ALBERT

Description: The cartilaginous tubercles of the mantle of the squid Cranchia scabra have been examined with the scanning electron microscope. Some tubercles are small, simple nodules whereas others are large with a complex Maltese cross form. The varying shapes and sizes probably represent a developmental sequence. The possible role of the tubercles is discussed.

Description: Three specimens of the rare giant squid (genus Architeuthis, 18 nominal species) are described from the waters around southern Africa. Consideration of their internal and external morphology, including beaks, radula, statocyst and statolith give no reason to suppose that the three specimens do not pertain to the same species. A standardized data collection form and a summary of existing morphometric data are presented for the first time and the morphology and systematics of the genus are discussed. The value of various systematic characters is examined and certain guidelines are proposed, with an appeal for a more scientific approach to Architeuthis studies. Features of the internal anatomy, including the female reproductive tract, are described and illustrated and the beak dimensions are used to evaluate existing regression formulae for beak and body parameters. The statocyst and statolith are described and illustrated in full, the statolith for the first time, and are compared with those of other squids. The value of recent data from trawl-caught specimens, as well as indirect evidence, is cited to replace speculation in discussions on distribution and habitat. Our specimens suggest that the waters off the south-western coast of Africa may be one of the natural habitats of Architeurhis, during both feeding and spawning periods of the life cycle.

Description: Investigations indicate that the Iceland Ice Sheet was reduced in size during MIS 3 but readvanced to the shelf break at the LGM. Retreat occurred very rapidly around 15 k–16 k cal. yr BP. By contrast, the margin of the ice sheet on the East Greenland shelf, north of the Denmark Strait, was at or close to the shelf break during MIS 3 and 2 and retreat starting ∼17 k cal. yr BP. Quantitative X-ray diffraction analysis of the 〈2 mm sediment fraction was undertaken on 161 samples from Iceland and East Greenland diamictons, and from cores on the slopes and margins of the Denmark Strait. Weight% mineralogical data are used in a principal component analysis to differentiate sediments derived from the two margins. The first two PC axes explain 52% of the variance. These associations are used to characterise sediments as being affiliated with (a) Iceland, (b) East Greenland or (c) mixed. The contribution from Iceland becomes prominent during MIS 2. The extensive outcrop of early Tertiary basalts on East Greenland between 68° and 71° N is an alternative source for basaltic clasts and North Atlantic sediments with εNd(0) values close to ±0.

Description: Two cores were recovered in the southeastern part of Lake Shkodra (Montenegro and Albania) and sampled for identification of tephra layers. The first core (SK13, 7.8 m long) was recovered from a water depth of 7 m, while the second core (SK19, 5.8 m long) was recovered close to the present-day shoreline (water depth of 2 m). Magnetic susceptibility investigations show generally low values with some peaks that in some cases are related to tephra layers. Naked-eye inspection of the cores allowed the identification of four tephra layers in core SK13 and five tephra layers in core SK19. Major element analyses on glass shards and mineral phases allowed correlation of the tephra layers between the two cores, and their attribution to six different Holocene explosive eruptions of southern Italy volcanoes. Two tephra layers have under-saturated composition of glass shards (foiditic and phonolitic) and were correlated to the AD 472 and the Avellino (ca. 3.9 cal. ka BP) eruptions of Somma-Vesuvius. One tephra layer has benmoreitic composition and was correlated to the FL eruption of Mount Etna (ca. 3.4 cal. ka BP). The other three tephra layers have trachytic composition and were correlated to Astroni (ca. 4.2 cal. ka BP), Agnano Monte Spina (ca. 4.5 cal. ka BP) and Agnano Pomici Principali (ca. 12.3 cal. ka BP) eruptions of Campi Flegrei. The ages of tephra layers are in broad agreement with eight 14C accelerator mass spectrometric measurements carried out on plant remains and charcoal from the lake sediments at different depths along the two cores. The recognition of distal tephra layers from Italian volcanoes allowed the physical link of the Holocene archive of Lake Shkodra to other archives located in the central Mediterranean area and the Balkans (i.e. Lake Ohrid). Five of the recognised tephra layers were recognised for the first time in the Balkans area, and this has relevance for volcanic hazard assessment and for ash dispersal forecasting in case of renewed explosive activity from some of the southern Italy volcanoes. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Description: This paper presents a temperature reconstruction of the past 1000 years for Central Europe, based on chronological records. The advantages and limitations of this hermeneutic, text-based approach are discussed and the statistic methodology is introduced. Historical documents represent direct observation of weather and atmospheric conditions with highest temporal resolution available and precise dating. A major advantage of these extensive data is that they allow the reconstruction of large numbers of variables such as winter temperature, precipitation, pressure patterns or climate extremes as well as floods or storms. Within this hermeneutic climatological research approach, even human impacts and social dimensions of climate development can be examined. In order to quantify the historical information, statistical methods are applied, based on an index approach.

