DOCSLIB.ORG

Patterns and Predictions Across Scales A

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text

Load more

STANDING STOCKS AND FAUNAL ZONATION OF DEEP-SEA BENTHOS: PATTERNS AND PREDICTIONS ACROSS SCALES A Dissertation by CHIH-LIN WEI Submitted to the Office of Graduate Studies of Texas A&M University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY May 2011 Major Subject: Oceanography Standing Stocks and Faunal Zonation of Deep-Sea Benthos: Patterns and Predictions across Scales Copyright 2011 Chih-Lin Wei STANDING STOCKS AND FAUNAL ZONATION OF DEEP-SEA BENTHOS: PATTERNS AND PREDICTIONS ACROSS SCALES A Dissertation by CHIH-LIN WEI Submitted to the Office of Graduate Studies of Texas A&M University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Approved by: Chair of Committee, Gilbert T. Rowe Committee Members, Jay R. Rooker Antonietta Quigg Daniel C. O. Thornton Head of Department, Piers Chapman May 2011 Major Subject: Oceanography iii ABSTRACT Standing Stocks and Faunal Zonation of Deep-Sea Benthos: Patterns and Predictions across Scales. (May 2011) Chih-Lin Wei, B.S., National Chung-Hsing University (Taiwan); M.S., Texas A&M University Chair of Advisory Committee: Dr. Gilbert T. Rowe The deep ocean (> 200-m depth) covers more than 65% of earth’s surface and is known as the largest active carbon sink of the planet. Photosynthesis fixes inorganic carbon into organic rich-compounds to fuel the biological production in the upper ocean. A small portion of the photosynthetic carbon eventually sinks to the seafloor to support diverse deep-sea life. In this dissertation, the phytoplankton production and export flux of particulate organic carbon (POC) to the seafloor were linked to standing stocks and compositional changes of the deep-sea soft bottom assemblages. The pattern and processes of energy transfer from the surface ocean to the deep sea was examined by modeling the global benthic bacteria, meiofauna, macrofauna, and megafauna biomass from remotely sensed ocean color images and the seafloor relief. The analysis was then scaled down to the macrofauna of the Gulf of Mexico (GoM) to examine the global pattern on regional oceanic features with contrasting productivity regimes. These results suggested a universal decline of benthic standing stocks down the continental margins that is caused by an exponential decrease of export POC flux with depth. A revisit of iv historical epibenthic invertebrate sampling in the North Atlantic showed that both individual species and multi-species assemblages occurred in narrow depth bands that hugged the topography from the upper continental slope out to the Hatteras Abyssal Plain. The continuum compositional change suggested that the continuous decline of benthic food supply with depth was the potential driving force for the pattern of bathymetric faunal zonation. A broad, systematic survey across multiple depth transects in the northern GoM suggested that macrofauna zonation is not only taking place across isobaths, but also form the northeast to the northwest GoM due to a horizontal productivity gradient created by the nutrient-laden Mississippi River. Analyses of long- term demersal fish data from 1964 to 2002 in the northern GoM showed no evidence of large-scale faunal change across different sampling times. Base on the pooled data, a shift in rate of fish species replacement may be caused by complex biological interactions or changes in environmental heterogeneity along depth or productivity gradients. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my committee chair, Dr. Gilbert T. Rowe, and committee members, Dr. Jay R. Rooker, Dr. Antonietta Quigg, and Dr. Dan C. O. Thornton, for their guidance, encouragement, and support throughout the course of my dissertation research. Their office doors were always open for me while searching for advice and invaluable discussions. I am grateful to Dr. Fain Hubbard, our formal lab manager and graduate student mentor, who oversaw our day-to-day macrofauna sorting activity. He passed away shortly after completion of the DGoMB project, but his influence has imprinted on the many student researcher s of the deep GoM benthos. Thanks go to Archie Ammons, Clif Nunnally, Lindsey Loughry, Min Chen, Matt Ziegler, Xiaojia Chen, and Yuning Wang for the wonderful time working together at sea and sample sorting in the lab. To Amélie Scheltema, Fain Hubbard, George Wilson, Iorgu Petrescu, John Foster, Mary Wicksten, Min Chen, Roe Davenport, Yuning Wang, and Yousria Soliman for macrofauna identification, and to John McEachran for the deepwater fish identification. I would like to thank my co-authors of publications and manuscripts generated from this dissertation including Gilbert Rowe, Elva Escobar-Briones, Antje Boetius, Thomas Soltwedel, Julian Caley, Yousria Soliman, Falk Huettmann, Fangyuan Qu, Zishan Yu, Roland Pitcher, Richard