Newsletter Issn 1834-4259 No

NEWSLETTER ISSN 1834-4259 NO. 146. FEBRUARY 2013

Molluscs 2012: The triennial meeting of the Malacological Society of Australasia 3–6 December, 2012, St Mary’s College, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia Winston Ponder, Australian Museum Email: [email protected]; [email protected]

The organising committee, comprised of Dr Rose- and taxonomy and overviews of the mollusc collec- mary Golding (Chair), Australian Museum Sydney, tions in the Tasmanian and Australian museums. Dr Rachel Przeslawski (President), Geoscience Aus- The conference dinner on Wednesday evening was tralia, Dr Kirsten Benkendorff, Southern Cross Uni- enhanced with music provided by the group Pearly versity and Dr Jan Strugnell, La Trobe University, Shells. did a great job. The conference organiser was The formal proceedings commenced with brief Narelle Hall, who ensured that things ran smoothly welcoming addresses by Rosemary Golding and Ra- and on time. chel Przeslawski. An opening keynote by Dr Kat Szabó on ‘Shell Artefacts and Human Evolution’ set the tone for the meeting. In all, there were five symposia in addition to general papers. The first symposium, ‘Molecules and Mol- luscs’, was introduced by Dr Kirsten Benkendorff and the keynote speaker was Dr Scott Cummins who spoke on ‘Bioactive peptides: signalling the future’. Five other papers were included in this symposium that included natural products, research on pearl oysters, bioactive compounds and antiviral activity. The ‘Threatened and Endangered Species’ symposium was introduced by Dr Rosemary Gold- ing and had two keynote speakers, Dr Winston Ponder (Australian aquatic molluscs – conservation priorities and practicalities) and Dr Frank Köhler (Advances in land snail systematics inform conservation manage- Crassostrea gigas. Photo CSIRO. ment in Australia). Six additional papers were included in this symposium that covered freshwater mus- ABRS made a generous donation, ensuring the con- sels, giant clams and land snails. ference finances remained in the black. The third symposium, ‘Molluscs and Cli- The meeting kicked off to a good start with a mate Change’ was introduced by Dr Rachel reception in the late afternoon of Monday 3rd. Other Przeslawski and also had two keynote speakers, Dr social events included the poster cocktail session the Gretta Pecl (Assessing climate change responses for next evening during which 14 posters on a wide marine molluscs in south east Australia) and Dr Andy range of topics were presented including: the effects Davis (Molluscs in a changing ocean: Past, present of ocean acidification, glochidial morphology, drift- and future). Eight additional papers were presented ing cuttlebones and argonaut strandings, volute phy- in this symposium including discussions on how Fiji- logeny, giant clams, land snail conservation genetics an freshwater gastropods, abalone, and argonauts (Continued on page 3) 1

Society information President: Rachel Przeslawski Victorian Branch Vice President Kirsten Berkendorff Treasurer Don Colgan Secretary Michael Lyons, 19 Banksia Street, Black- Secretary Carmel McDougall burn, VIC 3130. Phone (03) 9894 1526 or Email: Journal editor Winston Ponder [email protected]. Meetings at the Newsletter editors Mandy Reid & Jonathan Melbourne Camera Club, cnr Dorcas and Farrars Parkyn Streets, South Melbourne, on the third Monday of Council members Lesley Brooker each month. No meeting in January, July or Decem- (Membership Secretary) ber. Rosemary Golding Simon Hills Jonathan Parkyn Queensland Shell Club Au Phuong Correspondence: Malacological Society of Australa- Platon Vafiadis sia, Queensland Branch, PO Box 15064, City East, Caitlen Woods QLD 4002. Phone (07) 3848 9270 (H) or Email: (Public Relations Officer) [email protected]. Meetings are held at 6:30 Website administrator Shane Penny p.m. on the last Tuesday of each month except De- cember at the TLC Building, 20 Peel Street, South All enquiries and orders should be sent to the Secre- Brisbane, QLD. tary, Carmel McDougall, at [email protected] The Society’s Newsletter and the journal Molluscan Research, published three times a year, are sent to all Sydney Shell Club members. Contact Steve Dean, Email: [email protected]. Membership fees 2013 NSW Branch meetings are held at 2 p.m. on the Includes Molluscan Research and MSA Newsletter and fourth Saturday of each month at the Ryde- discounted registration at Molluscs 2015. Eastwood Leagues Club, 117 Ryedale Rd, West Ry- Ordinary members (Aust., Asia, W. Pacific) $A70 de, Sydney. Ordinary members (rest of the world) $A100 Extra family member $A5 Affiliate organisation $A100 Newsletter Student member $A45 Editors: Mandy Reid, Malacology Department, Membership fees are preferably paid via the website Australian Museum, 6 College St, Sydney, NSW www.malsocaus.org. To pay by paper, send to 2010. Phone (02) 9320 6412 (W), Email: Malacological Society of Australasia, c/o Dr Don [email protected] Colgan, Australian Museum, 6 College St, Sydney, Jonathan Parkyn, Email: NSW 2010. [email protected] Web Site http://www.malsocaus.org

