Gulf of Mexico Science Volume 19 Article 9 Number 2 Number 2 2001 The ourF th North American Echinoderm Conference, 22-26 August 2001 John H. Dearborn University of Maine John M. Lawrence University of South Florida Stephen A. Watts University of Alabama at Birmingham DOI: 10.18785/goms.1902.09 Follow this and additional works at: https://aquila.usm.edu/goms Recommended Citation Dearborn, J. H., J. M. Lawrence and S. A. Watts. 2001. The ourF th North American Echinoderm Conference, 22-26 August 2001. Gulf of Mexico Science 19 (2). Retrieved from https://aquila.usm.edu/goms/vol19/iss2/9 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by The Aquila Digital Community. It has been accepted for inclusion in Gulf of Mexico Science by an authorized editor of The Aquila Digital Community. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Dearborn et al.: The Fourth North American Echinoderm Conference, 22-26 August 200 Gulf of Mexico Science, 2001 (2), pp. 165-193 DEDICATED SECTION THE FOURTH NORTH AMERICAN ECHINODERM CONFERENCE 22-26 AUGUST 2001 Friends of Echinoderms Share Their Research and Renew Their Enthusiasm JOHN H. DEARBORN s demonstrated by the enthusiasm of the DEDICATION A participants and the diversity and high quality of oral and poster presentations, echi­ This conference was dedicated to Larry noderms continue to intrigue, delight, and McEdward, who died 2 July 2001. Larry was an cast their mysterious appeal over invertebrate intellectual powerhouse who enjoyed an inter­ national reputation as an authority on inver­ zoologists both young and old. Seventy-four tebrate reproduction, especially the compara­ specialists from 18 states, the District of Colum­ tive morphology, growth, and energetics of bia, and six foreign countries (Austria, Bel­ echinoderm larvae and juveniles. He pub­ gium, Canada, Israel, South Africa, and the lished many papers on these general topics, United Kingdom) met together Aug. 22-26 both specific research contributions and review 2001 for the Fourth North American Echino­ articles, often in collaboration with colleagues derm Conference. Many participants traveled and students, with special attention to aster­ with family members, so the total number of oids and echinoids. He was equally at home in people involved was considerably higher. The the laboratory or in the field. Collecting loca­ meeting turned out to be a wonderful blend tions in Puget Sound and Florida were special. of formal presentations, informal discussions, Larry was a person of diverse interests, both as and debates and social gatherings, including a scientist and in his outside pursuits. His pas­ outdoor picnics, a lobster and clam bake, and sion for off-road mountain bikes was legend­ a delightful early evening cruise along the cen­ ary. The marine biology community has lost a tral Maine coast. The conference was held at dynamic colleague. Larry will be remembered the University of Maine's Darling Marine Cen­ with respect and admiration. ter (DMC) in Walpole, near Damariscotta, Maine. The Organizing Committee consisted CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS of Emma Creaser, Unity College; Kevin Eckel­ barger, Director of the DMC; Isidro Bosch, During the conference, a total of 61 presen­ SUNY Geneseo, and John M. Lawrence, Uni­ tations were made consisting of a report on the versity of South Florida. Our local hosts and history of the North American Echinoderm organizers, in addition to Creaser and Eckel­ Conferences, three plenary talks, and 56 re­ barger, were DMC staffers Linda Healy (Sci­ search presentations ( 41 oral reports and 15 ence Writer and Events Coordinator) and Tim posters). On Wednesday evening, 22 Aug., Kev­ in Eckelbarger welcomed the registered partic­ Miller (Laboratory Manager). They and other ipants and others and gave a brief history of DMC employees, especially Susan Elwell, Irene the development of the center and a descrip­ Leeman, and Karen Templeton, worked to­ tion of the present status of the teaching, re­ gether efficiently and tirelessly to make the search, and public service missions and dis­ conference a roaring success. I thank them all cussed some of the plans for future develop­ for a truly exciting and stimulating scientific ment. The next morning, John Lawrence be­ meeting and a memorable opportunity to in­ gan the session with a spirited review of teract with colleagues in a spectacular natural previous NAEC meetings from tentative begin­ setting. Learning about echinoderms in a nings in 1972 at the Smithsonian Institution in beautiful conference center overlooking the Washington, DC, to the present. His personal Damariscotta River is not a difficult way to enthusiasm for such meetings was clearly re­ spend 4 days! flected by the participants. All seemed to agree © 2001 by the Marine EnvironmcnLal Sciences Consortium of Alabama Published by The Aquila Digital Community, 2001 1 Gulf of Mexico Science, Vol. 19 [2001], No. 2, Art. 9 166 GULF OF MEXICO SCIENCE, 