The deep ocean is frequently assumed to be a homogeneous system lacking the same diverse life his... more The deep ocean is frequently assumed to be a homogeneous system lacking the same diverse life history strategies found in shallower waters. However, as our methods for exploring the deep ocean improve, common assumptions about dispersal, reproduction and behavior are constantly being challenged. Fishes exhibit the most diverse reproductive strategies among vertebrates. Understanding life history strategies in deep-sea environments is lacking for many species of fishes. Here, we report a novel reproductive strategy where a fish (Parazen pacificus) provides parental care via mouth brooding. This behavior is observed from a specimen collected with eggs present in the buccal cavity, along with other specimens exhibiting pre-brooding morphologies. This is the first description of this unique life history trait in a deep-sea fish and fills in a gap in the larval literature for this family of fishes and prompts further investigation into other novel reproductive modes of deep-sea fauna. Of all vertebrates, the varieties of parental care behaviors in fishes, specifically teleosts, are considered the most diverse, with behaviors ranging from no care to bi-parental care 1. Of all the known fish families, 89 are presently known to exhibit parental care which have been subdivided into 16 distinct modes of parental care 2. In teleost fish, the four general classes of parental care have been described as: no care, male care, biparental care, and female care, with no care being the most common and female care the least 3. For most groups of fishes there is a moderate correlation between reproductive behavior and evolutionary relationships at the family level and lower. Some examples being Amiidae, Syngnathidae, Kurtidae, and Gasteroteidae 2. Some groups are polymorphic and show multiple reproductive strategies across a clade. Examples of this include Characidae, Cyprinodontidae, Cyprinidae and Percidae 4,5. While many groups of fishes have had extensive studies focused on reproductive behaviors, the literature remains sparse on reproductive habits of fishes found in more extreme environments like the deep ocean. One such group of deep-sea marine fishes with gaps in our understanding of reproductive behaviors is the order Zeiformes. Zeiformes currently consists of six extant exclusively marine families: Cyttidae, Grammicolepididae, Oreosomatidae, Parazenidae, Zeidae, and Zeniontidae 6,7. The phylogenetic relationships among the Zeiformes have been extensively studied and the family Parazenidae has been described as a distinct clade using both osteological 8 and molecular data 9. The maximum likelihood and Bayesian trees of combined morphological and molecular data in Grande et al. (2018) indicated there may be two additional families within the Zeiformes, one encompassing Capromimus + Cyttomimus and the other including just Macrurocyttus. Most families of zeiform fishes have at least a basic larval description and the young have been illustrated or described for six of the Pacific genera 10 and only four of a probable 10-11 western North Atlantic species 11. However, the family Parazenidae remains the only Zeiform without at least a basic description of its larva 12,13. Parazenidae is a monotypic family with one species, Parazen pacificus being found in the western Pacific 14 , Indian 15 , Caribbean and western Atlantic 16 , without any populations known in either the eastern Atlantic or East Pacific. Previously, Parazen pacificus has been hypothesized to be a broadcast spawner similar to other species of Zeiformes 17,18. However, recently a specimen of Parazen pacificus from the western Pacific Ocean was found with an egg mass in its buccal cavity. This can be surmised to be an indication of mouth brooding as a mode of parental care by
The scale of the Deepwater Horizon disaster was and is unprecedented: geographic extent, pollutan... more The scale of the Deepwater Horizon disaster was and is unprecedented: geographic extent, pollutant amount, countermeasure scope, and of most relevance to this Research Topic issue, range of ecotypes affected. These ecotypes include coastal/nearshore, continental shelf, deep benthic, and open-ocean domains, the last of which is the subject of this synthesis. The open-ocean ecotype comprises ~90% of the volume of the Gulf of Mexico. The exact percentage of this ecotype contaminated with toxins is unknown due to its three-dimensional nature and dynamics, but estimates suggest that the footprint encompassed most of its eastern half. Further, interactions between the water column and the deep benthos may be persistent, making this synthesis one of time (a decade) rather than event conclusion. Here we examine key elements of the open-ocean ecosystem, with emphasis on vulnerability and resilience. Of paramount importance relative to the Gulf nearshore and shelf ecotypes, pre-disaster basel...