This publication is not deemed to be valid for Deadline for articles for the next issue of taxonomic purposes (See article 8b in International Code the Newsletter: 17 May 2013. of Zoological Nomenclature 3rd Edition, 1985).

(Continued from page 1) might respond to climate change, and changes in A workshop on marine micromolluscs was held im- molluscs in Moreton Bay and Ningaloo rock plat- mediately prior to Molluscs 2012 at Queenscliff, Vic- forms. toria (see below for report). The ‘Molecular Markers and Barcoding’ Seventy-five registrants attended the meet- symposium was introduced by Dr Jan Strugnell and ing, of which 18 were students. The quality of the the keynote speakers were Dr Thuy Nguyen (A draft papers and posters was excellent and all sessions of the Australian blue mussel genome) and Dr Neri- were well attended, helped by the absence of paral- da Wilson (Life’s rich tapestry: how many species of lel sessions. For some truly excellent presentations, Austrodoris slugs are there in Antarctica?). Twelve student awards went to: Hugh Jones (best student additional papers were presented in this session, oral presentation), and Jonathan Parkyn and Sean including papers on the phylogeny of New Zealand Stankowski (runners-up, best student oral presenta- volutes and NW Australian land snails, next genera- tions). Fatemeh Hazeribaghdadabad won the post- tion sequencing and land snail phylogeny, the com- er prize. munity and molluscan genetics, mangrove microgas- Most participants were from Australia, three tropods, mytilid and donacid genetics, the phyloge- were from NZ, and there were three other overseas ny of Limicoidea and European trochids, commer- registrants. From within Australia, 23 were from cial offshore bivalves, estimation of abalone growth NSW, 18 from Victoria, 11 from Western Austral- rates, nudibranch coloration, and an invasive spe- ia, nine from Queensland, two each from the cies. Northern Territory, South Australia and Tasmania There were, in addition to the symposia, and one from the ACT. fourteen papers presented in the ‘General Session’. The Malacological Society Annual General These covered a wide range of topics, including oc- Meeting was held on Wednesday at 16.35 (see sepa- topus fisheries and taxonomy, cuttlefish behaviour, rate report). chiton distribution, bioengineers, gastropod stato- An electronic copy of the full program and liths, abalone transport, shipworms, and the impact abstracts can be found at: of ocean acidification. http://www.malsocaus.org/docs Mol- luscs2012_Program_and_Abstract_Handbook.pdf

Marine micro-mollusc workshop at Queenscliff Lynton Stephens, Mont Albert North, Victoria Email: [email protected]

Between 30 Nov. and 3 Dec. 2012 a group of around 15 people assembled at Queenscliff in Vic- toria for a marine micro-mollusc workshop that preceded the MalSoc conference in Melbourne. The event was coordinated by Winston Ponder and Rosemary Golding and those attending ranged from complete novices, eager to pick up some new skills and knowledge, to acknowledged experts in malacology. The activities got underway on Friday night with a series of presentations by Winston Ponder and Rosemary Golding that gave an overview of marine mollusc phylogeny and basic research methodology. It was interesting to hear about some of the recently published changes in gastropod classification and some likely, but as yet un- published, developments. Serious field work began on Saturday morn- Collecting at the pre-conference workshop. From Left: Alan ing with a trip to the rock platform at Point Lons- Monger, Winston Ponder, Rosemary Golding, Simon Grove. dale, which is well known as a site with outstand- Photo: L. Stephens. ing molluscan diversity. Here, the group had a chance to exercise their field skills, including algal

3 sampling, sieving and rock-washing. This was fol- Additional field-work was undertaken on Sunday, lowed by more collecting further north in Port Phil- this time focused on upper littoral salt marsh and lip Bay at Portarlington, interspersed with some re- brackish-water environments. On both Saturday and laxation in a local café and a few all-important cups Sunday evenings the group was treated to a series of of coffee. presentations by attendees, including Platon Vafiadis, Simon Grove, Robert Burn, Alan Monger, Rosemary Golding and myself, showcasing some of the research being done in our region. In addition to this, Platon Vafiadis and I managed to photograph some of the most interesting specimens (finishing well after midnight on both nights) with the best part of a thousand images captured. Each night, the group descended on the hotel at Queenscliff for dinner, drinks and some broad- ranging conversation. Overall, the workshop was a good chance for some old friends to re-unite, new friendships and connections to be formed and for acquiring new skills and knowledge. Some useful photographs and field observations were a bonus, and the notoriously fickle weather was mostly good to us. Hopefully there will be opportunities for similar workshops in the future. Digidentis perplexa (Chromodorididae) from Point Lonsdae. Photo: L. Stephens.