2001, VOL. 19(2) that informal meetings open to scientists inter­ propriate data are rarely available before ovel'­ ested in any aspect of echinoderm biology fishing occurs. Moreover, at present there are should continue at regular intervals and that few long-term, quantitative studies available on such meetings were especially useful in provid­ the interactions between commercially harvest­ ing opportunities for participation by graduate ed and noncommercial species of inverte­ students, many of whom were in attendance. brates, especially echinoderms. For most of the Three plenary talks were given by me, Paul general public, environmental issues involve A. Tyler and Craig M. Young, and John S. vertebrates, especially birds and mammals. Pearse. I discussed the echinoderm fauna of There is little knowledge of marine inverte­ the Gulf of Maine and some concerns about brates and their ecological interactions. Thus, the commercial exploitation of the green ur­ there is little or no public advocacy for reason­ chin StT01lg)'locentmtus dmebachiensis and the ho­ able regulations based on sound ecological lothurian Cucwnaria frondosa. A total of 95 spe­ data. cies of echinoderms occur in the Gulf of Paul Tyler and Craig Young presented a Maine, including Georges Bank, betw·een the thoughtful discussion about echinoderm lar­ intertidal zone and the outer edge of.the con­ vae, which often disperse far and wide but may tinental shelf at 500 m. Asteroids are repre­ not settle in an area where they can survive. sented by the highest number of species (37) They used the expression "alien invaders" to and crinoids are least represented ( 4 species). describe the situation. Many deep-sea echi­ There are 30 species of ophiuroids in the re­ noids and ophiuroids produce larvae that set­ gion, 7 echinoids, and 17 holothurians. A com­ tle over wide bathymetric zones, but the juve­ parison with the shallow-water echinoderms of niles or adults ultimately survive only in narrow the Florida Keys and Bermuda confirms the depth ranges. A central theme of their presen­ relatively low species diversity but high biomass tation was that some shallow-water echino­ of the Gulf of Maine fauna. At present, only S. derms can tolerate to various degrees the tem­ droebachiesis and C. fimzdosa are exploited com­ peratures and pressures in the deep sea and mercially. Although there has been ·a small may be invading that habitat, yet the specific green urchin fishery in the Gulf of Maine for pathways by which such colonization could oc­ many years, it was not until about 1987 that cur remain uncertain. They suggest that at the widespread commercial exploitation began. In present time the cold isothermal water col­ that year, about 2 million pounds were taken, umns near the poles are the most likely routes, largely by scuba divers. Just 6 years later, in whereas during the Mesozoic and early Ceno­ 1993, the catch reached a peak of about 41 zoic one or more warm isothermal columns million pounds harvested by various methods, were the most likely routes. They emphasized including extensive dredging. By 2000, the hal'­ that echinoderms provide useful models for in­ vest was down to about 9 million pounds, and vestigations of the origin of the deep-sea fauna, the decline is likely to continue. The sea cu­ both present and past. cumber fishery is equally vulnerable. Over 3 In the third plenary session, John Pearse re­ million pounds were harvested in the Gulf of viewed two major paradigms in marine biology Maine in 1994. In 2000, 9.5 million pounds and presented compelling evidence suggesting were taken. Although some state regulations that both ideas need to be largely discarded or are now in place, in the early years of com­ at least reevaluated. His work was based on de­ mercial activity both the urchin and sea cu­ tailed studies of two abundant Antarctic echi­ cumber industries were completely unregulat­ noderms, the asteroid Odontaster validus and ed. The harvesting of these species and the po­ the echinoid Sterechinus newnayeri. Orton's tential for exploitation of other echinoderms Rule states that temperature change regulates in the future raise a number of difficult and as seasonal reproduction and that where there is yet unresolved issues. Many biologists and in­ no temperature change, reproduction should dustry officials are now aware of the validity of be continuous. Pearse showed that both these an ecosystem approach to resource manage­ two Antarctic species have strongly seasonal re­ ment but for a variety of complex reasons we production in a region where the water tem­ still tend to regulate on an individual species perature is always close to -1.8 C. Thorson's basis. As new marine resources are identified Rule can be stated in various ways but the un­ and exploited it is very difficult to create rea­ derlying theme is that pelagic, planktotrophic sonable state and federal regulations before the development is the dominant form of repro­ resource is overfished.