The Deepwater Horizon oil spill (DWHOS) was unique not only for its volume, but also for its dept... more The Deepwater Horizon oil spill (DWHOS) was unique not only for its volume, but also for its depth of influence (0-1500 m). Variable amounts of hydrocarbons reached the ocean surface and/or seafloor, whereas 100% went through the water column. Understanding this pelagic habitat is important. For example, about half of all fish species that occur in the Gulf of Mexico (GoM) spend all or part of their lives in the open ocean. Many mesopelagic and bathypelagic species migrate vertically each night to feed in the upper water column and return to deep water during the day. This behavior promotes rapid cycling of natural and anthropogenic material in the water column. Deep-pelagic nekton are prey for gamefishes, seabirds, and marine mammals. Given the steady growth of oil exploration and operations, the likelihood of future spills emphasizes the need to document acute and chronic effects on the pelagic fauna. The GoMRI-funded DEEPEND (Deep-Pelagic Nekton Dynamics) consortium was created for that purpose. DEEPEND is in the second of a 3year program that builds on two intensive NOAA-supported surveys during 2010-11. DEEPEND is focussed on timescales from short-term to interannual to appraise the dynamic nature of communities using a suite of integrated approaches. These investigations include: 1) a direct assessment of GoM deep-pelagic community structure including the physical and biological drivers of this structure; 2) a time-series analysis/comparison of biophysical data; 3) a time-series examination of differences in genetic diversity among key species; and 4) a biogeochemical analysis of the effect of DWHOS on pelagic biota. http://www.deependconsortium.or
The Deepwater Horizon oil spill (DWHOS) represented a worst-case scenario with respect to environ... more The Deepwater Horizon oil spill (DWHOS) represented a worst-case scenario with respect to environmental damage assessment - a massive, whole-water-column disturbance in an environment with no pre-event baseline data. In order to provide information on the meso- and bathypelagic faunal composition and abundance of the northern Gulf of Mexico, a large-scale, quantitative sampling program was conducted over a 10-month period in 2010 and 2011. Ensuing analyses revealed a highly speciose ichthyofaunal assemblage - in fact the highest species richness for any oceanic ecosystem reported to date. A follow-on sampling program in 2015, 2016, and 2017, using the same gear and sampling methods, revealed dramatic reductions in fish numbers and biomass across a wide range of taxa, with 3-to-4-fold decreases among some of the dominant constituents (e.g., lanternfishes). This decrease ostensibly has ramifications up and down the food chain (e.g., prey for deep-diving mammals, zooplankton grazing impact, respectively). The lack of pre-spill data precludes determination of causality, but the largest-scale view of this phenomenon leaves a relatively small number of options: 1) 2011 could have been a particularly “good” year for deep-pelagic fishes, with abundances above baseline; 2) deep-pelagic fish abundances naturally vary on time-scales larger than that encompassed in this study; and/or 3) the Gulf deep-pelagic fauna has experienced increased mortality since the DWHOS. Evidence of a continuing presence of DWHOS contamination in the deep-pelagic fauna will be presented. This study emphasizes the need for research on community baselines before commercial exploitation, particularly in deep-sea ecosystems whose natural restorative capacity is unknown
Data and R code for Hanish et al. (2020) in AoB Plants: "Endozoochory of Chrysobalanus icaco... more Data and R code for Hanish et al. (2020) in AoB Plants: "Endozoochory of Chrysobalanus icaco (Cocoplum) by Gopherus polyphemus (Gopher Tortoise) facilitates rapid germination and colonization in a suburban nature preserve" We examined whether Gopherus polyphemus (Gopher Tortoise) facilitated the spread of Chrysobalanus icaco (Cocoplum; Chrysobalanaceae) over a 14 year period in a suburban nature preserve (in Jupiter, Florida, USA) by: 1) comparing germination patterns among gut passed, hand depulped, and whole fruit treatments, and 2) testing hypotheses about environmental predictors of the spatial distribution of C. icaco, including information about G. polyphemus movement pathways and burrow locations. For the germination trials, we did not find a significant difference in the overall proportion of seeds that germinated by the end of the observation period, but Time to Event analysis revealed that gut passed seeds tended to germinate earlier than hand depulped and whole fruit treatments, supporting a lone scarification effect. Point Process Modeling revealed that the density of C. icaco bushes was higher near G. polyphemus movement pathways and was lower inside Serenoa repens (Saw Palmetto) patches, supporting a positive effect of tortoise movement patterns on plant distributions. The density of C. icaco increased from west to east, consistent with westward dispersal from the four founder bushes on the east side of the study area. After removal of outliers, we also detected a negative association between C. icaco spatial density and G. polyphemus burrow density that was presumably explained by the fact that seeds defecated deep within burrows were unlikely to germinate and establish without secondary movement. The results suggest that G. polyphemus contributed to the rapid dispersal of C. icaco by scatter dispersal of seeds (via feces) in areas where tortoises were active and that movement pathways provided suitable conditions for colonization. Data are from the MS thesis of CJH, conducted at Florida Atlantic U [...]
