Latitudinal variation in the reproductive biology of the burrowing ghost shrimp Callianassa filholi (Decapoda: Thalassinidea)

Population structure and reproductive ecology of the burrowing ghost shrimp Callianassa filholi Milne-Edwards, 1878 were studied in populations along a latitudinal gradient throughout New Zealand during the breeding season. Size-frequency distributions revealed unimodal populations, with predominantly sexually mature shrimp. All populations showed an unbiased sex-ratio, and there appeared to be no significant difference in size (carapace length, CL) between sexes. At the same time, CL and size at maturity differed significantly between populations; however, a general increase in sizes from north to south was not consistent throughout the latitudinal range studied. The timing of the breeding cycle differed significantly between populations, and breeding started earlier in southern populations. Number of embryos (fecundity) increased linearly with female CL at each location, but rates differed significantly between populations. Embryo size was not related to number of embryos, and the former increased significantly with latitude. With the exception of embryo size, observed differences in body size/size at maturity and reproductive timing between C. filholi populations are thought to be determined by food availability rather than temperature. Thus, further study is suggested on these aspects of thalassinid reproductive biology. Received: 17 June 1999 / Accepted: 8 January 2000     

Mating behaviour of Macrophthalmus hirtipes (Brachyura: Ocypodidae)

 We examined the mating behaviour of the New Zealand ocypodid crab Macrophthalmus hirtipes in the laboratory between February and June 1998. This species has a discrete breeding season. Mating and moulting were not linked and only intermoult females with mobile gonopore opercula were attractive to males. Allometry and compatibility of gonopods and gonopores of different-sized crabs was investigated. Under laboratory conditions, the opercula of intermoult females remained mobile on average for 11.4 d, but the duration of receptivity did not appear to be under female control. The operational sex ratio in the laboratory fluctuated greatly, but was always male-dominated. During the period of opercular mobility, females mated many times with several different males. Matings in the absence of burrows were relatively short (mean duration = 23 min, max. = 122 min) and the mating behaviour of M. hirtipes lacked courtship and mate-guarding. Males used a search-intercept method to acquire mates, with very low levels of intrasexual competition. There was no evidence of mate preference in M. hirtipes, and males spent just as long mating with ovigerous females as with non-ovigerous ones. Although M. hirtipes has ventral-type spermathecae, as do several other ocypodid crabs, it is unclear whether this promotes last-male sperm precedence. The role of burrows in modifying the mating behaviour of M. hirtipes in the field remains to be established. Received: 7 January 2000 / Accepted: 5 June 2000     

Size-related aspects of arm damage, tissue mechanics, and autotomy in the starfish Asterias rubens

 Arm damage is a widely reported but superficially investigated aspect of the biology of the starfish Asterias rubens L. In the present study, the incidence of arm damage was surveyed in populations of A.  rubens at two sites in the Firth of Clyde, Scotland, and three sites in Gullmarsfjorden, Sweden. The mean (±SD) incidence across all sites of individuals with basal arm damage (resulting from detachment at the basal autotomy plane) was 19.69 ± 8.86%, the incidence of those with distal arm damage (resulting from amputation at more distal levels) was 7.74 ± 10.01%. The mean incidence of arms with basal damage was 5.28 ± 4.12%, of those with distal damage 1.83 ± 2.45%. There was a significant negative correlation between size and the incidence of basal damage at all but one site, but no significant correlation between size and distal damage at any site. Mechanical tests on specimens of the aboral body wall from the basal region of the arm (which included the autotomy plane) and from a more distal region revealed that with increasing body size there was a significant increase in yield stress, ultimate stress and Young's modulus (stiffness) but no significant change in yield strain and ultimate strain. There was no significant difference between the relationships for basal and distal specimens. It is hypothesised that in larger individuals increased mechanical toughness replaces autotomy as an effective antipredator strategy. Using two methods to induce autotomy, a significant positive correlation between size and the delay between the onset of stimulation and arm detachment was found; this may represent a size-related decline in the efficiency of the autotomy mechanism through the relaxation of selection pressure. Since size is an unreliable indicator of age in A.  rubens, the trends identified herein can be interpreted only tentatively as age-associated phenomena. Received: 4 September 1999 / Accepted: 17 February 2000     

Patterns of time and space utilisation in coelacanths (Latimeria chalumnae), determined by ultrasonic telemetry

