Phenotype-environment matching in the shore crab (Carcinus maenas)

The shore crab (Carcinus maenas) exhibits a range of carapace pattern polymorphisms, but little is known regarding their function or maintenance. If patterns represent some form of crypsis, then associations between carapace colouration and substrate are expected; to determine whether such relationships exist, frequency of crab morphs and quantity of substrate type were measured from fifteen 10×40 m² quadrats at each of three sites along the southern shore of the Firth of Forth, Scotland. Five thousand one hundred and thirty-seven crabs and 3.6 km of line intercept transect data were collected during a 9-week period. Crab abundance, relative frequency of morphs and substrate type varied significantly among the three sites. Plain crabs were strongly associated with macro-algal substrates whereas patterned crabs were associated with mussel beds. This pronounced phenotype-environment matching, as well as various characteristics of the carapace patterns themselves, suggests that patterned crabs are cryptic on polychromatic backgrounds. The frequency of patterned crabs and the percentage of white pigment on the carapace both declined significantly with carapace width. The loss of pattern coincides with an ontogenetic shift in habitat use and we present evidence to suggest that individual crabs lose their pigment, rather than larger patterned crabs being preferentially removed from the population by predators. Throughout their life history, shore crabs encounter high variation in predation, food supply, and physical habitat; to survive they have evolved a strategy that includes elements of pattern polymorphism, crypsis, ontogenetic shifts, and plastic responses.     

Differential breeding investment in bridled and non-bridled common guillemots (Uria aalge): morph of the partner matters

Polymorphism is the coexistence of two or more phenotypically distinct and genetically determinate forms in a population and implies a selective balance between the alternative morphs to permanently exist. Common guillemots Uria aalge occur in two genetically distinct morphs—a non-bridled and a bridled—the latter with white eye rings and a well-defined stripe behind the eyes. In this study, we investigated differences between the morphs with regard to reproductive parameters. We used a detailed family-based sample providing data on mother, father, and chick over three breeding seasons. The mating between morphs was random but pure non-bridled and pure bridled pairs produced smaller chicks at age 15 days than the two mixed pair compositions. Body mass of the adults showed much the same pattern; pure pairs having lower body mass than mixed pairs. There were no differences between the two morphs in reproductive parameters without considering the morph of the partner. This suggests that reproductive decisions in some way not only depend on the morph but also on the tactic of the partner. Different reproductive strategies between morph family groups as found in this study may contribute to the understanding of the existence of a balanced polymorphism in common guillemots. The overall breeding conditions during the years of this study were good. However, over time in a variable environment, we suggest that tactics of different family groups may have different success stabilizing the frequency of non-bridled and bridled birds over time.     

Sea Snake Harvest in the Gulf of Thailand

Conservation of sea snakes is virtually nonexistent in Asia, and its role in human–snake interactions in terms of catch, trade, and snakebites as an occupational hazard is mostly unexplored. We collected data on sea snake landings from the Gulf of Thailand, a hotspot for sea snake harvest by squid fishers operating out of the ports of Song Doc and Khanh Hoi, Ca Mau Province, Vietnam. The data were collected during documentation of the steps of the trading process and through interviewers with participants in the trade. Squid vessels return to ports once per lunar synodic cycle and fishers sell snakes to merchants who sort, package, and ship the snakes to various destinations in Vietnam and China for human consumption and as a source of traditional remedies. Annually, 82 t, roughly equal to 225,500 individuals, of live sea snakes are brought to ports. To our knowledge, this rate of harvest constitutes one of the largest venomous snake and marine reptile harvest activities in the world today. Lapemis curtus and Hydrophis cyanocinctus constituted about 85% of the snake biomass, and Acalyptophis peronii, Aipysurus eydouxii, Hydrophis atriceps, H. belcheri, H. lamberti, and H. ornatus made up the remainder. Our results establish a quantitative baseline for characteristics of catch, trade, and uses of sea snakes. Other key observations include the timing of the trade to the lunar cycle, a decline of sea snakes harvested over the study period (approximately 30% decline in mass over 4 years), and the treatment of sea snake bites with rhinoceros horn. Emerging markets in Southeast Asia drive the harvest of venomous sea snakes in the Gulf of Thailand and sea snake bites present a potentially lethal occupational hazard. We call for implementation of monitoring programs to further address the conservation implications of this large‐scale marine reptile exploitation. Cosecha de Serpientes Marinas en el Golfo de Tailandia     