Later in the afternoon the group had a chance to assess the samples using the enviable facilities at the Marine Discovery Centre in Queenscliff. This laboratory was generously made available throughout the workshop. Despite the dismal state of the low tide, the sampling yielded a total of eight gastropod species that had not previously been photographed alive. One of these (a triphorid from Point Lonsdale) was also a new record for the State. The Marine Re- search Group of Victoria has conducted assiduous sampling and photography along the local coastline for many years, so these results were impressive, welcome, and highly unexpected. Several other interest- Miralda suprasculpta (Pyramidellidae) from Point Lonsdae. ing gastropods were encountered, including one or Photo: L. Stephens. two undescribed species.

Future events

 2nd International Southeast Asian Gateway Evolution (SAGE) Meeting, Berlin, Germany 11–15 March 2013 http://www.sage2013.org  9th International Conference on Molluscan Shellfish Safety, Sydney, 17–22 March 2013 http://www.ICMSS2013.com  Australian Marine Science Association (AMSA) Golden Jubilee Confer- ence, Gold Coast, 7–11 July 2013 http://amsaconference.com.au  Genetics Society of AustralAsia Inc. conference ‘ Genetics in the Harbour City’ 14–17th July 2013 http://conference2013.genetics.org.au/  Unitas Malacologica Conference, World Congress of Malacology, Azores, Portugal 21–28 July 2013 http://www.wcm2013.com  23rd Cephalopod International Advisory Council Conference, Hakodate, Japan 2015 http://www.abdn.ac.uk/CIAC

Giant Clam and Black-Lip Oyster trial culture with the Warruwi community, western Arnhem Land Wendy Banta, Darwin Aquaculture Centre, NT Dept Primary Industries & Fisheries Email: [email protected] Project partners in the Northern Territory are work- from 3.3 mm per month to 4.8 mm per month, and ing with the Indigenous community of Warruwi on trials in the Solomon Islands where growth rates South Goulburn Island, Western Arnhem Land, to averaged 4.7 mm per month. Survival data from the trial the farming of two bivalve molluscs: Giant Goulburn Island trials will be collected in the near Clam (Tridacna squamosa) and Black-lip Rock Oyster future for analysis and comparison. (Saccostrea mytiloides). These low-maintenance native Black-lip oyster trials commenced in Septem- species are showing promise as aquaculture species ber 2012 with basket structures constructed at three suitable for culture by the local community to pro- sites around the island in varying environmental con- vide a sustainable food source as well as enterprise ditions. Each trial site consisted of three baskets development opportunities. Partners in the project include members of the Warruwi community such as traditional Aborigi- nal land owners and CDEP work participants, the West Arnhem Shire Council, Charles Darwin Uni- versity (CDU) lecturers from the VET Aquaculture and Horticulture Branch, and the Aquaculture Branch of the NT Department of Primary Industry and Fisheries. A private industry partner has also been involved in investigating spawning techniques for giant clams. The clams and oysters are produced at the Darwin Aquaculture Centre and placed in trial structures at appropriate locations around South Goulburn Island in collaboration with project partners. Basket structures in place at South Goulburn. Clams are being trialled in plastic and metal mesh cages in reef habitat on the west side of the containing 700 g of spat per basket, with a total of island. Clams are transported unattached to any sub- approximately 5000 spat deployed across all sites. strate for logistical ease and to save freight costs. Preliminary results indicate the site at Yagbani has Seven cages were initially deployed in April 2012 shown the best growout potential with oyster weight with approximately 60 clams per cage. Cages con- increasing by about 260%, while the two other sites tained grouted tile substrate to allow for the clams to show increases of 91% and 14%. Oysters from the reattach once deployed. Clams averaged 38 mm at same batch held in land-based ponds over a similar the time of deployment. Growth rates are encourag- time period had an increase in biomass of around ing, at an average to date of 6.17 mm per month. 41%. This compares favourably to data recorded in trials A primary goal of the trials is to generate so- in Singapore where growth rates among reefs ranged cial, cultural and economic benefits for the Warruwi people through increased involvement in aquaculture and fishing-related activities. Therefore, the success of the project ultimately depends on the lev- el of local interest and engagement, and whether benefits have been realised according to the perspec- tives of the community. These benefits may be in the form of a consistent supply of sustainable sea- food for local consumption, or a source of income from the sale of shellfish for public consumption or to the aquarium market in the case of clams. Aside from proving the technical feasibility of the trials, one of the key challenges for the project includes meeting minimum shellfish quality assurance standards for any products sold for public consumption. Project partners will continue to work together to overcome such challenges and facilitate positive Clams in cages on the reef at South Goulburn Island. outcomes. 5