Editor's Note: this Article has been retracted; the Retraction Note is available at https://d... more Editor's Note: this Article has been retracted; the Retraction Note is available at https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-75408-8
The deep ocean is frequently assumed to be a homogeneous system lacking the same diverse life his... more The deep ocean is frequently assumed to be a homogeneous system lacking the same diverse life history strategies found in shallower waters. However, as our methods for exploring the deep ocean improve, common assumptions about dispersal, reproduction and behavior are constantly being challenged. Fishes exhibit the most diverse reproductive strategies among vertebrates. Understanding life history strategies in deep-sea environments is lacking for many species of fishes. Here, we report a novel reproductive strategy where a fish (Parazen pacificus) provides parental care via mouth brooding. This behavior is observed from a specimen collected with eggs present in the buccal cavity, along with other specimens exhibiting pre-brooding morphologies. This is the first description of this unique life history trait in a deep-sea fish and fills in a gap in the larval literature for this family of fishes and prompts further investigation into other novel reproductive modes of deep-sea fauna.
The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill (DWHOS) was primarily a deep-pelagic event. Variable amounts of d... more The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill (DWHOS) was primarily a deep-pelagic event. Variable amounts of discharged hydrocarbons reached the ocean surface and/or seafloor, whereas 100% occurred within the water column. Understanding this pelagic habitat is important because about half of all fish species that occur in the Gulf of Mexico (GoM) spend all or part of their lives in the open ocean. Most mesopelagic (200-1000 m depth) species of fishes vertically migrate each night to feed in epipelagic (0-200 m) depths and return to deep water during the day. This behavior affects rapid cycling of natural and anthropogenic material in the water column. Deep-pelagic fishes are prey for gamefishes, seabirds, and marine mammals. Given the steady growth of oil exploration and operations, the likelihood of future spills emphasizes the need to document acute and chronic effects on pelagic fauna. The DEEPEND (Deep-Pelagic Nekton Dynamics) Consortium will conduct a 3-year sampling and analysis program th...
Bulletin of The Peabody Museum of Natural History, Apr 1, 2014
Instances of vertebrates supplementing their diets through the ingestion of gastroliths have been... more Instances of vertebrates supplementing their diets through the ingestion of gastroliths have been observed or documented in numerous organisms, including birds, crocodiles and dinosaurs. Although not uncommon, this behavior can be motivated by a wide range of factors that include endoparasite removal, stomach cleaning, or calcium supplementation during eggshell formation. As plant-based diets are often mineral deficient, the use of gastroliths as calcium supplements may play an important role in the reproductive biology of egg-laying herbivorous reptiles. Whereas gravid females of some species of herbivorous reptiles have been shown to seek out calcareous gastroliths, the occurrence or prevalence of gastroliths in gravid females remains unknown for many species. Using field observations and radiographs, we studied patterns of gastrolith ingestion by adult female gopher tortoises (Gopherus polyphemus), a herbivorous species of testudinoid turtles. Gastroliths documented included fossil seashells, calcareous stones and carnivore feces containing vertebrate bones. The prevalence of gastroliths was significantly different between gravid and non-gravid tortoises. We suggest this behavior is a means of supplementing calcium intake during eggshell formation and may play a part in the female reproductive biology of this species.
Bear Seamount (39° 55'N, 67° 30'W) is an extinct undersea volcano located inside the U.S.... more Bear Seamount (39° 55'N, 67° 30'W) is an extinct undersea volcano located inside the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone south of Georges Bank. The fauna associated with the seamount was little known until twenty trawl stations were made 2-7 December 2000, by the NOAA ship Delaware II. The objective of the cruise was to begin to document the biodiversity on and over the seamount, particularly of fishes, cephalopods, and crustaceans. Representatives of most species were preserved as vouchers and for subsequent definitive identification. Preliminary identifications indicate the capture of 115 fish species. Among these were a number of new fish records for the area or rare species, including Acromycter pertubator (Congridae), Alepocephalus bairdii (Alepocephalidae), Mirognathus normani (Alepocephalidae), Bathygadus favosus (Bathygadidae), Nezumia longebarbata (Macrouridae), Gaidropsarus argentatus (Phycidae), and Dibranchus tremendus (Ogcocephalidae). Only two fish species of potentia...