The expansion of tree-based boom crops in mainland Southeast Asia: 2001 to 2014

Over the past half century, countries of Mainland Southeast Asia (MSEA) – Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam – have witnessed increases in commercialized agriculture with rapid expansions of boom-crop plantations. We used MODIS EVI and SWIR time-series from 2001–2014 to classify tree-cover changes across MSEA and performed a supervised change detection using an upscaling approach by deriving samples from existing Landsat classifications. We used the random forest classifier and distinguished 24 classes (16 representing boom-crops) with an accuracy of 82.2%. Boom-crops occupy about 18% of the landscape (8% of which is rubber). Since 2003 74,960 km² of rubber have been planted; 70% of rubber is planted on former forest land, and 30% on low vegetation area (mainly former croplands). Timing, patterns of change, and deforestation rates, however, differ among the MSEA countries and the high spatial and temporal detail of our classification allowed us to quantify dynamics and discuss political and socio-economic drivers of change.     

Background and temperature effects on Uca panacea color change

Organismal coloration is used for communication, camouflage, and thermoregulation. These functions of body coloration may impose conflicting demands upon color-changing organisms. Here, we examined interacting thermoregulatory and camouflage color change responses when fiddler crabs Uca panacea were subject to simultaneously changing temperatures (10, 25, 40 °C) and backgrounds (black, white). Crab coloration lightened on a white background and at high temperatures and darkened on a black background and at low temperatures, reflecting the camouflage and thermoregulatory functions of color change. Synergistic background and temperature treatments (i.e., hot/white or cold/black) induced strong color change responses. When temperature and background were in conflict (i.e., hot/black or cold/white), responses to background coloration constrained thermoregulatory color change such that carapace coloration did not change. Such conflicts are likely to be common in nature, especially in highly heterogeneous environments. Throughout the experiment, males remained lighter than females and showed a greater response to the hot/white treatment, driven by a stronger response to high temperatures. These differences may reflect the physiological, morphological, and behavioral differences associated with sexual selection and sexual dimorphism in this species.     

Sustainable management of shellfish resources in Bandon Bay, Gulf of Thailand

Bandon Bay (Surat Thani Province) is one of the most productive coastal areas in southern Thailand. The Tapi River and 18 channels are the main sources of freshwater, nutrients, organic matter and sediment to the bay and the loading of freshwater and nutrients provide essential support for the production of phytoplankton in the estuarine ecosystem. Bandon Bay is important as natural spawning, nursery and feeding grounds for shellfish such as oysters, blood cockles, green mussels, short-necked clams, mud crabs and shrimps, and the estuary also serves as an excellent area for mariculturing of shellfish. In fact, oysters and blood cockles cultured in Bandon Bay are now being exported worldwide. However, Bandon Bay is also a textbook example of overexploitation of coastal resources in the tropics including all the derived changes in the estuarial ecosystem with severe socio-economic consequences. Hence, there is an urgent need for setting up an integrated management plant for a sustainable use of shellfish resources in Bandon Bay. The present study attempts to integrate water quality simulation results, socio-economic data and information on existing shellfish resource use in the process of proposing a set of sustainable management strategies for shellfish resources in Bandon Bay. These strategies involve: (1) using water quality modeling to monitor ecological and environmental changes in shellfish culture beds and their natural habitats in the process of setting up a master plan for management of waste water discharge into Bandon Bay; (2) zoning of shellfish mariculture in the coastal area in order to solve conflicts between resource users; (3) setting up a clear system for taxation of mariculture where the revenue may be used for (4) setting up and managing mangrove strips as filters of pollution and sediment around Bandon Bay; and finally (5) it is suggested to form a committee with members representing all relevant stakeholders plus the local government in order to work on resolving the existing and potential future conflicts over resource usage in Bandon Bay. This methodology may be seen as an important contribution towards a Bandon Bay sustainable management approach, based on the principles of integrated coastal zone management because it is science-based and takes into consideration the needs and perceptions of people involved in coastal resource extraction.     