Description: The dry weight and the crest length of the upper and lower beak, the length of the radula ribbon, the average width of the base of the six proximal and distal rachidian teeth as well as the total number of these teeth have all been related to the live body weight of octopuses between 1.1 and 4440 g. From any one of these parameters it is possible to estimate the size and approximate age of the animal.

Description: Features of the brain of this oceanic squid have been investigated and related, as far as possible, to its habits and mode of life. The body and arms are much vacuolated for buoyancy and the animal probably lives with the head upwards. The very long whip-like tentacles are not vacuolated and perhaps hang downwards. They are covered by numerous minute pedunculated suckers, perhaps providing a sticky surface. A special nerve running outside the brain carries signals from the arms and tentacles to the magnocellular lobe, which is very large and of complex structure. However, there are no giant cells and the mantle is weak. Propulsion is mainly by the large fins, which are controlled from the magnocellular lobe, presumably using the information from the arms and tentacles.

Description: Benthoctopus piscatorum appears to be a multiple spawner. In the ovary of one specimen about 50 eggs were found at various stages of development.

Description: Meiobenthos densities and higher taxon composition were studied in an active gas seepage area at depths from 182 to 252 m in the submarine Dnieper Canyon located in the northwestern part of the Black Sea. The meiobenthos was represented by Ciliata, Foraminifera, Nematoda, Polychaeta, Bivalvia, Gastropoda, Amphipoda, and Acarina. Also present in the sediment samples were juvenile stages of Copepoda and Cladocera which may be of planktonic origin. Nematoda and Foraminifera were the dominant groups. The abundance of the meiobenthos varied between 2397 and 52,593 ind.·m−2. Maximum densities of Nematoda and Foraminifera were recorded in the upper sediment layer of a permanent H2S zone at depths from 220 to 250 m. This dense concentration of meiobenthos was found in an area where intense methane seeps were covered by methane-oxidizing microbial mats. Results suggest that methane and its microbial oxidation products are the factors responsible for the presence of a highly sulfidic and biologically productive zone characterized by specially adapted benthic groups. At the same time, an inverse correlation was found between meiofauna densities and methane concentrations in the uppermost sediment layers. The hypothesis is that the concentration of Nematoda and Foraminifera within the areas enriched with methane is an ecological compromise between the food requirements of these organisms and their adaptations to the toxic H2S.

Description: The diet of King Penguins Aptenodytes patagonica at Possession Island was studied in February 1989 by analysis of 20 stomach contents collected from adult birds, just before they fed their single chicks. The mean mass of the samples was 1.84 kg, equivalent to 15% of the unladen adult body-mass. Fish accounted for 99.8% and squids for 0.2% by mass. The main prey were mesopelagic myctophid fish which live in dense shoals and perform a daily vertical migration. Subadults/adults of Electrona carlsbergi and juveniles and subadults/adults of Krefftichthys anderssoni represented 73.7 and 13.4% of the diet by mass, respectively. No difference was found in the diet of male and female King Penguins. Comparison of individual samples suggests that these birds catch a large quantity of fish from only a limited number of shoals. The mean caloric content of the food was 7 kJ/g wet mass. The total energy requirement of each chick during its initial period of growth was estimated to amount to 328,000 kJ, equivalent to 55 kg of food. The rate at which energy was delivered to the chick was calculated to be 50 W during this period.

Description: In Loligo forbesi Steenstrup, the female reproductive system consists of the ovary and accessory reproductive organs which include the oviducal gland, the nidamental gland, the accessory nidamental gland and seminal receptacle. Histological studies were made on the accessory reproductive organs of female L. forbesi. The various changes observed during maturation are described and the functional significance discussed. The secretions produced by the oviducal gland and nidamental gland apparently form the egg coats. The seminal receptacle serves to store spermatozoa after mating. The function of the accessory nidamental gland is unknown.

Description: An automatic food dispenser was designed for use with Octopus vulgaris Lamarck. One live crab was delivered each time the octopus pulled a white shape attached to the dispenser. The apparatus provided a continuous record of the time and frequency of feeding over periods of up to 15 days.