Haedrich, Mary Wicksten, Michael Rex, Jeffrey Baguley, Jyotsna Sharma, Roberto Danovaro, Ian MacDonald, Clifton Nunnally, Jody Deming, vi Paul Montagna, Mélanie Lévesque, Jan Marcin Weslawski, Maria Wlodarska- Kowalczuk, Baban Ingole, Brian Bett, David Billet, Andrew Yool, Bodil Bluhm, Katrin Iken, Bhavani Narayanaswamy, Amélie Scheltema, George Wilson, Iorgu Petrescu, John Foster, Min Chen, Roe Davenport, Yuning Wang, and Greg Boland. Thanks also go to Bob Carney, Michael Rex, Ron Etter, Paul Snelgrove, and anonymous reviewers for the comments and suggestions on my manuscripts and to Roland Pitcher, Peter Lawton, Nick Ellis, Stephen Smith, Lewis Incze, Michelle Greenlaw, Nicholas Wolff, Tom Shirley, and Paul Snelgrove for valuable discussions on data analysis. Thanks go to the men and women on board the R/V Eastwood, R/V Alaminos and R/V Gyre for their enthusiasm and devotion to explore deep ocean life. The North Atlantic epibenthic invertebrate data was derived from a dissertation at Duke University by Gilbert T. Rowe under the direction of Robert J. Menzies. This dissertation was supported by Minerals Management Service (MMS), now the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE). Thanks go to Erma Lee and Luke Mooney, the Oceanography Department (TAMU) and Marine Biology Department (TAMUG) for conference travel support. Additional funding thanks to Cross-Project Synthesis and Continental Margin Ecosystems (COMARGE) of Census Marine Life (CoML) that was supported by Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. Thanks to my friends, colleagues, department faculty and staff for making my time at the College Station and Galveston campuses an enjoyable memory. Finally, I would like to vii thank my parents, family, friends in Taiwan, and my wife, Shih-Ying for their encouragement, patience and love. viii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT .......................................................................................................... iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................... v TABLE OF CONTENTS....................................................................................... viii LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................... x LIST OF TABLES................................................................................................. xiii CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION............................................................................. 1 II GLOBAL PATTERNS AND PREDICTIONS OF SEAFLOOR BIOMASS USING RANDOM FORESTS......................................... 5 2.1. Overview .............................................................................. 5 2.2. Introduction .......................................................................... 6 2.3. Materials and Methods .......................................................... 10 2.4. Results .................................................................................. 20 2.5. Discussion............................................................................. 37 III STANDING STOCKS AND BODY SIZE OF DEEP-SEA MACROFAUNA: A BASELINE PRIOR TO THE 2010 BP OIL SPILL IN THE NORTHERN GULF OF MEXICO ........................... 45 3.1. Overview .............................................................................. 45 3.2. Introduction .......................................................................... 46 3.3. Materials and Methods .......................................................... 52 3.4. Results .................................................................................. 60 3.5. Discussion............................................................................. 82 IV FAUNAL ZONATION OF LARGE EPIBENTHIC INVERTEBRATES OFF NORTH CAROLINA REVISITED........... 95 4.1. Overview .............................................................................. 95 4.2. Introduction .......................................................................... 95 ix CHAPTER Page 4.3. Data Analyses ....................................................................... 97 4.4. Results .................................................................................. 98 4.5. Characteristics of Each Depth Zone....................................... 105 4.6. Discussion............................................................................. 106 V BATHYMETRIC ZONATION OF DEEP-SEA MACROFAUNA IN RELATION TO EXPORT OF SURFACE PHYTOPLANKTON PRODUCTION ................................................................................. 107 5.1. Overview .............................................................................. 107 5.2. Introduction .........................................................................
Recommended publications
  • Early Stages of Fishes in the Western North Atlantic Ocean Volume