Dispersal and use of sponges and ascidians as camouflage by Cryptodromia hilgendorfi (Brachyura: Dromiacea)

From May 1977 to February 1979, the use of sponges and ascidians by Cryptodromia hilgendorfi was studied in Moreton Bay, Queensland, Australia. The aim was to investigate patterns of seasonal use, cap making behaviour, cap turnover, the effect of intraspecific interactions on cap life and the effect of movement of crabs between hosts on background matching. C. hilgendorfi uses 12 (of 16 available) species of sponge and 3 species of ascidians to construct caps, which are carried by the crabs using their last two pairs of legs. Cap area increases non-linearly with crab size, and caps are normally two to three times as large as the crabs. Cap making behaviour is described. It occurs during intermoult periods, with females making most of their caps at night. Caps decrease in size with time, but conceal the crabs which commonly occupy exposed sites on sponges. Cap life is independent of crab size, differs between different cap species and is influenced by the presence of other crabs who can dislodge caps through aggressive behaviour. Caps are made from the sponge Suberites carnosus more often than from other available sponges. S. carnosus caps also decay less rapidly than caps made from other sponges. Use of sponge and ascidian species varies seasonally, with Halichondria sp. and S. carnosus being used in all months. C. hilgendorfi exhibits a preference for certain sponges. The majority of crabs carried caps which matched their host sponge or ascidian, but mis-matches varied seasonally with a winter peak following the breeding season. Young C. hilgendorfi settle only on S. carnosus sponges and disperse from this host to other species in the environment. Males and females differ in their rate of discovery of new hosts. Males, despite their greater mobility, find new hosts slower than females. It is hypothesized that males occupy “home ranges” which females do not. Crabs frequently move between sponges, mostly at night. Sponges and ascidian species grow in intimate association with each other, and sponge crabs act a selective asexual propagation mechanism. Depending upon the nature of the interactions between sponge and ascidian species (co-operative or competitive) and whether competitive hierarchies or networks are involved, the sponge crabs may have either stabilizing or destabilizing effects on the sponge community.     

Diet selection of the Chilean stone crab Homalaspis plana

Diet selection of the Chilean stone crab Homolaspis plana (Milne-Edwards, 1834) was studied using the optimal foraging theory to explain its feeding strategy. The hypothesis that H. plana prefers prey species of the highest prey (“energy”) value was experimentally tested on adult crabs during 1980–1981. Food value was defined as the ratio between caloric content and consumption time, according to energy maximization as the criterion to optimize diet selection. Diet composition of adult crabs from the littoral of Valparaíso (Chile) and ingestion under laboratory conditions were studied to determine type, size and quantity of food to be offered in experiments on prey-type preference. Porcellanid crabs, barnacles and bivalves were the most frequently occurring items in stomachs from in situ conditions. In the aquaria, daily ingestion rates were quite variable among crabs and among days. H. plana showed no size preference for molluscs (Tegula atra, Semimytilus algosus) but preferred larger sizes of porcellanids. The order of preference for prey type was S. algosus>T. atra> porcellanids. However, no differences between their energy values were found and, therefore, the optimal foraging hypothesis was rejected. By extension, the energy maximization criterion alone may not explain the diet selection of H. plana under experimental conditions.     

Recent expansion led to the lack of genetic structure of Sargassum aquifolium populations in Southeast Asia

Phylogeographical study of the brown macroalga, Sargassum aquifolium using nuclear internal transcribed spacer 2, plastidal RuBisCo spacer, and mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit-III revealed the populations in Southeast Asia to be homogeneous. On the other hand, genetic differences were detected between populations from Southeast Asia and western Pacific Islands/Guam, suggesting the presence of genetic break between these regions. This further suggests that populations of S. aquifolium may have survived east of Sunda Shelf during the Last Glacial Maximum and recent recolonization led to homogeneity of the populations in the Sunda Shelf region. Recolonization could be facilitated by year-round reproduction of the populations and dispersal of germlings on floating thalli by coastal currents. Restricted current flow across Maluku Sea and directional equatorial current flows could have isolated the Pacific Island and Guam populations from those of Southeast Asia. Our results support the presence of multiple refugia as the source of different lineages of S. aquifolium populations with a lack of secondary contact in the post-glacial dispersal between Southeast Asia and western Pacific as the mechanisms behind the phylogeographical patterns observed.     

