1
Championship classes are G- catfish, I-Betta splendens and Oa-q male guppies.
Diamond Class T- AOS Livebearers (not those in class Ta)
Videos of the 2017 & back to 2001 Fish Show at Southend are at vimeo.com/southendaquarist
==========================
New species of glass knifefish Eigenmannialoretana (Gymnotiformes: Sternopygidae) from the Western Amazon
BRANDON T. WALTZ, JAMES S. ALBERT
Abstract
A new species of the Eigenmannia trilineata species group is described from the Loreto, Peru region of the western Amazon basin. The new species is similar in external appearance to members of the E. trilineataspecies group, but has a distinct phenotype, being diagnosed from congeners by the following unique combination of characters: four longitudinal dark pigment stipes on the lateral surfaces (over the lateral line, hypaxial muscles, proximal and distal pterygiophore margins); short, relatively round head (head depth 86.8–96.7% head length) with a terminal mouth; intermediate posterodorsal expansion of infraorbital bones 1+2 (60–75% length of infraorbitals 1+2); 11–15 teeth in three rows on the premaxilla; six to seven teeth in a single row on the endopterygoid; eye high on head (suborbital depth 28–36% head length); ii, 13–14 pectoral-fin rays; 183–219 anal-fin rays; and a uniformly dark brown head and pectoral fins on freshly-preserved specimens. The new species extends the geographic range of described species of the E. trilineata species group to the Western Amazon. This new species elevates the current number of valid species within the E. trilineata species group to 15, and the number of species within Eigenmannia to 20.
==========================
A new species of Anchoviella (Clupeiformes: Engraulidae) from the western Amazon River in Peru, with comments on congeners in the Peruvian Amazon RiverM. V. Loeb
H. R. Varella
N. A. Menezes
First published: 6 April 2018
https://doi.org/10.1111/jfb.13601urn:lsid: zoobank.org:pub:E47A5671‐6FBB‐4C15‐B738‐FC9D7132B6C8.
AbstractAnchoviella hernanni sp. nov. is described from the upper Amazon River basin, in tributaries of the Marañon, Ucayali and Madre de Dios river drainages that drain the Peruvian Andes. The new taxon can be distinguished from all congeners except Anchoviella jamesi, Anchoviella manamensis and Anchoviella perezi, by having 12–15 gill rakers in the lower branch of the first gill arch (v·16–35) and from those species by the distance between verticals through the posterior margin of the orbit to the posterior margin of the upper jaw 9·5–14·8% head length; LH (v. up to 6·0% LH). An updated identification key of all freshwater species of Anchoviella and morphological comparisons between all species of the genus occurring in Peru are provided.
==========================
H. R. Varella
N. A. Menezes
First published: 6 April 2018
https://doi.org/10.1111/jfb.13601urn:lsid: zoobank.org:pub:E47A5671‐6FBB‐4C15‐B738‐FC9D7132B6C8.
AbstractAnchoviella hernanni sp. nov. is described from the upper Amazon River basin, in tributaries of the Marañon, Ucayali and Madre de Dios river drainages that drain the Peruvian Andes. The new taxon can be distinguished from all congeners except Anchoviella jamesi, Anchoviella manamensis and Anchoviella perezi, by having 12–15 gill rakers in the lower branch of the first gill arch (v·16–35) and from those species by the distance between verticals through the posterior margin of the orbit to the posterior margin of the upper jaw 9·5–14·8% head length; LH (v. up to 6·0% LH). An updated identification key of all freshwater species of Anchoviella and morphological comparisons between all species of the genus occurring in Peru are provided.
==========================
Hisonotus devidei, a new species from the São Francisco basin, Brazil (Siluriformes: Loricariidae)F. F. Roxo
G. S. C. Silva
B. F. Melo
First published: 19 April 2018
https://doi.org/10.1111/jfb.13599urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:5CDDA9ED‐D157‐4 EB7‐ 8 AC0‐AB8984C3048F
Abstract A recent expedition to headwaters of the Rio Pandeiros, a left‐bank tributary of the Rio São Francisco revealed the presence of a fourth species of Hisonotusfrom that basin. Hisonotus devidei sp. nov. differs from congeners by the presence of conspicuous dark blotches of distinct shapes irregularly arranged along lateral and dorsal surfaces of the body and scattered throughout all fins, by possessing small plates in lateral portions of the abdomen and adjacent areas between pelvic fins without development of dermal plates and by morphometric ratios. The putative phylogenetic placement of the new species is discussed based on morphological comparisons with species of related Hypoptopomatinae genera and the Hisonotus species diversity within the Rio São Francisco Basin is compared with that of adjacent basins.
from Wiley Online libary
==========================
G. S. C. Silva
B. F. Melo
First published: 19 April 2018
https://doi.org/10.1111/jfb.13599urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:5CDDA9ED‐D157‐4 EB7‐ 8 AC0‐AB8984C3048F
Abstract A recent expedition to headwaters of the Rio Pandeiros, a left‐bank tributary of the Rio São Francisco revealed the presence of a fourth species of Hisonotusfrom that basin. Hisonotus devidei sp. nov. differs from congeners by the presence of conspicuous dark blotches of distinct shapes irregularly arranged along lateral and dorsal surfaces of the body and scattered throughout all fins, by possessing small plates in lateral portions of the abdomen and adjacent areas between pelvic fins without development of dermal plates and by morphometric ratios. The putative phylogenetic placement of the new species is discussed based on morphological comparisons with species of related Hypoptopomatinae genera and the Hisonotus species diversity within the Rio São Francisco Basin is compared with that of adjacent basins.
from Wiley Online libary
==========================
The World’s Rivers Are All Blocked Up, Leaving Fish With No Place To Go
Imagine you’re heading out for a dinner date. You’re hungry and left enough time to get there and not be late, but when you step outside you find that conditions aren’t quite what you expected — you run into a 30-foot wall every few steps. What would you do? If you’re anything like me, you would probably just give up — stymied, hungry, un-romanced.
This is what’s happening for fish and aquatic wildlife in Europe: according to new research, there is a dam or other manmade obstruction blocking the continent’s rivers and streams every kilometer. The researchers figured this out by scraping whatever information they could find online, then went out and confirmed it for a total 1,000 kilometers. And, notably, the number of barriers they found was about thirty times larger than the number reported in existing (and outdated) databases.
Those researchers are launching an app that will allow people update the status of river and stream barriers as they come across them.
But, ultimately, a better database doesn’t help the trapped fish (that is, unless someone does something about it). What’s more, that project would create a database that is far from comprehensive, since this problem goes beyond Europe.
Look at the Amazon River, for example. As of February, there were 142 hydroelectric dams that were at least partially constructed and another 160 proposed across the mighty river; as a result, migratory fish like the migratory dorado catfish have already begun to disappear. And in the Pacific Northwest, salmon are being blocked by dams and need to be transported upstream so they can spawn.
This is not a new problem. Back in 2001, computer models already showed how river fragmentation directly lead to extinction. And yet the U.S. Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy’s best solution is — no seriously — a literal goddamn Salmon Cannon.
Yes, interventions like this can help some fish survive, as long as people are there to place them on their personal waterslide. But it doesn’t address the other problems caused by river fragmentation, like the changes to the Amazon’s floodplains and other areas around dams. And even when people build dams that have bypass channels specifically intended to help fish get through, large populations of fish simply don’t go into them.
An obvious solution: stop building so many dams. But the hydroelectric power the structures generate can be a crucial source of emission-free energy for industrializing nations that were left with very little room to industrialize under the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement.
The better answer seems to be to drain the dams we no longer need. That research into European river barriers also found that a number of the dams and other blocks out there are totally obsolete. These, like many other dams around the world, are still physically in place. Local governments have slowly made efforts to do this, but those are isolated cases.
So if you’re hiking a river trail and documenting barriers for that new app, we’re not saying you should knock over a barrier or two, but we’ll understand why you did it.
==========================
Imagine you’re heading out for a dinner date. You’re hungry and left enough time to get there and not be late, but when you step outside you find that conditions aren’t quite what you expected — you run into a 30-foot wall every few steps. What would you do? If you’re anything like me, you would probably just give up — stymied, hungry, un-romanced.
This is what’s happening for fish and aquatic wildlife in Europe: according to new research, there is a dam or other manmade obstruction blocking the continent’s rivers and streams every kilometer. The researchers figured this out by scraping whatever information they could find online, then went out and confirmed it for a total 1,000 kilometers. And, notably, the number of barriers they found was about thirty times larger than the number reported in existing (and outdated) databases.
Those researchers are launching an app that will allow people update the status of river and stream barriers as they come across them.
But, ultimately, a better database doesn’t help the trapped fish (that is, unless someone does something about it). What’s more, that project would create a database that is far from comprehensive, since this problem goes beyond Europe.
Look at the Amazon River, for example. As of February, there were 142 hydroelectric dams that were at least partially constructed and another 160 proposed across the mighty river; as a result, migratory fish like the migratory dorado catfish have already begun to disappear. And in the Pacific Northwest, salmon are being blocked by dams and need to be transported upstream so they can spawn.
This is not a new problem. Back in 2001, computer models already showed how river fragmentation directly lead to extinction. And yet the U.S. Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy’s best solution is — no seriously — a literal goddamn Salmon Cannon.
Yes, interventions like this can help some fish survive, as long as people are there to place them on their personal waterslide. But it doesn’t address the other problems caused by river fragmentation, like the changes to the Amazon’s floodplains and other areas around dams. And even when people build dams that have bypass channels specifically intended to help fish get through, large populations of fish simply don’t go into them.
An obvious solution: stop building so many dams. But the hydroelectric power the structures generate can be a crucial source of emission-free energy for industrializing nations that were left with very little room to industrialize under the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement.
The better answer seems to be to drain the dams we no longer need. That research into European river barriers also found that a number of the dams and other blocks out there are totally obsolete. These, like many other dams around the world, are still physically in place. Local governments have slowly made efforts to do this, but those are isolated cases.
So if you’re hiking a river trail and documenting barriers for that new app, we’re not saying you should knock over a barrier or two, but we’ll understand why you did it.
==========================
Fishkeeping in Southend for over 83 years
==================
There’s koi fish loose near the Cornwallis River, Nova Scotia and it concerns one professor
Goldfish can be seen in the Cornwallis River in this Facebook photo.An Acadia University biologist says reports of koi fish — or carp — in or along the Cornwallis River in Kings County are “interesting,” but that assessment could change depending on whether the fish flourish and establish themselves in the river.
Trevor Avery, an associate professor in the biology department who studies aquatic systems and introduced species, hadn’t heard of the reports before being contacted.
“That wouldn’t suprise me,” he said. He said the fish could be cast off or escaped from ornamental ponds, or have been moved by people.
“At this point I think I would call it interesting, but I think it could turn into something that’s concerning,” he said.
Photos posted on Facebook earlier this month show a school of the fish in what was described as a “pothole” or isolated pool in the wetland along the south side of the river in the bird sanctuary between Kentville and Coldbrook. But the river is notorious for flooding and some worry the fish could be washed into the river, if they haven’t been already.
At least two other people have commented online about seeing the fish over the past two years, with one mentioning an area of the river in Kentville.
Avery said the fish wouldn’t be in parts of the river where the salt content is higher. The river is tidal and flows into the Minas Basin near Port Williams but has less salinity in its western reaches.
Koi can grow up to a metre in length if food supply and conditions allow.
Avery said there is a definite danger of the fish being moved into the river by floodwaters.
He said they aren’t a predator fish so they won’t likely feed on much more than algae, and if they ate young fish it would be an opportunistic thing because the fish are in the wrong place at the wrong time.
But they could still be problematic, he said.
“If there’s a lot of them, then they’re taking nutrients and resources out of the system that the larvae of other fish might be feeding on as well,” he said. “And space, too. . . . If they’re occupying all the space, then other fish can’t occupy it.”
The river is home to brook trout and brown trout.
“This looks like it needs to be looked into much more,” Avery said.
He said he will likely try to get out to the river to look for the fish, and also to see if they are spawning.
Avery said that it’s more difficult for invasive species to become established if there is a variety of species of fish already in an area, “but if there’s nothing, it’s very easy to make a footprint. That would be one of the concerns I would have here: Are these koi in the system because there’s not much there, and are they going to thrive in that system?”
He said he’s not aware of koi being well established anywhere in the province.
The provincial Fisheries Department said in an emailed statement that large populations of the species may disturb sport fish habitats, and Nova Scotians shouldn’t dispose of goldfish or similar fish in any water source.
==========================
Goldfish can be seen in the Cornwallis River in this Facebook photo.An Acadia University biologist says reports of koi fish — or carp — in or along the Cornwallis River in Kings County are “interesting,” but that assessment could change depending on whether the fish flourish and establish themselves in the river.
Trevor Avery, an associate professor in the biology department who studies aquatic systems and introduced species, hadn’t heard of the reports before being contacted.
“That wouldn’t suprise me,” he said. He said the fish could be cast off or escaped from ornamental ponds, or have been moved by people.
“At this point I think I would call it interesting, but I think it could turn into something that’s concerning,” he said.
Photos posted on Facebook earlier this month show a school of the fish in what was described as a “pothole” or isolated pool in the wetland along the south side of the river in the bird sanctuary between Kentville and Coldbrook. But the river is notorious for flooding and some worry the fish could be washed into the river, if they haven’t been already.
At least two other people have commented online about seeing the fish over the past two years, with one mentioning an area of the river in Kentville.
Avery said the fish wouldn’t be in parts of the river where the salt content is higher. The river is tidal and flows into the Minas Basin near Port Williams but has less salinity in its western reaches.
Koi can grow up to a metre in length if food supply and conditions allow.
Avery said there is a definite danger of the fish being moved into the river by floodwaters.
He said they aren’t a predator fish so they won’t likely feed on much more than algae, and if they ate young fish it would be an opportunistic thing because the fish are in the wrong place at the wrong time.
But they could still be problematic, he said.
“If there’s a lot of them, then they’re taking nutrients and resources out of the system that the larvae of other fish might be feeding on as well,” he said. “And space, too. . . . If they’re occupying all the space, then other fish can’t occupy it.”
The river is home to brook trout and brown trout.
“This looks like it needs to be looked into much more,” Avery said.
He said he will likely try to get out to the river to look for the fish, and also to see if they are spawning.
Avery said that it’s more difficult for invasive species to become established if there is a variety of species of fish already in an area, “but if there’s nothing, it’s very easy to make a footprint. That would be one of the concerns I would have here: Are these koi in the system because there’s not much there, and are they going to thrive in that system?”
He said he’s not aware of koi being well established anywhere in the province.
The provincial Fisheries Department said in an emailed statement that large populations of the species may disturb sport fish habitats, and Nova Scotians shouldn’t dispose of goldfish or similar fish in any water source.
==========================
Small changes in rainforests cause big damage to fish ecosystemsDate:
April 19, 2018
Source:
Imperial College London
Summary:
Using lasers, researchers have connected, arranged and merged artificial cells, paving the way for networks of artificial cells acting as tissues.
Share:
FULL STORY
Sampling at the Brantian River, Sabah, Borneo.
Credit: Clare WilkinsonFreshwater fish diversity is harmed as much by selective logging in rainforests as they are by complete deforestation, according to a new study.
Researchers had expected the level of damage would rise depending on the amount of logging and were surprised to discover the impact of removing relatively few trees.
There are many types of logging that occur in rainforests, from 'selective logging' -- only taking certain species -- to complete logging and the transformation of the rainforest to oil-palm plantations.
Different types of animals react to these changes in often complex ways. However, a new study published today in Biological Conservation shows that for freshwater fish, any logging is too much. The team, led by Imperial College London, found a drop in fish biodiversity -- the number of different species -- across all logging types.
The authors of the paper say the result suggests a rethink in how freshwater ecosystems are protected in these forests.
Lead author Clare Wilkinson, from the Department of Life Sciences at Imperial, said: "That such a small change can impact fish biodiversity is shocking and worrying. We expected to see a gradient from least affected in the selectively logged areas, to heavily impacted for the streams in oil palm plantations. Instead, we saw almost the same level of fish biodiversity loss in all altered environments."
The team sampled 23 streams in Borneo as part of the SAFE (Stability of Altered Forest Ecosystems) Project, which investigates environmental changes across a gradient from primary forest to oil palm plantation.
They found that fish diversity was decreased in all logged areas compared to within virgin forest, and that the time since logging did not affect the level of change. All logged regions suffered similar levels of losses irrespective of whether only select trees were taken or all of them, or whether the logging was recent or further in the past.
Researchers believe the reasons for these dramatic changes are likely to be down to a range of factors that affect stream habitats when trees are lost. Trees provide shade, creating cooler patches of stream that many fish need to spawn. Older, taller trees provide more of this shade, but they are the ones usually removed in selective logging. Leaf litter from these trees also helps to keep the streams cool and to concentrate food sources.
The loss of trees also increases soil erosion, meaning banks are more susceptible to collapse and more sediment ends up in the stream. This had the effect of making streams shallower and wider, limiting the types of species that can use the habitat.
For oil palm plantations to be labelled 'sustainable, they must include a riparian zone -- a buffer of forest land immediately bordering streams -- of at least 30 metres. However, in none the streams sampled in oil palm areas in this study, did the presence of a 30 metre riparian zone reduce the damage to fish biodiversity.
Wilkinson said: "The freshwater fish in these streams are a food source for local people, so maintaining biodiversity is important. Our study suggests that current protections are not good enough in that they do not prioritise conserving intact forest, and are not sufficient to protect fish in more altered environments."
Story Source:
Materials provided by Imperial College London. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
Journal Reference:
Imperial College London. "Small changes in rainforests cause big damage to fish ecosystems." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 19 April 2018. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/04/180419130945.htm>.
==========================
April 19, 2018
Source:
Imperial College London
Summary:
Using lasers, researchers have connected, arranged and merged artificial cells, paving the way for networks of artificial cells acting as tissues.
Share:
FULL STORY
Sampling at the Brantian River, Sabah, Borneo.
Credit: Clare WilkinsonFreshwater fish diversity is harmed as much by selective logging in rainforests as they are by complete deforestation, according to a new study.
Researchers had expected the level of damage would rise depending on the amount of logging and were surprised to discover the impact of removing relatively few trees.
There are many types of logging that occur in rainforests, from 'selective logging' -- only taking certain species -- to complete logging and the transformation of the rainforest to oil-palm plantations.
Different types of animals react to these changes in often complex ways. However, a new study published today in Biological Conservation shows that for freshwater fish, any logging is too much. The team, led by Imperial College London, found a drop in fish biodiversity -- the number of different species -- across all logging types.
The authors of the paper say the result suggests a rethink in how freshwater ecosystems are protected in these forests.
Lead author Clare Wilkinson, from the Department of Life Sciences at Imperial, said: "That such a small change can impact fish biodiversity is shocking and worrying. We expected to see a gradient from least affected in the selectively logged areas, to heavily impacted for the streams in oil palm plantations. Instead, we saw almost the same level of fish biodiversity loss in all altered environments."
The team sampled 23 streams in Borneo as part of the SAFE (Stability of Altered Forest Ecosystems) Project, which investigates environmental changes across a gradient from primary forest to oil palm plantation.
They found that fish diversity was decreased in all logged areas compared to within virgin forest, and that the time since logging did not affect the level of change. All logged regions suffered similar levels of losses irrespective of whether only select trees were taken or all of them, or whether the logging was recent or further in the past.
Researchers believe the reasons for these dramatic changes are likely to be down to a range of factors that affect stream habitats when trees are lost. Trees provide shade, creating cooler patches of stream that many fish need to spawn. Older, taller trees provide more of this shade, but they are the ones usually removed in selective logging. Leaf litter from these trees also helps to keep the streams cool and to concentrate food sources.
The loss of trees also increases soil erosion, meaning banks are more susceptible to collapse and more sediment ends up in the stream. This had the effect of making streams shallower and wider, limiting the types of species that can use the habitat.
For oil palm plantations to be labelled 'sustainable, they must include a riparian zone -- a buffer of forest land immediately bordering streams -- of at least 30 metres. However, in none the streams sampled in oil palm areas in this study, did the presence of a 30 metre riparian zone reduce the damage to fish biodiversity.
Wilkinson said: "The freshwater fish in these streams are a food source for local people, so maintaining biodiversity is important. Our study suggests that current protections are not good enough in that they do not prioritise conserving intact forest, and are not sufficient to protect fish in more altered environments."
Story Source:
Materials provided by Imperial College London. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
Journal Reference:
- Clare L. Wilkinson, Darren C.J. Yeo, Heok Hui Tan, Arman Hadi Fikri, Robert M. Ewers. Land-use change is associated with a significant loss of freshwater fish species and functional richness in Sabah, Malaysia. Biological Conservation, 2018; 222: 164 DOI: 10.1016/j.biocon.2018.04.004
Imperial College London. "Small changes in rainforests cause big damage to fish ecosystems." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 19 April 2018. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/04/180419130945.htm>.
==========================
Hawai’i Bans Amateur Collection of Live Marine Fishes
20 Apr, 2018
“This is legal; catching them alive for an aquarium is not. No permit needed to kill them.” Paku Ikui (Achilles Tangs) on ice for sale at $4.99 a pound in a Hawaiian fish market. Image: Hiloliving.com
CORAL Staff Report
“Now kids can’t catch fish for their aquariums….”
Writing from his home in Honolulu, this was how Dr. Bruce Carlson, marine biologist and former director of the Waikiki Aquarium, first reacted to news that a court in Hawai’i had just expanded the ban on collecting live marine fishes to recreational marine life enthusiasts. The ruling effectively put a complete to halt the state’s collection of live fishes for aquariums. (See background articles.)
First, the courts invalidated the state’s commercial aquarium fine-mesh net fishing permits, which led to a virtual shutdown of the industry in Hawai’i. Then, Hawaii’s DLNR closed the main fishery for aquarium fish in Hawai’i, putting the West Hawai’i Regional Fishery Management Area off limits.
Recreational Fishing Banned In Hawaii
Now, in addition to effectively ending the commercial collection of reef fish pending environmental review, Hawai’i’s First Circuit Court has issued a new ruling which invalidates recreational aquarium fishing permits. These permits allowed private individuals to collect marine fish for personal use in home aquariums. Reports state that the issuance of the current recreational permits, which authorized the collection of up to 5 fish per day, failed to comply with the environmental impact assessment requirements of the Hawai’i Environmental Policy Act.
Sport and recreational fishing with poles and hooks, and spearfishing which kills reef fishes, are both still allowed.
Other than the newly invalidated recreational aquarium fishing permits, there are no license requirements for recreational fishing in the ocean in the state of Hawai’i. (“There is no marine recreational fishing license in Hawai‘i for either residents or visitors, so you don’t need to worry about that as long as you don’t sell your catch.” – Hawai’i DLNR Fishing FAQ)
Dr. Bruce Carlson
Dr. Carlson also forwarded a copy of the image shown above to the CORAL editorial offices above with the comment: “This is legal; catching them alive for an aquarium is not. No permit needed to kill them.”
A check on the current price for a single Achilles Tang in the retail US aquarium trade is $299 and upward, although many suppliers are out of stock as Hawai’i’s collection bans have severely hampered the trade in many species.
Victory for Anti-Aquarium Coalition
According to an article by Timothy Hurley in the Honolulu Star Advertiser: “Thursday’s decision by First Circuit Judge Jeffrey Crabtree means no such fishing is legally permitted in the islands until the appropriate level of environmental review is developed and approved.
“The ruling is the latest legal victory for plaintiffs Rene Umberger, Mike Nakachi, Ka‘imi Kaupiko, Willie Kaupiko, the Conservation Council for Hawai‘i, the Humane Society of the United States and the Center for Biological Diversity.
“Represented by the Earthjustice environmental law firm, the group sued the state Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) in 2012 for failing to comply with Hawaii’s Environmental Policy Act, which requires the government to consider environmental impacts in its actions.” (Link to full article below.)
Aquarium Trade Responses
Members of the Aquarium Fishery community and the aquarium trade are counting on responses from the DLNR and Environmental Assessments that use scientific data to support a reopening of the issuance of aquarium collection permits. All such current published data indicates that the aquarium trade in Hawai’i is sustainable and causing no significant harm to the state’s reefs and marine resources. (See “Pulse Check,” Sources, below.)
The Pet Industry Joint Action Council (PIJAC), based in Washington, DC, is supporting work on Environmental Assessments that they hope will support a return to legal commercial collection of aquarium fishes. Presumably, kids with nets would also be able to return to the states inshore waters and beaches.
SOURCES
Honolulu Star Advertiser:
“Recreational aquarium fishing is blocked,” by Timothy Hurley, April 17, 2018
Additional Information:
Hawai’i’s DAR Fishing License and Permit Information
Hawai’i DAR Fishing FAQs
Humane Society of the United States: “Hawai‘i Court Voids All Existing Recreational Aquarium Collection Permits,”
The Maui News: “Oahu court invalidates state-issued permits to collect tropical fish in wild,” by Melisa Tanji, April 17, 2018
West Hawai’i Today: “Recreational aquarium collection permits voided,” by Gita Howard, April 17, 2018
Reef to Rainforest:
“A Pulse Check on Hawai’i’s Aquarium Fishing Ban: Draft Assessments Published“, by Matt Pedersen, April 13, 2018
“Hawai’i’s Contentious Inshore Fisheries, By the Numbers,” by Dr. Bruce Carlson, April 13, 2018
Image: Hilo Living Blog
From Amazonas Magazine
==========================
20 Apr, 2018
“This is legal; catching them alive for an aquarium is not. No permit needed to kill them.” Paku Ikui (Achilles Tangs) on ice for sale at $4.99 a pound in a Hawaiian fish market. Image: Hiloliving.com
CORAL Staff Report
“Now kids can’t catch fish for their aquariums….”
Writing from his home in Honolulu, this was how Dr. Bruce Carlson, marine biologist and former director of the Waikiki Aquarium, first reacted to news that a court in Hawai’i had just expanded the ban on collecting live marine fishes to recreational marine life enthusiasts. The ruling effectively put a complete to halt the state’s collection of live fishes for aquariums. (See background articles.)
First, the courts invalidated the state’s commercial aquarium fine-mesh net fishing permits, which led to a virtual shutdown of the industry in Hawai’i. Then, Hawaii’s DLNR closed the main fishery for aquarium fish in Hawai’i, putting the West Hawai’i Regional Fishery Management Area off limits.
Recreational Fishing Banned In Hawaii
Now, in addition to effectively ending the commercial collection of reef fish pending environmental review, Hawai’i’s First Circuit Court has issued a new ruling which invalidates recreational aquarium fishing permits. These permits allowed private individuals to collect marine fish for personal use in home aquariums. Reports state that the issuance of the current recreational permits, which authorized the collection of up to 5 fish per day, failed to comply with the environmental impact assessment requirements of the Hawai’i Environmental Policy Act.
Sport and recreational fishing with poles and hooks, and spearfishing which kills reef fishes, are both still allowed.
Other than the newly invalidated recreational aquarium fishing permits, there are no license requirements for recreational fishing in the ocean in the state of Hawai’i. (“There is no marine recreational fishing license in Hawai‘i for either residents or visitors, so you don’t need to worry about that as long as you don’t sell your catch.” – Hawai’i DLNR Fishing FAQ)
Dr. Bruce Carlson
Dr. Carlson also forwarded a copy of the image shown above to the CORAL editorial offices above with the comment: “This is legal; catching them alive for an aquarium is not. No permit needed to kill them.”
A check on the current price for a single Achilles Tang in the retail US aquarium trade is $299 and upward, although many suppliers are out of stock as Hawai’i’s collection bans have severely hampered the trade in many species.
Victory for Anti-Aquarium Coalition
According to an article by Timothy Hurley in the Honolulu Star Advertiser: “Thursday’s decision by First Circuit Judge Jeffrey Crabtree means no such fishing is legally permitted in the islands until the appropriate level of environmental review is developed and approved.
“The ruling is the latest legal victory for plaintiffs Rene Umberger, Mike Nakachi, Ka‘imi Kaupiko, Willie Kaupiko, the Conservation Council for Hawai‘i, the Humane Society of the United States and the Center for Biological Diversity.
“Represented by the Earthjustice environmental law firm, the group sued the state Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) in 2012 for failing to comply with Hawaii’s Environmental Policy Act, which requires the government to consider environmental impacts in its actions.” (Link to full article below.)
Aquarium Trade Responses
Members of the Aquarium Fishery community and the aquarium trade are counting on responses from the DLNR and Environmental Assessments that use scientific data to support a reopening of the issuance of aquarium collection permits. All such current published data indicates that the aquarium trade in Hawai’i is sustainable and causing no significant harm to the state’s reefs and marine resources. (See “Pulse Check,” Sources, below.)
The Pet Industry Joint Action Council (PIJAC), based in Washington, DC, is supporting work on Environmental Assessments that they hope will support a return to legal commercial collection of aquarium fishes. Presumably, kids with nets would also be able to return to the states inshore waters and beaches.
SOURCES
Honolulu Star Advertiser:
“Recreational aquarium fishing is blocked,” by Timothy Hurley, April 17, 2018
Additional Information:
Hawai’i’s DAR Fishing License and Permit Information
Hawai’i DAR Fishing FAQs
Humane Society of the United States: “Hawai‘i Court Voids All Existing Recreational Aquarium Collection Permits,”
The Maui News: “Oahu court invalidates state-issued permits to collect tropical fish in wild,” by Melisa Tanji, April 17, 2018
West Hawai’i Today: “Recreational aquarium collection permits voided,” by Gita Howard, April 17, 2018
Reef to Rainforest:
“A Pulse Check on Hawai’i’s Aquarium Fishing Ban: Draft Assessments Published“, by Matt Pedersen, April 13, 2018
“Hawai’i’s Contentious Inshore Fisheries, By the Numbers,” by Dr. Bruce Carlson, April 13, 2018
Image: Hilo Living Blog
From Amazonas Magazine
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Hemibrycon iqueima • A New Species of Hemibrycon (Characiformes, Characidae, Stevardiinae) from the upper Magdalena River Basin in Colombia
Hemibrycon iqueima
García‐Melo, Albornoz‐Garzón, García‐Melo, Villa‐Navarro & Maldonado‐Ocampo, 2018
DOI: 10.1111/jfb.13634
Abstract
Hemibrycon iqueima sp. nov., is described from small streams in the Magdalena drainage at the foothills of the western slope of the Eastern Cordillera of the Colombian Andes, Suarez municipality, Tolima Department, Colombia. The new species is distinguished from its congeners in the Magdalena–Cauca River basin by a combination of characters related to snout–anal‐fin origin length, head length, dorsal–pectoral fin distance, dorsal‐fin–hypural distance, postorbital distance, orbital diameter, snout length, number of total vertebrae, pre‐dorsal scales, scale rows between anal‐fin origin and lateral line, number of branched rays of the anal fin, maxillary teeth number and number and arrangement of hooks on the branched rays of the pectoral and dorsal fins. In addition, the validity of this species is supported by previous molecular analyses that included specimens of the new species that had been erroneously identified. Phylogenetic relationships between the new species and congeners from Pacific coast basins are discussed.
Key words: biodiversity; ichthyology; morphological visualization; Neotropical fishes; Stevardiinae; taxonomy
FIG. 1. Hemibrycon iqueima sp. nov., Quebrada Bacallá, upper Magdalena River basin, Suárez Municipality, Tolima Department, Colombia. Holotype CZTU-IC 16418, 57.3 mm standard length, preserved coloration.
(a) Lateral view, (b) dorsal view, (c) ventral view. Scale bar 10 mm.
FIG. Lateral view of cleared and stained skeleton of Hemibrycon iqueima sp. nov. CZUT-IC 11920, 40.9 mm standard length. Scale bar 10 mm.
Hemibrycon iqueima sp. nov.
Distribution and habitat: Hemibrycon iqueima is known from three small tributaries (Batatas, Yeguas, Bacallá) in the upper Magdalena River basin, draining the western slope of the Eastern Cordillera (Figs 5 and 6).
Etymology: The specific epithet is a noun in apposition referring to Cacique Iqueima, a name belonging to the indigenous Los Panches and Tolimas tribes that inhabited the type locality region. The tribes inhabited land near to the Magdalena River south-west of Cundinamarca and north-east of Tolima.
J. E. García‐Melo, J. G. Albornoz‐Garzón, L. J. García‐Melo, F. A. Villa‐Navarro and J. A. Maldonado‐Ocampo. 2018. A New Species of Hemibrycon (Characiformes, Characidae, Stevardiinae) from the upper Magdalena River Basin in Colombia. Journal of Fish Biology. DOI: 10.1111/jfb.13634
facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10105941738185911
twitter.com/TimDrawsFish/status/986702843989184517
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Hemibrycon iqueima
García‐Melo, Albornoz‐Garzón, García‐Melo, Villa‐Navarro & Maldonado‐Ocampo, 2018
DOI: 10.1111/jfb.13634
Abstract
Hemibrycon iqueima sp. nov., is described from small streams in the Magdalena drainage at the foothills of the western slope of the Eastern Cordillera of the Colombian Andes, Suarez municipality, Tolima Department, Colombia. The new species is distinguished from its congeners in the Magdalena–Cauca River basin by a combination of characters related to snout–anal‐fin origin length, head length, dorsal–pectoral fin distance, dorsal‐fin–hypural distance, postorbital distance, orbital diameter, snout length, number of total vertebrae, pre‐dorsal scales, scale rows between anal‐fin origin and lateral line, number of branched rays of the anal fin, maxillary teeth number and number and arrangement of hooks on the branched rays of the pectoral and dorsal fins. In addition, the validity of this species is supported by previous molecular analyses that included specimens of the new species that had been erroneously identified. Phylogenetic relationships between the new species and congeners from Pacific coast basins are discussed.
Key words: biodiversity; ichthyology; morphological visualization; Neotropical fishes; Stevardiinae; taxonomy
FIG. 1. Hemibrycon iqueima sp. nov., Quebrada Bacallá, upper Magdalena River basin, Suárez Municipality, Tolima Department, Colombia. Holotype CZTU-IC 16418, 57.3 mm standard length, preserved coloration.
(a) Lateral view, (b) dorsal view, (c) ventral view. Scale bar 10 mm.
FIG. Lateral view of cleared and stained skeleton of Hemibrycon iqueima sp. nov. CZUT-IC 11920, 40.9 mm standard length. Scale bar 10 mm.
Hemibrycon iqueima sp. nov.
Distribution and habitat: Hemibrycon iqueima is known from three small tributaries (Batatas, Yeguas, Bacallá) in the upper Magdalena River basin, draining the western slope of the Eastern Cordillera (Figs 5 and 6).
Etymology: The specific epithet is a noun in apposition referring to Cacique Iqueima, a name belonging to the indigenous Los Panches and Tolimas tribes that inhabited the type locality region. The tribes inhabited land near to the Magdalena River south-west of Cundinamarca and north-east of Tolima.
J. E. García‐Melo, J. G. Albornoz‐Garzón, L. J. García‐Melo, F. A. Villa‐Navarro and J. A. Maldonado‐Ocampo. 2018. A New Species of Hemibrycon (Characiformes, Characidae, Stevardiinae) from the upper Magdalena River Basin in Colombia. Journal of Fish Biology. DOI: 10.1111/jfb.13634
facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10105941738185911
twitter.com/TimDrawsFish/status/986702843989184517
==========================
Ryedale A.S. Open Show will be held on Sunday 29th April. Venue will be the Kirby Misperton Village Hall, Malton, N. Yorks. YO17 6XN. 41 Classes covering the full range of tropical freshwater and coldwater fishes plus a fish craft class. YAAS rules and standards apply. Auction of fishkeeping items . Doors open at 10.00a.m.
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Dysomma alticorpus • A New Species of Cutthroat Eel (Teleostei: Synaphobranchidae) from the Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea
Dysomma alticorpus
Fricke, Golani, Appelbaum-Golani & Zajonz, 2018
DOI: 10.1016/j.crvi.2017.10.005
Abstract
The cutthroat eel Dysomma alticorpus n. sp. is described based on a single specimen collected in a trammel net at a depth of 350 m off Eilat, Israel, Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea. The new species belongs to the Dysomma anguillare species complex, which comprises species possessing a well-developed pectoral fin, intermaxillary teeth, a uniserial row of 7–15 large compound teeth in the lower jaw (which may be followed by a few smaller teeth), and an anteriorly situated anus with the trunk shorter than the head length. It is characterised by a combination of the following characters: origin of the dorsal fin well anterior to the base of the pectoral fin, predorsal length 13.8% TL; preanal length 22.8% TL; three compound teeth on the vomer; head pores: IO 4, SO 3; M 6; POP 0; AD 1, F 0, ST 0; lateral-line pores: predorsal 4, prepectoral 8, preanal 14, total 57–58, the last at the posterior two-thirds of the total length; MVF 7–16–115; total vertebrae 115. Dysomma alticorpus n. sp. is compared with other species of the genus. A revised key to the species of the genera Dysomma and Dysommina is provided.
Keywords: Synaphobranchidae; Ichthyology; Systematics; Gulf of Aqaba; Red Sea; Cutthroat eel; New species
Fig. Dysomma alticorpus new species, HUJ 17054 (holotype, 323.4 mm TL), Red Sea, Gulf of Aqaba, Israel, off Eilat; A lateral view, B lateral view, detail of head, C trunk, ventral view; colouration in preservative.
Dysomma alticorpus new species
Pale cutthroat eel
Etymology: Altus (Latin) = high; corpus (Latin) = body. The name of the new species refers to the relatively high body of this new species. It is used as a noun in apposition.
Ronald Fricke, Daniel Golani, Brenda Appelbaum-Golani, Uwe Zajonz. 2018. Dysomma alticorpus, A New Species of Cutthroat Eel from the Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea (Teleostei: Synaphobranchidae) [Dysomma alticorpus, une nouvelle espèce d’anguille égorgée du golfe d’Aqaba, mer Rouge (Teleostei: Synaphobranchidae)] Comptes Rendus Biologies. 341(2); 111-119. DOI: 10.1016/j.crvi.2017.10.005
==========================
Dysomma alticorpus
Fricke, Golani, Appelbaum-Golani & Zajonz, 2018
DOI: 10.1016/j.crvi.2017.10.005
Abstract
The cutthroat eel Dysomma alticorpus n. sp. is described based on a single specimen collected in a trammel net at a depth of 350 m off Eilat, Israel, Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea. The new species belongs to the Dysomma anguillare species complex, which comprises species possessing a well-developed pectoral fin, intermaxillary teeth, a uniserial row of 7–15 large compound teeth in the lower jaw (which may be followed by a few smaller teeth), and an anteriorly situated anus with the trunk shorter than the head length. It is characterised by a combination of the following characters: origin of the dorsal fin well anterior to the base of the pectoral fin, predorsal length 13.8% TL; preanal length 22.8% TL; three compound teeth on the vomer; head pores: IO 4, SO 3; M 6; POP 0; AD 1, F 0, ST 0; lateral-line pores: predorsal 4, prepectoral 8, preanal 14, total 57–58, the last at the posterior two-thirds of the total length; MVF 7–16–115; total vertebrae 115. Dysomma alticorpus n. sp. is compared with other species of the genus. A revised key to the species of the genera Dysomma and Dysommina is provided.
Keywords: Synaphobranchidae; Ichthyology; Systematics; Gulf of Aqaba; Red Sea; Cutthroat eel; New species
Fig. Dysomma alticorpus new species, HUJ 17054 (holotype, 323.4 mm TL), Red Sea, Gulf of Aqaba, Israel, off Eilat; A lateral view, B lateral view, detail of head, C trunk, ventral view; colouration in preservative.
Dysomma alticorpus new species
Pale cutthroat eel
Etymology: Altus (Latin) = high; corpus (Latin) = body. The name of the new species refers to the relatively high body of this new species. It is used as a noun in apposition.
Ronald Fricke, Daniel Golani, Brenda Appelbaum-Golani, Uwe Zajonz. 2018. Dysomma alticorpus, A New Species of Cutthroat Eel from the Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea (Teleostei: Synaphobranchidae) [Dysomma alticorpus, une nouvelle espèce d’anguille égorgée du golfe d’Aqaba, mer Rouge (Teleostei: Synaphobranchidae)] Comptes Rendus Biologies. 341(2); 111-119. DOI: 10.1016/j.crvi.2017.10.005
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Save a North Sea fish from becoming museum exhibit
Jon C. Svendsen,Aage K. O. Alstrup &Lasse F. Jensen
The habitats needed by this fish for spawning and juvenile development are still unclear, so it is not possible to protect or restore them. This basic knowledge is essential for future restoration projects. We urgently need to understand why the population is still in decline and to put effective conservation measures in place. The North Sea houting must not end up next to the great auk (Pinguinus impennis) on museum shelves.
Nature 556, 174 (2018)
doi: 10.1038/d41586-018-04170-9
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Jon C. Svendsen,Aage K. O. Alstrup &Lasse F. Jensen
The North Sea houting (Coregonus oxyrinchus) is a whitefish that is endemic to the Wadden Sea, an area including the North Sea coasts of the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark. A critically small population in Denmark’s Vidaa River, estimated at 3,500 adult individuals in 2014, is the last remaining worldwide. We call on the Danish authorities to prevent further decline of this fish through informed conservation planning and management before it is too late.
The habitats needed by this fish for spawning and juvenile development are still unclear, so it is not possible to protect or restore them. This basic knowledge is essential for future restoration projects. We urgently need to understand why the population is still in decline and to put effective conservation measures in place. The North Sea houting must not end up next to the great auk (Pinguinus impennis) on museum shelves.
Nature 556, 174 (2018)
doi: 10.1038/d41586-018-04170-9
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Stonefish Have Switchblade-Like Defensive System, Researchers Say
A team of marine biologists from the University of Kansas and the Field Museum, Chicago has discovered a remarkable defensive system — ‘lachrymal saber’ — in a group of fish called stonefish. Their work is published in the journal Copeia.
Stonefish are packing switchblades in their faces. Image credit: Frank am Main / CC BY-SA 2.0.
“I don’t why this hasn’t been discovered before. It’s probably because there are just one or two people that ever worked on this group,” said Professor William Leo Smith, from the Biodiversity Institute and Natural History Museum at the University of Kansas.
“We took five or six families and were able to resolve the problems in their classifications. To have this really strong anatomical feature visible from the outside is really helpful.”
All specimens Professor Smith and co-authors examined feature a mechanism they dub a ‘lachrymal saber’ located on each cheek below the eye.
Moreover, genetic analysis of 113 morphological and 5,280 molecular characters for 63 species reveals stonefish possessing the lachrymal saber are closely related, producing a revised taxonomy of flatheads, scorpionfish, sea robins and stonefish.
The researchers found the switchblade-like devices in the cheeks of stonefish involve specialized modifications to several bones and muscles: the circumorbitals, maxilla and adductor mandibulae.
“To help the stonefish deploy the switchblade, an unusually large number of muscles and ligaments attach to bones comprising the lachrymal saber system compared with species outside the stonefish family,” they said.
Top: cleared and stained specimen of the warty prowfish (Aetapcus maculatus). Bottom: the whiskered prowfish (Neopataecus waterhousii). Image credit: Leo Smith, University of Kansas.
“The switchblade only added to an already impressive array of defensive features that rank stonefish among the deadliest fishes in the ocean, including spikes, camouflages and some of the world’s most powerful venoms, which even could be fatal to an adult human being,” Professor Smith said.
“Of all the fishes I’ve studied, I haven’t yet been stung by any of these stonefish.”
“I’m just super paranoid. In some places they catch them for food — the big ones, they’re delicious — there is an aquaculture for larger ones in Indonesia. That’s mind-boggling to me. The venom breaks down in our digestive system. But people eat lots of venomous species all over the world, even in the U.S.”
According to the team, the lachrymal saber is most likely an additional defensive system in stonefish, to avoid predation.
“If you find pictures of these stonefish in the mouths of other things, the lachrymal saber is always locked out,” Professor Smith said.
“The main thing people know about these fishes is they’re venomous. Some people know them because they have these fingerlike appendages and drag themselves around like they’re playing the piano; the appendages actually taste food as they go.”
These stonefish can mimic leaves floating in the water — they’re super camouflaged.
“A lot of them have really bright pectoral fins on sides of their body, and when they’re scared they flash them — this drab fish will suddenly flash bright yellows and oranges,” the scientist said.
“I always assume all of these features are defensive, but recent studies by other fish scientists suggest these could all be displays like a peacock.”
_____
W. Leo Smith et al. 2018. Phylogeny and Taxonomy of Flatheads, Scorpionfishes, Sea Robins, and Stonefishes (Percomorpha: Scorpaeniformes) and the Evolution of the Lachrymal Saber. Copeia 106 (1): 94-119; doi: 10.1643/CG-17-669
==========================
A team of marine biologists from the University of Kansas and the Field Museum, Chicago has discovered a remarkable defensive system — ‘lachrymal saber’ — in a group of fish called stonefish. Their work is published in the journal Copeia.
Stonefish are packing switchblades in their faces. Image credit: Frank am Main / CC BY-SA 2.0.
“I don’t why this hasn’t been discovered before. It’s probably because there are just one or two people that ever worked on this group,” said Professor William Leo Smith, from the Biodiversity Institute and Natural History Museum at the University of Kansas.
“We took five or six families and were able to resolve the problems in their classifications. To have this really strong anatomical feature visible from the outside is really helpful.”
All specimens Professor Smith and co-authors examined feature a mechanism they dub a ‘lachrymal saber’ located on each cheek below the eye.
Moreover, genetic analysis of 113 morphological and 5,280 molecular characters for 63 species reveals stonefish possessing the lachrymal saber are closely related, producing a revised taxonomy of flatheads, scorpionfish, sea robins and stonefish.
The researchers found the switchblade-like devices in the cheeks of stonefish involve specialized modifications to several bones and muscles: the circumorbitals, maxilla and adductor mandibulae.
“To help the stonefish deploy the switchblade, an unusually large number of muscles and ligaments attach to bones comprising the lachrymal saber system compared with species outside the stonefish family,” they said.
Top: cleared and stained specimen of the warty prowfish (Aetapcus maculatus). Bottom: the whiskered prowfish (Neopataecus waterhousii). Image credit: Leo Smith, University of Kansas.
“The switchblade only added to an already impressive array of defensive features that rank stonefish among the deadliest fishes in the ocean, including spikes, camouflages and some of the world’s most powerful venoms, which even could be fatal to an adult human being,” Professor Smith said.
“Of all the fishes I’ve studied, I haven’t yet been stung by any of these stonefish.”
“I’m just super paranoid. In some places they catch them for food — the big ones, they’re delicious — there is an aquaculture for larger ones in Indonesia. That’s mind-boggling to me. The venom breaks down in our digestive system. But people eat lots of venomous species all over the world, even in the U.S.”
According to the team, the lachrymal saber is most likely an additional defensive system in stonefish, to avoid predation.
“If you find pictures of these stonefish in the mouths of other things, the lachrymal saber is always locked out,” Professor Smith said.
“The main thing people know about these fishes is they’re venomous. Some people know them because they have these fingerlike appendages and drag themselves around like they’re playing the piano; the appendages actually taste food as they go.”
These stonefish can mimic leaves floating in the water — they’re super camouflaged.
“A lot of them have really bright pectoral fins on sides of their body, and when they’re scared they flash them — this drab fish will suddenly flash bright yellows and oranges,” the scientist said.
“I always assume all of these features are defensive, but recent studies by other fish scientists suggest these could all be displays like a peacock.”
_____
W. Leo Smith et al. 2018. Phylogeny and Taxonomy of Flatheads, Scorpionfishes, Sea Robins, and Stonefishes (Percomorpha: Scorpaeniformes) and the Evolution of the Lachrymal Saber. Copeia 106 (1): 94-119; doi: 10.1643/CG-17-669
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Rhinogobius maxillivirgatus • A New Species of Rhinogobius (Pisces: Gobiidae) from Eastern China, with Analyses of its DNA Barcode
Rhinogobius maxillivirgatus Xia, Wu & Li, 2018
in Xia, Wu, Li, Wu & Liu, 2018.
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4407.4.7
Abstract
The genus Rhinogobius Gill 1859 is widely distributed in fresh waters along the Western Pacific coast of tropical and temperate Asia. A new species, Rhinogobiusmaxillivirgatus, is described from Anhui Province in Eastern China. This species can be differentiated from all congeners by a combination of the following characters: up to 6 longitudinal brown to black stripes along the side of the body; pectoral-fin rays modally 14; predorsal scale series 5–9; lateral scale series 28–30; transverse scale series 6–7; branchiostegal membrane with about 20 red round spots in males; and 2 black oblique stripes parallel along the upper jaw on the anterior portion of the cheek. Analyzing sequences of cytochrome c oxidase subunit I revealed that the new species is closely related to, but distinct, from Rhinogobius wuyanlingensis.
Keywords: Pisces, freshwater goby, Rhinogobius maxillivirgatus, Eastern China, COI gene
FIGURE Rhinogobius maxillivirgatus [upper] Male adult at type locality; [lower] Female adult at type locality.
Rhinogobius maxillivirgatus Xia, Wu, and Li, sp. n.
Diagnosis. Rhinogobius maxillivirgatus is distinguishable from the other species in the same genus by the unique combination of the following features: D2 rays modally I/8 (rarely I/9); A rays modally I/7; P rays 13–15; LL 28–30; TR 6–7; predorsal scales 5–9; vertebral count 10+17=27; lateral side with 5–6 longitudinal serrated stripes, ventral ones dark; a whitish band across from snout to dorsal portion of operculum, interrupted by orbit; a black stripe along lower half of upper jaw, followed by a longer parallel stripe across anterior portion of cheek; rear edge of orbit with a black blotch; cheek and operculum spotless, branchiostegal membrane grayish with up to 20 red spots in male; D1 with 3–4 horizontal rows of spots and D2 with 5–6 rows; P base with an arched reddish brown band, membrane with several vertical rows of spots and a bold mark near the origin; and C base with a large dark spot, with vertical rows of spots in membrane and the anterior row enlarged.
Distribution. Currently Rhinogobius maxillivirgatus is only known from a particular tributary of the Changjiang Basin in Qimen County, Huangshan City, Anhui Province, China.
Etymology. The name maxillivirgatus is a noun in apposition and derived from the Latin maxilla meaning “upper jaw” and virgas meaning “stripes,” referring to 2 distinctive stripes behind the upper jaw of both sexes.
Jian-Hong Xia, Han-Lin Wu, Chen-Hong Li, Yuan-Qi Wu and Su-Han Liu. 2018. A New Species of Rhinogobius (Pisces: Gobiidae), with Analyses of its DNA Barcode. Zootaxa. 4407(4); 553–562. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4407.4.7
==========================
Rhinogobius maxillivirgatus Xia, Wu & Li, 2018
in Xia, Wu, Li, Wu & Liu, 2018.
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4407.4.7
Abstract
The genus Rhinogobius Gill 1859 is widely distributed in fresh waters along the Western Pacific coast of tropical and temperate Asia. A new species, Rhinogobiusmaxillivirgatus, is described from Anhui Province in Eastern China. This species can be differentiated from all congeners by a combination of the following characters: up to 6 longitudinal brown to black stripes along the side of the body; pectoral-fin rays modally 14; predorsal scale series 5–9; lateral scale series 28–30; transverse scale series 6–7; branchiostegal membrane with about 20 red round spots in males; and 2 black oblique stripes parallel along the upper jaw on the anterior portion of the cheek. Analyzing sequences of cytochrome c oxidase subunit I revealed that the new species is closely related to, but distinct, from Rhinogobius wuyanlingensis.
Keywords: Pisces, freshwater goby, Rhinogobius maxillivirgatus, Eastern China, COI gene
FIGURE Rhinogobius maxillivirgatus [upper] Male adult at type locality; [lower] Female adult at type locality.
Rhinogobius maxillivirgatus Xia, Wu, and Li, sp. n.
Diagnosis. Rhinogobius maxillivirgatus is distinguishable from the other species in the same genus by the unique combination of the following features: D2 rays modally I/8 (rarely I/9); A rays modally I/7; P rays 13–15; LL 28–30; TR 6–7; predorsal scales 5–9; vertebral count 10+17=27; lateral side with 5–6 longitudinal serrated stripes, ventral ones dark; a whitish band across from snout to dorsal portion of operculum, interrupted by orbit; a black stripe along lower half of upper jaw, followed by a longer parallel stripe across anterior portion of cheek; rear edge of orbit with a black blotch; cheek and operculum spotless, branchiostegal membrane grayish with up to 20 red spots in male; D1 with 3–4 horizontal rows of spots and D2 with 5–6 rows; P base with an arched reddish brown band, membrane with several vertical rows of spots and a bold mark near the origin; and C base with a large dark spot, with vertical rows of spots in membrane and the anterior row enlarged.
Distribution. Currently Rhinogobius maxillivirgatus is only known from a particular tributary of the Changjiang Basin in Qimen County, Huangshan City, Anhui Province, China.
Etymology. The name maxillivirgatus is a noun in apposition and derived from the Latin maxilla meaning “upper jaw” and virgas meaning “stripes,” referring to 2 distinctive stripes behind the upper jaw of both sexes.
Jian-Hong Xia, Han-Lin Wu, Chen-Hong Li, Yuan-Qi Wu and Su-Han Liu. 2018. A New Species of Rhinogobius (Pisces: Gobiidae), with Analyses of its DNA Barcode. Zootaxa. 4407(4); 553–562. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4407.4.7
==========================
Mike Liggins devastated after theft of £6k from Creation Aquatics, Wickford, Essex, UK.
Creation Aquatics
A BUSINESS owner has described his devastation after a trio of thugs raided his specialist aquatics shop and made off with thousands of pounds worth of gear.
Mike Liggins, 61, has run Creation Aquatics in Wickford for 31 years and went to open the shop as usual on Tuesday morning when he realised the shop, in London Road, had been targeted by thieves.
Mr Liggins said: “I went to open up at 8am and noticed they had forced the back door open.
“The shop was a mess. I wouldn’t say it was ransacked but it was pretty bad.”
Creation Aquatics, which forms part of the Alpha Garden Centre, is a specialist shop which sells a wide range of equipment connected to aquatics, fish and pond supplies, including aquariums, specialist food and live fish.
Mr Liggins added: “They have taken all the expensive equipment.
“The flow pumps are gone. They’ve taken the power filters and the LED lights.
“All in all, the equipment they’ve taken is worth about £6,000. I’m covered by insurance but the premium is just too dear - it’s not worth it.
“I was absolutely devastated when I saw the state of the shop. They had pulled out all the glass cases to get to the stock.”
Mr Liggins believes the three suspects came in the day before to case the shop before carrying out the late-night raid.
He added: “They came in the day before on those dirt bike type motorbikes to case the place.
“One of the registration’s read PA55 YOU. You remember these kinds of things.
“I’m glad that they didn’t take any of the fish or my stingrays. They also left behind my giant fibreglass Nemo and dinosaur.
“It must have been too big for them to take.
“You can see them on the CCTV footage putting all the equipment into a fibreglass pond they found outside and hauled it to a van.
“Ideally it would be great to get my stock back. My business will survive but it’s a big hit to take.”
Forensic officers have since been to the shop to examine the scene and collect evidence.
Anyone with information about the incident should contact Essex Police on 101.
Alternatively you can share information with charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or online at crimestoppers-uk.org.
Found in the Echo.
http://www.echo-news.co.uk/…/16152898.Owner_devastated_af…/…
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Creation Aquatics
A BUSINESS owner has described his devastation after a trio of thugs raided his specialist aquatics shop and made off with thousands of pounds worth of gear.
Mike Liggins, 61, has run Creation Aquatics in Wickford for 31 years and went to open the shop as usual on Tuesday morning when he realised the shop, in London Road, had been targeted by thieves.
Mr Liggins said: “I went to open up at 8am and noticed they had forced the back door open.
“The shop was a mess. I wouldn’t say it was ransacked but it was pretty bad.”
Creation Aquatics, which forms part of the Alpha Garden Centre, is a specialist shop which sells a wide range of equipment connected to aquatics, fish and pond supplies, including aquariums, specialist food and live fish.
Mr Liggins added: “They have taken all the expensive equipment.
“The flow pumps are gone. They’ve taken the power filters and the LED lights.
“All in all, the equipment they’ve taken is worth about £6,000. I’m covered by insurance but the premium is just too dear - it’s not worth it.
“I was absolutely devastated when I saw the state of the shop. They had pulled out all the glass cases to get to the stock.”
Mr Liggins believes the three suspects came in the day before to case the shop before carrying out the late-night raid.
He added: “They came in the day before on those dirt bike type motorbikes to case the place.
“One of the registration’s read PA55 YOU. You remember these kinds of things.
“I’m glad that they didn’t take any of the fish or my stingrays. They also left behind my giant fibreglass Nemo and dinosaur.
“It must have been too big for them to take.
“You can see them on the CCTV footage putting all the equipment into a fibreglass pond they found outside and hauled it to a van.
“Ideally it would be great to get my stock back. My business will survive but it’s a big hit to take.”
Forensic officers have since been to the shop to examine the scene and collect evidence.
Anyone with information about the incident should contact Essex Police on 101.
Alternatively you can share information with charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or online at crimestoppers-uk.org.
Found in the Echo.
http://www.echo-news.co.uk/…/16152898.Owner_devastated_af…/…
==========================
Fig. 1. Examples of the habitat and fishes (C) characteristic of the Middle Xingu River.
Species shown are: a) Leporinus maculatus (Anostomidae), b) Baryancistrus xanthellus (Loricariidae), c) Ossubtus xinguense (Serrasalmidae), d) Crenicichla sp. (Cichlidae), e) Ancistrus ranunculus (Loricariidae), f) Cichla melaniae (Cichlidae), g) Tometes kranponhah (Serrasalmidae), h) Hypancistrus sp. (Loricariidae), i) Leporinus fasciatus (Anostomidae), j) Rhinodoras sp. (Doradidae) and k) Hypancistrus zebra (Loricariidae).
in Fitzgerald, Sabaj Perez, Sousa, et al. 2018.
DOI: 10.1016/j.biocon.2018.04.002
twitter.com/DrNathanLujan
Species shown are: a) Leporinus maculatus (Anostomidae), b) Baryancistrus xanthellus (Loricariidae), c) Ossubtus xinguense (Serrasalmidae), d) Crenicichla sp. (Cichlidae), e) Ancistrus ranunculus (Loricariidae), f) Cichla melaniae (Cichlidae), g) Tometes kranponhah (Serrasalmidae), h) Hypancistrus sp. (Loricariidae), i) Leporinus fasciatus (Anostomidae), j) Rhinodoras sp. (Doradidae) and k) Hypancistrus zebra (Loricariidae).
in Fitzgerald, Sabaj Perez, Sousa, et al. 2018.
DOI: 10.1016/j.biocon.2018.04.002
twitter.com/DrNathanLujan
Diversity and Community Structure of Rapids-dwelling Fishes of the Xingu River: Implications for Conservation Amid Large-scale Hydroelectric Development
Highlights
• 193 rapids-dwelling fish species were sampled prior to flow alteration.
• Fish community structure differed significantly between river segments.
• Rapids specialists and threatened species were concentrated in the Volta Grande.
• The Volta Grande rapids are now flooded and dewatered due to a hydropower facility.
• Maintaining rapids in the dewatered section will be critical for aquatic diversity.
Abstract
A recent boom in hydroelectric development in the world's most diverse tropical river basins is currently threatening aquatic biodiversity on an unprecedented scale. Among the most controversial of these projects is the Belo Monte Hydroelectric Complex (BMHC) on the Xingu River, the Amazon's largest clear-water tributary. The design of the BMHC creates three distinctly altered segments: a flooded section upstream of the main dam, a middle section between the dam and the main powerhouse that will be dewatered, and a downstream section subject to flow alteration from powerhouse discharge. This region of the Xingu is notable for an extensive series of rapids known as the Volta Grande that hosts exceptional levels of endemic aquatic biodiversity; yet, patterns of temporal and spatial variation in community composition within this highly threatened habitat are not well documented. We surveyed fish assemblages within rapids in the three segments impacted by the BMHC prior to hydrologic alteration, and tested for differences in assemblage structure between segments and seasons. Fish species richness varied only slightly between segments, but there were significant differences in assemblage structure between segments and seasons. Most of the species thought to be highly dependent on rapids habitat, including several species listed as threatened in Brazil, were either restricted to or much more abundant within the upstream and middle segments. Our analysis identified the middle section of the Volta Grande as critically important for the conservation of this diverse, endemic fish fauna. Additional research is urgently needed to determine dam operations that may optimize energy production with an environmental flow regime that conserves the river's unique habitat and biodiversity.
Keywords: Anostomidae; Assemblage structure; Belo Monte; Brazil; Cichlidae; Hydrologic connectivity; Loricariidae; Rheophilic
Daniel B. Fitzgerald, Mark H. Sabaj Perez, Leandro M. Sousa, Alany P. Gonçalves, Lucia Rapp Py-Daniel, Nathan K. Lujan, Jansen Zuanon, Kirk O. Winemiller and John G. Lundberg. 2018. Diversity and Community Structure of Rapids-dwelling Fishes of the Xingu River: Implications for Conservation Amid Large-scale Hydroelectric Development. Biological Conservation. 222; 104–112. DOI: 10.1016/j.biocon.2018.04.002
twitter.com/DrNathanLujan/status/983403538305961988
==========================
Highlights
• 193 rapids-dwelling fish species were sampled prior to flow alteration.
• Fish community structure differed significantly between river segments.
• Rapids specialists and threatened species were concentrated in the Volta Grande.
• The Volta Grande rapids are now flooded and dewatered due to a hydropower facility.
• Maintaining rapids in the dewatered section will be critical for aquatic diversity.
Abstract
A recent boom in hydroelectric development in the world's most diverse tropical river basins is currently threatening aquatic biodiversity on an unprecedented scale. Among the most controversial of these projects is the Belo Monte Hydroelectric Complex (BMHC) on the Xingu River, the Amazon's largest clear-water tributary. The design of the BMHC creates three distinctly altered segments: a flooded section upstream of the main dam, a middle section between the dam and the main powerhouse that will be dewatered, and a downstream section subject to flow alteration from powerhouse discharge. This region of the Xingu is notable for an extensive series of rapids known as the Volta Grande that hosts exceptional levels of endemic aquatic biodiversity; yet, patterns of temporal and spatial variation in community composition within this highly threatened habitat are not well documented. We surveyed fish assemblages within rapids in the three segments impacted by the BMHC prior to hydrologic alteration, and tested for differences in assemblage structure between segments and seasons. Fish species richness varied only slightly between segments, but there were significant differences in assemblage structure between segments and seasons. Most of the species thought to be highly dependent on rapids habitat, including several species listed as threatened in Brazil, were either restricted to or much more abundant within the upstream and middle segments. Our analysis identified the middle section of the Volta Grande as critically important for the conservation of this diverse, endemic fish fauna. Additional research is urgently needed to determine dam operations that may optimize energy production with an environmental flow regime that conserves the river's unique habitat and biodiversity.
Keywords: Anostomidae; Assemblage structure; Belo Monte; Brazil; Cichlidae; Hydrologic connectivity; Loricariidae; Rheophilic
Daniel B. Fitzgerald, Mark H. Sabaj Perez, Leandro M. Sousa, Alany P. Gonçalves, Lucia Rapp Py-Daniel, Nathan K. Lujan, Jansen Zuanon, Kirk O. Winemiller and John G. Lundberg. 2018. Diversity and Community Structure of Rapids-dwelling Fishes of the Xingu River: Implications for Conservation Amid Large-scale Hydroelectric Development. Biological Conservation. 222; 104–112. DOI: 10.1016/j.biocon.2018.04.002
twitter.com/DrNathanLujan/status/983403538305961988
==========================
Romanogobio skywalkeri • A New Gudgeon (Teleostei: Gobionidae) from the upper Mur River, Austria
Romanogobio skywalkeri
Friedrich, Wiesner, Zangl, Daill, Freyhof & Koblmüller, 2018
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4403.2.6
museum-joanneum.at
Abstract
Romanogobio skywalkeri, new species, is described from the upper Mur River in the Austrian Danube drainage. It is related to R. banarescui from the Mediterranean basin. Romanogobio skywalkeri is distinguished from R. banarescui by lacking epithelial crests on the predorsal back, having 12–14 total pectoral-fin rays (vs. 10–11) and usually 8½ branched dorsal-fin rays (vs. 7½). It is distinguished from other Romanogobio species in the Danube drainage by having a very slender body; a moderately long barbel, extending slightly beyond the posterior eye margin; and no epithelial crests on the predorsal back. Romanogobio skywalkeri is distinguished by a minimum net divergence of 6.3% (uncorrected p-distance against R. banarescui) in the COI barcoding region from other European Romanogobio species. A key to the Romanogobio species of the Danube drainage is provided. Romanogobio banarescui from the Vardar drainage and R. carpathorossicus from the Danube drainage are treated as valid species.
Keywords: Pisces, Freshwater fish, taxonomy, Cytochrome oxidase I, Europe, hydropower
Smaragdgressling Romanogobio skywalkeri
photos: Wolfgang Gessl, www.pisces.at
museum-joanneum.at
Romanogobio skywalkeri, new species
Etymology. Named for Luke Skywalker, the hero of the movie “Star Wars: Episode IV—A New Hope” (Lucasfilms, Twentieth Century Fox, 1977). As common name emerald gudgeon fits the line with common names of other Romanogobio species and reflects the green hue of the fish when observed in his natural habitat or freshly caught.
Smaragdgressling Romanogobio skywalkeri,
photos: Wolfgang Gessl, www.pisces.at
Thomas Friedrich, Christian Wiesner, Lukas Zangl, Daniel Daill, Jörg Freyhof and Stephan Koblmüller. 2018. Romanogobio skywalkeri, A New Gudgeon (Teleostei: Gobionidae) from the upper Mur River, Austria. Zootaxa. 4403(2); 336–350. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4403.2.6
www.museum-joanneum.at/presse/aktuelle-projekte/events/event/6908/hotspot-mur-1
facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10156304529357138
treatment.plazi.org/id/56314416-8525-FF95-90A9-A1DEFEB2FEAA
twitter.com/plazi_ch/status/981468539445006336
==========================
Romanogobio skywalkeri
Friedrich, Wiesner, Zangl, Daill, Freyhof & Koblmüller, 2018
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4403.2.6
museum-joanneum.at
Abstract
Romanogobio skywalkeri, new species, is described from the upper Mur River in the Austrian Danube drainage. It is related to R. banarescui from the Mediterranean basin. Romanogobio skywalkeri is distinguished from R. banarescui by lacking epithelial crests on the predorsal back, having 12–14 total pectoral-fin rays (vs. 10–11) and usually 8½ branched dorsal-fin rays (vs. 7½). It is distinguished from other Romanogobio species in the Danube drainage by having a very slender body; a moderately long barbel, extending slightly beyond the posterior eye margin; and no epithelial crests on the predorsal back. Romanogobio skywalkeri is distinguished by a minimum net divergence of 6.3% (uncorrected p-distance against R. banarescui) in the COI barcoding region from other European Romanogobio species. A key to the Romanogobio species of the Danube drainage is provided. Romanogobio banarescui from the Vardar drainage and R. carpathorossicus from the Danube drainage are treated as valid species.
Keywords: Pisces, Freshwater fish, taxonomy, Cytochrome oxidase I, Europe, hydropower
Smaragdgressling Romanogobio skywalkeri
photos: Wolfgang Gessl, www.pisces.at
museum-joanneum.at
Romanogobio skywalkeri, new species
Etymology. Named for Luke Skywalker, the hero of the movie “Star Wars: Episode IV—A New Hope” (Lucasfilms, Twentieth Century Fox, 1977). As common name emerald gudgeon fits the line with common names of other Romanogobio species and reflects the green hue of the fish when observed in his natural habitat or freshly caught.
Smaragdgressling Romanogobio skywalkeri,
photos: Wolfgang Gessl, www.pisces.at
Thomas Friedrich, Christian Wiesner, Lukas Zangl, Daniel Daill, Jörg Freyhof and Stephan Koblmüller. 2018. Romanogobio skywalkeri, A New Gudgeon (Teleostei: Gobionidae) from the upper Mur River, Austria. Zootaxa. 4403(2); 336–350. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4403.2.6
www.museum-joanneum.at/presse/aktuelle-projekte/events/event/6908/hotspot-mur-1
facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10156304529357138
treatment.plazi.org/id/56314416-8525-FF95-90A9-A1DEFEB2FEAA
twitter.com/plazi_ch/status/981468539445006336
==========================
Pictorial fish book with entry by Japanese Emperor the hit of the season
An illustrated encyclopedia of native fish species of Japan that includes a lengthy entry by Emperor Akihito on his study of goby is the unexpected hit of the season.
Priced at 6,900 yen ($64.50), the weighty tome published by Shogakukan Inc. has sold like hotcakes since it was released March 20, and a second printing run is already in the works.
The encyclopedia runs to 544 pages, and Akihito wrote four of them.
“The Natural History of the Fishes of Japan” contains detailed descriptions, along with photographs, of 1,400 or so fish native to Japan. It is aimed at amateur enthusiasts and academics.
A first edition of a specialized illustrated encyclopedia to be considered for a reprint after 5,000 sales in a year after publication is generally regarded as a success in Japan's publishing world.
According to the publisher, the title at one point ranked fifth in overall book sales on Amazon.co.jp. With the initial run of 6,000 copies expected to sell out soon, it was decided that a reprinting was in order.
The editorial team ran an online promotional campaign over two years on Twitter and Facebook, and gained a fan base prior to the book's publication.
==========================
An illustrated encyclopedia of native fish species of Japan that includes a lengthy entry by Emperor Akihito on his study of goby is the unexpected hit of the season.
Priced at 6,900 yen ($64.50), the weighty tome published by Shogakukan Inc. has sold like hotcakes since it was released March 20, and a second printing run is already in the works.
The encyclopedia runs to 544 pages, and Akihito wrote four of them.
“The Natural History of the Fishes of Japan” contains detailed descriptions, along with photographs, of 1,400 or so fish native to Japan. It is aimed at amateur enthusiasts and academics.
A first edition of a specialized illustrated encyclopedia to be considered for a reprint after 5,000 sales in a year after publication is generally regarded as a success in Japan's publishing world.
According to the publisher, the title at one point ranked fifth in overall book sales on Amazon.co.jp. With the initial run of 6,000 copies expected to sell out soon, it was decided that a reprinting was in order.
The editorial team ran an online promotional campaign over two years on Twitter and Facebook, and gained a fan base prior to the book's publication.
==========================
Elassoma alabammae
Lawsuit Launched to Speed Habitat Protection for Threatened Alabama Fish (Elassoma alabammae)
Spring Pygmy Sunfish's Freshwater Habitat Imminently Threatened by Planned Auto Plants
HUNTSVILLE, Ala.— The Center for Biological Diversity today filed a formal notice of intent to sue the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for failing to designate critical habitat for the spring pygmy sunfish under the Endangered Species Act.
The fish is under imminent threat from a massive automobile manufacturing plant planned adjacent to the Beaverdam Spring Complex, home to the only native population of the species.
The new mega-development will come with equally enormous amounts of new roads, buildings and parking lots. They will impact water quality and disrupt water flow to the springs, risking the destruction of everything living there — including the spring pygmy sunfish.
“We won’t let this rare fish wait any longer for the habitat protections it’s guaranteed under the Endangered Species Act,” said Elise Bennett, an attorney at the Center. “Reckless development has already sent this little fish diving toward the brink of extinction. The Fish and Wildlife Service needs to protect the sunfish’s habitat immediately before this massive manufacturing plant destroys what’s left of it.”
The spring pygmy sunfish is a small freshwater fish known from only one spring complex in the Tennessee River watershed. It is so rare that it was twice thought to be extinct. Development, river channelization and pollution have degraded its clear spring habitat.
Then, in January, Toyota Motor Corp. and Mazda Motor Corp. announced plans to build a massive automobile manufacturing plant in Huntsville, adjacent to the Beaverdam Spring Complex. Beginning as soon as 2021, the 2,400-acre mega-development will house a plant with two manufacturing lines that will produce up to 300,000 cars annually.
The plant would also bring a good number of jobs to Alabama, which the state needs. But for the beautiful springs and unique little fish to be saved, either another site needs to be found, or serious mitigation measures need to be put in place. If the pygmy sunfish is lost, it will be the second species Huntsville has driven to extinction. The whiteline topminnow was a species of fish described in the late 1800s in Big Spring, which is now largely paved over in downtown Huntsville; the fish is extinct.
“Clean, clear springs are important for all living things, including people,” said Bennett. “There’s just no way to protect species like the spring pygmy sunfish without protecting the places they live. Protecting critical habitat will ensure a healthy future for wildlife and the people of Alabama.”
The Center petitioned to protect the spring pygmy sunfish under the Endangered Species Act in 2009. In 2013 the Fish and Wildlife Service protected the sunfish as a threatened species and proposed protections for eight stream miles and 1,617 acres of spring pool and spring-influenced critical habitat in Limestone County, Ala.
The agency was required to designate critical habitat at the same time it listed the species as threatened in October 2013. More than four years later, the Service has not finalized its critical habitat proposal, leaving the sunfish’s dwindling habitat at risk.
Critical habitat includes areas that with geographic and biological features essential to the conservation of an endangered or threatened species. Once designated, critical habitat receives special consideration when activities funded, permitted or carried out by federal agencies may “adversely modify” — that is, damage — it, enabling the agencies to avoid or minimize harm.
Contact: Elise Bennett, (727) 755-6950, ebennett@biologicaldiversity.org
==========================
Trimma hamartium• A New Species of Trimma (Pisces; Gobiidae) from the South-West Islands of Palau, western Pacific Ocean
Trimma hamartium
Winterbottom, 2018
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4370.2.2
Abstract
A new species of Trimma is described from South-West Islands of Palau. Trimma hamartium n. sp. lacks scales on the cheeks and opercle, has 8–9 scales in the predorsal midline, 17–19 pectoral-fin rays with 5–10 branched rays in the middle of the fin, an unbranched 5th pelvic-fin ray that is 51–64% the length of the 4th ray, 17–19 gill rakers on the outer surface of the first gill arch, an U-shaped interorbital trench with a narrow, slit-like postorbital trench ending at the last papilla in row p, and has 6 papillae in row c beneath the eye. When freshly collected, the species is very similar in appearance to T. preclarum, with which it is syntopic at three of the more northern islands of the South-West Islands.
Keywords: Pisces, taxonomy, Western Pacific, coral reef gobies, COI gene
Richard Winterbottom. 2018. A New Species of Trimma (Pisces; Gobiidae) from the South-West Islands of Palau, western Pacific Ocean. Zootaxa. 4370(2); 123–136. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4370.2.2
==========================
Trimma hamartium
Winterbottom, 2018
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4370.2.2
Abstract
A new species of Trimma is described from South-West Islands of Palau. Trimma hamartium n. sp. lacks scales on the cheeks and opercle, has 8–9 scales in the predorsal midline, 17–19 pectoral-fin rays with 5–10 branched rays in the middle of the fin, an unbranched 5th pelvic-fin ray that is 51–64% the length of the 4th ray, 17–19 gill rakers on the outer surface of the first gill arch, an U-shaped interorbital trench with a narrow, slit-like postorbital trench ending at the last papilla in row p, and has 6 papillae in row c beneath the eye. When freshly collected, the species is very similar in appearance to T. preclarum, with which it is syntopic at three of the more northern islands of the South-West Islands.
Keywords: Pisces, taxonomy, Western Pacific, coral reef gobies, COI gene
Richard Winterbottom. 2018. A New Species of Trimma (Pisces; Gobiidae) from the South-West Islands of Palau, western Pacific Ocean. Zootaxa. 4370(2); 123–136. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4370.2.2
==========================
Laubuka tenella, a Shimmering New Danio Species
Laubuka tenella, paratype from the type locality, photographed alive immediately upon capture, displaying a neon blue-green stripe and faint blue vertical bars.
A sleek, small, and glimmeringly-hued new species in the danio clan has just been described and may offer potential for breeders serving the aquarium trade. Reaching a maximum size of just 6 cm (2.36 inches), the shimmering Laubuka tenella represents the newest addition to the ever-popular Danioninae subfamily. Discovered in the Cox’s Bazar District of southeastern coastal Bangladesh, it has also been reported further to the south in the Thandwe River drainage in neighboring western Myanmar.
Domdomia stream, the type locality of Laubuka tenella, May 9th, 2015.
The open-access ZooKeys paper, Laubuka tenella, a new species of cyprinid fish from southeastern Bangladesh and southwestern Myanmar (Teleostei, Cyprinidae, Danioninae), by authors Sven Kullander, Md. Mizanur Rahman, Michael Norén, and Abdur Rob Mollah, provides a great deal of insight into the genus Laubuka, clarifying earlier work. The paper’s authors note that Laubuka spp. are similar in many respects to the more familiar Devario genus, but Laubuka lack barbels and tend to have more muted, indistinct markings, when compared to Devario.
The “tenella” name etymology is stated by the authors this way: “The specific name is a Latin adjective in diminutive form, tenellus, here in the meaning of delicate, referring to the small size and the soft, delicate consistency of fresh specimens.”
Map of collecting sites of Laubuka laubuca and the newly described L. tenella. (Map: Kullander et al using Natural Earth Data.)
Readers willing to dive into the species description will be rewarded with insights into the habitat of the new species; thorough descriptions of the stream composition could be quite useful in recreating the biotope of this species. The authors further provide detailed accountings of species found in situ with Laubuka tenella at each location surveyed. Depending on the specific location, one might find a range of aquarium-suitable danios, Devario species, rasboras, and assorted barbs, along with the Burmese Loach (Lepidocephalichthys berdmorei) and at times multiple gobies, owing to the coastal proximity of this species’ habitat.
Humanely euthanized with MS 222 and preserved specimens of Laubuka tenella. A: holotype, DU 9004, 42.1 mm SL. Bangladesh: Chittagong Division: Domdomia stream, 10 km north of Teknaf. B: Laubuka tenella, paratype, NRM 40813, 39.8 mm SL. Myanmar: Rakhine State: Thandwe River drainage, Nan Chaung, near Thandwe. C: Laubuka tenella, paratype, NRM 67380, 46.8 mm SL, preserved in 95% ethanol. Bangladesh: Chittagong Division, Majerchora stream, 10 km south of Cox’s Bazar.
You can read the paper online at https://zookeys.pensoft.net/articles.php?id=22510
Abstract
Laubuka tenella is a new species characterized by the colour pattern, consisting of short dark vertical bars anteriorly on the side, and a dark lateral band posteriorly on the side, combined with a relatively short pelvic fin and 29–30 lateral-line scales. It is separated from other Laubuka analysed by minimum 9% uncorrected p-distance in the mitochondrial COI gene. The type series is composed of specimens from small streams in the Cox’s Bazar District in Bangladesh (the type locality), and the Thandwe River drainage in western Myanmar. Laubuka brahmaputraensis is strongly indicated to be a junior synonym of L. laubuca, the second known species of Laubuka in Bangladesh. Eustira ceylonensis, currently in the synonymy of Devariomalabaricus, is a valid species of Laubuka.
Sources
Natural Earth Data: http://www.naturalearthdata.com/
from Reef to Rainforest media
==========================
Laubuka tenella, paratype from the type locality, photographed alive immediately upon capture, displaying a neon blue-green stripe and faint blue vertical bars.
A sleek, small, and glimmeringly-hued new species in the danio clan has just been described and may offer potential for breeders serving the aquarium trade. Reaching a maximum size of just 6 cm (2.36 inches), the shimmering Laubuka tenella represents the newest addition to the ever-popular Danioninae subfamily. Discovered in the Cox’s Bazar District of southeastern coastal Bangladesh, it has also been reported further to the south in the Thandwe River drainage in neighboring western Myanmar.
Domdomia stream, the type locality of Laubuka tenella, May 9th, 2015.
The open-access ZooKeys paper, Laubuka tenella, a new species of cyprinid fish from southeastern Bangladesh and southwestern Myanmar (Teleostei, Cyprinidae, Danioninae), by authors Sven Kullander, Md. Mizanur Rahman, Michael Norén, and Abdur Rob Mollah, provides a great deal of insight into the genus Laubuka, clarifying earlier work. The paper’s authors note that Laubuka spp. are similar in many respects to the more familiar Devario genus, but Laubuka lack barbels and tend to have more muted, indistinct markings, when compared to Devario.
The “tenella” name etymology is stated by the authors this way: “The specific name is a Latin adjective in diminutive form, tenellus, here in the meaning of delicate, referring to the small size and the soft, delicate consistency of fresh specimens.”
Map of collecting sites of Laubuka laubuca and the newly described L. tenella. (Map: Kullander et al using Natural Earth Data.)
Readers willing to dive into the species description will be rewarded with insights into the habitat of the new species; thorough descriptions of the stream composition could be quite useful in recreating the biotope of this species. The authors further provide detailed accountings of species found in situ with Laubuka tenella at each location surveyed. Depending on the specific location, one might find a range of aquarium-suitable danios, Devario species, rasboras, and assorted barbs, along with the Burmese Loach (Lepidocephalichthys berdmorei) and at times multiple gobies, owing to the coastal proximity of this species’ habitat.
Humanely euthanized with MS 222 and preserved specimens of Laubuka tenella. A: holotype, DU 9004, 42.1 mm SL. Bangladesh: Chittagong Division: Domdomia stream, 10 km north of Teknaf. B: Laubuka tenella, paratype, NRM 40813, 39.8 mm SL. Myanmar: Rakhine State: Thandwe River drainage, Nan Chaung, near Thandwe. C: Laubuka tenella, paratype, NRM 67380, 46.8 mm SL, preserved in 95% ethanol. Bangladesh: Chittagong Division, Majerchora stream, 10 km south of Cox’s Bazar.
You can read the paper online at https://zookeys.pensoft.net/articles.php?id=22510
Abstract
Laubuka tenella is a new species characterized by the colour pattern, consisting of short dark vertical bars anteriorly on the side, and a dark lateral band posteriorly on the side, combined with a relatively short pelvic fin and 29–30 lateral-line scales. It is separated from other Laubuka analysed by minimum 9% uncorrected p-distance in the mitochondrial COI gene. The type series is composed of specimens from small streams in the Cox’s Bazar District in Bangladesh (the type locality), and the Thandwe River drainage in western Myanmar. Laubuka brahmaputraensis is strongly indicated to be a junior synonym of L. laubuca, the second known species of Laubuka in Bangladesh. Eustira ceylonensis, currently in the synonymy of Devariomalabaricus, is a valid species of Laubuka.
Sources
Natural Earth Data: http://www.naturalearthdata.com/
from Reef to Rainforest media
==========================
Robin Hood Aquarists Club
Spring Auction 2018
Sunday 8th April 2018
We will be holding an auction of fish, plants and equipment at the
Highbank Community Centre, Farnborough Road, Clifton, Nottingham, NG11 9DG.
Doors open 10.30am and Auction starts 11am.
Refreshments will be available throughout the day and a licensed bar has been applied for.
Admission to the auction is free. We look forward to seeing you there.
PLEASE NOTE: Smoking is strictly prohibited within the building and this includes E-cigarettes. Also it is now council policy that no dogs are permitted in the building.
For further details, including booking an auction lot,
please contact
e-mail: rhaqua@hotmail.co.uk
Please Note : Auction Lots can only be booked from 12 midnight on 8th March 2018.
We're also on Facebook, go to https://www.facebook.com/#!/groups/524581947558898/
Click HERE for the auction rules and buying at auction guide.
We have been notified by sellers of the items below that will hopefully be at the auction.
***PLEASE NOTE*** There are no guarantees that these items will definitely be available as unforeseen circumstances before the day cannot be accounted for.
Also, this is certainly not a full list of what will be available, it's only what we know of so far and many sellers do not notify us what they intend to bring along. It's not just a fish and plant auction, there will also be various items of second hand equipment available along with live food cultures. If you are coming for anything specific on the list, let us know and we will try to ascertain from the seller if the item is at risk of not being there and let them know that someone is interested in that item.
The items listed below have only been declared by only 8 sellers, we currently have lots from 18 individual sellers in total booked in for the auction. So there will be much, much more at the auction than what is on this list.
Fish
Black Bar Endlers
Peacock Endlers
Snakeskin guppies
Brown Bristlenose Ancistrus
Albino Bristlenose
Super Red Bristlenose
Long fin albino Ancistrus
Yellow Congo Tetras
Hi fin red swords
Pair Golden Mollys
Clown Loach 6"
Ancistrus temminckii
Peacock goby
Blue guppies
Tiger guppies
Platies
Mollies
Montezuma swords
Green swords
Pygmaeus swords
Pearl gourami
Dwarf gourami
Cherry shrimp
Harlequins
Black Phantom Tetras
Silver Tipped tetras
Glowlight Tetras
Splash tetras
Black Neon Tetras
Peppered Cory
Albino Cory
Schulzei Cory
Xl pair Black Corys (Have bred)
Pearl danios
Cherry barbs
Black Ruby barbs
Madagascar rainbows
Hoplo cats
Albino Hoplo cats
Silver dollars (small)
Glowlight tetras
Glowlight danios
Zebra danios
Mouthbrooders
Mixed African cichlids
Congo tetras
Scissor tails
Guppies male and females
Black neons
Neons
Platys
Cherry shrimp
Rosey barbs
Black kuhli loaches
Giant danios
Lemon goldfish
Sarasa Comet gold fish
Assorted Oranda
Assorted Grade A koi
Cherry Barb
Clown Loach
German blue ram
Gold ram
Harlequin rasbora
Indian Dwarf gourami
Long fin black angel fish
Long fin koi angel fish
Neon Tetra
Odessa Barb
Pink Kissing gourami
Whip tail catfish (Rineloricaria lanceolata)
Blue angels
Long fin angels
Gold barbs
Red line torpedo barb
Tinfoil barbs
Albino corydoras
Albino sterbai Corydoras
Brown bristle nose
Corydoras sterbai
Featherfin Catfish Large
L177 WILD CAUGHT Gold seam Gold nugget plec 2-3 inch
Long fin peppered corydoras
Peppered corydoras
Shultzei corydoras
Blood Red Parrot Fish
Cobalt Blue Male Dwarf Gourami
Cobalt blue dwarf gourami Pairs
Sunset Red Male Dwarf gourami
Sunset Red gourami Pairs
Dwarf gourami
Male fighter fish
Pearl gourami
Assorted Guppy
Assorted Platy
Assorted swordtails
Balloon molly
Jumbo sailfin molly
Molly
Kuhli Loach
Boesmani rainbow
Rainbow shark
Metallic pink male guppy
Red tail black shark
Black neon tetra
Cardinal tetra
Columbian red-blue tetra
Lemon tetra
Neon tetra
Moscow snow white guppy
Yellow Shrimp (Neocaridina sp.)
Endlers 'Red Laser'
Blonde Endlers
Blond Endlers 'Red Laser'
3 large male bristlenose
4 Assorted corydoras
Red Swordtails
Green Swordtails
Montezuma Swordtails
Blue Endlers
Heterandria Formosa
Girardinus metallicus Black Chin
Xiphophorus milleri
Black Molly (Freshwater reared)
L144 Lemon Bristlenose
Calico Bristlenose
Longfin Albino Bristlenose
Characodon audax pair
Aquarium Grown Plants
Ludwigia dark orange
Sumatra Fern
Blyxa Japonica
Small leaf Java Fern
Thin leaf Java Fern
Trident Leaf Java Fern
Yellow leaf Anubias Nana
Cryptocoryne 'moi ora'
Anubias barteri
Hornwort
Hygrophila rosae australis
Pistia stratiotes - Water Lettuce
Vallisneria asiatica
Vallisneria spiralis
Cryptocoryne wendtii green
Microsorum pteropus - Java Fern
Bolbitis heudelotii
Vesicularia montagnei – Christmas Moss
Bucephalandra ‘Green Wavy’
Anubias barteri nana
Hygrophila polysperma
Amazon Frogbit
Giant Vallis
Java Fern
Bacopa
Java Moss
Other Items
Microworm cultures
Walterworm cultures
Bananaworm cultures
Small aquarium stand (H69W49D26cm)
Two sets of two clay Apisto caves
Set of clay Shrimp caves (1x6, 3x3, 1x1 tubes)
Kordon Amquel Plus 473ml
10+ pond plant baskets (to be sold as 1 item)
Seachem Fluorite 3.5kg Premium Natural Substrate for Planted Aquaria
Seachem Fluorite Red 3.5kg Premium Natural Substrate for Planted Aquaria
NewJet 3500 L/h Adjustable Multiuse Pump FW/Marine (used only a couple of times for moving water)
Crystal Clear 1L Biological Filtermedia (including filter media bag)
BioBalls 3L
3x5pck of Hessian Squares
3 bags of 30 Almond Leaves
Jewel Rio 180 fish tank stand
1 box jewel filters
Rocks
Tank cleaning accessories - pipe, magnetic tank cleaner
Various ornaments
Small show tanks
Multibreeder
Imitation plants
Bogwood
Set of fishkeeper magazines
Pond specialist book
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
How to Get to the Auction (SATNAV settings (Post Code) NG11 9DG)
Highbank Community Centre is at the junction of Farnborough Road & Southchurch Drive Clifton.
From The South: - Leave M1 at junction 24 (Nott'm south) along the A435 to Nott'm past power station on left until at a traffic island at the Crusader public house. Turn right towards Gotham travel along for approximately 400 to 500 mtrs. Where road widens turn left, into Farnborough Road. The centre is on the right.
From The North and West: - Leave M1 at Junction 25, A52 to Nott'm. Follow A52 towards Grantham past the Queens Medical Centre on your left over a flyover. Follow signs A453 Birmingham & M1 south over a complex of bridges to traffic lights with a left filter lane in bus stop, turn left into Farnborough Road and follow the road. The centre is on the left.
From The East:- Take A52 Towards Nott'm (from the A46 Fosse Way) heading towards Trent Bridge. At the traffic lights at Trent Bridge Cricket Ground turn left onto A60 (Loughborough). Follow signs A453, M1 south, under the complex of bridges to traffic lights with a left filter lane in a bus stop, turn left into Farnborough Road, follow the road along. The centre is on the left.
==========================
Spring Auction 2018
Sunday 8th April 2018
We will be holding an auction of fish, plants and equipment at the
Highbank Community Centre, Farnborough Road, Clifton, Nottingham, NG11 9DG.
Doors open 10.30am and Auction starts 11am.
Refreshments will be available throughout the day and a licensed bar has been applied for.
Admission to the auction is free. We look forward to seeing you there.
PLEASE NOTE: Smoking is strictly prohibited within the building and this includes E-cigarettes. Also it is now council policy that no dogs are permitted in the building.
For further details, including booking an auction lot,
please contact
e-mail: rhaqua@hotmail.co.uk
Please Note : Auction Lots can only be booked from 12 midnight on 8th March 2018.
We're also on Facebook, go to https://www.facebook.com/#!/groups/524581947558898/
Click HERE for the auction rules and buying at auction guide.
We have been notified by sellers of the items below that will hopefully be at the auction.
***PLEASE NOTE*** There are no guarantees that these items will definitely be available as unforeseen circumstances before the day cannot be accounted for.
Also, this is certainly not a full list of what will be available, it's only what we know of so far and many sellers do not notify us what they intend to bring along. It's not just a fish and plant auction, there will also be various items of second hand equipment available along with live food cultures. If you are coming for anything specific on the list, let us know and we will try to ascertain from the seller if the item is at risk of not being there and let them know that someone is interested in that item.
The items listed below have only been declared by only 8 sellers, we currently have lots from 18 individual sellers in total booked in for the auction. So there will be much, much more at the auction than what is on this list.
Fish
Black Bar Endlers
Peacock Endlers
Snakeskin guppies
Brown Bristlenose Ancistrus
Albino Bristlenose
Super Red Bristlenose
Long fin albino Ancistrus
Yellow Congo Tetras
Hi fin red swords
Pair Golden Mollys
Clown Loach 6"
Ancistrus temminckii
Peacock goby
Blue guppies
Tiger guppies
Platies
Mollies
Montezuma swords
Green swords
Pygmaeus swords
Pearl gourami
Dwarf gourami
Cherry shrimp
Harlequins
Black Phantom Tetras
Silver Tipped tetras
Glowlight Tetras
Splash tetras
Black Neon Tetras
Peppered Cory
Albino Cory
Schulzei Cory
Xl pair Black Corys (Have bred)
Pearl danios
Cherry barbs
Black Ruby barbs
Madagascar rainbows
Hoplo cats
Albino Hoplo cats
Silver dollars (small)
Glowlight tetras
Glowlight danios
Zebra danios
Mouthbrooders
Mixed African cichlids
Congo tetras
Scissor tails
Guppies male and females
Black neons
Neons
Platys
Cherry shrimp
Rosey barbs
Black kuhli loaches
Giant danios
Lemon goldfish
Sarasa Comet gold fish
Assorted Oranda
Assorted Grade A koi
Cherry Barb
Clown Loach
German blue ram
Gold ram
Harlequin rasbora
Indian Dwarf gourami
Long fin black angel fish
Long fin koi angel fish
Neon Tetra
Odessa Barb
Pink Kissing gourami
Whip tail catfish (Rineloricaria lanceolata)
Blue angels
Long fin angels
Gold barbs
Red line torpedo barb
Tinfoil barbs
Albino corydoras
Albino sterbai Corydoras
Brown bristle nose
Corydoras sterbai
Featherfin Catfish Large
L177 WILD CAUGHT Gold seam Gold nugget plec 2-3 inch
Long fin peppered corydoras
Peppered corydoras
Shultzei corydoras
Blood Red Parrot Fish
Cobalt Blue Male Dwarf Gourami
Cobalt blue dwarf gourami Pairs
Sunset Red Male Dwarf gourami
Sunset Red gourami Pairs
Dwarf gourami
Male fighter fish
Pearl gourami
Assorted Guppy
Assorted Platy
Assorted swordtails
Balloon molly
Jumbo sailfin molly
Molly
Kuhli Loach
Boesmani rainbow
Rainbow shark
Metallic pink male guppy
Red tail black shark
Black neon tetra
Cardinal tetra
Columbian red-blue tetra
Lemon tetra
Neon tetra
Moscow snow white guppy
Yellow Shrimp (Neocaridina sp.)
Endlers 'Red Laser'
Blonde Endlers
Blond Endlers 'Red Laser'
3 large male bristlenose
4 Assorted corydoras
Red Swordtails
Green Swordtails
Montezuma Swordtails
Blue Endlers
Heterandria Formosa
Girardinus metallicus Black Chin
Xiphophorus milleri
Black Molly (Freshwater reared)
L144 Lemon Bristlenose
Calico Bristlenose
Longfin Albino Bristlenose
Characodon audax pair
Aquarium Grown Plants
Ludwigia dark orange
Sumatra Fern
Blyxa Japonica
Small leaf Java Fern
Thin leaf Java Fern
Trident Leaf Java Fern
Yellow leaf Anubias Nana
Cryptocoryne 'moi ora'
Anubias barteri
Hornwort
Hygrophila rosae australis
Pistia stratiotes - Water Lettuce
Vallisneria asiatica
Vallisneria spiralis
Cryptocoryne wendtii green
Microsorum pteropus - Java Fern
Bolbitis heudelotii
Vesicularia montagnei – Christmas Moss
Bucephalandra ‘Green Wavy’
Anubias barteri nana
Hygrophila polysperma
Amazon Frogbit
Giant Vallis
Java Fern
Bacopa
Java Moss
Other Items
Microworm cultures
Walterworm cultures
Bananaworm cultures
Small aquarium stand (H69W49D26cm)
Two sets of two clay Apisto caves
Set of clay Shrimp caves (1x6, 3x3, 1x1 tubes)
Kordon Amquel Plus 473ml
10+ pond plant baskets (to be sold as 1 item)
Seachem Fluorite 3.5kg Premium Natural Substrate for Planted Aquaria
Seachem Fluorite Red 3.5kg Premium Natural Substrate for Planted Aquaria
NewJet 3500 L/h Adjustable Multiuse Pump FW/Marine (used only a couple of times for moving water)
Crystal Clear 1L Biological Filtermedia (including filter media bag)
BioBalls 3L
3x5pck of Hessian Squares
3 bags of 30 Almond Leaves
Jewel Rio 180 fish tank stand
1 box jewel filters
Rocks
Tank cleaning accessories - pipe, magnetic tank cleaner
Various ornaments
Small show tanks
Multibreeder
Imitation plants
Bogwood
Set of fishkeeper magazines
Pond specialist book
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
How to Get to the Auction (SATNAV settings (Post Code) NG11 9DG)
Highbank Community Centre is at the junction of Farnborough Road & Southchurch Drive Clifton.
From The South: - Leave M1 at junction 24 (Nott'm south) along the A435 to Nott'm past power station on left until at a traffic island at the Crusader public house. Turn right towards Gotham travel along for approximately 400 to 500 mtrs. Where road widens turn left, into Farnborough Road. The centre is on the right.
From The North and West: - Leave M1 at Junction 25, A52 to Nott'm. Follow A52 towards Grantham past the Queens Medical Centre on your left over a flyover. Follow signs A453 Birmingham & M1 south over a complex of bridges to traffic lights with a left filter lane in bus stop, turn left into Farnborough Road and follow the road. The centre is on the left.
From The East:- Take A52 Towards Nott'm (from the A46 Fosse Way) heading towards Trent Bridge. At the traffic lights at Trent Bridge Cricket Ground turn left onto A60 (Loughborough). Follow signs A453, M1 south, under the complex of bridges to traffic lights with a left filter lane in a bus stop, turn left into Farnborough Road, follow the road along. The centre is on the left.
==========================
Update: Teamwork is Helping Hawaii’s Aquarium Trade
#LittleClubBigImpact: An open letter on how teamwork is helping the aquarium trade survive in Hawaiian update from PIJAC‘s Vice President of Government Affairs, Robert Likins
Robert Likins III, Vice President of Government Affairs for the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council (PIJAC)
Since early last year, Hawaii’s aquarium fishing trade has faced significant threats to its survival. Thanks to the hard work of a number of organizations, however, things are looking up for the hobbyists and professionals across the islands.
SB 1240, SB 2003, and Hawaii’s Supreme Court
The news was mostly bad in 2017. Senate Bill 1240 would have phased out aquarium fishing permits – thus possibly ending the trade and certainly endangering the safety of divers. Governor David Ige wisely vetoed the bill, in large part due to the concerted efforts of fishers and scientists, as well as direct engagement by PIJAC, fishers, and others. Governor Ige acknowledged the clear scientific evidence that aquarium fishing is environmentally sustainable.
Senate Bill 1240 was vetoed on July 17. Fifty-one days later, the Hawaii Supreme Court ruled that the Department of Land & Natural Resources (DLNR) must comply with the Hawaii Environmental Protection Act (HEPA) prior to the issuance of aquarium fishing licenses – in this case, an environmental review. A lower court subsequently ruled that use of mesh nets for catching aquarium fish is illegal, and DLNR declared all licenses for their use void.
PIJAC immediately joined the court fight to protect fishers while simultaneously helping to fund and organize the environmental review process. This has cost tens of thousands of dollars to PIJAC and local fishers, and will likely cost far more.
The blows kept coming in early 2018. Senate Bill 2003 was introduced by the lead sponsor of the failed SB1240. It would have resulted in closure of the aquarium fishery over time – risking jobs, safety, and a significant portion of Hawaii’s tourist industry.
Thankfully, an alliance of fisher advocates and – surprisingly – environmental activists stood against SB 2003. It did not advance to the floor of either legislative chamber, allowing fishers to finally breathe a sigh of relief.
Environmental Analysis
As court decisions and bills seemed to come out of the woodwork, PIJAC and fishers were moving forward with DLNR to develop Environmental Assessments (EAs) evaluating the impacts of aquarium fishing. PIJAC is pleased to announce that draft EAs were submitted by DLNR to the Hawaii Office of Environmental Quality Control (OEQC) on March 27, 2018. These draft EAs will be published for public review and comment; comments may be submitted for 30 days after publication.
The draft EAs were developed with input from State and Federal fishery scientists and were peer-reviewed by two world-renowned scientists who determined the documents to be “excellent.” The DEAs conclude that aquarium fishing in Hawaii will not have a significant impact on targeted fish populations or Hawaii’s coral reefs.
The analysis contained in the draft EAs is tremendous for jobs and for science. We encourage everyone to review the DEAs, and submit comments in support of the documents. The documents may be obtained from OEQC in the near future*. We suspect activists will attempt to shut down its scientifically supported findings.
Winning Takes Everyone: #LittleClubBigImpact
It’s been a long year for everyone in Hawaii; hopefully, we are in the home stretch. This is thanks to everyone who has worked so hard to protect aquarium fishing.
Unlike other industries, the responsible pet trade is mostly small businesses and – especially in the aquatics trade – hobbyists. We encourage everyone who can to become a PIJAC memberand/or to donate to our Aquatic Defense Fund. After all, the larger the PIJAC membership, the louder our voice. We were only able to demonstrate standing in court last year because of our many members in Hawaii. And there is no way we could have afforded to engage in court or on the environmental assessment without the donations from those inside and outside Hawaii at and after last year’s Aquatic Experience.
Raising awareness is also important. We are exceedingly grateful for multiple aquarium publications that provide us direct access to hobbyists and professionals through advertisements and coverage. They were critical in creating the groundswell of support necessary to win in Hawaii.
We would also love to work with you to promote what you’re doing for the trade and to help PIJAC. For example, the Green Bay Aquarium Society (GBAS) donated a record $700 to PIJAC after a March 11 fundraiser as part of our #LittleClubBigImpact campaign. Social media was a major part of the awareness operation pre-fundraiser as well as afterward.
The Green Bay Aquarium Society’s 2018 Spring Benefit Auction raised significant capital, which contributed to PIJAC’s efforts. Image credit: John Moyles, GBAS Event Coordinator
The goal of #LittleClubBigImpact is to ensure that national groups like PIJAC and smaller organizations like GBAS show the importance of working hand-in-hand. Only with the expertise and support of everyone can PIJAC continue to defend the trade – and we often provide important strategic insights on matters such as legislation, media outreach, and legal challenges.
Again, it looks like the Hawaii fishing trade may have reason to be cautiously optimistic after a very tough year. Thanks to all who worked so hard to make this happen – and please be sure to contact us at info@pijac.org if you would like to work more closely with PIJAC.
Robert Likins is Vice President of Government Affairs for the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council (PIJAC). PIJAC is the advocacy and legislative voice for the responsible pet industry, including the aquatic trade.
==========================
#LittleClubBigImpact: An open letter on how teamwork is helping the aquarium trade survive in Hawaiian update from PIJAC‘s Vice President of Government Affairs, Robert Likins
Robert Likins III, Vice President of Government Affairs for the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council (PIJAC)
Since early last year, Hawaii’s aquarium fishing trade has faced significant threats to its survival. Thanks to the hard work of a number of organizations, however, things are looking up for the hobbyists and professionals across the islands.
SB 1240, SB 2003, and Hawaii’s Supreme Court
The news was mostly bad in 2017. Senate Bill 1240 would have phased out aquarium fishing permits – thus possibly ending the trade and certainly endangering the safety of divers. Governor David Ige wisely vetoed the bill, in large part due to the concerted efforts of fishers and scientists, as well as direct engagement by PIJAC, fishers, and others. Governor Ige acknowledged the clear scientific evidence that aquarium fishing is environmentally sustainable.
Senate Bill 1240 was vetoed on July 17. Fifty-one days later, the Hawaii Supreme Court ruled that the Department of Land & Natural Resources (DLNR) must comply with the Hawaii Environmental Protection Act (HEPA) prior to the issuance of aquarium fishing licenses – in this case, an environmental review. A lower court subsequently ruled that use of mesh nets for catching aquarium fish is illegal, and DLNR declared all licenses for their use void.
PIJAC immediately joined the court fight to protect fishers while simultaneously helping to fund and organize the environmental review process. This has cost tens of thousands of dollars to PIJAC and local fishers, and will likely cost far more.
The blows kept coming in early 2018. Senate Bill 2003 was introduced by the lead sponsor of the failed SB1240. It would have resulted in closure of the aquarium fishery over time – risking jobs, safety, and a significant portion of Hawaii’s tourist industry.
Thankfully, an alliance of fisher advocates and – surprisingly – environmental activists stood against SB 2003. It did not advance to the floor of either legislative chamber, allowing fishers to finally breathe a sigh of relief.
Environmental Analysis
As court decisions and bills seemed to come out of the woodwork, PIJAC and fishers were moving forward with DLNR to develop Environmental Assessments (EAs) evaluating the impacts of aquarium fishing. PIJAC is pleased to announce that draft EAs were submitted by DLNR to the Hawaii Office of Environmental Quality Control (OEQC) on March 27, 2018. These draft EAs will be published for public review and comment; comments may be submitted for 30 days after publication.
The draft EAs were developed with input from State and Federal fishery scientists and were peer-reviewed by two world-renowned scientists who determined the documents to be “excellent.” The DEAs conclude that aquarium fishing in Hawaii will not have a significant impact on targeted fish populations or Hawaii’s coral reefs.
The analysis contained in the draft EAs is tremendous for jobs and for science. We encourage everyone to review the DEAs, and submit comments in support of the documents. The documents may be obtained from OEQC in the near future*. We suspect activists will attempt to shut down its scientifically supported findings.
Winning Takes Everyone: #LittleClubBigImpact
It’s been a long year for everyone in Hawaii; hopefully, we are in the home stretch. This is thanks to everyone who has worked so hard to protect aquarium fishing.
Unlike other industries, the responsible pet trade is mostly small businesses and – especially in the aquatics trade – hobbyists. We encourage everyone who can to become a PIJAC memberand/or to donate to our Aquatic Defense Fund. After all, the larger the PIJAC membership, the louder our voice. We were only able to demonstrate standing in court last year because of our many members in Hawaii. And there is no way we could have afforded to engage in court or on the environmental assessment without the donations from those inside and outside Hawaii at and after last year’s Aquatic Experience.
Raising awareness is also important. We are exceedingly grateful for multiple aquarium publications that provide us direct access to hobbyists and professionals through advertisements and coverage. They were critical in creating the groundswell of support necessary to win in Hawaii.
We would also love to work with you to promote what you’re doing for the trade and to help PIJAC. For example, the Green Bay Aquarium Society (GBAS) donated a record $700 to PIJAC after a March 11 fundraiser as part of our #LittleClubBigImpact campaign. Social media was a major part of the awareness operation pre-fundraiser as well as afterward.
The Green Bay Aquarium Society’s 2018 Spring Benefit Auction raised significant capital, which contributed to PIJAC’s efforts. Image credit: John Moyles, GBAS Event Coordinator
The goal of #LittleClubBigImpact is to ensure that national groups like PIJAC and smaller organizations like GBAS show the importance of working hand-in-hand. Only with the expertise and support of everyone can PIJAC continue to defend the trade – and we often provide important strategic insights on matters such as legislation, media outreach, and legal challenges.
Again, it looks like the Hawaii fishing trade may have reason to be cautiously optimistic after a very tough year. Thanks to all who worked so hard to make this happen – and please be sure to contact us at info@pijac.org if you would like to work more closely with PIJAC.
Robert Likins is Vice President of Government Affairs for the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council (PIJAC). PIJAC is the advocacy and legislative voice for the responsible pet industry, including the aquatic trade.
==========================
Myloplus tumukumak • A New Species of MyloplusGill (Characiformes, Serrasalmidae) from the Tumucumaque Mountain Range, Brazil and French Guiana, with Comments on M. rubripinnis
Myloplus tumukumak
Andrade, Jégu & Gama, 2018
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4403.1.6
Abstract
A new species of Myloplus Gill is described from Eastern Tumucumaque Mountain Range, drainages of the Oyapock and Araguari rivers between Brazil and French Guiana. The new species is diagnosed by having comparatively large scales on the flanks, resulting in lower counts when compared with congeners, i.e., 59 to 70 total perforated scales on lateral line, 31 to 35 longitudinal scales above lateral line, 24 to 29 longitudinal scales below lateral line, and 22 to 26 circumpeduncular scale rows. The new species most closely resembles Myloplus rubripinnis by sharing with this species a general rounded shape, a similar color pattern, and a high number of rays, i.e., 23 to 25 branched dorsal-fin rays and 35 to 38 branched anal-fin rays in the new species (vs. 24 to 25 and 32 to 40, respectively, in M. rubripinnis). After reviewing the available type-specimens of all Myloplus species, M. rubripinnis is re-diagnosed as having higher counts of branched dorsal-fin rays and anal-fin rays combined to tiny scales on flanks, i.e., 85 to 89 total perforated scales on lateral line, 38 to 45 longitudinal scales above lateral line, 33 to 42 longitudinal scales below lateral line, and 30 to 39 circumpeduncular scale rows.
Keywords: Pisces, taxonomy, Oiapoque, Araguari, Amapá, Guiana Shield, Ostariophysi
Marcelo C. Andrade, Michel Jégu and Cecile S. Gama. 2018. A New Species of Myloplus Gill(Characiformes, Serrasalmidae) from the Tumucumaque Mountain Range, Brazil and French Guiana, with Comments on M. rubripinnis. Zootaxa. 4403(1); 111–122. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4403.1.6
==========================
Myloplus tumukumak
Andrade, Jégu & Gama, 2018
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4403.1.6
Abstract
A new species of Myloplus Gill is described from Eastern Tumucumaque Mountain Range, drainages of the Oyapock and Araguari rivers between Brazil and French Guiana. The new species is diagnosed by having comparatively large scales on the flanks, resulting in lower counts when compared with congeners, i.e., 59 to 70 total perforated scales on lateral line, 31 to 35 longitudinal scales above lateral line, 24 to 29 longitudinal scales below lateral line, and 22 to 26 circumpeduncular scale rows. The new species most closely resembles Myloplus rubripinnis by sharing with this species a general rounded shape, a similar color pattern, and a high number of rays, i.e., 23 to 25 branched dorsal-fin rays and 35 to 38 branched anal-fin rays in the new species (vs. 24 to 25 and 32 to 40, respectively, in M. rubripinnis). After reviewing the available type-specimens of all Myloplus species, M. rubripinnis is re-diagnosed as having higher counts of branched dorsal-fin rays and anal-fin rays combined to tiny scales on flanks, i.e., 85 to 89 total perforated scales on lateral line, 38 to 45 longitudinal scales above lateral line, 33 to 42 longitudinal scales below lateral line, and 30 to 39 circumpeduncular scale rows.
Keywords: Pisces, taxonomy, Oiapoque, Araguari, Amapá, Guiana Shield, Ostariophysi
Marcelo C. Andrade, Michel Jégu and Cecile S. Gama. 2018. A New Species of Myloplus Gill(Characiformes, Serrasalmidae) from the Tumucumaque Mountain Range, Brazil and French Guiana, with Comments on M. rubripinnis. Zootaxa. 4403(1); 111–122. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4403.1.6
==========================
Piranha fish found in Chichester sewer as water company pleads 'only flush poo, paper and pee'
29 MARCH 2018 • 6:45PMAwater company has pleaded with householders not to flush exotic animals down the toilet after a piranha fish was discovered in a sewer in Chichester.
The flesh-eating creature was found by a startled member of staff at Southern Water who was carrying out checks at the West Sussex treatment works.
The South-American river predator, which normally hunt in packs, can rip flesh to shreds in a matter of seconds.
Although the newly discovered piranha was dead and posed no threat, having most likely been flushed away after dying naturally in its tank, water bosses said that only ‘p’s that should go down the toilet were ‘pee, poo and paper.’
Southern Water spokeswoman Nicola Crichton said: "Obviously someone who owns exotic animals must have flushed it down the toilet, I don't think it managed to migrate all this way.
"People will flush anything down their toilets, we once found a bed sheet at the waterworks, and find all sorts of strange things."
Alligators have been reported in the New York sewers
Indigenous to the Amazonian basin, the piranha is a freshwater fish which can range in size from 5in to 20in depending on the species.
They have been characterised in films and the media as extremely predatory due to their powerful jaws and feeding frenzies but in fact are omnivorous and pose a relatively low threat to humans.
Strange animals living in the sewers have been a part of urban legends since modern drainage began. There have been tales and anecdotes about alligators living the sewers of New York since the New York Times ran a story in 1935 claiming youngsters shovelling snow had found a creature writhing in a storm drain and dragged it out.
New Yorkers are now so proud of legend that on February 9th they celebrate ‘Alligators in Sewers Day’.
In 2008, the Eastbourne Herald reported that sewer workers at Southern Water’s treatment plant in Eastbourne, East Sussex, claimed to have seen a strange humanoid shadow in the underground passages, which would follow staff.
They also reported muffled conversations emanating from behind the tunnel walls.
And in the 1800s, a strange story circulated around London that the sewers of Hampstead were home to a population of black pigs. It was claimed that a pregnant sow had fallen into a drain and been unable to find its way out.
On the 10th October 1889, The Daily Telegraph reported that ‘the Hampstead sewers shelter a monstrous breed of black swine, which have propagated and run wild among the slimy feculence, and whose ferocious snouts will one day up-root Highgate archway, while they make Holloway intolerable with their grunting.”
Speaking of the latest sewer dweller, Southern Water communications officer Simon Fluendy said: "Our campaigns normally focus on stopping people flushing plastic-based materials such as wet wipes, sanitary products, condoms and nappies down the toilet.
"There's only the three Ps which should go down the loo - pee, poo and paper. Piranhas are not one of them.
"We like to make it clear, we do not believe that there is any risk of shoals of piranhas swimming around our sewers - this would be highly unusual.
"We would like to reassure our 4.6 million customers that it is safe to use their toilets as normal."
from The Telegraph
==========================
The piranha found in the sewage works CREDIT: SOLENT NEWS & PHOTO AGENCY- Sarah Knapton, science editor
29 MARCH 2018 • 6:45PMAwater company has pleaded with householders not to flush exotic animals down the toilet after a piranha fish was discovered in a sewer in Chichester.
The flesh-eating creature was found by a startled member of staff at Southern Water who was carrying out checks at the West Sussex treatment works.
The South-American river predator, which normally hunt in packs, can rip flesh to shreds in a matter of seconds.
Although the newly discovered piranha was dead and posed no threat, having most likely been flushed away after dying naturally in its tank, water bosses said that only ‘p’s that should go down the toilet were ‘pee, poo and paper.’
Southern Water spokeswoman Nicola Crichton said: "Obviously someone who owns exotic animals must have flushed it down the toilet, I don't think it managed to migrate all this way.
"People will flush anything down their toilets, we once found a bed sheet at the waterworks, and find all sorts of strange things."
Alligators have been reported in the New York sewers
Indigenous to the Amazonian basin, the piranha is a freshwater fish which can range in size from 5in to 20in depending on the species.
They have been characterised in films and the media as extremely predatory due to their powerful jaws and feeding frenzies but in fact are omnivorous and pose a relatively low threat to humans.
Strange animals living in the sewers have been a part of urban legends since modern drainage began. There have been tales and anecdotes about alligators living the sewers of New York since the New York Times ran a story in 1935 claiming youngsters shovelling snow had found a creature writhing in a storm drain and dragged it out.
New Yorkers are now so proud of legend that on February 9th they celebrate ‘Alligators in Sewers Day’.
In 2008, the Eastbourne Herald reported that sewer workers at Southern Water’s treatment plant in Eastbourne, East Sussex, claimed to have seen a strange humanoid shadow in the underground passages, which would follow staff.
They also reported muffled conversations emanating from behind the tunnel walls.
And in the 1800s, a strange story circulated around London that the sewers of Hampstead were home to a population of black pigs. It was claimed that a pregnant sow had fallen into a drain and been unable to find its way out.
On the 10th October 1889, The Daily Telegraph reported that ‘the Hampstead sewers shelter a monstrous breed of black swine, which have propagated and run wild among the slimy feculence, and whose ferocious snouts will one day up-root Highgate archway, while they make Holloway intolerable with their grunting.”
Speaking of the latest sewer dweller, Southern Water communications officer Simon Fluendy said: "Our campaigns normally focus on stopping people flushing plastic-based materials such as wet wipes, sanitary products, condoms and nappies down the toilet.
"There's only the three Ps which should go down the loo - pee, poo and paper. Piranhas are not one of them.
"We like to make it clear, we do not believe that there is any risk of shoals of piranhas swimming around our sewers - this would be highly unusual.
"We would like to reassure our 4.6 million customers that it is safe to use their toilets as normal."
from The Telegraph
==========================
Poecilia vivipara
How did Poecilia vivipara cross the ocean?: An unexpected fish appears on a volcanic archipelago
Summary:
To the surprise of the scientists, populations of a South American guppy were spotted at the Fernando de Noronha archipelago, a volcanic island in the South Atlantic. Even if being easily adaptable fishes, it was unclear how a small freshwater species had managed to cross the ocean and populate the archipelago. Researchers suggest that the US military in WWII may be behind the phenomenon.
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FULL STORY
Credit: Image courtesy of Pensoft PublishersWhile people tend to describe tropical oceanic islands as 'paradises on Earth' and associate them with calm beaches, transparent warm waters and marvellous landscapes, archipelagos are often the product of a fierce natural force -- volcanoes which erupt at the bottom of the sea.
Because of their origin, these islands have never been connected to the mainland, thereby it is extremely difficult for species to cross the ocean and populate them.
One such species -- the South American guppy (Poecilia vivipara) -- is a small freshwater fish which looks nowhere equipped to cross the distance between the mainland and the Fernando de Noronha oceanic archipelago in Northeast Brazil.
Nevertheless, the research team of PhD student Waldir M. Berbel-Filho and his professor Dr. Sergio Lima from Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte recorded the species from a local mangrove on the island. The question that immediately sprang to the minds of the scientists was: 'Where did the guppies come from and how did they get to Fernando de Noronha?'
To answer these questions, the scientists sequenced a gene of the guppies' DNA to analyze potential signatures of the island colonization left in the fish DNA. As a result, they concluded that the isolated population was in fact closely related to the fish inhabiting the closest continental drainages.
However, this evidence was not enough to explain how the species turned up on the island in the first place. Was it natural colonization, or rather human introduction?
The most likely scenario, according to the team, leads back to about 60 years ago when the American military had their WWII bases positioned at both Fernando de Noronha and Natal -- the closest continental city. Indeed, the soldiers suggested to bring guppies to the island in an attempt to control mosquito population (in this region, guppies are commonly placed in water reservoirs to eat mosquito larvae).
On the other hand, natural dispersion cannot be completely excluded. The biologists remind that, apart for their exuberant colours and shapes, the guppies are well known for their capacity to resist to a wide range of environmental conditions. It could be that a set of circumstances occurring together, such as a favourable sea current, physiological adaptation and a bit of luck, might have brought the guppies to the archipelago.
"Regardless of their means of transportation," argue the authors, "this guppy population represents a valuable lesson on how small populations manage to colonize and thrive in isolated environments."
"Despite being visited by thousands of people every year, some of the most intriguing secrets of tropical islands may still be hidden in the DNA of their inhabitants," they conclude. "These 'paradises on Earth' are capable of simultaneously filling our hearts with beauty and our minds -- with knowledge."
Story Source:
Materials provided by Pensoft Publishers. The original story is licensed under a Creative Commons License. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
Journal Reference:
==========================
Summary:
To the surprise of the scientists, populations of a South American guppy were spotted at the Fernando de Noronha archipelago, a volcanic island in the South Atlantic. Even if being easily adaptable fishes, it was unclear how a small freshwater species had managed to cross the ocean and populate the archipelago. Researchers suggest that the US military in WWII may be behind the phenomenon.
Share:
FULL STORY
Credit: Image courtesy of Pensoft PublishersWhile people tend to describe tropical oceanic islands as 'paradises on Earth' and associate them with calm beaches, transparent warm waters and marvellous landscapes, archipelagos are often the product of a fierce natural force -- volcanoes which erupt at the bottom of the sea.
Because of their origin, these islands have never been connected to the mainland, thereby it is extremely difficult for species to cross the ocean and populate them.
One such species -- the South American guppy (Poecilia vivipara) -- is a small freshwater fish which looks nowhere equipped to cross the distance between the mainland and the Fernando de Noronha oceanic archipelago in Northeast Brazil.
Nevertheless, the research team of PhD student Waldir M. Berbel-Filho and his professor Dr. Sergio Lima from Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte recorded the species from a local mangrove on the island. The question that immediately sprang to the minds of the scientists was: 'Where did the guppies come from and how did they get to Fernando de Noronha?'
To answer these questions, the scientists sequenced a gene of the guppies' DNA to analyze potential signatures of the island colonization left in the fish DNA. As a result, they concluded that the isolated population was in fact closely related to the fish inhabiting the closest continental drainages.
However, this evidence was not enough to explain how the species turned up on the island in the first place. Was it natural colonization, or rather human introduction?
The most likely scenario, according to the team, leads back to about 60 years ago when the American military had their WWII bases positioned at both Fernando de Noronha and Natal -- the closest continental city. Indeed, the soldiers suggested to bring guppies to the island in an attempt to control mosquito population (in this region, guppies are commonly placed in water reservoirs to eat mosquito larvae).
On the other hand, natural dispersion cannot be completely excluded. The biologists remind that, apart for their exuberant colours and shapes, the guppies are well known for their capacity to resist to a wide range of environmental conditions. It could be that a set of circumstances occurring together, such as a favourable sea current, physiological adaptation and a bit of luck, might have brought the guppies to the archipelago.
"Regardless of their means of transportation," argue the authors, "this guppy population represents a valuable lesson on how small populations manage to colonize and thrive in isolated environments."
"Despite being visited by thousands of people every year, some of the most intriguing secrets of tropical islands may still be hidden in the DNA of their inhabitants," they conclude. "These 'paradises on Earth' are capable of simultaneously filling our hearts with beauty and our minds -- with knowledge."
Story Source:
Materials provided by Pensoft Publishers. The original story is licensed under a Creative Commons License. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
Journal Reference:
- Waldir Miron Berbel-Filho, Luciano Freitas Barros-Neto, Ricardo Marques Dias, Liana Figueiredo Mendes, Carlos Augusto Assumpção Figueiredo, Rodrigo Augusto Torres, Sergio Maia Queiroz Lima. Poecilia vivipara Bloch & Schneider, 1801 (Cyprinodontiformes, Poeciliidae), a guppy in an oceanic archipelago: from where did it come?ZooKeys, 2018; 746: 91 DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.746.20960
==========================
Cosmetic Surgery for a Pet Fish? In Asia, This One Is King of the Tank
SINGAPORE — Eugene Ng jabbed a pudgy finger against the side of the glass tank, like a predator singling out his unlucky target.
“That fish’s eye is looking a little droopy,” said Mr. Ng, pointing to a fish with large metallic gold scales swimming happily among its companions.
Minutes later, the fish was knocked out and getting an eyelift, a procedure that has become standard practice in Mr. Ng’s job as one of the premier cosmetic surgeons for Asian arowana fish here in Singapore. Using a pair of forceps, Mr. Ng — known to his clients as Dr. Ark, after the pet fish store that he also runs — worked quickly, loosening the tissue behind the fish’s eye and pushing the eyeball up into the socket.
“I know some people think it’s cruel to the fish,” said Mr. Ng, lifting his sedated patient with one hand to show off its newly straightened eye. “But really I’m doing it a favor. Because now the fish looks better and its owner will love it even more.”
The idea of cosmetic surgery for a fish may sound extreme. But the Asian arowana is not your average pet store fish. Known as the long yu, or “dragon fish” in Chinese, it reigns as one of the world’s most expensive aquarium fish, selling for anywhere from a few hundred dollars to tens of thousands of dollars.
Photo“In Singapore, if you have an arowana, that means you have status,” said Kenny Lim, a local hobbyist.CreditOre Huiying for The New York TimesOne fish was even rumored to have been bought by a Chinese Communist Party official for $300,000. So for most owners, the cost of an eyelift ($90) or a chin job ($60) for their pet fish is pocket change.
While prices of the fish saw a boom and a bit of a bust earlier this decade, the arowana remains a popular luxury accessory across Asia. Wealthy Chinese businessmen in particular prize the fish — with its large glimmering scales, sage-like whiskers and aggressive personality — for its resemblance to the mythical Chinese dragon.
Adding to the allure are the often-repeated tales of arowana that sacrifice their lives by jumping out of tanks to warn owners about a bad business investment or other potential dangers.
For those reasons, aficionados call the arowana the king of the fish, emperor of the tank, a dragon among mere mortals.
PhotoBreeders used DNA technology to hone the traits of a “perfect” fish, and neon pink tanning lights are a common feature in tanks to enhance the fish’s reddish hue. CreditOre Huiying for The New York Times“For Chinese, keeping fish is about bringing good luck and wealth, and the Asian arowana are especially lucky,” said Kenny Yap, the executive chairman of Qian Hu Fish, one of the top arowana breeders in Singapore.
“In the West, dragons are evil monsters,” added Mr. Yap, or Kenny the Fish, as he prefers to be called. “But in Chinese culture, dragons are divine.”
Perhaps nowhere is the obsession more apparent than here in this tropical city-state, a hub of the global ornamental fish trade and home to a thriving network of breeders and hobbyists dedicated to the Asian arowana (not to be confused with the silver arowana, its South American cousin).
The fish has become so deeply ingrained as a status symbol that it was even featured in the latest installment of Kevin Kwan’s “Crazy Rich Asians,” a popular series of novels about the lives of Singapore’s elite, in the form of a $250,000 super red arowana named Valentino.
“Singaporeans are crazy about the fish,” said Emily Voigt, the author of “The Dragon Behind the Glass,” a rollicking account of her transcontinental journey into the murky world of the arowana.
Photo“For Chinese, keeping fish is about bringing good luck and wealth, and the Asian arowana are especially lucky,” said Kenny Yap, the executive chairman of Qian Hu Fish, a top arowana breeder in Singapore.CreditOre Huiying for The New York TimesAt one point, Ms. Voigt said, the global craze for the fish reached such a frenzy that even in Singapore, where the crime rate is so low that a stolen delivery parcel makes headlines, there were four arowana heists in one week. During one of the robberies, the thief punched an elderly woman as he ran away with her fish in a sloshing bucket.
In a separate episode, a Singaporean man was sentenced to three years in prison and 12 strokes of the cane for trying to steal arowana from a shop.
“You think of pet fish as being an innocent thing,” Ms. Voigt said. “But I didn’t expect to find myself confronting this dark underbelly.”
The prominence of the Asian arowana is a sharp reversal in fortune for a fish that half a century ago was considered by locals in its natural swamp habitat of Borneo and Indonesia to be a common food fish — and a rather bony and tasteless one at that.
Experts say the turning point came in 1975, when the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, signed by 183 countries, banned the fish from international trade. By classifying it as a rare species, some say, the treaty elevated its status as a luxury item.
PhotoThe price of arowana crashed around 2012 as breeding farms flooded the market, but despite the sharp dip, the fish remains an aspirational luxury good. CreditOre Huiying for The New York TimesAfter the ban, a booming black market for arowana emerged. Smuggled arowana were turning up in countries around Asia and later in the United States, where it is still banned. The overwhelming demand had a devastating effect on the wild population of arowana. So starting in the late 1980s, restrictions were loosened to allow trade of farm-bred arowana whose parents were also born in captivity.
While the wild arowana never recovered, trade in captive-bred arowana flourished, reaching a peak in the 2000s as buyers in mainland China jumped into the game.
Breeders used DNA technology to pinpoint characteristics in a bid to create a “perfect” fish: straight feelers, bright eyes, large and round fins and tails and shimmering red scales. Neon pink tanning lights became a common feature in tanks to enhance the fish’s reddish hue.
“It’s like a beauty pageant,” said Alex Chang, the head of research and development at Qian Hu Fish, who was caught several years ago attempting to smuggle two suitcases full of endangered fish worth over $180,000 into Australia. “The fish cannot be fat. It must look strong and have personality. It must swim confidently and be firm, stern and fierce. It cannot be timid.”
But around 2012, the price of arowana crashed as breeding farms flooded the market. While prices have somewhat bounced back in recent years, big farms like Qian Hu have begun breeding other species.
Despite the sharp dip in prices, the arowana remains an aspirational luxury good and a point of obsession for many Singaporeans.
As a young boy growing up in Singapore, Nicholas Chia always dreamed about having an arowana. Then, last year, he finally bit the bullet and bought his first one. Since then, he has acquired five more. Now, he keeps his prized fish in six large tanks that take up a third of his living room.
“Sometimes my wife complains that I neglect the children because of the fish,” said Mr. Chia, a 30-year-old software entrepreneur. “To a certain extent, yes, I guess that’s true.”
from the Singapore Journal
==========================
SINGAPORE — Eugene Ng jabbed a pudgy finger against the side of the glass tank, like a predator singling out his unlucky target.
“That fish’s eye is looking a little droopy,” said Mr. Ng, pointing to a fish with large metallic gold scales swimming happily among its companions.
Minutes later, the fish was knocked out and getting an eyelift, a procedure that has become standard practice in Mr. Ng’s job as one of the premier cosmetic surgeons for Asian arowana fish here in Singapore. Using a pair of forceps, Mr. Ng — known to his clients as Dr. Ark, after the pet fish store that he also runs — worked quickly, loosening the tissue behind the fish’s eye and pushing the eyeball up into the socket.
“I know some people think it’s cruel to the fish,” said Mr. Ng, lifting his sedated patient with one hand to show off its newly straightened eye. “But really I’m doing it a favor. Because now the fish looks better and its owner will love it even more.”
The idea of cosmetic surgery for a fish may sound extreme. But the Asian arowana is not your average pet store fish. Known as the long yu, or “dragon fish” in Chinese, it reigns as one of the world’s most expensive aquarium fish, selling for anywhere from a few hundred dollars to tens of thousands of dollars.
Photo“In Singapore, if you have an arowana, that means you have status,” said Kenny Lim, a local hobbyist.CreditOre Huiying for The New York TimesOne fish was even rumored to have been bought by a Chinese Communist Party official for $300,000. So for most owners, the cost of an eyelift ($90) or a chin job ($60) for their pet fish is pocket change.
While prices of the fish saw a boom and a bit of a bust earlier this decade, the arowana remains a popular luxury accessory across Asia. Wealthy Chinese businessmen in particular prize the fish — with its large glimmering scales, sage-like whiskers and aggressive personality — for its resemblance to the mythical Chinese dragon.
Adding to the allure are the often-repeated tales of arowana that sacrifice their lives by jumping out of tanks to warn owners about a bad business investment or other potential dangers.
For those reasons, aficionados call the arowana the king of the fish, emperor of the tank, a dragon among mere mortals.
PhotoBreeders used DNA technology to hone the traits of a “perfect” fish, and neon pink tanning lights are a common feature in tanks to enhance the fish’s reddish hue. CreditOre Huiying for The New York Times“For Chinese, keeping fish is about bringing good luck and wealth, and the Asian arowana are especially lucky,” said Kenny Yap, the executive chairman of Qian Hu Fish, one of the top arowana breeders in Singapore.
“In the West, dragons are evil monsters,” added Mr. Yap, or Kenny the Fish, as he prefers to be called. “But in Chinese culture, dragons are divine.”
Perhaps nowhere is the obsession more apparent than here in this tropical city-state, a hub of the global ornamental fish trade and home to a thriving network of breeders and hobbyists dedicated to the Asian arowana (not to be confused with the silver arowana, its South American cousin).
The fish has become so deeply ingrained as a status symbol that it was even featured in the latest installment of Kevin Kwan’s “Crazy Rich Asians,” a popular series of novels about the lives of Singapore’s elite, in the form of a $250,000 super red arowana named Valentino.
“Singaporeans are crazy about the fish,” said Emily Voigt, the author of “The Dragon Behind the Glass,” a rollicking account of her transcontinental journey into the murky world of the arowana.
Photo“For Chinese, keeping fish is about bringing good luck and wealth, and the Asian arowana are especially lucky,” said Kenny Yap, the executive chairman of Qian Hu Fish, a top arowana breeder in Singapore.CreditOre Huiying for The New York TimesAt one point, Ms. Voigt said, the global craze for the fish reached such a frenzy that even in Singapore, where the crime rate is so low that a stolen delivery parcel makes headlines, there were four arowana heists in one week. During one of the robberies, the thief punched an elderly woman as he ran away with her fish in a sloshing bucket.
In a separate episode, a Singaporean man was sentenced to three years in prison and 12 strokes of the cane for trying to steal arowana from a shop.
“You think of pet fish as being an innocent thing,” Ms. Voigt said. “But I didn’t expect to find myself confronting this dark underbelly.”
The prominence of the Asian arowana is a sharp reversal in fortune for a fish that half a century ago was considered by locals in its natural swamp habitat of Borneo and Indonesia to be a common food fish — and a rather bony and tasteless one at that.
Experts say the turning point came in 1975, when the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, signed by 183 countries, banned the fish from international trade. By classifying it as a rare species, some say, the treaty elevated its status as a luxury item.
PhotoThe price of arowana crashed around 2012 as breeding farms flooded the market, but despite the sharp dip, the fish remains an aspirational luxury good. CreditOre Huiying for The New York TimesAfter the ban, a booming black market for arowana emerged. Smuggled arowana were turning up in countries around Asia and later in the United States, where it is still banned. The overwhelming demand had a devastating effect on the wild population of arowana. So starting in the late 1980s, restrictions were loosened to allow trade of farm-bred arowana whose parents were also born in captivity.
While the wild arowana never recovered, trade in captive-bred arowana flourished, reaching a peak in the 2000s as buyers in mainland China jumped into the game.
Breeders used DNA technology to pinpoint characteristics in a bid to create a “perfect” fish: straight feelers, bright eyes, large and round fins and tails and shimmering red scales. Neon pink tanning lights became a common feature in tanks to enhance the fish’s reddish hue.
“It’s like a beauty pageant,” said Alex Chang, the head of research and development at Qian Hu Fish, who was caught several years ago attempting to smuggle two suitcases full of endangered fish worth over $180,000 into Australia. “The fish cannot be fat. It must look strong and have personality. It must swim confidently and be firm, stern and fierce. It cannot be timid.”
But around 2012, the price of arowana crashed as breeding farms flooded the market. While prices have somewhat bounced back in recent years, big farms like Qian Hu have begun breeding other species.
Despite the sharp dip in prices, the arowana remains an aspirational luxury good and a point of obsession for many Singaporeans.
As a young boy growing up in Singapore, Nicholas Chia always dreamed about having an arowana. Then, last year, he finally bit the bullet and bought his first one. Since then, he has acquired five more. Now, he keeps his prized fish in six large tanks that take up a third of his living room.
“Sometimes my wife complains that I neglect the children because of the fish,” said Mr. Chia, a 30-year-old software entrepreneur. “To a certain extent, yes, I guess that’s true.”
from the Singapore Journal
==========================
Gila cypha
Humpback chub
Ptychocheilus lucius Colorado pike minnow
Gila elegans boneytail chubb
Xyrauchen texanus Razorbacked sucker
One of four endangered Colorado River fish species rebounding
One of the four endangered fish of the Colorado River appears to be ready to be upgraded, to threatened status, a federal agency said.
That means that a recovery program devised to allow development of Colorado River water while meeting the needs of fish is working, said Chris Treese, spokesman for the Colorado River Water Conservancy District.
The humpback chub (Gila cypha) now has a stable population of about 12,000 adults in the Colorado River and Little Colorado in the Grand Canyon.
Four smaller populations of the chub in the Green and Colorado rivers persist and appear to be in no immediate danger of extinction, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said.
A five-year status review of the fish concluded that the risk of extinction is low and that the service should consider reclassifying the fish to threatened in the next year.
There is no need to stock fish to boost the size of the existing five populations, the service said.
It also means there will be little if any change in the amount of water dedicated to the endangered fish, Treese said.
Delisting or downlisting the chub must be accompanied by actions necessary to continue "self-sustaining populations," Treese said.
"In the case of fish, that invariably means sufficient river flows and other protective measures."
The fish is benefitting from managing the flows on the river to mimic natural fluctuations, as well as efforts to control invasive predators, the service said.
The humpback chub was identified as a separate species in the 1940s and was placed on the original list of endangered species in 1967.
The fish, which gets its name from a fleshy hump behind its head, prefers canyon-bound reaches of river where it lives in swift, turbulent currents.
The other four endangered fish are the Colorado pikeminnow, bonytail chub and razorback sucker.
==========================
One of the four endangered fish of the Colorado River appears to be ready to be upgraded, to threatened status, a federal agency said.
That means that a recovery program devised to allow development of Colorado River water while meeting the needs of fish is working, said Chris Treese, spokesman for the Colorado River Water Conservancy District.
The humpback chub (Gila cypha) now has a stable population of about 12,000 adults in the Colorado River and Little Colorado in the Grand Canyon.
Four smaller populations of the chub in the Green and Colorado rivers persist and appear to be in no immediate danger of extinction, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said.
A five-year status review of the fish concluded that the risk of extinction is low and that the service should consider reclassifying the fish to threatened in the next year.
There is no need to stock fish to boost the size of the existing five populations, the service said.
It also means there will be little if any change in the amount of water dedicated to the endangered fish, Treese said.
Delisting or downlisting the chub must be accompanied by actions necessary to continue "self-sustaining populations," Treese said.
"In the case of fish, that invariably means sufficient river flows and other protective measures."
The fish is benefitting from managing the flows on the river to mimic natural fluctuations, as well as efforts to control invasive predators, the service said.
The humpback chub was identified as a separate species in the 1940s and was placed on the original list of endangered species in 1967.
The fish, which gets its name from a fleshy hump behind its head, prefers canyon-bound reaches of river where it lives in swift, turbulent currents.
The other four endangered fish are the Colorado pikeminnow, bonytail chub and razorback sucker.
==========================
Eigenmannia loretana • A New Species of Glass Knifefish (Gymnotiformes: Sternopygidae)from the Western Amazon
Eigenmannia loretana Waltz & Albert, 2018
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4399.3.9
Abstract
A new species of the Eigenmannia trilineata species group is described from the Loreto, Peru region of the western Amazon basin. The new species is similar in external appearance to members of the E. trilineata species group, but has a distinct phenotype, being diagnosed from congeners by the following unique combination of characters: four longitudinal dark pigment stipes on the lateral surfaces (over the lateral line, hypaxial muscles, proximal and distal pterygiophore margins); short, relatively round head (head depth 86.8–96.7% head length) with a terminal mouth; intermediate posterodorsal expansion of infraorbital bones 1+2 (60–75% length of infraorbitals 1+2); 11–15 teeth in three rows on the premaxilla; six to seven teeth in a single row on the endopterygoid; eye high on head (suborbital depth 28–36% head length); ii, 13–14 pectoral-fin rays; 183–219 anal-fin rays; and a uniformly dark brown head and pectoral fins on freshly-preserved specimens. The new species extends the geographic range of described species of the E. trilineata species group to the Western Amazon. This new species elevates the current number of valid species within the E. trilineata species group to 15, and the number of species within Eigenmannia to 20.
Keywords: Pisces, cryptic species, electric fish, freshwater fish, taxonomy, tropical diversity
Brandon T. Waltz and James S. Albert. 2018. New Species of Glass Knifefish Eigenmannia loretana (Gymnotiformes: Sternopygidae) from the Western Amazon. Zootaxa. 4399(3); 399–411. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4399.3.9
twitter.com/Eigenmanniac/status/976865897364250625
twitter.com/MJBernt/status/976845664922595328
==========================
Eigenmannia loretana Waltz & Albert, 2018
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4399.3.9
Abstract
A new species of the Eigenmannia trilineata species group is described from the Loreto, Peru region of the western Amazon basin. The new species is similar in external appearance to members of the E. trilineata species group, but has a distinct phenotype, being diagnosed from congeners by the following unique combination of characters: four longitudinal dark pigment stipes on the lateral surfaces (over the lateral line, hypaxial muscles, proximal and distal pterygiophore margins); short, relatively round head (head depth 86.8–96.7% head length) with a terminal mouth; intermediate posterodorsal expansion of infraorbital bones 1+2 (60–75% length of infraorbitals 1+2); 11–15 teeth in three rows on the premaxilla; six to seven teeth in a single row on the endopterygoid; eye high on head (suborbital depth 28–36% head length); ii, 13–14 pectoral-fin rays; 183–219 anal-fin rays; and a uniformly dark brown head and pectoral fins on freshly-preserved specimens. The new species extends the geographic range of described species of the E. trilineata species group to the Western Amazon. This new species elevates the current number of valid species within the E. trilineata species group to 15, and the number of species within Eigenmannia to 20.