Acoustic telemetry was used to examine patterns of activity and space utilisation of coelacanths, nocturnal predators which spend the day in submarine caves. Nine coelacanths (Latimeria chalumnae) were tracked, each for a period of 1 to 16 nights at Grande Comore, West Indian Ocean. Activities lasted on average 9 h, usually starting shortly after sunset and ending before sunrise. Vertically, coelacanths moved up and down at and below cave level by following the bottom contour, mainly between 180 and 400 m depth. The deepest record was 698 m, the shallowest 133 m. Most time was spent between 200 and 300 m depth. Large individuals performed deep excursions to depths below 400 m, usually once per night. The fish spent most time in water temperatures of 15 to 19 °C; they rarely ventured into waters warmer than 22 °C measured at depths shallower than 160 m depth. Horizontally, coelacanths stayed in narrow areas ranging from <1 to 10 km of coastline. Coelacanths are extremely slow drift-hunters with an estimated average swimming speed of 3.2 m min⁻¹, often travelling not more than 3 km per night. They probably take advantage of local upwelling and downwelling and slow currents occurring parallel to the steep slopes. This study shows that coelacanths are inhabitants of the subphotic zone, where they are active mainly below the depth of their daytime refuges. Received: 7 July 1999 / Accepted: 11 February 2000     

Short retention times of stomach temperature loggers in free-living seabirds: is there hope in the spring?

Stomach temperature loggers have proved useful for the study of feeding activity in free-living seabirds, but their usage has been restricted because they are frequently dislodged and lost during the seabirds' regular regurgitation of indigestible prey remains. In the present study we examine the incidence of spontaneous regurgitation (pellet production) in free-living seabirds, consider the effect this has on the likely retrieval of stomach temperature loggers and present a structural modification of the logger housings which leads to a much lower incidence of regurgitation. Systems were tested on albatrosses, cormorants, gannets and penguins. Received: 15 July 1997 / Accepted: 31 October 1997     

Manipulation of food and photoperiod promotes out-of-season gametogenesis in the green sea urchin, Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis: implications for aquaculture

Green sea urchins, Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis OF Müller, collected off the coast of New Hampshire, USA, in late February 1995, were brought into the laboratory and fed an artificial diet ad libitum, and subjected to a photoperiod advanced by 4 months. During this study, temperatures and salinities for experimental urchins mirrored those recorded at the collection site. We examined the effects of changes in feeding regime and photoperiod on gametogenesis and compared the experimental urchins with those from the source population. During the 7-month period, experimental urchins showed no detectable changes in mean test height or diameter. Experimental urchins had a significantly higher gonad index (GI) in March, April and May (18 ± 6%) compared with field urchins in March (11 ± 3%). Subsequently, experimental urchins had a mean monthly GI of 25 to 30%, while the mean GI for field urchins was 11 to 13%. Gonial cell mitosis and gametogenesis occurred earlier in experimental male and female urchins compared with field urchins. Stereological and histological observations and stage–frequency data showed that the ovaries of experimental urchins were large because of the accelerated development of nutritive phagocytes, the volume fraction (V _v) of which was 89 to 90% of the gonad, while new vitellogenic primary oocytes occupied <1% V _v. In males, stereological and histological observations and stage–frequency data suggested a mobilization of materials from the nutritive phagocytes beginning between June and August, i.e. earlier than in females, and, by September, new gametes occupied a V _v of 49 ± 3% of the testes. Oocyte size–frequency distributions demonstrated that most primary oocytes were <80 μm in diameter between March and September, suggesting that cold temperatures may be needed for completion of vitellogenesis. We describe changes in the two principal cell types in the germinal epithelium of urchin gonads and indicate how knowledge of their population dynamics may be useful in aquaculture applications. Received: 21 February 1997 / Accepted: 3 June 1998     

Feeding in myodocopid ostracods: functional morphology and laboratory observations from videos

High-resolution videos, scanning electron microscopy and histology were used to study the feeding mechanism of myodocopid ostracods from the Pacific Coast of Japan, as exemplified by Vargula hilgendorfii (Müller, 1890) and a few other cypridinid species. Ostracods observed in the laboratory were attracted to a wide spectrum of natural food sources, behaving as predators of living prey (e.g. polychaete annelids), as opportunistic scavengers on dead animals (e.g. annelids, fishes, squid), and also consuming artificial food. Food sources may be detected by chemoreception. The fourth limb (endopodites with strong sclerotized setae) and the furcal lamellae (claws with teeth) act in coordination to abrade and eventually tear open the protective integument of living/dead prey such as annelids. The mandibular palps are used mainly to hold the food. Food sections and soft-body contents are transferred to the mouth by the fourth limb (endopodial “rake”) and fifth limb (exopodite with pectinate setae) and are passed to the oesophagus by the endites (mandibles, fourth and fifth limbs). Food is subsequently pumped up to the stomach by peristaltic contractions of the oesophagus (ring muscles) and stored in the stomach pouch. The upper lip of bioluminescent (V. hilgendorfii) and non-bioluminescent species of Cypridinidae often contact food, suggesting that some of the glands housed in this organ may emit digestive enzymes prior to ingestion. Ostracods are able to ingest massive quantities of food within a few minutes and to survive starvation for several weeks. In V. hilgendorfii, the midgut is a huge sac-like organ with no partition and is lined with a single layer of columnar epithelial cells. No differentiated hepatopancreas is present. The cypridinid produces a single faecal pellet wrapped in a thin reticulated, peritrophic membrane. Myodocopid ostracods exhibit a wide range of feeding strategies (detritus-feeding, comb-feeding, scavenging, predation, ectoparasitism) in both benthic and pelagic niches, and constitute a substantial source of food for many zooplankters. Adaptation of cypridinids to scavenging/predation is reflected in the morphology of their furcae, mandibles, fourth and fifth limbs, and their digestive system. Palaeontological data suggest that early Triassic cypridinids and possible late Ordovician myodocopids may have been carnivorous scavengers feeding on carcasses of cephalopods (ammonoids or orthoconic nautiloids), thus playing the same role of “recyclers” as modern representatives of the group. Received: 2 January 1998 / Accepted: 23 July 1998     