Development of a new antifouling method for a marine cooling water system

Variations in meristic characters occur within and between samples of milkfish Chanos chanos (Forsskal) collected on June 1977 from five localities in Philippine waters. The unbranched anal and ventral fin rays are the most plastic, and vertebral number is the most stable of nine meristic characters examined. The number of ventral fin rays is the only meristic feature which differed consistently enough to suggest distinct population groups: South China Sea, comprising samples from Ilocos and Panay Island; Pacific Ocean from Bicol; and Celebes Sea, from Zamboanga and Davao. A discriminant analysis which incorporated generalized distance (Mahanalobis D²) and percent overlap of a reduced set of characters indicated several morphometric subgroups of milkfish in Philippine waters, although geographic subgroups were not clearly demonstrated.SEAFDEC Contribution No. 218     

Genetic differentiation between morphotypes of the marine sponge Suberites ficus (Demospongiae: Hadromerida)

Sponges of three morphotypes of Suberites ficus (Johnston, 1842) were collected during February and March 1985 off the south-west of the Isle of Man, and were compared by using spicule size distributions and genetic allele frequencies of isozyme loci. The populations did not show any significant differences of spicule size or type, but could be easily differentiated into three separate species based on isozyme patterns. Samples of pale orange S. ficus growing on gastropod shells inhabited by hermit crabs (Pagurus spp.) were reproductively isolated from the redorange and the pale yellow colour morphs encrusting the bivalve Chlamys opercularis. These latter two colour morphs were genetically similar, but significant differences were observed at two of the 19 gene loci assayed. All the sponges studied were sympatric, and therefore the genetic differences, indicating reproductive isolation, are strong evidence for separate gene pools and, hence, that they are different species. The genetic identity between the two colour morphs of S. ficus on C. opercularis shells was 0.977, whilst between each of these and S. ficus on hermit crabs it was about 0.65. In all three species genetic variability was high, with mean expected and observed heterozygosity values per locus ranging from 0.17 to 0.36.     

Drastic decline of an extensive eelgrass bed in Nova Scotia due to the activity of the invasive green crab (Carcinus maenas)

In 2001–2002, there were severe declines of eelgrass (Zostera marina) in estuaries along the Nova Scotia coast of the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence. We examined the relationship between the recent invasion of European green crabs (Carcinus maenas) and the eelgrass decline in Benoit Cove in Tracadie Harbour. The abnormally abundant eelgrass wrack consisted mainly of entire shoots, not the usual blades. Three separate methods yielded similar estimates of the rate of shoot removal from the eelgrass beds (direct quadrat counts, “mark–recapture” of tagged shoots in the eelgrass bed, and rate of shoot appearance in the shore wrack). From 14 July to 8 September 2002, the shoot density in the bed fell by about 75 %. Similar rates of decline occurred in crab enclosures (4.4 crabs m^?2) placed in the eelgrass bed. Green crab foraging, involving the tearing of shoots and the digging of large pits, was the reason for the drastic decline of the eelgrass bed in Benoit Cove. It is clear that an invasion of green crabs to a region where they had not previously existed can both destroy eelgrass beds and restrict their recovery.     

Lack of innate preference for morph and species identity in mate-searching <Emphasis Type="Italic">Enallagma</Emphasis> damselflies

Insect mate recognition is often viewed as stereotypic, innate, and species-specific. However, male damselflies can learn to identify female-specific color morphs as potential mates. A suite of male mimicry hypotheses assume that heteromorphic females, which differ from males in color pattern, are more easily recognized as “female” and thus lack the inherent, anti-harassment advantage that the more male-like signal provides for andromorphs. Using two measures of male preference, we investigated whether naïve males have a preexisting sensory bias for a given morph color in Enallagma civile, a species that appeared to exhibit extreme plasticity in morph expression across generations within a breeding season. E. civile males raised in the absence of females exhibited no preference for either morph, whereas males raised with one female type exhibited a learned sensory bias for that morph. Male Enallagma also lacked a bias toward conspecific females over a congeneric sister species. In a naturally naïve population of Enallagma ebrium, males reacted sexually to both morphs of Enallagma hageni as often as they did to conspecific females, whose thoracic spectra were nearly identical with those of E. hageni. Moreover, despite the similar thoracic spectra of males and andromorphs, both of which reflected UV, males rarely reacted sexually to other males. Our results falsified implicit assumptions of male mimicry hypotheses, supported learned mate recognition, and suggested a scenario for speciation via sexual conflict.     