Variation in gastropod statolith band formation: an indicator of age or environmental extremes? Michael Parker, University of Melbourne Email: [email protected]

Estimating age is critical to understanding the popu- The species investigated were Austrolittorina unifas- lation dynamics of a species. With increased pressure ciata and Bembicium nanum (Littorinidae), and from the growing aquaculture industry, age estima- Dicathais orbita (Muricidae). tion techniques have been honed in many species of Monthly samples of 8–15 individuals from fish and cephalopods. The otoliths (in fish) and stat- each species over a range of shell sizes were gath- oliths (in cephalopods) form daily and seasonal ered to determine when new bands were formed at bands through the growth of these structures; such the edge of the statolith. This was achieved by cross- bands can be used as a convincing method in aging. sectioning the dissected statolith then measuring the About one quarter of gastropod families also form distance between the last formed band and the edge statoliths. These near-spherical structures are formed of the structure. inside the statocyst (a spatial organ), and are created By comparing when the bands are formed for by aragonite crystals being embedded in a protein different locations and species, we are interested in matrix. Within this statolith, darker bands form testing for: when protein is laid down without aragonite being  Differences between sites for each species, signi- inserted into the matrix. While gastropod statoliths fying local environmental cues may play a role in do not show daily banding, there has been some evi- band formation. dence that annual bands are produced. Therefore,  Differences between species, but not sites, which there is still a need to understand the factors contrib- may indicate that there are intrinsic mechanisms uting to, and frequency of, band formation in gastro- for each species, or a more widespread cue is act- pods. ing on the animals. Using three species, multiple collection sites  Consistency for all species and sites, which would and monthly collections over a 14 month period, our most likely suggest widespread environmental study examined variation in timing and frequency of cues act to form these protein bands inside the band formation. This study looks at the possibility statolith, with a possibility for intrinsic mecha- for: population variation at different sites for each nisms to play a role. species; variation between species in the same loca- The data from this research should improve our tion; and differences within populations at each site. understanding of the formation of these bands and, Sites were selected from around Port Phillip Bay, by extension, the validity of methods for age estima- Victoria, and the surrounding exposed coastline be- tion in gastropods. tween Torquay and Barwon Heads. iMollusca: A community approach advancing molluscan research Natasha Botwright, CSIRO Food Futures Flagship; CSIRO Animal, Food and Health Sciences Email: [email protected] The ‘-omics’ era is facilitating rapid advances in re- There are an estimated 100 000 molluscan species search across a wide diversity of species. Sanger first that have so far generally been neglected in terms of developed technology to ascertain DNA sequence large scale sequencing. The time is rapidly approach- around 25 years ago, and over the last decade we ing when it will be possible to obtain genetic data have seen a new wave of next generation sequencing about these species for a relatively small cost. The technology. This technology is able to produce vast slower uptake of massive scale sequence tech- amounts of sequence data in short time frames at a nologies by the molluscan community provides an significantly reduced cost per megabase of data. Bio- opportunity to co-ordinate our efforts in terms of technology companies are racing to produce the next long term sequence data storage. My colleagues and I wave of sequencing technologies due to phenomenal at CSIRO present the iMollusca concept, a commu- uptake by researchers. This demand has rapidly led nity proposal to establish a molluscan-specific se- to decreased sequencing costs, improving accessibil- quence portal providing comparative approaches, ity for researchers working on non-model and non- tools and a forum for molluscan researchers to com- food related species of interest. municate on areas of common interest.

