ALBERT

Description: A collection of cephalopods from the British Antarctic Survey’s Offshore Biological Programme is described and the cephalopod prey of vertebrate predators at South Georgia is reviewed. Comparison of these data indicates that predators catch larger specimens and a greater diversity of species than nets. There are also differences between samples from different types of net. The RMT 25, the largest research net used to date, has caught most of the species thought to occur in the Scotia Sea but specimens are generally smaller than those taken by predators. Cephalopods which are thought to have potential commercial value are Martialia hyadesi, Kondakovia longimana, Moroteuthis ingens, M. knipovitchi, M. robsoni and Gonatus antarcticus. Other possibilities include species of brachioteuthid, psychroteuthid and neoteuthid. It is likely that Antarctic stocks will be sensitive to exploitation and liable to dramatic fluctuations if overfished. The possible consequences of commercial exploitation of cephalopods for the reproductive success of the vertebrate predators, which prey on cephalopods in the Scotia Sea, are examined.

Description: Post-recruit Illex argentinus were collected from the fishery on the Patagonian Shelf between 1986 and 1988. Age was determined by analysis of daily growth increments in ground sections of the statolith, female fecundity was determined, specimens were dissected, weighed and assigned a maturity stage. The relation between mantle length and age is best approximated by a linear model. Both sexes live approximately one year. Females grow faster and attain a larger size than males, but males mature younger. Hatching occurs during the austral winter, peaking in June-July. There is a consistent trend of increasing growth rate with later date of hatching. Statolith growth is negatively allometric with body growth and there is greater divergence between statolith and body growth in females. In post-recruit Illex growth in mass of somatic tissues, apart from the digestive gland, approximates isometry with growth of the whole body. Growth of the digestive gland and the reproductive organs is positively allometric with growth in whole body mass. There is poor correlation between the female reproductive organs and whole body mass, which is due to differences in size at maturity. Mating rarely occurs on the feeding grounds. Fecundity of fully mature females in the sample falls in the range 113835-246098 eggs per individual. This possibly underestimates average fecundity because mature squid on the feeding grounds may be precocious and smaller than average at full maturity. A model combining absolute and relative growth, predicts average male and female growth and growth of the major somatic and reproductive organs. This poorly predicts average female maturity indices with age because of variability in mass of the female reproductive organs. A model that treats maturity stages separately gives close agreement with measured mass of the reproductive organs and maturity indices of a mature female at age one year. Females invest approximately 20% of total body mass in gonad and accessory reproductive organs at full maturity.

Description: An abrupt lithofacies change between calcareous shale and noncalcareous shale occurs in strata deposited in the mid-Cretaceous Greenhorn Seaway in the southeastern corner of Montana. The facies were correlated lithostratigraphically using bentonites and calcarenites. The lithocorrelations were then refined using ammonites, foraminifera, and calcareous nannofossils. Twenty-five time slices were defined within the upper middle and lower upper Cenomanian strata. Biofacies analysis indicate that lithofacies changes record the boundary or oceanic front between two water masses with distinctly different paleoceanographic conditions. One water mass entered the seaway from the Arctic and the other from the Gulf of Mexico/Tethys. The microfauna and microflora permit interpretation of the environmental conditions in each water mass. At times when the front was near vertical, the two water masses were of the same density but of different temperatures and salinities.