    Early Stages of Fishes in the Western North Atlantic Ocean Volume

    ISBN 0-9689167-4-x Early Stages of Fishes in the Western North Atlantic Ocean (Davis Strait, Southern Greenland and Flemish Cap to Cape Hatteras) Volume One Acipenseriformes through Syngnathiformes Michael P. Fahay ii Early Stages of Fishes in the Western North Atlantic Ocean iii Dedication This monograph is dedicated to those highly skilled larval fish illustrators whose talents and efforts have greatly facilitated the study of fish ontogeny. The works of many of those fine illustrators grace these pages. iv Early Stages of Fishes in the Western North Atlantic Ocean v Preface The contents of this monograph are a revision and update of an earlier atlas describing the eggs and larvae of western Atlantic marine fishes occurring between the Scotian Shelf and Cape Hatteras, North Carolina (Fahay, 1983). The three-fold increase in the total num- ber of species covered in the current compilation is the result of both a larger study area and a recent increase in published ontogenetic studies of fishes by many authors and students of the morphology of early stages of marine fishes. It is a tribute to the efforts of those authors that the ontogeny of greater than 70% of species known from the western North Atlantic Ocean is now well described. Michael Fahay 241 Sabino Road West Bath, Maine 04530 U.S.A. vi Acknowledgements I greatly appreciate the help provided by a number of very knowledgeable friends and colleagues dur- ing the preparation of this monograph. Jon Hare undertook a painstakingly critical review of the entire monograph, corrected omissions, inconsistencies, and errors of fact, and made suggestions which markedly improved its organization and presentation.
  • Larvae and Juveniles of the Deepsea “Whalefishes”

    Larvae and Juveniles of the Deepsea “Whalefishes”

    © Copyright Australian Museum, 2001 Records of the Australian Museum (2001) Vol. 53: 407–425. ISSN 0067-1975 Larvae and Juveniles of the Deepsea “Whalefishes” Barbourisia and Rondeletia (Stephanoberyciformes: Barbourisiidae, Rondeletiidae), with Comments on Family Relationships JOHN R. PAXTON,1 G. DAVID JOHNSON2 AND THOMAS TRNSKI1 1 Fish Section, Australian Museum, 6 College Street, Sydney NSW 2010, Australia [email protected] [email protected] 2 Fish Division, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. 20560, U.S.A. [email protected] ABSTRACT. Larvae of the deepsea “whalefishes” Barbourisia rufa (11: 3.7–14.1 mm nl/sl) and Rondeletia spp. (9: 3.5–9.7 mm sl) occur at least in the upper 200 m of the open ocean, with some specimens taken in the upper 20 m. Larvae of both families are highly precocious, with identifiable features in each by 3.7 mm. Larval Barbourisia have an elongate fourth pelvic ray with dark pigment basally, notochord flexion occurs between 6.5 and 7.5 mm sl, and by 7.5 mm sl the body is covered with small, non- imbricate scales with a central spine typical of the adult. In Rondeletia notochord flexion occurs at about 3.5 mm sl and the elongate pelvic rays 2–4 are the most strongly pigmented part of the larvae. Cycloid scales (here reported in the family for the first time) are developing by 7 mm; these scales later migrate to form a layer directly over the muscles underneath the dermis. By 7 mm sl there is a unique organ, here termed Tominaga’s organ, separate from and below the nasal rosette, developing anterior to the eye.
  • Percomorph Phylogeny: a Survey of Acanthomorphs and a New Proposal