The designation of geographical entities in this book, and the presentation of the material, do n... more The designation of geographical entities in this book, and the presentation of the material, do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of IUCN concerning the legal status of any country, territory, or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of IUCN. This publication has been made possible in part by funding from Agence Française de Développement (AFD) and through the MAVA (Fondation pour la Nature (Switzerland)).
A survey of the herpetofauna from buildings in southern Florida was conducted in 2005 and again d... more A survey of the herpetofauna from buildings in southern Florida was conducted in 2005 and again during November 2015–March 2016. Associations among activity and abundance of the building-dwelling species were compared between the two surveys, one in 2005 for four buildings and a follow-up in 2016 for the same four buildings, plus five additional buildings. Two species, Hemidactylus garnotii (Indo-Pacific Gecko) and its superior competitor, H. mabouia (Wood Slave), overlap extensively with respect to habitat use and activity across various weather conditions. Our surveys, however, revealed larger populations of the Wood Slave among a wider subset of the buildings than in 2005, commensurate with its general replacement of the Indo-Pacific Gecko. The presence of their predator, Osteopilus septentrionalis (Cuban Treefrog), differentially impacted occurrence of these two species of geckos, perhaps as an adaptive predator avoidance strategy, the result of which maintained coexistence of t...
The West River bordering New Haven and West Haven, Connecticut, is under evaluation for potential... more The West River bordering New Haven and West Haven, Connecticut, is under evaluation for potential restoration of a former salt marsh. As part of a larger survey of biota associated with this river, the fish fauna was examined in the estuary and adjacent freshwaters. The results provide baseline data for monitoring restoration efforts and indicate the environmental health of the river. The fish communities lacked intolerant species, included significant numbers of individuals of non-native fishes, and showed low abundance and diversity of the native species, all indicating that this stretch of the river represents poor fish habitat with significant ecological disturbances. Some sites contained individuals with excessive parasites, tumors, ulcers, and fin erosion, which suggests physiological stress and potential human health hazards. These problems are localized in the vicinity of combined sewage outflows and/or storm sewer runoff from streets. They are exacerbated by periodic low flow or stagnant waters caused by the tide gates. Salt marsh restoration with tide-gate modification could improve habitat for species with commercial and recreational value and improve movement of diadromous fishes.
Application of Solid Phase Adsorption Toxin Tracking (SPATT) devices for an improved Ciguatera Fi... more Application of Solid Phase Adsorption Toxin Tracking (SPATT) devices for an improved Ciguatera Fish Poisoning (CFP) risk assessment, Mélanie Roué [et al.] Ciguatera fish poisoning in the South Pacific: implementation of a regional surveillance network (CIGUA-WATCH PROJECT), Clémence Gatti [et al.]. .. .. . .
An ongoing research program has investigated the ichthyofaunal structure and dynamics of the ocea... more An ongoing research program has investigated the ichthyofaunal structure and dynamics of the oceanic northern Gulf of Mexico (GoM), from the surface to 1500 m depth. Prior to 2011 there was no inventory of the GoM bathypelagial (\u3e1000 m depth) and that of the mesopelagial (200-1000 m) was largely limited to the eastern GoM. Extensive sampling and analysis since that time has revealed an exceptionally speciose oceanic fish assemblage with inherent pelagic endemicity. Of the 794 fish species identified to date, 180 are new records for the GoM, including one newly described and 21 putative undescribed species. This increases the total fish species number for the entire GoM marine ecosystem by over 10%. Over half of all known fish species in the GoM use the oceanic habitat for part or all of their lives. The GoM now ranks among the most-speciose oceanic ichthyofaunal assemblages known in the World Ocean. This ranking likely results from: 1) the ecotonal nature of the oceanic GoM (low-latitude input, winter cooling); 2) high (non-limiting) oxygen at depth; 3) substantial use of pelagic habitat by juvenile deep-demersal and coastal fishes; 4) sampling intensity (the GoM stands as the world’s most-studied bathypelagic system); and 5) the integration of morphological and genetic methodology used to increase taxonomic accuracy and precision. Despite extensive sampling, the species accumulation curve has not reached asymptote; more species will likely be recorded with more sampling
This data set includes the biological and environmental data for all of the species collected dur... more This data set includes the biological and environmental data for all of the species collected during the Pisces cruises from Dec. 2010 - September 2011. The main gear type used was a Polytron rope trawl. Four trawls were conducted at each station sampled to capture diel vertical migration information; one deep and one shallow during daylight hours between 9am-2:30pm CDT, and one deep one shallow between 9pm-2:30am CDT. A table of the taxonomic hierarchy used in the nekton database will be included with references to those scientific names recently updated which are not yet reflected by the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (www.itis.gov)