Description: Whether the study of external morphology can increase our knowledge of shallow-water octopuses and their biology is tested by multivariate morphometric analyses. The extent of morphological variation among 20 species from the Atlantic and eastern tropical Pacific Oceans is explored, and four hypotheses are addressed: (1) that octopuses show secondary sexual dimorphism; (2) that remote, ostensibly conspecific populations are morphologically distinct; (3) that morphometric characters contribute to resource partitioning among sympatric species; and (4) that morphology is predictably associated with habitat. Results of principal components analysis show most species to be very similar in shape. Arm length contributes most shape variation; other characters contribute little. Principal components and size-free discriminant analyses refute each of the hypotheses considered. The morphological similarity of isolated Atlantic populations may be a symplesiomorphy, but information on the planktonic phase of the octopus lire cycle supports the possibility of dispersal across the Atlantic Ocean. Size, not directly treated here, may significantly affect some aspects of octopus biology. Increased female size may evolve due to selection for increased fecundity and intraspecific niche partitioning. Size may also indicate interaction within and among species. Characters of shape, deemed essential to species descriptions, do not appear to be able to identify most specimens, nor to increase our understanding of octopus biology.

Description: This paper presents an event stratigraphy based on data documenting the history of vegetation cover, lake-level changes and fire frequency, as well as volcanic eruptions, over the Last Glacial–early Holocene transition from a terrestrial sediment sequence recovered at Lake Accesa in Tuscany (north-central Italy). On the basis of an age–depth model inferred from 13 radiocarbon dates and six tephra horizons, the Oldest Dryas–Bølling warming event was dated to ca. 14 560 cal. yr BP and the Younger Dryas event to ca. 12 700–11 650 cal. yr BP. Four sub-millennial scale cooling phases were recognised from pollen data at ca. 14 300–14 200, 13 900–13 700, 13 400–13 100 and 11 350–11 150 cal. yr BP. The last three may be Mediterranean equivalents to the Older Dryas (GI-1d), Intra-Allerød (GI-1b) and Preboreal Oscillation (PBO) cooling events defined from the GRIP ice-core and indicate strong climatic linkages between the North Atlantic and Mediterranean areas during the last Termination. The first may correspond to Intra-Bølling cold oscillations registered by various palaeoclimatic records in the North Atlantic region. The lake-level record shows that the sub-millennial scale climatic oscillations which punctuated the last deglaciation were associated in central Italy with different successive patterns of hydrological changes from the Bølling warming to the 8.2 ka cold reversal. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Description: The stomach contents of 1522 adult seals (Arctocephalus pusillus pusillus) and 673 pups, which were collected around the West and South Coasts of Southern Africa, were examined and cephalopod prey identified. About 20 cephalopod species (some identifications were uncertain) were found in the stomachs, of which only six were significant: Loligo vulgaris reynaudii. Sepia spp., Octopus sp., Todaropsis eblanae, Todarodes angolensis and Ocythoe tuberculata. This list suggests that A. pusillus feeds exclusively on the continental shelf, frequently on or near the bottom. Among adults, cephalopod prey varied in importance around the coast. It was most important on the South Coast of South Africa where it comprised 35.0% of the weight of all prey, of which L. v. veynaudii constituted about 88%. On the West Coast cephalopods comprised about 26.6% by weight of all prey, and Octopus sp. predominated, whereas in Namibian waters cephalopods were least important, constituting only 3.4% by weight of all prey, with Todarodes angolensis and Octopus sp. being most significant. Among pups (aged 8–10 months) in the Lüderitz (Namibia) area, cephalopods were about 16.9% of prey by weight, of which Ocythoe tuberculata, small Sepia spp. and Octopoda were most important.

Description: The movements of the isolated buccal mass of Octopus vulgaris have been investigated. The beaks undergo rhythmic cycles of activity in the absence of applied stimulation and after electrical stimulation of the inter-buccal connective. Initial opening, closing, retraction and re-opening phases of movement are described. This cycle of movements is taken to resemble those in the intact animal. Anatomical and electrical evidence identifies the superior mandibular muscle as being partly responsible for the closing and retraction phases of movement. The inferior buccal ganglion determines the sequence of these buccal movements, but modification by sensory feed-back from the musculature is also implied. The preparation will allow a closer comparison of the control of movement in cephalopods and gastropods.