Distribution pattern, reproductive traits, and molecular analysis of two coexisting vermetid gastropods of the genus Petaloconchus: a Caribbean endemic and a potential invasive species

Vermetid gastropods are characterized by complex taxonomy and unusual ecology. A survey of the fouling community in the intake channel at the Planta Centro Power Plan in Puerto Cabello, Venezuela, found massive colonies of vermetid gastropods of the genus Petaloconchus. We arbitrarily named two prevalent varieties as black and brown-orange morphs, distinguishing based on the color of their soft bodies. Spatial distribution was different for the morphs. The black morph was present along the jetty, with higher average densities in the shallower intertidal area (410 vs. 143 ind m⁻²), while the brown-orange morph was only present at the initial part of the channel (μ = 83 ind m⁻²). Both produced small eggs (142 vs. 180 μm diameter on average), with the orange-brown eggs being slightly larger, but the morphs differed in other reproductive aspects. The brown-orange morph produced significantly fewer capsules (up to nine simultaneously per female) with fewer embryos (average of 27 viable embryos/capsule) that hatched at a larger size (577 μm on average), allocating about 17.64% of the initial egg production to nurse eggs. In contrast, the black morph produced up to 14 capsules simultaneously, hatched an average of 178 veligers of 212 μm, and produced no nurse eggs. The intra-capsular development reached a more advanced stage in the brown-orange morph than in the black one. Several cytochrome subunit I (COI) and 16S rRNA (16S) haplotypes were found for the black morph, when compared to only one haplotype for both genes present for the brown-orange morph. Preliminary phylogenetic analyses separated the morphs into different clades, supported by robust bootstrap values and posterior probabilities (>98). Our results indicate that the morphs are two different species: the black morph was identified as Petaloconchus cf. varians and the brown-orange morph as a non-described species, Petaloconchus sp. (orange). The first is endemic to the Caribbean, while the second is potentially an introduced species.     

Chemical polymorphism in male femoral gland secretions matches polymorphic coloration in common wall lizards (Podarcis muralis)

Previous studies showed that common wall lizards (Podarcis muralis) are polymorphic in colour, both sexes showing three main ventral morphs (white, yellow and red) within the same population and that the three morphs correlate with many life-history traits, including a positive assortative mating according to colour. Chemical communication plays a key role in intra-specific recognition and in social organization of lizards; thus chemical cues might be involved in morph recognition and mate choice. We used gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) to investigate possible differences in the lipophilic fraction of femoral gland secretions between size/age classes and to explore whether chemical secretions match male colour morphs. As expected, most males shared the same compounds, but smaller males showed significantly higher proportions of aldehydes, alcohols and ketones and significantly lower proportions of tocopherols than larger males. Interestingly, inter-morph differences in the proportion of some compounds (especially tocopherols and furanones) matched ventral colour polymorphism. Pairwise comparisons showed that white lizards had significantly different chemical profiles than both the yellow and red ones, whereas differences between yellow and red males were only marginal. A further canonical analysis of principal coordinates correctly classified 67.2 % on average of the chemical profiles according to colour morph (white 85.0 %, red 60.9 %, yellow 57.1 %). We hypothesized that chemical differences associated with colour polymorphism may play a central role in intra-specific communication and even in sexual selection, allowing individuals to choose their partners according to their age, and more interestingly according to their colour morph, in a non-random mating population system.     

Geographic variation in Loligo forbesi in the Northeast Atlantic Ocean: analysis of morphometric data and tests of causal hypotheses

Geographic variation in the squid Loligo forbesi was investigated using multivariate analysis of morphometric and meristic characters in samples of squid taken from 13 localities in the Northeast Atlantic Ocean. Two character sets, body morphometrics and beak morphometrics, indicated similar patterns of variation, with squid from the Azores differing markedly from those on the continental shelf. No consistent pattern was apparent in meristic data. Partial Mantel tests indicated that similarity matrices for morphological data were significantly correlated with distance matrices for (a) geographic proximity, (b) whether the capture site was on the continental shelf or the Azorean bank, and (c) (beak data only) average seasurface temperature at site of capture. Partial Mantel tests on allozyme data for the same individuals support hypothesis (b). The results suggest that L. forbesi in the Azores may reasonably be regarded as a distinct stock, differing significantly from L. forbesi on the continental shelf.     