The deep ocean is frequently assumed to be a homogeneous system lacking the same diverse life his... more The deep ocean is frequently assumed to be a homogeneous system lacking the same diverse life history strategies found in shallower waters. However, as our methods for exploring the deep ocean improve, common assumptions about dispersal, reproduction and behavior are constantly being challenged. Fishes exhibit the most diverse reproductive strategies among vertebrates. Understanding life history strategies in deep-sea environments is lacking for many species of fishes. Here, we report a novel reproductive strategy where a fish (Parazen pacificus) provides parental care via mouth brooding. This behavior is observed from a specimen collected with eggs present in the buccal cavity, along with other specimens exhibiting pre-brooding morphologies. This is the first description of this unique life history trait in a deep-sea fish and fills in a gap in the larval literature for this family of fishes and prompts further investigation into other novel reproductive modes of deep-sea fauna. Of all vertebrates, the varieties of parental care behaviors in fishes, specifically teleosts, are considered the most diverse, with behaviors ranging from no care to bi-parental care 1. Of all the known fish families, 89 are presently known to exhibit parental care which have been subdivided into 16 distinct modes of parental care 2. In teleost fish, the four general classes of parental care have been described as: no care, male care, biparental care, and female care, with no care being the most common and female care the least 3. For most groups of fishes there is a moderate correlation between reproductive behavior and evolutionary relationships at the family level and lower. Some examples being Amiidae, Syngnathidae, Kurtidae, and Gasteroteidae 2. Some groups are polymorphic and show multiple reproductive strategies across a clade. Examples of this include Characidae, Cyprinodontidae, Cyprinidae and Percidae 4,5. While many groups of fishes have had extensive studies focused on reproductive behaviors, the literature remains sparse on reproductive habits of fishes found in more extreme environments like the deep ocean. One such group of deep-sea marine fishes with gaps in our understanding of reproductive behaviors is the order Zeiformes. Zeiformes currently consists of six extant exclusively marine families: Cyttidae, Grammicolepididae, Oreosomatidae, Parazenidae, Zeidae, and Zeniontidae 6,7. The phylogenetic relationships among the Zeiformes have been extensively studied and the family Parazenidae has been described as a distinct clade using both osteological 8 and molecular data 9. The maximum likelihood and Bayesian trees of combined morphological and molecular data in Grande et al. (2018) indicated there may be two additional families within the Zeiformes, one encompassing Capromimus + Cyttomimus and the other including just Macrurocyttus. Most families of zeiform fishes have at least a basic larval description and the young have been illustrated or described for six of the Pacific genera 10 and only four of a probable 10-11 western North Atlantic species 11. However, the family Parazenidae remains the only Zeiform without at least a basic description of its larva 12,13. Parazenidae is a monotypic family with one species, Parazen pacificus being found in the western Pacific 14 , Indian 15 , Caribbean and western Atlantic 16 , without any populations known in either the eastern Atlantic or East Pacific. Previously, Parazen pacificus has been hypothesized to be a broadcast spawner similar to other species of Zeiformes 17,18. However, recently a specimen of Parazen pacificus from the western Pacific Ocean was found with an egg mass in its buccal cavity. This can be surmised to be an indication of mouth brooding as a mode of parental care by
The scale of the Deepwater Horizon disaster was and is unprecedented: geographic extent, pollutan... more The scale of the Deepwater Horizon disaster was and is unprecedented: geographic extent, pollutant amount, countermeasure scope, and of most relevance to this Research Topic issue, range of ecotypes affected. These ecotypes include coastal/nearshore, continental shelf, deep benthic, and open-ocean domains, the last of which is the subject of this synthesis. The open-ocean ecotype comprises ~90% of the volume of the Gulf of Mexico. The exact percentage of this ecotype contaminated with toxins is unknown due to its three-dimensional nature and dynamics, but estimates suggest that the footprint encompassed most of its eastern half. Further, interactions between the water column and the deep benthos may be persistent, making this synthesis one of time (a decade) rather than event conclusion. Here we examine key elements of the open-ocean ecosystem, with emphasis on vulnerability and resilience. Of paramount importance relative to the Gulf nearshore and shelf ecotypes, pre-disaster basel...
