Geographic,population, and seasonal patterns in the reproductive parameters of the sea urchin <Emphasis Type="Italic">Paracentrotus lividus</Emphasis>

Generalized additive models were used to synthesize the data from 52 publications on the gonad growth and spawning seasonality of Paracentrotus lividus and identify spatial and temporal patterns in the reproductive processes. According to our results, Atlantic populations spawn in spring and develop large gonads (6.4 ± 0.2% of fresh body weight (mean ± SE)), which increase in size toward higher latitudes. While in the Mediterranean, the gonads are smaller (3.1 ± 0.1%), possibly as the result of successive spawnings which impede nutrients accumulating in the gonads. Differences were also observed between habitats: gonad production was higher in seagrass meadows in the Mediterranean and in subtidal rocky substrates in the Atlantic. Food availability might cause these variations as well as the negative correlation observed between depth and the gonad index for rocky substrates. Sex and body size do not seem to influence greatly gonad growth.     

Microsatellite data reveal fine genetic structure in male Guiana dolphins (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Sotalia guianesis)</Emphasis> in two geographically close embayments at south-eastern coast of Brazil

A large macrogeographic differentiation has been observed among Sotalia guianensis populations along the South American coast. However, no genetic structure has been detected so far in closely distributed populations of this species, even though it has been observed in other cetaceans. Here, we examined the fine scale population structure for the largest populations of S. guianensis inhabiting Sepetiba and Paraty embayments at the south-eastern coast of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Analysis of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control region sequences failed to detect variability among sequences. Conversely, evidence of significant male population structure was found on the basis of ten nuclear microsatellite loci. Surprisingly, the microsatellite markers were able to distinguish between individuals from the two embayments located 60 km apart. The results suggest that differences in habitat type and behavioral specializations are likely to explain the patterns of genetic structure. These findings should provide baselines for the management of communities exposed to increasing human-driven habitat loss.     

Diet of young Atlantic bluefin tuna (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Thunnus thynnus</Emphasis>) in eastern and western Atlantic foraging grounds

Atlantic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) are highly migratory predators whose abundance, distribution, and somatic condition have changed over the past decades. Prey community composition and abundance have also varied in several foraging grounds. To better understand underlying food webs and regional energy sources, we performed stomach content and stable isotope analyses on mainly juvenile (60–150 cm curved fork length) bluefin tuna captured in foraging grounds in the western (Mid-Atlantic Bight) and eastern (Bay of Biscay) Atlantic Ocean. In the Mid-Atlantic Bight, bluefin tuna diet was mainly sand lance (Ammodytes spp., 29% prey weight), consistent with historic findings. In the Bay of Biscay, krill (Meganyctiphanes norvegica) and anchovy (Engraulis encrasicolus) made up 39% prey weight, with relative consumption of each reflecting annual changes in prey abundance. Consumption of anchovies apparently declined after the local collapse of this prey resource. In both regions, stable isotope analysis results showed that juvenile bluefin tuna fed at a lower trophic position than indicated by stomach content analysis. In the Mid-Atlantic Bight, stable isotope analyses suggested that >30% of the diet was prey from lower trophic levels that composed <10% of the prey weights based upon traditional stomach content analyses. Trophic position was similar to juvenile fish sampled in the NW Atlantic but lower than juveniles sampled in the Mediterranean Sea in previous studies. Our findings indicate that juvenile bluefin tuna targeted a relatively small range of prey species and regional foraging patterns remained consistent over time in the Mid-Atlantic Bight but changed in relation to local prey availability in the Bay of Biscay.     

Age effect on the antioxidant activity of Daphnia magna (Anomopoda: Daphniidae): does younger mean more sensitivity?

It has been accepted that for most species newborns and senescent organisms are more sensitive than other ages to environmental stressors. Nevertheless, it must be considered that there are several biochemical and physiological compensatory processes which are not expressed with the same magnitude during the whole life cycle. With this aim, Daphnia magna individuals of different age were exposed to hexavalent chromium, Cr (VI), at two different sublethal concentrations (0.032 and 0.0064 mg l(-1)), and the activity of some antioxidant enzymes such as catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione reductase (GR) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) were evaluated during most of the life cycle of this cladoceran. The antioxidant enzymatic activity showed an inverse relationship with respect to age. The activity of CAT, GR and GPx were increased in the two treated groups, at all life stages tested. On the other hand, the activity of SOD decreased in the same groups. Both, increase and decrease in the antioxidant enzymatic activities, showed significant differences with respect to the control group, being higher for the 0.032 mg l(-1) group. The Cr (VI) LC50 was also estimated for these age groups, finding statistical differences among them. Even though adults exhibited higher responses, these enzymatic activity changes should not be interpreted as higher sensitivity, since the daphnids acute chromium toxicity followed a different pattern, with increasing LC50 values according to age.     

Local Perception of Environmental Change in a Semi-Arid Area of Northeast Brazil: A New Approach for the Use of Participatory Methods at the Level of Family Units

The diversity of plant resources in the Brazilian semi-arid region is being compromised by practices related to agriculture, pastures, and forest harvesting, especially in areas containing Caatinga vegetation (xeric shrublands and thorn forests). The impact of these practices constitutes a series of complex factors involving local issues, creating a need for further scientific studies on the social-environmental dynamics of natural resource use. Through participatory methods, the present study analyzed people’s representations about local environmental change processes in the Brazilian semi-arid region, taking into consideration local production systems, natural resources, and their importance. Environmental historical graphs were developed with nine local families to analyze landscape changes with regard to cultivated areas and pastures, and their relationship with the availability of native vegetation. Punctuation exercises were performed to observe the importance of each unit that supplied native and cultivated resources. The availability of native resources in the environment is subject to stability, as observed by a majority of the local families. The role of the production units (crops and pastures) was emphasized by most families in the study, especially because of the need for products for subsistence needs and income generation. The current decline of such practices is a consequence of an exodus of field workers and also relates to the conservation of native species that otherwise would have been deforested in favor of agricultural practices.     

