpenAIRE

Latham, John; Bower, Keith; Choularton, Tom; Coe, Hugh; Connolly, Paul; Cooper, Gary; Craft, Tim; Foster, Jack; Gadian, Alan; Galbraith, Lee; Iacovides, Hector; Johnston, David; Launder, Brian; Leslie, Brian; Meyer, John

2012-01-01

The idea behind the marine cloud-brightening (MCB) geoengineering technique is that seeding marine stratocumulus clouds with copious quantities of roughly monodisperse sub-micrometre sea water particles might significantly enhance the cloud droplet number concentration, and thereby the cloud albedo and possibly longevity. This would produce a cooling, which general circulation model (GCM) computations suggest could—subject to satisfactory resolution of technical and scientific problems identi...
The Cost of SOx Limits to Marine Operators; Results from Exploring Marine Fuel Prices

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Orestis Schinas

2013-06-01

Full Text Available Marine operators are confronted with the new air emissions regulations that determine the limits of sulfur content in marine fuels. The low-sulfur (LS marine fuels have a higher price, and their fluctuation is almost similar to the fluctuation of high-sulfur (HS fuels. The price difference between HS and LS might also determine the decision of operators for alternative technical means, such as scrubbers, in order to comply with the new limits. This paper aims to provide a thorough statistical analysis of the currently available LS and HS marine fuels time series, as well as to present the analysis of the differential of the HS and LS fuel prices. The paper concludes with suggestions for further research.
Hanford protective barriers program: Status of asphalt barrier studies - FY 1989

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Freeman, H.D.; Gee, G.W.

1989-11-01

The Hanford Protective Barrier Program is evaluating alternate barriers to provide a means of meeting stringent water infiltration requirements. One type of alternate barrier being considered is an asphalt-based layer, 1.3 to 15 cm thick. Evaluations of these barriers were initiated in FY 1988, and, based on laboratory studies, two asphalt formulations were selected for further testing in small-tube lysimeters: a hot rubberized asphalt and an admixture of cationic asphalt emulsion and concrete sand containing 24 wt% residual asphalt. Eight lysimeters containing asphalt seals were installed as part of the Small Tube Lysimeter Test Facility on the Hanford Site. Two control lysimeters containing Hanford sand with a surface gravel treatment were also installed for comparison. 5 refs., 13 figs., 1 tab
A combination of quantitative marinating and Maillard reaction to enhance volatile flavor in Chinese marinated chicken.

Science.gov (United States)

Wei, Xiuli; Wang, Chunqing; Zhang, Chunhui; Li, Xia; Wang, Jinzhi; Li, Hai; Tang, Chunhong

2017-02-01

A combination of quantitative marinating and Maillard reaction was investigated by adding d-xylose, l-cysteine and thiamine to the marinated brine of quantitative marinating, which was expected to enhance the volatile flavor of Chinese marinated chicken. Response surface methodology was used to optimize parameters, in which response was sensory evaluation scores of marinated chicken. A Box-Behnken center design was applied to the optimized added contents. The optimized contents were d-xylose (1-5‰), l-cysteine (1-5‰) and thiamine (1-3‰). Analysis of variance indicated that a second-order polynomial equation could predict the experimental data well (R 2 = 0.94), and sensory evaluation scores were significantly affected by the added amount of d-xylose, l-cysteine and thiamine. The optimal conditions that maximized the sensory evaluation score of Chinese marinated chicken were found to be 4.96‰ d-xylose, 2.28‰ l-cysteine and 2.66‰ thiamine (w/w). Given these optimal conditions, a number of meat-like flavor compounds such as 2-pentyl-furan, benzothiazole and 4-methyl-5-thiazoleethanol were identified by gas chromatographic-mass spectrometric analysis. Our results suggested that a combination of quantitative marinating and Maillard reaction might be a promising method to enhance the volatile flavor, especially meat-like flavor, of Chinese marinated chicken. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.
Encyclopedic approach to Marine History of Russia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrey V. Ishin

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Marine direction of foreign policy is for Russia one of key. It is determined geographical position of the Russian state banks of which is washed plenty of Maureies. Also it is related to that considerable part of population lives on the coast of Russian Maureies, and industry, located in an off-shore bar brings, in a large contribution to the economy.Many Russian marine travelers were the discoverers of «new» earths. The contribution of the Russian scientists to the hydrophysical, geological and biological study of Maureies and Oceans is great. Russia possesses a navy, to the constituents approximately one-third of total tonnage of world VMF and one of large in the world a rybopromyslovym fleet. Transport ships under the flag of Russian Federation it is possible to meet planets in the remotest corners. In a number of areas of military shipbuilding and civil shipbuilding Russia had and continues to save priority.Enhanceable interest to the Seas and Oceans found the reflection in the fundamental Russian documents, including, in the Marine doctrine of Russian Federation, ratified Russia President in 2015. In it the value of marine spaces for the Russian state is marked. In the Marine doctrine of Russian Federation is writtenin: «The skilled providing, marine teaching and education play an important role in the increase of efficiency of marine activity. They are directed on preparation, bringing in and maintainance of skilled shots of all levels, maintenance of professionalism, marine traditions and not indifferent relation of citizens to marine history of country, serve positive presentation, propaganda and support of national marine policy, to marine activity and marine service in society».Marine direction, marine science about regions found a reflection in the publications of row of the Russian authors, devoted research of policy of Russia in such regions, as: Black Sea region, Caspian region, Arctic, and also in the series of Encyclopaedias

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