Description: The structure of the reproductive systems of mature males and females of the nektonic, oceanic squid Thysanoteuthis rhombus are described. The main peculiarities of the female system are relatively low capacity oviducts, set in a tight spiral, and hypertrophically developed oviducal glands with a very large second section. The male reproductive system is characterized by a long, narrow Needham's sac containing 10–15 large spermatophores 80–100 mm in length. The mesentery supporting the gonad, and protruding into it dorsally, is a characteristic feature in both sexes. The hectocotylus structure differs markedly from that in other squids and resembles that of sepiids. The reproductive system of T. rhombus possesses primitive features (pattern of gonad attachment and hectocotylus) but mostly secondary characters (small oviducts, very large oviducal glands and ovary). The complex morpho-ecological adaptations of T. rhombus are reflected in the distinctive features of the reproductive system.

Description: Seasonal variation in the diet of common seals (Phoca vitulina) in the Moray Firth, north-east Scotland, was determined from analysis of faecal samples collected at haul-out sites during each month of 1988. Data on diet of common seals in 1987 are also presented. Limitations of the methods available for quantification of diet are discussed. Although some of the observed variation in diet from month to month may reflect changes in the sampling regime, a clear seasonal pattern was apparent, with clupeids predominating in the winter and sandeels in the summer. The trends observed are consistent with opportunistic feeding on the most abundant Prey.

Description: The cephalopod fauna collected during six surveys carried out in the bathyal basin of the north-western Mediterranean is discussed. Samples were taken at depths mainly between 1000 and 2000 m. Ten species were identified. Bathypolypus sponsalis and Neorossia caroli were the commonest species. Small individuals of both these species occurred at greater depths than did larger individuals, suggesting up-slope ontogenetic migration. The depth ranges recorded for all species collected are discussed and compared to the results of previous studies found in the literature.

Description: Taonius megalops is a neutrally buoyant oceanic squid, very different in form when young and old. The young, has a round, sac-like mantle and relatively long tentacles, while the adult has an elongated cone-like mantle and relatively short tentacles. The transition in shape and form is gradual and has been followed in animals of between 3 and 180 mm dorsal mantle length. Statistical tests on various parameters investigated, both external and internal, revealed good correlation with the dorsal mantle length and confirmed the descriptions of the development of the chromatophores and subocular light organs with growth. It was concluded that these animals, captured in the Atlantic Ocean, all belonged to the species T. megalops Prosch 1849. This study has permitted us to suggest a tentative outline of the life cycle, although no adults were present in the material available.

Description: A crab which has been captured and paralysed by an octopus but retrieved 1 1/2 min later cannot at first be pulled apart by the experimenter: 27 min later it can be dismembered easily. This demonstrates that there is external digestion when Octopus vulgaris feeds upon crabs. However, it is strictly limited at this stage to the arthrodial membrane and the musculo-skeletal attachment mechanisms as the exoskeleton separates at the joints allowing the muscles to be drawn out of the appendages. And yet, two hours after capture, pieces of crab meat are still recognizable in the octopus's stomach. The process of paralysing and cleaning a crab was noticeably slowed after the surgical removal of the radula, salivary papilla or the lateral buccal palps.

Description: The changes in body weight of 12 octopuses, fed on fish or crabs, were followed under laboratory conditions for periods of 1 to 7 1/2 months. The food intake was estimated and compared with the changes in body weight of the octopuses; 25 to 55% of the total intake of food appeared to be incorporated. The range of the average increase in weight over the whole observation period of each of the animals was 1.9 to 7.7g per day (1 to 7 1/2 months); the mean value was 4.8g per day. The effect of changing the diet of small octopuses (fish or crab)was followed for four weeks but there was no evidence that alteration of the diet affected the rate of changes in body weight of animals of more than 47g initial body weight.

Description: Diosmetin, 5,7,3′-trihydroxy-4′-methoxyflavone shows chemopreventive, antimutagenic, and antiallergic effects. On the other hand, chrysoeriol, 5,7,4′-trihydroxy-3′-methoxyflavone induced nodABC-lacZ in Rhizobium meliloti. Both of them belong to hydroxymethoxy- flavones. One major difference between diosmetin and chrysoeriol is the substituted position of hydroxyl and methoxyl groups. In order to elucidate the relationships between their structures and activity, one of the first things to be done is the determination of their structures. However, most flavones occur widely in nature, and thus it is difficult to obtain in sufficient amounts from natural sources to identify their structures. Assignments of NMR data of several hydroxymethoxyflavones may help us to identify novel flavonoid compounds isolated from natural sources based on their NMR experiments. Therefore, we report here the complete assignments of 1H and 13C NMR data of 13 hydroxymethoxyflavones.