    Percomorph Phylogeny: a Survey of Acanthomorphs and a New Proposal

    BULLETIN OF MARINE SCIENCE, 52(1): 554-626, 1993 PERCOMORPH PHYLOGENY: A SURVEY OF ACANTHOMORPHS AND A NEW PROPOSAL G. David Johnson and Colin Patterson ABSTRACT The interrelationships of acanthomorph fishes are reviewed. We recognize seven mono- phyletic terminal taxa among acanthomorphs: Lampridiformes, Polymixiiformes, Paracan- thopterygii, Stephanoberyciformes, Beryciformes, Zeiformes, and a new taxon named Smeg- mamorpha. The Percomorpha, as currently constituted, are polyphyletic, and the Perciformes are probably paraphyletic. The smegmamorphs comprise five subgroups: Synbranchiformes (Synbranchoidei and Mastacembeloidei), Mugilomorpha (Mugiloidei), Elassomatidae (Elas- soma), Gasterosteiformes, and Atherinomorpha. Monophyly of Lampridiformes is justified elsewhere; we have found no new characters to substantiate the monophyly of Polymixi- iformes (which is not in doubt) or Paracanthopterygii. Stephanoberyciformes uniquely share a modification of the extrascapular, and Beryciformes a modification of the anterior part of the supraorbital and infraorbital sensory canals, here named Jakubowski's organ. Our Zei- formes excludes the Caproidae, and characters are proposed to justify the monophyly of the group in that restricted sense. The Smegmamorpha are thought to be monophyletic principally because of the configuration of the first vertebra and its intermuscular bone. Within the Smegmamorpha, the Atherinomorpha and Mugilomorpha are shown to be monophyletic elsewhere. Our Gasterosteiformes includes the syngnathoids and the Pegasiformes
  • Chapter 9. State of Deep-Sea Coral and Sponge Ecosystems of the U.S

    Chapter 9. State of Deep-Sea Coral and Sponge Ecosystems of the U.S

    State of Deep‐Sea Coral and Sponge Ecosystems of the Northeast United States Chapter 9 in The State of Deep‐Sea Coral and Sponge Ecosystems of the United States Report Recommended citation: Packer DB, Nizinski MS, Bachman MS, Drohan AF, Poti M, Kinlan BP (2017) State of Deep‐Sea Coral and Sponge Ecosystems of the Northeast United States. In: Hourigan TF, Etnoyer, PJ, Cairns, SD (eds.). The State of Deep‐Sea Coral and Sponge Ecosystems of the United States. NOAA Technical Memorandum NMFS‐OHC‐4, Silver Spring, MD. 62 p. Available online: http://deepseacoraldata.noaa.gov/library. An octopus hides in a rock wall dotted with cup coral and soft coral in Welker Canyon off New England. Courtesy of the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research. STATE OF DEEP‐SEA CORAL AND SPONGE ECOSYSTEMS OF THE NORTHEAST UNITED STATES STATE OF DEEP-SEA CORAL AND SPONGE David B. Packer1*, ECOSYSTEMS OF THE Martha S. NORTHEAST UNITED Nizinski2, Michelle S. STATES Bachman3, Amy F. Drohan1, I. Introduction Matthew Poti4, The Northeast region extends from Maine to North Carolina ends at and Brian P. the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). It encompasses the 4 continental shelf and slope of Georges Bank, southern New Kinlan England, and the Mid‐Atlantic Bight to Cape Hatteras as well as four New England Seamounts (Bear, Physalia, Mytilus, and 1 NOAA Habitat Ecology Retriever) located off the continental shelf near Georges Bank (Fig. Branch, Northeast Fisheries Science Center, 1). Of particular interest in the region is the Gulf of Maine, a semi‐ Sandy Hook, NJ enclosed, separate “sea within a sea” bounded by the Scotian Shelf * Corresponding Author: to the north (U.S.
  • Dynamics of the Continental Slope Demersal Fish Community in the Colombian Caribbean – Deep-Sea Research in the Caribbean

    Dynamics of the Continental Slope Demersal Fish Community in the Colombian Caribbean – Deep-Sea Research in the Caribbean