The Deepwater Horizon oil spill (DWHOS) was unique not only for its volume, but also for its dept... more The Deepwater Horizon oil spill (DWHOS) was unique not only for its volume, but also for its depth of influence (0-1500 m). Variable amounts of hydrocarbons reached the ocean surface and/or seafloor, whereas 100% went through the water column. Understanding this pelagic habitat is important. For example, about half of all fish species that occur in the Gulf of Mexico (GoM) spend all or part of their lives in the open ocean. Many mesopelagic and bathypelagic species migrate vertically each night to feed in the upper water column and return to deep water during the day. This behavior promotes rapid cycling of natural and anthropogenic material in the water column. Deep-pelagic nekton are prey for gamefishes, seabirds, and marine mammals. Given the steady growth of oil exploration and operations, the likelihood of future spills emphasizes the need to document acute and chronic effects on the pelagic fauna. The GoMRI-funded DEEPEND (Deep-Pelagic Nekton Dynamics) consortium was created for that purpose. DEEPEND is in the second of a 3year program that builds on two intensive NOAA-supported surveys during 2010-11. DEEPEND is focussed on timescales from short-term to interannual to appraise the dynamic nature of communities using a suite of integrated approaches. These investigations include: 1) a direct assessment of GoM deep-pelagic community structure including the physical and biological drivers of this structure; 2) a time-series analysis/comparison of biophysical data; 3) a time-series examination of differences in genetic diversity among key species; and 4) a biogeochemical analysis of the effect of DWHOS on pelagic biota. http://www.deependconsortium.or
The Deepwater Horizon oil spill (DWHOS) represented a worst-case scenario with respect to environ... more The Deepwater Horizon oil spill (DWHOS) represented a worst-case scenario with respect to environmental damage assessment - a massive, whole-water-column disturbance in an environment with no pre-event baseline data. In order to provide information on the meso- and bathypelagic faunal composition and abundance of the northern Gulf of Mexico, a large-scale, quantitative sampling program was conducted over a 10-month period in 2010 and 2011. Ensuing analyses revealed a highly speciose ichthyofaunal assemblage - in fact the highest species richness for any oceanic ecosystem reported to date. A follow-on sampling program in 2015, 2016, and 2017, using the same gear and sampling methods, revealed dramatic reductions in fish numbers and biomass across a wide range of taxa, with 3-to-4-fold decreases among some of the dominant constituents (e.g., lanternfishes). This decrease ostensibly has ramifications up and down the food chain (e.g., prey for deep-diving mammals, zooplankton grazing impact, respectively). The lack of pre-spill data precludes determination of causality, but the largest-scale view of this phenomenon leaves a relatively small number of options: 1) 2011 could have been a particularly “good” year for deep-pelagic fishes, with abundances above baseline; 2) deep-pelagic fish abundances naturally vary on time-scales larger than that encompassed in this study; and/or 3) the Gulf deep-pelagic fauna has experienced increased mortality since the DWHOS. Evidence of a continuing presence of DWHOS contamination in the deep-pelagic fauna will be presented. This study emphasizes the need for research on community baselines before commercial exploitation, particularly in deep-sea ecosystems whose natural restorative capacity is unknown
Data and R code for Hanish et al. (2020) in AoB Plants: "Endozoochory of Chrysobalanus icaco... more Data and R code for Hanish et al. (2020) in AoB Plants: "Endozoochory of Chrysobalanus icaco (Cocoplum) by Gopherus polyphemus (Gopher Tortoise) facilitates rapid germination and colonization in a suburban nature preserve" We examined whether Gopherus polyphemus (Gopher Tortoise) facilitated the spread of Chrysobalanus icaco (Cocoplum; Chrysobalanaceae) over a 14 year period in a suburban nature preserve (in Jupiter, Florida, USA) by: 1) comparing germination patterns among gut passed, hand depulped, and whole fruit treatments, and 2) testing hypotheses about environmental predictors of the spatial distribution of C. icaco, including information about G. polyphemus movement pathways and burrow locations. For the germination trials, we did not find a significant difference in the overall proportion of seeds that germinated by the end of the observation period, but Time to Event analysis revealed that gut passed seeds tended to germinate earlier than hand depulped and whole fruit treatments, supporting a lone scarification effect. Point Process Modeling revealed that the density of C. icaco bushes was higher near G. polyphemus movement pathways and was lower inside Serenoa repens (Saw Palmetto) patches, supporting a positive effect of tortoise movement patterns on plant distributions. The density of C. icaco increased from west to east, consistent with westward dispersal from the four founder bushes on the east side of the study area. After removal of outliers, we also detected a negative association between C. icaco spatial density and G. polyphemus burrow density that was presumably explained by the fact that seeds defecated deep within burrows were unlikely to germinate and establish without secondary movement. The results suggest that G. polyphemus contributed to the rapid dispersal of C. icaco by scatter dispersal of seeds (via feces) in areas where tortoises were active and that movement pathways provided suitable conditions for colonization. Data are from the MS thesis of CJH, conducted at Florida Atlantic U [...]