Keywords: Pisces, cryptic species, electric fish, freshwater fish, taxonomy, tropical diversity
Brandon T. Waltz and James S. Albert. 2018. New Species of Glass Knifefish Eigenmannia loretana (Gymnotiformes: Sternopygidae) from the Western Amazon. Zootaxa. 4399(3); 399–411. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4399.3.9
twitter.com/Eigenmanniac/status/976865897364250625
twitter.com/MJBernt/status/976845664922595328
==========================
Insulin resistance in cavefish as an adaptation to a nutrient-limited environment
Abstract
Periodic food shortages are a major challenge faced by organisms in natural habitats. Cave-dwelling animals must withstand long periods of nutrient deprivation, as—in the absence of photosynthesis—caves depend on external energy sources such as seasonal floods1. Here we show that cave-adapted populations of the Mexican tetra, Astyanax mexicanus, have dysregulated blood glucose homeostasis and are insulin-resistant compared to river-adapted populations. We found that multiple cave populations carry a mutation in the insulin receptor that leads to decreased insulin binding in vitro and contributes to hyperglycaemia. Hybrid fish from surface–cave crosses carrying this mutation weigh more than non-carriers, and zebrafish genetically engineered to carry the mutation have increased body weight and insulin resistance. Higher body weight may be advantageous in caves as a strategy to cope with an infrequent food supply. In humans, the identical mutation in the insulin receptor leads to a severe form of insulin resistance and reduced lifespan. However, cavefish have a similar lifespan to surface fish and do not accumulate the advanced glycation end-products in the blood that are typically associated with the progression of diabetes-associated pathologies. Our findings suggest that diminished insulin signalling is beneficial in a nutrient-limited environment and that cavefish may have acquired compensatory mechanisms that enable them to circumvent the typical negative effects associated with failure to regulate blood glucose levels.
Abstract
Periodic food shortages are a major challenge faced by organisms in natural habitats. Cave-dwelling animals must withstand long periods of nutrient deprivation, as—in the absence of photosynthesis—caves depend on external energy sources such as seasonal floods1. Here we show that cave-adapted populations of the Mexican tetra, Astyanax mexicanus, have dysregulated blood glucose homeostasis and are insulin-resistant compared to river-adapted populations. We found that multiple cave populations carry a mutation in the insulin receptor that leads to decreased insulin binding in vitro and contributes to hyperglycaemia. Hybrid fish from surface–cave crosses carrying this mutation weigh more than non-carriers, and zebrafish genetically engineered to carry the mutation have increased body weight and insulin resistance. Higher body weight may be advantageous in caves as a strategy to cope with an infrequent food supply. In humans, the identical mutation in the insulin receptor leads to a severe form of insulin resistance and reduced lifespan. However, cavefish have a similar lifespan to surface fish and do not accumulate the advanced glycation end-products in the blood that are typically associated with the progression of diabetes-associated pathologies. Our findings suggest that diminished insulin signalling is beneficial in a nutrient-limited environment and that cavefish may have acquired compensatory mechanisms that enable them to circumvent the typical negative effects associated with failure to regulate blood glucose levels.
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The next Britsh Livebearers Association event is an auction during the Mid-Sussex AS show, on the 22nd April. The venue is :-
Patcham Community Centre,
Ladies Mile Road,
Patcham,
Brighton,
BN1 8TA
and is very near the junction of the A23 and the A27. The doors open at 9.00am and it is hoped to start the BLA auction at about 1.00 pm.
The UK Fancy Guppy Society are holding a leg of their guppy league at the same time. It would be good if lots of BLA members could get there.
==========================
Patcham Community Centre,
Ladies Mile Road,
Patcham,
Brighton,
BN1 8TA
and is very near the junction of the A23 and the A27. The doors open at 9.00am and it is hoped to start the BLA auction at about 1.00 pm.
The UK Fancy Guppy Society are holding a leg of their guppy league at the same time. It would be good if lots of BLA members could get there.
==========================
Indian calls for plan to manage import of exotic fish
Shiv Sahay Singh Kolkata
Urges quarantine facilities at major seaports, airports Expressing concern over the increase in the import of ornamental fishes to the country, which is posing a threat to India’s native fish populations, the National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) has urged the government to come up with quarantine facilities at major seaports and airports.
“The government of India has only approved the import of 92 species of ornamental fish but the number of ornamental fish species being imported and in trade is somewhere between 200-300,” Dr. B. Meenakumari, Chairperson, NBA, told The Hindu.
Dr. Meenakumari pointed out that the quarantine facility at the Chennai airport is mainly used for prawns meant for aquaculture and not for ornamental fish. She was in Kolkata to attend a workshop on the Economic and Ecological Impacts of Invasive Alien Species organised by Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) and the Asia-Pacific Forest Invasive Species Network (APFISN) from February 21-23.
Huge market
Dr. Meenakumari said the huge market for Invasive Alien Species (IAS) is turning out to be major threat to India’s aquatic biodiversity.
She also stressed on the need for educating and creating awareness among Customs officials at airports and seaports. Most of the fish are imported from southeast Asian countries, she said, adding that, sometimes, the cost of only a pair of fish can go up to lakhs of rupees.
S. Sandilyan, a Fellow on invasive alien species, who is associated with the NBA, said that both Kolkata and Chennai have emerged as a major hub for the trade of ornamental fish in the country and that an assessment of the online market for ornamental fish and aquariums will establish the presence of over 1,000 exotic fish species being traded in India.
In a research paper titled ‘Occurrence of ornamental fishes: A looming danger for inland fish diversity of India’ published in the science journal Current Science, the researcher has pointed out that export of such species has increased at an average annual rate of 14%.
The paper states that several studies have disclosed the occurrence of exotic ornamental fish in many inland aquatic systems, including biodiversity-sensitive areas such as the Western Ghats.
Dr. Sandilyan gave the example of suckermouth catfish, an ornamental species known as a ‘tank cleaner’ of aquariums, has spread to almost all freshwater ecosystems and outnumbers other native fish by feeding on their larvae and competing with them for food resources.
“Under the Centre for Biodiversity and Policy and Law (CEBPOL), the NBA is trying to bring out a national list of IAS. So far, no attempt has been made by any scientific organisation to have a national IAS list across different categories like terrestrial plants, aquatic plants, inland fisheries, marine organisms, insects and microbes,” Dr. Meenakumari said.
The list will be put made available on a public platform and will be communicated to different Ministries and stakeholders. The announcement by NBA assumes significance as scientists and experts in the country are still divided over the number of IAS and their economic and ecological impact.
Biodiversity policy
CEBPOL is a bilateral collaboration between the Indian and Norwegian governments, and focuses on biodiversity policies and laws.
While the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) and the Botanical Survey of India (BSI) have come up with some tentative lists for animal and plant IAS, there remains a debate on how to standardise the invasiveness of specific species.
T.V. Sajeev, Coordinator, APFISN, said that while the number of publications on IAS has increased over the past few years, there has been no coordinated effort for the management of IAS. He added that statisticians and biologists need to come together for distribution mapping and the application of statistical approaches in the management of IAS.
from the Hindu
==========================
Shiv Sahay Singh Kolkata
Urges quarantine facilities at major seaports, airports Expressing concern over the increase in the import of ornamental fishes to the country, which is posing a threat to India’s native fish populations, the National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) has urged the government to come up with quarantine facilities at major seaports and airports.
“The government of India has only approved the import of 92 species of ornamental fish but the number of ornamental fish species being imported and in trade is somewhere between 200-300,” Dr. B. Meenakumari, Chairperson, NBA, told The Hindu.
Dr. Meenakumari pointed out that the quarantine facility at the Chennai airport is mainly used for prawns meant for aquaculture and not for ornamental fish. She was in Kolkata to attend a workshop on the Economic and Ecological Impacts of Invasive Alien Species organised by Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) and the Asia-Pacific Forest Invasive Species Network (APFISN) from February 21-23.
Huge market
Dr. Meenakumari said the huge market for Invasive Alien Species (IAS) is turning out to be major threat to India’s aquatic biodiversity.
She also stressed on the need for educating and creating awareness among Customs officials at airports and seaports. Most of the fish are imported from southeast Asian countries, she said, adding that, sometimes, the cost of only a pair of fish can go up to lakhs of rupees.
S. Sandilyan, a Fellow on invasive alien species, who is associated with the NBA, said that both Kolkata and Chennai have emerged as a major hub for the trade of ornamental fish in the country and that an assessment of the online market for ornamental fish and aquariums will establish the presence of over 1,000 exotic fish species being traded in India.
In a research paper titled ‘Occurrence of ornamental fishes: A looming danger for inland fish diversity of India’ published in the science journal Current Science, the researcher has pointed out that export of such species has increased at an average annual rate of 14%.
The paper states that several studies have disclosed the occurrence of exotic ornamental fish in many inland aquatic systems, including biodiversity-sensitive areas such as the Western Ghats.
Dr. Sandilyan gave the example of suckermouth catfish, an ornamental species known as a ‘tank cleaner’ of aquariums, has spread to almost all freshwater ecosystems and outnumbers other native fish by feeding on their larvae and competing with them for food resources.
“Under the Centre for Biodiversity and Policy and Law (CEBPOL), the NBA is trying to bring out a national list of IAS. So far, no attempt has been made by any scientific organisation to have a national IAS list across different categories like terrestrial plants, aquatic plants, inland fisheries, marine organisms, insects and microbes,” Dr. Meenakumari said.
The list will be put made available on a public platform and will be communicated to different Ministries and stakeholders. The announcement by NBA assumes significance as scientists and experts in the country are still divided over the number of IAS and their economic and ecological impact.
Biodiversity policy
CEBPOL is a bilateral collaboration between the Indian and Norwegian governments, and focuses on biodiversity policies and laws.
While the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) and the Botanical Survey of India (BSI) have come up with some tentative lists for animal and plant IAS, there remains a debate on how to standardise the invasiveness of specific species.
T.V. Sajeev, Coordinator, APFISN, said that while the number of publications on IAS has increased over the past few years, there has been no coordinated effort for the management of IAS. He added that statisticians and biologists need to come together for distribution mapping and the application of statistical approaches in the management of IAS.
from the Hindu
==========================
Grunion (Leuresthes tenuis) season kicks off: A fish that spawns on the beach!
12 tips for watching the little fish run along Southern California beaches
“It’s a cool California thing,” said Jim Serpa, who for 20 years ran a grunion night at Doheny State Beach while he was supervising rangers, before retiring a few years ago.
The grunion season officially kicked off early March, and the next run is expected Saturday, March 17 through Tuesday, March 20.
So grab your flashlights, beach chairs and, if you don’t mind staying up late, get ready to watch them run.
Serpa offered tips on why they run, the best times to go, and interesting tidbits about the fascinating fish:
1. Why do grunions wash up on shore?They are mating. They have to mate at night, when the tide is at its highest around a full moon. They want to be on the sand so the eggs have a long time to incubate, Serpa said. They live off shore when they are not running — they just don’t come to shore unless it’s spring or summer.
Each female lays 2,000 to 3,000 eggs. They have a short life — only about five years max — and get to be about six inches long. The females bury themselves up to the fins, deposit their eggs and the males deposit the milt right there. When the wave comes by, the sand closes it up. The eggs stay buried in the sand for 10 to 14 days. The wave and surge jostling helps them hatch.
2. Find a beach they likeSome beaches, they don’t run on. It all depends on what’s underneath, if it’s good sand, Serpa said. They don’t like gravelly beaches. You might not see them in one spot, but a mile farther, they might be going like gangbusters. At Doheny, it’s rocky underneath but once you get on the beach, it’s sand. It’s perfect for them.
“When I was growing up, we always went to La Jolla. Any beach like that — Huntington, Crystal Cove and there’s a great beach up by the Cabrillo Aquarium in San Pedro. Malibu would be a great beach for it,” he said. “You want a beach that is a real gradual, you don’t want a shore break beach where the waves drop and dump.” Serpa said they seem to like Doheny, perhaps because the jetty acts as a shelter. Cabrillo offers something similar.
3. Go early in the seasonThey always run really good in the early part of the season, in April and May, Serpa said. As we get further into the year, it’s more hit or miss.
April and May, however, is the closed part of the season — so it’s just for watching, no catching.
4. Don’t spook the scoutsTry and let them come up and start their full run before you start annoying them and shining bright lights on them. “I don’t know that there’s been any real scientific data on it, but what we noticed, they always run better if you start letting them run for a while,” Serpa said.
5. Know the tidesYou always want to go right before the peak of the high tide. They don’t run until that peak happens, Serpa said. If they do run before that, they have a chance of their eggs washing out.
“A lot of people, they see the run at midnight and say ‘let’s go at 10,'” Serpa said. “Kids are waiting and two hours later they haven’t run and they say, ‘let’s get out of here.'” The good time is the peak and the people just came too early. Timing is critical.
6. Watch the birds“We would go out an hour or two before the peak of the high tide,” Serpa said. “If the birds were lined on the beach waiting, that means the grunions were in the shallows and they are ready to run and (the birds) know it.”
7. Tips for takingYou’ll need a fishing license if you are 16 or older. And don’t take anything you won’t use. You can only take with your hands — no scooping devices. That allows for more grunion to go back and helps the resources to stay healthy, Serpa said.
8. Don’t get soakedKeep your eyes on the waves, Serpa warned. People get so absorbed with picking up the grunions, and then the wave comes and they get soaked.
9. Are they tasty?If you ask me, I’d say no, Serba said. “But plenty of people like them,” he said. “A lot of people fry them up, the whole thing. Other people gut them.”
10. Fishing is good during grunion runsLocal fishermen know that. There’s halibut during that time, Serpa said. He’s seen huge halibut taken off the beach during grunion run nights.
11. Are the waters sharkier during grunion runs?Nobody has done a study on that, Serpa said, but putting two and two together, it might be a good guess. “Juvenile sharks love grunion,” he said. “So offshore might be a place to see (sharks).”
12. What should we bring to a grunion run?A flashlight, chair so you can sit while you’re waiting, a bucket to put your grunion in and a fishing license if you are planning to take them. A jacket to stay warm is always a good idea.
For a full schedule of grunion runs, go to: wildlife.ca.gov/fishing/ocean/grunion
==========================
12 tips for watching the little fish run along Southern California beaches
- They flop and slip and make sweet love on the sand under the full moon’s light.
“It’s a cool California thing,” said Jim Serpa, who for 20 years ran a grunion night at Doheny State Beach while he was supervising rangers, before retiring a few years ago.
The grunion season officially kicked off early March, and the next run is expected Saturday, March 17 through Tuesday, March 20.
So grab your flashlights, beach chairs and, if you don’t mind staying up late, get ready to watch them run.
Serpa offered tips on why they run, the best times to go, and interesting tidbits about the fascinating fish:
1. Why do grunions wash up on shore?They are mating. They have to mate at night, when the tide is at its highest around a full moon. They want to be on the sand so the eggs have a long time to incubate, Serpa said. They live off shore when they are not running — they just don’t come to shore unless it’s spring or summer.
Each female lays 2,000 to 3,000 eggs. They have a short life — only about five years max — and get to be about six inches long. The females bury themselves up to the fins, deposit their eggs and the males deposit the milt right there. When the wave comes by, the sand closes it up. The eggs stay buried in the sand for 10 to 14 days. The wave and surge jostling helps them hatch.
2. Find a beach they likeSome beaches, they don’t run on. It all depends on what’s underneath, if it’s good sand, Serpa said. They don’t like gravelly beaches. You might not see them in one spot, but a mile farther, they might be going like gangbusters. At Doheny, it’s rocky underneath but once you get on the beach, it’s sand. It’s perfect for them.
“When I was growing up, we always went to La Jolla. Any beach like that — Huntington, Crystal Cove and there’s a great beach up by the Cabrillo Aquarium in San Pedro. Malibu would be a great beach for it,” he said. “You want a beach that is a real gradual, you don’t want a shore break beach where the waves drop and dump.” Serpa said they seem to like Doheny, perhaps because the jetty acts as a shelter. Cabrillo offers something similar.
3. Go early in the seasonThey always run really good in the early part of the season, in April and May, Serpa said. As we get further into the year, it’s more hit or miss.
April and May, however, is the closed part of the season — so it’s just for watching, no catching.
4. Don’t spook the scoutsTry and let them come up and start their full run before you start annoying them and shining bright lights on them. “I don’t know that there’s been any real scientific data on it, but what we noticed, they always run better if you start letting them run for a while,” Serpa said.
5. Know the tidesYou always want to go right before the peak of the high tide. They don’t run until that peak happens, Serpa said. If they do run before that, they have a chance of their eggs washing out.
“A lot of people, they see the run at midnight and say ‘let’s go at 10,'” Serpa said. “Kids are waiting and two hours later they haven’t run and they say, ‘let’s get out of here.'” The good time is the peak and the people just came too early. Timing is critical.
6. Watch the birds“We would go out an hour or two before the peak of the high tide,” Serpa said. “If the birds were lined on the beach waiting, that means the grunions were in the shallows and they are ready to run and (the birds) know it.”
7. Tips for takingYou’ll need a fishing license if you are 16 or older. And don’t take anything you won’t use. You can only take with your hands — no scooping devices. That allows for more grunion to go back and helps the resources to stay healthy, Serpa said.
8. Don’t get soakedKeep your eyes on the waves, Serpa warned. People get so absorbed with picking up the grunions, and then the wave comes and they get soaked.
9. Are they tasty?If you ask me, I’d say no, Serba said. “But plenty of people like them,” he said. “A lot of people fry them up, the whole thing. Other people gut them.”
10. Fishing is good during grunion runsLocal fishermen know that. There’s halibut during that time, Serpa said. He’s seen huge halibut taken off the beach during grunion run nights.
11. Are the waters sharkier during grunion runs?Nobody has done a study on that, Serpa said, but putting two and two together, it might be a good guess. “Juvenile sharks love grunion,” he said. “So offshore might be a place to see (sharks).”
12. What should we bring to a grunion run?A flashlight, chair so you can sit while you’re waiting, a bucket to put your grunion in and a fishing license if you are planning to take them. A jacket to stay warm is always a good idea.
For a full schedule of grunion runs, go to: wildlife.ca.gov/fishing/ocean/grunion
==========================
The BCA Proudly Present
Our Spring Convention
Date: 6th May
Speakers
Adrian Indermaur
David Pool
Please support the BCA This event is for beginner to expert everyone welcome. Discounted rooms are available at the Oak Hotel, 8640, Stratford Road, Hockley Heath, Solihull, West Midlands , B94 5NW. £50 for a double or twin please mention you are attending the fish event on 6th may.
Tickets are available online with fast track entry please follow this link below to purchase yours today http://www.british-Cichlid.org.uk/…/product-…/event-tickets/
You can pay on the day but we are encouraging you to book your ticket in advance with the above link.
We will also be trailing a new format, no auction but Tropical fish and dry goods inc foods etc will be on sale from our usual sellers at unbelievable prices - see the fish and buy directly with the seller
If you are a seller please contact Darren Evans - treasurer@british-Cichlid.org.uk to book your table
Seller conditions
Table rental = £15.00 (Each vendor will receive 1 draw ticket for seller draw (3 none aquatic items).
Up to 2 people may share a table and both must be registered when booking.
Only fish and related aquarium items may be offered
All transactions are between buyers & sellers only
The BCA will not be responsible for any sales disputes.
Buyers
Door entry – £5.00 for BCA members and £10.00 Non members (this will include 12 months membership to the BCA valued at £5 per person. You will receive a free goodie bag on entry with products from our supporters and also a tub of vitalis food - which will more than cover your entry fee !
All delegates and vendors will be given a raffle ticket for the Door prize.
Door prize – (3 Main prizes).
Main Raffle prize – (12 items min)
Lectures
Lectures take place at – TBA -
Doors Open at 9.00am for setting up and sales start at 11.00 first lecture begins 10:00 am
Note to sellers
Once you have booked your table, you are free to advertise your items on the BCA web site forum, on the BCA face book group page, and any other pages where you have permission.
The BCA will not be responsible for advertising any sales items.
All fish being offered for sale must be adequately packages
Please feel free to share this post on other groups
Thank you
The BCA Committee
Alternatively you can join the British cichlid association on the day at the door for ONLY £5 For 1 YEAR.
Which entitles you to discounted entry to all Bca events for 1 year aswel as digital pdf copy's of ciclidae magazine which is only available at the British cichlid association
How The Day Plays Out ???
The days schedule will look something like this. but please be aware some parts may go on longer or shorter the times are just a guideline
9:00 to 10am - booking in of lots for sellers
10:00am first talk
12:00 Break for lunch - food available
13:00 Raffle and famous BCA Auction - rare cichlids from around the world
16:00 to 16:30 end of day
http://www.british-cichlid.org.uk/wordpress/
==========================
Our Spring Convention
Date: 6th May
Speakers
Adrian Indermaur
David Pool
Please support the BCA This event is for beginner to expert everyone welcome. Discounted rooms are available at the Oak Hotel, 8640, Stratford Road, Hockley Heath, Solihull, West Midlands , B94 5NW. £50 for a double or twin please mention you are attending the fish event on 6th may.
Tickets are available online with fast track entry please follow this link below to purchase yours today http://www.british-Cichlid.org.uk/…/product-…/event-tickets/
You can pay on the day but we are encouraging you to book your ticket in advance with the above link.
We will also be trailing a new format, no auction but Tropical fish and dry goods inc foods etc will be on sale from our usual sellers at unbelievable prices - see the fish and buy directly with the seller
If you are a seller please contact Darren Evans - treasurer@british-Cichlid.org.uk to book your table
Seller conditions
Table rental = £15.00 (Each vendor will receive 1 draw ticket for seller draw (3 none aquatic items).
Up to 2 people may share a table and both must be registered when booking.
Only fish and related aquarium items may be offered
All transactions are between buyers & sellers only
The BCA will not be responsible for any sales disputes.
Buyers
Door entry – £5.00 for BCA members and £10.00 Non members (this will include 12 months membership to the BCA valued at £5 per person. You will receive a free goodie bag on entry with products from our supporters and also a tub of vitalis food - which will more than cover your entry fee !
All delegates and vendors will be given a raffle ticket for the Door prize.
Door prize – (3 Main prizes).
Main Raffle prize – (12 items min)
Lectures
Lectures take place at – TBA -
Doors Open at 9.00am for setting up and sales start at 11.00 first lecture begins 10:00 am
Note to sellers
Once you have booked your table, you are free to advertise your items on the BCA web site forum, on the BCA face book group page, and any other pages where you have permission.
The BCA will not be responsible for advertising any sales items.
All fish being offered for sale must be adequately packages
Please feel free to share this post on other groups
Thank you
The BCA Committee
Alternatively you can join the British cichlid association on the day at the door for ONLY £5 For 1 YEAR.
Which entitles you to discounted entry to all Bca events for 1 year aswel as digital pdf copy's of ciclidae magazine which is only available at the British cichlid association
How The Day Plays Out ???
The days schedule will look something like this. but please be aware some parts may go on longer or shorter the times are just a guideline
9:00 to 10am - booking in of lots for sellers
10:00am first talk
12:00 Break for lunch - food available
13:00 Raffle and famous BCA Auction - rare cichlids from around the world
16:00 to 16:30 end of day
http://www.british-cichlid.org.uk/wordpress/
==========================
Moapa coriacea
Moapa dace (Moapa coriacea ) population steady in new count of endangered fish
Nevada Deparment of Wildlife Hatchery Biologist Eric Laux opens a tank containing Moapa Dace fish at the Lake Mead Fish Hatchery in Las Vegas on Friday, March 17, 2017. (Brett Le Blanc/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @bleblancphoto
An August count placed the population of Moapa dace at 2,248, almost double the population from August 2012. The count suggests the endangered fish that lives in springs and streams 60 miles north of Las Vegas is on its way to recovery. (Las Vegas Review-Journal, File)
The latest count is in for Clark County’s most endangered fish, and the results are mixed.
While researchers were relieved to see the Moapa dace population holding steady at 1,138 adult fish, they would prefer some real improvement for a species that’s been under federal protection for just over 50 years.
“We’re not in a crisis mode where the species is declining,” said Michael Schwemm, senior fish biologist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Southern Nevada. “But we’re not happy with the status quo. We want to see things improve.”
He said researchers plan to step up efforts to restore habitat and eliminate nonnative predators in the warm springs and streams that form the headwaters of the Muddy River, 60 miles northeast of Las Vegas.
To arrive at the most recent population estimate, Schwemm and company put on snorkels and swim masks and crawled through several miles of shallow, warm-water streams, counting the fish one at a time. The survey was conducted over three days in late February by a team from the Fish and Wildlife Service, the Nevada Department of Wildlife and the Southern Nevada Water Authority, which owns most of the fish’s natural habitat in northern Clark County.
This year’s number was close to the February 2017 count of 1,165, but the population remains well below the roughly 1,900 fish spotted during the February surveys in 2015 and 2016.
Even so, the dace is better off now than it was a decade ago, when its numbers suddenly plunged from 1,172 in 2007 to just 459 in 2008.
The sharp decline prompted the protectors of the endangered fish to add a second population survey each August and launch an aggressive campaign to rid the upper Muddy River of tilapia, a predatory, nonnative game fish.
With the tilapia now gone, Schwemm said the recovery team has turned its attention to other, smaller exotics such as mollies and mosquito fish that compete with — and in some cases feed on — Moapa dace.
In light of last month’s count, he said more traps will be deployed to thin the dace’s remaining competition.
The team also will continue working with the Mormon Church to improve fish habitat at a church-owned recreational retreat in the area, Schwemm said.
The finger-length fish with a black spot on its tail was added to the endangered species list in 1967. Its entire habitat is confined to the 116-acre Moapa Valley National Wildlife Refuge; some adjacent private land, including the LDS retreat; and the 1,218-acre tract the water authority bought for $69 million in 2007 and now maintains as the Warm Springs Natural Area.
The Fish and Wildlife Service and the Nevada Department of Wildlife also maintain a back-up population in carefully maintained tanks at the state fish hatchery near Lake Mead.
The current recovery plan for the Moapa dace calls for the species to remain under federal protection until at least 75 percent of its habitat has been secured and its population in the wild reaches 6,000.
Contact Henry Brean at hbrean @reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0350. Follow @RefriedBrean on Twitter.
Nevada Deparment of Wildlife Hatchery Biologist Eric Laux opens a tank containing Moapa Dace fish at the Lake Mead Fish Hatchery in Las Vegas on Friday, March 17, 2017. (Brett Le Blanc/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @bleblancphoto
An August count placed the population of Moapa dace at 2,248, almost double the population from August 2012. The count suggests the endangered fish that lives in springs and streams 60 miles north of Las Vegas is on its way to recovery. (Las Vegas Review-Journal, File)
The latest count is in for Clark County’s most endangered fish, and the results are mixed.
While researchers were relieved to see the Moapa dace population holding steady at 1,138 adult fish, they would prefer some real improvement for a species that’s been under federal protection for just over 50 years.
“We’re not in a crisis mode where the species is declining,” said Michael Schwemm, senior fish biologist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Southern Nevada. “But we’re not happy with the status quo. We want to see things improve.”
He said researchers plan to step up efforts to restore habitat and eliminate nonnative predators in the warm springs and streams that form the headwaters of the Muddy River, 60 miles northeast of Las Vegas.
To arrive at the most recent population estimate, Schwemm and company put on snorkels and swim masks and crawled through several miles of shallow, warm-water streams, counting the fish one at a time. The survey was conducted over three days in late February by a team from the Fish and Wildlife Service, the Nevada Department of Wildlife and the Southern Nevada Water Authority, which owns most of the fish’s natural habitat in northern Clark County.
This year’s number was close to the February 2017 count of 1,165, but the population remains well below the roughly 1,900 fish spotted during the February surveys in 2015 and 2016.
Even so, the dace is better off now than it was a decade ago, when its numbers suddenly plunged from 1,172 in 2007 to just 459 in 2008.
The sharp decline prompted the protectors of the endangered fish to add a second population survey each August and launch an aggressive campaign to rid the upper Muddy River of tilapia, a predatory, nonnative game fish.
With the tilapia now gone, Schwemm said the recovery team has turned its attention to other, smaller exotics such as mollies and mosquito fish that compete with — and in some cases feed on — Moapa dace.
In light of last month’s count, he said more traps will be deployed to thin the dace’s remaining competition.
The team also will continue working with the Mormon Church to improve fish habitat at a church-owned recreational retreat in the area, Schwemm said.
The finger-length fish with a black spot on its tail was added to the endangered species list in 1967. Its entire habitat is confined to the 116-acre Moapa Valley National Wildlife Refuge; some adjacent private land, including the LDS retreat; and the 1,218-acre tract the water authority bought for $69 million in 2007 and now maintains as the Warm Springs Natural Area.
The Fish and Wildlife Service and the Nevada Department of Wildlife also maintain a back-up population in carefully maintained tanks at the state fish hatchery near Lake Mead.
The current recovery plan for the Moapa dace calls for the species to remain under federal protection until at least 75 percent of its habitat has been secured and its population in the wild reaches 6,000.
Contact Henry Brean at hbrean @reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0350. Follow @RefriedBrean on Twitter.
==========================
Hybognathus amarus
Rio Grande
An Endangered Fish Out of WaterBY BUD RUSSO – MARCH 13, 2018
A unique hatchery program is keeping the Rio Grande’s silvery minnow alive. But the long-term fate of this tiny fish is uncertain.When irrigation was introduced to New Mexico, principally by the Spanish four centuries ago, the Rio Grande began its long decline from a wild, free-flowing river to a channeled ditch delivering water from its headwaters in the San Juan Mountains in southern Colorado to the Gulf of Mexico nearly 1,900 miles away. Dam and water diversion projects built by conservation district personnel, the US Army Corp of Engineers, and the Bureau of Land Management, which manage the river, have inadvertently endangered a number of species—among them, the diminutive Rio Grande silvery minnow (Hybognathus amarus).
The minnow survives only in about 5 percent of its historic range, in a 174-mile stretch of the middle Rio Grande (pictured above), often called the Albuquerque stretch, which also happens to be the most densely populated region of New Mexico.
The two-inch silvery minnow once occupied 2,400 miles of the Rio Grande and the Peco River, one of its major tributaries. Now the minnow survives only in about 5 percent of its historic range, between the Cochiti Dam in the north and the headwaters of Elephant Butte Reservoir — a 174-mile stretch of the middle Rio Grande, often called the Albuquerque stretch, which also happens to be the most densely populated region of New Mexico where more than half of its citizens live.
The silvery minnow was listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act in 1994, around the time when this stretch of the river began to regularly dry each summer when farmers diverted the water for irrigation into canals and ditches and onto alfalfa fields and pecan orchards, leaving the fish out of water. The plight of the minnow set off a legal battle between irrigators represented by the Middle Rio Grande Conservation District and environmental groups attempting to preserve habitat for the fish.
There is a growing understanding that like the proverbial canary in the coal mine,the silvery minnow
in the Rio Grande is not only a bellwether of the health of the river and its ecosystem, its fate
is also a harbinger of what people might face as as our freshwater sources become more scarce.
Nine years later, in 2003 the US Fish and Wildlife Service issued its biological opinion, which basically stated that water mangers would have to keep a small amount of water moving in the Albuquerque stretch of the Rio Grande so that it doesn’t dry in the summer heat.
Farmers and ranchers once considered themselves the principal stakeholders of the Rio Grande. But attitudes evolved, especially with the growth of urban centers inhabited by educated professionals who consider the river to have intrinsic value beyond its so-called beneficial uses for humans. There is a growing understanding that like the proverbial canary in the coal mine, the silvery minnow in the Rio Grande is not only a bellwether of the health of the river and its ecosystem, its fate is also a harbinger of what people might face in the future as our freshwater sources become more and more scarce.
Like many Western rivers, the Rio Grande's natural flow is highly variable, sometimes flooding, other times leaving a dry riverbed. “While species have adapted and even prospered in highly variable streams, human water supply demand lacks this flexibility,” writes attorney Charles DuMars in his essay, "The Middle Rio Grande Minnow Wars" in the 2012 book One Hundred Years of Water Wars in New Mexico. “Water flowing past a city or farm in April is of no value to that entity in July. Balancing flows may make for reliable human supply, but it directly affects the viability of species relying on historic variation.”
Environmental groups, such as Defenders of Wildlife, the Sierra Club, WildEarth Guardians, and Southwest Environmental Center argued, the silvery minnow's survival would require a more natural state of water flow. As DuMars put it, however, every drop taken for the minnow meant a reduction in water for irrigators and consumers because the Middle Rio Grande is a fully appropriated stream.
The outcome of the contentious litigation was favorable not only to the fish but to the river itself — and did not appreciably impact farmers and consumers. In summary, a certain amount of water was allowed to flow year around. Meanwhile, the Middle Grande River Conservation District adopted stricter conservation measures and municipal water utilities repaired city water pipes (therefore lessening waste). Both stakeholders pumped aquifers that didn't affect river volume to make up for losses. Moreover, levies were moved farther back from the riverbed, allowing the river to form braided streams. Cottonwoods and other riparian plants were allowed to grow more densely, providing shade and food for fish.
These measures helped somewhat, and the silvery minnow has survived thus far, but its population has not appreciably prospered; the remaining Rio Grande habitat is just too small for the fish to flourish on their own. Enter, the Los Lunas Silvery Minnow Refugium, established by the New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission at Los Lunas, 25 miles south of Albuquerque.
Photo by Bud RussoSerpentine flow through the Los Lunas Silvery Minnow Refugium mimics the natural flow of the Rio Grandé. Overhead cables prevent predation by herons, hawks, and other birds.
“The refugium is a fish hatchery,” says Dr. Alison Hutson,environmental scientist and assistant manager, “but unlike any hatchery you’ve ever seen.”
In its park-like setting, the refugium features a 458-foot-long serpentine concrete channel, ponds, shelves, backwaters, and a floodplain that, taken together, simulate the flow of the Rio Grande. Landscaped with native plants growing on the river’s banks, the project was designed and constructed at a cost of $1.7 million to spawn and propagate the endangered silvery minnow.
“The refugium was required by the Fish and Wildlife Service’s 2003 Biological Opinion,” manager Douglas Tave explains, but “the term 'refugium' was not defined. It was kind of an invented word, and no one knew what it entailed.”
Traditional hatcheries coddle brood stock in aquaria and tanks until females lay eggs and maintain the environment until eggs hatch. Fry are then raised until they reach a prescribed length and weight before being released into lakes and streams. In most cases, fry are not there very long before commercial and recreational fishermen and fisherwomen pull them out of the water.
“What we’re doing is conservation aquaculture,” Tave continues, noting that preserving an endangered species requires a different tack. Hutson adds, “We’re trying to put a farmed animal into the wild, and we asked if there’s a better way of doing this. The refugium allows us to produce fish that are more wild so when they’re stocked in the river, the species has a better chance of recovering.”
Because the Rio Grande is fully appropriated for beneficial use, scientists had to apply to the Office of the State Engineer to acquire rights for the nearly 161,000 gallons of river water that flows through and is recycled at the refugium. The only “new” water added is that which replaces river water lost to evaporation.
But the refugium is much more than just water modeling the Rio Grande. As Hutson emphasized, the goal of the project is to raise wild fish. In this replication of the silvery minnow's natural habitat, the minnows are allowed to fend for themselves. Staff members add fertilizer to water at the exit sump, where it can blend in thoroughly as the water is recirculated back to the inlet. The fertilizer facilitates growth of freshwater algae, diatoms, zooplankton, and animals that cling to plants. These life forms constitute the primary food source for the minnows, which are left to their own devices to forage.
Fry are introduced to the refugium in May. The exact number of fry varies, as does their age and size — all factors which contribute to their survivability. The older and larger the fry, the more likely fish will survive until the harvest in October.
“Hopefully, the refugium will enable the fish to develop wild-type behaviors and will also prevent the development of maladaptive hatchery-induced behaviors,” Tave and Hutson wrote in a paper for World Aquaculture.
At the end of the season, sand bags and other obstacles are removed and the refugium is seined. Staff members capture and tag every minnow with a unique tattoo, and measure and weigh a subsample to determine average length and weight. The fish are held temporarily in tanks until Fish and Wildlife staff transport them to stock the Middle Rio Grande and an experimental stretch of the river near Big Bend, Texas.
Photo by Bud RussoDr. Alison Hutson explains the conservation aquaculture principles used at the facility. Tanks of fry are allowed to grow to preferred size and weight before being introduced to the refugium.
The refugium is, however, a stopgap measure to keep this short-lived fish from becoming extinct. Without it and the relocation program, the minnow would have probably vanished by now. And even now, its fate hangs on balance. As USFWS biologist Thomas Archdeacon told Water Deeplylast year: "Basically two bad years in a row will essentially wipe it out, and we'll be relying almost entirely on that hatchery safety net."
Yet, in 2016, after 15 years of requiring water managers to keep at least 100 cubic feet per second of water in the Albuquerque stretch of the river, USFWS issued another biological opinion that basically said that water management operations on the Rio Grande were no longer jeopardizing the silvery minnow and stopped requiring flow minimums.
According to David Campbell, the USFWS branch chief who oversees the river recovery project, “Now there are no flow requirements at all.” Instead the new biological opinion calls for water managers — the US Bureau of Reclamation and its partners — to manage the river in other ways, such a building fish passages around dams. Campbell also explains, if the river dries, surviving silvery minnows can be rescued from puddles and, if fish densities are too low, they will continue to be supplemented with fish raised in the refugium, without which this rare fish inevitably will become extinct.
Only by managing the Rio Grande as the complex, integrated ecosystem that it is, and not viewing it simply as a water-delivery ditch; only by considering the river as a legal entity — just like the farmer, industrialist, and consumer — will the silvery minnow, and other wildlife that depend on it, like the endangered southwestern willow flycatcher, the yellow-billed cuckoo, and even the iconic cottonwoods, have a chance survive.
Comment
The Monteray Platy (Xiphophorus couchianus) was once reported from the Rio Grande but now is on the red list as endagered
==========================
A unique hatchery program is keeping the Rio Grande’s silvery minnow alive. But the long-term fate of this tiny fish is uncertain.When irrigation was introduced to New Mexico, principally by the Spanish four centuries ago, the Rio Grande began its long decline from a wild, free-flowing river to a channeled ditch delivering water from its headwaters in the San Juan Mountains in southern Colorado to the Gulf of Mexico nearly 1,900 miles away. Dam and water diversion projects built by conservation district personnel, the US Army Corp of Engineers, and the Bureau of Land Management, which manage the river, have inadvertently endangered a number of species—among them, the diminutive Rio Grande silvery minnow (Hybognathus amarus).
The minnow survives only in about 5 percent of its historic range, in a 174-mile stretch of the middle Rio Grande (pictured above), often called the Albuquerque stretch, which also happens to be the most densely populated region of New Mexico.
The two-inch silvery minnow once occupied 2,400 miles of the Rio Grande and the Peco River, one of its major tributaries. Now the minnow survives only in about 5 percent of its historic range, between the Cochiti Dam in the north and the headwaters of Elephant Butte Reservoir — a 174-mile stretch of the middle Rio Grande, often called the Albuquerque stretch, which also happens to be the most densely populated region of New Mexico where more than half of its citizens live.
The silvery minnow was listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act in 1994, around the time when this stretch of the river began to regularly dry each summer when farmers diverted the water for irrigation into canals and ditches and onto alfalfa fields and pecan orchards, leaving the fish out of water. The plight of the minnow set off a legal battle between irrigators represented by the Middle Rio Grande Conservation District and environmental groups attempting to preserve habitat for the fish.
There is a growing understanding that like the proverbial canary in the coal mine,the silvery minnow
in the Rio Grande is not only a bellwether of the health of the river and its ecosystem, its fate
is also a harbinger of what people might face as as our freshwater sources become more scarce.
Nine years later, in 2003 the US Fish and Wildlife Service issued its biological opinion, which basically stated that water mangers would have to keep a small amount of water moving in the Albuquerque stretch of the Rio Grande so that it doesn’t dry in the summer heat.
Farmers and ranchers once considered themselves the principal stakeholders of the Rio Grande. But attitudes evolved, especially with the growth of urban centers inhabited by educated professionals who consider the river to have intrinsic value beyond its so-called beneficial uses for humans. There is a growing understanding that like the proverbial canary in the coal mine, the silvery minnow in the Rio Grande is not only a bellwether of the health of the river and its ecosystem, its fate is also a harbinger of what people might face in the future as our freshwater sources become more and more scarce.
Like many Western rivers, the Rio Grande's natural flow is highly variable, sometimes flooding, other times leaving a dry riverbed. “While species have adapted and even prospered in highly variable streams, human water supply demand lacks this flexibility,” writes attorney Charles DuMars in his essay, "The Middle Rio Grande Minnow Wars" in the 2012 book One Hundred Years of Water Wars in New Mexico. “Water flowing past a city or farm in April is of no value to that entity in July. Balancing flows may make for reliable human supply, but it directly affects the viability of species relying on historic variation.”
Environmental groups, such as Defenders of Wildlife, the Sierra Club, WildEarth Guardians, and Southwest Environmental Center argued, the silvery minnow's survival would require a more natural state of water flow. As DuMars put it, however, every drop taken for the minnow meant a reduction in water for irrigators and consumers because the Middle Rio Grande is a fully appropriated stream.
The outcome of the contentious litigation was favorable not only to the fish but to the river itself — and did not appreciably impact farmers and consumers. In summary, a certain amount of water was allowed to flow year around. Meanwhile, the Middle Grande River Conservation District adopted stricter conservation measures and municipal water utilities repaired city water pipes (therefore lessening waste). Both stakeholders pumped aquifers that didn't affect river volume to make up for losses. Moreover, levies were moved farther back from the riverbed, allowing the river to form braided streams. Cottonwoods and other riparian plants were allowed to grow more densely, providing shade and food for fish.
These measures helped somewhat, and the silvery minnow has survived thus far, but its population has not appreciably prospered; the remaining Rio Grande habitat is just too small for the fish to flourish on their own. Enter, the Los Lunas Silvery Minnow Refugium, established by the New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission at Los Lunas, 25 miles south of Albuquerque.
Photo by Bud RussoSerpentine flow through the Los Lunas Silvery Minnow Refugium mimics the natural flow of the Rio Grandé. Overhead cables prevent predation by herons, hawks, and other birds.
“The refugium is a fish hatchery,” says Dr. Alison Hutson,environmental scientist and assistant manager, “but unlike any hatchery you’ve ever seen.”
In its park-like setting, the refugium features a 458-foot-long serpentine concrete channel, ponds, shelves, backwaters, and a floodplain that, taken together, simulate the flow of the Rio Grande. Landscaped with native plants growing on the river’s banks, the project was designed and constructed at a cost of $1.7 million to spawn and propagate the endangered silvery minnow.
“The refugium was required by the Fish and Wildlife Service’s 2003 Biological Opinion,” manager Douglas Tave explains, but “the term 'refugium' was not defined. It was kind of an invented word, and no one knew what it entailed.”
Traditional hatcheries coddle brood stock in aquaria and tanks until females lay eggs and maintain the environment until eggs hatch. Fry are then raised until they reach a prescribed length and weight before being released into lakes and streams. In most cases, fry are not there very long before commercial and recreational fishermen and fisherwomen pull them out of the water.
“What we’re doing is conservation aquaculture,” Tave continues, noting that preserving an endangered species requires a different tack. Hutson adds, “We’re trying to put a farmed animal into the wild, and we asked if there’s a better way of doing this. The refugium allows us to produce fish that are more wild so when they’re stocked in the river, the species has a better chance of recovering.”
Because the Rio Grande is fully appropriated for beneficial use, scientists had to apply to the Office of the State Engineer to acquire rights for the nearly 161,000 gallons of river water that flows through and is recycled at the refugium. The only “new” water added is that which replaces river water lost to evaporation.
But the refugium is much more than just water modeling the Rio Grande. As Hutson emphasized, the goal of the project is to raise wild fish. In this replication of the silvery minnow's natural habitat, the minnows are allowed to fend for themselves. Staff members add fertilizer to water at the exit sump, where it can blend in thoroughly as the water is recirculated back to the inlet. The fertilizer facilitates growth of freshwater algae, diatoms, zooplankton, and animals that cling to plants. These life forms constitute the primary food source for the minnows, which are left to their own devices to forage.
Fry are introduced to the refugium in May. The exact number of fry varies, as does their age and size — all factors which contribute to their survivability. The older and larger the fry, the more likely fish will survive until the harvest in October.
“Hopefully, the refugium will enable the fish to develop wild-type behaviors and will also prevent the development of maladaptive hatchery-induced behaviors,” Tave and Hutson wrote in a paper for World Aquaculture.
At the end of the season, sand bags and other obstacles are removed and the refugium is seined. Staff members capture and tag every minnow with a unique tattoo, and measure and weigh a subsample to determine average length and weight. The fish are held temporarily in tanks until Fish and Wildlife staff transport them to stock the Middle Rio Grande and an experimental stretch of the river near Big Bend, Texas.
Photo by Bud RussoDr. Alison Hutson explains the conservation aquaculture principles used at the facility. Tanks of fry are allowed to grow to preferred size and weight before being introduced to the refugium.
The refugium is, however, a stopgap measure to keep this short-lived fish from becoming extinct. Without it and the relocation program, the minnow would have probably vanished by now. And even now, its fate hangs on balance. As USFWS biologist Thomas Archdeacon told Water Deeplylast year: "Basically two bad years in a row will essentially wipe it out, and we'll be relying almost entirely on that hatchery safety net."
Yet, in 2016, after 15 years of requiring water managers to keep at least 100 cubic feet per second of water in the Albuquerque stretch of the river, USFWS issued another biological opinion that basically said that water management operations on the Rio Grande were no longer jeopardizing the silvery minnow and stopped requiring flow minimums.
According to David Campbell, the USFWS branch chief who oversees the river recovery project, “Now there are no flow requirements at all.” Instead the new biological opinion calls for water managers — the US Bureau of Reclamation and its partners — to manage the river in other ways, such a building fish passages around dams. Campbell also explains, if the river dries, surviving silvery minnows can be rescued from puddles and, if fish densities are too low, they will continue to be supplemented with fish raised in the refugium, without which this rare fish inevitably will become extinct.
Only by managing the Rio Grande as the complex, integrated ecosystem that it is, and not viewing it simply as a water-delivery ditch; only by considering the river as a legal entity — just like the farmer, industrialist, and consumer — will the silvery minnow, and other wildlife that depend on it, like the endangered southwestern willow flycatcher, the yellow-billed cuckoo, and even the iconic cottonwoods, have a chance survive.
Comment
The Monteray Platy (Xiphophorus couchianus) was once reported from the Rio Grande but now is on the red list as endagered
==========================
Palytoxin Nearly Killed my Family and Pets!
GUEST WRITER
32A traumatic event happened at my house this week. My family and pets became very sick and in the dogs case, near death. A chain of events lead to my house being filled with aerosolized Palytoxin.
This week’s event in our house changed my life. In one way I am thankful that my family and dogs are still alive, but the event has left a permanent mark psychologically. The guilt I have been feeling is a heavy weight on my shoulders. As I am writing this I listen to every breath my family takes, and am watching my dogs like hawks.
The anxiety of it all is very consuming even though I have done everything I can to make sure our house is safe (Bleach, Ozone, Hepa, UV treatments) I am writing this in hopes that what happened to me and my family doesn’t ever happen again.
Here is the chain of events and a bit of background. For a year I have been gathering parts here and there when I had the money to build a softy reef tank for my 9 Year old daughter who loves everything reef. One of the items I bought is some “Dried” rock from a guy that had broken down his tank several years ago.
He was not a serious reefer, but had a bunch of items he was getting rid of. The rock was in sealed containers, but I believe he had some zoas or palys on the rocks when he pulled it out of his tank, and the coral died leaving toxins. With that being said we started plumbing the tank and getting the ‘scaping done on Monday.
READ Reefing hobby makes it to Washington Post with warning of coral toxinsThe tank looked great! Tuesday morning I started filling the tank with RODI, and tested the plumbing. All was looking good by mid afternoon, so I started dumping salt into the tank. Most of the salt was an anhydrous salt mix (no, I am not going to name a manufacture). As you may or may not know anhydrous salt reacts with water
and gets very hot.
The salt was covering the rock as I spread it out all over the place. I truly believe this was when the Palytoxin got literally cooked off the rock. With the tank running, I
went about my day. Later that day I started getting a scratchy throat. Figured I had a cold coming on, but I tend to ignore and push through when there is work to be done.
That same afternoon my wife, who is an asthmatic, had a pretty severe attack. Neither of us could figure out why, because there was no normal “triggers” present in the house. She medicated herself and a few hours later was feeling much better. We were out of the house most of Wednesday and besides a cough here and there, we were not having any issues.
Wednesday night my son started coughing pretty heavily, and again I am just thinking “great the whole family is getting a cold” Here is when things took a turn for the worse in a hurry. Thursday morning I get my kids into their schoolwork (we home school), and I look at the tank and it looks slightly yellow, so I decide to start the protein skimmer to see if I can get out some of the organics.
READ Minimix Of Aquatic Art's Zoanthid Collection!Within several hours of starting the protein skimmer, my kids and I coughs were getting progressively worse. To the point I told them to stop schoolwork. I go up stairs and my wife is starting yet another massive asthma attack (or at least I thought it was). At this point I am shaking my head wondering what’s going on, and then I see that my older labrador is struggling to breath.
I immediately tossed the red flag and evacuated everyone to the back yard. It was at this time my 7 month old lab puppy came up to us drooling and shivering. It was time for 911. The emergency crews came to my house, and examined all of us. My kids and I were treated and released, but my wife was taken to a local ER due to her pain and labored breathing.
I rushed my dogs to the local vet where they were put in oxygen chambers and given fluids. Everyone including the dogs had blood draws and toxin screens. All came back clear of normal toxins. Mind you they do not understand nor do they test for Palytoxins!
My house was heavily scrutinized by emergency services with ZERO detectable toxins. Again this is just not a normal thing you can scan for. Everyone is just shaking their heads trying to figure out what just happened to this family. After some brain storming with some friends, a little Google, and some calls to people I know in the field, we finally figured out what happened.
Microbubbles in the tank or from a protein skimmer can ‘aerosolize’ toxins from an aquarium, making them airborne.My family is not the first to fall victim to this as you can do a Google search and read other stories like mine where families and pets nearly died, and in some cases the pets did die. What lessons did I learn from this? Never ever trust any rock you get. Always sanitize rock before use!
Bleach and then cook Sanitize the rock outside your home (or buy clean dry rock to start with). ALWAYS wear protective gear when handling rock or corals. Even dry rock! Will this stop me from reefing? No way! I love it too much to let a freak accident stop me from a hobby I love.
The danger and potency of toxins from Palythoa can NOT be overstated!With that being said however, I do sincerely hope that this story is shared everywhere so this doesn’t happen again to anyone. Right now I need to get back to building our life back up. We all still have some left over affects of the toxins, but are improving every day. My first project is to cheer my daughter up who is really sad.
While she knows that there was little choice at the time to break down her tank (she has been very sweet to cheer me up from my guilt), she knows she will have to wait a long time to get her tank running again because after the ER bill, $1000 vet bill, and clean up costs, buying rock and sand just isn’t in the cards.
READ Reefing hobby makes it to Washington Post with warning of coral toxins(We threw out everything and bleached the tank in the haste of getting our house back).
Happy and Safe Reefing!
The following true story is an account of how one reefer, Mark Strachan, learned the hard way that Paythoa ain’t nothing to mess with! Please use caution and protection when handling used rock and living or dead zoanthids of any kind.
from ReefBuilders
==========================
GUEST WRITER
32A traumatic event happened at my house this week. My family and pets became very sick and in the dogs case, near death. A chain of events lead to my house being filled with aerosolized Palytoxin.
This week’s event in our house changed my life. In one way I am thankful that my family and dogs are still alive, but the event has left a permanent mark psychologically. The guilt I have been feeling is a heavy weight on my shoulders. As I am writing this I listen to every breath my family takes, and am watching my dogs like hawks.
The anxiety of it all is very consuming even though I have done everything I can to make sure our house is safe (Bleach, Ozone, Hepa, UV treatments) I am writing this in hopes that what happened to me and my family doesn’t ever happen again.
Here is the chain of events and a bit of background. For a year I have been gathering parts here and there when I had the money to build a softy reef tank for my 9 Year old daughter who loves everything reef. One of the items I bought is some “Dried” rock from a guy that had broken down his tank several years ago.
He was not a serious reefer, but had a bunch of items he was getting rid of. The rock was in sealed containers, but I believe he had some zoas or palys on the rocks when he pulled it out of his tank, and the coral died leaving toxins. With that being said we started plumbing the tank and getting the ‘scaping done on Monday.
READ Reefing hobby makes it to Washington Post with warning of coral toxinsThe tank looked great! Tuesday morning I started filling the tank with RODI, and tested the plumbing. All was looking good by mid afternoon, so I started dumping salt into the tank. Most of the salt was an anhydrous salt mix (no, I am not going to name a manufacture). As you may or may not know anhydrous salt reacts with water
and gets very hot.
The salt was covering the rock as I spread it out all over the place. I truly believe this was when the Palytoxin got literally cooked off the rock. With the tank running, I
went about my day. Later that day I started getting a scratchy throat. Figured I had a cold coming on, but I tend to ignore and push through when there is work to be done.
That same afternoon my wife, who is an asthmatic, had a pretty severe attack. Neither of us could figure out why, because there was no normal “triggers” present in the house. She medicated herself and a few hours later was feeling much better. We were out of the house most of Wednesday and besides a cough here and there, we were not having any issues.
Wednesday night my son started coughing pretty heavily, and again I am just thinking “great the whole family is getting a cold” Here is when things took a turn for the worse in a hurry. Thursday morning I get my kids into their schoolwork (we home school), and I look at the tank and it looks slightly yellow, so I decide to start the protein skimmer to see if I can get out some of the organics.
READ Minimix Of Aquatic Art's Zoanthid Collection!Within several hours of starting the protein skimmer, my kids and I coughs were getting progressively worse. To the point I told them to stop schoolwork. I go up stairs and my wife is starting yet another massive asthma attack (or at least I thought it was). At this point I am shaking my head wondering what’s going on, and then I see that my older labrador is struggling to breath.
I immediately tossed the red flag and evacuated everyone to the back yard. It was at this time my 7 month old lab puppy came up to us drooling and shivering. It was time for 911. The emergency crews came to my house, and examined all of us. My kids and I were treated and released, but my wife was taken to a local ER due to her pain and labored breathing.
I rushed my dogs to the local vet where they were put in oxygen chambers and given fluids. Everyone including the dogs had blood draws and toxin screens. All came back clear of normal toxins. Mind you they do not understand nor do they test for Palytoxins!
My house was heavily scrutinized by emergency services with ZERO detectable toxins. Again this is just not a normal thing you can scan for. Everyone is just shaking their heads trying to figure out what just happened to this family. After some brain storming with some friends, a little Google, and some calls to people I know in the field, we finally figured out what happened.
- Palytoxins were present on the rocks that I installed in the tank.
- Rehydration and heat from anhydrous salt likely activated the toxin.
- Protein skimmer emitting large amounts of micro bubbles into the tank aerosolized the Palytoxins into the air.
Microbubbles in the tank or from a protein skimmer can ‘aerosolize’ toxins from an aquarium, making them airborne.My family is not the first to fall victim to this as you can do a Google search and read other stories like mine where families and pets nearly died, and in some cases the pets did die. What lessons did I learn from this? Never ever trust any rock you get. Always sanitize rock before use!
Bleach and then cook Sanitize the rock outside your home (or buy clean dry rock to start with). ALWAYS wear protective gear when handling rock or corals. Even dry rock! Will this stop me from reefing? No way! I love it too much to let a freak accident stop me from a hobby I love.
The danger and potency of toxins from Palythoa can NOT be overstated!With that being said however, I do sincerely hope that this story is shared everywhere so this doesn’t happen again to anyone. Right now I need to get back to building our life back up. We all still have some left over affects of the toxins, but are improving every day. My first project is to cheer my daughter up who is really sad.
While she knows that there was little choice at the time to break down her tank (she has been very sweet to cheer me up from my guilt), she knows she will have to wait a long time to get her tank running again because after the ER bill, $1000 vet bill, and clean up costs, buying rock and sand just isn’t in the cards.
READ Reefing hobby makes it to Washington Post with warning of coral toxins(We threw out everything and bleached the tank in the haste of getting our house back).
Happy and Safe Reefing!
The following true story is an account of how one reefer, Mark Strachan, learned the hard way that Paythoa ain’t nothing to mess with! Please use caution and protection when handling used rock and living or dead zoanthids of any kind.
from ReefBuilders
==========================
Incredible Xanthic Eibl’s Angelfish Appears in Hong Kong
Pygmy angelfish are very popular marine aquarium fish because they pack a lot of personality and color into a very manageable size. But another thing that we can sometimes enjoy in the dwarf Centropyge genus is some really wildly aberrant specimens such as this xanthic Eibl’s angelfish, Centropyge eibli.
Eibl’s angelfish don’t usually show so little melanin in the body, or so much on the tail, so it’s a curiosity how both extremes can be observed in a single fish.This sexy individual of Eibl’s angelfish was shown off by East Marine HK in Hong Kong, the same dealer which shared a crazy-colored ‘Blue Skeleton’ Majestic angelfish last year. However while this extreme color pattern is quite rare for pygmy angelfish, it’s not a ‘true’ xanthism with a genetic component.
A similarly pale colored eibl’s angelfish collected last year which turned back to normal coloration within a matter of a few weeks. We’ve seen xanthic specimens of a number of Centropyge species and nine times out of ten, the fish begins to darken up the moment that it’s removed from the ocean. No one really knows what causes this extreme, semi-permanent coloration – some have linked it to seasonal spawning coloration – but unfortunately this brilliant color almost never persists.
from ReefBuilders
==========================
Pygmy angelfish are very popular marine aquarium fish because they pack a lot of personality and color into a very manageable size. But another thing that we can sometimes enjoy in the dwarf Centropyge genus is some really wildly aberrant specimens such as this xanthic Eibl’s angelfish, Centropyge eibli.
Eibl’s angelfish don’t usually show so little melanin in the body, or so much on the tail, so it’s a curiosity how both extremes can be observed in a single fish.This sexy individual of Eibl’s angelfish was shown off by East Marine HK in Hong Kong, the same dealer which shared a crazy-colored ‘Blue Skeleton’ Majestic angelfish last year. However while this extreme color pattern is quite rare for pygmy angelfish, it’s not a ‘true’ xanthism with a genetic component.
A similarly pale colored eibl’s angelfish collected last year which turned back to normal coloration within a matter of a few weeks. We’ve seen xanthic specimens of a number of Centropyge species and nine times out of ten, the fish begins to darken up the moment that it’s removed from the ocean. No one really knows what causes this extreme, semi-permanent coloration – some have linked it to seasonal spawning coloration – but unfortunately this brilliant color almost never persists.
from ReefBuilders
==========================
Ostichthys alamai
Ostichthys alamai, a New Species of Highfin Soldierfish from Japan
Soldierfish and Squirrelfish are not the most common fish seen in reef tanks but they should be as they don’t touch coral at all. Ostichthys alamai is a new member of this group, more specifically a recently described species of ‘highfin soldierfish’ from Japan.
Although the basic appearance of these fish is mostly red, the variation of fin shape and color and degree of bony scaling varies a lot. Ostichthys alamai is among the most bony group but not quite as protected as the pineapple fish.
Ostichthys alamai has the highest dorsal spines of any species in the highfin soldierfish complex but the body color is still a basic red being more white along the ventral area, and a white spot on each scale. For examples of more ‘compelling’ soldierfish definitely check out our articles on the crosseye soldierfish and the bright white blacktip soldierfish.
from ReefBuilders
==========================
Soldierfish and Squirrelfish are not the most common fish seen in reef tanks but they should be as they don’t touch coral at all. Ostichthys alamai is a new member of this group, more specifically a recently described species of ‘highfin soldierfish’ from Japan.
Although the basic appearance of these fish is mostly red, the variation of fin shape and color and degree of bony scaling varies a lot. Ostichthys alamai is among the most bony group but not quite as protected as the pineapple fish.
Ostichthys alamai has the highest dorsal spines of any species in the highfin soldierfish complex but the body color is still a basic red being more white along the ventral area, and a white spot on each scale. For examples of more ‘compelling’ soldierfish definitely check out our articles on the crosseye soldierfish and the bright white blacktip soldierfish.
from ReefBuilders
==========================
Lachnolaimus maximus
Hogfish Can ‘See’ with Its Skin
Researchers have long suspected that colour-changing animals like hogfish (Lachnolaimus maximus) don’t just rely on their eyes to tune their appearance to their surroundings — they also sense light with their skin; but exactly how ‘skin vision’ works remains a mystery. Now, a new genetic analysis of the hogfish reveals evidence to explain how they do it. Published in the Journal of Comparative Physiology A, the results suggest that light-sensing evolved separately in two tissues.
The hogfish (Lachnolaimus maximus). Image credit: Brian Gratwicke / CC BY 2.0.
The hogfish is a species of wrasse native to the western Atlantic Ocean. It is present in the Caribbean and north to Bermuda and the Carolinas and extends southwards to the northern region of the Brazilian Coast.
The species is found on coral reefs at 10-131 feet (3-40 m) depth, especially sandy outer reef slopes. Juveniles are most common in shallow seagrass, and inshore reef habitats.
The hogfish can make its skin whitish to blend in with the sandy bottom of the ocean floor and hide from predators or ambush prey. Or it can take on a bright, contrasting pattern to look threatening or attract a mate.
The key to these makeovers are special pigment-containing cells called chromatophores, which, when activated by light, can spread their pigments out or bunch them up to change the skin’s overall color or pattern.
“With ‘dermal photoreception,’ as it is called, the skin doesn’t enable animals to perceive details like they do with their eyes,” said study lead author Dr. Lori Schweikert, a postdoctoral scientist at Duke University.
“But it may be sensitive to changes in brightness or wavelength, such as moving shadows cast by approaching predators, or light fluctuations associated with different times of day.”
Dr. Schweikert and co-authors, Duke University’s Professor Sönke Johnsen and Dr. Bob Fitak, took pieces of skin and retina from a single female hogfish caught off the Florida Keys and analyzed all of its gene readouts, or RNA transcripts, to see which genes were switched on in each tissue.
Previous studies of other color-changing animals including octopuses and cuttlefish suggest the same molecular pathway that detects light in eyes may have been co-opted to sense light in the skin. But the study authors found that hogfish skin works differently.
Almost none of the genes involved in light detection in the hogfish’s eyes were activated in the skin. Instead, the data suggest that hogfish skin relies on an alternative molecular pathway to sense light, a chain reaction involving a molecule called cyclic AMP.
“Just how the hogfish’s ‘skin vision’ supplements input from the eyes to monitor light in their surroundings and bring about a color change remains unclear,” Dr. Schweikert said.
“Light-sensing skin could provide information about conditions beyond the animal’s field of view, or outside the range of wavelengths that the eye can pick up.”
“Together with previous studies, our results suggest that fish have found a new way to ‘see’ with their skin and change color quickly.”
_____
Lorian E. Schweikert et al. De novo transcriptomics reveal distinct phototransduction signaling components in the retina and skin of a color-changing vertebrate, the hogfish (Lachnolaimus maximus). Journal of Comparative Physiology A, published online February 28, 2018; doi: 10.1007/s00359-018-1254-4
==========================
Researchers have long suspected that colour-changing animals like hogfish (Lachnolaimus maximus) don’t just rely on their eyes to tune their appearance to their surroundings — they also sense light with their skin; but exactly how ‘skin vision’ works remains a mystery. Now, a new genetic analysis of the hogfish reveals evidence to explain how they do it. Published in the Journal of Comparative Physiology A, the results suggest that light-sensing evolved separately in two tissues.
The hogfish (Lachnolaimus maximus). Image credit: Brian Gratwicke / CC BY 2.0.
The hogfish is a species of wrasse native to the western Atlantic Ocean. It is present in the Caribbean and north to Bermuda and the Carolinas and extends southwards to the northern region of the Brazilian Coast.
The species is found on coral reefs at 10-131 feet (3-40 m) depth, especially sandy outer reef slopes. Juveniles are most common in shallow seagrass, and inshore reef habitats.
The hogfish can make its skin whitish to blend in with the sandy bottom of the ocean floor and hide from predators or ambush prey. Or it can take on a bright, contrasting pattern to look threatening or attract a mate.
The key to these makeovers are special pigment-containing cells called chromatophores, which, when activated by light, can spread their pigments out or bunch them up to change the skin’s overall color or pattern.
“With ‘dermal photoreception,’ as it is called, the skin doesn’t enable animals to perceive details like they do with their eyes,” said study lead author Dr. Lori Schweikert, a postdoctoral scientist at Duke University.
“But it may be sensitive to changes in brightness or wavelength, such as moving shadows cast by approaching predators, or light fluctuations associated with different times of day.”
Dr. Schweikert and co-authors, Duke University’s Professor Sönke Johnsen and Dr. Bob Fitak, took pieces of skin and retina from a single female hogfish caught off the Florida Keys and analyzed all of its gene readouts, or RNA transcripts, to see which genes were switched on in each tissue.
Previous studies of other color-changing animals including octopuses and cuttlefish suggest the same molecular pathway that detects light in eyes may have been co-opted to sense light in the skin. But the study authors found that hogfish skin works differently.
Almost none of the genes involved in light detection in the hogfish’s eyes were activated in the skin. Instead, the data suggest that hogfish skin relies on an alternative molecular pathway to sense light, a chain reaction involving a molecule called cyclic AMP.
“Just how the hogfish’s ‘skin vision’ supplements input from the eyes to monitor light in their surroundings and bring about a color change remains unclear,” Dr. Schweikert said.
“Light-sensing skin could provide information about conditions beyond the animal’s field of view, or outside the range of wavelengths that the eye can pick up.”
“Together with previous studies, our results suggest that fish have found a new way to ‘see’ with their skin and change color quickly.”
_____
Lorian E. Schweikert et al. De novo transcriptomics reveal distinct phototransduction signaling components in the retina and skin of a color-changing vertebrate, the hogfish (Lachnolaimus maximus). Journal of Comparative Physiology A, published online February 28, 2018; doi: 10.1007/s00359-018-1254-4
==========================
Schistura kottelati • A New Species of Loach (Teleostei: Nemacheilidae) from the Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng National Park in central Vietnam
Schistura kottelati
Tuan, Thao & Quang, 2018
RAFFLES BULLETIN OF ZOOLOGY. 66
Abstract
Schistura kottelati, new species, is described from the Hung Dang Valley (Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng National Park) in central Vietnam. It is distinguished from all other species of Schistura known from Vietnam and adjacent areas in Laos by a unique combination of characters, including features of lateral line and body pigmentation, counts of fin rays, and barbel and body measurements.
Key words. cypriniformes, taxonomy, morphology, Southeast Asia, karstic area
Schistura kottelati, new species
Diagnosis. Schistura kottelati differs from the other species of genus Schistura known from Vietnam and adjacent areas in Laos by the unique combination of the following characters: lateral line very short, with 5–14 pores; pelvic fin with 1 unbranched and 8 branched rays; a long maxillary barbel (reaching vertical through nape) and inner rostral barbel (reaching vertical through anterior margin of eye); body without obvious markings; caudal fin deeply forked (length of median ray 1.5–1.7 times in length of upper slobe); no external sexual dimorphism; caudal peduncle slender (its length 8.0–11.6% SL); a large eye (eye diameter 4.7–6.2% SL); and wide interorbital region (interorbital width 9.1–11.7% SL).
Etymology. The species is named for Maurice Kottelat, in appreciation for his research on Eurasian freshwater fishes, among others those of Vietnam. A noun in genitive.
Ho Anh Tuan, Hoang Ngoc Thao and Ngo Xuan Quang. 2018. Schistura kottelati, A New Species of Loach from the Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng National Park in central Vietnam (Teleostei: Nemacheilidae). RAFFLES BULLETIN OF ZOOLOGY. 66; 142–148.
lkcnhm.nus.edu.sg/app/uploads/2018/01/66rbz142-148.pdf
==========================
Schistura kottelati
Tuan, Thao & Quang, 2018
RAFFLES BULLETIN OF ZOOLOGY. 66
Abstract
Schistura kottelati, new species, is described from the Hung Dang Valley (Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng National Park) in central Vietnam. It is distinguished from all other species of Schistura known from Vietnam and adjacent areas in Laos by a unique combination of characters, including features of lateral line and body pigmentation, counts of fin rays, and barbel and body measurements.
Key words. cypriniformes, taxonomy, morphology, Southeast Asia, karstic area
Schistura kottelati, new species
Diagnosis. Schistura kottelati differs from the other species of genus Schistura known from Vietnam and adjacent areas in Laos by the unique combination of the following characters: lateral line very short, with 5–14 pores; pelvic fin with 1 unbranched and 8 branched rays; a long maxillary barbel (reaching vertical through nape) and inner rostral barbel (reaching vertical through anterior margin of eye); body without obvious markings; caudal fin deeply forked (length of median ray 1.5–1.7 times in length of upper slobe); no external sexual dimorphism; caudal peduncle slender (its length 8.0–11.6% SL); a large eye (eye diameter 4.7–6.2% SL); and wide interorbital region (interorbital width 9.1–11.7% SL).
Etymology. The species is named for Maurice Kottelat, in appreciation for his research on Eurasian freshwater fishes, among others those of Vietnam. A noun in genitive.
Ho Anh Tuan, Hoang Ngoc Thao and Ngo Xuan Quang. 2018. Schistura kottelati, A New Species of Loach from the Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng National Park in central Vietnam (Teleostei: Nemacheilidae). RAFFLES BULLETIN OF ZOOLOGY. 66; 142–148.
lkcnhm.nus.edu.sg/app/uploads/2018/01/66rbz142-148.pdf
==========================
Brighton Sea Life hits back as fewer fish die here than at many centres
SEA LIFE Brighton has hit back at criticism at how the aquariums looked after its animals after a report showed 30 per cent of them died in just one year at a centre.
The popular attraction made national headlines after it was revealed sea creatures in bases at Great Yarmouth and Scarborough have very high mortality rates.
Experts from the Marine Conservation Society expressed concerns at the centres’ management after figures were released from a Freedom of Information request made by the BBC.
It reported a total of 4,500 animals died from 2015-2016, and creatures in Great Yarmouth centre had the highest death rate at 812 out of 2,293 animals. The data included Birmingham, Blackpool, Hunstanton, London, Manchester, Scarborough and Weymouth.
Brighton did not provide their numbers but they have revealed to The Argus that 15 per cent of their animals have died in the past three years.
The centre houses around 3,500 creatures in their aquarium.
A spokesman said: “Brighton Sea Life has not revealed our numbers as we only provide figures to the local health authority.
“Sea Life places the very highest priority on the welfare of the animals at its sites, which are supported by experienced animal care teams, marine biologists and world-renowned veterinary consultants.
“Sea Life has a strong track record in animal husbandry and complies with all the laws and regulations under the Zoo Licensing Act.
“We take an active role in promoting conservation, playing a leading part in rescue and rehabilitation, breeding select species at our facilities and educating the many millions of visitors to our attractions.”
The Sea Life spokesman responded to criticism from experts who questioned how the centres looked after the animals.
He said: “You can’t apply a blanket percentage of mortality rates across all centres. It is utter nonsense.
“Death rates depends on what animals you have in the centre. If a centre has more jelly fishes who live for one year, then the percentage will be higher.
“If you have a centre that has more sharks than any other ones then the mortality rate will be lower. We have two sea turtles in our centre who are 75-years-old.
“The Brighton team is dedicated and passionate and we carry out regular checks on our animals’ health and our water quality. If we lose an animal from unnatural causes we do post-mortem checks.”
from The Argus, Brighton
==========================
SEA LIFE Brighton has hit back at criticism at how the aquariums looked after its animals after a report showed 30 per cent of them died in just one year at a centre.
The popular attraction made national headlines after it was revealed sea creatures in bases at Great Yarmouth and Scarborough have very high mortality rates.
Experts from the Marine Conservation Society expressed concerns at the centres’ management after figures were released from a Freedom of Information request made by the BBC.
It reported a total of 4,500 animals died from 2015-2016, and creatures in Great Yarmouth centre had the highest death rate at 812 out of 2,293 animals. The data included Birmingham, Blackpool, Hunstanton, London, Manchester, Scarborough and Weymouth.
Brighton did not provide their numbers but they have revealed to The Argus that 15 per cent of their animals have died in the past three years.
The centre houses around 3,500 creatures in their aquarium.
A spokesman said: “Brighton Sea Life has not revealed our numbers as we only provide figures to the local health authority.
“Sea Life places the very highest priority on the welfare of the animals at its sites, which are supported by experienced animal care teams, marine biologists and world-renowned veterinary consultants.
“Sea Life has a strong track record in animal husbandry and complies with all the laws and regulations under the Zoo Licensing Act.
“We take an active role in promoting conservation, playing a leading part in rescue and rehabilitation, breeding select species at our facilities and educating the many millions of visitors to our attractions.”
The Sea Life spokesman responded to criticism from experts who questioned how the centres looked after the animals.
He said: “You can’t apply a blanket percentage of mortality rates across all centres. It is utter nonsense.
“Death rates depends on what animals you have in the centre. If a centre has more jelly fishes who live for one year, then the percentage will be higher.
“If you have a centre that has more sharks than any other ones then the mortality rate will be lower. We have two sea turtles in our centre who are 75-years-old.
“The Brighton team is dedicated and passionate and we carry out regular checks on our animals’ health and our water quality. If we lose an animal from unnatural causes we do post-mortem checks.”
from The Argus, Brighton
==========================
Robin Hood Aquarists Society Auction
Sunday 8th April 2018
The Robin Hood Aquarists Society Nottingham will be holding an auction of fish, plants and equipment on Sunday 8th April 2018 at the Highbank Community Centre, Farnborough Road, Clifton, Nottingham, NG11 9DG.
Doors open 10.30am and Auction starts 11am. Refreshments will be available throughout the day and a licensed bar has been applied for.
Admission to the auction is free. We look forward to seeing you there.
PLEASE NOTE: Smoking is strictly prohibited within the building and this includes E-cigarettes. Also it is now council policy that no dogs are permitted in the building.
For further details, including booking an auction lot, please contact e-mail: rhaqua@hotmail.co.uk
==========================
Sunday 8th April 2018
The Robin Hood Aquarists Society Nottingham will be holding an auction of fish, plants and equipment on Sunday 8th April 2018 at the Highbank Community Centre, Farnborough Road, Clifton, Nottingham, NG11 9DG.
Doors open 10.30am and Auction starts 11am. Refreshments will be available throughout the day and a licensed bar has been applied for.
Admission to the auction is free. We look forward to seeing you there.
PLEASE NOTE: Smoking is strictly prohibited within the building and this includes E-cigarettes. Also it is now council policy that no dogs are permitted in the building.
For further details, including booking an auction lot, please contact e-mail: rhaqua@hotmail.co.uk
==========================
Cleaner Wrasses make Client fish brainier by eating blood feasting parasites
It’s not easy for fish to clean themselves, without limbs or digits to scrub those hard-to-reach places. Fortunately for them, coral reefs come with cleaning stations.
At particular sites, an itchy individual can attract the attention of the bluestreak cleaner wrasse—a slender fish, with blue and yellow markings and a prominent black stripe. On seeing these colors, the itchy “client” strikes a specific pose, allowing the wrasse to snake across its body, mouth, and gills, picking off parasites and dead skin along the way. The wrasse gets a meal. The client gets exfoliated. A single wrasse works for around four hours a day, and in that time, it can inspect more than 2,000 clients.
The wrasse are remarkably savvy about how they perform their services. Redouan Bshary, from the University of Neuchâtel, has shown that they sometimes cheat their clients by taking illicit bites of the protective mucus covering their skin. If the clients are watching, the wrasse restrain themselves from such shenanigans, in an effort to maintain their reputation. If disgruntled clients chase them, they try to make amends by offering a complementary fin massage. If high-status clients pop by—large, visiting predators like sharks or groupers—the cleaners prioritize them over smaller fish that live in the area. They’re surprisingly intelligent for fish.
And it seems that, by removing parasites, they also make other fish more intelligent.
We know this because, in 2000, Alexandra Grutter, from the University of Queensland, started removing cleaner wrasse from patches of reef around Australia’s Lizard Island. Every three months, she and her team would net every cleaner in these areas and move them elsewhere. The other small fish in these patches won’t cross the large tracts of open sand between them. So, for entire generations, Grutter deprived them of the cleaners’ attentions.
On the de-wrassed reefs, the total number of fish species halved, and their numbers fell by three-quarters. Some damselfish remained, but they were smallerthan usual—a clear sign that their physical health depends on regular cleaning.
Sandra Binning, who’s also from the University of Neuchâtel, has shown that the damsels’ mental prowess is also influenced by the cleaners. Working with Grutter and Bshary, she captured damselfish from various reefs and put them through a series of challenges. First, she put square plates on either side of their tank. One of these hid a chunk of food that the fish could smell but not reach, while the other hid a more accessible morsel. The damselfish had to learn which plate to swim up to—a simple spatial-memory test, and one that every individual passed. Next, Binning swapped the location of the correct plate; again, all the fish learned to change their behavior.
Things changed when she gave them a more difficult task. This time, they had to approach the correct plate based not on its location, but on its appearance. This skill—visual discrimination—is vitally important to a damselfish. “They have to learn very quickly, on the basis of color and pattern, which fish are safe to be around, and what competitors or friends look like,” says Binning. “They’re very good at that.”
But not all of them. The fish that had been serviced by cleaners solved the task faster, and in greater numbers, than those without a history of such services, even when the two groups were matched for size.
“It’s easy to imagine how that would work,” says Isabelle Côté, a researcher from Simon Fraser University who wasn’t involved in the study. “Imagine having an itch that you just can’t scratch, no matter what you do. Ultimately, it drives you to distraction. That might well be similar to what these fish that can’t visit cleaners are feeling. It means that these cleaning interactions are even more important than we had anticipated.”
Without the cleaners, the damselfish might also not have enough energy to fully fuel their demanding brains. They’re targeted by parasitic, bloodsucking crustaceans, which makes them “anemic, sluggish, and weak,” Binning says. When cleaners remove these parasites, the distressed damsels can divert their energies toward other matters—like thinking. Binning confirmed this idea by collecting fish that had grown up in the presence of cleaners, and deliberately infecting them with the bloodsucking parasites. Sure enough, they performed badly in the visual test, just like their peers from cleaner-free reefs.
It’s too easy to see the parasites as the villains of this story, however. In many way, they’re the glue that cements the relationship between the cleaners and their clients, says the disease ecologist Carrie Cizauskas. “Take them away, and it’s debatable whether the cleaner wrasses would be able to survive on client skin detritus alone,” she says.
And the cleaners, through their ministrations, could shape the intellectual development of an entire ecosystem. After all, “there are many other species of clients, like parrotfish and groupers, that are way more parasitized and get much higher priority,” Binning says. “The hierarchy of service is so complex, and our damselfish get cleaned when there’s no one else around.”
from the Atlantic
==========================
It’s not easy for fish to clean themselves, without limbs or digits to scrub those hard-to-reach places. Fortunately for them, coral reefs come with cleaning stations.
At particular sites, an itchy individual can attract the attention of the bluestreak cleaner wrasse—a slender fish, with blue and yellow markings and a prominent black stripe. On seeing these colors, the itchy “client” strikes a specific pose, allowing the wrasse to snake across its body, mouth, and gills, picking off parasites and dead skin along the way. The wrasse gets a meal. The client gets exfoliated. A single wrasse works for around four hours a day, and in that time, it can inspect more than 2,000 clients.
The wrasse are remarkably savvy about how they perform their services. Redouan Bshary, from the University of Neuchâtel, has shown that they sometimes cheat their clients by taking illicit bites of the protective mucus covering their skin. If the clients are watching, the wrasse restrain themselves from such shenanigans, in an effort to maintain their reputation. If disgruntled clients chase them, they try to make amends by offering a complementary fin massage. If high-status clients pop by—large, visiting predators like sharks or groupers—the cleaners prioritize them over smaller fish that live in the area. They’re surprisingly intelligent for fish.
And it seems that, by removing parasites, they also make other fish more intelligent.
We know this because, in 2000, Alexandra Grutter, from the University of Queensland, started removing cleaner wrasse from patches of reef around Australia’s Lizard Island. Every three months, she and her team would net every cleaner in these areas and move them elsewhere. The other small fish in these patches won’t cross the large tracts of open sand between them. So, for entire generations, Grutter deprived them of the cleaners’ attentions.
On the de-wrassed reefs, the total number of fish species halved, and their numbers fell by three-quarters. Some damselfish remained, but they were smallerthan usual—a clear sign that their physical health depends on regular cleaning.
Sandra Binning, who’s also from the University of Neuchâtel, has shown that the damsels’ mental prowess is also influenced by the cleaners. Working with Grutter and Bshary, she captured damselfish from various reefs and put them through a series of challenges. First, she put square plates on either side of their tank. One of these hid a chunk of food that the fish could smell but not reach, while the other hid a more accessible morsel. The damselfish had to learn which plate to swim up to—a simple spatial-memory test, and one that every individual passed. Next, Binning swapped the location of the correct plate; again, all the fish learned to change their behavior.
Things changed when she gave them a more difficult task. This time, they had to approach the correct plate based not on its location, but on its appearance. This skill—visual discrimination—is vitally important to a damselfish. “They have to learn very quickly, on the basis of color and pattern, which fish are safe to be around, and what competitors or friends look like,” says Binning. “They’re very good at that.”
But not all of them. The fish that had been serviced by cleaners solved the task faster, and in greater numbers, than those without a history of such services, even when the two groups were matched for size.
“It’s easy to imagine how that would work,” says Isabelle Côté, a researcher from Simon Fraser University who wasn’t involved in the study. “Imagine having an itch that you just can’t scratch, no matter what you do. Ultimately, it drives you to distraction. That might well be similar to what these fish that can’t visit cleaners are feeling. It means that these cleaning interactions are even more important than we had anticipated.”
Without the cleaners, the damselfish might also not have enough energy to fully fuel their demanding brains. They’re targeted by parasitic, bloodsucking crustaceans, which makes them “anemic, sluggish, and weak,” Binning says. When cleaners remove these parasites, the distressed damsels can divert their energies toward other matters—like thinking. Binning confirmed this idea by collecting fish that had grown up in the presence of cleaners, and deliberately infecting them with the bloodsucking parasites. Sure enough, they performed badly in the visual test, just like their peers from cleaner-free reefs.
It’s too easy to see the parasites as the villains of this story, however. In many way, they’re the glue that cements the relationship between the cleaners and their clients, says the disease ecologist Carrie Cizauskas. “Take them away, and it’s debatable whether the cleaner wrasses would be able to survive on client skin detritus alone,” she says.
And the cleaners, through their ministrations, could shape the intellectual development of an entire ecosystem. After all, “there are many other species of clients, like parrotfish and groupers, that are way more parasitized and get much higher priority,” Binning says. “The hierarchy of service is so complex, and our damselfish get cleaned when there’s no one else around.”
from the Atlantic
==========================
Pseudacanthicus major • One of the Largest Known Loricariidae(Hypostominae: Ancistrini), A Species from rio Tocantins Basin, Brazil
Pseudacanthicus major Chamon & Costa e Silva, 2018
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4387.3.5
Abstract
The genus Pseudacanthicus currently comprises the following six species distributed in the Amazon and Tocantins basins, and coastal drainages from Guyana to French Guyana: P. serratus, P. fordii, P. histrix, P. spinosus, P. leopardus, P. pitanga, and P. pirarara. Herein we describe Pseudacanthicus major, from rio Tocantins basin, one of the largest loricariid species known. The new species is distinguished from its congeners by the following combination of characters: having body color pattern with dark brown background without spots or blotches and dorsal and caudal fins with transversal white bands; anterior process of compound pterotic with no contacting with the posterior margin of the orbit and by the absence of a conspicuous crest on the posterior edge of parieto-supraocciptal. Other osteological characteristics are further used to diagnose P. major from others congeners. A discussion on gigantism and miniaturization in freshwater fish, ornamental fisheries activities, threats and conservation of the new species are also provided.
Keywords: Pisces, Amazon Basin, fish trade, Gigantism, Neotropical, taxonomy, conservation
Pseudacanthicus major, new species
Etymology. The specific epithet major, derives from Latin meaning greater than, larger than, in allusion to the large size of the specimens in comparison with others species of the genus. An adjective.
Remarks. Pseudacanthicus major is known and marketed in ornamental fish trade, like others species of the genus. Pseudacanthicus major is recognized in the L number system employed by aquarists as L186 (Schraml & Schaefer, 2004; Stawikowski et al., 2004; Werner et al., 2005). There is no suggestion that the species is consumed as food source by the colonies of fishermen (pers. obs.)
Carine C. Chamon and Thiago Costa e Silva. 2018. Pseudacanthicus major: Description of One of the Largest Known Loricariidae (Hypostominae: Ancistrini), A Species from rio Tocantins Basin, Brazil. Zootaxa. 4387(3); 499–510. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4387.3.5
Researchgate.net/publication/323447355_Pseudacanthicus_major_from_rio_Tocantins_basin_Brazil
==========================
Pseudacanthicus major Chamon & Costa e Silva, 2018
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4387.3.5
Abstract
The genus Pseudacanthicus currently comprises the following six species distributed in the Amazon and Tocantins basins, and coastal drainages from Guyana to French Guyana: P. serratus, P. fordii, P. histrix, P. spinosus, P. leopardus, P. pitanga, and P. pirarara. Herein we describe Pseudacanthicus major, from rio Tocantins basin, one of the largest loricariid species known. The new species is distinguished from its congeners by the following combination of characters: having body color pattern with dark brown background without spots or blotches and dorsal and caudal fins with transversal white bands; anterior process of compound pterotic with no contacting with the posterior margin of the orbit and by the absence of a conspicuous crest on the posterior edge of parieto-supraocciptal. Other osteological characteristics are further used to diagnose P. major from others congeners. A discussion on gigantism and miniaturization in freshwater fish, ornamental fisheries activities, threats and conservation of the new species are also provided.
Keywords: Pisces, Amazon Basin, fish trade, Gigantism, Neotropical, taxonomy, conservation
Pseudacanthicus major, new species
Etymology. The specific epithet major, derives from Latin meaning greater than, larger than, in allusion to the large size of the specimens in comparison with others species of the genus. An adjective.
Remarks. Pseudacanthicus major is known and marketed in ornamental fish trade, like others species of the genus. Pseudacanthicus major is recognized in the L number system employed by aquarists as L186 (Schraml & Schaefer, 2004; Stawikowski et al., 2004; Werner et al., 2005). There is no suggestion that the species is consumed as food source by the colonies of fishermen (pers. obs.)
Carine C. Chamon and Thiago Costa e Silva. 2018. Pseudacanthicus major: Description of One of the Largest Known Loricariidae (Hypostominae: Ancistrini), A Species from rio Tocantins Basin, Brazil. Zootaxa. 4387(3); 499–510. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4387.3.5
Researchgate.net/publication/323447355_Pseudacanthicus_major_from_rio_Tocantins_basin_Brazil
==========================
BIGGEST AQUATICS AUCTION IN THE NORTHEAST ON THE 13th of May!!
No commission for buyers
Normally around 30+ sellers from all over the country
Dry goods tables
Not an online auction (only people in the hall will grab the bargains)
Cash only sale
Better selection of fish then most shops
Rough list of fish will be on the events page
N.E.T.S. Aquatics society are holding an auction on the 13th of may, we organize the biggest of its kind in the northeast, normally attracting around 30+ sellers made up of some of the best breeders and hobbyist in the country. Coming together for 1 day ONLY to sell there items....
JOIN OUR EVENTS PAGE FOR MORE INFO OR DROP ME AN INBOX
https://www.facebook.com/events/301251447020916/
==========================
No commission for buyers
Normally around 30+ sellers from all over the country
Dry goods tables
Not an online auction (only people in the hall will grab the bargains)
Cash only sale
Better selection of fish then most shops
Rough list of fish will be on the events page
N.E.T.S. Aquatics society are holding an auction on the 13th of may, we organize the biggest of its kind in the northeast, normally attracting around 30+ sellers made up of some of the best breeders and hobbyist in the country. Coming together for 1 day ONLY to sell there items....
JOIN OUR EVENTS PAGE FOR MORE INFO OR DROP ME AN INBOX
https://www.facebook.com/events/301251447020916/
==========================
Dellichthys trnskii • A New Species of Sea Urchin Associating Clingfish of the Genus Dellichthys(Teleostei, Gobiesocidae) from New Zealand
Dellichthys trnskii
Conway, Stewart & Summers, 2018
DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.740.22712
Abstract
A new species of clingfish, Dellichthys trnskii sp. n. is described on the basis of 27 specimens, 11.9–46.0 mm SL, collected from intertidal and shallow coastal waters of New Zealand. It is distinguished from its only congener, D. morelandi Briggs, 1955 by characters of the cephalic sensory system and oral jaws, snout shape, and colouration in life. A rediagnosis is provided for D. morelandi, which is shown to exhibit sexual dimorphism in snout shape.
Keywords: Taxonomy, marine fishes, Acanthomorpha, sexual dimorphism
Figure 1. Dellichthys trnskii, AIM MA73570, holotype, male, 22.8 mm SL; New Zealand: Northland, Pacific Bay, Tutukaka Coast.
Dellichthys trnskii sp. n.
Diagnosis: Dellichthys trnskii is diagnosed by the following combination of characters: snout broad, short (length less than or equal to interorbital distance); upper and lower jaws equal in length or lower jaw only slight shorter than the upper; upper jaw teeth not visible or only few teeth visible in gap between upper and lower lip at tip of jaws when jaws are closed; patch of teeth on lingual surface of premaxilla roughly rectangular, with ~50 small conical teeth; skin fold on surface of snout directly posterior to fold of upper lip; postorbital lateral line canal pore 2 located directly above preopercular lateral line canal pore 3; tip of snout and lower jaw pale pink in life; dorsal and lateral surface of head light yellow to green in life; body pale orange to yellow in life; and median fins transparent and without faint brown reticulate markings in life.
Distribution: Dellichthys trnskii is endemic to New Zealand coastal waters, currently known only from shallow (0–7 meters in depth) waters along the northeastern coast of both the North Island (Auckland, Bay of Plenty, Hawke’s Bay, Northland, and Wellington) and South Island (Marlborough Sounds) . Its occurrence further south may be confirmed by further sampling and by a better understanding of the differences between the two species.
Notes on biology: At the type locality, D. trnskii was found primarily under rocks or boulders covered with filamentous algae or low macroalgae often in close proximity to the sea urchin Evechinus chloroticus. Small dense objects, possibly sand grains, are visible in the pharyngeal cavity and gut of the CT scanned paratype (NMNZ P.028060, 25.0 mm SL; Figs 3, 6). A single ctenoid scale also is lodged in the opercular opening of this individual (Fig. 3). Whether this scale was ingested or entered the opercular opening subsequent to capture is difficult to confirm. The specimen was collected with a large number of associated sub-tidal species including triplefins, some of which could have shed scales in the bag.
Etymology: Named for Tom Trnski, who played a key role in the discovery of the new species by collecting in depths beyond the reach of the first author. A noun in the genitive.
Kevin W. Conway, Andrew L. Stewart and Adam P. Summers. 2018. A New Species of Sea Urchin Associating Clingfish of the Genus Dellichthys from New Zealand (Teleostei, Gobiesocidae). ZooKeys. 740: 77-95. DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.740.22712
==========================
Dellichthys trnskii
Conway, Stewart & Summers, 2018
DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.740.22712
Abstract
A new species of clingfish, Dellichthys trnskii sp. n. is described on the basis of 27 specimens, 11.9–46.0 mm SL, collected from intertidal and shallow coastal waters of New Zealand. It is distinguished from its only congener, D. morelandi Briggs, 1955 by characters of the cephalic sensory system and oral jaws, snout shape, and colouration in life. A rediagnosis is provided for D. morelandi, which is shown to exhibit sexual dimorphism in snout shape.
Keywords: Taxonomy, marine fishes, Acanthomorpha, sexual dimorphism
Figure 1. Dellichthys trnskii, AIM MA73570, holotype, male, 22.8 mm SL; New Zealand: Northland, Pacific Bay, Tutukaka Coast.
Dellichthys trnskii sp. n.
Diagnosis: Dellichthys trnskii is diagnosed by the following combination of characters: snout broad, short (length less than or equal to interorbital distance); upper and lower jaws equal in length or lower jaw only slight shorter than the upper; upper jaw teeth not visible or only few teeth visible in gap between upper and lower lip at tip of jaws when jaws are closed; patch of teeth on lingual surface of premaxilla roughly rectangular, with ~50 small conical teeth; skin fold on surface of snout directly posterior to fold of upper lip; postorbital lateral line canal pore 2 located directly above preopercular lateral line canal pore 3; tip of snout and lower jaw pale pink in life; dorsal and lateral surface of head light yellow to green in life; body pale orange to yellow in life; and median fins transparent and without faint brown reticulate markings in life.
Distribution: Dellichthys trnskii is endemic to New Zealand coastal waters, currently known only from shallow (0–7 meters in depth) waters along the northeastern coast of both the North Island (Auckland, Bay of Plenty, Hawke’s Bay, Northland, and Wellington) and South Island (Marlborough Sounds) . Its occurrence further south may be confirmed by further sampling and by a better understanding of the differences between the two species.
Notes on biology: At the type locality, D. trnskii was found primarily under rocks or boulders covered with filamentous algae or low macroalgae often in close proximity to the sea urchin Evechinus chloroticus. Small dense objects, possibly sand grains, are visible in the pharyngeal cavity and gut of the CT scanned paratype (NMNZ P.028060, 25.0 mm SL; Figs 3, 6). A single ctenoid scale also is lodged in the opercular opening of this individual (Fig. 3). Whether this scale was ingested or entered the opercular opening subsequent to capture is difficult to confirm. The specimen was collected with a large number of associated sub-tidal species including triplefins, some of which could have shed scales in the bag.
Etymology: Named for Tom Trnski, who played a key role in the discovery of the new species by collecting in depths beyond the reach of the first author. A noun in the genitive.
Kevin W. Conway, Andrew L. Stewart and Adam P. Summers. 2018. A New Species of Sea Urchin Associating Clingfish of the Genus Dellichthys from New Zealand (Teleostei, Gobiesocidae). ZooKeys. 740: 77-95. DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.740.22712
==========================
Flash photography does not induce stress in the Ram cichlid Mikrogeophagus ramirezi (Myers & Harry, 1948) in aquaria
Authors
==========================
Authors
- K. Knopf,
- K. Buschmann,
- M. Hansel,
- J. Radinger,
- W. Kloas
- First published: 28 February 2018Full publication history
- DOI: 10.1111/jai.13673 View/save citation
==========================
National Betta Show 2018
June 22 - 24, 2018
at 11:00am - 5:00pm
The Oak Hotel - Hockley Heath - Solihull
8640 Stratford Rd, Hockley Heath,
Solihull B94 5NW, UK
www.BETTASHOW.CO.UK
==========================
June 22 - 24, 2018
at 11:00am - 5:00pm
The Oak Hotel - Hockley Heath - Solihull
8640 Stratford Rd, Hockley Heath,
Solihull B94 5NW, UK
www.BETTASHOW.CO.UK
==========================
Taxonomic Revision of the Cis-Andean Species of MylossomaEigenmann & Kennedy, 1903 (Characiformes: Serrasalmidae)
Mylossoma albiscopum
in Mateussi, Oliveira & Pavanelli, 2018.
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4387.2.3
Abstract
A revision of the cis-Andean species of Mylossoma is presented. Four species were recognized: M. albiscopum and M. aureum from the rio Amazonas and rio Orinoco basins; M. duriventre, from the rio Paraguai, lower rio Paraná and rio Uruguai basins; and M. unimaculatum, an endemic species from the Tocantins-Araguaia system. Both Mylossoma albiscopum and M. unimaculatum were removed from the synonymy of Mylossoma duriventre, which had its occurrence range restricted to the La Plata basin. The recognition of these four valid species corroborates the results of a previous DNA barcode study. Redescriptions of each species, and an identification key for the genus are provided.
Keywords: Pisces, biodiversity, freshwater fishes, systematics, taxonomy
Nadayca T. B. Mateussi, Claudio Oliveira and Carla S. Pavanelli. 2018. Taxonomic Revision of the Cis-Andean Species of Mylossoma Eigenmann & Kennedy, 1903 (Teleostei: Characiformes: Serrasalmidae). Zootaxa. 4387(2); 275–309. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4387.2.3
==========================
Mylossoma albiscopum
in Mateussi, Oliveira & Pavanelli, 2018.
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4387.2.3
Abstract
A revision of the cis-Andean species of Mylossoma is presented. Four species were recognized: M. albiscopum and M. aureum from the rio Amazonas and rio Orinoco basins; M. duriventre, from the rio Paraguai, lower rio Paraná and rio Uruguai basins; and M. unimaculatum, an endemic species from the Tocantins-Araguaia system. Both Mylossoma albiscopum and M. unimaculatum were removed from the synonymy of Mylossoma duriventre, which had its occurrence range restricted to the La Plata basin. The recognition of these four valid species corroborates the results of a previous DNA barcode study. Redescriptions of each species, and an identification key for the genus are provided.
Keywords: Pisces, biodiversity, freshwater fishes, systematics, taxonomy
Nadayca T. B. Mateussi, Claudio Oliveira and Carla S. Pavanelli. 2018. Taxonomic Revision of the Cis-Andean Species of Mylossoma Eigenmann & Kennedy, 1903 (Teleostei: Characiformes: Serrasalmidae). Zootaxa. 4387(2); 275–309. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4387.2.3
==========================
Cueva del Azufre
Poecilia mexicana cave morph
Predator Giant Water Bug
Cave biology and Poecilia mexicana
In the Cueva del Azufre system in Mexico, nature provides us with a unique natural experiment. The small livebearing fish, Poecilia mexicana, inhabits surface and cave habitats, some of which contain high concentrations of hydrogen sulfide (H2S). Current research projects focus on the general ecology of the unique cave ecosystem, as the evolutionary ecology of the different P. mexicana populations, and the genetic basis of the striking phenotypic variation observed across proximate – albeit environmentally distinct – populations.
Effects of adverse environmental factors on phenotypic evolutionIn the Cueva del Azufre system, P. mexicana not only have to cope with perpetual darkness and acutely toxic levels of H2S, but biotic environmental conditions, such as food availability and predation regime, also differ among habitat types. We study causes and consequences of local adaptation of populations living under different environmental conditions.
Predator-prey-interactionsCave fish are usually considered the top predators in their ecosystems. In the Cueva del Azufre system, however, cave fish are preyed upon by giant water-bugs of the genus Belostoma, which occur at high densities. We investigate factors affecting Belostoma predation on cave fish (e.g., what are the underlying causes of sex- and size-specific predation?). Furthermore, we study the potential evolutionary consequences of differential predation by the water-bugs.
Food web analysesWhereas the absence of light precludes photo-autotrophic primary production in caves, the presence of H2S allows for chemoautotropic production by sulfide-oxidizing bacteria in sulfidic habitats. We use stable isotope analyses to elucidate the food web structure as well as the sources of carbon in different habitat types.
Search for:SearchCurrent research projects
from Tobler Laboratory at Kansas State University
==========================
In the Cueva del Azufre system in Mexico, nature provides us with a unique natural experiment. The small livebearing fish, Poecilia mexicana, inhabits surface and cave habitats, some of which contain high concentrations of hydrogen sulfide (H2S). Current research projects focus on the general ecology of the unique cave ecosystem, as the evolutionary ecology of the different P. mexicana populations, and the genetic basis of the striking phenotypic variation observed across proximate – albeit environmentally distinct – populations.
Effects of adverse environmental factors on phenotypic evolutionIn the Cueva del Azufre system, P. mexicana not only have to cope with perpetual darkness and acutely toxic levels of H2S, but biotic environmental conditions, such as food availability and predation regime, also differ among habitat types. We study causes and consequences of local adaptation of populations living under different environmental conditions.
Predator-prey-interactionsCave fish are usually considered the top predators in their ecosystems. In the Cueva del Azufre system, however, cave fish are preyed upon by giant water-bugs of the genus Belostoma, which occur at high densities. We investigate factors affecting Belostoma predation on cave fish (e.g., what are the underlying causes of sex- and size-specific predation?). Furthermore, we study the potential evolutionary consequences of differential predation by the water-bugs.
Food web analysesWhereas the absence of light precludes photo-autotrophic primary production in caves, the presence of H2S allows for chemoautotropic production by sulfide-oxidizing bacteria in sulfidic habitats. We use stable isotope analyses to elucidate the food web structure as well as the sources of carbon in different habitat types.
Search for:SearchCurrent research projects
- Adaptation to hydrogen sulfide
- Ecological speciation
- Evolutionary and physiological ecology
- Cave biology
- Phenotypic evolution & ecological dynamics
from Tobler Laboratory at Kansas State University
==========================
Brazil announces end to Amazon mega-dam building policy
An indigenous leader in April 2015 at the São Manoel dam construction site on the Teles Pires River in the Tapajós basin. Photo by Midia Ninja courtesy of International Rivers.In a surprise move, the Brazilian government has announced that the era of building big hydroelectric dams in the Amazon basin, long criticized by environmentalists and indigenous groups, is ending. “We are not prejudiced against big [hydroelectric] projects, but we have to respect the views of society, which views them with restrictions,” Paulo Pedrosa, the Executive Secretary of the Ministry of Mines and Energy, told O Globo newspaper.
According to Pedrosa, Brazil has the potential to generate an additional 50 gigawatts of energy by 2050 through the building of new dams but, of this total, only 23 percent would not affect in some way indigenous land, quilombos (communities set up by runaway slaves) and federally protected areas. The government, he says, doesn’t have the stomach to take on the battles.
Pedrosa went on: “Nor are we disposed to take actions that mask the costs and the risks [of hydroelectric projects].” This statement seems to refer to the actions of previous governments, particularly under President Dilma Rousseff and the Workers’ Party (PT), which made it difficult to evaluate the real expense and environmental impact of large dams, such as Belo Monte on the Xingu River. It was only after construction of this particular dam that the huge cost – financial, social and environmental – was fully revealed.
That’s one reason such mega-projects began meeting with a rising storm of protest. For example, in 2016, after many indigenous demonstrations, IBAMA,* the environmental agency, suspended the building of a large dam on the Tapajós River – São Luiz do Tapajós – which would have flooded part of the Munduruku indigenous territory of Sawre-Muybu. However, because the government never officially cancelled the dam, Indians and environmentalists have long feared that the project could be relaunched at any moment. However, according to O Globo, the Ministry of Mines and Energy has announced that it will “no longer fight for the [São Luiz do Tapajós] project.”
The Belo Monte mega-dam under construction.(Picture 1). Belo Monte displaced somewhere between 20,000 and 40,000 people and did tremendous damage to the Xingu River fishery, along with other environmental harm. Its construction was cloaked in charges of government and construction company corruption. .“I don’t think any more big hydro dams will be built,” said Mauro Maura Severino, a lecturer in electric energy at the University of Brasilia. ”Brazil should move towards clean energy, like solar and wind.”
João Carlos Mello, from Thymos Energia, a consulting company, agreed: “The future lies with renewable energy, such as wind, and much smaller dams. The tendency will be to generate the energy much nearer to where it will be consumed.”
While the Temer administration hasn’t said so, experts say there is no doubt that hard economic realities played a chief role in the government’s turnabout. In the past, the huge Brazilian development bank, BNDES (National Bank of Economic and Social Development), subsidized mega-dams to the tune of billions of dollars, funnelling the money through state companies, which became powerful as a result. For example, Eletrobrás, Latin America’s biggest utility company, owns 49.98 percent of Belo Monte. Furnas, a regional power utility and Eletrobras subsidiary, owns 39 percent of the Santo Antônio hydroelectric project and, through its subsidiaries, 40 percent of the Jirau dams – both large, controversial projects built on the Madeira River.
The Santo Antônio dam on the Madeira River, Brazil, part of the Madeira Hydroelectric Complex. An era of mega-dam construction in the Amazon basin that damaged freshwater and forest ecosystems may be coming to an end. Photo by the Brazil’s Growth Acceleration Program (Programa de Aceleração do Crescimento (PAC) on flickr, used under a CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 licenseHowever, in August of last year Temer stunned the market by announcing the privatization of Eletrobras. Edvaldo Santana, the former director of ANEEL (the National Agency of Electric Energy), said: “The privatization of Eletrobrás is a relevant factor [in the change of policy regarding mega-dams]. Neither Belo Monte nor Santo Antônio nor Jirau would have existed – or would have taken much longer to build – without Eletrobras” and the infusion of cash from BNDES.
Brazil’s political climate has also changed since the heyday of mega-dam construction under presidents Lula and Rousseff. By 2016, for example, when Mongabay wrote a series of articles about BNDES and its funding of the big Amazon dams, it could no longer find anyone – not even an engineer or an energy expert – willing to defend the Belo Monte dam. Although few were willing to speak on record then, many agreed that the only reason Belo Monte was built was because the PT government needed a big construction project by which the political party could pay back the big construction companies, like Odebrecht, for the huge sums in illegal electoral campaign contributions the firms had provided.
Such deals are no longer possible thanks to the far-reaching corruption scandal known as Lava-Jato (Car Wash) that ensnared a vast swath of Brazil’s political and business elite, including top executives from major construction companies. Investigations are ongoing.
Back in 2016, Felício Pontes, a MPF Prosecutor in the state of Pará, told Mongabay: “The factor that explains the irrational option for hydroelectric stations in the Amazon is corruption… In other words, energy planning in Brazil is not treated as a strategic issue involving the future of the nation but, at least since the time of the military dictatorship, as a source of money for construction companies and politicians. I think that, until these questions are exposed and resolved, we will continue to have expensive and inefficient dams that have a serious social and environmental impact in Amazonia.”
In 2015, an indigenous alliance demanded that Brazil halt Amazon dam construction. The Brazilian government has just announced an end to its mega-dam construction policy in the Amazon basin. Photo courtesy of Amazon WatchThe government’s hydroelectric dams policy change announced this week will surely be greeted as a hopeful sign by environmentalists and indigenous groups. But experts warn that a much bigger strategic policy shift is needed regarding infrastructure planning and agribusiness before the Amazon can be deemed safe from major deforestation.
Over the last 18 months, the bancada ruralista, the rural lobby in Congress, has won victory after victory, leading to policies meant to benefit agribusiness while threatening conservation units and indigenous territories. That drive seems likely to intensify in the months leading up to October’s presidential election. There is, for example, still talk of a hugely environmentally harmful project that would turn the Tapajos river basin into an industrial waterway, with its tributaries and main stem dredged and rapids dynamited.
Hydroelectric dams have caused great damage to indigenous and traditional communities and the environment, but they are only one of many serious Amazon threats – new roads, railways, waterways, mines and other infrastructure all result in great destruction. While the just-announced shift in hydropower policy is important, experts agree that major changes are needed before one can talk of a real conservation breakthrough in the Brazilian Amazon.
Correction: When originally published on 3 January, this story stated that the Rousseff administration archived the São Luiz do Tapajós dam. However, Rousseff was suspended from her duties by Brazil’s House of Deputies on 12 May, with Michel Temer assuming her duties as interim president. The dam was archived in early August by IBAMA. The Senate voted on 31 August for Rousseff’s impeachment, and Temer was then sworn in as president.
==========================
- Brazil’s government announced a major shift away from its policy of building mega-dams in the Brazilian Amazon – a strategy born during the country’s military dictatorship (1964-1985) and vigorously carried forward down to the present day.
- The Temer government claims the decision is a response to intense resistance from environmentalists and indigenous groups, but while that may be part of the reason, experts see other causes as well.
- The decline in political influence of Brazil’s gigantic construction companies caused by the Lava Jato (Car Wash) corruption investigation is likely a major cause of the change in policy. So is the current depressed state of Brazil’s economy, which makes it unlikely that Brazil’s huge development bank (BNDES) will invest in such multi-billion dollar projects.
- While environmentalists and indigenous groups will likely celebrate the shift away from the mega-dam policy, experts warn that many threats to the Amazon remain, including pressure by Brazil’s ruralist lobby to open up conserved areas and indigenous lands to agribusiness, along with threats posed by new road, rail, waterway and mining projects.
An indigenous leader in April 2015 at the São Manoel dam construction site on the Teles Pires River in the Tapajós basin. Photo by Midia Ninja courtesy of International Rivers.In a surprise move, the Brazilian government has announced that the era of building big hydroelectric dams in the Amazon basin, long criticized by environmentalists and indigenous groups, is ending. “We are not prejudiced against big [hydroelectric] projects, but we have to respect the views of society, which views them with restrictions,” Paulo Pedrosa, the Executive Secretary of the Ministry of Mines and Energy, told O Globo newspaper.
According to Pedrosa, Brazil has the potential to generate an additional 50 gigawatts of energy by 2050 through the building of new dams but, of this total, only 23 percent would not affect in some way indigenous land, quilombos (communities set up by runaway slaves) and federally protected areas. The government, he says, doesn’t have the stomach to take on the battles.
Pedrosa went on: “Nor are we disposed to take actions that mask the costs and the risks [of hydroelectric projects].” This statement seems to refer to the actions of previous governments, particularly under President Dilma Rousseff and the Workers’ Party (PT), which made it difficult to evaluate the real expense and environmental impact of large dams, such as Belo Monte on the Xingu River. It was only after construction of this particular dam that the huge cost – financial, social and environmental – was fully revealed.
That’s one reason such mega-projects began meeting with a rising storm of protest. For example, in 2016, after many indigenous demonstrations, IBAMA,* the environmental agency, suspended the building of a large dam on the Tapajós River – São Luiz do Tapajós – which would have flooded part of the Munduruku indigenous territory of Sawre-Muybu. However, because the government never officially cancelled the dam, Indians and environmentalists have long feared that the project could be relaunched at any moment. However, according to O Globo, the Ministry of Mines and Energy has announced that it will “no longer fight for the [São Luiz do Tapajós] project.”
The Belo Monte mega-dam under construction.(Picture 1). Belo Monte displaced somewhere between 20,000 and 40,000 people and did tremendous damage to the Xingu River fishery, along with other environmental harm. Its construction was cloaked in charges of government and construction company corruption. .“I don’t think any more big hydro dams will be built,” said Mauro Maura Severino, a lecturer in electric energy at the University of Brasilia. ”Brazil should move towards clean energy, like solar and wind.”
João Carlos Mello, from Thymos Energia, a consulting company, agreed: “The future lies with renewable energy, such as wind, and much smaller dams. The tendency will be to generate the energy much nearer to where it will be consumed.”
While the Temer administration hasn’t said so, experts say there is no doubt that hard economic realities played a chief role in the government’s turnabout. In the past, the huge Brazilian development bank, BNDES (National Bank of Economic and Social Development), subsidized mega-dams to the tune of billions of dollars, funnelling the money through state companies, which became powerful as a result. For example, Eletrobrás, Latin America’s biggest utility company, owns 49.98 percent of Belo Monte. Furnas, a regional power utility and Eletrobras subsidiary, owns 39 percent of the Santo Antônio hydroelectric project and, through its subsidiaries, 40 percent of the Jirau dams – both large, controversial projects built on the Madeira River.
The Santo Antônio dam on the Madeira River, Brazil, part of the Madeira Hydroelectric Complex. An era of mega-dam construction in the Amazon basin that damaged freshwater and forest ecosystems may be coming to an end. Photo by the Brazil’s Growth Acceleration Program (Programa de Aceleração do Crescimento (PAC) on flickr, used under a CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 licenseHowever, in August of last year Temer stunned the market by announcing the privatization of Eletrobras. Edvaldo Santana, the former director of ANEEL (the National Agency of Electric Energy), said: “The privatization of Eletrobrás is a relevant factor [in the change of policy regarding mega-dams]. Neither Belo Monte nor Santo Antônio nor Jirau would have existed – or would have taken much longer to build – without Eletrobras” and the infusion of cash from BNDES.
Brazil’s political climate has also changed since the heyday of mega-dam construction under presidents Lula and Rousseff. By 2016, for example, when Mongabay wrote a series of articles about BNDES and its funding of the big Amazon dams, it could no longer find anyone – not even an engineer or an energy expert – willing to defend the Belo Monte dam. Although few were willing to speak on record then, many agreed that the only reason Belo Monte was built was because the PT government needed a big construction project by which the political party could pay back the big construction companies, like Odebrecht, for the huge sums in illegal electoral campaign contributions the firms had provided.
Such deals are no longer possible thanks to the far-reaching corruption scandal known as Lava-Jato (Car Wash) that ensnared a vast swath of Brazil’s political and business elite, including top executives from major construction companies. Investigations are ongoing.
Back in 2016, Felício Pontes, a MPF Prosecutor in the state of Pará, told Mongabay: “The factor that explains the irrational option for hydroelectric stations in the Amazon is corruption… In other words, energy planning in Brazil is not treated as a strategic issue involving the future of the nation but, at least since the time of the military dictatorship, as a source of money for construction companies and politicians. I think that, until these questions are exposed and resolved, we will continue to have expensive and inefficient dams that have a serious social and environmental impact in Amazonia.”
In 2015, an indigenous alliance demanded that Brazil halt Amazon dam construction. The Brazilian government has just announced an end to its mega-dam construction policy in the Amazon basin. Photo courtesy of Amazon WatchThe government’s hydroelectric dams policy change announced this week will surely be greeted as a hopeful sign by environmentalists and indigenous groups. But experts warn that a much bigger strategic policy shift is needed regarding infrastructure planning and agribusiness before the Amazon can be deemed safe from major deforestation.
Over the last 18 months, the bancada ruralista, the rural lobby in Congress, has won victory after victory, leading to policies meant to benefit agribusiness while threatening conservation units and indigenous territories. That drive seems likely to intensify in the months leading up to October’s presidential election. There is, for example, still talk of a hugely environmentally harmful project that would turn the Tapajos river basin into an industrial waterway, with its tributaries and main stem dredged and rapids dynamited.
Hydroelectric dams have caused great damage to indigenous and traditional communities and the environment, but they are only one of many serious Amazon threats – new roads, railways, waterways, mines and other infrastructure all result in great destruction. While the just-announced shift in hydropower policy is important, experts agree that major changes are needed before one can talk of a real conservation breakthrough in the Brazilian Amazon.
Correction: When originally published on 3 January, this story stated that the Rousseff administration archived the São Luiz do Tapajós dam. However, Rousseff was suspended from her duties by Brazil’s House of Deputies on 12 May, with Michel Temer assuming her duties as interim president. The dam was archived in early August by IBAMA. The Senate voted on 31 August for Rousseff’s impeachment, and Temer was then sworn in as president.
==========================
Jellyfish? Do you want a cornet or a wafer?
PETER FROST wonders how long it will be before British holidaymakers are eating jellyfish ice cream
THE exceptional storms over Christmas and New Year have seen a rapid increase in jellyfish blooms around our coast and it isn’t just along the British coast. Jellyfish numbers have also reached a worrying high in the Mediterranean.
It seems jellyfish numbers are increasing all over the globe and the scale of the population increase is both impressive and worrying.
One leading Italian marine biologist is urging us to start eating jellyfish both to reduce numbers and to give us a new cheap source of both delicious and nourishing protein.
We don’t really know why numbers are growing so fast. Some scientists say that pollution is driving up the number of algal blooms and depriving the seas of oxygen. That’s bad for shellfish and other fish species but jellyfish do well in these conditions.
Others believe it is a side effect of commercial overfishing. Still others say that it is just a natural cycle and nothing to worry about. I bet they are the ones advising Donald Trump.
Weather and warm summers remain a key factor in the number of jellyfish that invade our summer beaches I am sure.
Offshore wind farms and oil and gas platforms might be to blame, as they inadvertently provide an ideal habitat for the creatures to thrive.
One particularly hazardous breed, the mauve stinger (pictured), is rearing its tentacles more frequently around Britain. Their sting is classified as one of the worst, often causing a burning sensation, intense pain and skin rashes.
Over in Italy Professor Silvio Grecio — one of that countries’ most esteemed marine biologists — has been experimenting with ways to make this harmful sea creature appetising.
The number of jellyfish in the Mediterranean has risen by 400 per cent in the last 13 years due to pollution and climate change.
It’s a big issue for biodiversity, explained Grecio, who insists the jellyfish are a highly opportunistic species that quickly conquer empty spaces in the sea and are consequently inhibiting marine food chains.
“Now man must be the new predator of jellyfish,” he says and in order to encourage people to eat jellyfish Grecio is focusing on highlighting the nutritional benefits of the species.
He suggests recipes which use Asian flavourings like soy and sesame oil. One popular dish deep-fries them in tempura batter rather like the popular calamari dish.
The environmentalist turned chef suggests cooking them in boiling water for a few minutes with lemon juice and vinegar and then plunging them into ice.
The hot water sterilises the meat getting rid of bacteria and also destroys the stinging poison.
“Jellyfish remind me of oysters,” says the Grecio. “When you eat them you experience an explosion of the sea on your tongue — they are, after all, 90 per cent seawater.”
“The sea is full of jellyfish and it’s a big problem for biodiversity,” Greco believes: “They are a rampant, opportunistic species that immediately take over any empty space in the water.”
Illegal overfishing of natural jellyfish predators like tuna and turtles has left the coast clear for them to multiply.
Eating jellyfish is an idea the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation is encouraging too.
For years, fishermen have been finding their nets increasingly burdened with unwanted jellyfish that they simply throw back into the sea.
Greco hopes this will change and says that sustainability aside, jellyfish is actually good for you — rich in protein and collagen, low in calories, and fat-free.
Edible jellyfish is a seafood that is already harvested and consumed in several Asian and south-east Asian countries where it is considered a delicacy.
It is also often processed into a dried product. When reconstituted it is used in salads, sushi and noodle dishes.
In China, some species of jellyfish have been used as a source of food and ingredient for over 1,700 years.
A few Chinese restaurants in Britain offer this rare delicacy.
Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam all catch, dry and pickle jellyfish. It is considered a special delicacy in Japan.
Jellyfish salad is a popular dish in some areas of Asia. Jellyfish sushi is very popular in Japan and, in Thailand, a crunchy style of noodle is produced using jellyfish.
One Japanese company now produces a vanilla and jellyfish ice cream. It was invented in 2009 to use up large quantities of Nomura’s Jellyfish that were plaguing Japanese beaches.
In 2013 British ice cream wizard Charlie Francis created For Halloween a glow-in-the-dark ice cream using synthesised jellyfish proteins — the same ones that allow these marine animals to produce light — bioluminescence — inside their bodies. The biggest snag was that a glowing cone cost around £150.
==========================
PETER FROST wonders how long it will be before British holidaymakers are eating jellyfish ice cream
THE exceptional storms over Christmas and New Year have seen a rapid increase in jellyfish blooms around our coast and it isn’t just along the British coast. Jellyfish numbers have also reached a worrying high in the Mediterranean.
It seems jellyfish numbers are increasing all over the globe and the scale of the population increase is both impressive and worrying.
One leading Italian marine biologist is urging us to start eating jellyfish both to reduce numbers and to give us a new cheap source of both delicious and nourishing protein.
We don’t really know why numbers are growing so fast. Some scientists say that pollution is driving up the number of algal blooms and depriving the seas of oxygen. That’s bad for shellfish and other fish species but jellyfish do well in these conditions.
Others believe it is a side effect of commercial overfishing. Still others say that it is just a natural cycle and nothing to worry about. I bet they are the ones advising Donald Trump.
Weather and warm summers remain a key factor in the number of jellyfish that invade our summer beaches I am sure.
Offshore wind farms and oil and gas platforms might be to blame, as they inadvertently provide an ideal habitat for the creatures to thrive.
One particularly hazardous breed, the mauve stinger (pictured), is rearing its tentacles more frequently around Britain. Their sting is classified as one of the worst, often causing a burning sensation, intense pain and skin rashes.
Over in Italy Professor Silvio Grecio — one of that countries’ most esteemed marine biologists — has been experimenting with ways to make this harmful sea creature appetising.
The number of jellyfish in the Mediterranean has risen by 400 per cent in the last 13 years due to pollution and climate change.
It’s a big issue for biodiversity, explained Grecio, who insists the jellyfish are a highly opportunistic species that quickly conquer empty spaces in the sea and are consequently inhibiting marine food chains.
“Now man must be the new predator of jellyfish,” he says and in order to encourage people to eat jellyfish Grecio is focusing on highlighting the nutritional benefits of the species.
He suggests recipes which use Asian flavourings like soy and sesame oil. One popular dish deep-fries them in tempura batter rather like the popular calamari dish.
The environmentalist turned chef suggests cooking them in boiling water for a few minutes with lemon juice and vinegar and then plunging them into ice.
The hot water sterilises the meat getting rid of bacteria and also destroys the stinging poison.
“Jellyfish remind me of oysters,” says the Grecio. “When you eat them you experience an explosion of the sea on your tongue — they are, after all, 90 per cent seawater.”
“The sea is full of jellyfish and it’s a big problem for biodiversity,” Greco believes: “They are a rampant, opportunistic species that immediately take over any empty space in the water.”
Illegal overfishing of natural jellyfish predators like tuna and turtles has left the coast clear for them to multiply.
Eating jellyfish is an idea the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation is encouraging too.
For years, fishermen have been finding their nets increasingly burdened with unwanted jellyfish that they simply throw back into the sea.
Greco hopes this will change and says that sustainability aside, jellyfish is actually good for you — rich in protein and collagen, low in calories, and fat-free.
Edible jellyfish is a seafood that is already harvested and consumed in several Asian and south-east Asian countries where it is considered a delicacy.
It is also often processed into a dried product. When reconstituted it is used in salads, sushi and noodle dishes.
In China, some species of jellyfish have been used as a source of food and ingredient for over 1,700 years.
A few Chinese restaurants in Britain offer this rare delicacy.
Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam all catch, dry and pickle jellyfish. It is considered a special delicacy in Japan.
Jellyfish salad is a popular dish in some areas of Asia. Jellyfish sushi is very popular in Japan and, in Thailand, a crunchy style of noodle is produced using jellyfish.
One Japanese company now produces a vanilla and jellyfish ice cream. It was invented in 2009 to use up large quantities of Nomura’s Jellyfish that were plaguing Japanese beaches.
In 2013 British ice cream wizard Charlie Francis created For Halloween a glow-in-the-dark ice cream using synthesised jellyfish proteins — the same ones that allow these marine animals to produce light — bioluminescence — inside their bodies. The biggest snag was that a glowing cone cost around £150.
==========================
Sewage and livestock waste is killing Britain's seagrass meadows
The ‘canaries of the sea’ are sending a worrying message about the health of our oceans
We know that the seagrass meadows surrounding the UK are in a perilous state of decline, and our recently published research has now uncovered one of the biggest causes. Our study suggests that a major driver of seagrass decline is nutrient pollution from sewage and livestock waste.
Though a new finding, it sadly comes as no surprise, given that about 40 per cent of rivers in England and Wales are polluted with sewage.
This nutrient pollution puts the long-term viability of seagrass meadows in doubt. Over-enrichment results in the suffocation of seagrass. The nutrients cause microscopic algae – called epiphytes – to smother the seagrass leaves, decreasing their ability to capture light, ultimately killing them, and destroying the habitat for fish and other marine animals.
Seagrass is know as ‘the canary of the sea’In addition to this environmental impact, we found that several areas, including the Thames waterway seagrass and a meadow in Studland Bay, Dorset – which are popular with swimmers and boaters – were considerably enriched in nutrients from sewage, livestock effluent and/or human waste. Despite this, neither location, nor any other we identified with the same problem, were classed as unsuitable for swimmers.
Outdated treatment
Clearly, we have a massive problem at hand – but water companies, farmers and the Government have not and are still not doing enough to prevent it.
Though efforts have been made to develop a British marine protected area network, and EU legislation has improved water quality in the last few decades, we have found these initiatives to be insufficient. Ten of the 11 sites we studied were in areas with designated EU protection, but most of these seagrass meadows were still polluted with nutrients derived from urban sewage and livestock waste.
So how has this happened? Analysis of the seagrass tissues points to constant sewage exposure. Old and outdated water treatment facilities are one of the likely culprits, resulting in discharges of untreated sewage during times of heavy rainfall. These are legal, but evidently the capacity of these facilities is insufficient to handle the country’s needs, and waterways are suffering because of it.
There is also the problem of livestock waste. Farming is now one of the UK’s leading causes of water pollution, and inefficiencies in storage and disposal of slurry mean that it ends up in rivers and coastal waters.
Local and national
Evidently, in addition to national and international initiatives, we need to start quickly identifying and understanding all local threats to seagrass. Especially if we are going to harmonise conservation goals with sustainable economic development. Only by finding out specifically where the nutrients affecting seagrass areas have come from can we really start to think about a targeted solution for each meadow.
Unfortunately, to date, the conservation of specific seagrass meadows is rarely based on the explicit consideration of local threats and drivers. Instead, projects focus on conserving seagrass as part of a broader plan, incorporating other specific habitats or species. While this may be effective at dealing with problems such as the impact on fisheries, and is certainly a step forward for the marine environment, it doesn’t deal with the persistent and chronic problem of pollution – which can go largely unnoticed.
==========================
The ‘canaries of the sea’ are sending a worrying message about the health of our oceans
We know that the seagrass meadows surrounding the UK are in a perilous state of decline, and our recently published research has now uncovered one of the biggest causes. Our study suggests that a major driver of seagrass decline is nutrient pollution from sewage and livestock waste.
Though a new finding, it sadly comes as no surprise, given that about 40 per cent of rivers in England and Wales are polluted with sewage.
This nutrient pollution puts the long-term viability of seagrass meadows in doubt. Over-enrichment results in the suffocation of seagrass. The nutrients cause microscopic algae – called epiphytes – to smother the seagrass leaves, decreasing their ability to capture light, ultimately killing them, and destroying the habitat for fish and other marine animals.
Seagrass is know as ‘the canary of the sea’In addition to this environmental impact, we found that several areas, including the Thames waterway seagrass and a meadow in Studland Bay, Dorset – which are popular with swimmers and boaters – were considerably enriched in nutrients from sewage, livestock effluent and/or human waste. Despite this, neither location, nor any other we identified with the same problem, were classed as unsuitable for swimmers.
Outdated treatment
Clearly, we have a massive problem at hand – but water companies, farmers and the Government have not and are still not doing enough to prevent it.
Though efforts have been made to develop a British marine protected area network, and EU legislation has improved water quality in the last few decades, we have found these initiatives to be insufficient. Ten of the 11 sites we studied were in areas with designated EU protection, but most of these seagrass meadows were still polluted with nutrients derived from urban sewage and livestock waste.
So how has this happened? Analysis of the seagrass tissues points to constant sewage exposure. Old and outdated water treatment facilities are one of the likely culprits, resulting in discharges of untreated sewage during times of heavy rainfall. These are legal, but evidently the capacity of these facilities is insufficient to handle the country’s needs, and waterways are suffering because of it.
There is also the problem of livestock waste. Farming is now one of the UK’s leading causes of water pollution, and inefficiencies in storage and disposal of slurry mean that it ends up in rivers and coastal waters.
Local and national
Evidently, in addition to national and international initiatives, we need to start quickly identifying and understanding all local threats to seagrass. Especially if we are going to harmonise conservation goals with sustainable economic development. Only by finding out specifically where the nutrients affecting seagrass areas have come from can we really start to think about a targeted solution for each meadow.
Unfortunately, to date, the conservation of specific seagrass meadows is rarely based on the explicit consideration of local threats and drivers. Instead, projects focus on conserving seagrass as part of a broader plan, incorporating other specific habitats or species. While this may be effective at dealing with problems such as the impact on fisheries, and is certainly a step forward for the marine environment, it doesn’t deal with the persistent and chronic problem of pollution – which can go largely unnoticed.
==========================
The Burbot (Lota lota)
Fish Face Close Up! One of the Burbot, with its single distinguishable barbel,
caught near an artificial reef in the St. Clair River. Credit: Jennifer L Johnson,
USFWS
Burbot (Lota lota) are a species of fish that are truly unique in North America. A member of the Lotidae family, Burbot are essentially a freshwater cod and are the only species of their kind. Distinguished by a single barbel on the chin, these winter spawners are typically associated with cold, deep water of lakes and large rivers. Not much is known regarding the population status of Burbot across their range, particularly in the Detroit and St. Clair rivers.
The Detroit and St. Clair rivers historically supported an abundant fishery; however like many river systems, these rivers have been greatly altered. The creation of navigation channels and other anthropogenic disturbances have resulted in the decline of native fish populations and loss of habitat. Like many other native fish species, pollution, invasive species, and habitat degradation may have contributed to declining numbers of Burbot. In order to restore these impairments, artificial reefs have been constructed in the Detroit and St. Clair rivers. While Burbot were not a target species when considering reef construction, they are a species which may be benefiting.
Picture :Jennifer Johnson with the USFWS holds a
Burbot captured during fall gill net surveys
on the St. Clair River. Credit: USFWS
Each year the Alpena Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office (FWCO) - Waterford Substation conducts several surveys on the St. Clair-Detroit River System (SCDRS) using multiple gear types. Prior to the beginning of reef construction, no Burbot were recorded in any surveys. In 2015, all that changed. A total of five Burbot were caught in SCDRS that year. Three occurred in the St. Clair River while two were caught in the Detroit River. Even more Burbot were caught during the last field season with a total of eight in 2016. This time five were caught in the Detroit River and three in the St. Clair River. This means a total 13 Burbot have been caught in the last two years. Thirteen may not seem like a lot of fish, but when compared to zero in the previous 10 plus years, thirteen is a good number! Both the time of the year and gear type used in the survey does not seem to have an effect on whether or not Burbot were captured. Fish were caught in setlines, gill nets, and minnow traps in months ranging from April through December.
How does this relate to the artificial reefs? One of factors the Burbot catches had in common was the reefs. All of the Burbot captured in the Detroit River have been caught during surveys near the artificial reefs which have been constructed since 2008. Only two of the Burbot caught over the last two years in the St. Clair River were not caught on or near the reefs.
While it cannot be said conclusively that the artificial reefs in the SCDRS are benefiting Burbot populations, Alpena FWCO –Waterford Substation have documented Burbot utilizing this area. While various populations may be declining, the future for Burbot in the St. Clair – Detroit River System may be bright.
The Burbot is rare in the UK.
==========================
Fish Face Close Up! One of the Burbot, with its single distinguishable barbel,
caught near an artificial reef in the St. Clair River. Credit: Jennifer L Johnson,
USFWS
Burbot (Lota lota) are a species of fish that are truly unique in North America. A member of the Lotidae family, Burbot are essentially a freshwater cod and are the only species of their kind. Distinguished by a single barbel on the chin, these winter spawners are typically associated with cold, deep water of lakes and large rivers. Not much is known regarding the population status of Burbot across their range, particularly in the Detroit and St. Clair rivers.
The Detroit and St. Clair rivers historically supported an abundant fishery; however like many river systems, these rivers have been greatly altered. The creation of navigation channels and other anthropogenic disturbances have resulted in the decline of native fish populations and loss of habitat. Like many other native fish species, pollution, invasive species, and habitat degradation may have contributed to declining numbers of Burbot. In order to restore these impairments, artificial reefs have been constructed in the Detroit and St. Clair rivers. While Burbot were not a target species when considering reef construction, they are a species which may be benefiting.
Picture :Jennifer Johnson with the USFWS holds a
Burbot captured during fall gill net surveys
on the St. Clair River. Credit: USFWS
Each year the Alpena Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office (FWCO) - Waterford Substation conducts several surveys on the St. Clair-Detroit River System (SCDRS) using multiple gear types. Prior to the beginning of reef construction, no Burbot were recorded in any surveys. In 2015, all that changed. A total of five Burbot were caught in SCDRS that year. Three occurred in the St. Clair River while two were caught in the Detroit River. Even more Burbot were caught during the last field season with a total of eight in 2016. This time five were caught in the Detroit River and three in the St. Clair River. This means a total 13 Burbot have been caught in the last two years. Thirteen may not seem like a lot of fish, but when compared to zero in the previous 10 plus years, thirteen is a good number! Both the time of the year and gear type used in the survey does not seem to have an effect on whether or not Burbot were captured. Fish were caught in setlines, gill nets, and minnow traps in months ranging from April through December.
How does this relate to the artificial reefs? One of factors the Burbot catches had in common was the reefs. All of the Burbot captured in the Detroit River have been caught during surveys near the artificial reefs which have been constructed since 2008. Only two of the Burbot caught over the last two years in the St. Clair River were not caught on or near the reefs.
While it cannot be said conclusively that the artificial reefs in the SCDRS are benefiting Burbot populations, Alpena FWCO –Waterford Substation have documented Burbot utilizing this area. While various populations may be declining, the future for Burbot in the St. Clair – Detroit River System may be bright.
The Burbot is rare in the UK.
==========================
Petfish Monthly May 1973 is now online at:- http://aqua-worlduk.weebly.com
========================================
Larval Swimming Capacities Affect Genetic Differentiation and Range Size in Demersal Marine Fishes
The swimming capacities of pelagic larvae affects gene flow and range size in demersal marine fishes.
in Nanninga & Manica, 2018. DOI: 10.3354/meps12515
Photo: Frank Baensch
ABSTRACT
Dispersal is a fundamental process governing the ecological and evolutionary dynamics of any given species. Due to inherent challenges associated with measuring dispersal directly, identifying proxies for dispersal capacity has long been an active field of research across ecosystems. In marine systems, pelagic larval duration (PLD) has been one of the most widely used indicators of interspecific dispersal potential. The validity of this proxy, however, relies mostly on the assumption of entirely passive dispersal, a notion that has been challenged by findings of strong larval behavioural capabilities. Here, we assessed the effect of larval swimming capacities measured as mean critical swimming speed (U-crit) on emergent species-level properties related to dispersal potential, population genetic structure and global range size, in demersal marine fishes. In a meta-analytic framework, we tested the relative importance of U-crit versus other intrinsic (PLD, egg type, adult body size) and extrinsic (genetic marker type, study scale) predictors of isolation-by-distance slope, global FST and range size. U-crit showed stronger relationships with all emergent response variables than PLD and was consistently the most important predictor in multi-model inference. Our findings indicate that larval swimming capacities could serve as a powerful indicator of a species’ long-distance dispersal potential.
KEY WORDS: Larval dispersal · Critical swimming speed · Connectivity · Genetic structure · Isolation-by-distance · Range size
Gerrit B. Nanninga and Andrea Manica. 2018. Larval Swimming Capacities Affect Genetic Differentiation and Range Size in Demersal Marine Fishes. Mar Ecol Prog Ser. 589;1-12. DOI: 10.3354/meps12515
twitter.com/TrevorABranch/status/967115273894440961
twitter.com/GerritNanninga/status/967159290065666048
==========================
The swimming capacities of pelagic larvae affects gene flow and range size in demersal marine fishes.
in Nanninga & Manica, 2018. DOI: 10.3354/meps12515
Photo: Frank Baensch
ABSTRACT
Dispersal is a fundamental process governing the ecological and evolutionary dynamics of any given species. Due to inherent challenges associated with measuring dispersal directly, identifying proxies for dispersal capacity has long been an active field of research across ecosystems. In marine systems, pelagic larval duration (PLD) has been one of the most widely used indicators of interspecific dispersal potential. The validity of this proxy, however, relies mostly on the assumption of entirely passive dispersal, a notion that has been challenged by findings of strong larval behavioural capabilities. Here, we assessed the effect of larval swimming capacities measured as mean critical swimming speed (U-crit) on emergent species-level properties related to dispersal potential, population genetic structure and global range size, in demersal marine fishes. In a meta-analytic framework, we tested the relative importance of U-crit versus other intrinsic (PLD, egg type, adult body size) and extrinsic (genetic marker type, study scale) predictors of isolation-by-distance slope, global FST and range size. U-crit showed stronger relationships with all emergent response variables than PLD and was consistently the most important predictor in multi-model inference. Our findings indicate that larval swimming capacities could serve as a powerful indicator of a species’ long-distance dispersal potential.
KEY WORDS: Larval dispersal · Critical swimming speed · Connectivity · Genetic structure · Isolation-by-distance · Range size
Gerrit B. Nanninga and Andrea Manica. 2018. Larval Swimming Capacities Affect Genetic Differentiation and Range Size in Demersal Marine Fishes. Mar Ecol Prog Ser. 589;1-12. DOI: 10.3354/meps12515
twitter.com/TrevorABranch/status/967115273894440961
twitter.com/GerritNanninga/status/967159290065666048
==========================
The Identity of Aplocheilus andamanicus (Köhler, 1906)(Teleostei: Cyprinodontiformes), An Endemic Killifish from the Andaman Islands, with Notes on Odontopsis armata
Aplocheilus andamanicus (Köhler, 1906)
in Katwate, Kumkar, Britz, Raghavan & Dahanukar, 2018.
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4382.1.6
Abstract
In his work on the fishes of the Andaman Islands, Francis Day (1870) collected large-sized specimens of Aplocheilus from the south Andamans. Despite differences in the size and dorsal-fin ray counts, Day refrained from recognising the Andaman Aplocheilus as a distinct species and considered it as Aplocheilus panchax, a species distributed in the Ganges delta and across the eastern coast of mainland India. However, Day mentioned the differences in fin-ray counts between these two populations. Subsequently Köhler (1906) described the Andaman population as Haplochilus andamanicus (now in Aplocheilus), referring to the diagnostic characters initially discovered by Day. This species failed to receive recognition from taxonomists, because of the uncertainty regarding the validity of the species and its questionable synonymy with A. panchax. In this study, based on morphological and molecular evidence, we demonstrate that A. andamanicus is indeed a distinct and valid species, which can easily be diagnosed from the widespread A. panchax. While resolving the identity of A. andamanicus, we also demonstrate that the congeners from southeast Asia form a genetically distinct group for which the name Odontopsis armata is available.
Keywords: Pisces, Aplocheilus panchax, freshwater fish, taxonomy, South Asia
Unmesh Katwate, Pradeep Kumkar, Ralf Britz, Rajeev Raghavan and Neelesh Dahanukar. 2018. The Identity of Aplocheilus andamanicus (Köhler, 1906) (Teleostei: Cyprinodontiformes), An Endemic Killifish from the Andaman Islands, with Notes on Odontopsis armata van Hasselt. Zootaxa. 4382(1); 159–174. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4382.1.6
facebook.com/TheUnmesh/posts/10208579955375536
facebook.com/indiagillsbangalore/photos/585246375144651
==========================
Aplocheilus andamanicus (Köhler, 1906)
in Katwate, Kumkar, Britz, Raghavan & Dahanukar, 2018.
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4382.1.6
Abstract
In his work on the fishes of the Andaman Islands, Francis Day (1870) collected large-sized specimens of Aplocheilus from the south Andamans. Despite differences in the size and dorsal-fin ray counts, Day refrained from recognising the Andaman Aplocheilus as a distinct species and considered it as Aplocheilus panchax, a species distributed in the Ganges delta and across the eastern coast of mainland India. However, Day mentioned the differences in fin-ray counts between these two populations. Subsequently Köhler (1906) described the Andaman population as Haplochilus andamanicus (now in Aplocheilus), referring to the diagnostic characters initially discovered by Day. This species failed to receive recognition from taxonomists, because of the uncertainty regarding the validity of the species and its questionable synonymy with A. panchax. In this study, based on morphological and molecular evidence, we demonstrate that A. andamanicus is indeed a distinct and valid species, which can easily be diagnosed from the widespread A. panchax. While resolving the identity of A. andamanicus, we also demonstrate that the congeners from southeast Asia form a genetically distinct group for which the name Odontopsis armata is available.
Keywords: Pisces, Aplocheilus panchax, freshwater fish, taxonomy, South Asia
Unmesh Katwate, Pradeep Kumkar, Ralf Britz, Rajeev Raghavan and Neelesh Dahanukar. 2018. The Identity of Aplocheilus andamanicus (Köhler, 1906) (Teleostei: Cyprinodontiformes), An Endemic Killifish from the Andaman Islands, with Notes on Odontopsis armata van Hasselt. Zootaxa. 4382(1); 159–174. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4382.1.6
facebook.com/TheUnmesh/posts/10208579955375536
facebook.com/indiagillsbangalore/photos/585246375144651
==========================
Audrey Lilian Cheswright
!9th November 1936 16th February 2018
It is with great sadness that I have to inform you that Audrey Cheswright an Honorary Life Member of Southend , Leigh & District Aquarist Society passed away on the morning of February 16th 2018.
Audrey has been associated with fish and fish clubs since she first met her husband Dave, indeed the first date with Dave was to a Fish Show.
I first met Audrey when I was persuaded by Chris Skilton and the late George Yallop to to take them to Dave & Audrey's to view Dave's fish house. In those days it was common practice to just turn up at a fellow aquarists place unannounced. Although Audrey was just days before giving birth to Chris she made no bones about it and welcomed us with tea and cakes.
Audrey was for many years the clubs Catering Secretary and also arranged and served the Judges at our Show with proper meals after they had completed the judging.
On one occasion Dave asked her to check on his fish house whilst he was out and as she entered a large bow fronted aquarium decided to shatter it's front glass and completely soak her from head to foot. Most spouses would after that have decided that fishes were not for them– but not Audrey!
In April 1983 Dave passed away but Audrey insisted in carrying on with the club until the late 1990`s. For all her years of unstinting service to the Society she was awarded a Life Membership as thanks for all the help she gave to our Society.
May I and all the aquarists who knew her, offer our heartfelt condolences to her son Chris, her daughter Ann and her grandson Jack
Peter Capon
==========================
!9th November 1936 16th February 2018
It is with great sadness that I have to inform you that Audrey Cheswright an Honorary Life Member of Southend , Leigh & District Aquarist Society passed away on the morning of February 16th 2018.
Audrey has been associated with fish and fish clubs since she first met her husband Dave, indeed the first date with Dave was to a Fish Show.