Description: Reproductive mechanisms in the seven species of the thecosomatous pteropod genus Limacina are described and compared. All species are protandrous hermaphrodites. Five species–L. bulimoides, L. helicina, L. lesueuri, L. retroversa and L. trochiformis–have a similar reproductive anatomy in which the gonoduct leading from the gonad to the common genital pore functions as a seminal vesicle in the male and is elaborated into mucous and albumen glands in the female. The male system consists of a prostate gland and penis connected to the common genital pore by an external ciliary tract. All five species have a free-swimming veliger stage which hatches from free-floating egg masses. Limacina helicoides has the same reproductive anatomy but is ovoviviparous, with embryos retained in capsules in the mucous gland until they are juveniles of 50 mm in shell diameter. Limacina inflata lacks mucous and albumen glands and a penis; a spermatophore formed by the prostate gland is used in aphallic sperm transfer. This species exhibits brood protection with un-encapsulated embryos retained in the mantle cavity until they are released as veligers measuring 0067 mm in diameter. L. inflata is the most abundant of the seven species despite lowered fecundity; reasons for its ecological success are discussed.

Description: The Stilbonemutinue (marine free-living nematodes) arc remarkable for cctosymbiotic bacteria, which cover the greatest part of their body in a highly ordered and species specific pattern. Using SEM we describe the main types of symbiotic cover and give evidence for the role of the bacteria in the nutrition of their host on the basis of stable carbon isotope ratios. In experimental systems the worms migrated repeatedly across a sulfide gradient during 12 h when sulfide concentrations were low, but stayed above the sulfide maximum at high concentrations. The migration across the chemocline exposes the symbionts alternately to reduced sulfur compounds and oxygen; this constitutes an alternative strategy to the ventilation/circulation systems in symbiotic macrofauna from sulfidic habitats

Description: Myrionecta rubra, a ubiquitous planktonic ciliate, has received much attention due to its wide distribution, occurrence as a red tide organism, and unusual cryptophyte endosymbiont. Although well studied in coastal waters, M. rubra is poorly examined in the open ocean. In the Irminger Basin, North Atlantic, the abundance of M. rubra was 0–5 cells/ml, which is low compared with that found in coastal areas. Distinct patchiness (100 km) was revealed by geostatistical analysis. Multiple regression indicated there was little relationship between M. rubra abundance and a number of environmental factors, with the exception of temperature and phytoplankton biomass, which influenced abundance in the spring. We also improve on studies that indicate distinct size classes of M. rubra; we statistically recognise four significantly distinct width classes (5–16, 12–23, 18–27, 21–33 μm), which decrease in abundance with increasing size. A multinomial logistic regression revealed the main variable correlated with this size distribution was ambient nitrate concentration. Finally, we propose a hypothesis for the distribution of sizes, involving nutrients, feeding, and dividing of the endosymbiont.

Description: Understanding the influence of growth temperature and carbon dioxide (CO2) on seed quality in terms of seed composition, subsequent seedling emergence and early seedling vigour is important under present and future climates. The objective of this study was to determine the combined effects of elevated temperature and CO2 during seed-filling of parent plants on seed composition, subsequent seedling emergence and seedling vigour of red kidney bean (Phaseolus vulgaris). Plants of cultivar ‘Montcalm’, were grown at daytime maximum/nighttime minimum sinusoidal temperature regimes of 28/18 and 34/24 °C at ambient CO2 (350 μmol mol−1) and at elevated CO2 (700 μmol mol−1) from emergence to maturity. Seed size and seed composition at maturity and subsequent per cent emergence, early seedling vigour (rate of development) and seedling dry matter production were measured. Elevated CO2 did not influence seed composition, emergence, or seedling vigour of seeds produced either at 28/18 or 34/24 °C. Seed produced at 34/24 °C had smaller seed size, decreased glucose concentration, but significantly increased concentrations of sucrose and raffinose compared to 28/18 °C. Elevated growth temperatures during seed production decreased the subsequent per cent emergence and seedling vigour of the seeds and seedling dry matter production of seed produced either at ambient or elevated CO2.