A correction to: biological and oceanographic insights from larval labrid (Pisces: Labridae) identification using mtDNA sequences

Previously published mtDNA cytochrome b sequences for Xyrichtys novacula (Linnaeus) and two morphologically distinct types of Xyrichtys larvae (Pisces: Labridae) included human cytochrome b sequence, presumably due to sample contamination and/or poor preservation of sample DNA. Those sequences had been used to identify the two types of Xyrichtys larvae as X. novacula, but owing to the contamination, the identifications are invalid. Fresh specimens were collected: X.␣martinicensis (Cuvier and Valenciennes), X. novacula, X. splendens (Castelnau), and Xyrichtys sp. larvae of each of the two morphotypes (dorsal-forward eye and ventral-forward eye). The cytochrome b fragment was amplified from each specimen using the polymerase chain reaction. Comparison of the sequences with human cytochrome b sequence confirmed that the new sequences were not contaminated. The interspecific differences in Xyrichtys sequences were less than previously reported, but still greater than observed in many fish genera. Distance and parsimony analyses indicated that X. novacula and X. martinicensis were more closely related to each other than to X. splendens. This conclusion differs from our previous conclusion that X. martinicensis and X. splendens were more closely related to each other than to X. novacula. Distance and parsimony analyses also demonstrated that both larval morphotypes were X. novacula and, thus, our previous conclusions regarding larval ecology and oceanographic transport remain unchanged. Received: 12 March 1997 / Accepted: 24 October 1997     

Karyotypic characterization of the great sturgeon, Huso huso, by multiple staining techniques and fluorescent in situ hybridization

A karyotype analysis by several staining techniques was carried out on the great sturgeon, Huso huso (Linnaeus, 1758). The karyotype (2n = 118 ± 2) was composed of 42 pairs of meta-/submetacentric chromosomes and 17 pairs of acrocentrics/microchromosomes. Constitutive heterochromatin was mainly located at the centromeric regions of the acrocentric chromosomes. The biarmed chromosomes showed weak C-bands. Fluorescent staining with GC-specific chromomycin A₃ showed clearly recognizable fluorescent regions, whereas a more uniform base composition was revealed by the AT-specific 4,6-diamidino-2 phenylindole. After Ag-staining, nucleolar organizer regions could be observed on the short arms of two medium-sized submetacentrics and on two acrocentrics. Digoxigenated 28S and 5S rDNA probes, prepared from Acipenser naccarii DNA and hybridized to metaphase chromosomes, showed signals on six and two chromosomes, respectively. The telomeric sequence (TTAGGG) _n detected by FISH was located at both ends of each chromosome. Results are discussed in relation to karyotype organization and evolution in sturgeons. Received: 1 April 1998 / Accepted: 21 July 1998     

Genetic protein variation in red mullet (Mullus barbatus) and striped red mullet (M. surmuletus) populations from the Mediterranean Sea

Starch-gel electrophoresis of allozymes was used to differentiate the two red mullet species (Mullus barbatus L. and M. surmuletus L.) in the Mediterranean Sea and, further, to investigate the genetic stock structure of M. barbatus in the eastern Mediterranean area. Twenty putative enzyme-coding loci were examined in eight M. barbatus samples caught in the Aegean and Ionian Seas (Greece) and in the Gulf of Lion (France), and two M. surmuletus samples caught in the Aegean and Gulf of Lion. A high degree of genetic polymorphism was found in both species. Species-specific electrophoretic patterns were found in PGI* and PGM*. Estimates of variance of allele frequencies among samples (F _ST) and ² analyses both revealed significant differences (P < 0.05) among the M. barbatus samples. Most of the genetic variation was among samples regardless of region. The mean value of Nei's genetic distance between the two species was 0.329. Genetic distance among M. barbatus samples was low (maximum Nei's D = 0.012), with the sample from Platania differing most from other M. barbatus samples. This is probably be due to founder effects existing at this area. These results suggest that allozyme analysis may provide important information on the genetic structure of the red mullet to ensure sustainable management of this species. Received: 7 May 1997 / Accepted: 13 October 1997