Editor's Note: this Article has been retracted; the Retraction Note is available at https://d... more Editor's Note: this Article has been retracted; the Retraction Note is available at https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-75408-8
The deep ocean is frequently assumed to be a homogeneous system lacking the same diverse life his... more The deep ocean is frequently assumed to be a homogeneous system lacking the same diverse life history strategies found in shallower waters. However, as our methods for exploring the deep ocean improve, common assumptions about dispersal, reproduction and behavior are constantly being challenged. Fishes exhibit the most diverse reproductive strategies among vertebrates. Understanding life history strategies in deep-sea environments is lacking for many species of fishes. Here, we report a novel reproductive strategy where a fish (Parazen pacificus) provides parental care via mouth brooding. This behavior is observed from a specimen collected with eggs present in the buccal cavity, along with other specimens exhibiting pre-brooding morphologies. This is the first description of this unique life history trait in a deep-sea fish and fills in a gap in the larval literature for this family of fishes and prompts further investigation into other novel reproductive modes of deep-sea fauna.
The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill (DWHOS) was primarily a deep-pelagic event. Variable amounts of d... more The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill (DWHOS) was primarily a deep-pelagic event. Variable amounts of discharged hydrocarbons reached the ocean surface and/or seafloor, whereas 100% occurred within the water column. Understanding this pelagic habitat is important because about half of all fish species that occur in the Gulf of Mexico (GoM) spend all or part of their lives in the open ocean. Most mesopelagic (200-1000 m depth) species of fishes vertically migrate each night to feed in epipelagic (0-200 m) depths and return to deep water during the day. This behavior affects rapid cycling of natural and anthropogenic material in the water column. Deep-pelagic fishes are prey for gamefishes, seabirds, and marine mammals. Given the steady growth of oil exploration and operations, the likelihood of future spills emphasizes the need to document acute and chronic effects on pelagic fauna. The DEEPEND (Deep-Pelagic Nekton Dynamics) Consortium will conduct a 3-year sampling and analysis program th...
Bulletin of The Peabody Museum of Natural History, Apr 1, 2014
Instances of vertebrates supplementing their diets through the ingestion of gastroliths have been... more Instances of vertebrates supplementing their diets through the ingestion of gastroliths have been observed or documented in numerous organisms, including birds, crocodiles and dinosaurs. Although not uncommon, this behavior can be motivated by a wide range of factors that include endoparasite removal, stomach cleaning, or calcium supplementation during eggshell formation. As plant-based diets are often mineral deficient, the use of gastroliths as calcium supplements may play an important role in the reproductive biology of egg-laying herbivorous reptiles. Whereas gravid females of some species of herbivorous reptiles have been shown to seek out calcareous gastroliths, the occurrence or prevalence of gastroliths in gravid females remains unknown for many species. Using field observations and radiographs, we studied patterns of gastrolith ingestion by adult female gopher tortoises (Gopherus polyphemus), a herbivorous species of testudinoid turtles. Gastroliths documented included fossil seashells, calcareous stones and carnivore feces containing vertebrate bones. The prevalence of gastroliths was significantly different between gravid and non-gravid tortoises. We suggest this behavior is a means of supplementing calcium intake during eggshell formation and may play a part in the female reproductive biology of this species.
Bear Seamount (39° 55'N, 67° 30'W) is an extinct undersea volcano located inside the U.S.... more Bear Seamount (39° 55'N, 67° 30'W) is an extinct undersea volcano located inside the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone south of Georges Bank. The fauna associated with the seamount was little known until twenty trawl stations were made 2-7 December 2000, by the NOAA ship Delaware II. The objective of the cruise was to begin to document the biodiversity on and over the seamount, particularly of fishes, cephalopods, and crustaceans. Representatives of most species were preserved as vouchers and for subsequent definitive identification. Preliminary identifications indicate the capture of 115 fish species. Among these were a number of new fish records for the area or rare species, including Acromycter pertubator (Congridae), Alepocephalus bairdii (Alepocephalidae), Mirognathus normani (Alepocephalidae), Bathygadus favosus (Bathygadidae), Nezumia longebarbata (Macrouridae), Gaidropsarus argentatus (Phycidae), and Dibranchus tremendus (Ogcocephalidae). Only two fish species of potentia...