Description: Laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) is a high spatial resolution analytical method which has been applied to the analysis of silicic tephras. With current instrumentation, around 30 trace elements can be determined from single glass shards as small as ∼ 40 µm, separated from tephra deposits. As a result of element fractionation during the ablation process using a 266 nm laser, a relatively complex calibration strategy is required. Nonetheless, such a strategy gives analyses which are accurate (typically within ±5%) and have an analytical precision which varies from ∼ ±2% at 100 ppm, to ∼ ±15% at 1 ppm. Detection limits for elements used in correlation and discrimination studies are well below 1 ppm. Examples of the application of trace element analysis by LA-ICP-MS in tephra studies are presented from the USA, New Zealand and the Mediterranean. Improvements in instrumental sensitivity in recent years have the potential to lower detection limits and improve analytical precision, thus allowing the analysis of smaller glass shards from more distal tephras. Laser systems operating at shorter wavelengths (e.g. 193 nm) are now more widely available, and produce a much more controllable ablation in glasses than 266 nm lasers. Crater sizes of 〈10 µm are easily achieved, and at 193 nm many of the elemental fractionation issues which mar longer wavelengths are overcome. By coupling a short wavelength laser to a modern ICP-MS it should be possible to determine the trace element composition of glass shards as small as 20 µm and, providing sample preparation issues can be overcome, the determination of the more abundant trace elements in glass shards as small as 10 µm is within instrumental capabilities. This will make it possible to chemically fingerprint tephra deposits which are far from their sources, and will greatly extend the range over which geochemical correlation of tephras can be undertaken.

Description: Absolute barriers to dispersal are not common in marine systems, and the prevalence of planktonic larvae in marine taxa provides potential for gene flow across large geographic distances. These observations raise the fundamental question in marine evolutionary biology as to whether geographic and oceanographic barriers alone can account for the high levels of species diversity observed in marine environments such as coral reefs, or whether marine speciation also operates in the presence of gene flow between diverging populations. In this respect, the ecological hypothesis of speciation, in which reproductive isolation results from divergent or disruptive natural selection, is of particular interest because it may operate in the presence of gene flow. Although important insights into the process of ecological speciation in aquatic environments have been provided by the study of freshwater fishes, comparatively little is known about the possibility of ecological speciation in marine teleosts. In this study, the evidence consistent with different aspects of the ecological hypothesis of speciation is evaluated in marine fishes. Molecular approaches have played a critical role in the development of speciation hypotheses in marine fishes, with a role of ecology suggested by the occurrence of sister clades separated by ecological factors, rapid cladogenesis or the persistence of genetically and ecologically differentiated species in the presence of gene flow. Yet, ecological speciation research in marine fishes is still largely at an exploratory stage. Cases where the major ingredients of ecological speciation, namely a source of natural divergent or disruptive selection, a mechanism of reproductive isolation and a link between the two have been explicitly documented are few. Even in these cases, specific predictions of the ecological hypothesis of speciation remain largely untested. Recent developments in the study of freshwater fishes illustrate the potential for molecular approaches to address specific questions related to the ecological hypothesis of speciation such as the nature of the genes underlying key ecological traits, the magnitude of their effect on phenotype and the mechanisms underlying their differential expression in different ecological contexts. The potential provided by molecular studies is fully realized when they are complemented with alternative (e.g. ecological, theoretical) approaches.

Description: Growth of the shallow-water gorgonian Lophogorgia ceratophyta was investigated in an infralittoral station located in La Spezia Gulf, Ligurian Sea. Mean annual height growth rate was estimated to be 2.57 cm · a-1. The fractal dimension of the colonies was found to gradually evolve in complexity, exhibiting a simpler branching pattern in younger specimens. The maintenance of a low, invariable ramification complexity as an optimal choice in managing relationships between water and the colony's living tissues is also discussed.

Description: Groundwater seeps are known to occur in Eckernförde Bay, Baltic Sea. Their discharge rate and dispersion were investigated with a new schlieren technique application, which is able to visualize heterogeneous water parcels with density anomalies down to Drt ¼ 0.049 on the scale of millimeters. With the use of an inverted funnel, discharged fluids can be captured and the outflow velocity can be determined. Overall, 46 stations could be categorized by three different cases: active vent sites, seep-influenced sites, and non-seep sites. New seep locations were discovered, even at shallow near-shore sites, lacking prominent sediment depression, which indicate submarine springs. The detection of numerous seeps was possible and the groundwater-influenced area was defined to be approximately 6.3 km2. Flow rates of between 0.05 and 0.71 l m)2 min)1 were measured. A single focused fluid plume, which was not disturbed by the funnel was recorded and revealed a flux of 59.6 ± 20 ml cm)2 min)1 and it was calculated that this single focused plume would be strong enough to produce a flow rate through the funnel of 1.32 ± 0.44 l m)2 min)1. The effect of different seep-meter funnel sizes is discussed.