Community resources built to our specific needs aim molluscan species with well-established communities to support research by providing a ‘one-stop’ shop and supporting websites. for tools and comparative approaches, and supple- For a proposal of this nature to succeed, com- ment larger repositories such as the National Center munity involvement of researchers working across a for Biotechnology Information. This resource may diversity of molluscan species with different skill sets provide training and incentives to contribute to the is a necessity. public domain, may facilitate collaboration/s, assist Volunteers are currently being sought to pro- to spread funding costs, and ensure research conti- mote the iMollusca concept to the worldwide com- nuity and result repeatability. Two examples of community, to seek feedback on community needs and munity databases are: determine whether the molluscan community is large AphidBase http://www.aphidbase.com and enough to be self reliant. The second phase will be Nembase 4 http://www.nematodes.org to form a steering committee to scope out the tasks Some possibilities for an iMollusca community re- and potential funding agencies. To reduce impact on source include the storage of raw sequence data and any one group of researchers it is proposed to estab- contigs as well as tools for protein prediction, prote- lish working groups to progress separate compo- ome analyses, BLAST and BatchBLAST, phyloge- nents of the project. These include design and infra- netic analysis and data format conversion. A mollus- structure acquisition, community concept education, can researcher forum for technical solutions and to funding, establishment and the on-going mainte- aid in development of collaborations may also be nance of iMollusca. beneficial given the wide diversity of molluscs. Addi- If you are able to assist in establishing this tionally, the resource could provide functional exper- valuable resource by promoting this concept to your iment solutions and links to other relevant sites and peers or are interested in providing feedback please resources. This is particularly important for those contact the author.

Virtual volunteering You don’t have to travel away from your computer to be involved in conservation science. By making an account with the Biodiversity Volunteer Portal, you can help conserve Australia’s biodiversity.

The Atlas of Living Australia, in partnership with the Australian Museum, have developed an online Vol- unteer Portal for members of the community to help capture non-digital information (e.g. typed or hand- written) that describes collection material within Australian and international museums and herbaria. The aim of the project is to encourage online or virtual volunteers to work on the task of transcrib- ing specimen labels, field notes, and expedition diaries. Having these records digitised and available in an online database means scientists, conservation agencies and government departments across the country can work together to better understand, manage and conserve our precious biodiversity. If you are interested in being a volunteer for Australia’s Biodiversity Volunteer Portal, register at: http://volunteer.ala.org.au/

Advances in land snail systematics inform conservation management in Australia Frank Köhler, Australian Museum, Malacology Email: [email protected]

Recent years have indeed seen major leaps forward towards a more comprehensive documentation of Australia’s land snail fauna, building the foundation for more appropriate assessments of their conservation status and an evaluation of their utility as bio- indicators. Most significantly, within the past three to four years or so the number of known species has more than doubled. This is mainly due to the publication of the Handbook ‘Australian Land Snails. Vol- ume 1: A field guide to Eastern Australian species’ (Stanisic et al., 2010), which lists nearly 800 species from the mesic eastern fringes of the continent. This brought the total number of formally recog- Burnt spinifex stand with dead snails. Various land snails nized land snail species in Australia to about 1 600. rely on hummocks of Spinifex grass (Triodia sp.) for shelter In addition, larger surveys were conducted by the in grasslands throughout central Australia. These native author in the Kimberley in Western Australia and in communities are on retreat as they are being replaced by per- the Victoria River District, Northern Territory, ennial weeds. Fires accelerate this process as the weeds are which resulted in the discovery of many new species better adapted to fire than Spinifex. Weed communities pro- of camaenids. About 150 of these new species have vide no suitable habitat for snails, which have disappeared been named since 2009, but about an equal number from vast areas along with their native habitat (here: Sinu- of new species remain to be described. These dis- melon expositum). coveries helped to identify the Kimberley region as a The conservation of invertebrates has long been new land snail hotspot in Australia, for example, and neglected, as reflected in the huge imbalance of spe- underlined the fact that humidity and topographic cies listed as threatened by the Commonwealth, complexity are major drivers of land snail diversity States and Territories. However, biodiversity studies and endemism in Australia. While recent taxonomic are increasingly incorporating invertebrate studies, studies have confirmed the narrow ranges of many resulting in a more complete understanding of pat- land snail species, ecological studies have demon- terns of diversity. This understanding is urgently strated that changes in the natural vegetation struc- needed to improve current conservation manage- ture caused by introduction of weeds, anthropogenic ment policies and guidelines. Molluscs, and land fire regimes and pastoralism have significantly nega- snails in particular, have the potential to play a pivot- tive impacts on native land snails. al role in terrestrial conservation-related research. For these two reasons, increasing numbers of Not only do these snails represent a comparatively land snails have been listed as threatened. The scope well known component of the terrestrial invertebrate and implementation of legislation is still uneven be- fauna, but many species are also vulnerable because tween the Commonwealth, States and Territories, of their often narrow distributions and dependability particularly in relation to the listing of endangered on specific habitats. Information about the distribu- species, ecological communities and habitats. While tion of such animals with limited mobility and re- growing acceptance of the conservation relevance stricted distributions is crucial to gauge the possible and need of land snails resulted in increased num- impacts of urban development, mining, oil and gas bers of listed species in Western Australia (33 spe- exploration and other forms of land use on local to cies), the Northern Territory (31 species) and to regional scales. For this reason, land snails are one of some extend the Commonwealth (15 species), other the groups that are increasingly targeted in biological States, such as Queensland and South Australia surveys across the country. For the same reasons, maintain their reluctance to list land snails as endan- land snails have been proposed as bio-indicators for gered species. The promotion of land snail and other monitoring the effects of landscape degradation and molluscan conservation is thus an important chal- environmental change as well as predictors for the lenge for the Malacological Society of Australasia significance of areas for biodiversity conservation. and its members now and in the future.