    Andrea Polanco Fernández Dynamics of the continental slope demersal fish community in the Colombian Caribbean – Deep-sea research in the Caribbean DYNAMICS OF THE CONTINENTAL SLOPE DEMERSAL FISH COMMUNITY IN THE COLOMBIAN CARIBBEAN Deep-sea research in the Caribbean by Andrea Polanco F. A Dissertation Submitted to the DEPARTMENT OF MINES (Universidad Nacional de Colombia) and the DEPARTMENT OF BIOLOGY & CHEMISTRY (Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany) in Fulfillment of the Requirements for obtaining the Degree of DOCTOR IN MARINE SCIENCES at UNIVERSIDAD NACIONAL DE COLOMBIA (UNal) and DOCTOR RER. NAT. at THE JUSTUS-LIEBIG-UNIVERSITY GIESSEN (UniGiessen) 2015 Deans: Prof. Dr. John William Branch Bedoya (Unal) Prof. Dr. Holger Zorn (UniGiessen) Advisors: Prof. Dr. Arturo Acero Pizarro (Unal) Prof. Dr. Thomas Wilke (UniGiessen) Andrea Polanco F. (2014) Dynamics of the continental slope demersal fish community in the Colombian Caribbean - Deep-sea research in the Caribbean. This dissertation has been submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for a cotutelled advanced degree at the Universidad Nacional de Colombia (UNal) and the Justus Liebig University of Giessen adviced by Professor Arturo Acero (UNal) and Professor Thomas Wilke (UniGiessen). A mi familia y al mar… mi vida! To my family and to the sea….. my life! Después de esto, jamás volveré a mirar el mar de la misma manera… Ahora, como un pez en el agua… rodeado de inmensidad y libertad. After this, I will never look again the sea in the same way Now, as a fish in the sea… surounded of inmensity and freedom. TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS .................................................................................................................................. I TABLE OF FIGURES ...................................................................................................................................
  • Deep-Ocean Climate Change Impacts on Habitat, Fish and Fisheries, by Lisa Levin, Maria Baker, and Anthony Thompson (Eds)

    Deep-Ocean Climate Change Impacts on Habitat, Fish and Fisheries, by Lisa Levin, Maria Baker, and Anthony Thompson (Eds)

    ISSN 2070-7010 FAO 638 FISHERIES AND AQUACULTURE TECHNICAL PAPER 638 Deep-ocean climate change impacts on habitat, fish and fisheries Deep-ocean climate change impacts on habitat, fish and fisheries This publication presents the outcome of a meeting between the FAO/UNEP ABNJ Deep-seas and Biodiversity project and the Deep Ocean Stewardship Initiative. It focuses on the impacts of climatic changes on demersal fisheries, and the interactions of these fisheries with other species and vulnerable marine ecosystems. Regional fisheries management organizations rely on scientific information to develop advice to managers. In recent decades, climate change has been a focus largely as a unidirectional forcing over decadal timescales. However, changes can occur abruptly when critical thresholds are crossed. Moreover, distribution changes are expected as populations shift from existing to new areas. Hence, there is a need for new monitoring programmes to help scientists understand how these changes affect productivity and biodiversity. costa = 9,4 mm ISBN 978-92-5-131126-4 ISSN 2070-7010 FA 9 789251 311264 CA2528EN/1/09.19 O Cover image: Time of emergence of seafloor climate changes. Figure 7 in Chapter 8 of this Technical Paper. FAO FISHERIES AND Deep-ocean climate change AQUACULTURE TECHNICAL impacts on habitat, fish and PAPER fisheries 638 Edited by Lisa Levin Center for Marine Biodiversity and Conservation and Integrative Oceanography Division Scripps Institution of Oceanography University of California San Diego United States of America Maria Baker University of Southampton National Oceanography Centre Southampton United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland Anthony Thompson Consultant Fisheries and Aquaculture Department Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Rome Italy FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS Rome, 2018 FAO.
  • SPOTLIGHT 8 Vailulu'u Seamount