Description: Quantitative X-ray diffraction analysis of the 〈2mm sediment fraction was carried out on 1257 samples (from the seafloor and 16 cores) from the Iceland shelf west of 188 W. All but one core (B997-347PC) were from transects along troughs on theNW to N-central shelf, an area that in modern and historic times has been affected by drift ice. The paper focuses on the non-clay mineralogy of the sediments (excluding calcite and volcanic glass). Quartz and potassium feldspars occupy similar positions in an R-mode principal component analysis, and oligoclase feldspar tracks quartz; these minerals are used as a proxy for ice-rafted detritus (IRD). Accordingly, the sum of these largely foreign minerals (Q&K) (to Icelandic bedrock) is used as a proxy for drift ice. A stacked, equi-spaced 100 a record is developed which shows both low-frequency trends and higher-frequency events. The detrended stacked record compares well with the flux of quartz (mg cm-2 a-1) at MD99-2269 off N Iceland. The multi-taper method indicated that there are three significant frequencies at the 95% confidence level with periods of ca. 2500, 445 and 304 a. Regime shift analysis pinpoints intervals when there was a statistically significant shift in the average Q&K weight %, and identifies four IRDrich events separated by intervals with lower inputs. There is some association between peaks of IRD input, less dense surface waters (from d18O data on planktonic foraminifera) and intervals of moraine building.

Description: An experimental study was performed to disentangle parental and environmental effects on the growth of Atlantic cod Gadus morhua larvae and juveniles. Eggs were collected during the spawning season from spawning pairs (families) kept separately in specially designed spawning compartments. Newly hatched larvae were released simultaneously into two mesocosms of 2500 and 4400 m3. Larval growth was monitored by sampling over a 10 week period, after which juveniles were transferred to on-growing tanks, where they were tagged and kept for up to 2 years. Maternal origin was determined by individual microsatellite genotyping of the larvae (n = 3949, 24 families) and juveniles (n = 600). The results showed significant positive correlations between egg size and larval size during the whole mesocosm period. Correlations, however, weakened with time and were no longer significant at the first tank-rearing sampling at an age of 9 months. Significant family-specific differences in growth were observed. The coefficient of variation (c.v.) was calculated in order to examine variation in standard length of larvae during the mesocosm period. Inter-family c.v. was on average 69% of intra-family c.v. Differences in zooplankton densities between the two mesocosms were reflected in larval growth, condition factor and c.v. Low food abundance appeared to reduce c.v. and favour growth of larvae that showed relatively slow growth at high food abundance. It is suggested that genetically determined variation in growth potential is maintained by environmental variability.

Description: To study the impact of the gradient of primary production between the southern, central, and northern Red Sea, benthic metabolism and standing stocks were investigated in the axial trough between 17°N and 27°N. Data on sediment chloroplastic pigments, macrofauna and meiofauna abundance, particulate adenylate, protein and carbohydrate biomass, as well as electron transport activity of the sediment community give evidence for an enhanced benthic standing stock and activity in the southern Red Sea south of 18°N; this is related to the increased primary productivity in the area south 16°N. Despite a large primary production only small benthic standing stocks were found in all areas investigated; they are much smaller than in other parts of the world's deep oceans with comparable primary production. The low benthic biomass is caused by two factors: a large proportion of particulate organic carbon is remineralized in the water column, while only a relatively small amount sediments to the sea floor; nearly all sedimented particulate organic matter is respired by the benthic community of the deep Red Sea and only a minute proportion is used for the production of benthic biomass.

Description: The annual cycle of extreme 1-day precipitation events across the UK is investigated by developing a statistical model and fitting it to data from 689 rain gauges. A generalized extreme-value distribution (GEV) is fit to the time series of monthly maxima, across all months of the year simultaneously, by approximating the annual cycles of the location and scale parameters by harmonic functions, while keeping the shape parameter constant throughout the year. We average the shape parameter of neighbouring rain gauges to decrease parameter uncertainties, and also interpolate values of all model parameters to give complete coverage of the UK. The model reveals distinct spatial patterns for the estimated parameters. The annual mean of the location and scale parameter is highly correlated with orography. The annual cycle of the location parameter is strong in the northwest UK (peaking in late autumn or winter) and in East Anglia (where it peaks in late summer), and low in the Midlands. The annual cycle of the scale parameter exhibits a similar pattern with strongest amplitudes in East Anglia. The spatial patterns of the annual cycle phase suggest that they are linked to the dominance of frontal precipitation for generating extreme precipitation in the west and convective precipitation in the southeast of the UK. The shape parameter shows a gradient from positive values in the east to negative values in some areas of the west. We also estimate 10-year and 100-year return levels at each rain gauge, and interpolated across the UK.