Description: The Cretaceous Western Interior seaway provided a wide, relatively shallow connection between the polar ocean and the subtropical ocean, both of which invaded the comparatively shallow western Interior Seaway and left distinctive faunal and floral records. Water masses from these very different climatic regions may have had similar densities but very different salinities and temperatures. Mixing of such disparate water masses could have produced a third water mass with a density greater than one or both of them, and this mechanism may have caused the Western Interior Seaway to become a significant source of intermediate water to the world ocean. The abrupt change in environmental conditions at the oceanic front where mixing occurred would probably have killed the plankton and introduced large amounts of organic matter into the descending, third water mass, leading to the development of an intense oxygen minimum. -from Authors

Description: The biology of the chokker squid Loligo vulgaris reynaudii on inshore grounds in the South-East Cape was studied by examination of trends in jig catches, length frequency analyses, length/weight relationships, analyses of maturity stages and SCUBA diving transects in a spawning area. Commercial catches probably reflected the influx of squid into shallow waters to spawn. Modal length at spawning was between 265 and 305 mm mantle length (ML) in males and between 175 and 195 mm ML in females. There was no modal progression to indicate growth, nearly all squid were mature, a percentage of males were spent, the level of feeding on the grounds was very low, and mantle walls were thinner than those of squid offshore. These factors all indicate that the squid population inshore had reached the end of its life cycle and was in the spawning phase. The sex ratio was biased towards males, an indication either of differential inshore migration or of greater longevity in males than in females. The frequency of occurrence of trawled egg capsules was highest in summer and all eggs were between 18 and 25 m deep. The preferred substratum for spawning appeared to be low-relief reef interspersed with coarse sand, and the stalks of egg capsules were always embedded in the sand to form individual clusters, as in most other loliginids. No evidence was found of post-spawning mortality in the areas examined.

Description: The stomach contents of 1345 Sepia officinalis and 717 Sepia elegans caught in the Ria de Vigo have been examined. The feeding analysis of both species has been made employing an index of occurrence, as other indices gave similar results. The diet of both species is described and compared. Cuttlefish feed mostly on crustacea and fish. S. officinalis shows 40 different items of prey belonging to 4 groups (polychaeta, cephalopods, crustacea, bony fish) and S. elegans 18 different items of prey belonging to 3 groups (polychaeta, crustacea, bony fish). A significant change occurs in diet with growth in S. officinalis, but not in S. elegans, within the range studied. The variety of prey decreases with increase in size of S. officinalis, but not in S. elegans. Differences in feeding habits of male and female S. officinalis were not observed at any size, but were found in S. elegans. The feeding intensity of females increases with sexual maturity in S. officinalis but not in S. elegans. No seasonal changes in diet were found in absolute values and in order of importance of the prey clusters. S. officinalis fed on a wider variety of prey than S. elegans. The value and significance of some indices employed in feeding ecology is discussed.

Description: Increasing concentrations of CO2 and other gases seem likely to warm the earth in the next century. This article examines opportunities to prepare for the consequences, and focuses on options that are rational even if one is skeptical about global warming. These include rerouting the Mississippi River to save coastal Louisiana, changing coastal land use conventions to enable ecosystems to migrate inland as sea level rises, and phasing out federal water subsidies in the west. The merits of deferring action on the greenhouse effect until its consequences are proven must also be weighed against the relative ease of reaching a consensus on what is fair today, while the consequences still seem remote.

Description: New lithostratigraphic Standard is proposed for the Quaternary volcanic succession at Deception Island, South Shetland Islands (West Antarctica). The succession is subdivided into the older Foster Group (redefined group) which includes pre-caldera volcanics, and the younger Hawkes Group (new group) which includes syn-caldera and post-caldera volcanics and volcanic forms. The Foster Group consists of four formations (new units): the Entrance Fm. (basallic and basaltic andesite lavas and pyroclastics); the Cathcdral Fm. (agglomerates); the Stonethrow Fm. (basaltic andesite lavas alternating with agglomerates); and the Window Fm. (trachybasalt dykes). The Hawkes Group consists of seven formations (new units): the Murature Fm. (andesitic lapilli tuff, destroyed ring tephra cones); the Ronald Fm. (trachydacite lava and plug); the Collins F/n. (trachydacite lava flows, tuffs, craters and destroyed cones); the Chacao Fm. (basaltic andesite tephra cones and maars); the Casco Fm. (basaltic andesite tephra cones with craters); the Kirkwood Fm. (basaltic lavas and tephra; fissure eruptions and craters); and the Telefon Fm. (andesitic tephra cones, lavas and tephra cover associated with fissure eruptions, maars). The Telefon Fm. (three phases) relates to the 1967-1970 volcanic activity; the Kirkwood Fm. includes the 1842 event and the events between 1829 and 1912; all older formations pre-date 1829.