What does the future hold? The Malacological Society of South Australia Inc. Peter Hunt, President MSSA Email: [email protected]

The MSSA is the oldest club of its type in Australia, things as butterflies, worms, frogs, native plants, and and globally second only to the Royal Society in other terrestrial life forms, so why not molluscs? London. We therefore have a long history of mala- We remain linked to science with several mem- cology and conchology studies and many famous bers volunteering their time in various areas of the malacologists have been members. Until recently, South Australian Museum. We are reaching out to our our semi-professional approach has been unques- regional friends with the establishment of an affiliated tioned. Recently, however, we have struggled to at- monthly study group. I personally intend to collabo- tract new members, and less with academic status. rate with others to review SA’s native land snails, tak- There is hope, as often I hear people say that ama- ing a prominent role in some citizen science by de- teur collectors still have much to offer science, espe- signing a survey to rediscover the remnant popula- cially when it comes to field work. tions around the greater Adelaide area. Following another year of successful activi- With all of this activity, we still seem to be frus- ties, which included hosting the Ninth National trated by the fact that very few younger people have Shell Show, the MSSA has taken advantage of this enough interest or time to join the club. Is this a quieter season to take stock. The MSSA continues symptom of computers, or the attitude of this paren- to strive to remain relevant in today’s society. This tal generation who now tell children not to touch? year’s program is dominated by South Australian This is a point that David Attenborough makes when subjects: the design of a new beachcombing poster, talking about his early days, collecting and studying and our new promotional leaflet to enhance our nature as a child in his local area more than 70 years membership. As the current president, I see our ago. It seems that young children today will never primary role as supporting our main interest groups, develop the same appreciation of nature as he did the hobbyists, and the educators. These consist of because living things are so precious we must not dis- school teachers, and members who regularly give turb them. talks to schools and community social groups at With numbers of active participants slowly fall- many levels, especially to those with marine interests ing at meetings and more added bureaucracy with located nearer to the coast. every idea or action, I can only keep an open mind As a semi-retired member of the public I feel and remain adaptable, and study the few more suc- that others in the community interested in the very cessful clubs to hopefully get the formula right for popular marine ecology movement may have an future. We welcome new members to our group. interest in malacology as well. I am told that many Meetings are held on the first and third Mondays of community groups are interested in studying such each month at 7.30 p.m. in the Royal Soc. Rooms off Kintore Ave behind the South Australian Museum. Molluscs in the media

Push to bring pink snails to Gold Coast Development and cultural consultant Matthew Gol- lan is behind a push to transport a number of 3 m hot pink snails from Italy to Surfers Paradise. Mr Gollan, who was involved in the original plans for the city council’s proposed Arts District at Chevron Island and other developments across the coast, wants to see the eight snails line the foreshore. The snails have already paced around the world and have visited Milan, Treviso and Rome in Italy, Paris in France and Miami in the US. The sculptures, known as ‘RE-generation’, are a series of public art pieces that encourage awareness of environmental issues, said Mr Gollan. ‘It would be great to bring some Source: http://www.goldcoast.com.au/gold-coast- international culture to the Gold Coast’. theme-parks.html

Cuttlefish fight fire with fire Alex Schnell, Macquarie University Email: [email protected]