    SPOTLIGHT 8 Vailulu'u Seamount

    or collective redistirbution of any portion article of any by of this or collective redistirbution MOUNTAINS IN THE SEA articleThis has in been published SPOTLIGHT 8 Vailulu’u Seamount 14°12.96'S, 169°03.46'W Oceanography By Anthony A.P. Koppers, Hubert Staudigel, Stanley R. Hart, Craig Young, and Jasper G. Konter , Volume 23, Number journal of The 1, a quarterly Oceanography Society. , Volume Vailulu’u seamount is an active under- in the crater rim. This interaction series of distinct ecological settings water volcano that marks the end of surrounds the volcano with a transient, may be used to explore the responses permitted photocopy machine, only is reposting, means or other the Samoan hotspot trail (Hart et al., 200-m-thick doughnut-shaped ring of of microbial and metazoan communi- 2000). Vailulu’u has a simple conical turbid waters whose traces have been ties to hydrothermal pollution. These morphology (Figure 1) with a largely detected as far as 7 km away. Vailulu’u’s settings include the deep crater floor enclosed volcanic crater at relatively overall heat output has been estimated at that is hydrothermally dominated, shallow water depths, ranging from 760 MW, the equivalent of 20–100 black allowing study of hydrothermal (over) 590 m (highest point on the crater rim) smokers found at the mid-ocean ridges. exposure, and the top of Nafanua and to 1050 m (crater floor). The crater High manganese (Mn) concentra- the crater breach areas, where expo- hosts a 300-m-high central volcanic tions (up to 7.3 nmol kg-1) in the water sure to intense hydrothermal activity cone, Nafanua, that was formed between result in manganese export fluxes of is regularly interchanged with influxes 2001 and 2004.
  • Order LOPHIIFORMES LOPHIIDAE Anglerfishes (Goosefishes, Monkfishes) by J.H

    Order LOPHIIFORMES LOPHIIDAE Anglerfishes (Goosefishes, Monkfishes) by J.H

    click for previous page Lophiiformes: Lophiidae 1043 Order LOPHIIFORMES LOPHIIDAE Anglerfishes (goosefishes, monkfishes) by J.H. Caruso, University of New Orleans, Louisianna, USA iagnostic characters: Head and anterior part of body much depressed and very broad, posterior Dportion of body tapering; maximum size to about 200 cm, about 120 cm in the area, commonly 25 to 45 cm. Head rounded, bearing numerous sharp spines and ridges on dorsal and lateral surfaces, the most conspicuous of which are the following: 1 very large prominent spine or group of spines immediately an- terior to each pectoral-fin base (humeral spines); 1 pair of sharp prominent spines on either side of snout, im- mediately behind mouth (palatine spines); a bony ridge above eyes with 2 or 3 short spines (frontal spines); and 2 bony ridges on snout running forward from eyes (frontal ridges); interorbital space slightly concave. Mouth very large and wide, upper jaw protractile and the lower projecting, both bearing numerous long, sharp, depressible teeth; gill openings fairly large, low in pectoral-fin axil, sometimes extending for- ward in front of pectoral-fin base. Two separate dorsal fins, the first composed of 2 or 3 isolated slender spines on head (cephalic spines) and of 1 to 3 spines (often connected by a membrane, at least in juve- niles), at the level of pectoral fins (postcephalic spines); first 2 cephalic spines located at anterior end of snout, the foremost modified into an angling apparatus, usually bearing a fleshy appendage (esca) at tip;the third cephalic spine, when present, is located at level of humeral spines;anal fin with 6 to 11 soft rays, below second dorsal fin; caudal fin with 8 rays, the 2 outer rays unbranched; pectoral-fin rays unbranched, ter- minating in small fleshy filaments; pelvic fins on ventral surface of head, anterior to pectoral fins.
  • Inventory and Atlas of Corals and Coral Reefs, with Emphasis on Deep-Water Coral Reefs from the U

    Inventory and Atlas of Corals and Coral Reefs, with Emphasis on Deep-Water Coral Reefs from the U