Description: Oogenesis in four commercial Caribbean sponge species, Hippospongia lachne, Spongia barbara, S. cheiris and S. graminea, was studied using light and transmission electron microscopy. Eggs and embryos develop asynchronously in localized endosomal nurseries of these viviparous and gonochoristic species. Statistical analyses of specific morphological characteristics of reproductive elements have unequivocally identified four specific stages in the process of oogenesis. Oogonia undergo mitotic division to produce primary oocytes. Meiotic division occurs producing secondary oocytes which are fertilized before zygotes undergo major growth by phagocytosis and the transfer of nutrients through cytoplasmic bridges. During cleavage of the zygote, umbilici form between embryos and nurse cell layers and these function in the transfer of symbiotic bacteria and other mesohyl substances from the maternal parent to the embryo. These symbionts were observed dispersed between blastomeres of all young and maturing embryos and between internal cells of cytodifferentiated parenchymella larvae. Extracellular transfer of symbiotic bacteria from maternal tissues to developing embryos has not been reported in any other viviparous invertebrate.

Description: Before 1985, Martialia hyadesi (Cephalopoda: Ommastrephidae) in the Pacific Ocean was known only from the Eltanin Fracture Zone and Macquarie Island. A joint Japan‐New Zealand squid survey around New Zealand captured many immature ommastrephid squids. Gel electrophoresis confirmed the presence of immature M. hyadesi. Aspects of the external morphology are described. The distinctive tentacle club was evident in the smallest specimen examined, 19 mm dorsal mantle length (ML). Arm trabeculae were first evident in specimens of 40–50 mm ML. Immature squid were distributed around and southward of the Subtropical Convergence Zone. The presence of very small squid (〈 10 mm ML) indicated spawning on or near the Auckland Island Shelf.

Description: Serological methods for prey identification have been applied to detection of residues ofsandeel (Ammodytidae) protein in faeces of common seals (Phoca vitulina) and grey seals(Halichoerus grypus) from the Moray Firth, north-east Scotland. Antisera raised to muscleprotein from Ammodytes marinus were evaluated by testing their reactions with proteinextracts made from a range of North Sea fish species and protein residues in in vitro digestates,seal digestive tracts and seal faeces. It was concluded that, using fused rocketimmuno-electrophoresis, linkage of precipitin peaks from unknown samples with peaksfrom standard sandeel extract was a reliable indicator of the presence of sandeel in theunknown sample. Seasonal variation in the incidence of sandeels in common seal diet in theMoray Firth was examined by identifying otoliths, bones, and proteins, and all threemethods indicated that sandeels occurred in the majority of samples tested in the summer,but were less important during the winter. Proteins were detected in fewer samples thanotoliths, particularly in February and March. Possible reasons for this difference arediscussed. Serological identification of sandeel proteins is potentially applicable to dietarystudies on all marine predators.