The designation of geographical entities in this book, and the presentation of the material, do n... more The designation of geographical entities in this book, and the presentation of the material, do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of IUCN concerning the legal status of any country, territory, or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of IUCN. This publication has been made possible in part by funding from Agence Française de Développement (AFD) and through the MAVA (Fondation pour la Nature (Switzerland)).
A survey of the herpetofauna from buildings in southern Florida was conducted in 2005 and again d... more A survey of the herpetofauna from buildings in southern Florida was conducted in 2005 and again during November 2015–March 2016. Associations among activity and abundance of the building-dwelling species were compared between the two surveys, one in 2005 for four buildings and a follow-up in 2016 for the same four buildings, plus five additional buildings. Two species, Hemidactylus garnotii (Indo-Pacific Gecko) and its superior competitor, H. mabouia (Wood Slave), overlap extensively with respect to habitat use and activity across various weather conditions. Our surveys, however, revealed larger populations of the Wood Slave among a wider subset of the buildings than in 2005, commensurate with its general replacement of the Indo-Pacific Gecko. The presence of their predator, Osteopilus septentrionalis (Cuban Treefrog), differentially impacted occurrence of these two species of geckos, perhaps as an adaptive predator avoidance strategy, the result of which maintained coexistence of t...
The West River bordering New Haven and West Haven, Connecticut, is under evaluation for potential... more The West River bordering New Haven and West Haven, Connecticut, is under evaluation for potential restoration of a former salt marsh. As part of a larger survey of biota associated with this river, the fish fauna was examined in the estuary and adjacent freshwaters. The results provide baseline data for monitoring restoration efforts and indicate the environmental health of the river. The fish communities lacked intolerant species, included significant numbers of individuals of non-native fishes, and showed low abundance and diversity of the native species, all indicating that this stretch of the river represents poor fish habitat with significant ecological disturbances. Some sites contained individuals with excessive parasites, tumors, ulcers, and fin erosion, which suggests physiological stress and potential human health hazards. These problems are localized in the vicinity of combined sewage outflows and/or storm sewer runoff from streets. They are exacerbated by periodic low flow or stagnant waters caused by the tide gates. Salt marsh restoration with tide-gate modification could improve habitat for species with commercial and recreational value and improve movement of diadromous fishes.
Application of Solid Phase Adsorption Toxin Tracking (SPATT) devices for an improved Ciguatera Fi... more Application of Solid Phase Adsorption Toxin Tracking (SPATT) devices for an improved Ciguatera Fish Poisoning (CFP) risk assessment, Mélanie Roué [et al.] Ciguatera fish poisoning in the South Pacific: implementation of a regional surveillance network (CIGUA-WATCH PROJECT), Clémence Gatti [et al.]. .. .. . .
An ongoing research program has investigated the ichthyofaunal structure and dynamics of the ocea... more An ongoing research program has investigated the ichthyofaunal structure and dynamics of the oceanic northern Gulf of Mexico (GoM), from the surface to 1500 m depth. Prior to 2011 there was no inventory of the GoM bathypelagial (\u3e1000 m depth) and that of the mesopelagial (200-1000 m) was largely limited to the eastern GoM. Extensive sampling and analysis since that time has revealed an exceptionally speciose oceanic fish assemblage with inherent pelagic endemicity. Of the 794 fish species identified to date, 180 are new records for the GoM, including one newly described and 21 putative undescribed species. This increases the total fish species number for the entire GoM marine ecosystem by over 10%. Over half of all known fish species in the GoM use the oceanic habitat for part or all of their lives. The GoM now ranks among the most-speciose oceanic ichthyofaunal assemblages known in the World Ocean. This ranking likely results from: 1) the ecotonal nature of the oceanic GoM (low-latitude input, winter cooling); 2) high (non-limiting) oxygen at depth; 3) substantial use of pelagic habitat by juvenile deep-demersal and coastal fishes; 4) sampling intensity (the GoM stands as the world’s most-studied bathypelagic system); and 5) the integration of morphological and genetic methodology used to increase taxonomic accuracy and precision. Despite extensive sampling, the species accumulation curve has not reached asymptote; more species will likely be recorded with more sampling
This data set includes the biological and environmental data for all of the species collected dur... more This data set includes the biological and environmental data for all of the species collected during the Pisces cruises from Dec. 2010 - September 2011. The main gear type used was a Polytron rope trawl. Four trawls were conducted at each station sampled to capture diel vertical migration information; one deep and one shallow during daylight hours between 9am-2:30pm CDT, and one deep one shallow between 9pm-2:30am CDT. A table of the taxonomic hierarchy used in the nekton database will be included with references to those scientific names recently updated which are not yet reflected by the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (www.itis.gov)
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