Optimal Pollution Trading Without Pollution Reductions: A Note1

García, Jorge H., Matthew T. Heberling, and Hale W. Thurston, 2011. Optimal Pollution Trading Without Pollution Reductions: A Note. Journal of the American Water Resources Association (JAWRA) 47(1):52‐58. DOI: 10.1111/j.1752‐1688.2010.00476.x Abstract: Various kinds of water pollution occur in pulses (e.g., agricultural and urban runoff). Ecosystems, such as wetlands, can serve to regulate these pulses and smooth pollution distributions over time. This smoothing reduces total environmental damages when “instantaneous” damages are marginally increasing. This paper introduces a water quality trading model between a farm (a pulse‐pollution source) and a firm (a more steady pollution source) where the object of exchange is the “temporary” retention of runoff as opposed to total runoff reductions. The optimal trading ratio requires firm emissions to be offset by more than a proportional retention of the initial agricultural runoff pulse. The reason is twofold: (1) emissions are steady or constant over time and, in this sense, have relatively larger environmental impact; and (2) certain kinds of runoff management cause delayed environmental damages.     

Molecular taxonomy confirms morphological classification of deep-sea hydrothermal vent copepods (Dirivultidae) and suggests broad physiological tolerance of species and frequent dispersal along ridges

Dirivultid copepods are among the most successful organisms at deep-sea hydrothermal vents, as this family includes 50 morphologically described species. We studied COI diversity of some species in various geographical areas and vent fluid regimes, in order to gain a better understanding of true species diversity, dispersal strategies, and evolution. DNA taxonomy revealed the same entities as described with morphological characters. No cryptic species were detected. With the help of COI analyses, it was possible to identify a new species and match the dimorphic sexes of another species. The geographical distance between vents, as well as the extreme physico-chemical environment, are thought to affect the gene flow of fauna. We could not detect any sequence differences within species among different geographical scales (up to 2,000 km) or different vent fluid regimes. We suggest that Dirivultidae have relatively high gene flow between vents and are able to disperse relatively easy along ridges. Further, they have a broad physiological tolerance and thus might not have undergone speciation in response to heterogeneity caused by vent fluids.     

Brood parasitism disproportionately increases nest provisioning and helper recruitment in a cooperatively breeding bird

Obligate avian brood parasites lay their eggs in nests of other species (hosts), which raise parasitic young. Parasitic nestlings are likely to influence host’s parental behaviours as they typically beg for food more vigorously than young host for a given hunger level. However, few studies have tested this idea, with conflicting results. These prior studies were largely limited to biparental hosts, but little is known about the effect of brood parasitism on parental behaviours in hosts that breed cooperatively. We followed a multimodel approach to examine the effect of brood parasitism on nest provisioning and helper recruitment in the baywing (Agelaioides badius), a cooperative breeder parasitised by screaming (Molothrus rufoaxillaris) and shiny (Molothrus bonariensis) cowbirds. Multimodel inference results indicated that feeding visits increased with nestling age, cooperative group size and number of cowbird nestlings in the brood. Brood size had little influence on feeding visits, which further suggests that baywings adjusted their provisioning effort in response to cowbird parasitism. In addition, nests parasitised artificially with shiny cowbird eggs or hatchlings recruited more helpers than unmanipulated nests having only host or screaming cowbird young. Our results provide novel evidence that brood parasitism and cooperative breeding interact in determining the levels of nest provisioning.     

When conservation management becomes contraindicated: impact of food supplementation on health of endangered wildlife

Understanding the conditions that force the implementation of management actions and their efficiency is crucial for conservation of endangered species. Wildlife managers are widely and increasingly using food supplementation for such species because the potentially immediate benefits may translate into rapid conservation improvements. Supplementary feeding can also pose risks eventually promoting undesired, unexpected, subtle, or indirect, and often unnoticed, effects that are generally poorly understood. For two decades, intensive food supplementation has been used in attempting to improve the breeding productivity of the Spanish Imperial Eagle, Aquila adalberti, one of the most endangered birds of prey in the world. Here, we examined the impact of this intensive management action on nestling health, including contamination, immunodepression, and acquisition of disease agents derived from supplementation techniques and provisioned food. Contrary to management expectations, we found that fed individuals were often inadvertently "medicated" with pharmaceuticals (antibiotics and antiparasitics) contained in supplementary food (domestic rabbits). Individuals fed with medicated rabbits showed a depressed immune system and a high prevalence and richness of pathogens compared with those with no or safe supplementary feeding using non-medicated wild rabbits. A higher presence of antibiotics (fluoroquinolones) was found in sick as opposed to healthy individuals among eaglets with supplementary feeding, which points directly toward a causal effect of these drugs in disease and other health impairments. This study represents a telling example of well-meaning management strategies not based on sound scientific evidence becoming a "contraindicated" action with detrimental repercussions undermining possible beneficial effects by increasing the impact of stochastic factors on extinction risk of endangered wildlife.