As so clearly described by Darwin, animals are in- ate body size to rivals. Opponent males were ex- herently competitive and this may lead them to fight posed to four types of video stimuli, ranging from over limited resources such as food and mates. submissive to aggressive male displays. In the ab- However, fighting can escalate to severe injury or sence of a female, opponent males subjected to sub- even death. By communicating intent and capability, missive stimuli would often initiate a challenge, but animals may mitigate or continue this escalation, by, this rarely progressed further into ritualized aggres- for instance, signaling a desire for enhanced aggressive displays. In contrast, the more aggressive stimu- sion, or submission. So how do animals decide li provoked an equally and sometimes intensified whether to visually signal intent, or escalate to a aggressive response in opponent males that usually costly physical fight? Determining the answer re- resulted in an escalation of combative behaviour. quires experimental knowledge of signals involved Our laboratory experiments have revealed pat- in aggressive interactions. We studied the signals terns of cuttlefish behaviour that are consistent with that have been reported to provoke aggressive inter- those observed in wild populations. We have seen actions in the wild in male giant Australian cuttle- that males will regularly challenge one another even fish, Sepia apama. Male Sepia apama engage in fre- in the absence of a female. Furthermore, aggressive quent agonistic bouts to gain access to female ma- interactions will often escalate if a rival male exhibits tes. They communicate aggression through complex overtly aggressive behaviour or a mating opportuni- visual signals composed of an array of body pattern- ty is at stake. This is the first study to show that vid- ing and postures. At times these displays can esca- eo playback can be used to investigate visual signal- late to physical contact including grappling and bit- ing in cuttlefish. This new method will enable exper- ing. We used high-definition video playback of male imental manipulation to identify the various signals cuttlefish displaying various agonistic signals to test and behavioural patterns that make up the complex the onset of aggressive behaviour in opponent communication system of cuttlefish. These findings males. The agonistic signals exhibited by males are may also shed light on the fact that even though displayed as a series of chromatic skin changes, humans are separated from cuttlefish by 450 million which can intensify into dark cloud patterns that years of evolution, we may not be so different after flow repeatedly over the body of the animal. These all. We share an instinct to fight when threatened, skin patterns are often used in combination with and more often than not, the fight usually begins overt body postures and appear to visually exagger- over a female.

Agonistic interaction between two male cuttlefish. This display is comprised of a range of chromatic and postural components and includes the passing cloud pattern (broad bands successively shimmering across the body), wavy arms and an arched body posture. Photo: R. Hanlon.

Conference Review — CIAC 2013 Mandy Reid, Australian Museum Email: [email protected] Two days of workshops preceding the conference were attended by 91 delegates, with each joining one of the four following discussion groups: ‘Cephalopod Culture: recent advances and challenges’; Biology, Ecology and Biodiversity of Deep-sea Cephalopods’; ‘Habitats and Behaviour of Cephalopod Key-Life Stages’, and ‘Cephalopod Species Dynamics and Envi- ronmental Effects, Stock Assessment, and Management’. The results of these discussions will be published as four review papers in Advances in Marine Biology. Highlights of the social events enjoyed by the delegates were the Welcome Recept ion held overlooking the beautiful northern bay of Floripa, the Poster sessions foll- Fishing Boats at Praia da Armação, Florianópolis. owed by Happy Hours (that for many evolved into Photo M. Reid. many, many happy hours), and the symposium dinner at Alameda Casa Rosa where we enjoyed a gour- CIAC 2012, the 22nd Cephalopod International Advi- met dinner, dancing into the early morning and en- sory Council Symposium was held from 27th October tertainment provided by some very energetic and to 2nd November in Florianópolis, Brazil. The meet- scantily clad local dancers. ing was an overwhelming success, attracting 162 dele- Proceedings of the meeting will be pub- gates from 24 countries. There were 89 oral presenta- lished in three journals: Hydrobiologia, Fisheries Re- tions and 133 posters covering a broad range of top- search and the Journal of Natural History. We are al- ics (abstracts can be viewed at http:// ready looking forward to CIAC 2015, which will be www.ciac2012brazil.com.br). hosted by Prof. Yasunori Sakurai and his team in Our Australasian region was very well repre- Hakodate Japan. sented despite the distance and expense of travel to Brazil. Eight Australians and five New Zealanders attended. For more information about CIAC, visit: Approximately one-third of the delegates were http://www.abdn.ac.uk/CIAC students and the standards of their research and presentations were extremely high, leaving us all feel- CIAC now has a Facebook page that cephalopod ing very positive about the future of cephalopod re- researchers can use to upload photos, report on the search worldwide. latest in science, or the latest curiosities, get engaged Superb contributions were made by four key- and keep in touch. It is easy, fast and free of charge. note speakers. Angel Guerra opened with an insightful Go to: https://www.facebook.com/pages/CIAC- talk on the importance of ‘Interdisciplinary Ap- C e p h a l o p o d - International - A d v i s o r y - proaches to Cephalopod Biology’. The talk was rele- Council/107732636057010?fref=ts. A Twitter feed vant to science in general, with interdisciplinary re- was also launched following the meeting that can be search projects increasingly being seen as a way to followed @cephCIAC as well as a Young Cephalo- stimulate novel approaches to addressing research pod Researchers (YCR) group to foster links among questions, in addition to broadening funding possibil- young researchers worldwide. Contact Rigoberto ities. Louise Allcock (the new CIAC president) gave a Rosas Luis [email protected]; Augusto C. Cres- passionate talk about past and contemporary women pi-Abril [email protected]; Seffi Keller Stefan- in cephalopod research. Uwe Piatkowsky introduced [email protected], or Silvia Lourenço salouren- the ‘Cephalopods and the Environment’ session, by [email protected] if you would like to join the YCR providing an overview of natural and anthropogenic group. factors influencing cephalopod life cycles and, on the final day, Ron O’Dor presented information on the latest tagging and tracking technology.