I first met Audrey when I was persuaded by Chris Skilton and the late George Yallop to to take them to Dave & Audrey's to view Dave's fish house. In those days it was common practice to just turn up at a fellow aquarists place unannounced. Although Audrey was just days before giving birth to Chris she made no bones about it and welcomed us with tea and cakes.
Audrey was for many years the clubs Catering Secretary and also arranged and served the Judges at our Show with proper meals after they had completed the judging.
On one occasion Dave asked her to check on his fish house whilst he was out and as she entered a large bow fronted aquarium decided to shatter it's front glass and completely soak her from head to foot. Most spouses would after that have decided that fishes were not for them– but not Audrey!
In April 1983 Dave passed away but Audrey insisted in carrying on with the club until the late 1990`s. For all her years of unstinting service to the Society she was awarded a Life Membership as thanks for all the help she gave to our Society.
May I and all the aquarists who knew her, offer our heartfelt condolences to her son Chris, her daughter Ann and her grandson Jack
Peter Capon
==========================
Exostoma sectile • A New Glyptosternine Catfish (Siluriformes: Sisoridae) from Northern Myanmar
Exostoma sectile Ng & Kottelat. 2018
DOI: 10.1643/CI-17-613
twitter.com/ASIHCopeia
A new species of sisorid catfish in the genus Exostoma is described from the upper Irrawaddy River drainage in northern Myanmar. The new species can be distinguished from congeners by the condition of the posterior extremity of the adipose-fin base, the degree of tuberculation in the preorbital area, as well as morphometric data for the nasal barbel length, snout length, interorbital distance, adipose fin-base length, body depth at anus, caudal-peduncle length, and caudal-peduncle depth. The taxonomic status of congeners in the Irrawaddy River drainage is also discussed, and E. chaudhurii is revalidated as a distinct species.
Fig. 1. Exostoma sectile, holotype, MHNG 2767.061, 78.2 mm SL. Dorsal, lateral, and ventral views.
Exostoma sectile, new species
Distribution.-- This species is known from a single locality near Putao in the upper Irrawaddy River drainage in northern Myanmar.
Etymology.— The specific epithet comes from the Latin adjective sectilis, -is, -e, meaning cut or cleft. This is used in reference to the presence of a distinct incision or notch at the posterior extremity of the adipose-fin base in this species.
Heok Hee Ng and Maurice Kottelat. 2018. A New Glyptosternine Catfish from Northern Myanmar (Teleostei: Siluriformes: Sisoridae). Copeia. 106(1); 63-69. DOI: 10.1643/CI-17-613
ResearchGate.net/publication/323076647_A_New_Glyptosternine_Catfish_from_northern_Myanmar
twitter.com/ASIHCopeia/status/962039021852549120
==========================
Exostoma sectile Ng & Kottelat. 2018
DOI: 10.1643/CI-17-613
twitter.com/ASIHCopeia
A new species of sisorid catfish in the genus Exostoma is described from the upper Irrawaddy River drainage in northern Myanmar. The new species can be distinguished from congeners by the condition of the posterior extremity of the adipose-fin base, the degree of tuberculation in the preorbital area, as well as morphometric data for the nasal barbel length, snout length, interorbital distance, adipose fin-base length, body depth at anus, caudal-peduncle length, and caudal-peduncle depth. The taxonomic status of congeners in the Irrawaddy River drainage is also discussed, and E. chaudhurii is revalidated as a distinct species.
Fig. 1. Exostoma sectile, holotype, MHNG 2767.061, 78.2 mm SL. Dorsal, lateral, and ventral views.
Exostoma sectile, new species
Distribution.-- This species is known from a single locality near Putao in the upper Irrawaddy River drainage in northern Myanmar.
Etymology.— The specific epithet comes from the Latin adjective sectilis, -is, -e, meaning cut or cleft. This is used in reference to the presence of a distinct incision or notch at the posterior extremity of the adipose-fin base in this species.
Heok Hee Ng and Maurice Kottelat. 2018. A New Glyptosternine Catfish from Northern Myanmar (Teleostei: Siluriformes: Sisoridae). Copeia. 106(1); 63-69. DOI: 10.1643/CI-17-613
ResearchGate.net/publication/323076647_A_New_Glyptosternine_Catfish_from_northern_Myanmar
twitter.com/ASIHCopeia/status/962039021852549120
==========================
Resurrection of the Sixgill Shark Hexanchus vitulus Springer & Waller, 1969 (Hexanchiformes, Hexanchidae), with Comments on Its Distribution in the northwest Atlantic Ocean
Hexanchus vitulus Springer & Waller, 1969
in Daly-Engel, Baremore, Grubbs, et al., 2018.
DOI: 10.1007/s12526-018-0849-x
facebook.com/SharkReferences
Abstract
The sixgill sharks of the genus Hexanchus (Hexanchiformes, Hexanchidae) are large, rarely encountered deep-sea sharks, thought to comprise just two species: the bluntnose sixgill Hexanchus griseus (Bonaterre, 1788) and the bigeye sixgill Hexanchus nakamurai (Teng, 1962). Their distribution is putatively worldwide in tropical and temperate waters, but many verified records for these species are lacking, and misidentification is common. Taxonomic uncertainty has long surrounded H. nakamurai in particular, with debate as to whether individuals from the Atlantic constitute a separate species. Using 1,310 base pairs of two mitochondrial genes, COI and ND2, we confirm that bigeye sixgill sharks from the Atlantic Ocean (Belize, Gulf of Mexico, and Bahamas) diverge from those in the Pacific and Indian Oceans (Japan, La Reunion, and Madagascar) with 7.037% sequence divergence. This difference is similar to the genetic distance between both Atlantic and Indo-Pacific bigeye sixgill sharks and the bluntnose sixgill shark (7.965% and 8.200%, respectively), and between the entire genus Hexanchus and its sister genus Heptranchias (8.308%). Such variation far exceeds previous measures of species-level genetic divergence in elasmobranchs, even among slowly-evolving deep-water taxa. Given the high degree of morphological similarity within Hexanchus, and the fact that cryptic diversity is common even among frequently observed shark species, we conclude that these results support the resurrection of the name Hexanchus vitulus Springer and Waller, 1969 for bigeye sixgill sharks in the northwest Atlantic Ocean. We propose the common name “Atlantic sixgill shark” for H. vitulus, and provide new locality records from Belize, as well as comments on its overall distribution.
Keywords: Systematics, Mitochondrial DNA, Phylogenetics, Speciation, Elasmobranchs
An adult Atlantic sixgill shark swims in the waters off Belize.
photo: Ivy Baremore/Maralliance
Toby S. Daly-Engel, Ivy E. Baremore, R. Dean Grubbs, Simon J. B. Gulak, Rachel T. Graham and Michael P. Enzenauer. 2018. Resurrection of the Sixgill Shark Hexanchus vitulus Springer & Waller, 1969 (Hexanchiformes, Hexanchidae), with comments on its distribution in the northwest Atlantic Ocean. Marine Biodiversity. DOI: 10.1007/s12526-018-0849-x
New species of shark discovered through genetic testing phy.so/438254250 via @physorg_com
facebook.com/SharkReferences/photos/1718179378202159
==========================
Hexanchus vitulus Springer & Waller, 1969
in Daly-Engel, Baremore, Grubbs, et al., 2018.
DOI: 10.1007/s12526-018-0849-x
facebook.com/SharkReferences
Abstract
The sixgill sharks of the genus Hexanchus (Hexanchiformes, Hexanchidae) are large, rarely encountered deep-sea sharks, thought to comprise just two species: the bluntnose sixgill Hexanchus griseus (Bonaterre, 1788) and the bigeye sixgill Hexanchus nakamurai (Teng, 1962). Their distribution is putatively worldwide in tropical and temperate waters, but many verified records for these species are lacking, and misidentification is common. Taxonomic uncertainty has long surrounded H. nakamurai in particular, with debate as to whether individuals from the Atlantic constitute a separate species. Using 1,310 base pairs of two mitochondrial genes, COI and ND2, we confirm that bigeye sixgill sharks from the Atlantic Ocean (Belize, Gulf of Mexico, and Bahamas) diverge from those in the Pacific and Indian Oceans (Japan, La Reunion, and Madagascar) with 7.037% sequence divergence. This difference is similar to the genetic distance between both Atlantic and Indo-Pacific bigeye sixgill sharks and the bluntnose sixgill shark (7.965% and 8.200%, respectively), and between the entire genus Hexanchus and its sister genus Heptranchias (8.308%). Such variation far exceeds previous measures of species-level genetic divergence in elasmobranchs, even among slowly-evolving deep-water taxa. Given the high degree of morphological similarity within Hexanchus, and the fact that cryptic diversity is common even among frequently observed shark species, we conclude that these results support the resurrection of the name Hexanchus vitulus Springer and Waller, 1969 for bigeye sixgill sharks in the northwest Atlantic Ocean. We propose the common name “Atlantic sixgill shark” for H. vitulus, and provide new locality records from Belize, as well as comments on its overall distribution.
Keywords: Systematics, Mitochondrial DNA, Phylogenetics, Speciation, Elasmobranchs
An adult Atlantic sixgill shark swims in the waters off Belize.
photo: Ivy Baremore/Maralliance
Toby S. Daly-Engel, Ivy E. Baremore, R. Dean Grubbs, Simon J. B. Gulak, Rachel T. Graham and Michael P. Enzenauer. 2018. Resurrection of the Sixgill Shark Hexanchus vitulus Springer & Waller, 1969 (Hexanchiformes, Hexanchidae), with comments on its distribution in the northwest Atlantic Ocean. Marine Biodiversity. DOI: 10.1007/s12526-018-0849-x
New species of shark discovered through genetic testing phy.so/438254250 via @physorg_com
facebook.com/SharkReferences/photos/1718179378202159
==========================
Anarhichas minor
Chiasmodon harteli
Canada finally has a list of all our Arctic fish, 58 years in the making
Published on: February 19, 2018 | Last Updated: February 19, 2018 2:13 PM EST
Figure 1 Spotted Wolffish (Anarhichas minor). Credit: Canadian Scientific Submersible Facility, DFO.
It was 1960 and Canada’s fisheries managers had a problem: No one fully knew what kinds of fish were in our oceans, or where they lived.
Not understanding what fish we have can be a national problem, as the crash of the Atlantic cod fishery later proved.
So the Fisheries Research Board of Canada began gathering information, and soon there were descriptions and maps for the Atlantic fish, Pacific fish and freshwater fish — but still nothing for the Arctic Ocean. The problem stayed that way for decades.
“The problem in this case was twofold,” recalled James Reist, a veteran Fisheries and Oceans researcher. “The specimens weren’t there, basic information wasn’t there, and then on top of that was the difficulty of working in the north, and the expense.”
Figure 2 Hartel’s Swallower (Chiasmodon harteli)- top and dorsal views. Illustration shows the fish with its prey inside the stomach. OTTWP
Some Arctic fish were well known in one sense — everyone knows what an Arctic char looks like — but their distribution had to be mapped out. Other species were real mysteries, such as the deep-sea creatures of which only one or two specimens have ever been found.
The task fell in the end to Ottawa’s Don McAllister, the young curator of fishes (he was still in his 20s) at what is now the Canadian Museum of Nature, and an Arctic specialist.
“Don McAllister began the effort in about 1960 or so,” Reist said.
This week, the result is finally in print: Marine Fishes of Arctic Canada has more than 600 pages of every known fish in our north, from halibut to sculpins to the massive Greenland shark.
The book is edited by Reist and Brian Coad, a long-time researcher at the nature museum, with contributions from many sources, including Noel Alfonso and Claude Renaud of the museum. It’s dedicated to McAllister, who died in 2001.
There’s a book launch with free admission at the museum Tuesday at 7 p.m.
The book production began in the early 1990s but they took the slow road in order to get pinpoint accuracy in the many maps.
“Rather than plot generalized distributions, sort of where we think the fish should be, we undertook a massive effort … to go through all of the available information,” Reist said. This detective work led through formal research studies, but also through old typed reports from fisheries managers and consultants.
Reist has occupied a lot of his career on Arctic fish that spend summer at sea but move inland to spend the winter and spawn in rivers. These include the different kinds of char.
He still marvels at their ability to adapt to harsh and changing conditions: “Low temperatures for much of the year, sea ice and ice in freshwater, highly variable environmental conditions,” he said, and water that doesn’t have a lot of food in it.
He also noted the weird fish — especially in the Davis Strait and Baffin Bay — from several thousand metres deep, with huge jaws, enormous bellies and not a lot else.
“They are adapted so that anything they encounter, they eat. Anybody they meet in the deep water, they will try to consume.”
The book normally costs $99.95, and can be ordered specially by bookstores. There is an introductory special online from U of T Press for $74.95. It is published jointly by the museum and Fisheries and Oceans Canada.
==========================
Published on: February 19, 2018 | Last Updated: February 19, 2018 2:13 PM EST
Figure 1 Spotted Wolffish (Anarhichas minor). Credit: Canadian Scientific Submersible Facility, DFO.
It was 1960 and Canada’s fisheries managers had a problem: No one fully knew what kinds of fish were in our oceans, or where they lived.
Not understanding what fish we have can be a national problem, as the crash of the Atlantic cod fishery later proved.
So the Fisheries Research Board of Canada began gathering information, and soon there were descriptions and maps for the Atlantic fish, Pacific fish and freshwater fish — but still nothing for the Arctic Ocean. The problem stayed that way for decades.
“The problem in this case was twofold,” recalled James Reist, a veteran Fisheries and Oceans researcher. “The specimens weren’t there, basic information wasn’t there, and then on top of that was the difficulty of working in the north, and the expense.”
Figure 2 Hartel’s Swallower (Chiasmodon harteli)- top and dorsal views. Illustration shows the fish with its prey inside the stomach. OTTWP
Some Arctic fish were well known in one sense — everyone knows what an Arctic char looks like — but their distribution had to be mapped out. Other species were real mysteries, such as the deep-sea creatures of which only one or two specimens have ever been found.
The task fell in the end to Ottawa’s Don McAllister, the young curator of fishes (he was still in his 20s) at what is now the Canadian Museum of Nature, and an Arctic specialist.
“Don McAllister began the effort in about 1960 or so,” Reist said.
This week, the result is finally in print: Marine Fishes of Arctic Canada has more than 600 pages of every known fish in our north, from halibut to sculpins to the massive Greenland shark.
The book is edited by Reist and Brian Coad, a long-time researcher at the nature museum, with contributions from many sources, including Noel Alfonso and Claude Renaud of the museum. It’s dedicated to McAllister, who died in 2001.
There’s a book launch with free admission at the museum Tuesday at 7 p.m.
The book production began in the early 1990s but they took the slow road in order to get pinpoint accuracy in the many maps.
“Rather than plot generalized distributions, sort of where we think the fish should be, we undertook a massive effort … to go through all of the available information,” Reist said. This detective work led through formal research studies, but also through old typed reports from fisheries managers and consultants.
Reist has occupied a lot of his career on Arctic fish that spend summer at sea but move inland to spend the winter and spawn in rivers. These include the different kinds of char.
He still marvels at their ability to adapt to harsh and changing conditions: “Low temperatures for much of the year, sea ice and ice in freshwater, highly variable environmental conditions,” he said, and water that doesn’t have a lot of food in it.
He also noted the weird fish — especially in the Davis Strait and Baffin Bay — from several thousand metres deep, with huge jaws, enormous bellies and not a lot else.
“They are adapted so that anything they encounter, they eat. Anybody they meet in the deep water, they will try to consume.”
The book normally costs $99.95, and can be ordered specially by bookstores. There is an introductory special online from U of T Press for $74.95. It is published jointly by the museum and Fisheries and Oceans Canada.
==========================
Tugenchromis pickfordi • A Stem-group Cichlid of the ‘East African Radiation’ from the upper Miocene of central Kenya
Tugenchromis pickfordi
Altner, Schliewen, Penk & Reichenbacher, 2017
DOI: 10.1080/02724634.2017.1297819
en.palaeontologie.geowissenschaften.uni-muenchen.de
ABSTRACT
The highly diverse tropical freshwater fish family Cichlidae is sparsely represented in the fossil record. Here we describe the new cichlid †Tugenchromis pickfordi, gen. et sp. nov., from the Upper Miocene (9–10 Ma) of central Kenya. The new taxon possesses a unique combination of characters, including six lateral line foramina on the lacrimal, three lateral line segments, cycloid scales, and a low number of vertebrae (29), dorsal fin spines (13), and dorsal soft rays (9). Its lacrimal morphology and tripartite lateral line suggest an affinity with the present-day Lake Tanganyika tribes Ectodini and Limnochromini, and thus with members of the ‘East African Radiation’ among the African cichlids. To further elucidate the relationships of †T. pickfordi, we used a comprehensive comparative data set comprising meristic data from all present-day tribes of the ‘East African Radiation.’ Principal coordinates analyses support links between the fossil and Ectodini + Limnochromini, and additionally with modern Haplochromini. We conclude that †T. pickfordi could be an extinct lineage within the ‘most ancient Tanganyika tribes,’ or a stem lineage of the ‘ancient Tanganyika mouthbrooders.’ A direct relationship to the Haplochromini is unlikely because its members do not exhibit the derived characteristics of the lacrimal as seen in †T. pickfordi. Because Lake Tanganyika is located in the western branch of the East African Rift System, †T. pickfordi from the eastern branch supports the ‘melting-pot Tanganyika hypothesis,’ which posits that the cichlids of modern Lake Tanganyika are derived from riverine lineages that had already diversified prior to the lake formation.
FIGURE †Tugenchromis pickfordi, gen. et sp. nov. A1–A2, holotype in part (OCO-5-35) and counterpart (OCO-5-22); A3, right lateral view of the specimen (shading refers to ribs from the left side of the specimen);
Abbreviations: cl, cleithrum; cor, coracoid; ep, epural; hs, hemal spine; hyp, hypural plate; lac, lacrimal; nlc, neurocranial lateral line canal; ns, neural spine; o, otolith; op, operculum; ph, parhypural; pha, pharyngeal teeth; ppc, postcleithrum; ptt, posttemporal; pu, preural centrum; rad, radials; sca, scapula; scl, supracleithrum; sop, suboperculum; us, urostyle; un1, uroneural 1; = , tubular lateral line scale; °, pitted lateral line scale.
SYSTEMATIC PALEONTOLOGY
CICHLIDAE Bonaparte, 1835
PSEUDOCRENILABRINAE Fowler, 1934
†TUGENCHROMIS, nov. gen.
Generic Diagnosis: Lateral line on the trunk divided into three segments, two of which are posterior lateral lines. One posterior segment positioned ventrally, the other dorsally to the anterior lateral line segment. This is a condition not seen in any other cichlid genus.
Etymology: ‘Tugen’ refers to the ‘Tugen Hills’ (named after the local people, i.e., the ‘Tugen,’ a subgroup of the Kalenjin ethnic group), in which the type locality of the new fossil taxon is located. The Greek word ‘Chromis’ (χρόμις) is a name used by the Ancient Greek and was applied to various fish. It is a common second element in cichlid genus names. Tugenchromis is masculine.
Type Species: †Tugenchromis pickfordi, sp. nov.
†TUGENCHROMIS PICKFORDI, sp. nov.
Holotype: OCO-5-22/35, partially complete skeleton in part and counterpart (Fig. 2A1–A3), approximately 60 mm total length, 33.5 mm body length.
Etymology: Species named in honor of the paleontologist Martin Pickford in recognition of his outstanding contributions to the geology and paleontology of East Africa.
Locality, Horizon, and Age: Outcrop Waril in Central Kenya; Ngorora Formation, Member E; late Miocene (9–10 Ma) (see Rasmussen et al., 2017).
CONCLUSION:
Based on lacrimal morphology and meristic data derived from all present-day cichlids of the ‘East African Radiation,’ we propose that the newly discovered cichlid fossil from the upper Miocene of Central Kenya either represents a stem lineage of the ‘ancient Tanganyika mouthbrooders’ or an extinct lineage within the ‘most ancient Tanganyika tribes.’ This result implies that the use of a comprehensive set of comparative material derived from extant cichlids may make it possible to phylogenetically place other fossil cichlids with greater confidence in future studies.
Apart from a lower Miocene cichlid from Uganda (‘cf. Pelmatochromis spp.’), none of the previously described fossil cichlid taxa from Africa, Arabia, and Europe possess distinctive similarities to †T. pickfordi. This indicates that the Ngorora fish Lagerstätte in Central Kenya may provide an unrivalled window into the evolutionary history of African cichlids, particularly into the origin of the ‘East African Radiation,’ i.e., the megadiversity of the present-day cichlids in Lake Tanganyika, Lake Malawi, and Lake Victoria.
Furthermore, the new fossil provides additional support for the presence of an ancient east-west connection (e.g., proto-Malagarasi River) between the Central Kenya Rift and Lake Tanganyika, which is consistent with previous assumptions regarding the hydrological networks across East and Central Africa during the Miocene.
Melanie Altner, Ulrich K. Schliewen, Stefanie B. R. Penk and Bettina Reichenbacher. 2017 . †Tugenchromis pickfordi, gen. et sp. nov., from the upper Miocene—A Stem-group Cichlid of the ‘East African Radiation’. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 37(2); e1297819. DOI: 10.1080/02724634.2017.1297819
en.palaeontologie.geowissenschaften.uni-muenchen.de/forschung/forsch_gebiete/kenya/index.html
twitter.com/gombessagirl/status/861246850854244354
==========================
Tugenchromis pickfordi
Altner, Schliewen, Penk & Reichenbacher, 2017
DOI: 10.1080/02724634.2017.1297819
en.palaeontologie.geowissenschaften.uni-muenchen.de
ABSTRACT
The highly diverse tropical freshwater fish family Cichlidae is sparsely represented in the fossil record. Here we describe the new cichlid †Tugenchromis pickfordi, gen. et sp. nov., from the Upper Miocene (9–10 Ma) of central Kenya. The new taxon possesses a unique combination of characters, including six lateral line foramina on the lacrimal, three lateral line segments, cycloid scales, and a low number of vertebrae (29), dorsal fin spines (13), and dorsal soft rays (9). Its lacrimal morphology and tripartite lateral line suggest an affinity with the present-day Lake Tanganyika tribes Ectodini and Limnochromini, and thus with members of the ‘East African Radiation’ among the African cichlids. To further elucidate the relationships of †T. pickfordi, we used a comprehensive comparative data set comprising meristic data from all present-day tribes of the ‘East African Radiation.’ Principal coordinates analyses support links between the fossil and Ectodini + Limnochromini, and additionally with modern Haplochromini. We conclude that †T. pickfordi could be an extinct lineage within the ‘most ancient Tanganyika tribes,’ or a stem lineage of the ‘ancient Tanganyika mouthbrooders.’ A direct relationship to the Haplochromini is unlikely because its members do not exhibit the derived characteristics of the lacrimal as seen in †T. pickfordi. Because Lake Tanganyika is located in the western branch of the East African Rift System, †T. pickfordi from the eastern branch supports the ‘melting-pot Tanganyika hypothesis,’ which posits that the cichlids of modern Lake Tanganyika are derived from riverine lineages that had already diversified prior to the lake formation.
FIGURE †Tugenchromis pickfordi, gen. et sp. nov. A1–A2, holotype in part (OCO-5-35) and counterpart (OCO-5-22); A3, right lateral view of the specimen (shading refers to ribs from the left side of the specimen);
Abbreviations: cl, cleithrum; cor, coracoid; ep, epural; hs, hemal spine; hyp, hypural plate; lac, lacrimal; nlc, neurocranial lateral line canal; ns, neural spine; o, otolith; op, operculum; ph, parhypural; pha, pharyngeal teeth; ppc, postcleithrum; ptt, posttemporal; pu, preural centrum; rad, radials; sca, scapula; scl, supracleithrum; sop, suboperculum; us, urostyle; un1, uroneural 1; = , tubular lateral line scale; °, pitted lateral line scale.
SYSTEMATIC PALEONTOLOGY
CICHLIDAE Bonaparte, 1835
PSEUDOCRENILABRINAE Fowler, 1934
†TUGENCHROMIS, nov. gen.
Generic Diagnosis: Lateral line on the trunk divided into three segments, two of which are posterior lateral lines. One posterior segment positioned ventrally, the other dorsally to the anterior lateral line segment. This is a condition not seen in any other cichlid genus.
Etymology: ‘Tugen’ refers to the ‘Tugen Hills’ (named after the local people, i.e., the ‘Tugen,’ a subgroup of the Kalenjin ethnic group), in which the type locality of the new fossil taxon is located. The Greek word ‘Chromis’ (χρόμις) is a name used by the Ancient Greek and was applied to various fish. It is a common second element in cichlid genus names. Tugenchromis is masculine.
Type Species: †Tugenchromis pickfordi, sp. nov.
†TUGENCHROMIS PICKFORDI, sp. nov.
Holotype: OCO-5-22/35, partially complete skeleton in part and counterpart (Fig. 2A1–A3), approximately 60 mm total length, 33.5 mm body length.
Etymology: Species named in honor of the paleontologist Martin Pickford in recognition of his outstanding contributions to the geology and paleontology of East Africa.
Locality, Horizon, and Age: Outcrop Waril in Central Kenya; Ngorora Formation, Member E; late Miocene (9–10 Ma) (see Rasmussen et al., 2017).
CONCLUSION:
Based on lacrimal morphology and meristic data derived from all present-day cichlids of the ‘East African Radiation,’ we propose that the newly discovered cichlid fossil from the upper Miocene of Central Kenya either represents a stem lineage of the ‘ancient Tanganyika mouthbrooders’ or an extinct lineage within the ‘most ancient Tanganyika tribes.’ This result implies that the use of a comprehensive set of comparative material derived from extant cichlids may make it possible to phylogenetically place other fossil cichlids with greater confidence in future studies.
Apart from a lower Miocene cichlid from Uganda (‘cf. Pelmatochromis spp.’), none of the previously described fossil cichlid taxa from Africa, Arabia, and Europe possess distinctive similarities to †T. pickfordi. This indicates that the Ngorora fish Lagerstätte in Central Kenya may provide an unrivalled window into the evolutionary history of African cichlids, particularly into the origin of the ‘East African Radiation,’ i.e., the megadiversity of the present-day cichlids in Lake Tanganyika, Lake Malawi, and Lake Victoria.
Furthermore, the new fossil provides additional support for the presence of an ancient east-west connection (e.g., proto-Malagarasi River) between the Central Kenya Rift and Lake Tanganyika, which is consistent with previous assumptions regarding the hydrological networks across East and Central Africa during the Miocene.
Melanie Altner, Ulrich K. Schliewen, Stefanie B. R. Penk and Bettina Reichenbacher. 2017 . †Tugenchromis pickfordi, gen. et sp. nov., from the upper Miocene—A Stem-group Cichlid of the ‘East African Radiation’. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 37(2); e1297819. DOI: 10.1080/02724634.2017.1297819
en.palaeontologie.geowissenschaften.uni-muenchen.de/forschung/forsch_gebiete/kenya/index.html
twitter.com/gombessagirl/status/861246850854244354
==========================
Satanoperca curupira • A New Cichlid Species from the rio Madeira Basin (Teleostei: Cichlidae)in Brazil
Satanoperca curupira
Ota, Kullander, Deprá, da Graça & Pavanelli, 2018
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4379.1.6
Abstract
Satanoperca curupira, new species, is described from the rio Madeira basin in the State of Rondônia, Brazil. It is distinguished from all congeners by the following combination of characters: 3–7 dark-brown oblique stripes on the lachrymal (vs. 2 well-defined dark-brown stripes, or dark-brown stripes absent) and an irregular pattern of dark-brown stripes on cheek and opercular series (vs. cheek without dark-brown markings or with light-beige rounded spots). According to meristic and color pattern characters, the new species is considered a member of the S. jurupari species group, and is syntopic with S. jurupari, which is widespread in the Amazon basin. The restricted geographical range of the new species is congruent to that observed for some other Satanoperca species.
Keywords: Pisces, Geophaginae, Neotropical region, Satanoperca jurupari species-group, taxonomy
FIGURE Satanoperca curupira, living specimen photographed just after capture in the rio Jaru, rio Madeira basin in Brazil (photo by U. Werner).
Satanoperca curupira, new species
Satanoperca sp. “Jaru” —. Weidner 2000: 243 (photograph of living specimen).
Satanoperca jurupari —. Stawikowski & Werner 2004: 404 (photograph of living specimen) —. Graça et al. 2013: 373 (in part; lots UFRO-I 7869 and UFRO-I 11589).
Distribution. Satanoperca curupira is known from the rio Madeira basin in Brazil, occurring in the main channel of the rio Madeira and in several tributaries draining the Brazilian shield (rio Jaciparaná, rio Jamari, rio Jaru and rio Machado), and also at the rio Roosevelt (a tributary of the rio Aripuanã), and at the rio São Luis (a tributary of the rio Guaporé) (Fig. 5).
Etymology. The specific name curupira refers to a mythological creature of Brazilian folklore that protects the forest and its inhabitants, punishing those who hunt for pleasure or who kill breeding females or defenseless juveniles (Pereira 1994). The Curupira legend reveals the relationship between the indigenous people and the forest: it is not about exploration and indiscriminate use, but respect for life. A noun in apposition.
Renata R. Ota, Sven O. Kullander, Gabriel C. Deprá, Weferson J. da Graça and Carla S. Pavanelli. 2018. Satanoperca curupira, A New Cichlid Species from the rio Madeira basin in Brazil (Teleostei: Cichlidae). Zootaxa. 4379(1);103–112. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4379.1.6
ResearchGgate.net/publication/323130025_Satanoperca_curupira_a_new_cichlid_species_from_the_rio_Madeira_basin_in_Brazil
facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1585926344790484
==========================
Satanoperca curupira
Ota, Kullander, Deprá, da Graça & Pavanelli, 2018
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4379.1.6
Abstract
Satanoperca curupira, new species, is described from the rio Madeira basin in the State of Rondônia, Brazil. It is distinguished from all congeners by the following combination of characters: 3–7 dark-brown oblique stripes on the lachrymal (vs. 2 well-defined dark-brown stripes, or dark-brown stripes absent) and an irregular pattern of dark-brown stripes on cheek and opercular series (vs. cheek without dark-brown markings or with light-beige rounded spots). According to meristic and color pattern characters, the new species is considered a member of the S. jurupari species group, and is syntopic with S. jurupari, which is widespread in the Amazon basin. The restricted geographical range of the new species is congruent to that observed for some other Satanoperca species.
Keywords: Pisces, Geophaginae, Neotropical region, Satanoperca jurupari species-group, taxonomy
FIGURE Satanoperca curupira, living specimen photographed just after capture in the rio Jaru, rio Madeira basin in Brazil (photo by U. Werner).
Satanoperca curupira, new species
Satanoperca sp. “Jaru” —. Weidner 2000: 243 (photograph of living specimen).
Satanoperca jurupari —. Stawikowski & Werner 2004: 404 (photograph of living specimen) —. Graça et al. 2013: 373 (in part; lots UFRO-I 7869 and UFRO-I 11589).
Distribution. Satanoperca curupira is known from the rio Madeira basin in Brazil, occurring in the main channel of the rio Madeira and in several tributaries draining the Brazilian shield (rio Jaciparaná, rio Jamari, rio Jaru and rio Machado), and also at the rio Roosevelt (a tributary of the rio Aripuanã), and at the rio São Luis (a tributary of the rio Guaporé) (Fig. 5).
Etymology. The specific name curupira refers to a mythological creature of Brazilian folklore that protects the forest and its inhabitants, punishing those who hunt for pleasure or who kill breeding females or defenseless juveniles (Pereira 1994). The Curupira legend reveals the relationship between the indigenous people and the forest: it is not about exploration and indiscriminate use, but respect for life. A noun in apposition.
Renata R. Ota, Sven O. Kullander, Gabriel C. Deprá, Weferson J. da Graça and Carla S. Pavanelli. 2018. Satanoperca curupira, A New Cichlid Species from the rio Madeira basin in Brazil (Teleostei: Cichlidae). Zootaxa. 4379(1);103–112. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4379.1.6
ResearchGgate.net/publication/323130025_Satanoperca_curupira_a_new_cichlid_species_from_the_rio_Madeira_basin_in_Brazil
facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1585926344790484
==========================
Enneapterygius velatus
New Species of Deepwater Triplefin
2Enneapterygius velatus is a new species of triplefin recently described from Japan. Coming from the deep waters of the Ryukyu Islands, the holotypes for this new fish was collected at 55 meters (180 feet) deep but it has been photographed as shallow as 30m/100ft. This deepwater triplefin is remarkable for having an extremely long first dorsal fin which is further adorned with additional extensions and filaments.
Triplefins are a very interesting group of blennioid fishes which are all but absent in the aquarium hobby. Their small size, intricate camouflage and bright colored males of some species would make them a great aquarium inhabitant, and it should be ‘manageable’ to breed them in captivity. [Ichtyo. Research]
from Reef Builder
==========================
2Enneapterygius velatus is a new species of triplefin recently described from Japan. Coming from the deep waters of the Ryukyu Islands, the holotypes for this new fish was collected at 55 meters (180 feet) deep but it has been photographed as shallow as 30m/100ft. This deepwater triplefin is remarkable for having an extremely long first dorsal fin which is further adorned with additional extensions and filaments.
Triplefins are a very interesting group of blennioid fishes which are all but absent in the aquarium hobby. Their small size, intricate camouflage and bright colored males of some species would make them a great aquarium inhabitant, and it should be ‘manageable’ to breed them in captivity. [Ichtyo. Research]
from Reef Builder
==========================
Panaqolus claustellifer • A New Species of Panaqolus (Siluriformes: Loricariidae) from the rio Branco
Panaqolus claustellifer
Tan, Souza & Armbruster, 2016
DOI: 10.1590/1982-0224-20150033
A new species of Panaqolus is described from material from the Takutu River and the mainstem rio Branco. The new species is diagnosed from congeners by its color pattern consisting of dark and light bars on the body, bands on the fins, and with dots and vermiculations absent (vs. no bars in P. albomaculatus, P. nix, P. nocturnus, and P. koko, vs. fins unbanded in P. albomaculatus, P. dentex, P. koko, and P. nix, and vs. dots and vermiculations present in P. albivermis and P. maccus). The new species is diagnosed from barred species of Panaqolus by its specific bar number and orientation and color pattern on its head, with bars oriented in a anteroventral-posterodorsal direction (vs. anterodorsal-posteroventral bars in P. gnomus), having consistently 5 bars (n = 4) on the trunk that do not increase with size (vs. number increasing with size in P. purusiensis and vs. 6-12 in P. changae), and the color pattern on the head of straight lines extending from posterior to the eye to the snout margin, splitting in the middle portion of the line in larger specimens (vs. small, dense reticulate lines in P. changae). Biogeographically, we infer that the new species ancestrally originated in the Amazon river, dispersing to the Takutu River after the Amazon captured part of the Proto-Berbice.
Keywords: Brazil, Guyana, Hypostominae, Takutu River.
Fig. Panaqolus claustellifer, new species, CSBD F1702/AUM 44721, Takutu River, holotype, adult male, 61.6 mm SL, lateral view is of right side and flipped horizontally. Photo by Milton Tan.
Panaqolus claustellifer, new species
Diagnosis. Panaqolus claustellifer is diagnosed from most other described species ofPanaqolus by its color pattern of dark and light bars on the body, bands on the fins, and with dots and vermiculations absent (vs. no bars in P. albomaculatus, P. nix, P. nocturnus, and P. koko, vs. fins unbanded in P. albomaculatus, P. dentex, P. koko, and P. nix, and vs. dots and vermiculations present in P. albivermis and P. maccus ). Additionally, Panaqolus claustellifer is diagnosed from P. albivermis, P. albomaculatus, and P. nix by dentaries forming an acute angle ~70º vs. dentaries forming a very acute angle to dentaries parallel), and from P. koko by spoon-shaped teeth with small lateral cusps vs. quadrate teeth with strong lateral cusps. Panaqolus claustellifer is diagnosed from other barred species of Panaqolus by the specific bar number and orientation and color pattern on the head, with bars oriented in a anteroventral-posterodorsal direction (vs. anterodorsal-posteroventral bars in P. gnomus), having consistently 5 bars (n = 4) on the trunk that do not increase with size (vs. number increasing with size in P. purusiensis and fading at body sizes >85 mm SL, and vs. 6-12 in P. changae), and the color pattern on the head of straight lines extending from posterior to the eye to the snout margin, splitting in the middle portion of the line in larger specimens (vs. small, dense reticulate lines in P. changae).
Etymology. From the Latin claustellum , meaning keyhole, and the Latin fero , meaning to bear. Refers to the dark brown lines on the snout surrounding a keyhole-like shape of light-brown base coloration. Treated as a masculine adjective.
Ecological notes. Individuals of Panaqolus claustellifer were found in shallow cataracts along the Takutu river, a whitewater system. The substrate was sandy with lateritic rocks interspersed. Surrounding habitat consisted of a narrow strip of gallery forest, but mostly savanna. Small specimens <20 mm SL (AUM 47717, AUM 65708) likely represent young-of-year that have hatched less than a couple weeks prior to collection.
Distribution. Panaqolus claustellifer occurs in the Takutu river and the mainstem rio Branco of Brazil and Guyana.
Milton Tan, Lesley S. de Souza and Jonathan W. Armbruster. 2016. A New Species of Panaqolus (Siluriformes: Loricariidae) from the rio Branco. Neotropical Ichthyology. 14(2); e150033. DOI: 10.1590/1982-0224-20150033
scielo.br/pdf/ni/v14n2/1982-0224-ni-14-02-e150033.pdf
twitter.com/LesleydeSouza/status/752596385288097792
==========================
Panaqolus claustellifer
Tan, Souza & Armbruster, 2016
DOI: 10.1590/1982-0224-20150033
A new species of Panaqolus is described from material from the Takutu River and the mainstem rio Branco. The new species is diagnosed from congeners by its color pattern consisting of dark and light bars on the body, bands on the fins, and with dots and vermiculations absent (vs. no bars in P. albomaculatus, P. nix, P. nocturnus, and P. koko, vs. fins unbanded in P. albomaculatus, P. dentex, P. koko, and P. nix, and vs. dots and vermiculations present in P. albivermis and P. maccus). The new species is diagnosed from barred species of Panaqolus by its specific bar number and orientation and color pattern on its head, with bars oriented in a anteroventral-posterodorsal direction (vs. anterodorsal-posteroventral bars in P. gnomus), having consistently 5 bars (n = 4) on the trunk that do not increase with size (vs. number increasing with size in P. purusiensis and vs. 6-12 in P. changae), and the color pattern on the head of straight lines extending from posterior to the eye to the snout margin, splitting in the middle portion of the line in larger specimens (vs. small, dense reticulate lines in P. changae). Biogeographically, we infer that the new species ancestrally originated in the Amazon river, dispersing to the Takutu River after the Amazon captured part of the Proto-Berbice.
Keywords: Brazil, Guyana, Hypostominae, Takutu River.
Fig. Panaqolus claustellifer, new species, CSBD F1702/AUM 44721, Takutu River, holotype, adult male, 61.6 mm SL, lateral view is of right side and flipped horizontally. Photo by Milton Tan.
Panaqolus claustellifer, new species
Diagnosis. Panaqolus claustellifer is diagnosed from most other described species ofPanaqolus by its color pattern of dark and light bars on the body, bands on the fins, and with dots and vermiculations absent (vs. no bars in P. albomaculatus, P. nix, P. nocturnus, and P. koko, vs. fins unbanded in P. albomaculatus, P. dentex, P. koko, and P. nix, and vs. dots and vermiculations present in P. albivermis and P. maccus ). Additionally, Panaqolus claustellifer is diagnosed from P. albivermis, P. albomaculatus, and P. nix by dentaries forming an acute angle ~70º vs. dentaries forming a very acute angle to dentaries parallel), and from P. koko by spoon-shaped teeth with small lateral cusps vs. quadrate teeth with strong lateral cusps. Panaqolus claustellifer is diagnosed from other barred species of Panaqolus by the specific bar number and orientation and color pattern on the head, with bars oriented in a anteroventral-posterodorsal direction (vs. anterodorsal-posteroventral bars in P. gnomus), having consistently 5 bars (n = 4) on the trunk that do not increase with size (vs. number increasing with size in P. purusiensis and fading at body sizes >85 mm SL, and vs. 6-12 in P. changae), and the color pattern on the head of straight lines extending from posterior to the eye to the snout margin, splitting in the middle portion of the line in larger specimens (vs. small, dense reticulate lines in P. changae).
Etymology. From the Latin claustellum , meaning keyhole, and the Latin fero , meaning to bear. Refers to the dark brown lines on the snout surrounding a keyhole-like shape of light-brown base coloration. Treated as a masculine adjective.
Ecological notes. Individuals of Panaqolus claustellifer were found in shallow cataracts along the Takutu river, a whitewater system. The substrate was sandy with lateritic rocks interspersed. Surrounding habitat consisted of a narrow strip of gallery forest, but mostly savanna. Small specimens <20 mm SL (AUM 47717, AUM 65708) likely represent young-of-year that have hatched less than a couple weeks prior to collection.
Distribution. Panaqolus claustellifer occurs in the Takutu river and the mainstem rio Branco of Brazil and Guyana.
Milton Tan, Lesley S. de Souza and Jonathan W. Armbruster. 2016. A New Species of Panaqolus (Siluriformes: Loricariidae) from the rio Branco. Neotropical Ichthyology. 14(2); e150033. DOI: 10.1590/1982-0224-20150033
scielo.br/pdf/ni/v14n2/1982-0224-ni-14-02-e150033.pdf
twitter.com/LesleydeSouza/status/752596385288097792
==========================
A Euryhaline Fish, Lost in the Desert: The Unexpected Metapopulation Structure of Coptodon guineensis (Günther, 1862) in the Sebkha of Imlili, Morocco
Coptodon guineensis (Günther, 1862)
in Agnèse, Louizi, Gilles, et al., 2018.
DOI: 10.1016/j.crvi.2018.01.002
Abstract
Euryhaline Cichlid fish of the species Coptodon guineensis are present in different water holes situated in a dried depression in the desert in the extreme South of Morocco, the Sebkha of Imlili. A genetic survey of this population, using complete sequences of the ND2 gene (mtDNA) and sixteen microsatellite loci, revealed that the fish in the sebkha did not form a single population, but rather a metapopulation. This metapopulational structure may be regarded as good news from the point of view of the conservation of fish in the sebkha. Although small individual populations may have short, finite life spans, the metapopulation as a whole is more stable, because immigrants from one population are likely to re-colonize the habitat, left open by the extinction of another.
Keywords: Tilapia; Conservation; Endangered species
Fig. Views of the sebkha and the fish present in the water holes.
A. View from the top of the sand dunes. B. Band of plants surrounding the sebkha. C. Sandy soil with salt crystallization. D. Permanent water holes (two are clearly visible, five are indicated with arrows). E. Fish in a permanent hole. F. Close up of two specimens of C. guineensis from the sebkha (male above, female below).
Jean-François Agnèse, Halima Louizi, André Gilles, Ouafae Berrada Rkhami, Abdelaziz Benhoussa, Abdeljebbar Qninba and Antoine Pariselle. 2018. A Euryhaline Fish, Lost in the Desert: The Unexpected Metapopulation Structure of Coptodon guineensis (Günther, 1862) in the Sebkha of Imlili [Un poisson euryhalin perdu dans le désert : structure métapopulationnelle inattendue de Coptodon guineensis (Günther, 1862) dans la Sebkha d’Imili]. Comptes Rendus Biologies. In Press. DOI: 10.1016/j.crvi.2018.01.002
==========================
Coptodon guineensis (Günther, 1862)
in Agnèse, Louizi, Gilles, et al., 2018.
DOI: 10.1016/j.crvi.2018.01.002
Abstract
Euryhaline Cichlid fish of the species Coptodon guineensis are present in different water holes situated in a dried depression in the desert in the extreme South of Morocco, the Sebkha of Imlili. A genetic survey of this population, using complete sequences of the ND2 gene (mtDNA) and sixteen microsatellite loci, revealed that the fish in the sebkha did not form a single population, but rather a metapopulation. This metapopulational structure may be regarded as good news from the point of view of the conservation of fish in the sebkha. Although small individual populations may have short, finite life spans, the metapopulation as a whole is more stable, because immigrants from one population are likely to re-colonize the habitat, left open by the extinction of another.
Keywords: Tilapia; Conservation; Endangered species
Fig. Views of the sebkha and the fish present in the water holes.
A. View from the top of the sand dunes. B. Band of plants surrounding the sebkha. C. Sandy soil with salt crystallization. D. Permanent water holes (two are clearly visible, five are indicated with arrows). E. Fish in a permanent hole. F. Close up of two specimens of C. guineensis from the sebkha (male above, female below).
Jean-François Agnèse, Halima Louizi, André Gilles, Ouafae Berrada Rkhami, Abdelaziz Benhoussa, Abdeljebbar Qninba and Antoine Pariselle. 2018. A Euryhaline Fish, Lost in the Desert: The Unexpected Metapopulation Structure of Coptodon guineensis (Günther, 1862) in the Sebkha of Imlili [Un poisson euryhalin perdu dans le désert : structure métapopulationnelle inattendue de Coptodon guineensis (Günther, 1862) dans la Sebkha d’Imili]. Comptes Rendus Biologies. In Press. DOI: 10.1016/j.crvi.2018.01.002
==========================
Melanosternarchus amaru • A New Genus and Species of Electric Ghost Knifefish (Gymnotiformes: Apteronotidae) from the Amazon Basin
Melanosternarchus amaru
Bernt, Crampton, Orfinger & Albert, 2018
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4378.4.1
Abstract
We describe Melanosternarchus amaru as a new genus and species of Apteronotidae from the deep channels of blackwater and clearwater tributaries of the Amazon River in Brazil and Peru. The new species superficially resembles members of the widespread “Apteronotus” bonapartii species group, from which it can be readily distinguished by expanded bones of the infraorbital laterosensory canal. It can further be distinguished from all other apteronotids by a unique combination of characters: reduced premaxillary dentition, a large gape, and an absence of scales from the entire dorsum. A molecular phylogenetic analysis using three mitochondrial loci and one nuclear locus (~3000 bp) places this genus as sister to Compsaraia, and these two genera together as a clade sister to Pariosternarchus; all nodes with strong statistical support. The clade formed by these three genera includes five species, four of which are restricted to the Amazon basin. The apparent habitat preference of the new species for low-conductivity blackwater and clearwater rivers has not been reported in other apteronotid species.
Keywords: Pisces, Neotropics, Peru, Brazil, diversity, Blackwater, taxonomy
Melanosternarchus, new genus
Type species. Melanosternarchus amaru, new species,
by monotypy and original designation.
Etymology. Melano from the Greek melas, meaning black in reference to dark pigmentation and presence in blackwater rivers, and sternarchus, a name commonly used in apteronotid taxonomy, from the Greek sternon (chest) and archos (rectum), referring to the anterior position of the anus.
Melanosternarchus amaru, new species
Etymology. The species name is from the Quechuan amaru, a mythical serpent, referring to the snakelike shape of this fish. A noun in apposition.
Maxwell J. Bernt, William G. R. Crampton, Alexander B. Orfinger and James S. Albert. 2018. Melanosternarchus amaru, A New Genus and Species of Electric Ghost Knifefish (Gymnotiformes: Apteronotidae) from the Amazon Basin. Zootaxa. 4378(4); 451–479. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4378.4.1
ResearchGate.net/publication/323120879_Melanosternarchus_amaru_a_new_genus_and_species_of_electric_ghost_knifefish_from_the_Amazon_Basin
twitter.com/MJBernt/status/962898598013923329
facebook.com/AlexOrfinger/posts/10156093177785419
==========================
Melanosternarchus amaru
Bernt, Crampton, Orfinger & Albert, 2018
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4378.4.1
Abstract
We describe Melanosternarchus amaru as a new genus and species of Apteronotidae from the deep channels of blackwater and clearwater tributaries of the Amazon River in Brazil and Peru. The new species superficially resembles members of the widespread “Apteronotus” bonapartii species group, from which it can be readily distinguished by expanded bones of the infraorbital laterosensory canal. It can further be distinguished from all other apteronotids by a unique combination of characters: reduced premaxillary dentition, a large gape, and an absence of scales from the entire dorsum. A molecular phylogenetic analysis using three mitochondrial loci and one nuclear locus (~3000 bp) places this genus as sister to Compsaraia, and these two genera together as a clade sister to Pariosternarchus; all nodes with strong statistical support. The clade formed by these three genera includes five species, four of which are restricted to the Amazon basin. The apparent habitat preference of the new species for low-conductivity blackwater and clearwater rivers has not been reported in other apteronotid species.
Keywords: Pisces, Neotropics, Peru, Brazil, diversity, Blackwater, taxonomy
Melanosternarchus, new genus
Type species. Melanosternarchus amaru, new species,
by monotypy and original designation.
Etymology. Melano from the Greek melas, meaning black in reference to dark pigmentation and presence in blackwater rivers, and sternarchus, a name commonly used in apteronotid taxonomy, from the Greek sternon (chest) and archos (rectum), referring to the anterior position of the anus.
Melanosternarchus amaru, new species
Etymology. The species name is from the Quechuan amaru, a mythical serpent, referring to the snakelike shape of this fish. A noun in apposition.
Maxwell J. Bernt, William G. R. Crampton, Alexander B. Orfinger and James S. Albert. 2018. Melanosternarchus amaru, A New Genus and Species of Electric Ghost Knifefish (Gymnotiformes: Apteronotidae) from the Amazon Basin. Zootaxa. 4378(4); 451–479. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4378.4.1
ResearchGate.net/publication/323120879_Melanosternarchus_amaru_a_new_genus_and_species_of_electric_ghost_knifefish_from_the_Amazon_Basin
twitter.com/MJBernt/status/962898598013923329
facebook.com/AlexOrfinger/posts/10156093177785419
==========================
'Unique' fish evolving despite thousands of generations of clones, say scientists
Named the Amazon molly after the mythological warrior women, the fish species has confounded established theories of evolution.
Image:The Amazon molly is an entirely female species of fish. Pic: Manfred Schartl
The Amazon molly is the only animal with a spine that is capable of reproducing without having sex and its existence has baffled scientists.
"According to established theories, this species should no longer exist. It should have long become extinct during the course of evolution," said Dr Manfred Schartl of the University of Wurzburg in Germany.
Dr Schartl led a study which sequenced the Amazon molly's genome and is published in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution.
He said the fish appeared to be thriving.
Normally, harmful changes occur in a creature's genome which would destroy such a species.
Dr Schartl explained: "In creatures whose offspring are pure clones, these defects would accumulate over generations until there are no more healthy individuals."
Species that are direct clones are also not expected to evolve because new generations do not get to build upon the successful genetic material of previous generations.
"These species are usually not capable of adapting to environmental changes as quickly as their sexually producing counterparts," said Dr Schartl.
But after sequencing its genome, the researchers found that the Amazon molly was different.
"We found little evidence of genetic degeneration in the Amazon molly, but rather a unique genetic variability and clear signs of an ongoing evolutionary process," he said.
According to the research, the Amazon molly evolved approximately 100,000 years ago - and with a new generation born every three to four months, there have been approximately 500,000 identical molly species.
Although its name suggests a southern American habitat, the fish is actually native to the fresh waters in the border region of Texas and Mexico.
It gained its name as a reference to the Amazon warriors of Greek mythology.
Its offspring are all female, and all identical clones of the mother - a process known as gynogenesis.
Found on Sky news site -- the original picture is not formosa as it shows a male!
==========================
Named the Amazon molly after the mythological warrior women, the fish species has confounded established theories of evolution.
Image:The Amazon molly is an entirely female species of fish. Pic: Manfred Schartl
- The photo on the Sky site is not Poecilia formosa as the lower fish is MALE! The second ¬photo is a P. formosa
The Amazon molly is the only animal with a spine that is capable of reproducing without having sex and its existence has baffled scientists.
"According to established theories, this species should no longer exist. It should have long become extinct during the course of evolution," said Dr Manfred Schartl of the University of Wurzburg in Germany.
Dr Schartl led a study which sequenced the Amazon molly's genome and is published in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution.
He said the fish appeared to be thriving.
Normally, harmful changes occur in a creature's genome which would destroy such a species.
Dr Schartl explained: "In creatures whose offspring are pure clones, these defects would accumulate over generations until there are no more healthy individuals."
Species that are direct clones are also not expected to evolve because new generations do not get to build upon the successful genetic material of previous generations.
"These species are usually not capable of adapting to environmental changes as quickly as their sexually producing counterparts," said Dr Schartl.
But after sequencing its genome, the researchers found that the Amazon molly was different.
"We found little evidence of genetic degeneration in the Amazon molly, but rather a unique genetic variability and clear signs of an ongoing evolutionary process," he said.
According to the research, the Amazon molly evolved approximately 100,000 years ago - and with a new generation born every three to four months, there have been approximately 500,000 identical molly species.
Although its name suggests a southern American habitat, the fish is actually native to the fresh waters in the border region of Texas and Mexico.
It gained its name as a reference to the Amazon warriors of Greek mythology.
Its offspring are all female, and all identical clones of the mother - a process known as gynogenesis.
Found on Sky news site -- the original picture is not formosa as it shows a male!
==========================
New Perspective on Lanternfish Relationships and Classification using Genomic and Morphological Data
Martin, Olson, Girard, Smith & Davis, 2018.
DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2017.12.029
twitter.com/Lampichthys
Highlights
• This is the first phylogenetic study to integrate morphological and molecular data to specifically address the relationships within Myctophiformes.
• This study presents the first hypotheses of evolutionary relationships of lanternfishes that includes a phylogenomic dataset.
• A revised classification of lanternfishes is presented that includes five subfamilies within the family Myctophidae.
• The Diaphinae are recovered as the sister group to the Myctophinae.
Abstract
Massive parallel sequencing allows scientists to gather DNA sequences composed of millions of base pairs that can be combined into large datasets and analyzed to infer organismal relationships at a genome-wide scale in non-model organisms. Although the use of these large datasets is becoming more widespread, little to no work has been done in estimating phylogenetic relationships using UCEs in deep-sea fishes. Among deep-sea animals, the 257 species of lanternfishes (Myctophiformes) are among the most important open-ocean lineages, representing half of all mesopelagic vertebrate biomass. With this relative abundance, they are key members of the midwater food web where they feed on smaller invertebrates and fishes in addition to being a primary prey item for other open-ocean animals. Understanding the evolution and relationships of midwater organisms generally, and this dominant group of fishes in particular, is necessary for understanding and preserving the underexplored deep-sea ecosystem. Despite substantial congruence in the evolutionary relationships among deep-sea lanternfishes at higher classification levels in previous studies, the relationships among tribes, genera, and species within Myctophidae often conflict across phylogenetic studies or lack resolution and support. Herein we provide the first genome-scale phylogenetic analysis of lanternfishes, and we integrate these data from across the nuclear genome with additional protein-coding gene sequences and morphological data to further test evolutionary relationships among lanternfishes. Our phylogenetic hypotheses of relationships among lanternfishes are entirely congruent across a diversity of analyses that vary in methods, taxonomic sampling, and data analyzed. Within the Myctophiformes, the Neoscopelidae is inferred to be monophyletic and sister to a monophyletic Myctophidae. The current classification of lanternfishes is incongruent with our phylogenetic tree, so we recommend revisions that retain much of the traditional tribal structure and recognize five subfamilies instead of the traditional two subfamilies. The revised monophyletic taxonomy of myctophids includes the elevation of three former lampanyctine tribes to subfamilies. A restricted Lampanyctinae was recovered sister to Notolychninae. These two clades together were recovered as the sister group to the Gymnoscopelinae. Combined, these three subfamilies were recovered as the sister group to a clade composed of a monophyletic Diaphinae sister to the traditional Myctophinae. Our results corroborate recent multilocus molecular studies that infer a polyphyletic Myctophum in Myctophinae, and a para- or polyphyletic Lampanyctus and Nannobrachium within Lampanyctinae. We resurrect Dasyscopelus and Ctenoscopelus for the independent clades traditionally classified as species of Myctophum, and we place Nannobrachium into the synonymy of Lampanyctus.
Keywords: Phylogenomic, Evolution, Deep Sea, Taxonomy, Classification
Rene P. Martin, Emily E. Olson, Matthew G. Girard, Wm. Leo Smith and Matthew P. Davis. 2018. Light in the Darkness: New Perspective on Lanternfish Relationships and Classification using Genomic and Morphological Data. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 121; 71-85. DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2017.12.029
twitter.com/Lampichthys/status/959812633309450242
Martin, Olson, Girard, Smith & Davis, 2018.
DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2017.12.029
twitter.com/Lampichthys
Highlights
• This is the first phylogenetic study to integrate morphological and molecular data to specifically address the relationships within Myctophiformes.
• This study presents the first hypotheses of evolutionary relationships of lanternfishes that includes a phylogenomic dataset.
• A revised classification of lanternfishes is presented that includes five subfamilies within the family Myctophidae.
• The Diaphinae are recovered as the sister group to the Myctophinae.
Abstract
Massive parallel sequencing allows scientists to gather DNA sequences composed of millions of base pairs that can be combined into large datasets and analyzed to infer organismal relationships at a genome-wide scale in non-model organisms. Although the use of these large datasets is becoming more widespread, little to no work has been done in estimating phylogenetic relationships using UCEs in deep-sea fishes. Among deep-sea animals, the 257 species of lanternfishes (Myctophiformes) are among the most important open-ocean lineages, representing half of all mesopelagic vertebrate biomass. With this relative abundance, they are key members of the midwater food web where they feed on smaller invertebrates and fishes in addition to being a primary prey item for other open-ocean animals. Understanding the evolution and relationships of midwater organisms generally, and this dominant group of fishes in particular, is necessary for understanding and preserving the underexplored deep-sea ecosystem. Despite substantial congruence in the evolutionary relationships among deep-sea lanternfishes at higher classification levels in previous studies, the relationships among tribes, genera, and species within Myctophidae often conflict across phylogenetic studies or lack resolution and support. Herein we provide the first genome-scale phylogenetic analysis of lanternfishes, and we integrate these data from across the nuclear genome with additional protein-coding gene sequences and morphological data to further test evolutionary relationships among lanternfishes. Our phylogenetic hypotheses of relationships among lanternfishes are entirely congruent across a diversity of analyses that vary in methods, taxonomic sampling, and data analyzed. Within the Myctophiformes, the Neoscopelidae is inferred to be monophyletic and sister to a monophyletic Myctophidae. The current classification of lanternfishes is incongruent with our phylogenetic tree, so we recommend revisions that retain much of the traditional tribal structure and recognize five subfamilies instead of the traditional two subfamilies. The revised monophyletic taxonomy of myctophids includes the elevation of three former lampanyctine tribes to subfamilies. A restricted Lampanyctinae was recovered sister to Notolychninae. These two clades together were recovered as the sister group to the Gymnoscopelinae. Combined, these three subfamilies were recovered as the sister group to a clade composed of a monophyletic Diaphinae sister to the traditional Myctophinae. Our results corroborate recent multilocus molecular studies that infer a polyphyletic Myctophum in Myctophinae, and a para- or polyphyletic Lampanyctus and Nannobrachium within Lampanyctinae. We resurrect Dasyscopelus and Ctenoscopelus for the independent clades traditionally classified as species of Myctophum, and we place Nannobrachium into the synonymy of Lampanyctus.
Keywords: Phylogenomic, Evolution, Deep Sea, Taxonomy, Classification
Rene P. Martin, Emily E. Olson, Matthew G. Girard, Wm. Leo Smith and Matthew P. Davis. 2018. Light in the Darkness: New Perspective on Lanternfish Relationships and Classification using Genomic and Morphological Data. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 121; 71-85. DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2017.12.029
twitter.com/Lampichthys/status/959812633309450242
Thousands of farm fish escape into loch
A hole in a new net was found on Thursday afternoon during routine weekly checks.
Farming director for Dawnfresh Alison Hutchins said it was the site team at the Braevallich farm who found the hole along the seam in a net only installed in November 2017.
‘The team immediately fixed the problem and notified Marine Scotland, before inspecting all of the other nets on the farm, finding no further problems. Using specialised equipment to count the fish in the net, regrettably we estimate that 5,400 fish have escaped into the loch. These fish are all bred as Triploid’s so are sterile and, thus, unable to breed. The local fisheries board has also been alerted,’ she said.
Ms Hutchins added: ‘We would usually expect a net such as this to last between five and seven years so, as this one was only installed in November 2017, the manufacturers have already been onsite to remove the net to determine if it might have had a fault of some kind, as other likely causes such as predators are highly unlikely at this site.’
from The Oban Times
==========================
A hole in a new net was found on Thursday afternoon during routine weekly checks.
Farming director for Dawnfresh Alison Hutchins said it was the site team at the Braevallich farm who found the hole along the seam in a net only installed in November 2017.
‘The team immediately fixed the problem and notified Marine Scotland, before inspecting all of the other nets on the farm, finding no further problems. Using specialised equipment to count the fish in the net, regrettably we estimate that 5,400 fish have escaped into the loch. These fish are all bred as Triploid’s so are sterile and, thus, unable to breed. The local fisheries board has also been alerted,’ she said.
Ms Hutchins added: ‘We would usually expect a net such as this to last between five and seven years so, as this one was only installed in November 2017, the manufacturers have already been onsite to remove the net to determine if it might have had a fault of some kind, as other likely causes such as predators are highly unlikely at this site.’
from The Oban Times
==========================
Microphilypnus hypolyrasimeion • A New Species of Miniature Fish of the Genus Microphilypnus Myers, 1927 (Gobioidei: Eleotridae) from the Upper Rio Negro Basin, Amazonas, Brazil
Microphilypnus hypolyrasimeion
Caires & Toledo-Piza, 2018
DOI: 10.1643/CI-17-634 twitter.com/ASIHCopeia
A new species of the eleotrid genus Microphilypus from the Upper Rio Negro basin is described herein. It differs from all congeners in the presence of 5–6 arched rows of melanophores on the abdominal region, posterior to the base of the pelvic fins, followed by six large irregularly oval black blotches, with the tips of the three posteriormost blotches visible in lateral view; a dark teardrop-shaped blotch on the caudal peduncle, extending to the base of the ventral caudal rays; five light brown blotches along the dorsal profile of the body, between the origin of the second dorsal fin and the caudal peduncle; and the poorly developed laterosensory system on the head, with horizontal rows of head papillae b and d absent. A key to the species of Microphilypnus is presented.
Rodrigo A. Caires and Mônica Toledo-Piza. 2018. A New Species of Miniature Fish of the Genus Microphilypnus Myers, 1927 (Gobioidei: Eleotridae) from the Upper Rio Negro Basin, Amazonas, Brazil. Copeia. 106(1); 49-55. DOI: 10.1643/CI-17-634
twitter.com/ASIHCopeia/status/962034114386739200
==========================
Microphilypnus hypolyrasimeion
Caires & Toledo-Piza, 2018
DOI: 10.1643/CI-17-634 twitter.com/ASIHCopeia
A new species of the eleotrid genus Microphilypus from the Upper Rio Negro basin is described herein. It differs from all congeners in the presence of 5–6 arched rows of melanophores on the abdominal region, posterior to the base of the pelvic fins, followed by six large irregularly oval black blotches, with the tips of the three posteriormost blotches visible in lateral view; a dark teardrop-shaped blotch on the caudal peduncle, extending to the base of the ventral caudal rays; five light brown blotches along the dorsal profile of the body, between the origin of the second dorsal fin and the caudal peduncle; and the poorly developed laterosensory system on the head, with horizontal rows of head papillae b and d absent. A key to the species of Microphilypnus is presented.
Rodrigo A. Caires and Mônica Toledo-Piza. 2018. A New Species of Miniature Fish of the Genus Microphilypnus Myers, 1927 (Gobioidei: Eleotridae) from the Upper Rio Negro Basin, Amazonas, Brazil. Copeia. 106(1); 49-55. DOI: 10.1643/CI-17-634
twitter.com/ASIHCopeia/status/962034114386739200
==========================
Oceanic plastic trash conveys disease to coral reefs
Source:
Cornell University
Summary:
For coral reefs, the threat of climate change and bleaching are bad enough. An international research group has now found that plastic trash -- ubiquitous throughout the world's oceans -- intensifies disease for coral, adding to reef peril.
FULL STORY
Plastic pollution carries diseases to coral reefs.
Credit: © whitcomberd / FotoliaFor coral reefs, the threat of climate change and bleaching are bad enough. An international research group led by Cornell University has found that plastic trash -- ubiquitous throughout the world's oceans -- intensifies disease for coral, adding to reef peril, according to a new study in the journal Science.
"Plastic debris acts like a marine motorhome for microbes," said the study's lead author, Joleah Lamb, a postdoctoral research fellow at Cornell. She began collecting this data as a doctoral candidate at James Cook University in Australia.
"Plastics make ideal vessels for colonizing microscopic organisms that could trigger disease if they come into contact with corals," Lamb said. "Plastic items -- commonly made of polypropylene, such as bottle caps and toothbrushes -- have been shown to become heavily inhabited by bacteria. This is associated with the globally devastating group of coral diseases known as white syndromes."
When plastic debris meets coral, the authors say, the likelihood of disease increases from 4 to 89 percent -- a 20-fold change. The scientists estimate that about 11.1 billion plastic items are entangled on reefs across the Asia-Pacific region, and that this will likely increase 40 percent over the next seven years.
Coral are tiny animals with living tissue that cling to and build upon one another to form "apartments," or reefs. Bacterial pathogens ride aboard the plastics, disturbing delicate coral tissues and their microbiome.
"What's troubling about coral disease is that once the coral tissue loss occurs, it's not coming back," said Lamb. "It's like getting gangrene on your foot and there is nothing you can do to stop it from affecting your whole body."
Lamb and colleagues surveyed 159 coral reefs from Indonesia, Australia, Myanmar and Thailand, visually examining nearly 125,000 reef-building corals for tissue loss and disease lesions. The number of plastic items varied widely, from 0.4 items per 100 square meters (about the size of a two-bedroom Manhattan flat), in Australia, to 25.6 items per 100 square meters in Indonesia. This is significant given that 4.8 to 12.7 million metric tons of plastic waste are estimated to enter the ocean in a single year, Lamb said.
The scientists forecast that by 2025, plastic going into the marine environment will increase to roughly 15.7 billion plastic items on coral reefs, which could lead to skeletal eroding band disease, white syndromes and black band disease.
"Our work shows that plastic pollution is killing corals. Our goal is to focus less on measuring things dying and more on finding solutions," said senior author Drew Harvell, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology. "While we can't stop the huge impact of global warming on coral health in the short term, this new work should drive policy toward reducing plastic pollution."
Coral reefs are productive habitats in the middle of nutrient-poor waters, Harvell said. Thanks to the symbiotic relationship between corals and their solar-powered algae, "this miracle of construction creates the foundation for the greatest biodiversity in our oceans," she said. "Corals are creating a habitat for other species, and reefs are critical to fisheries."
Said Lamb: "This study demonstrates that reductions in the amount of plastic waste entering the ocean will have direct benefits to coral reefs by reducing disease-associated mortality."
Story Source:
Materials provided by Cornell University. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
Journal Reference:
Cornell University. "A 'marine motorhome for microbes': Oceanic plastic trash conveys disease to coral reefs." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 25 January 2018. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/01/180125140848.htm>.
==========================
Source:
Cornell University
Summary:
For coral reefs, the threat of climate change and bleaching are bad enough. An international research group has now found that plastic trash -- ubiquitous throughout the world's oceans -- intensifies disease for coral, adding to reef peril.
FULL STORY
Plastic pollution carries diseases to coral reefs.
Credit: © whitcomberd / FotoliaFor coral reefs, the threat of climate change and bleaching are bad enough. An international research group led by Cornell University has found that plastic trash -- ubiquitous throughout the world's oceans -- intensifies disease for coral, adding to reef peril, according to a new study in the journal Science.
"Plastic debris acts like a marine motorhome for microbes," said the study's lead author, Joleah Lamb, a postdoctoral research fellow at Cornell. She began collecting this data as a doctoral candidate at James Cook University in Australia.
"Plastics make ideal vessels for colonizing microscopic organisms that could trigger disease if they come into contact with corals," Lamb said. "Plastic items -- commonly made of polypropylene, such as bottle caps and toothbrushes -- have been shown to become heavily inhabited by bacteria. This is associated with the globally devastating group of coral diseases known as white syndromes."
When plastic debris meets coral, the authors say, the likelihood of disease increases from 4 to 89 percent -- a 20-fold change. The scientists estimate that about 11.1 billion plastic items are entangled on reefs across the Asia-Pacific region, and that this will likely increase 40 percent over the next seven years.
Coral are tiny animals with living tissue that cling to and build upon one another to form "apartments," or reefs. Bacterial pathogens ride aboard the plastics, disturbing delicate coral tissues and their microbiome.
"What's troubling about coral disease is that once the coral tissue loss occurs, it's not coming back," said Lamb. "It's like getting gangrene on your foot and there is nothing you can do to stop it from affecting your whole body."
Lamb and colleagues surveyed 159 coral reefs from Indonesia, Australia, Myanmar and Thailand, visually examining nearly 125,000 reef-building corals for tissue loss and disease lesions. The number of plastic items varied widely, from 0.4 items per 100 square meters (about the size of a two-bedroom Manhattan flat), in Australia, to 25.6 items per 100 square meters in Indonesia. This is significant given that 4.8 to 12.7 million metric tons of plastic waste are estimated to enter the ocean in a single year, Lamb said.
The scientists forecast that by 2025, plastic going into the marine environment will increase to roughly 15.7 billion plastic items on coral reefs, which could lead to skeletal eroding band disease, white syndromes and black band disease.
"Our work shows that plastic pollution is killing corals. Our goal is to focus less on measuring things dying and more on finding solutions," said senior author Drew Harvell, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology. "While we can't stop the huge impact of global warming on coral health in the short term, this new work should drive policy toward reducing plastic pollution."
Coral reefs are productive habitats in the middle of nutrient-poor waters, Harvell said. Thanks to the symbiotic relationship between corals and their solar-powered algae, "this miracle of construction creates the foundation for the greatest biodiversity in our oceans," she said. "Corals are creating a habitat for other species, and reefs are critical to fisheries."
Said Lamb: "This study demonstrates that reductions in the amount of plastic waste entering the ocean will have direct benefits to coral reefs by reducing disease-associated mortality."
Story Source:
Materials provided by Cornell University. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
Journal Reference:
- Joleah B. Lamb, Bette L. Willis, Evan A. Fiorenza, Courtney S. Couch, Robert Howard, Douglas N. Rader, James D. True, Lisa A. Kelly, Awaludinnoer Ahmad, Jamaluddin Jompa, C. Drew Harvell. Plastic waste associated with disease on coral reefs. Science, 2018 DOI: 10.1126/science.aar3320
Cornell University. "A 'marine motorhome for microbes': Oceanic plastic trash conveys disease to coral reefs." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 25 January 2018. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/01/180125140848.htm>.
==========================
This Deep-Sea Fish Lays Its Eggs in the Most Hellish Nursery on the Planet
The oceans are largely unexplored, but if you want to find something interesting, there’s no better place to visit than a hydrothermal vent.
Often marked by dark plumes gushing into frigid water, the vents mark spots where magma rises close to the seafloor and heats the water to temperatures that can reach over 750 degrees Fahrenheit. Warmth and nutrients from the vents provide the basis for a vibrant deep-sea community, populated by creatures that often never see the sun’s light. And, for some animals, these vents have become the ideal nursery.
Into the DarkResearchers from the Charles Darwin Research Station in the Galapagos ventured to a deep-sea vent field just north of the islands with an ROV. There, a mile beneath the waves, they found a jumble of yellow casings, which looked something like pillows with little antennae, scattered about the seafloor. Though they’ve been called “mermaid’s purses” for their appearance, what the researchers had actually found was eggs — over 150 of them — from the Pacific white skate, a relative of sharks that looks something like a stingray. This particular species is known to mostly inhabit the deep oceans, and sightings are consequently rare.
A different species of skate, Raja undulata. (Credit: Vladimir Wrangel/Shutterstock)
Though the researchers didn’t find any of the skates nearby, the huge cluster of eggs betrayed their presence. In research published Thursday in Nature Scientific Reports, they theorize that the skates are using the vents like incubators to warm their eggs and speed up hatching times. Cold temperatures slow the processes of life down — animals in cold places seem to live longer as a result — and temperatures in the deep ocean verge on freezing.
The result is eggs that take an abnormally long time to hatch. Another closely related species of skate lays eggs that don’t hatch for over three years, and because the water here is colder, the researchers think that Pacific white skate eggs might take even longer to hatch — more than four years total.
Staying WarmPlacing their eggs near hydrothermal vents, where the water is warmer, though not by much, could accelerate the development process and cut down on the time the eggs must sit unattended. Because skates don’t brood their eggs, the unhatched offspring are vulnerable to predators or misfortune, so the less time they sit around for, the better.
Egg casings whose inhabitants had already hatched were littered around the site as well, indicating that skates had been coming to this site to deposit their eggs for at least several years. Most of the eggs were located near to the vents, where the water is warmest, adding weight to the researchers’ theory that the placement was intentional. When we say “warm,” though, it’s pretty relative. The ambient water temperature at the site was about 37 degrees and the water by the vents was only a few degrees warmer.
It’s the first time such behavior has been reported in the ocean, although it’s been documented before on land. Megapode birds on the island of Tonga in Polynesia dig their eggs into geothermally-warmed soils, and a species of dinosaur was thought to do something similar as well. Several other reptile and bird species are known to seek out warm soils for their eggs as well.
Hydrothermal vent sites may hold other advantages for offspring as well — such as more readily available nutrients or prey — though the researchers aren’t sure yet. They end with a note of caution regarding the skate nursery: Hydrothermal vents are often targeted by deep-sea mining companies for the minerals that accumulate there. Though the skate eggs the researchers found lie in a protected area, others might not be so lucky.
==========================
Crenicichla ploegi • A New Species of Pike-cichlid of the C. saxatilis Group (Teleostei: Cichlidae) from the Rio Juruena and upper Rio Paraguai Basins in Brazil, with An Updated Diagnosis and Biogeographical Comments on the Group
Crenicichla ploegi
Varella, Loeb, Lima & Kullander, 2018
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4377.3.3
Abstract
Crenicichla ploegi, new species, is described based on material from the Rio Juruena (Rio Papagaio, Rio do Sangue, Rio Arinos, and Rio Juruena itself) and from tributaries of the upper Rio Paraguai (upper Rio Jauru, upper Rio Cabaçal and upper Rio Sepotuba) in Mato Grosso, Brazil. Crenicichla ploegi is the twenty-third species of the C. saxatilis group. It is distinguished from all other species of the group by the presence of dark spots and vermiculations on snout, interorbital area and dorsally on head in adults vs. dark markings absent or present only in juveniles but absent in adults, and by the presence of a deep and strongly pigmented lateral band present in both juveniles and adults, occupying a depth of 4–6 horizontal scale rows vs. lateral band narrower, occupying a depth of 2–3 horizontal scale rows, and conspicuous only in juveniles and smaller specimens, faded or absent in larger specimens. Diagnostic characteristics of the C. saxatilis group proposed in previous studies were discussed to update the diagnosis of the group, and morphological comparisons among the species included in the group, with biogeographical comments, are provided. The presence of conspicuous dark markings dorsally on the head and the presence of a prominent midlateral band are hypothesized to be paedomorphic characteristics, retained from juvenile conditions in the context of the species of the C. saxatilis group.
Keywords: Pisces, biogeography, coloration, paedomorphy, species groups
FIGURE . Crenicichla ploegi, a male (left) and a female (right) photographed alive in the Rio Verde, tributary of the Rio Papagaio, Mato Grosso, Brazil. Photo by Marcelo Krause.
Distribution: Crenicichla ploegi is known both from the upper Rio Paraguai basin, and from tributaries of the upper Rio Juruena, in Mato Grosso state, Brazil.
Etymology: Crenicichla ploegi is named in honor of the Dutch ichthyologist Alex Ploeg, whose PhD thesis dealt with the taxonomic revision, biogeography and phylogeny of Crenicichla, and who published papers on systematics of the genus from 1986 to 1991, describing a total of 23 species, 18 of which still considered to be valid. Since then, he worked as interlocutor between the ornamental fish industry and other institutions worldwide.
Unfortunately, Dr. Ploeg perished with his wife and son in the Malaysia Airlines 17 (MH17) airplane attack in Ukraine on 17 July 2014.
Habitat and ecological notes: Crenicichla ploegi has been collected in a variety of aquatic habitats, but mostly in streams and mid-sized rivers. The type locality is actually an exception, being a large river pool, more than 100 meters wide. Streams and rivers inhabited by C. ploegi possess clear water, a moderate to fast water flow, and rocky bottoms, usually with well-developed riparian forest, although the species has also been collected in rivers with highly disturbed or suppressed riparian forest.
Henrique R. Varella, Marina V. Loeb, Flávio C.T. Lima and Sven O. Kullander. 2018. Crenicichla ploegi, A New Species of Pike-cichlid of the C. saxatilis Group from the Rio Juruena and upper Rio Paraguai Basins in Brazil, with An Updated Diagnosis and Biogeographical Comments on the Group (Teleostei: Cichlidae). Zootaxa. 4377(3); 361–386. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4377.3.3
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==========================
Crenicichla ploegi
Varella, Loeb, Lima & Kullander, 2018
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4377.3.3
Abstract
Crenicichla ploegi, new species, is described based on material from the Rio Juruena (Rio Papagaio, Rio do Sangue, Rio Arinos, and Rio Juruena itself) and from tributaries of the upper Rio Paraguai (upper Rio Jauru, upper Rio Cabaçal and upper Rio Sepotuba) in Mato Grosso, Brazil. Crenicichla ploegi is the twenty-third species of the C. saxatilis group. It is distinguished from all other species of the group by the presence of dark spots and vermiculations on snout, interorbital area and dorsally on head in adults vs. dark markings absent or present only in juveniles but absent in adults, and by the presence of a deep and strongly pigmented lateral band present in both juveniles and adults, occupying a depth of 4–6 horizontal scale rows vs. lateral band narrower, occupying a depth of 2–3 horizontal scale rows, and conspicuous only in juveniles and smaller specimens, faded or absent in larger specimens. Diagnostic characteristics of the C. saxatilis group proposed in previous studies were discussed to update the diagnosis of the group, and morphological comparisons among the species included in the group, with biogeographical comments, are provided. The presence of conspicuous dark markings dorsally on the head and the presence of a prominent midlateral band are hypothesized to be paedomorphic characteristics, retained from juvenile conditions in the context of the species of the C. saxatilis group.
Keywords: Pisces, biogeography, coloration, paedomorphy, species groups
FIGURE . Crenicichla ploegi, a male (left) and a female (right) photographed alive in the Rio Verde, tributary of the Rio Papagaio, Mato Grosso, Brazil. Photo by Marcelo Krause.
Distribution: Crenicichla ploegi is known both from the upper Rio Paraguai basin, and from tributaries of the upper Rio Juruena, in Mato Grosso state, Brazil.
Etymology: Crenicichla ploegi is named in honor of the Dutch ichthyologist Alex Ploeg, whose PhD thesis dealt with the taxonomic revision, biogeography and phylogeny of Crenicichla, and who published papers on systematics of the genus from 1986 to 1991, describing a total of 23 species, 18 of which still considered to be valid. Since then, he worked as interlocutor between the ornamental fish industry and other institutions worldwide.
Unfortunately, Dr. Ploeg perished with his wife and son in the Malaysia Airlines 17 (MH17) airplane attack in Ukraine on 17 July 2014.
Habitat and ecological notes: Crenicichla ploegi has been collected in a variety of aquatic habitats, but mostly in streams and mid-sized rivers. The type locality is actually an exception, being a large river pool, more than 100 meters wide. Streams and rivers inhabited by C. ploegi possess clear water, a moderate to fast water flow, and rocky bottoms, usually with well-developed riparian forest, although the species has also been collected in rivers with highly disturbed or suppressed riparian forest.
Henrique R. Varella, Marina V. Loeb, Flávio C.T. Lima and Sven O. Kullander. 2018. Crenicichla ploegi, A New Species of Pike-cichlid of the C. saxatilis Group from the Rio Juruena and upper Rio Paraguai Basins in Brazil, with An Updated Diagnosis and Biogeographical Comments on the Group (Teleostei: Cichlidae). Zootaxa. 4377(3); 361–386. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4377.3.3
facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1577559488960503
facebook.com/PecesArgentina/photos/640499162954023
==========================
Basic Description and Some Notes on the Evolution of Seven Sympatric Morphs of Dolly VardenSalvelinus malma from the Lake Kronotskoe Basin (Russia, Kamchatka)
Sympatric morphs of Lake Kronotskoe charrs.
W, white; L, longhead; N, nosed; S, smallmouth; B, bigmouth
Markevich, Esin & Anisimova, 2018.
DOI: 10.1002/ece3.3806
Abstract
The study examines the basic morphological and ecological features of Dolly Varden from Lake Kronotskoe (Russia, Kamchatka). Seven valid morphs different in head proportions, feeding, timing, and place of spawning have been determined in this ecosystem. The basic morphometric characteristics clearly separate Lake Kronotskoe morphs from each other, as well as from its potential ancestor (Dolly Varden). According to CVA analysis, the most notable morphological characteristics determining the mouth position are the length of a lower jaw and rostrum. Furthermore, five of seven morphs inhabit different depth zones of the lake and feed on different food resources. Our data suggest that reproductive isolation may be maintained by temporal/spatial isolation for two morphs with lacustrine spawning, and by spatial isolation only for the rest of the morphs with riverine spawning. The sympatric diversity of the Lake Kronotskoe charrs is exceptionally wide, and there are no other examples for seven sympatric morphs of genus Salvelinus to coexist within a single ecosystem. This study puts forward a three-step hypothetical model of charr divergence in Lake Kronotskoe as a potential ground for future studies.
KEYWORDS: “charr problem”, diversification isolation, functional morphology, spawning, trophic polymorphism
Figure 1 Sympatric morphs of Lake Kronotskoe charrs.
W, white; L, longhead; N, nosed: 1—blunt nosed, 2—sharpnosed, 3—shovelnosed; S, smallmouth; B, bigmouth
Grigorii Markevich, Evgeny Esin and Liudmila Anisimova. 2018. Basic Description and Some Notes on the Evolution of Seven Sympatric Morphs of Dolly Varden Salvelinus malma from the Lake Kronotskoe Basin. Ecology and Evolution. DOI: 10.1002/ece3.3806
==========================
Sympatric morphs of Lake Kronotskoe charrs.
W, white; L, longhead; N, nosed; S, smallmouth; B, bigmouth
Markevich, Esin & Anisimova, 2018.
DOI: 10.1002/ece3.3806
Abstract
The study examines the basic morphological and ecological features of Dolly Varden from Lake Kronotskoe (Russia, Kamchatka). Seven valid morphs different in head proportions, feeding, timing, and place of spawning have been determined in this ecosystem. The basic morphometric characteristics clearly separate Lake Kronotskoe morphs from each other, as well as from its potential ancestor (Dolly Varden). According to CVA analysis, the most notable morphological characteristics determining the mouth position are the length of a lower jaw and rostrum. Furthermore, five of seven morphs inhabit different depth zones of the lake and feed on different food resources. Our data suggest that reproductive isolation may be maintained by temporal/spatial isolation for two morphs with lacustrine spawning, and by spatial isolation only for the rest of the morphs with riverine spawning. The sympatric diversity of the Lake Kronotskoe charrs is exceptionally wide, and there are no other examples for seven sympatric morphs of genus Salvelinus to coexist within a single ecosystem. This study puts forward a three-step hypothetical model of charr divergence in Lake Kronotskoe as a potential ground for future studies.
KEYWORDS: “charr problem”, diversification isolation, functional morphology, spawning, trophic polymorphism
Figure 1 Sympatric morphs of Lake Kronotskoe charrs.
W, white; L, longhead; N, nosed: 1—blunt nosed, 2—sharpnosed, 3—shovelnosed; S, smallmouth; B, bigmouth
Grigorii Markevich, Evgeny Esin and Liudmila Anisimova. 2018. Basic Description and Some Notes on the Evolution of Seven Sympatric Morphs of Dolly Varden Salvelinus malma from the Lake Kronotskoe Basin. Ecology and Evolution. DOI: 10.1002/ece3.3806
==========================
Seaside Aquarium puzzled by mystery fish
By: KOIN 6 News Staff
The Seaside Aquarium is trying to identify this mystery fish after the eggs hatched a few days ago. (Tiffany Boothe/Seaside Aquarium)
SEASIDE, Ore. (KOIN) -- Can you identify this mystery fish?
Seaside Aquarium posted to its Facebook page Monday saying they found these fish eggs in January after some kelp holdfasts washed ashore after a big storm.
According to the post, they could already see "little eyes peering out" from inside the eggs, so they placed them in a brooding basket to see if they would hatch.
A few days ago, the mystery fish started to hatch.
The aquarium thought that once the fish hatched, they would be able to identify the species. However, they're still puzzled as to what this fish could be.
According to the post, the aquarium hopes they'll have better luck identifying the fish once they get a little bit bigger.
In the meantime, head to KOIN's Facebook page to let us know what type of fish you think it is.
==========================
By: KOIN 6 News Staff
The Seaside Aquarium is trying to identify this mystery fish after the eggs hatched a few days ago. (Tiffany Boothe/Seaside Aquarium)
SEASIDE, Ore. (KOIN) -- Can you identify this mystery fish?
Seaside Aquarium posted to its Facebook page Monday saying they found these fish eggs in January after some kelp holdfasts washed ashore after a big storm.
According to the post, they could already see "little eyes peering out" from inside the eggs, so they placed them in a brooding basket to see if they would hatch.
A few days ago, the mystery fish started to hatch.
The aquarium thought that once the fish hatched, they would be able to identify the species. However, they're still puzzled as to what this fish could be.
According to the post, the aquarium hopes they'll have better luck identifying the fish once they get a little bit bigger.
In the meantime, head to KOIN's Facebook page to let us know what type of fish you think it is.
==========================
Opsarius kanaensis• A New Species of Bariliine Fish(Cypriniformes: Cyprinidae) from Manipur, Northeastern India
Opsarius kanaensis Arunkumar & Moyon, 2017
Species. 18(61)
ABSTRACT
Opsarius kanaensis is a new species from cyprinid fishes, Manipur. The new species is differentiated with other cyprinid fishes through the combination of morphological characters: 1 pair of short maxillary barbel, no mandibular knob, length of the origin of dorsal fin to the upper end of caudal fin lobe is longer than the distance between the origin of dorsal fin to the anterior margin of nares, 8-10 blue black lateral bands, a round blue black spot at the anterior base of caudal fin which is overlap by the last vertical band, a mid-transverse band of black colour in the dorsal fin, distinct red colouration of anal fin, depth of caudal peduncle 9.2-9.9% SL; eye diameter 6.3-8.5% SL; post dorsal length 72.1-78.5% SL; head length 18.7-24.2% SL; head depth at occiput 17.2-21.2% SL; and at eye 64.6-70.0% HL; snout length 30.8-37.2% HL; interorbital width 32.2-35.8% HL and width of head at neck 42.6-48.5% HL. A key to the species Opsarius from the Chindwin basin of Manipur is provided.
Key words: Opsarius kanaensis, North eastern India, New species.
Opsarius kanaensis new species
Diagnosis Opsarius kanaensis, a new species of bariliine cyprinid fish is described from the Yu River basin of Manipur, north eastern India. The new species can be differentiated from its congeners occurring in the Chindwin basin of Manipur in having the following combination of characters:1pair of short rudimentary maxillary barbel, no mandibular knob, length of the origin of dorsal fin to the upper end of caudal fin lobe is longer than the distance between the origin of dorsal fin to the anterior margin of nares, 8-10 blue black lateral bands, a round blue black spot at the anterior base of caudal fin which is overlap by the last vertical band, a midtransverse band of black colour in the dorsal fin, distinct red colouration of anal fin, depth of caudal peduncle 9.2-9.9% SL; eye diameter 6.3-8.5% SL; post dorsal length 72.1-78.5% SL; head length 18.7-24.2% SL; head depth at occiput 17.2-21.2% SL; and at eye 64.6-70.0% HL; snout length 30.8-37.2% HL; interorbital width 32.2-35.8% HL and width of head at neck 42.6-48.5% HL.
Habitat Opsarius kanaensis is found in fast-flowing stream and river with clear water, gravel or cobble bottoms . The new species O. kanaensisis accompanied with Schistura manipurensis, Pethia meingangbii; Glyptothorax granulus; Channa marulius; Rasbora ornatus; Devario aequipinnatus; Acanthocobitis zonalternans; Botia histronica etc.
Distribution Opsarius kanaensisis at present is known only from the Kana River, a tributary headwater of the Yu River basin of Manipur (Figure 5).
Etymology The species Opsarius kanaensis is named after the Kana River of Sajik-Tampak, located at Chakpikarong of Chandel District, Manipur.
Arunkumar L. and Wanglar Alphonsa Moyon. 2017. Opsarius kanaensis A New Species of Bariliine Fish (Cypriniformes: Cyprinidae) from Manipur, Northeastern India. Species. 18(61); 160-169.
http://www.discoveryjournals.org/Species/current_issue/2017/A14.pdf
==========================
Opsarius kanaensis Arunkumar & Moyon, 2017
Species. 18(61)
ABSTRACT
Opsarius kanaensis is a new species from cyprinid fishes, Manipur. The new species is differentiated with other cyprinid fishes through the combination of morphological characters: 1 pair of short maxillary barbel, no mandibular knob, length of the origin of dorsal fin to the upper end of caudal fin lobe is longer than the distance between the origin of dorsal fin to the anterior margin of nares, 8-10 blue black lateral bands, a round blue black spot at the anterior base of caudal fin which is overlap by the last vertical band, a mid-transverse band of black colour in the dorsal fin, distinct red colouration of anal fin, depth of caudal peduncle 9.2-9.9% SL; eye diameter 6.3-8.5% SL; post dorsal length 72.1-78.5% SL; head length 18.7-24.2% SL; head depth at occiput 17.2-21.2% SL; and at eye 64.6-70.0% HL; snout length 30.8-37.2% HL; interorbital width 32.2-35.8% HL and width of head at neck 42.6-48.5% HL. A key to the species Opsarius from the Chindwin basin of Manipur is provided.
Key words: Opsarius kanaensis, North eastern India, New species.
Opsarius kanaensis new species
Diagnosis Opsarius kanaensis, a new species of bariliine cyprinid fish is described from the Yu River basin of Manipur, north eastern India. The new species can be differentiated from its congeners occurring in the Chindwin basin of Manipur in having the following combination of characters:1pair of short rudimentary maxillary barbel, no mandibular knob, length of the origin of dorsal fin to the upper end of caudal fin lobe is longer than the distance between the origin of dorsal fin to the anterior margin of nares, 8-10 blue black lateral bands, a round blue black spot at the anterior base of caudal fin which is overlap by the last vertical band, a midtransverse band of black colour in the dorsal fin, distinct red colouration of anal fin, depth of caudal peduncle 9.2-9.9% SL; eye diameter 6.3-8.5% SL; post dorsal length 72.1-78.5% SL; head length 18.7-24.2% SL; head depth at occiput 17.2-21.2% SL; and at eye 64.6-70.0% HL; snout length 30.8-37.2% HL; interorbital width 32.2-35.8% HL and width of head at neck 42.6-48.5% HL.
Habitat Opsarius kanaensis is found in fast-flowing stream and river with clear water, gravel or cobble bottoms . The new species O. kanaensisis accompanied with Schistura manipurensis, Pethia meingangbii; Glyptothorax granulus; Channa marulius; Rasbora ornatus; Devario aequipinnatus; Acanthocobitis zonalternans; Botia histronica etc.
Distribution Opsarius kanaensisis at present is known only from the Kana River, a tributary headwater of the Yu River basin of Manipur (Figure 5).
Etymology The species Opsarius kanaensis is named after the Kana River of Sajik-Tampak, located at Chakpikarong of Chandel District, Manipur.
Arunkumar L. and Wanglar Alphonsa Moyon. 2017. Opsarius kanaensis A New Species of Bariliine Fish (Cypriniformes: Cyprinidae) from Manipur, Northeastern India. Species. 18(61); 160-169.
http://www.discoveryjournals.org/Species/current_issue/2017/A14.pdf
==========================
Declining Amazon fish
The connection comes down to food. Leandro Castello, assistant professor of fisheries at Virginia Tech, says: ‘Floodplain forests are the principal sources of food [for fish] via provision of detritus, tree leaves, fruits and insects.’ Indeed, for the economically important tambaqui fish (pictured above), which can fetch top prices in fish markets, fruits and seeds constitute the major food source during high waters when the species can enter new territories to feed and spawn. Deforestation, it seems, removes not only these food sources, but also the habitats that protect fish and their offspring from predators. ‘It shows that tropical deforestation is not just an issue that affects climate change or terrestrial biodiversity,’ says Castello.
The research analysed floodplains over a 400-square mile area of the Amazon and 12 years of regional fishery data. This was combined with land cover maps from satellite images showing the amount of woody habitat in the floodplains. The two sets of data showed the connections between the amount of fish in the Amazon’s lakes with the amount of forest around each of them. Castello’s team found that deforested areas matched with local fisheries producing much lower yields than those with larger forest areas surrounding them.
If fish do depend on forests, the link is bad news for fisheries all over the tropics. According to the report, these areas are not only some of the most productive food sources, but often sustain livelihoods of the poorest human populations. Compared to uplands, however, there are fewer protections in place for floodplains. Many are at risk of alteration. In the area studied, 56 per cent of the forests have already been cleared to make way for cattle ranches and plantations in recent years.
‘More strict legislation is necessary to protect floodplain forests from clearing to do ranching or agriculture,’ says Castello. ‘Even if cattle ranching provides more cash in the short-term, it is unlikely that such benefits will be greater than the overall food, income, and livelihood security that come from fisheries in the long-run.’
from Geographical Magazine
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Gymnochanda ploegi
Gymnochanda ploegi • A New Species of Ambassid Glassperch from West Kalimantan, Indonesia
Gymnochanda ploegi Tan & Lim, 2014
RAFFLES BULLETIN OF ZOOLOGY. 62.
Abstract
A spectacularly coloured sexually dimorphic freshwater glassfish allied to Gymnochanda verae is described herein. It shares with its other congeners a body without scales, but differing from its congeners with males having a maroon-red first dorsal fin, expanded maroon-red anal and second dorsal fins with black distal portions, without any individual fin ray elongations free from the interradial fin membranes; head with reddish opercle cover. A key to the genus Gymnochanda is also provided.
Key words. Taxonomy, new species, Gymnochanda, sexual dimorphism, Southeast Asia
Species of Gymnochanda
Gymnochanda limi Kottelat, 1995
Gymnochanda filamentosa Fraser-Brunner, 1955
Gymnochanda flamea Roberts, 1994
Gymnochanda verae Tan & Lim, 2011
Gymnochanda ploegi, new species
Fig. Gymnochanda ploegi: A, MZB 17220, 25.9 mm SL male holotype (note: anal fin is damaged); B, MZB 17221, 26.0 mm SL female paratype.
Gymnochanda ploegi, new species
Gymnochanda cf. flamea – Kottelat & Widjarnati, 2005: 164.
Diagnosis. Gymnochanda ploegi can be differentiated from its congeners by the following characters: mature males with pinkish body with the dorsal half suffused with reddish pigments, expanded anal and second dorsal fins, the soft rays of both fins expanded to reach 2 /3 of caudal fin forming a crescentic profile, without any individual fin ray free from the interradial fin membrane; anterior part to whole of both anal and second dorsal fins maroon red in life, with posterior portion of distal rays black forming a crescentic pattern (hyaline when preserved); whole caudal fin lightly suffused with red in life (hyaline when preserved); female with yellowish body suffused with reddish pigments without any fin elongation (hyaline when preserved), both dorsal fins suffused with reddish pigments (hyaline when preserved).
Distribution. Gymnochanda ploegi is currently known from the Sanggau and Kapuas Lakes regions in West Kalimantan (Fig. 5).
Habitat notes. As its congeners, this species inhabits still water pools near swamp forest and riverine systems. Apparently, this is the first import for the ornamental fish trade (August 2014) and it took the collectors more than three hours to trek to the site (A Meng pers. comm.). In the Kapuas Lakes region, G. ploegi could be sympatric with G. filamentosa; but they were not collected in the same sample from fish traps in a swampy area with brown water (M. Kottelat pers. comm.).
Etymology. This species is named in memory of Alex Ploeg, a good friend, fellow taxonomist, advisor and fellow conservationist against alien aquatic species; for his services to the ornamental fish trade in this region and abroad in his role as the Secretary General of the Ornamental Fish International; who unfortunately perished in a terrible tragedy over Ukraine on 17 July 2014.
Fig. 5. Map of Sundaland showing distribution of Gymnochanda: round = G. filamentosa; triangle = G. flamea; square = G. limi; inverted triangle = G. verae; and diamond = G. ploegi.
Tan Heok Hui and Kelvin Lim Kok Peng. 2014. Gymnochanda ploegi, A New Species of Ambassid Glassperch from West Kalimantan, Indonesia. RAFFLES BULLETIN OF ZOOLOGY. 62; 688–695.
https://lkcnhm.nus.edu.sg/app/uploads/2017/06/62rbz688-695.pdf
ResearchGate.net/publication/266023257_Gymnochanda_ploegi_a_new_species_of_ambassid_glassperch_from_West_Kalimantan_Indonesia
==========================
Gymnochanda ploegi Tan & Lim, 2014
RAFFLES BULLETIN OF ZOOLOGY. 62.
Abstract
A spectacularly coloured sexually dimorphic freshwater glassfish allied to Gymnochanda verae is described herein. It shares with its other congeners a body without scales, but differing from its congeners with males having a maroon-red first dorsal fin, expanded maroon-red anal and second dorsal fins with black distal portions, without any individual fin ray elongations free from the interradial fin membranes; head with reddish opercle cover. A key to the genus Gymnochanda is also provided.
Key words. Taxonomy, new species, Gymnochanda, sexual dimorphism, Southeast Asia
Species of Gymnochanda
Gymnochanda limi Kottelat, 1995
Gymnochanda filamentosa Fraser-Brunner, 1955
Gymnochanda flamea Roberts, 1994
Gymnochanda verae Tan & Lim, 2011
Gymnochanda ploegi, new species
Fig. Gymnochanda ploegi: A, MZB 17220, 25.9 mm SL male holotype (note: anal fin is damaged); B, MZB 17221, 26.0 mm SL female paratype.
Gymnochanda ploegi, new species
Gymnochanda cf. flamea – Kottelat & Widjarnati, 2005: 164.
Diagnosis. Gymnochanda ploegi can be differentiated from its congeners by the following characters: mature males with pinkish body with the dorsal half suffused with reddish pigments, expanded anal and second dorsal fins, the soft rays of both fins expanded to reach 2 /3 of caudal fin forming a crescentic profile, without any individual fin ray free from the interradial fin membrane; anterior part to whole of both anal and second dorsal fins maroon red in life, with posterior portion of distal rays black forming a crescentic pattern (hyaline when preserved); whole caudal fin lightly suffused with red in life (hyaline when preserved); female with yellowish body suffused with reddish pigments without any fin elongation (hyaline when preserved), both dorsal fins suffused with reddish pigments (hyaline when preserved).
Distribution. Gymnochanda ploegi is currently known from the Sanggau and Kapuas Lakes regions in West Kalimantan (Fig. 5).
Habitat notes. As its congeners, this species inhabits still water pools near swamp forest and riverine systems. Apparently, this is the first import for the ornamental fish trade (August 2014) and it took the collectors more than three hours to trek to the site (A Meng pers. comm.). In the Kapuas Lakes region, G. ploegi could be sympatric with G. filamentosa; but they were not collected in the same sample from fish traps in a swampy area with brown water (M. Kottelat pers. comm.).
Etymology. This species is named in memory of Alex Ploeg, a good friend, fellow taxonomist, advisor and fellow conservationist against alien aquatic species; for his services to the ornamental fish trade in this region and abroad in his role as the Secretary General of the Ornamental Fish International; who unfortunately perished in a terrible tragedy over Ukraine on 17 July 2014.
Fig. 5. Map of Sundaland showing distribution of Gymnochanda: round = G. filamentosa; triangle = G. flamea; square = G. limi; inverted triangle = G. verae; and diamond = G. ploegi.
Tan Heok Hui and Kelvin Lim Kok Peng. 2014. Gymnochanda ploegi, A New Species of Ambassid Glassperch from West Kalimantan, Indonesia. RAFFLES BULLETIN OF ZOOLOGY. 62; 688–695.
https://lkcnhm.nus.edu.sg/app/uploads/2017/06/62rbz688-695.pdf
ResearchGate.net/publication/266023257_Gymnochanda_ploegi_a_new_species_of_ambassid_glassperch_from_West_Kalimantan_Indonesia
==========================
Charax awa
Charax awa • A New Species of Charax (Characiformes, Characidae) from northeastern Brazil
Charax awa
Guimarães, De Brito, Ferreira & Ottoni, 2018
DOI: 10.3897/zse.94.22106
Abstract
Charax awa sp. n. is herein described from the Rio Mearim, Rio Munim and Rio Turiaçu basins, three coastal river basins of northeastern Brazil located between the Rios Gurupi and Parnaíba basins. These have a complex and still poorly known biogeographic history. This region is ecologically extremely relevant since it comprises three of the main Brazilian biomes, as well as, transition zones between them: Amazônia, Brazilian Cerrado and Caatinga. Therefore, this area has faunal and floristic representatives of these three biomes, which makes it particularly relevant in terms of ecology, biodiversity and conservation. Charax awa sp. n. possesses a relatively small orbital diameter (22.1–28.5 % HL), what distinguishes it from most of its congeners, except from C. notulatus and C. caudimaculatus. It differs from C. caudimaculatus by a longer snout, and from C. notulatus by the number of scales around the caudal peduncle, as well as by the number of vertebrae. The new species herein described differs from its geographically closely distributed congeners, C. leticiae, C. niger, and C. pauciradiatus mainly by the relative horizontal orbital diameter. It is a “small-eyed” species. In addition, C. awa sp. n. can be distinguished from C. leticiae by having a maxilla extending to the vertical line posterior to the pupil, near the posterior orbital margin and by having a lower humeral spot distance. It can be distinguished from C. pauciradiatusby more scale rows from the pelvic-fin origin to the lateral line and more scale rows from the dorsal-fin origin to the lateral line and it differs from C. niger by having more transverse scale rows in space from the humeral spot to the supracleithrum. In addition, it differs from C. pauciradiatus and C. niger by the absence of bony hooks on anal and pelvic-fins rays of adult males.
Key Words: Characinae, Characini, freshwater, Maranhão state, Neotropical region, Rio Mearim, Rio Munim, Rio Turiaçu, taxonomy
Charax awa sp. n.
Charax gibbosus [non Charax gibbosus (Linnaeus, 1758)]: Martins and Oliveira 2011: 196-197.
Charax sp. - Martins and Oliveira 2011:196–197.
Diagnosis: Charax awa sp. n. can be distinguished from C. apurensis Lucena, 1987, C. condei (Géry & Knöppel, 1976), C. delimai Menezes & Lucena, 2014, C. gibbosus (Linnaeus, 1758), C. hemigrammus (Eigenmann, 1912), C. leticiae Lucena, 1987, C. macrolepis (Kner, 1858), C. metae Eigenmann, 1922, C. michaeli Lucena, 1989, C. niger Lucena, 1989, C. pauciradiatus (Günther, 1864), C. stenopterus (Cope, 1894) C. tectifer (Cope, 1870) by the orbital diameter (22.1–28.5% HL vs. 29.6–38.4% HL combined) (Fig. 2). Charax awa sp. n. differs from C. caudimaculatus Lucena, 1987 by the possession of a longer snout (snout length 23.3–32.8% HL vs. 20.3–22.8% HL); from C. notulatus Lucena, 1987 by the number of scales around the caudal peduncle (15–18 vs. 20–22) and by having more vertebrae (35 vs. 32). Furthermore, Charax awa sp. n. can be distinguished from C. condei, C. hemigrammusand C. stenopterus by having the lateral line complete (vs. incomplete); from C. delimai, C. metae and C. tectifer by having a toothless ectopterygoid (vs. presence of teeth on ectopterygoid) and having the anal-fin origin always anterior to the vertical through the dorsal-fin origin (vs. anal-fin origin on, or slightly posterior to the vertical through the dorsal-fin origin); from C. condei, C. delimai, C. hemigrammus, C. metae, C. pauciradiatus and C. stenopterus by the number of scale rows from the pelvic-fin origin to the lateral line (11–12 vs. 6–10 combined); from C. pauciradiatus by having more scale rows from the dorsal-fin origin to the lateral line (15–18 vs. 13–14). It can be distinguished from C. niger by having 8–10 transverse scale rows in space from the humeral spot to the supracleithrum (vs. 5–6); from C. condei, C. delimai, C. metae, C. rupununi Eigenmann, 1912 by the number of scale rows around the caudal peduncle (15–18 in C. awa sp. n. vs. 12–14 combined in C. condei and C. rupununi, 19–21 combined in C. delimai and C. metae). Finally, it differs from C. leticiaeby having the maxilla extending to a vertical line posterior to pupil, near the posterior orbital margin (vs. maxilla extending slightly beyond vertical through middle of pupil) and from humeral spot distance (35.8–38.0 % SL vs. 39.0–44.0 % SL).
Distribution: Charax awa is known from the Rio Mearim, Rio Munim and Rio Turiaçu basins, Maranhão state, northeastern Brazil.
Etymology: The specific epithet honors the term Awá, from Tupi-guarani, meaning “man, people, person”, used by the native tribe Guajá, from the Maranhão state, for their self-denomination.
Erick Cristofore Guimarães, Pâmella Silva De Brito, Beldo Rywllon Abreu Ferreira and Felipe Polivanov Ottoni. 2018. A New Species of Charax (Ostariophysi, Characiformes, Characidae) from northeastern Brazil. Zoosystematics and Evolution. 94(1): 83-93. DOI: 10.3897/zse.94.22106
==========================
Charax awa
Guimarães, De Brito, Ferreira & Ottoni, 2018
DOI: 10.3897/zse.94.22106
Abstract
Charax awa sp. n. is herein described from the Rio Mearim, Rio Munim and Rio Turiaçu basins, three coastal river basins of northeastern Brazil located between the Rios Gurupi and Parnaíba basins. These have a complex and still poorly known biogeographic history. This region is ecologically extremely relevant since it comprises three of the main Brazilian biomes, as well as, transition zones between them: Amazônia, Brazilian Cerrado and Caatinga. Therefore, this area has faunal and floristic representatives of these three biomes, which makes it particularly relevant in terms of ecology, biodiversity and conservation. Charax awa sp. n. possesses a relatively small orbital diameter (22.1–28.5 % HL), what distinguishes it from most of its congeners, except from C. notulatus and C. caudimaculatus. It differs from C. caudimaculatus by a longer snout, and from C. notulatus by the number of scales around the caudal peduncle, as well as by the number of vertebrae. The new species herein described differs from its geographically closely distributed congeners, C. leticiae, C. niger, and C. pauciradiatus mainly by the relative horizontal orbital diameter. It is a “small-eyed” species. In addition, C. awa sp. n. can be distinguished from C. leticiae by having a maxilla extending to the vertical line posterior to the pupil, near the posterior orbital margin and by having a lower humeral spot distance. It can be distinguished from C. pauciradiatusby more scale rows from the pelvic-fin origin to the lateral line and more scale rows from the dorsal-fin origin to the lateral line and it differs from C. niger by having more transverse scale rows in space from the humeral spot to the supracleithrum. In addition, it differs from C. pauciradiatus and C. niger by the absence of bony hooks on anal and pelvic-fins rays of adult males.
Key Words: Characinae, Characini, freshwater, Maranhão state, Neotropical region, Rio Mearim, Rio Munim, Rio Turiaçu, taxonomy
Charax awa sp. n.
Charax gibbosus [non Charax gibbosus (Linnaeus, 1758)]: Martins and Oliveira 2011: 196-197.
Charax sp. - Martins and Oliveira 2011:196–197.
Diagnosis: Charax awa sp. n. can be distinguished from C. apurensis Lucena, 1987, C. condei (Géry & Knöppel, 1976), C. delimai Menezes & Lucena, 2014, C. gibbosus (Linnaeus, 1758), C. hemigrammus (Eigenmann, 1912), C. leticiae Lucena, 1987, C. macrolepis (Kner, 1858), C. metae Eigenmann, 1922, C. michaeli Lucena, 1989, C. niger Lucena, 1989, C. pauciradiatus (Günther, 1864), C. stenopterus (Cope, 1894) C. tectifer (Cope, 1870) by the orbital diameter (22.1–28.5% HL vs. 29.6–38.4% HL combined) (Fig. 2). Charax awa sp. n. differs from C. caudimaculatus Lucena, 1987 by the possession of a longer snout (snout length 23.3–32.8% HL vs. 20.3–22.8% HL); from C. notulatus Lucena, 1987 by the number of scales around the caudal peduncle (15–18 vs. 20–22) and by having more vertebrae (35 vs. 32). Furthermore, Charax awa sp. n. can be distinguished from C. condei, C. hemigrammusand C. stenopterus by having the lateral line complete (vs. incomplete); from C. delimai, C. metae and C. tectifer by having a toothless ectopterygoid (vs. presence of teeth on ectopterygoid) and having the anal-fin origin always anterior to the vertical through the dorsal-fin origin (vs. anal-fin origin on, or slightly posterior to the vertical through the dorsal-fin origin); from C. condei, C. delimai, C. hemigrammus, C. metae, C. pauciradiatus and C. stenopterus by the number of scale rows from the pelvic-fin origin to the lateral line (11–12 vs. 6–10 combined); from C. pauciradiatus by having more scale rows from the dorsal-fin origin to the lateral line (15–18 vs. 13–14). It can be distinguished from C. niger by having 8–10 transverse scale rows in space from the humeral spot to the supracleithrum (vs. 5–6); from C. condei, C. delimai, C. metae, C. rupununi Eigenmann, 1912 by the number of scale rows around the caudal peduncle (15–18 in C. awa sp. n. vs. 12–14 combined in C. condei and C. rupununi, 19–21 combined in C. delimai and C. metae). Finally, it differs from C. leticiaeby having the maxilla extending to a vertical line posterior to pupil, near the posterior orbital margin (vs. maxilla extending slightly beyond vertical through middle of pupil) and from humeral spot distance (35.8–38.0 % SL vs. 39.0–44.0 % SL).
Distribution: Charax awa is known from the Rio Mearim, Rio Munim and Rio Turiaçu basins, Maranhão state, northeastern Brazil.
Etymology: The specific epithet honors the term Awá, from Tupi-guarani, meaning “man, people, person”, used by the native tribe Guajá, from the Maranhão state, for their self-denomination.
Erick Cristofore Guimarães, Pâmella Silva De Brito, Beldo Rywllon Abreu Ferreira and Felipe Polivanov Ottoni. 2018. A New Species of Charax (Ostariophysi, Characiformes, Characidae) from northeastern Brazil. Zoosystematics and Evolution. 94(1): 83-93. DOI: 10.3897/zse.94.22106
==========================
Paedocypris progenetica
WHAT IS THE SMALLEST FISH?
What is the definition of ‘smallest’? This seemingly simple question is behind a friendly rivalry that has developed between three groups of scientists.
Live individuals of Paedocypris progenetica
Photographer: H. Tan © H. Tan
Mine's smaller than yours!If the definition of the smallest species, means the shortest, then the newly described Paedocypris progenetica may take the title, at least for females. This tiny carp-relative that lives in peat swamp forests of Sumatra was described by Kottelat, Britz, Tan and Witte (see ‘Further Reading’) in a paper published in 2005. The species reaches a maximum size of 10.3 mm with females reaching maturity at 7.9 mm.
Ted Pietsch of the University of Washington, however, believes that the title of the world’s smallest fish belongs to Photocorynus spiniceps. Males of this deepsea anglerfish are parasitic on the much larger female. A 6.2 mm mature male attached to a 46 mm female was found by Pietsch in the Scripps Institution of Oceanography Fish Collection (Pietsch, 2005).
The claim of scientists from the Australian Museum, the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and the Southwest Fisheries Science Center is that the title of smallest fish rests with the Stout Floater, Schindleria brevipinguis. Females of this species, a relative of gobies, which is only known from the Great Barrier Reef, reach sexual maturity by 7 mm to 8 mm in length and males mature by 6.5 mm to 7 mm. The largest specimen known is only 8.4 mm long. Watson and Walker base their claim on the fact that the Stout Infantfish is far more slender, and thus lighter than either of the other species. It is noteworthy that all gamefishing records are based on weight not length. Most people would agree that a 4 m long elephant is a bigger animal than a 5 m long snake. The Stout Infantfish is slightly longer, but at less than one-millionth of a kilogram, is almost certainly much lighter than either P. progenetica or the male P. spiniceps and is thus the smallest species. Both males and females of the Stout Infantfish are small, unlike the anglerfish species championed by Dr Pietsch.
Clearly, which species is smallest depends upon your definition of ‘small’. In the long run, it probably matters little which species is the smallest. All three species - P. progenetica, P. spiniceps and S. brevipinguis are remarkable fishes and highlight the fact that there is still much to learn about fishes.
Further reading
- Kottelat, M., Britz, R., Tan, H.H.& K-E. Witte. 2006. Paedocypris, a new genus of Southeast Asian cyprinid fish with a remarkable sexual dimorphism, comprises the world’s smallest vertebrate. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: 1-5.
- Pietsch, T.W. 2005. Dimorphism, parasitism, and sex revisited: modes of reproduction among deep-sea ceratioid anglerfishes (Teleostei: Lophiiformes). Ichthyological Research. 52: 207-236.
- Watson, W. & H.J. Walker Jr. 2004. The world's smallest vertebrate, Schindleria brevipinguis, a new paedomorphic species in the family Schindleriidae (Perciformes: Gobioidei). Records of the Australian Museum. 56(2): 139-142.
from the Australian Museum site
==========================
How A Quake In Alaska Moved The Rarest Fish (Cyprinodon diabolis)To Spawn In Death ValleyA massive temblor off Alaska last week made literal waves as far away as Florida, as Earth enters what some geologists say may be a busier seismic period.
When it struck early last Tuesday in the Gulf of Alaska, a magnitude 7.9 earthquake caused a small tsunami, triggering middle-of-the-night alerts along shores from British Columbia through California and sending residents fleeing to high ground and huddling in shelters. It was the U.S.’s biggest quake of the year so far, at a time when geologists say the Earth may be primed for more. By the time the waves arrived on land, however, they never reached more than three to eight inches, leading to some confusion among those who received alerts and those who didn’t.
But no alerts were sent to the typically tranquil Devil’s Hole, a shallow, 18-foot-long pool in Death Valley National Park, which straddles California and Nevada. A few minutes after the quake began, the water at Devil’s Hole began sloshing around. Along the western coast of the United States, the tsunami’s waves were pathetic; here, 1,800 miles from the epicenter, the waves reached over a foot tall, park rangers said.
Within an hour of the quake, groundwater 3,500 miles away in Fort Lauderdale yo-yoed by up to an inch and a half. Up the coast in Florida’s marshy Big Bend, water levels rose two inches in wells in Madison.
Back at Devil’s Hole, watchful park rangers noticed something else as the waves dissipated: The pool’s most famous inhabitants, a group of critically endangered desert pupfish, appeared to be spawning out of season. One telltale sign: the males glow an iridescent blue.
Pupfish spawning typically happens in the spring and fall, but it can also occur when their habitat is disturbed. In this case the culprit wasn’t a tsunami but what hydrologists call a seiche: when a standing wave appears on a river, reservoir, pond, or lake, as a result of strong winds, changes in air pressure, or, in this case, seismic waves from an earthquake passing through the ground.
“It’s crazy that distant earthquakes affect Devils Hole,” said Kevin Wilson, Aquatic Ecologist for Death Valley National Park in a statement. “We’ve seen this a few times before, but it still amazes me.”
When a seiche (pronounced say-ch) hit Devil’s Hole following an earthquake in Qaxaca, Mexico, in 2012, that, too, triggered a spawning event among the pupfish. “Environmental disaster, it seems, acted as an aphrodisiac,” Peter Byrne wrote in Scientific American. (It also spawned a viral video, below.)
With a population at last census of 115 fish, the desert pupfish, or Cyprinodon diabolis, are considered by some to be the world’s rarest fish. Devil’s Hole is their only natural habitat, and is the tiniest habitat of any endangered vertebrate species. For thousands of years the fish have relied on the pool’s steady oxygen concentrations and a constant temperature of 93 degrees Fahrenheit.
Their population had long hovered around 400 to 600 fish, until water levels in the pool dropped due to nearby irrigation (the pool is fed by the Nevada aquifer). After the pupfish became one of the first fish to be protected by the U.S. Endangered Species Act in 1973, local landowners, complaining that the protection curtailed their right to draw water, appealed all the way to the Supreme Court. The justices upheld the government’s water rights, and the desert pupfish won.
The fish are up against weirder threats, too: In 2016, three men broke into the protected Devil’s Hole area, waded into the water, vomited near it, destroyed scientific equipment, sprayed gunfire, and killed a pupfish. Last week, two of the intruders pleaded guilty to violating the Endangered Species Act and now face a maximum penalty of one year in prison and/or a fine of up to $50,000.
The earthquake-induced spawn will be a temporary boon to the pupfish’s fluctuating population (in 2006 there were only 28 of them), but the seiche may have also temporarily disturbed a key part of their diet: the algae that grows on a shallow sunlit shelf at the top of Devils Hole. “The pupfish’s food source will probably be a little reduced for a bit, but it is expected to rebound,” said Ambre Chaudoin, a Biological Science Technician at Death Valley.
==========================
When it struck early last Tuesday in the Gulf of Alaska, a magnitude 7.9 earthquake caused a small tsunami, triggering middle-of-the-night alerts along shores from British Columbia through California and sending residents fleeing to high ground and huddling in shelters. It was the U.S.’s biggest quake of the year so far, at a time when geologists say the Earth may be primed for more. By the time the waves arrived on land, however, they never reached more than three to eight inches, leading to some confusion among those who received alerts and those who didn’t.
But no alerts were sent to the typically tranquil Devil’s Hole, a shallow, 18-foot-long pool in Death Valley National Park, which straddles California and Nevada. A few minutes after the quake began, the water at Devil’s Hole began sloshing around. Along the western coast of the United States, the tsunami’s waves were pathetic; here, 1,800 miles from the epicenter, the waves reached over a foot tall, park rangers said.
Within an hour of the quake, groundwater 3,500 miles away in Fort Lauderdale yo-yoed by up to an inch and a half. Up the coast in Florida’s marshy Big Bend, water levels rose two inches in wells in Madison.
Back at Devil’s Hole, watchful park rangers noticed something else as the waves dissipated: The pool’s most famous inhabitants, a group of critically endangered desert pupfish, appeared to be spawning out of season. One telltale sign: the males glow an iridescent blue.
Pupfish spawning typically happens in the spring and fall, but it can also occur when their habitat is disturbed. In this case the culprit wasn’t a tsunami but what hydrologists call a seiche: when a standing wave appears on a river, reservoir, pond, or lake, as a result of strong winds, changes in air pressure, or, in this case, seismic waves from an earthquake passing through the ground.
“It’s crazy that distant earthquakes affect Devils Hole,” said Kevin Wilson, Aquatic Ecologist for Death Valley National Park in a statement. “We’ve seen this a few times before, but it still amazes me.”
When a seiche (pronounced say-ch) hit Devil’s Hole following an earthquake in Qaxaca, Mexico, in 2012, that, too, triggered a spawning event among the pupfish. “Environmental disaster, it seems, acted as an aphrodisiac,” Peter Byrne wrote in Scientific American. (It also spawned a viral video, below.)
With a population at last census of 115 fish, the desert pupfish, or Cyprinodon diabolis, are considered by some to be the world’s rarest fish. Devil’s Hole is their only natural habitat, and is the tiniest habitat of any endangered vertebrate species. For thousands of years the fish have relied on the pool’s steady oxygen concentrations and a constant temperature of 93 degrees Fahrenheit.
Their population had long hovered around 400 to 600 fish, until water levels in the pool dropped due to nearby irrigation (the pool is fed by the Nevada aquifer). After the pupfish became one of the first fish to be protected by the U.S. Endangered Species Act in 1973, local landowners, complaining that the protection curtailed their right to draw water, appealed all the way to the Supreme Court. The justices upheld the government’s water rights, and the desert pupfish won.
The fish are up against weirder threats, too: In 2016, three men broke into the protected Devil’s Hole area, waded into the water, vomited near it, destroyed scientific equipment, sprayed gunfire, and killed a pupfish. Last week, two of the intruders pleaded guilty to violating the Endangered Species Act and now face a maximum penalty of one year in prison and/or a fine of up to $50,000.
The earthquake-induced spawn will be a temporary boon to the pupfish’s fluctuating population (in 2006 there were only 28 of them), but the seiche may have also temporarily disturbed a key part of their diet: the algae that grows on a shallow sunlit shelf at the top of Devils Hole. “The pupfish’s food source will probably be a little reduced for a bit, but it is expected to rebound,” said Ambre Chaudoin, a Biological Science Technician at Death Valley.
==========================
Conserving the Evolutionary History of Sharks, Rays and Chimaeras (Chondrichthyes)
A representative taxon-complete tree with phylogenetic distribution of molecular data coverage.
Stein, Mull, Kuhn, et al. 2018.
@DrSharkBrain || DOI: 10.1038/s41559-017-0448-4
Abstract
In an era of accelerated biodiversity loss and limited conservation resources, systematic prioritization of species and places is essential. In terrestrial vertebrates, evolutionary distinctness has been used to identify species and locations that embody the greatest share of evolutionary history. We estimate evolutionary distinctness for a large marine vertebrate radiation on a dated taxon-complete tree for all 1,192 chondrichthyan fishes (sharks, rays and chimaeras) by augmenting a new 610-species molecular phylogeny using taxonomic constraints. Chondrichthyans are by far the most evolutionarily distinct of all major radiations of jawed vertebrates—the average species embodies 26 million years of unique evolutionary history. With this metric, we identify 21 countries with the highest richness, endemism and evolutionary distinctness of threatened species as targets for conservation prioritization. On average, threatened chondrichthyans are more evolutionarily distinct—further motivating improved conservation, fisheries management and trade regulation to avoid significant pruning of the chondrichthyan tree of life.
Picture A representative taxon-complete tree with phylogenetic distribution of molecular data coverage. Clades are shaded according to molecular data coverage within each order, and those species with molecular data are indicated by outer ticks. Red dots highlight nodes defining orders, with the paraphyletic order Rhinopristiformes delimited by two highly supported nodes.
R. William Stein, Christopher G. Mull, Tyler S. Kuhn, Neil C. Aschliman, Lindsay N. K. Davidson, Jeffrey B. Joy, Gordon J. Smith, Nicholas K. Dulvy and Arne O. Mooers. 2018. Global Priorities for Conserving the Evolutionary History of Sharks, Rays and Chimaeras. Nature Ecology & Evolution. 2; 288–298. DOI: 10.1038/s41559-017-0448-4
twitter.com/DrSharkBrain/status/954024295537233922
Saving sharks with trees: researchers aim to save key branches of shark and ray tree of life phy.so/436013572 @physorg_com
==========================
A representative taxon-complete tree with phylogenetic distribution of molecular data coverage.
Stein, Mull, Kuhn, et al. 2018.
@DrSharkBrain || DOI: 10.1038/s41559-017-0448-4
Abstract
In an era of accelerated biodiversity loss and limited conservation resources, systematic prioritization of species and places is essential. In terrestrial vertebrates, evolutionary distinctness has been used to identify species and locations that embody the greatest share of evolutionary history. We estimate evolutionary distinctness for a large marine vertebrate radiation on a dated taxon-complete tree for all 1,192 chondrichthyan fishes (sharks, rays and chimaeras) by augmenting a new 610-species molecular phylogeny using taxonomic constraints. Chondrichthyans are by far the most evolutionarily distinct of all major radiations of jawed vertebrates—the average species embodies 26 million years of unique evolutionary history. With this metric, we identify 21 countries with the highest richness, endemism and evolutionary distinctness of threatened species as targets for conservation prioritization. On average, threatened chondrichthyans are more evolutionarily distinct—further motivating improved conservation, fisheries management and trade regulation to avoid significant pruning of the chondrichthyan tree of life.
Picture A representative taxon-complete tree with phylogenetic distribution of molecular data coverage. Clades are shaded according to molecular data coverage within each order, and those species with molecular data are indicated by outer ticks. Red dots highlight nodes defining orders, with the paraphyletic order Rhinopristiformes delimited by two highly supported nodes.
R. William Stein, Christopher G. Mull, Tyler S. Kuhn, Neil C. Aschliman, Lindsay N. K. Davidson, Jeffrey B. Joy, Gordon J. Smith, Nicholas K. Dulvy and Arne O. Mooers. 2018. Global Priorities for Conserving the Evolutionary History of Sharks, Rays and Chimaeras. Nature Ecology & Evolution. 2; 288–298. DOI: 10.1038/s41559-017-0448-4
twitter.com/DrSharkBrain/status/954024295537233922
Saving sharks with trees: researchers aim to save key branches of shark and ray tree of life phy.so/436013572 @physorg_com
==========================
Thymichthys politus
New population of “world’s rarest fish” discovered
As few as 20 new specimens gives hope to marine researchers.
The extremely rare red handfish.
ANTONIA COOPER/RLS
An undersea area just the area of two tennis courts holds a newly discovered population of what is thought to be the world’s rarest fish.
The discovery is the result of collaboration between the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS), based in Tasmania, Australia, and a citizen science project called the Reef Life Survey.
Divers from IMAS report that they have located a population of red handfish (Thymichthys politus) at an unnamed site off south-east Tasmania.
The area, just 50 metres long and 20 metres wide, contains an estimated 20 to 40 fish. It is only the second group of the critically endangered species ever discovered. The first, containing about the same number, lives several kilometres away in Frederick Henry Bay.
“Finding this second population is a huge relief as it effectively doubles how many we think are left on the planet,” says IMAS scientist and Reef Life Survey co-founder Rick Stuart-Smith.
“We’ve already learned a lot from finding this second population because their habitat isn’t identical to that of the first population, so we can take some heart from knowing red handfish are not as critically dependent on that particular set of local conditions.”
There are three species of handfish in the waters off southern Tasmania, all rare. The spotted handfish has been seen near the city of Hobart, but the third, Ziebell’s handfish (Brachiopsilus ziebelli) hasn’t been seen in more than a decade and is feared extinct.
found in Cosmos Magazine
==========================
As few as 20 new specimens gives hope to marine researchers.
The extremely rare red handfish.
ANTONIA COOPER/RLS
An undersea area just the area of two tennis courts holds a newly discovered population of what is thought to be the world’s rarest fish.
The discovery is the result of collaboration between the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS), based in Tasmania, Australia, and a citizen science project called the Reef Life Survey.
Divers from IMAS report that they have located a population of red handfish (Thymichthys politus) at an unnamed site off south-east Tasmania.
The area, just 50 metres long and 20 metres wide, contains an estimated 20 to 40 fish. It is only the second group of the critically endangered species ever discovered. The first, containing about the same number, lives several kilometres away in Frederick Henry Bay.
“Finding this second population is a huge relief as it effectively doubles how many we think are left on the planet,” says IMAS scientist and Reef Life Survey co-founder Rick Stuart-Smith.
“We’ve already learned a lot from finding this second population because their habitat isn’t identical to that of the first population, so we can take some heart from knowing red handfish are not as critically dependent on that particular set of local conditions.”
There are three species of handfish in the waters off southern Tasmania, all rare. The spotted handfish has been seen near the city of Hobart, but the third, Ziebell’s handfish (Brachiopsilus ziebelli) hasn’t been seen in more than a decade and is feared extinct.
found in Cosmos Magazine
==========================
Spectracanthicus javae • A New Species of the Genus Spectracanthicus (Loricariidae, Hypostominae, Ancistrini) from the Rio Javaיs (Rio Araguaia Basin), with A Description of Gross Brain Morphology
Spectracanthicus javae
Chamon, Pereira, Mendonca & Akama, 2018
DOI: 10.1111/jfb.13526
Abstract
A new species of Spectracanthicus is described from the Rio Javaés, Rio Araguaia basin. The new species is distinguished from its congeners (except Spectracanthicus immaculatus) by colour pattern: body dark grey to dark brown without dots or blotches (v. body colour with yellowish small dots in Spectracanthicus murinus, Spectracanthicus punctatissimus and Spectracanthicus tocantinensis and large white dots in Spectracanthicus zuanoni). It can be further distinguished from S. immaculatus by having thicker and less numerous teeth, with up to eight premaxillary and 20 dentary teeth (v. teeth thinner and more numerous with up to 22 premaxillary and 30 dentary teeth); dorsal and caudal fins without curved spines (v. dorsal and caudal fins with curved spines). Other osteological characters can also diagnose the new species from its congeners. In addition, a gross brain description and brief comments on the new species' ecological habitat are given.
Figure Colour in life of Spectracanthicus javae.
Spectracanthicus javae sp. nov.
Etymology: The specific epithet (a noun in apposition) is in reference to the Javaé people, an indigenous branch of the Karajá people in Brazil who inhabit the Ilha do Bananal and confer the name of the river (Rio Javaés), where the new species was reported.
C. C. Chamon, T. N. A. Pereira, M. B. Mendonca and A. Akama. 2018. New Species of the Genus Spectracanthicus (Loricariidae, Hypostominae, Ancistrini) from the Rio Javaיs (Rio Araguaia Basin), with A Description of Gross Brain Morphology. Journal of Fish Biology. DOI: 10.1111/jfb.13526
facebook.com/israquarium/photos/1676916349041624
facebook.com/IchthyologyoftheWorld/photos/1774881345865988
Carine C. Chamon and Lúcia H. Rapp Py-Daniel. 2014. Taxonomic revision of Spectracanthicus Nijssen & Isbrücker (Loricariidae: Hypostominae: Ancistrini), with description of three new species. Neotropical Ichthyology. 12(1):1-25.
scielo.br/pdf/ni/v12n1/1679-6225-ni-12-01-00001.pdf
==========================
Spectracanthicus javae
Chamon, Pereira, Mendonca & Akama, 2018
DOI: 10.1111/jfb.13526
Abstract
A new species of Spectracanthicus is described from the Rio Javaés, Rio Araguaia basin. The new species is distinguished from its congeners (except Spectracanthicus immaculatus) by colour pattern: body dark grey to dark brown without dots or blotches (v. body colour with yellowish small dots in Spectracanthicus murinus, Spectracanthicus punctatissimus and Spectracanthicus tocantinensis and large white dots in Spectracanthicus zuanoni). It can be further distinguished from S. immaculatus by having thicker and less numerous teeth, with up to eight premaxillary and 20 dentary teeth (v. teeth thinner and more numerous with up to 22 premaxillary and 30 dentary teeth); dorsal and caudal fins without curved spines (v. dorsal and caudal fins with curved spines). Other osteological characters can also diagnose the new species from its congeners. In addition, a gross brain description and brief comments on the new species' ecological habitat are given.
Figure Colour in life of Spectracanthicus javae.
Spectracanthicus javae sp. nov.
Etymology: The specific epithet (a noun in apposition) is in reference to the Javaé people, an indigenous branch of the Karajá people in Brazil who inhabit the Ilha do Bananal and confer the name of the river (Rio Javaés), where the new species was reported.
C. C. Chamon, T. N. A. Pereira, M. B. Mendonca and A. Akama. 2018. New Species of the Genus Spectracanthicus (Loricariidae, Hypostominae, Ancistrini) from the Rio Javaיs (Rio Araguaia Basin), with A Description of Gross Brain Morphology. Journal of Fish Biology. DOI: 10.1111/jfb.13526
facebook.com/israquarium/photos/1676916349041624
facebook.com/IchthyologyoftheWorld/photos/1774881345865988
Carine C. Chamon and Lúcia H. Rapp Py-Daniel. 2014. Taxonomic revision of Spectracanthicus Nijssen & Isbrücker (Loricariidae: Hypostominae: Ancistrini), with description of three new species. Neotropical Ichthyology. 12(1):1-25.
scielo.br/pdf/ni/v12n1/1679-6225-ni-12-01-00001.pdf
==========================
Winghead sharkFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Winghead shark
Conservation status
Endangered (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:Animalia
Phylum:Chordata
Class:Chondrichthyes
Order:Carcharhiniformes
Family:Sphyrnidae
Genus:Eusphyra
T. N. Gill, 1862
Species:E. blochii
Binomial name
Eusphyra blochii
(G. Cuvier, 1816)
Range of the winghead shark[2]
Synonyms
Inhabiting the shallow coastal waters of the central and western Indo-Pacific, the winghead shark feeds on small bony fishes, crustaceans, and cephalopods. It gives birth to live young, with the developing embryos receiving nourishment through a placental connection. Females produce annual litters of 6 to 25 pups; depending on region, birthing may occur from February to June after a gestation period of 8–11 months. This harmless species is widely fished for meat, fins, liver oil, and fishmeal. The International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed it as Endangered in 2016, as it is thought to have declined in some parts of its range due to overfishing.
==========================
Winghead shark
Conservation status
Endangered (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:Animalia
Phylum:Chordata
Class:Chondrichthyes
Order:Carcharhiniformes
Family:Sphyrnidae
Genus:Eusphyra
T. N. Gill, 1862
Species:E. blochii
Binomial name
Eusphyra blochii
(G. Cuvier, 1816)
Range of the winghead shark[2]
Synonyms
- Zygaena blochii G. Cuvier, 1816
- Zygaena laticeps Cantor, 1837
- Zygaena latycephala van Hasselt, 1823
Inhabiting the shallow coastal waters of the central and western Indo-Pacific, the winghead shark feeds on small bony fishes, crustaceans, and cephalopods. It gives birth to live young, with the developing embryos receiving nourishment through a placental connection. Females produce annual litters of 6 to 25 pups; depending on region, birthing may occur from February to June after a gestation period of 8–11 months. This harmless species is widely fished for meat, fins, liver oil, and fishmeal. The International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed it as Endangered in 2016, as it is thought to have declined in some parts of its range due to overfishing.
==========================
A, Lepidotrigla longipinnis, NMV A31696-001, 121 mm SL, Myanmar, off Ayeyarwady Delta, 111–104 m;
B, Lepidotrigla omanensis, NMV A31691-001, 110 mm SL, Myanmar, off Ayeyarwady Delta, 149–164 m;
C, Lepidotrigla psolokerkos new species, holotype, NMV A31698-001, 135 mm SL, Myanmar, off Ayeyarwady Delta, 147–156 m.
Review of the Lepidotrigla Gurnards (Scorpaeniformes: Triglidae) in the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Seaoff Myanmar with A Description of A New Species; Lepidotrigla psolokerkos
Lepidotrigla longipinnis Alcock, 1890,
Lepidotrigla psolokerkos Gomon & Psomadakis, 2018
L. omanensis Regan, 1905
RAFFLES BULLETIN OF ZOOLOGY. 66
Abstract
A 2015 trawl survey along the coast of Myanmar provided an opportunity to assess species of the triglid genus Lepidotrigla occurring in the country. Three species, L. longipinnis Alcock, 1890, L. omanensis Regan, 1905, and an undescribed species, were identified among the 15 voucher specimens retained. A formal description of the unnamed species, as well as descriptive accounts of the other two are provided. Lepidotrigla psolokerkos, new species, based on two specimens, resembles L. alcocki Regan, 1908 described from the Saya de Malho Bank in the central Indian Ocean, differing from it in having fewer oblique scale rows between the anal fin origin and the lateral line and broader covering of dark pigmentation on the inner surface of the pectoral fin. The known geographical ranges of L. longipinnis, reported in the literature as L. riggsi Richards & Saksena, 1977, and L. omanensis are extended to the Andaman Sea off south-eastern Myanmar. A key is provided for the three species occurring in the survey area.
Key words. Indian Ocean, taxonomy, ichthyology, geographical distribution, depth range
Fig. Myanmar species of Lepidotrigla.
A, Lepidotrigla longipinnis, NMV A31696-001, 121 mm SL, Myanmar, off Ayeyarwady Delta, 111–104 m;
B, Lepidotrigla omanensis, NMV A31691-001, 110 mm SL, Myanmar, off Ayeyarwady Delta, 149–164 m;
C, Lepidotrigla psolokerkos new species, holotype, NMV A31698-001, 135 mm SL, Myanmar, off Ayeyarwady Delta, 147–156 m.
SYSTEMATICS
Lepidotrigla longipinnis Alcock, 1890
Proposed vernacular: Stellar Gurnard
Etymology. Initially proposed as a varietal name, longipinnis is an amalgamation of the Latin “longus” for long and “pinna” for fin, in reference to the longer pectoral fin that was considered by Alcock (1890) to distinguish what is now recognised as a distinct species from L. spiloptera Günther, 1860.
Distribution. Confined to coastal waters of the northern Indian Ocean, from at least Bombay, India to just south of the equator off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia (Fig. 4) at depths of 70 to at least 107 m.
Lepidotrigla omanensis Regan, 1905
Vernacular: Oman Gurnard
Etymology. Regan’s (1905) omanensis was named for the collecting locality “the Sea of Oman” for his three type specimens.
Distribution. Occurs in coastal waters of the northern Indian Ocean from the Gulf of Aden to the Andaman Sea off south-eastern Myanmar (Fig. 4) at depths of 41–335 m; apparently excluded from the Persian Gulf.
Lepidotrigla psolokerkos new species
Proposed vernacular: Skinny Gurnard
Etymology. The name psolokerkos is a conjunction of the Greek psolos for “dirt” and “kerkos” for tail in reference to the distinctive grey blotch dorsoposteriorly on the caudal fin of this species.
Distribution. Known only from the two type specimens collected in the Andaman Sea off south-eastern Myanmar (Fig. 4) at depths of 151–255 m.
Martin F. Gomon and Peter N. Psomadakis. 2018. Review of the Lepidotrigla Gurnards (Teleostei: Scorpaeniformes: Triglidae) in the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea off Myanmar with A Description of A New Species. RAFFLES BULLETIN OF ZOOLOGY. 66; 66–77. lkcnhm.nus.edu.sg/app/uploads/2018/01/66rbz066-077.pdf
==========================
B, Lepidotrigla omanensis, NMV A31691-001, 110 mm SL, Myanmar, off Ayeyarwady Delta, 149–164 m;
C, Lepidotrigla psolokerkos new species, holotype, NMV A31698-001, 135 mm SL, Myanmar, off Ayeyarwady Delta, 147–156 m.
Review of the Lepidotrigla Gurnards (Scorpaeniformes: Triglidae) in the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Seaoff Myanmar with A Description of A New Species; Lepidotrigla psolokerkos
Lepidotrigla longipinnis Alcock, 1890,
Lepidotrigla psolokerkos Gomon & Psomadakis, 2018
L. omanensis Regan, 1905
RAFFLES BULLETIN OF ZOOLOGY. 66
Abstract
A 2015 trawl survey along the coast of Myanmar provided an opportunity to assess species of the triglid genus Lepidotrigla occurring in the country. Three species, L. longipinnis Alcock, 1890, L. omanensis Regan, 1905, and an undescribed species, were identified among the 15 voucher specimens retained. A formal description of the unnamed species, as well as descriptive accounts of the other two are provided. Lepidotrigla psolokerkos, new species, based on two specimens, resembles L. alcocki Regan, 1908 described from the Saya de Malho Bank in the central Indian Ocean, differing from it in having fewer oblique scale rows between the anal fin origin and the lateral line and broader covering of dark pigmentation on the inner surface of the pectoral fin. The known geographical ranges of L. longipinnis, reported in the literature as L. riggsi Richards & Saksena, 1977, and L. omanensis are extended to the Andaman Sea off south-eastern Myanmar. A key is provided for the three species occurring in the survey area.
Key words. Indian Ocean, taxonomy, ichthyology, geographical distribution, depth range
Fig. Myanmar species of Lepidotrigla.
A, Lepidotrigla longipinnis, NMV A31696-001, 121 mm SL, Myanmar, off Ayeyarwady Delta, 111–104 m;
B, Lepidotrigla omanensis, NMV A31691-001, 110 mm SL, Myanmar, off Ayeyarwady Delta, 149–164 m;
C, Lepidotrigla psolokerkos new species, holotype, NMV A31698-001, 135 mm SL, Myanmar, off Ayeyarwady Delta, 147–156 m.
SYSTEMATICS
Lepidotrigla longipinnis Alcock, 1890
Proposed vernacular: Stellar Gurnard
Etymology. Initially proposed as a varietal name, longipinnis is an amalgamation of the Latin “longus” for long and “pinna” for fin, in reference to the longer pectoral fin that was considered by Alcock (1890) to distinguish what is now recognised as a distinct species from L. spiloptera Günther, 1860.
Distribution. Confined to coastal waters of the northern Indian Ocean, from at least Bombay, India to just south of the equator off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia (Fig. 4) at depths of 70 to at least 107 m.
Lepidotrigla omanensis Regan, 1905
Vernacular: Oman Gurnard
Etymology. Regan’s (1905) omanensis was named for the collecting locality “the Sea of Oman” for his three type specimens.