    Inventory and Atlas of Corals and Coral Reefs, with Emphasis on Deep-Water Coral Reefs from the U. S. Caribbean EEZ Jorge R. García Sais SEDAR26-RD-02 FINAL REPORT Inventory and Atlas of Corals and Coral Reefs, with Emphasis on Deep-Water Coral Reefs from the U. S. Caribbean EEZ Submitted to the: Caribbean Fishery Management Council San Juan, Puerto Rico By: Dr. Jorge R. García Sais dba Reef Surveys P. O. Box 3015;Lajas, P. R. 00667 [email protected] December, 2005 i Table of Contents Page I. Executive Summary 1 II. Introduction 4 III. Study Objectives 7 IV. Methods 8 A. Recuperation of Historical Data 8 B. Atlas map of deep reefs of PR and the USVI 11 C. Field Study at Isla Desecheo, PR 12 1. Sessile-Benthic Communities 12 2. Fishes and Motile Megabenthic Invertebrates 13 3. Statistical Analyses 15 V. Results and Discussion 15 A. Literature Review 15 1. Historical Overview 15 2. Recent Investigations 22 B. Geographical Distribution and Physical Characteristics 36 of Deep Reef Systems of Puerto Rico and the U. S. Virgin Islands C. Taxonomic Characterization of Sessile-Benthic 49 Communities Associated With Deep Sea Habitats of Puerto Rico and the U. S. Virgin Islands 1. Benthic Algae 49 2. Sponges (Phylum Porifera) 53 3. Corals (Phylum Cnidaria: Scleractinia 57 and Antipatharia) 4. Gorgonians (Sub-Class Octocorallia 65 D. Taxonomic Characterization of Sessile-Benthic Communities 68 Associated with Deep Sea Habitats of Puerto Rico and the U. S. Virgin Islands 1. Echinoderms 68 2. Decapod Crustaceans 72 3. Mollusks 78 E.
  • Two New Deep-Sea Anglerfishes (Oneirodidae and Gigantactidae) from Taiwan, with Synopsis of Taiwanese Ceratioids

    Two New Deep-Sea Anglerfishes (Oneirodidae and Gigantactidae) from Taiwan, with Synopsis of Taiwanese Ceratioids

    Zootaxa 4702 (1): 010–018 ISSN 1175-5326 (print edition) https://www.mapress.com/j/zt/ Article ZOOTAXA Copyright © 2019 Magnolia Press ISSN 1175-5334 (online edition) https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4702.1.5 http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:F7BCE3B0-220C-466F-A3A5-1D9D2606A7CA Two new deep-sea anglerfishes (Oneirodidae and Gigantactidae) from Taiwan, with synopsis of Taiwanese ceratioids HSUAN-CHING HO1,2* & KWANG-TSAO SHAO3 1 National Museum of Marine Biology & Aquarium, Pingtung, Taiwan 2Institute of Marine Biology, National Dong Hwa University, Pingtung, Taiwan 3Institute of Marine Biology, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung, Taiwan *Corresponding author. E-mail: [email protected] Abstract Two new species of deep-sea anglerfishes are described on the basis of specimens collected from off northeastern Taiwan. Oneirodes formosanus sp. nov., based on one adult female, differs from its congeners in having a deep caudal peduncle (15.4% SL) and esca with a single simple, elongate, unbranched, internally pigmented, anterior escal appendage; a simple, elongate, posterior escal appendage; an elongate terminal escal papilla; and no medial and lateral escal appendages. Gigantactis cheni sp. nov., based on three adult females, differs from its congeners in having a series of unpigmented filaments at base of illicium; a black terminal elongated esca bearing numerous dermal spinules; relatively more jaws teeth with the outtermost ones relatively short. A synopsis of Taiwanese species of the suborder Ceratioidei is provided. Keywords: Lophiiformes, Oneirodes formosanus sp. nov., Gigantactis cheni sp. nov., deep-sea fish, Taiwan Introduction Deep-sea anglerfishes (suborder Ceratioidei) from Taiwanese waters were poorly known until deep-sea biodiversity surveys were made in recent two decades.
  • The Ceratioid Anglerfishes (Lophiiformes: Ceratioidei) of New Zealand