The Future of MSA Branches Rachel Przeslawski, Geoscience Australia Email: [email protected]

The MSA has historically operated several branches notably the potential liability of some of the MSA and lists its current branches in New South Wales, councillors for branch activities and the associated Queensland, and Victoria. In mid-2012 I contacted importance of operating under the sanction of MSA representatives of these branches to discuss the Council. The outcome of the discussion was a unan- poor communication between the MSA Council and imous vote in favour of the motion being postponed Branches. This has been an ongoing problem that until the 2013 AGM. The MSA Council and Victori- had been lurking in the background of MSA opera- an Branch representatives also agreed to improve tions for some time, and the issue was something I’d communication and adhere to the Constitution. It resolved to address (admittedly, it took me three was also noted that a branch of any organisation years to get around to it!). To make a long story should include only members of that organisation. short, branches were operating as independent In order to improve relationships between groups, and a growing number of NSW and Qld our branches and other partner organisations, we branch members were not MSA members. also created a new council position and appointed As our discussion progressed, it also became Caitlin Woods as our first Public Relations Officer. clear that neither the MSA nor its branches were In addition, Platon Vafiadis of the Victorian Branch adhering to the rules of our Constitution. Although was elected as MSA councillor to help liaise between all groups agreed that communication between us MSA Council and the branch. I have since notified needed to improve regardless of branch status, the the Vic. Branch and the NSW and Qld groups of the exact ways in which we should do this were unclear. AGM results. Council’s intention this year is to assist Due in part to their low number of MSA members, the NSW and Qld groups with their transitions to the NSW and Qld branches also decided that the separate organisations and to work with the Vic. best option for them was to formally become sepa- branch to fulfil our Constitutional requirements. rate organisations. We put forth a motion to be con- This was not an easy or fun issue to deal with, sidered at the AGM to remove mention of branches and there were a few contentious moments and un- from the Constitution and transition all branches to happy members along the way. However, as part of separate organisations. Importantly, this motion was it, we’ve had more dialogue with our branches and not developed to severe ties with branches, amateurs other like-minded organisations in the past few or shell collectors. Rather, it was intended to recog- months than the previous decade! I’m happy and nise the actual situation between most branches and confident that relationships between the MSA, its the MSA and to provide a fresh start for improved branches, and its partner organisations will continue relationships between all the groups. to improve and we’ll all benefit from the relation- At the AGM, the motion was discussed for ships. Regardless of whether we’re part of a branch, over 45 minutes by attendees, including those from partner organisation, or just the MSA itself, we all the Victorian Branch. Several issues were raised, share similar interests in molluscs! Comings and goings

It is with a great deal of sadness She has studied numerous molluscan groups, in- that we have to farewell Rose- cluding vermetid worm snails, mangrove and salt- mary Golding, who has re- marsh gastropods (amphiboloids), smeagolids, phal- signed from her position as lomedusoids, and heterobranchs. The outcomes of Postdoctoral Research Scientist this work have resulted in over a dozen articles in at the Australian Museum to internationally peer-reviewed journals, five book study dentistry at Sydney Uni- chapters and popular science articles, and eleven versity, where she can be as- conference abstracts and seminars. sured of future employment Rosemary’s switch in career path is a great and a secure career. loss to the molluscan research community. It is a Her broad research interests cover the evolutionary tragic consequence of the lack of support and job biology of molluscs, systematics and taxonomy, security for taxonomists and systematists, which is, cladistic and phylogenetic analysis, DNA sequence sadly, a worldwide phenomenon. We wish Rose- analysis, experimental microscopy, 3D anatomical mary well in her endeavours. reconstruction, and comparative morphology. ~ Dr Mandy Reid