Distribution. Occurs in coastal waters of the northern Indian Ocean from the Gulf of Aden to the Andaman Sea off south-eastern Myanmar (Fig. 4) at depths of 41–335 m; apparently excluded from the Persian Gulf.
Lepidotrigla psolokerkos new species
Proposed vernacular: Skinny Gurnard
Etymology. The name psolokerkos is a conjunction of the Greek psolos for “dirt” and “kerkos” for tail in reference to the distinctive grey blotch dorsoposteriorly on the caudal fin of this species.
Distribution. Known only from the two type specimens collected in the Andaman Sea off south-eastern Myanmar (Fig. 4) at depths of 151–255 m.
Martin F. Gomon and Peter N. Psomadakis. 2018. Review of the Lepidotrigla Gurnards (Teleostei: Scorpaeniformes: Triglidae) in the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea off Myanmar with A Description of A New Species. RAFFLES BULLETIN OF ZOOLOGY. 66; 66–77. lkcnhm.nus.edu.sg/app/uploads/2018/01/66rbz066-077.pdf
==========================
Dutch agree to halt controversial Pulse fishing
Posted on January 17, 2018 by Jenny Hjul • 0 CommentsDUTCH pulse fishermen have agreed not to operate around sensitive areas of the English coast in a voluntary but landmark deal with local inshore fishermen.
Both sides say the move is without prejudice to any future evidence based policies which may be adopted by the authorities, or further voluntary agreements.
Pulse fishing is a technique being developed by the Dutch, where trawlers use nets that generate an electric current. Fish – particularly sole – are stunned, which forces them to float upwards, making them easier to catch.
It is not without controversy and the European parliament voted yesterday to ban it, although legislation is not guaranteed.
Campaigners, such as the French conservation group Bloom, have been leading the move to have it stopped. Critics say it kills fish and marine life other than sole and is like putting a Taser into the water.
Speaking about the deal with Dutch fishermen, NFFO (National Federation of Fishermen’s Organisations) chief executive Barrie Deas said: ‘It seemed worthwhile to see if a voluntary agreement could be reached quickly, with the people most affected in the room, to ensure that the closed areas are in the right place and at the right time.
‘The Dutch fishermen have responded positively so we have taken a small step forward. I think that it is important not to oversell this agreement.
‘I hope that will help a bit but it is without prejudice to any government policies that might be adopted in the future on the basis of scientific advice.’
Pim Visser, CEO of the Dutch Organisation VisNed, said: ‘We recognise that pulse fishing is new and controversial and has led to changes in the spatial distribution and intensity of fishing in some areas.
‘An enormous amount of scientific work has been undertaken and is being undertaken to measure the effects of pulse fishing.
‘We also acknowledge the concerns of fishermen on the English side, although in my own view much of what has been said is wildly alarmist.
‘Whilst these scientific studies are being undertaken, and as a goodwill gesture, we met with the inshore fishermen from Ramsgate, the Thames Estuary, Orford and Lowestoft, in London.
‘It was a very constructive meeting and the English fishermen put forward a number of concrete proposals. The result is we are prepared to accept the closed areas suggested by the fishermen.’
found on Fishupdate
==========================
Posted on January 17, 2018 by Jenny Hjul • 0 CommentsDUTCH pulse fishermen have agreed not to operate around sensitive areas of the English coast in a voluntary but landmark deal with local inshore fishermen.
Both sides say the move is without prejudice to any future evidence based policies which may be adopted by the authorities, or further voluntary agreements.
Pulse fishing is a technique being developed by the Dutch, where trawlers use nets that generate an electric current. Fish – particularly sole – are stunned, which forces them to float upwards, making them easier to catch.
It is not without controversy and the European parliament voted yesterday to ban it, although legislation is not guaranteed.
Campaigners, such as the French conservation group Bloom, have been leading the move to have it stopped. Critics say it kills fish and marine life other than sole and is like putting a Taser into the water.
Speaking about the deal with Dutch fishermen, NFFO (National Federation of Fishermen’s Organisations) chief executive Barrie Deas said: ‘It seemed worthwhile to see if a voluntary agreement could be reached quickly, with the people most affected in the room, to ensure that the closed areas are in the right place and at the right time.
‘The Dutch fishermen have responded positively so we have taken a small step forward. I think that it is important not to oversell this agreement.
‘I hope that will help a bit but it is without prejudice to any government policies that might be adopted in the future on the basis of scientific advice.’
Pim Visser, CEO of the Dutch Organisation VisNed, said: ‘We recognise that pulse fishing is new and controversial and has led to changes in the spatial distribution and intensity of fishing in some areas.
‘An enormous amount of scientific work has been undertaken and is being undertaken to measure the effects of pulse fishing.
‘We also acknowledge the concerns of fishermen on the English side, although in my own view much of what has been said is wildly alarmist.
‘Whilst these scientific studies are being undertaken, and as a goodwill gesture, we met with the inshore fishermen from Ramsgate, the Thames Estuary, Orford and Lowestoft, in London.
‘It was a very constructive meeting and the English fishermen put forward a number of concrete proposals. The result is we are prepared to accept the closed areas suggested by the fishermen.’
found on Fishupdate
==========================
BIGGEST AQUATICS AUCTION IN THE NORTHEAST of the UK
ON THE 13th of May!!
No commission for buyers
Normally around 30+ sellers from all over the country
Dry goods tables
Not an online auction (only people in the hall will grab the bargains)
Cash only sale
Better selection of fish then most shops
Rough list of fish will be on the events page
N.E.T.S. Aquatics society are holding an auction on the 13th of may, we organize the biggest of its kind in the northeast, normally attracting around 30+ sellers made up of some of the best breeders and hobbyist in the country. Coming together for 1 day ONLY to sell there items....
JOIN OUR EVENTS PAGE FOR MORE INFO OR DROP ME AN INBOX
https://www.facebook.com/events/301251447020916/
==========================
ON THE 13th of May!!
No commission for buyers
Normally around 30+ sellers from all over the country
Dry goods tables
Not an online auction (only people in the hall will grab the bargains)
Cash only sale
Better selection of fish then most shops
Rough list of fish will be on the events page
N.E.T.S. Aquatics society are holding an auction on the 13th of may, we organize the biggest of its kind in the northeast, normally attracting around 30+ sellers made up of some of the best breeders and hobbyist in the country. Coming together for 1 day ONLY to sell there items....
JOIN OUR EVENTS PAGE FOR MORE INFO OR DROP ME AN INBOX
https://www.facebook.com/events/301251447020916/
==========================
Spectrum Brands Pet LLC Introduces GloFish® Sharks to GloFish® Family of Fluorescent Fish
New species is largest GloFish® variety available, expands line to bottom-feeding fish
via Spectrum Brands Pet LLC
Blacksburg, VA, January 15, 2018 – To enhance the colorful fishkeeping experience of GloFish® and expand its livestock selection, Spectrum Brands Pet LLC has introduced GloFish® Sharks to its popular line of GloFish® fluorescent fish.
“GloFish® Sharks are a sleek and elegant addition to any freshwater aquarium — whether you’re adding to a tank with other fish or completely transforming your aquarium to a GloFish® tank,” said John Fox, Division Vice President, Aquatic Marketing, Spectrum Brands Pet LLC. “They’re a great conversation piece for fish owners since they’re larger than other GloFish® fluorescent fish but still have the same brilliant color.”
GloFish® Sharks are members of the minnow family, not actual sharks. Since these fish can reach up to 4 inches in length like their counterpart, the Rainbow Shark (Epalzeorhynchos frenatum), they should only be placed in aquariums 20 gallons or larger. While only one shark is recommended for a 20-gallon aquarium, multiple GloFish® Sharks can be kept in aquariums larger than 40 gallons as long as there is ample bottom space for each to establish territory.
When placed in an aquarium, GloFish® Sharks exist peacefully with other GloFish® and non-fluorescent community fish, and can receive the same care as their tank mates. They also serve as bottom feeders, giving the added benefit of cleaning up leftover food, unsightly algae, and small nuisance snails.
GloFish® Sharks are the latest addition to the GloFish® family, which includes GloFish® Danios, Tetras, and Barbs. Initially, Sharks will be available in two colors: Sunburst Orange® and Galactic Purple®. Like all other GloFish® fluorescent fish, they get their natural color from their parents and are not injected, painted, or dyed.
“We’re excited to introduce this dazzling new fish species to our GloFish® line. Every expansion we make can brighten up the days of fishkeepers everywhere,” said Fox.
GloFish® fluorescent fish add an alluring array of brilliant colors to any aquarium.
Spectrum Brands Pet LLC is an indirect subsidiary of Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc.
GLAD that these horrendous FRANKENSTEIN MONSTERS ARE BANNED IN THE UK
Found on Reef to Rainforest Media
==========================
Record low temperatures hit Florida`s Tropical Fish Farms
Fish farmers fear worst for their stocks
Florida’s fish farmers scrambled to cover their ponds with plastic to protect them from the deadly chill.
Many expect their fish to perish anyway.
Aquaculture — the growing of fish, plants and other underwater species — is a roughly $70 million industry in Florida. Between the earlier cold snap and this week’s near-record-low temperatures, some fish farmers in the bay area are projecting "considerable" losses to their crops, said Craig Watson, director of the University of Florida’s Tropical Aquaculture Laboratory in Ruskin.
"It’s a big hit, needless to say, but we’ve seen worse," he said.
Fish can become stressed when the water temperature dips below 70 degrees. In water 50 degrees or lower, all but the most hardy species die. To protect more cold-sensitive species and varieties, farmers cover some ponds with a clear layer of plastic that traps heat while allowing sunlight in. Another strategy is to pump 72-degree well water into the ponds.
Nevertheless, some farmers expect to lose more than 50 percent of their more sensitive species in covered ponds, Watson said. Some are also reporting losses to more cold-tolerant fish crops in uncovered ponds.
extract from tampabay.com
==========================
Fish farmers fear worst for their stocks
Florida’s fish farmers scrambled to cover their ponds with plastic to protect them from the deadly chill.
Many expect their fish to perish anyway.
Aquaculture — the growing of fish, plants and other underwater species — is a roughly $70 million industry in Florida. Between the earlier cold snap and this week’s near-record-low temperatures, some fish farmers in the bay area are projecting "considerable" losses to their crops, said Craig Watson, director of the University of Florida’s Tropical Aquaculture Laboratory in Ruskin.
"It’s a big hit, needless to say, but we’ve seen worse," he said.
Fish can become stressed when the water temperature dips below 70 degrees. In water 50 degrees or lower, all but the most hardy species die. To protect more cold-sensitive species and varieties, farmers cover some ponds with a clear layer of plastic that traps heat while allowing sunlight in. Another strategy is to pump 72-degree well water into the ponds.
Nevertheless, some farmers expect to lose more than 50 percent of their more sensitive species in covered ponds, Watson said. Some are also reporting losses to more cold-tolerant fish crops in uncovered ponds.
extract from tampabay.com
==========================
Scale-eating fish adopt clever parasitic methods to survive
January 17, 2018, University of Washington
CT-scanned image of the piranha Catoprion mento. The blue dyed segments inside the skeleton are fish scales eaten by the piranha (also shown enlarged next to the fish). Credit: University of WashingtonThink of them as extra-large parasites. A small group of fishes—possibly the world's cleverest carnivorous grazers—feeds on the scales of other fish in the tropics. The different species' approach differs: some ram their blunt noses into the sides of other fish to prey upon sloughed-off scales, while others open their jaws to gargantuan widths to pry scales off with their teeth.
A team led by biologists at the University of Washington's Friday Harbor Laboratories is trying to understand these scale-feeding fish and how this odd diet influences their body evolution and behavior. The researchers published their results Jan. 17 in the journal Royal Society Open Science.
"We were expecting that with this specialized scale-eating niche, you would get specialized morphology. Instead, what you get is a mosaic of strategies for the end goal of scale feeding," said lead author Matthew Kolmann, a postdoctoral researcherat Friday Harbor Laboratories.
"This niche has a hidden complexity to it, and it is yet another story about the incredible diversity of life on Earth."
The researchers compared two species of piranha fish—one that feeds on scales only as a juvenile and another that eats scales its whole life—and two species of characin fish, commonly known as tetras, with similar eating habits as the piranhas. They found that all four of the scale-feeders varied considerably in their body shape and feeding strategy.
The piranha that eats scales its whole life, named Catoprion mento, tends to live alone. When it does hunt, it swims up behind its prey, opens its large, Jay Leno-like jaw 120 degrees and pries large scales off the sides of other fishes. These piranhas can tolerate nearly a dozen large fish scales in their stomachs at one time; that's like a human swallowing a dozen silver dollar pancakes in a single bite.
In contrast, the characin fish most similar to the piranha in life history and eating preferences gets its food in an entirely different way. The blunt-faced fish, called Roeboides affinis, has teeth on its nose and butts its face into other fish, devouring the scales as they fly off from the force of impact.
The research team gathered its data by CT scanning specimens of each fish at different ages at Friday Harbor Laboratories on San Juan Island. Using iodine-contrast staining, they were able to examine the internal anatomy of the four species to better understand what traits are shared by fishes that employ such a rare feeding strategy.
The stark differences in jaw and head shape, combined with how each prefers to hunt, shows a great diversity among the small number of species that have evolved to eat scales, the researchers found.
"This study would have been extremely hard to do without the CT scanning," said co-author Jonathan Huie, a UW undergraduate student in aquatic and fishery sciences. "We were able to look at the image slices from three different points of view, and could more accurately pinpoint and measure certain elements like the jawbones."
About 50 fish species are classified as scale-eaters, and all of them live in the tropics. Previous studies have shown—and the CT scans confirm—the fish are able to digest entire scales. The mucous lining the inside of each scale is thought to be appealing to fishes, but there could be other reasons why they prefer the entire scale, Kolmann said.
Most of the piranha and characin scanning was completed last spring during an undergraduate marine biology course at Friday Harbor Laboratories. Huie, then a student in the class, and the other co-authors scanned fish from collections all over the U.S., then meticulously measured a series of traits that are important for feeding, such as the sharpness and shape of various teeth.
The completed scans join a growing online library of 3-D digital fish replicas, pioneered by Adam Summers, a co-author and professor at Friday Harbor Laboratories, with the intent of creating an open-source repository for researchers and the general public to learn about all of the fish on Earth.
Co-author Kory Evans, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Minnesota, and Kolmann conceived of this project when they both discovered rare, scale-eating fish in their respective field projects involving different fish species in the Amazon.
Kolmann will continue studying the evolution and feeding patterns of piranhas in his new position at George Washington University, where he will have access to the Smithsonian Institution's fish collections.
More information: Matthew A. Kolmann et al, Specialized specialists and the narrow niche fallacy: a tale of scale-feeding fishes, Royal Society Open Science (2018). DOI: 10.1098/rsos.171581
Read more at: https://phys.org/news/2018-01-scale-eating-fish-clever-parasitic-methods.html#jCp
==========================
January 17, 2018, University of Washington
CT-scanned image of the piranha Catoprion mento. The blue dyed segments inside the skeleton are fish scales eaten by the piranha (also shown enlarged next to the fish). Credit: University of WashingtonThink of them as extra-large parasites. A small group of fishes—possibly the world's cleverest carnivorous grazers—feeds on the scales of other fish in the tropics. The different species' approach differs: some ram their blunt noses into the sides of other fish to prey upon sloughed-off scales, while others open their jaws to gargantuan widths to pry scales off with their teeth.
A team led by biologists at the University of Washington's Friday Harbor Laboratories is trying to understand these scale-feeding fish and how this odd diet influences their body evolution and behavior. The researchers published their results Jan. 17 in the journal Royal Society Open Science.
"We were expecting that with this specialized scale-eating niche, you would get specialized morphology. Instead, what you get is a mosaic of strategies for the end goal of scale feeding," said lead author Matthew Kolmann, a postdoctoral researcherat Friday Harbor Laboratories.
"This niche has a hidden complexity to it, and it is yet another story about the incredible diversity of life on Earth."
The researchers compared two species of piranha fish—one that feeds on scales only as a juvenile and another that eats scales its whole life—and two species of characin fish, commonly known as tetras, with similar eating habits as the piranhas. They found that all four of the scale-feeders varied considerably in their body shape and feeding strategy.
The piranha that eats scales its whole life, named Catoprion mento, tends to live alone. When it does hunt, it swims up behind its prey, opens its large, Jay Leno-like jaw 120 degrees and pries large scales off the sides of other fishes. These piranhas can tolerate nearly a dozen large fish scales in their stomachs at one time; that's like a human swallowing a dozen silver dollar pancakes in a single bite.
In contrast, the characin fish most similar to the piranha in life history and eating preferences gets its food in an entirely different way. The blunt-faced fish, called Roeboides affinis, has teeth on its nose and butts its face into other fish, devouring the scales as they fly off from the force of impact.
The research team gathered its data by CT scanning specimens of each fish at different ages at Friday Harbor Laboratories on San Juan Island. Using iodine-contrast staining, they were able to examine the internal anatomy of the four species to better understand what traits are shared by fishes that employ such a rare feeding strategy.
The stark differences in jaw and head shape, combined with how each prefers to hunt, shows a great diversity among the small number of species that have evolved to eat scales, the researchers found.
"This study would have been extremely hard to do without the CT scanning," said co-author Jonathan Huie, a UW undergraduate student in aquatic and fishery sciences. "We were able to look at the image slices from three different points of view, and could more accurately pinpoint and measure certain elements like the jawbones."
About 50 fish species are classified as scale-eaters, and all of them live in the tropics. Previous studies have shown—and the CT scans confirm—the fish are able to digest entire scales. The mucous lining the inside of each scale is thought to be appealing to fishes, but there could be other reasons why they prefer the entire scale, Kolmann said.
Most of the piranha and characin scanning was completed last spring during an undergraduate marine biology course at Friday Harbor Laboratories. Huie, then a student in the class, and the other co-authors scanned fish from collections all over the U.S., then meticulously measured a series of traits that are important for feeding, such as the sharpness and shape of various teeth.
The completed scans join a growing online library of 3-D digital fish replicas, pioneered by Adam Summers, a co-author and professor at Friday Harbor Laboratories, with the intent of creating an open-source repository for researchers and the general public to learn about all of the fish on Earth.
Co-author Kory Evans, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Minnesota, and Kolmann conceived of this project when they both discovered rare, scale-eating fish in their respective field projects involving different fish species in the Amazon.
Kolmann will continue studying the evolution and feeding patterns of piranhas in his new position at George Washington University, where he will have access to the Smithsonian Institution's fish collections.
More information: Matthew A. Kolmann et al, Specialized specialists and the narrow niche fallacy: a tale of scale-feeding fishes, Royal Society Open Science (2018). DOI: 10.1098/rsos.171581
Read more at: https://phys.org/news/2018-01-scale-eating-fish-clever-parasitic-methods.html#jCp
==========================
Lipogramma schrieri
L. barrettorum
Lipogramma schrieri & L. barrettorum, two new species of Caribbean basslets
4Deepwater basslets are a source of constant fascination, and a virtual wellspring of unknown fish. The latest species to come from this broad group are Lipogramma schrieri and L. barrettorum from the southern Caribbean.
We tend to loosely classify any fish living beyond safe SCUBA depths of around 130 feet as being deepwater and many of the newest species have been found at around 200 to 400 feet deep. But Lipogramma barrettorum & L. schrieri obliterate that record by living at around 300 meters deep or nearly 1000 feet!
Liopgramma barrettorum has beautiful blue and yellow lines in its fins which would be incredible to see in real life.These bone crushing depths were reached by the trusty deep diving submersible known as the Curasub in Curaçao where the only light is a fraction of what it is at the surface. Both new species share some clear similarities with Lipogramma robinsi but have a combination of genetic markers and physical traits that helps to distinguish them.
Lipogramma schrieri pictured above and in the header image has a yellowish-brown base coloration with fairly enlarged dorsal and anal fins. A large eyespot on the base of the posterior dorsal is the most prominent feature and the unpaired fins also have a pattern of yellowish spots on a blueish background.
Meanwhile Lipogramma barrettorum has the same general appearance with the same prominent eyespot and yellowish-brown base color. However this species has smaller fin with yellow spots that arrange into fins lines in the dorsal, anal and tail fin. The biggest difference between L. barrettorum & L. schrieri is the number of vertical bars on the sides of the body – these might be faint but number around seven to eight in L. schrieri and closer to eight to ten in L. barrettorum.
The Lipogramma genus has almost doubled in the last couple of years, and a few species are not even pictured hereSince this group of basslets comes from such profound depths there’s no realistic way we’ll ever see these species in the aquarium hobby unless a dedicated captive breeding effort is established. It’s quite incredible that the specimens for Lipogramma barrettorum and L. schrieri look as good as they do in these photographs but we have no doubt that conditioned aquarium specimens would look incredibly unique.
The two new species of Lipogramma ZooKeys from the abyss of Curaçao are described by Baldwin et. al.
==========================
4Deepwater basslets are a source of constant fascination, and a virtual wellspring of unknown fish. The latest species to come from this broad group are Lipogramma schrieri and L. barrettorum from the southern Caribbean.
We tend to loosely classify any fish living beyond safe SCUBA depths of around 130 feet as being deepwater and many of the newest species have been found at around 200 to 400 feet deep. But Lipogramma barrettorum & L. schrieri obliterate that record by living at around 300 meters deep or nearly 1000 feet!
Liopgramma barrettorum has beautiful blue and yellow lines in its fins which would be incredible to see in real life.These bone crushing depths were reached by the trusty deep diving submersible known as the Curasub in Curaçao where the only light is a fraction of what it is at the surface. Both new species share some clear similarities with Lipogramma robinsi but have a combination of genetic markers and physical traits that helps to distinguish them.
Lipogramma schrieri pictured above and in the header image has a yellowish-brown base coloration with fairly enlarged dorsal and anal fins. A large eyespot on the base of the posterior dorsal is the most prominent feature and the unpaired fins also have a pattern of yellowish spots on a blueish background.
Meanwhile Lipogramma barrettorum has the same general appearance with the same prominent eyespot and yellowish-brown base color. However this species has smaller fin with yellow spots that arrange into fins lines in the dorsal, anal and tail fin. The biggest difference between L. barrettorum & L. schrieri is the number of vertical bars on the sides of the body – these might be faint but number around seven to eight in L. schrieri and closer to eight to ten in L. barrettorum.
The Lipogramma genus has almost doubled in the last couple of years, and a few species are not even pictured hereSince this group of basslets comes from such profound depths there’s no realistic way we’ll ever see these species in the aquarium hobby unless a dedicated captive breeding effort is established. It’s quite incredible that the specimens for Lipogramma barrettorum and L. schrieri look as good as they do in these photographs but we have no doubt that conditioned aquarium specimens would look incredibly unique.
The two new species of Lipogramma ZooKeys from the abyss of Curaçao are described by Baldwin et. al.
==========================
Fugu blowfish fail sparks emergency warning in Japanese city
Deadly blowfish (or Fugu) is a delicacy in Japan.(CNN)A Japanese city issued an emergency alert to residents Monday after two people ate potentially dangerous portions of fugu fish that should not have been sold.
Five packs of Yorito fugu (blunt head blowfish) were sold at a supermarket located in Gamagori city, in the central Aichi prefecture, by a licensed employee who had not removed the livers, according to Hiroko Mizuno, an official from the district's Life and Hygiene Department.
The fish, also referred to as puffer fish, contains a toxin hundreds of times more poisonous than cyanide; its liver alone can contain enough poison to kill five men. Japan has laws in place to ensure it is prepared and detoxified properly before it is sold.Fugu, with its lethal innards, is considered a winter time delicacy in Japan, with high-end Tokyo restaurants charging customers 22,000 yen ($199 US) to risk death.
An intoxicating tour of Japan's deadly puffer fish capital
The two people who consumed the fish have not reported any health problems as this time. However, Gamagori city activated an emergency warning to its citizens alerting them through all wireless systems, including community loud speakers, against eating the fugu and recalling the product.
Mizuno told CNN that this particular type of blowfish usually has very weak or no poison, but the food hygiene laws prohibit the sale of any liver given its potentially poisonous implications. The liver should never be eaten because only testing can detect the poison.
Two packs of the recalled fish were located and returned on Monday night after the city's quarantine office was alerted by a consumer who had bought the product and found the liver still inside. The office has since launched an investigation into the supermarket, Mizuno said.
A third pack was later returned accounting for all five packages.
Mizuno added that the supermarket told the quarantine office that their licensed employee who cut the blowfish thought this type of fugu was not poisonous as they had previously sold it with its liver before.Fugu's popularity in Japan
Fugu meat is sold regularly for sashimi and hot pot ingredients.
Toshiharu Hata, a fugu wholesaler in Japan previously told CNN it is traditionally served as transparent paper-thin strips on porcelain pates.
"Master chefs cut them into the shapes of chrysanthemum petals, Mount Fuji or into animals like peacocks, turtles and butterflies. Every plate is a work of art, every dish is a work of science," Hata said.
According to Western Australia's Department of Fisheries, puffer fish are the second most poisonous vertebrate in the world after the golden poison frog.
==========================
Deadly blowfish (or Fugu) is a delicacy in Japan.(CNN)A Japanese city issued an emergency alert to residents Monday after two people ate potentially dangerous portions of fugu fish that should not have been sold.
Five packs of Yorito fugu (blunt head blowfish) were sold at a supermarket located in Gamagori city, in the central Aichi prefecture, by a licensed employee who had not removed the livers, according to Hiroko Mizuno, an official from the district's Life and Hygiene Department.
The fish, also referred to as puffer fish, contains a toxin hundreds of times more poisonous than cyanide; its liver alone can contain enough poison to kill five men. Japan has laws in place to ensure it is prepared and detoxified properly before it is sold.Fugu, with its lethal innards, is considered a winter time delicacy in Japan, with high-end Tokyo restaurants charging customers 22,000 yen ($199 US) to risk death.
An intoxicating tour of Japan's deadly puffer fish capital
The two people who consumed the fish have not reported any health problems as this time. However, Gamagori city activated an emergency warning to its citizens alerting them through all wireless systems, including community loud speakers, against eating the fugu and recalling the product.
Mizuno told CNN that this particular type of blowfish usually has very weak or no poison, but the food hygiene laws prohibit the sale of any liver given its potentially poisonous implications. The liver should never be eaten because only testing can detect the poison.
Two packs of the recalled fish were located and returned on Monday night after the city's quarantine office was alerted by a consumer who had bought the product and found the liver still inside. The office has since launched an investigation into the supermarket, Mizuno said.
A third pack was later returned accounting for all five packages.
Mizuno added that the supermarket told the quarantine office that their licensed employee who cut the blowfish thought this type of fugu was not poisonous as they had previously sold it with its liver before.Fugu's popularity in Japan
Fugu meat is sold regularly for sashimi and hot pot ingredients.
Toshiharu Hata, a fugu wholesaler in Japan previously told CNN it is traditionally served as transparent paper-thin strips on porcelain pates.
"Master chefs cut them into the shapes of chrysanthemum petals, Mount Fuji or into animals like peacocks, turtles and butterflies. Every plate is a work of art, every dish is a work of science," Hata said.
According to Western Australia's Department of Fisheries, puffer fish are the second most poisonous vertebrate in the world after the golden poison frog.
==========================
New fisheries rules: add a ban on electric pulse fishing, say MEPs
Press Releases
PLENARY SESSION
- EU-wide ban on the use of electric pulse fishing
- Simpler rules on fishing gear and minimum size of fish
- More regional flexibility for fishermen, but also limits on catches of vulnerable stocks, especially of juvenile fish
MEPs adopted new fisheries rules-negotiations with the Council will now begin ©AP Images/European Union-EPNew EU rules on how, where and when fish can be caught, were voted on Tuesday. MEPs inserted an amendment to ban the use of pulsed electric current for fishing.
The new law - updating and combining more than 30 regulations - would provide for common measures on fishing gear and methods, the minimum size of fish that may be caught and stopping or restricting fishing in certain areas or during certain periods. It also allows for tailor-made measures to be adapted to the regional needs of each sea basin.
An amendment calling for a total ban on the use of electric current for fishing (e.g. to drive fish up out of the seabed and into the net) was passed by 402 votes to 232, with 40 abstentions.
EU-wide prohibitions
The EU rules, designed progressively to reduce juvenile catches, would, inter alia:
- prohibit some fishing gear and methods,
- impose general restrictions on the use of towed gear and static nets (list fish and shellfish species for which fishing is banned
- restrict catches of marine mammals, seabirds and marine reptiles, including special provisions to protect sensitive habitats, and
- ban practices such as “high-grading” (discarding low-priced fish even though they should legally be landed) in order to reduce discarding.
Regional measures
Regional measures would cover inter alia minimum conservation reference sizes, and closed or restricted areas. Member states and the Commission would have 18 months after the entry into force of the regulation to adopt regional rules on mesh sizes.
However, it would be possible to deviate from these regional rules, via a regional fisheries multiannual plan or, in the absence of such a plan, via a decision by the EU Commission. Member states could submit joint recommendations to this end, and MEPs ask them to “base their recommendations on the best available scientific advice”.
Quote
Rapporteur Gabriel Mato (EPP, ES), said: “The current state of standards is impractical, complex and rigid, so there is a need to revise the technical measures. Everyone agreed we needed simplification. We shouldn’t reinvent the rules, but rather make them clearer and more practical to implement for fishermen and others, with regionalisation and results-based programming which is helpful for the fishermen, and national and local authorities being able to take decisions in line with the broad framework.”
Next steps
Parliament authorised Fisheries Committee MEPs to start talks with the Council on the final wording of the legislation.
Quick facts
The current technical measures regime includes more than 30 regulations. According to the Commission these are “numerous and overly complex, making compliance and control more difficult” whilst it is “impossible to measure their impact on the achievement of the conservation objectives of the Common Fisheries Policy”.
==========================
Pharmaceuticals and other contaminants force fish to work much harder to survive McMaster University
Photo`,The site where researchers tested the metabolism of fish downstream of the Dundas Wastewater Treatment Plant in suburban Hamilton, ON. Credit: McMaster UniversityPharmaceuticals and other man-made contaminants are forcing fish that live downstream from a typical sewage treatment plant to work at least 30 per cent harder just to survive, McMaster researchers have found.
The effort to decontaminate their bodies from pollutants that persist even after water treatment makes fish vulnerable by forcing them to burn energy that would typically go toward other vital functions.
"That's a difference in metabolic rate that we would have if we started walking several extra hours a day. It's a pretty big increase in metabolism," says Graham Scott, senior author of a new paper published today in the journal Environmental Science and Technology. "That's a lot of resources."
Metabolism increases with activity, sickness or stress. By using valuable metabolic resources to decontaminate its own body, a fish has less energy for movement, evading predators, catching prey, and reproduction. The effort puts populations at risk, highlighting the unseen impacts of pollution, Scott says.
"A lot of studies of environmental pollution are looking major impacts that cause animals to die. We were really concerned about those impacts of pollution that are not as obvious, but still very significant," says Scott, an assistant professor of biology at McMaster University who worked with six colleagues, including animal behavior specialist Sigal Balshine and lead author Sherry Du, a graduate student in biology. "Metabolism is a lens into the inner workings of the animal, and its health and fitness."
The findings suggest that new water-treatment technology is required to protect populations from modern threats.
The researchers took wild sunfish from an unpolluted local source and submerged cages of them at different points downstream from the Dundas Wastewater Treatment Plant near the McMaster campus for three weeks in the summer of 2016.
Using laboratory analyses, the researchers compared the metabolism of the wastewater-exposed subjects to that of fish they had placed in an unpolluted pond in the headwaters of the same watershed.
The wastewater treatment plant functions well, the researchers say, but it is not made to capture modern pollutants such as birth-control medication, anti-depressants and beta blockers, and while upgrades are planned, the new technology still won't be able to clear all of the modern contaminants.
Cootes Paradise, the marsh that forms the extreme west end of Lake Ontario, is a good location for such research, Scott explains, because it is a contained environment. What happens to fish living in treated sewage outflow is likely similar in other locations with similar plants, he says.
Balshine was the senior author of a related study that recently showed the behaviour of fish living in treated wastewater outflow was also measurably different.
Taken together, Scott says, the studies of metabolism and behavior reinforce the idea that invisible pollution from emerging new contaminants is having a serious impact on populations downstream from sewage treatment plants - a problem that should be addressed.
Explore further: One fin in the grave: Necrobiome poses a health threat to fish
Journal reference: Environmental Science and Technology
Provided by: McMaster University
Read more at: https://phys.org/news/2018-01-pharmaceuticals-contaminants-fish-harder-survive.html#jCp
==========================
Photo`,The site where researchers tested the metabolism of fish downstream of the Dundas Wastewater Treatment Plant in suburban Hamilton, ON. Credit: McMaster UniversityPharmaceuticals and other man-made contaminants are forcing fish that live downstream from a typical sewage treatment plant to work at least 30 per cent harder just to survive, McMaster researchers have found.
The effort to decontaminate their bodies from pollutants that persist even after water treatment makes fish vulnerable by forcing them to burn energy that would typically go toward other vital functions.
"That's a difference in metabolic rate that we would have if we started walking several extra hours a day. It's a pretty big increase in metabolism," says Graham Scott, senior author of a new paper published today in the journal Environmental Science and Technology. "That's a lot of resources."
Metabolism increases with activity, sickness or stress. By using valuable metabolic resources to decontaminate its own body, a fish has less energy for movement, evading predators, catching prey, and reproduction. The effort puts populations at risk, highlighting the unseen impacts of pollution, Scott says.
"A lot of studies of environmental pollution are looking major impacts that cause animals to die. We were really concerned about those impacts of pollution that are not as obvious, but still very significant," says Scott, an assistant professor of biology at McMaster University who worked with six colleagues, including animal behavior specialist Sigal Balshine and lead author Sherry Du, a graduate student in biology. "Metabolism is a lens into the inner workings of the animal, and its health and fitness."
The findings suggest that new water-treatment technology is required to protect populations from modern threats.
The researchers took wild sunfish from an unpolluted local source and submerged cages of them at different points downstream from the Dundas Wastewater Treatment Plant near the McMaster campus for three weeks in the summer of 2016.
Using laboratory analyses, the researchers compared the metabolism of the wastewater-exposed subjects to that of fish they had placed in an unpolluted pond in the headwaters of the same watershed.
The wastewater treatment plant functions well, the researchers say, but it is not made to capture modern pollutants such as birth-control medication, anti-depressants and beta blockers, and while upgrades are planned, the new technology still won't be able to clear all of the modern contaminants.
Cootes Paradise, the marsh that forms the extreme west end of Lake Ontario, is a good location for such research, Scott explains, because it is a contained environment. What happens to fish living in treated sewage outflow is likely similar in other locations with similar plants, he says.
Balshine was the senior author of a related study that recently showed the behaviour of fish living in treated wastewater outflow was also measurably different.
Taken together, Scott says, the studies of metabolism and behavior reinforce the idea that invisible pollution from emerging new contaminants is having a serious impact on populations downstream from sewage treatment plants - a problem that should be addressed.
Explore further: One fin in the grave: Necrobiome poses a health threat to fish
Journal reference: Environmental Science and Technology
Provided by: McMaster University
Read more at: https://phys.org/news/2018-01-pharmaceuticals-contaminants-fish-harder-survive.html#jCp
==========================
RYEDALE AQUARIST SOCIETY 18th Open Show & Auction
Sunday 29th April 2018
Kirby Misperton Village Hall,
Malton, North Yorkshire. Y017 6XN
Open Show exhibits - 20p
The venue is ideal for a family day out. There is ample FREE PARKING plus family picnic area and enclosed playground for children.
The venue operates a strict NO SMOKING or CONSUMPTION OF ALCOHOL policy.
Refreshments will be available throughout the duration of the event.
OPEN SHOW AWARDS;-
Y.A.A.S. AWARDS
BEST IN SHOW
BEST EXHIBIT
BEST GOLDFISH EXHIBIT
PRIZES FOR: 1st 2nd AND 3rd PLACE IN ALL CLASSES
JUDGES
A’ Class:
Mrs. P. Jones
Mr. T. Douglas
Mr. K. Webb
Mr. E. Cheetham
BENCHING OF OPEN SHOW EXHIBITS
10.00a.m. to 12.45p.m.
AUCTION
LOTS TO BE TABLED BY 12.30p.m.
AUCTION BEGINS AT 12.45p.m.
YOU CAN PRE~BOOK A LOT THROUGH a phone call to David Marshall on 01751 472715.
AUCTIONEER: Mr. S. Jones
Please note that Ryedale A.S. will take a 15% commission on all auction lots sold. Please label lots to assist the auctioneer.
Please make sure that all electrical goods are clearly marked with the name and address of the seller.
Schedule of Open Show Classes
1.Danio and Minnow
2. Rasbora
3. Molly
4. Guppy
5. Platy
6. Swordtail
7. A.O.V. Livebearer
8. A.V. Female Livebearer
9. Breeders - Livebearer
10. Matched Pair - Livebearer
11. Betta splendens (Siamese Fighters)
12. A.O.V. Small Anabantoid (up to 10cm)
13. A.O.V. Large Anabantoid (over 10cm)
14. Sharks and Foxes
15. Small Barb (up to 10cm)
16. Large Barb (over 10cm)
17. Angel and Discus
18. Endemic Rift Lake Cichlids
19. A.O.V. Small Cichlids (up to 10cm)
20. A.O.V. Large Cichlids (over 10cm)
21. Albino and Leucistic
22. *Fundulopanchax, Scriptaphyosemion, -Archiaphyosemion, Aphyosemion and Callopanchax
23. A.O.V. Killifish
24. Pencil Fish
25. A.O.V. Small Characin (up to 7cm)
26. A.O.V. Large Characin (over 7cm)
27. Single Tailed Goldfish
28. Double Tailed Goldfish
29. A.O.V. Coldwater
30. Female Egglayer
31. Botia and Loach
32. Aspidoras and Small Corydoras (up to 5.5cm)
33. Scleromystax, Brochis and Large Corydoras (over 5.5cm)
34. A.O.V. Small Catfish (up to 15cm)
35. A.O.V. Large Catfish (over 15cm)
36. Rainbowfish
37. A.O.V. Tropical (up to 15cm)
38. A.O.V. Tropical (over 15cm)
39. Matched Pair - Egglayer
40.Breeders - Egglayers
41. Junior
42.Eggshibit
OPEN SHOW RULES
1. Judging to Y.A.A.S. rules and standards. All exhibits to be shown in slab sided containers. All show tanks to have sufficient airspace above the waterline.
2. Once benched, exhibits are not to be removed without the permission of the show steward. When de-benching is announced, all exhibitors should remain within the show room until it is established that no exhibits are missing.
3. To assist the public, exhibitors must name their entries.
4. Although Ryedale A.S. will take all possible care of exhibits no responsibility can be accepted for loss or damage to exhibits. Non-exhibitors must gain permission from the Show Steward to take photographs (flash photography is prohibited prior to and during judging) within the showing room. Members of the Ryedale Aquarist Society will be present within the showing room at all times.
5. Fish entered in Classes 9 and 40 are to consist of six fish bred by the exhibitor with the date of spawning/birth of the fry and breeding group clearly marked.
6. Fish entered in Classes 10 and 39 must be true pairs.
7. Classes 22 and 23 follow the current killie showing guide as laid down by the Y.A.A.S. Judges and Standards Committee.
8. Class 42. To enter this class, you will need to either boil an egg or find a small egg-shaped object and then use all of your artistic flair and craftwork knowledge to build your egg into a fish. As with the living exhibits you must put the name or type of fish onto a label. Judges’ discretion will decide the places.
9. Class 41 is open to under 16’s only. The youngster benching the exhibit must be present on the day.
HOW TO FIND THE VENUE
From WEST YORKSHIRE, SOUTH YORKSHIRE, LANCASHIRE, THE SOUTH etc. From Tadcaster, follow the A64 onto the Malton by-pass. Branch left at signs for Flamingo Land and Steam Railway. At the roundabout take the 1st exit onto the A169. At the next roundabout take the second exit. Follow the A169 for several miles to signs for Kirby Misperton and Flamingo Land and turn left here. Follow the road (past the fences for the Zoo on your right) to the roundabout and take the left turning into the village. Follow the road to the top of the village and branch left. (There is a no through road sign.) The Village Hall is just along the road on the right.
*Should you wish to avoid the A64 then take the A1 or A19 turn off for Thirsk. Follow A170 road towards Helmsley. Follow road down from Sutton Bank (going past the turn off for Kilburn and Wass) and approx. 2 miles from Helmsley turn right after bend taking the B1257 signposted Malton. Go through Hovingham and past the turn off for Slingsby. As you enter Amotherby village turn left and go through the village (BOCM and Queen’s Head Pub are on your right). Continue on country road. Go over both the normal and the humped back bridge. Turn right SP Little Barugh and Kirby Misperton. Branch left at Little Barugh. As you enter Kirby Misperton don’t follow the left curve into the village but turn first right and this takes you to the venue car park.
From the NORTH-EAST, CUMBRIA, SCOTLAND
From Thirsk (A1 or A19) follow the instructions above marked with a star*.
If you are coming via Stokesley into Helmsley. Turn right at Helmsley Church and at mini-roundabout turn right onto A170 signposted Thirsk. At top of hill branch left B1257 signposted Malton. Then follow the instructions marked with a *.
Alternatively, you can go into Helmsley and follow the A170 signs for Pickering. At Pickering follow the road (avoiding the Local traffic only sign as you pass the garage at Middleton Village) through the outskirts of the town until you come to the traffic lights (Lidl is on your right). Carry on to the roundabout. Here you take the 3rd turning onto the A169. Follow this road past Beansheaf to the turning for Kirby Misperton and Flamingo Land and turn right here. Follow the road (past the fences for the Zoo on your right) to the roundabout and take the left turning into the village. Follow the road to the top of the village and branch left (There is a no through road sign). The Village Hall is along the road on the right.
From HUMBER BRIDGE, DRIFFIELD, HULL etc. - Follow the B1248 into Norton turning left into the high street. Go past the swimming baths, turn right over the railway crossing and follow the bend to the traffic lights. At the lights turn right. Go up the hill and past a large glass building (RDC) on your left. At the mini-roundabout go straight over and past the Church. At the roundabout take the 2nd exit onto the A169. At the next roundabout take the second exit. Follow this road for several miles to signs for Kirby Misperton and Flamingo Land and turn left here. Follow the road (past the fences for the Zoo on your right) to the roundabout and take the left turning into the village. Follow the road to the top of the village and branch left (There is a no through road sign). The Village Hall is along the road on the right.
SCARBOROUGH, BRIDLINGTON - Follow the A64. At the Malton by-pass take the exit signposted Pickering/Malton (A169). At the roundabout take the 3nd exit onto the A169. At the next roundabout take the second exit. Follow this road for several miles to signs for Kirby Misperton and Flamingo Land and turn left here. Follow the road (past the fences for the Zoo on your right) to the roundabout and take the left turning into the village. Follow the road to the top of the village and branch left (There is a no through road sign). The Village Hall is along the road on the right.
Alternatively follow the A170 into Pickering. At the roundabout take 1st exit onto the A169. Follow this road past Beansheaf to the turning for Kirby Misperton and Flamingo Land and turn right here. Follow the road (past the fences for the Zoo on your right) to the roundabout and take the left turning into the village. Follow the road to the top of the village and branch left (There is a no through road sign). The Village Hall is along the road on the right.
From WHITBY - Follow the A169 Whitby to Pickering road into Pickering. Going past the cemetery carry straight on to the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A169 Follow this road past Beansheaf to the turning for Kirby Misperton and Flamingo Land and turn right here. Follow the road (past the fences for the Zoo on your right) to the roundabout and take the left turning into the village. Follow the road to the top of the village and branch left (There is a no through road sign). The
venue is on the right.
==========================
Sunday 29th April 2018
Kirby Misperton Village Hall,
Malton, North Yorkshire. Y017 6XN
Open Show exhibits - 20p
The venue is ideal for a family day out. There is ample FREE PARKING plus family picnic area and enclosed playground for children.
The venue operates a strict NO SMOKING or CONSUMPTION OF ALCOHOL policy.
Refreshments will be available throughout the duration of the event.
OPEN SHOW AWARDS;-
Y.A.A.S. AWARDS
BEST IN SHOW
BEST EXHIBIT
BEST GOLDFISH EXHIBIT
PRIZES FOR: 1st 2nd AND 3rd PLACE IN ALL CLASSES
JUDGES
A’ Class:
Mrs. P. Jones
Mr. T. Douglas
Mr. K. Webb
Mr. E. Cheetham
BENCHING OF OPEN SHOW EXHIBITS
10.00a.m. to 12.45p.m.
AUCTION
LOTS TO BE TABLED BY 12.30p.m.
AUCTION BEGINS AT 12.45p.m.
YOU CAN PRE~BOOK A LOT THROUGH a phone call to David Marshall on 01751 472715.
AUCTIONEER: Mr. S. Jones
Please note that Ryedale A.S. will take a 15% commission on all auction lots sold. Please label lots to assist the auctioneer.
Please make sure that all electrical goods are clearly marked with the name and address of the seller.
Schedule of Open Show Classes
1.Danio and Minnow
2. Rasbora
3. Molly
4. Guppy
5. Platy
6. Swordtail
7. A.O.V. Livebearer
8. A.V. Female Livebearer
9. Breeders - Livebearer
10. Matched Pair - Livebearer
11. Betta splendens (Siamese Fighters)
12. A.O.V. Small Anabantoid (up to 10cm)
13. A.O.V. Large Anabantoid (over 10cm)
14. Sharks and Foxes
15. Small Barb (up to 10cm)
16. Large Barb (over 10cm)
17. Angel and Discus
18. Endemic Rift Lake Cichlids
19. A.O.V. Small Cichlids (up to 10cm)
20. A.O.V. Large Cichlids (over 10cm)
21. Albino and Leucistic
22. *Fundulopanchax, Scriptaphyosemion, -Archiaphyosemion, Aphyosemion and Callopanchax
23. A.O.V. Killifish
24. Pencil Fish
25. A.O.V. Small Characin (up to 7cm)
26. A.O.V. Large Characin (over 7cm)
27. Single Tailed Goldfish
28. Double Tailed Goldfish
29. A.O.V. Coldwater
30. Female Egglayer
31. Botia and Loach
32. Aspidoras and Small Corydoras (up to 5.5cm)
33. Scleromystax, Brochis and Large Corydoras (over 5.5cm)
34. A.O.V. Small Catfish (up to 15cm)
35. A.O.V. Large Catfish (over 15cm)
36. Rainbowfish
37. A.O.V. Tropical (up to 15cm)
38. A.O.V. Tropical (over 15cm)
39. Matched Pair - Egglayer
40.Breeders - Egglayers
41. Junior
42.Eggshibit
OPEN SHOW RULES
1. Judging to Y.A.A.S. rules and standards. All exhibits to be shown in slab sided containers. All show tanks to have sufficient airspace above the waterline.
2. Once benched, exhibits are not to be removed without the permission of the show steward. When de-benching is announced, all exhibitors should remain within the show room until it is established that no exhibits are missing.
3. To assist the public, exhibitors must name their entries.
4. Although Ryedale A.S. will take all possible care of exhibits no responsibility can be accepted for loss or damage to exhibits. Non-exhibitors must gain permission from the Show Steward to take photographs (flash photography is prohibited prior to and during judging) within the showing room. Members of the Ryedale Aquarist Society will be present within the showing room at all times.
5. Fish entered in Classes 9 and 40 are to consist of six fish bred by the exhibitor with the date of spawning/birth of the fry and breeding group clearly marked.
6. Fish entered in Classes 10 and 39 must be true pairs.
7. Classes 22 and 23 follow the current killie showing guide as laid down by the Y.A.A.S. Judges and Standards Committee.
8. Class 42. To enter this class, you will need to either boil an egg or find a small egg-shaped object and then use all of your artistic flair and craftwork knowledge to build your egg into a fish. As with the living exhibits you must put the name or type of fish onto a label. Judges’ discretion will decide the places.
9. Class 41 is open to under 16’s only. The youngster benching the exhibit must be present on the day.
HOW TO FIND THE VENUE
From WEST YORKSHIRE, SOUTH YORKSHIRE, LANCASHIRE, THE SOUTH etc. From Tadcaster, follow the A64 onto the Malton by-pass. Branch left at signs for Flamingo Land and Steam Railway. At the roundabout take the 1st exit onto the A169. At the next roundabout take the second exit. Follow the A169 for several miles to signs for Kirby Misperton and Flamingo Land and turn left here. Follow the road (past the fences for the Zoo on your right) to the roundabout and take the left turning into the village. Follow the road to the top of the village and branch left. (There is a no through road sign.) The Village Hall is just along the road on the right.
*Should you wish to avoid the A64 then take the A1 or A19 turn off for Thirsk. Follow A170 road towards Helmsley. Follow road down from Sutton Bank (going past the turn off for Kilburn and Wass) and approx. 2 miles from Helmsley turn right after bend taking the B1257 signposted Malton. Go through Hovingham and past the turn off for Slingsby. As you enter Amotherby village turn left and go through the village (BOCM and Queen’s Head Pub are on your right). Continue on country road. Go over both the normal and the humped back bridge. Turn right SP Little Barugh and Kirby Misperton. Branch left at Little Barugh. As you enter Kirby Misperton don’t follow the left curve into the village but turn first right and this takes you to the venue car park.
From the NORTH-EAST, CUMBRIA, SCOTLAND
From Thirsk (A1 or A19) follow the instructions above marked with a star*.
If you are coming via Stokesley into Helmsley. Turn right at Helmsley Church and at mini-roundabout turn right onto A170 signposted Thirsk. At top of hill branch left B1257 signposted Malton. Then follow the instructions marked with a *.
Alternatively, you can go into Helmsley and follow the A170 signs for Pickering. At Pickering follow the road (avoiding the Local traffic only sign as you pass the garage at Middleton Village) through the outskirts of the town until you come to the traffic lights (Lidl is on your right). Carry on to the roundabout. Here you take the 3rd turning onto the A169. Follow this road past Beansheaf to the turning for Kirby Misperton and Flamingo Land and turn right here. Follow the road (past the fences for the Zoo on your right) to the roundabout and take the left turning into the village. Follow the road to the top of the village and branch left (There is a no through road sign). The Village Hall is along the road on the right.
From HUMBER BRIDGE, DRIFFIELD, HULL etc. - Follow the B1248 into Norton turning left into the high street. Go past the swimming baths, turn right over the railway crossing and follow the bend to the traffic lights. At the lights turn right. Go up the hill and past a large glass building (RDC) on your left. At the mini-roundabout go straight over and past the Church. At the roundabout take the 2nd exit onto the A169. At the next roundabout take the second exit. Follow this road for several miles to signs for Kirby Misperton and Flamingo Land and turn left here. Follow the road (past the fences for the Zoo on your right) to the roundabout and take the left turning into the village. Follow the road to the top of the village and branch left (There is a no through road sign). The Village Hall is along the road on the right.
SCARBOROUGH, BRIDLINGTON - Follow the A64. At the Malton by-pass take the exit signposted Pickering/Malton (A169). At the roundabout take the 3nd exit onto the A169. At the next roundabout take the second exit. Follow this road for several miles to signs for Kirby Misperton and Flamingo Land and turn left here. Follow the road (past the fences for the Zoo on your right) to the roundabout and take the left turning into the village. Follow the road to the top of the village and branch left (There is a no through road sign). The Village Hall is along the road on the right.
Alternatively follow the A170 into Pickering. At the roundabout take 1st exit onto the A169. Follow this road past Beansheaf to the turning for Kirby Misperton and Flamingo Land and turn right here. Follow the road (past the fences for the Zoo on your right) to the roundabout and take the left turning into the village. Follow the road to the top of the village and branch left (There is a no through road sign). The Village Hall is along the road on the right.
From WHITBY - Follow the A169 Whitby to Pickering road into Pickering. Going past the cemetery carry straight on to the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A169 Follow this road past Beansheaf to the turning for Kirby Misperton and Flamingo Land and turn right here. Follow the road (past the fences for the Zoo on your right) to the roundabout and take the left turning into the village. Follow the road to the top of the village and branch left (There is a no through road sign). The
venue is on the right.
==========================
==========================
Sardinus pilchardus
Engraulis encrasicolus
Ingestion of microplastics and natural fibres in Sardina pilchardus (Walbaum, 1792) and Engraulis encrasicolus(Linnaeus, 1758) along the Spanish Mediterranean coast
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2018.01.009
Highlights
•Fifteen percent of sampled European pilchards and European anchovies ingested microplastics and natural fibres.
•Condition index (Fulton's K) influences the ingestion of microplastics and natural fibres in the sampled European pilchard.
•The ingestion of microplastics and natural fibres in these fish species is widespread along the Spanish Mediterranean coast.
•Eighty-three percent of ingested anthropogenic particles were fibres.
AbstractThe ingestion of microplastics and natural fibres (<5 mm) was assessed for two commercial fish species in the western Mediterranean Sea: Sardina pilchardus and Engraulis encrasicolus. Gastrointestinal tracts from 210 individuals from 14 stations were examined with 14.28–15.24% of the small pelagic fish S. pilchardus and E. encrasicolushaving ingested microplastics and natural fibres. A latitudinal increase in condition index (Fulton's K) of S. pilchardus gave an indication that larger individuals with better physical condition are less likely to ingest microplastics and natural fibres. Fibres were the most frequent particle type (83%) and Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) analysis indicated polyethylene terephthalate was the most common microplastics material (30%). Results from this study show that both microplastics and natural fibres of anthropogenic origin are common throughout the pelagic environment along the Spanish Mediterranean coast.
From :- Marine Pollution Bulletin Volume 128, March 2018, pps 89-96
==========================
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2018.01.009
Highlights
•Fifteen percent of sampled European pilchards and European anchovies ingested microplastics and natural fibres.
•Condition index (Fulton's K) influences the ingestion of microplastics and natural fibres in the sampled European pilchard.
•The ingestion of microplastics and natural fibres in these fish species is widespread along the Spanish Mediterranean coast.
•Eighty-three percent of ingested anthropogenic particles were fibres.
AbstractThe ingestion of microplastics and natural fibres (<5 mm) was assessed for two commercial fish species in the western Mediterranean Sea: Sardina pilchardus and Engraulis encrasicolus. Gastrointestinal tracts from 210 individuals from 14 stations were examined with 14.28–15.24% of the small pelagic fish S. pilchardus and E. encrasicolushaving ingested microplastics and natural fibres. A latitudinal increase in condition index (Fulton's K) of S. pilchardus gave an indication that larger individuals with better physical condition are less likely to ingest microplastics and natural fibres. Fibres were the most frequent particle type (83%) and Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) analysis indicated polyethylene terephthalate was the most common microplastics material (30%). Results from this study show that both microplastics and natural fibres of anthropogenic origin are common throughout the pelagic environment along the Spanish Mediterranean coast.
From :- Marine Pollution Bulletin Volume 128, March 2018, pps 89-96
==========================
Lembeh Frogfish gets a proper Re-DescriptionS
0The Lembeh Frogfish is an interesting cryptic fish which represented a species that was has been known and beloved to underwater photographers for decades. While this species was first described as Antennarius subteres way back in 1909, and placed in the new genus Nudiantennarius in 1957, our understanding of the frogfish group of marine fish has grown substantially in the half century since.
Also known as the ocellated frogfish, since Lembeh Indonesia is a very popular dive spot for underwater photographers to capture images of cryptic marine life, Nudiantennarius subteres is perhaps one of the most photographed in the world. Armed with a cornucopia of images and much more information about this fish, a modern redescription helps to illuminate what is special about this particular frogfish.
What is particularly unique about the Lembeh Frogfish is that unlike its warty counterparts, it has much smoother skin with fewer tiny spines in its skin, giving the body a somewhat naked appearance. This smoother appearance might prevent it from looking like coral, coralline algae or rock, it sure does help look more like the sponges in the muck diving habitats this species prefers.
While uber common around Lembeh, Indonesia, Nudiantennarius subteres was first described from specimens in Luzon, Philippines but it is also known from as far as Bali. The refinement ofNudiantennarius subteres was done by Theodore Pietsch and Rachel Arnold in the November issue of the Copeia journal.
from ReefBilders
==========================
0The Lembeh Frogfish is an interesting cryptic fish which represented a species that was has been known and beloved to underwater photographers for decades. While this species was first described as Antennarius subteres way back in 1909, and placed in the new genus Nudiantennarius in 1957, our understanding of the frogfish group of marine fish has grown substantially in the half century since.
Also known as the ocellated frogfish, since Lembeh Indonesia is a very popular dive spot for underwater photographers to capture images of cryptic marine life, Nudiantennarius subteres is perhaps one of the most photographed in the world. Armed with a cornucopia of images and much more information about this fish, a modern redescription helps to illuminate what is special about this particular frogfish.
What is particularly unique about the Lembeh Frogfish is that unlike its warty counterparts, it has much smoother skin with fewer tiny spines in its skin, giving the body a somewhat naked appearance. This smoother appearance might prevent it from looking like coral, coralline algae or rock, it sure does help look more like the sponges in the muck diving habitats this species prefers.
While uber common around Lembeh, Indonesia, Nudiantennarius subteres was first described from specimens in Luzon, Philippines but it is also known from as far as Bali. The refinement ofNudiantennarius subteres was done by Theodore Pietsch and Rachel Arnold in the November issue of the Copeia journal.
from ReefBilders
==========================
Bonnet head shark
Bonnethead Sharks Consume and Digest Seagrass
A small coastal shark called the bonnethead shark (Sphyrna tiburo) eats copious amounts of seagrass (Thalassia testudinum) and has adaptations in its digestive system to process vegetation, according to new research.
Leigh et al investigated the digestive function of bonnethead sharks in order to determine whether they can digest and assimilate nutrients from seagrass. Image credit: Mills Baker / CC BY 2.0.
The bonnethead shark is a member of the hammerhead shark genus Sphyrnain the family Sphyrnidae.
This species is commonly found in shallow estuaries and bays over seagrass, mud and sandy bottoms at depths from 33 to 263 feet (10-80 m).
It ranges from New England, where it is rare, to the Gulf of Mexico and Brazil and from southern California to Ecuador. It is common in the inshore waters of the Carolinas and Georgia in summer, and off Florida and in the Gulf of Mexico in spring, summer, and fall.
On average, bonnethead sharks are about 2-3 feet (61-91 cm) long, with a maximum size of about 5 feet (1.5 m). Females tend to be larger than males. The body is grey-brown above and lighter on the underside.
The first evidence for plant-eating bonnethead sharks came from an unusual discovery published in 2007.
Dana Bethea, a research ecologist with NOAA Fisheries in Florida, and colleagues examined the stomach contents of bonnethead sharks in the Gulf of Mexico, and were surprised to find that more than half of the material they had ingested was seagrass.
However, it was unclear if the sharks were actually consuming grass and extracting nutrients from it, or just accidentally swallowing it as they hunted for crabs and shrimp hiding in the vegetation.
This work inspired University of California Irvine researcher Samantha Leighand co-authors to investigate the ability of bonnetheads to digest plants.
“We captured several individuals and brought them into the laboratory at Florida International University, where they were fed a diet of 90% seagrass for several weeks,” the scientists said.
“The seagrass had been labeled with stable isotope carbon-13, so when the sharks consumed it, we could test for a signature of carbon-13 in the sharks’ tissues and see if nutrients from the seagrass were actually taken up into the body.”
“We also collected the shark’s feces, to see how much of the seagrass nutrients (such as carbohydrates, proteins, etc) was simply excreted undigested.”
“Further, we looked at digestive enzymes in the intestines of the bonnetheads, to see if they even have any ability to break down plant material.”
“A purely carnivorous animal should have no mechanism to digest plants, but if the bonnethead sharks eat seagrass regularly, they should have enzymes for this purpose.”
The results were conclusive: carbon-13 from the labeled seagrass was found in the shark’s blood, so they were fully digesting and incorporating nutrients from the grass into their bodies, not just excreting it as waste.
Out of the total grass consumed, about half was actually digested and broken down by the gut, and half was excreted undigested.
The team also found that the sharks had the digestive enzyme b-glucosidase in their guts, which breaks down cellulose, an important component of plant matter.
This is the first finding of plant-specific digestive enzymes in sharks.
On top of this, the bonnetheads seemed perfectly content on their 90% vegetarian diet.
“We observed no negative health effects, and the sharks even gained weight during the study,” the researchers noted.
“While in the wild bonnethead sharks would likely eat less than 90% seagrass, the ability to thrive on such a high plant diet is further support for their ability to obtain nutrients from seagrass.”
“Adaptations for omnivory may allow the bonnetheads to be generalists as opposed to strictly predators, giving them flexibility to consume both plants and protein,” Leigh said.
“We always think of sharks as these apex predators, but here is this shark that is not really acting like an apex predator at all… but more like an omnivore.”
It is still unknown whether the sharks intentionally consume grass in the wild by grazing or if they ingest plants accidentally and have adapted a digestive mechanism to take advantage of that.
“A greater concern is what may happen to bonnethead sharks if these seagrass meadows, which are currently threatened, are destroyed,” the authors said.
“While bonnetheads are not currently endangered, this research indicates seagrass is an important part of their diet, in addition to their habitat.”
Leigh and colleagues reported their findings January 7 at the 2018 Annual Meeting of the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology in San Francisco, CA.
_____
S.C. Leigh et al. Omnivorous Sharks? An Analysis of Bonnethead Shark Digestive Physiology Provides Evidence for Seagrass Digestion and Assimilation. SICB Annual Meetiing Abstract
==========================
A small coastal shark called the bonnethead shark (Sphyrna tiburo) eats copious amounts of seagrass (Thalassia testudinum) and has adaptations in its digestive system to process vegetation, according to new research.
Leigh et al investigated the digestive function of bonnethead sharks in order to determine whether they can digest and assimilate nutrients from seagrass. Image credit: Mills Baker / CC BY 2.0.
The bonnethead shark is a member of the hammerhead shark genus Sphyrnain the family Sphyrnidae.
This species is commonly found in shallow estuaries and bays over seagrass, mud and sandy bottoms at depths from 33 to 263 feet (10-80 m).
It ranges from New England, where it is rare, to the Gulf of Mexico and Brazil and from southern California to Ecuador. It is common in the inshore waters of the Carolinas and Georgia in summer, and off Florida and in the Gulf of Mexico in spring, summer, and fall.
On average, bonnethead sharks are about 2-3 feet (61-91 cm) long, with a maximum size of about 5 feet (1.5 m). Females tend to be larger than males. The body is grey-brown above and lighter on the underside.
The first evidence for plant-eating bonnethead sharks came from an unusual discovery published in 2007.
Dana Bethea, a research ecologist with NOAA Fisheries in Florida, and colleagues examined the stomach contents of bonnethead sharks in the Gulf of Mexico, and were surprised to find that more than half of the material they had ingested was seagrass.
However, it was unclear if the sharks were actually consuming grass and extracting nutrients from it, or just accidentally swallowing it as they hunted for crabs and shrimp hiding in the vegetation.
This work inspired University of California Irvine researcher Samantha Leighand co-authors to investigate the ability of bonnetheads to digest plants.
“We captured several individuals and brought them into the laboratory at Florida International University, where they were fed a diet of 90% seagrass for several weeks,” the scientists said.
“The seagrass had been labeled with stable isotope carbon-13, so when the sharks consumed it, we could test for a signature of carbon-13 in the sharks’ tissues and see if nutrients from the seagrass were actually taken up into the body.”
“We also collected the shark’s feces, to see how much of the seagrass nutrients (such as carbohydrates, proteins, etc) was simply excreted undigested.”
“Further, we looked at digestive enzymes in the intestines of the bonnetheads, to see if they even have any ability to break down plant material.”
“A purely carnivorous animal should have no mechanism to digest plants, but if the bonnethead sharks eat seagrass regularly, they should have enzymes for this purpose.”
The results were conclusive: carbon-13 from the labeled seagrass was found in the shark’s blood, so they were fully digesting and incorporating nutrients from the grass into their bodies, not just excreting it as waste.
Out of the total grass consumed, about half was actually digested and broken down by the gut, and half was excreted undigested.
The team also found that the sharks had the digestive enzyme b-glucosidase in their guts, which breaks down cellulose, an important component of plant matter.
This is the first finding of plant-specific digestive enzymes in sharks.
On top of this, the bonnetheads seemed perfectly content on their 90% vegetarian diet.
“We observed no negative health effects, and the sharks even gained weight during the study,” the researchers noted.
“While in the wild bonnethead sharks would likely eat less than 90% seagrass, the ability to thrive on such a high plant diet is further support for their ability to obtain nutrients from seagrass.”
“Adaptations for omnivory may allow the bonnetheads to be generalists as opposed to strictly predators, giving them flexibility to consume both plants and protein,” Leigh said.
“We always think of sharks as these apex predators, but here is this shark that is not really acting like an apex predator at all… but more like an omnivore.”
It is still unknown whether the sharks intentionally consume grass in the wild by grazing or if they ingest plants accidentally and have adapted a digestive mechanism to take advantage of that.
“A greater concern is what may happen to bonnethead sharks if these seagrass meadows, which are currently threatened, are destroyed,” the authors said.
“While bonnetheads are not currently endangered, this research indicates seagrass is an important part of their diet, in addition to their habitat.”
Leigh and colleagues reported their findings January 7 at the 2018 Annual Meeting of the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology in San Francisco, CA.
_____
S.C. Leigh et al. Omnivorous Sharks? An Analysis of Bonnethead Shark Digestive Physiology Provides Evidence for Seagrass Digestion and Assimilation. SICB Annual Meetiing Abstract
==========================
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposes endangered status for Barrens topminnow, Fundulus julisia.
The Barrens topminnow is a beautiful, iridescent fish, rarely growing longer than four inches, which is found in only a few creeks and springs of the Barrens Plateau in four Middle Tennessee counties. The little fish is in trouble, due to the introduction of the non-native western mosquitofish, which is invading the minnow’s habitat, out competing it for food and directly preying on young topminnows. On top of that, the impact of the drought means the minnow is struggling to survive.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is now proposing to help protect the Barrens topminnow as an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act.
“There has already been a good deal of successful conservation work on the Barrens topminnow by many partners including the Barrens Topminnow Working Group, Conservation Fisheries Inc., and the Tennessee Aquarium in Chattanooga,” said Leopoldo Miranda, assistant regional director for the service’s Ecological Services program in the Southeast Region. “Extending protected status is a signal that more work is needed, and we look forward to cooperating with the many organizations and people trying to help this fish.”
AdvertisementRecovery efforts for the Barrens topminnow began in the 1970s and have been successful at producing fish for stocking. The Fish and Wildlife Service has also worked with landowners to protect and improve Barrens topminnow habitat. And a concerted effort began in the 1990s to restock topminnows into 27 springs throughout their historic range with the cooperation of many landowners.
The Barrens Topminnow Working Group – consisting of the USFWS, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, Tennessee Tech University researchers and nonprofit organizations such as the Tennessee Aquarium and Conservation Fisheries Inc. – was created in 2001 to coordinate actions such as habitat improvement, propagation and stocking. Although more than 44,000 Barrens topminnow have been stocked into 27 sites, the prevalence of the western mosquitofish has made recovery challenging.
The mosquitofish, apparently introduced into the area in the 1960s in an effort to control mosquito populations, has proved only moderately successful at doing so. But it has proved to be very efficient at outcompeting Barrens topminnows. The mosquitofish rapidly expand their populations into all corners of an available body of water. Once they move into an area where Barrens topminnows reside, the topminnows essentially cease reproduction.
Topminnow males are showy and iridescent, with background colors of greens and blues, and with reddish-orange spots and yellow fins. Females, juveniles and non-reproductive males are more drab, with pale brown bodies sprinkled with darker spots.
Current and historic range of the Barrens topminnow. (Map: USFWS)USFWS accepting public comments
The proposed endangered listing is based on the recent completion of a peer-reviewed Species Status Assessment for the fish. The Fish and Wildlife Service is accepting public comments on this proposed rule. The Service must receive requests for public hearings in writing at this address: Tennessee Ecological Services Field Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 446 Neal St., Cookeville, TN 38506 by Feb. 20, 2018.
You may submit comments by one of the following methods:
By hard copy: Submit by U.S. mail or hand-delivery to: Public Comments Processing, Attn: FWS–R4–ES–2017–0094, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, MS: BPHC, 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803. Comments must be received or postmarked by March 5, 2018.
==========================
The Barrens topminnow is a beautiful, iridescent fish, rarely growing longer than four inches, which is found in only a few creeks and springs of the Barrens Plateau in four Middle Tennessee counties. The little fish is in trouble, due to the introduction of the non-native western mosquitofish, which is invading the minnow’s habitat, out competing it for food and directly preying on young topminnows. On top of that, the impact of the drought means the minnow is struggling to survive.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is now proposing to help protect the Barrens topminnow as an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act.
“There has already been a good deal of successful conservation work on the Barrens topminnow by many partners including the Barrens Topminnow Working Group, Conservation Fisheries Inc., and the Tennessee Aquarium in Chattanooga,” said Leopoldo Miranda, assistant regional director for the service’s Ecological Services program in the Southeast Region. “Extending protected status is a signal that more work is needed, and we look forward to cooperating with the many organizations and people trying to help this fish.”
AdvertisementRecovery efforts for the Barrens topminnow began in the 1970s and have been successful at producing fish for stocking. The Fish and Wildlife Service has also worked with landowners to protect and improve Barrens topminnow habitat. And a concerted effort began in the 1990s to restock topminnows into 27 springs throughout their historic range with the cooperation of many landowners.
The Barrens Topminnow Working Group – consisting of the USFWS, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, Tennessee Tech University researchers and nonprofit organizations such as the Tennessee Aquarium and Conservation Fisheries Inc. – was created in 2001 to coordinate actions such as habitat improvement, propagation and stocking. Although more than 44,000 Barrens topminnow have been stocked into 27 sites, the prevalence of the western mosquitofish has made recovery challenging.
The mosquitofish, apparently introduced into the area in the 1960s in an effort to control mosquito populations, has proved only moderately successful at doing so. But it has proved to be very efficient at outcompeting Barrens topminnows. The mosquitofish rapidly expand their populations into all corners of an available body of water. Once they move into an area where Barrens topminnows reside, the topminnows essentially cease reproduction.
Topminnow males are showy and iridescent, with background colors of greens and blues, and with reddish-orange spots and yellow fins. Females, juveniles and non-reproductive males are more drab, with pale brown bodies sprinkled with darker spots.
Current and historic range of the Barrens topminnow. (Map: USFWS)USFWS accepting public comments
The proposed endangered listing is based on the recent completion of a peer-reviewed Species Status Assessment for the fish. The Fish and Wildlife Service is accepting public comments on this proposed rule. The Service must receive requests for public hearings in writing at this address: Tennessee Ecological Services Field Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 446 Neal St., Cookeville, TN 38506 by Feb. 20, 2018.
You may submit comments by one of the following methods:
By hard copy: Submit by U.S. mail or hand-delivery to: Public Comments Processing, Attn: FWS–R4–ES–2017–0094, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, MS: BPHC, 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803. Comments must be received or postmarked by March 5, 2018.
==========================
Calls for EU to reinstate ban on 'destructive' electric pulse fishing
Campaigners say it causes unnecessary suffering but those in favour of method say it is less damaging than trawling
It is not known how many fishing boats use the technology. Photograph: Glenn Beanland/Getty Images/Lonely Planet ImagesFiona Harvey Environment correspondent
Groups representing small-scale fishing fleets across Europe have called on the European Union to reinstate a ban on fishing using electrical pulses, which they say is a destructive method.
However, others have called for the technique to continue, saying it causes less disturbance than methods such as trawling the bottom of the seabed.
Electric pulses are sometimes used by fishing boats, through devices attached to their nets, to send electricity into the seabed where it disturbs marine life, with the aim of causing fish to move into the nets.
The method has been allowed in Europe since 2006, after a decision by the European commission, despite a bloc-wide ban instituted in 1998 on environmental grounds.
Later this month, the European parliament will vote again on whether to allow the practice to continue. Campaign groups including The Black Fish, Low Impact Fishers of Europe and Bloom have written to parliamentarians requesting the ban be reinstated.
It is not known how many of Europe’s fishing vessels use the technology, or what its effects are.
The Green party MEP Molly Scott Cato said: “We are opposed to any expansion of pulse fishing, which seems pretty barbaric and causes unnecessary suffering to fish. While the use of electrical disturbance might reduce the damage caused to seabed habitats through heavy beam trawling, it cannot be justified to replace one damaging fishing technology with another. The impact on fish and other marine wildlife of pulse fishing is unclear, and it thus also appears to violate the precautionary principle.”
Barrie Deas, the chief executive of the National Federation of Fishermen’s Organisations (NFFO), said: “Pulse fishing is a highly controversial and emotive issue at present. The extent to which pulse fishing is more or less impactful on the marine environment than conventional beam trawling is currently being studied. The outcome of this research will be significant in shaping future policy.”
He said the use of pulse fishing had led to an increase in the intensity of fishing in areas such as the Greater Thames fisheries, because the technology allowed vessels to fish in softer ground for valuable species such as sole, and the effects of this were not yet known. He said that until a definitive scientific view emerged, governments should protect “sensitive” fishing grounds from the use of the technique, particularly in areas off the English coast.
The NFFO has been holding talks with its Dutch counterparts on the subject, with a view to developing a shared approach.
The European commission told the Guardian that the most up-to-date scientific advice showed that electric pulse fishing was safe and could result in less damage to marine life than alternatives. The commission said recent scientific studies, from 2012 and 2016, showed that pulse fishing could reduce bycatch, result in less damage to the seafloor than trawling, and cut down on carbon dioxide emissions.
from the Guardian
==========================
Campaigners say it causes unnecessary suffering but those in favour of method say it is less damaging than trawling
It is not known how many fishing boats use the technology. Photograph: Glenn Beanland/Getty Images/Lonely Planet ImagesFiona Harvey Environment correspondent
Groups representing small-scale fishing fleets across Europe have called on the European Union to reinstate a ban on fishing using electrical pulses, which they say is a destructive method.
However, others have called for the technique to continue, saying it causes less disturbance than methods such as trawling the bottom of the seabed.
Electric pulses are sometimes used by fishing boats, through devices attached to their nets, to send electricity into the seabed where it disturbs marine life, with the aim of causing fish to move into the nets.
The method has been allowed in Europe since 2006, after a decision by the European commission, despite a bloc-wide ban instituted in 1998 on environmental grounds.
Later this month, the European parliament will vote again on whether to allow the practice to continue. Campaign groups including The Black Fish, Low Impact Fishers of Europe and Bloom have written to parliamentarians requesting the ban be reinstated.
It is not known how many of Europe’s fishing vessels use the technology, or what its effects are.
The Green party MEP Molly Scott Cato said: “We are opposed to any expansion of pulse fishing, which seems pretty barbaric and causes unnecessary suffering to fish. While the use of electrical disturbance might reduce the damage caused to seabed habitats through heavy beam trawling, it cannot be justified to replace one damaging fishing technology with another. The impact on fish and other marine wildlife of pulse fishing is unclear, and it thus also appears to violate the precautionary principle.”
Barrie Deas, the chief executive of the National Federation of Fishermen’s Organisations (NFFO), said: “Pulse fishing is a highly controversial and emotive issue at present. The extent to which pulse fishing is more or less impactful on the marine environment than conventional beam trawling is currently being studied. The outcome of this research will be significant in shaping future policy.”
He said the use of pulse fishing had led to an increase in the intensity of fishing in areas such as the Greater Thames fisheries, because the technology allowed vessels to fish in softer ground for valuable species such as sole, and the effects of this were not yet known. He said that until a definitive scientific view emerged, governments should protect “sensitive” fishing grounds from the use of the technique, particularly in areas off the English coast.
The NFFO has been holding talks with its Dutch counterparts on the subject, with a view to developing a shared approach.
The European commission told the Guardian that the most up-to-date scientific advice showed that electric pulse fishing was safe and could result in less damage to marine life than alternatives. The commission said recent scientific studies, from 2012 and 2016, showed that pulse fishing could reduce bycatch, result in less damage to the seafloor than trawling, and cut down on carbon dioxide emissions.
from the Guardian
==========================
Is fishing with electricity less destructive than digging up the seabed with beam trawlers?
January 8, 2018 3.52pm GMTAuthor
Partners
Bangor University provides funding as a member of The Conversation UK.
The Conversation UK receives funding from Hefce, Hefcw, SAGE, SFC, RCUK, The Nuffield Foundation, The Ogden Trust, The Royal Society, The Wellcome Trust, Esmée Fairbairn Foundation and The Alliance for Useful Evidence, as well as sixty five university members.
While many people may be interested in the sustainability and welfare of the fish they eat, or the health of the environment, fewer probably worry about the effect that trawl fishing – which accounts for 20% of landings – has on the ocean.
For a long time researchers and the industry have been trying to improve trawl fishing practices. Things have moved on from practices such as beam trawling – where a large net is dragged across the ocean floor – to potentially less invasive and newer methods like electric pulse trawling. This sees electrical pulses being sent into the seawater to flush out bottom-dwelling fish like plaice and sole, causing them to swim into the path of trawl nets.
Beam trawls have been the focus of environmental concern for decades, as it causes a substantial reduction in the abundance of animals living on the seabed. These effects can be long lasting if the fishing occurs in areas which are inhabited by long-lived seabed dwelling species such as oysters and sponges. Beam trawls are also associated with high amounts of bycatch – unwanted fish and other organisms – although the industry and researchers are working on ways to reduce this.
However, the relatively newer electric pulse fishing is not necessarily a perfect solution either. Though it does not dig into the seabed to the same extent as traditional beam trawling, research has found it can fatally injure other species which may not be the target catch.
An electric trawler beam and net. Michel Kaiser, Author providedSo why use this method if it still has its faults? High fuel costs and EU legislationwhich has reduced the discarding fish at sea, have renewed interest in the use of electricity in fishing. Across the world, millions are fed by the fish caught by trawlers so it is unrealistic for trawling to just be stopped altogether, but the variety of negative impacts on the marine ecosystem remain a cause for concern.
For and againstThe UK government recently announced an review into the use of electric pulses by foreign trawlers in British waters due to concerns about its potential effects on the environment and bycatch. Campaign groups have also called on the EU to reinstate a ban on the electrical pulse method, calling it “destructive”.
The current pulse trawls are fine-tuned to catch larger fish (the spine of the fish acts as a conductor), so that bigger fish respond more strongly to the electric stimulus and are more likely to be caught in the nets. This reduces catch of unwanted species that are less likely to respond to the electric pulse, and also reduces contact with the seabed.
Traditional beam trawls, on the other hand, are fitted with heavy “tickler chains” – horizontal chains strung across the mouth of the trawl – designed to “dig” fish like Dover sole out of the seabed. Soles curl into a “c” shape in response to the electric stimulation used by pulse trawls, so they can be caught without the use of these “tickler chains”.
A beam trawl with tickler chains. Michel Kaiser, Author providedDispensing with the chains means that the gear is lighter, creates less disruption of the seabed, and substantially reduces the amount of other seabed organisms caught – by 75-80% per unit area of the seabed fished. By not catching the unwanted species, this improves the quality of landed catch too, because skin abrasion is reduced in the net. Together, improved catch quality and the reduced fuel consumption means greater profitability for the fishermen.
Electric pulse seems like a good idea from this perspective, but studies of its effects on other species of fish – that are not the intended catch – show that larger cod in particular are prone to spinal fractures when in contact with the electric pulses. Small cod appear to be unaffected. Cod typically have a low survival rate if they are unintentionally caught in most trawls, so this issue of spinal fracture may be irrelevant if they are caught using either method.
Additionally, though fewer seabed organisms end up in the trawl net when using electricity compared to traditional beam trawling, it is too early to tell whether the creatures remaining on the seabed are affected negatively by contact with the electric stimuli. Aquarium experiments, have shown that worms and shrimps, for example, recover within seconds following the application of an electric shock. However, these controlled laboratory experiments take place without natural predators – that may take advantage of a shocked creature – present.
The issues here are not solely environmental. The pulse trawl fleet has encroached on grounds that historically were fished by fishermen using low impact netting methods, leading to some resentment and conflict with others in the fishing community.
Societal acceptance of any food production method is vital, and at present – for pulse trawling – this is a greater challenge than answering the ecological questions. This issue could be resolved by more formal zoning of the sea so that pulse trawling is restricted to areas that do not impinge upon traditional low impact fisheries – initiatives which are currently in negotiation.
Taking both society and environment into account, electric pulse trawling may not be an infallible solution, but it might a better way of trawling than the use of traditional forms of beam trawling.
from The Conversation.com
==========================
January 8, 2018 3.52pm GMTAuthor
- Michel KaiserChair of Marine Conservation Ecology, Bangor University
Partners
Bangor University provides funding as a member of The Conversation UK.
The Conversation UK receives funding from Hefce, Hefcw, SAGE, SFC, RCUK, The Nuffield Foundation, The Ogden Trust, The Royal Society, The Wellcome Trust, Esmée Fairbairn Foundation and The Alliance for Useful Evidence, as well as sixty five university members.
While many people may be interested in the sustainability and welfare of the fish they eat, or the health of the environment, fewer probably worry about the effect that trawl fishing – which accounts for 20% of landings – has on the ocean.
For a long time researchers and the industry have been trying to improve trawl fishing practices. Things have moved on from practices such as beam trawling – where a large net is dragged across the ocean floor – to potentially less invasive and newer methods like electric pulse trawling. This sees electrical pulses being sent into the seawater to flush out bottom-dwelling fish like plaice and sole, causing them to swim into the path of trawl nets.
Beam trawls have been the focus of environmental concern for decades, as it causes a substantial reduction in the abundance of animals living on the seabed. These effects can be long lasting if the fishing occurs in areas which are inhabited by long-lived seabed dwelling species such as oysters and sponges. Beam trawls are also associated with high amounts of bycatch – unwanted fish and other organisms – although the industry and researchers are working on ways to reduce this.
However, the relatively newer electric pulse fishing is not necessarily a perfect solution either. Though it does not dig into the seabed to the same extent as traditional beam trawling, research has found it can fatally injure other species which may not be the target catch.
An electric trawler beam and net. Michel Kaiser, Author providedSo why use this method if it still has its faults? High fuel costs and EU legislationwhich has reduced the discarding fish at sea, have renewed interest in the use of electricity in fishing. Across the world, millions are fed by the fish caught by trawlers so it is unrealistic for trawling to just be stopped altogether, but the variety of negative impacts on the marine ecosystem remain a cause for concern.
For and againstThe UK government recently announced an review into the use of electric pulses by foreign trawlers in British waters due to concerns about its potential effects on the environment and bycatch. Campaign groups have also called on the EU to reinstate a ban on the electrical pulse method, calling it “destructive”.
The current pulse trawls are fine-tuned to catch larger fish (the spine of the fish acts as a conductor), so that bigger fish respond more strongly to the electric stimulus and are more likely to be caught in the nets. This reduces catch of unwanted species that are less likely to respond to the electric pulse, and also reduces contact with the seabed.
Traditional beam trawls, on the other hand, are fitted with heavy “tickler chains” – horizontal chains strung across the mouth of the trawl – designed to “dig” fish like Dover sole out of the seabed. Soles curl into a “c” shape in response to the electric stimulation used by pulse trawls, so they can be caught without the use of these “tickler chains”.
A beam trawl with tickler chains. Michel Kaiser, Author providedDispensing with the chains means that the gear is lighter, creates less disruption of the seabed, and substantially reduces the amount of other seabed organisms caught – by 75-80% per unit area of the seabed fished. By not catching the unwanted species, this improves the quality of landed catch too, because skin abrasion is reduced in the net. Together, improved catch quality and the reduced fuel consumption means greater profitability for the fishermen.
Electric pulse seems like a good idea from this perspective, but studies of its effects on other species of fish – that are not the intended catch – show that larger cod in particular are prone to spinal fractures when in contact with the electric pulses. Small cod appear to be unaffected. Cod typically have a low survival rate if they are unintentionally caught in most trawls, so this issue of spinal fracture may be irrelevant if they are caught using either method.
Additionally, though fewer seabed organisms end up in the trawl net when using electricity compared to traditional beam trawling, it is too early to tell whether the creatures remaining on the seabed are affected negatively by contact with the electric stimuli. Aquarium experiments, have shown that worms and shrimps, for example, recover within seconds following the application of an electric shock. However, these controlled laboratory experiments take place without natural predators – that may take advantage of a shocked creature – present.
The issues here are not solely environmental. The pulse trawl fleet has encroached on grounds that historically were fished by fishermen using low impact netting methods, leading to some resentment and conflict with others in the fishing community.
Societal acceptance of any food production method is vital, and at present – for pulse trawling – this is a greater challenge than answering the ecological questions. This issue could be resolved by more formal zoning of the sea so that pulse trawling is restricted to areas that do not impinge upon traditional low impact fisheries – initiatives which are currently in negotiation.
Taking both society and environment into account, electric pulse trawling may not be an infallible solution, but it might a better way of trawling than the use of traditional forms of beam trawling.
from The Conversation.com
==========================
Parapsilorhynchus swaini • A New Species of Parapsilorhynchus Hora, 1921 (Teleostei, Cyprinidae) from Mahanadi River Basin of Odisha, India
Parapsilorhynchus swaini
Baliarsingh & Kosygin, 2017
DOI: 10.21077/ijf.2017.64.4.35503-06
ABSTRACT
A new cyprinid fish, Parapsilorhynchus swaini sp. nov., is described based on specimens collected from a stream near Harisankar, Mahanadi River basin of Odisha, India. It differs from other species of the genus in having following combination of characters: elongated and slender body (depth at dorsal fin origin 16.9-18.7% SL); narrow and slender head (width 60.0-68.7% HL, height at occiput 40.0-50.0% HL); narrow inter orbital space (46.6-50.0% HL); 33-34 lateral line scales; 3 simple pectoral fin rays, poorly developed callous pad behind lower lip which is not delimited posteriorly, pectoral fin longer than head length, presence of tubercles on snout and a black bar on the anal fin. With the description of this new species, distributional range of the genus Parapsilorhynchus is extended further north in the Eastern Ghats to the Mahanadi River drainage of Odisha.
Keywords: Cyprinidae, Mahanadi River basin, New species, Odisha, Parapsilorhynchus swaini
Fig. . Parapsilorhynchus swaini sp. nov., ZSI FF5057, holotype, 42.0 mm SL; (a) Dorsal, (b) lateral and (c) ventral views
Taxonomy
Parapsilorhynchus swaini Baliarsingh & Kosygin sp. nov.
Common name: Mahanadhi minnow
Diagnosis: Parapsilorhynchus swaini sp. nov. can be distinguished from other species of the genus by the following combination of characters: elongated and slender body (depth at dorsal fin origin 16.9-18.7% SL); narrow and slender head (width 60.0-68.7% HL, height at occiput 40.0-50.0% HL); narrow inter orbital space (46.6-50.0% HL); 33-34 lateral line scales; 3 simple pectoral fin rays, poorly developed callous pad behind lower lip which is not delimited posteriorly, pectoral fin longer than head length, presence of tubercles on snout and a black bar on the anal fin.
Distribution: Presently known from a stream near Harisankar, Mahanadi River basin in Odisha, India (Fig. 4).
Etymology: Named after Dr. S. K. Swain of ICAR-Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture (ICAR-CIFA), Bhubaneshwar for his encouragement and support in the present study.
B. K. Baliarsingh and Laishram Kosygin. 2017. A New Species of Parapsilorhynchus Hora, 1921(Teleostei, Cyprinidae) from Mahanadi River Basin of Odisha, India. Indian J. Fish. 64(4); 44-49. DOI: 10.21077/ijf.2017.64.4.35503-06
==========================
Parapsilorhynchus swaini
Baliarsingh & Kosygin, 2017
DOI: 10.21077/ijf.2017.64.4.35503-06
ABSTRACT
A new cyprinid fish, Parapsilorhynchus swaini sp. nov., is described based on specimens collected from a stream near Harisankar, Mahanadi River basin of Odisha, India. It differs from other species of the genus in having following combination of characters: elongated and slender body (depth at dorsal fin origin 16.9-18.7% SL); narrow and slender head (width 60.0-68.7% HL, height at occiput 40.0-50.0% HL); narrow inter orbital space (46.6-50.0% HL); 33-34 lateral line scales; 3 simple pectoral fin rays, poorly developed callous pad behind lower lip which is not delimited posteriorly, pectoral fin longer than head length, presence of tubercles on snout and a black bar on the anal fin. With the description of this new species, distributional range of the genus Parapsilorhynchus is extended further north in the Eastern Ghats to the Mahanadi River drainage of Odisha.
Keywords: Cyprinidae, Mahanadi River basin, New species, Odisha, Parapsilorhynchus swaini
Fig. . Parapsilorhynchus swaini sp. nov., ZSI FF5057, holotype, 42.0 mm SL; (a) Dorsal, (b) lateral and (c) ventral views
Taxonomy
Parapsilorhynchus swaini Baliarsingh & Kosygin sp. nov.
Common name: Mahanadhi minnow
Diagnosis: Parapsilorhynchus swaini sp. nov. can be distinguished from other species of the genus by the following combination of characters: elongated and slender body (depth at dorsal fin origin 16.9-18.7% SL); narrow and slender head (width 60.0-68.7% HL, height at occiput 40.0-50.0% HL); narrow inter orbital space (46.6-50.0% HL); 33-34 lateral line scales; 3 simple pectoral fin rays, poorly developed callous pad behind lower lip which is not delimited posteriorly, pectoral fin longer than head length, presence of tubercles on snout and a black bar on the anal fin.
Distribution: Presently known from a stream near Harisankar, Mahanadi River basin in Odisha, India (Fig. 4).
Etymology: Named after Dr. S. K. Swain of ICAR-Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture (ICAR-CIFA), Bhubaneshwar for his encouragement and support in the present study.
B. K. Baliarsingh and Laishram Kosygin. 2017. A New Species of Parapsilorhynchus Hora, 1921(Teleostei, Cyprinidae) from Mahanadi River Basin of Odisha, India. Indian J. Fish. 64(4); 44-49. DOI: 10.21077/ijf.2017.64.4.35503-06
==========================
Gymnogeophagus taroba • A New Species (Teleostei: Cichlidae)from the río Iguazú Basin, Misiones, Argentina
Gymnogeophagus taroba
Casciotta, Almirón, Piálek & Říčan, 2017
HISTORIA NATURAL. Tercera Serie. 7(2)
Abstract
The Gymnogeophagus setequedas group is based on our results composed of three endemic species of which one, Gymnogeophagus taroba sp. n., is described as a new species. The three species are diagnosable from each other and from other species of Gymnogeophagus by stable differences in several morphological characters among which the best are found in coloration patterns. Body and head shapes and meristic characters show lesser differentiation but several are also clearly diagnostic in the G. setequedas group. The G. setequedas group is strongly structured allopatrically. The prime candidates for this fragmentation and speciation are the origins of the waterfalls on the individual tributaries. The largest of the waterfalls, the famous Cataratas del Iguazú, with a height of 72 m, separate G. taroba sp. n. from its closest relatives G. che and G. setequedas. The original 28 m high Urugua-í falls separate G. che from G. setequedas. Gymnogeophagus setequedas is separated from G. che and G. taroba by large rapids (about 65m in total elevation above the río Paraná) and a former fall on the Acaray river and by the 45 m high Monday falls located a few km from the mouth of the Monday into the río Paraná just opposite the mouth of the Iguazú.
Key words. Cichlid fishes, endemism, morphology, La Plata River basin, Paraná river basin
Figure - Gymnogeophagus taroba, coloration of live specimens immediatelly after capture.
(A-B) IBIGEO-I 449, paratype specimens, 87.8 mm, 79.8 mm. (C-D) MLP uncat., Říčan et al., February 2014, data as holotype.
Taxonomy
Family Cichlidae Bonaparte, 1835
Genus Gymnogeophagus Miranda Ribeiro, 1918
Gymnogeophagus taroba, new species (Figures 1-7; Table 1)
Gymnogeophagus aff. setequedas Casciotta et al., 2016
(photo of live holotype, first mention of the species)
Diagnosis. Gymnogeophagus taroba is distinguished from all species of Gymnogeophagus in the G. gymnogenys group by the possession of 23 to 25 E1 scales and the absence of a well developed adipose hump in adult males. Gymnogeophagus taroba is most easily distinguished from all species in the G. rhabdotus group (G. terrapurpura, G. rhabdotus, G. meridionalis, G. setequedas and G. che) by the pigmentation of the dorsal fin. ....
......
Etymology. The specific epithet taroba refers to Tarobá, a warrior, and refers to a legend of the Kaingang people; a noun in apposition. The Kaingang were the original first inhabitants of the present province of Misiones in Argentina and the southern Brazilian states of Paraná, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul and also the southeastern state of São Paulo. Their language and culture is quite distinct from the neighboring Guaraní. The Kaingang language is classified as a member of the Gê language family. The legend tells that at the beginning of time, the río Iguazú was inhabited by a huge and monstrous serpent called Mboi, a guardian god. The Kaingang sacrificed a beautiful young maiden every year to Mboi. When Tarobá meets Naipí, chosen for the sacrifice, he rebells against the elders of the tribe who refuse to release her. Tarobá and Naipí try to escape in a canoe by the river. Mboi becomes furious and brakes the course of the river forming the Iguazú falls, catching the lovers. Naipí is transformed into one of the rocks of the falls, perpetually punished by the turbulent waters, and Tarobá is turned into a palm tree on the bank of the waterfall. Mboi lives submerged in the Garganta del Diablo, from where he watches over the lovers, preventing them from joining again. However, on sunny days and as a bridge of love, the rainbow overcomes the power of Mboi by rejoining Naipí and Tarobá.
Jorge Casciotta, Adriana Almirón, Lubomir Piálek and Oldřich Říčan. 2017. Gymnogeophagus taroba (Teleostei: Cichlidae), A New Species from the río Iguazú Basin, Misiones, Argentina. HISTORIA NATURAL. Tercera Serie. 7(2); 5-22.
fundacionazara.org.ar/img/revista-historia-natural/tomo-14/historia-natural-2017-2-5-22.pdf
ResearchGate.net/publication/322273180_Gymnogeophagus_taroba_Teleostei_Cichlidae_a_new_species_from_the_rio_Iguazu_basin_Misiones_Argentina
facebook.com/926581357394010/photos/1643299149055557
==========================
Gymnogeophagus taroba
Casciotta, Almirón, Piálek & Říčan, 2017
HISTORIA NATURAL. Tercera Serie. 7(2)
Abstract
The Gymnogeophagus setequedas group is based on our results composed of three endemic species of which one, Gymnogeophagus taroba sp. n., is described as a new species. The three species are diagnosable from each other and from other species of Gymnogeophagus by stable differences in several morphological characters among which the best are found in coloration patterns. Body and head shapes and meristic characters show lesser differentiation but several are also clearly diagnostic in the G. setequedas group. The G. setequedas group is strongly structured allopatrically. The prime candidates for this fragmentation and speciation are the origins of the waterfalls on the individual tributaries. The largest of the waterfalls, the famous Cataratas del Iguazú, with a height of 72 m, separate G. taroba sp. n. from its closest relatives G. che and G. setequedas. The original 28 m high Urugua-í falls separate G. che from G. setequedas. Gymnogeophagus setequedas is separated from G. che and G. taroba by large rapids (about 65m in total elevation above the río Paraná) and a former fall on the Acaray river and by the 45 m high Monday falls located a few km from the mouth of the Monday into the río Paraná just opposite the mouth of the Iguazú.
Key words. Cichlid fishes, endemism, morphology, La Plata River basin, Paraná river basin
Figure - Gymnogeophagus taroba, coloration of live specimens immediatelly after capture.
(A-B) IBIGEO-I 449, paratype specimens, 87.8 mm, 79.8 mm. (C-D) MLP uncat., Říčan et al., February 2014, data as holotype.
Taxonomy
Family Cichlidae Bonaparte, 1835
Genus Gymnogeophagus Miranda Ribeiro, 1918
Gymnogeophagus taroba, new species (Figures 1-7; Table 1)
Gymnogeophagus aff. setequedas Casciotta et al., 2016
(photo of live holotype, first mention of the species)
Diagnosis. Gymnogeophagus taroba is distinguished from all species of Gymnogeophagus in the G. gymnogenys group by the possession of 23 to 25 E1 scales and the absence of a well developed adipose hump in adult males. Gymnogeophagus taroba is most easily distinguished from all species in the G. rhabdotus group (G. terrapurpura, G. rhabdotus, G. meridionalis, G. setequedas and G. che) by the pigmentation of the dorsal fin. ....
......
Etymology. The specific epithet taroba refers to Tarobá, a warrior, and refers to a legend of the Kaingang people; a noun in apposition. The Kaingang were the original first inhabitants of the present province of Misiones in Argentina and the southern Brazilian states of Paraná, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul and also the southeastern state of São Paulo. Their language and culture is quite distinct from the neighboring Guaraní. The Kaingang language is classified as a member of the Gê language family. The legend tells that at the beginning of time, the río Iguazú was inhabited by a huge and monstrous serpent called Mboi, a guardian god. The Kaingang sacrificed a beautiful young maiden every year to Mboi. When Tarobá meets Naipí, chosen for the sacrifice, he rebells against the elders of the tribe who refuse to release her. Tarobá and Naipí try to escape in a canoe by the river. Mboi becomes furious and brakes the course of the river forming the Iguazú falls, catching the lovers. Naipí is transformed into one of the rocks of the falls, perpetually punished by the turbulent waters, and Tarobá is turned into a palm tree on the bank of the waterfall. Mboi lives submerged in the Garganta del Diablo, from where he watches over the lovers, preventing them from joining again. However, on sunny days and as a bridge of love, the rainbow overcomes the power of Mboi by rejoining Naipí and Tarobá.
Jorge Casciotta, Adriana Almirón, Lubomir Piálek and Oldřich Říčan. 2017. Gymnogeophagus taroba (Teleostei: Cichlidae), A New Species from the río Iguazú Basin, Misiones, Argentina. HISTORIA NATURAL. Tercera Serie. 7(2); 5-22.
fundacionazara.org.ar/img/revista-historia-natural/tomo-14/historia-natural-2017-2-5-22.pdf
ResearchGate.net/publication/322273180_Gymnogeophagus_taroba_Teleostei_Cichlidae_a_new_species_from_the_rio_Iguazu_basin_Misiones_Argentina
facebook.com/926581357394010/photos/1643299149055557
==========================
Rhinichthys osculus
Agency proposes rare fish (Rhinichthys osculus )be taken off endangered list
A tiny fish found only in remote waters in southern Oregon has been recommended to be removed from the federal endangered species list.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Wednesday proposed that the Foskett speckled dace to be delisted after more than a decade of work to restore the species' habitat, the Capital Press reported .
The rare fish is a member of the minnow family and grows to about 2-4 inches (5-10 centimeters) long. The fish spawn in the spring and only live a few years.
The fish are found in Foskett Spring on the west side of Coleman Lake, and another population was established at nearby Dace Spring, said Chris Allen, a biologist for the Fish and Wildlife Service.
The species was listed as threatened in 1985, and the Bureau of Land Management purchased the land surrounding the species' habitat a couple years later. The population has since reached more sustainable levels, Allen said.
"In this habitat at least, they thrive in open water," Allen said. "That's been one of the keys to recovery, is to create as much suitable habitat for this fish as possible."
The population of the fish tends to fluctuate from year to year, Allen said. Between 2011 and 2014, the population ranged from nearly 2,000 to nearly 25,000. At Foskett Spring last year, Allen said there were 4,279 Foskett speckled dace recorded.
The Foskett speckled dace would be the 37th species to be recovered under the Endangered Species Act, said Noah Greenwald, endangered species director at the Center for Biological Diversity.
"This is exactly how the Endangered Species Act is supposed to work," Greenwald said. "The fish's habitat was protected and threats removed, and now the dace has a future."
==========================
Poaching Lake Victoria’s fish for traditional Chinese medicine
Andrew Brierley
Nile perch (Lates niloticus) are being illegally fished in Lake Victoria, Africa’s biggest lake, driven by demand for their swim bladders from traditional Chinese medicine (see also Nature 551, 541; 2017).
Fishers can be paid ten times more for the bladder than the price they can achieve for fish flesh, so the flesh has become a by-catch of the bladder harvest. Large fish have large bladders, and so poachers target fish that are bigger than the 85-centimetre upper legal length limit; these are not accepted by regulated processing factories. Large fish are protected because they are substantial spawners, and removing them could affect stock recruitment.
Traditional Chinese medicine needs proper scrutiny.Furthermore, fish-processing factories will not accept legally sized Nile perch carcasses that have already been opened to remove the swim bladder, so several factories have closed because the bladder trade has cut the supply of fish. This has reduced local employment and the volume of fish sold to export, affecting earnings from abroad.
Fishery resources from Lake Victoria underpin the livelihoods of more than 35 million people, and fish products contribute about 2% to the combined gross domestic product of Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda (see go.nature.com/2bmpevq).
Although the Nile perch is an introduced species in Lake Victoria and has severely affected natural fish abundance and biodiversity, it has brought some food security and economic prosperity to the region. Traditional medicine threatens both.
doi: 10.1038/d41586-017-09011-9
from Nature
==========================
Andrew Brierley
Nile perch (Lates niloticus) are being illegally fished in Lake Victoria, Africa’s biggest lake, driven by demand for their swim bladders from traditional Chinese medicine (see also Nature 551, 541; 2017).
Fishers can be paid ten times more for the bladder than the price they can achieve for fish flesh, so the flesh has become a by-catch of the bladder harvest. Large fish have large bladders, and so poachers target fish that are bigger than the 85-centimetre upper legal length limit; these are not accepted by regulated processing factories. Large fish are protected because they are substantial spawners, and removing them could affect stock recruitment.
Traditional Chinese medicine needs proper scrutiny.Furthermore, fish-processing factories will not accept legally sized Nile perch carcasses that have already been opened to remove the swim bladder, so several factories have closed because the bladder trade has cut the supply of fish. This has reduced local employment and the volume of fish sold to export, affecting earnings from abroad.
Fishery resources from Lake Victoria underpin the livelihoods of more than 35 million people, and fish products contribute about 2% to the combined gross domestic product of Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda (see go.nature.com/2bmpevq).
Although the Nile perch is an introduced species in Lake Victoria and has severely affected natural fish abundance and biodiversity, it has brought some food security and economic prosperity to the region. Traditional medicine threatens both.
doi: 10.1038/d41586-017-09011-9
from Nature
==========================
Tennessee Fish, Fundulus julisia, Proposed for Endangered Species Act Protection
NASHVILLE, Tenn.— The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposed Endangered Species Act protection today for the Barrens topminnow, a small fish found only in central Tennessee in clear, spring-fed streams on the Barrens Plateau.
Just five populations of the highly endangered fish survive in the wild southeast of Nashville, where the species is threatened by drought, pollution and predation by non-native mosquitofish. At last count there were fewer than 400 total inviduals.
“The Barrens topminnow was first proposed for Endangered Species Act protection more than 40 years ago, and this small fish now finds itself on the very brink of extinction,” said Tierra Curry, a senior scientist at the Center for Biological Diversity. “I’m hoping this proposal will be the turning point that keeps it from being lost forever.”
The topminnow is found in Cannon, Coffee and Warren counties. It lives in the headwaters of the Duck and Elk river watersheds, which are part of the Tennessee River drainage, as well as in the Caney Fork River system in the Cumberland River drainage. The fish grows to 4 inches long, has flashy colors and swims near the water’s surface, where it preys on mosquito larvae and other insects.
The Barrens topminnow was proposed for Endangered Species Act protection with critical habitat in 1977, but the proposal was never finalized. In 1982 it was instead placed on a waiting list for federal protection. The Center petitioned the Service to add the species to the endangered list in 2010 and won a lawsuit in 2015 requiring the Service to issue a decision on the petition.
The fish declined from 14 known sites in the early 1980s to seven sites in the mid-1990s. It is currently found in only five sites. In an effort to prevent its extinction, captive-breeding populations are being held at Conservation Fisheries Inc. in Knoxville and at the Tennessee Aquarium Conservation Institute in Chattanooga. For recovery, mosquitofish need to be removed; then barriers need to be installed, and populations need to be closely monitored.
“It’s not too late to save the Barrens topminnow, but the scientists working to save them desperately need more money to fund their recovery,” Curry said. “Instead of trying to undermine the Endangered Species Act, Congress should grant all the money that’s needed to fully fund the recovery of our nation’s endangered species.”
The southeastern United States is home to more kinds of fishes, crayfishes, mussels and salamanders than anywhere else in the world, but it is also a hotspot for extinction. Last week a freshwater snail from Georgia, the beaverpond marstonia, was determined to be extinct, joining more than 50 other southeastern species that have already been lost to history.
The Center for Biological Diversity is working to gain Endangered Species Act protection for nearly 400 southeastern species. Nationally, Center legal victories have led to Endangered Species Act protection for 193 species since 2011; five additional species have been proposed for protection, including the topminnow.
Photo by J.R. Shute/Conservation Fisheries, Inc. Image and video footage are available for media use.The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 1.6 million members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places
==========================
NASHVILLE, Tenn.— The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposed Endangered Species Act protection today for the Barrens topminnow, a small fish found only in central Tennessee in clear, spring-fed streams on the Barrens Plateau.
Just five populations of the highly endangered fish survive in the wild southeast of Nashville, where the species is threatened by drought, pollution and predation by non-native mosquitofish. At last count there were fewer than 400 total inviduals.
“The Barrens topminnow was first proposed for Endangered Species Act protection more than 40 years ago, and this small fish now finds itself on the very brink of extinction,” said Tierra Curry, a senior scientist at the Center for Biological Diversity. “I’m hoping this proposal will be the turning point that keeps it from being lost forever.”
The topminnow is found in Cannon, Coffee and Warren counties. It lives in the headwaters of the Duck and Elk river watersheds, which are part of the Tennessee River drainage, as well as in the Caney Fork River system in the Cumberland River drainage. The fish grows to 4 inches long, has flashy colors and swims near the water’s surface, where it preys on mosquito larvae and other insects.
The Barrens topminnow was proposed for Endangered Species Act protection with critical habitat in 1977, but the proposal was never finalized. In 1982 it was instead placed on a waiting list for federal protection. The Center petitioned the Service to add the species to the endangered list in 2010 and won a lawsuit in 2015 requiring the Service to issue a decision on the petition.
The fish declined from 14 known sites in the early 1980s to seven sites in the mid-1990s. It is currently found in only five sites. In an effort to prevent its extinction, captive-breeding populations are being held at Conservation Fisheries Inc. in Knoxville and at the Tennessee Aquarium Conservation Institute in Chattanooga. For recovery, mosquitofish need to be removed; then barriers need to be installed, and populations need to be closely monitored.
“It’s not too late to save the Barrens topminnow, but the scientists working to save them desperately need more money to fund their recovery,” Curry said. “Instead of trying to undermine the Endangered Species Act, Congress should grant all the money that’s needed to fully fund the recovery of our nation’s endangered species.”
The southeastern United States is home to more kinds of fishes, crayfishes, mussels and salamanders than anywhere else in the world, but it is also a hotspot for extinction. Last week a freshwater snail from Georgia, the beaverpond marstonia, was determined to be extinct, joining more than 50 other southeastern species that have already been lost to history.
The Center for Biological Diversity is working to gain Endangered Species Act protection for nearly 400 southeastern species. Nationally, Center legal victories have led to Endangered Species Act protection for 193 species since 2011; five additional species have been proposed for protection, including the topminnow.
Photo by J.R. Shute/Conservation Fisheries, Inc. Image and video footage are available for media use.The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 1.6 million members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places
==========================
Dog killed after 'eating dead fish' on Norfolk beach
Dog-walkers are being urged to take care when walking their petsPeople have been warned to be careful while walking their dogs on the beach on the north-Norfolk coast, after a dog was killed after reportedly eating a "dead fish that had washed up".
The Hunstanton RNLI confirmed a dog died just an hour after ingesting one on Cley beach.
They're urging people to keep a close eye on their animals while on a beach stroll.
Norfolk WT
@SupportNWTDog owners: we have had a report of a dog dying after eating a dead fish washed up on Cley beach yesterday. While i… https://t.co/5B4H2YnoIE
==========================
Dog-walkers are being urged to take care when walking their petsPeople have been warned to be careful while walking their dogs on the beach on the north-Norfolk coast, after a dog was killed after reportedly eating a "dead fish that had washed up".
The Hunstanton RNLI confirmed a dog died just an hour after ingesting one on Cley beach.
They're urging people to keep a close eye on their animals while on a beach stroll.
Norfolk WT
@SupportNWTDog owners: we have had a report of a dog dying after eating a dead fish washed up on Cley beach yesterday. While i… https://t.co/5B4H2YnoIE
==========================
New fish in Maltese waters
A small tropical fish, which until recently was familiar in local aquariums, has now been spotted in Maltese waters by a diver at Marsamxett port.
Alan Deidun said, “the Azure Damoiselle, a species arriving from thousands of kilometres far, is a native species originating from the west of Australia and Indonesia. We have no name for it in Maltese as they are a new specie, but if we had to name it, I think an adaptable name is that of Ċawla Kaħlanija as its cousins are other damsel fish”.
Professor Deidum said that alien species are not only present in the Mediterranean by entering from the Atlantic Ocean or the Pacific, but through sea water aquarium enthusiasts who then release them at sea.
He added that while the Ċawla Kaħlanija is not an invasive specie, the Devil Fire Fish – known as the Lion Fish – found near Maltese seas suppresses species in its own environment.
“It eats a lot of fish in one day; produces immensely – around 50,000 eggs every three days in the reproduction season – does not have many enemies as it protects itself with fish bones that inject poison from its back. It cannot be controlled as it impacts on other fish as it competes for the same food”.
There are around 15,000 creatures in the Mediterranean sea that include fish, sea vegetation and crabs; more than a thousand of them enter from other seas.
Prof. Deidun stated that the Grand Harbour, Marsamxett and Marsaxlokk bay are among the most places in Malta where alien species were noticed as they enter with ships.
He said that the public is encouraged to participate in the Spot the Alien Fish campaign, when noticing strange fish, an initiative through which fishermen and members of the public send photos and information on the location of the fish on aliensmalta.eu.
==========================
A small tropical fish, which until recently was familiar in local aquariums, has now been spotted in Maltese waters by a diver at Marsamxett port.
Alan Deidun said, “the Azure Damoiselle, a species arriving from thousands of kilometres far, is a native species originating from the west of Australia and Indonesia. We have no name for it in Maltese as they are a new specie, but if we had to name it, I think an adaptable name is that of Ċawla Kaħlanija as its cousins are other damsel fish”.
Professor Deidum said that alien species are not only present in the Mediterranean by entering from the Atlantic Ocean or the Pacific, but through sea water aquarium enthusiasts who then release them at sea.
He added that while the Ċawla Kaħlanija is not an invasive specie, the Devil Fire Fish – known as the Lion Fish – found near Maltese seas suppresses species in its own environment.
“It eats a lot of fish in one day; produces immensely – around 50,000 eggs every three days in the reproduction season – does not have many enemies as it protects itself with fish bones that inject poison from its back. It cannot be controlled as it impacts on other fish as it competes for the same food”.
There are around 15,000 creatures in the Mediterranean sea that include fish, sea vegetation and crabs; more than a thousand of them enter from other seas.
Prof. Deidun stated that the Grand Harbour, Marsamxett and Marsaxlokk bay are among the most places in Malta where alien species were noticed as they enter with ships.
He said that the public is encouraged to participate in the Spot the Alien Fish campaign, when noticing strange fish, an initiative through which fishermen and members of the public send photos and information on the location of the fish on aliensmalta.eu.
==========================
Chrysiptera burtjonesi • A New Species of Damselfish (Chrysiptera: Pomacentridae) from Coral Reefs of the Solomon Islands
Chrysiptera burtjonesi
Allen, Erdmann & Cahyani, 2017
Journal of the Ocean Science Foundation. 28
Abstract
A sixth member of the Chrysiptera oxycephala group of Pomacentridae, Chrysiptera burtjonesi n. sp., is described on the basis of 24 specimens, 20.5–48.2 mm SL, collected at the Solomon Islands in the western Pacific Ocean. It differs from other members of the group, including C. ellenae (Raja Ampat Islands, West Papua Province in Indonesia), C. maurinae (Cenderawasih Bay, West Papua Province), C. oxycephala (central Indonesia, Philippines, and Palau), C. papuensis (northeastern Papua New Guinea), and C. sinclairi(Bismarck Archipelago and islands off northeastern Papua New Guinea), on the basis of its distinctive color pattern and a 6.9% divergence in the sequence of the mitochondrial control region from its closest relative (C. maurineae). Adults are primarily grayish brown to greenish except bright yellow on the ventralmost head and body, including the adjacent pelvic and anal fins. Juveniles are mostly neon blue to dark blue with bright yellow pelvic and anal fins. In addition, it is the only species besides C. sinclairi that usually lacks embedded scales on the preorbital and suborbital bones.
Figure Chrysiptera burtjonesi, Solomon Islands, underwater photographs:
A) juvenile, approx. 12 mm SL, B) juvenile, approx. 20 mm SL, C) subadult, approx. 35 mm SL, D) adult, approx. 45 mm SL (G.R. Allen).
Chrysiptera burtjonesi, n. sp.
Burt’s Damselfish
Diagnosis. A species of the pomacentrid genus Chrysiptera with the following combination of characters: dorsal-fin rays XIII,11 (rarely 10 or 12); anal-fin rays II,12 (rarely 13); pectoral-fin rays 15 (14–16); gill rakers on first branchial arch 9–11+20–22, total gill rakers 29–32; tubed lateral-line scales 13–16 (usually 14–15); preorbital+suborbital scales usually absent, occasionally 1–3 embedded scales present; color of adult overall grayish brown to greenish (sometimes with neon blue/green transverse streak on each scale) with translucent to pale greenish fins, except bright yellow ventrally on head, body, and adjacent anal and pelvic fins, a broad yellow band from base of first few dorsal-fin spines to outer edge of last dorsal-fin spine; juvenile neon blue on head, most of body (above diagonal line from pelvic-fin base to base of uppermost caudal-fin ray), and dorsal fin, remainder of body and adjacent fins bright yellow.
Etymology. This species is named in honor of photographer and underwater guide par excellence Burt Jones of Sequim, Washington, USA. Burt and his partner Maurine Shimlock were pioneers for the promotion of dive tourism at the Solomon Islands and, more recently, have been instrumental in the tremendous popularity of the West Papuan region by means of their excellent underwater guidebook to the area and creation of the highly informative Bird’s Head Seascape website (birdsheadseascape.com).
Distribution. The new species is known only from the Solomon Islands. It was collected or observed by the authors at the following islands and reefs: Isabel, Choiseul, Makira, Malaita and nearby Alite Reef, Shortland Islands, New Georgia Group, Russell Group, and the Florida Group.
Gerald R. Allen, Mark V. Erdmann and N.K. Dita Cahyani. 2017. A New Species of Damselfish (Chrysiptera: Pomacentridae) from Coral Reefs of the Solomon Islands. Journal of the Ocean Science Foundation. 28; 10–21.
http://www.oceansciencefoundation.org/josf/josf28b.pdf
==========================
Chrysiptera burtjonesi
Allen, Erdmann & Cahyani, 2017
Journal of the Ocean Science Foundation. 28
Abstract
A sixth member of the Chrysiptera oxycephala group of Pomacentridae, Chrysiptera burtjonesi n. sp., is described on the basis of 24 specimens, 20.5–48.2 mm SL, collected at the Solomon Islands in the western Pacific Ocean. It differs from other members of the group, including C. ellenae (Raja Ampat Islands, West Papua Province in Indonesia), C. maurinae (Cenderawasih Bay, West Papua Province), C. oxycephala (central Indonesia, Philippines, and Palau), C. papuensis (northeastern Papua New Guinea), and C. sinclairi(Bismarck Archipelago and islands off northeastern Papua New Guinea), on the basis of its distinctive color pattern and a 6.9% divergence in the sequence of the mitochondrial control region from its closest relative (C. maurineae). Adults are primarily grayish brown to greenish except bright yellow on the ventralmost head and body, including the adjacent pelvic and anal fins. Juveniles are mostly neon blue to dark blue with bright yellow pelvic and anal fins. In addition, it is the only species besides C. sinclairi that usually lacks embedded scales on the preorbital and suborbital bones.
Figure Chrysiptera burtjonesi, Solomon Islands, underwater photographs:
A) juvenile, approx. 12 mm SL, B) juvenile, approx. 20 mm SL, C) subadult, approx. 35 mm SL, D) adult, approx. 45 mm SL (G.R. Allen).
Chrysiptera burtjonesi, n. sp.
Burt’s Damselfish
Diagnosis. A species of the pomacentrid genus Chrysiptera with the following combination of characters: dorsal-fin rays XIII,11 (rarely 10 or 12); anal-fin rays II,12 (rarely 13); pectoral-fin rays 15 (14–16); gill rakers on first branchial arch 9–11+20–22, total gill rakers 29–32; tubed lateral-line scales 13–16 (usually 14–15); preorbital+suborbital scales usually absent, occasionally 1–3 embedded scales present; color of adult overall grayish brown to greenish (sometimes with neon blue/green transverse streak on each scale) with translucent to pale greenish fins, except bright yellow ventrally on head, body, and adjacent anal and pelvic fins, a broad yellow band from base of first few dorsal-fin spines to outer edge of last dorsal-fin spine; juvenile neon blue on head, most of body (above diagonal line from pelvic-fin base to base of uppermost caudal-fin ray), and dorsal fin, remainder of body and adjacent fins bright yellow.
Etymology. This species is named in honor of photographer and underwater guide par excellence Burt Jones of Sequim, Washington, USA. Burt and his partner Maurine Shimlock were pioneers for the promotion of dive tourism at the Solomon Islands and, more recently, have been instrumental in the tremendous popularity of the West Papuan region by means of their excellent underwater guidebook to the area and creation of the highly informative Bird’s Head Seascape website (birdsheadseascape.com).
Distribution. The new species is known only from the Solomon Islands. It was collected or observed by the authors at the following islands and reefs: Isabel, Choiseul, Makira, Malaita and nearby Alite Reef, Shortland Islands, New Georgia Group, Russell Group, and the Florida Group.
Gerald R. Allen, Mark V. Erdmann and N.K. Dita Cahyani. 2017. A New Species of Damselfish (Chrysiptera: Pomacentridae) from Coral Reefs of the Solomon Islands. Journal of the Ocean Science Foundation. 28; 10–21.
http://www.oceansciencefoundation.org/josf/josf28b.pdf
==========================
Fish restocked in River Blackwater and River Colne
Catherine Johnson @CatherineNQEReporterPhoto by the Environment Agency
Thousands of fish were restocked in two rivers in the run up to Christmas.
The restocking activity by the Environment Agency is part of an annual programme, funded by income from rod licence sales.
A specialist breeding farm in Nottingham produces between 400,000 and 500,000 fish each year and a mix of 6,400 was split between the River Wid, Blackwater and Colne.
Alan Henshaw, fisheries team leader at the Environment Agency said: "Many of our industrialised rivers have improved dramatically in water quality in the last 30 years and concerted restocking has accelerated the restoration of natural fish stocks and viable fisheries.
"New techniques in pond rearing have delivered significant improvements in the average size of the 18 month-old fish and many rivers and lakes throughout England have benefited from these stockings.
"All of this work is funded by money from rod licence sales to protect and improve fish stocks and fisheries.”
Restocking of England’s rivers and lakes by the Environment Agency happens for a number of reasons.
This may be following a pollution incident where the original population has been lost, where recruitment is poor or in the creation of new fisheries and angling opportunities.
More stockings will continue into the New Year.
==========================
Catherine Johnson @CatherineNQEReporterPhoto by the Environment Agency
Thousands of fish were restocked in two rivers in the run up to Christmas.
The restocking activity by the Environment Agency is part of an annual programme, funded by income from rod licence sales.
A specialist breeding farm in Nottingham produces between 400,000 and 500,000 fish each year and a mix of 6,400 was split between the River Wid, Blackwater and Colne.
Alan Henshaw, fisheries team leader at the Environment Agency said: "Many of our industrialised rivers have improved dramatically in water quality in the last 30 years and concerted restocking has accelerated the restoration of natural fish stocks and viable fisheries.
"New techniques in pond rearing have delivered significant improvements in the average size of the 18 month-old fish and many rivers and lakes throughout England have benefited from these stockings.
"All of this work is funded by money from rod licence sales to protect and improve fish stocks and fisheries.”
Restocking of England’s rivers and lakes by the Environment Agency happens for a number of reasons.
This may be following a pollution incident where the original population has been lost, where recruitment is poor or in the creation of new fisheries and angling opportunities.
More stockings will continue into the New Year.
==========================
extract from New York Times Magazine
Born. 1927 Died May 2017
HERBERT R.AXELRODA hustler who built a fortune on a fish tale.
BY DANIEL FROMSON
Axelrod created a market for cardinal tetras. “The most profound change in my life,” Herbert R. Axelrod once recalled, began in 1955, when Axelrod, a New Jersey-based aquarium-fish dealer and the publisher of Tropical Fish Hobbyist magazine, took a steamboat up the Rio Negro, deep in the Brazilian Amazon. He was searching for a supply of wild discus fishes that would allow him to break a rival dealer’s monopoly. Fishless and out of food, he got off at a small town, where he met a German priest, who happened to be a fish hobbyist.
“Yes, there are discus fishes near here,” the priest said. “But we also have neon tetras!” The priest guided Axelrod to a nearby creek and, lifting his cassock, led him into the water, where red-and-blue tetras schooled around their legs. Axelrod returned to New Jersey with “the largest neons I had ever seen” — and sent some to the curator of fishes at the Smithsonian. The curator, the story goes, excitedly called him a few days later: The neons weren’t neons at all. They were an exotic and beautiful new species.
The rise of the cardinal tetra — Paracheirodon axelrodi, now one of the world’s most popular aquarium fish — helped make Axelrod, in the words of the trade publication Practical Fishkeeping, perhaps “the single most influential fishkeeper the hobby and industry has seen.” But Axelrod’s tale of discovery is a myth: As he himself admitted early on, he had actually acquired the tetras not in the Amazon but from a dealer in Irvington, N.J. (The dealer got them from the discus monopolist. Nonetheless, after a technical yet dramatic dispute, an international commission named the fish for Axelrod.) Inventing a new origin story, Axelrod didn’t just change the facts; he spun a personal legend, which he clung to as he self-promoted his way to pet-industry fortune. After all, it not only legitimized his “discovery” but also, accompanied by digressions about befriending Indians and swimming with piranhas, presented him as “the Indiana Jones of ichthyology,” as one hobbyist put it, which he must have preferred to the P.T. Barnum of pet fish.
INVENTING A NEW ORIGIN STORY, AXELROD DIDN’T JUST CHANGE THE FACTS; HE SPUN A PERSONAL LEGEND.
Raised in North Jersey during the Depression, Axelrod supposedly spoke five languages by age 5 and swam across Lake Ontario at 10. He was also crazy about pet pigeons (which he collected, alongside fossils and rare violins, in adulthood too). The pivot to fish came in his 20s, when he studied at New York University, served in the Army and found time to publish tropical-fish handbooks and start Tropical Fish Hobbyist. In 1965, Sports Illustrated called him “an intrepid ichthyologist and explorer,” trumpeting dozens of claims: He could recognize more than 7,000 kinds of fish by sight. He once landed at the Trinidad airport, approached a pool near the runway and, as onlookers gasped, netted a new species. “He was once censured by a professor,” the magazine reported, “for performing a Caesarean on a guppy.”
Guppy surgeon or not, his importance was undeniable. In an era before web forums and Google, collectors turned to Tropical Fish Hobbyist and Axelrod’s dozens of books: “Koi of the World,” “The Allure of Discus,” “Tropical Fish for Those Who Care.” His company, TFH Publications, became a dominant pet-book publishing conglomerate, which catered to gecko and gerbil fanciers alike and invested in tetra farms and chew toys. He smoked Cuban cigars and boasted of collecting sea slugs with Emperor Hirohito, spearfishing with King Leopold III and corresponding with Winston Churchill about goldfish. He also, reportedly, became pen pals with prisoners in Indiana, who, he claimed, had for decades hidden pet fish in vials strapped to their bodies.
In his later years, Axelrod restyled himself as a philanthropist: After he sold TFH Publications in 1997 for $70 million and a $10 million loan, he became best known for collecting Stradivarius violins and other prestigious stringed instruments, many of which he gave to the Smithsonian or sold to the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra. (A 2003 Times Magazine profile of Axelrod was headlined “Medici of the Meadowlands.”) But this narrative didn’t last. In 2004, he was indicted on federal tax-fraud charges and accused of hiding money in Switzerland; separately, in one of many lawsuits he attracted, TFH’s new owners sued him for misrepresenting its finances, and a Senate committee investigated whether he inflated the value of some of his instruments. He fled to Cuba — “Herbert Axelrod sits in an oceanfront bungalow at the Hemingway Marina, a fugitive from justice, poring over photographs of hamsters,” The Star-Ledger reported from Havana — and was later extradited from Germany. He was sentenced to 18 months in prison for tax fraud. Paradoxically, as a hobbyist observed on MonsterFishKeepers.com, Axelrod, confined like a tetra in a tank, ended up “living the life of a fish.”
“I will be remembered as someone who disrespected the law,” Axelrod lamented in 2005. But after his death in May in Switzerland, tributes rang out from admirers as disparate as the violinist Joshua Bell and the Australian Society for Fish Biology. And his name still adheres to more than a dozen species, including, of course, Paracheirodon axelrodi. For Axelrod, the tetra wasn’t just a discovery or a pet. It wasn’t just the profound beginning of fortune and notoriety. It was a symbol of our all-too-human foibles and obsessions, real and imagined, the stuff of emperors and prisoners and priests.
Daniel Fromson is a copy editor for the magazine. He is the author of “Finding Shakespeare,” published by The Atavist Magazine.
==========================
Born. 1927 Died May 2017
HERBERT R.AXELRODA hustler who built a fortune on a fish tale.
BY DANIEL FROMSON
Axelrod created a market for cardinal tetras. “The most profound change in my life,” Herbert R. Axelrod once recalled, began in 1955, when Axelrod, a New Jersey-based aquarium-fish dealer and the publisher of Tropical Fish Hobbyist magazine, took a steamboat up the Rio Negro, deep in the Brazilian Amazon. He was searching for a supply of wild discus fishes that would allow him to break a rival dealer’s monopoly. Fishless and out of food, he got off at a small town, where he met a German priest, who happened to be a fish hobbyist.
“Yes, there are discus fishes near here,” the priest said. “But we also have neon tetras!” The priest guided Axelrod to a nearby creek and, lifting his cassock, led him into the water, where red-and-blue tetras schooled around their legs. Axelrod returned to New Jersey with “the largest neons I had ever seen” — and sent some to the curator of fishes at the Smithsonian. The curator, the story goes, excitedly called him a few days later: The neons weren’t neons at all. They were an exotic and beautiful new species.
The rise of the cardinal tetra — Paracheirodon axelrodi, now one of the world’s most popular aquarium fish — helped make Axelrod, in the words of the trade publication Practical Fishkeeping, perhaps “the single most influential fishkeeper the hobby and industry has seen.” But Axelrod’s tale of discovery is a myth: As he himself admitted early on, he had actually acquired the tetras not in the Amazon but from a dealer in Irvington, N.J. (The dealer got them from the discus monopolist. Nonetheless, after a technical yet dramatic dispute, an international commission named the fish for Axelrod.) Inventing a new origin story, Axelrod didn’t just change the facts; he spun a personal legend, which he clung to as he self-promoted his way to pet-industry fortune. After all, it not only legitimized his “discovery” but also, accompanied by digressions about befriending Indians and swimming with piranhas, presented him as “the Indiana Jones of ichthyology,” as one hobbyist put it, which he must have preferred to the P.T. Barnum of pet fish.
INVENTING A NEW ORIGIN STORY, AXELROD DIDN’T JUST CHANGE THE FACTS; HE SPUN A PERSONAL LEGEND.
Raised in North Jersey during the Depression, Axelrod supposedly spoke five languages by age 5 and swam across Lake Ontario at 10. He was also crazy about pet pigeons (which he collected, alongside fossils and rare violins, in adulthood too). The pivot to fish came in his 20s, when he studied at New York University, served in the Army and found time to publish tropical-fish handbooks and start Tropical Fish Hobbyist. In 1965, Sports Illustrated called him “an intrepid ichthyologist and explorer,” trumpeting dozens of claims: He could recognize more than 7,000 kinds of fish by sight. He once landed at the Trinidad airport, approached a pool near the runway and, as onlookers gasped, netted a new species. “He was once censured by a professor,” the magazine reported, “for performing a Caesarean on a guppy.”
Guppy surgeon or not, his importance was undeniable. In an era before web forums and Google, collectors turned to Tropical Fish Hobbyist and Axelrod’s dozens of books: “Koi of the World,” “The Allure of Discus,” “Tropical Fish for Those Who Care.” His company, TFH Publications, became a dominant pet-book publishing conglomerate, which catered to gecko and gerbil fanciers alike and invested in tetra farms and chew toys. He smoked Cuban cigars and boasted of collecting sea slugs with Emperor Hirohito, spearfishing with King Leopold III and corresponding with Winston Churchill about goldfish. He also, reportedly, became pen pals with prisoners in Indiana, who, he claimed, had for decades hidden pet fish in vials strapped to their bodies.
In his later years, Axelrod restyled himself as a philanthropist: After he sold TFH Publications in 1997 for $70 million and a $10 million loan, he became best known for collecting Stradivarius violins and other prestigious stringed instruments, many of which he gave to the Smithsonian or sold to the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra. (A 2003 Times Magazine profile of Axelrod was headlined “Medici of the Meadowlands.”) But this narrative didn’t last. In 2004, he was indicted on federal tax-fraud charges and accused of hiding money in Switzerland; separately, in one of many lawsuits he attracted, TFH’s new owners sued him for misrepresenting its finances, and a Senate committee investigated whether he inflated the value of some of his instruments. He fled to Cuba — “Herbert Axelrod sits in an oceanfront bungalow at the Hemingway Marina, a fugitive from justice, poring over photographs of hamsters,” The Star-Ledger reported from Havana — and was later extradited from Germany. He was sentenced to 18 months in prison for tax fraud. Paradoxically, as a hobbyist observed on MonsterFishKeepers.com, Axelrod, confined like a tetra in a tank, ended up “living the life of a fish.”
“I will be remembered as someone who disrespected the law,” Axelrod lamented in 2005. But after his death in May in Switzerland, tributes rang out from admirers as disparate as the violinist Joshua Bell and the Australian Society for Fish Biology. And his name still adheres to more than a dozen species, including, of course, Paracheirodon axelrodi. For Axelrod, the tetra wasn’t just a discovery or a pet. It wasn’t just the profound beginning of fortune and notoriety. It was a symbol of our all-too-human foibles and obsessions, real and imagined, the stuff of emperors and prisoners and priests.
Daniel Fromson is a copy editor for the magazine. He is the author of “Finding Shakespeare,” published by The Atavist Magazine.
==========================
New species of blind fish discovered inside Meghalaya cave
A new species of blind fish has been discovered inside a cave in East Jaintia Hills district of Meghalaya, a New Zealand-based science journal has revealed.
The fish -- Schistura larketensis -- gets its name from Larket village, where the cave has been found, the journal, Zootaxa, said.
The species has apparently lost its sight living in the perpetual darkness inside the cave, a joint team of scientists from the Gauhati University and the North Eastern Hill University said.
It has also lost its pigments too while adapting to its habitat in the dark waters, they said.
Khlur Mukhim, a leading researcher from Gauhati University, came across the blind fish in the cave several years ago during an expedition. The cave is about 880 meters above sea level and over 7 km in length.
Mr. Mukhim said that the study came out recently though it was found several years ago as he had to corroborate the available facts and figures to establish that the fish was actually blind and belonged to a new species.
The fish sample was collected from small stagnant pools, a few square meters in area and about 1-2 m in depth, about 1,600 feet from the main entrance of the cave.
The pool bed is mostly sandy with pebbles. Other species found inside the cave include weakly pigmented crabs and crayfish, spiders, crickets, cockroaches and millipedes, small frogs and snakes.
Scientists had, in the past, chanced upon porcupine paws and quills on the muddy floor of a passage in the same cave.
The fish was named after ‘Larket’ village to encourage local people to take up biodiversity conservation, Mr. Khlur said.
Although there are about 200 known species of similar kind inhabiting streams and rivers throughout Indochina and Southeast Asia, this is the first such discovery, according to the researcher.
The new fish species can also be immediately distinguished from all other species of Schistura, barring Schistura papulifera -- another cave fish from Synrang Pamiang cave system in the same district -- for its vestigial subcutaneous eyes appearing as black spots.
Mr. Khlur said the orbital diameter gradually decreases as the species matures, with the eyes completely absent in older individuals.
Eventually, only small, faintly blackish spot-like depressions appeared in place of eyes, indicating evolutionary and as morphological adaptations.
The researchers have also expressed regret to see the high level of siltation, pollution and acidification of the water drainage systems in Jaintia Hills due to accumulation of acid mine drainage (AMD) from open-cast coal mining.
Several cement plants located on top of the wide and long cave systems are threatening the cave biodiversity as a whole, the researcher said.
from the Hindu
==========================
A new species of blind fish has been discovered inside a cave in East Jaintia Hills district of Meghalaya, a New Zealand-based science journal has revealed.
The fish -- Schistura larketensis -- gets its name from Larket village, where the cave has been found, the journal, Zootaxa, said.
The species has apparently lost its sight living in the perpetual darkness inside the cave, a joint team of scientists from the Gauhati University and the North Eastern Hill University said.
It has also lost its pigments too while adapting to its habitat in the dark waters, they said.
Khlur Mukhim, a leading researcher from Gauhati University, came across the blind fish in the cave several years ago during an expedition. The cave is about 880 meters above sea level and over 7 km in length.
Mr. Mukhim said that the study came out recently though it was found several years ago as he had to corroborate the available facts and figures to establish that the fish was actually blind and belonged to a new species.
The fish sample was collected from small stagnant pools, a few square meters in area and about 1-2 m in depth, about 1,600 feet from the main entrance of the cave.
The pool bed is mostly sandy with pebbles. Other species found inside the cave include weakly pigmented crabs and crayfish, spiders, crickets, cockroaches and millipedes, small frogs and snakes.
Scientists had, in the past, chanced upon porcupine paws and quills on the muddy floor of a passage in the same cave.
The fish was named after ‘Larket’ village to encourage local people to take up biodiversity conservation, Mr. Khlur said.
Although there are about 200 known species of similar kind inhabiting streams and rivers throughout Indochina and Southeast Asia, this is the first such discovery, according to the researcher.
The new fish species can also be immediately distinguished from all other species of Schistura, barring Schistura papulifera -- another cave fish from Synrang Pamiang cave system in the same district -- for its vestigial subcutaneous eyes appearing as black spots.
Mr. Khlur said the orbital diameter gradually decreases as the species matures, with the eyes completely absent in older individuals.
Eventually, only small, faintly blackish spot-like depressions appeared in place of eyes, indicating evolutionary and as morphological adaptations.
The researchers have also expressed regret to see the high level of siltation, pollution and acidification of the water drainage systems in Jaintia Hills due to accumulation of acid mine drainage (AMD) from open-cast coal mining.
Several cement plants located on top of the wide and long cave systems are threatening the cave biodiversity as a whole, the researcher said.
from the Hindu
==========================
HOW DO FISH HANDLE COLD WATER?
The Fisheries Blog.
·Summertime’s come and gone, and winter has arrived in the Northern Hemisphere. Inland waters across North America are cooling down, and many will soon be covered with ice.
Winter can be hard on fishes, being poikilotherms that can’t regulate their own body temperature (with some exceptions). So just how do they make it through this challenging season?
Firstly, freshwater fishes are rarely threatened by freezing to death because of one of water’s most unique properties. Like most substances, water’s density increases as temperatures drop. However, it’s most dense just above its freezing point; density increases between 4° and 0°, causing ice to float. Were it not for this property, lakes and rivers would freeze from the bottom-up and fish at more northern latitudes would be seasonally extirpated.
Most fishes are rarely threatened with being frozen alive. Source
But not all fishes are not equally thermally adapted, and many cannot tolerate very cold or very warm temperatures. Thermal tolerance is an important controller of fish distributions, but within their range, fishes have adapted several ways to deal with cold temperatures:
Movement. When temperatures drop, many fish make seasonal movements to thermal refugia. Thermal refugia can be particularly important in northern climes, where warmer groundwater helps keep aquatic habitats ice-free.
Alternative enzymes. Enzymes are proteins that catalyze metabolic reactions, but their efficiency is temperature-dependent; enzymes perform best at an optimal temperature. To maximize their efficiency across a range of temperatures, some fishes have evolved alternative enzyme systems called isozymes to perform the same function at different optimal temperatures. Other fishes utilize allozymes—different forms of the same enzyme that are controlled by different alleles that allow reactions to function at different temperatures.
Antifreeze. In polar marine systems, high salt concentrations reduce water’s freezing point to around -2°–colder than the freezing point of most species’ bodily fluids. In these habitats, several species (most noteably the Notothenoidei but also cods, sea ravens, and some herrings) have antifreeze proteins that prevent blood from crystalizing. This allows them to survive in the harsh, ice-covered polar regions.
Antifreeze proteins in blood inhibit ice crystal formation. Source.
Salt Concentration. Other species beat the super-cold salty water at its own game. Marine fishes must constantly export ions to maintain osmotic balance. However, retaining more ions can help to reduce a fish’s freezing point and survive in below-zero temperatures.
These fish most likely died from lack of oxygen before becoming lodged in ice. Source.
But in the end, some fish simply can’t handle the cold. Threadfin Shad, in particular, are subject to large winter die-offs, which can be an important source of winter forage for many predators. Large-scale winter fish die-offs often occur in instances of extreme temperature fluctuation. For example, ~100,000 drum died in the Arkansas River in 2011 after a particularly chilly cold front front blew through following several warm weeks. Lastly, many ponds and small lakes are experience winterkill–massive fish die-offs that occur not because of cold, but because ice limits oxygen exchange. The fish in the photo above probably suffocated and floated to the surface where they became lodged in ice.
==========================
The Fisheries Blog.
·Summertime’s come and gone, and winter has arrived in the Northern Hemisphere. Inland waters across North America are cooling down, and many will soon be covered with ice.
Winter can be hard on fishes, being poikilotherms that can’t regulate their own body temperature (with some exceptions). So just how do they make it through this challenging season?
Firstly, freshwater fishes are rarely threatened by freezing to death because of one of water’s most unique properties. Like most substances, water’s density increases as temperatures drop. However, it’s most dense just above its freezing point; density increases between 4° and 0°, causing ice to float. Were it not for this property, lakes and rivers would freeze from the bottom-up and fish at more northern latitudes would be seasonally extirpated.
Most fishes are rarely threatened with being frozen alive. Source
But not all fishes are not equally thermally adapted, and many cannot tolerate very cold or very warm temperatures. Thermal tolerance is an important controller of fish distributions, but within their range, fishes have adapted several ways to deal with cold temperatures:
Movement. When temperatures drop, many fish make seasonal movements to thermal refugia. Thermal refugia can be particularly important in northern climes, where warmer groundwater helps keep aquatic habitats ice-free.
Alternative enzymes. Enzymes are proteins that catalyze metabolic reactions, but their efficiency is temperature-dependent; enzymes perform best at an optimal temperature. To maximize their efficiency across a range of temperatures, some fishes have evolved alternative enzyme systems called isozymes to perform the same function at different optimal temperatures. Other fishes utilize allozymes—different forms of the same enzyme that are controlled by different alleles that allow reactions to function at different temperatures.
Antifreeze. In polar marine systems, high salt concentrations reduce water’s freezing point to around -2°–colder than the freezing point of most species’ bodily fluids. In these habitats, several species (most noteably the Notothenoidei but also cods, sea ravens, and some herrings) have antifreeze proteins that prevent blood from crystalizing. This allows them to survive in the harsh, ice-covered polar regions.
Antifreeze proteins in blood inhibit ice crystal formation. Source.
Salt Concentration. Other species beat the super-cold salty water at its own game. Marine fishes must constantly export ions to maintain osmotic balance. However, retaining more ions can help to reduce a fish’s freezing point and survive in below-zero temperatures.
These fish most likely died from lack of oxygen before becoming lodged in ice. Source.
But in the end, some fish simply can’t handle the cold. Threadfin Shad, in particular, are subject to large winter die-offs, which can be an important source of winter forage for many predators. Large-scale winter fish die-offs often occur in instances of extreme temperature fluctuation. For example, ~100,000 drum died in the Arkansas River in 2011 after a particularly chilly cold front front blew through following several warm weeks. Lastly, many ponds and small lakes are experience winterkill–massive fish die-offs that occur not because of cold, but because ice limits oxygen exchange. The fish in the photo above probably suffocated and floated to the surface where they became lodged in ice.