Description: Intraspecific growth and structure of the squid, Illex argentinus (Ommastrephidae) in winter and spring in the southwestern Atlantic. — The intraspecific structure and growth of seasonal cohorts of Illex argentinus were studied on the basis of statoliths of 900 specimens of Illex argentinus (Ommastrephidae, Teuthida) with mantle length 1.2-39 cm caught in three fishery regions of the Exclusive Economic Zone of Argentina (EEZA): on the shelf (depths 130-140 m) and Continental slope (depths 400-700 m) in 41-42°S and 45-47°S, as well as in the open waters of Argentina Basin between July and October. Squids of all four seasonal groups at different ontogenetic stages occurred within the regions investigated. Adults of the spring cohort (mantle length 27-37 cm) caught on the slope in 42 and 45-46°S, were characterized by almost maximum growth rates for the species, being approximately the same as in winter adults hatched in August. Two forms were distinguished within summer-hatched squids: a fast growing form occurred on the Continental slope in 41-42°S (ML 23-29 cm) and a slow-growing form on the shelf in 45-47°S (ML 16-19 cm). Juveniles of autumn-hatched squids (ML 8-15 cm) predominated on the shelf in 45-47°S in September. Growth rates of juveniles of winter-hatched squids caught on the shelf in 45-47°S in September-October (shelf form with ML 4-8 cm) were higher than those of winter hatched juveniles in the open waters of the Argentine Basin at the same time (oceanic form with ML 2-4 cm). Possible reasons for growth rate variations of I. argentinus at individual, intra- and intergroup levels are discussed. An attempt was made to describe probable life cycle variations in each seasonal group of squid.

Description: Age and growth were estimated in the European squid, Loligo vulgaris, by examining growth increments in the statoliths of 203 specimens collected from off the French Mediterranean coast. Length and increment data were analyzed assuming that the increments were formed daily. The relationships between age and length showed that: growth rate varied considerably among individuals; growth was double exponential; the squids grew on average to 240 mm ML at 240 d from hatching, with a maximum of 350 mm at 240 d; the life span is probably about one year.

Description: Some of the limits to the use of serology to identify prey species in the digestive tracts of cephalopods have been evaluated. Cuttlefish, Sepia officinalis, were given meals of krill slurry (Euphausia superba). Protein extracts of contents from four regions of the digestive tract, stomach, caecum, digestive gland and intestine, were tested for prey antigenicity. Digestion times (loss of antigenicity) ranged from 1 to 8 h depending on sampling site. Stomach and caecum emptied rapidly, but meal antigenicity persisted longer in the digestive gland. The Sepia experiments provide a basis for interpretation of results from natural predation by cephalopods).

Description: Distribution and abundance of the horned octopus Eledone cirrhosa in the Tyrrhenian Sea are described on the basis of stratified-random bottom trawl surveys in spring and summer of the years 1985–1987. Specimens were caught between 25 and 630 m depth (higher densities between 50 and 200 m depth); mature males were found to prefer deeper bottoms than mature females. Young specimens occurred in spring samples from the Western Ligurian Sea and in summer samples from the Lower Tyrrhenian Sea, but were scarcely represented in the Higher Tyrrhenian Sea. Thus recruitment seems to be progressively delayed later in the season from north to south. The greatest abundance was recorded in the Higher Tyrrhenian Sea; wide seasonal variations of minimum stock biomass estimates have been observed and total biomass decreased from 1985 to 1987 in the surveyed areas.

Description: Samples of the squid Martialia hyadesi were collected aboard two Japanese squid-jigging vessels carrying out commercial fishing trials at the Antarctic Polar Frontal Zone, north Scotia Sea, in February 1989. The dissected stomachs of 61 specimens were classified according to fullness and the contents were examined visually. Identifiable food items included fish sagittal otoliths, crustacean eyes, the lappets on euphausiid first antennule segments and cephalopod sucker rings. The most frequent items in the squid's diet were the myctophid fishes Krefftichthys anderssoni and Electrona carlsbergi, the euphausiid Euphausia superba and a hyperiid amphipod, probably Themisto gaudichaudi. A small proportion of the sample had been feeding cannibalistically. Total lengths of the fish prey were estimated from sagittal otolith size using published relationships. All fish were relatively small; 7 to 35% of squid mantle-length. However, it is possible that some heads of larger fish are discarded by the squid and so are not represented by otoliths in the stomach contents. Over the size range of squid in the sample there was no relationship between size of fish prey and size of squid. Similarly, when the squid sample was divided into groups according to prey categories: crustaceans, crustaceans+fish, fish, cephalopod, there was no evidence that dietary preference was related to squid size. The prevalence of copepod-feeding myctophids in the diet of this squid, which is itself a major prey item of some higher predators in the Scotia Sea, suggests that a previously unrecognised food chain: copepod-myctophid-M. hyadesi-higher predator, may be an important component of the Antarctic oceanic ecosystem.