    The Ceratioid Anglerfishes (Lophiiformes: Ceratioidei) of New Zealand

    © Journal of The Royal Society of New Zealand, Volume 28, Number 1, March 1998, pp 1-37 The ceratioid anglerfishes (Lophiiformes: Ceratioidei) of New Zealand A. L. Stewart1, T. W. Pietsch2 Ceratioid anglerfishes collected from New Zealand waters are reviewed on the basis of all known material. Twenty species in nine genera and six families are recognised; nine species represent new records for the region, and one species of Oneirodes is described as new to science. Diagnostic and descriptive data are given with notes on geographical distribution. Diagnoses of all ceratioid families are provided, against the possibility of capture within the New Zealand EEZ. Keywords: taxonomy; anglerfishes; Ceratioidei; New Zealand; new records; Oneirodes new species INTRODUCTION With the declaration in 1978 of a 200 nautical mile Exclusive Economic Zone (Fig. 1), New Zealand acquired the fourth-largest such zone in the world, of over 4 000 000 km2 (Blezard 1980). Much of this area encompasses depths greater than 500 m. Subsequent trawling at depths of 800-1200 m for orange roughy, Hoplostethus atlanticus Collett, and other deep- water commercial species has resulted in a substantial bathypelagic and mesopelagic by- catch, including ceratioid anglerfishes (order Lophiiformes) representing six families, nine genera and twenty species. This paper summarises information to date, documents new material and geographical distributions, revises keys, and provides diagnoses, descriptions and illustrations of species supported by voucher specimens. Because most of the approximately 136 species of Ceratioidei (Pietsch & Grobecker 1987) have a wide distribution, diagnoses and a key to all families are provided against the possibility that they might occur in New Zealand waters.
  • Mitogenomic Sequences and Evidence from Unique Gene Rearrangements Corroborate Evolutionary Relationships of Myctophiformes (Neoteleostei) Poulsen Et Al

    Mitogenomic Sequences and Evidence from Unique Gene Rearrangements Corroborate Evolutionary Relationships of Myctophiformes (Neoteleostei) Poulsen Et Al

    Mitogenomic sequences and evidence from unique gene rearrangements corroborate evolutionary relationships of myctophiformes (Neoteleostei) Poulsen et al. Poulsen et al. BMC Evolutionary Biology 2013, 13:111 http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2148/13/111 Poulsen et al. BMC Evolutionary Biology 2013, 13:111 http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2148/13/111 RESEARCH ARTICLE Open Access Mitogenomic sequences and evidence from unique gene rearrangements corroborate evolutionary relationships of myctophiformes (Neoteleostei) Jan Y Poulsen1*, Ingvar Byrkjedal1, Endre Willassen1, David Rees1, Hirohiko Takeshima2, Takashi P Satoh3, Gento Shinohara3, Mutsumi Nishida2 and Masaki Miya4 Abstract Background: A skewed assemblage of two epi-, meso- and bathypelagic fish families makes up the order Myctophiformes – the blackchins Neoscopelidae and the lanternfishes Myctophidae. The six rare neoscopelids show few morphological specializations whereas the divergent myctophids have evolved into about 250 species, of which many show massive abundances and wide distributions. In fact, Myctophidae is by far the most abundant fish family in the world, with plausible estimates of more than half of the oceans combined fish biomass. Myctophids possess a unique communication system of species-specific photophore patterns and traditional intrafamilial classification has been established to reflect arrangements of photophores. Myctophids present the most diverse array of larval body forms found in fishes although this attribute has both corroborated and confounded phylogenetic hypotheses based on adult morphology. No molecular phylogeny is available for Myctophiformes, despite their importance within all ocean trophic cycles, open-ocean speciation and as an important part of neoteleost divergence. This study attempts to resolve major myctophiform phylogenies from both mitogenomic sequences and corroborating evidence in the form of unique mitochondrial gene order rearrangements.