==========================
Description of a new species of Pareiorhaphis(Loricariidae: Neoplecostominae) from the rio Jequitinhonha basin, Minas Gerais, eastern Brazil
Edson H. L. Pereira1
Tiago C. Pessali2
Francisco de Andrade3
Roberto E. Reis1
1Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), Laboratório de Sistemática de Vertebrados, Av. Ipiranga 6681, 90619-900 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil. (EHLP) ehlpereira@gmail.com, (RER) reis@pucrs.br
2Museu de Ciências Naturais, Pontifícia Universidade Católica de Minas Gerais, Av. Dom José Gaspar 290, 30535-610 Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil. tcpessali@hotmail.com
3Pós Graduação em Ecologia Aplicada, Departamento de Biologia, Setor de Ecologia, Universidade Federal de Lavras, Caixa Postal 3037, 37200-000 Lavras, MG, Brazil. surubim@gmail.com
ABSTRACT
A new species of the loricariid genus Pareiorhaphis is described based on specimens from several tributaries of the upper and middle rio Jequitinhonha basin, Minas Gerais State, eastern Brazil. The new species increases the number of known species of Pareiorhaphis to 25 and, at the same time, represents the second member of the subfamily Neoplecostominae reported from the rio Jequitinhonha basin. The new species is diagnosed from all remaining congeners by a putative autapomorphic feature related to the color pattern: a well-defined, dark brown stripe on the median series of lateral plates that extends along the flank from the posterior margin of compound pterotic to the caudal-fin base. The shallow caudal peduncle and the comparatively larger number of dentary teeth also distinguish the new species from most congeners. The new species is also compared to Pareiorhaphis stephanus, a syntopic congener with similar traits.
Keywords: Cascudos; Coastal drainages; Endemism; Itacambiruçu River; Taxonomy
INTRODUCTION
Pareiorhaphis Miranda Ribeiro comprises a distinctive assemblage of loricariid catfishes with 25 known species, including the new taxon described in this report. Species of this genus exhibit a significant variation in body size, color pattern, nature of the pectoral girdle covering, shape of the head, and other morphometric and meristic traits. However, a common pattern related to the sexually dimorphic attributes associated with adult males is shared by all species of the genus and diagnoses Pareiorhaphis among all other neoplecostomines, namely the hypertrophied odontodes that cover most of the cheek, opercle, and exposed lateral process of the cleithrum (Pereira et al., 2007, 2010). The type locality of the new species is located in the rio Itacambiruçu, one of the main tributaries of the rio Jequitinhonha, a coastal drainage included in the Northeastern Mata Atlântica freshwater ecoregion (Abell et al., 2008), which harbors high levels of fish endemism (Camelier, Zanata, 2014). In addition, no other neoplecostomine have been reported in that basin since Oliveira, Oyakawa (1999) described Pareiorhaphisstephanus from the ribeirão das Pedras, a headwater tributary to the rio Jequitinhonha basin near Diamantina, Minas Gerais State. Recently, however, a possible second species of Pareiorhaphis has been identified based on DNA barcode comparison and since its genetic distance from P. stephanus was higher than 2% (namely 5.79%), it was considered a candidate new species by Pugedo et al. (2016), what was confirmed with the present morphometric analysis. Various ichthyological surveys conducted by the authors in tributaries to upper and middle portions of the rio Jequitinhonha basin during the last few years, have produced good series of that distinct, undescribed species of Pareiorhaphis, which is formally described in the present paper.
==========================
Edson H. L. Pereira1
Tiago C. Pessali2
Francisco de Andrade3
Roberto E. Reis1
1Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), Laboratório de Sistemática de Vertebrados, Av. Ipiranga 6681, 90619-900 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil. (EHLP) ehlpereira@gmail.com, (RER) reis@pucrs.br
2Museu de Ciências Naturais, Pontifícia Universidade Católica de Minas Gerais, Av. Dom José Gaspar 290, 30535-610 Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil. tcpessali@hotmail.com
3Pós Graduação em Ecologia Aplicada, Departamento de Biologia, Setor de Ecologia, Universidade Federal de Lavras, Caixa Postal 3037, 37200-000 Lavras, MG, Brazil. surubim@gmail.com
ABSTRACT
A new species of the loricariid genus Pareiorhaphis is described based on specimens from several tributaries of the upper and middle rio Jequitinhonha basin, Minas Gerais State, eastern Brazil. The new species increases the number of known species of Pareiorhaphis to 25 and, at the same time, represents the second member of the subfamily Neoplecostominae reported from the rio Jequitinhonha basin. The new species is diagnosed from all remaining congeners by a putative autapomorphic feature related to the color pattern: a well-defined, dark brown stripe on the median series of lateral plates that extends along the flank from the posterior margin of compound pterotic to the caudal-fin base. The shallow caudal peduncle and the comparatively larger number of dentary teeth also distinguish the new species from most congeners. The new species is also compared to Pareiorhaphis stephanus, a syntopic congener with similar traits.
Keywords: Cascudos; Coastal drainages; Endemism; Itacambiruçu River; Taxonomy
INTRODUCTION
Pareiorhaphis Miranda Ribeiro comprises a distinctive assemblage of loricariid catfishes with 25 known species, including the new taxon described in this report. Species of this genus exhibit a significant variation in body size, color pattern, nature of the pectoral girdle covering, shape of the head, and other morphometric and meristic traits. However, a common pattern related to the sexually dimorphic attributes associated with adult males is shared by all species of the genus and diagnoses Pareiorhaphis among all other neoplecostomines, namely the hypertrophied odontodes that cover most of the cheek, opercle, and exposed lateral process of the cleithrum (Pereira et al., 2007, 2010). The type locality of the new species is located in the rio Itacambiruçu, one of the main tributaries of the rio Jequitinhonha, a coastal drainage included in the Northeastern Mata Atlântica freshwater ecoregion (Abell et al., 2008), which harbors high levels of fish endemism (Camelier, Zanata, 2014). In addition, no other neoplecostomine have been reported in that basin since Oliveira, Oyakawa (1999) described Pareiorhaphisstephanus from the ribeirão das Pedras, a headwater tributary to the rio Jequitinhonha basin near Diamantina, Minas Gerais State. Recently, however, a possible second species of Pareiorhaphis has been identified based on DNA barcode comparison and since its genetic distance from P. stephanus was higher than 2% (namely 5.79%), it was considered a candidate new species by Pugedo et al. (2016), what was confirmed with the present morphometric analysis. Various ichthyological surveys conducted by the authors in tributaries to upper and middle portions of the rio Jequitinhonha basin during the last few years, have produced good series of that distinct, undescribed species of Pareiorhaphis, which is formally described in the present paper.
==========================
Self-fertilizing fish have surprising amount of genetic diversity
Source:
Washington State University
Summary:
A self-replicating fish replicates only its own DNA, but researchers have found the mangrove killifish has a remarkable amount of genetic diversity across its species.
Share:
FULL STORY
As weird animals go, the mangrove killifish is in a class of its own.
It flourishes in both freshwater and water with twice as much salt as the ocean. It can live up to two months on land, breathing through its skin, before returning to the water with a series of spectacular 180-degree flips.
And it is one of only two vertebrates -- the other is a close relative -- that fertilizes itself.
This last part intrigues scientists like Luana Lins, a postdoctoral researcher in the Washington State University School of Biological Sciences.
Intimately befriending oneself -- called "selfing" -- has benefits. If you find yourself in a good situation, with plentiful food or a nice climate, you can start a family on the spot. But because a self-fertilizing animal replicates only its own DNA, it is deprived of a diverse genetic toolkit that can be handy if the environment suddenly changes. Self-fertilization also can increase the odds of a dangerous mutation becoming common in a population.
Yet the killifish is unfazed by a wide variety of nasty situations, as if begging the world to hit it with its best shot.
It turns out that when Lins and colleagues in the lab of genome scientist Joanna Kelley sequenced the genome of the killifish, also known as the mangrove rivulus, Kryptolebias marmoratus, or just plain "Kmar," it had a lot going on. Writing in the journal Genome, they describe how they compared 15 different lineages of the creature and found a remarkable amount of genetic diversity across the species.
When two individuals mate and their chromosomes line up, each parent's genes will have different nucleotides, or genetic building blocks, at corresponding locations of the DNA. These different nucleotides are called "heterozygous." And because different genes confer different characteristics, offspring will have a mix of traits from each parent.
But when a creature fertilizes its own egg with its own sperm, its nucleotides are more likely to match up with a uniformity that is broken only by the occasional mutation or recombination. Their paired nucleotides are called homozygous and, like clones, one generation is pretty much the same as the next.
In looking at killifish DNA from various lineages, one might expect to see a certain uniformity among them. Yet Lins and colleagues at WSU, Stanford University and the University of Alabama didn't.
"We found way more areas that were heterogeneous, heterozygous, than we expected if you just followed the logic of something that has been mating with itself for a long time," said Lins. "That opens up a can of worms. How is that happening?"
One explanation is that the creatures have a lot more mutations than previously thought. But mutations have a certain regularity or odds, making this much diversity unlikely.
But in most Kmar populations, a small percentage of individuals will be male. Their sperm will manage to fertilize an even smaller percentage of other individuals' eggs.
Separate studies have found that when hermaphrodites are exposed to fish from different lineages -- male fish or other unrelated hermaphrodites -- they are more likely to lay more eggs than with fish from the same lineage. It could be that the Kmar are occasionally living through one of the archetypal narratives -- stranger comes to town -- and when they see the stranger, they capitalize on this new pool of exotic DNA. They are drawn to the stranger, or they respond to the stranger by producing extra eggs.
For all their limited brain capacity, the fish aren't exactly dumb. Lins has noticed that they learn when it is time to eat, rising to be fed. Still, spotting a new pool of DNA would be a remarkable sort of perception, for a fish or really any other creature.
"How they know how different the other individual is, we don't know," said Lins. "There are a lot of unknowns, and I think that's the fun of science. We're all trying to figure out what is going on with these fishes."
Story Source:
Materials provided by Washington State University. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
Journal Reference:
Washington State University. "Befriending oneself has benefits, but backup plan recommended: Self-fertilizing fish have surprising amount of genetic diversity." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 26 December 2017. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/12/171226154037.htm>.
==========================
Source:
Washington State University
Summary:
A self-replicating fish replicates only its own DNA, but researchers have found the mangrove killifish has a remarkable amount of genetic diversity across its species.
Share:
FULL STORY
As weird animals go, the mangrove killifish is in a class of its own.
It flourishes in both freshwater and water with twice as much salt as the ocean. It can live up to two months on land, breathing through its skin, before returning to the water with a series of spectacular 180-degree flips.
And it is one of only two vertebrates -- the other is a close relative -- that fertilizes itself.
This last part intrigues scientists like Luana Lins, a postdoctoral researcher in the Washington State University School of Biological Sciences.
Intimately befriending oneself -- called "selfing" -- has benefits. If you find yourself in a good situation, with plentiful food or a nice climate, you can start a family on the spot. But because a self-fertilizing animal replicates only its own DNA, it is deprived of a diverse genetic toolkit that can be handy if the environment suddenly changes. Self-fertilization also can increase the odds of a dangerous mutation becoming common in a population.
Yet the killifish is unfazed by a wide variety of nasty situations, as if begging the world to hit it with its best shot.
It turns out that when Lins and colleagues in the lab of genome scientist Joanna Kelley sequenced the genome of the killifish, also known as the mangrove rivulus, Kryptolebias marmoratus, or just plain "Kmar," it had a lot going on. Writing in the journal Genome, they describe how they compared 15 different lineages of the creature and found a remarkable amount of genetic diversity across the species.
When two individuals mate and their chromosomes line up, each parent's genes will have different nucleotides, or genetic building blocks, at corresponding locations of the DNA. These different nucleotides are called "heterozygous." And because different genes confer different characteristics, offspring will have a mix of traits from each parent.
But when a creature fertilizes its own egg with its own sperm, its nucleotides are more likely to match up with a uniformity that is broken only by the occasional mutation or recombination. Their paired nucleotides are called homozygous and, like clones, one generation is pretty much the same as the next.
In looking at killifish DNA from various lineages, one might expect to see a certain uniformity among them. Yet Lins and colleagues at WSU, Stanford University and the University of Alabama didn't.
"We found way more areas that were heterogeneous, heterozygous, than we expected if you just followed the logic of something that has been mating with itself for a long time," said Lins. "That opens up a can of worms. How is that happening?"
One explanation is that the creatures have a lot more mutations than previously thought. But mutations have a certain regularity or odds, making this much diversity unlikely.
But in most Kmar populations, a small percentage of individuals will be male. Their sperm will manage to fertilize an even smaller percentage of other individuals' eggs.
Separate studies have found that when hermaphrodites are exposed to fish from different lineages -- male fish or other unrelated hermaphrodites -- they are more likely to lay more eggs than with fish from the same lineage. It could be that the Kmar are occasionally living through one of the archetypal narratives -- stranger comes to town -- and when they see the stranger, they capitalize on this new pool of exotic DNA. They are drawn to the stranger, or they respond to the stranger by producing extra eggs.
For all their limited brain capacity, the fish aren't exactly dumb. Lins has noticed that they learn when it is time to eat, rising to be fed. Still, spotting a new pool of DNA would be a remarkable sort of perception, for a fish or really any other creature.
"How they know how different the other individual is, we don't know," said Lins. "There are a lot of unknowns, and I think that's the fun of science. We're all trying to figure out what is going on with these fishes."
Story Source:
Materials provided by Washington State University. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
Journal Reference:
- Luana S. F. Lins, Shawn Trojahn, Alexandra Sockell, Muh-Ching Yee, Andrey Tatarenkov, Carlos D. Bustamante, Ryan L. Earley, Joanna L Kelley. Whole-genome sequencing reveals the extent of heterozygosity in a preferentially self-fertilizing hermaphroditic vertebrate. Genome, 2017; DOI: 10.1139/gen-2017-0188
Washington State University. "Befriending oneself has benefits, but backup plan recommended: Self-fertilizing fish have surprising amount of genetic diversity." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 26 December 2017. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/12/171226154037.htm>.
==========================
A Revision of the Grunter Genus Syncomistes (Teleostei, Terapontidae) with Descriptions of Seven New Species from the Kimberley region, northwestern Australia
Syncomistes versicolor
Shelley, Delaval & Le Feuvre, 2017
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4367.1.1
Abstract
The systematics of the genus Syncomistes Vari, 1978 endemic to freshwater habitats of remote northwestern Australia, is reviewed in light of recent collections in the region and a fine scale molecular study of the group that identified new taxa. Based primarily on external morphology, seven taxa are described as new: Syncomistes bonapartensis sp. nov., S. carcharus sp. nov., S. dilliensis sp. nov., S. holsworthi sp. nov., S. moranensis sp. nov., S. wunambal sp. nov. and S. versicolor sp. nov. The species complexes Syncomistes butleri Vari, 1978 and S. trigonicus Vari, 1978 are resolved and redescribed, and S. kimberleyensis Vari, 1978 and S. rastellus Vari & Hutchins, 1978 are redescribed based on juvenile and adult specimens. Finally, a neotype is provided for S. trigonicus sensu stricto in place of the destroyed holotype. Meristic and morphometric data are collected and analysed for the entire genus. Syncomistes have a broad range of meristic and morphometric character differences between species, and juveniles and adults, as well as variations in colour. The head, particularly feeding structures such as the jaw and dentition, were found to be the most important morphological features in discriminating between taxa. Some characters undergo distinct ontogenetic shifts in form, which are discussed. Of note, four of the new species, and seven from the entire genus, are narrow-range endemics, each found in single river systems, and are thus of conservation concern.
Keywords: Pisces, Cryptic species, sympatric, range-restricted, freshwater, biodiversity, taxonomy, systematics, neotype
• Syncomistes butleri Vari, 1978
• Syncomistes kimberleyensis Vari, 1978
• Syncomistes rastellus Vari & Hutchins, 1978
• Syncomistes trigonicus Vari, 1978
• Syncomistes bonapartensis, new species
English vernacular name: Lake Bonaparte Grunter.
Etymology: The specific name bonapartensis refers to the distribution of the species that is confined to drainages that once flowed into the paleolake, Lake Bonaparte.
• Syncomistes carcharus, new species
English vernacular name: Sharp-toothed Grunter.
Etymology: The specific name carcharus is Latin for sharp teeth, and refers to the robust, pointed teeth of the species, relative to other Syncomistes.
• Syncomistes dilliensis, new species
English vernacular name: Dillie Grunter.
Etymology: The specific name dilliensis refers to the type locality, Dillie Gorge, on the Charnley River, Western Australia.
• Syncomistes holsworthi, new species
English vernacular name: Holsworth’s Grunter.
Etymology: The specific name holsworthi honors Bill Holsworth whose foundation financed the expedition on which this species was found, as well as providing ongoing support for doctoral research into the ecology, management and natural history of Australian wildlife.
• Syncomistes moranensis, new species
English vernacular name: Moran Grunter.
Etymology: The specific name moranensis refers to the type locality, the Moran River, which is also the only known location of the species.
• Syncomistes versicolor, new species
English vernacular name: The Many-coloured Grunter.
Etymology: The specific name versicolor is Latin for many-coloured and refers to the distinct changes in the colour of the species at different stages in its ontogeny.
• Syncomistes wunambal, new species
English vernacular name: Wunambal Grunter.
Etymology: Named wunambal, to be treated as a noun in apposition, for the Wunambal tribe and language group from the Mitchell River area, in which the fish is found.
James J. Shelley, Aurélien Delaval and Matthew C. Le Feuvre. 2017. A Revision of the Grunter Genus Syncomistes (Teleostei, Terapontidae) with Descriptions of Seven New Species from the Kimberley region, northwestern Australia. Zootaxa. 4367(1); 1–103. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4367.1.1
We discovered 20 new fish in northern Australia – now we need to protect them theconversation.com/we-discovered-20-new-fish-in-northern-australia-now-we-need-to-protect-them-52905 @ConversationEDU
==========================
Syncomistes versicolor
Shelley, Delaval & Le Feuvre, 2017
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4367.1.1
Abstract
The systematics of the genus Syncomistes Vari, 1978 endemic to freshwater habitats of remote northwestern Australia, is reviewed in light of recent collections in the region and a fine scale molecular study of the group that identified new taxa. Based primarily on external morphology, seven taxa are described as new: Syncomistes bonapartensis sp. nov., S. carcharus sp. nov., S. dilliensis sp. nov., S. holsworthi sp. nov., S. moranensis sp. nov., S. wunambal sp. nov. and S. versicolor sp. nov. The species complexes Syncomistes butleri Vari, 1978 and S. trigonicus Vari, 1978 are resolved and redescribed, and S. kimberleyensis Vari, 1978 and S. rastellus Vari & Hutchins, 1978 are redescribed based on juvenile and adult specimens. Finally, a neotype is provided for S. trigonicus sensu stricto in place of the destroyed holotype. Meristic and morphometric data are collected and analysed for the entire genus. Syncomistes have a broad range of meristic and morphometric character differences between species, and juveniles and adults, as well as variations in colour. The head, particularly feeding structures such as the jaw and dentition, were found to be the most important morphological features in discriminating between taxa. Some characters undergo distinct ontogenetic shifts in form, which are discussed. Of note, four of the new species, and seven from the entire genus, are narrow-range endemics, each found in single river systems, and are thus of conservation concern.
Keywords: Pisces, Cryptic species, sympatric, range-restricted, freshwater, biodiversity, taxonomy, systematics, neotype
• Syncomistes butleri Vari, 1978
• Syncomistes kimberleyensis Vari, 1978
• Syncomistes rastellus Vari & Hutchins, 1978
• Syncomistes trigonicus Vari, 1978
• Syncomistes bonapartensis, new species
English vernacular name: Lake Bonaparte Grunter.
Etymology: The specific name bonapartensis refers to the distribution of the species that is confined to drainages that once flowed into the paleolake, Lake Bonaparte.
• Syncomistes carcharus, new species
English vernacular name: Sharp-toothed Grunter.
Etymology: The specific name carcharus is Latin for sharp teeth, and refers to the robust, pointed teeth of the species, relative to other Syncomistes.
• Syncomistes dilliensis, new species
English vernacular name: Dillie Grunter.
Etymology: The specific name dilliensis refers to the type locality, Dillie Gorge, on the Charnley River, Western Australia.
• Syncomistes holsworthi, new species
English vernacular name: Holsworth’s Grunter.
Etymology: The specific name holsworthi honors Bill Holsworth whose foundation financed the expedition on which this species was found, as well as providing ongoing support for doctoral research into the ecology, management and natural history of Australian wildlife.
• Syncomistes moranensis, new species
English vernacular name: Moran Grunter.
Etymology: The specific name moranensis refers to the type locality, the Moran River, which is also the only known location of the species.
• Syncomistes versicolor, new species
English vernacular name: The Many-coloured Grunter.
Etymology: The specific name versicolor is Latin for many-coloured and refers to the distinct changes in the colour of the species at different stages in its ontogeny.
• Syncomistes wunambal, new species
English vernacular name: Wunambal Grunter.
Etymology: Named wunambal, to be treated as a noun in apposition, for the Wunambal tribe and language group from the Mitchell River area, in which the fish is found.
James J. Shelley, Aurélien Delaval and Matthew C. Le Feuvre. 2017. A Revision of the Grunter Genus Syncomistes (Teleostei, Terapontidae) with Descriptions of Seven New Species from the Kimberley region, northwestern Australia. Zootaxa. 4367(1); 1–103. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4367.1.1
We discovered 20 new fish in northern Australia – now we need to protect them theconversation.com/we-discovered-20-new-fish-in-northern-australia-now-we-need-to-protect-them-52905 @ConversationEDU
==========================
Interfered with electric meter while breeding fish
When he was breeding tropical fish and found his electricity bill increasing a 48-year-old man prevented the meter from recording.
Stephen Lynas, Drumcarn Gardens, Portadown, admitted criminal damage to a meter on October 24 last year, preventing it from recording and unlawful possession of a class C drug, Alprazolam.
Craigavon Magistrates Court heard last Wednesday that a search was carried out at the home of the defendant and the offences came to light.
The amount of revenue lost was £1,024.84 and Lynas had entered into an agreement to repay the money.
Mr Richard Monteith, representing the defendant, explained that Lynas had been breeding tropical fish and with his electricity bill increasing this is what he did.
Deputy District Judge Trevor Browne said it was a ‘crude unsophisticated’ crime but he was mindful of the fact there had been full restitution. For each offence he imposed a conditional discharge for 12 months.
==========================
When he was breeding tropical fish and found his electricity bill increasing a 48-year-old man prevented the meter from recording.
Stephen Lynas, Drumcarn Gardens, Portadown, admitted criminal damage to a meter on October 24 last year, preventing it from recording and unlawful possession of a class C drug, Alprazolam.
Craigavon Magistrates Court heard last Wednesday that a search was carried out at the home of the defendant and the offences came to light.
The amount of revenue lost was £1,024.84 and Lynas had entered into an agreement to repay the money.
Mr Richard Monteith, representing the defendant, explained that Lynas had been breeding tropical fish and with his electricity bill increasing this is what he did.
Deputy District Judge Trevor Browne said it was a ‘crude unsophisticated’ crime but he was mindful of the fact there had been full restitution. For each offence he imposed a conditional discharge for 12 months.
==========================
Sinorhodeus microlepis • A New Genus and Species of Bitterling (Cyprinidae: Acheilognathinae) from China
Sinorhodeus microlepis
Li, Liao & Arai, 2017
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4353.1.4
Abstract
A new genus and species, Sinorhodeus microlepis gen. et sp. nov., is described from a tributary of the Yangtze River, in Chongqing City, China. Sinorhodeus gen. nov. can be distinguished from four closely related genera, Paratanakia, Pseudorhodeus, Rhodeus, and Tanakia, by the following combination of characters: pharyngeal teeth 0,0,4–4,0,0, longitudinal scales 41–46, white spots on dorsal-fin rays absent, a black blotch on dorsal fin in juvenile absent, and less developed wing-like yolk sac projections in larvae. Phylogenetic analysis of one mitochondrial gene and six nuclear genes supports the establishment of the new genus.
Keywords: Pisces, Cyprinidae, Rhodeus, Tanakia, phylogeny, Yangtze River, China
Sinorhodeus microlepis in breeding season, male (A) and female (B)
Fan Li, Te-Yu Liao, Ryoichi Arai and Liangjie Zhao. 2017. Sinorhodeus microlepis, A New Genus and Species of Bitterling from China (Teleostei: Cyprinidae: Acheilognathinae). Zootaxa. 4353(1); 69–88. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4353.1.4
facebook.com/FanLi10690/posts/1545818788832949
==========================
Sinorhodeus microlepis
Li, Liao & Arai, 2017
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4353.1.4
Abstract
A new genus and species, Sinorhodeus microlepis gen. et sp. nov., is described from a tributary of the Yangtze River, in Chongqing City, China. Sinorhodeus gen. nov. can be distinguished from four closely related genera, Paratanakia, Pseudorhodeus, Rhodeus, and Tanakia, by the following combination of characters: pharyngeal teeth 0,0,4–4,0,0, longitudinal scales 41–46, white spots on dorsal-fin rays absent, a black blotch on dorsal fin in juvenile absent, and less developed wing-like yolk sac projections in larvae. Phylogenetic analysis of one mitochondrial gene and six nuclear genes supports the establishment of the new genus.
Keywords: Pisces, Cyprinidae, Rhodeus, Tanakia, phylogeny, Yangtze River, China
Sinorhodeus microlepis in breeding season, male (A) and female (B)
Fan Li, Te-Yu Liao, Ryoichi Arai and Liangjie Zhao. 2017. Sinorhodeus microlepis, A New Genus and Species of Bitterling from China (Teleostei: Cyprinidae: Acheilognathinae). Zootaxa. 4353(1); 69–88. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4353.1.4
facebook.com/FanLi10690/posts/1545818788832949
==========================
Joy for Bury anglers as River Irwell restocked with fish
A total 8,000 barbel, chub and dace have been added to sections of the Irwell in Bury, controlled by Little Britain Anglers
ANGLERS in Bury have received great news after 8,000 coarse fish were released into sections of the River Irwell.
The substantial stocking sees 500 barbel added to three sections of the river controlled by Bury angling group Little Britain Anglers, alongside 2,500 chub and 5,000 dace, intended to give fish stocks in the river a boost after two pollution incidents earlier this year.
The decision follows long discussions between Little Britain Anglers and the Environment Agency.
Mike Cootes, from Little Britain Anglers, said he was very pleased with the news, adding: "This is brilliant because we have been working very hard to keep the river free of pollution.
"The stocking of barbel is a big thing, because in the last years they were classed as a non-indigenous species.
"Even though there are barbel in the Irwell they are very few and far between.
"We have been in discussion with the Environment Agency for over three years and we are constantly badgering them to stock the river."
Mr Cootes added that there had been several reasons behind the Environment Agency's reluctance to restock including due to financial constraints.
He said: "The EA haven't stocked for over three years, as they wanted to find out if the river was self sustaining for coarse fish.
"The big stocking is in Bury and the thinking behind it is that hopefully the stocking will trickle down to lower parts of the river.
"But we may have problems there because there are so many weirs on the Irwell.
"If the fish go through they are stuck because there are no fish passes, so they can get down but can't get back up."
Eric Owen, chairman of Little Britain Anglers, said: "Little Britain Anglers had many a meeting and discussion as the EA decided they would not be stocking fish in the rivers due to no habitat for the fish to hide from predators.
"They also said that until the habitat had been done they would continue not to stock fish.
"We also had to press for barbel and we showed the EA what works we had done already on habitat and also how the fish had survived from the last two stocks that the EA had put in at LBA HQ.
"After a number of meetings and visits to LBA HQ the EA agreed to stock the fish as we had justified that we had barbel in our stretch of the River Irwell and they were spawning, and also that the fish stocked previously had survived within the habitat we had created.
"The EA were then happy to continue to stock fish to help support the rivers, future fish stocks, and rebuild fish loss to pollution and predators, such as cormorants."
Little Britain Anglers worked with Salford Friendly Anglers Society on encouraging the restocking, having collaborated closely with the group in the past on cleaning up local waterways.
Mr Cootes said: "We have seen the coarse fish reduce drastically, and even the trout in certain areas are sparse, because we are constantly fighting against pollution.
"Years ago the river was one of the most polluted in Europe, so over the past few years groups have been fighting against pollution.
"Lots of the time we are eco warriors keeping our eyes open for people who are polluting."
==========================
A total 8,000 barbel, chub and dace have been added to sections of the Irwell in Bury, controlled by Little Britain Anglers
ANGLERS in Bury have received great news after 8,000 coarse fish were released into sections of the River Irwell.
The substantial stocking sees 500 barbel added to three sections of the river controlled by Bury angling group Little Britain Anglers, alongside 2,500 chub and 5,000 dace, intended to give fish stocks in the river a boost after two pollution incidents earlier this year.
The decision follows long discussions between Little Britain Anglers and the Environment Agency.
Mike Cootes, from Little Britain Anglers, said he was very pleased with the news, adding: "This is brilliant because we have been working very hard to keep the river free of pollution.
"The stocking of barbel is a big thing, because in the last years they were classed as a non-indigenous species.
"Even though there are barbel in the Irwell they are very few and far between.
"We have been in discussion with the Environment Agency for over three years and we are constantly badgering them to stock the river."
Mr Cootes added that there had been several reasons behind the Environment Agency's reluctance to restock including due to financial constraints.
He said: "The EA haven't stocked for over three years, as they wanted to find out if the river was self sustaining for coarse fish.
"The big stocking is in Bury and the thinking behind it is that hopefully the stocking will trickle down to lower parts of the river.
"But we may have problems there because there are so many weirs on the Irwell.
"If the fish go through they are stuck because there are no fish passes, so they can get down but can't get back up."
Eric Owen, chairman of Little Britain Anglers, said: "Little Britain Anglers had many a meeting and discussion as the EA decided they would not be stocking fish in the rivers due to no habitat for the fish to hide from predators.
"They also said that until the habitat had been done they would continue not to stock fish.
"We also had to press for barbel and we showed the EA what works we had done already on habitat and also how the fish had survived from the last two stocks that the EA had put in at LBA HQ.
"After a number of meetings and visits to LBA HQ the EA agreed to stock the fish as we had justified that we had barbel in our stretch of the River Irwell and they were spawning, and also that the fish stocked previously had survived within the habitat we had created.
"The EA were then happy to continue to stock fish to help support the rivers, future fish stocks, and rebuild fish loss to pollution and predators, such as cormorants."
Little Britain Anglers worked with Salford Friendly Anglers Society on encouraging the restocking, having collaborated closely with the group in the past on cleaning up local waterways.
Mr Cootes said: "We have seen the coarse fish reduce drastically, and even the trout in certain areas are sparse, because we are constantly fighting against pollution.
"Years ago the river was one of the most polluted in Europe, so over the past few years groups have been fighting against pollution.
"Lots of the time we are eco warriors keeping our eyes open for people who are polluting."
==========================
Loose skin and 'slack volume' protect Hagfish from shark bites
Source:
Chapman University
Summary:
New research shows how hagfishes survive an initial attack from predators before they release large volumes of slime to defend themselves. Because the slime is released after they are attacked, this defense strategy is only effective if they survive the initial bite. Results show that hagfish skin is not puncture resistant; it is both unattached and flaccid, which helps avoid internal damage from penetrating teeth.
Share:
FULL STORY
Chapman University has published new research showing how hagfishes survive an initial attack from predators before they release large volumes of slime to defend themselves. Because the slime is released after they are attacked, this defense strategy is only effective if they survive the initial bite. Results show that hagfish skin is not puncture resistant; it is both unattached and flaccid, which helps avoid internal damage from penetrating teeth.
Hagfishes are an ancient group of eel-like animals found at the bottom of the ocean. Video footage of hagfishes being attacked, lab studies of how their defensive slime functions, and the fact hagfishes are rarely found in the stomachs of other fish, suggest that fish predators are rarely successful when they attempt to eat a hagfish.
This three-minute video shows how hagfishes use slime as their defense mechanism: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8aVgSIDJjM.
"This video really was the inspiration for our entire study," said Douglas Fudge, Ph.D., associate professor of biological sciences at Chapman University and lead author on this study. "A sizable slack volume in hagfishes, combined with minimal attachment of the skin to the muscle, allows the body to slip out of harm's way even when the skin is punctured."
Researchers studied the three layers of hagfish skin to determine how they survive the initial attack. They narrowed it down to two possibilities; the hagfishes have either puncture-resistant skin or a loose and flaccid body design that makes it more difficult for teeth to penetrate. The performance of hagfish skin is notable because they lack scales that help boost puncture resistance in many fishes. Hagfishes have a subcutaneous sinus system that runs the length of their body, containing 30 percent of their blood volume. Although previous research has found evidence that this sinus system is crucial to burrowing and knot-tying, this study shows that it also plays a role in predator defense.
The study, called "Flaccid skin protects hagfishes from shark bites," was published in the Journal of the Royal Society Interface. Researchers performed skin puncture tests of 22 fish species. They also used simulated shark bites on hagfish and their closest relatives, the sea lamprey.
Story Source:
Materials provided by Chapman University. Original written by Stacy Nagai. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
Journal Reference:
==========================
Source:
Chapman University
Summary:
New research shows how hagfishes survive an initial attack from predators before they release large volumes of slime to defend themselves. Because the slime is released after they are attacked, this defense strategy is only effective if they survive the initial bite. Results show that hagfish skin is not puncture resistant; it is both unattached and flaccid, which helps avoid internal damage from penetrating teeth.
Share:
FULL STORY
Chapman University has published new research showing how hagfishes survive an initial attack from predators before they release large volumes of slime to defend themselves. Because the slime is released after they are attacked, this defense strategy is only effective if they survive the initial bite. Results show that hagfish skin is not puncture resistant; it is both unattached and flaccid, which helps avoid internal damage from penetrating teeth.
Hagfishes are an ancient group of eel-like animals found at the bottom of the ocean. Video footage of hagfishes being attacked, lab studies of how their defensive slime functions, and the fact hagfishes are rarely found in the stomachs of other fish, suggest that fish predators are rarely successful when they attempt to eat a hagfish.
This three-minute video shows how hagfishes use slime as their defense mechanism: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8aVgSIDJjM.
"This video really was the inspiration for our entire study," said Douglas Fudge, Ph.D., associate professor of biological sciences at Chapman University and lead author on this study. "A sizable slack volume in hagfishes, combined with minimal attachment of the skin to the muscle, allows the body to slip out of harm's way even when the skin is punctured."
Researchers studied the three layers of hagfish skin to determine how they survive the initial attack. They narrowed it down to two possibilities; the hagfishes have either puncture-resistant skin or a loose and flaccid body design that makes it more difficult for teeth to penetrate. The performance of hagfish skin is notable because they lack scales that help boost puncture resistance in many fishes. Hagfishes have a subcutaneous sinus system that runs the length of their body, containing 30 percent of their blood volume. Although previous research has found evidence that this sinus system is crucial to burrowing and knot-tying, this study shows that it also plays a role in predator defense.
The study, called "Flaccid skin protects hagfishes from shark bites," was published in the Journal of the Royal Society Interface. Researchers performed skin puncture tests of 22 fish species. They also used simulated shark bites on hagfish and their closest relatives, the sea lamprey.
Story Source:
Materials provided by Chapman University. Original written by Stacy Nagai. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
Journal Reference:
- Sarah Boggett, Jean-Luc Stiles, Adam P. Summers, Douglas S. Fudge. Flaccid skin protects hagfishes from shark bites. Journal of The Royal Society Interface, 2017; 14 (137): 20170765 DOI: 10.1098/rsif.2017.0765
==========================
Cirrhilabrus greeni, A Glorious New Species of Fairy Wrasse
840Cirrhilabrus greeni is a gorgeous new species of fairy wrasse which is yet another discovery for Monsoon Aquatics. This distinctive red and yellow reef fish is more than just a little different from what we’ve seen before and entirely deserving of being called the sunset fairy wrasse.
Female sunset fairy wrasse,Coming from the eastern edge of the Timor Sea between East Timor and Northwestern Australia, the sunset fairy wrasse was first collected by Tim Green of Monsoon Aquatics after whom the new species is named. Although the sunset wrasse was discovered in a fairly remote region it lives at the modest depth of 18 to 40 meters (60 to 130 feet) in typical fairy wrasse habitat alongside other known species including the newly described monsoon fairy wrasse, Cirrhilabrus hygroxerus.
The gorgeous red and yellow body colour of Cirrhilabrus greeni is truly reminiscent of C. naokoae but with very different fin shape and colorThe red body with a bright yellow underbelly of the sunset fairy wrasse bears a superficial resemblance to the bold yellow stripes of Naoko’s fairy wrasse. However C. greeni has clearish red and yellow fins compared to the dark dorsal and pelvic fins of C. naokoae, also without the exaggerated pelvic and anterior portion of the dorsal fins. What it does have it a red margin to its tail fin with a clear interior making it appear as if it has a lunate shaped fin.
There’s been a hot streak of new species described the last couple years bringing the total number of known fairy wrasses to 57 with 33 of those described since only 1990! The new sunset fairy wrasse is described by Gerald Allen and Michael Hammer in the Journal of the Ocean Science Foundation. [JOSF]
from ReefBuilders
==========================
840Cirrhilabrus greeni is a gorgeous new species of fairy wrasse which is yet another discovery for Monsoon Aquatics. This distinctive red and yellow reef fish is more than just a little different from what we’ve seen before and entirely deserving of being called the sunset fairy wrasse.
Female sunset fairy wrasse,Coming from the eastern edge of the Timor Sea between East Timor and Northwestern Australia, the sunset fairy wrasse was first collected by Tim Green of Monsoon Aquatics after whom the new species is named. Although the sunset wrasse was discovered in a fairly remote region it lives at the modest depth of 18 to 40 meters (60 to 130 feet) in typical fairy wrasse habitat alongside other known species including the newly described monsoon fairy wrasse, Cirrhilabrus hygroxerus.
The gorgeous red and yellow body colour of Cirrhilabrus greeni is truly reminiscent of C. naokoae but with very different fin shape and colorThe red body with a bright yellow underbelly of the sunset fairy wrasse bears a superficial resemblance to the bold yellow stripes of Naoko’s fairy wrasse. However C. greeni has clearish red and yellow fins compared to the dark dorsal and pelvic fins of C. naokoae, also without the exaggerated pelvic and anterior portion of the dorsal fins. What it does have it a red margin to its tail fin with a clear interior making it appear as if it has a lunate shaped fin.
There’s been a hot streak of new species described the last couple years bringing the total number of known fairy wrasses to 57 with 33 of those described since only 1990! The new sunset fairy wrasse is described by Gerald Allen and Michael Hammer in the Journal of the Ocean Science Foundation. [JOSF]
from ReefBuilders
==========================
Fishery puts up fences around lake to stop fish being slaughtered by otters
One of Britain's premier fisheries has spent tens of thousands of pounds putting up fencing to protect its prized fish from being slaughtered by otters.
More than two miles of 6ft-tall wire fencing now surrounds the two lakes at the fishery that are filled with carp, including Britain's biggest weighing 80lbs.
Large coarse fish can be worth as much as £30,000 a piece as they attract anglers who pay good money for the chance to catch them. But in recent years carp and barbel have been threatened by the resurgence of the wild otter population in Britain, which eat the fish.
A number of fisheries have had to close as a result of the loss of stock. Wingham Fisheries near Canterbury, Kent, has become the latest to fence off their rural lakes with the barriers.
The move comes after the UK Wild Otter Trust admitted mistakes were made when hundreds of protected otters were released into the countryside in the 1980s and 90s to boost their dwindling numbers.
It's only a matter of time before otters arrive everywhere, and with the size of the lakes and the terrain we couldn't have put up fencing quickly.Steve Burke, owner of Wingham FisheriesDavid Webb, chairman of the trust, said more research should have been carried out into the effects they had on rivers and fisheries.
He also conceded that the carnivorous mammals would have regenerated naturally without the help from wildlife campaigners.
Steve Burke, who owns Wingham Fisheries, said it was only a matter of time before otters targeted his fish that include nine carp weighing more than 50lbs, prompting him to install the fencing.
He said: "It's only a matter of time before otters arrive everywhere, and with the size of the lakes and the terrain we couldn't have put up fencing quickly.
Carp fish eaten by otters at a fishery in North Wales CREDIT: BNPS"In the meantime we could have lost some historic fish. It was therefore essential to act before otters returned to this area of Kent.
"Having spent over 20 years creating something beyond my wildest dreams I couldn't stand by and allow it to be destroyed in perhaps as many weeks.
"It's been a massive cost, but clearly the right thing to do."
It is not known how much the fencing has cost. The fishery received a grant from the Angling Trust to fund some of the work.
Otter numbers plummeted in Britain in the 1950s due largely to pollution from pesticides and habitat loss.
But since otter hunting was banned in 1978 and organochlorine pesticides were phased out they have successfully recolonised many of our waterways, with the help of wildlife conservationists.
The otters enjoy protective status and it is illegal to harm them or interfere with their habitat.
Over the last few years the Environment Agency has released to the Angling Trust more than £1m from the £21m a year it nets from rod licences. The trust then awards grants to fisheries wishing to install otter-proof fencing to protect their stock.
Martin Salter, head of campaigns at the Angling Trust, said: "Individual specimen fish, especially big carp, are prized by anglers who pay several hundreds of pounds a year in club membership fees to fish such waters.
"The value of record or near-record breaking fish can be measured in many thousands of pounds.
"We are seeing that fishery owners are prepared to spend substantial sums of money to protect their stock from otter predation, mainly through installing heavy duty fencing.
"Otters are an apex predator, they didn't need any outside assistance in their recovery. Their numbers returned once we stopped using horrible pesticides.
"The artificial introduction of them was both unnecessary and, in some ways, down right irresponsible as the conservationists did it without any consultation with fisheries."
One of Britain's premier fisheries has spent tens of thousands of pounds putting up fencing to protect its prized fish from being slaughtered by otters.
More than two miles of 6ft-tall wire fencing now surrounds the two lakes at the fishery that are filled with carp, including Britain's biggest weighing 80lbs.
Large coarse fish can be worth as much as £30,000 a piece as they attract anglers who pay good money for the chance to catch them. But in recent years carp and barbel have been threatened by the resurgence of the wild otter population in Britain, which eat the fish.
A number of fisheries have had to close as a result of the loss of stock. Wingham Fisheries near Canterbury, Kent, has become the latest to fence off their rural lakes with the barriers.
The move comes after the UK Wild Otter Trust admitted mistakes were made when hundreds of protected otters were released into the countryside in the 1980s and 90s to boost their dwindling numbers.
It's only a matter of time before otters arrive everywhere, and with the size of the lakes and the terrain we couldn't have put up fencing quickly.Steve Burke, owner of Wingham FisheriesDavid Webb, chairman of the trust, said more research should have been carried out into the effects they had on rivers and fisheries.
He also conceded that the carnivorous mammals would have regenerated naturally without the help from wildlife campaigners.
Steve Burke, who owns Wingham Fisheries, said it was only a matter of time before otters targeted his fish that include nine carp weighing more than 50lbs, prompting him to install the fencing.
He said: "It's only a matter of time before otters arrive everywhere, and with the size of the lakes and the terrain we couldn't have put up fencing quickly.
Carp fish eaten by otters at a fishery in North Wales CREDIT: BNPS"In the meantime we could have lost some historic fish. It was therefore essential to act before otters returned to this area of Kent.
"Having spent over 20 years creating something beyond my wildest dreams I couldn't stand by and allow it to be destroyed in perhaps as many weeks.
"It's been a massive cost, but clearly the right thing to do."
It is not known how much the fencing has cost. The fishery received a grant from the Angling Trust to fund some of the work.
Otter numbers plummeted in Britain in the 1950s due largely to pollution from pesticides and habitat loss.
But since otter hunting was banned in 1978 and organochlorine pesticides were phased out they have successfully recolonised many of our waterways, with the help of wildlife conservationists.
The otters enjoy protective status and it is illegal to harm them or interfere with their habitat.
Over the last few years the Environment Agency has released to the Angling Trust more than £1m from the £21m a year it nets from rod licences. The trust then awards grants to fisheries wishing to install otter-proof fencing to protect their stock.
Martin Salter, head of campaigns at the Angling Trust, said: "Individual specimen fish, especially big carp, are prized by anglers who pay several hundreds of pounds a year in club membership fees to fish such waters.
"The value of record or near-record breaking fish can be measured in many thousands of pounds.
"We are seeing that fishery owners are prepared to spend substantial sums of money to protect their stock from otter predation, mainly through installing heavy duty fencing.
"Otters are an apex predator, they didn't need any outside assistance in their recovery. Their numbers returned once we stopped using horrible pesticides.
"The artificial introduction of them was both unnecessary and, in some ways, down right irresponsible as the conservationists did it without any consultation with fisheries."
=========================
Neopomacentrus aktites • A New Species of Damselfish (Pisces: Pomacentridae) from Western Australia
Neopomacentrus aktites
Allen, Moore & Allen, 2017
oceansciencefoundation.org
Abstract
A new species of damselfish, Neopomacentrus aktites n. sp., is described on the basis of 50 specimens, 17.8–54.1 mm SL, collected from Western Australia. The new species was formerly confused with Neopomacentrus filamentosus, an Indo-Malayan species that appears morphologically indistinguishable and has a mostly similar color pattern. However, the new species lacks several markings characteristic of N. filamentosus, i.e. a large black spot on the pectoral-fin axil, a large dark marking at the lateral-line origin, and yellow or gold color on the upper edge of the rear opercle. The two species differ by 7.55% (K2P) in the sequence of the mtDNA-barcode marker COI. The new species is only 2.19% divergent from an undescribed damselfish species from eastern Australia and southern New Guinea, but differs from that species by having dark margins on the proximal half of the caudal fin and lacking a bright yellow caudal fin, caudal peduncle, and posterior parts of the dorsal and anal fins.
Key words: taxonomy, systematics, ichthyology, coral-reef fishes, Indo-Pacific Ocean, DNA barcoding.
Neopomacentrus aktites n. sp.
Figure 2. aquarium photograph of freshly collected adult, approx. 45 mm SL, Dampier Archipelago, Western Australia.
Figure 3. underwater photograph of juvenile, approx. 25 mm SL, Cassini Island, Kimberley District, Western Australia.
photos: G. R. Allen
Neopomacentrus aktites, n. sp.
Western Australian Demoiselle
Diagnosis. Dorsal-fin elements XIII,10–12 (usually 11); anal-fin elements II,10–12 (usually 11); pectoralfin rays 17–19 (rarely 19); tubed lateral-line scales 16–19 (usually 17–18); total gill rakers on first arch 21–23 (usually 21–22); body depth 2.2–2.4 in SL; ventral margin of suborbital exposed (i.e. not hidden by scales); middle fin rays of dorsal and anal fins filamentous; dorsal and ventral margins of caudal fin filamentous; mainly dark brown in life except pale posteriormost parts of dorsal and anal fins and pale central portion of caudal fin; dark margins of caudal fin restricted to proximal half of fin; small dark spot at upper pectoral-fin base, but not extending into axil of fin.
Etymology. The species is named aktites (Greek: shore dweller) with reference to its relatively shallow-water habitat. The specific epithet is treated as a noun in apposition.
Distribution and habitat. The new species is currently known only from Western Australia, ranging from Shark Bay northward to the Kimberley coast in the far northern portion of the state. The species is generally associated with rocky substrates with ample crevices and coral formations, which are utilized for shelter. Capture depths range from about 1–10 m, but there is considerable tidal fluctuation (10+ m), especially along the Kimberley coast. They frequently occur in large aggregations, which feed well above the bottom on zooplankton
Gerald R. Allen, Glenn I. Moore and Mark G. Allen. 2017. Neopomacentrus aktites, A New Species of Damselfish (Pisces: Pomacentridae) from Western Australia. Journal of the Ocean Science Foundation. 29, 1–10. oceansciencefoundation.org/josf29a.html
==========================
Neopomacentrus aktites
Allen, Moore & Allen, 2017
oceansciencefoundation.org
Abstract
A new species of damselfish, Neopomacentrus aktites n. sp., is described on the basis of 50 specimens, 17.8–54.1 mm SL, collected from Western Australia. The new species was formerly confused with Neopomacentrus filamentosus, an Indo-Malayan species that appears morphologically indistinguishable and has a mostly similar color pattern. However, the new species lacks several markings characteristic of N. filamentosus, i.e. a large black spot on the pectoral-fin axil, a large dark marking at the lateral-line origin, and yellow or gold color on the upper edge of the rear opercle. The two species differ by 7.55% (K2P) in the sequence of the mtDNA-barcode marker COI. The new species is only 2.19% divergent from an undescribed damselfish species from eastern Australia and southern New Guinea, but differs from that species by having dark margins on the proximal half of the caudal fin and lacking a bright yellow caudal fin, caudal peduncle, and posterior parts of the dorsal and anal fins.
Key words: taxonomy, systematics, ichthyology, coral-reef fishes, Indo-Pacific Ocean, DNA barcoding.
Neopomacentrus aktites n. sp.
Figure 2. aquarium photograph of freshly collected adult, approx. 45 mm SL, Dampier Archipelago, Western Australia.
Figure 3. underwater photograph of juvenile, approx. 25 mm SL, Cassini Island, Kimberley District, Western Australia.
photos: G. R. Allen
Neopomacentrus aktites, n. sp.
Western Australian Demoiselle
Diagnosis. Dorsal-fin elements XIII,10–12 (usually 11); anal-fin elements II,10–12 (usually 11); pectoralfin rays 17–19 (rarely 19); tubed lateral-line scales 16–19 (usually 17–18); total gill rakers on first arch 21–23 (usually 21–22); body depth 2.2–2.4 in SL; ventral margin of suborbital exposed (i.e. not hidden by scales); middle fin rays of dorsal and anal fins filamentous; dorsal and ventral margins of caudal fin filamentous; mainly dark brown in life except pale posteriormost parts of dorsal and anal fins and pale central portion of caudal fin; dark margins of caudal fin restricted to proximal half of fin; small dark spot at upper pectoral-fin base, but not extending into axil of fin.
Etymology. The species is named aktites (Greek: shore dweller) with reference to its relatively shallow-water habitat. The specific epithet is treated as a noun in apposition.
Distribution and habitat. The new species is currently known only from Western Australia, ranging from Shark Bay northward to the Kimberley coast in the far northern portion of the state. The species is generally associated with rocky substrates with ample crevices and coral formations, which are utilized for shelter. Capture depths range from about 1–10 m, but there is considerable tidal fluctuation (10+ m), especially along the Kimberley coast. They frequently occur in large aggregations, which feed well above the bottom on zooplankton
Gerald R. Allen, Glenn I. Moore and Mark G. Allen. 2017. Neopomacentrus aktites, A New Species of Damselfish (Pisces: Pomacentridae) from Western Australia. Journal of the Ocean Science Foundation. 29, 1–10. oceansciencefoundation.org/josf29a.html
==========================
Pseudoliparis swirei• A Newly-Discovered Hadal Snailfish(Scorpaeniformes: Liparidae) from the Mariana Trench
Pseudoliparis swirei
Gerringer, Linley, Jamieson, Goetze & Drazen, 2017
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4358.1.7
Abstract
Pseudoliparis swirei sp. nov. is described from 37 individuals collected in the Mariana Trench at depths 6898–7966 m. The collection of this new species is the deepest benthic capture of a vertebrate with corroborated depth data. Here, we describe P. swirei sp. nov. and discuss aspects of its morphology, biology, distribution, and phylogenetic relationships to other hadal liparids based on analysis of three mitochondrial genes. Pseudoliparis swirei sp. nov. is almost certainly endemic to the Mariana Trench, as other hadal liparids appear isolated to a single trench/ trench system in the Kermadec, Macquarie, South Sandwich, South Orkney, Peru-Chile, Kurile-Kamchatka and Japan trenches. The discovery of another hadal liparid species, apparently abundant at depths where other fish species are few and only found in low numbers, provides further evidence for the dominance of this family among the hadal fish fauna.
Keywords: Pisces, snailfish, Notoliparis, description, taxonomy, phylogenetics
Pseudoliparis swirei Gerringer & Linley sp. nov.
Mariana snailfish: Linley et al. 2016 (page 105, Figure 4a)
Mariana snailfish: Linley et al. 2017 (page 42, Figure 6.43)
Mariana snailfish/Mariana liparid: Gerringer et al. 2017a (page 111)
Mariana liparid/Liparidae sp. nov: Gerringer et al. 2017b (page 137)
Diagnosis. Andriashev and Pitruk (1993) define the genus Pseudoliparis as having a well-developed disk and one pair of nostrils and lacking pseudobranchia and pleural ribs, with four radials in the pectoral girdle, which has neither notches nor fenestrae. In this genus, the hypural plate is divided by a distal slit (Andriashev and Pitruk, 1993). Like the other in this genus, Pseudoliparis swirei sp. nov. (Figures 2, 3) displays these characters, including a moderately well-developed disk, although this is easily damaged in collection. Pseudoliparis swirei sp. nov. can be distinguished from the two other known Pseudoliparis species with the following characters. Pseudoliparis swirei sp. nov. differs from P. belyaevi in the presence of a distinct lower pectoral-fin lobe, similar to that seen in P. amblystomopsis (Andriashev, 1955). Pseudoliparis swirei has more dorsal-fin rays 55 (51–58) than P. amblystomopsis 49 (49–52), more anal-fin rays 48 (43–49) compared to 43 (42–45), and more vertebrae 61 (56– 62), compared to 55–57, although these ranges somewhat overlap. Head length is shorter in P. swirei sp. nov. (17.0–21.7 %SL) than P. amblystomopsis (21.6–24.0 %SL). Comparisons were made according to ranges presented by Andriashev & Pitruk (1993). Pseudoliparis belyaevi is known only from the Japan Trench, P. amblystomopsis from the Japan and Kurile-Kamchatka trenches, P. swirei only from the Mariana Trench.
Distribution. Known only from the Mariana Trench at capture depths from 6,898–7,966 m, individuals likely this species were recognized in video at depths 6,198–8,098 m (Linley et al. 2016; Jamieson & Linley, unpublished data).
Etymology. The Mariana Trench famously houses the ocean’s deepest point, at Challenger Deep, named for the HMS Challenger expedition which discovered the trench in 1875. Their deepest sounding of 8,184 m, then the greatest known ocean depth, was christened Swire Deep after Herbert Swire, the ship’s First Navigating Sublieutenant (Corfield 2003). We name this fish in his honor, in acknowledgment and gratitude of the crew members that have supported oceanographic research throughout history.
A CT scan of the Mariana snailfish. The green shape, a small crustacean, is seen in the snailfish’s stomach.Adam Summers/University of Washington
Mackenzie E. Gerringer, Thomas D. Linley, Alan J. Jamieson, Erica Goetze and Jeffrey C. Drazen. 2017. Pseudoliparis swirei sp. nov.: A Newly-Discovered Hadal Snailfish (Scorpaeniformes: Liparidae) from the Mariana Trench. Zootaxa. 4358(1); 161–177. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4358.1.7
There's a deeper fish in the sea washington.edu/news/2017/11/28/theres-a-deeper-fish-in-the-sea/
What You Need to Know About Bali's Rumbling Volcano on.natgeo.com/2Ae6F3G via @NatGeo
Thomas D. Linley, Mackenzie E. Gerringer, Paul H. Yancey, Jeffrey C. Drazen, Chloe L. Weinstock and Alan J .Jamieson. 2016. Fishes of the hadal zone including new species, in situ observations and depth records of Liparidae. Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers. 114; 99-110. DOI: 10.1016/j.dsr.2016.05.003
==========================
Pseudoliparis swirei
Gerringer, Linley, Jamieson, Goetze & Drazen, 2017
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4358.1.7
Abstract
Pseudoliparis swirei sp. nov. is described from 37 individuals collected in the Mariana Trench at depths 6898–7966 m. The collection of this new species is the deepest benthic capture of a vertebrate with corroborated depth data. Here, we describe P. swirei sp. nov. and discuss aspects of its morphology, biology, distribution, and phylogenetic relationships to other hadal liparids based on analysis of three mitochondrial genes. Pseudoliparis swirei sp. nov. is almost certainly endemic to the Mariana Trench, as other hadal liparids appear isolated to a single trench/ trench system in the Kermadec, Macquarie, South Sandwich, South Orkney, Peru-Chile, Kurile-Kamchatka and Japan trenches. The discovery of another hadal liparid species, apparently abundant at depths where other fish species are few and only found in low numbers, provides further evidence for the dominance of this family among the hadal fish fauna.
Keywords: Pisces, snailfish, Notoliparis, description, taxonomy, phylogenetics
Pseudoliparis swirei Gerringer & Linley sp. nov.
Mariana snailfish: Linley et al. 2016 (page 105, Figure 4a)
Mariana snailfish: Linley et al. 2017 (page 42, Figure 6.43)
Mariana snailfish/Mariana liparid: Gerringer et al. 2017a (page 111)
Mariana liparid/Liparidae sp. nov: Gerringer et al. 2017b (page 137)
Diagnosis. Andriashev and Pitruk (1993) define the genus Pseudoliparis as having a well-developed disk and one pair of nostrils and lacking pseudobranchia and pleural ribs, with four radials in the pectoral girdle, which has neither notches nor fenestrae. In this genus, the hypural plate is divided by a distal slit (Andriashev and Pitruk, 1993). Like the other in this genus, Pseudoliparis swirei sp. nov. (Figures 2, 3) displays these characters, including a moderately well-developed disk, although this is easily damaged in collection. Pseudoliparis swirei sp. nov. can be distinguished from the two other known Pseudoliparis species with the following characters. Pseudoliparis swirei sp. nov. differs from P. belyaevi in the presence of a distinct lower pectoral-fin lobe, similar to that seen in P. amblystomopsis (Andriashev, 1955). Pseudoliparis swirei has more dorsal-fin rays 55 (51–58) than P. amblystomopsis 49 (49–52), more anal-fin rays 48 (43–49) compared to 43 (42–45), and more vertebrae 61 (56– 62), compared to 55–57, although these ranges somewhat overlap. Head length is shorter in P. swirei sp. nov. (17.0–21.7 %SL) than P. amblystomopsis (21.6–24.0 %SL). Comparisons were made according to ranges presented by Andriashev & Pitruk (1993). Pseudoliparis belyaevi is known only from the Japan Trench, P. amblystomopsis from the Japan and Kurile-Kamchatka trenches, P. swirei only from the Mariana Trench.
Distribution. Known only from the Mariana Trench at capture depths from 6,898–7,966 m, individuals likely this species were recognized in video at depths 6,198–8,098 m (Linley et al. 2016; Jamieson & Linley, unpublished data).
Etymology. The Mariana Trench famously houses the ocean’s deepest point, at Challenger Deep, named for the HMS Challenger expedition which discovered the trench in 1875. Their deepest sounding of 8,184 m, then the greatest known ocean depth, was christened Swire Deep after Herbert Swire, the ship’s First Navigating Sublieutenant (Corfield 2003). We name this fish in his honor, in acknowledgment and gratitude of the crew members that have supported oceanographic research throughout history.
A CT scan of the Mariana snailfish. The green shape, a small crustacean, is seen in the snailfish’s stomach.Adam Summers/University of Washington
Mackenzie E. Gerringer, Thomas D. Linley, Alan J. Jamieson, Erica Goetze and Jeffrey C. Drazen. 2017. Pseudoliparis swirei sp. nov.: A Newly-Discovered Hadal Snailfish (Scorpaeniformes: Liparidae) from the Mariana Trench. Zootaxa. 4358(1); 161–177. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4358.1.7
There's a deeper fish in the sea washington.edu/news/2017/11/28/theres-a-deeper-fish-in-the-sea/
What You Need to Know About Bali's Rumbling Volcano on.natgeo.com/2Ae6F3G via @NatGeo
Thomas D. Linley, Mackenzie E. Gerringer, Paul H. Yancey, Jeffrey C. Drazen, Chloe L. Weinstock and Alan J .Jamieson. 2016. Fishes of the hadal zone including new species, in situ observations and depth records of Liparidae. Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers. 114; 99-110. DOI: 10.1016/j.dsr.2016.05.003
==========================
Brachychalcinus reisi • A New Species of Brachychalcinus (Characiformes: Characidae) from the rio Xingu basin, Serra do Cachimbo, Brazil
Brachychalcinus reisi
Garcia-Ayala, Ohara, Pastana & Benine, 2017
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4362.4.5
Abstract
Brachychalcinus reisi, a new species of characid fish, is described from the rio Curuá, tributary of rio Iriri, rio Xingu basin, Serra do Cachimbo, Pará State, Brazil. The new species can be distinguished from its congeners by the presence of a series of longitudinal black wavy stripes on the entire body and by a lower number of longitudinal scale rows between dorsal-fin origin and lateral line (7–8 vs. 8–12). Additionally, the new species differs from B. copei, B. parnaibae, and B. retrospina by the lower number of branched dorsal-fin rays (9 vs.10). This is the first description of a new species of the subfamily since the revisionary study of Stethaprioninae, published almost 30 years ago.
Keywords: Pisces, Stethaprioninae, Neotropical region, freshwater fishes, taxonomy, Amazon
FIGURE Brachychalcinus reisi, MZUSP 119456, paratype, 57.3 mm SL, Brazil, Pará, Altamira, rio Curuá, rio Xingu basin.
Brachychalcinus reisi new species
Etymology. The specific name reisi is in honor of Roberto Esser dos Reis, for his great contributions to the knowledge of the Stethaprioninae and the Neotropical ichthyology as a whole. A genitive noun.
James R. Garcia-Ayala, Willian M. Ohara, Murilo N. L. Pastana and Ricardo C. Benine. 2017. A New Species of Brachychalcinus (Characiformes: Characidae) from the rio Xingu basin, Serra do Cachimbo, Brazil. Zootaxa. 4362(4); 564–574. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4362.4.5
ResearchGate.net/publication/321650844_A_new_species_of_Brachychalcinus_from_the_rio_Xingu_basin_Serra_do_Cachimbo_Brazil
==========================
Brachychalcinus reisi
Garcia-Ayala, Ohara, Pastana & Benine, 2017
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4362.4.5
Abstract
Brachychalcinus reisi, a new species of characid fish, is described from the rio Curuá, tributary of rio Iriri, rio Xingu basin, Serra do Cachimbo, Pará State, Brazil. The new species can be distinguished from its congeners by the presence of a series of longitudinal black wavy stripes on the entire body and by a lower number of longitudinal scale rows between dorsal-fin origin and lateral line (7–8 vs. 8–12). Additionally, the new species differs from B. copei, B. parnaibae, and B. retrospina by the lower number of branched dorsal-fin rays (9 vs.10). This is the first description of a new species of the subfamily since the revisionary study of Stethaprioninae, published almost 30 years ago.
Keywords: Pisces, Stethaprioninae, Neotropical region, freshwater fishes, taxonomy, Amazon
FIGURE Brachychalcinus reisi, MZUSP 119456, paratype, 57.3 mm SL, Brazil, Pará, Altamira, rio Curuá, rio Xingu basin.
Brachychalcinus reisi new species
Etymology. The specific name reisi is in honor of Roberto Esser dos Reis, for his great contributions to the knowledge of the Stethaprioninae and the Neotropical ichthyology as a whole. A genitive noun.
James R. Garcia-Ayala, Willian M. Ohara, Murilo N. L. Pastana and Ricardo C. Benine. 2017. A New Species of Brachychalcinus (Characiformes: Characidae) from the rio Xingu basin, Serra do Cachimbo, Brazil. Zootaxa. 4362(4); 564–574. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4362.4.5
ResearchGate.net/publication/321650844_A_new_species_of_Brachychalcinus_from_the_rio_Xingu_basin_Serra_do_Cachimbo_Brazil
==========================
UVB radiation influences behavior of sticklebacks
Fish become more 'risk-seeking' under increased radiation intensity
Source:
University of Bonn
Summary:
Fish cannot see ultraviolet B rays but still change their behavior when they grow up under increased UVB intensity. According to studies by biologists, on three-spined sticklebacks (Gasterosteus aculeatus) increased UVB leads to a smaller body size and more risk-seeking behavior when faced with predators. Climate change is likely to increase UVB intensity, possibly with consequences for ecosystems and fish farming.
Share:
FULL STORY
Fish cannot see ultraviolet B rays but still change their behavior when they grow up under increased UVB intensity. According to studies by biologists at the University of Bonn on three-spined sticklebacks (Gasterosteus aculeatus), increased UVB leads to a smaller body size and more risk-seeking behavior when faced with predators. Climate change is likely to increase UVB intensity, possibly with consequences for ecosystems and fish farming. The results are now being published in the journal Biology Letters of the Royal Society.
The three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) occurs almost everywhere in the northern hemisphere and is a popular model organism in experimental biology. With a length of up to ten centimeters, its size is manageable. It gets its name from three dorsal fin spines that can be locked into an erect position. At the Dutch Wadden Sea island of Texel, sticklebacks spend the winter in the sea and migrate to freshwater to reproduce. The specimens that the scientists from the Institute for Evolutionary Biology and Ecology of the University of Bonn used for breeding come from this island.
With the aid of the sticklebacks, the researchers of the working group headed by Prof. Dr. Theo C. M. Bakker investigated the effects of natural ultraviolet B radiation (UVB). "Numerous studies have shown that this high-energy radiation can damage the genome and cells," says evolutionary biologist Dr. Ingolf P. Rick. To what extent the UVB, which is invisible to fish, alters their behavior is largely unexplored.
The scientists divided the offspring that had hatched from artificially fertilized eggs into different treatment groups. Out of 28 sibling groups, half of each group grew up under natural light conditions, the other half exposed to artificially enhanced UVB radiation. "However, the more intense ultraviolet radiation remained well below the maximum levels found in nature," reports Simon Vitt, lead author of the study. This ensures that fish are not damaged by unrealistic overdoses.
After a seven-month treatment phase, the researchers found that the fish in the pools with increased UVB conditions were significantly smaller than those exposed to natural radiation. "Presumably, the sticklebacks exposed to a higher UVB dose have to invest more resources into repairing tissue damage," says Vitt. This is evidently at the expense of their body size and shows that increased UVB has a detrimental effect.
Confrontation with a predator
In a three-part aquarium, the researchers tested the behavior of the two types of stickleback groups. In one chamber swam a trout, a typical predator. At the other end of the water tank was one of the sticklebacks in its own compartment, with an artificial aquatic plant as a hiding place. The actual experimental arena was between trout and stickleback. The researchers simultaneously removed a transparent barrier to the hiding place and a visual shield to the trout chamber. Then the predator appeared behind the glass. The stickleback was now able to leave its compartment and explore the middle chamber.
"Remarkably, the stickleback was not fleeing to escape danger, but moved in circles towards the trout and back again," reports Rick. This was well-known inspection behavior from a safe distance: Fish leave shoals and get closer to an unknown animal to test its dangerousness. It was surprising that those sticklebacks that were smaller as a result of being exposed to UVB radiation for months remained in the exploration zone for almost twice as long as those that had grown up under natural conditions. These diminutive sticklebacks demonstrated that small certainly does not always equal timid.
The increased risk-seeking behavior could have different causes according to the researchers. Vitt describes one of the possibilities: "The specimens under higher UVB stress may initially perform a more thorough risk check than their larger counterparts, so that they can then dedicate themselves entirely to feeding." But it could also be that the physically restricted individuals show stronger exploratory behavior per se, as information about potential dangers has greater importance for them. A third possibility may also be that the strategy of smaller, more agile animals is to clearly show the trout as a predator that it has been recognized as a danger and that stalking is futile.
"The result is clear: Increased UVB intensity leads to a significant change in behavior, although the fish cannot see this radiation," summarizes Vitt. In the face of climate change, UVB exposure is expected to increase even further. "This can affect ecosystems worldwide, as small changes in predator-prey behavior across complex food webs can have far-reaching consequences," explains Rick. Increased UVB may also be detrimental to aquacultures in shallow water zones.
Story Source:
Materials provided by University of Bonn.
Journal Reference:
==========================
Fish become more 'risk-seeking' under increased radiation intensity
Source:
University of Bonn
Summary:
Fish cannot see ultraviolet B rays but still change their behavior when they grow up under increased UVB intensity. According to studies by biologists, on three-spined sticklebacks (Gasterosteus aculeatus) increased UVB leads to a smaller body size and more risk-seeking behavior when faced with predators. Climate change is likely to increase UVB intensity, possibly with consequences for ecosystems and fish farming.
Share:
FULL STORY
Fish cannot see ultraviolet B rays but still change their behavior when they grow up under increased UVB intensity. According to studies by biologists at the University of Bonn on three-spined sticklebacks (Gasterosteus aculeatus), increased UVB leads to a smaller body size and more risk-seeking behavior when faced with predators. Climate change is likely to increase UVB intensity, possibly with consequences for ecosystems and fish farming. The results are now being published in the journal Biology Letters of the Royal Society.
The three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) occurs almost everywhere in the northern hemisphere and is a popular model organism in experimental biology. With a length of up to ten centimeters, its size is manageable. It gets its name from three dorsal fin spines that can be locked into an erect position. At the Dutch Wadden Sea island of Texel, sticklebacks spend the winter in the sea and migrate to freshwater to reproduce. The specimens that the scientists from the Institute for Evolutionary Biology and Ecology of the University of Bonn used for breeding come from this island.
With the aid of the sticklebacks, the researchers of the working group headed by Prof. Dr. Theo C. M. Bakker investigated the effects of natural ultraviolet B radiation (UVB). "Numerous studies have shown that this high-energy radiation can damage the genome and cells," says evolutionary biologist Dr. Ingolf P. Rick. To what extent the UVB, which is invisible to fish, alters their behavior is largely unexplored.
The scientists divided the offspring that had hatched from artificially fertilized eggs into different treatment groups. Out of 28 sibling groups, half of each group grew up under natural light conditions, the other half exposed to artificially enhanced UVB radiation. "However, the more intense ultraviolet radiation remained well below the maximum levels found in nature," reports Simon Vitt, lead author of the study. This ensures that fish are not damaged by unrealistic overdoses.
After a seven-month treatment phase, the researchers found that the fish in the pools with increased UVB conditions were significantly smaller than those exposed to natural radiation. "Presumably, the sticklebacks exposed to a higher UVB dose have to invest more resources into repairing tissue damage," says Vitt. This is evidently at the expense of their body size and shows that increased UVB has a detrimental effect.
Confrontation with a predator
In a three-part aquarium, the researchers tested the behavior of the two types of stickleback groups. In one chamber swam a trout, a typical predator. At the other end of the water tank was one of the sticklebacks in its own compartment, with an artificial aquatic plant as a hiding place. The actual experimental arena was between trout and stickleback. The researchers simultaneously removed a transparent barrier to the hiding place and a visual shield to the trout chamber. Then the predator appeared behind the glass. The stickleback was now able to leave its compartment and explore the middle chamber.
"Remarkably, the stickleback was not fleeing to escape danger, but moved in circles towards the trout and back again," reports Rick. This was well-known inspection behavior from a safe distance: Fish leave shoals and get closer to an unknown animal to test its dangerousness. It was surprising that those sticklebacks that were smaller as a result of being exposed to UVB radiation for months remained in the exploration zone for almost twice as long as those that had grown up under natural conditions. These diminutive sticklebacks demonstrated that small certainly does not always equal timid.
The increased risk-seeking behavior could have different causes according to the researchers. Vitt describes one of the possibilities: "The specimens under higher UVB stress may initially perform a more thorough risk check than their larger counterparts, so that they can then dedicate themselves entirely to feeding." But it could also be that the physically restricted individuals show stronger exploratory behavior per se, as information about potential dangers has greater importance for them. A third possibility may also be that the strategy of smaller, more agile animals is to clearly show the trout as a predator that it has been recognized as a danger and that stalking is futile.
"The result is clear: Increased UVB intensity leads to a significant change in behavior, although the fish cannot see this radiation," summarizes Vitt. In the face of climate change, UVB exposure is expected to increase even further. "This can affect ecosystems worldwide, as small changes in predator-prey behavior across complex food webs can have far-reaching consequences," explains Rick. Increased UVB may also be detrimental to aquacultures in shallow water zones.
Story Source:
Materials provided by University of Bonn.
Journal Reference:
- Simon Vitt, Janina E. Zierul, Theo C. M. Bakker, Ingolf P. Rick. Long-term UVB exposure promotes predator-inspection behaviour in a fish. Biology Letters, 2017; 13 (12): 20170497 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2017.0497
==========================
Goodbye to our friends at the Ilford Society - below is their last News letter. their last meeting was held on the 12th of December 2017
| ilford_last.pdf |
==========================
New species of fish displays striking color difference between males and females
Adult males of are a deep reddish-orange, while females and juveniles are pale yellow, according to the authors of an article in Journal of Fish Biology describing tetra Hyphessobrycon myrmex.
A new species of freshwater fish in the family Characidae, called Hyphessobrycon myrmex, seized the attention of researchers at the University of São Paulo's Zoology Museum (MZ-USP) in Brazil because of its intriguing sexual dichromatism: adult males are a deep reddish-orange, while females and juveniles are pale yellow.
The species has been described in an article published in the Journal of Fish Biology. H. myrmex is approximately 2 cm long and lives in the crystal-clear waters of the Formiga River (both the Greek myrmex and the Portuguese formiga mean "ant"), a tributary of the Juruena River in Serra dos Parecis, Mato Grosso State. The Formiga is part of the Tapajós Basin.
"Sexual dichromatism, a form of sexual dimorphism, is common among vertebrates, especially birds and fish. A classic example is the peacock," said one of the authors of the study, ichthyologist Murilo Pastana, affiliated with MZ-USP.
The specimens described in the study were collected between 2011 and 2015 during the expeditions of a Thematic Project organized to produce "An inventory of the Characiform fish fauna (Teleostei, Ostariophysi) from South America". Characiformes is one of the largest and most diverse orders of freshwater fish, comprising 2,171 recognized species distributed in families such as Parodontidae (scrapetooths), Curimatidae (toothless characins), Prochilodontidae (flannel-mouthed characins), Anostomidae (Leporinus spp., headstanders), Crenuchidae (South American darters), Hemiodontidae (halftooths), Gasteropelecidae (freshwater hatchetfishes), Characidae (lambari, piaba, pacu, piranha, tambaqui, dourado, brycon), Acestrorhynchidae (smallscale pike characins), Cynodontidae (dogtooth characins, vampire tetras), Erythrinidae (trahira, tigerfish), Lebiasinidae (pencilfishes), and Ctenoluciidae (pike characins).
The Thematic Project is linked to the Sao Paulo Research Foundation - FAPESP's Research Program on Biodiversity Characterization, Conservation, Restoration & Sustainable Use (hBIOTA-FAPESP) and is coordinated by Naércio Aquino Menezes, also a researcher at MZ-USP.
Endangered ecosystems
"The Characiformes are dominant wherever they occur. In South America, they predominate in all river basins, alongside the Siluriformes, the order of catfish families," said Menezes.
Completed in 2015, the project set out to collect specimens from the headwaters of the Amazon rivers that rise in central Brazil. "These ichthyofaunas inhabit specific ecosystems," Menezes explained. "There are species that occur only in one particular stream and aren't found in nearby streams or rivers. Because the headwaters are located in upland plateau areas, the rivers have many rapids and waterfalls that isolate headwater species from those found farther downstream."
Large falls on major Amazon rivers are priority locations for the construction of hydroelectric dams, so ichthyologists are racing against the clock to inventory as many species as possible. "The construction of power plants destroys everything that exists in these ecosystems," Menezes said.
Some 30 new species of Characiformes were discovered during the project's seven expeditions, conducted between 2011 and 2016.
Mapping of dichromatism in Characiformes
Approximately 1,750 species live in South America, and the rest live in Africa. Their size ranges from 1.7 cm to 2 m. Sexual dichromatism is common, but males and females of H. myrmexstand out for the sharp contrast in their respective hues.
"Ichthyologists were well aware of dichromatism in certain species of Characidae, but no one had set out to identify all dichromatic species, where they live, and the function of dichromatism in their behavior," Pastana said.
Having detected dichromatism in H. myrmex, Pastana decided to conduct a detailed survey and discovered that 109 species of Characiformes are dichromatic - 57 of them in the family Characidae, as shown in the study.
He also found that dichromatism is present in six of the 24 known families of Characiformes. Five families are South American, and one is African. Sexual dimorphism in these six families is not just chromatic. It also appears in the size difference between sexes, in fin size, and even in behavior.
According to Pastana, the most surprising case of sexual dimorphism in behavior is in Copella arnoldi, which belongs to the Lebiasinidae family of pencilfishes or tetras found in southern Central America and in South America. C. arnoldi is often referred to as a splash tetra because of its reproductive behavior.
"This is one of the most spectacular cases of reproductive behavior in fish and of task segregation between sexes while mating," Pastana said.
"When the male and female are ready to mate, they leap out of the river and attach themselves by fin suction to the underside of an overhanging leaf. They lay and fertilize their eggs on the leaf, not in the water. The male watches the eggs and intermittently splashes them using its elongated tail fin to keep them moist."
According to Pastana, the male's long tail fin is another facet of sexual dimorphism in the species. When the eggs hatch, the fry fall into the water from the leaf. The female plays no part in the process after spawning.
###
About São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP)
The São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) is a public institution with the mission of supporting scientific research in all fields of knowledge by awarding scholarships, fellowships, and grants to investigators linked with higher education and research institutions in the State of São Paulo, Brazil. FAPESP is aware that the very best research can only be done by working with the best researchers internationally. Therefore, it has established partnerships with funding agencies, higher education, private companies, and research organizations in other countries known for the quality of their research and has been encouraging scientists funded by its grants to further develop their international collaboration. For more information: http://www.fapesp.br/en.
==========================
Adult males of are a deep reddish-orange, while females and juveniles are pale yellow, according to the authors of an article in Journal of Fish Biology describing tetra Hyphessobrycon myrmex.
A new species of freshwater fish in the family Characidae, called Hyphessobrycon myrmex, seized the attention of researchers at the University of São Paulo's Zoology Museum (MZ-USP) in Brazil because of its intriguing sexual dichromatism: adult males are a deep reddish-orange, while females and juveniles are pale yellow.
The species has been described in an article published in the Journal of Fish Biology. H. myrmex is approximately 2 cm long and lives in the crystal-clear waters of the Formiga River (both the Greek myrmex and the Portuguese formiga mean "ant"), a tributary of the Juruena River in Serra dos Parecis, Mato Grosso State. The Formiga is part of the Tapajós Basin.
"Sexual dichromatism, a form of sexual dimorphism, is common among vertebrates, especially birds and fish. A classic example is the peacock," said one of the authors of the study, ichthyologist Murilo Pastana, affiliated with MZ-USP.
The specimens described in the study were collected between 2011 and 2015 during the expeditions of a Thematic Project organized to produce "An inventory of the Characiform fish fauna (Teleostei, Ostariophysi) from South America". Characiformes is one of the largest and most diverse orders of freshwater fish, comprising 2,171 recognized species distributed in families such as Parodontidae (scrapetooths), Curimatidae (toothless characins), Prochilodontidae (flannel-mouthed characins), Anostomidae (Leporinus spp., headstanders), Crenuchidae (South American darters), Hemiodontidae (halftooths), Gasteropelecidae (freshwater hatchetfishes), Characidae (lambari, piaba, pacu, piranha, tambaqui, dourado, brycon), Acestrorhynchidae (smallscale pike characins), Cynodontidae (dogtooth characins, vampire tetras), Erythrinidae (trahira, tigerfish), Lebiasinidae (pencilfishes), and Ctenoluciidae (pike characins).
The Thematic Project is linked to the Sao Paulo Research Foundation - FAPESP's Research Program on Biodiversity Characterization, Conservation, Restoration & Sustainable Use (hBIOTA-FAPESP) and is coordinated by Naércio Aquino Menezes, also a researcher at MZ-USP.
Endangered ecosystems
"The Characiformes are dominant wherever they occur. In South America, they predominate in all river basins, alongside the Siluriformes, the order of catfish families," said Menezes.
Completed in 2015, the project set out to collect specimens from the headwaters of the Amazon rivers that rise in central Brazil. "These ichthyofaunas inhabit specific ecosystems," Menezes explained. "There are species that occur only in one particular stream and aren't found in nearby streams or rivers. Because the headwaters are located in upland plateau areas, the rivers have many rapids and waterfalls that isolate headwater species from those found farther downstream."
Large falls on major Amazon rivers are priority locations for the construction of hydroelectric dams, so ichthyologists are racing against the clock to inventory as many species as possible. "The construction of power plants destroys everything that exists in these ecosystems," Menezes said.
Some 30 new species of Characiformes were discovered during the project's seven expeditions, conducted between 2011 and 2016.
Mapping of dichromatism in Characiformes
Approximately 1,750 species live in South America, and the rest live in Africa. Their size ranges from 1.7 cm to 2 m. Sexual dichromatism is common, but males and females of H. myrmexstand out for the sharp contrast in their respective hues.
"Ichthyologists were well aware of dichromatism in certain species of Characidae, but no one had set out to identify all dichromatic species, where they live, and the function of dichromatism in their behavior," Pastana said.
Having detected dichromatism in H. myrmex, Pastana decided to conduct a detailed survey and discovered that 109 species of Characiformes are dichromatic - 57 of them in the family Characidae, as shown in the study.
He also found that dichromatism is present in six of the 24 known families of Characiformes. Five families are South American, and one is African. Sexual dimorphism in these six families is not just chromatic. It also appears in the size difference between sexes, in fin size, and even in behavior.
According to Pastana, the most surprising case of sexual dimorphism in behavior is in Copella arnoldi, which belongs to the Lebiasinidae family of pencilfishes or tetras found in southern Central America and in South America. C. arnoldi is often referred to as a splash tetra because of its reproductive behavior.
"This is one of the most spectacular cases of reproductive behavior in fish and of task segregation between sexes while mating," Pastana said.
"When the male and female are ready to mate, they leap out of the river and attach themselves by fin suction to the underside of an overhanging leaf. They lay and fertilize their eggs on the leaf, not in the water. The male watches the eggs and intermittently splashes them using its elongated tail fin to keep them moist."
According to Pastana, the male's long tail fin is another facet of sexual dimorphism in the species. When the eggs hatch, the fry fall into the water from the leaf. The female plays no part in the process after spawning.
###
About São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP)
The São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) is a public institution with the mission of supporting scientific research in all fields of knowledge by awarding scholarships, fellowships, and grants to investigators linked with higher education and research institutions in the State of São Paulo, Brazil. FAPESP is aware that the very best research can only be done by working with the best researchers internationally. Therefore, it has established partnerships with funding agencies, higher education, private companies, and research organizations in other countries known for the quality of their research and has been encouraging scientists funded by its grants to further develop their international collaboration. For more information: http://www.fapesp.br/en.
==========================
Native fish species at risk following water removal from the Colorado River
Water extraction places ecologically distinct native species at risk of extinction through hybridization
Summary:
Agriculture and domestic activities consume much of the Colorado River water that once flowed to the Colorado Delta and Northern Gulf of California. The nature and extent of impact of this fresh-water loss on the ecology and fisheries of the Colorado Delta and Gulf of California is controversial. A recent publication reveals a previously unseen risk to the unique local biodiversity of the tidal portion of the Delta.
Share:
FULL STORY
Agriculture and domestic activities consume much of the Colorado River water that once flowed to the Colorado Delta and Northern Gulf of California. The nature and extent of impact of this fresh-water loss on the ecology and fisheries of the Colorado Delta and Gulf of California is controversial. A recent publication in the journal PeerJ reveals a previously unseen risk to the unique local biodiversity of the tidal portion of the Delta.
Unique ecological species evolved in the historically fresher Colorado Delta and adapted to this environment. These fish are distinct from closely related species in the historically saltier estuaries found in other regions of the Gulf. However, the Colorado Delta is now more similar in salinity to many of the other estuary systems in the Gulf of California, suggesting that the ecological factors that separated species may have broken down.
Workers from UCLA examined species of silverside fish in a genus that only occurs in the Gulf of California. One species, Colpichthys hubbsi, lives exclusively in the Delta and is listed as endangered due to its restricted range. Morphologic and genetic anayses demonstrate that this species hybridizes along the western edge of the Delta with Colpichthys regis, a widespread relative distributed in estuaries throughout the Gulf. Although hybrids could be recognized morphologically, there was no evidence of hybridization in earlier museum collections.
Furthermore, the genes from the widespread species were found to penetrate the range of the Delta specific species, but there were no genes from the Delta species found elsewhere in the Gulf. Thus, there was clear evidence of gene movement in one direction between the two species. This potentially places the Delta species at risk of extinction as its genome is swamped or replaced by the genes of the other species.
In this particular case, more work is needed to clarify the detailed causes of species separation and the nature of ongoing impacts to the genome of the Delta species. However, there are broader issues at stake than a single species. Other groups of fishes and crabs also appear to have evolved as ecological species restricted to the Colorado Delta. These may also be at risk. More broadly, water extraction continues to accelerate in large river systems around the world. Thus, loss of ecological species in deltas and estuaries around the world is also likely accelerating.
Museums and institutions in Mexico, including the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History, Scripps Institution of Oceanography CIAD in Guaymas facilitated this work by sharing their collections and supporting field work.
Story Source:
Materials provided by PeerJ. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
Journal Reference:
Water extraction places ecologically distinct native species at risk of extinction through hybridization
Summary:
Agriculture and domestic activities consume much of the Colorado River water that once flowed to the Colorado Delta and Northern Gulf of California. The nature and extent of impact of this fresh-water loss on the ecology and fisheries of the Colorado Delta and Gulf of California is controversial. A recent publication reveals a previously unseen risk to the unique local biodiversity of the tidal portion of the Delta.
Share:
FULL STORY
Agriculture and domestic activities consume much of the Colorado River water that once flowed to the Colorado Delta and Northern Gulf of California. The nature and extent of impact of this fresh-water loss on the ecology and fisheries of the Colorado Delta and Gulf of California is controversial. A recent publication in the journal PeerJ reveals a previously unseen risk to the unique local biodiversity of the tidal portion of the Delta.
Unique ecological species evolved in the historically fresher Colorado Delta and adapted to this environment. These fish are distinct from closely related species in the historically saltier estuaries found in other regions of the Gulf. However, the Colorado Delta is now more similar in salinity to many of the other estuary systems in the Gulf of California, suggesting that the ecological factors that separated species may have broken down.
Workers from UCLA examined species of silverside fish in a genus that only occurs in the Gulf of California. One species, Colpichthys hubbsi, lives exclusively in the Delta and is listed as endangered due to its restricted range. Morphologic and genetic anayses demonstrate that this species hybridizes along the western edge of the Delta with Colpichthys regis, a widespread relative distributed in estuaries throughout the Gulf. Although hybrids could be recognized morphologically, there was no evidence of hybridization in earlier museum collections.
Furthermore, the genes from the widespread species were found to penetrate the range of the Delta specific species, but there were no genes from the Delta species found elsewhere in the Gulf. Thus, there was clear evidence of gene movement in one direction between the two species. This potentially places the Delta species at risk of extinction as its genome is swamped or replaced by the genes of the other species.
In this particular case, more work is needed to clarify the detailed causes of species separation and the nature of ongoing impacts to the genome of the Delta species. However, there are broader issues at stake than a single species. Other groups of fishes and crabs also appear to have evolved as ecological species restricted to the Colorado Delta. These may also be at risk. More broadly, water extraction continues to accelerate in large river systems around the world. Thus, loss of ecological species in deltas and estuaries around the world is also likely accelerating.
Museums and institutions in Mexico, including the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History, Scripps Institution of Oceanography CIAD in Guaymas facilitated this work by sharing their collections and supporting field work.
Story Source:
Materials provided by PeerJ. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
Journal Reference:
- Clive L.F. Lau, David K. Jacobs. Introgression between ecologically distinct species following increased salinity in the Colorado Delta- Worldwide implications for impacted estuary diversity. PeerJ, 2017; 5: e4056 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.4056
Exostoma gaoligongense • A New Species of Sisorid Catfish of the Genus Exostoma from the Salween drainage, Yunnan, China
Exostoma gaoligongense
Chen, Poly, Catania & Jiang, 2017
ZooRes.ac.cn
Abstract
A new species of the sisorid catfish genus Exostoma Blyth, 1860 was collected from two hill-stream tributaries of the Nujiang (Salween River) drainage in Gaoligong Mountain, south-western Yunnan Province, China from 2003 to 2006 and from two tributaries of the Salween River in Cangyuan County, Lingcang Prefecture, Yunnan Province, China (in 2007) and in Yongde County, Lingcang Prefecture, Yunnan Province, China (in 2015). Exostoma gaoligongense sp. nov. is the 10th species of the genus and is most similar to E. vinciguerrae in morphology but can be distinguished by pelvic fin reaching anus vs. not reaching; maxillary barbels just reaching or slightly surpassing pectoral-fin origin vs. surpassing pectoral-fin origin or even reaching posterior end of gill membrane; abdominal vertebrae 23-25 vs. 25-27; length of dorsal fin/dorsal to adipose distance 90.3%-287.0% vs. 59.2-85.7. A key to Exostoma spp. is provided.
Keywords: Glyptosterninae; Sisoridae; Nujiang; Gaoligong Mountain; Yunnan
Figure : Holotype of Exostoma gaoligongense sp. nov. (KIZ 200310738); lateral (top), dorsal (middle), and ventral (bottom) views (photos by Xiao-Yong Chen)
Exostoma gaoligongense sp. nov.
Etymology: The specific name is an adjective that refers to the Gaoligong Mountain in which the type locality is located, and the suffix agrees in gender with the generic name Exostoma (gender neuter).
Notes on biology: This species was collected from shallow water ( < 1 m deep) in a fast flowing stream with clear water. Water temperature was 18.8 ℃, water pH 6.95, conductivity 45.6 μS/cm. The bottom substrate was boulders, cobbles, gravel, and sand with many diatoms that made the rocks slippery. This species was obtained from fast water and small waterfalls. The new species of Exostoma seems to have much lower tolerance to either low dissolved oxygen or to stress from electrofishing than Pseudexostoma brachysoma Chu, 1979, which occurs in the same habitat. After shocking sampling on 7 October 2003, all the Exostoma were dead, whereas all the individuals of P. brachysoma survived until the next morning.
Xiao-Yong Chen, William J. Poly, David Catania and Wan-Sheng Jiang. 2017. A New Species of Sisorid Catfish of the Genus Exostoma from the Salween drainage, Yunnan, China. Zoological Research. 38(5); 291-299. ZooRres.ac.cn/article/2017/1358/ZoolRes-38-5-291.html
zoores.ac.cn/EN/abstract/abstract3840.shtml
facebook.com/israquarium/photos/1580248302041763
A Chinese biologist’s 14-year quest to prove his new catfish species scmp.com/news/china/society/article/2123595/chinese-biologist-proves-his-myanmar-discovery-new-catfish via @SCMP_News
==========================
Exostoma gaoligongense
Chen, Poly, Catania & Jiang, 2017
ZooRes.ac.cn
Abstract
A new species of the sisorid catfish genus Exostoma Blyth, 1860 was collected from two hill-stream tributaries of the Nujiang (Salween River) drainage in Gaoligong Mountain, south-western Yunnan Province, China from 2003 to 2006 and from two tributaries of the Salween River in Cangyuan County, Lingcang Prefecture, Yunnan Province, China (in 2007) and in Yongde County, Lingcang Prefecture, Yunnan Province, China (in 2015). Exostoma gaoligongense sp. nov. is the 10th species of the genus and is most similar to E. vinciguerrae in morphology but can be distinguished by pelvic fin reaching anus vs. not reaching; maxillary barbels just reaching or slightly surpassing pectoral-fin origin vs. surpassing pectoral-fin origin or even reaching posterior end of gill membrane; abdominal vertebrae 23-25 vs. 25-27; length of dorsal fin/dorsal to adipose distance 90.3%-287.0% vs. 59.2-85.7. A key to Exostoma spp. is provided.
Keywords: Glyptosterninae; Sisoridae; Nujiang; Gaoligong Mountain; Yunnan
Figure : Holotype of Exostoma gaoligongense sp. nov. (KIZ 200310738); lateral (top), dorsal (middle), and ventral (bottom) views (photos by Xiao-Yong Chen)
Exostoma gaoligongense sp. nov.
Etymology: The specific name is an adjective that refers to the Gaoligong Mountain in which the type locality is located, and the suffix agrees in gender with the generic name Exostoma (gender neuter).
Notes on biology: This species was collected from shallow water ( < 1 m deep) in a fast flowing stream with clear water. Water temperature was 18.8 ℃, water pH 6.95, conductivity 45.6 μS/cm. The bottom substrate was boulders, cobbles, gravel, and sand with many diatoms that made the rocks slippery. This species was obtained from fast water and small waterfalls. The new species of Exostoma seems to have much lower tolerance to either low dissolved oxygen or to stress from electrofishing than Pseudexostoma brachysoma Chu, 1979, which occurs in the same habitat. After shocking sampling on 7 October 2003, all the Exostoma were dead, whereas all the individuals of P. brachysoma survived until the next morning.
Xiao-Yong Chen, William J. Poly, David Catania and Wan-Sheng Jiang. 2017. A New Species of Sisorid Catfish of the Genus Exostoma from the Salween drainage, Yunnan, China. Zoological Research. 38(5); 291-299. ZooRres.ac.cn/article/2017/1358/ZoolRes-38-5-291.html
zoores.ac.cn/EN/abstract/abstract3840.shtml
facebook.com/israquarium/photos/1580248302041763
A Chinese biologist’s 14-year quest to prove his new catfish species scmp.com/news/china/society/article/2123595/chinese-biologist-proves-his-myanmar-discovery-new-catfish via @SCMP_News
==========================
Chromis anadema
(d) Junior
(c) adult
Chromis anadema is the newest species of Damselfish from Japan & W. Pacific
Chromis anadema is the kind of discovery that happens when researchers take a closer look at an other wise common group of fishes. In this case, a new investigation into the paletail chromis, C. xanhura revealed a new species with its own juvenile and adult characteristics.
The short tail double bar chromis, as Chromis anadema will be commonly known, was discovered living in remote oceanic islands on the very southern territories of Japan, at Ishigaki, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. These islands are actually much closer to Taiwan than to mainland Japan, and it’s no surprise then that we’ve seen this species collected from the Northern Philippines by RVS Fishworld. Paratypes of this species have been collected from as far as Guam and the Marquesas Islands, so Chromis anadema is not restricted in distribution by any means.
Like many species of Chromis the short tail double bar C. anadema is a very colorful juvenile and much less endowed adult. Young C. anadema are light silvery blue with nearly all yellow fins save for the pectoral fins. As it grows the double bars become bolder and blacker around the head while the yellow colored fins fade to grey or black.
The new short tail double bar Chromis anadema is described by Motomura et. al. in the latest volume of Ichthyological Research. [SpringerLink]
from ReefBuilders
==========================
Chromis anadema is the kind of discovery that happens when researchers take a closer look at an other wise common group of fishes. In this case, a new investigation into the paletail chromis, C. xanhura revealed a new species with its own juvenile and adult characteristics.
The short tail double bar chromis, as Chromis anadema will be commonly known, was discovered living in remote oceanic islands on the very southern territories of Japan, at Ishigaki, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. These islands are actually much closer to Taiwan than to mainland Japan, and it’s no surprise then that we’ve seen this species collected from the Northern Philippines by RVS Fishworld. Paratypes of this species have been collected from as far as Guam and the Marquesas Islands, so Chromis anadema is not restricted in distribution by any means.
Like many species of Chromis the short tail double bar C. anadema is a very colorful juvenile and much less endowed adult. Young C. anadema are light silvery blue with nearly all yellow fins save for the pectoral fins. As it grows the double bars become bolder and blacker around the head while the yellow colored fins fade to grey or black.
The new short tail double bar Chromis anadema is described by Motomura et. al. in the latest volume of Ichthyological Research. [SpringerLink]
from ReefBuilders
==========================
Pseudojuloides splendens
Pseudojuloides polynesica
Two New Species of Pencil Wrasses: Pseudojuloides polynesica & Pseudojuloides splendens
00The pencil wrasse genus Pseudojuloides just increased by two more new species, the splendid pencil wrasse, Pseudojuloides splendens and the Polynesian Pencil Wrasse, Pseudojuloides polynesica. Both of these two new pencil wrasses are similar in appearance to the colorful smalltail pencil wrasse P. cerasinus but differ both in appearance and in their distribution.
Pseudojuloides splendens, the splendid pencil wrasseThe splendid pencil wrasse is found in the western pacific ocean from Japan to Australia and is the most similar to its Hawaiian counterpart. The body of males is an overall green color with a black edged tail in both P. splendens and P. cerasinus but the males of the common green pencil wrasse have just one blue facial stripe while P. splendens has two. Furthermore the splendid pencil wrasse has a pronounced orange dorsal stripe running from the snout all the way across the dorsal fin to the base of the tail.
Meanwhile the polynesian pencil wrasse, Pseudojuloides polynesica is found in the South Pacific Ocean from Rangiroa and Tahiti in French Polynesia. This species has a distinctly yellow appearance in males, with a single blue facial stripe like P. cerasinus but no black in the tail.
Pseudojuloides polynesica and P. splendens join a growing list of new species of beautiful pencil wrasses that have been described in recent years including P. zeus & P labyrinthus. The polynesian pencil wrasse and splendid pencil wrasse were described by Benjamin Victor in the Journal of the Ocean Science Foundation.
found on ReefBuilders
==========================
00The pencil wrasse genus Pseudojuloides just increased by two more new species, the splendid pencil wrasse, Pseudojuloides splendens and the Polynesian Pencil Wrasse, Pseudojuloides polynesica. Both of these two new pencil wrasses are similar in appearance to the colorful smalltail pencil wrasse P. cerasinus but differ both in appearance and in their distribution.
Pseudojuloides splendens, the splendid pencil wrasseThe splendid pencil wrasse is found in the western pacific ocean from Japan to Australia and is the most similar to its Hawaiian counterpart. The body of males is an overall green color with a black edged tail in both P. splendens and P. cerasinus but the males of the common green pencil wrasse have just one blue facial stripe while P. splendens has two. Furthermore the splendid pencil wrasse has a pronounced orange dorsal stripe running from the snout all the way across the dorsal fin to the base of the tail.
Meanwhile the polynesian pencil wrasse, Pseudojuloides polynesica is found in the South Pacific Ocean from Rangiroa and Tahiti in French Polynesia. This species has a distinctly yellow appearance in males, with a single blue facial stripe like P. cerasinus but no black in the tail.
Pseudojuloides polynesica and P. splendens join a growing list of new species of beautiful pencil wrasses that have been described in recent years including P. zeus & P labyrinthus. The polynesian pencil wrasse and splendid pencil wrasse were described by Benjamin Victor in the Journal of the Ocean Science Foundation.
found on ReefBuilders
==========================
Fish poisoned in “vendetta” against aquarium shop
A Dundee aquarium shop owner has told how cruel louts poisoned a tankful of fish worth more than £2000.
Kris Rennie, who runs Discovery Aquatics at Manhattan Works, described how his business has suffered a number of setbacks including the poisoning.
He also told of crime in the area putting off customers and nearby waterworks reportedly leading to a “an almost 50% drop in trade” over the past week.
Mr Rennie spoke out after the Courier revealed Dundee has one of the poorest business survival rates in Scotland, with more than 60% shutting up shop before their fifth anniversary.
The business owner said he would battle on despite the difficulties.
He said: “I was shocked but not surprised to read dreadful statistics on survival rates.
“We have grown and had great success over the last seven years, but it always seems an uphill battle. A few months ago someone came into our shop, while we were open, and dropped some kind of substance inside a tank of fish.
“I noticed the fish just weren’t right. They were swimming funny and within half an hour were close to death. Out of the six, which had a combined retail value of £2500, only two survived.
“But it’s not just about the money – it is such a cruel and mindless act. I’ve no idea why someone would do that, perhaps it’s some sort of vendetta.”
The fish included sharks, Sohal Tang, cross-hatch triggers and puffer fish.
Mr Rennie said he was unable to prove who was responsible due to CCTV not pointing at the tank in question.
He also claims he has lost out on around £8000 worth of trade over the past week due to waterworks “making access difficult” for customers.
The waterworks, carried out by Caledonia Water Alliance on behalf of Scottish Water, began at the end of November and have now been completed.
Mr Rennie said: “I can’t recoup the losses but I’m glad that the work has been finished ahead of schedule – originally they had planned to be here until December 17.”
A Scottish Water spokesman said: “The work being carried out is part of Scottish Water’s £5m upgrade of the water network across Dundee.
“This investment is essential to ensure we can provide our customers in the area with a high quality water supply far into the future.
“In this case, CWA contacted residents and business owners on two occasions by letter to let them know about the planned work before it started.
“Local access for vehicles has been maintained throughout the work and Business Open As Usual signs are also in place in the area.”
from the Dundee Courier
==========================
A Dundee aquarium shop owner has told how cruel louts poisoned a tankful of fish worth more than £2000.
Kris Rennie, who runs Discovery Aquatics at Manhattan Works, described how his business has suffered a number of setbacks including the poisoning.
He also told of crime in the area putting off customers and nearby waterworks reportedly leading to a “an almost 50% drop in trade” over the past week.
Mr Rennie spoke out after the Courier revealed Dundee has one of the poorest business survival rates in Scotland, with more than 60% shutting up shop before their fifth anniversary.
The business owner said he would battle on despite the difficulties.
He said: “I was shocked but not surprised to read dreadful statistics on survival rates.
“We have grown and had great success over the last seven years, but it always seems an uphill battle. A few months ago someone came into our shop, while we were open, and dropped some kind of substance inside a tank of fish.
“I noticed the fish just weren’t right. They were swimming funny and within half an hour were close to death. Out of the six, which had a combined retail value of £2500, only two survived.
“But it’s not just about the money – it is such a cruel and mindless act. I’ve no idea why someone would do that, perhaps it’s some sort of vendetta.”
The fish included sharks, Sohal Tang, cross-hatch triggers and puffer fish.
Mr Rennie said he was unable to prove who was responsible due to CCTV not pointing at the tank in question.
He also claims he has lost out on around £8000 worth of trade over the past week due to waterworks “making access difficult” for customers.
The waterworks, carried out by Caledonia Water Alliance on behalf of Scottish Water, began at the end of November and have now been completed.
Mr Rennie said: “I can’t recoup the losses but I’m glad that the work has been finished ahead of schedule – originally they had planned to be here until December 17.”
A Scottish Water spokesman said: “The work being carried out is part of Scottish Water’s £5m upgrade of the water network across Dundee.
“This investment is essential to ensure we can provide our customers in the area with a high quality water supply far into the future.
“In this case, CWA contacted residents and business owners on two occasions by letter to let them know about the planned work before it started.
“Local access for vehicles has been maintained throughout the work and Business Open As Usual signs are also in place in the area.”
from the Dundee Courier
==========================
Redescription of the Bump-head Sunfish Mola alexandrini(Ranzani 1839), senior synonym of Mola ramsayi(Giglioli 1883), with Designation of A Neotype forMola mola (Linnaeus 1758) (Tetraodontiformes: Molidae)
Mola alexandrini (Ranzani 1839)
Sawai, Yamanoue, Nyegaard & Sakai, 2017.
DOI: 10.1007/s10228-017-0603-6
Abstract
The genus Mola of ocean sunfishes (family Molidae) is currently composed of three species: Mola mola (Linnaeus 1758), Mola ramsayi (Giglioli 1883), and Mola tecta Nyegaard et al. 2017. For a comprehensive revision of the genus, both literature survey and morphological investigations of Molidae were conducted. We found Mola alexandrini (Ranzani 1839) to be synonymous with M. ramsayi and we herein redescribe M. alexandrini based on the rediscovered dried holotype and 21 other fresh and preserved specimens. Mola alexandrini can be distinguished from other species of Mola by the following combination of characters in adults: head profile with bump; chin with bump; body scales rectangular; clavus rounded, supported by 14–24 (mode 17) clavus fin rays and 8–15 (12) ossicles on the rear margin. A neotype of M. mola is designated for comparison with M. alexandrini, as these two species have long been confused.
Keywords: Morphology, Neotype, Ocean sunfish, Redescription, Synonymy
Mola alexandrini bump-head sunfish
photo: Hasama Underwater Park
Mola alexandrini (Ranzani 1839)
(Japanese name: Ushi-manbo; New English name: Bump-head sunfish)
Orthragoriscus alexandrini Ranzani 1839:...
Orthragoriscus ramsayi Giglioli 1883:...
Orthagoriscus mola: Williams 1893:...
Masturus lanceolatus (not of Liénard): Gudger 1937: ...
Mola mola (not of Linnaeus): ...
Mola ramsayi: Whitley 1931: ...
Mola ramsayi Atlantic group: Bass et al. 2005: ....
Mola mola group A: Yoshita et al. 2005: 171.
Mola sp. group A: Yoshita et al. 2009: ....
Mola sp. A: Sawai et al. 2009: ....
Distribution and ecological notes. Mola alexandrini is widely distributed in the world’s oceans except for the polar regions (Fig. 5a; ESM Table S1); collected from waters off Japan, Taiwan, Galápagos Islands, New Zealand, Australia, Turkey, Oman, and Spain (Yamanoue et al. 2004, 2010; Bass et al. 2005; Sagara et al. 2005; Yoshita et al. 2005, 2009; Sawai et al. 2009, 2011, 2017a; Yamanoue and Sawai 2012; Thys et al. 2013, Ahuir-Baraja et al. 2017; Nyegaard et al. 2017). Mola alexandrini presumably prefers warmer water temperatures than inhabited by Mola mola; in waters off the Sanriku coast of Japan, sea surface temperatures during the occurrence of M. alexandrini (16.8–25.6°C, average 19.9°C) were on average higher than during the occurrence of M. mola (11.5–25.6°C, average 17.7°C) (Sawai et al. 2011).
Etsuro Sawai, Yusuke Yamanoue, Marianne Nyegaard and Yoichi Sakai. 2017. Redescription of the Bump-head Sunfish Mola alexandrini (Ranzani 1839), senior synonym of Mola ramsayi (Giglioli 1883), with Designation of A Neotype for Mola mola (Linnaeus 1758) (Tetraodontiformes: Molidae). Ichthyological Research. DOI: 10.1007/s10228-017-0603-6
World’s heaviest bony fish identified and correctly named
Researchers clear up confusion between taxonomy of multiple species of ocean sunfishes
springer.com/gb/about-springer/media/research-news/all-english-research-news/world-s-heaviest-bony-fish-identified-and-correctly-named/15270666
eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-12/s-whb120517.php
==========================
Mola alexandrini (Ranzani 1839)
Sawai, Yamanoue, Nyegaard & Sakai, 2017.
DOI: 10.1007/s10228-017-0603-6
Abstract
The genus Mola of ocean sunfishes (family Molidae) is currently composed of three species: Mola mola (Linnaeus 1758), Mola ramsayi (Giglioli 1883), and Mola tecta Nyegaard et al. 2017. For a comprehensive revision of the genus, both literature survey and morphological investigations of Molidae were conducted. We found Mola alexandrini (Ranzani 1839) to be synonymous with M. ramsayi and we herein redescribe M. alexandrini based on the rediscovered dried holotype and 21 other fresh and preserved specimens. Mola alexandrini can be distinguished from other species of Mola by the following combination of characters in adults: head profile with bump; chin with bump; body scales rectangular; clavus rounded, supported by 14–24 (mode 17) clavus fin rays and 8–15 (12) ossicles on the rear margin. A neotype of M. mola is designated for comparison with M. alexandrini, as these two species have long been confused.
Keywords: Morphology, Neotype, Ocean sunfish, Redescription, Synonymy
Mola alexandrini bump-head sunfish
photo: Hasama Underwater Park
Mola alexandrini (Ranzani 1839)
(Japanese name: Ushi-manbo; New English name: Bump-head sunfish)
Orthragoriscus alexandrini Ranzani 1839:...
Orthragoriscus ramsayi Giglioli 1883:...
Orthagoriscus mola: Williams 1893:...
Masturus lanceolatus (not of Liénard): Gudger 1937: ...
Mola mola (not of Linnaeus): ...
Mola ramsayi: Whitley 1931: ...
Mola ramsayi Atlantic group: Bass et al. 2005: ....
Mola mola group A: Yoshita et al. 2005: 171.
Mola sp. group A: Yoshita et al. 2009: ....
Mola sp. A: Sawai et al. 2009: ....
Distribution and ecological notes. Mola alexandrini is widely distributed in the world’s oceans except for the polar regions (Fig. 5a; ESM Table S1); collected from waters off Japan, Taiwan, Galápagos Islands, New Zealand, Australia, Turkey, Oman, and Spain (Yamanoue et al. 2004, 2010; Bass et al. 2005; Sagara et al. 2005; Yoshita et al. 2005, 2009; Sawai et al. 2009, 2011, 2017a; Yamanoue and Sawai 2012; Thys et al. 2013, Ahuir-Baraja et al. 2017; Nyegaard et al. 2017). Mola alexandrini presumably prefers warmer water temperatures than inhabited by Mola mola; in waters off the Sanriku coast of Japan, sea surface temperatures during the occurrence of M. alexandrini (16.8–25.6°C, average 19.9°C) were on average higher than during the occurrence of M. mola (11.5–25.6°C, average 17.7°C) (Sawai et al. 2011).
Etsuro Sawai, Yusuke Yamanoue, Marianne Nyegaard and Yoichi Sakai. 2017. Redescription of the Bump-head Sunfish Mola alexandrini (Ranzani 1839), senior synonym of Mola ramsayi (Giglioli 1883), with Designation of A Neotype for Mola mola (Linnaeus 1758) (Tetraodontiformes: Molidae). Ichthyological Research. DOI: 10.1007/s10228-017-0603-6
World’s heaviest bony fish identified and correctly named
Researchers clear up confusion between taxonomy of multiple species of ocean sunfishes
springer.com/gb/about-springer/media/research-news/all-english-research-news/world-s-heaviest-bony-fish-identified-and-correctly-named/15270666
eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-12/s-whb120517.php
==========================
Why does this fish's penis resemble a medieval weapon?
Biologists recently discovered a new species of freshwater fish called the llanos mosquitofish, or Gambusia quadruncus, in which the male members of the species have genitalia with four pronounced hooks on them, while the females feature a colourful anal spot. Now, it's quite possible that these fish have some kind of S&M thing going on, but the scientists who are studying them believe they know what's really going on — and it ain't pretty.
Female fish, like the females of most species, have to be careful about who they mate with. Unlike males, who simply work to spread their genome far and wide, females have to bear the real costs of reproduction. Consequently, they need to be really picky about who they mate with.
As a result, some female fish have evolved a defence against those guy fish who won't take no for an answer: a blocking device (essentially a big ball of tissue) that obstructs most of the genital pore, thus restricting entry of the male's penis (or more accurately, the gonopodial tip). Armed with this shield, female fish can then behaviorally allow the males who they fancy to mate with them.
But evolution doesn't care for these tricks, and where there's a will, there's often a way. To counter this defense, male llanos mosquitofish have evolved 4-pronged genitalia as a way to overcome female resistance. The hooks on the gonopodial tip allow the males to latch on to the females' gonopore and transfer their sperm.
That said, the biologists have posited an alternative theory which suggests that the hooks may stimulate the female in a way that causes them to respond better to effective sperm transfer (which is kind of kinky when you think about it).
As for the colorful anal spot on the females, the biologists suspect that it's a signaling mechanism to help the males find, uh, their way to the right spot. It's also possible that the spot is a way of helping the fish distinguish themselves from other species. Inter-species breeding is a problem for fish, often resulting in offspring with reduced fitness (hybrids are bad).
And you thought fish were boring.
You can read the entire study at Journal of Fish Biology.
Image: Brian Langerhans, NC State University.
==========================
Biologists recently discovered a new species of freshwater fish called the llanos mosquitofish, or Gambusia quadruncus, in which the male members of the species have genitalia with four pronounced hooks on them, while the females feature a colourful anal spot. Now, it's quite possible that these fish have some kind of S&M thing going on, but the scientists who are studying them believe they know what's really going on — and it ain't pretty.
Female fish, like the females of most species, have to be careful about who they mate with. Unlike males, who simply work to spread their genome far and wide, females have to bear the real costs of reproduction. Consequently, they need to be really picky about who they mate with.
As a result, some female fish have evolved a defence against those guy fish who won't take no for an answer: a blocking device (essentially a big ball of tissue) that obstructs most of the genital pore, thus restricting entry of the male's penis (or more accurately, the gonopodial tip). Armed with this shield, female fish can then behaviorally allow the males who they fancy to mate with them.
But evolution doesn't care for these tricks, and where there's a will, there's often a way. To counter this defense, male llanos mosquitofish have evolved 4-pronged genitalia as a way to overcome female resistance. The hooks on the gonopodial tip allow the males to latch on to the females' gonopore and transfer their sperm.
That said, the biologists have posited an alternative theory which suggests that the hooks may stimulate the female in a way that causes them to respond better to effective sperm transfer (which is kind of kinky when you think about it).
As for the colorful anal spot on the females, the biologists suspect that it's a signaling mechanism to help the males find, uh, their way to the right spot. It's also possible that the spot is a way of helping the fish distinguish themselves from other species. Inter-species breeding is a problem for fish, often resulting in offspring with reduced fitness (hybrids are bad).
And you thought fish were boring.
You can read the entire study at Journal of Fish Biology.
Image: Brian Langerhans, NC State University.
==========================
For Fish Penises, Bigger Isn't Always Better
Male swordtail of a closely-related species to those used in the study. (Photo: Loury Cédric)When it comes to reproduction, most fish are external fertilizers, crop dusting eggs in a cloud of sperm. But swordtails (Xiphophorus) aren’t like most fish. These fish fertilize eggs internally and “give birth” to live young. To help this whole operation, males have evolved external genitalia for transferring sperm—a tool not typical among fish. Naturally, the next question would be—for swordtails at least—is bigger better? After all, they went through all the trouble of evolving penises in the first place. New research on the matter of female swordtail preferences towards their males’ members provides an answer: not necessarily. Yes, size is important, but so is how the males use it—and only when females are healthy enough to be in a discerning position.
To be clear, “it” isn’t really like anything familiar to humans. These organs are made of highly-modified portions of a fin near the anus, folded into a long, somewhat terrifying appliance tipped with hooks and weird plates. It’s called a “gonopodium,” and while not technically the same as the mammalian penis—evolutionarily speaking—it functions identically, depositing sperm in the female’s sexual opening. The gonopodium is basically a fish dick, and its length varies wildly between swordtail species and among males in the same species. This makes for a unique opportunity to examine how female choice in mating may be influencing its size.
Swordtails—guppy-like fish native to Central America’s waterways—get their common name from the males’ bizarrely long extension on the tail fin. In some swordtail species, the males are all “courters,” using their swordtail and showy movements to convince females to permit mating. However, in other species, some males are courters, while others are “sneakers,” small males that skip the complex foreplay step altogether in what’s known as an “alternative reproductive strategy.” The wooing method is passed on directly from the father fish, meaning that courters always sire courter sons, and vice versa with sneakers.
With all this very heritable variation at play between penis length and flirting style in male swordtails, researchers at the Instituto de Ecología, A.C. in Veracruz, México investigated how female fish navigate a chaotic medley of dicks and flashy performances, judging and choosing their preferred partners. By looking at female responses to varying genitalia length, combined with male mating behavior, the scientists were able to narrow down what was important to lady swordtails, and under what conditions.
Their findings--published today in Proceedings B of the Royal Society—show that how female swordtails peruse their suitors’ penises and pageantry may incorporate a careful evolutionary calculus, taking into account survival and risk in a dangerous habitat.
The scientists essentially shot, edited, and screened fish porn to see what got females of the species all hot and bothered.The research team collected both sexes of two species of swordtail from the wild in Mexico for the study: green swordtails (which only have courting males), and high-backed pygmy swordtails (which have both courting and sneaking males). For each species (and each male wooing strategy), they filmed a male interacting and flirting with a female. The resulting short, looped video clip was then Photoshopped frame by frame, removing the female from the clip entirely, and either shortening or lengthening the male’s gonopodium by 30 percent to represent the full range of swordtail dick size. This way, there were six videos: one for each of the three types of males, with each of those divided into long and short-penised versions. They then exposed females to these video clips—shortened and lengthened genitalia versions side by side—and recorded the females’ responses to gauge which version they preferred. This was mostly based on how quickly they approached a video male, and how long they parked in front of the screen.
Yes, that’s exactly how it sounds: The scientists essentially shot, edited, and screened fish porn to see what got females of the species all hot and bothered.
In the green swordtails, which only have courter males, females preferred the males with smaller junk. The same went for the pygmy swordtails, for both male types. However, as soon as the researchers considered the relative health of the females tested, the preferences split between courters and sneakers.
Before the experiment, all females had their body densities measured, as higher density reflects a body packed with more fat and protein, and thus greater health and “body condition.” Though their more feeble sisters didn’t care much about courtship style (just penis length), heftier, healthier females had very particular tastes. Overall, they favored courter males with short genitalia, but in contrast they liked their sneaker males well hung. As body condition of the females increased, so did the strength of this preference.
Male and female swordtail fish. (Photo: Wojciech J. Płuciennik)This division in preferences among more weighty female fish likely has its roots in the common quest of all life on Earth: ensuring survival of yourself, and of your offspring. Healthier females are often older, more experienced, and more equipped to evade threats from predators (usually bigger, meaner fish). This allows them to take a bit more risk, and to use their better condition to funnel benefits to the next generation. Under normal conditions, long-dicked males may actually be dangerous to hang around. This is especially true of courter males, which are already conspicuous as hell, attracting attention from predators—long genitalia may actually cause enough drag in the water to make them less able to dart away from danger. Their girlfriends could easily get eaten by association. So, bigger genitalia may just be a bad idea for the courter lifestyle. But for the low-key sneaker males, bigger penises may provide benefits. Mating for them is quick, dirty, and involves chasing, so a longer penis may make fertilization during the athletic feat more likely.
Given this landscape of penis-size consequences and how males consistently pass on their courtship style to their sons, it’s possible that healthy, risk-taking females are being choosy for the sake of their own potential future sons. By selecting the best combinations of wooing method and penis size, rather than just taking the safest option, these females may be ensuring their sons also have the best packages for the job.
The study illuminates a complex relationship between social behavior, competition, and the evolution of the reproductive system—something we’ve seen before in spring-loaded duck penises—showing us, yet again, that patterns in biology often have indirect causes in hidden, unexpected places.
==========================
Male swordtail of a closely-related species to those used in the study. (Photo: Loury Cédric)When it comes to reproduction, most fish are external fertilizers, crop dusting eggs in a cloud of sperm. But swordtails (Xiphophorus) aren’t like most fish. These fish fertilize eggs internally and “give birth” to live young. To help this whole operation, males have evolved external genitalia for transferring sperm—a tool not typical among fish. Naturally, the next question would be—for swordtails at least—is bigger better? After all, they went through all the trouble of evolving penises in the first place. New research on the matter of female swordtail preferences towards their males’ members provides an answer: not necessarily. Yes, size is important, but so is how the males use it—and only when females are healthy enough to be in a discerning position.
To be clear, “it” isn’t really like anything familiar to humans. These organs are made of highly-modified portions of a fin near the anus, folded into a long, somewhat terrifying appliance tipped with hooks and weird plates. It’s called a “gonopodium,” and while not technically the same as the mammalian penis—evolutionarily speaking—it functions identically, depositing sperm in the female’s sexual opening. The gonopodium is basically a fish dick, and its length varies wildly between swordtail species and among males in the same species. This makes for a unique opportunity to examine how female choice in mating may be influencing its size.
Swordtails—guppy-like fish native to Central America’s waterways—get their common name from the males’ bizarrely long extension on the tail fin. In some swordtail species, the males are all “courters,” using their swordtail and showy movements to convince females to permit mating. However, in other species, some males are courters, while others are “sneakers,” small males that skip the complex foreplay step altogether in what’s known as an “alternative reproductive strategy.” The wooing method is passed on directly from the father fish, meaning that courters always sire courter sons, and vice versa with sneakers.
With all this very heritable variation at play between penis length and flirting style in male swordtails, researchers at the Instituto de Ecología, A.C. in Veracruz, México investigated how female fish navigate a chaotic medley of dicks and flashy performances, judging and choosing their preferred partners. By looking at female responses to varying genitalia length, combined with male mating behavior, the scientists were able to narrow down what was important to lady swordtails, and under what conditions.
Their findings--published today in Proceedings B of the Royal Society—show that how female swordtails peruse their suitors’ penises and pageantry may incorporate a careful evolutionary calculus, taking into account survival and risk in a dangerous habitat.
The scientists essentially shot, edited, and screened fish porn to see what got females of the species all hot and bothered.The research team collected both sexes of two species of swordtail from the wild in Mexico for the study: green swordtails (which only have courting males), and high-backed pygmy swordtails (which have both courting and sneaking males). For each species (and each male wooing strategy), they filmed a male interacting and flirting with a female. The resulting short, looped video clip was then Photoshopped frame by frame, removing the female from the clip entirely, and either shortening or lengthening the male’s gonopodium by 30 percent to represent the full range of swordtail dick size. This way, there were six videos: one for each of the three types of males, with each of those divided into long and short-penised versions. They then exposed females to these video clips—shortened and lengthened genitalia versions side by side—and recorded the females’ responses to gauge which version they preferred. This was mostly based on how quickly they approached a video male, and how long they parked in front of the screen.
Yes, that’s exactly how it sounds: The scientists essentially shot, edited, and screened fish porn to see what got females of the species all hot and bothered.
In the green swordtails, which only have courter males, females preferred the males with smaller junk. The same went for the pygmy swordtails, for both male types. However, as soon as the researchers considered the relative health of the females tested, the preferences split between courters and sneakers.
Before the experiment, all females had their body densities measured, as higher density reflects a body packed with more fat and protein, and thus greater health and “body condition.” Though their more feeble sisters didn’t care much about courtship style (just penis length), heftier, healthier females had very particular tastes. Overall, they favored courter males with short genitalia, but in contrast they liked their sneaker males well hung. As body condition of the females increased, so did the strength of this preference.
Male and female swordtail fish. (Photo: Wojciech J. Płuciennik)This division in preferences among more weighty female fish likely has its roots in the common quest of all life on Earth: ensuring survival of yourself, and of your offspring. Healthier females are often older, more experienced, and more equipped to evade threats from predators (usually bigger, meaner fish). This allows them to take a bit more risk, and to use their better condition to funnel benefits to the next generation. Under normal conditions, long-dicked males may actually be dangerous to hang around. This is especially true of courter males, which are already conspicuous as hell, attracting attention from predators—long genitalia may actually cause enough drag in the water to make them less able to dart away from danger. Their girlfriends could easily get eaten by association. So, bigger genitalia may just be a bad idea for the courter lifestyle. But for the low-key sneaker males, bigger penises may provide benefits. Mating for them is quick, dirty, and involves chasing, so a longer penis may make fertilization during the athletic feat more likely.
Given this landscape of penis-size consequences and how males consistently pass on their courtship style to their sons, it’s possible that healthy, risk-taking females are being choosy for the sake of their own potential future sons. By selecting the best combinations of wooing method and penis size, rather than just taking the safest option, these females may be ensuring their sons also have the best packages for the job.
The study illuminates a complex relationship between social behavior, competition, and the evolution of the reproductive system—something we’ve seen before in spring-loaded duck penises—showing us, yet again, that patterns in biology often have indirect causes in hidden, unexpected places.
==========================
Rare banded kokopu fish found in 'lifeless' Auckland stream
The Waitematā and Orakei local boards have granted $60,000 to residents to restore the Newmarket stream, which runs from Remuera Rd through to Hobson Bay, after banded kokopu fish, diving beetles and water snails were found alive during a water quality assessment.
Banded kokopu fish are a rare native whitebait whose numbers have dwindled in the past few decades.
SUPPLIEDBanded kokopu, a type of whitebait, was found in the stream.
Local residents Penny Hansen and Malcom Black spearheaded the project after residents had long complained about the stream smelling like sewage.
Environmental scientist Brett Stansfield and Kairan, 9, inspect the rare native fish.
Waitematā Local Board member Rob Thomas said there was also sewage from non-separated waste and stormwater pipes that could contain pathogens in the stream.
But despite the pollution, Gecko Trust NZ found living banded kokopu fish, diving beetles and water snails during a water quality assessment in November.
The trust is a non-profit organisation that mentors conservation projects in Auckland.
Thomas said he was "shocked" to find life in the stream.
Orakei Local Board member Kit Parkinson said more than 60 residents had expressed interest in restoring the stream.
"The stream carries polluted water into Newmarket Park where our children play," Parkinson said.
"Cleaning up the tributary will contribute to making the harbour more swimmable and support aquatic life both down and upstream," Parkinson said.
Last month Auckland Council blacklisted 16 spots as unsafe for swimming, citing concerns over "long-term water quality".
The restoration was a collaboration between residents, local boards and Gecko NZ Trust and was expected to take 10 years.
==========================
- Remuera resident Penny Hansen is asking other residents to get involved in restoring the Newmarket Stream.
The Waitematā and Orakei local boards have granted $60,000 to residents to restore the Newmarket stream, which runs from Remuera Rd through to Hobson Bay, after banded kokopu fish, diving beetles and water snails were found alive during a water quality assessment.
Banded kokopu fish are a rare native whitebait whose numbers have dwindled in the past few decades.
SUPPLIEDBanded kokopu, a type of whitebait, was found in the stream.
Local residents Penny Hansen and Malcom Black spearheaded the project after residents had long complained about the stream smelling like sewage.
Environmental scientist Brett Stansfield and Kairan, 9, inspect the rare native fish.
Waitematā Local Board member Rob Thomas said there was also sewage from non-separated waste and stormwater pipes that could contain pathogens in the stream.
But despite the pollution, Gecko Trust NZ found living banded kokopu fish, diving beetles and water snails during a water quality assessment in November.
The trust is a non-profit organisation that mentors conservation projects in Auckland.
Thomas said he was "shocked" to find life in the stream.
Orakei Local Board member Kit Parkinson said more than 60 residents had expressed interest in restoring the stream.
"The stream carries polluted water into Newmarket Park where our children play," Parkinson said.
"Cleaning up the tributary will contribute to making the harbour more swimmable and support aquatic life both down and upstream," Parkinson said.
Last month Auckland Council blacklisted 16 spots as unsafe for swimming, citing concerns over "long-term water quality".
The restoration was a collaboration between residents, local boards and Gecko NZ Trust and was expected to take 10 years.
==========================
Rare fish only found in area may receive federal protection
The slender, bug-eyed trispot darter (Etheostoma trisella) swims through area rivers, staying close to the edges of waterways, with its pale undersurface and scattered dark blotches on its fin rays. The fish is not found anywhere else and now it could soon get federal protection.
It lives in North Georgia, North Alabama and Southeast Tennessee. In Georgia, it is endangered. In Tennessee, it is threatened. In Alabama, it is listed as a Priority 2 Species of High Conservation Concern.
For 50 years, researchers in Alabama thought the fish was extinct before a biologist found three in St. Clair County in 2008. No one knows exactly how many remain, but the population is small, and it's shrinking, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources.
The trispot darter plays a vital part in the local food cycle, said Tierra Curry, of the Center for Biological Diversity. The centre petitioned to try to protect the fish, which spawned the decision by the Fish and Wildlife Service to review its protection. The fish eats insects and helps control the local ecosystem and is then eaten by larger fish.
"It's a beautiful little fish," Curry said. "It only occurs in that part of the world and nowhere else. It's gorgeous to look at, and darters play a role in the food web."
But the population is not doing well and may go extinct.
"They have a very specific life history strategy that makes them vulnerable to decline," said Brett Albanese, with Georgia Department of Natural Resources. "They have to migrate from large river habitats to tiny creeks for reproduction in the late winter and early spring. If those small stream habitats are blocked by a dam, farm pond or even a poorly designed culvert, they cannot reach their spawning sites."
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is proposing to list the species as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, which is the final step before it is officially listed.
The protection would focus conservation efforts on the fish's behalf and would raise awareness to the threats of the fish, according to the announcement from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. It would also further dictate what can and cannot happen near the waters it inhabits. The key to recovery for the trispot darter population is connectivity, Albanese said. That would allow fish to travel unhindered to and from mating locations.
The fish was first proposed to be federally protected in 2010, and in 2011 the Fish and Wildlife Service agreed it may warrant protection. However, because of a backlog of species being considered for protection, it took more than five years for things to move forward.
The protection process has now cleared most major hurdles and is on its final leg. Curry said the process is at a point where it should make it through to the end and receive federal protection.
When the fish was reviewed, the Fish and Wildlife Service had three choices. It could have ruled the fish was not warranted to receive protection, that it should go back on the waiting list or that it should continue on the process toward approval. Its October ruling kept the fish on the path toward federal protection.
"If they weren't going to put it on the [federally protected] list then they would have a 'not warranted' finding or put it on the waiting list," Curry said.
The public has until Monday, Dec. 4, to provide comment. It will take 10 months to finalize the decision.
==========================
The slender, bug-eyed trispot darter (Etheostoma trisella) swims through area rivers, staying close to the edges of waterways, with its pale undersurface and scattered dark blotches on its fin rays. The fish is not found anywhere else and now it could soon get federal protection.
It lives in North Georgia, North Alabama and Southeast Tennessee. In Georgia, it is endangered. In Tennessee, it is threatened. In Alabama, it is listed as a Priority 2 Species of High Conservation Concern.
For 50 years, researchers in Alabama thought the fish was extinct before a biologist found three in St. Clair County in 2008. No one knows exactly how many remain, but the population is small, and it's shrinking, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources.
The trispot darter plays a vital part in the local food cycle, said Tierra Curry, of the Center for Biological Diversity. The centre petitioned to try to protect the fish, which spawned the decision by the Fish and Wildlife Service to review its protection. The fish eats insects and helps control the local ecosystem and is then eaten by larger fish.
"It's a beautiful little fish," Curry said. "It only occurs in that part of the world and nowhere else. It's gorgeous to look at, and darters play a role in the food web."
But the population is not doing well and may go extinct.
"They have a very specific life history strategy that makes them vulnerable to decline," said Brett Albanese, with Georgia Department of Natural Resources. "They have to migrate from large river habitats to tiny creeks for reproduction in the late winter and early spring. If those small stream habitats are blocked by a dam, farm pond or even a poorly designed culvert, they cannot reach their spawning sites."
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is proposing to list the species as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, which is the final step before it is officially listed.
The protection would focus conservation efforts on the fish's behalf and would raise awareness to the threats of the fish, according to the announcement from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. It would also further dictate what can and cannot happen near the waters it inhabits. The key to recovery for the trispot darter population is connectivity, Albanese said. That would allow fish to travel unhindered to and from mating locations.
The fish was first proposed to be federally protected in 2010, and in 2011 the Fish and Wildlife Service agreed it may warrant protection. However, because of a backlog of species being considered for protection, it took more than five years for things to move forward.
The protection process has now cleared most major hurdles and is on its final leg. Curry said the process is at a point where it should make it through to the end and receive federal protection.
When the fish was reviewed, the Fish and Wildlife Service had three choices. It could have ruled the fish was not warranted to receive protection, that it should go back on the waiting list or that it should continue on the process toward approval. Its October ruling kept the fish on the path toward federal protection.
"If they weren't going to put it on the [federally protected] list then they would have a 'not warranted' finding or put it on the waiting list," Curry said.
The public has until Monday, Dec. 4, to provide comment. It will take 10 months to finalize the decision.
==========================
Indian Government withdraws aquarium, fish tank shop rules. The gazette notification says the ministry “Hereby withdraws the notification number G.S.R. 493 (E)”, which pertains to the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Aquarium and Fish Tank Animals Shop) Rules, 2017."
On Friday it withdrew a different notification dated May 23, 2017, which was about regulating aquarium and fish tank shops.
While the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) mulls withdrawing a notification banning sale of cattle for slaughter in animals markets, on Friday it withdrew a different notification dated May 23, 2017, which was about regulating aquarium and fish tank shops.
The gazette notification says the ministry “hereby withdraws the notification number G.S.R. 493 (E)”, which pertains to the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Aquarium and Fish Tank Animals Shop) Rules, 2017. Ministry secretary C.K. Mishra said the decision was taken “to redo notification after wider consultations”.
Four notifications were passed on 23, May 2017 among them Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Dog Breeding and Marketing) Rules, 2017, Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Care and Maintenance of Case Property Animals), 2017, and the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Market) Rules, 2017. It is this last one which is under scrutiny for its plans to ban sale of cattle for slaughter in animal markets.
==========================
On Friday it withdrew a different notification dated May 23, 2017, which was about regulating aquarium and fish tank shops.
While the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) mulls withdrawing a notification banning sale of cattle for slaughter in animals markets, on Friday it withdrew a different notification dated May 23, 2017, which was about regulating aquarium and fish tank shops.
The gazette notification says the ministry “hereby withdraws the notification number G.S.R. 493 (E)”, which pertains to the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Aquarium and Fish Tank Animals Shop) Rules, 2017. Ministry secretary C.K. Mishra said the decision was taken “to redo notification after wider consultations”.
Four notifications were passed on 23, May 2017 among them Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Dog Breeding and Marketing) Rules, 2017, Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Care and Maintenance of Case Property Animals), 2017, and the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Market) Rules, 2017. It is this last one which is under scrutiny for its plans to ban sale of cattle for slaughter in animal markets.
==========================
Armored 'Pinecone' Fish's Insides Revealed in Spooky Scan
Matt Kolmann, PhD@KolmannMAThis pinecone fish, Cleidopus, might be my new favorite fish to scan - look at that armor! #scanalfishes Thanks to @calacademy Fish Collections for the specimen!
Armored skeleton from the outside, the pinecone fish is a colorful yet fearsome beast. On the inside, it's downright spooky.
A new scan of a fish of the genus Cleidopus, posted on Twitter, looks like the re-creation of a monster from a sci-fi horror flick. In actuality, the scan reveals the tough, spiked armor of this denizen of the tropical and subtropical Indo-Pacific.
Pinecone fish grow about 8 inches (20 centimeters) long and come by their nickname honestly: Their scales are yellow, crisscrossed with black markings in the shape of the scales of a pinecone. (The fish are also known as "pineapple fish," another name that references their striking markings.) Running down the fish's sides are rows of small, nasty-looking spikes. Pinecone fish live at relatively deep ocean depths, down to 650 feet (200 meters) or so, and their jaws are studded with two bioluminescent organs, called photophores. These give off a greenish glow that the fish might use to attract prey. [See Photos of the Freakiest-Looking Fish]
"They're just really weird fish for a lot of reasons," said Matthew Kolmann, a postdoctoral researcher at of the University of Washington's Friday Harbor Laboratories, who made and posted the scan. Kolmann and his team, however, were interested in the fish's bony armor.
The computed tomography (CT) scan of the fish reveals that the spiky pinecone pattern is more than skin-deep. The fish is protected by a formidable layer of bony armor, built from small sections called scutes.
Overlapping scutes make a suit of armor for the pinecone fish (Cleidopus gloriamaris), and Indo-Pacific tropical and subtropical species that also protects itself with rows of nasty, bony spikes.
Credit: Matthew Kolmann/Friday Harbor Laboratories"It's incredibly intricate, seemingly ornate, thick, overlapping plates," Kolmann told Live Science in an email. "We knew from seeing them in collections and in aquariums that they had armor plating, but there's something about seeing the skeleton by itself where we realized, 'Oh, man, it seems like the majority of their skeleton is armor.'"
It was an exciting view for Kolmann and his colleagues, who are interested in the way that bony armor evolved among fish. Fish are a particularly useful group through which to study biodiversity, Kolmann said.
"I work with fishes because there's over 30,000 species (over half the vertebrates), and if you're interested in some weird behavior or anatomy, odds are fish have done it, are doing it or will do it," he said.
Scan them allThe scanned pinecone fish was a loan from the California Academy of Sciences, where ichthyologist Graham Short is working to understand to the armor of seahorses and their relatives. Little was known about fish armor in general, Short and Kolmann soon discovered, prompting the pinecone fish collaboration.
Kolmann posted the resulting images under the hashtag #scanallfishes, the brainchild of Friday Harbor Labs' researcher Adam Summers.
"He's been using CT scanning to investigate fish anatomy for years and years, and he'd send pictures of the scans to collaborators or post them to social media," Kolmann said. "People would ask, 'What are you going to scan next?' and he'd just say that eventually we'd scan them all."
The hashtag has become a repository of sorts of fish CT scans from many research labs. So far, Kolmann said, the researchers at Friday Harbor Labs have scanned about 2,500 species.
"I'd say a couple times a week, we rush into the scanning room to see something truly weird and novel," he said.
Original article on Live Science.
==========================
Matt Kolmann, PhD@KolmannMAThis pinecone fish, Cleidopus, might be my new favorite fish to scan - look at that armor! #scanalfishes Thanks to @calacademy Fish Collections for the specimen!
Armored skeleton from the outside, the pinecone fish is a colorful yet fearsome beast. On the inside, it's downright spooky.
A new scan of a fish of the genus Cleidopus, posted on Twitter, looks like the re-creation of a monster from a sci-fi horror flick. In actuality, the scan reveals the tough, spiked armor of this denizen of the tropical and subtropical Indo-Pacific.
Pinecone fish grow about 8 inches (20 centimeters) long and come by their nickname honestly: Their scales are yellow, crisscrossed with black markings in the shape of the scales of a pinecone. (The fish are also known as "pineapple fish," another name that references their striking markings.) Running down the fish's sides are rows of small, nasty-looking spikes. Pinecone fish live at relatively deep ocean depths, down to 650 feet (200 meters) or so, and their jaws are studded with two bioluminescent organs, called photophores. These give off a greenish glow that the fish might use to attract prey. [See Photos of the Freakiest-Looking Fish]
"They're just really weird fish for a lot of reasons," said Matthew Kolmann, a postdoctoral researcher at of the University of Washington's Friday Harbor Laboratories, who made and posted the scan. Kolmann and his team, however, were interested in the fish's bony armor.
The computed tomography (CT) scan of the fish reveals that the spiky pinecone pattern is more than skin-deep. The fish is protected by a formidable layer of bony armor, built from small sections called scutes.
Overlapping scutes make a suit of armor for the pinecone fish (Cleidopus gloriamaris), and Indo-Pacific tropical and subtropical species that also protects itself with rows of nasty, bony spikes.
Credit: Matthew Kolmann/Friday Harbor Laboratories"It's incredibly intricate, seemingly ornate, thick, overlapping plates," Kolmann told Live Science in an email. "We knew from seeing them in collections and in aquariums that they had armor plating, but there's something about seeing the skeleton by itself where we realized, 'Oh, man, it seems like the majority of their skeleton is armor.'"
It was an exciting view for Kolmann and his colleagues, who are interested in the way that bony armor evolved among fish. Fish are a particularly useful group through which to study biodiversity, Kolmann said.
"I work with fishes because there's over 30,000 species (over half the vertebrates), and if you're interested in some weird behavior or anatomy, odds are fish have done it, are doing it or will do it," he said.
Scan them allThe scanned pinecone fish was a loan from the California Academy of Sciences, where ichthyologist Graham Short is working to understand to the armor of seahorses and their relatives. Little was known about fish armor in general, Short and Kolmann soon discovered, prompting the pinecone fish collaboration.
Kolmann posted the resulting images under the hashtag #scanallfishes, the brainchild of Friday Harbor Labs' researcher Adam Summers.
"He's been using CT scanning to investigate fish anatomy for years and years, and he'd send pictures of the scans to collaborators or post them to social media," Kolmann said. "People would ask, 'What are you going to scan next?' and he'd just say that eventually we'd scan them all."
The hashtag has become a repository of sorts of fish CT scans from many research labs. So far, Kolmann said, the researchers at Friday Harbor Labs have scanned about 2,500 species.
"I'd say a couple times a week, we rush into the scanning room to see something truly weird and novel," he said.
Original article on Live Science.
==========================
Cumbrian farm fined after thousands of fish killed
Brown TroutA Cumbrian farm has been fined after after a slurry leak killed 6,000 fish near Penrith.
JM & M Harris, which operates Whitbarrow Farm, at Berrier, was sentenced today at North and West Cumbria Magistrates' Court in Carlisle after pleading guilty to polluting a local watercourse.
The farming partnership has been fined £1,600 for an illegal discharge of farm slurry and has also been ordered to pay £3,500 costs.
The Environment Agency prosecuted the farm after a member of the public reported a thick brown slurry entering Skitwath Beck at Penruddock on September 8, 2015.
An Environment Agency Officer attended the scene later the same day and noted the beck at Penruddock, which under normal circumstances is of excellent water quality and an important spawning ground for salmon and trout, was green in colour with a strong odour of slurry.
A water sample was obtained and the results, on analysis, confirmed the watercourse was highly polluted at levels that would be harmful to the water environment and toxic to fish.
An investigation confirmed major fish mortality along a 4.3km section of Skitwath Beck, with over 6,000 dead fish counted including salmon, brown trout, stone loach and stickleback.
The slurry had entered the beck after a spillage at the farm the previous evening when a sluice gate on a slurry store had become jammed.
This led to the loss of around 5,000 gallons of slurry, some of which had entered the watercourse through a sinkhole at the nearby Whitbarrow Holiday Village.
An Environment Agency spokesman said: “This incident, which led to the deaths of thousands of fish, may have been avoided with the exercise of greater care.