Logging, Conservation, and Native Rights in Sarawak Forests

Books reviewed in this article:
Rainforest Conservation in Sarawak: An International Policy for WWF . Kavanagh, M.; Rahim, Abdullah Abdul; and Hails, C.J. 1989
The Promotion of Sustainable Forest Management: A Case Study in Sarawak, Malaysia . 1990. International Tropical Timber Organization
The Tropical Timber Industry In Sarawak, Malaysia . Congressional Staff Study Mission to Malaysia. 1989
Keepers of the Forest: Land Management Alternatives in Southeast Asia . Poffenberger, M., editor. 1990
Endangered Animals of Thailand . Humphrey, S. R, and Bain, J. R. 1990.     

An improved method for the measurement of CO2 in marine animals,applied to three species of decapods

Previous methods for measuring CO₂ respired in sea water were inaccurate bacause of the high concentration of bound CO₂ (carbonates). The method developed here “refluxes” a fixed volume of air through a fixed volume of sea water while simultaneously trapping the respired CO₂. Tests were run long enough for the volume of respired CO₂ to approximately equal the CO₂ bound in the water, thus decreasing the former cause of inaccuracies. The method was tested with 3 species of crabs: Maia aquinado, Carcinus meanas, and Cancer pagurus. Tests lasted overnight (20 h). Six respirometers were used, 5 containing crabs and 1 control for the measurement of bound CO₂. The volume of respired CO₂ was given by the weight of trapped CO₂ (as BaCO₃) from the test units (the total of respired CO₂ and that in the test water) minus the weight of the control CO₂. In both fed and starved crabs, of all 3 species, CO₂ output followed the average trend of oxygen consumption, especially after feeding when both CO₂ and O₂ rose sharply. RQ's (respiratory quotients) could not be determined because O₂ was measured intermittently, but the relative ratio of CO₂ and O₂ was essentially unchanged throughout the experiments. In general, CO₂ was less variable than O₂ and may be a better indicator of average metabolic rate.     

Adaptive droving behavior observed in the fiddler crab Uca vocans vocans

Droving is conspicuous in Uca vocans vocans in summer. The crabs burrowing on the upper habitat have a higher tendency to wander compared to the ones burrowing on the lower habitat. Most of the wandering crabs captured on the low tide levels are relatively large and male. Larger crabs and males prefer to burrow on the upper zones of U. vocans habitat, but the smaller ones and females prefer the lower habitat. The upper level of the U. vocans habitat has relatively low N-content compared to the water's edge. Therefore droving is advantageous in crabs that have burrows on the upper level. Female and smaller resident crabs have faster feeding motions than male and larger ones, and can satisfy their feeding demands more rapidly. Therefore, for males and larger crabs it is advantageous to move away from the burrow area and forage in areas of higher food content near the low tide level where the number of feeding motions increases.     

Predation on two brachiopods, Joania cordata and Argyrotheca cuneata, from an offshore reef in the Tyrrhenian Sea

Predator holes in empty shells of Joania cordata and Argyrotheca cuneata (Brachiopoda: Megathyrididae) collected in the marine protected area “Secche di Tor Paterno”, central Tyrrhenian Sea, Italy (41°35′N–12°20′E, at depths of 20–28?m), were analyzed. Predation intensity was low but appreciable, with the more common species J. cordata preyed on more frequently (6.7?%) than A. cuneata (3.8?%). Three main types of holes were recognized: (1) cylindrical drill holes with a circular outline, (2) larger irregular holes with a jagged outline, and (3) small holes at the bottom of depressions in the shell. They were probably produced by muricid gastropods, crabs, and Foraminifera, respectively. The large, irregular holes were the most common type in both brachiopod species. Evidence for predator selectivity with respect to which valve, the position of the hole on the valve, and the size of the brachiopod with respect to those available was assessed. The ventral valve, the postero-medial portions of both valves, and larger (J. cordata) or medium-sized (A. cuneata) shells were more frequently holed.