Description: The presence of several typically northern hemisphere foraminiferal species in the upper Miocene and Recent deposits of the Río de la Plata, Paraná river and adjacent areas, and their absence along the Brazilian coast strongly suggests that in the late Miocene the Caribbean and the Southern Atlantic were linked by a marine connection. This connection was first envisioned by H. von Ihering, who called it the ‘Arm of the Tethys’. It was represented by a very broad strait which ran meridionally across the South American continent. In the Pliocene it shrank considerably and its salinity was lowered by Andean river runoff. At the end of the Pliocene - beginning of the Pleistocene it gave rise to the Paraná river, a series of brackish water lakes and lagoons, and the Río de la Plata. □Foraminifera, arm of the Tethys, South America.

Description: Epipelagic pterotracheid heteropods and young cranchiid squids rely primarily on transparency for concealment; yet they have opaque structures, the eyes and visceral organs that compose the visceral nuclei, which can only be camouflaged in other ways. These two groups have achieved convergent solutions to this problem. The visceral nucleus has a narrow and conical shape and a covering layer of iridophores that lies parallel to the surface of the organ. The eyes also have iridophore layers and tapered shapes. A minimal ventral silhouette results when the long axes of the visceral nucleus and eyes are oriented vertically, with the narrowest ends directed downward. In pterotracheids, this is actively achieved by tilting the nucleus and eyes and flexing the body and proboscis. In cranchiids, tilting of the organs alone suffices and adjustments are accomplished much more rapidly than in the pterotracheids.

Description: Coccoliths were studied from the ODP Hole 1002C and core PL07-39PC in the Cariaco Basin. Increases in Emiliania huxleyi are synchronous with decreases of Gephyrocapsa oceanica and vice versa. A new index (GEX) based on the relative abundances of these two taxa is proposed, and correlates with various other proxies. It is shown that GEX can serve as upwelling proxy. This confirms that the Intertropical Convergence Zone shifted north during the Bølling/Allerød, south during the Younger Dryas and back north during the Preboreal. The upwelling proxy shows few discrepancies with the terrigenous record.

Description: A visible tephra horizon in the NGRIP ice core has been identified by geochemical analysis as the Fugloyarbanki Tephra, a widespread marker horizon in marine cores from the Faroe Islands area and the northern North Atlantic. An age of 26 740 ± 390 yr b2k (1s uncertainty) is derived for this tephra according to the new Greenland Ice Core Chronology (GICC05) based on multiparameter counting of annual layers. Detection of this tephra for the first time within the NGRIP ice core provides a key tie-point between marine and ice-core records during the transition between MIS 3 and 2. Identification of this volcanic event within the Greenland records demonstrates the future potential of using tephrochronology to precisely correlate palaeoarchives in widely separated localities that span the last glacial period, as well as providing a potential method for examining the extent of the radiocarbon marine reservoir effect at this time.

Description: A study of the diet of Sepia officinalis and S. elegans in the Ria de Vigo has shown that crustaceans are the most abundant prey in both species, followed by fish. Changes in the food composition of both species occur with growth. The type of prey eaten by the two sexes of these species is very similar. The possibility of trophic competition between juveniles of S. qficinalis and S. elegans is discussed.

Description: Natural communities are constantly changing due to a variety of interacting external processes and the temporal occurrence and intensity of these processes can have important implications for the diversity and structure of marine sessile assemblages. In this study, we investigated the effects of temporal variation in a disturbance regime, as well as the specific timing of events within different regimes, on the composition and diversity of marine subtidal fouling assemblages. We did this in a multi-factorial experiment using artificial settlement tiles deployed at two sites on the North East coast of England. We found that although there were significant effects of disturbances on the composition of assemblages, there were no effects of either the variation in the disturbance regime or the specific timing of events on the diversity or assemblage composition at either site. In contrast to recent implications we conclude that in marine fouling assemblages, the variability in disturbance regimes (as a driving force) is unimportant, while disturbance itself is an important force for structuring robust ecosystems.