"Farms have a duty to ensure their operations do not pose a threat to the environment. In this case JM & M Harris failed to prevent the escape of slurry in the event of the sluice jam and failed to report the incident.
"Had the incident been reported to the Environment Agency, we may have been able to take action much more quickly to reduce the impact of the pollution on the river and its fish."
He continued: “We hope the court’s sentencing demonstrates to other farms and businesses the importance of taking their environmental obligations seriously."
In mitigation, JM & M Harris said that this had been a one-off incident and that steps had since been taken to prevent a recurrence.
30 November 2017
==========================
Brown TroutA Cumbrian farm has been fined after after a slurry leak killed 6,000 fish near Penrith.
JM & M Harris, which operates Whitbarrow Farm, at Berrier, was sentenced today at North and West Cumbria Magistrates' Court in Carlisle after pleading guilty to polluting a local watercourse.
The farming partnership has been fined £1,600 for an illegal discharge of farm slurry and has also been ordered to pay £3,500 costs.
The Environment Agency prosecuted the farm after a member of the public reported a thick brown slurry entering Skitwath Beck at Penruddock on September 8, 2015.
An Environment Agency Officer attended the scene later the same day and noted the beck at Penruddock, which under normal circumstances is of excellent water quality and an important spawning ground for salmon and trout, was green in colour with a strong odour of slurry.
A water sample was obtained and the results, on analysis, confirmed the watercourse was highly polluted at levels that would be harmful to the water environment and toxic to fish.
An investigation confirmed major fish mortality along a 4.3km section of Skitwath Beck, with over 6,000 dead fish counted including salmon, brown trout, stone loach and stickleback.
The slurry had entered the beck after a spillage at the farm the previous evening when a sluice gate on a slurry store had become jammed.
This led to the loss of around 5,000 gallons of slurry, some of which had entered the watercourse through a sinkhole at the nearby Whitbarrow Holiday Village.
An Environment Agency spokesman said: “This incident, which led to the deaths of thousands of fish, may have been avoided with the exercise of greater care.
"Farms have a duty to ensure their operations do not pose a threat to the environment. In this case JM & M Harris failed to prevent the escape of slurry in the event of the sluice jam and failed to report the incident.
"Had the incident been reported to the Environment Agency, we may have been able to take action much more quickly to reduce the impact of the pollution on the river and its fish."
He continued: “We hope the court’s sentencing demonstrates to other farms and businesses the importance of taking their environmental obligations seriously."
In mitigation, JM & M Harris said that this had been a one-off incident and that steps had since been taken to prevent a recurrence.
30 November 2017
==========================
Technician - Fish and Aquatics 6 days left on 30th November 2017
Recruiter
Sparsholt College
Location
Sparsholt, Winchester
Salary
£15,075 - £18,290 (dependent upon qualifications and experience)
Posted
29 Nov 2017
Closes
06 Dec 2017
Ref
V1549
Subject Area
Agricultural, Horticulture and Animal Care
Job Level
Technician
Job Function
Academic Support
Contract Type
Permanent
Hours
Full Time £15,075 - £18,290 (dependent upon qualifications and experience)
The post holder will work under the direction of the Head of Faculty – Higher Education in undertaking the management and husbandry of the Fish and Aquatics section. In addition to supporting the College’s education goals in this outstanding area of the curriculum, the department also has full BIAZA membership and participates in a number of conservation breeding programs. Working with teaching staff the post holder will provide practical support, and supervision to students in practical subjects both on an individual and group basis, ensuring provision is learner focused, to achieve exemplary standards in animal welfare, teaching and customer service.
Candidates should be educated to at least level 2 in a relevant vocational subject and be able to demonstrate a professional track record of work within the Fish/Aquatics industry. A flexible approach to a varied workload with a real enthusiasm for the fish you will be working with, plus herptile knowledge and experience would be an advantage. The post holder will be required to work weekends on a rotational basis.
This post is based at the Sparsholt campus.
On-site Accommodation may be available.
Closing Date: 06 December 2017
College Benefits
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==========================
Recruiter
Sparsholt College
Location
Sparsholt, Winchester
Salary
£15,075 - £18,290 (dependent upon qualifications and experience)
Posted
29 Nov 2017
Closes
06 Dec 2017
Ref
V1549
Subject Area
Agricultural, Horticulture and Animal Care
Job Level
Technician
Job Function
Academic Support
Contract Type
Permanent
Hours
Full Time £15,075 - £18,290 (dependent upon qualifications and experience)
The post holder will work under the direction of the Head of Faculty – Higher Education in undertaking the management and husbandry of the Fish and Aquatics section. In addition to supporting the College’s education goals in this outstanding area of the curriculum, the department also has full BIAZA membership and participates in a number of conservation breeding programs. Working with teaching staff the post holder will provide practical support, and supervision to students in practical subjects both on an individual and group basis, ensuring provision is learner focused, to achieve exemplary standards in animal welfare, teaching and customer service.
Candidates should be educated to at least level 2 in a relevant vocational subject and be able to demonstrate a professional track record of work within the Fish/Aquatics industry. A flexible approach to a varied workload with a real enthusiasm for the fish you will be working with, plus herptile knowledge and experience would be an advantage. The post holder will be required to work weekends on a rotational basis.
This post is based at the Sparsholt campus.
On-site Accommodation may be available.
Closing Date: 06 December 2017
College Benefits
- Eligibility to join the Local Government Pension Scheme (a defined benefit pension scheme)
- Death Benefit grant of 3 x salary if in the pension scheme
- Free on-site parking
- Car Share Scheme
- Occupational Sick Pay Scheme
- Occupational Maternity Pay Scheme
- Flexible Working Policy
- Holiday entitlement of 22 days (rising to 25 days after 5 years’ service) plus Public and Bank Holidays along with college closure days at Xmas.
- Child Care Vouchers
- Ability to Purchase Additional Annual Leave via a salary sacrifice arrangement
- Access to an employee assistance scheme
- On-site gym at the Sparsholt campus (membership £100 per annum)
- You Make the Difference Staff nomination scheme
- Facility to purchase Sparsholt produce including: plants, flowers, fruit & vegetables, fish, venison and turkey.
- Access to discounted hair and beauty treatments at the Andover campus
- Discounted admission to Marwell Zoo
- Ability to access a range of CPD events and support with undertaking professional qualifications
- Various food outlets and eateries offering good value food and drink at competitive prices
Supporting documents
- Application FormThis will open in a new window
- Job Description and Person SpecificationThis will open in a new window
- Further InformationThis will open in a new window
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==========================
A 70th Anniversary Open Show
BRADFORD & DISTRICT AQUARIST SOCIETY·MONDAY, 27 NOVEMBER 2017
MS for PFK by Dr David Ford, Aquatic Services
To celebrate their 70th year the Bradford & District Aquarists’ Society designed a special trophy for the Best in Show.
It wasn’t a Golden Arowana that won but a Southeast Serpent Loach Serpenticobitis octozona by the Brown family of Preston AS. Here is Club Secretary Anthony Fisher presenting the family with their awards ….
Held on Remembrance Sunday, November 12th at the Bradford Academy, the Loach won against 242 entries in the 37 Classes the BDAS have been showing for the last 70 years. It received 86.6 points from the three Yorkshire Association of Aquarist Society judges via YAAS rules.
The next important award is in the Pairs Classes where the highest pointed is called the Best Exhibit. Again, a special 70th anniversary trophy was awarded.
Won by John Hetherington of STAMPS (South Tyneside Aquatic Marine & Pondkeepers Society) with a pair of Notropsis chrosomus the North American Rainbow Shiner, with 86 points.
The Open Show also included an Auction with over 100 visitors bidding for the 22 Lots of aquatic items with auctioneer Steve Jones of YAAS. As always, there was hot & cold food and drinks available all day, including their Meat Pie and Mushy Peas special, at only a £1.
As part of the celebrations there was a projection display of the members, their fish and past shows, especially the aquatic tableaux that used to be built in past exhibitions. This was shown on a screen all day long. It was interesting to see members looking at this screen, reminiscing and even taking photos (on their iPhones) of ancient photos that were once slides, now digitized and displayed. Not all 70 years though, that was before technology!
==========================
BRADFORD & DISTRICT AQUARIST SOCIETY·MONDAY, 27 NOVEMBER 2017
MS for PFK by Dr David Ford, Aquatic Services
To celebrate their 70th year the Bradford & District Aquarists’ Society designed a special trophy for the Best in Show.
It wasn’t a Golden Arowana that won but a Southeast Serpent Loach Serpenticobitis octozona by the Brown family of Preston AS. Here is Club Secretary Anthony Fisher presenting the family with their awards ….
Held on Remembrance Sunday, November 12th at the Bradford Academy, the Loach won against 242 entries in the 37 Classes the BDAS have been showing for the last 70 years. It received 86.6 points from the three Yorkshire Association of Aquarist Society judges via YAAS rules.
The next important award is in the Pairs Classes where the highest pointed is called the Best Exhibit. Again, a special 70th anniversary trophy was awarded.
Won by John Hetherington of STAMPS (South Tyneside Aquatic Marine & Pondkeepers Society) with a pair of Notropsis chrosomus the North American Rainbow Shiner, with 86 points.
The Open Show also included an Auction with over 100 visitors bidding for the 22 Lots of aquatic items with auctioneer Steve Jones of YAAS. As always, there was hot & cold food and drinks available all day, including their Meat Pie and Mushy Peas special, at only a £1.
As part of the celebrations there was a projection display of the members, their fish and past shows, especially the aquatic tableaux that used to be built in past exhibitions. This was shown on a screen all day long. It was interesting to see members looking at this screen, reminiscing and even taking photos (on their iPhones) of ancient photos that were once slides, now digitized and displayed. Not all 70 years though, that was before technology!
==========================
The Tennessee Valley Authority discovers new fish in Tennessee River Watershed
The Tennessee Valley Authority announced Monday its biologists identified a new fish species. Percina apina, or Logperch, lives in the Duck River tributary streams in middle Tennessee."This fish is a significant find because it tells us that our work to preserve and protect the Tennessee River Watershed is paying off," says Jeff Simmons, a TVA aquatic biologist who helped make the discovery. "Percina apina can only live in the cleanest of streams."
Simmons named the new fish after the clean, clear waters where it lives. Apina is a Greek word meaning "clean" or "without dirt." Its use in the new name refers to the silt-free substrates that the fish requires to thrive, hunting aquatic insect larvae like blackfly, caddisfly, mayfly, and stonefly.
For 84 years TVA has monitored water quality and today it assesses over 700 sites throughout the Tennessee Valley, creating scorecards for each one. Clean water is one reason why a 2017 University of Tennessee, Institute of Agriculture study found that the value of recreation on TVA’s reservoirs is worth about $12 billion per year to the regional economy.
The Tennessee River is one of the most aquatically biodiverse river systems in North America; home to about 230 species of fish and 100 species of mussels, many of which are common to the watershed.
Though it is a small fish (4-6 inches), Percina apina plays a big role in the Tennessee Valley environment.
“This is the only Logperch species common to Tennessee, and though you might not see it right away, there is a web of other species that are interconnected to it,” Simmons explains. “Keeping our water clean, keeping this fish alive—this is our natural heritage. This is what we have to pass down to the next generation.”
found on 10news
==========================
The Tennessee Valley Authority announced Monday its biologists identified a new fish species. Percina apina, or Logperch, lives in the Duck River tributary streams in middle Tennessee."This fish is a significant find because it tells us that our work to preserve and protect the Tennessee River Watershed is paying off," says Jeff Simmons, a TVA aquatic biologist who helped make the discovery. "Percina apina can only live in the cleanest of streams."
Simmons named the new fish after the clean, clear waters where it lives. Apina is a Greek word meaning "clean" or "without dirt." Its use in the new name refers to the silt-free substrates that the fish requires to thrive, hunting aquatic insect larvae like blackfly, caddisfly, mayfly, and stonefly.
For 84 years TVA has monitored water quality and today it assesses over 700 sites throughout the Tennessee Valley, creating scorecards for each one. Clean water is one reason why a 2017 University of Tennessee, Institute of Agriculture study found that the value of recreation on TVA’s reservoirs is worth about $12 billion per year to the regional economy.
The Tennessee River is one of the most aquatically biodiverse river systems in North America; home to about 230 species of fish and 100 species of mussels, many of which are common to the watershed.
Though it is a small fish (4-6 inches), Percina apina plays a big role in the Tennessee Valley environment.
“This is the only Logperch species common to Tennessee, and though you might not see it right away, there is a web of other species that are interconnected to it,” Simmons explains. “Keeping our water clean, keeping this fish alive—this is our natural heritage. This is what we have to pass down to the next generation.”
found on 10news
==========================
Thousands of rare fish released into Snowdonia lakeConservationists are trying to halt the decline of the prehistoric Arctic charr population in Llyn Padarn
The fish, also known as Arctic charr, had almost become extinct in Llyn Padarn, Llanberis, Gwynedd - Wales’s first designated freshwater bathing lake and a Site of Special Scientific Interest.
Welsh Government agency Cyfoeth Naturiol Cymru (Natural Resources Wales) said the exact reasons for fish population’s decline were “not fully understood”.
The effects of climate change along with “site specific issues” such as the building of the nearby Dinorwig power station, or the lake’s water qualityafter it was hit by raw sewage and algal blooms in recent years, could also be factors.
NRW officers have been catching and stripping the eggs from some Torgoch and breeding them at their hatchery at Aberhonddu (Brecon).
Firms fined after Snowdonia beauty spot is polluted during hydro electric plant build
Some have been released back into Llyn Padarn while others have been released into Llyn Crafnant in the Conwy Valley to establish a back-up population.
The NRW’s Walter Hanks said: “We successfully released the Arctic charr in two batches of 7,000 into Llyn Padarn last week.
“In December 2016, we had collected eggs from charr in Afon Bala, (Llanberis) as part of our conservation programme for these unique fish.
“The fish were reared in our hatchery – and it was great to see them returned now at 11 months old.
The news was welcomed by Seiont, Gwyrfai and Llyfni Angling Society secretary Huw Hughes who said: “We hope there will be a boost in the numbers of the Torgoch.
"We as a Society would like to see a hatchery here at Crawia which could create an interest in the fish locally and we could return to the days when it was plentiful and available in restaurants in the area.”
Protest at Llyn Padarn over Glyn Rhonwy hydroelectric plant
He added: “Before the Padarn problems there were 15 boats regularly fishing for charr on the lake.”
Padarn Country Park surrounding Llyn Padarn has secured the Green Flag award again this year – the international mark of a quality park or green space. Situated in 800-acres, the park, run by Gwynedd Council, offers spectacular scenery across towards Dolbadarn Castle and the mountains of Snowdonia.
==========================
The fish, also known as Arctic charr, had almost become extinct in Llyn Padarn, Llanberis, Gwynedd - Wales’s first designated freshwater bathing lake and a Site of Special Scientific Interest.
Welsh Government agency Cyfoeth Naturiol Cymru (Natural Resources Wales) said the exact reasons for fish population’s decline were “not fully understood”.
The effects of climate change along with “site specific issues” such as the building of the nearby Dinorwig power station, or the lake’s water qualityafter it was hit by raw sewage and algal blooms in recent years, could also be factors.
NRW officers have been catching and stripping the eggs from some Torgoch and breeding them at their hatchery at Aberhonddu (Brecon).
Firms fined after Snowdonia beauty spot is polluted during hydro electric plant build
Some have been released back into Llyn Padarn while others have been released into Llyn Crafnant in the Conwy Valley to establish a back-up population.
The NRW’s Walter Hanks said: “We successfully released the Arctic charr in two batches of 7,000 into Llyn Padarn last week.
“In December 2016, we had collected eggs from charr in Afon Bala, (Llanberis) as part of our conservation programme for these unique fish.
“The fish were reared in our hatchery – and it was great to see them returned now at 11 months old.
The news was welcomed by Seiont, Gwyrfai and Llyfni Angling Society secretary Huw Hughes who said: “We hope there will be a boost in the numbers of the Torgoch.
"We as a Society would like to see a hatchery here at Crawia which could create an interest in the fish locally and we could return to the days when it was plentiful and available in restaurants in the area.”
Protest at Llyn Padarn over Glyn Rhonwy hydroelectric plant
He added: “Before the Padarn problems there were 15 boats regularly fishing for charr on the lake.”
Padarn Country Park surrounding Llyn Padarn has secured the Green Flag award again this year – the international mark of a quality park or green space. Situated in 800-acres, the park, run by Gwynedd Council, offers spectacular scenery across towards Dolbadarn Castle and the mountains of Snowdonia.
==========================
December at 9:30–17:00
Next Week 4th December
==========================
Next Week 4th December
==========================
'The marine equivalent of fracking': Europe to legalise controversial pulse fishingThe European Parliament’s fishing committee allowed a motion to pass legalising the controversial technique.
A BRANCH OF the European Union has voted to allow an untested type of fishing that sends electric shocks through the seabed.
The European Parliament fisheries committee decided to allow “electric pulse” fishing to be considered conventional, a move which would allow EU states to licence it like any other type of fishing.
The technique was invented in the Netherlands in 1992, and because of this mostly Dutch ships use the technique.
The fishing method replaces the chains of traditional “beam” trawling with a series of electrical drag wires mounted into the net. The wires send electrical pulses into the seabed which cause the muscles of fish to contract and forces the fish upwards and out of the seabed and into the net.
It’s also been alleged that the practice uses 46% less fuel and reduces the number of areas ships need to go to catch the fish.
The Dutch have remained the biggest advocates of pulse fishing, claiming that it ensures that more of the target species caught, less damage to the seabed and fish that are caught are in better condition.
But critics have raised concerns about the lack of testing the technique has, and called the method destructive and “the marine equivalent of fracking”.
Sinn Féin MEP Liadh Ní Riada, who’s a member of the EP fisheries committee, said that although the technique isn’t used in Ireland, “it’s only a matter of time” if the technique becomes legal.
She says if Dutch ships that use the technique were to fish in Irish waters, the practice would impact on Ireland that way.
As the legislation was passed, it’s likely that the practice will be allowed in Ireland. Ní Riada’s amendment would mean that greater responsibility is given to the local fishermen and fishing organisations on how fishing practices are used.
The Irish Wildlife Trust had urged the committee’s members to resist the measure. In a statement it said:
“The development of industrial electrocution of marine life is a further indicator of chronic overfishing of our waters, which requires ever more destructive modes of capture to target what’s left of fish and invertebrate populations for commercial exploitation.”
Found on the Journal.ie
==========================
A BRANCH OF the European Union has voted to allow an untested type of fishing that sends electric shocks through the seabed.
The European Parliament fisheries committee decided to allow “electric pulse” fishing to be considered conventional, a move which would allow EU states to licence it like any other type of fishing.
The technique was invented in the Netherlands in 1992, and because of this mostly Dutch ships use the technique.
The fishing method replaces the chains of traditional “beam” trawling with a series of electrical drag wires mounted into the net. The wires send electrical pulses into the seabed which cause the muscles of fish to contract and forces the fish upwards and out of the seabed and into the net.
It’s also been alleged that the practice uses 46% less fuel and reduces the number of areas ships need to go to catch the fish.
The Dutch have remained the biggest advocates of pulse fishing, claiming that it ensures that more of the target species caught, less damage to the seabed and fish that are caught are in better condition.
But critics have raised concerns about the lack of testing the technique has, and called the method destructive and “the marine equivalent of fracking”.
Sinn Féin MEP Liadh Ní Riada, who’s a member of the EP fisheries committee, said that although the technique isn’t used in Ireland, “it’s only a matter of time” if the technique becomes legal.
She says if Dutch ships that use the technique were to fish in Irish waters, the practice would impact on Ireland that way.
As the legislation was passed, it’s likely that the practice will be allowed in Ireland. Ní Riada’s amendment would mean that greater responsibility is given to the local fishermen and fishing organisations on how fishing practices are used.
The Irish Wildlife Trust had urged the committee’s members to resist the measure. In a statement it said:
“The development of industrial electrocution of marine life is a further indicator of chronic overfishing of our waters, which requires ever more destructive modes of capture to target what’s left of fish and invertebrate populations for commercial exploitation.”
Found on the Journal.ie
==========================
Ancient fish scales and vertebrate teeth share an embryonic origin
Latest findings support the theory that teeth in the animal kingdom evolved from the jagged scales of ancient fish, the remnants of which can be seen today embedded in the skin of sharks and skate.
This ancient dermal skeleton has undergone considerable reductions and modifications through time
Andrew GillisIn biology, one long-running debate has teeth: whether ancient fish scales moved into the mouth with the origin of jaws, or if the tooth had its own evolutionary inception.
Recent studies on species such as zebrafish showed scales and teeth developing from distinctly different clusters of cells in fish embryos, pouring cold water on ‘teeth from scales’ theories.
However, while most fish in the sea have bones, one ancient lineage – sharks, skates and rays – possess skeletons made entirely of cartilage.
These cartilaginous fish retain some primitive characteristics that have been lost in their bony counterparts, including small spiky scales embedded in their skin called ‘dermal denticles’ that bear a striking resemblance to jagged teeth.
Now, researchers at the University of Cambridge have used fluorescent markers to track cell development in the embryo of a cartilaginous fish – a little skate in this case – and found that these thorny scales are in fact created from the same type of cells as teeth: neural crest cells.
The findings, published in the journal PNAS, support the theory that, in the depths of early evolution, these ‘denticle’ scales were carried into the emerging mouths of jawed vertebrates to form teeth. Jawed vertebrates now make up 99% of all living vertebrates, from fish to mammals.
“The scales of most fish that live today are very different from the ancient scales of early vertebrates,” says study author Dr Andrew Gillis from Cambridge’s Department of Zoology and the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole.
“Primitive scales were much more tooth-like in structure, but have been retained in only a few living lineages, including that of cartilaginous fishes such as skates and sharks.
“Stroke a shark and you’ll find it feels rougher than other fish, as shark skin is covered entirely in dermal denticles. There’s evidence that shark skin was actually used as sandpaper as early as the Bronze Age,” says Gillis.
“By labelling the different types of cells in the embryos of skate, we were able to trace their fates. We show that, unlike most fish, the denticle scales of sharks and skate develop from neural crest cells, just like teeth.
“Neural crest cells are central to the process of tooth development in mammals. Our findings suggest a deep evolutionary relationship between these primitive fish scales and the teeth of vertebrates.
“Early jawless vertebrates were filter feeders – sucking in small prey items from the water. It was the advent of both jaws and teeth that allowed vertebrates to begin processing larger and more complex prey.”
The very name of these scales, dermal denticles, alludes to the fact that they are formed of dentine: a hard calcified tissue that makes up the majority of a tooth, sitting underneath the enamel.
The jagged dermal denticles on sharks and skate – and, quite possibly, vertebrate teeth – are remnants of the earliest mineralised skeleton of vertebrates: superficial armour plating.
This armour would have perhaps peaked some 400 million years ago in now-extinct jawless vertebrate species, as protection against predation by ferocious sea scorpions, or even their early jawed kin.
The Cambridge scientists hypothesise that these early armour plates were multi-layered: consisting of a foundation of bone and an outer layer of dentine – with the different layers deriving from different types of cells in unborn embryos.
These layers were then variously retained, reduced or lost in different vertebrate linages over the course of evolution. “This ancient dermal skeleton has undergone considerable reductions and modifications through time,” says Gillis.
“The sharks and skate have lost the bony under-layer, while most fish have lost the tooth-like dentine outer layer. A few species, such as the bichir, a popular fish in home aquariums, have retained aspects of both layers of this ancient external skeleton.”
The text in this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. by Cambridge University
==========================
Latest findings support the theory that teeth in the animal kingdom evolved from the jagged scales of ancient fish, the remnants of which can be seen today embedded in the skin of sharks and skate.
This ancient dermal skeleton has undergone considerable reductions and modifications through time
Andrew GillisIn biology, one long-running debate has teeth: whether ancient fish scales moved into the mouth with the origin of jaws, or if the tooth had its own evolutionary inception.
Recent studies on species such as zebrafish showed scales and teeth developing from distinctly different clusters of cells in fish embryos, pouring cold water on ‘teeth from scales’ theories.
However, while most fish in the sea have bones, one ancient lineage – sharks, skates and rays – possess skeletons made entirely of cartilage.
These cartilaginous fish retain some primitive characteristics that have been lost in their bony counterparts, including small spiky scales embedded in their skin called ‘dermal denticles’ that bear a striking resemblance to jagged teeth.
Now, researchers at the University of Cambridge have used fluorescent markers to track cell development in the embryo of a cartilaginous fish – a little skate in this case – and found that these thorny scales are in fact created from the same type of cells as teeth: neural crest cells.
The findings, published in the journal PNAS, support the theory that, in the depths of early evolution, these ‘denticle’ scales were carried into the emerging mouths of jawed vertebrates to form teeth. Jawed vertebrates now make up 99% of all living vertebrates, from fish to mammals.
“The scales of most fish that live today are very different from the ancient scales of early vertebrates,” says study author Dr Andrew Gillis from Cambridge’s Department of Zoology and the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole.
“Primitive scales were much more tooth-like in structure, but have been retained in only a few living lineages, including that of cartilaginous fishes such as skates and sharks.
“Stroke a shark and you’ll find it feels rougher than other fish, as shark skin is covered entirely in dermal denticles. There’s evidence that shark skin was actually used as sandpaper as early as the Bronze Age,” says Gillis.
“By labelling the different types of cells in the embryos of skate, we were able to trace their fates. We show that, unlike most fish, the denticle scales of sharks and skate develop from neural crest cells, just like teeth.
“Neural crest cells are central to the process of tooth development in mammals. Our findings suggest a deep evolutionary relationship between these primitive fish scales and the teeth of vertebrates.
“Early jawless vertebrates were filter feeders – sucking in small prey items from the water. It was the advent of both jaws and teeth that allowed vertebrates to begin processing larger and more complex prey.”
The very name of these scales, dermal denticles, alludes to the fact that they are formed of dentine: a hard calcified tissue that makes up the majority of a tooth, sitting underneath the enamel.
The jagged dermal denticles on sharks and skate – and, quite possibly, vertebrate teeth – are remnants of the earliest mineralised skeleton of vertebrates: superficial armour plating.
This armour would have perhaps peaked some 400 million years ago in now-extinct jawless vertebrate species, as protection against predation by ferocious sea scorpions, or even their early jawed kin.
The Cambridge scientists hypothesise that these early armour plates were multi-layered: consisting of a foundation of bone and an outer layer of dentine – with the different layers deriving from different types of cells in unborn embryos.
These layers were then variously retained, reduced or lost in different vertebrate linages over the course of evolution. “This ancient dermal skeleton has undergone considerable reductions and modifications through time,” says Gillis.
“The sharks and skate have lost the bony under-layer, while most fish have lost the tooth-like dentine outer layer. A few species, such as the bichir, a popular fish in home aquariums, have retained aspects of both layers of this ancient external skeleton.”
The text in this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. by Cambridge University
==========================
Eoanabas thibetana • Fossil Climbing Perch and Associated Plant Megafossils indicate A Warm and Wet Central Tibet During the late Oligocene
Eoanabas thibetana
Wu, Miao, Chang, Shi & Wang, 2017
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-00928-9 IVPP.cas.cn
Abstract
Understanding the Tibetan Plateau’s palaeogeography and palaeoenvironment is critical for reconstructing Asia’s climatic history; however, aspects of the plateau’s uplift history remain unclear. Here, we report a fossil biota that sheds new light on these issues. It comprises a fossil climbing perch (Anabantidae) and a diverse subtropical fossil flora from the Chattian (late Oligocene) of central Tibet. The fish, Eoanabas thibetana gen. et sp. nov., is inferred to be closely related to extant climbing perches from tropical lowlands in south Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. It has osteological correlates of a labyrinth organ, which in extant climbing perches gives them the ability to breathe air to survive warm, oxygen-poor stagnant waters or overland excursion under moist condition. This indicates that Eoanabas likewise lived in a warm and humid environment as suggested by the co-existing plant assemblage including palms and golden rain trees among others. As a palaeoaltimeter, this fossil biota suggests an elevation of ca. 1,000 m. These inferences conflict with conclusions of a high and dry Tibet claimed by some recent and influential palaeoaltimetry studies. Our discovery prompts critical re-evaluation of prevailing uplift models of the plateau and their temporal relationships with the Cenozoic climatic changes.
Systematic Palaeontology
Teleostei Müller, 1845
Anabantiformes sensu Wiley and Johnson, 2010
Anabantoidei sensu Lauder and Liem, 1983
Anabantidae Bonaparte, 1839
Eoanabas thibetana gen. et sp. nov.
Etymology. The generic name combines ‘Eo-’ (Greek, early/primeval) with ‘Anabas’, the type genus of Anabantidae from tropical Asia. The specific name refers to Tibet, China.
Holotype. IVPP V 22782, a complete skeleton, part and counterpart (Fig. 1a,b).
Paratypes. Sixteen specimens are designated as paratypes (Supplementary Information).
Locality and Horizon. Jiangnongtangga (type locality) and Songwori in south Nima Basin and Dayu in Lunpola Basin in central Tibet (Supplementary Figs 1 and 2). Middle-upper part of Dingqing Formation, late Oligocene (Chattian) (ca. 26~23.5 Ma)6, 20, 26.
Diagnosis. A labyrinth fish displaying anabantid characteristics including a posterior notch of the opercle bounded by spines, a V-shaped strut on inner side of opercle and six to nine anal-fin spines. It shares with Asian anabantids the following derived characters: broad infraorbitals 3–5 completely covering the cheek, a sensory canal pore just behind sphenotic/pterotic junction and pelvic plate lying flat; and it shares with African anabantids some derived characters, e.g., sensory canal opening in between the infraorbitals, supraorbital commissure of the sensory canal absent and male postocular contact organ present.
Figure 2 A new fossil climbing perch, Eoanabas thibetana gen. et sp. nov. from the upper Oligocene of central Tibet. It resembles its extant tropical relatives in having a labyrinth organ for air breathing and postocular contact organ in male fishes for stimulating the female during a mating clasp.
(a) Photograph and (b) line drawing of holotype (IVPP V22782a), image horizontally rotated. (c) Photograph and (d) line drawing of the head of IVPP V18412a, red area in (d) representing muscular attachment facet.
Abbreviations: alm, attachment facet of levator operculi muscle; Cbr1, ceratobranchial of first gill arch; op.st, V-shaped struts on inner side of opercles.
Feixiang Wu, Desui Miao, Mee-mann Chang, Gongle Shi and Ning Wang. 2017. Fossil Climbing Perch and Associated Plant Megafossils indicate A Warm and Wet Central Tibet During the late Oligocene. Scientific Reports. 7, Article number: 878. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-00928-9
ResearchGate.net/publication/316090334_Fossil_climbing_perch_and_associated_plant_megafossils_indicate_a_warm_and_wet_central_Tibet_during_the_late_Oligocene
IVPP.cas.cn/xwdt/tpxw/201706/t20170605_4807953.html
==========================
Eoanabas thibetana
Wu, Miao, Chang, Shi & Wang, 2017
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-00928-9 IVPP.cas.cn
Abstract
Understanding the Tibetan Plateau’s palaeogeography and palaeoenvironment is critical for reconstructing Asia’s climatic history; however, aspects of the plateau’s uplift history remain unclear. Here, we report a fossil biota that sheds new light on these issues. It comprises a fossil climbing perch (Anabantidae) and a diverse subtropical fossil flora from the Chattian (late Oligocene) of central Tibet. The fish, Eoanabas thibetana gen. et sp. nov., is inferred to be closely related to extant climbing perches from tropical lowlands in south Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. It has osteological correlates of a labyrinth organ, which in extant climbing perches gives them the ability to breathe air to survive warm, oxygen-poor stagnant waters or overland excursion under moist condition. This indicates that Eoanabas likewise lived in a warm and humid environment as suggested by the co-existing plant assemblage including palms and golden rain trees among others. As a palaeoaltimeter, this fossil biota suggests an elevation of ca. 1,000 m. These inferences conflict with conclusions of a high and dry Tibet claimed by some recent and influential palaeoaltimetry studies. Our discovery prompts critical re-evaluation of prevailing uplift models of the plateau and their temporal relationships with the Cenozoic climatic changes.
Systematic Palaeontology
Teleostei Müller, 1845
Anabantiformes sensu Wiley and Johnson, 2010
Anabantoidei sensu Lauder and Liem, 1983
Anabantidae Bonaparte, 1839
Eoanabas thibetana gen. et sp. nov.
Etymology. The generic name combines ‘Eo-’ (Greek, early/primeval) with ‘Anabas’, the type genus of Anabantidae from tropical Asia. The specific name refers to Tibet, China.
Holotype. IVPP V 22782, a complete skeleton, part and counterpart (Fig. 1a,b).
Paratypes. Sixteen specimens are designated as paratypes (Supplementary Information).
Locality and Horizon. Jiangnongtangga (type locality) and Songwori in south Nima Basin and Dayu in Lunpola Basin in central Tibet (Supplementary Figs 1 and 2). Middle-upper part of Dingqing Formation, late Oligocene (Chattian) (ca. 26~23.5 Ma)6, 20, 26.
Diagnosis. A labyrinth fish displaying anabantid characteristics including a posterior notch of the opercle bounded by spines, a V-shaped strut on inner side of opercle and six to nine anal-fin spines. It shares with Asian anabantids the following derived characters: broad infraorbitals 3–5 completely covering the cheek, a sensory canal pore just behind sphenotic/pterotic junction and pelvic plate lying flat; and it shares with African anabantids some derived characters, e.g., sensory canal opening in between the infraorbitals, supraorbital commissure of the sensory canal absent and male postocular contact organ present.
Figure 2 A new fossil climbing perch, Eoanabas thibetana gen. et sp. nov. from the upper Oligocene of central Tibet. It resembles its extant tropical relatives in having a labyrinth organ for air breathing and postocular contact organ in male fishes for stimulating the female during a mating clasp.
(a) Photograph and (b) line drawing of holotype (IVPP V22782a), image horizontally rotated. (c) Photograph and (d) line drawing of the head of IVPP V18412a, red area in (d) representing muscular attachment facet.
Abbreviations: alm, attachment facet of levator operculi muscle; Cbr1, ceratobranchial of first gill arch; op.st, V-shaped struts on inner side of opercles.
Feixiang Wu, Desui Miao, Mee-mann Chang, Gongle Shi and Ning Wang. 2017. Fossil Climbing Perch and Associated Plant Megafossils indicate A Warm and Wet Central Tibet During the late Oligocene. Scientific Reports. 7, Article number: 878. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-00928-9
ResearchGate.net/publication/316090334_Fossil_climbing_perch_and_associated_plant_megafossils_indicate_a_warm_and_wet_central_Tibet_during_the_late_Oligocene
IVPP.cas.cn/xwdt/tpxw/201706/t20170605_4807953.html
==========================
Santa Claus dives in to feed the Fish
www.wtol.com/clip/13916716/santa-donning-diving-suit-to-feed-fish-at-this-years-lights-before-christmas
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Chinese man jailed for over three years for catching one little fishElectrofishing duo head to prison after police find haul includes an endangered species
Li Licai and partner Tang Yongxiang were caught electrofishing in the Yangtze in Luzhou, Sichuan province, by police earlier this year.
Among their 7kg catch, was a baby 50 gram high-fin banded shark, which is listed as a Chinese category II endangered species, local news portal Newslz reported via its Weibo account.
A local court ruled on Friday that Li was guilty of poaching and killing endangered wildlife.
Because he had a previous conviction for harbouring a criminal and was still on probation for that offence, the court ruled that he should be jailed for three years and two months.
‘It was like a mini wildlife park’: Chinese police bust smugglers selling red pandas and gibbons online
Tang was also sentenced to seven months in prison for the same crime. They were each fined 2,000 yuan (US$300).
Killing endangered species can result in up to 10 years’ imprisonment, according to Chinese law.
The high-fin banded shark was added to the protected species list because its numbers have declined dramatically due to pollution, overfishing and dam construction, which prevents it reaching its spawning grounds.
Five held after Chinese authorities spot something fishy in ‘electrofishing’ video
The species – known as Myxocyprinus asiaticus– was given its name because it resembles a shark and is popular in the aquarium trade.
Poaching to satisfy this demand has further diminished its numbers.
Electrofishing, which involves using two electrodes to produce electric currents to shock and paralyse fish, is also illegal, regardless of the species caught.
==========================
Li Licai and partner Tang Yongxiang were caught electrofishing in the Yangtze in Luzhou, Sichuan province, by police earlier this year.
Among their 7kg catch, was a baby 50 gram high-fin banded shark, which is listed as a Chinese category II endangered species, local news portal Newslz reported via its Weibo account.
A local court ruled on Friday that Li was guilty of poaching and killing endangered wildlife.
Because he had a previous conviction for harbouring a criminal and was still on probation for that offence, the court ruled that he should be jailed for three years and two months.
‘It was like a mini wildlife park’: Chinese police bust smugglers selling red pandas and gibbons online
Tang was also sentenced to seven months in prison for the same crime. They were each fined 2,000 yuan (US$300).
Killing endangered species can result in up to 10 years’ imprisonment, according to Chinese law.
The high-fin banded shark was added to the protected species list because its numbers have declined dramatically due to pollution, overfishing and dam construction, which prevents it reaching its spawning grounds.
Five held after Chinese authorities spot something fishy in ‘electrofishing’ video
The species – known as Myxocyprinus asiaticus– was given its name because it resembles a shark and is popular in the aquarium trade.
Poaching to satisfy this demand has further diminished its numbers.
Electrofishing, which involves using two electrodes to produce electric currents to shock and paralyse fish, is also illegal, regardless of the species caught.
==========================
Navigobius kaguya • A New Species of Ptereleotrine Goby (Teleostei: Gobiidae) from the West Pacific
Navigobius kaguya
Gill, Tea & Senou, 2017
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4347.2.11
Abstract
Navigobius kaguya is described on the basis of two specimens from the Ryukyu Islands, Japan, and Luzon, Philippines. It differs from other described species of the genus in live coloration, and in having: second dorsal-fin rays I,16; anal-fin rays I,16; pectoral-fin rays 21–22; gill rakers 5–6 + 17; and first dorsal fin weakly to moderately incised between spines, taller than second dorsal. It closely resembles an undescribed species from Bali and the Maldives, but differs in lacking an orange-red mid-lateral stripe. The possible placement of Navigobius khanhoa in Oxymetapon is discussed.
Keywords: Pisces, ichthyology, taxonomy, Japan, Philippines
FIGURE 3. Navigobius kaguya, aquarium specimen (not retained, sex not determined) from Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands, Japan. Photo by Y.K. Tea.
FIGURE 4. Navigobius kaguya, KPM-NR 32379B, underwater photo in 36 m, Nakanose, between Ie-jima Island and Okinawa-jima Island, Ryukyu Islands, Japan, 22 June 1998. Photo by H. Kodato.
Navigobius kaguya new species
New standard Japanese name: Kaguyahime-haze
English common name: Kaguya’s dartfish
Diagnosis. Navigobius kaguya differs from congeners in the following: second dorsal-fin rays I,16; anal-fin rays I,16; pectoral-fin rays 21–22; gill rakers 5–6 + 17; first dorsal fin weakly to moderately incised between spines, taller than second dorsal; and live coloration (first dorsal fin yellow-grey to yellow, basally purple with 1-4 rows of yellow spots; sides of body without orange-red lateral stripe).
Etymology. Named after the Moon Princess Kaguya from the Japanese folk tale Taketori Monogatari (The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter). It alludes to the small spots on the first dorsal fin, which resemble the graphics used in moon phase charts, and acknowledges that the species occurs in Japanese waters. The name was selected by school students at education workshops associated with University of Sydney performances of 2071: A Performance about Climate Change.
Habitat and distribution. Navigobius kaguya is known only from Sagami Bay and the Ryukyu Islands, Japan, and the west coast of Luzon, Philippines (Figure 7). It appears to occur singly or in small groups in silty areas, with sand or mud-bottom or low-relief reef at depths ranging from 30–60 m.
Anthony C. Gill, Yi-Kai Tea and Hiroshi Senou. 2017. Navigobius kaguya, New Species of Ptereleotrine Goby (Teleostei: Gobiidae) from the West Pacific. Zootaxa. 4347(2); 371–380. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4347.2.11
==========================
Navigobius kaguya
Gill, Tea & Senou, 2017
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4347.2.11
Abstract
Navigobius kaguya is described on the basis of two specimens from the Ryukyu Islands, Japan, and Luzon, Philippines. It differs from other described species of the genus in live coloration, and in having: second dorsal-fin rays I,16; anal-fin rays I,16; pectoral-fin rays 21–22; gill rakers 5–6 + 17; and first dorsal fin weakly to moderately incised between spines, taller than second dorsal. It closely resembles an undescribed species from Bali and the Maldives, but differs in lacking an orange-red mid-lateral stripe. The possible placement of Navigobius khanhoa in Oxymetapon is discussed.
Keywords: Pisces, ichthyology, taxonomy, Japan, Philippines
FIGURE 3. Navigobius kaguya, aquarium specimen (not retained, sex not determined) from Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands, Japan. Photo by Y.K. Tea.
FIGURE 4. Navigobius kaguya, KPM-NR 32379B, underwater photo in 36 m, Nakanose, between Ie-jima Island and Okinawa-jima Island, Ryukyu Islands, Japan, 22 June 1998. Photo by H. Kodato.
Navigobius kaguya new species
New standard Japanese name: Kaguyahime-haze
English common name: Kaguya’s dartfish
Diagnosis. Navigobius kaguya differs from congeners in the following: second dorsal-fin rays I,16; anal-fin rays I,16; pectoral-fin rays 21–22; gill rakers 5–6 + 17; first dorsal fin weakly to moderately incised between spines, taller than second dorsal; and live coloration (first dorsal fin yellow-grey to yellow, basally purple with 1-4 rows of yellow spots; sides of body without orange-red lateral stripe).
Etymology. Named after the Moon Princess Kaguya from the Japanese folk tale Taketori Monogatari (The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter). It alludes to the small spots on the first dorsal fin, which resemble the graphics used in moon phase charts, and acknowledges that the species occurs in Japanese waters. The name was selected by school students at education workshops associated with University of Sydney performances of 2071: A Performance about Climate Change.
Habitat and distribution. Navigobius kaguya is known only from Sagami Bay and the Ryukyu Islands, Japan, and the west coast of Luzon, Philippines (Figure 7). It appears to occur singly or in small groups in silty areas, with sand or mud-bottom or low-relief reef at depths ranging from 30–60 m.
Anthony C. Gill, Yi-Kai Tea and Hiroshi Senou. 2017. Navigobius kaguya, New Species of Ptereleotrine Goby (Teleostei: Gobiidae) from the West Pacific. Zootaxa. 4347(2); 371–380. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4347.2.11
==========================
Longest living dolphin in captivity dies at Japan aquarium
Nana the bottlenose dolphin reached the grand old age of 47
A female bottlenose dolphin has died at a Japanese aquarium only weeks after breaking a national record of more than four decades in captivity, an official said Thursday.
Nana, thought to be around 47 years old, was discovered drowned on Tuesday at a natural cove of Shimoda Aquarium in Shizuoka, central Japan, said official Kiyoshi Sakamoto.
The death came less than a month after Nana reached 42 years and 10 months under human care, beating the previous record held by another dolphin at Kamogawa Sea World, southeast of Tokyo.
The aquarium will conduct an autopsy on the dolphin as the exact cause of its death could not immediately be established, said Sakamoto, adding that Nana had recently lost her appetite.
Many bottlenose dolphins die between the age of 10 and 15 years.
Nana, which drew media attention after breaking the record, was given an award and special residence certificate by the city of Shimoda last month.
"Nana was a symbol of our aquarium and had attracted a lot of fans with her cute behaviour," Sakamoto said.
"We miss her so much," he said, adding that the facility is considering holding a ceremony in the dolphin's memory.
Nana was captured off the coast of Ito in 1974 and had lived at the aquarium ever since. She gave birth to eight calves while also taking part in dolphin shows, the official said.
Dolphin shows are popular at Japanese aquariums, while some local fishermen hunt the animals for meat, which they say is a traditional part of their diet.
==========================
Nana the bottlenose dolphin reached the grand old age of 47
A female bottlenose dolphin has died at a Japanese aquarium only weeks after breaking a national record of more than four decades in captivity, an official said Thursday.
Nana, thought to be around 47 years old, was discovered drowned on Tuesday at a natural cove of Shimoda Aquarium in Shizuoka, central Japan, said official Kiyoshi Sakamoto.
The death came less than a month after Nana reached 42 years and 10 months under human care, beating the previous record held by another dolphin at Kamogawa Sea World, southeast of Tokyo.
The aquarium will conduct an autopsy on the dolphin as the exact cause of its death could not immediately be established, said Sakamoto, adding that Nana had recently lost her appetite.
Many bottlenose dolphins die between the age of 10 and 15 years.
Nana, which drew media attention after breaking the record, was given an award and special residence certificate by the city of Shimoda last month.
"Nana was a symbol of our aquarium and had attracted a lot of fans with her cute behaviour," Sakamoto said.
"We miss her so much," he said, adding that the facility is considering holding a ceremony in the dolphin's memory.
Nana was captured off the coast of Ito in 1974 and had lived at the aquarium ever since. She gave birth to eight calves while also taking part in dolphin shows, the official said.
Dolphin shows are popular at Japanese aquariums, while some local fishermen hunt the animals for meat, which they say is a traditional part of their diet.
==========================
Investigation launched as 1,000 fish die in Tokyo aquarium
More than 1,000 fish have died in a tank at a popular Tokyo aquarium due to oxygen deprivation.
An investigation has been launched at Sunshine Aquarium in Tokyo’s Ikebukuro district after 1,235 fish were found dead in its biggest tank.
The fish, which accounted for 94 per cent of all creatures residing in the 40-foot wide tank, were found by a security guard earlier this week.
Only 73 fish, including zebra sharks and stingrays, survived in the Sunshine Lagoon tank, which holds around 240 tonnes of water, according to reports.
The cause of the mass fish death is thought to be oxygen deprivation, after the stoppage of a bubble-generating tank cleaner hours earlier.
There are reports that staff temporarily stopped the machine in order to increase the efficacy of medicine which they had added to the water tank to treat some sick fish.
Sunshine Aquarium is home to around 37,000 fish from 750 species displayed in dozens of tanks, with other attractions including a Jelly Fish Tunnel, sea otters and penguins.
The aquarium, which is located on the rooftop of a busy commercial complex called Sunshine City, closed for one day following the discovery but has now resumed partial operations.
However, underwater performances in the tank and guided tours of the aquarium remain suspended, according to reports.
Officials at the aquarium now have cleaned out the water in the tank and plan to reintroduce new fish to the tank gradually in order to repopulate it.
Two years ago, another aquarium in the capital Tokyo Sea Life Park hit the headlines following the mysterious deaths of dozens of fish at Tokyo Sea Life leaving just one tuna roaming a once-full tank.
==========================
More than 1,000 fish have died in a tank at a popular Tokyo aquarium due to oxygen deprivation.
An investigation has been launched at Sunshine Aquarium in Tokyo’s Ikebukuro district after 1,235 fish were found dead in its biggest tank.
The fish, which accounted for 94 per cent of all creatures residing in the 40-foot wide tank, were found by a security guard earlier this week.
Only 73 fish, including zebra sharks and stingrays, survived in the Sunshine Lagoon tank, which holds around 240 tonnes of water, according to reports.
The cause of the mass fish death is thought to be oxygen deprivation, after the stoppage of a bubble-generating tank cleaner hours earlier.
There are reports that staff temporarily stopped the machine in order to increase the efficacy of medicine which they had added to the water tank to treat some sick fish.
Sunshine Aquarium is home to around 37,000 fish from 750 species displayed in dozens of tanks, with other attractions including a Jelly Fish Tunnel, sea otters and penguins.
The aquarium, which is located on the rooftop of a busy commercial complex called Sunshine City, closed for one day following the discovery but has now resumed partial operations.
However, underwater performances in the tank and guided tours of the aquarium remain suspended, according to reports.
Officials at the aquarium now have cleaned out the water in the tank and plan to reintroduce new fish to the tank gradually in order to repopulate it.
Two years ago, another aquarium in the capital Tokyo Sea Life Park hit the headlines following the mysterious deaths of dozens of fish at Tokyo Sea Life leaving just one tuna roaming a once-full tank.
==========================
Nothobranchius cooperi • A New Species of Annual Killifish (Teleostei: Cyprinodontiformes) from the Luapula River Drainage, northern Zambia
Nothobranchius cooperi
Nagy, Watters & Bellstedt, 2017
DOI: 10.2989/16085914.2017.1372270
Abstract
Nothobranchius cooperi, Nagy, Watters and Bellstedt, new species, is described from seasonal streams and ephemeral pools associated with the upper Mansa River system in the middle Luapula drainage and systems draining into the low-lying area marginal to the southwestern part of Lake Bangweulu, in the Luapula province of northern Zambia. It belongs to the N. brieni species group. Males of Nothobranchius cooperi are distinguished from congeners by the following unique combination of characters: body scales with broad orange posterior margin, forming a highly irregular cross-barred pattern; anal fin fairly uniform orange-red with irregular to regular, light blue-green zone close to the base; caudal peduncle length 1.2–1.3 times its depth; prepelvic length 48.8–51.9% SL; and head depth 75–77% of head length. Genetic divergence of the mitochondrial COI and ND2 genes and nuclear S7 gene support the distinction of the new species from its closest known relative, N. rosenstocki and confirms its position in the N. brieni species group.
Keywords: Mansa River, mtDNA analyses, nDNA analyses, Nothobranchiidae, Nothobranchius rosenstocki, taxonomy
: Nothobranchius cooperi, wild-caught male, not preserved. From the easternmost known location, about 11 km west of Samfya, in a drainage system flowing into the low-lying area marginal to the southwestern part of Lake Bangweulu.
Figure 8: Nothobranchius cooperi, wild-caught female, not preserved. Location: type locality, about 20 km east of the town of Mansa, upper Mansa River system Luapula Province, middle Luapula River drainage.
Type locality for Nothobranchius cooperi. ... the upper Mansa River system, Luapula Province, middle Luapula River drainage. Habitat comprised a densely vegetated seasonal stream and associated roadside ditches and pools within a broad shallow valley. Photograph taken 28 March, 1997.
Etymology: The specific epithet is given in honour of Barry J. Cooper, renowned collector and breeder of killifish, for his significant contributions to the field study of Nothobranchius and to the killifish hobby in general. A noun in genitive.
B. Nagy, B. R. Watters, P. D. W. van der Merwe, F. P. D. Cotterill and D. U. Bellstedt. 2017.
Nothobranchius cooperi (Teleostei: Cyprinodontiformes): A New Species of Annual Killifish from the Luapula River Drainage, northern Zambia. African Journal of Aquatic Science. 42(3); 201-218. DOI: 10.2989/16085914.2017.1372270
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==========================
Nothobranchius cooperi
Nagy, Watters & Bellstedt, 2017
DOI: 10.2989/16085914.2017.1372270
Abstract
Nothobranchius cooperi, Nagy, Watters and Bellstedt, new species, is described from seasonal streams and ephemeral pools associated with the upper Mansa River system in the middle Luapula drainage and systems draining into the low-lying area marginal to the southwestern part of Lake Bangweulu, in the Luapula province of northern Zambia. It belongs to the N. brieni species group. Males of Nothobranchius cooperi are distinguished from congeners by the following unique combination of characters: body scales with broad orange posterior margin, forming a highly irregular cross-barred pattern; anal fin fairly uniform orange-red with irregular to regular, light blue-green zone close to the base; caudal peduncle length 1.2–1.3 times its depth; prepelvic length 48.8–51.9% SL; and head depth 75–77% of head length. Genetic divergence of the mitochondrial COI and ND2 genes and nuclear S7 gene support the distinction of the new species from its closest known relative, N. rosenstocki and confirms its position in the N. brieni species group.
Keywords: Mansa River, mtDNA analyses, nDNA analyses, Nothobranchiidae, Nothobranchius rosenstocki, taxonomy
: Nothobranchius cooperi, wild-caught male, not preserved. From the easternmost known location, about 11 km west of Samfya, in a drainage system flowing into the low-lying area marginal to the southwestern part of Lake Bangweulu.
Figure 8: Nothobranchius cooperi, wild-caught female, not preserved. Location: type locality, about 20 km east of the town of Mansa, upper Mansa River system Luapula Province, middle Luapula River drainage.
Type locality for Nothobranchius cooperi. ... the upper Mansa River system, Luapula Province, middle Luapula River drainage. Habitat comprised a densely vegetated seasonal stream and associated roadside ditches and pools within a broad shallow valley. Photograph taken 28 March, 1997.
Etymology: The specific epithet is given in honour of Barry J. Cooper, renowned collector and breeder of killifish, for his significant contributions to the field study of Nothobranchius and to the killifish hobby in general. A noun in genitive.
B. Nagy, B. R. Watters, P. D. W. van der Merwe, F. P. D. Cotterill and D. U. Bellstedt. 2017.
Nothobranchius cooperi (Teleostei: Cyprinodontiformes): A New Species of Annual Killifish from the Luapula River Drainage, northern Zambia. African Journal of Aquatic Science. 42(3); 201-218. DOI: 10.2989/16085914.2017.1372270
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==========================
“Lembeh Frogfish” Identified: Redescription of Nudiantennarius subteres (Smith and Radcliffe,in Radcliffe, 1912) (Lophiiformes: Antennariidae)
Nudiantennarius subteres (Smith and Radcliffe, in Radcliffe, 1912)
Pietsch & Arnold, 2017.
@ASIHCopeia DOI: 10.1643/CI-17-651
The “Lembeh Frogfish” or “Ocellated Frogfish,” a distinct antennariid, known for many years, especially among members of the dive community, and suggested by some to represent an undescribed species, is identified as Nudiantennarius subteres (Smith and Radcliffe). Unique in several ways—including reduced dermal spinules, the body appearing naked; illicium short, about half the length of the second dorsal-fin spine; second dorsal-fin spine unusually long and narrow, without a posterior membrane; pectoral lobe narrow, somewhat detached from the body; membranes between the rays of the paired fins deeply incised; and all pelvic-fin rays simple—the species is redescribed and figured below. Morphological and molecular analyses indicate a close relationship with the Sargassumfish, Histrio histrio.
Nudiantennarius subteres, uncollected specimens:(Figure 2)
(A) Pantar Island, Alor Archipelago, Indonesia, 29 November 2006 (© 2006 David Hall); (B) Secret Bay, Anilao, Philippines, 18 April 2009 (photo by Stephane Bailliez); (C) Dauin, Negros Island, Philippines, 29 April 2015 (photo by Daniel Geary); (D) Ambon, Indonesia, 28 October 2015 (photo by Linda Ianniello); (E) hypothesized mated pair, male on the left, female on the right; Seraya Bay, northeast Bali, Indonesia, 1 November 2012 (photo by Vincent Chalias); (F) Secret Bay, Anilao, Philippines, ca. 2 m depth, 19 April 2009 (photo by Stephane Bailliez).
Theodore W. Pietsch and Rachel J. Arnold. 2017. The “Lembeh Frogfish” Identified: Redescription of Nudiantennarius subteres (Smith and Radcliffe, in Radcliffe, 1912) (Teleostei: Lophiiformes: Antennariidae). Copeia. 105(4); 659-665. DOI: 10.1643/CI-17-651
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==========================
Nudiantennarius subteres (Smith and Radcliffe, in Radcliffe, 1912)
Pietsch & Arnold, 2017.
@ASIHCopeia DOI: 10.1643/CI-17-651
The “Lembeh Frogfish” or “Ocellated Frogfish,” a distinct antennariid, known for many years, especially among members of the dive community, and suggested by some to represent an undescribed species, is identified as Nudiantennarius subteres (Smith and Radcliffe). Unique in several ways—including reduced dermal spinules, the body appearing naked; illicium short, about half the length of the second dorsal-fin spine; second dorsal-fin spine unusually long and narrow, without a posterior membrane; pectoral lobe narrow, somewhat detached from the body; membranes between the rays of the paired fins deeply incised; and all pelvic-fin rays simple—the species is redescribed and figured below. Morphological and molecular analyses indicate a close relationship with the Sargassumfish, Histrio histrio.
Nudiantennarius subteres, uncollected specimens:(Figure 2)
(A) Pantar Island, Alor Archipelago, Indonesia, 29 November 2006 (© 2006 David Hall); (B) Secret Bay, Anilao, Philippines, 18 April 2009 (photo by Stephane Bailliez); (C) Dauin, Negros Island, Philippines, 29 April 2015 (photo by Daniel Geary); (D) Ambon, Indonesia, 28 October 2015 (photo by Linda Ianniello); (E) hypothesized mated pair, male on the left, female on the right; Seraya Bay, northeast Bali, Indonesia, 1 November 2012 (photo by Vincent Chalias); (F) Secret Bay, Anilao, Philippines, ca. 2 m depth, 19 April 2009 (photo by Stephane Bailliez).
Theodore W. Pietsch and Rachel J. Arnold. 2017. The “Lembeh Frogfish” Identified: Redescription of Nudiantennarius subteres (Smith and Radcliffe, in Radcliffe, 1912) (Teleostei: Lophiiformes: Antennariidae). Copeia. 105(4); 659-665. DOI: 10.1643/CI-17-651
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==========================
Redescription and New Records of Jansen’s Goatfish, Parupeneus jansenii (Mullidae), from the Western Pacific and Eastern Indian Ocean
Parupeneus jansenii (Bleeker, 1856)
Parupeneus heptacanthus (Lacepède, 1802)
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4344.3.6
Abstract
For Jansen’s goatfish, Parupeneus jansenii (Mullidae), taxonomic knowledge has been rather poor and occurrence information restricted to a few localities only, with verified records from northern Sulawesi and Sunda Street (Indonesia), and Luzon (Philippines). This species is here included in the so-called “heptacanthus” group together with the Indo-Pacific cinnabar goatfish, P. heptacanthus, and five Indian Ocean congenerics, based on an evenly, symmetrically rounded posterior maxilla margin and similarities in meristic characters and preserved colour. In total 29 P. jansenii and 53 P. heptacanthus consisting of types, recently collected material from south-central Vietnam, southern Indonesia, and NE Australia, and geographically related reference material were studied along with single types of the other five heptacanthus-group species and P. angulatus, a morphologically similar Western Indian Ocean species. In total 62 quantitative meristic and morphometric characters including standard length (SL) were analysed after splitting the data into two size classes (small-sized fish, < 110 mm SL, vs. large-sized fish > 110 mm SL) to account for size-related differences due to allometry. Diagnoses for P. jansenii and P. heptacanthus and a redescription for P. jansenii were prepared. Fresh-fish colour descriptions for both large- and small-sized voucher specimens of P. jansenii are provided and the effects of freshness status on colour patterns is documented. New records for P. jansenii for Vietnam, southern Indonesia and NE Australia (= first verified record for Australia) are reported and depth information (24–100 m depth range) is given for the first time. P. jansenii differs from the co-occurring P. heptacanthus - independently of size - in shallower body and caudal peduncle, smaller maximum head depth, shorter barbels, caudal and pelvic fins, shallower first dorsal fin, shallower first ray of second dorsal fin, and lack of small dark red or reddish-brown spot on or just below the eighth lateral-line scale. The populations of P. jansenii from Vietnam and Australia differ from each other in a single character, the height of the eighth dorsal-fin ray, but both overlap with the intermediate population from Indonesia. This comprehensive alpha-taxonomic approach provides a useful tool for uncovering the diversity of Parupeneus goatfishes.
Keywords: Pisces, heptacanthus species group, NE Australia, southern Indonesia, south-central Vietnam, morphometric characters, intraspecific variation, colour patterns
FIGURE . Parupeneus jansenii (left side) and P. heptacanthus (right side).
(A) VNMN-I 4, 159 mm SL, Hon Ro landing site, Nha Trang City, Vietnam (Franz Uiblein); (B) VNMN-I 51, 135 mm SL, Binh Tan fish market, Nha Trang City, Vietnam (Tuan Anh Hoang); (C) CSIRO H 5972-19, 146 mm SL, Kedonganan, Jimbaran Bay (S coast of Bali), Indonesia (William T. White); (D) CSIRO H 8154-01, 81 mm SL, NE of Lizard Island, Queensland, Australia (Daniel C. Gledhill);
(E, F) VNMN-I 49, 170 mm SL, Binh Tan fish market, Nha Trang, Vietnam (Tuan Anh Hoang); (G) CSIRO H 5972-17, 150 mm SL, Kedonganan, Jimbaran Bay (S coast of Bali), Indonesia (William T. White); (H) CSIRO H 7379-07, 122 mm SL, NE of Cairns, Great Barrier Reef, Queensland, Australia (Daniel C. Gledhill).
Taxonomy
Genus Parupeneus Bleeker, 1863
Parupeneus jansenii (Bleeker, 1856)
Jansen’s goatfish
Upeneus jansenii Bleeker, 1856 (type locality Manado, Sulawesi).
Parupeneus jansenii: Bleeker 1875; Randall 2004; Allen & Erdmann 2012
Description. Morphometric data as ratios of SL for large-sized fish, data for small-sized fish (including syntypes) in squared brackets: body elongated, its depth at first dorsal-fin origin 3.8–4.3 [3.9–4.5]; body depth at anal-fin origin 4.8–5.3 [4.8–5.4]; caudal peduncle depth 11–12 [11–13], subequal to interorbital length (10—12 [10–12]); maximum head depth 4.1–4.5 [4.2–4.9], subequal to barbel length (4.0–4.6 [3.9–4.6]); head depth through eye 4.7–5.2 [4.9–5.6]; head length 2.9–3.2 [3.0–3.2], larger than maximum depth of body and caudal-fin length (3.7–4.0 [3.5–4.0]); snout length 6.2–7.0 [6.6–8.0], shorter than postorbital length (8.0–9.4 [7.5–8.9]) in large-sized fish; orbit length 13–18 [13–15]; anal-fin height 7.2–8.4 [7.0–8.1]; second dorsal-fin height 7.3–9.3 [7.0–8.8]; pectoral-fin length 4.0–4.7 [4.3–4.6], subequal to barbel length and subequal to pelvic-fin length (4.6– 5.0 [4.3–4.9]) in small-sized fish.
Distribution, depth range, and size. Parupeneus jansenii occurs in the Western Pacific and Eastern Indian Ocean in the area ranging from south-central Vietnam and northern Philippines to southwestern Indonesia and NE Australia, with verified records from Nha Trang Bay (this study), Luzon (Randall 2004), northern Sulawesi (type locality Manado), Sunda Strait off southern Sumatra (Randall 2004), southern Bali and southern Lombok (this study), and Torres Strait to Great Barrier Reef (this study). Depth range is 24–100 m, maximum size is 159 mm SL.
Parupeneus heptacanthus (Lacepède, 1802)
Cinnabar goatfish
Sciaena heptacantha Lacepède, 1802 (type locality not given)
Upeneus cinnabarinus Cuvier in Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1829
Upeneus pleurospilos Bleeker, 1853 (type locality Ambon, Moluccas, Indonesia)
Parupeneus heptacanthus Kim & Amaoka 2001, Randall 2004, Randall & Heemstra 2009, Allen & Erdman 2012
Franz Uiblein, Tuan Anh Hoang and Daniel Gledhill. 2017. Redescription and New Records of Jansen’s Goatfish, Parupeneus jansenii (Mullidae), from the Western Pacific and Eastern Indian Ocean. Zootaxa. 4344(3); 541–559. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4344.3.6
==========================
Parupeneus jansenii (Bleeker, 1856)
Parupeneus heptacanthus (Lacepède, 1802)
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4344.3.6
Abstract
For Jansen’s goatfish, Parupeneus jansenii (Mullidae), taxonomic knowledge has been rather poor and occurrence information restricted to a few localities only, with verified records from northern Sulawesi and Sunda Street (Indonesia), and Luzon (Philippines). This species is here included in the so-called “heptacanthus” group together with the Indo-Pacific cinnabar goatfish, P. heptacanthus, and five Indian Ocean congenerics, based on an evenly, symmetrically rounded posterior maxilla margin and similarities in meristic characters and preserved colour. In total 29 P. jansenii and 53 P. heptacanthus consisting of types, recently collected material from south-central Vietnam, southern Indonesia, and NE Australia, and geographically related reference material were studied along with single types of the other five heptacanthus-group species and P. angulatus, a morphologically similar Western Indian Ocean species. In total 62 quantitative meristic and morphometric characters including standard length (SL) were analysed after splitting the data into two size classes (small-sized fish, < 110 mm SL, vs. large-sized fish > 110 mm SL) to account for size-related differences due to allometry. Diagnoses for P. jansenii and P. heptacanthus and a redescription for P. jansenii were prepared. Fresh-fish colour descriptions for both large- and small-sized voucher specimens of P. jansenii are provided and the effects of freshness status on colour patterns is documented. New records for P. jansenii for Vietnam, southern Indonesia and NE Australia (= first verified record for Australia) are reported and depth information (24–100 m depth range) is given for the first time. P. jansenii differs from the co-occurring P. heptacanthus - independently of size - in shallower body and caudal peduncle, smaller maximum head depth, shorter barbels, caudal and pelvic fins, shallower first dorsal fin, shallower first ray of second dorsal fin, and lack of small dark red or reddish-brown spot on or just below the eighth lateral-line scale. The populations of P. jansenii from Vietnam and Australia differ from each other in a single character, the height of the eighth dorsal-fin ray, but both overlap with the intermediate population from Indonesia. This comprehensive alpha-taxonomic approach provides a useful tool for uncovering the diversity of Parupeneus goatfishes.
Keywords: Pisces, heptacanthus species group, NE Australia, southern Indonesia, south-central Vietnam, morphometric characters, intraspecific variation, colour patterns
FIGURE . Parupeneus jansenii (left side) and P. heptacanthus (right side).
(A) VNMN-I 4, 159 mm SL, Hon Ro landing site, Nha Trang City, Vietnam (Franz Uiblein); (B) VNMN-I 51, 135 mm SL, Binh Tan fish market, Nha Trang City, Vietnam (Tuan Anh Hoang); (C) CSIRO H 5972-19, 146 mm SL, Kedonganan, Jimbaran Bay (S coast of Bali), Indonesia (William T. White); (D) CSIRO H 8154-01, 81 mm SL, NE of Lizard Island, Queensland, Australia (Daniel C. Gledhill);
(E, F) VNMN-I 49, 170 mm SL, Binh Tan fish market, Nha Trang, Vietnam (Tuan Anh Hoang); (G) CSIRO H 5972-17, 150 mm SL, Kedonganan, Jimbaran Bay (S coast of Bali), Indonesia (William T. White); (H) CSIRO H 7379-07, 122 mm SL, NE of Cairns, Great Barrier Reef, Queensland, Australia (Daniel C. Gledhill).
Taxonomy
Genus Parupeneus Bleeker, 1863
Parupeneus jansenii (Bleeker, 1856)
Jansen’s goatfish
Upeneus jansenii Bleeker, 1856 (type locality Manado, Sulawesi).
Parupeneus jansenii: Bleeker 1875; Randall 2004; Allen & Erdmann 2012
Description. Morphometric data as ratios of SL for large-sized fish, data for small-sized fish (including syntypes) in squared brackets: body elongated, its depth at first dorsal-fin origin 3.8–4.3 [3.9–4.5]; body depth at anal-fin origin 4.8–5.3 [4.8–5.4]; caudal peduncle depth 11–12 [11–13], subequal to interorbital length (10—12 [10–12]); maximum head depth 4.1–4.5 [4.2–4.9], subequal to barbel length (4.0–4.6 [3.9–4.6]); head depth through eye 4.7–5.2 [4.9–5.6]; head length 2.9–3.2 [3.0–3.2], larger than maximum depth of body and caudal-fin length (3.7–4.0 [3.5–4.0]); snout length 6.2–7.0 [6.6–8.0], shorter than postorbital length (8.0–9.4 [7.5–8.9]) in large-sized fish; orbit length 13–18 [13–15]; anal-fin height 7.2–8.4 [7.0–8.1]; second dorsal-fin height 7.3–9.3 [7.0–8.8]; pectoral-fin length 4.0–4.7 [4.3–4.6], subequal to barbel length and subequal to pelvic-fin length (4.6– 5.0 [4.3–4.9]) in small-sized fish.
Distribution, depth range, and size. Parupeneus jansenii occurs in the Western Pacific and Eastern Indian Ocean in the area ranging from south-central Vietnam and northern Philippines to southwestern Indonesia and NE Australia, with verified records from Nha Trang Bay (this study), Luzon (Randall 2004), northern Sulawesi (type locality Manado), Sunda Strait off southern Sumatra (Randall 2004), southern Bali and southern Lombok (this study), and Torres Strait to Great Barrier Reef (this study). Depth range is 24–100 m, maximum size is 159 mm SL.
Parupeneus heptacanthus (Lacepède, 1802)
Cinnabar goatfish
Sciaena heptacantha Lacepède, 1802 (type locality not given)
Upeneus cinnabarinus Cuvier in Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1829
Upeneus pleurospilos Bleeker, 1853 (type locality Ambon, Moluccas, Indonesia)
Parupeneus heptacanthus Kim & Amaoka 2001, Randall 2004, Randall & Heemstra 2009, Allen & Erdman 2012
Franz Uiblein, Tuan Anh Hoang and Daniel Gledhill. 2017. Redescription and New Records of Jansen’s Goatfish, Parupeneus jansenii (Mullidae), from the Western Pacific and Eastern Indian Ocean. Zootaxa. 4344(3); 541–559. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4344.3.6
==========================
A Revision of Paracanthocobitis zonalternans(Cypriniformes: Nemacheilidae) Species Complex with Descriptions of Three New Species
FIGURE 4. Paracanthocobitis zonalternans from the Salween drainage, Thailand.
UF 188197, Mae Hong Son Province, live
photo by Z. S. Randall (UF).
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4324.1.5
Abstract
The Paracanthocobitis zonalternans species complex is revised based on analysis of morphological and molecular data. Three new species, P. nigrolineata, P. marmorata, and P. triangula are described, and P. phuketensis is removed from synonymy. All species are described morphologically, geographic ranges are delimited, and relationships are discussed for those for which molecular data (cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 - COI) are available. In view of the morphological similarities of some of the species, a surprising result of this study was the moderately large genetic distances among species. Uncorrected COI p-distances between geographic clades of P. zonalternans ranged from 7.6–9.3%, suggesting that the species are reproductively isolated from one another even though morphological changes are minor. Paracanthocobitis phuketensis, distributed in several rivers draining to the Gulf of Thailand and to the Andaman Sea, shows considerable intraspecific variation that should be explored in detail for historical and ecological explanations. Cobitis chlorosoma McClelland, 1839 from Assam, India, is a synonym of P. botia, not P. zonalternans.
Keywords: Pisces, Cypriniformes, Southeast Asia, zipper loaches, Acanthocobitis
Paracanthocobitis zonalternans (Blyth, 1860)
Dwarf Zipper Loach
Cobitis zonalternans Blyth, 1860:172. Type locality: Tenasserim provinces, Burma. Two syntypes (Day, 1869:551; Day, 1872:186), presumed lost (Hora, 1929:319). Neotype, ZSM 27468, designated by Kottelat, 1990:42, Huai Mae Charno, 4 km south Amphoe Mae Ramat on road 1085 [approximately 16.967N, 98.567E], Tak Province, Salween drainage, Thailand.
Nemacheilus zonalternans.—Day, 1869:551.
Nemachilus zonalternans.—Day, 1889:232.
Noemacheilus zonalternans.—Sen, 1985:119, fig. 63.
Acanthocobitis zonalternans.—Kottelat, 1990:13.
Acanthocobitis (Paracanthocobitis) zonalternans.—Grant, 2007:3.
Paracanthocobitis zonalternans.—Singer & Page, 2015:396.
Diagnosis. Paracanthocobitis zonalternans is distinguished from all other species of Paracanthocobitis by combination of incomplete lateral line ending near dorsal-fin insertion; 9½–10½ branched dorsal-fin rays; axillary pelvic lobe present; series of black blotches, usually without black stripe but with faint dusky stripe, along side of body, usually ending near dorsal-fin insertion; circular black spot on upper margin of caudal-fin base; black pigment extending from lateral stripe onto pectoral-fin base; no marmorated pattern anterior to dorsal-fin origin; dorsal saddles short, rarely connecting to lateral blotches; 8 (occasionally 7) branched upper caudal-fin rays.
Distribution. Paracanthocobitis zonalternans is known from the Salween River drainage in Thailand and Myanmar (Fig. 5).
Paracanthocobitis phuketensis (Klausewitz, 1957)
Phuket Zipper Loach
Noemacheilus phuketensis Klausewitz, 1957:195, fig. 1. Type locality: Phuket Island, Thailand. Holotype: SMF 3966.
Acanthocobitis phuketensis.—Bănărescu & Nalbant, 1964:160.
Noemacheilus (Acanthocobitis) phuketensis.—Bănărescu & Nalbant, 1968:322.
Diagnosis. Paracanthocobitis phuketensis is distinguished from all other species of Paracanthocobitis by combination of incomplete lateral line ending near dorsal-fin insertion; 9½–10½ branched dorsal-fin rays; axillary pelvic lobe usually absent, occasionally rudimentary; series of black blotches, sometimes overlain with faint dusky stripe along side of body not obscuring lateral blotches, ending near caudal-fin; circular black spot on upper margin of caudal-fin base; black pigment not extending from black blotches along side of body onto pectoral-fin base; no marmorated pattern anterior to dorsal-fin origin; dorsal saddles longer than interspaces, frequently connecting to lateral blotches; 7–8 branched upper caudal-fin rays.
Distribution. Paracanthocobitis phuketensis is known from Peninsular Thailand in the Panang Tak drainage and on Phuket Island, south to the Perlis, Padang Sarai, and Ketil drainages of Peninsular Malaysia (Fig. 5).
Paracanthocobitis nigrolineata, new species
Blacklined Zipper Loach
Diagnosis. Paracanthocobitis nigrolineata is distinguished from all other species of Paracanthocobitis by combination of incomplete lateral line ending near dorsal-fin insertion; 9½–10½ branched dorsal-fin rays; axillary pelvic lobe present; black stripe along side of body, ending near caudal-fin, usually overlying black lateral blotches extending ventrally from lateral stripe; circular black spot on upper margin of caudal-fin base; black pigment extending from lateral stripe onto pectoral-fin base; no marmorated pattern anterior to dorsal-fin origin; black dorsal saddles short, not connecting to lateral blotches; 8 branched upper caudal-fin rays.
Distribution. Paracanthocobitis nigrolineata is known from Irrawaddy and Sittang drainages of Myanmar and the Mae Khlong drainage of Thailand with a large geographic gap in-between (Fig. 5). This gap is likely due to the paucity of sampling in Myanmar.
Etymology. The epithet nigrolineata refers to the black stripe along the side of the body.
Paracanthocobitis triangula, new species
Wedged Zipper Loach
Diagnosis. Paracanthocobitis triangula is distinguished from all other species of Paracanthocobitis by combination of incomplete lateral line ending near dorsal-fin insertion; 9½–10½ branched dorsal-fin rays; axillary pelvic lobe present; series of black blotches, sometimes overlain with faint dusky stripe along side of body not obscuring lateral blotches, ending just beyond dorsal-fin insertion; small black triangular blotch in ocellus on upper margin of caudal-fin base; black pigment of the midlateral stripe not extending onto pectoral-fin base; no marmorated pattern between dorsal saddles and lateral blotches; dorsal saddles usually extending ventrally just past faint lateral stripe, usually connecting to lateral blotches; 8 branched upper caudal-fin rays.
Distribution. Paracanthocobitis triangula is known from the Brahmaputra (Jamuna) and Meghna drainages of Bangladesh (Fig. 5).
Etymology. The epithet triangula refers to the usual presence of a small black triangular blotch in the ocellus on the upper margin of the caudal peduncle.
Paracanthocobitis marmorata, new species
Marmorated Zipper Loach
Diagnosis. Paracanthocobitis marmorata is distinguished from all other species of Paracanthocobitis by combination of incomplete lateral line ending just beyond dorsal-fin insertion; 9½–10½ branched dorsal-fin rays; no axillary pelvic lobe; no black stripe along side of body; marmorated pattern of dark lines and blotches between irregularly shaped dorsal saddles dark blotches along side of body; teardrop-shaped black spot on upper margin of caudal-fin base; 8 branched upper caudal-fin rays.
Distribution. Paracanthocobitis marmorata is known from the Barak drainage of Assam, India (Fig. 5).
Etymology. The epithet marmorata refers to the marmorated pattern on the nape and between the dorsal saddles and lateral blotches in lieu of the black stripe along the side of the body typical of other members of the P. zonalternans complex.
Randal A. Singer, John M. Pfeiffer and Lawrence M. Page. 2017. A Revision of the Paracanthocobitis zonalternans (Cypriniformes: Nemacheilidae) Species Complex with Descriptions of Three New Species. Zootaxa. 4324(1); 85–107. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4324.1.5
==========================
FIGURE 4. Paracanthocobitis zonalternans from the Salween drainage, Thailand.
UF 188197, Mae Hong Son Province, live
photo by Z. S. Randall (UF).
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4324.1.5
Abstract
The Paracanthocobitis zonalternans species complex is revised based on analysis of morphological and molecular data. Three new species, P. nigrolineata, P. marmorata, and P. triangula are described, and P. phuketensis is removed from synonymy. All species are described morphologically, geographic ranges are delimited, and relationships are discussed for those for which molecular data (cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 - COI) are available. In view of the morphological similarities of some of the species, a surprising result of this study was the moderately large genetic distances among species. Uncorrected COI p-distances between geographic clades of P. zonalternans ranged from 7.6–9.3%, suggesting that the species are reproductively isolated from one another even though morphological changes are minor. Paracanthocobitis phuketensis, distributed in several rivers draining to the Gulf of Thailand and to the Andaman Sea, shows considerable intraspecific variation that should be explored in detail for historical and ecological explanations. Cobitis chlorosoma McClelland, 1839 from Assam, India, is a synonym of P. botia, not P. zonalternans.
Keywords: Pisces, Cypriniformes, Southeast Asia, zipper loaches, Acanthocobitis
Paracanthocobitis zonalternans (Blyth, 1860)
Dwarf Zipper Loach
Cobitis zonalternans Blyth, 1860:172. Type locality: Tenasserim provinces, Burma. Two syntypes (Day, 1869:551; Day, 1872:186), presumed lost (Hora, 1929:319). Neotype, ZSM 27468, designated by Kottelat, 1990:42, Huai Mae Charno, 4 km south Amphoe Mae Ramat on road 1085 [approximately 16.967N, 98.567E], Tak Province, Salween drainage, Thailand.
Nemacheilus zonalternans.—Day, 1869:551.
Nemachilus zonalternans.—Day, 1889:232.
Noemacheilus zonalternans.—Sen, 1985:119, fig. 63.
Acanthocobitis zonalternans.—Kottelat, 1990:13.
Acanthocobitis (Paracanthocobitis) zonalternans.—Grant, 2007:3.
Paracanthocobitis zonalternans.—Singer & Page, 2015:396.
Diagnosis. Paracanthocobitis zonalternans is distinguished from all other species of Paracanthocobitis by combination of incomplete lateral line ending near dorsal-fin insertion; 9½–10½ branched dorsal-fin rays; axillary pelvic lobe present; series of black blotches, usually without black stripe but with faint dusky stripe, along side of body, usually ending near dorsal-fin insertion; circular black spot on upper margin of caudal-fin base; black pigment extending from lateral stripe onto pectoral-fin base; no marmorated pattern anterior to dorsal-fin origin; dorsal saddles short, rarely connecting to lateral blotches; 8 (occasionally 7) branched upper caudal-fin rays.
Distribution. Paracanthocobitis zonalternans is known from the Salween River drainage in Thailand and Myanmar (Fig. 5).
Paracanthocobitis phuketensis (Klausewitz, 1957)
Phuket Zipper Loach
Noemacheilus phuketensis Klausewitz, 1957:195, fig. 1. Type locality: Phuket Island, Thailand. Holotype: SMF 3966.
Acanthocobitis phuketensis.—Bănărescu & Nalbant, 1964:160.
Noemacheilus (Acanthocobitis) phuketensis.—Bănărescu & Nalbant, 1968:322.
Diagnosis. Paracanthocobitis phuketensis is distinguished from all other species of Paracanthocobitis by combination of incomplete lateral line ending near dorsal-fin insertion; 9½–10½ branched dorsal-fin rays; axillary pelvic lobe usually absent, occasionally rudimentary; series of black blotches, sometimes overlain with faint dusky stripe along side of body not obscuring lateral blotches, ending near caudal-fin; circular black spot on upper margin of caudal-fin base; black pigment not extending from black blotches along side of body onto pectoral-fin base; no marmorated pattern anterior to dorsal-fin origin; dorsal saddles longer than interspaces, frequently connecting to lateral blotches; 7–8 branched upper caudal-fin rays.
Distribution. Paracanthocobitis phuketensis is known from Peninsular Thailand in the Panang Tak drainage and on Phuket Island, south to the Perlis, Padang Sarai, and Ketil drainages of Peninsular Malaysia (Fig. 5).
Paracanthocobitis nigrolineata, new species
Blacklined Zipper Loach
Diagnosis. Paracanthocobitis nigrolineata is distinguished from all other species of Paracanthocobitis by combination of incomplete lateral line ending near dorsal-fin insertion; 9½–10½ branched dorsal-fin rays; axillary pelvic lobe present; black stripe along side of body, ending near caudal-fin, usually overlying black lateral blotches extending ventrally from lateral stripe; circular black spot on upper margin of caudal-fin base; black pigment extending from lateral stripe onto pectoral-fin base; no marmorated pattern anterior to dorsal-fin origin; black dorsal saddles short, not connecting to lateral blotches; 8 branched upper caudal-fin rays.
Distribution. Paracanthocobitis nigrolineata is known from Irrawaddy and Sittang drainages of Myanmar and the Mae Khlong drainage of Thailand with a large geographic gap in-between (Fig. 5). This gap is likely due to the paucity of sampling in Myanmar.
Etymology. The epithet nigrolineata refers to the black stripe along the side of the body.
Paracanthocobitis triangula, new species
Wedged Zipper Loach
Diagnosis. Paracanthocobitis triangula is distinguished from all other species of Paracanthocobitis by combination of incomplete lateral line ending near dorsal-fin insertion; 9½–10½ branched dorsal-fin rays; axillary pelvic lobe present; series of black blotches, sometimes overlain with faint dusky stripe along side of body not obscuring lateral blotches, ending just beyond dorsal-fin insertion; small black triangular blotch in ocellus on upper margin of caudal-fin base; black pigment of the midlateral stripe not extending onto pectoral-fin base; no marmorated pattern between dorsal saddles and lateral blotches; dorsal saddles usually extending ventrally just past faint lateral stripe, usually connecting to lateral blotches; 8 branched upper caudal-fin rays.
Distribution. Paracanthocobitis triangula is known from the Brahmaputra (Jamuna) and Meghna drainages of Bangladesh (Fig. 5).
Etymology. The epithet triangula refers to the usual presence of a small black triangular blotch in the ocellus on the upper margin of the caudal peduncle.
Paracanthocobitis marmorata, new species
Marmorated Zipper Loach
Diagnosis. Paracanthocobitis marmorata is distinguished from all other species of Paracanthocobitis by combination of incomplete lateral line ending just beyond dorsal-fin insertion; 9½–10½ branched dorsal-fin rays; no axillary pelvic lobe; no black stripe along side of body; marmorated pattern of dark lines and blotches between irregularly shaped dorsal saddles dark blotches along side of body; teardrop-shaped black spot on upper margin of caudal-fin base; 8 branched upper caudal-fin rays.
Distribution. Paracanthocobitis marmorata is known from the Barak drainage of Assam, India (Fig. 5).
Etymology. The epithet marmorata refers to the marmorated pattern on the nape and between the dorsal saddles and lateral blotches in lieu of the black stripe along the side of the body typical of other members of the P. zonalternans complex.
Randal A. Singer, John M. Pfeiffer and Lawrence M. Page. 2017. A Revision of the Paracanthocobitis zonalternans (Cypriniformes: Nemacheilidae) Species Complex with Descriptions of Three New Species. Zootaxa. 4324(1); 85–107. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4324.1.5
==========================
Back from the brink: crowdfunding saves rainbow fish
Scientists turn to crowdfunding to save rare Running River Rainbowfish
( ABC News ) One of Australia's rarest freshwater fish has been saved from the brink of extinction, through a release program researchers hope will ensure the species' survival.
The Running River Rainbowfish is native to just a 13-kilometre stretch of the river bearing its name, in the upper Burdekin catchment near Paluma, 80 kilometres north-west of Townsville in North Queensland.
The remote Paluma Ranges in North Queensland is home to tiny populations of wild Running River Rainbowfish.
(ABC Rural: Tom Major)Two years ago Peter Unmack was part of a team of fish researchers in the upper Burdekin monitoring the region's freshwater fish populations, when he realised the species was under threat of extinction.
"The key threat is actually another rainbowfish that's been introduced upstream," Dr Unmack said.
"We're not really sure when and where they came from, but they appeared in really big numbers in 2015.
"Just by luck we were up here sampling at that time, and we noticed there were a few of these foreign rainbows down in the main part of Running River, and when we went upstream we found thousands of them and we realised this fish is in real trouble."
International renownThe Running River Rainbowfish is a particularly colourful variety, well known to aquarium enthusiasts as being a popular species of the genus.
Interest from hobbyists led the team to research its wild population and discover the threat to its existence.
"It's got quite distinctive colour patterns … a lot of the time rainbowfish keepers are really good at telling things apart, so when they say something's a bit different, we usually pay attention and go and try and work out what's going on," Dr Unmack said.
With minimal government funding available to conserve the species, which is yet to be described by scientists, the University of Canberra team decided to go online for the money they needed.
"When you've got a newly discovered species that doesn't have a name, it's very difficult to get funding from the Federal Government for these types of things. They don't really have any emergency funds set aside," he said.
"Because rainbowfish are so popular in the aquarium trade there's massive interest overseas so we decided to crowd fund, so we started a project asking different clubs around the world to donate funds."
That effort netted $12,000 from clubs and enthusiasts, money that has been spent on trips to collect 207 remaining Running River Rainbowfish to breed them in captivity for release in a new environment.
That new habitat is Puzzle and Deception Creeks, upstream of Running River and separated from the original range of the species by high waterfalls, where experts hope to avoid further dilution of the genetic pool of the Running River Rainbowfish through hybridisation.
Natural ark environmentThe property where the fish have been released is owned by not-for-profit group Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC), who bought the Mount Zero and Taravale cattle stations in 2004 to conserve the region's rich ecosystem.
Eridani Mulder is the resident ecologist at Mount Zero-Taravale, and she is taking a keen interest in the restocking campaign in creeks previously unstocked with rainbowfish.
"It's a very exciting project for us, part of AWC's core business is mammal reintroduction … this is our first foray into a fish translocation," she said.
"It's really exciting to have this species on AWC estate and having helped to ensure the continued survival of this species."
Karl Moy is a master's student and research assistant also from the University of Canberra who has adopted the fish for his thesis project, releasing around 4,000 captive-bred fingerlings so far in the two creek systems earlier this year.
"They're doing well, so that population size is increasing quite rapidly, and it's spreading throughout the catchment," he said.
Rain in late October hampered efforts to conduct a comprehensive population survey, but signs are positive that the fish has taken to its new environment.
"Not quite sure how it's doing here [Puzzle Creek] but we have detected juveniles, so it means that they are breeding," Mr Moy said.
"Depending on how Puzzle Creek pans out we probably won't need to do too many more releases, but it's important to monitor long term.
"Throwing fish in a creek doesn't mean they're going to survive."
==========================
Scientists turn to crowdfunding to save rare Running River Rainbowfish
( ABC News ) One of Australia's rarest freshwater fish has been saved from the brink of extinction, through a release program researchers hope will ensure the species' survival.
The Running River Rainbowfish is native to just a 13-kilometre stretch of the river bearing its name, in the upper Burdekin catchment near Paluma, 80 kilometres north-west of Townsville in North Queensland.
The remote Paluma Ranges in North Queensland is home to tiny populations of wild Running River Rainbowfish.
(ABC Rural: Tom Major)Two years ago Peter Unmack was part of a team of fish researchers in the upper Burdekin monitoring the region's freshwater fish populations, when he realised the species was under threat of extinction.
"The key threat is actually another rainbowfish that's been introduced upstream," Dr Unmack said.
"We're not really sure when and where they came from, but they appeared in really big numbers in 2015.
"Just by luck we were up here sampling at that time, and we noticed there were a few of these foreign rainbows down in the main part of Running River, and when we went upstream we found thousands of them and we realised this fish is in real trouble."
International renownThe Running River Rainbowfish is a particularly colourful variety, well known to aquarium enthusiasts as being a popular species of the genus.
Interest from hobbyists led the team to research its wild population and discover the threat to its existence.
"It's got quite distinctive colour patterns … a lot of the time rainbowfish keepers are really good at telling things apart, so when they say something's a bit different, we usually pay attention and go and try and work out what's going on," Dr Unmack said.
With minimal government funding available to conserve the species, which is yet to be described by scientists, the University of Canberra team decided to go online for the money they needed.
"When you've got a newly discovered species that doesn't have a name, it's very difficult to get funding from the Federal Government for these types of things. They don't really have any emergency funds set aside," he said.
"Because rainbowfish are so popular in the aquarium trade there's massive interest overseas so we decided to crowd fund, so we started a project asking different clubs around the world to donate funds."
That effort netted $12,000 from clubs and enthusiasts, money that has been spent on trips to collect 207 remaining Running River Rainbowfish to breed them in captivity for release in a new environment.
That new habitat is Puzzle and Deception Creeks, upstream of Running River and separated from the original range of the species by high waterfalls, where experts hope to avoid further dilution of the genetic pool of the Running River Rainbowfish through hybridisation.
Natural ark environmentThe property where the fish have been released is owned by not-for-profit group Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC), who bought the Mount Zero and Taravale cattle stations in 2004 to conserve the region's rich ecosystem.
Eridani Mulder is the resident ecologist at Mount Zero-Taravale, and she is taking a keen interest in the restocking campaign in creeks previously unstocked with rainbowfish.
"It's a very exciting project for us, part of AWC's core business is mammal reintroduction … this is our first foray into a fish translocation," she said.
"It's really exciting to have this species on AWC estate and having helped to ensure the continued survival of this species."
Karl Moy is a master's student and research assistant also from the University of Canberra who has adopted the fish for his thesis project, releasing around 4,000 captive-bred fingerlings so far in the two creek systems earlier this year.
"They're doing well, so that population size is increasing quite rapidly, and it's spreading throughout the catchment," he said.
Rain in late October hampered efforts to conduct a comprehensive population survey, but signs are positive that the fish has taken to its new environment.
"Not quite sure how it's doing here [Puzzle Creek] but we have detected juveniles, so it means that they are breeding," Mr Moy said.
"Depending on how Puzzle Creek pans out we probably won't need to do too many more releases, but it's important to monitor long term.
"Throwing fish in a creek doesn't mean they're going to survive."
==========================
Exploring fish eyes in the deep
Professor Ron Douglas talks about fish eyes, their evolution and how they could one day help treat human eye diseases
First published Friday, 3rd November, 2017 • by George Wigmore (Senior Communications Officer)“This is one of the few professions in the world where you can actually still claim to do exploration,” says Professor Ron Douglas as we sit down in a communal meeting room on the ground floor of the Gloucester Building at City. “Really you and I are just irrelevant in terms of the total number, biomass and importance on earth. Everything is deep sea. The rest is a little decoration on the surface.”
Simply put, we still know very little about our own oceans. It is estimated that 95 per cent of this underwater world remains unexplored. If you take a globe and study it for a while you’ll see that large swathes of the planet are covered with water. In fact, 71 per cent of the surface area of the earth is water, but in terms of living space, that number is much greater.
“If you think about it life on land is largely two dimensional as we live within the first couple of meters of the surface,” explains Ron, “but the average depth of the ocean is 4000m, so in terms of volume it’s huge – 99.9 per cent of living space on the planet is deep sea.”
Searching the deep
As the Chair of Visual Science at City University London, Professor Ron Douglas gets to investigate the optical systems of many weird and wonderful things.
“To me deep sea fish are fascinating because the deep sea is such an extreme environment. So what these fish are looking at and how they see it is a really interesting question.”
The deep sea can be a very dark and gloomy place, as even in clear water sunlight doesn’t reach further than 1000 metres below the surface. To compensate for this, deep sea fish have evolved some interesting solutions.
“Almost all have very sophisticated visual systems with big and fully functional eyes. Most animals in the deep sea bioluminescence - they make their own light - so it’s the relationship between the bioluminescence and the visual system that is important.”
However studying these fish – and working out what they see and how they see it – is no simple task, with the ships needed for such expeditions extremely expensive. “The techniques are also quite crude so it’s not always easy to catch what you’re after,” he adds.
Typically Ron uses two methods when trying to observe and catch the fish he is looking to study. The first involves using a net with a mouth the size of a football goal and the second uses submersibles. In order to fish at 4000m the net requires 15 kilometres of wire and is then towed behind the boat at a speed of 2 miles an hour. The problem is that with a small net and a low speed the catch isn’t always representative of what’s present that far below.
The issues are also comparable when using submersibles. Once locked inside with bolts from the outside, the subs – which are normally either a round sphere or long tube – are lowered into the sea and released enabling Ron to explore the depths for a day or so. While the sights can be incredible there are also major issues when it comes to exploring the ocean this way.
“The truth is that our ability to study the deep sea is severely limited as we can fish and use submersibles, but many of the things that are there we never see as the lights and engines scare most animals away,” says Ron.
African adventures
Flying from London via Johannesburg to Walvis Bay, a small plane containing Ron and his colleagues landed on a tiny strip of desert in Namibia’s skeleton coast. From there Ron boarded an ex-German fisheries vessel named FS Sonne before leaving port quickly to avoid an impending storm. Heading 400 miles westwards, they sailed towards a series of seamounts around the Walvis Ridge to go fishing.
Having spent four days fishing on the ridge, the ship then headed south, passing the Cape of Good Hope to get to Durban where the trip finished.
“While these ships can carry around 20 scientists most projects don’t need that many so you normally invite your friends along. Of course you don’t want people who do exactly what you do; you want people who study different things. In this case I have a colleague at the University of Tübingen in Germany and he got a place on this trip and was able to take three other people, one of whom was myself.”
Following on from previous trips, the main aim of this expedition was to investigate two different fish, both of which display remarkable traits which have yet to be fully explained. The first concerned a family of fish known as dragon fish and the second another group of species known as spookfish, both of which have fascinating visual systems.
Finding fish at the bottom of the ocean
If you were to dive down 100 meters and be unfortunate enough to cut yourself while swimming, you would bleed green instead of red as red light cannot travel that far in water. Light has many peculiar properties, one of which is that it is comprised of many different wavelengths. The longer wavelengths of light, such as red, are absorbed by the sea leaving the shorter wavelengths - such as blue and green - to travel much more easily through the ocean. This is the reason why we bleed green instead of red at such depths and also why the oceans appear blue, but this phenomenon also has repercussions for deep sea vision.
“In the deep sea you only really see blue light, so all the animals down there have eyes that only see blue except for one family of dragonfish which have special organs called photophores producing light. Some emit blue light but others strangely produce red light, so they are making light that nobody can see. So we looked at the eyes and found that actually they are incredibly sensitive to red light, so they have a private wavelength at the bottom of the sea. This enables them to illuminate prey without the prey knowing that they’re being looked at.”
But Ron suspects that having their own ‘private wavelength’ may also have further benefits.
“When it comes to mating, a lot of fish flash light at each other to attract mates using bioluminescence. By doing that with blue light you may find a mate but you may also get eaten as other fish down there can see the light. But if you can make and see red light, only your mates can see you so you can reproduce as you like while remaining invisible to predators.”
But how do they detect the red light? The answer was something that no one was expecting, as Ron and his colleagues found that the fish see red light by using chlorophyll, a compound normally used by plants and bacteria to make energy from light.
“Nobody believed me when I first suggested this,” said Ron. “In their eyes, the chlorophyll absorbs the red light, activating the other visual pigments – which normally detect light – indirectly. We actually think that they may get the chlorophyll from colonies of bacteria living in their eyes, and we were trying to get more evidence for it on this trip. If it’s true, this would be a very big deal.”
Since Ron first published his research in Nature in 1998, in the intervening years people have taken chlorophyll and inserted it into the eyes of cows and other animals, subsequently improving their sensitively to red light. When people looked further into the reasons for this it was found that in fact chlorophyll stabilises one of the visual pigments - known as rhodopsin - in the eye. With the degradation and destabilisation of rhodopsin the basis of a lot of retinal diseases, there is hope that chlorophyll could be used to stabilise rhodopsin in these human conditions, potentially providing a therapy for some forms of blindness.
The spookfish also have an unusual visual system. Instead of possessing one type of eye which uses a lens to focus light onto photosensitive receptor cells, the spookfish augment this visual system with another which is almost completely unheard-of in vertebrates.
Separated from the main eye is a visual system which works not unlike a radio telescope, using reflective guanine crystals - one of the constituent bases of DNA - to reflect light towards another set of photoreceptor cells independent to the main eye. This split structure allows the fish to see up and down at the same time. But still the mystery of how such an incredible structure could evolve remains obscure.
Once back on land, Ron will continue to explore the visual systems of these creatures, using molecular biology, microscopy and computer modelling to try and further work out how these wonderful eyes work. By sequencing their genes he will also gain an insight into the evolutionary history of these incredible eyes.
But while the implications are wide ranging, as one day these weird and wonderful fish eyes could perhaps provide the key to solving common eye diseases, maybe even providing the basis for a cure for some sight threatening diseases, there is still much work to be done. This is in many ways fitting as the deep sea continues to cling on to many of its secrets due to the difficulties associated with exploring such depths.
As a result, it will take Ron and other deep sea explorers many more years to uncover all the mysteries, as we still know very little about our deepest oceans. As Ron says, “every time you go in a submersible you see something that hardly anyone has ever seen before, and every third dive you see something nobody has seen before.” There is still much to discover.
==========================
Professor Ron Douglas talks about fish eyes, their evolution and how they could one day help treat human eye diseases
First published Friday, 3rd November, 2017 • by George Wigmore (Senior Communications Officer)“This is one of the few professions in the world where you can actually still claim to do exploration,” says Professor Ron Douglas as we sit down in a communal meeting room on the ground floor of the Gloucester Building at City. “Really you and I are just irrelevant in terms of the total number, biomass and importance on earth. Everything is deep sea. The rest is a little decoration on the surface.”
Simply put, we still know very little about our own oceans. It is estimated that 95 per cent of this underwater world remains unexplored. If you take a globe and study it for a while you’ll see that large swathes of the planet are covered with water. In fact, 71 per cent of the surface area of the earth is water, but in terms of living space, that number is much greater.
“If you think about it life on land is largely two dimensional as we live within the first couple of meters of the surface,” explains Ron, “but the average depth of the ocean is 4000m, so in terms of volume it’s huge – 99.9 per cent of living space on the planet is deep sea.”
Searching the deep
As the Chair of Visual Science at City University London, Professor Ron Douglas gets to investigate the optical systems of many weird and wonderful things.
“To me deep sea fish are fascinating because the deep sea is such an extreme environment. So what these fish are looking at and how they see it is a really interesting question.”
The deep sea can be a very dark and gloomy place, as even in clear water sunlight doesn’t reach further than 1000 metres below the surface. To compensate for this, deep sea fish have evolved some interesting solutions.
“Almost all have very sophisticated visual systems with big and fully functional eyes. Most animals in the deep sea bioluminescence - they make their own light - so it’s the relationship between the bioluminescence and the visual system that is important.”
However studying these fish – and working out what they see and how they see it – is no simple task, with the ships needed for such expeditions extremely expensive. “The techniques are also quite crude so it’s not always easy to catch what you’re after,” he adds.
Typically Ron uses two methods when trying to observe and catch the fish he is looking to study. The first involves using a net with a mouth the size of a football goal and the second uses submersibles. In order to fish at 4000m the net requires 15 kilometres of wire and is then towed behind the boat at a speed of 2 miles an hour. The problem is that with a small net and a low speed the catch isn’t always representative of what’s present that far below.
The issues are also comparable when using submersibles. Once locked inside with bolts from the outside, the subs – which are normally either a round sphere or long tube – are lowered into the sea and released enabling Ron to explore the depths for a day or so. While the sights can be incredible there are also major issues when it comes to exploring the ocean this way.
“The truth is that our ability to study the deep sea is severely limited as we can fish and use submersibles, but many of the things that are there we never see as the lights and engines scare most animals away,” says Ron.
African adventures
Flying from London via Johannesburg to Walvis Bay, a small plane containing Ron and his colleagues landed on a tiny strip of desert in Namibia’s skeleton coast. From there Ron boarded an ex-German fisheries vessel named FS Sonne before leaving port quickly to avoid an impending storm. Heading 400 miles westwards, they sailed towards a series of seamounts around the Walvis Ridge to go fishing.
Having spent four days fishing on the ridge, the ship then headed south, passing the Cape of Good Hope to get to Durban where the trip finished.
“While these ships can carry around 20 scientists most projects don’t need that many so you normally invite your friends along. Of course you don’t want people who do exactly what you do; you want people who study different things. In this case I have a colleague at the University of Tübingen in Germany and he got a place on this trip and was able to take three other people, one of whom was myself.”
Following on from previous trips, the main aim of this expedition was to investigate two different fish, both of which display remarkable traits which have yet to be fully explained. The first concerned a family of fish known as dragon fish and the second another group of species known as spookfish, both of which have fascinating visual systems.
Finding fish at the bottom of the ocean
If you were to dive down 100 meters and be unfortunate enough to cut yourself while swimming, you would bleed green instead of red as red light cannot travel that far in water. Light has many peculiar properties, one of which is that it is comprised of many different wavelengths. The longer wavelengths of light, such as red, are absorbed by the sea leaving the shorter wavelengths - such as blue and green - to travel much more easily through the ocean. This is the reason why we bleed green instead of red at such depths and also why the oceans appear blue, but this phenomenon also has repercussions for deep sea vision.
“In the deep sea you only really see blue light, so all the animals down there have eyes that only see blue except for one family of dragonfish which have special organs called photophores producing light. Some emit blue light but others strangely produce red light, so they are making light that nobody can see. So we looked at the eyes and found that actually they are incredibly sensitive to red light, so they have a private wavelength at the bottom of the sea. This enables them to illuminate prey without the prey knowing that they’re being looked at.”
But Ron suspects that having their own ‘private wavelength’ may also have further benefits.
“When it comes to mating, a lot of fish flash light at each other to attract mates using bioluminescence. By doing that with blue light you may find a mate but you may also get eaten as other fish down there can see the light. But if you can make and see red light, only your mates can see you so you can reproduce as you like while remaining invisible to predators.”
But how do they detect the red light? The answer was something that no one was expecting, as Ron and his colleagues found that the fish see red light by using chlorophyll, a compound normally used by plants and bacteria to make energy from light.
“Nobody believed me when I first suggested this,” said Ron. “In their eyes, the chlorophyll absorbs the red light, activating the other visual pigments – which normally detect light – indirectly. We actually think that they may get the chlorophyll from colonies of bacteria living in their eyes, and we were trying to get more evidence for it on this trip. If it’s true, this would be a very big deal.”
Since Ron first published his research in Nature in 1998, in the intervening years people have taken chlorophyll and inserted it into the eyes of cows and other animals, subsequently improving their sensitively to red light. When people looked further into the reasons for this it was found that in fact chlorophyll stabilises one of the visual pigments - known as rhodopsin - in the eye. With the degradation and destabilisation of rhodopsin the basis of a lot of retinal diseases, there is hope that chlorophyll could be used to stabilise rhodopsin in these human conditions, potentially providing a therapy for some forms of blindness.
The spookfish also have an unusual visual system. Instead of possessing one type of eye which uses a lens to focus light onto photosensitive receptor cells, the spookfish augment this visual system with another which is almost completely unheard-of in vertebrates.
Separated from the main eye is a visual system which works not unlike a radio telescope, using reflective guanine crystals - one of the constituent bases of DNA - to reflect light towards another set of photoreceptor cells independent to the main eye. This split structure allows the fish to see up and down at the same time. But still the mystery of how such an incredible structure could evolve remains obscure.
Once back on land, Ron will continue to explore the visual systems of these creatures, using molecular biology, microscopy and computer modelling to try and further work out how these wonderful eyes work. By sequencing their genes he will also gain an insight into the evolutionary history of these incredible eyes.
But while the implications are wide ranging, as one day these weird and wonderful fish eyes could perhaps provide the key to solving common eye diseases, maybe even providing the basis for a cure for some sight threatening diseases, there is still much work to be done. This is in many ways fitting as the deep sea continues to cling on to many of its secrets due to the difficulties associated with exploring such depths.
As a result, it will take Ron and other deep sea explorers many more years to uncover all the mysteries, as we still know very little about our deepest oceans. As Ron says, “every time you go in a submersible you see something that hardly anyone has ever seen before, and every third dive you see something nobody has seen before.” There is still much to discover.
==========================
Review of the Chromis xanthura Species Group (Perciformes: Pomacentridae), with Description of A New Species; Chromis anadema
Chromis anadema
Motomura, Nishiyama & Chiba, 2017
DOI: 10.1007/s10228-017-0601-8
Abstract
A taxonomic review of the Chromis xanthura species group, defined here as having 13 dorsal-fin spines, three upper and three lower procurrent caudal-fin rays, two black bands at the preopercular and opercular margins, and a yellow caudal fin when juvenile, resulted in the recognition of three species, Chromis xanthura (Bleeker 1854), Chromis opercularis (Günther 1867), and Chromis anadema sp. nov. Chromis xanthura and C. opercularis, the Pacific and Indian Ocean paired sister species, respectively, are redescribed, with confirmation of two color types of C. xanthura (having a white or black caudal peduncle and fin) as a single species on the basis of morphological and molecular analyses. Chromis anadema sp. nov., described from the oceanic islands of the Pacific Ocean on the basis of 21 specimens, is characterized by having 28–33 gill rakers; longest dorsal-fin soft ray length 20.0–24.7% of standard length (SL); first anal-fin spine length 5.0–6.1% of SL; caudal-fin length 33.4–43.8% of SL; posterior tips of caudal-fin lobes not filamentous in adults; broad black bands along preopercular and opercular margins, sum width of two bands 28.9–38.7% of head length; distal half of soft-rayed portion of dorsal fin transparent in adults; triangular black blotches at upper and lower caudal-fin base in adults; caudal peduncle and fin bluish black in adults; and body grayish, and all fins (except for pectoral fin) bright yellow in juveniles.
Keywords: Teleostei, Chromis anadema, Chromis opercularis, Damselfish, Taxonomy, Morphology
Fig. 2 Photographs of Chromis anadema sp. nov.
a–b Fresh holotype from Yoron-jima island, Ryukyu Islands, Japan (KAUM–I. 42229, 101.3 mm SL);
c live individual from Ishigaki-jima island, Ryukyu Islands, Japan, 15 m depth (photo: T. Uchida); d live juvenile from Hachijo-jima island, Izu Islands, Japan, 12 m depth (photo: S. Kato)
Chromis anadema sp. nov.
(New English name: Short-tail Doublebar Chromis;
new standard Japanese name: Kanzashi-suzumedai)
Diagnosis. A species of Chromis with the following combination of characters: dorsal-fin rays XIII, 10 or 11 (mode 11); anal-fin rays II, 10–12 (11); pectoral-fin rays 18–20 (19); upper and lower procurrent caudal-fin rays 3; pored lateral-line scales 17–19 (18); gill rakers 7–9 (8) + 20–24 (22) = 28–33 (30); longest dorsal-fin soft ray length 20.0–24.7% (mean 22.3%) of SL; first anal-fin spine length 5.0–6.1% (5.6%) of SL; caudal-fin length 33.4–43.8% (38.4%) of SL; posterior tips of caudal-fin lobes not filamentous in adults; broad black bands along preopercular and opercular margins, sum width of two bands 28.9–38.7% (33.1%) of head length; distal half of soft-rayed portion of dorsal fin transparent in adults; triangular black blotches at upper and lower caudal-fin base in adults; caudal peduncle and fin bluish black in adults; body grayish and all fins (except for pectoral fin) bright yellow in juveniles.
Distribution. Known from the vicinity of oceanic islands in the tropical Pacific Ocean (Fig. 4). The specimens were collected from the Ryukyu, Mariana, Marquesas, Society, Gambier, and Pitcairn islands at depths of 3–45 m. Records by published underwater photographs are: Hachijo-jima island (Izu Islands, off Pacific coast of Japanese mainland), Saipan, and Palau (Kato 2011),Guam (Myers 1989), Minna-jima, Ie-jima, and Okinawa-jima islands (Okinawa Islands, Ryukyu Islands) (Yoshino 2008; Araga 2009), Yaku-shima island (Osumi Islands, north of Ryukyu Islands) (Motomura and Harazaki 2017), and Tahiti (Society Islands) (Randall 2005) (Fig. 4).
Etymology. Derived the Latin anadema meaning “hair band”, with reference to two black bands at the preopercular and opercular margins of the species.
Chromis opercularis (Günther 1867 in Playfair and Günther 1867)
(English name: Doublebar Chromis)
Chromis xanthura (Bleeker 1854)
(English name: Paletail Chromis;
standard Japanese name: Mon-suzumedai)
Hiroyuki Motomura, Hajime Nishiyama and Satoru N. Chiba. 2017. Review of the Chromis xanthura Species Group (Perciformes: Pomacentridae), with Description of A New Species. Ichthyological Research. DOI: 10.1007/s10228-017-0601-8
==========================
Chromis anadema
Motomura, Nishiyama & Chiba, 2017
DOI: 10.1007/s10228-017-0601-8
Abstract
A taxonomic review of the Chromis xanthura species group, defined here as having 13 dorsal-fin spines, three upper and three lower procurrent caudal-fin rays, two black bands at the preopercular and opercular margins, and a yellow caudal fin when juvenile, resulted in the recognition of three species, Chromis xanthura (Bleeker 1854), Chromis opercularis (Günther 1867), and Chromis anadema sp. nov. Chromis xanthura and C. opercularis, the Pacific and Indian Ocean paired sister species, respectively, are redescribed, with confirmation of two color types of C. xanthura (having a white or black caudal peduncle and fin) as a single species on the basis of morphological and molecular analyses. Chromis anadema sp. nov., described from the oceanic islands of the Pacific Ocean on the basis of 21 specimens, is characterized by having 28–33 gill rakers; longest dorsal-fin soft ray length 20.0–24.7% of standard length (SL); first anal-fin spine length 5.0–6.1% of SL; caudal-fin length 33.4–43.8% of SL; posterior tips of caudal-fin lobes not filamentous in adults; broad black bands along preopercular and opercular margins, sum width of two bands 28.9–38.7% of head length; distal half of soft-rayed portion of dorsal fin transparent in adults; triangular black blotches at upper and lower caudal-fin base in adults; caudal peduncle and fin bluish black in adults; and body grayish, and all fins (except for pectoral fin) bright yellow in juveniles.
Keywords: Teleostei, Chromis anadema, Chromis opercularis, Damselfish, Taxonomy, Morphology
Fig. 2 Photographs of Chromis anadema sp. nov.
a–b Fresh holotype from Yoron-jima island, Ryukyu Islands, Japan (KAUM–I. 42229, 101.3 mm SL);
c live individual from Ishigaki-jima island, Ryukyu Islands, Japan, 15 m depth (photo: T. Uchida); d live juvenile from Hachijo-jima island, Izu Islands, Japan, 12 m depth (photo: S. Kato)
Chromis anadema sp. nov.
(New English name: Short-tail Doublebar Chromis;
new standard Japanese name: Kanzashi-suzumedai)
Diagnosis. A species of Chromis with the following combination of characters: dorsal-fin rays XIII, 10 or 11 (mode 11); anal-fin rays II, 10–12 (11); pectoral-fin rays 18–20 (19); upper and lower procurrent caudal-fin rays 3; pored lateral-line scales 17–19 (18); gill rakers 7–9 (8) + 20–24 (22) = 28–33 (30); longest dorsal-fin soft ray length 20.0–24.7% (mean 22.3%) of SL; first anal-fin spine length 5.0–6.1% (5.6%) of SL; caudal-fin length 33.4–43.8% (38.4%) of SL; posterior tips of caudal-fin lobes not filamentous in adults; broad black bands along preopercular and opercular margins, sum width of two bands 28.9–38.7% (33.1%) of head length; distal half of soft-rayed portion of dorsal fin transparent in adults; triangular black blotches at upper and lower caudal-fin base in adults; caudal peduncle and fin bluish black in adults; body grayish and all fins (except for pectoral fin) bright yellow in juveniles.
Distribution. Known from the vicinity of oceanic islands in the tropical Pacific Ocean (Fig. 4). The specimens were collected from the Ryukyu, Mariana, Marquesas, Society, Gambier, and Pitcairn islands at depths of 3–45 m. Records by published underwater photographs are: Hachijo-jima island (Izu Islands, off Pacific coast of Japanese mainland), Saipan, and Palau (Kato 2011),Guam (Myers 1989), Minna-jima, Ie-jima, and Okinawa-jima islands (Okinawa Islands, Ryukyu Islands) (Yoshino 2008; Araga 2009), Yaku-shima island (Osumi Islands, north of Ryukyu Islands) (Motomura and Harazaki 2017), and Tahiti (Society Islands) (Randall 2005) (Fig. 4).
Etymology. Derived the Latin anadema meaning “hair band”, with reference to two black bands at the preopercular and opercular margins of the species.
Chromis opercularis (Günther 1867 in Playfair and Günther 1867)
(English name: Doublebar Chromis)
Chromis xanthura (Bleeker 1854)
(English name: Paletail Chromis;
standard Japanese name: Mon-suzumedai)
Hiroyuki Motomura, Hajime Nishiyama and Satoru N. Chiba. 2017. Review of the Chromis xanthura Species Group (Perciformes: Pomacentridae), with Description of A New Species. Ichthyological Research. DOI: 10.1007/s10228-017-0601-8
==========================
Seahorses of the Hippocampus coronatus complex (Teleostei, Syngnathidae): Taxonomic Revision, and Description of Hippocampus haema, A New Species from Korea and Japan
Hippocampus haema
Han, Kim, Kai & Senou, 2017
DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.712.14955
Abstract
Morphological and molecular analyses were conducted on 182 specimens belonging to the Hippocampus coronatus complex (H. coronatus sensu lato), collected in Korea and Japan 1933–2015, in order to clarify the taxonomic status of the species within this complex. Three species are recognized based on the shape of the coronet, the number of trunk rings (TrR) and tail rings (TaR), and presence or absence of a wing-tip spine (WS) at the dorsal fin base. Hippocampus coronatus Temminck & Schlegel, 1850 (H. coronatus sensu stricto), is diagnosed by 10 TrR, 37–40 TaR, an extremely high coronet (55.7–79.0 % head length) with four tips on the corona flat (CoT), and one WS. Hippocampus sindonis Jordan & Snyder, 1901 is diagnosed by 10 TrR, 35–38 TaR, a moderately high coronet (36.3–55.4 % HL) with five CoT, and no WS. A new species, Hippocampus haema is described on the basis of 140 specimens, characterized by 10 TrR, 35–38 TaR, a moderately high coronet (34.1–54.9 % head length) with four CoT, and two WS. Hippocampus haema is only known from the Korea Strait, western Kyushu, and East/Japan Sea. Recognition of the three species is supported by differences in mitochondrial DNA fragments (cytochrome b, 16S rRNA, and 12S rRNA).
Keywords: Genetic distance, morphology, molecular systematics, Pacific Ocean, taxonomy
Figure 4. Coloration of fresh specimens. A Hippocampus haema (paratype, PKU 9424) B H. coronatus(FAKU 137351) C H. sindonis (FAKU 137339).
Hippocampus coronatus Temminck & Schlegel, 1850
English name: Crowned seahorse,
New Korean name: -haema, Japanese name: Tatsu-no-otoshigo
Diagnosis: A species of Hippocampus having a bony body; double gill openings; ring (R: TrR + TaR) 10 + 37–40, mode 10 + 39 (lectotype: 10 + 38); extremely high coronet, straight or inclined backwards; CoT 4; CHGO 43.0–60.1 % HL; CHMC 55.7–79.0 % HL; WS thick and recurved.
Distribution: Southeastern coast of Honshu (Japan), from Izu Peninsula (Shizuoka Prefecture) to Boso Peninsula (Chiba Prefecture) (Fig. 1). Hippocampus coronatus lives in weed habitats, especially in floating Sargassum (Kuiter 2009; Senou 2013), within shallow areas (0–20 m depth).
Etymology: The Latin word coronatus means crowned. The new Korean name, Wanggwan-haema means ‘crowned seahorse’, in agreement with the English and scientific names. In fact, Haema, which has the connotation ‘common’ and ‘fish species belonging to the genus Hippocampus’ in Korean, has been used to name seahorses commonly found in Korea, whereas Wanggwan-haema has been informally used to refer to H. coronatus in Korean. In addition, the word wanggwan [crown] is more suited for H. coronatus, whose coronet is considerably higher than that of H. haema. The Japanese name Tatsu-no-otoshigo literally means ‘dragon’s bastard child’.
Hippocampus sindonis Jordan & Snyder, 1901
English name: Painted seahorse,
Korean name: Sindo-haema, Japanese name: Hanatatsu
Diagnosis: A species of Hippocampus having a bony body; double gill openings; R 10 + 35–38 (holotype: 10 + 37); coronet moderately high; CoT 5; CHGO 26.8–41.0 % HL; CHMC 36.3–55.4 % HL; a very blunt or truncated spine on the dorsal fin base; no WS on dorsal fin base.
Distribution: Southeastern coast of Honshu (Japan), from Tanabe (Wakayama Prefecture) to Boso Peninsula (Chiba Prefecture) (Fig. 1). Hippocampus sindonis lives in a wide range of habitats, from shallow high-energy algae reefs to soft bottom habitats (Kuiter 2009), at 2–30 m depth (Senou 2013).
Etymology: The specific name sindonis was derived from the name of M. Sindo, an assistant curator of fishes at Stanford University (Jordan and Snyder 1901; Lourie 2016). The English name was coined by Kuiter (2009). The Japanese name Hanatatsu literally means ‘hana (flower or blossom, which indicates gorgeous) + tatsu (dragon, or the abbreviation of the word “Tatsu-no-otoshigo: seahorse”)’, and refers to the beautiful color and skin filaments of the species.
Hippocampus haema sp. n.
New English name: Korean seahorse,
Korean name: Haema, New Japanese name: Himetatsu
Hippocampus coronatus: Jordan and Snyder 1901: 19; Mori 1928: 5; Boeseman 1947: 195; Mitani 1956: 30; Chyung 1977: 272; Araga 1984: 89; Senou 1993: 489 (right fig.), 1294; Kim and Lee 1995: 76; Nakamura 1999b: 125; Senou 2000: 536; Choi et al. 2002: 141; Senou 2002: 536, 1508; Kim et al. 2005: 203; Choi et al. 2006; Yoshino and Senou 2008: 76; Kohno et al. 2011: 127; Senou 2013: 635, 1911; Han et al. 2014: 423 (non Temminck & Schlegel).
Hippocampus cf. coronatus: Kuiter 2009: 128.
Hippocampus sindonis: Nakamura 1999a: 124; Yoshino and Senou 2008: 76; Kim et al. 2013: 42 (non Jordan & Snyder).
Hippocampus kuda: Kim et al. 2001: 67, Myoung et al. 2002: 74 (non Bleeker).
Hippocampus sp.: Kim and Ryu 2017: 110.
Diagnosis: A species of Hippocampus having a bony body; double gill openings; R 10 + 35–38, mode 10 + 36 (holotype: 10 + 36); coronet moderately high and turned back on top; CoT 4; CHGO 22.7–41.6 % HL; CHMC 34.1–54.9 % HL; a WS on the dorsal fin base.
Distribution: Korea: southern and southeastern coasts of the Korean Peninsula (from Soan Island to Ulsan); Japan: western coast of Kyushu (western Kagoshima Prefecture), northwestern coast of Honshu (from Kyoto Prefecture to Akita Prefecture) (Fig. 1). Lives in floating Sargassum and weeds on shallow soft bottom habitats from 0–18 m depth (e.g. Kim et al. 2016).
Etymology: The Korean word Haema means ‘seahorse’, which connotes ‘representative’ and ‘common’. Thus, the scientific and Korean names Haema were chosen to indicate that this seahorse is the one most commonly found in Korea. The Japanese name Himetatsu means ‘princess seahorse’ or ‘dwarf seahorse’, and refers to its lower coronet and smaller body compared to H. coronatus.
Sang-Yun Han, Jin-Koo Kim, Yoshiaki Kai and Hiroshi Senou. 2017. Seahorses of the Hippocampus coronatus complex: Taxonomic Revision, and Description of Hippocampus haema, A New Species from Korea and Japan (Teleostei, Syngnathidae). ZooKeys. 712: 113-139. DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.712.14955
==========================
Hippocampus haema
Han, Kim, Kai & Senou, 2017
DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.712.14955
Abstract
Morphological and molecular analyses were conducted on 182 specimens belonging to the Hippocampus coronatus complex (H. coronatus sensu lato), collected in Korea and Japan 1933–2015, in order to clarify the taxonomic status of the species within this complex. Three species are recognized based on the shape of the coronet, the number of trunk rings (TrR) and tail rings (TaR), and presence or absence of a wing-tip spine (WS) at the dorsal fin base. Hippocampus coronatus Temminck & Schlegel, 1850 (H. coronatus sensu stricto), is diagnosed by 10 TrR, 37–40 TaR, an extremely high coronet (55.7–79.0 % head length) with four tips on the corona flat (CoT), and one WS. Hippocampus sindonis Jordan & Snyder, 1901 is diagnosed by 10 TrR, 35–38 TaR, a moderately high coronet (36.3–55.4 % HL) with five CoT, and no WS. A new species, Hippocampus haema is described on the basis of 140 specimens, characterized by 10 TrR, 35–38 TaR, a moderately high coronet (34.1–54.9 % head length) with four CoT, and two WS. Hippocampus haema is only known from the Korea Strait, western Kyushu, and East/Japan Sea. Recognition of the three species is supported by differences in mitochondrial DNA fragments (cytochrome b, 16S rRNA, and 12S rRNA).
Keywords: Genetic distance, morphology, molecular systematics, Pacific Ocean, taxonomy
Figure 4. Coloration of fresh specimens. A Hippocampus haema (paratype, PKU 9424) B H. coronatus(FAKU 137351) C H. sindonis (FAKU 137339).
Hippocampus coronatus Temminck & Schlegel, 1850
English name: Crowned seahorse,
New Korean name: -haema, Japanese name: Tatsu-no-otoshigo
Diagnosis: A species of Hippocampus having a bony body; double gill openings; ring (R: TrR + TaR) 10 + 37–40, mode 10 + 39 (lectotype: 10 + 38); extremely high coronet, straight or inclined backwards; CoT 4; CHGO 43.0–60.1 % HL; CHMC 55.7–79.0 % HL; WS thick and recurved.
Distribution: Southeastern coast of Honshu (Japan), from Izu Peninsula (Shizuoka Prefecture) to Boso Peninsula (Chiba Prefecture) (Fig. 1). Hippocampus coronatus lives in weed habitats, especially in floating Sargassum (Kuiter 2009; Senou 2013), within shallow areas (0–20 m depth).
Etymology: The Latin word coronatus means crowned. The new Korean name, Wanggwan-haema means ‘crowned seahorse’, in agreement with the English and scientific names. In fact, Haema, which has the connotation ‘common’ and ‘fish species belonging to the genus Hippocampus’ in Korean, has been used to name seahorses commonly found in Korea, whereas Wanggwan-haema has been informally used to refer to H. coronatus in Korean. In addition, the word wanggwan [crown] is more suited for H. coronatus, whose coronet is considerably higher than that of H. haema. The Japanese name Tatsu-no-otoshigo literally means ‘dragon’s bastard child’.
Hippocampus sindonis Jordan & Snyder, 1901
English name: Painted seahorse,
Korean name: Sindo-haema, Japanese name: Hanatatsu
Diagnosis: A species of Hippocampus having a bony body; double gill openings; R 10 + 35–38 (holotype: 10 + 37); coronet moderately high; CoT 5; CHGO 26.8–41.0 % HL; CHMC 36.3–55.4 % HL; a very blunt or truncated spine on the dorsal fin base; no WS on dorsal fin base.
Distribution: Southeastern coast of Honshu (Japan), from Tanabe (Wakayama Prefecture) to Boso Peninsula (Chiba Prefecture) (Fig. 1). Hippocampus sindonis lives in a wide range of habitats, from shallow high-energy algae reefs to soft bottom habitats (Kuiter 2009), at 2–30 m depth (Senou 2013).
Etymology: The specific name sindonis was derived from the name of M. Sindo, an assistant curator of fishes at Stanford University (Jordan and Snyder 1901; Lourie 2016). The English name was coined by Kuiter (2009). The Japanese name Hanatatsu literally means ‘hana (flower or blossom, which indicates gorgeous) + tatsu (dragon, or the abbreviation of the word “Tatsu-no-otoshigo: seahorse”)’, and refers to the beautiful color and skin filaments of the species.
Hippocampus haema sp. n.
New English name: Korean seahorse,
Korean name: Haema, New Japanese name: Himetatsu
Hippocampus coronatus: Jordan and Snyder 1901: 19; Mori 1928: 5; Boeseman 1947: 195; Mitani 1956: 30; Chyung 1977: 272; Araga 1984: 89; Senou 1993: 489 (right fig.), 1294; Kim and Lee 1995: 76; Nakamura 1999b: 125; Senou 2000: 536; Choi et al. 2002: 141; Senou 2002: 536, 1508; Kim et al. 2005: 203; Choi et al. 2006; Yoshino and Senou 2008: 76; Kohno et al. 2011: 127; Senou 2013: 635, 1911; Han et al. 2014: 423 (non Temminck & Schlegel).
Hippocampus cf. coronatus: Kuiter 2009: 128.
Hippocampus sindonis: Nakamura 1999a: 124; Yoshino and Senou 2008: 76; Kim et al. 2013: 42 (non Jordan & Snyder).
Hippocampus kuda: Kim et al. 2001: 67, Myoung et al. 2002: 74 (non Bleeker).
Hippocampus sp.: Kim and Ryu 2017: 110.
Diagnosis: A species of Hippocampus having a bony body; double gill openings; R 10 + 35–38, mode 10 + 36 (holotype: 10 + 36); coronet moderately high and turned back on top; CoT 4; CHGO 22.7–41.6 % HL; CHMC 34.1–54.9 % HL; a WS on the dorsal fin base.
Distribution: Korea: southern and southeastern coasts of the Korean Peninsula (from Soan Island to Ulsan); Japan: western coast of Kyushu (western Kagoshima Prefecture), northwestern coast of Honshu (from Kyoto Prefecture to Akita Prefecture) (Fig. 1). Lives in floating Sargassum and weeds on shallow soft bottom habitats from 0–18 m depth (e.g. Kim et al. 2016).
Etymology: The Korean word Haema means ‘seahorse’, which connotes ‘representative’ and ‘common’. Thus, the scientific and Korean names Haema were chosen to indicate that this seahorse is the one most commonly found in Korea. The Japanese name Himetatsu means ‘princess seahorse’ or ‘dwarf seahorse’, and refers to its lower coronet and smaller body compared to H. coronatus.
Sang-Yun Han, Jin-Koo Kim, Yoshiaki Kai and Hiroshi Senou. 2017. Seahorses of the Hippocampus coronatus complex: Taxonomic Revision, and Description of Hippocampus haema, A New Species from Korea and Japan (Teleostei, Syngnathidae). ZooKeys. 712: 113-139. DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.712.14955
==========================
Parapercis altipinnis • A New Species of the Sandperch Genus Parapercis (Perciformes: Pinguipedidae) from the Philippines
Parapercis altipinnis
Ho & Heden, 2017
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4341.4.8
Abstract
A new species sandperch, Parapercis altipinnis, is described based on the holotype collected from Cebu, the Philippines at 55–65 m by SCUBA. The new species belongs to the P. cylindrica complex and can be distinguished by an extremely high first dorsal fin, the first spine slightly longer than the head; 3 predorsal scales; 42 or 43 lateral-line scales; teeth present on vomer and palatines. The body is reddish dorsally and blackish ventrally, with 5 large brownish saddles alternating with white bands on dorsal surface; scattered dots on top of head, first dorsal fin and dorsal surface; first dorsal fin milky white with 5 black marks on anterior margin; a black broad band below eye; cheek and throat blackish red surrounding by white color; row of 10 short white bars along the lateral side of body axis; row of 9 deep red to blackish bars on lower half of lateral side of body; base of pelvic fin and lower margin of caudal fin blackish; rows of black spots on soft dorsal fin. A key to the species of the complex is provided.
Keywords: Pisces, Teleostei; taxonomy, Parapercis altipinnis, new species
FIGURE Living or fresh coloration of Parapercis altipinnis sp. nov., holotype. A. lateral view of right side; B. lateral view of left side of head; C. dorsal view;
Photos by M. van Heden (A) and J. Mallefet (B–C).
Parapercis altipinnis sp. nov.
English name: Karen's sandperch
Parapercis sp. 5: Kuiter & Tonozuka, 2001:569,
fig. A–B (Bali, Indonesia, underwater photograph only).
Holotype. NMMB-P26107, 50.3 mm SL, Cebu, the Philippines, ca. 55–65 m, hand net, SCUBA diving, and purchased from an aquarium in Belgium in December, 2016.
Diagnosis. Dorsal-fin rays V, 21; anal-fin rays I, 17; pectoral-fin rays 14 or 15; lateral-line scales 42 or 43; gill rakers on first gill arch 3 + 7; predorsal scales 3; small, partly embedded, cycloid scales on anterior portion and large ctenoid scales in about 4 rows on posterior portion of cheek; single row of vomerine teeth in curved band; palatine teeth present; prominent sharp spine at upper edge of subopercle present; body depth 4.1 in SL (24.3% SL); first two dorsal-fin spines elongate, first slightly longer than head length, second about half length of first; membrane from last dorsal-fin spine joined to base of first soft ray; caudal fin slightly rounded. When alive, body reddish dorsally and blackish ventrally; 5 large brown saddles on dorsal surface; scattered dots on top of head, first dorsal fin and dorsal surface of back; first dorsal fin whitish with 5 black mark on anterior margin of first spine; a black band below eye; cheek and throat blackish; row of 10 white short bars along lateral side of body axis; row of 9 blackish red bars on lower half of lateral body; base of pelvic fin and lower half of caudal fin blackish; row of black spots on base of soft dorsal fin.
Etymology. The specific name is derived from the Latin alti (long) and pinnis (fin) in referring to the extremely high first dorsal fin.
Distribution. Known only from the holotype collected from Cebu, the Philippines, at around 55–65 m depth.
Ecological note. That Parapercis is generally believed to be protogynous and that the change from female to male is often accompanied by color changes, but not elongation of certain fin rays (Ho, pers. obse.). The holotype has a pairs of saccus connecting to the cloaca, which are most likely ovaries but without eggs. The specimen might be a juvenile or a mature female just after spawning. Underwater photographs of a male individual are provided in Kuiter & Tonozuka (2001; as Parapercis sp. 5). It shows sexual dimorphism in the coloration, but not the high dorsal fin, in present species.
Hsuan-Ching Ho and Miranda V. Heden. 2017. A New Species of the Sandperch Genus Parapercis from the Philippines (Perciformes: Pinguipedidae). Zootaxa. 4341(4); 563–569. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4341.4.8
==========================
Parapercis altipinnis
Ho & Heden, 2017
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4341.4.8
Abstract
A new species sandperch, Parapercis altipinnis, is described based on the holotype collected from Cebu, the Philippines at 55–65 m by SCUBA. The new species belongs to the P. cylindrica complex and can be distinguished by an extremely high first dorsal fin, the first spine slightly longer than the head; 3 predorsal scales; 42 or 43 lateral-line scales; teeth present on vomer and palatines. The body is reddish dorsally and blackish ventrally, with 5 large brownish saddles alternating with white bands on dorsal surface; scattered dots on top of head, first dorsal fin and dorsal surface; first dorsal fin milky white with 5 black marks on anterior margin; a black broad band below eye; cheek and throat blackish red surrounding by white color; row of 10 short white bars along the lateral side of body axis; row of 9 deep red to blackish bars on lower half of lateral side of body; base of pelvic fin and lower margin of caudal fin blackish; rows of black spots on soft dorsal fin. A key to the species of the complex is provided.
Keywords: Pisces, Teleostei; taxonomy, Parapercis altipinnis, new species
FIGURE Living or fresh coloration of Parapercis altipinnis sp. nov., holotype. A. lateral view of right side; B. lateral view of left side of head; C. dorsal view;
Photos by M. van Heden (A) and J. Mallefet (B–C).
Parapercis altipinnis sp. nov.
English name: Karen's sandperch
Parapercis sp. 5: Kuiter & Tonozuka, 2001:569,
fig. A–B (Bali, Indonesia, underwater photograph only).
Holotype. NMMB-P26107, 50.3 mm SL, Cebu, the Philippines, ca. 55–65 m, hand net, SCUBA diving, and purchased from an aquarium in Belgium in December, 2016.
Diagnosis. Dorsal-fin rays V, 21; anal-fin rays I, 17; pectoral-fin rays 14 or 15; lateral-line scales 42 or 43; gill rakers on first gill arch 3 + 7; predorsal scales 3; small, partly embedded, cycloid scales on anterior portion and large ctenoid scales in about 4 rows on posterior portion of cheek; single row of vomerine teeth in curved band; palatine teeth present; prominent sharp spine at upper edge of subopercle present; body depth 4.1 in SL (24.3% SL); first two dorsal-fin spines elongate, first slightly longer than head length, second about half length of first; membrane from last dorsal-fin spine joined to base of first soft ray; caudal fin slightly rounded. When alive, body reddish dorsally and blackish ventrally; 5 large brown saddles on dorsal surface; scattered dots on top of head, first dorsal fin and dorsal surface of back; first dorsal fin whitish with 5 black mark on anterior margin of first spine; a black band below eye; cheek and throat blackish; row of 10 white short bars along lateral side of body axis; row of 9 blackish red bars on lower half of lateral body; base of pelvic fin and lower half of caudal fin blackish; row of black spots on base of soft dorsal fin.
Etymology. The specific name is derived from the Latin alti (long) and pinnis (fin) in referring to the extremely high first dorsal fin.
Distribution. Known only from the holotype collected from Cebu, the Philippines, at around 55–65 m depth.
Ecological note. That Parapercis is generally believed to be protogynous and that the change from female to male is often accompanied by color changes, but not elongation of certain fin rays (Ho, pers. obse.). The holotype has a pairs of saccus connecting to the cloaca, which are most likely ovaries but without eggs. The specimen might be a juvenile or a mature female just after spawning. Underwater photographs of a male individual are provided in Kuiter & Tonozuka (2001; as Parapercis sp. 5). It shows sexual dimorphism in the coloration, but not the high dorsal fin, in present species.
Hsuan-Ching Ho and Miranda V. Heden. 2017. A New Species of the Sandperch Genus Parapercis from the Philippines (Perciformes: Pinguipedidae). Zootaxa. 4341(4); 563–569. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4341.4.8
==========================
The Magma Fairy Wrasse, Cirrhilabrus shutmani, Just Described From Northern Philippines
530Cirrhilabrus shutmani, the magma wrasse which was first discovered by RVS Fishworld has just been described. This completely novel wrasse species made a big splash when it first appeared as it was unmistakably new to both science and the marine aquarium world.
The solid red coloration of Cirrhilabrus shutmani is unlike virtually any other species of fairy wrasse but it clearly shows some visual affinity with the common Hawaiian flame wrasse, Cirrhilabrus jordani. But since the magma wrasse was discovered in the northern Philippines many thousands of miles away this species has developed into a beautiful fairy wrasse which is quite distinct.
Besides its brilliant red coloration, this species is called the magma wrasse since it was found living around Didicas Volcano in the Caguyan Islands. Part of the reason this fish hadn’t ever been collected is that it lives at a modest depth of between 50 to 70 meters or around 165 to 230 feet deep! Like many other fairy wrasses Cirrhilabrus shutmani likes fairly open rubble slopes where juveniles and females can find plenty of places to hide.
The Magma wrasse is part of a new wave of recently described fairy wrasse species and brings the total number of species in this group to 56. With increased ornamental fish collection in exotic regions of the world we’ll likely be seeing more Cirrhilabrus in the future but it’ll be tough to match the brilliance and very novel appearance of C. shutmanni. This exquisite new reef fish was enshrined by Reef Builders veteran Tea Yi Kai and Dr. Anthony Gill in the latest issue of ZooTaxa.
from Reef Builder
==========================
530Cirrhilabrus shutmani, the magma wrasse which was first discovered by RVS Fishworld has just been described. This completely novel wrasse species made a big splash when it first appeared as it was unmistakably new to both science and the marine aquarium world.
The solid red coloration of Cirrhilabrus shutmani is unlike virtually any other species of fairy wrasse but it clearly shows some visual affinity with the common Hawaiian flame wrasse, Cirrhilabrus jordani. But since the magma wrasse was discovered in the northern Philippines many thousands of miles away this species has developed into a beautiful fairy wrasse which is quite distinct.
Besides its brilliant red coloration, this species is called the magma wrasse since it was found living around Didicas Volcano in the Caguyan Islands. Part of the reason this fish hadn’t ever been collected is that it lives at a modest depth of between 50 to 70 meters or around 165 to 230 feet deep! Like many other fairy wrasses Cirrhilabrus shutmani likes fairly open rubble slopes where juveniles and females can find plenty of places to hide.
The Magma wrasse is part of a new wave of recently described fairy wrasse species and brings the total number of species in this group to 56. With increased ornamental fish collection in exotic regions of the world we’ll likely be seeing more Cirrhilabrus in the future but it’ll be tough to match the brilliance and very novel appearance of C. shutmanni. This exquisite new reef fish was enshrined by Reef Builders veteran Tea Yi Kai and Dr. Anthony Gill in the latest issue of ZooTaxa.
from Reef Builder
==========================
Pseudanthias tequila• A New Species of Anthiadine Serranid from the Ogasawara and Mariana Islands
Pseudanthias tequila
Gill, Tea & Senou, 2017
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4341.1.5
Abstract
Pseudanthias tequila is described on the basis of two specimens from the Ogasawara Islands. It also is recorded from the Mariana Islands on the basis of colour photographs. The species belongs to a complex that includes P. randalli (Lubbock & Allen), P. pulcherrimus Heemstra & Randall, P. flavicauda Randall & Pyle, P. oumati Williams, Delrieu-Trottin & Planes, and a potentially new species from the Line Islands. Species within the complex are distinguished on the basis of male live colouration, morphometric details and gill-raker and scale counts. Colour photos of all five species are provided.
Keywords: Pisces, taxonomy, ichthyology, Japan, Micronesia
Male Pseudanthias tequila: A) from Ototo-jima, Chichi-jima Islands, Ogasawara Islands, Japan (KPM-NR 179391A, photo by O. Morishita); B) from Tinian, Mariana Islands (photo by N. Tsuji)
FIGURE 6. Group of Pseudanthias tequila n. sp., Tinian, Mariana Islands, Micronesia. Photo by N. Tsuji.
Pseudanthias tequila new species
New standard Japanese name: Bonin-hanadai
English common name: Cave anthias
Pseudanthias randalli (non Lubbock & Allen, 1978); Myers & Shephard, 1980: 316 (Blue Hole, Orote Peninsula, Guam).
Pseudanthias sp.; Myers, 1988: 140 (Guam).
Pseudanthias sp. 3; Michael, 1998: 576 (colour photo; Guam).
Pseudanthias sp. B; Myers 1999: 109, pl. 35 G (colour photo; Guam).
Pseudanthias flavicauda [non Randall & Pyle, 2001]; Myers & Donaldson, 2003: 616 (list, Marianas Islands).
Pseudanthias cf randalli; Kuiter, 2004: 61, unnumbered colour figs A and B (colour photos; Palau, Saipan and Guam).
Pseudanthias cf flavicauda; Kuiter & Debelius, 2006: 298 (colour photo; Micronesia).
Diagnosis. The following combination of characters distinguishes Pseudanthias tequila from congeners: dorsal rays X,16; anal rays III,7; pectoral rays 18; third dorsal spine prolonged in males; third segmented anal-fin ray longest; lateral-line scales 46–47; no auxiliary scales on body; interopercle and subopercle with distinct serrations in adults; males in life with upper body beneath anterior part of dorsal fin purple to pink with orange-red stripe, dorsal fin greenish yellow anteriorly, posteriorly red with blue basal area, anterior part of anal fin red, and pelvic fins bright yellow.
