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     

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     

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     

Major and trace elements of selected pedons in the USA

Few studies of soil geochemistry over large geographic areas exist, especially studies encompassing data from major pedogenic horizons that evaluate both native concentrations of elements and anthropogenically contaminated soils. In this study, pedons (n = 486) were analyzed for trace (Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Hg, Mn, Ni, Pb, Zn) and major (Al, Ca, Fe, K, Mg, Na, P, Si, Ti, Zr) elements, as well as other soil properties. The objectives were to (i) determine the concentration range of selected elements in a variety of U.S. soils with and without known anthropogenic additions, (ii) illustrate the association of elemental source and content by assessing trace elemental content for several selected pedons, and (iii) evaluate relationships among and between elements and other soil properties. Trace element concentrations in the non-anthropogenic dataset (NAD) were in the order Mn > (Zn, Cr, Ni, Cu) > (Pb, Co) > (Cd, Hg), with greatest mean total concentrations for the Andisol order. Geometric means by horizon indicate that trace elements are concentrated in surface and/or B horizons over C horizons. Median values for trace elements are significantly higher in surface horizons of the anthropogenic dataset (AD) over the NAD. Total Al, Fe, cation exchange capacity (CEC), organic C, pH, and clay exhibit significant correlations (0.56, 0.74, 0.50, 0.31, 0.16, and 0.30, respectively) with total trace element concentrations of all horizons of the NAD. Manganese shows the best inter-element correlation (0.33) with these associated total concentrations. Total Fe has one of the strongest relationships, explaining 55 and 30% of the variation in total trace element concentrations for all horizons in the NAD and AD, respectively.