Habitat and distribution. Pseudanthias tequila is described on the basis of two specimens from Ototo-jima, Chichi-jima Islands, Ogasawara Islands, Japan. We also record it from Guam, Saipan and Tinian in the Mariana Islands on the basis of photographs (Figure 7). Kuiter’s (2004) photograph of an individual of “Pseudanthias cf randalli”, stated to be from Palau, is referable to P. tequila. However, R.F. Myers (pers. comm.) advised us that the photograph, by Hiroyuki Kimura, is actually from Saipan. Other photographs from Palau are referrable to the closely related P. randalli (Lubbock & Allen, 1978). The original description of P. randalli also included paratypes from Palau. Pseudanthias tequila appears to be mostly found in caves on reef slopes in 40–60 m, earning it the popular name of “cave anthias”. In Saipan and Tinian, however, it occurs in the open on reef slopes dominated by Halimeda and Caulerpa algae (Figures 4B & 6).
Etymology. The specific epithet refers to the alcoholic beverage tequila sunrise, alluding to the vibrant life colours of the males of the species. To be treated as a noun in apposition.
Anthony C. Gill, Yi-Kai Tea and Hiroshi Senou. 2017. Pseudanthias tequila, A New Species of Anthiadine Serranid from the Ogasawara and Mariana Islands. Zootaxa. 4341(1); 67–76. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4341.1.5
==========================
Pseudanthias tequila
Gill, Tea & Senou, 2017
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4341.1.5
Abstract
Pseudanthias tequila is described on the basis of two specimens from the Ogasawara Islands. It also is recorded from the Mariana Islands on the basis of colour photographs. The species belongs to a complex that includes P. randalli (Lubbock & Allen), P. pulcherrimus Heemstra & Randall, P. flavicauda Randall & Pyle, P. oumati Williams, Delrieu-Trottin & Planes, and a potentially new species from the Line Islands. Species within the complex are distinguished on the basis of male live colouration, morphometric details and gill-raker and scale counts. Colour photos of all five species are provided.
Keywords: Pisces, taxonomy, ichthyology, Japan, Micronesia
Male Pseudanthias tequila: A) from Ototo-jima, Chichi-jima Islands, Ogasawara Islands, Japan (KPM-NR 179391A, photo by O. Morishita); B) from Tinian, Mariana Islands (photo by N. Tsuji)
FIGURE 6. Group of Pseudanthias tequila n. sp., Tinian, Mariana Islands, Micronesia. Photo by N. Tsuji.
Pseudanthias tequila new species
New standard Japanese name: Bonin-hanadai
English common name: Cave anthias
Pseudanthias randalli (non Lubbock & Allen, 1978); Myers & Shephard, 1980: 316 (Blue Hole, Orote Peninsula, Guam).
Pseudanthias sp.; Myers, 1988: 140 (Guam).
Pseudanthias sp. 3; Michael, 1998: 576 (colour photo; Guam).
Pseudanthias sp. B; Myers 1999: 109, pl. 35 G (colour photo; Guam).
Pseudanthias flavicauda [non Randall & Pyle, 2001]; Myers & Donaldson, 2003: 616 (list, Marianas Islands).
Pseudanthias cf randalli; Kuiter, 2004: 61, unnumbered colour figs A and B (colour photos; Palau, Saipan and Guam).
Pseudanthias cf flavicauda; Kuiter & Debelius, 2006: 298 (colour photo; Micronesia).
Diagnosis. The following combination of characters distinguishes Pseudanthias tequila from congeners: dorsal rays X,16; anal rays III,7; pectoral rays 18; third dorsal spine prolonged in males; third segmented anal-fin ray longest; lateral-line scales 46–47; no auxiliary scales on body; interopercle and subopercle with distinct serrations in adults; males in life with upper body beneath anterior part of dorsal fin purple to pink with orange-red stripe, dorsal fin greenish yellow anteriorly, posteriorly red with blue basal area, anterior part of anal fin red, and pelvic fins bright yellow.
Habitat and distribution. Pseudanthias tequila is described on the basis of two specimens from Ototo-jima, Chichi-jima Islands, Ogasawara Islands, Japan. We also record it from Guam, Saipan and Tinian in the Mariana Islands on the basis of photographs (Figure 7). Kuiter’s (2004) photograph of an individual of “Pseudanthias cf randalli”, stated to be from Palau, is referable to P. tequila. However, R.F. Myers (pers. comm.) advised us that the photograph, by Hiroyuki Kimura, is actually from Saipan. Other photographs from Palau are referrable to the closely related P. randalli (Lubbock & Allen, 1978). The original description of P. randalli also included paratypes from Palau. Pseudanthias tequila appears to be mostly found in caves on reef slopes in 40–60 m, earning it the popular name of “cave anthias”. In Saipan and Tinian, however, it occurs in the open on reef slopes dominated by Halimeda and Caulerpa algae (Figures 4B & 6).
Etymology. The specific epithet refers to the alcoholic beverage tequila sunrise, alluding to the vibrant life colours of the males of the species. To be treated as a noun in apposition.
Anthony C. Gill, Yi-Kai Tea and Hiroshi Senou. 2017. Pseudanthias tequila, A New Species of Anthiadine Serranid from the Ogasawara and Mariana Islands. Zootaxa. 4341(1); 67–76. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4341.1.5
==========================
Venemous Weever Fishes Caught Off SouthWold Pier
Mike Stiff, 81, from Grundisburgh, near Woodbridge, was startled to catch a pair of weever fish off Southwold Pier.
Found in shallow British waters, usually during warm summer months, the weever fish is classified as an ‘ambush predator’ – spending most of the day buried in the shallows, displaying only its eyes and dorsal spikes.
If stood on by an unsuspecting bather, the weever’s dark tipped spines can inject a painful venom.
Mr Stiff was fishing from the pier when two weevers took his bait. They were among nine species of fish he caught that day – including a small haul of bass and cod he took home.
“When I caught the first one, I thought ‘what’s that?’ he said.
“At first I thought it might be a rockling, but when I touched it, up came the dorsal fin.
“I recognised it as a weever fish because I’ve caught them in the past – but not for a long time.
“Having caught two in the same day, I’m concerned for other people.
“If you touch the dorsal fin, they can inject poison into you.
“They have a venomous dark dorsal fin, which will raise if touched. If it makes contact with your skin, it will cause severe pain.
“Luckily, I identified them both within a good day’s fishing, before taking them off the hook
“Anglers and children should be aware that these fish are around these shores.”
Bex Lynam, marine advocacy officer for North Sea Wildlife Trusts, said increased sea temperatures may encourage more weever fish to an area.
“It’s acknowledged that weever fish move into shallower coastal waters during the summer months, due to the increased sea temperatures,” she added.
“This is why incidents of stings from weever fish increase during this time, as it’s much easier for people to stand on them in the coastal shallows – and for anglers to catch them.”
The only treatment for a weever fish sting is to soak the affected area in hot water, above 40C, breaking down the venom’s protein.
In areas of darker sand, the weever fish has developed white tipped spines and can be seen more clearly.
from East Angflian Daily Times
==========================
Hawaii’s aquarium fishery is now officially closed, according to this report, just in:
“On Friday (27 October), the First Circuit Court — sitting as the Environmental Court — ruled that any and all existing aquarium fish permits issued to commercial collectors to date are illegal and invalid.”
Click to read the fully story at Hawaii News Now.
Hawaii’s DLNR is now forced to undertake a Hawaii Environmental Policy Act (HEPA) review of the fishery, and according to the story there is no timeline for if, or when, the fishery could be reopened.
Read the full story by reporter Jobert Devara on the Hawaii News Now website, with commentary from all sides in the ongoing debate over Hawaii’s Marine Aquarium Fishery.
From Reef to Rainforest
==========================
“On Friday (27 October), the First Circuit Court — sitting as the Environmental Court — ruled that any and all existing aquarium fish permits issued to commercial collectors to date are illegal and invalid.”
Click to read the fully story at Hawaii News Now.
Hawaii’s DLNR is now forced to undertake a Hawaii Environmental Policy Act (HEPA) review of the fishery, and according to the story there is no timeline for if, or when, the fishery could be reopened.
Read the full story by reporter Jobert Devara on the Hawaii News Now website, with commentary from all sides in the ongoing debate over Hawaii’s Marine Aquarium Fishery.
From Reef to Rainforest
==========================
www.cichlidae.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=40
OHIO CICHLID ASSOCIATION Extravaganza 2017
November 17 to November 19 2017
· Hosted by Ohio Cichlid Association
Details
This marks the 23rd year of one of the greatest tropical fish shows on earth. Featuring cichlids and scavengers in our show, a large vendors and manufacturers room, dry goods auction and HUGE auction on Sunday. Fish sales out of rooms and wonderful hospitality from our Holiday Inn base camp at low $70 per night room rate.
==========================
OHIO CICHLID ASSOCIATION Extravaganza 2017
November 17 to November 19 2017
· Hosted by Ohio Cichlid Association
- 17 November - 19 November
17 November at 9:00 to 19 November at 20:00 EST
Holiday Inn Cleveland Strongsville Airport
15471 Royalton Road, Strongsville, Ohio 44136
Details
This marks the 23rd year of one of the greatest tropical fish shows on earth. Featuring cichlids and scavengers in our show, a large vendors and manufacturers room, dry goods auction and HUGE auction on Sunday. Fish sales out of rooms and wonderful hospitality from our Holiday Inn base camp at low $70 per night room rate.
==========================
Killer exotic fish loose in city water bodies
Chennai: They are beautiful but deadly. A few species of ornamental fish, including the suckermouth native to South America, imported at the height of the aquarium trade boom in the 1980s, are playing havoc with the freshwater ecosystem in the city. They have been found responsible for the near extinction of several local varieties.
Having found their way into ponds, lakes and tanks some were let in to feed on mosquito larvae, others were meant to destroy invasive weeds such as water hyacinth many multiplied and actually fed on the native species they were to indirectly protect.
The problem is particularly intense in Madipakkam where ponds are teeming with the suckermouth. Trapped in tonnes in fishing nets, they are simply abandoned as they are not edible and cannot be let back into the water either. They struggle for about five hours before breathing their last, say fishermen.
A suckermouth, said Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute assistant chief technical officer S Mohan, can grow up to 7.5cm long. These beautiful fish, he added, increased the turbidity in water leading to the depletion of aquatic vegetation, causing disrupting in the aquatic food chain and destroying the local or native fish population. They also affect the birds that flock to the water bodies to feed on the fish there, he said.
Around 17 species of local fish in West Bengal have been wiped out by such exotic arrivals, said former director of Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) K Venkataraman.
Scientists and researchers have been unable to trace the source through which they entered water bodies, but the adverse impact they have is unmistakable, he said.
Of the nearly 150 species of exotic fish that entered the country in the 1980s, Venkataraman said, at least 22 species managed to establish themselves in the water bodies in Tamil Nadu. In Chennai, temple tanks in Mylapore, Triplicane, Madipakkam and Puzhudhivakkam abound in suckermouths. Last week, some of these fish were caught in the Puzhudhivakkam lake and later thrown away on the bund, said K Ram, a youth who is an angler at the lake.
In the Madipakkam lake, where suckermouths have almost decimated the local population, fishermen do not even dare spread their nets, fearing that the exotic breeds would damage the nets as well.
At present, said Venkataraman, there were no detailed studies of the exact number of these exotic species that have occupied the few remaining wetlands in the state.
The only solution to ensure that survival of the local species, he said, was for the Union government to issue directions to all the aquariums to import only 'invasive free species' of ornamental fish.
FROM :- The Times of India
==========================
Chennai: They are beautiful but deadly. A few species of ornamental fish, including the suckermouth native to South America, imported at the height of the aquarium trade boom in the 1980s, are playing havoc with the freshwater ecosystem in the city. They have been found responsible for the near extinction of several local varieties.
Having found their way into ponds, lakes and tanks some were let in to feed on mosquito larvae, others were meant to destroy invasive weeds such as water hyacinth many multiplied and actually fed on the native species they were to indirectly protect.
The problem is particularly intense in Madipakkam where ponds are teeming with the suckermouth. Trapped in tonnes in fishing nets, they are simply abandoned as they are not edible and cannot be let back into the water either. They struggle for about five hours before breathing their last, say fishermen.
A suckermouth, said Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute assistant chief technical officer S Mohan, can grow up to 7.5cm long. These beautiful fish, he added, increased the turbidity in water leading to the depletion of aquatic vegetation, causing disrupting in the aquatic food chain and destroying the local or native fish population. They also affect the birds that flock to the water bodies to feed on the fish there, he said.
Around 17 species of local fish in West Bengal have been wiped out by such exotic arrivals, said former director of Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) K Venkataraman.
Scientists and researchers have been unable to trace the source through which they entered water bodies, but the adverse impact they have is unmistakable, he said.
Of the nearly 150 species of exotic fish that entered the country in the 1980s, Venkataraman said, at least 22 species managed to establish themselves in the water bodies in Tamil Nadu. In Chennai, temple tanks in Mylapore, Triplicane, Madipakkam and Puzhudhivakkam abound in suckermouths. Last week, some of these fish were caught in the Puzhudhivakkam lake and later thrown away on the bund, said K Ram, a youth who is an angler at the lake.
In the Madipakkam lake, where suckermouths have almost decimated the local population, fishermen do not even dare spread their nets, fearing that the exotic breeds would damage the nets as well.
At present, said Venkataraman, there were no detailed studies of the exact number of these exotic species that have occupied the few remaining wetlands in the state.
The only solution to ensure that survival of the local species, he said, was for the Union government to issue directions to all the aquariums to import only 'invasive free species' of ornamental fish.
FROM :- The Times of India
==========================
Satan eurystomus
Scientists on the Trail of Central Texas’ Elusive Satan Fish
As Halloween approaches, scientists are pondering a mysterious creature that may be lurking in underwater caves deep beneath a major U.S. city. It's eyeless, has see-through skin and spends its life in the total darkness of the Edwards Aquifer, thousands of feet below the bustle of San Antonio. Meet the Widemouth Blindcat, a.k.a. Satan fish. The fish were collected from deep-water wells for decades, but biologists have not seen one alive since 1984.
Now scientists from a range of disciplines are seeking to make the fish part of a project that combines their expertise to monitor the overall ecological health of Central Texas aquifers and better understand how water flows through them. As part of that effort, they are seeking funding and permission to search for the elusive Satan fish. Surveys in 2006 and 2010 failed to turn up even one. As the top predator in the aquifer, the health and population size of the Satan fish could tell scientists about the health of the whole ecosystem.
Very little is known about the fish. All scientists have are preserved specimens. They recently scanned specimens in a CT scanner, yielding 3D images of the Satan fish skeleton. But that study raised as many questions as it answered, as a paper to be published on Oct. 31 in the Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia will demonstrate.
"Satan fish are really cool critters," said Dean Hendrickson, curator of ichthyology at the University of Texas at Austin and one of the authors on the paper. "Most San Antonio residents have no clue that these things live below them. I want to raise awareness and get a study going to see if there's something going on down there."
The team studying Texas and Mexican blind catfishes consists of UT Austin Biodiversity Centerexperts on aquifer fish, salamanders and invertebrates (such as shrimp and snails); conservation biologists at the San Antonio Zoo; cave biologists from Zara Environmental (who did the 2006 and 2010 surveys) and hydrogeologists from UT Austin and the National Autonomous University of Mexico.
The tiny, pink Satan fish (Satan eurystomus) is one of three blind catfish living in underwater caves in Texas. If funding and permission can be secured, Hendrickson will team up with Andy Gluesenkamp and Dante Fenolio—director and assistant director of conservation and research at the San Antonio Zoo—and others for fieldwork to hunt for living Satan fish and try to determine what ecological factors led to their decline and possible extinction.
One of the questions that the researchers sought to answer with the CT scan of specimens was how the Satan fish relates to other catfish. Hendrickson said that to precisely pin down their location in the catfish family tree, genetic analyses would be needed.
"We still don't really know who Satan is and where it came from," said Hendrickson. "It would be cool to sequence Satan's DNA. No one's done it before."
Satan fish are extremely difficult to collect in the wild. Because they live thousands of feet below the surface, the only practical way to collect them is through deep-water wells, either with cages or traps placed at depth or by pumping water to the surface and running it through nets. That can be costly and require permission from local water authorities.
Other UT Austin biologists will help in the broader effort to study the Edwards Aquifer ecosystem, including David Hillis, an expert on endangered salamanders, and Alex Wild, the University's curator of entomology, who oversees a vast collection of invertebrates from the underwater caves of Central Texas. Antonio Hernández Espriú, a hydrogeologist from Mexico and visiting scholar at UT Austin, hopes to start using information about these denizens of the aquifer, including their DNA, as new tools for learning about how water flows through the aquifer.
When the paper publishes on Oct. 31, a link will be available at: http://www.bioone.org/toc/ansp/165/1
==========================
As Halloween approaches, scientists are pondering a mysterious creature that may be lurking in underwater caves deep beneath a major U.S. city. It's eyeless, has see-through skin and spends its life in the total darkness of the Edwards Aquifer, thousands of feet below the bustle of San Antonio. Meet the Widemouth Blindcat, a.k.a. Satan fish. The fish were collected from deep-water wells for decades, but biologists have not seen one alive since 1984.
Now scientists from a range of disciplines are seeking to make the fish part of a project that combines their expertise to monitor the overall ecological health of Central Texas aquifers and better understand how water flows through them. As part of that effort, they are seeking funding and permission to search for the elusive Satan fish. Surveys in 2006 and 2010 failed to turn up even one. As the top predator in the aquifer, the health and population size of the Satan fish could tell scientists about the health of the whole ecosystem.
Very little is known about the fish. All scientists have are preserved specimens. They recently scanned specimens in a CT scanner, yielding 3D images of the Satan fish skeleton. But that study raised as many questions as it answered, as a paper to be published on Oct. 31 in the Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia will demonstrate.
"Satan fish are really cool critters," said Dean Hendrickson, curator of ichthyology at the University of Texas at Austin and one of the authors on the paper. "Most San Antonio residents have no clue that these things live below them. I want to raise awareness and get a study going to see if there's something going on down there."
The team studying Texas and Mexican blind catfishes consists of UT Austin Biodiversity Centerexperts on aquifer fish, salamanders and invertebrates (such as shrimp and snails); conservation biologists at the San Antonio Zoo; cave biologists from Zara Environmental (who did the 2006 and 2010 surveys) and hydrogeologists from UT Austin and the National Autonomous University of Mexico.
The tiny, pink Satan fish (Satan eurystomus) is one of three blind catfish living in underwater caves in Texas. If funding and permission can be secured, Hendrickson will team up with Andy Gluesenkamp and Dante Fenolio—director and assistant director of conservation and research at the San Antonio Zoo—and others for fieldwork to hunt for living Satan fish and try to determine what ecological factors led to their decline and possible extinction.
One of the questions that the researchers sought to answer with the CT scan of specimens was how the Satan fish relates to other catfish. Hendrickson said that to precisely pin down their location in the catfish family tree, genetic analyses would be needed.
"We still don't really know who Satan is and where it came from," said Hendrickson. "It would be cool to sequence Satan's DNA. No one's done it before."
Satan fish are extremely difficult to collect in the wild. Because they live thousands of feet below the surface, the only practical way to collect them is through deep-water wells, either with cages or traps placed at depth or by pumping water to the surface and running it through nets. That can be costly and require permission from local water authorities.
Other UT Austin biologists will help in the broader effort to study the Edwards Aquifer ecosystem, including David Hillis, an expert on endangered salamanders, and Alex Wild, the University's curator of entomology, who oversees a vast collection of invertebrates from the underwater caves of Central Texas. Antonio Hernández Espriú, a hydrogeologist from Mexico and visiting scholar at UT Austin, hopes to start using information about these denizens of the aquifer, including their DNA, as new tools for learning about how water flows through the aquifer.
When the paper publishes on Oct. 31, a link will be available at: http://www.bioone.org/toc/ansp/165/1
==========================
Caernarfon, Wales exotic fish business set to be launched by student...with some species costing £2,000
The company will have an online shop based in the Gwynedd town that will deliver across the UK
An exotic fish business that aims to be biggest in UK is set to launch in Caernarfon - run by an ambitious university student.
Sam Hamill, currently in his third year studying Marine Biology at Bangor University, is set to launch Big on Fish in November, an online shop and retail store selling aquarium equipment and stocking over 1,100 exotic fish and coral species.
The 20-year-old will stock fish from across the world, with the most expensive species retailing at over £2,000.
Sam - who has been supported by Big Ideas Wales and Bangor University - will manage both the online outlet which offers a next day delivery service based in Caernarfon, as well as a retail store in Manchester.
Sam Hamill, studying marine biology at Bangor university, is launching Big on FishHis ambition is to become the largest livestock supplier of fish species in the UK and open a retail stores in North Wales and other parts of the UK.
He said: “It has taken time to build the business from the ground up to be ready to launch, but I’m a very ambitious person and felt this was a market that I could really add to with both my knowledge and passion for marine biology.
“The business is aimed at commercial and private clients, and I believe we’ll have people from all backgrounds buying aquarium products from us – whether they’re looking for an exotic fish for their home, or an impressive fish tank for their business.
==========================
The company will have an online shop based in the Gwynedd town that will deliver across the UK
An exotic fish business that aims to be biggest in UK is set to launch in Caernarfon - run by an ambitious university student.
Sam Hamill, currently in his third year studying Marine Biology at Bangor University, is set to launch Big on Fish in November, an online shop and retail store selling aquarium equipment and stocking over 1,100 exotic fish and coral species.
The 20-year-old will stock fish from across the world, with the most expensive species retailing at over £2,000.
Sam - who has been supported by Big Ideas Wales and Bangor University - will manage both the online outlet which offers a next day delivery service based in Caernarfon, as well as a retail store in Manchester.
Sam Hamill, studying marine biology at Bangor university, is launching Big on FishHis ambition is to become the largest livestock supplier of fish species in the UK and open a retail stores in North Wales and other parts of the UK.
He said: “It has taken time to build the business from the ground up to be ready to launch, but I’m a very ambitious person and felt this was a market that I could really add to with both my knowledge and passion for marine biology.
“The business is aimed at commercial and private clients, and I believe we’ll have people from all backgrounds buying aquarium products from us – whether they’re looking for an exotic fish for their home, or an impressive fish tank for their business.
==========================
Pseudochromis stellatus, a new species of dottyback from Raja Ampat, Indonesia.HARES
10Pseudochromis stellatus is the newest species of dottyback to be added to the roster of reef fish from Indonesia. This new Pseudochromis was collected from Batanta and Batu Hitam in the northern Raja Ampat Islands of West Papua Province, Indonesia at a depth of more than 50 meters deep, or 164 feet, so not a shallow water species at all.
If there’s one word to describe the Greenhead Dottyback, as its common name implies, is fairly pale with a greenish head. The fins are clear, the tail is unadorned and besides the yellow spots on its back there are no real defining features of this new dottyback to really make it stand out. However there does appear to be some similar species from Cebu, Milne Bay, and Cenderawasih Bay with much more color potential including a brighter yellow head.
It’s very rare that a new species of reef fish is so bland looking but perhaps this is simply because large adult or male specimens have yet to be found. The new Pseudochromis stellatus is described by Gill, Allen & Erdmann in the most recent volume of ZooTaxa.
from ReefBuilders
==========================
10Pseudochromis stellatus is the newest species of dottyback to be added to the roster of reef fish from Indonesia. This new Pseudochromis was collected from Batanta and Batu Hitam in the northern Raja Ampat Islands of West Papua Province, Indonesia at a depth of more than 50 meters deep, or 164 feet, so not a shallow water species at all.
If there’s one word to describe the Greenhead Dottyback, as its common name implies, is fairly pale with a greenish head. The fins are clear, the tail is unadorned and besides the yellow spots on its back there are no real defining features of this new dottyback to really make it stand out. However there does appear to be some similar species from Cebu, Milne Bay, and Cenderawasih Bay with much more color potential including a brighter yellow head.
It’s very rare that a new species of reef fish is so bland looking but perhaps this is simply because large adult or male specimens have yet to be found. The new Pseudochromis stellatus is described by Gill, Allen & Erdmann in the most recent volume of ZooTaxa.
from ReefBuilders
==========================
Taxonomic Study of the Genus Niwaella (Cypriniformes: Cobitidae) from East China, with Description of Four New Species
Niwaella brevipinna, N. fimbriata, N. nigrolinea & N. qujiangensis
Chen & Chen, 2017
in Chen, He, Chen & Chen || zootax.com.cn
Abstract
Four loaches, Niwaella brevipinna Chen & Chen, sp. nov., N. fimbriata Chen & Chen, sp. nov., N. nigrolinea Chen & Chen, sp. nov. and N. qujiangensis Chen & Chen, sp. nov., are described based on specimens collected from Zhejiang and Anhui Provinces, East China. The mitochondrial cytochrome b gene of 28 individuals of seven species from seven locations collected from Zhejiang, Anhui and Jiangxi Provinces were amplified and analyzed. Morphological and molecular data showed that N. fimbriata Chen & Chen, sp. nov. and N. nigrolinea Chen & Chen, sp. nov., N. brevipinna Chen & Chen, sp. nov. and N. laterimaculata (Yan & Zheng), N. qujiangensis Chen & Chen, sp. nov. and N. longibarba Chen & Chen are closely related. The seven Chinese Niwaella species, N. brevipinna Chen & Chen, sp. nov., N. fimbriata Chen & Chen, sp. nov., N. laterimaculata, N. longibarba, N. nigrolinea Chen & Chen, sp. nov., N. qujiangensis Chen & Chen, sp. nov., and N. xinjiangensis are clearly distinguished by the combination of the color patter, mental lobes, suborbital spine, caudal peduncle, body shape, and subdorsal scales.
Yongxia Chen, Dekui He, Hao Chen and Yifeng Chen. 2017. Taxonomic Study of the Genus Niwaella (Cypriniformes: Cobitidae) from East China, with Description of Four New Species. Zoological Systematics. 42(4); 490–507. zootax.com.cn/EN/abstract/abstract190.shtml
facebook.com/israquarium/photos/1584652901601303
==========================
Niwaella brevipinna, N. fimbriata, N. nigrolinea & N. qujiangensis
Chen & Chen, 2017
in Chen, He, Chen & Chen || zootax.com.cn
Abstract
Four loaches, Niwaella brevipinna Chen & Chen, sp. nov., N. fimbriata Chen & Chen, sp. nov., N. nigrolinea Chen & Chen, sp. nov. and N. qujiangensis Chen & Chen, sp. nov., are described based on specimens collected from Zhejiang and Anhui Provinces, East China. The mitochondrial cytochrome b gene of 28 individuals of seven species from seven locations collected from Zhejiang, Anhui and Jiangxi Provinces were amplified and analyzed. Morphological and molecular data showed that N. fimbriata Chen & Chen, sp. nov. and N. nigrolinea Chen & Chen, sp. nov., N. brevipinna Chen & Chen, sp. nov. and N. laterimaculata (Yan & Zheng), N. qujiangensis Chen & Chen, sp. nov. and N. longibarba Chen & Chen are closely related. The seven Chinese Niwaella species, N. brevipinna Chen & Chen, sp. nov., N. fimbriata Chen & Chen, sp. nov., N. laterimaculata, N. longibarba, N. nigrolinea Chen & Chen, sp. nov., N. qujiangensis Chen & Chen, sp. nov., and N. xinjiangensis are clearly distinguished by the combination of the color patter, mental lobes, suborbital spine, caudal peduncle, body shape, and subdorsal scales.
Yongxia Chen, Dekui He, Hao Chen and Yifeng Chen. 2017. Taxonomic Study of the Genus Niwaella (Cypriniformes: Cobitidae) from East China, with Description of Four New Species. Zoological Systematics. 42(4); 490–507. zootax.com.cn/EN/abstract/abstract190.shtml
facebook.com/israquarium/photos/1584652901601303
==========================
Won’t Somebody Please Think of the Koi?
Animal service groups partnered to save more than 130 koi fish threatened by the North Bay fires. California
In animal rescue news that few saw coming out of the North Bay fires, animal groups also took koi fish under their fins, they announced Wednesday.
Sonoma County Animal Services now holds more than 130 koi fish that were called in from eight homes until they can be reunited with their owners. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals partnered to with the county to remove the bulk of those fish on Tuesday.
In the push to offer resources to displaced owners unable to care for their animals, families contacted the groups to help care for their fish, ASPCA says. Without the removal effort, the koi fish would have been left without food and functioning aeration systems to keep them alive.
“The catastrophic wildfires that devastated Northern California impacted the lives of animals big and small,” says Dick Green, senior director of ASPCA Disaster Response.
This mission also took the help of UC Davis, International Bird Rescue and Research Center, Rojas Fisheries, and the Santa Clara Valley Koi and Water Garden Club.
==========================
Animal service groups partnered to save more than 130 koi fish threatened by the North Bay fires. California
In animal rescue news that few saw coming out of the North Bay fires, animal groups also took koi fish under their fins, they announced Wednesday.
Sonoma County Animal Services now holds more than 130 koi fish that were called in from eight homes until they can be reunited with their owners. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals partnered to with the county to remove the bulk of those fish on Tuesday.
In the push to offer resources to displaced owners unable to care for their animals, families contacted the groups to help care for their fish, ASPCA says. Without the removal effort, the koi fish would have been left without food and functioning aeration systems to keep them alive.
“The catastrophic wildfires that devastated Northern California impacted the lives of animals big and small,” says Dick Green, senior director of ASPCA Disaster Response.
This mission also took the help of UC Davis, International Bird Rescue and Research Center, Rojas Fisheries, and the Santa Clara Valley Koi and Water Garden Club.
==========================
Tracking a parasite that's ravaging fish
Credit: EPFLIn Switzerland – not to mention the rest of Europe and the United States – freshwater fish are falling victim to a deadly disease that is rampant in the summer and dormant in the winter. It is caused by a parasite that thrives in rivers and attacks salmonid fish in particular. Researchers from EPFL, EAWAG and FIWI have come up with a mathematical model for predicting outbreaks as part of a three-year joint research program.
Freshwater fish are vulnerable to a parasite called Tetracapsuloides bryosalmonae. This parasite, which has no effect on humans, causes proliferative kidney disease (PKD) – which is highly contagious and can wipe out entire fish populations. In Switzerland, this seasonal disease has been detected in rainbow trout, brown trout and char. It has been identified as one of the main causes of the decline in fish populations in recent decades and has played a major role in the extinction of local endemic species.
Researchers from EPFL, EAWAG the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (EAWAG) and the University of Bern's Center for Fish and Wildlife Health (FIWI spent three years studying the 50-km-long Wigger River – which crosses the cantons of Aargau and Lucerne in the Alp foothills – and its watershed. In their work, they show how both spatial and environmental features of river systems can be used to better understand the epidemiology and dynamics of waterborne diseases. They also developed a mathematical model that predicts how and where T. bryosalmonae will contaminate its environment.
In creating their epidemiological model, the scientists had to take into account the parasite's complex life cycle. It appears first in bryozoans – tiny animals attached to stones on the river floor. The parasites are then excreted into the river water as spores and enter fish through their gills and mucous membranes, where the disease first breaks out before attacking the kidneys. The spores are subsequently released through fish urine and can, in mutated form, infect colonies of bryozoans. This means the parasite needs both bryozoans and fish to multiply and mutate.
T. bryosalmonae contamination generates few symptoms in cold water but becomes apparent when the water temperature stays above 15 degrees Celsius for several weeks. Its deadly effect on both farmed and wild fish therefore lasts from the summer through early fall. Infected fish that manage to survive may continue excreting spores for several seasons. The researchers had to look at all such biological factors in order to model outbreaks.
"We selected several stretches along the Wigger and in the watershed where we took fish samples, measured the concentration of both bryozoan and parasite DNA in the water, and calculated the hydrological and geomorphological variables," says Luca Carraro from EPFL's Laboratory of Ecohydrology. It turns out that the parasite flourishes in moraines, where they are protected from currents. This finding will have to be confirmed, however, and there is no shortage of rivers infested by the parasite in which to test it. As part of their sleuthing, the researchers also needed to factor an array of existing data into their findings in order to account for climate change and water temperatures, and find a way to incorporate the wealth of data collected by the scientific community into their model.
Parasite spores inside bryozoan. Credit: EPFLTo help predict the spread of bryozoan colonies throughout the watershed, the researchers also came up with a model that interprets the concentration of DNA measured in the water samples. Apart from its relevance for PKD, this model could come in handy in a number of ecohydrological applications for locating either invasive or soon-to-be extinct species in freshwater habitats.
At this stage it is impossible to combat the disease in its natural surroundings. But the Swiss Federal Veterinary Office wants to be sure that any fish introduced into rivers for repopulation purposes are carefully checked to ensure they are free of the parasites.
Epidemiological model scheme. Credit: Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne
Credit: Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne Explore further: Fish may use different behaviors to protect against parasites
More information: Luca Carraro et al. Integrated field, laboratory, and theoretical study of PKD spread in a Swiss prealpine river, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2017). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1713691114
Journal reference: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Provided by: Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne
Read more at: https://phys.org/news/2017-10-tracking-parasite-ravaging-fish.html#jCp
==========================
Credit: EPFLIn Switzerland – not to mention the rest of Europe and the United States – freshwater fish are falling victim to a deadly disease that is rampant in the summer and dormant in the winter. It is caused by a parasite that thrives in rivers and attacks salmonid fish in particular. Researchers from EPFL, EAWAG and FIWI have come up with a mathematical model for predicting outbreaks as part of a three-year joint research program.
Freshwater fish are vulnerable to a parasite called Tetracapsuloides bryosalmonae. This parasite, which has no effect on humans, causes proliferative kidney disease (PKD) – which is highly contagious and can wipe out entire fish populations. In Switzerland, this seasonal disease has been detected in rainbow trout, brown trout and char. It has been identified as one of the main causes of the decline in fish populations in recent decades and has played a major role in the extinction of local endemic species.
Researchers from EPFL, EAWAG the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (EAWAG) and the University of Bern's Center for Fish and Wildlife Health (FIWI spent three years studying the 50-km-long Wigger River – which crosses the cantons of Aargau and Lucerne in the Alp foothills – and its watershed. In their work, they show how both spatial and environmental features of river systems can be used to better understand the epidemiology and dynamics of waterborne diseases. They also developed a mathematical model that predicts how and where T. bryosalmonae will contaminate its environment.
In creating their epidemiological model, the scientists had to take into account the parasite's complex life cycle. It appears first in bryozoans – tiny animals attached to stones on the river floor. The parasites are then excreted into the river water as spores and enter fish through their gills and mucous membranes, where the disease first breaks out before attacking the kidneys. The spores are subsequently released through fish urine and can, in mutated form, infect colonies of bryozoans. This means the parasite needs both bryozoans and fish to multiply and mutate.
T. bryosalmonae contamination generates few symptoms in cold water but becomes apparent when the water temperature stays above 15 degrees Celsius for several weeks. Its deadly effect on both farmed and wild fish therefore lasts from the summer through early fall. Infected fish that manage to survive may continue excreting spores for several seasons. The researchers had to look at all such biological factors in order to model outbreaks.
"We selected several stretches along the Wigger and in the watershed where we took fish samples, measured the concentration of both bryozoan and parasite DNA in the water, and calculated the hydrological and geomorphological variables," says Luca Carraro from EPFL's Laboratory of Ecohydrology. It turns out that the parasite flourishes in moraines, where they are protected from currents. This finding will have to be confirmed, however, and there is no shortage of rivers infested by the parasite in which to test it. As part of their sleuthing, the researchers also needed to factor an array of existing data into their findings in order to account for climate change and water temperatures, and find a way to incorporate the wealth of data collected by the scientific community into their model.
Parasite spores inside bryozoan. Credit: EPFLTo help predict the spread of bryozoan colonies throughout the watershed, the researchers also came up with a model that interprets the concentration of DNA measured in the water samples. Apart from its relevance for PKD, this model could come in handy in a number of ecohydrological applications for locating either invasive or soon-to-be extinct species in freshwater habitats.
At this stage it is impossible to combat the disease in its natural surroundings. But the Swiss Federal Veterinary Office wants to be sure that any fish introduced into rivers for repopulation purposes are carefully checked to ensure they are free of the parasites.
Epidemiological model scheme. Credit: Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne
Credit: Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne Explore further: Fish may use different behaviors to protect against parasites
More information: Luca Carraro et al. Integrated field, laboratory, and theoretical study of PKD spread in a Swiss prealpine river, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2017). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1713691114
Journal reference: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Provided by: Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne
Read more at: https://phys.org/news/2017-10-tracking-parasite-ravaging-fish.html#jCp
==========================
Maigre
Chinese Long Nose Catfish
12 fish species reappear in Yangtze estuary
THE Yangtze River’s ecological environment is getting better — and to prove it 12 fish species have reappeared in the river’s mouth.
They include the spotted maigre (Nibea albiflora) and the Chinese long-snout catfish (Leiocassius longirostris)..
From 2012, more than 30 monitoring spots were set up in the Chinese Sturgeon Nature Conservation Area at Chongming Island near the estuary of Yangtze River, but the 12 species were not observed until the past year.
Six species such as the spotted maigre have been frequently found in the conservation area in the past year, and the other six species, such as the long-snout catfish are also seen in the area, though not as frequently.
Yangtze River’s estuary, the passage for fish to travel between the river water and East China Sea, plays a key role in the fishery development along the huge river.
This is why the conservation area was set up at Chongming Island.
In 2012, the conservation area’s management office set up an artificial fish shelter in the reservation area. The shelter comprises 2.5-meter-long bamboo poles with holes. The bamboos are set in the riverbed and the holes allow sand to flow in to stabilize the bamboos in the water.
Moss grows on the poles, providing a source of food of fish, and loose sand at the bottom can attract creatures that enjoy swimming in sand. The poles also serve as a shelter for young fish and shrimps when under attack from aggressive fish.
Over the past five years, more than 330,000 bamboo poles have been set up in the river, and the shelter now covers an area of 13,000 square kilometers.
Officials said the shelter has made a significant contribution to improve the eco-diversity of the Yangtze River.
==========================
THE Yangtze River’s ecological environment is getting better — and to prove it 12 fish species have reappeared in the river’s mouth.
They include the spotted maigre (Nibea albiflora) and the Chinese long-snout catfish (Leiocassius longirostris)..
From 2012, more than 30 monitoring spots were set up in the Chinese Sturgeon Nature Conservation Area at Chongming Island near the estuary of Yangtze River, but the 12 species were not observed until the past year.
Six species such as the spotted maigre have been frequently found in the conservation area in the past year, and the other six species, such as the long-snout catfish are also seen in the area, though not as frequently.
Yangtze River’s estuary, the passage for fish to travel between the river water and East China Sea, plays a key role in the fishery development along the huge river.
This is why the conservation area was set up at Chongming Island.
In 2012, the conservation area’s management office set up an artificial fish shelter in the reservation area. The shelter comprises 2.5-meter-long bamboo poles with holes. The bamboos are set in the riverbed and the holes allow sand to flow in to stabilize the bamboos in the water.
Moss grows on the poles, providing a source of food of fish, and loose sand at the bottom can attract creatures that enjoy swimming in sand. The poles also serve as a shelter for young fish and shrimps when under attack from aggressive fish.
Over the past five years, more than 330,000 bamboo poles have been set up in the river, and the shelter now covers an area of 13,000 square kilometers.
Officials said the shelter has made a significant contribution to improve the eco-diversity of the Yangtze River.
==========================
Austrolebias camaquensis • A New Annual Fish of the Genus Austrolebias (Cyprinodontiformes: Rivulidae) from Rio Camaquã basin, Laguna dos Patos system, Brazilian Pampa
Austrolebias camaquensis
Volcan, Gonçalves & Lanés, 2017
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4338.1.7
Abstract
A new species of Austrolebias is described from the middle course of the Rio Camaquã, Laguna dos Patos system, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The new species belongs to the Austrolebias alexandri species group, which is distinguished from the remaining congeners by the presence of a dark gray pectoral fin with bright blue iridescence in males. The new species is distinguished from all remaining species of the A. alexandri species group by the following combination of characters: presence of well-defined bright blue bars on the flank in males, shorter caudal fin length in males and females, contact organs in the first three rays of the pectoral fin in males, one to two post-optic neuromasts (rarely three), basihyal width of 50% of the length, and basihyal cartilage about 50–60% of the basihyal length. The recognition of this new species belonging to the A. alexandri group endemic of the middle course of Rio Camaquã and the recent discovery of Austrolebias bagual in the same general region reinforces the claim of the middle Rio Camaquã basin as an area of endemism for annual fishes and as such, a priority area for conservation in southern Brazil.
Keywords: Pisces, Austrolebias, killifish, Rio Camaquã basin, temporary wetland, threatened fish, conservation
Matheus Vieira Volcan, Ândrio Cardozo Gonçalves and Luis Esteban Krause Lanés. 2017. A New Annual Fish of the Genus Austrolebias (Cyprinodontiformes: Rivulidae) from Rio Camaquã basin, Laguna dos Patos system, Brazilian Pampa. Zootaxa. 4338(1); 141–152. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4338.1.7
==========================
Austrolebias camaquensis
Volcan, Gonçalves & Lanés, 2017
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4338.1.7
Abstract
A new species of Austrolebias is described from the middle course of the Rio Camaquã, Laguna dos Patos system, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The new species belongs to the Austrolebias alexandri species group, which is distinguished from the remaining congeners by the presence of a dark gray pectoral fin with bright blue iridescence in males. The new species is distinguished from all remaining species of the A. alexandri species group by the following combination of characters: presence of well-defined bright blue bars on the flank in males, shorter caudal fin length in males and females, contact organs in the first three rays of the pectoral fin in males, one to two post-optic neuromasts (rarely three), basihyal width of 50% of the length, and basihyal cartilage about 50–60% of the basihyal length. The recognition of this new species belonging to the A. alexandri group endemic of the middle course of Rio Camaquã and the recent discovery of Austrolebias bagual in the same general region reinforces the claim of the middle Rio Camaquã basin as an area of endemism for annual fishes and as such, a priority area for conservation in southern Brazil.
Keywords: Pisces, Austrolebias, killifish, Rio Camaquã basin, temporary wetland, threatened fish, conservation
Matheus Vieira Volcan, Ândrio Cardozo Gonçalves and Luis Esteban Krause Lanés. 2017. A New Annual Fish of the Genus Austrolebias (Cyprinodontiformes: Rivulidae) from Rio Camaquã basin, Laguna dos Patos system, Brazilian Pampa. Zootaxa. 4338(1); 141–152. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4338.1.7
==========================
Cairns Aquarium mascots - rare fish- will be a sight for “saw” eyes
THE star attractions of Cairns Aquarium, which are expected to arrive at the venue in two weeks, will be a sight for “saw” eyes.
A pair of freshwater sawfish (Pristis zijsron ) is currently under quarantine at Cairns Marine after being captured from the wild in the Gulf of Carpentaria.
They will be taken to the aquarium, where they will be on display in the freshwater exhibit – the largest display of its kind in Australia.
Freshwater sawfish, also known as largetooth sawfish, are listed as critically endangered worldwide.
The species, which are characteristically known for their long, jagged, saw-like noses, are accidentally captured in nets and threatened by coastal degradation.
Their saws – known as rostrums – are also targeted by trophy hunters.
Aquarium assistant curator Bradley Dohnt hoped that the juvenile sawfish, a male and female, would become a mating pair and the aquarium could start a captive breeding program with them. “We’ll be doing research into the reproduction of sawfish, so we can find out more for the future, to work out whether this is something that is viable in captivity, and if so, how would we do this,” he said.
Cairns Aquarium chose the freshwater sawfish as its logo mascot, due to its critically endangered conservation status, and its strong association with indigenous Australians in the Far North.
Mr Dohnt, who has previously worked with sawfish during his career, said staff were excited that the animals would arrive in coming days.
“You need to be cautious around these creatures, but I wouldn’t say they’re dangerous,” he said.
“They’re just like any other animal.
“When you feed them, you just need to be wary of them, but they’re not aggressive.”
==========================
THE star attractions of Cairns Aquarium, which are expected to arrive at the venue in two weeks, will be a sight for “saw” eyes.
A pair of freshwater sawfish (Pristis zijsron ) is currently under quarantine at Cairns Marine after being captured from the wild in the Gulf of Carpentaria.
They will be taken to the aquarium, where they will be on display in the freshwater exhibit – the largest display of its kind in Australia.
Freshwater sawfish, also known as largetooth sawfish, are listed as critically endangered worldwide.
The species, which are characteristically known for their long, jagged, saw-like noses, are accidentally captured in nets and threatened by coastal degradation.
Their saws – known as rostrums – are also targeted by trophy hunters.
Aquarium assistant curator Bradley Dohnt hoped that the juvenile sawfish, a male and female, would become a mating pair and the aquarium could start a captive breeding program with them. “We’ll be doing research into the reproduction of sawfish, so we can find out more for the future, to work out whether this is something that is viable in captivity, and if so, how would we do this,” he said.
Cairns Aquarium chose the freshwater sawfish as its logo mascot, due to its critically endangered conservation status, and its strong association with indigenous Australians in the Far North.
Mr Dohnt, who has previously worked with sawfish during his career, said staff were excited that the animals would arrive in coming days.
“You need to be cautious around these creatures, but I wouldn’t say they’re dangerous,” he said.
“They’re just like any other animal.
“When you feed them, you just need to be wary of them, but they’re not aggressive.”
==========================
Giant Trevally (Caranx ignobilis ) goes fishing for Birds!
Giant trevally can grow to 80kgs and are known as formidabble predators.Predatory fish that burst out of the sea to attack birds? It sounds like the tallest of fisherman’s tales.
However, Sir David Attenborough’s new BBC Blue Planet series has captured the first images of fish trying to snatch birds from the air.
The fish, a giant trevally, is a massive marine predator that can grow to be bigger than many sharks. Its ability to launch attacks on seabirds was unknown until Blue Planet’s film makers caught one on camera leaping clear of the water in an attempt to capture terns flying above the waves.
The BBC, which wants to maintain some surprises for the first screening, is refusing to say if its camera crew actually filmed any fish consuming birds in midair. But it is unlikely that the BBC would be so pleased if the sequence were devoid of some terns being crushed to death in the jaws of a giant fish flying two metres above the ocean’s surface.
It would also be in keeping with earlier Attenborough specials in which his gentle tones have narrated the slaughter of baby seals by white sharks, cannibalism among chimps and, more recently, the infamous sequence of snakes killing hatchling iguanas.
“A fish that launches itself, missile-like, to try to take birds from the air sounded too extraordinary to be true,” said Miles Barton, who directed the sequence.
“Despite it being a fisherman’s tale with no photographic evidence to back it up, I decided it was worth taking the greatest risk of my 30-year career.”
Attenborough’s TV crew say it has broken new ground in filming the phenomenon. Pic: Al McGlashanThe risk was mainly financial. The cost of taking people and equipment to remote locations - in this case a coral atoll in the Seychelles - can run into millions.
Giant trevallies - which can weigh up to 80kg - are known to be formidable predators, capable of hunting alone or in huge schools, and the atoll where they gather is home to about 500,000 terns.
“Four of us set off to a remote atoll with 800kg of kit, including a stabilised camera, to film the action from a boat,” said Barton. They soon discovered the trevallies had indeed acquired a taste for tern - regularly ambushing those which landed on water and sucking them under.
The bird-hunting trevallies are only one of the scientific revelations emerging from the series. Another is that some fish have worked out how to use tools, such as the orange-dotted tuskfish filmed off Australia’s Lizard Island.
It has learnt how to open shellfish by cracking them against an “anvil” - a solid piece of coral shaped like a bowl. The fish would carry a mussel in its mouth to the anvil, then smash it until the shell broke.
Attenborough, 91, who narrates the series and who travelled to some of the locations, said: “The amazing thing is how every film and every series has found new things.
“There were details on fish behaviour which I thought were completely new. You suddenly saw this fish which is more intelligent than you imagined. It was extraordinary.”
==========================
Giant trevally can grow to 80kgs and are known as formidabble predators.Predatory fish that burst out of the sea to attack birds? It sounds like the tallest of fisherman’s tales.
However, Sir David Attenborough’s new BBC Blue Planet series has captured the first images of fish trying to snatch birds from the air.
The fish, a giant trevally, is a massive marine predator that can grow to be bigger than many sharks. Its ability to launch attacks on seabirds was unknown until Blue Planet’s film makers caught one on camera leaping clear of the water in an attempt to capture terns flying above the waves.
The BBC, which wants to maintain some surprises for the first screening, is refusing to say if its camera crew actually filmed any fish consuming birds in midair. But it is unlikely that the BBC would be so pleased if the sequence were devoid of some terns being crushed to death in the jaws of a giant fish flying two metres above the ocean’s surface.
It would also be in keeping with earlier Attenborough specials in which his gentle tones have narrated the slaughter of baby seals by white sharks, cannibalism among chimps and, more recently, the infamous sequence of snakes killing hatchling iguanas.
“A fish that launches itself, missile-like, to try to take birds from the air sounded too extraordinary to be true,” said Miles Barton, who directed the sequence.
“Despite it being a fisherman’s tale with no photographic evidence to back it up, I decided it was worth taking the greatest risk of my 30-year career.”
Attenborough’s TV crew say it has broken new ground in filming the phenomenon. Pic: Al McGlashanThe risk was mainly financial. The cost of taking people and equipment to remote locations - in this case a coral atoll in the Seychelles - can run into millions.
Giant trevallies - which can weigh up to 80kg - are known to be formidable predators, capable of hunting alone or in huge schools, and the atoll where they gather is home to about 500,000 terns.
“Four of us set off to a remote atoll with 800kg of kit, including a stabilised camera, to film the action from a boat,” said Barton. They soon discovered the trevallies had indeed acquired a taste for tern - regularly ambushing those which landed on water and sucking them under.
The bird-hunting trevallies are only one of the scientific revelations emerging from the series. Another is that some fish have worked out how to use tools, such as the orange-dotted tuskfish filmed off Australia’s Lizard Island.
It has learnt how to open shellfish by cracking them against an “anvil” - a solid piece of coral shaped like a bowl. The fish would carry a mussel in its mouth to the anvil, then smash it until the shell broke.
Attenborough, 91, who narrates the series and who travelled to some of the locations, said: “The amazing thing is how every film and every series has found new things.
“There were details on fish behaviour which I thought were completely new. You suddenly saw this fish which is more intelligent than you imagined. It was extraordinary.”
==========================
125,000 salmon die in disease outbreak at Lewis fish farms
About 125,000 salmon have died due to a disease outbreak at two fish farms on the Isle of Lewis, BBC Scotland has learned.
Marine Harvest confirmed that the sites in Loch Erisort have been hit by the bacterium Pasturella Skyensis.
The company has apologised to local people concerned about the smell of decay in the area and the sight of lorries carrying away dead fish.
The pathogen is believed to have taken hold at the farms at the end of August.
One theory behind the emergence of the disease is that climate change and rising ocean temperatures could be making Scottish fish farms more vulnerable to bacterial infections.
'Extremely unfortunate'Infected salmon become very lethargic, stop eating and as the illness progresses it can prove fatal.
Marine Harvest's business support manager Steve Bracken confirmed that the outbreak was "quite serious" and had taken its toll.
"The mortality is in the region of about 500 tonnes," he said. "The fish are around about 4 kilos so it is about 125,000 fish we have lost during this period.
Image copyrightREUTERS"It's extremely unfortunate but we do see from time to time that there are these outbreaks of infections that are hard to explain. In this case we have seen it [Pasturella Skyensis] before."
He said the pathogen was first identified at one of the company's farms on Skye in 2002. It was also seen there in the late 1990s but at the time the company was not sure what it was.
"In its worst case it kills fish but it does respond to treatment and that is what we are carrying out at Loch Erisort at the moment," Mr Bracken said. "We use antibiotics to control the infection and it has taken time but we are seeing that the antibiotics are working.
"I think we are through the worst of it, but we are still concerned of course and are not out of the woods yet. We are monitoring the situation very closely to make sure the disease is dying away."
Stopping the spreadLorries carrying thousands of dead fish have been a regular feature in the area over the last few weeks.
Specialist contractors are being used to transport the carcasses to the central belt where they are put into an anaerobic digester and turned into liquid fertiliser. Marine Harvest said this was done in line with strict bio-security measures.
In the longer term, it is hoped a vaccine can be developed for the disease, but for now the top priority for the company is to stop it getting into other sites.
The concentration of fish in salmon farm cages is high and one infected fish could quickly spread the illness to thousands of others.
Mr Bracken said the company had managed to stop it from reaching another of their fish farms in Loch Erisort, just one mile away at Tavay.
The aquaculture sector in Scotland has been affected by serious problems with sea lice and amoebic gill disease and it's hoped that Pasturella Skyensis doesn't become a third major issue.
Strains of the bacteria are present in wild fish which could be the origin of the infection, however, it is feared that climate change could be making Scottish fish farms more vulnerable to bacterial diseases.
Not a lot is known about the infection but Mr Bracken said the company would learn a great deal more from this particular incident.
==========================
About 125,000 salmon have died due to a disease outbreak at two fish farms on the Isle of Lewis, BBC Scotland has learned.
Marine Harvest confirmed that the sites in Loch Erisort have been hit by the bacterium Pasturella Skyensis.
The company has apologised to local people concerned about the smell of decay in the area and the sight of lorries carrying away dead fish.
The pathogen is believed to have taken hold at the farms at the end of August.
One theory behind the emergence of the disease is that climate change and rising ocean temperatures could be making Scottish fish farms more vulnerable to bacterial infections.
'Extremely unfortunate'Infected salmon become very lethargic, stop eating and as the illness progresses it can prove fatal.
Marine Harvest's business support manager Steve Bracken confirmed that the outbreak was "quite serious" and had taken its toll.
"The mortality is in the region of about 500 tonnes," he said. "The fish are around about 4 kilos so it is about 125,000 fish we have lost during this period.
Image copyrightREUTERS"It's extremely unfortunate but we do see from time to time that there are these outbreaks of infections that are hard to explain. In this case we have seen it [Pasturella Skyensis] before."
He said the pathogen was first identified at one of the company's farms on Skye in 2002. It was also seen there in the late 1990s but at the time the company was not sure what it was.
"In its worst case it kills fish but it does respond to treatment and that is what we are carrying out at Loch Erisort at the moment," Mr Bracken said. "We use antibiotics to control the infection and it has taken time but we are seeing that the antibiotics are working.
"I think we are through the worst of it, but we are still concerned of course and are not out of the woods yet. We are monitoring the situation very closely to make sure the disease is dying away."
Stopping the spreadLorries carrying thousands of dead fish have been a regular feature in the area over the last few weeks.
Specialist contractors are being used to transport the carcasses to the central belt where they are put into an anaerobic digester and turned into liquid fertiliser. Marine Harvest said this was done in line with strict bio-security measures.
In the longer term, it is hoped a vaccine can be developed for the disease, but for now the top priority for the company is to stop it getting into other sites.
The concentration of fish in salmon farm cages is high and one infected fish could quickly spread the illness to thousands of others.
Mr Bracken said the company had managed to stop it from reaching another of their fish farms in Loch Erisort, just one mile away at Tavay.
The aquaculture sector in Scotland has been affected by serious problems with sea lice and amoebic gill disease and it's hoped that Pasturella Skyensis doesn't become a third major issue.
Strains of the bacteria are present in wild fish which could be the origin of the infection, however, it is feared that climate change could be making Scottish fish farms more vulnerable to bacterial diseases.
Not a lot is known about the infection but Mr Bracken said the company would learn a great deal more from this particular incident.
==========================
Scientists Gave Fish Marijuana to See if It Would Make Them Relax
It didn’t. But it would’ve been a lot cooler if it did.
You’ve probably heard of edibles—tasty treats fortified with marijuana oil for medicinal or recreational use in humans. But what if there was an edible designed for animals?
According to a paper published last month, scientists in Lebanon fed Nile tilapia fish pellets laced with cannabis oil to test whether the drugs could make the fish chill the heck out and maybe even grow faster.
But what does a tilapia have to be stressed about? It’s not like it has a mortgage, deadlines, or a Twitter feed full of Trump news. But life can be tough for a fish in a barrel. Tilapia is farmed intensively, and in a bid to maximize the amount of product fish farmers can bring to market, some fish pens have become incredibly congested.
Living in such close quarters can lead to all kinds of nastiness for the fish, including reduced water quality, more incidences of disease, and “increasing intraspecific interactions”—translation: fish bullying.
All of which is why it would be nice if there were something we could feed the tilapia to take the edge off. Unfortunately, the pot pellets didn’t quite have the mood-altering effect the scientists had hoped for.
Researchers, concerned that fish living in cramped farms may be stressed out, were looking for something to help the fish chillax. But pot, it seems, is not the answer. Photo by Joerg Boethling/Alamy Stock Photo
For starters, fish fed THC-laden edibles didn’t seem to be surviving any better than fish fed a control diet, which the researchers took to mean that the drugs were not helping the fish deal with the stress of pen life. It’s possible, however, that the fish simply built up a tolerance after receiving the same amount of THC every day for two straight weeks. (Researchers saw a similar habituation in Siamese fighting fish back in 1971.)
As for growth, the researchers found that feeding fish pot oil does give their metabolism a boost. Recreational marijuana users will recognize this phenomenon as “the munchies.”
“[B]ut they were not given extra food to make up for this metabolic increase,” says Patrick Saoud, an aquatic scientist at the American University of Beirut and lead author of the study. “So they used what food they got for energy rather than building blocks for growth.”
Of course, farmers could give the fish pot and then feed them more food, but doing so would cut into profit margins, so Saoud says it’s unlikely that any fish farmers will be investing in the drug anytime soon.
Saoud didn’t have to visit any street corners to source his product. Instead, he spoke with Lebanon’s attorney general, who said no one had ever asked for such a thing before, but there was no law against it. In the end, the police were able to hook up Saoud with cannabis from their evidence locker.
As for the prospects of commercially available pot-reared fish, Saoud and his coauthors’ conclusion is a real downer: “Until further research yields different results, we do not believe fish should be given reefer.”
==========================
It didn’t. But it would’ve been a lot cooler if it did.
You’ve probably heard of edibles—tasty treats fortified with marijuana oil for medicinal or recreational use in humans. But what if there was an edible designed for animals?
According to a paper published last month, scientists in Lebanon fed Nile tilapia fish pellets laced with cannabis oil to test whether the drugs could make the fish chill the heck out and maybe even grow faster.
But what does a tilapia have to be stressed about? It’s not like it has a mortgage, deadlines, or a Twitter feed full of Trump news. But life can be tough for a fish in a barrel. Tilapia is farmed intensively, and in a bid to maximize the amount of product fish farmers can bring to market, some fish pens have become incredibly congested.
Living in such close quarters can lead to all kinds of nastiness for the fish, including reduced water quality, more incidences of disease, and “increasing intraspecific interactions”—translation: fish bullying.
All of which is why it would be nice if there were something we could feed the tilapia to take the edge off. Unfortunately, the pot pellets didn’t quite have the mood-altering effect the scientists had hoped for.
Researchers, concerned that fish living in cramped farms may be stressed out, were looking for something to help the fish chillax. But pot, it seems, is not the answer. Photo by Joerg Boethling/Alamy Stock Photo
For starters, fish fed THC-laden edibles didn’t seem to be surviving any better than fish fed a control diet, which the researchers took to mean that the drugs were not helping the fish deal with the stress of pen life. It’s possible, however, that the fish simply built up a tolerance after receiving the same amount of THC every day for two straight weeks. (Researchers saw a similar habituation in Siamese fighting fish back in 1971.)
As for growth, the researchers found that feeding fish pot oil does give their metabolism a boost. Recreational marijuana users will recognize this phenomenon as “the munchies.”
“[B]ut they were not given extra food to make up for this metabolic increase,” says Patrick Saoud, an aquatic scientist at the American University of Beirut and lead author of the study. “So they used what food they got for energy rather than building blocks for growth.”
Of course, farmers could give the fish pot and then feed them more food, but doing so would cut into profit margins, so Saoud says it’s unlikely that any fish farmers will be investing in the drug anytime soon.
Saoud didn’t have to visit any street corners to source his product. Instead, he spoke with Lebanon’s attorney general, who said no one had ever asked for such a thing before, but there was no law against it. In the end, the police were able to hook up Saoud with cannabis from their evidence locker.
As for the prospects of commercially available pot-reared fish, Saoud and his coauthors’ conclusion is a real downer: “Until further research yields different results, we do not believe fish should be given reefer.”
==========================
‘Bizarre’ fish discovered in Swiss Alps
Scientists have discovered a fossil of a new species of Coelacanth fish in the Swiss Alps. A team of paleontologists found it on a pass near the mountain resort of Davos in southeastern Switzerland in 2014 and 2015.
The fish skeletons from the Middle Triassic, which are on display at the Natural History Museum of Geneva, are around 240 million years old, according to the museum.
Lionel Cavin, curator specialist of fossil fish, said it had taken some time to establish what kind of species it is. Scientists named it after a fellow scientist and patron, Foreyia maxkuhni.
A detailed description was published in the online Scientific Reports journal on Friday.
It is believed that the fossil find could open up new pathways to study the evolutionary process, notably about vertebrates.
==========================
Scientists have discovered a fossil of a new species of Coelacanth fish in the Swiss Alps. A team of paleontologists found it on a pass near the mountain resort of Davos in southeastern Switzerland in 2014 and 2015.
The fish skeletons from the Middle Triassic, which are on display at the Natural History Museum of Geneva, are around 240 million years old, according to the museum.
Lionel Cavin, curator specialist of fossil fish, said it had taken some time to establish what kind of species it is. Scientists named it after a fellow scientist and patron, Foreyia maxkuhni.
A detailed description was published in the online Scientific Reports journal on Friday.
It is believed that the fossil find could open up new pathways to study the evolutionary process, notably about vertebrates.
==========================
Invasive 'Devil Fish' Plague Mexico's Waters. Can't Beat 'Em? Eat 'Em
In trying to get people to eat the Pez Diablo, or suckermouth catfish, sustainable fisheries specialist Mike Mitchell says it isn't "a problem of biology or science, but marketing."
Pez diablo: "devil fish." That's what locals in the Mexican state of Tabasco call the armored catfish that has invaded their waters.
Also known as suckermouths, the species is popular with aquarium owners because the fish eats the algae that pollute tanks. But in the wild, that same behavior erodes shorelines and devastates underwater plant life.
A Mexican social enterprise called Acari is trying to do something about it — by creating a taste for these aquatic terrors.
Francisco Mendoza, a 38-year-old fisherman from the village of Simón Sarlat in Tabasco, has fished in the region's lagoons and streams since he was 15.
"We didn't even know the fish before," Mendoza says. Róbalo, or snook, used to be abundant. Those are nearly gone, their marshy habitat taken over by the invasive pez diablo.
A fish that's a survivor
No one knows for sure how suckermouths became such a problem, but they now plague Texas, Florida and southern Mexico. It may be the "Nemo effect" — that fish prized for cleaning aquariums grew too big for their tanks and were set free in the wild. Others believe that aquaculture facilities inadvertently released them. It's likely a combination. But once in the waterways, their population exploded. The pez diablo matures rapidly, lays 500 eggs at a time and lives seven to 15 years. It is encased in hard scales, and can breathe outside water for up to four hours. In other words, it is a survivor.
Sustainable fisheries specialist Mike Mitchell also grew up fishing, and when he took an environmental science class in high school, something clicked. Learning about the efficiency of producing fish compared to other animal sources of protein, "I saw the viability of fish to feed the world's population," he says.
So, in 2014, with a degree from the University of Pennsylvania and several years of working in Latin America under his belt, Mitchell applied for a Fulbright research grant with a proposal to analyze freshwater fishing in Mexico. When he started his research in Tabasco, he talked with countless fishermen, who kept asking: "What the heck am I going to do with the pez diablo?"
Mitchell checked out what was already known about the fish, particularly the research of Salomón Páramo-Delgadillo of the University Juárez Autónoma de Tabasco (UJAT). Mitchell's first plan of attack was to turn the pez diablo into fish meal. He says that effort turned out to be "incredibly tedious, low yield, and not sustainable."
Plan B was to eat the fish. "I thought about Chilean sea bass," Mitchell says. "It used to be called the Patagonian toothfish, and it's a slimy creature." But, rebranded, Chilean sea bass became a delicacy, found on the menus of upscale restaurants around the globe.
Locals believed the pez diablo to be poisonous, but Páramo-Delgadillo's research verified that is not the case. "Salomón showed me how to fillet the fish, so I did a couple of taste tests with other junior researchers in the lab," Mitchell said.
The flavor is similar to other mild freshwater fish. "It wasn't a problem of biology or science, but marketing," Mitchell eventually concluded. "Let's not reinvent the wheel. Let's just fillet it, change the name and call it a day."
Easier said than done
"It has been incredibly difficult," Mitchell admits. He refers to the fish as acari, the name used in its native Brazil, but others keep calling it pez diablo. Getting people to cook it was as difficult as convincing them to call it acari. It would take more than a couple of university researchers to sway public opinion.
It wasn't until Mitchell sat down with chef Lupita Vidal that he found a taker.
Vidal and her husband, photographer Jesus David, own La Cevichería Tabasco, a restaurant in the state's capital of Villahermosa. The eatery is more than just a business for them.
"We believe that through gastronomy and art, great social changes can be generated," Vidal says. On the menu are ceviches, tacos, tostadas and seafood plates, all of them sourced locally. "More than just filling bellies and hearts, my dishes have a cause and a conscience."
Vidal developed a fish burger of pez diablo and in May 2016 added it to her menu. "There were people who wrote us on social media saying that they would never return to our restaurant because we served that species. But together with Mike, we believe that it is just a matter of time, patience and perseverance for this fish to be accepted."
With his first buyer lined up, Mitchell officially established Acari, which he describes as a small business that applies a market-driven approach to improving both the environment and the well-being of fishermen and others in the region.
At the start, Vidal sold one fish burger per week. Now customers order 15 or 20 in the same amount of time. The fish is as nutritious as it is delicious, packed with protein and omega 3 fatty acids.
Victor Hernandez was one of the initial non-believers. Now a third-year biology student at UJAT, he attended one of Mitchell's workshops on the pez diablo. He says, "My family fished in the rivers, and were always talking about the pez diablo. I thought, 'I have to get involved!'" He joined forces with Mitchell, but still hesitated when tasting time arrived.
"I hadn't eaten the fish before. I was the last one — I didn't want to try it," Hernandez says. "Then I tasted the fish burger and ... wow! It was súper rico." Totally delicious.
Next on the horizon
However, it will take a lot more than 20 burgers a week to make a dent in the pez diablo problem. Since founding Acari, they've sold around 450 kilos of fish fillets. The yield of fillet is only about 20 percent per fish, meaning that Acari has removed roughly 2,500 kilos of fish from local waters. Although the local government is supporting Acari's efforts, the stigma of the fish remains high, and Vidal remains the only chef in Tabasco offering pez diablo on the menu. Acari has had more success outside of the state: It currently supplies two more restaurants, and as of this month has begun deliveries to Google in Mexico City.
In addition to finding corporate customers, Acari hopes to help some of the most marginalized in the community through donations of the fish. An estimated 450,000 migrants and refugees enter Mexico from Central America every year, fleeing violence in their home countries. Acari developed fish croquettes to donate to the migrants, but soon realized that a shelf-stable product would be more useful. They are now perfecting a fish jerky.
And rather than outsourcing production, fishermen like Mendoza have been taught to fillet and package the fish, earning around double what they used to take in for fishing alone. According to Mendoza, the pez diablo "might be a plague, but for us it is an economic benefit."
The fish is a devil of a problem. But Acari looks poised to outwit it.
=======================================
In trying to get people to eat the Pez Diablo, or suckermouth catfish, sustainable fisheries specialist Mike Mitchell says it isn't "a problem of biology or science, but marketing."
Pez diablo: "devil fish." That's what locals in the Mexican state of Tabasco call the armored catfish that has invaded their waters.
Also known as suckermouths, the species is popular with aquarium owners because the fish eats the algae that pollute tanks. But in the wild, that same behavior erodes shorelines and devastates underwater plant life.
A Mexican social enterprise called Acari is trying to do something about it — by creating a taste for these aquatic terrors.
Francisco Mendoza, a 38-year-old fisherman from the village of Simón Sarlat in Tabasco, has fished in the region's lagoons and streams since he was 15.
"We didn't even know the fish before," Mendoza says. Róbalo, or snook, used to be abundant. Those are nearly gone, their marshy habitat taken over by the invasive pez diablo.
A fish that's a survivor
No one knows for sure how suckermouths became such a problem, but they now plague Texas, Florida and southern Mexico. It may be the "Nemo effect" — that fish prized for cleaning aquariums grew too big for their tanks and were set free in the wild. Others believe that aquaculture facilities inadvertently released them. It's likely a combination. But once in the waterways, their population exploded. The pez diablo matures rapidly, lays 500 eggs at a time and lives seven to 15 years. It is encased in hard scales, and can breathe outside water for up to four hours. In other words, it is a survivor.
Sustainable fisheries specialist Mike Mitchell also grew up fishing, and when he took an environmental science class in high school, something clicked. Learning about the efficiency of producing fish compared to other animal sources of protein, "I saw the viability of fish to feed the world's population," he says.
So, in 2014, with a degree from the University of Pennsylvania and several years of working in Latin America under his belt, Mitchell applied for a Fulbright research grant with a proposal to analyze freshwater fishing in Mexico. When he started his research in Tabasco, he talked with countless fishermen, who kept asking: "What the heck am I going to do with the pez diablo?"
Mitchell checked out what was already known about the fish, particularly the research of Salomón Páramo-Delgadillo of the University Juárez Autónoma de Tabasco (UJAT). Mitchell's first plan of attack was to turn the pez diablo into fish meal. He says that effort turned out to be "incredibly tedious, low yield, and not sustainable."
Plan B was to eat the fish. "I thought about Chilean sea bass," Mitchell says. "It used to be called the Patagonian toothfish, and it's a slimy creature." But, rebranded, Chilean sea bass became a delicacy, found on the menus of upscale restaurants around the globe.
Locals believed the pez diablo to be poisonous, but Páramo-Delgadillo's research verified that is not the case. "Salomón showed me how to fillet the fish, so I did a couple of taste tests with other junior researchers in the lab," Mitchell said.
The flavor is similar to other mild freshwater fish. "It wasn't a problem of biology or science, but marketing," Mitchell eventually concluded. "Let's not reinvent the wheel. Let's just fillet it, change the name and call it a day."
Easier said than done
"It has been incredibly difficult," Mitchell admits. He refers to the fish as acari, the name used in its native Brazil, but others keep calling it pez diablo. Getting people to cook it was as difficult as convincing them to call it acari. It would take more than a couple of university researchers to sway public opinion.
It wasn't until Mitchell sat down with chef Lupita Vidal that he found a taker.
Vidal and her husband, photographer Jesus David, own La Cevichería Tabasco, a restaurant in the state's capital of Villahermosa. The eatery is more than just a business for them.
"We believe that through gastronomy and art, great social changes can be generated," Vidal says. On the menu are ceviches, tacos, tostadas and seafood plates, all of them sourced locally. "More than just filling bellies and hearts, my dishes have a cause and a conscience."
Vidal developed a fish burger of pez diablo and in May 2016 added it to her menu. "There were people who wrote us on social media saying that they would never return to our restaurant because we served that species. But together with Mike, we believe that it is just a matter of time, patience and perseverance for this fish to be accepted."
With his first buyer lined up, Mitchell officially established Acari, which he describes as a small business that applies a market-driven approach to improving both the environment and the well-being of fishermen and others in the region.
At the start, Vidal sold one fish burger per week. Now customers order 15 or 20 in the same amount of time. The fish is as nutritious as it is delicious, packed with protein and omega 3 fatty acids.
Victor Hernandez was one of the initial non-believers. Now a third-year biology student at UJAT, he attended one of Mitchell's workshops on the pez diablo. He says, "My family fished in the rivers, and were always talking about the pez diablo. I thought, 'I have to get involved!'" He joined forces with Mitchell, but still hesitated when tasting time arrived.
"I hadn't eaten the fish before. I was the last one — I didn't want to try it," Hernandez says. "Then I tasted the fish burger and ... wow! It was súper rico." Totally delicious.
Next on the horizon
However, it will take a lot more than 20 burgers a week to make a dent in the pez diablo problem. Since founding Acari, they've sold around 450 kilos of fish fillets. The yield of fillet is only about 20 percent per fish, meaning that Acari has removed roughly 2,500 kilos of fish from local waters. Although the local government is supporting Acari's efforts, the stigma of the fish remains high, and Vidal remains the only chef in Tabasco offering pez diablo on the menu. Acari has had more success outside of the state: It currently supplies two more restaurants, and as of this month has begun deliveries to Google in Mexico City.
In addition to finding corporate customers, Acari hopes to help some of the most marginalized in the community through donations of the fish. An estimated 450,000 migrants and refugees enter Mexico from Central America every year, fleeing violence in their home countries. Acari developed fish croquettes to donate to the migrants, but soon realized that a shelf-stable product would be more useful. They are now perfecting a fish jerky.
And rather than outsourcing production, fishermen like Mendoza have been taught to fillet and package the fish, earning around double what they used to take in for fishing alone. According to Mendoza, the pez diablo "might be a plague, but for us it is an economic benefit."
The fish is a devil of a problem. But Acari looks poised to outwit it.
=======================================
New Genus and Species of Andean Killifish
External views of Pseudorestias lirimensis gen. et sp. nov. illustrating different coloration patterns. Credit: Gloria Arratia et. al.
New species of fish seem to be described almost daily, but a new genus? That’s less common.
Of particular interest to killifish enthusiasts, scientists have introduced the new species and genus Pseudorestias lirimensis, hailing from the high plains of Chile (the Chilean Altiplano). The type location is the Chancacolla River. The new killifish species description, Morphological and taxonomic descriptions of a new genus and species of killifishes (Teleostei: Cyprinodontiformes) from the high Andes of northern Chile, was published by authors Gloria Arratia, Irma Vila, Claudia Jimena Guerrero, and Claudio Quezada-Romegialli, in the journal PLoS ONE on August 8th, 2017.
“Pseudorestias” is the chosen name for the genus, “in reference to the overall similarities with the genus Orestias.” According to Wikipedia, “Orestias is restricted to freshwater habitats at an altitude of 2,800-4,600m (9,200-15,100ft) in the Andes of central and southern Peru, western Bolivia, and northeastern Chile. Of the 45 recognized species, the majority are found in Lake Titicaca (including 23 endemics), with the remaining from other Altiplano lakes, rivers or springs.
Main course of Chancacolla River, type locality of the new killifish, Pseudorestias lirimensis. Credit: Gloria Arratia et. al.
While it’s unlikely that this fish would show up in the aquarium hobby, Killifish fanatics could surprise us; freshwater aquarists seem ever more willing, year after year, to step out of their comfort zones and the traditional mainstream aquarium staples, looking to break new ground.
Some general notes of interest for the would-be aquarist:
In summation, this new killifish is a new example of a fish taking up residence in potentially harsh conditions, not unlike the Soda Lake Cichlids from Africa or the Desert Pupfish found in the southwestern United States. It’s a curiosity for sure. You can read the full species description for Pseudorestias limirensis in the open access article on PLoS ONE.
References:
Arratia, Gloria et al. “Morphological and Taxonomic Descriptions of a New Genus and Species of Killifishes (Teleostei: Cyprinodontiformes) from the High Andes of Northern Chile.” Ed. Paul Eckhard Witten. PLoS ONE 12.8 (2017): e0181989. PMC. Web. 17 Aug. 2017. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5549709/figure/pone.0181989.g01
From Amazonas Magazine
==========================
External views of Pseudorestias lirimensis gen. et sp. nov. illustrating different coloration patterns. Credit: Gloria Arratia et. al.
New species of fish seem to be described almost daily, but a new genus? That’s less common.
Of particular interest to killifish enthusiasts, scientists have introduced the new species and genus Pseudorestias lirimensis, hailing from the high plains of Chile (the Chilean Altiplano). The type location is the Chancacolla River. The new killifish species description, Morphological and taxonomic descriptions of a new genus and species of killifishes (Teleostei: Cyprinodontiformes) from the high Andes of northern Chile, was published by authors Gloria Arratia, Irma Vila, Claudia Jimena Guerrero, and Claudio Quezada-Romegialli, in the journal PLoS ONE on August 8th, 2017.
“Pseudorestias” is the chosen name for the genus, “in reference to the overall similarities with the genus Orestias.” According to Wikipedia, “Orestias is restricted to freshwater habitats at an altitude of 2,800-4,600m (9,200-15,100ft) in the Andes of central and southern Peru, western Bolivia, and northeastern Chile. Of the 45 recognized species, the majority are found in Lake Titicaca (including 23 endemics), with the remaining from other Altiplano lakes, rivers or springs.
Main course of Chancacolla River, type locality of the new killifish, Pseudorestias lirimensis. Credit: Gloria Arratia et. al.
While it’s unlikely that this fish would show up in the aquarium hobby, Killifish fanatics could surprise us; freshwater aquarists seem ever more willing, year after year, to step out of their comfort zones and the traditional mainstream aquarium staples, looking to break new ground.
Some general notes of interest for the would-be aquarist:
- This species is highly sexually dimorphic; males are considerably smaller, and slimmer than females.
- The coloration of this species is highly variable, as demonstrated in the accompanying photographs.
- The authors describe the water chemistry of the type location as “a predominant sodium sulfated wetland (Na<Ca<K<Mg).” Water chemistry samples from regional wetlandssuggest saline areas with high dissolved solids and high pH levels.
- La Paz, Belize, is the closest city, some 350+ miles away by road. While its climate may provide some very general insights, a lot can change over that distance.
- Given the general region’s climate, it’s probably best to initially think of these as temperate desert fish. Water temps for area wetlands taken in November (summer in the southern hemisphere) were 22.1 C – 24.1 C (approximately 72-75F); no complete seasonal water temperature profile exists.
- Coming from an arid high plain, where the region averages 12,300 feet above sea level, air temps vary widely and seasonally, and presumably, water temps would vary in kind. While exact data doesn’t seem to be available, by combining reported data from Wikipedia and the website This Is Chile, it’s probably fair to presume that daytime temps above 24C (75F) are rare, and the coldest winter night might come in at -20C (-4F).
In summation, this new killifish is a new example of a fish taking up residence in potentially harsh conditions, not unlike the Soda Lake Cichlids from Africa or the Desert Pupfish found in the southwestern United States. It’s a curiosity for sure. You can read the full species description for Pseudorestias limirensis in the open access article on PLoS ONE.
References:
Arratia, Gloria et al. “Morphological and Taxonomic Descriptions of a New Genus and Species of Killifishes (Teleostei: Cyprinodontiformes) from the High Andes of Northern Chile.” Ed. Paul Eckhard Witten. PLoS ONE 12.8 (2017): e0181989. PMC. Web. 17 Aug. 2017. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5549709/figure/pone.0181989.g01
From Amazonas Magazine
==========================
Mid Sussex aquarist society. 2018 open show booked April 22nd
====================================================
Roa rumsfeldi • A New Butterflyfish (Teleostei, Chaetodontidae)from Mesophotic Coral Ecosystems of the Philippines
Roa rumsfeldi
Rocha, Pinheiro, Wandell, Rocha & Shepherd, 2017
Figure 2. Live specimen of Roa rumsfeldi sp. n. photographed at the California Academy of Sciences’ Twilight Zone exhibit (photo LA Rocha).
DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.709.20404
Abstract
A new species of the butterflyfish genus Roa is herein described from the Verde Island Passage in the Philippines, West Pacific Ocean. Roa rumsfeldi sp. n. was found on mesophotic coral ecosystems at Puerto Galera and Batangas, and sampled through technical mixed-gas rebreather diving at 100–130 m depth. This represents the fifth known species of Roa. The main differences between Roa rumsfeldi sp. n. and its congeners are the lower number of pored scales in the lateral line, longer snout, longer caudal peduncle, shorter caudal fin, pelvic fin color (dark first spine vs. white in all other Roa), and genetics (8.4% divergence from its closest relative Roa modesta in the mitochondrial COI gene). Roa spp. are usually seen in pairs, but the two specimens we collected were solitary individuals. We have kept one of the specimens alive in the California Academy of Sciences’ Twilight Zone exhibit for more than one year, where it thrives and is feeding on a variety of dried and fresh food.
Keywords: Coral triangle, deep reefs, new species, rebreather diving, reef fish
Figure . Roa rumsfeldi sp. n., holotype shortly after death, 77.53 mm SL, PNM 15198 (photo LA Rocha).
Roa rumsfeldi sp. n.
Deep-blackfin butterflyfish
Diagnosis: Roa rumsfeldi sp. n. differs from all of its congeners by the smaller number of pored scales in the lateral line pored scales (27 versus 37-46 in other Roa), longer snout (35.9% in HL vs. 28.2–35.5%), shorter first dorsal ray (12% in SL vs. 16.6–26.6%), longer caudal peduncle (8.5% in SL vs. 4.2–8.2%), shorter caudal fin (15.9% in SL vs. 19.8–25.9%), and a dark brown pelvic-fin spine (white in all other known Roa species).
Etymology: We name Roa rumsfeldi to honor Donald Rumsfeld who immortalized the quote: “there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns – the ones we don’t know we don’t know.” He said that when referring to the uncertainties of war, but we think it applies perfectly to the taxonomy of MCE species: We only realized this species was new after we took a good look at it here at the aquarium in San Francisco, so we think it’s a perfect example of an unknown unknown.
Distribution and habitat: Roa rumsfeldi sp. n. is only known to occur in the Verde Island Passage, central Philippines. It was found on MCEs of Puerto Galera, Oriental Mindoro, and Bauan, Batangas, between 100 and 130 m depth. However, the species likely has a wider distribution and remains undetected because of its preferred depth range. The ecosystems where it was found vary from sheltered rocky outcroppings heavily covered by fine sediment to areas exposed to strong currents. The ambient seawater temperature varied between 19 and 21°C during our dives, which were conducted in April-May over several years. Azooxanthellate gorgonians, black corals, and solitary stony corals are the most abundant benthic invertebrates in this habitat.
Luiz A. Rocha, Hudson T. Pinheiro, Matt Wandell, Claudia R. Rocha and Bart Shepherd. 2017. Roa rumsfeldi, A New Butterflyfish (Teleostei, Chaetodontidae) from Mesophotic Coral Ecosystems of the Philippines. ZooKeys. 709; 127-134. DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.709.20404
==========================
Roa rumsfeldi
Rocha, Pinheiro, Wandell, Rocha & Shepherd, 2017
Figure 2. Live specimen of Roa rumsfeldi sp. n. photographed at the California Academy of Sciences’ Twilight Zone exhibit (photo LA Rocha).
DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.709.20404
Abstract
A new species of the butterflyfish genus Roa is herein described from the Verde Island Passage in the Philippines, West Pacific Ocean. Roa rumsfeldi sp. n. was found on mesophotic coral ecosystems at Puerto Galera and Batangas, and sampled through technical mixed-gas rebreather diving at 100–130 m depth. This represents the fifth known species of Roa. The main differences between Roa rumsfeldi sp. n. and its congeners are the lower number of pored scales in the lateral line, longer snout, longer caudal peduncle, shorter caudal fin, pelvic fin color (dark first spine vs. white in all other Roa), and genetics (8.4% divergence from its closest relative Roa modesta in the mitochondrial COI gene). Roa spp. are usually seen in pairs, but the two specimens we collected were solitary individuals. We have kept one of the specimens alive in the California Academy of Sciences’ Twilight Zone exhibit for more than one year, where it thrives and is feeding on a variety of dried and fresh food.
Keywords: Coral triangle, deep reefs, new species, rebreather diving, reef fish
Figure . Roa rumsfeldi sp. n., holotype shortly after death, 77.53 mm SL, PNM 15198 (photo LA Rocha).
Roa rumsfeldi sp. n.
Deep-blackfin butterflyfish
Diagnosis: Roa rumsfeldi sp. n. differs from all of its congeners by the smaller number of pored scales in the lateral line pored scales (27 versus 37-46 in other Roa), longer snout (35.9% in HL vs. 28.2–35.5%), shorter first dorsal ray (12% in SL vs. 16.6–26.6%), longer caudal peduncle (8.5% in SL vs. 4.2–8.2%), shorter caudal fin (15.9% in SL vs. 19.8–25.9%), and a dark brown pelvic-fin spine (white in all other known Roa species).
Etymology: We name Roa rumsfeldi to honor Donald Rumsfeld who immortalized the quote: “there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns – the ones we don’t know we don’t know.” He said that when referring to the uncertainties of war, but we think it applies perfectly to the taxonomy of MCE species: We only realized this species was new after we took a good look at it here at the aquarium in San Francisco, so we think it’s a perfect example of an unknown unknown.
Distribution and habitat: Roa rumsfeldi sp. n. is only known to occur in the Verde Island Passage, central Philippines. It was found on MCEs of Puerto Galera, Oriental Mindoro, and Bauan, Batangas, between 100 and 130 m depth. However, the species likely has a wider distribution and remains undetected because of its preferred depth range. The ecosystems where it was found vary from sheltered rocky outcroppings heavily covered by fine sediment to areas exposed to strong currents. The ambient seawater temperature varied between 19 and 21°C during our dives, which were conducted in April-May over several years. Azooxanthellate gorgonians, black corals, and solitary stony corals are the most abundant benthic invertebrates in this habitat.
Luiz A. Rocha, Hudson T. Pinheiro, Matt Wandell, Claudia R. Rocha and Bart Shepherd. 2017. Roa rumsfeldi, A New Butterflyfish (Teleostei, Chaetodontidae) from Mesophotic Coral Ecosystems of the Philippines. ZooKeys. 709; 127-134. DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.709.20404
==========================
Channa shingon • A New Dwarf Snakehead (Perciformes: Channidae) from western Yunnan
Channa shingon
Endruweit, 2017
Vertebrate Zoology. 67(2)
Abstract
Channa shingon, new species, is described from small mountainous rivulets associated with the Irrawaddy drainage in western Yunnan Province, China. Its maximum SL of about 100 mm makes it the smallest pelvic-fin bearing dwarf snakehead. Further specific characters are lateral head length 27–30 % SL; interorbital width 33 –35 % HL; 25–27 anal-fin rays; 44–45 lateral-line scales; 4 –5 scale rows between dorsal-fin origin and lateral line; 8 –9 scale rows between lateral line and anal-fin origin; 1 mandibular scale; 43–44 vertebrae; inferomesial process of parasphenoid very shallow and straight; dorsal profile conspicuously bulging in front of dorsal fin; juveniles without ocellus-like mark on posterior part of dorsal fin; and a pectoral-fin pattern of 3 – 4 broad gray to black bands alternating with cream to white interspaces, bands increasingly wide towards distal edge of the fin, interspaces equally wide as bands or narrower.
Key words: Channa; new species; Irrawaddy; Salween; taxonomy
Fig. Channa shingon; Erganya, Yingjiang; Jieyanghe River: a, KIZ 2014005982, 89.7 mm SL, holotype; b, KIZ 2014005980, 90.2 mm SL, paratype, reversed; c, KIZ 2014005971, 89.4 mm SL; Cangyuan; Nangunhe River.
Channa shingon, new species
Diagnosis. Channa shingon is distinguished from other members of the C. gachua-complex (Britz, 2008) by having a lateral head length 27–30 % SL; interorbital width 33 – 35 % HL; 25–27 [26] anal-fin rays; 44– 45 [45] lateral-line scales; 4 –5 [4] transverse scales to dorsal-fin origin and 8–9 [8] to anal-fin origin; 1 mandibular scale, 43 –44 [44] vertebrae; inferomesial process of parasphenoid very shallow and straight; dorsal profile conspicuously bulging in front of dorsal fin; pelvic fin present; juveniles without ocellus-like mark on posterior part of dorsal fin; a pectoral-fin pattern of 3–4 broad gray to black bands alternating with cream to white interspaces, width of bands increasing towards distal edge of the fin, interspaces equally wide as bands or narrower; and a maximum standard length of about 100 mm.
Distribution. Known from the Irrawaddy and Salween drainages in Dehong and Lincang prefectures, Yunnan, China; expected to occur in the same drainages in Myanmar.
Ecology. Channa shingon prefers weedy, stagnant water sections of small mountainous rivulets. These rivulets are often redirected to irrigate rice paddies. At the type locality, the ankle-deep water was clear, with a pH of 5.9, a conductivity of 20 µS/cm, and a temperature of 12 ºC in the afternoon. The lower reaches of these rivulets, shortly before the influx into a larger stream are usually also inhabited by Misgurnus anguillicaudatus and juveniles of C. harcourtbutleri. Another habitat of C. shingon, the Mengnaihe River upstream of Xima at an elevation of 1730 m, had a water temperature of just 8 ºC in the morning (pH 6.7; 20 µS/cm); some backwaters had a thin layer of ice after a chilly night. Vast areas of C. shingon’s habitats are ephemeral and desiccate during droughts.
Etymology. The specific epithet is derived from a character in Burmese spiritualism. Shingon, also referred to as Lady Humpback, is one of the 37 officially recognized spirits (nats) in Myanmar; an allusion to the species’ humpbacked appearance; a noun in apposition.
Marco Endruweit. 2017. Description of A New Dwarf Snakehead (Perciformes: Channidae) from western Yunnan. Vertebrate Zoology. 67(2); 173-178.
senckenberg.de/files/content/forschung/publikationen/vertebratezoology/vz67-2/05_vertebrate_zoology_67-2_endruweit_173-178.pdf
==========================
Channa shingon
Endruweit, 2017
Vertebrate Zoology. 67(2)
Abstract
Channa shingon, new species, is described from small mountainous rivulets associated with the Irrawaddy drainage in western Yunnan Province, China. Its maximum SL of about 100 mm makes it the smallest pelvic-fin bearing dwarf snakehead. Further specific characters are lateral head length 27–30 % SL; interorbital width 33 –35 % HL; 25–27 anal-fin rays; 44–45 lateral-line scales; 4 –5 scale rows between dorsal-fin origin and lateral line; 8 –9 scale rows between lateral line and anal-fin origin; 1 mandibular scale; 43–44 vertebrae; inferomesial process of parasphenoid very shallow and straight; dorsal profile conspicuously bulging in front of dorsal fin; juveniles without ocellus-like mark on posterior part of dorsal fin; and a pectoral-fin pattern of 3 – 4 broad gray to black bands alternating with cream to white interspaces, bands increasingly wide towards distal edge of the fin, interspaces equally wide as bands or narrower.
Key words: Channa; new species; Irrawaddy; Salween; taxonomy
Fig. Channa shingon; Erganya, Yingjiang; Jieyanghe River: a, KIZ 2014005982, 89.7 mm SL, holotype; b, KIZ 2014005980, 90.2 mm SL, paratype, reversed; c, KIZ 2014005971, 89.4 mm SL; Cangyuan; Nangunhe River.
Channa shingon, new species
Diagnosis. Channa shingon is distinguished from other members of the C. gachua-complex (Britz, 2008) by having a lateral head length 27–30 % SL; interorbital width 33 – 35 % HL; 25–27 [26] anal-fin rays; 44– 45 [45] lateral-line scales; 4 –5 [4] transverse scales to dorsal-fin origin and 8–9 [8] to anal-fin origin; 1 mandibular scale, 43 –44 [44] vertebrae; inferomesial process of parasphenoid very shallow and straight; dorsal profile conspicuously bulging in front of dorsal fin; pelvic fin present; juveniles without ocellus-like mark on posterior part of dorsal fin; a pectoral-fin pattern of 3–4 broad gray to black bands alternating with cream to white interspaces, width of bands increasing towards distal edge of the fin, interspaces equally wide as bands or narrower; and a maximum standard length of about 100 mm.
Distribution. Known from the Irrawaddy and Salween drainages in Dehong and Lincang prefectures, Yunnan, China; expected to occur in the same drainages in Myanmar.
Ecology. Channa shingon prefers weedy, stagnant water sections of small mountainous rivulets. These rivulets are often redirected to irrigate rice paddies. At the type locality, the ankle-deep water was clear, with a pH of 5.9, a conductivity of 20 µS/cm, and a temperature of 12 ºC in the afternoon. The lower reaches of these rivulets, shortly before the influx into a larger stream are usually also inhabited by Misgurnus anguillicaudatus and juveniles of C. harcourtbutleri. Another habitat of C. shingon, the Mengnaihe River upstream of Xima at an elevation of 1730 m, had a water temperature of just 8 ºC in the morning (pH 6.7; 20 µS/cm); some backwaters had a thin layer of ice after a chilly night. Vast areas of C. shingon’s habitats are ephemeral and desiccate during droughts.
Etymology. The specific epithet is derived from a character in Burmese spiritualism. Shingon, also referred to as Lady Humpback, is one of the 37 officially recognized spirits (nats) in Myanmar; an allusion to the species’ humpbacked appearance; a noun in apposition.
Marco Endruweit. 2017. Description of A New Dwarf Snakehead (Perciformes: Channidae) from western Yunnan. Vertebrate Zoology. 67(2); 173-178.
senckenberg.de/files/content/forschung/publikationen/vertebratezoology/vz67-2/05_vertebrate_zoology_67-2_endruweit_173-178.pdf
==========================
Fish numbers drop on rising pollution at Lake Victoria
Rising pollution in Lake Victoria has led to a drop in the numbers of the popular Nile Perch (Lates niloticus) and Omena fish (Rastrineobola argentea), signalling a new threat to food security.
A new report published this week says that Nile Perch population has dropped by up to a quarter while that of Omena has almost halved (49 per cent).
The study titled ‘‘The Lake Wide Hydro-acoustic and Environmental Survey’’ and conducted by Lake Victoria Fisheries Organisation, a Jinja-based fish research body, between August and September last year, found that the water is increasingly not supportive of breeding or habitation.
The report says that for fish to thrive, the water must be of good visibility to allow enough sunshine, which enables plants to thrive and provide food for fish. The water must also be free from toxins and have sufficient oxygen.
The Tanzania portion of the lake, which is the largest of the three nations, recorded the highest decline by 33 per cent followed by Kenya (31 per cent) and Uganda at 13 per cent, the report shows.
==========================
Rising pollution in Lake Victoria has led to a drop in the numbers of the popular Nile Perch (Lates niloticus) and Omena fish (Rastrineobola argentea), signalling a new threat to food security.
A new report published this week says that Nile Perch population has dropped by up to a quarter while that of Omena has almost halved (49 per cent).
The study titled ‘‘The Lake Wide Hydro-acoustic and Environmental Survey’’ and conducted by Lake Victoria Fisheries Organisation, a Jinja-based fish research body, between August and September last year, found that the water is increasingly not supportive of breeding or habitation.
The report says that for fish to thrive, the water must be of good visibility to allow enough sunshine, which enables plants to thrive and provide food for fish. The water must also be free from toxins and have sufficient oxygen.
The Tanzania portion of the lake, which is the largest of the three nations, recorded the highest decline by 33 per cent followed by Kenya (31 per cent) and Uganda at 13 per cent, the report shows.
==========================
Thousands of dead fish found floating down a river in Paraguay.
Thousands of dead fish float at ‘Confuso’ river near Villa Hayes city, Paraguay (Picture: AP) These eerie pictures show thousands of dead fish floating in a river. The images were taken at the ‘Confuso’ river, near Villa Hayes city, in Paraguay, yesterday. Authorities are not quite sure what caused the fish to perish at the location, which is 30 kilometres north from Asuncio. An official investigation has been launched to solve the mystery, with authorities looking into the factories that are located upstream. The fish suddenly died (Picture: AP) Officials are investigating (Picture: AP) There are several factories upstream (Picture: AP) A similar incident happened in the Nicoya Gulf, in Costa Rica, last year. Student who inhaled 360 laughing gas canisters in a week may never walk again Scientists theorized the fish may have died as a result of seaweed lowering the oxygen levels in the water. At the time Gustavo Meneses, executive president of Costa Rica’s Fishing and Aquaculture Institute (Incopesca), told news.co.cr: ‘This is very atypical, not only because of the large number of fish found, but also because of the species, both these fish are around the same size, and the fact that they are appearing in this one specific place, we have a very healthy Nicoya Gulf, this makes it unusual.’
Read more: http://metro.co.uk/2017/10/15/tragic-pictures-show-thousands-of-dead-fish-floating-down-a-river-7001919/?ito=cbshare
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MetroUK | Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MetroUK/
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Great day out for all the family. More info in the link:
https:/www/.facebook.com/groups/104119359623549 ( We couldn`t get this link to work)
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https:/www/.facebook.com/groups/104119359623549 ( We couldn`t get this link to work)
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Giant sea bass worth more alive as undersea wonders than as commercial catch
Almost as large as a Smart car, giant sea bass can weigh more than 500 pounds and grow longer than 6 feet. At this size, they are the largest bony fish found along the California coast.
Once commercially important, these gentle giants were overfished in the 1900s, leading to the collapse of the fishery in the 1970s. Now, they are classified as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, making them as imperiled as the black rhino.
In a new study, UCSB researchers investigated the different economic values of giant sea bass -- paradoxically both a flagship species to the recreational dive industry and regularly sold in California's commercial fisheries when incidentally caught -- to two key stakeholders: commercial fishers and recreational scuba divers. Their findings appear in the journal Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems.
"Analyzing commercial catch data, we found that the average annual value of the giant sea bass fishery to fishers in California was $12,600," said lead author Ana Sofia Guerra, a graduate student in UCSB's Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology (EEMB). "This represents less than 1 percent of the value of the non-endangered fish commercial fishers are actually targeting: white sea bass and California halibut, which are healthy and sustainable seafood options."
While giant sea bass can no longer be targeted by commercial fishermen, if one is caught in a gill net during the capture of other species, it can be sold, which is why this endangered fish still appears regularly on restaurant menus and in fish markets.
Using self-reported fishery catch location data, the researchers identified seasonal bycatch hotspots, where commercial fishermen were not catching white sea bass or halibut but accidentally caught a lot of giant sea bass. According to co-author Douglas McCauley, an EEMB assistant professor, managing such ocean pockets as seasonal giant sea bass sanctuaries would likely have minimal or no financial impact on California's important fisheries but might create a lot more worth for the dive industry.
Although the economic value of a species generally is equated with consumption, the growth of ecotourism has expanded the range of value to include animal interaction -- think photography or wildlife viewing.
"Approximately 1.38 million dives are done in California on an annual basis," Guerra said. "Annual direct expenditures from scuba diving in California range from $161 to $323 million."
Giant sea bass are to California divers what a bison sighting might be to a visitor in Yellowstone National Park. An iconic part of the state's underwater wilderness, giant sea bass have a curious gentle disposition, yet some divers go years without seeing one.
To ascertain the value of giant sea bass in the scuba community, the scientists surveyed recreational divers in Southern California online and in person. They rode along on recreational dive boats to determine the worth divers place on a rare face-to-face encounter with these unique creatures.
The researchers estimated that average annual value at $2.3 million. This amount does not represent a direct cash flow to the diving industry but rather is derived from how much value divers assign to a sighting of this gigantic fish. The high value to divers demonstrates the potential for an industry centered on giant sea bass viewing, which could be more lucrative than their consumption potential.
Similar values have been estimated for other charismatic ocean species. Reef sharks in Palau were found to be over 17 times more valuable alive as an ecotourism attraction in their lifetimes than dead in the market. Globally, the estimated annual economic value of manta ray tourism is $140 million, which substantially exceeds the annual $5 million value of the manta ray gill raker trade.
Viewing value in this way highlights the importance of giant sea bass beyond a fishery and stresses the importance of considering all stakeholders in policy and management plans, Guerra noted. "Fishing and ecotourism or wildlife viewing are not mutually exclusive activities," she said. "The paper highlights ways to strategically maximize the value of giant sea bass to both stakeholders."
Story Source:
Materials provided by University of California - Santa Barbara. Original written by Julie Cohen. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
Journal Reference:
==========================
Almost as large as a Smart car, giant sea bass can weigh more than 500 pounds and grow longer than 6 feet. At this size, they are the largest bony fish found along the California coast.
Once commercially important, these gentle giants were overfished in the 1900s, leading to the collapse of the fishery in the 1970s. Now, they are classified as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, making them as imperiled as the black rhino.
In a new study, UCSB researchers investigated the different economic values of giant sea bass -- paradoxically both a flagship species to the recreational dive industry and regularly sold in California's commercial fisheries when incidentally caught -- to two key stakeholders: commercial fishers and recreational scuba divers. Their findings appear in the journal Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems.
"Analyzing commercial catch data, we found that the average annual value of the giant sea bass fishery to fishers in California was $12,600," said lead author Ana Sofia Guerra, a graduate student in UCSB's Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology (EEMB). "This represents less than 1 percent of the value of the non-endangered fish commercial fishers are actually targeting: white sea bass and California halibut, which are healthy and sustainable seafood options."
While giant sea bass can no longer be targeted by commercial fishermen, if one is caught in a gill net during the capture of other species, it can be sold, which is why this endangered fish still appears regularly on restaurant menus and in fish markets.
Using self-reported fishery catch location data, the researchers identified seasonal bycatch hotspots, where commercial fishermen were not catching white sea bass or halibut but accidentally caught a lot of giant sea bass. According to co-author Douglas McCauley, an EEMB assistant professor, managing such ocean pockets as seasonal giant sea bass sanctuaries would likely have minimal or no financial impact on California's important fisheries but might create a lot more worth for the dive industry.
Although the economic value of a species generally is equated with consumption, the growth of ecotourism has expanded the range of value to include animal interaction -- think photography or wildlife viewing.
"Approximately 1.38 million dives are done in California on an annual basis," Guerra said. "Annual direct expenditures from scuba diving in California range from $161 to $323 million."
Giant sea bass are to California divers what a bison sighting might be to a visitor in Yellowstone National Park. An iconic part of the state's underwater wilderness, giant sea bass have a curious gentle disposition, yet some divers go years without seeing one.
To ascertain the value of giant sea bass in the scuba community, the scientists surveyed recreational divers in Southern California online and in person. They rode along on recreational dive boats to determine the worth divers place on a rare face-to-face encounter with these unique creatures.
The researchers estimated that average annual value at $2.3 million. This amount does not represent a direct cash flow to the diving industry but rather is derived from how much value divers assign to a sighting of this gigantic fish. The high value to divers demonstrates the potential for an industry centered on giant sea bass viewing, which could be more lucrative than their consumption potential.
Similar values have been estimated for other charismatic ocean species. Reef sharks in Palau were found to be over 17 times more valuable alive as an ecotourism attraction in their lifetimes than dead in the market. Globally, the estimated annual economic value of manta ray tourism is $140 million, which substantially exceeds the annual $5 million value of the manta ray gill raker trade.
Viewing value in this way highlights the importance of giant sea bass beyond a fishery and stresses the importance of considering all stakeholders in policy and management plans, Guerra noted. "Fishing and ecotourism or wildlife viewing are not mutually exclusive activities," she said. "The paper highlights ways to strategically maximize the value of giant sea bass to both stakeholders."
Story Source:
Materials provided by University of California - Santa Barbara. Original written by Julie Cohen. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
Journal Reference:
- Ana Sofía Guerra, Daniel J. Madigan, Milton S. Love, Douglas J. McCauley. The worth of giants: The consumptive and non-consumptive use value of the giant sea bass (Stereolepis gigas). Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems, 2017; DOI: 10.1002/aqc.2837
==========================
Why is this fish biting swimmers at Mediterranean beaches?
The white seabream (Diplodus sargus) is no newcomer, but it seems to be becoming more aggressive. One Israeli expert blames climate change, and cites changes in behavior of insects and germs, too
Tzvi Bar-David, a New Yorker, was on a summer vacation to Israel when he got bit. He was about 30 feet (9 meters) out into the water at waist level when, “all of a sudden, there was a little school of fish that came and bit me.”
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Up and down the Israeli coast and even in the Sea of Galilee, swimmers are reporting being nibbled on, often painfully.
The main culprits in the Mediterranean, the experts say, are Diplodus sargus fish, also known as sargo or white seabream, usually about 10 to 15 centimeters (four to six inches) long, which are native to the Sea. (The species can reach up to 40 centimeters long, but the larger fish tend to stay in deeper waters and avoid humans.) The fish biting in the Sea of Galilee, meanwhile, are cichlids, also called St. Peter’s fish, and other tilapias.
Where white seabream are found (Miguelsierra / Wikipedia)Although the sargo is not new to the waters off Israel’s shore, the incidence of biting seems to be escalating, with news reports and social media posts on the rise in the past year. TripAdvisor has had posts documenting tourists being bitten in 2015 and 2016.
What’s going on? Some experts cite climate change as a major factor, and say the biting fish are only one, minor manifestation of the impact of warming temperatures. Certain insect behaviors are changing too, they note.
Elad Goren, a medic on Gordon Beach in Tel Aviv, said he started noticing the biting fish about three years ago.
The fish bite in both shallow and deep water, and are attracted to old cuts, dead skin and varicose veins, he said.
“They smell blood; if you have small cuts they open them,” said Goren, who has patrolled Tel Aviv’s beaches as a medic for the past 16 years, treating small beach emergencies.
Goren estimated that in August, the height of the beach season, he was treating about 20 people a day for the bites.
They smell blood; if you have small cuts they open them
In one extreme case in 2015, a bacterial infection from untreated wounds landed two people in the hospital. But most bites are small and require nothing more than initial cleansing, if that. Rachel Ashur’s bite didn’t require any care, she said, and healed quickly on its own.
What’s going on?“This is not a new story,” said Dr. Menachem Goren (no relation to the beach medic), a professor and principal research associate in the Department of Zoology at Tel Aviv University, who noted that the sargo fish are ancient inhabitants of the Mediterranean. “[The fish] are seeking food. When they see our feet, they bite. They consider it plankton,” said Goren. “People shouldn’t take it too seriously.”
Dr. Goren said sargo fish like shallow water and that the young ones in particular try to bite the little bubbles that humans make while swimming. “Other fish are frightened [of humans] and they don’t go into shallow water,” he said.
Israelis enjoy Tel Aviv beach at sunset on August 1, 2017. (Miriam Alster/FLASH90)Prof. Yoav Yair, dean of the School of Sustainability at the Interdisciplinary Center (IDC) Herzliya, confirmed that the fish are veterans, but said the sargo fish are “notoriously curious and territorial,” and that he had noticed an increase in reports of them biting in recent years.
Stressing that no thorough research has been carried out to check if there is an actual rise, Yair said any verifiable increase in biting could be tied to several factors, including but not limited to climate change.
After he and his daughter were bitten on separate Tel Aviv beaches, Yair met with several marine biologists to try to pin down the cause. “It was really surprising, since I’ve been swimming [here] since childhood,” said Yair.
He posited that increases in average temperature and the warming of the sea may be to blame, as well as changes in the habitats of the fish, which disturb them and possibly make them more aggressive.
The Eastern Mediterranean has warmed by 3 degrees Celsius (5.4 degrees Fahrenheit) over the past 30 years, according to research by the Israel Oceanographic and Limnological Institute.
Meanwhile, over-fishing, commercial shipping, leisure sailing from tourism, and offshore drilling for oil and gas have significantly impacted the fish populations near the Israeli coastline, said Yair. Pollution runoff also threatens the fish’s natural habitats, he added. These factors combine together to produce a more stress-inducing environment that could make the fish more aggressive.
Not just fishYair pointed to other unusual patterns of behavior, by insects, due to increasing temperatures.
During this summer’s heatwaves, anecdotal reports of cockroaches flying to the tops of apartments in Tel Aviv were widespread. Cockroaches usually walk on the ground unless temperatures reach a threshold too unbearable for them, which is about 35 to 36 degrees Celsius (95-97 degrees Fahrenheit). This past July was one of the hottest Julys ever recorded in Israel, with an average temperature nearly 3 degrees Celsius higher than normal.
from The Times of Israel
==========================
The white seabream (Diplodus sargus) is no newcomer, but it seems to be becoming more aggressive. One Israeli expert blames climate change, and cites changes in behavior of insects and germs, too
Tzvi Bar-David, a New Yorker, was on a summer vacation to Israel when he got bit. He was about 30 feet (9 meters) out into the water at waist level when, “all of a sudden, there was a little school of fish that came and bit me.”
Get The Times of Israel's Daily Edition by email and never miss our top storiesFREE SIGN UP
Up and down the Israeli coast and even in the Sea of Galilee, swimmers are reporting being nibbled on, often painfully.
The main culprits in the Mediterranean, the experts say, are Diplodus sargus fish, also known as sargo or white seabream, usually about 10 to 15 centimeters (four to six inches) long, which are native to the Sea. (The species can reach up to 40 centimeters long, but the larger fish tend to stay in deeper waters and avoid humans.) The fish biting in the Sea of Galilee, meanwhile, are cichlids, also called St. Peter’s fish, and other tilapias.
Where white seabream are found (Miguelsierra / Wikipedia)Although the sargo is not new to the waters off Israel’s shore, the incidence of biting seems to be escalating, with news reports and social media posts on the rise in the past year. TripAdvisor has had posts documenting tourists being bitten in 2015 and 2016.
What’s going on? Some experts cite climate change as a major factor, and say the biting fish are only one, minor manifestation of the impact of warming temperatures. Certain insect behaviors are changing too, they note.
Elad Goren, a medic on Gordon Beach in Tel Aviv, said he started noticing the biting fish about three years ago.
The fish bite in both shallow and deep water, and are attracted to old cuts, dead skin and varicose veins, he said.
“They smell blood; if you have small cuts they open them,” said Goren, who has patrolled Tel Aviv’s beaches as a medic for the past 16 years, treating small beach emergencies.
Goren estimated that in August, the height of the beach season, he was treating about 20 people a day for the bites.
They smell blood; if you have small cuts they open them
In one extreme case in 2015, a bacterial infection from untreated wounds landed two people in the hospital. But most bites are small and require nothing more than initial cleansing, if that. Rachel Ashur’s bite didn’t require any care, she said, and healed quickly on its own.
What’s going on?“This is not a new story,” said Dr. Menachem Goren (no relation to the beach medic), a professor and principal research associate in the Department of Zoology at Tel Aviv University, who noted that the sargo fish are ancient inhabitants of the Mediterranean. “[The fish] are seeking food. When they see our feet, they bite. They consider it plankton,” said Goren. “People shouldn’t take it too seriously.”
Dr. Goren said sargo fish like shallow water and that the young ones in particular try to bite the little bubbles that humans make while swimming. “Other fish are frightened [of humans] and they don’t go into shallow water,” he said.
Israelis enjoy Tel Aviv beach at sunset on August 1, 2017. (Miriam Alster/FLASH90)Prof. Yoav Yair, dean of the School of Sustainability at the Interdisciplinary Center (IDC) Herzliya, confirmed that the fish are veterans, but said the sargo fish are “notoriously curious and territorial,” and that he had noticed an increase in reports of them biting in recent years.
Stressing that no thorough research has been carried out to check if there is an actual rise, Yair said any verifiable increase in biting could be tied to several factors, including but not limited to climate change.
After he and his daughter were bitten on separate Tel Aviv beaches, Yair met with several marine biologists to try to pin down the cause. “It was really surprising, since I’ve been swimming [here] since childhood,” said Yair.
He posited that increases in average temperature and the warming of the sea may be to blame, as well as changes in the habitats of the fish, which disturb them and possibly make them more aggressive.
The Eastern Mediterranean has warmed by 3 degrees Celsius (5.4 degrees Fahrenheit) over the past 30 years, according to research by the Israel Oceanographic and Limnological Institute.
Meanwhile, over-fishing, commercial shipping, leisure sailing from tourism, and offshore drilling for oil and gas have significantly impacted the fish populations near the Israeli coastline, said Yair. Pollution runoff also threatens the fish’s natural habitats, he added. These factors combine together to produce a more stress-inducing environment that could make the fish more aggressive.
Not just fishYair pointed to other unusual patterns of behavior, by insects, due to increasing temperatures.
During this summer’s heatwaves, anecdotal reports of cockroaches flying to the tops of apartments in Tel Aviv were widespread. Cockroaches usually walk on the ground unless temperatures reach a threshold too unbearable for them, which is about 35 to 36 degrees Celsius (95-97 degrees Fahrenheit). This past July was one of the hottest Julys ever recorded in Israel, with an average temperature nearly 3 degrees Celsius higher than normal.
from The Times of Israel
==========================
Blind cave fish lost eyes by unexpected evolutionary process
We’ve found out why a Mexican cavefish has no eyes – and the surprising answer is likely to be seized upon by those who think the standard view of evolution needs revising.
Over the past few million years, blind forms of the Mexican tetra (Astyanax mexicanus) have evolved in caves. Maintaining eyes and the visual parts of the brain uses lots of energy, so the loss of eyes is a big advantage for animals living in the dark. Instead the cavefish “see” by sucking.
It was assumed that these fish became blind because mutations disabled key genes involved in eye development. This has been shown to be the case for some other underground species that have lost their eyes.
But Aniket Gore of the US’s National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and colleagues haven’t found any disabling changes in the DNA sequences of eye development genes in the cavefish.
Instead, the genes have been switched off by the addition of chemical tags called methyl groups. This is what is known as an epigenetic, rather than genetic, change.
“Although a central role for DNA methylation in development and disease has been well-documented, our results suggest that epigenetic processes can play an equally important role in adaptive evolution,” the team writes.
Faster evolution?The researchers propose that this epigenetic mechanism allowed the cavefish to shed its eyes faster than if the change had happened via DNA mutations in eye genes.
That is a controversial suggestion, and one that will be music to the ears of those who think that evolution can occur via heritable epigenetic mechanisms, and that standard evolutionary theory needs to be broadened to include such processes.
“This is a most interesting paper,” says evolutionary biologist Douglas Futuyma of Stony Brook University in New York. But he doesn’t think it poses any challenge to standard evolutionary theory as the epigenetic change is itself most likely a result of a genetic change.
Gore’s team shows that the silencing of the eye genes is due to the increased activity of a specific gene involved in methylation, Futuyma points out. So the question then is, what is making this gene more active?
“I think it likely that there has been an alteration in DNA sequence of that gene,” he says.
“You cannot completely rule out genetic mutations,” says Eva Jablonka of Tel Aviv University, Israel, who thinks evolution can occur via epigenetic changes and that we need a new evolutionary synthesis. “Maybe there was genetic variation that contributed to the eye loss.”
Lamarckian evolutionHowever, Jablonka thinks that heritable epigenetic changes alone could explain the loss of eyes. What is more, she even thinks it possible that the epigenetic changes were somehow triggered by the cave environment in the first place. That would be a form of Lamarckian evolution: the idea that characteristics acquired during an individual’s lifetime can be passed on to descendants.
David Shuker at the University of Edinburgh, UK, is unconvinced by this or any of the other proposed examples of evolution via epigenetic mechanisms.
There is no doubt that some animals respond to the environment via epigenetic mechanisms, he says, but these mechanisms have evolved via genetic changes. “It goes through genetically built systems,” Shuker says.
So, like Futuyma, he thinks standard evolutionary processes such as mutation and natural selection still explain all we have discovered.
“We are always finding new ways in which these processes manifest themselves,” says Shuker. “We have found lots of amazing things.” But the basic principles remain valid, he says.
Shuker is suspicious of some efforts to promote the idea of an “extended evolutionary synthesis”. He thinks some people are trying sneak religious ideas back into evolutionary theory.
“They are trying to allow organisms to have agency not controlled by genes,” he says.
Journal reference: bioRxiv, DOI: 10.1101/199018
extracted from the New Scientist
==========================
We’ve found out why a Mexican cavefish has no eyes – and the surprising answer is likely to be seized upon by those who think the standard view of evolution needs revising.
Over the past few million years, blind forms of the Mexican tetra (Astyanax mexicanus) have evolved in caves. Maintaining eyes and the visual parts of the brain uses lots of energy, so the loss of eyes is a big advantage for animals living in the dark. Instead the cavefish “see” by sucking.
It was assumed that these fish became blind because mutations disabled key genes involved in eye development. This has been shown to be the case for some other underground species that have lost their eyes.
But Aniket Gore of the US’s National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and colleagues haven’t found any disabling changes in the DNA sequences of eye development genes in the cavefish.
Instead, the genes have been switched off by the addition of chemical tags called methyl groups. This is what is known as an epigenetic, rather than genetic, change.
“Although a central role for DNA methylation in development and disease has been well-documented, our results suggest that epigenetic processes can play an equally important role in adaptive evolution,” the team writes.
Faster evolution?The researchers propose that this epigenetic mechanism allowed the cavefish to shed its eyes faster than if the change had happened via DNA mutations in eye genes.
That is a controversial suggestion, and one that will be music to the ears of those who think that evolution can occur via heritable epigenetic mechanisms, and that standard evolutionary theory needs to be broadened to include such processes.
“This is a most interesting paper,” says evolutionary biologist Douglas Futuyma of Stony Brook University in New York. But he doesn’t think it poses any challenge to standard evolutionary theory as the epigenetic change is itself most likely a result of a genetic change.
Gore’s team shows that the silencing of the eye genes is due to the increased activity of a specific gene involved in methylation, Futuyma points out. So the question then is, what is making this gene more active?
“I think it likely that there has been an alteration in DNA sequence of that gene,” he says.
“You cannot completely rule out genetic mutations,” says Eva Jablonka of Tel Aviv University, Israel, who thinks evolution can occur via epigenetic changes and that we need a new evolutionary synthesis. “Maybe there was genetic variation that contributed to the eye loss.”
Lamarckian evolutionHowever, Jablonka thinks that heritable epigenetic changes alone could explain the loss of eyes. What is more, she even thinks it possible that the epigenetic changes were somehow triggered by the cave environment in the first place. That would be a form of Lamarckian evolution: the idea that characteristics acquired during an individual’s lifetime can be passed on to descendants.
David Shuker at the University of Edinburgh, UK, is unconvinced by this or any of the other proposed examples of evolution via epigenetic mechanisms.
There is no doubt that some animals respond to the environment via epigenetic mechanisms, he says, but these mechanisms have evolved via genetic changes. “It goes through genetically built systems,” Shuker says.
So, like Futuyma, he thinks standard evolutionary processes such as mutation and natural selection still explain all we have discovered.
“We are always finding new ways in which these processes manifest themselves,” says Shuker. “We have found lots of amazing things.” But the basic principles remain valid, he says.
Shuker is suspicious of some efforts to promote the idea of an “extended evolutionary synthesis”. He thinks some people are trying sneak religious ideas back into evolutionary theory.
“They are trying to allow organisms to have agency not controlled by genes,” he says.
Journal reference: bioRxiv, DOI: 10.1101/199018
extracted from the New Scientist
==========================
Gary, our President, did well at the Festival of Fishkeeping 2017
Roy at the Festival of Fishkeeping 2017
Do male fish prefer them big and colourful?
Male Mexican fish (Giradinichthys viviparus) are attracted to females with large bellies
Male black-finned goodeid or mexcalpique fish know what they want when they pick a female to mate with; they prefer them big-bellied and as orange as possible. Interestingly, females displaying these traits are the ones most able to produce more offspring that survive, two researchers from the National Autonomous University of Mexico have found.
Share:
FULL STORY
Male black-finned goodeid or mexcalpique fish know what they want when they pick a female to mate with; they prefer them big-bellied and as orange as possible. Interestingly, females displaying these traits are the ones most able to produce more offspring that survive, two researchers from the National Autonomous University of Mexico have found. The study by Marcela Méndez-Janovitz and Constantino Macías Garcia is published in Springer's journal Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology.
The black-finned goodeid (Girardinichthys viviparus) from Mexico is a very promiscuous species of fish, with males constantly seeking a suitable partner to mate with. The females are only sexually receptive for a few days every two months after giving birth. The black-finned goodeid is viviparous, meaning that young fish fully develop inside the female's body before they are born.
During courtship, males concentrate all their attention on only one female at a time. The wooing process is made even harder because females can be quite selective. Courtship consists of three basic elements, and is initiated when the male approaches the female he has chosen. His interest is signalled through his dorsal and anal fins standing erect. He then folds these fins over the female's body, in a type of embrace, before starting to swim in synchrony with her. The male will go on to occasionally attempt to grip the female more firmly and to copulate.
Méndez-Janovitz and Macías Garcia wanted to find out how male black-finned goodeid decide which female to single out for their attention. Ten males were held separately under laboratory conditions. Each one was presented with two pregnant females at a time for fifteen minutes. The females were photographed to catalogue their size, colouration and belly size. The researchers took specific note of how swollen the females' bellies were, as an indication of the number of offspring that they could be carrying.
Some of the females were visited for more than five minutes at a time and the time males spent with a female went hand in hand with the specific physical traits that she possessed. Males lingered longer with the wider bellied, and more orange-looking females. They also made more displays with their fins erect towards ones that possessed such traits. In a further experiment, it was found that the larger females were the ones who produced more offspring that ultimately could survive better. Colour did not play a role in this.
"Belly area had the largest and most positive influence on male behaviour," explains Méndez-Janovitz. "Males made longer visits and performed more courtship displays to the females with wider bellies, while spending less time with thin-bellied females. They also made a greater effort to court females with bodies of a more orange hue."
"Some attributes of the females are therefore linked to their reproductive value, and seem to influence how much time and effort males devote to court them," adds Macías Garcia.
Story Source:
Materials provided by Springer.
Journal Reference:
Springer. "Do male fish prefer them big and colorful? Male Mexican fish are attracted to females with large bellies." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 10 October 2017. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/10/171010124123.htm>.
==========================
Male Mexican fish (Giradinichthys viviparus) are attracted to females with large bellies
Male black-finned goodeid or mexcalpique fish know what they want when they pick a female to mate with; they prefer them big-bellied and as orange as possible. Interestingly, females displaying these traits are the ones most able to produce more offspring that survive, two researchers from the National Autonomous University of Mexico have found.
Share:
FULL STORY
Male black-finned goodeid or mexcalpique fish know what they want when they pick a female to mate with; they prefer them big-bellied and as orange as possible. Interestingly, females displaying these traits are the ones most able to produce more offspring that survive, two researchers from the National Autonomous University of Mexico have found. The study by Marcela Méndez-Janovitz and Constantino Macías Garcia is published in Springer's journal Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology.
The black-finned goodeid (Girardinichthys viviparus) from Mexico is a very promiscuous species of fish, with males constantly seeking a suitable partner to mate with. The females are only sexually receptive for a few days every two months after giving birth. The black-finned goodeid is viviparous, meaning that young fish fully develop inside the female's body before they are born.
During courtship, males concentrate all their attention on only one female at a time. The wooing process is made even harder because females can be quite selective. Courtship consists of three basic elements, and is initiated when the male approaches the female he has chosen. His interest is signalled through his dorsal and anal fins standing erect. He then folds these fins over the female's body, in a type of embrace, before starting to swim in synchrony with her. The male will go on to occasionally attempt to grip the female more firmly and to copulate.
Méndez-Janovitz and Macías Garcia wanted to find out how male black-finned goodeid decide which female to single out for their attention. Ten males were held separately under laboratory conditions. Each one was presented with two pregnant females at a time for fifteen minutes. The females were photographed to catalogue their size, colouration and belly size. The researchers took specific note of how swollen the females' bellies were, as an indication of the number of offspring that they could be carrying.
Some of the females were visited for more than five minutes at a time and the time males spent with a female went hand in hand with the specific physical traits that she possessed. Males lingered longer with the wider bellied, and more orange-looking females. They also made more displays with their fins erect towards ones that possessed such traits. In a further experiment, it was found that the larger females were the ones who produced more offspring that ultimately could survive better. Colour did not play a role in this.
"Belly area had the largest and most positive influence on male behaviour," explains Méndez-Janovitz. "Males made longer visits and performed more courtship displays to the females with wider bellies, while spending less time with thin-bellied females. They also made a greater effort to court females with bodies of a more orange hue."
"Some attributes of the females are therefore linked to their reproductive value, and seem to influence how much time and effort males devote to court them," adds Macías Garcia.
Story Source:
Materials provided by Springer.
Journal Reference:
- Méndez-Janovitz, M. & Macías Garcia, C. Do male fish prefer them big and colourful? Non-random male courtship efforts in a viviparous fish with negligible paternal investment. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 2017; DOI: 10.1007/s00265-017-2385-2
Springer. "Do male fish prefer them big and colorful? Male Mexican fish are attracted to females with large bellies." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 10 October 2017. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/10/171010124123.htm>.
==========================
Endangered seahorse ends up as poultry feed, fish food
They are supposed to be protected and are declared vulnerable under International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), but for Tamil Nadu fishermen, out to get the best catch in their trawlers, endangered seashorses are just bycatch which need to be disposed. Daily tonnes of small fish, along with seahorses and sea cucumbers come in as bycatch only to be sold off as poultry feed or to the fish food and oil industry for a throwaway price, found researchers. The species, which is also a delicacy in south east Asia is also illegally exported.
Sharing details with TOI, director of Project Sea-horse Amanda Vincent said fishing practice through bottom trawling is wreaking havoc in the Gulf of Mannar and Palk Bay. "Fishermen drop their heavy nets and while pulling it back the nets scrape the ocean bed, mowing down everything on its way and scooping up all marine life. This damages the critical habitat under the waters. These are the crucial underwater habitats of fish nurseries of commercial species," she said.
Trawling in the state has no target species. The entire biomass is netted and sold. The basic idea of fishing is to not to deplete the marine sources. "However, the country is depleting her marine resources to poultry feed and fish meal and oil industry very sadly," said Vincent.
The capture of the seahorses came to light during a study by Tanvi Vaidhyanathan, a researcher from University of British Columbia, Canada. But with no records with the state fisheries department about the marine resources, no one knows the exact numbers at stake here.
Describing about the conditions prevailing in fish landing centres in Tuticorin, Vaidhyanathan said piles of marine life, which are brought by different vessels is strewn all over. "Sometimes these bycatch are sorted and sometimes not. They are sold to the poultry feed or fish food industry. The bycatch is sold for `4 per kg and at times `2 per kg," she said.
Tanvi said before the year 2000, the sea-horses were not protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection (WLP) Act of 1972. Data collected during that period showed that the Marine Products Export Development Authority had exported 10 tonnes of sea-horses, which means a whopping 4 million sea-horse specimens.
Today, though the species has been accorded protection under WLP Act, sea-horses are also collected and illegally exported. "When a sizeable quantity comes in they are brought to Chennai, from where they are exported. Chennai is the hub for such illegal trade," she said.
"There are five species of seahorses in the Gulf of Mannar region. But their population in the wild is not known, as there was no study on the population of the endangered marine species," said Vaidhyanathan, which makes it more difficult to track their depleting numbers.
The solution, says Vincent, lies in regular meetings between fishermen and forest officials. The mindset of fishermen has to change too for a balance in the marine ecosphere.
==========================
They are supposed to be protected and are declared vulnerable under International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), but for Tamil Nadu fishermen, out to get the best catch in their trawlers, endangered seashorses are just bycatch which need to be disposed. Daily tonnes of small fish, along with seahorses and sea cucumbers come in as bycatch only to be sold off as poultry feed or to the fish food and oil industry for a throwaway price, found researchers. The species, which is also a delicacy in south east Asia is also illegally exported.
Sharing details with TOI, director of Project Sea-horse Amanda Vincent said fishing practice through bottom trawling is wreaking havoc in the Gulf of Mannar and Palk Bay. "Fishermen drop their heavy nets and while pulling it back the nets scrape the ocean bed, mowing down everything on its way and scooping up all marine life. This damages the critical habitat under the waters. These are the crucial underwater habitats of fish nurseries of commercial species," she said.
Trawling in the state has no target species. The entire biomass is netted and sold. The basic idea of fishing is to not to deplete the marine sources. "However, the country is depleting her marine resources to poultry feed and fish meal and oil industry very sadly," said Vincent.
The capture of the seahorses came to light during a study by Tanvi Vaidhyanathan, a researcher from University of British Columbia, Canada. But with no records with the state fisheries department about the marine resources, no one knows the exact numbers at stake here.
Describing about the conditions prevailing in fish landing centres in Tuticorin, Vaidhyanathan said piles of marine life, which are brought by different vessels is strewn all over. "Sometimes these bycatch are sorted and sometimes not. They are sold to the poultry feed or fish food industry. The bycatch is sold for `4 per kg and at times `2 per kg," she said.
Tanvi said before the year 2000, the sea-horses were not protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection (WLP) Act of 1972. Data collected during that period showed that the Marine Products Export Development Authority had exported 10 tonnes of sea-horses, which means a whopping 4 million sea-horse specimens.
Today, though the species has been accorded protection under WLP Act, sea-horses are also collected and illegally exported. "When a sizeable quantity comes in they are brought to Chennai, from where they are exported. Chennai is the hub for such illegal trade," she said.
"There are five species of seahorses in the Gulf of Mannar region. But their population in the wild is not known, as there was no study on the population of the endangered marine species," said Vaidhyanathan, which makes it more difficult to track their depleting numbers.
The solution, says Vincent, lies in regular meetings between fishermen and forest officials. The mindset of fishermen has to change too for a balance in the marine ecosphere.
==========================
Dubai airport to replace security booths, face scans with fish
Forget queues, you will instead walk through a virtual aquarium as a security check.
Dubai wants to introduce some peace and calm in airport security by taking away facial recognition booths and replacing them with a virtual aquarium.
Navigating your way through airport security is rarely a trouble-free, relaxing event. Steely-eyed customs officers, form after form to fill out, visas, questioning, the removal of clothing and emptying out your bags -- not to mention occasional panicked rushes between connections and long queues -- the security circus can be incredibly stressful.
While new technologies such as e-gates and facial recognition are intended to cut waiting times and make the experience a touch easier, Dubai wants to go further by making security checks seem like anything but.
If I'm having a stressful day, spending 20 minutes gazing at my home aquarium does wonders. There's something about watching aquatic animals and fish which is relaxing, and Dubai's new alternative to counters and e-gates leverages this concept.
As reported by local media The National, the Dubai International Airport will one day walk through a virtual aquarium tunnel which will scan their faces as they pass through.
Instead of staring straight-ahead, eyes watering, as a security officer checks your features against your passport photo, the aquarium will contain hidden cameras that scan either your face or irises.
Roughly 80 cameras will be hidden among the fish and corals to build a picture of a passenger walking through while giving them a break from black-and-white security procedures.
According to the publication, the tunnel can also be set to a number of different environments, or be used to display ads.
Should the passenger check out, they will be given the green light to move forward and a message of greeting. However, if something has gone wrong, a red sign will warn officers to interfere.
"The fish is a sort of entertainment and something new for the traveler but, at the end of the day, it attracts the vision of the travelers to different corners in the tunnel for the cameras to capture his [or] her face print," said Major Gen Obaid Al Hameeri, deputy director general of Dubai Residency and Foreign Affairs. "The virtual images are of very high quality and gives a simulation of a real-life aquarium."
The so-called "virtual borders" will be installed by the end of summer 2018 at the airport's Terminal 3. Should the trial prove successful, a rollout will begin at other terminals.
Using a virtual aquarium may seem like an odd concept, but it is the result of 18 months of brainstorming by Dubai officials.
The airport expects to cater to passenger numbers of up to 180 million in the next few years, and cutting down security clearance time has become a top priority.
"We have been working for about four years to transform the procedure from the traditional counter and in the future we will not need the counter at all," says Hameeri. "This will also benefit stakeholders; now the traveler can spend more time shopping at duty-free, or avoid missing their flight due to long queues."
This is not the only recent innovation taking place at the Dubai International Airport. A new kind of security counter, called the Smart Gate, has been launched by the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA) in the hopes of eradicating the need for travel documents altogether.
It is hoped that departure and arrival checks can be done in less than 15 seconds, thanks to the mobile Smart UAE Wallet, which will hold all necessary travel details on smartphones or tablets.
==========================
Forget queues, you will instead walk through a virtual aquarium as a security check.
Dubai wants to introduce some peace and calm in airport security by taking away facial recognition booths and replacing them with a virtual aquarium.
Navigating your way through airport security is rarely a trouble-free, relaxing event. Steely-eyed customs officers, form after form to fill out, visas, questioning, the removal of clothing and emptying out your bags -- not to mention occasional panicked rushes between connections and long queues -- the security circus can be incredibly stressful.
While new technologies such as e-gates and facial recognition are intended to cut waiting times and make the experience a touch easier, Dubai wants to go further by making security checks seem like anything but.
If I'm having a stressful day, spending 20 minutes gazing at my home aquarium does wonders. There's something about watching aquatic animals and fish which is relaxing, and Dubai's new alternative to counters and e-gates leverages this concept.
As reported by local media The National, the Dubai International Airport will one day walk through a virtual aquarium tunnel which will scan their faces as they pass through.
Instead of staring straight-ahead, eyes watering, as a security officer checks your features against your passport photo, the aquarium will contain hidden cameras that scan either your face or irises.
Roughly 80 cameras will be hidden among the fish and corals to build a picture of a passenger walking through while giving them a break from black-and-white security procedures.
According to the publication, the tunnel can also be set to a number of different environments, or be used to display ads.
Should the passenger check out, they will be given the green light to move forward and a message of greeting. However, if something has gone wrong, a red sign will warn officers to interfere.
"The fish is a sort of entertainment and something new for the traveler but, at the end of the day, it attracts the vision of the travelers to different corners in the tunnel for the cameras to capture his [or] her face print," said Major Gen Obaid Al Hameeri, deputy director general of Dubai Residency and Foreign Affairs. "The virtual images are of very high quality and gives a simulation of a real-life aquarium."
The so-called "virtual borders" will be installed by the end of summer 2018 at the airport's Terminal 3. Should the trial prove successful, a rollout will begin at other terminals.
Using a virtual aquarium may seem like an odd concept, but it is the result of 18 months of brainstorming by Dubai officials.
The airport expects to cater to passenger numbers of up to 180 million in the next few years, and cutting down security clearance time has become a top priority.
"We have been working for about four years to transform the procedure from the traditional counter and in the future we will not need the counter at all," says Hameeri. "This will also benefit stakeholders; now the traveler can spend more time shopping at duty-free, or avoid missing their flight due to long queues."
This is not the only recent innovation taking place at the Dubai International Airport. A new kind of security counter, called the Smart Gate, has been launched by the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA) in the hopes of eradicating the need for travel documents altogether.
It is hoped that departure and arrival checks can be done in less than 15 seconds, thanks to the mobile Smart UAE Wallet, which will hold all necessary travel details on smartphones or tablets.
==========================
Fish species alien to Mediterranean picked up in Maltese waters
Guinea angelfish, a species which is alien to the Mediterranean, has been located in Maltese waters, oceanographer Alan Deidun reported.
The team behind the Spot the Alien Fish campaign, a citizen science campaign which kicked off earlier this year, were alerted to the capture this spring of two individuals of the Guinea angelfish (Holacanthus africanus), which, to date, was unknown from the Mediterranean, making this find a highly significant one.
According to Deidun, who heads the Spot the Alien Fish campaign, the fact that the Guinea angelfish is a non-migratory species which is associated with reefs at shallow depths in its native range (e.g. waters off Ghana and Guinea, in west Africa) suggests that the species was introduced to our waters through a human-mediated process.
In fact, the two individuals of this species were literally caught within tens of metres of each other at Senglea, leading researchers to speculate that the species might have been introduced along with the oil rig stationed at Senglea for repairs and maintenance work, given that both (i.e. the fish and the oil rig) originate from the tropical west coast of Africa. The intentional release of the species within our waters through the aquarium industry is yet another possibility given its popularity within such an industry. The Guinea angelfish is not dangerous to humans and can be consumed, although it’s not prized in commercial fisheries.
Reports of new species can be sent to the Spot the Alien Fish campaign by email (aliensmalta.eu), through the campaign website (www.aliensmalta.eu) or through the campaign facebook page. The campaign is dedicated towards documenting the arrival of new species to our waters, with such records surging in recent years. The text of the scientific paper emerging from this interesting find can be accessed at:http://www.reabic.net/journals/bir/2017/Accepted/BIR_2017_Deidun_etal_correctedproof.pd
==========================
Guinea angelfish, a species which is alien to the Mediterranean, has been located in Maltese waters, oceanographer Alan Deidun reported.
The team behind the Spot the Alien Fish campaign, a citizen science campaign which kicked off earlier this year, were alerted to the capture this spring of two individuals of the Guinea angelfish (Holacanthus africanus), which, to date, was unknown from the Mediterranean, making this find a highly significant one.
According to Deidun, who heads the Spot the Alien Fish campaign, the fact that the Guinea angelfish is a non-migratory species which is associated with reefs at shallow depths in its native range (e.g. waters off Ghana and Guinea, in west Africa) suggests that the species was introduced to our waters through a human-mediated process.
In fact, the two individuals of this species were literally caught within tens of metres of each other at Senglea, leading researchers to speculate that the species might have been introduced along with the oil rig stationed at Senglea for repairs and maintenance work, given that both (i.e. the fish and the oil rig) originate from the tropical west coast of Africa. The intentional release of the species within our waters through the aquarium industry is yet another possibility given its popularity within such an industry. The Guinea angelfish is not dangerous to humans and can be consumed, although it’s not prized in commercial fisheries.
Reports of new species can be sent to the Spot the Alien Fish campaign by email (aliensmalta.eu), through the campaign website (www.aliensmalta.eu) or through the campaign facebook page. The campaign is dedicated towards documenting the arrival of new species to our waters, with such records surging in recent years. The text of the scientific paper emerging from this interesting find can be accessed at:http://www.reabic.net/journals/bir/2017/Accepted/BIR_2017_Deidun_etal_correctedproof.pd
==========================
A Colorful Little Georgia Fish May Get Federal Protection
MOLLY SAMUEL • OCT 6, 2017
The male trispot darter is seen here.
CREDIT DAVE NEELYThe trispot darter lives in Georgia’s Conasauga River, but that’s not where it lays its eggs. The shiny orange fish with turquoise spots swims up into small streams to spawn.
“It’s kind of an amazing trek it has to make to get up to its headwaters, so anything that obstructs its path is going to prevent it from spawning,” said Jeff Powell, an assistant field supervisor at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
That’s the main reason why the fish is in trouble; things like dams or culverts under roads block its way. Powell said low water levels can affect the trispot darter, too, since if the stream is too low, it can’t get where it’s trying to go.
And if the trispot darter can’t get to its spawning habitat, it can’t reproduce. The federal government is looking at protecting it as “threatened” under the Endangered Species Act.
Georgia already considers trispot darters endangered. Brett Albanese with the state Department of Natural Resources said he rarely sees the fish.
“I’ve only collected it a handful of times,” he said. “I’ve been a fish biologist for DNR since 2003, and done a lot of sampling in these areas where they could occur.”
The Conasauga is one of the most diverse rivers in North America. It has more than three times the number of native fish as the Colorado, a significantly larger river system.
Parts of it are pristine. But Albanese said runoff from farms is a problem where the trispot darter lives.
“There’s lots of agricultural activity allowing sediment and pesticides, herbicides, nutrients and chemical pollutants to wash into the stream and that damages their habitat,” he said.
The state and federal wildlife agencies work with private landowners to minimize effects on the fish; rebuilding culverts so that they don’t stop the fish, and working with farmers to minimize effects on water quality.
“It is a beautiful little fish, and it has a unique life history and it’s really interesting,” said Powell. “If we can keep this species alive in the Conasauga River, the way we’re going to do that is protecting water quality, and that benefits everybody.”
==========================
MOLLY SAMUEL • OCT 6, 2017
The male trispot darter is seen here.
CREDIT DAVE NEELYThe trispot darter lives in Georgia’s Conasauga River, but that’s not where it lays its eggs. The shiny orange fish with turquoise spots swims up into small streams to spawn.
“It’s kind of an amazing trek it has to make to get up to its headwaters, so anything that obstructs its path is going to prevent it from spawning,” said Jeff Powell, an assistant field supervisor at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
That’s the main reason why the fish is in trouble; things like dams or culverts under roads block its way. Powell said low water levels can affect the trispot darter, too, since if the stream is too low, it can’t get where it’s trying to go.
And if the trispot darter can’t get to its spawning habitat, it can’t reproduce. The federal government is looking at protecting it as “threatened” under the Endangered Species Act.
Georgia already considers trispot darters endangered. Brett Albanese with the state Department of Natural Resources said he rarely sees the fish.
“I’ve only collected it a handful of times,” he said. “I’ve been a fish biologist for DNR since 2003, and done a lot of sampling in these areas where they could occur.”
The Conasauga is one of the most diverse rivers in North America. It has more than three times the number of native fish as the Colorado, a significantly larger river system.
Parts of it are pristine. But Albanese said runoff from farms is a problem where the trispot darter lives.
“There’s lots of agricultural activity allowing sediment and pesticides, herbicides, nutrients and chemical pollutants to wash into the stream and that damages their habitat,” he said.
The state and federal wildlife agencies work with private landowners to minimize effects on the fish; rebuilding culverts so that they don’t stop the fish, and working with farmers to minimize effects on water quality.
“It is a beautiful little fish, and it has a unique life history and it’s really interesting,” said Powell. “If we can keep this species alive in the Conasauga River, the way we’re going to do that is protecting water quality, and that benefits everybody.”
==========================
1
Gymnocranius obesus • A New Large-eye Seabream from the Coral Triangle
Gymnocranius obesus
Chen, Miki & Borsa, 2017
Obese Large-eye Seabream | DOI: 10.1016/j.crvi.2017.08.004
Abstract
Two previously recorded new species of the large-eye seabream genus Gymnocranius (Gymnocranius sp. D and Gymnocranius sp. E) remain undescribed. Here we describe Gymnocranius sp. E as Gymnocranius obesus sp. nov. This new species is morphologically distinct from all other known species under Gymnocranius by the following combination of characters: relatively deep body, with ratio of standard length to body depth 2.2–2.4; protruding large eye, with eye diameter about equal to or slightly larger than inter-orbital width; caudal fin moderately forked; no blue spots or wavy blue lines on cheek and snout in adults; fourth transversal dark bar on flank running from the sixth spine of the dorsal fin to the origin of the anal fin; anal, caudal and dorsal fins drab with yellowish to yellow margins. Gymnocranius obesus sp. nov. is distinct from G. griseus, with which it has been previously confused by a relatively larger head, scales above lateral line without dark basal patch, and a smaller number of front scales on the dorsal side of the head. Gymnocranius obesus sp. nov. is genetically distinct from its closest known relative, Gymnocranius sp. D by 104 diagnostic nucleotide characters, which translates into a 9.6% sequence divergence at the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene. Gymnocranius obesus sp. nov. reaches a length of at least 295 mm. Its distribution, from the Ryukyu Islands to Bali, including Taiwan and the Flores Sea, mostly coincides with the western half of the Coral Triangle.
Keywords: New species, Indo-West Pacific, Gymnocranius sp. D, Gymnocranius griseus
Gymnocranius obesus sp. nov.
Previously referred to as Gymnocranius sp. E [Borsa, et al., 2013],
Gymnocranius sp. 1 [Anonymous, 2016],
Gymnocranius griseus [Chiang, et al., 2014],
and Gymnocranius grandoculis [Shao, 2016].
Diagnosis: Gymnocranius obesus sp. nov. differs from its morphologically close congeners G. griseus and Gymnocranius sp. D by the number of front scales on the top of the head, and by the dark-bar patterns on flanks. While the fourth transversal dark bar in G. obesus sp. nov. runs from the basis of the sixth spine of the dorsal fin down to the origin of the anal fin, the one in G. griseus, when visible, runs down from the base of the sixth dorsal spine to the abdomen (Table 3). That in Gymnocranius sp. D descends from the sixth dorsal spine to the extremity of abdomen, before the anus (Table 3).
Along the cytochrome b gene, the following apomorphic sites have nucleotides shared by all five specimens of G. obesus sp. nov. examined so far, that are not present in G. elongatus, G. euanus, G. grandoculis, G. griseus, G. oblongus, G. satoi, G. superciliosus and Gymnocranius sp. D: Nos. 61, 108, 117, 135, 153, 165, 300, 303, 318, 375, 501, 564, 627, 630, 684, 756, 765, 816, 967, 972, and 1032. These nucleotide sites can be used for the diagnosis of G. obesus sp. nov. relative to G. griseus and Gymnocranius sp. D.
Etymology: Epithet obesus is the Latin translation of obese, a reference to the deep and relatively thick body shape of the specimens of this species. We propose the Obese Large-eye Seabream as vernacular name for G. obesus sp. nov.
Wei-Jen Chen, Ryohei Miki and Philippe Borsa. 2017. Gymnocranius obesus, A New Large-eye Seabream from the Coral Triangle. Comptes Rendus Biologies. In Press. DOI: 10.1016/j.crvi.2017.08.004
==========================
Gymnocranius obesus
Chen, Miki & Borsa, 2017
Obese Large-eye Seabream | DOI: 10.1016/j.crvi.2017.08.004
Abstract
Two previously recorded new species of the large-eye seabream genus Gymnocranius (Gymnocranius sp. D and Gymnocranius sp. E) remain undescribed. Here we describe Gymnocranius sp. E as Gymnocranius obesus sp. nov. This new species is morphologically distinct from all other known species under Gymnocranius by the following combination of characters: relatively deep body, with ratio of standard length to body depth 2.2–2.4; protruding large eye, with eye diameter about equal to or slightly larger than inter-orbital width; caudal fin moderately forked; no blue spots or wavy blue lines on cheek and snout in adults; fourth transversal dark bar on flank running from the sixth spine of the dorsal fin to the origin of the anal fin; anal, caudal and dorsal fins drab with yellowish to yellow margins. Gymnocranius obesus sp. nov. is distinct from G. griseus, with which it has been previously confused by a relatively larger head, scales above lateral line without dark basal patch, and a smaller number of front scales on the dorsal side of the head. Gymnocranius obesus sp. nov. is genetically distinct from its closest known relative, Gymnocranius sp. D by 104 diagnostic nucleotide characters, which translates into a 9.6% sequence divergence at the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene. Gymnocranius obesus sp. nov. reaches a length of at least 295 mm. Its distribution, from the Ryukyu Islands to Bali, including Taiwan and the Flores Sea, mostly coincides with the western half of the Coral Triangle.
Keywords: New species, Indo-West Pacific, Gymnocranius sp. D, Gymnocranius griseus
Gymnocranius obesus sp. nov.
Previously referred to as Gymnocranius sp. E [Borsa, et al., 2013],
Gymnocranius sp. 1 [Anonymous, 2016],
Gymnocranius griseus [Chiang, et al., 2014],
and Gymnocranius grandoculis [Shao, 2016].
Diagnosis: Gymnocranius obesus sp. nov. differs from its morphologically close congeners G. griseus and Gymnocranius sp. D by the number of front scales on the top of the head, and by the dark-bar patterns on flanks. While the fourth transversal dark bar in G. obesus sp. nov. runs from the basis of the sixth spine of the dorsal fin down to the origin of the anal fin, the one in G. griseus, when visible, runs down from the base of the sixth dorsal spine to the abdomen (Table 3). That in Gymnocranius sp. D descends from the sixth dorsal spine to the extremity of abdomen, before the anus (Table 3).
Along the cytochrome b gene, the following apomorphic sites have nucleotides shared by all five specimens of G. obesus sp. nov. examined so far, that are not present in G. elongatus, G. euanus, G. grandoculis, G. griseus, G. oblongus, G. satoi, G. superciliosus and Gymnocranius sp. D: Nos. 61, 108, 117, 135, 153, 165, 300, 303, 318, 375, 501, 564, 627, 630, 684, 756, 765, 816, 967, 972, and 1032. These nucleotide sites can be used for the diagnosis of G. obesus sp. nov. relative to G. griseus and Gymnocranius sp. D.
Etymology: Epithet obesus is the Latin translation of obese, a reference to the deep and relatively thick body shape of the specimens of this species. We propose the Obese Large-eye Seabream as vernacular name for G. obesus sp. nov.
Wei-Jen Chen, Ryohei Miki and Philippe Borsa. 2017. Gymnocranius obesus, A New Large-eye Seabream from the Coral Triangle. Comptes Rendus Biologies. In Press. DOI: 10.1016/j.crvi.2017.08.004
==========================
Female fish like males who sing
October 4, 2017
Source:
University of Gothenburg
Summary:
Noisier seas seem to hamper fish reproduction. New research shows that noise pollution impedes reproduction in sand and common gobies, both of which are important food sources for juvenile cod.
Share:
FULL STORY
This is a male and female (common goby) in the nest.
Credit: The University of GothenburgNoisier seas seem to hamper fish reproduction. A new doctoral thesis from the University of Gothenburg shows that noise pollution impedes reproduction in sand and common gobies, both of which are important food sources for juvenile cod.
Underwater noise is invisible. It is also inaudible above the surface. It travels almost five times faster than in air, and also over much longer distances.
'We can record the noise of boats that are far out of sight, and the sound is basically unchanged. It can be likened to living in Gothenburg and hearing the sound of all the cars driving around in Stockholm. That would be very noisy and would probably not be permitted, since it would be considered a health hazard. However, this does not apply to our seas, since there are no clear noise regulations for that environment,' says Eva-Lotta Blom, author of the doctoral thesis, which explores how underwater noise affects reproduction in sand and common gobies (Pomatoschistus minutus and Pomatoschistus microps, respectively).
Increasing Noise Pollution in the Seas
The discovery that fish communicate with sounds is relatively new, and it remains unclear how and why the sounds are used and how they are interpreted by the receivers.
But in order for a male sand or common goby to be able to reproduce, it seems to be necessary for him to make himself heard.
'So against the background of the rapidly growing use of leisure boats and other sources of noise in the marine environment, it is important to understand how fish are affected by noise.'
Males Attract Females by Singing
Sand and common gobies live in shallow waters along the entire Swedish coastline. Both species are fairly small (4-9 cm) and constitute an important food source for cod.
During its slightly more than 1-year long lifespan, the male will nest in an empty clamshell or in a hole he has dug. Then he will try to attract females to join him by showing off what he has to offer.
'If a female comes over to inspect his nest, the male is able to produce a sound that is critical to the female's decision of whether or not to mate with him. The sand goby sounds like a purring cat while the smaller common goby sounds more like an intense woodpecker.'
Females Choose Good Singers
If the female decides that the male is a suitable candidate for mating after listening to his singing, she will spawn in his nest. Then she will leave the male to take care of the eggs by himself until they hatch. This means that females will only select males who sing. Something in the male's singing seems to determine whether or not she will select him as a partner.
'The sound may contain some type of information, but if this is the case, we have no idea what the information might mean. What we do know, however, is that the singing is critical to the male's reproductive success.'
But what happens if the female cannot hear the male's singing because of too much noise in the water? To examine the possible negative effect of underwater noise, the fish were exposed to a sound source in their aquarium. The transmitted sound was in the same frequency range as the sound of a leisure boat.
'So we created a realistic scenario for the fish. Then we let two females and one male interact freely for 12 hours and looked at what happened. What we found was remarkable.'
Noise Interfered with Reproduction
The researchers found that fish that interacted in a noise environment hardly mated at all. And if they did, it took them much longer than fish that interacted in a silent aquarium.
In addition, half of the eggs in the noisy aquariums died before hatching. And if they did hatch, it took longer than the eggs in the silent environment.
'The studies also show that when you do experiments involving fish, the environment needs to be as quiet as possible, or else the results may be affected by noise. If some aquariums in a study have been more exposed to noise than others, this has to be taken into account when assessing the findings,' says Blom.
Link to the article: https://gupea.ub.gu.se/handle/2077/52614
Story Source:
Materials provided by University of Gothenburg.
==========================
October 4, 2017
Source:
University of Gothenburg
Summary:
Noisier seas seem to hamper fish reproduction. New research shows that noise pollution impedes reproduction in sand and common gobies, both of which are important food sources for juvenile cod.
Share:
FULL STORY
This is a male and female (common goby) in the nest.
Credit: The University of GothenburgNoisier seas seem to hamper fish reproduction. A new doctoral thesis from the University of Gothenburg shows that noise pollution impedes reproduction in sand and common gobies, both of which are important food sources for juvenile cod.
Underwater noise is invisible. It is also inaudible above the surface. It travels almost five times faster than in air, and also over much longer distances.
'We can record the noise of boats that are far out of sight, and the sound is basically unchanged. It can be likened to living in Gothenburg and hearing the sound of all the cars driving around in Stockholm. That would be very noisy and would probably not be permitted, since it would be considered a health hazard. However, this does not apply to our seas, since there are no clear noise regulations for that environment,' says Eva-Lotta Blom, author of the doctoral thesis, which explores how underwater noise affects reproduction in sand and common gobies (Pomatoschistus minutus and Pomatoschistus microps, respectively).
Increasing Noise Pollution in the Seas
The discovery that fish communicate with sounds is relatively new, and it remains unclear how and why the sounds are used and how they are interpreted by the receivers.
But in order for a male sand or common goby to be able to reproduce, it seems to be necessary for him to make himself heard.
'So against the background of the rapidly growing use of leisure boats and other sources of noise in the marine environment, it is important to understand how fish are affected by noise.'
Males Attract Females by Singing
Sand and common gobies live in shallow waters along the entire Swedish coastline. Both species are fairly small (4-9 cm) and constitute an important food source for cod.
During its slightly more than 1-year long lifespan, the male will nest in an empty clamshell or in a hole he has dug. Then he will try to attract females to join him by showing off what he has to offer.
'If a female comes over to inspect his nest, the male is able to produce a sound that is critical to the female's decision of whether or not to mate with him. The sand goby sounds like a purring cat while the smaller common goby sounds more like an intense woodpecker.'
Females Choose Good Singers
If the female decides that the male is a suitable candidate for mating after listening to his singing, she will spawn in his nest. Then she will leave the male to take care of the eggs by himself until they hatch. This means that females will only select males who sing. Something in the male's singing seems to determine whether or not she will select him as a partner.
'The sound may contain some type of information, but if this is the case, we have no idea what the information might mean. What we do know, however, is that the singing is critical to the male's reproductive success.'
But what happens if the female cannot hear the male's singing because of too much noise in the water? To examine the possible negative effect of underwater noise, the fish were exposed to a sound source in their aquarium. The transmitted sound was in the same frequency range as the sound of a leisure boat.
'So we created a realistic scenario for the fish. Then we let two females and one male interact freely for 12 hours and looked at what happened. What we found was remarkable.'
Noise Interfered with Reproduction
The researchers found that fish that interacted in a noise environment hardly mated at all. And if they did, it took them much longer than fish that interacted in a silent aquarium.
In addition, half of the eggs in the noisy aquariums died before hatching. And if they did hatch, it took longer than the eggs in the silent environment.
'The studies also show that when you do experiments involving fish, the environment needs to be as quiet as possible, or else the results may be affected by noise. If some aquariums in a study have been more exposed to noise than others, this has to be taken into account when assessing the findings,' says Blom.
Link to the article: https://gupea.ub.gu.se/handle/2077/52614
Story Source:
Materials provided by University of Gothenburg.
==========================
Tomiyamichthys reticulatus • A New Species of Shrimpgoby (Teleostei: Gobiidae) from Fiji
Tomiyamichthys reticulatus Greenfield, 2017
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.996850
Abstract
A new species of shrimpgoby, Tomiyamichthys reticulatus, is described on the basis of a single specimen taken at 16 m from a fine, silty-sand bottom at Rabi Island, Fiji. It differs from the other 12 valid described species in the genus on the basis of high fin-ray counts a combination of 12 dorsal and 13 anal-fin soft rays and 21 pectoral-fin rays, as well as a lanceolate caudal fin.
Key words: taxonomy, systematics, ichthyology, coral-reef fishes, gobies, Rabi Island, Pacific Ocean.
Figure 1. Tomiyamichthys reticulatus, fresh holotype, CAS243882, 54.6 mm SL, male, Rabi Island, Fiji (D.W. Greenfield).
Tomiyamichthys reticulatus, n. sp.
Reticulated Shrimpgoby
Diagnosis: Dorsal-fin elements VI+I,12; anal-fin rays I,13; pectoral-fin rays 21; both ctenoid and cycloid scales present; caudal fin lanceolate and longer than head, 2.2 in SL; first 5 dorsal-fin spines filamentous, 2nd longest; gill opening extending forward to middle of operculum, without a free fold across isthmus; a mid-lateral row of 6 orange-brown spots, first at pectoral-fin base, last at caudal-fin base; first dorsal fin with many oblong orange spots encircled with white lines; second dorsal fin with wavy white lines running its length with orange in between; pelvic fins orange, crossed by several narrow curved white lines.
Etymology: The specific epithet, reticulatus (Latin: netlike), referring to the many oblong orange spots encircled with white lines forming a reticulated pattern on the first dorsal fin, treated as a masculine adjective.
Distribution: Currently known only from the type location on Rabi Island, Fiji, although presumably wider spread in the Pacific Ocean.
David W. Greenfield. 2017. Tomiyamichthys reticulatus, A New Species of Shrimpgoby from Fiji (Teleostei: Gobiidae). Journal of the Ocean Science Foundation. 28; 47–51. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.996850
==========================
Tomiyamichthys reticulatus Greenfield, 2017
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.996850
Abstract
A new species of shrimpgoby, Tomiyamichthys reticulatus, is described on the basis of a single specimen taken at 16 m from a fine, silty-sand bottom at Rabi Island, Fiji. It differs from the other 12 valid described species in the genus on the basis of high fin-ray counts a combination of 12 dorsal and 13 anal-fin soft rays and 21 pectoral-fin rays, as well as a lanceolate caudal fin.
Key words: taxonomy, systematics, ichthyology, coral-reef fishes, gobies, Rabi Island, Pacific Ocean.
Figure 1. Tomiyamichthys reticulatus, fresh holotype, CAS243882, 54.6 mm SL, male, Rabi Island, Fiji (D.W. Greenfield).
Tomiyamichthys reticulatus, n. sp.
Reticulated Shrimpgoby
Diagnosis: Dorsal-fin elements VI+I,12; anal-fin rays I,13; pectoral-fin rays 21; both ctenoid and cycloid scales present; caudal fin lanceolate and longer than head, 2.2 in SL; first 5 dorsal-fin spines filamentous, 2nd longest; gill opening extending forward to middle of operculum, without a free fold across isthmus; a mid-lateral row of 6 orange-brown spots, first at pectoral-fin base, last at caudal-fin base; first dorsal fin with many oblong orange spots encircled with white lines; second dorsal fin with wavy white lines running its length with orange in between; pelvic fins orange, crossed by several narrow curved white lines.
Etymology: The specific epithet, reticulatus (Latin: netlike), referring to the many oblong orange spots encircled with white lines forming a reticulated pattern on the first dorsal fin, treated as a masculine adjective.
Distribution: Currently known only from the type location on Rabi Island, Fiji, although presumably wider spread in the Pacific Ocean.
David W. Greenfield. 2017. Tomiyamichthys reticulatus, A New Species of Shrimpgoby from Fiji (Teleostei: Gobiidae). Journal of the Ocean Science Foundation. 28; 47–51. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.996850
==========================
LEGO is now offering Aquarium Bricks
Think I`ll stick to a proper aquarium
==========================
==========================
Study highlights conservation needs of fish species (Chrosomus sp. cf. saylori) recently discovered in Southwest Virginia
Study highlights conservation needs of fish species (Chrosomus sp. cf. saylori) recently discovered in Southwest Virginia
Undergraduate students Hunter Hatcher, left, and Allison Mosley, second from right, help Michael Moore, second from left, and Donald Orth count and identify fish collected from a Southwest Virginia stream before safely returning them to the stream. Credit: Virginia TechIn 1999, a routine study for a pipeline in Tazewell County, Virginia, led to a surprising discovery. Researchers spotted tiny minnows with a black stripe and yellow fins, similar in size and skeletal structure to the Laurel dace, a species native to Tennessee. Further sampling, however, revealed that these minnows were actually a separate species.
Named for the upper Clinch River basin where they were discovered, the Clinch dace have been extensively studied since 2005. The most recent study, conducted by researchers in Virginia Tech's College of Natural Resources and Environment, offers suggestions for further methods of study and conservation efforts.
The study, published in the Journal of Fish and Wildlife Management, compiles data collected on the Clinch dace from 70 stream segments in Tazewell and Russell counties. The fish, which grow to roughly 2 inches in length, are typically found in forested streams. They prefer to nest in gravel depressions built by larger fish like creek chubs and stonerollers, which provide well-oxygenated nests for their eggs to develop.
The tiny Clinch dace, an extremely rare species typically found in forested streams, can serve as an indicator of water quality. All fish surveyed for this study were collected using approved methods and returned to streams unharmed. Photo by Rebecca Bourquin.
Lead author Michael Moore, who earned his master's in fish and wildlife conservation in 2016, worked in the field collecting data on the Clinch dace during the summers of 2014 and 2015.
"Conducting field work and searching for new populations is like a treasure hunt," he said. "You get to test your predictions, and every time you find a new population, it's exciting because you know the species has a little better chance of surviving."
Moore and a team of undergraduate students divided each stream into four 50-meter sections. In two sections, they used cloth mesh minnow traps to capture fish. In the other two stream segments, they used electrofishing, a technique that sends a small electrical pulse into the water to disrupt the fish and make them swim to the surface.
In order to accurately describe the current distribution of the species and minimize the risk of concluding false absences, each stream was surveyed twice. Moore kept a list of every fish caught, paying special attention to whether the Clinch dace was found. Using these data, he was able to develop a statistical model to predict the likelihood of discovering the Clinch dace in a particular stream.
The results of the study were somewhat bittersweet. Moore, who is now a doctoral student at the University of Missouri, explained that electrofishing proved to be the most effective method of finding the Clinch dace, but even then, detection is difficult because of the species' rarity.
"These are extremely rare fish in Virginia," he said. "We found them in less than 10 percent of the small streams in two counties. On the one hand, we were excited to find them in three streams where they'd never been found before, but we failed to find them in two other streams where they had been identified a few years ago."
The tiny Clinch dace, an extremely rare species typically found in forested streams, can serve as an indicator of water quality. All fish surveyed for this study were collected using approved methods and returned to streams unharmed. Credit: Rebecca BourquinCurrently, the Clinch dace is in the highest tier of the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries' Tiers of Imperilment for all wildlife species found in the state. According to Mike Pinder, an aquatic biologist with the agency, that means that conservation efforts are vital.
"Even though we live in a time when we think everything has been discovered, we're still finding new species right here in Virginia," he said. "If we didn't do this work, this species may have been gone soon after it was discovered."
Pinder added that because it takes very little to disrupt a Clinch dace population, the species can serve as a good indicator of water quality in an area. Because Clinch dace live in small streams and headwaters, their presence can give clues to the quality of water that ultimately flows into larger rivers and streams around the state.
"A single disturbance like a chemical spill can wipe out an entire generation of these fish, so they can serve as biomonitoring tools," he said. "If they're present in a water system, it's a good indication that the water system is healthy. If you see them declining, there may be something wrong."
Co-author Donald Orth, the Thomas H. Jones professor of fish and wildlife conservation, noted that there are many things that can be done to help protect Clinch dace populations in the area.
"Forested areas near the streams protect the waterway, prevent erosion, and provide shade that keeps the water cool, so any permits that would allow renewed or expanded timber harvesting or surface mining should be scrutinized to make sure they avoid changing the forest cover or water quality," he said.
Orth also explained that instituting a monitoring program for the existing populations would help researchers track how the species persists over time and determine if additional conservation or restoration efforts should be added.
Currently, Rebecca Bourquin, of Manahawkin, New Jersey, a master's student in fishand wildlife conservation, is collecting DNA samples from eight Clinch dace populations noted in the study to determine their genetic similarities and differences. Bourquin hopes that her research will help researchers and conservationists augment existing populations to prevent further extinctions.
"We wouldn't want to take one population and add it into another if they're too genetically dissimilar, so I'm trying to determine whether we can do any sort of translocation and increase some of those smaller population sizes," she explained.
In addition to offering recommendations for further study and conservation efforts, the researchers also took time to educate the local community, including elementary and middle school students, about the Clinch dace and its importance to the local ecosystem.
"All of these streams are owned by private landowners, so working with them to develop conservation practices is going to be vital," Orth said. "Most of the people we spoke to are really proud and excited that they have a local species that doesn't occur anywhere else in the world. Seeing landowners and students get excited about this species really gives me hope about its future."
Explore further: Study finds Oregon's most common fish at least three distinct species
More information: Michael J Moore et al, Occupancy and detection of Clinch Dace using two gear types, Journal of Fish and Wildlife Management (2017). DOI: 10.3996/022017-JFWM-017
Read more at: https://phys.org/news/2017-10-highlights-fish-species-southwest-virginia.html#jCp
==========================
Study highlights conservation needs of fish species (Chrosomus sp. cf. saylori) recently discovered in Southwest Virginia
Undergraduate students Hunter Hatcher, left, and Allison Mosley, second from right, help Michael Moore, second from left, and Donald Orth count and identify fish collected from a Southwest Virginia stream before safely returning them to the stream. Credit: Virginia TechIn 1999, a routine study for a pipeline in Tazewell County, Virginia, led to a surprising discovery. Researchers spotted tiny minnows with a black stripe and yellow fins, similar in size and skeletal structure to the Laurel dace, a species native to Tennessee. Further sampling, however, revealed that these minnows were actually a separate species.
Named for the upper Clinch River basin where they were discovered, the Clinch dace have been extensively studied since 2005. The most recent study, conducted by researchers in Virginia Tech's College of Natural Resources and Environment, offers suggestions for further methods of study and conservation efforts.
The study, published in the Journal of Fish and Wildlife Management, compiles data collected on the Clinch dace from 70 stream segments in Tazewell and Russell counties. The fish, which grow to roughly 2 inches in length, are typically found in forested streams. They prefer to nest in gravel depressions built by larger fish like creek chubs and stonerollers, which provide well-oxygenated nests for their eggs to develop.
The tiny Clinch dace, an extremely rare species typically found in forested streams, can serve as an indicator of water quality. All fish surveyed for this study were collected using approved methods and returned to streams unharmed. Photo by Rebecca Bourquin.
Lead author Michael Moore, who earned his master's in fish and wildlife conservation in 2016, worked in the field collecting data on the Clinch dace during the summers of 2014 and 2015.
"Conducting field work and searching for new populations is like a treasure hunt," he said. "You get to test your predictions, and every time you find a new population, it's exciting because you know the species has a little better chance of surviving."
Moore and a team of undergraduate students divided each stream into four 50-meter sections. In two sections, they used cloth mesh minnow traps to capture fish. In the other two stream segments, they used electrofishing, a technique that sends a small electrical pulse into the water to disrupt the fish and make them swim to the surface.
In order to accurately describe the current distribution of the species and minimize the risk of concluding false absences, each stream was surveyed twice. Moore kept a list of every fish caught, paying special attention to whether the Clinch dace was found. Using these data, he was able to develop a statistical model to predict the likelihood of discovering the Clinch dace in a particular stream.
The results of the study were somewhat bittersweet. Moore, who is now a doctoral student at the University of Missouri, explained that electrofishing proved to be the most effective method of finding the Clinch dace, but even then, detection is difficult because of the species' rarity.
"These are extremely rare fish in Virginia," he said. "We found them in less than 10 percent of the small streams in two counties. On the one hand, we were excited to find them in three streams where they'd never been found before, but we failed to find them in two other streams where they had been identified a few years ago."
The tiny Clinch dace, an extremely rare species typically found in forested streams, can serve as an indicator of water quality. All fish surveyed for this study were collected using approved methods and returned to streams unharmed. Credit: Rebecca BourquinCurrently, the Clinch dace is in the highest tier of the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries' Tiers of Imperilment for all wildlife species found in the state. According to Mike Pinder, an aquatic biologist with the agency, that means that conservation efforts are vital.
"Even though we live in a time when we think everything has been discovered, we're still finding new species right here in Virginia," he said. "If we didn't do this work, this species may have been gone soon after it was discovered."
Pinder added that because it takes very little to disrupt a Clinch dace population, the species can serve as a good indicator of water quality in an area. Because Clinch dace live in small streams and headwaters, their presence can give clues to the quality of water that ultimately flows into larger rivers and streams around the state.
"A single disturbance like a chemical spill can wipe out an entire generation of these fish, so they can serve as biomonitoring tools," he said. "If they're present in a water system, it's a good indication that the water system is healthy. If you see them declining, there may be something wrong."
Co-author Donald Orth, the Thomas H. Jones professor of fish and wildlife conservation, noted that there are many things that can be done to help protect Clinch dace populations in the area.
"Forested areas near the streams protect the waterway, prevent erosion, and provide shade that keeps the water cool, so any permits that would allow renewed or expanded timber harvesting or surface mining should be scrutinized to make sure they avoid changing the forest cover or water quality," he said.
Orth also explained that instituting a monitoring program for the existing populations would help researchers track how the species persists over time and determine if additional conservation or restoration efforts should be added.
Currently, Rebecca Bourquin, of Manahawkin, New Jersey, a master's student in fishand wildlife conservation, is collecting DNA samples from eight Clinch dace populations noted in the study to determine their genetic similarities and differences. Bourquin hopes that her research will help researchers and conservationists augment existing populations to prevent further extinctions.
"We wouldn't want to take one population and add it into another if they're too genetically dissimilar, so I'm trying to determine whether we can do any sort of translocation and increase some of those smaller population sizes," she explained.
In addition to offering recommendations for further study and conservation efforts, the researchers also took time to educate the local community, including elementary and middle school students, about the Clinch dace and its importance to the local ecosystem.
"All of these streams are owned by private landowners, so working with them to develop conservation practices is going to be vital," Orth said. "Most of the people we spoke to are really proud and excited that they have a local species that doesn't occur anywhere else in the world. Seeing landowners and students get excited about this species really gives me hope about its future."
Explore further: Study finds Oregon's most common fish at least three distinct species
More information: Michael J Moore et al, Occupancy and detection of Clinch Dace using two gear types, Journal of Fish and Wildlife Management (2017). DOI: 10.3996/022017-JFWM-017
Read more at: https://phys.org/news/2017-10-highlights-fish-species-southwest-virginia.html#jCp
==========================
BRITISH LIVEBEARER ASSOCIATION
Autumn 2017 Convention Sat 7th & Sun 8th October
Details on the Autumn 2017 Convention:
This is held Jointly with UK Fancy Guppies and their Show.
Sat 7th & Sun 8th October
Holiday Inn Express
Rockingham Road
Kettering
NN14 1UD
Schedule:Saturday 7th October
9:30am Talk one – Fancy Guppies – Showing, Judging and standards. Bill and Tomasz
11:00 am Talk 2 – Dissection of a fish, David Pool
1:00 pm Talk 3 – Fish Diseases. David Pool
2:00 pm Talk 4 – Livebearing fish Q and A. Dan Fromm.
4:00 pm Fancy Guppies UK AGM
7:00 pm Banquet Meal and Presentation
Sunday 8th October:
9:30 am Talk 1 – Constructing a Glass Fish tank. Matthew Rowthorn
11:00 am Trip to Mexico to see Goodeids – Greg Roebick
12:00 pm – Winners of the Colouring Competition Announcement
12:15 Guppy and BLA Auction
==========================
Autumn 2017 Convention Sat 7th & Sun 8th October
Details on the Autumn 2017 Convention:
This is held Jointly with UK Fancy Guppies and their Show.
Sat 7th & Sun 8th October
Holiday Inn Express
Rockingham Road
Kettering
NN14 1UD
Schedule:Saturday 7th October
9:30am Talk one – Fancy Guppies – Showing, Judging and standards. Bill and Tomasz
11:00 am Talk 2 – Dissection of a fish, David Pool
1:00 pm Talk 3 – Fish Diseases. David Pool
2:00 pm Talk 4 – Livebearing fish Q and A. Dan Fromm.
4:00 pm Fancy Guppies UK AGM
7:00 pm Banquet Meal and Presentation
Sunday 8th October:
9:30 am Talk 1 – Constructing a Glass Fish tank. Matthew Rowthorn
11:00 am Trip to Mexico to see Goodeids – Greg Roebick
12:00 pm – Winners of the Colouring Competition Announcement
12:15 Guppy and BLA Auction
==========================
Not long now- You`ll be sorry if you miss it!
=======================================
Excitement of the oceans
THE Ocean Film Festival World Tour is returning to the UK this autumn, bringing an evening of inspirational and jaw-dropping ocean films to almost 30 venues across Britain and Northern Ireland.
The event, which originated in Australia, features a brand-new selection of the world’s best ocean-themed short films, with action and spell-binding footage from both above and below the water’s surface.
The 2017 film programme sees intrepid free-divers explore haunting shipwrecks, nomadic sailors face the icy waters of Antarctica, and features awe-inspiring marine life such as humpback wales and the endangered Giant Pacific Mantaray.
“We’re delighted to be bringing the Ocean Film Festival World Tour back to UK audiences for the fourth year running,” says tour director Nell Teasdale.
He added: “Featuring incredible cinematography, the films capture the raw beauty and power of the ocean, while celebrating an eclectic and fascinating mix of characters who live for the sea’s salt spray.”
Highlights from the 2017 Ocean Film Tour include:
Sea Gypsies - Infinity and her crew are about to embark on an extraordinary voyage: 8,000 miles from New Zealand to Patagonia, taking in the intimidating iceberg-strewn waters of Antarctica along the way.
Whale Chasers - High on the rugged cliffs above New Zealand’s Cook Strait sits an unusual group of ‘citizen scientists.’ This motley collection of men in their 70s and 80s are keeping watch for humpback whales as part of the Cook Strait Whale Count – a study into the recovery of New Zealand’s humpback population since the end of New Zealand whaling in 1964. It’s tiring but rewarding work, but there’s a reason that the volunteers are so good at the job. Not only are they descendants of New Zealand’s 200-year history of whaling, they were all once whalers themselves.
Fish People - To some, the ocean is a fearsome and dangerous place. But to others, it’s a limitless world of fun, freedom and opportunity where life can be lived to the full. From surfers and spearfishers to a former coal miner and a group of at-risk kids in San Francisco, Fish People is a film about the transformative effects of time spent in the ocean—and how we can leave our limitations behind to find deeper meaning in the saltwater wilderness that lies just beyond the shore.
The Ocean Film Festival is at Birmingham's Crescent Theatre tomorrow (Saturday, September 30) and will be screening at Malvern Theatres on Friday, October 13, 2017.
==========================
THE Ocean Film Festival World Tour is returning to the UK this autumn, bringing an evening of inspirational and jaw-dropping ocean films to almost 30 venues across Britain and Northern Ireland.
The event, which originated in Australia, features a brand-new selection of the world’s best ocean-themed short films, with action and spell-binding footage from both above and below the water’s surface.
The 2017 film programme sees intrepid free-divers explore haunting shipwrecks, nomadic sailors face the icy waters of Antarctica, and features awe-inspiring marine life such as humpback wales and the endangered Giant Pacific Mantaray.
“We’re delighted to be bringing the Ocean Film Festival World Tour back to UK audiences for the fourth year running,” says tour director Nell Teasdale.
He added: “Featuring incredible cinematography, the films capture the raw beauty and power of the ocean, while celebrating an eclectic and fascinating mix of characters who live for the sea’s salt spray.”
Highlights from the 2017 Ocean Film Tour include:
Sea Gypsies - Infinity and her crew are about to embark on an extraordinary voyage: 8,000 miles from New Zealand to Patagonia, taking in the intimidating iceberg-strewn waters of Antarctica along the way.
Whale Chasers - High on the rugged cliffs above New Zealand’s Cook Strait sits an unusual group of ‘citizen scientists.’ This motley collection of men in their 70s and 80s are keeping watch for humpback whales as part of the Cook Strait Whale Count – a study into the recovery of New Zealand’s humpback population since the end of New Zealand whaling in 1964. It’s tiring but rewarding work, but there’s a reason that the volunteers are so good at the job. Not only are they descendants of New Zealand’s 200-year history of whaling, they were all once whalers themselves.
Fish People - To some, the ocean is a fearsome and dangerous place. But to others, it’s a limitless world of fun, freedom and opportunity where life can be lived to the full. From surfers and spearfishers to a former coal miner and a group of at-risk kids in San Francisco, Fish People is a film about the transformative effects of time spent in the ocean—and how we can leave our limitations behind to find deeper meaning in the saltwater wilderness that lies just beyond the shore.
The Ocean Film Festival is at Birmingham's Crescent Theatre tomorrow (Saturday, September 30) and will be screening at Malvern Theatres on Friday, October 13, 2017.
==========================
Goldfish once resuscitated by fire crews dies aged 18
A goldfish from a hook-a-duck stand has died at the age of 18, leaving a big space in his owner’s tank.
The remarkable fish called Rusty came home with Ena Woolford from a fair at Ruthin Farmers Auction in November 1999 and even survived a house fire in 2015.
Ena, who was in hospital at the time, says a fire in the microwave led to serious smoke damage in the house with fire crews finding Rusty floating in his tank on his side. Thanks to one quick-witted fire crew member, Rusty was revived, and managed to live another two years.
Ena says she feels a bit daft to be missing a fish, but that he lived a very long life.
Ena, 92, said: “We called him Rusty as he always had this streaky look about him.
“All the way back in November 1999, I took my grandson to the fair, which was just down the road in the farmers auction yard.
“It was a bitterly cold evening and these fish were hanging outside the “hook a duck” stall, where you had a prize every time.
“I won one for my grandson, then spotted this lovely fantail one, so I gave the man a pound, but didn’t even bother to hook a duck. We brought him home, bought a little tank, and he blossomed.
“Two years ago, I had a house fire when I was in hospital. The microwave blew up and caused extensive smoke damage. The fish was floating on its side, but the fireman told my daughter to get a bowl of cold water, which she did.
“He kept twirling the water around him quite fast, and the fish responded and he’d been fine ever since.”
Rusty is currently in the freezer.
Ena added: “The other morning I got up and he’d gone.
“It’s very sad, but he had a good life, and I felt a bit silly admitting to be missing a goldfish, but he’s left a big space in the tank!”
==========================
A goldfish from a hook-a-duck stand has died at the age of 18, leaving a big space in his owner’s tank.
The remarkable fish called Rusty came home with Ena Woolford from a fair at Ruthin Farmers Auction in November 1999 and even survived a house fire in 2015.
Ena, who was in hospital at the time, says a fire in the microwave led to serious smoke damage in the house with fire crews finding Rusty floating in his tank on his side. Thanks to one quick-witted fire crew member, Rusty was revived, and managed to live another two years.
Ena says she feels a bit daft to be missing a fish, but that he lived a very long life.
Ena, 92, said: “We called him Rusty as he always had this streaky look about him.
“All the way back in November 1999, I took my grandson to the fair, which was just down the road in the farmers auction yard.
“It was a bitterly cold evening and these fish were hanging outside the “hook a duck” stall, where you had a prize every time.
“I won one for my grandson, then spotted this lovely fantail one, so I gave the man a pound, but didn’t even bother to hook a duck. We brought him home, bought a little tank, and he blossomed.
“Two years ago, I had a house fire when I was in hospital. The microwave blew up and caused extensive smoke damage. The fish was floating on its side, but the fireman told my daughter to get a bowl of cold water, which she did.
“He kept twirling the water around him quite fast, and the fish responded and he’d been fine ever since.”
Rusty is currently in the freezer.
Ena added: “The other morning I got up and he’d gone.
“It’s very sad, but he had a good life, and I felt a bit silly admitting to be missing a goldfish, but he’s left a big space in the tank!”
==========================
Canadian city battles THOUSANDS of 'monster' goldfish that have infested a pond after someone set a pair of pet fish free four years ago
A Canadian city is desparately battling an infestion of thousands of 'monster' goldfish after someone set a pair free in a pond four years ago.
Thousands of Asian goldfish have taken over Edgewater Pond in the Canadian city of St. Albert.
For the past three years, city officials have tried to eradicate the invasive pests by draining water so the pond would freeze over the winter and by electro-shocking the water.
A Canadian city is desparately battling an infestion of thousands of 'monster' goldfish after someone set a pair free in a pond four years ago. Pictured, a monster fish found in a Canadian lake last year (file photo)
But the hardy fish survived their best efforts to wipe them out, according to CBC News.
This year, when goldfish were spotted at Ted Hole Pond downstream, the city decided to pump in chemicals to kill fish into both ponds.
'The battle goes on,' said Leah Kongsrude, St. Albert's director of environment.
Thousands of Asian goldfish have taken over Edgewater Pond (pictured) in the Canadian city of St. Albert
'I think of zombie movies when I think about [how] we froze the storm pond right to the bottom and they survived through that, when we tried to electro-fish 'em it didn't do anything.
'They're very resilient, very tough and our native fish species wouldn't have a chance if they got out there.
'They may look cute in your fish bowl when you buy them but once you let them out into the natural world, they can grow into monster fish.'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4930220/Canadian-city-battles-THOUSANDS-monster-goldfish.html#ixzz4uG61cM7P
==========================
- Thousands of Asian goldfish have taken over Edgewater Pond in the Canadian city of St. Albert
- City officials have tried to eradicate the invasive pests by draining water so the pond would freeze over the winter and by electro-shocking the water
- But the hardy fish survived their best efforts to wipe them out
A Canadian city is desparately battling an infestion of thousands of 'monster' goldfish after someone set a pair free in a pond four years ago.
Thousands of Asian goldfish have taken over Edgewater Pond in the Canadian city of St. Albert.
For the past three years, city officials have tried to eradicate the invasive pests by draining water so the pond would freeze over the winter and by electro-shocking the water.
A Canadian city is desparately battling an infestion of thousands of 'monster' goldfish after someone set a pair free in a pond four years ago. Pictured, a monster fish found in a Canadian lake last year (file photo)
But the hardy fish survived their best efforts to wipe them out, according to CBC News.
This year, when goldfish were spotted at Ted Hole Pond downstream, the city decided to pump in chemicals to kill fish into both ponds.
'The battle goes on,' said Leah Kongsrude, St. Albert's director of environment.
Thousands of Asian goldfish have taken over Edgewater Pond (pictured) in the Canadian city of St. Albert
'I think of zombie movies when I think about [how] we froze the storm pond right to the bottom and they survived through that, when we tried to electro-fish 'em it didn't do anything.
'They're very resilient, very tough and our native fish species wouldn't have a chance if they got out there.
'They may look cute in your fish bowl when you buy them but once you let them out into the natural world, they can grow into monster fish.'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4930220/Canadian-city-battles-THOUSANDS-monster-goldfish.html#ixzz4uG61cM7P
==========================
Astyanax taurorum• A New Species (Characiformes: Characidae)from dos Touros River, Pelotas River Drainage, An Upland southern Brazilian River
Astyanax taurorum
de Lucena, Zaluski & de Lucena, 2017
DOI: 10.3897/zoologia.34.e20174
Abstract
A new species of Astyanax belonging to the Astyanax scabripinnis complex is described from dos Touros River, tributary of the Pelotas River, Uruguay River basin. Astyanax taurorum sp. nov. is distinguished from other species of the Astyanax scabripinnis species complex by having two humeral spots, the first vertically elongated; teeth of inner row of premaxilla with three to five cusps; 2–3 (modes 2 or 3) maxillary teeth; 20–23 (mode 22) branched anal-fin rays; 13–15 (mode 14) gill rakers on lower branch of the first branchial arch; 20–23 (mode 21) total gill rakers in first branchial arch; 33–36 (mode 35) perforated lateral line scales. Astyanax taurorum sp. nov. is similar to Astyanax paris; nevertheless, it can be readily distinguished from it by having a smaller head depth (73.6-83.1% vs. 86.4–95.6%) and smaller interorbital width (24.1–28.0% vs. 30.8–32.8%). In addition, it differs from A. paris by the presence a posttemporal hook-shaped posterodorsal margin.
Astyanax taurorum sp. nov.
Etymology: The specific name taurorum, is derived from the Latin masculine noun taurus (second declension, meaning bull) inflected in the plural and genitive case. Therefore taurorum means “of the bulls” in reference to “rio dos Touros“ (= Portuguese, which means “river of the bulls”) the type locality.
Distribution and habitat: Astyanax taurorum sp. nov. is known from the dos Touros River drainage, tributary of Pelotas River, which in turn is a tributary of Uruguay River (Fig. 5). The Pelotas River drainage is located in the region named “Campos de Altitude do Planalto das Araucárias (= Araucaria Plateau in Bertaco et al. 2016)” or “Campos de Cima da Serra”, which has a high level of endemism of fishes (Malabarba et al. 2009, Bertaco et al.2016: 430) and other groups of animals (for example: sponges, Ribeiro et. al. 2009; crustaceans, Bond-Buckup et al. 2009). The dos Touros River tributary, type locality of Astyanax taurorum sp. nov., has a low to medium flow, transparent waters with stones and rocks on the bottom and moderate emergent marginal vegetation (Fig. 6). Four characid species were caught along with Astyanax taurorum sp. nov.: Bryconamericus patriciae Silva, 2004, B. iheringi Boulenger, 1887, Cheirodon interruptus Jenyns, 1842, and Oligosarcus brevioris Menezes, 1987.
Carlos Alberto S. de Lucena, Amanda Bungi Zaluski and Zilda Margarete Seixas de Lucena. 2017. Astyanax taurorum A New Species from dos Touros River, Pelotas River Drainage, An Upland southern Brazilian River (Characiformes: Characidae).
Zoologia. 34; 1-8. DOI: 10.3897/zoologia.34.e20174
ResearchGate.net/publication/319892392_Astyanax_taurorum_a_new_species_from_dos_Touros_River_Pelotas_River_drainage_an_upland_southern_Brazilian_river
==========================
Astyanax taurorum
de Lucena, Zaluski & de Lucena, 2017
DOI: 10.3897/zoologia.34.e20174
Abstract
A new species of Astyanax belonging to the Astyanax scabripinnis complex is described from dos Touros River, tributary of the Pelotas River, Uruguay River basin. Astyanax taurorum sp. nov. is distinguished from other species of the Astyanax scabripinnis species complex by having two humeral spots, the first vertically elongated; teeth of inner row of premaxilla with three to five cusps; 2–3 (modes 2 or 3) maxillary teeth; 20–23 (mode 22) branched anal-fin rays; 13–15 (mode 14) gill rakers on lower branch of the first branchial arch; 20–23 (mode 21) total gill rakers in first branchial arch; 33–36 (mode 35) perforated lateral line scales. Astyanax taurorum sp. nov. is similar to Astyanax paris; nevertheless, it can be readily distinguished from it by having a smaller head depth (73.6-83.1% vs. 86.4–95.6%) and smaller interorbital width (24.1–28.0% vs. 30.8–32.8%). In addition, it differs from A. paris by the presence a posttemporal hook-shaped posterodorsal margin.
Astyanax taurorum sp. nov.
Etymology: The specific name taurorum, is derived from the Latin masculine noun taurus (second declension, meaning bull) inflected in the plural and genitive case. Therefore taurorum means “of the bulls” in reference to “rio dos Touros“ (= Portuguese, which means “river of the bulls”) the type locality.
Distribution and habitat: Astyanax taurorum sp. nov. is known from the dos Touros River drainage, tributary of Pelotas River, which in turn is a tributary of Uruguay River (Fig. 5). The Pelotas River drainage is located in the region named “Campos de Altitude do Planalto das Araucárias (= Araucaria Plateau in Bertaco et al. 2016)” or “Campos de Cima da Serra”, which has a high level of endemism of fishes (Malabarba et al. 2009, Bertaco et al.2016: 430) and other groups of animals (for example: sponges, Ribeiro et. al. 2009; crustaceans, Bond-Buckup et al. 2009). The dos Touros River tributary, type locality of Astyanax taurorum sp. nov., has a low to medium flow, transparent waters with stones and rocks on the bottom and moderate emergent marginal vegetation (Fig. 6). Four characid species were caught along with Astyanax taurorum sp. nov.: Bryconamericus patriciae Silva, 2004, B. iheringi Boulenger, 1887, Cheirodon interruptus Jenyns, 1842, and Oligosarcus brevioris Menezes, 1987.
Carlos Alberto S. de Lucena, Amanda Bungi Zaluski and Zilda Margarete Seixas de Lucena. 2017. Astyanax taurorum A New Species from dos Touros River, Pelotas River Drainage, An Upland southern Brazilian River (Characiformes: Characidae).
Zoologia. 34; 1-8. DOI: 10.3897/zoologia.34.e20174
ResearchGate.net/publication/319892392_Astyanax_taurorum_a_new_species_from_dos_Touros_River_Pelotas_River_drainage_an_upland_southern_Brazilian_river
==========================
Lipogramma haberorum & L. levinsoni, two more new species of deepwater reef fish
240Lipogramma levinsoni and L. haberorum are yet two more new species to be officially described in the last 24 hours. Hot on the heels of Plectranthias takasei, a fish we knew about but didn’t have a name for, are two new Lipogramma species, neither of which were on the radar of rare fish fanciers.
The two new basslets are both deepwater inhabitants of Caribbean twilight reefs, and hence they do not occur in the range of conventional scuba diving. Both Lipogramma levinsoni and L. haberorum are ver similar to Lipogramma evides, but one species, Lipogramma levinsoni, is actually split from this species.
What we had been calling Lipogramma evides is actually the new species Lipogramma levinsoni.The msot interesting thing about this new species description is the realization that the majority of the L. evides we ever got in the aquarium hobby, is actually the newly minted Lipogramma levinsoni. The TRUE L. evides actually has a series of three very thin dark stripes, with the third loosely passing through a prominent ocelli in the dorsal fin. Not surprisingly, the Lipogramma levinsonithat we’re familiar with in the aquarium hobby has the shallowest distribution in the genus, except for L. trilineata.
The TRUE Lipogramma evides, which much thinner bars and more prominent dorsal eye spot. Photos by Barry Brown, Ross Robertson and Carole Baldwin.In some ways the true Lipogramma evides has an intermediate coloration between the boldly striped L. levinsoni, and the barely striped L. haberorum. Lipogramma haberorum is a much paler fish overall, with two poorly defined stripes on the head and body, and no hint of striping near the bold dorsal eyespot.
found on Reef Builders
==========================
240Lipogramma levinsoni and L. haberorum are yet two more new species to be officially described in the last 24 hours. Hot on the heels of Plectranthias takasei, a fish we knew about but didn’t have a name for, are two new Lipogramma species, neither of which were on the radar of rare fish fanciers.
The two new basslets are both deepwater inhabitants of Caribbean twilight reefs, and hence they do not occur in the range of conventional scuba diving. Both Lipogramma levinsoni and L. haberorum are ver similar to Lipogramma evides, but one species, Lipogramma levinsoni, is actually split from this species.
What we had been calling Lipogramma evides is actually the new species Lipogramma levinsoni.The msot interesting thing about this new species description is the realization that the majority of the L. evides we ever got in the aquarium hobby, is actually the newly minted Lipogramma levinsoni. The TRUE L. evides actually has a series of three very thin dark stripes, with the third loosely passing through a prominent ocelli in the dorsal fin. Not surprisingly, the Lipogramma levinsonithat we’re familiar with in the aquarium hobby has the shallowest distribution in the genus, except for L. trilineata.
The TRUE Lipogramma evides, which much thinner bars and more prominent dorsal eye spot. Photos by Barry Brown, Ross Robertson and Carole Baldwin.In some ways the true Lipogramma evides has an intermediate coloration between the boldly striped L. levinsoni, and the barely striped L. haberorum. Lipogramma haberorum is a much paler fish overall, with two poorly defined stripes on the head and body, and no hint of striping near the bold dorsal eyespot.
found on Reef Builders
==========================
Yellow Eyed Damselfish Is The Newest Species From Fiji & Tonga
Damselfish are some of the most prominent fish of many different marine habitats, and today we get to celebrate one more new species. Sometimes the species look very similar in appearance but Pomacentrus flavioculus has just been recognized from reefs of Fiji and Tonga as distinct from two other similar looking congeners.
As the latin name implies, the yellow eyed damselfish has a bright yellow eye, with a steely blue grey body that is more blue when young and more grey when mature. Pomacentrus flavioculus also has a prominent black spot at the base of its pectoral fins, and a light yellow tail which is useful for distinguishing it from two similar looking species.
Pomacentrus imitator and P. magniseptus are closely related species of damselfish which look similar to P. flavioculus but neither of those two has a yellow eye, or a yellow tail. Furthermore, they are restricted in natural distribution to the northeastern coast of Australia and the Great Barrier Reef.
Meanwhile the newly described yellow eyed damselfish is so far only known from Fiji and Tonga in the southwest Pacific Ocean. Pomacentrus flavioculus is described by Allen, Erdmann & Pertiwi in the Journal of the Ocean Science Foundation.
Pomacentrus magniseptus on the left with P. imitator on the right.
found on Reef Builders
==========================
Damselfish are some of the most prominent fish of many different marine habitats, and today we get to celebrate one more new species. Sometimes the species look very similar in appearance but Pomacentrus flavioculus has just been recognized from reefs of Fiji and Tonga as distinct from two other similar looking congeners.
As the latin name implies, the yellow eyed damselfish has a bright yellow eye, with a steely blue grey body that is more blue when young and more grey when mature. Pomacentrus flavioculus also has a prominent black spot at the base of its pectoral fins, and a light yellow tail which is useful for distinguishing it from two similar looking species.
Pomacentrus imitator and P. magniseptus are closely related species of damselfish which look similar to P. flavioculus but neither of those two has a yellow eye, or a yellow tail. Furthermore, they are restricted in natural distribution to the northeastern coast of Australia and the Great Barrier Reef.
Meanwhile the newly described yellow eyed damselfish is so far only known from Fiji and Tonga in the southwest Pacific Ocean. Pomacentrus flavioculus is described by Allen, Erdmann & Pertiwi in the Journal of the Ocean Science Foundation.
Pomacentrus magniseptus on the left with P. imitator on the right.
found on Reef Builders
==========================
Hurricane Irma delays Shreveport Aquarium fish stock up.
Planet Aqua Group — the company behind the Shreveport Aquarium — was watching Irma too.
The folks behind Planet Aqua Group wondered how they were going to get their fish.
Irma delayed a planned trip to get fish from a supplier in the Florida Keys accredited by the Association of Zoos & Aquariums, said Jake Wood, spokesperson for Planet Aqua Group.
The group initially planned to leave Sept. 17,and arrive two days later in Marathon, in the Keys.
Because of Hurricane Irma, Wood and a driver left Sunday — a week later than originally planned — for the 19-hour drive. They picked up sea life Tuesday and were en route to Shreveport when Wood shared details via phone.
"It pushed us seven days out," Wood said on the phone from the passenger seat of the aquarium's transport truck.
The 24-foot box truck is filled with a collection of small, Caribbean fish and cownose rays — brown and kite-shaped rays with long whip tails. The rays have a life-support system, and the truck is making schedule stops to check on the sea life, Wood said.
Irma made landfall in Florida two weeks ago as a Category 4 storm, unofficially killing 75.
As the group got close and drove through the Keys, Wood said, he saw the damage left in the storm's wake.
"Every 50-100 feet there were debris piles as high as you were," he said. "It's awe-inspiring."
The trip there was done in three legs: Shreveport to Crestview, Crestview to Homestead (near Miami) and then Homestead to the Keys before heading back.
The return trip is a straight shot back to Shreveport with no overnight stops, Wood said.
The group announced in late August that it would delay opening to late September or early October due to new additions and site plan changes.
Everything looks good, Wood said. All the water is in. The group is testing lighting. Only a few aesthetic changes are being made.
The biggest factor now is biology — how the sea life will adjust to the new pH, salinity and temperature of their new homes. Adjustment time varies based on sea life. Planet Aqua group is still eyeing an early October opening date, Wood said.
"They are sensitive creatures," Wood said. "We have to introduce them slowly."
The aquarium is located at 601 Clyde Fant Parkway in Downtown Shreveport, Louisiana.The aquarium is located at 601 Clyde Fant Parkway in Downtown Shreveport, Louisiana.
==========================
Planet Aqua Group — the company behind the Shreveport Aquarium — was watching Irma too.
The folks behind Planet Aqua Group wondered how they were going to get their fish.
Irma delayed a planned trip to get fish from a supplier in the Florida Keys accredited by the Association of Zoos & Aquariums, said Jake Wood, spokesperson for Planet Aqua Group.
The group initially planned to leave Sept. 17,and arrive two days later in Marathon, in the Keys.
Because of Hurricane Irma, Wood and a driver left Sunday — a week later than originally planned — for the 19-hour drive. They picked up sea life Tuesday and were en route to Shreveport when Wood shared details via phone.
"It pushed us seven days out," Wood said on the phone from the passenger seat of the aquarium's transport truck.
The 24-foot box truck is filled with a collection of small, Caribbean fish and cownose rays — brown and kite-shaped rays with long whip tails. The rays have a life-support system, and the truck is making schedule stops to check on the sea life, Wood said.
Irma made landfall in Florida two weeks ago as a Category 4 storm, unofficially killing 75.
As the group got close and drove through the Keys, Wood said, he saw the damage left in the storm's wake.
"Every 50-100 feet there were debris piles as high as you were," he said. "It's awe-inspiring."
The trip there was done in three legs: Shreveport to Crestview, Crestview to Homestead (near Miami) and then Homestead to the Keys before heading back.
The return trip is a straight shot back to Shreveport with no overnight stops, Wood said.
The group announced in late August that it would delay opening to late September or early October due to new additions and site plan changes.
Everything looks good, Wood said. All the water is in. The group is testing lighting. Only a few aesthetic changes are being made.
The biggest factor now is biology — how the sea life will adjust to the new pH, salinity and temperature of their new homes. Adjustment time varies based on sea life. Planet Aqua group is still eyeing an early October opening date, Wood said.
"They are sensitive creatures," Wood said. "We have to introduce them slowly."
The aquarium is located at 601 Clyde Fant Parkway in Downtown Shreveport, Louisiana.The aquarium is located at 601 Clyde Fant Parkway in Downtown Shreveport, Louisiana.
==========================
Alberta city guts ponds of invasive 'monster' goldfish
Three-year battle against goldfish hits invasive species with freezing, electro-fishing and chemicals.
For the past three years, St. Albert has tried, and failed, to eradicate an invasive goldfish species from local stormwater ponds.
Lurking in the depths of a quiet St. Albert stormwater pond are schools of goldfish, threatening to out-compete native species if they spread.
Someone set free a pair of pet fish about four years ago. Now, the infested water glimmers gold with thousands of Asian goldfish. For the past three years, the City of St. Albert has tried to eradicate the invasive species at Edgewater Pond on the city's northern edge.
In 2015, staff drained water so the pond would freeze completely over winter. The fish survived.
In 2016, they electro-shocked the water and then scooped the stunned fish out of the pond. Again, the fish survived.
This year, after goldfish were spotted at Ted Hole Pond downstream, the city decided to pump chemicals designed to kill fish into both ponds.
"The battle goes on," said Leah Kongsrude, St. Albert's director of environment. "I think of zombie movies when I think about [how] we froze the storm pond right to the bottom and they survived through that, when we tried to electro-fish 'em it didn't do anything.
"They're very resilient, very tough and our native fish species wouldn't have a chance if they got out there."
The province donated the chemicals, which target animals with gills. Goldfish are the only gilled species in the pond, Kongsrude said.
Before spraying the water, staff blocked all entries and exits to Edgewater Pond so the chemicals won't seep into nearby water supplies.
For the rest of the week, city staff will remove dead fish by skimming the pond with nets. More chemicals will be sprayed Thursday.
'They can grow into monster fish'The city must eradicate the fish to prevent survivors from repopulating the pond, Kongsrude said.
Rogue fish can grow to be 12 inches long. Without natural predators, they can quickly dominate Canadian waterways.
"Because the species that's here now is extremely competitive with any native species, if it got into our Sturgeon River there's a risk that the native fish that are in there would not live," Kongsrude said.
"These fish would out-compete them and we would have lower biodiversity and our natural ecosystem would be permanently affected."
The province is urging pet owners not to dump dead or living fish into open water with its Don't Let it Loose campaign.
"The message is, don't let any of your fish or aquatic animals loose into the wild," Kongsrude said.
"They may look cute in your fish bowl when you buy them but once you let them out into the natural world, they can grow into monster fish."
==========================
Brain damage in fish from plastic nanoparticles in water
Source:
Lund University
Summary:
A new study shows that plastic particles in water may end up inside fish brains. The plastic can cause brain damage, which is the likely cause of behavioral disorders observed in the fish.
Share:
FULL STORY
Fish.
Credit: © Zacarias da Mata / Fotolia
Calculations have shown that 10 per cent of all plastic produced around the world ultimately ends up in the oceans. As a result, a large majority of global marine debris is in fact plastic waste. Human production of plastics is a well-known environmental concern, but few studies have studied the effects of tiny plastic particles, known as nanoplastic particles.
"Our study is the first to show that nanosized plastic particles can accumulate in fish brains," says Tommy Cedervall, a chemistry researcher at Lund University.
The Lund University researchers studied how nanoplastics may be transported through different organisms in the aquatic ecosystem, i.e. via algae and animal plankton to larger fish. Tiny plastic particles in the water are eaten by animal plankton, which in turn are eaten by fish.
According to Cedervall, the study includes several interesting results on how plastic of different sizes affects aquatic organisms. Most importantly, it provides evidence that nanoplastic particles can indeed cross the blood-brain barrier in fish and thus accumulate inside fish's brain tissue.
In addition, the researchers involved in the present study have demonstrated the occurrence of behavioural disorders in fish that are affected by nanoplastics. They eat slower and explore their surroundings less. The researchers believe that these behavioural changes may be linked to brain damage caused by the presence of nanoplastics in the brain.
Another result of the study is that animal plankton die when exposed to nanosized plastic particles, while larger plastic particles do not affect them. Overall, these different effects of nanoplastics may have an impact on the ecosystem as a whole.
"It is important to study how plastics affect ecosystems and that nanoplastic particles likely have a more dangerous impact on aquatic ecosystems than larger pieces of plastics," says Tommy Cedervall.
However, he does not dare to draw the conclusion that plastic nanoparticles could accumulate in other tissues in fish and thus potentially be transmitted to humans through consumption.
"No, we are not aware of any such studies and are therefore very cautious about commenting on it," says Tommy Cedervall.
The present study was conducted in collaboration between the divisions of Biochemistry and structural biology, Aquatic ecology and Center for environmental and climate research at Lund University.
Story Source:
Materials provided by Lund University. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
Journal Reference:
==========================
Source:
Lund University
Summary:
A new study shows that plastic particles in water may end up inside fish brains. The plastic can cause brain damage, which is the likely cause of behavioral disorders observed in the fish.
Share:
FULL STORY
Fish.
Credit: © Zacarias da Mata / Fotolia
Calculations have shown that 10 per cent of all plastic produced around the world ultimately ends up in the oceans. As a result, a large majority of global marine debris is in fact plastic waste. Human production of plastics is a well-known environmental concern, but few studies have studied the effects of tiny plastic particles, known as nanoplastic particles.
"Our study is the first to show that nanosized plastic particles can accumulate in fish brains," says Tommy Cedervall, a chemistry researcher at Lund University.
The Lund University researchers studied how nanoplastics may be transported through different organisms in the aquatic ecosystem, i.e. via algae and animal plankton to larger fish. Tiny plastic particles in the water are eaten by animal plankton, which in turn are eaten by fish.
According to Cedervall, the study includes several interesting results on how plastic of different sizes affects aquatic organisms. Most importantly, it provides evidence that nanoplastic particles can indeed cross the blood-brain barrier in fish and thus accumulate inside fish's brain tissue.
In addition, the researchers involved in the present study have demonstrated the occurrence of behavioural disorders in fish that are affected by nanoplastics. They eat slower and explore their surroundings less. The researchers believe that these behavioural changes may be linked to brain damage caused by the presence of nanoplastics in the brain.
Another result of the study is that animal plankton die when exposed to nanosized plastic particles, while larger plastic particles do not affect them. Overall, these different effects of nanoplastics may have an impact on the ecosystem as a whole.
"It is important to study how plastics affect ecosystems and that nanoplastic particles likely have a more dangerous impact on aquatic ecosystems than larger pieces of plastics," says Tommy Cedervall.
However, he does not dare to draw the conclusion that plastic nanoparticles could accumulate in other tissues in fish and thus potentially be transmitted to humans through consumption.
"No, we are not aware of any such studies and are therefore very cautious about commenting on it," says Tommy Cedervall.
The present study was conducted in collaboration between the divisions of Biochemistry and structural biology, Aquatic ecology and Center for environmental and climate research at Lund University.
Story Source:
Materials provided by Lund University. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
Journal Reference:
- Karin Mattsson, Elyse V. Johnson, Anders Malmendal, Sara Linse, Lars-Anders Hansson, Tommy Cedervall. Brain damage and behavioural disorders in fish induced by plastic nanoparticles delivered through the food chain. Scientific Reports, 2017; 7 (1) DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-10813-0
==========================
Southend Leigh & District Aquarist Society have been organising fish shows for many years. There is a record of an Exhibition being held in 1938.
| exhibition_1952_sladas.pdf |
Please feel free to download the Program & Guide above
==========================
==========================
Evidence of invasive grass carp signals threat to Lake Erie
Researchers have fresh evidence that invasive grass carp are swimming and spawning near the mouth of a river that flows into Lake Erie.Their next step is figuring out how to stop it from gaining a foothold and devouring wetland plants along the shoreline and underwater vegetation in the lake that shelters native fish.
Grass carp are one of four Asian carp species threatening the Great Lakes, but they're not as worrisome as the bighead and silver carp, which could devastate fish populations in the lakes.
Researchers in the Great Lakes region have found new evidence that invasive grass carp are spawning near the mouth of a river that flows into Lake Erie. The discovery of more grass carp eggs this summer in a northern Ohio river points to what some scientists believe is a growing danger.
While environmental groups and scientists have put much of their attention on preventing the bighead and silver carp from reaching the lakes, the grass carp already have been found in Lakes Erie, Michigan and Ontario.
WHAT ARE GRASS CARP?
Brought to the U.S. more than 50 years ago to control weed growth, they're still sold to pond owners. Some states now require that they be sterilized before being released. But recent surveys have found grass carp eggs in Great Lakes waterways. Some made their way into the lakes via rivers, while others were dumped into the waterways. The fish feed on aquatic plants, eating up to 90 pounds a day and damaging areas used by spawning fish and migrating birds. What is not known is how many are in the lakes and where they've spread.
HOW BIG OF A THREAT?
It's believed there are still only a small number of grass carp in the lakes. But a report released by U.S. and Canadian researchers warned this year that if effective steps aren't taken, it's likely that the invasive fish will be established in lakes Erie, Huron, Michigan and Ontario within 10 years.
WHERE ARE THEY BEING FOUND?
The biggest concern is in Lake Erie where grass carp have been found in tributary rivers and along the shoreline. Researchers have been closely watching the Sandusky River, between Cleveland and Toledo, since the discovery of grass carp eggs in 2015. More eggs were found this summer along with eight adults that were netted during a two-day search.
WHAT HAVE RESEACHERS LEARNED?
It appears the grass carp spawn after heavy rains or when there's high water on the Sandusky River, said Rich Carter, who oversees fish management and research for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. The fish also seem to like long rivers. All of that is important to know, he said, to help find a potential way to control their populations.
WHAT'S BEING DONE?
Plans are being developed to make a more intensive effort to capture and remove the carp from the Sandusky River, where more than 100 have been found since 2012, Carter said. There's also ongoing work to follow grass carp that have been tagged to determine where they spawn and where they can be found, said Mark Gaikowski, a research director with the U.S. Geological Survey.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/ap/article-4912680/Evidence-invasive-grass-carp-signals-threat-Lake-Erie.html#ixzz4tX2EVHAL
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
==========================
Researchers have fresh evidence that invasive grass carp are swimming and spawning near the mouth of a river that flows into Lake Erie.Their next step is figuring out how to stop it from gaining a foothold and devouring wetland plants along the shoreline and underwater vegetation in the lake that shelters native fish.
Grass carp are one of four Asian carp species threatening the Great Lakes, but they're not as worrisome as the bighead and silver carp, which could devastate fish populations in the lakes.
Researchers in the Great Lakes region have found new evidence that invasive grass carp are spawning near the mouth of a river that flows into Lake Erie. The discovery of more grass carp eggs this summer in a northern Ohio river points to what some scientists believe is a growing danger.
While environmental groups and scientists have put much of their attention on preventing the bighead and silver carp from reaching the lakes, the grass carp already have been found in Lakes Erie, Michigan and Ontario.
WHAT ARE GRASS CARP?
Brought to the U.S. more than 50 years ago to control weed growth, they're still sold to pond owners. Some states now require that they be sterilized before being released. But recent surveys have found grass carp eggs in Great Lakes waterways. Some made their way into the lakes via rivers, while others were dumped into the waterways. The fish feed on aquatic plants, eating up to 90 pounds a day and damaging areas used by spawning fish and migrating birds. What is not known is how many are in the lakes and where they've spread.
HOW BIG OF A THREAT?
It's believed there are still only a small number of grass carp in the lakes. But a report released by U.S. and Canadian researchers warned this year that if effective steps aren't taken, it's likely that the invasive fish will be established in lakes Erie, Huron, Michigan and Ontario within 10 years.
WHERE ARE THEY BEING FOUND?
The biggest concern is in Lake Erie where grass carp have been found in tributary rivers and along the shoreline. Researchers have been closely watching the Sandusky River, between Cleveland and Toledo, since the discovery of grass carp eggs in 2015. More eggs were found this summer along with eight adults that were netted during a two-day search.
WHAT HAVE RESEACHERS LEARNED?
It appears the grass carp spawn after heavy rains or when there's high water on the Sandusky River, said Rich Carter, who oversees fish management and research for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. The fish also seem to like long rivers. All of that is important to know, he said, to help find a potential way to control their populations.
WHAT'S BEING DONE?
Plans are being developed to make a more intensive effort to capture and remove the carp from the Sandusky River, where more than 100 have been found since 2012, Carter said. There's also ongoing work to follow grass carp that have been tagged to determine where they spawn and where they can be found, said Mark Gaikowski, a research director with the U.S. Geological Survey.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/ap/article-4912680/Evidence-invasive-grass-carp-signals-threat-Lake-Erie.html#ixzz4tX2EVHAL
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
==========================
Garden Grove, Orange County man accused of smuggling protected, most expensive aquarium fish
Shawn Naolu Lee, 29, was one of two men indicted this month after federal prosecutors allege that they broke the Endangered Species Act by importing a species of fish facing extinction.
According to the indictment, U.S. Customs and Border Protection inspectors on Feb. 9 found eight live arowanas inside of a postal package from Hong Kong.
Federal officials, who apparently intercepted the package, would not disclose what alerted them to it.
Fish and wildlife agents, dressed as delivery men, brought the fish to Lee’s Garden Grove home, according to the indictment. With the help of immigration and homeland security investigators, they took Lee into custody and searched his home. The search turned up bundles of cash totaling $15,370, according to a court document.
Lee denied any knowledge about the contents of the package, but an investigator wrote in a court filing that he referred to Asian arowanas as “Arrows,” which the investigator described as a “term of art of those who traffic in that type of fish.”
According to prosecutors, a search of Lee’s cell phone turned up messages between Lee and co-defendant Mickey Tanadi.
Prosecutors allege that Lee wired money to Tanadi, who packaged the fish in Indonesia and shipped them to Lee’s Garden Grove home, and that Lee planned to re-sell them.
The fish were in plastic bags placed in pots that were wrapped up and put in a postal parcel, according to court filings. The packages were label as porcelain herbal pots, the indictment says.
In a message quoted in the indictment, Tanadi told Lee, “You know in the U.S. the fish is prohibited, right?” In another message, prosecutors quoted Tanadi as telling Lee, “We have the method to smuggle it.”
Tanadi charged Lee $2,000 for the eight fish, the indictment says, as well as an additional $550 for shipping. Prosecutors did not say how much Lee is believed to have planned to sell the fish for.
National Geographic, in a 2016 article, called them “the world’s most expensive aquarium fish.” The can grow to three feet long. In a story that same year, USA Today says a single Asian arrowana can go for $150,000 or more.
==========================
-
Shawn Naolu Lee, 29, was one of two men indicted this month after federal prosecutors allege that they broke the Endangered Species Act by importing a species of fish facing extinction.
According to the indictment, U.S. Customs and Border Protection inspectors on Feb. 9 found eight live arowanas inside of a postal package from Hong Kong.
Federal officials, who apparently intercepted the package, would not disclose what alerted them to it.
Fish and wildlife agents, dressed as delivery men, brought the fish to Lee’s Garden Grove home, according to the indictment. With the help of immigration and homeland security investigators, they took Lee into custody and searched his home. The search turned up bundles of cash totaling $15,370, according to a court document.
Lee denied any knowledge about the contents of the package, but an investigator wrote in a court filing that he referred to Asian arowanas as “Arrows,” which the investigator described as a “term of art of those who traffic in that type of fish.”
According to prosecutors, a search of Lee’s cell phone turned up messages between Lee and co-defendant Mickey Tanadi.
Prosecutors allege that Lee wired money to Tanadi, who packaged the fish in Indonesia and shipped them to Lee’s Garden Grove home, and that Lee planned to re-sell them.
The fish were in plastic bags placed in pots that were wrapped up and put in a postal parcel, according to court filings. The packages were label as porcelain herbal pots, the indictment says.
In a message quoted in the indictment, Tanadi told Lee, “You know in the U.S. the fish is prohibited, right?” In another message, prosecutors quoted Tanadi as telling Lee, “We have the method to smuggle it.”
Tanadi charged Lee $2,000 for the eight fish, the indictment says, as well as an additional $550 for shipping. Prosecutors did not say how much Lee is believed to have planned to sell the fish for.
National Geographic, in a 2016 article, called them “the world’s most expensive aquarium fish.” The can grow to three feet long. In a story that same year, USA Today says a single Asian arrowana can go for $150,000 or more.
==========================
SPRINGFIELD, Missouri is now home to the largest fish and wildlife attraction in the world.
Wonders of Wildlife National Museum and Aquarium in Springfield is a 350,000-square-foot facility with 1.5 miles of trails and has been in the making for 10 years.
"We are bigger than the Smithsonian Museum in D.C.," said spokesperson Shelby Stephenson.
It consists of wildlife galleries and an aquarium, which takes up more than half the space.
"With 35,000 live animals, there is a lot to see on the aquarium side," she said.
There's a whopping 1.5 million gallons of fresh and saltwater aquariums.
"It is an immersive journey around the world's most exotic habitats and it is truly unlike anything else that is done before," Stephenson said.
This massive attraction is adjacent to Bass Pro Shops National Headquarters in Springfield.
"Johnny Morris, who is the founder and CEO of Bass Pro Shops, has had a dream for a very long time to create an institution like this where people could come and learn about the conservation movement in a way that was fun and engaging and inspire them through the beauty of nature, to also get involved in conservation," she said.
The aquarium has a number of interactive features, including pop up tanks which allow you to get inside and look around.
"You can actually crawl inside the aquarium and pop up inside a bubble, so you are surrounded 360 degrees by the ocean habitat around you," Stephenson explained.
That's not the only place where you'll be surrounded by water.
"You're in a freshwater river habitat like you'd find in Missouri but you're seeing fish on all sides of you,” Stephenson said. “So you're seeing fish from above you which is a unique perspective."
Wonders of Wildlife is jaw dropping attraction you have to see in person to believe.
It opens to the public on Friday, September 22 and is located at 500 W Sunshine Street in Springfield, Missouri.
The number is (888) 222-6060. Prices vary but the aquarium prices are as follows:
KIDS 4-11: $19.95
ADULTS: $29.95.
KIDS UNDER 4: FREE
For more information, visit WondersOfWildlife.org.
==========================
Wonders of Wildlife National Museum and Aquarium in Springfield is a 350,000-square-foot facility with 1.5 miles of trails and has been in the making for 10 years.
"We are bigger than the Smithsonian Museum in D.C.," said spokesperson Shelby Stephenson.
It consists of wildlife galleries and an aquarium, which takes up more than half the space.
"With 35,000 live animals, there is a lot to see on the aquarium side," she said.
There's a whopping 1.5 million gallons of fresh and saltwater aquariums.
"It is an immersive journey around the world's most exotic habitats and it is truly unlike anything else that is done before," Stephenson said.
This massive attraction is adjacent to Bass Pro Shops National Headquarters in Springfield.
"Johnny Morris, who is the founder and CEO of Bass Pro Shops, has had a dream for a very long time to create an institution like this where people could come and learn about the conservation movement in a way that was fun and engaging and inspire them through the beauty of nature, to also get involved in conservation," she said.
The aquarium has a number of interactive features, including pop up tanks which allow you to get inside and look around.
"You can actually crawl inside the aquarium and pop up inside a bubble, so you are surrounded 360 degrees by the ocean habitat around you," Stephenson explained.
That's not the only place where you'll be surrounded by water.
"You're in a freshwater river habitat like you'd find in Missouri but you're seeing fish on all sides of you,” Stephenson said. “So you're seeing fish from above you which is a unique perspective."
Wonders of Wildlife is jaw dropping attraction you have to see in person to believe.
It opens to the public on Friday, September 22 and is located at 500 W Sunshine Street in Springfield, Missouri.
The number is (888) 222-6060. Prices vary but the aquarium prices are as follows:
KIDS 4-11: $19.95
ADULTS: $29.95.
KIDS UNDER 4: FREE
For more information, visit WondersOfWildlife.org.
==========================
Fish move back in as Macduff aquarium all set to reopen
Residents of one of the North-east’s most popular tourist attractions have returned to their watery home.
The team at Macduff Marine Aquarium has been rebuilding its exhibits to mark its 20th year, including refurbishing the central 90,000-gallon tank.
The project had been due to finish with a launch party earlier this month, but the event was postponed while final works on the main kelp tank were carried out.
1/5 –Yesterday, the aquarium’s marine creatures were given a first look at their new digs – including halibut pair Jemima and Hank.
A spokesman said: “It’s great news – the fish have returned.
“We will be opening Saturday 23rd September at 11am.
==========================
Residents of one of the North-east’s most popular tourist attractions have returned to their watery home.
The team at Macduff Marine Aquarium has been rebuilding its exhibits to mark its 20th year, including refurbishing the central 90,000-gallon tank.
The project had been due to finish with a launch party earlier this month, but the event was postponed while final works on the main kelp tank were carried out.
1/5 –Yesterday, the aquarium’s marine creatures were given a first look at their new digs – including halibut pair Jemima and Hank.
A spokesman said: “It’s great news – the fish have returned.
“We will be opening Saturday 23rd September at 11am.
==========================
Great news from Project Piaba
- its Executive Director Scott O'Dowd has been nominated for for the 2018 Indianapolis Prize for his work with Amazon fisheries. The Indianapolis Prize is a biennial award that recognises the accomplishments of those working to help save and sustain wildlife populations and ecosystem
Scott Dowd (New England Aquarium, Project Piaba) — Field biologist whose research on Amazon fisheries formed the basis for sound fisheries management, sustainability and benefits to rural communities. Co-founder of Project Piaba, an NGO supporting field work with the Brazilian government with the goal of socioeconomic and environmental impact.
==========================
- its Executive Director Scott O'Dowd has been nominated for for the 2018 Indianapolis Prize for his work with Amazon fisheries. The Indianapolis Prize is a biennial award that recognises the accomplishments of those working to help save and sustain wildlife populations and ecosystem
Scott Dowd (New England Aquarium, Project Piaba) — Field biologist whose research on Amazon fisheries formed the basis for sound fisheries management, sustainability and benefits to rural communities. Co-founder of Project Piaba, an NGO supporting field work with the Brazilian government with the goal of socioeconomic and environmental impact.
==========================
Chrysiptera burtjonesi Is A Gorgeous New Damselfish From The Solomon IslandsSHARE
210Chrysiptera burtjonesi is a beautiful new species of damselfish which has just been described from the Solomon Islands. This damselfish is very special to me because as recently as a couple years ago I saw this fish in many habitats around the Solomon Islands and I knew it had to be a new species.
Like so many species in this genus the juveniles of C. burtjonesi are very brightly colored, in this case it’s neon blue with an orange posterior-ventral area including the pelvic, anal and caudal fin. As the fish grows it becomes distinctly greenish with a high body and pointed face which is almost reminiscent of a Chromis.
The color and pattern of Chrysiptera burtjonesi from juvenile in the top left to full adult in the bottom right image. Photo Gerald Allen.The juveniles and adults are so different in coloration that at first I thought they were different fish in the same habitat, which was nearly always a near shore, greenwater environment with pretty poor visibility. This is the same kind of greenwater habitat where the greytail angelfish and yellow form of the 8-line butterflyfish are usually found.
The freshly minted Chrysiptera burtjonesiC. papuensis belongs to a cluster of species in the C. oxycephala group of damselfish, but if you know where the fish is from it would be hard to confuse it with the teal blue Chrysiptera sinclairi from northern Papua New Guinea, or the gold colored from western PNG. It’s cool to see a fish we first recognized in the wild as being undescribed finally get an official name, finally bestowed upon it by Allen & Erdmann in the latest from the Journal of the Ocean Science Foundation.
==========================
210Chrysiptera burtjonesi is a beautiful new species of damselfish which has just been described from the Solomon Islands. This damselfish is very special to me because as recently as a couple years ago I saw this fish in many habitats around the Solomon Islands and I knew it had to be a new species.
Like so many species in this genus the juveniles of C. burtjonesi are very brightly colored, in this case it’s neon blue with an orange posterior-ventral area including the pelvic, anal and caudal fin. As the fish grows it becomes distinctly greenish with a high body and pointed face which is almost reminiscent of a Chromis.
The color and pattern of Chrysiptera burtjonesi from juvenile in the top left to full adult in the bottom right image. Photo Gerald Allen.The juveniles and adults are so different in coloration that at first I thought they were different fish in the same habitat, which was nearly always a near shore, greenwater environment with pretty poor visibility. This is the same kind of greenwater habitat where the greytail angelfish and yellow form of the 8-line butterflyfish are usually found.
The freshly minted Chrysiptera burtjonesiC. papuensis belongs to a cluster of species in the C. oxycephala group of damselfish, but if you know where the fish is from it would be hard to confuse it with the teal blue Chrysiptera sinclairi from northern Papua New Guinea, or the gold colored from western PNG. It’s cool to see a fish we first recognized in the wild as being undescribed finally get an official name, finally bestowed upon it by Allen & Erdmann in the latest from the Journal of the Ocean Science Foundation.
==========================
Electrofishing used in Edinburgh conservation project
Jamie Ormiston, from the River Forth Fisheries Trust Conservationists (pictured) who has been using a novel technique to save fish from a Scottish river during a major project to improve migration routes for spawning salmon and other species.
Conservationists have been using a novel technique to save fish in a Scottish river as part of a major project to improve migration routes for spawning salmon and other species. A team of specially-trained electrofishing operatives has been called in to stun and catch fish stranded during major engineering works at a popular Edinburgh landmark, then carry them to safety. The 200-year-old Fair-a-Far weir at Cramond was built to serve an ironworks during the industrial revolution. A special pass was added to the 30m structure in the 1970s to allow fish to travel upriver to reach their breeding grounds. Despite this, however, the weir has remained a major obstacle for species such as salmon, trout, eel and lamprey. Now a £500,000 operation has begun to demolish the old fish pass and replace it with a more effective modern equivalent. It has involved damming the River Almond to allow access for plant machinery, potentially leaving resident fish stranded. So experts have been carrying out weekly rescue missions that involve electrofishing areas downstream of the weir, catching any specimens found there and transporting them upstream to continue their journey. The rescuing will continue for the next couple of weeks while the temporary dam is in place. The measures are part of the £6.7 million RiverLife: Almond & Avon restoration project, spearheaded by the River Forth Fisheries Trust and the City of Edinburgh Council. Jamie Ormiston, community engagement officer for RiverLife, said: “The Fair-a-Far weir is an iconic structure, part of the river’s history, and people love it. “We didn’t want to remove the weir but the existing fish pass was not fit for purpose so the decision was made to rip it out and build a new one. “It’s hoped this will allow fish to make their way to important spawning grounds.” The weir was built in 1790 to provide a new water source for the iron works at Fair-a- Far mill, but had to be extensively repaired after it was almost completely washed away during unprecedented floods in 1935. Project co-ordinator Kate Comin said: “The work at Fair-a-far weir in Cramond is just the beginning of the barrier improve inment works on the River Almond.”
Read more at: http://www.scotsman.com/regions/edinburgh-fife-lothians/electrofishing-used-in-edinburgh-conservation-project-1-4562780
==========================
Jamie Ormiston, from the River Forth Fisheries Trust Conservationists (pictured) who has been using a novel technique to save fish from a Scottish river during a major project to improve migration routes for spawning salmon and other species.
Conservationists have been using a novel technique to save fish in a Scottish river as part of a major project to improve migration routes for spawning salmon and other species. A team of specially-trained electrofishing operatives has been called in to stun and catch fish stranded during major engineering works at a popular Edinburgh landmark, then carry them to safety. The 200-year-old Fair-a-Far weir at Cramond was built to serve an ironworks during the industrial revolution. A special pass was added to the 30m structure in the 1970s to allow fish to travel upriver to reach their breeding grounds. Despite this, however, the weir has remained a major obstacle for species such as salmon, trout, eel and lamprey. Now a £500,000 operation has begun to demolish the old fish pass and replace it with a more effective modern equivalent. It has involved damming the River Almond to allow access for plant machinery, potentially leaving resident fish stranded. So experts have been carrying out weekly rescue missions that involve electrofishing areas downstream of the weir, catching any specimens found there and transporting them upstream to continue their journey. The rescuing will continue for the next couple of weeks while the temporary dam is in place. The measures are part of the £6.7 million RiverLife: Almond & Avon restoration project, spearheaded by the River Forth Fisheries Trust and the City of Edinburgh Council. Jamie Ormiston, community engagement officer for RiverLife, said: “The Fair-a-Far weir is an iconic structure, part of the river’s history, and people love it. “We didn’t want to remove the weir but the existing fish pass was not fit for purpose so the decision was made to rip it out and build a new one. “It’s hoped this will allow fish to make their way to important spawning grounds.” The weir was built in 1790 to provide a new water source for the iron works at Fair-a- Far mill, but had to be extensively repaired after it was almost completely washed away during unprecedented floods in 1935. Project co-ordinator Kate Comin said: “The work at Fair-a-far weir in Cramond is just the beginning of the barrier improve inment works on the River Almond.”
Read more at: http://www.scotsman.com/regions/edinburgh-fife-lothians/electrofishing-used-in-edinburgh-conservation-project-1-4562780
==========================
Steephead parrotfish (Chlorurus microrhinos)
Fish that Farm: Marine biologists identify movement patterns of a parrotfish species that rotates it`s harvest of its favourite algae,and defends its feeding territory
Source:
University of California - Santa Barbara
Summary:
Steephead parrotfish (Chlorurus microrhinos) are picky eaters. In the central Pacific, however, they appear to have taken matters into their own hands -- er, fins.
Share:
FULL STORY
Steephead parrotfish (Chlorurus microrhinos) are picky eaters. In the central Pacific, however, they appear to have taken matters into their own hands -- er, fins.
A new study by UC Santa Barbara marine biologists shows for the first time that these large algae-eaters rotationally harvest their favorite food and then defend their feeding territory while the food patches recuperate sufficiently for the fleshy turf algae to return. The team's findings -- along with another paper by the same authors, describing movement patterns of C. microrhinos -- appear in the Marine Ecology Progress Series.
"Herbivores are really important for coral reef ecology because there's a constant battle between coral and algae," explained Peter Carlson, lead author of the first paper. Carlson is a researcher in the Caselle Lab at UCSB's Marine Science Institute (MSI). "Anything that can remove algae is essentially considered a net positive for coral growth."
Working on Palmyra atoll, 1,000 miles south of Hawaii, the researchers noticed an abundance of bite scars in very small areas of algae growing on dead coral. They followed these patches through time and found parrotfish were feeding heavily in each patch for a short period of time. Then, the fish would allow that exact location to recover before returning to harvest the algae again.
"The fish would come back to the same area and defend it against other individuals of the same species," Carlson said. "Essentially, they're farming by using their environment very strategically."
It turns out these parrotfishes are doing a service to the coral reef. Turf algae have been shown to be harmful, even lethal, to juvenile corals. When the parrotfish bites scrape the coral, they create pockets of space without the algae, which may enable tiny coral larvae to settle and grow.
"In the habitat dominated by this low-lying turf algae, we saw this intensive feeding behavior of the parrotfish," Carlson noted. "But in coral-dominated areas, their feeding, while still concentrated, was spread over a much greater area."
This research clearly demonstrates that the movement patterns of these parrotfish are influenced by the available food in a particular habitat. It also highlights the importance of variation in food availability to their social structure.
"In places where there was lots of the turf algae that they like to eat, we saw only big males," said co-author Katie Davis, a researcher in the Caselle Lab. "There were hardly any smaller individuals or females. However, in coral-dominated sites, we saw more of a haremic social structure, with one or two large males accompanying a group of smaller females."
The second paper took a multiscale approach to tracking parrotfish movements, which is important information for conservation purposes. Because herbivores support coral reef health, many are safeguarded in marine protected areas. But to properly create and manage adequate space for these fish, managers need to know the range of their movements.
To make that determination, the researchers used long-term acoustic monitoring to track patterns over the years. They also monitored the animals from a boat to document their daily space use and employed fine-scale GPS tracking to measure their meter-scale movements over a couple of hours. Taken together, these different scales and varied tools confirm that the impact of individual parrotfish feeding is confined to small areas, even though their overall range is quite large.
"We found they were moving more than a kilometer offshore almost on a daily basis and that those movements were synced with tidal cycles," lead author Davis explained. "We concluded that they were likely going offshore to spawn because many coral reef fishes sync their spawning excursions to tidal cycles. However, the extent of these large movements had not been previously reported in this species, which is new information that managers can use when designing spatial protections."
According to MSI research biologist Jennifer Caselle, co-author on both papers, this research demonstrates the need for multiple tools to comprehensively understand the movement and behavior of coral reef parrotfishes.
"Our studies on Palmyra are providing information on a species whose abundance has been reduced greatly due to overfishing in most areas of the world," Caselle said. "Yet this is the type of fish that people want to bring back to help save coral reefs, so it's important to understand their behavior."
Story Source:
Materials provided by University of California - Santa Barbara. Original written by Julie Cohen. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
Journal Reference:
==========================
Source:
University of California - Santa Barbara
Summary:
Steephead parrotfish (Chlorurus microrhinos) are picky eaters. In the central Pacific, however, they appear to have taken matters into their own hands -- er, fins.
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FULL STORY
Steephead parrotfish (Chlorurus microrhinos) are picky eaters. In the central Pacific, however, they appear to have taken matters into their own hands -- er, fins.
A new study by UC Santa Barbara marine biologists shows for the first time that these large algae-eaters rotationally harvest their favorite food and then defend their feeding territory while the food patches recuperate sufficiently for the fleshy turf algae to return. The team's findings -- along with another paper by the same authors, describing movement patterns of C. microrhinos -- appear in the Marine Ecology Progress Series.
"Herbivores are really important for coral reef ecology because there's a constant battle between coral and algae," explained Peter Carlson, lead author of the first paper. Carlson is a researcher in the Caselle Lab at UCSB's Marine Science Institute (MSI). "Anything that can remove algae is essentially considered a net positive for coral growth."
Working on Palmyra atoll, 1,000 miles south of Hawaii, the researchers noticed an abundance of bite scars in very small areas of algae growing on dead coral. They followed these patches through time and found parrotfish were feeding heavily in each patch for a short period of time. Then, the fish would allow that exact location to recover before returning to harvest the algae again.
"The fish would come back to the same area and defend it against other individuals of the same species," Carlson said. "Essentially, they're farming by using their environment very strategically."
It turns out these parrotfishes are doing a service to the coral reef. Turf algae have been shown to be harmful, even lethal, to juvenile corals. When the parrotfish bites scrape the coral, they create pockets of space without the algae, which may enable tiny coral larvae to settle and grow.
"In the habitat dominated by this low-lying turf algae, we saw this intensive feeding behavior of the parrotfish," Carlson noted. "But in coral-dominated areas, their feeding, while still concentrated, was spread over a much greater area."
This research clearly demonstrates that the movement patterns of these parrotfish are influenced by the available food in a particular habitat. It also highlights the importance of variation in food availability to their social structure.
"In places where there was lots of the turf algae that they like to eat, we saw only big males," said co-author Katie Davis, a researcher in the Caselle Lab. "There were hardly any smaller individuals or females. However, in coral-dominated sites, we saw more of a haremic social structure, with one or two large males accompanying a group of smaller females."
The second paper took a multiscale approach to tracking parrotfish movements, which is important information for conservation purposes. Because herbivores support coral reef health, many are safeguarded in marine protected areas. But to properly create and manage adequate space for these fish, managers need to know the range of their movements.
To make that determination, the researchers used long-term acoustic monitoring to track patterns over the years. They also monitored the animals from a boat to document their daily space use and employed fine-scale GPS tracking to measure their meter-scale movements over a couple of hours. Taken together, these different scales and varied tools confirm that the impact of individual parrotfish feeding is confined to small areas, even though their overall range is quite large.
"We found they were moving more than a kilometer offshore almost on a daily basis and that those movements were synced with tidal cycles," lead author Davis explained. "We concluded that they were likely going offshore to spawn because many coral reef fishes sync their spawning excursions to tidal cycles. However, the extent of these large movements had not been previously reported in this species, which is new information that managers can use when designing spatial protections."
According to MSI research biologist Jennifer Caselle, co-author on both papers, this research demonstrates the need for multiple tools to comprehensively understand the movement and behavior of coral reef parrotfishes.
"Our studies on Palmyra are providing information on a species whose abundance has been reduced greatly due to overfishing in most areas of the world," Caselle said. "Yet this is the type of fish that people want to bring back to help save coral reefs, so it's important to understand their behavior."
Story Source:
Materials provided by University of California - Santa Barbara. Original written by Julie Cohen. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.
Journal Reference:
- PM Carlson, K Davis, RR Warner, JE Caselle. Fine-scale spatial patterns of parrotfish herbivory are shaped by resource availability. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 2017; 577: 165 DOI: 10.3354/meps12258
==========================
Pomatoschistus nanus (Teleostei, Gobiidae) • the Mediterranean's Smallest Marine Fish
Pomatoschistus nanus Engin & Seyhan, 2017
DOI: 10.1111/jfb.13455
Abstract
The new sand goby species Pomatoschistus nanus (Teleostei: Gobiidae) is described from the northern coast of the Levantine Sea (eastern Mediterranean Sea) based on both morphological and DNA barcoding data. The new species is the smallest fish in the Mediterranean Sea and may be distinguished from congeners by the following features: predorsal area, first dorsal-fin base and breast naked; δ-pore missing; anterior point of the suborbital row b not reaching level of posterior point of suborbital row d; slightly emarginated caudal fin and nape coloration pattern. DNA barcode data clearly discriminate Pomatoschistus spp. in the neighbour-joining tree with an average of 17·7% interspecific K2P distance. The most closely related taxon to P. nanus sp. nov. is Pomatoschistus bathi and the most distantly related is Pomatoschistus tortonesei with 11·9 and 21·9% K2P distances respectively. Morphometric and genetic data are also provided for Pomatoschistus bathi.
Key words: DNA barcoding; Pomatoschistus bathi; Pomatoschistus nanus; rebreather; sand goby.
Pomatoschistus nanus sp. nov.
Etymology: The specific epithet is derived from ancient Greek, which means pygmaean.
S. Engin and D. Seyhan. 2017. A New Species of Pomatoschistus (Teleostei, Gobiidae): the Mediterranean's Smallest Marine Fish. Journal of Fish Biology. DOI: 10.1111/jfb.13455
==========================
Pomatoschistus nanus Engin & Seyhan, 2017
DOI: 10.1111/jfb.13455
Abstract
The new sand goby species Pomatoschistus nanus (Teleostei: Gobiidae) is described from the northern coast of the Levantine Sea (eastern Mediterranean Sea) based on both morphological and DNA barcoding data. The new species is the smallest fish in the Mediterranean Sea and may be distinguished from congeners by the following features: predorsal area, first dorsal-fin base and breast naked; δ-pore missing; anterior point of the suborbital row b not reaching level of posterior point of suborbital row d; slightly emarginated caudal fin and nape coloration pattern. DNA barcode data clearly discriminate Pomatoschistus spp. in the neighbour-joining tree with an average of 17·7% interspecific K2P distance. The most closely related taxon to P. nanus sp. nov. is Pomatoschistus bathi and the most distantly related is Pomatoschistus tortonesei with 11·9 and 21·9% K2P distances respectively. Morphometric and genetic data are also provided for Pomatoschistus bathi.
Key words: DNA barcoding; Pomatoschistus bathi; Pomatoschistus nanus; rebreather; sand goby.
Pomatoschistus nanus sp. nov.
Etymology: The specific epithet is derived from ancient Greek, which means pygmaean.
S. Engin and D. Seyhan. 2017. A New Species of Pomatoschistus (Teleostei, Gobiidae): the Mediterranean's Smallest Marine Fish. Journal of Fish Biology. DOI: 10.1111/jfb.13455
==========================
Trichomycterus pascuali • A New Species of Trichomycterus (Siluriformes: Trichomycteridae) Lacking Pelvic Fins from Paranapanema Basin, southeastern Brazil
Trichomycterus pascuali
Ochoa, Silva, Silva, Oliveira & Datovo, 2017
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4319.3.7
Abstract
A new species of trichomycterid catfish, Trichomycterus pascuali, is described from Paranapanema basin and is distinguished from all congeners by the possession of five pectoral-fin rays and the absence of pelvic fin, girdle, and muscles. Additional features further differentiate the new species from the other congeners lacking pelvic fins, T. candidus, T. catamarcensis, and T. tropeiro. The identification of T. pascuali is additionally corroborated by genetic divergence based on DNA-barcode analysis. Osteological and myological data unequivocally support the inclusion of the new species in the Trichomycterinae and molecular analyses justify its allocation to the genus Trichomycterus rather than Eremophilus, a trichomycterine taxon traditionally diagnosed by the lack of pelvic fins. Our genetic analysis further indicates that pelvic fins were independently lost in E. mutisii, T. candidus, and T. pascuali.
Keywords: Pisces, Upper Paraná Basin, Freshwater catfish, pelvic-fin loss, taxonomy
FIGURE Body coloration patterns observed in Trichomycterus pascuali, LBP 23323, (A) 45.4 mm SL, (B) 52.2 mm SL.
Luz E. Ochoa, Gabriel S. C. Silva, Guilherme J. Costa E. Silva, Claudio Oliveira and Alessio Datovo. 2017. New Species of Trichomycterus (Siluriformes: Trichomycteridae) Lacking Pelvic Fins from Paranapanema Basin, southeastern Brazil. Zootaxa. 4319(3); 550–560. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4319.3.7
==========================
Trichomycterus pascuali
Ochoa, Silva, Silva, Oliveira & Datovo, 2017
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4319.3.7
Abstract
A new species of trichomycterid catfish, Trichomycterus pascuali, is described from Paranapanema basin and is distinguished from all congeners by the possession of five pectoral-fin rays and the absence of pelvic fin, girdle, and muscles. Additional features further differentiate the new species from the other congeners lacking pelvic fins, T. candidus, T. catamarcensis, and T. tropeiro. The identification of T. pascuali is additionally corroborated by genetic divergence based on DNA-barcode analysis. Osteological and myological data unequivocally support the inclusion of the new species in the Trichomycterinae and molecular analyses justify its allocation to the genus Trichomycterus rather than Eremophilus, a trichomycterine taxon traditionally diagnosed by the lack of pelvic fins. Our genetic analysis further indicates that pelvic fins were independently lost in E. mutisii, T. candidus, and T. pascuali.
Keywords: Pisces, Upper Paraná Basin, Freshwater catfish, pelvic-fin loss, taxonomy
FIGURE Body coloration patterns observed in Trichomycterus pascuali, LBP 23323, (A) 45.4 mm SL, (B) 52.2 mm SL.
Luz E. Ochoa, Gabriel S. C. Silva, Guilherme J. Costa E. Silva, Claudio Oliveira and Alessio Datovo. 2017. New Species of Trichomycterus (Siluriformes: Trichomycteridae) Lacking Pelvic Fins from Paranapanema Basin, southeastern Brazil. Zootaxa. 4319(3); 550–560. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4319.3.7
==========================
Undesirable fish cause concern
DARYL BAUER Nebraska Game and Parks Commission An angler recently caught this non-native oscar at Lincoln’s Bowling Lake. This aquarium fish is native to South America.
This fish was not a species that has ever been part of Nebraska’s freshwater fauna — or North America’s freshwater fauna. This fish was an oscar, a freshwater fish native to the Amazon basin of South America. How does an oscar end up swimming in Bowling Lake?
Oscars can be possessed and kept in aquariums. Irresponsible aquarium owners take their unwanted fish and release them in local waters. This is not the first time non-natives such as oscars, pacu, tilapia, plecostomus, redtail catfish or even piranha have shown up in Nebraska waters. I am a huge proponent of catch-and-release, but that fish did not go back into the water.
The risk from having tropical aquarium fish released in our waters is minimal, because they likely will go belly-up as soon as our water temperatures start dropping in late fall. Thank goodness for that. However, this occurrence points out one of the biggest threats to our fisheries across the country — illegal releases of undesirable species of fish that compete with desirable fish. There was a recent incident at Calamus Reservoir where there was a risk of zebra mussels being transported illegally there.
What is an unwanted species of fish? That depends on where you are and the species in question. A gizzard shad may be a welcome member of one water body’s fish community while it is the kiss of death to another. In some cases, even sportfish such as largemouth and smallmouth bass, northern pike and even walleye may be invasive, unwanted species. The appropriateness of one species or another depends on the habitat and fisheries management objectives — decisions best left to professional biologists and not some know-it-all carrying a bucket.
This is a major threat to fisheries all across our country. Unwanted species are not being moved around by birds, butterflies or Sasquatch; they are being moved by two-legged human violators and they need to be stopped. A quote in the 2017 Montana Fishing Guide sums it up: “Illegal introductions are made without proper biological analysis and public input, meaning that you the angler had no say in an ill-informed action by self-serving individuals.”
Those fisheries belong to all of us, and I take the health of those fisheries and the quality of my fishing very seriously.
==========================
DARYL BAUER Nebraska Game and Parks Commission An angler recently caught this non-native oscar at Lincoln’s Bowling Lake. This aquarium fish is native to South America.
This fish was not a species that has ever been part of Nebraska’s freshwater fauna — or North America’s freshwater fauna. This fish was an oscar, a freshwater fish native to the Amazon basin of South America. How does an oscar end up swimming in Bowling Lake?
Oscars can be possessed and kept in aquariums. Irresponsible aquarium owners take their unwanted fish and release them in local waters. This is not the first time non-natives such as oscars, pacu, tilapia, plecostomus, redtail catfish or even piranha have shown up in Nebraska waters. I am a huge proponent of catch-and-release, but that fish did not go back into the water.
The risk from having tropical aquarium fish released in our waters is minimal, because they likely will go belly-up as soon as our water temperatures start dropping in late fall. Thank goodness for that. However, this occurrence points out one of the biggest threats to our fisheries across the country — illegal releases of undesirable species of fish that compete with desirable fish. There was a recent incident at Calamus Reservoir where there was a risk of zebra mussels being transported illegally there.
What is an unwanted species of fish? That depends on where you are and the species in question. A gizzard shad may be a welcome member of one water body’s fish community while it is the kiss of death to another. In some cases, even sportfish such as largemouth and smallmouth bass, northern pike and even walleye may be invasive, unwanted species. The appropriateness of one species or another depends on the habitat and fisheries management objectives — decisions best left to professional biologists and not some know-it-all carrying a bucket.
This is a major threat to fisheries all across our country. Unwanted species are not being moved around by birds, butterflies or Sasquatch; they are being moved by two-legged human violators and they need to be stopped. A quote in the 2017 Montana Fishing Guide sums it up: “Illegal introductions are made without proper biological analysis and public input, meaning that you the angler had no say in an ill-informed action by self-serving individuals.”
Those fisheries belong to all of us, and I take the health of those fisheries and the quality of my fishing very seriously.
==========================
ILFORD & District Aquarist Society is to Close!
This announcement was found on the Federation of British Aquarist Society`s web site www.fbas.co.uk
"It is with sadness that we announce the decision has been reluctantly made by its members, to dissolve Ilford & District Aquarist & Pondkeepers Society.
Founded in 1934, the Society has had a proud history which, up to relativelt recently had managed to maintain a high membership figure. Over the years, driven by the dynamic Mike Shadrack and subsequently by an equally-passionate Ken Wrightson, the Society was presided over by Len Smith who must have held the distinction of being one of the most senior Society Presidents ever.
A sad time for its members and the hobby."
Any friends from Ilford are always welcome to visit us at any meeting, you are always welcome
Extracted from Ilford`s web site www.ilfordaquarist.co.uk
The AGM As per usual for the AGM, there were very few members that turned up. In fact there were only thirteen of us. The reports of the officers present were read and seconded. Instead of electing the Committee as usual, we went on to Any Other Business. This was because we needed to discuss what was going to happen to the club in the future. Ray gave his thoughts on the matter as did Ken, along with the members that were present giving their opinions on what was being said. As you can appreciate, with three Committee members moving away and no members willing to take their place, this puts extra pressure on the remaining Committee members who (I’m sure they won’t mind me saying this, are not getting any younger), and have done the job for many, many years. As a result of the views and comments expressed, it was decided that the Club should be dissolved and an Extraordinary General Meeting should take place at the September Meeting. Hopefully members reading this will make the effort to come to this one.
September Meeting is Extraordinary General Meeting This meeting is being called to ratify the decision at last month’s AGM for the dissolution of the Ilford and District Aquarists and Pondkeepers Society. As a point of order Rule 12 of the constitution states the resolution must be subsequently ratified by a majority of at least two thirds of the current membership by post, or by attendance at an extraordinary general meeting. Rule 12 in full on page 3. A voting form is included with this newsletter for anyone who cannot attend the meeting Whatever the outcome of this meeting, the club will continue to run at least up to the Christmas meeting. Future meetings October is Ken Wrightson , November Chris Cheswright.
==========================
This announcement was found on the Federation of British Aquarist Society`s web site www.fbas.co.uk
"It is with sadness that we announce the decision has been reluctantly made by its members, to dissolve Ilford & District Aquarist & Pondkeepers Society.
Founded in 1934, the Society has had a proud history which, up to relativelt recently had managed to maintain a high membership figure. Over the years, driven by the dynamic Mike Shadrack and subsequently by an equally-passionate Ken Wrightson, the Society was presided over by Len Smith who must have held the distinction of being one of the most senior Society Presidents ever.
A sad time for its members and the hobby."
Any friends from Ilford are always welcome to visit us at any meeting, you are always welcome
Extracted from Ilford`s web site www.ilfordaquarist.co.uk
The AGM As per usual for the AGM, there were very few members that turned up. In fact there were only thirteen of us. The reports of the officers present were read and seconded. Instead of electing the Committee as usual, we went on to Any Other Business. This was because we needed to discuss what was going to happen to the club in the future. Ray gave his thoughts on the matter as did Ken, along with the members that were present giving their opinions on what was being said. As you can appreciate, with three Committee members moving away and no members willing to take their place, this puts extra pressure on the remaining Committee members who (I’m sure they won’t mind me saying this, are not getting any younger), and have done the job for many, many years. As a result of the views and comments expressed, it was decided that the Club should be dissolved and an Extraordinary General Meeting should take place at the September Meeting. Hopefully members reading this will make the effort to come to this one.
September Meeting is Extraordinary General Meeting This meeting is being called to ratify the decision at last month’s AGM for the dissolution of the Ilford and District Aquarists and Pondkeepers Society. As a point of order Rule 12 of the constitution states the resolution must be subsequently ratified by a majority of at least two thirds of the current membership by post, or by attendance at an extraordinary general meeting. Rule 12 in full on page 3. A voting form is included with this newsletter for anyone who cannot attend the meeting Whatever the outcome of this meeting, the club will continue to run at least up to the Christmas meeting. Future meetings October is Ken Wrightson , November Chris Cheswright.
==========================
Finnish project aims to turn sawdust into fish food and tackle world hungertWorld hunger intuitively sounds like something you’d solve by growing more food — but a research project is trying to address it with sawdust. Dubbed MonoCell, the project aims to turn the waste material into single-cell protein to form an inexpensive base for fish feed.
Image credits Andrea Micca.
Food insecurity is already a problem, one bound to become more pressing as populations increase around the globe. The UN estimates that the Earth will house roughly two billion more people by 2050, and some 4.5 billion more by 2100. That’s a lot of extra mouths to feed. Compounding the problem is that our planet won’t get any bigger, meaning we’ll have less and less arable land available to feed each one of us. While improving technology and know-how is driving production figures up, we’re running out of arable land per capita — we’ve been doing so for a long time now.
Evolution of arable land per capita (global figures) between 1961 (0.371 ha) and 2014 (0.195 ha).
Chart via The World Bank / Food and Agriculture Organization.
It’s not hard to see why people are concerned about food insecurity looming in the future. In an effort to secure new sources of food for future generations, a research project from Luke (Luonnonvarakeskus, Finland’s natural resource institute) led by PhD Risto Korpinen is looking to turn sawdust into fish feed.
Dust to bassKorpinen is leading a project dubbed MonoCell — High-quality single cell protein for fish feed. It’s pretty descriptive, as far as names go, aiming to turn sawdust into usable protein for fish farms. The idea of supping on wood isn’t new in Finland. During a famine in the 19th century, the Finns took to making bread out of pine bark — an idea they re-used during their civil war of 1918.
This project, however, is a bit more refined. The team hopes to take what’s essentially waste material, available in many countries around the world, and turn it into a viable source of fish food. If successful, such technology would also help take the pressure off of the agricultural sector and wild fish stocks — which are currently supplying fish feed — curbing an increasingly unsustainable practice and preventing further ecological damage from these industries.
“There has been a lot of discussion about the challenges that food production has to face in the future. That is also one of the reasons why I came up with this idea”, Korpinen explains.
“The use of wild fish in feeding has led to the collapse of global fish stocks,” he says, adding that Finland is relying heavily on imported soy-based feed, and “is lacking a sustainable domestic option for fish feed.”
Korpinen is very familiar with sawdust. His master’s degree from the Åbo Akademi University in Turku, Finland, pertained to making cellulose out of this material. His background determined him to look into the possibility of turning sawdust into food especially since it’s not a readily-edible material.
“We could do these same things with potato or corn starch too, but starch can also feed humans,” he explains. “In the US they make bioethanol out of starch, even though there are plenty of people in the world suffering from hunger. It just goes against my morals to use food in fuel production.”
Korpinen is confident that the wood-derived feed has a real chance of being an economic hit. Pulp mills already have to dispose of the sawdust somehow, and already have the infrastructure to “establish protein production units on their properties,” he explains.
There are quite a few steps involved in the process.
Image via Luonnonvarakeskus / Luke.
These could help the businesses derive an extra profit from what’s essentially waste material, and may yield other benefits from circulating not just “materials, water and chemicals but also energy, like electricity and steam.” The process would also solve a problem Finnish sawmills are faced with in particular: right now, their sawdust can be used to make biofuels, but the country’s energy policy is virtually barring them from the market.
Finland subsidizes the use of forest chips (which are imported) as a source of energy, but these subsidies do not extend to domestic sawdust. As such, local sawmills have a lot of sawdust on their hands that they simply can’t get rid of, and like pulp mills, stand to gain from MonoCell program. In fact, one private company has already agreed to test-run their sawmill-to-protein process.
“We also hope to find partners from the producers of animal feed. But first we have to do the research and clarify the costs and material use.”
The team conducted the first few experiments of the program this August. Turning sawdust into protein is a complex process that includes several stages, however, so there’s still a long way to go. Luckily, some of the procedures involved are fairly familiar to the team as they’ve been used in past projects. They hope to conclude the research by the autumn of 2017.
Korpinen will mainly be working on the first stages on the project, as he is the lead researcher and the one conducting the initial experiments. After that, the team — consisting of ten researchers from all over Finland — will mostly take over and expand on his results. It consists of members with varied areas of expertise, including food and nutrition experts, and at the end will perform a life cycle analysis to find out “how much energy and chemicals have been used in the whole process”, Korpinen explains.
==========================
Image credits Andrea Micca.
Food insecurity is already a problem, one bound to become more pressing as populations increase around the globe. The UN estimates that the Earth will house roughly two billion more people by 2050, and some 4.5 billion more by 2100. That’s a lot of extra mouths to feed. Compounding the problem is that our planet won’t get any bigger, meaning we’ll have less and less arable land available to feed each one of us. While improving technology and know-how is driving production figures up, we’re running out of arable land per capita — we’ve been doing so for a long time now.
Evolution of arable land per capita (global figures) between 1961 (0.371 ha) and 2014 (0.195 ha).
Chart via The World Bank / Food and Agriculture Organization.
It’s not hard to see why people are concerned about food insecurity looming in the future. In an effort to secure new sources of food for future generations, a research project from Luke (Luonnonvarakeskus, Finland’s natural resource institute) led by PhD Risto Korpinen is looking to turn sawdust into fish feed.
Dust to bassKorpinen is leading a project dubbed MonoCell — High-quality single cell protein for fish feed. It’s pretty descriptive, as far as names go, aiming to turn sawdust into usable protein for fish farms. The idea of supping on wood isn’t new in Finland. During a famine in the 19th century, the Finns took to making bread out of pine bark — an idea they re-used during their civil war of 1918.
This project, however, is a bit more refined. The team hopes to take what’s essentially waste material, available in many countries around the world, and turn it into a viable source of fish food. If successful, such technology would also help take the pressure off of the agricultural sector and wild fish stocks — which are currently supplying fish feed — curbing an increasingly unsustainable practice and preventing further ecological damage from these industries.
“There has been a lot of discussion about the challenges that food production has to face in the future. That is also one of the reasons why I came up with this idea”, Korpinen explains.
“The use of wild fish in feeding has led to the collapse of global fish stocks,” he says, adding that Finland is relying heavily on imported soy-based feed, and “is lacking a sustainable domestic option for fish feed.”
Korpinen is very familiar with sawdust. His master’s degree from the Åbo Akademi University in Turku, Finland, pertained to making cellulose out of this material. His background determined him to look into the possibility of turning sawdust into food especially since it’s not a readily-edible material.
“We could do these same things with potato or corn starch too, but starch can also feed humans,” he explains. “In the US they make bioethanol out of starch, even though there are plenty of people in the world suffering from hunger. It just goes against my morals to use food in fuel production.”
Korpinen is confident that the wood-derived feed has a real chance of being an economic hit. Pulp mills already have to dispose of the sawdust somehow, and already have the infrastructure to “establish protein production units on their properties,” he explains.
There are quite a few steps involved in the process.
Image via Luonnonvarakeskus / Luke.
These could help the businesses derive an extra profit from what’s essentially waste material, and may yield other benefits from circulating not just “materials, water and chemicals but also energy, like electricity and steam.” The process would also solve a problem Finnish sawmills are faced with in particular: right now, their sawdust can be used to make biofuels, but the country’s energy policy is virtually barring them from the market.
Finland subsidizes the use of forest chips (which are imported) as a source of energy, but these subsidies do not extend to domestic sawdust. As such, local sawmills have a lot of sawdust on their hands that they simply can’t get rid of, and like pulp mills, stand to gain from MonoCell program. In fact, one private company has already agreed to test-run their sawmill-to-protein process.
“We also hope to find partners from the producers of animal feed. But first we have to do the research and clarify the costs and material use.”
The team conducted the first few experiments of the program this August. Turning sawdust into protein is a complex process that includes several stages, however, so there’s still a long way to go. Luckily, some of the procedures involved are fairly familiar to the team as they’ve been used in past projects. They hope to conclude the research by the autumn of 2017.
Korpinen will mainly be working on the first stages on the project, as he is the lead researcher and the one conducting the initial experiments. After that, the team — consisting of ten researchers from all over Finland — will mostly take over and expand on his results. It consists of members with varied areas of expertise, including food and nutrition experts, and at the end will perform a life cycle analysis to find out “how much energy and chemicals have been used in the whole process”, Korpinen explains.
==========================
rJack Wattley Discus & the Hurricanes
Miami, FL
WattleyDiscus.com
Status: Monday saw the first updates from Wattley Discus, shared by Gabriel Posada. “I finally made it this morning from the safe zone to the hatchery. Couldn’t sleep last night but prayed myself to sleep. Made it past a war zone of fallen trees and downed power lines but once I got on the turnpike it was a smooth trip. I saw a few places with lights on and it gave me some hope. Walked into the Hatchery and had zero power. The smell I dreaded filled the air. That didn’t stop me from turning on the generator as we had been planning. In the dark, I saw little eyes staring at me. Once everything was operational I turned on my cellphone’s flashlight. God spared us. I am completely choked up as I type. There were a few casualties in the larger wild discus but for the most part, 90% of the hatchery survived. Your prayers and mine were answered. Thank you.”
How Wattley Discus Prepped: “We lost power on Saturday night and were not able to return until Monday morning. We had made preparations by fasting the discus since the previous Wednesday and did daily water changes, over 8000 gallons per day. We ended up losing 10% of our stock. Unfortunately, the county won’t allow us to have a a standby generator due to the fact that there are seven other bays which, according to them, could cause carbon monoxide poisoning of the other tenants.”
This was the scene when Posada entered the Jack Wattley Discus hatchery on Monday morning (9/11/17)
Collecting the lost discus in one of two 5 gallon bucket fulls, a heartbreaking task for Posada.
This represents the losses out of over 3000 Discus that were on hand at the time of Hurricane Irma.
Image Credits: Gabriel Posada, Jack Wattley Discus
For how the Florida & Texas Aquarium trade fared over the storms log on to
www.reef2rainforest.com/2017/09/15/after-the-storms-the-aquarium-trade-checks-in-part-14/
==========================
Miami, FL
WattleyDiscus.com
Status: Monday saw the first updates from Wattley Discus, shared by Gabriel Posada. “I finally made it this morning from the safe zone to the hatchery. Couldn’t sleep last night but prayed myself to sleep. Made it past a war zone of fallen trees and downed power lines but once I got on the turnpike it was a smooth trip. I saw a few places with lights on and it gave me some hope. Walked into the Hatchery and had zero power. The smell I dreaded filled the air. That didn’t stop me from turning on the generator as we had been planning. In the dark, I saw little eyes staring at me. Once everything was operational I turned on my cellphone’s flashlight. God spared us. I am completely choked up as I type. There were a few casualties in the larger wild discus but for the most part, 90% of the hatchery survived. Your prayers and mine were answered. Thank you.”
How Wattley Discus Prepped: “We lost power on Saturday night and were not able to return until Monday morning. We had made preparations by fasting the discus since the previous Wednesday and did daily water changes, over 8000 gallons per day. We ended up losing 10% of our stock. Unfortunately, the county won’t allow us to have a a standby generator due to the fact that there are seven other bays which, according to them, could cause carbon monoxide poisoning of the other tenants.”
This was the scene when Posada entered the Jack Wattley Discus hatchery on Monday morning (9/11/17)
Collecting the lost discus in one of two 5 gallon bucket fulls, a heartbreaking task for Posada.
This represents the losses out of over 3000 Discus that were on hand at the time of Hurricane Irma.
Image Credits: Gabriel Posada, Jack Wattley Discus
For how the Florida & Texas Aquarium trade fared over the storms log on to
www.reef2rainforest.com/2017/09/15/after-the-storms-the-aquarium-trade-checks-in-part-14/
==========================
‘Unknown biological consequences’ after 11,000 farmed salmon escape.
Fishermen have been told to kill any farmed salmon they catch rather than returning them (Photo: Getty) Chris Green 1 dayFriday September 15th 2017 Scottish gamekeepers on the Isle of Mull have raised fears that the “genetic purity” of wild salmon has been compromised after more than 11,000 farmed fish escaped and entered local rivers. The mass escape from the Scottish Salmon Company farm at Geasgill was discovered last month after employees recorded low numbers during a routine grading exercise. “What will fisheries be offering in three or four years’ time? Fish of unknown genetic purity” Greg Marsh, Scottish Gamekeepers Association The Scottish Gamekeepers Association (SGA) said the incident was likely to lead to the cross-breeding of farmed salmon and wild fish, leading to “unknown biological consequences”. It said only 250 of the escaped fish had so far been recovered, with many entering rivers including the River Ba, one of the few in the west of Scotland given a class 1 rating for salmon conservation. Local ghillies have been ordering any farmed salmon caught in local rivers to be killed and not returned to the water, but there are fears that some fishermen will not be able to tell the difference. Greg Marsh, a member of the SGA’s fishing group, said people in the area were “up in arms” about the incident and called on the Scottish Government to take action. “What effect is this going to have on the wild fish? What will fisheries be offering in three or four years’ time? Fish of unknown genetic purity,” he said. Damage done “We can continue to catch and dispatch as many of the escaped fish as we can but the damage has been done because lots won’t be caught. “Those on the environmental side in Scottish Government need to raise greater awareness of the dangers to wild fish caused by escapes from fish farms and start doing something more effective about it.” The escape was reported to Marine Scotland, which is responsible for managing the nation’s seas and ensuring that freshwater fish are looked after sustainably. It is not the first time that farmed fish have escaped on Mull this year. In April around 21,300 fish went missing from a Scottish Sea Farms plant at Bloody Bay, with some expected to have reached rivers on the mainland. Mr Marsh said fishermen could spot a farmed salmon by examining their tail and pectoral fins, which were usually smaller and often “shredded”. A spokeswoman for the Scottish Salmon Company said: “During a routine fish handling exercise at our site on Mull we identified a reduction in salmon numbers. “This was reported to Marine Scotland and investigated in line with standard procedure. “We take the health and wellbeing of our fish and the surrounding environment very seriously and have reviewed procedures and training.” The Scottish Government has been approached for comment.
Read more at: https://inews.co.uk/essentials/news/environment/unknown-biological-consequences-11000-farmed-salmon-escape/
==========================
Fishermen have been told to kill any farmed salmon they catch rather than returning them (Photo: Getty) Chris Green 1 dayFriday September 15th 2017 Scottish gamekeepers on the Isle of Mull have raised fears that the “genetic purity” of wild salmon has been compromised after more than 11,000 farmed fish escaped and entered local rivers. The mass escape from the Scottish Salmon Company farm at Geasgill was discovered last month after employees recorded low numbers during a routine grading exercise. “What will fisheries be offering in three or four years’ time? Fish of unknown genetic purity” Greg Marsh, Scottish Gamekeepers Association The Scottish Gamekeepers Association (SGA) said the incident was likely to lead to the cross-breeding of farmed salmon and wild fish, leading to “unknown biological consequences”. It said only 250 of the escaped fish had so far been recovered, with many entering rivers including the River Ba, one of the few in the west of Scotland given a class 1 rating for salmon conservation. Local ghillies have been ordering any farmed salmon caught in local rivers to be killed and not returned to the water, but there are fears that some fishermen will not be able to tell the difference. Greg Marsh, a member of the SGA’s fishing group, said people in the area were “up in arms” about the incident and called on the Scottish Government to take action. “What effect is this going to have on the wild fish? What will fisheries be offering in three or four years’ time? Fish of unknown genetic purity,” he said. Damage done “We can continue to catch and dispatch as many of the escaped fish as we can but the damage has been done because lots won’t be caught. “Those on the environmental side in Scottish Government need to raise greater awareness of the dangers to wild fish caused by escapes from fish farms and start doing something more effective about it.” The escape was reported to Marine Scotland, which is responsible for managing the nation’s seas and ensuring that freshwater fish are looked after sustainably. It is not the first time that farmed fish have escaped on Mull this year. In April around 21,300 fish went missing from a Scottish Sea Farms plant at Bloody Bay, with some expected to have reached rivers on the mainland. Mr Marsh said fishermen could spot a farmed salmon by examining their tail and pectoral fins, which were usually smaller and often “shredded”. A spokeswoman for the Scottish Salmon Company said: “During a routine fish handling exercise at our site on Mull we identified a reduction in salmon numbers. “This was reported to Marine Scotland and investigated in line with standard procedure. “We take the health and wellbeing of our fish and the surrounding environment very seriously and have reviewed procedures and training.” The Scottish Government has been approached for comment.
Read more at: https://inews.co.uk/essentials/news/environment/unknown-biological-consequences-11000-farmed-salmon-escape/
==========================
This Tiny, Transparent Fish Could Save Your Life
Scientists can model—and observe—diseases in the see-through bodies of zebrafish embryos and young.
For a creature that’s less than one and a half inches long, the zebrafish (Danio rerio) looms large in biomedical research.
The zebrafish is a good research stand-in for its fellow vertebrate, the human, because the two have many parts in common: brain, heart, liver, kidneys. And genome sequencing has shown that 84 percent of the genes that cause disease in humans are also found in zebrafish.
Since University of Queensland cell biologist Ben Hogan began studying zebrafish in 2001, their use in labs has soared, he says. One of the fish’s advantages is clear—literally. Because embryos are transparent and develop outside the mother’s body, scientists can manipulate genes to model human diseases and directly observe disease changes in live animals—something not possible in another common lab animal, mice.
Though mature zebrafish are striped, young ones are see-through enough that scientists can study vascular and other systems by introducing fluorescence. In the brain, Hogan has found unexpected “scavenger cells” clearing away waste. If such cells occur in humans and could be controlled, they might be useful against dementia and stroke, he says.
Running repeated experiments takes lots of test subjects, and zebrafish oblige. In the wild, sunrise triggers mating; in Hogan’s lab, it’s spurred when he turns on lights and lifts the tank divider between the sexes. Aroused by the male’s mating dance, the female spawns—as many as 300 eggs, which the male fertilizes by releasing sperm into the water. Weekly breeding ensures the embryo supply.
So far zebrafish studies have yielded insights into cancer, diabetes, muscle diseases, and more. Elizabeth Burke, a researcher at the National Institutes of Health, predicts that “these little striped swimmers have great potential for advancing medical research in the future.”
ZEBRAFISHHABITAT/RANGE: Freshwater rivers and streams in South Asia
CONSERVATION STATUS: Least concern
OTHER FACTS: Zebrafish embryos absorb drugs added to the water they’re in. They’ve been used so successfully to discover possible new drugs that several zebrafish-tested cancer drugs have now entered clinical trials.
From National Geographic
==========================
Scientists can model—and observe—diseases in the see-through bodies of zebrafish embryos and young.
For a creature that’s less than one and a half inches long, the zebrafish (Danio rerio) looms large in biomedical research.
The zebrafish is a good research stand-in for its fellow vertebrate, the human, because the two have many parts in common: brain, heart, liver, kidneys. And genome sequencing has shown that 84 percent of the genes that cause disease in humans are also found in zebrafish.
Since University of Queensland cell biologist Ben Hogan began studying zebrafish in 2001, their use in labs has soared, he says. One of the fish’s advantages is clear—literally. Because embryos are transparent and develop outside the mother’s body, scientists can manipulate genes to model human diseases and directly observe disease changes in live animals—something not possible in another common lab animal, mice.
Though mature zebrafish are striped, young ones are see-through enough that scientists can study vascular and other systems by introducing fluorescence. In the brain, Hogan has found unexpected “scavenger cells” clearing away waste. If such cells occur in humans and could be controlled, they might be useful against dementia and stroke, he says.
Running repeated experiments takes lots of test subjects, and zebrafish oblige. In the wild, sunrise triggers mating; in Hogan’s lab, it’s spurred when he turns on lights and lifts the tank divider between the sexes. Aroused by the male’s mating dance, the female spawns—as many as 300 eggs, which the male fertilizes by releasing sperm into the water. Weekly breeding ensures the embryo supply.
So far zebrafish studies have yielded insights into cancer, diabetes, muscle diseases, and more. Elizabeth Burke, a researcher at the National Institutes of Health, predicts that “these little striped swimmers have great potential for advancing medical research in the future.”
ZEBRAFISHHABITAT/RANGE: Freshwater rivers and streams in South Asia
CONSERVATION STATUS: Least concern
OTHER FACTS: Zebrafish embryos absorb drugs added to the water they’re in. They’ve been used so successfully to discover possible new drugs that several zebrafish-tested cancer drugs have now entered clinical trials.
From National Geographic
==========================
Echiophis punctifer
Gruesome, fanged 'demon fish' washes up on Texas beach, sparking mystery
The strange fanged ‘sea creature’ that washed up on a Texas beach in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey quickly went viral after images were posted on Twitter, but what is it?
Preeti Desai tweeted the images out after discovering the creature on a beach in Texas City earlier this month. “Okay, biology twitter, what the heck is this??,” she wrote.
Her tweet, which was retweeted more than 4,000 times, has garnered more than 10,000 likes.
Desai, who works for the National Audubon Society, told Fox News that she was assessing damage to field sites and habitats in the aftermath of the hurricane when she made the gruesome find. “I spotted this a couple yards away. It was completely unexpected, not something that you'd typically see on a beach,” she explained, via email. “I thought it could be something from the deep sea that might have washed onto shore. My main reaction was curiosity; I wanted to figure out what it was.”
Expand / Collapse
Twitter was the logical route for Desai, who follows a large number of scientists and researchers. “There's such a great community of these folks that are very helpful, especially when it comes to answering questions about the world or IDing animals and plants,” she told Fox News. “I got so many guesses from marine biology experts, fish experts, people who just had an interest in this sort of stuff, etc. We were able to narrow it down to some sort of eel.”
A journalist friend of Desai who works for EarthTouchNews.com reached out to eel expert Kenneth Tighe, a specialist at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. Tighe was able to narrow it down to most likely a fangtooth snake-eel, or tusky eel, according to Desai, who said that Ben Frable, collection manager of fishes at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, also came to the same conclusion.
==========================
The strange fanged ‘sea creature’ that washed up on a Texas beach in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey quickly went viral after images were posted on Twitter, but what is it?
Preeti Desai tweeted the images out after discovering the creature on a beach in Texas City earlier this month. “Okay, biology twitter, what the heck is this??,” she wrote.
Her tweet, which was retweeted more than 4,000 times, has garnered more than 10,000 likes.
Desai, who works for the National Audubon Society, told Fox News that she was assessing damage to field sites and habitats in the aftermath of the hurricane when she made the gruesome find. “I spotted this a couple yards away. It was completely unexpected, not something that you'd typically see on a beach,” she explained, via email. “I thought it could be something from the deep sea that might have washed onto shore. My main reaction was curiosity; I wanted to figure out what it was.”
Expand / Collapse
Twitter was the logical route for Desai, who follows a large number of scientists and researchers. “There's such a great community of these folks that are very helpful, especially when it comes to answering questions about the world or IDing animals and plants,” she told Fox News. “I got so many guesses from marine biology experts, fish experts, people who just had an interest in this sort of stuff, etc. We were able to narrow it down to some sort of eel.”
A journalist friend of Desai who works for EarthTouchNews.com reached out to eel expert Kenneth Tighe, a specialist at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. Tighe was able to narrow it down to most likely a fangtooth snake-eel, or tusky eel, according to Desai, who said that Ben Frable, collection manager of fishes at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, also came to the same conclusion.
==========================
Floating Tar, Dead Fish: Oil Spill Threatens Greek Beaches
Oil on a beach on Salamis Island, Greece. A tanker carrying more than 2,500 metric tons of fuel oil and marine gas oil sank near the island on Sunday.
The Greek authorities scrambled on Thursday to clean up fuel leaked by an oil tanker that sank near Athens, putting popular beaches off limits to swimmers and raising fears of environmental damage.
The Agia Zoni II, a 45-year-old oil tanker, sank early Sunday morning near the island of Salamis, about seven miles from the country’s main port, Piraeus. It was carrying more than 2,500 metric tons of fuel oil and marine gas oil.
Though the leak was initially thought to be contained to the area of the shipwreck, it soon expanded to the coastline area known as the Athens Riviera.
Evaggelia Simou, a resident of Salamina, on the island, denounced the authorities for not tackling the oil spill more quickly and fully.
Continue reading the main story
PhotoPeople cleaning up oil on Tuesday at a beach on Salamis. CreditAngelos Tzortzinis/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images“We drove by the Selinia beach on Sunday night, and were alarmed because of the suffocating smell of oil,” Ms. Simou said in a Facebook chat.
When she and her husband went to the beach, they were shocked to see that a thick coat of oil had blackened the water. “Huge pieces of floating tar were burdening the waves, dead fish floated on the surface,” Ms. Simou said. They were surprised to see no cleanup workers, she said.
On Tuesday, a thick coat of oil blackened the waters off Salamis. Simou returned to the beach on Monday morning, along with her son, and was stunned to see no sign of an active cleanup, more than 24 hours after the shipwreck.
Thick, black masses of oil had reached the beaches around Glyfada, a high-end seaside community south of Athens, by Wednesday afternoon.
George Papanikolaou, the mayor of Glyfada, said he got a phone call from the Piraeus harbor master warning of the spill only a few hours before the black ooze washed up.
“The vessel sank on Sunday. How is it possible that the leak reached Glyfada from Salamina?” Mr. Papanikolaou asked in a phone interview. “And how is it possible that we only heard about it on Wednesday?”
The leak was initially thought to be contained to the area around the shipwreck, but it soon spread. -Since then, three private antipollution vessels have cleaned up more than 180 metric tons of fuel from Glyfada’s four beaches. Just this summer, one of the beaches had been recognized by the Foundation for Environmental Education as a Blue Flag beach, a certification of water quality.
“It’s tragic that it happened now, after all four beaches have gotten so beautiful,” Tima Vlasto, 51, an American who has lived in Glyfada for six years, said in a phone interview. “Seeing this makes you want to leave. If I can’t swim here, what’s the point of living in Glyfada?”
Mr. Papanikolaou said that emotions were running high in his community. “We’re angry,” he said. “It’s just such a shame that all this hard work can be destroyed in a split second.”
The Interpreter NewsletterUnderstand the world with sharp insight and commentary on the major news stories of the week.
Some ecologists have called the oil spill an environmental disaster, with immediate and potential long-term effects.
One photo circulating on the internet showed a kingfisher drenched in black oil. The bird tried to feed itself by fishing in the polluted waters, but quickly died because of the oil, according to Konstantina Ntemiri, an officer of the Hellenic Ornithological Society.
The full extent of the pollution and its effects are not yet clear; areas like uninhabited rocky islets are also thought to be affected.
, the Greek shipping minister, suggested on Thursday that he would resign if asked by Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. But as the political opposition insisted that he step down, the ministry said his words had been taken out of context.
After touring the affected areas in a Coast Guard vessel, Mr. Kouroumplis said that there had been “significant improvement” and that “in just a few days this affair will have been forgotten.”
That view is not shared by Themis Labridis, 33, a filmmaker whose family home is in Palaio Faliro, between Piraeus and Glyfada.
“We couldn’t sleep because of the smell,” he said in a phone interview. “The sea is like a dirty lagoon, a swamp of oil.”
On Thursday, he went with a friend to nearby Alimos beach, where they met another volunteer and used buckets to remove big pieces of black tar from the water.
They also gathered blackened stones from the shore. No authorities were around to stop — or help — them. “Who is going to clean the beaches of each and every polluted stone?” Mr. Labridis asked.
The cause of the shipwreck remains unclear.
The Hellenic Register of Shipping, an independent organization that oversees shipping safety, said that the tanker had not been certified as seaworthy, although its owner, Fos Petroleum, said that it had all of the proper credentials. The Greek Ministry of Shipping and Island Policy did not respond to several requests for information.
==========================
Oil on a beach on Salamis Island, Greece. A tanker carrying more than 2,500 metric tons of fuel oil and marine gas oil sank near the island on Sunday.
The Greek authorities scrambled on Thursday to clean up fuel leaked by an oil tanker that sank near Athens, putting popular beaches off limits to swimmers and raising fears of environmental damage.
The Agia Zoni II, a 45-year-old oil tanker, sank early Sunday morning near the island of Salamis, about seven miles from the country’s main port, Piraeus. It was carrying more than 2,500 metric tons of fuel oil and marine gas oil.
Though the leak was initially thought to be contained to the area of the shipwreck, it soon expanded to the coastline area known as the Athens Riviera.
Evaggelia Simou, a resident of Salamina, on the island, denounced the authorities for not tackling the oil spill more quickly and fully.
Continue reading the main story
PhotoPeople cleaning up oil on Tuesday at a beach on Salamis. CreditAngelos Tzortzinis/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images“We drove by the Selinia beach on Sunday night, and were alarmed because of the suffocating smell of oil,” Ms. Simou said in a Facebook chat.
When she and her husband went to the beach, they were shocked to see that a thick coat of oil had blackened the water. “Huge pieces of floating tar were burdening the waves, dead fish floated on the surface,” Ms. Simou said. They were surprised to see no cleanup workers, she said.
On Tuesday, a thick coat of oil blackened the waters off Salamis. Simou returned to the beach on Monday morning, along with her son, and was stunned to see no sign of an active cleanup, more than 24 hours after the shipwreck.
Thick, black masses of oil had reached the beaches around Glyfada, a high-end seaside community south of Athens, by Wednesday afternoon.
George Papanikolaou, the mayor of Glyfada, said he got a phone call from the Piraeus harbor master warning of the spill only a few hours before the black ooze washed up.
“The vessel sank on Sunday. How is it possible that the leak reached Glyfada from Salamina?” Mr. Papanikolaou asked in a phone interview. “And how is it possible that we only heard about it on Wednesday?”
The leak was initially thought to be contained to the area around the shipwreck, but it soon spread. -Since then, three private antipollution vessels have cleaned up more than 180 metric tons of fuel from Glyfada’s four beaches. Just this summer, one of the beaches had been recognized by the Foundation for Environmental Education as a Blue Flag beach, a certification of water quality.
“It’s tragic that it happened now, after all four beaches have gotten so beautiful,” Tima Vlasto, 51, an American who has lived in Glyfada for six years, said in a phone interview. “Seeing this makes you want to leave. If I can’t swim here, what’s the point of living in Glyfada?”
Mr. Papanikolaou said that emotions were running high in his community. “We’re angry,” he said. “It’s just such a shame that all this hard work can be destroyed in a split second.”
The Interpreter NewsletterUnderstand the world with sharp insight and commentary on the major news stories of the week.
Some ecologists have called the oil spill an environmental disaster, with immediate and potential long-term effects.
One photo circulating on the internet showed a kingfisher drenched in black oil. The bird tried to feed itself by fishing in the polluted waters, but quickly died because of the oil, according to Konstantina Ntemiri, an officer of the Hellenic Ornithological Society.
The full extent of the pollution and its effects are not yet clear; areas like uninhabited rocky islets are also thought to be affected.
, the Greek shipping minister, suggested on Thursday that he would resign if asked by Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. But as the political opposition insisted that he step down, the ministry said his words had been taken out of context.
After touring the affected areas in a Coast Guard vessel, Mr. Kouroumplis said that there had been “significant improvement” and that “in just a few days this affair will have been forgotten.”
That view is not shared by Themis Labridis, 33, a filmmaker whose family home is in Palaio Faliro, between Piraeus and Glyfada.
“We couldn’t sleep because of the smell,” he said in a phone interview. “The sea is like a dirty lagoon, a swamp of oil.”
On Thursday, he went with a friend to nearby Alimos beach, where they met another volunteer and used buckets to remove big pieces of black tar from the water.
They also gathered blackened stones from the shore. No authorities were around to stop — or help — them. “Who is going to clean the beaches of each and every polluted stone?” Mr. Labridis asked.
The cause of the shipwreck remains unclear.
The Hellenic Register of Shipping, an independent organization that oversees shipping safety, said that the tanker had not been certified as seaworthy, although its owner, Fos Petroleum, said that it had all of the proper credentials. The Greek Ministry of Shipping and Island Policy did not respond to several requests for information.
==========================
The September 2017 Issue of the FBAS Bulletin is now available to download FREE of charge
to anybody who wants to. You do not have to be an FBAS member. This issue contains information about the forthcoming Festival of Fishkeeping and important information about the fish and aquatic plant trade which may affect all hobbyists at some stage. DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE COPY AT:
http://www.fbas.co.uk/2017%20c%20Sept.pdf
==========================
to anybody who wants to. You do not have to be an FBAS member. This issue contains information about the forthcoming Festival of Fishkeeping and important information about the fish and aquatic plant trade which may affect all hobbyists at some stage. DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE COPY AT:
http://www.fbas.co.uk/2017%20c%20Sept.pdf
==========================
Five New Species of Sandperch Genus Parapercis (Perciformes: Pinguipedidae) from southeast Asia and northwest Australia; Parapercis soliorta, P. rubricaudalis, P. hoi, P. caudopellucida & P. flavipinna
Parapercis soliorta
Johnson & Motomura, 2017
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4320.1.7
Abstract
Five new species of sandperch (Pinguipedidae: Parapercis) from southeast Asia and northwest Australia are described. Parapercis soliorta sp. nov., known from a single specimen acquired from the Iloilo Central Market, taken off Iloilo, Panay Island, Philippines, is readily distinguished by a unique colour pattern including a series of nine brilliant yellow-ringed red spots along the body and caudal fin. Parapercis rubricaudalis sp. nov. is described from 15 specimens trawled between Dampier and Cape Leveque, Western Australia in 70–119 m and a single specimen taken by aquarium fish collectors off Zambales, Luzon, Philippines. It has the posterior end of the opercular ridge armed with two or three strong spines, the margin of the preopercle, subopercle and interopercle strongly serrated, and colouration including six broad irregular orange to reddish bands across the body, and the pelvic fins and lower third of the caudal fin crimson-red. A complex of three closely related species, Parapercis flavipinna sp. nov. from the Philippines, Parapercis caudopellucida sp. nov. from Myanm
Parapercis soliorta
Johnson & Motomura, 2017
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4320.1.7
Abstract
Five new species of sandperch (Pinguipedidae: Parapercis) from southeast Asia and northwest Australia are described. Parapercis soliorta sp. nov., known from a single specimen acquired from the Iloilo Central Market, taken off Iloilo, Panay Island, Philippines, is readily distinguished by a unique colour pattern including a series of nine brilliant yellow-ringed red spots along the body and caudal fin. Parapercis rubricaudalis sp. nov. is described from 15 specimens trawled between Dampier and Cape Leveque, Western Australia in 70–119 m and a single specimen taken by aquarium fish collectors off Zambales, Luzon, Philippines. It has the posterior end of the opercular ridge armed with two or three strong spines, the margin of the preopercle, subopercle and interopercle strongly serrated, and colouration including six broad irregular orange to reddish bands across the body, and the pelvic fins and lower third of the caudal fin crimson-red. A complex of three closely related species, Parapercis flavipinna sp. nov. from the Philippines, Parapercis caudopellucida sp. nov. from Myanm