Description: Records of 158 observations of cephalopods from submersibles, primarily the Johnson Sea-Link, have been compiled through collaboration with several investigators. These observations include 118 videotape sequences, 58 collected specimens, and numerous shipboard photographs of live animals. At least 33 species have been observed to date; a few species have been observed repeatedly and could be good subjects for directed studies. The methods developed for in situ observation and subsequent collection of specimens with little or no damage allow descriptions of behavior, morphology, physiology, and distribution that are not possible with other methods of collecting.

Description: The authors report the discovery of large specimen of Ommastrephes caroli (Ayn.O.bartramii), caught wirth a pelagic drifting net in Southern Thyrrenian Sea.

Description: Im Auftrag des Instituts für Meereskunde an der Universität Kiel und dem Institut für Energieanwendung und Rationelle Energiewirtschaft an der Universität Stuttgart; Die vorliegende Arbeit ist das Ergebnis einer 3-monatigen Studie über Einträge und Wirkungen von Kohlenwasserstoffen, die durch Aktivitäten der offshore Erdölproduktion und durch die Tankschiffahrt in die marine Umwelt gelangen. Sie umfaßt zunächst einen Überblick über Art und Umfang von Einträgen aus weltweiten und regionalen offshore Aktivitäten. Als exemplarische Fallstudie werden ergänzend aktuelle Informationen über Art und Umfang von Entsorgungen in die Nordsee durch die norwegische Ölplattform OSEBERG C gegeben. Globale und regionale Eintragsgrößen aus dem Transport von Rohöl und seiner Raffinate durch Tanker werden anschließend erörtert. Zum erständnis der Auswirkungen auf die Lebewelt erschien eine Betrachtung der Ausbreitung von Öl im Meer sowie dessen Veränderung unter dem Einfluß physikalisch-biologischer Abbauprozesse als notwendig. Abschließend werden potentielle Auswirkungen eines küstennahen Ölunfalls auf den betroffenen Wirtschaftsraum diskutiert und auf Probleme hingewiesen, die sich aus der Entsorgung ausgedienter Ölförderplattformen ergeben können.

Description: A detailed structural study of Naxos (Attic-Cycladic massif, Greece) reveals two major deformation events. The first one is associated with large scale thrusting and high-pressure-low-temperature metamorphism during an early Alpine subduction episode. The second event occurred during continental extension and the associated development of localized thermal domes, where lower crustal rocks were brought into contact with upper crustal units along a major shallow dipping shear zone. We agree with a model of Naxos as a Cordilleran type Metamorphic Core Complex. However, our observations show that the sense of shear was ‘upper plate moving North’ during the second event, calling for a reinterpretation of existing tectonic models of the Cyclades.

Description: We present ΔA14C and 39Ar data collected in the Nansen, Amundsen and Makarov basins during two expeditions to the central Arctic Ocean (RV Polarstern cruises ARK IV/3, 1987 and ARK VIII/3, 1991). The data are used, together with published Δ14C values, to describe the distribution of Δ14C in all major basins of the Arctic Ocean (Nansen, Amundsen, Makarov and Canada Basins), as well as the 39Ar distribution in the Nansen Basin and the deep waters of the Amundsen and Makarov Basins. From the combined Δ14C and 39Ar distributions, we derive information on the mean “isolation ages” of the deep and bottom waters of the Arctic Ocean. The data point toward mean ages of the bottom waters in the Eurasian Basin (Nansen and Amundsen Basins) of ca. 250-300 yr. The deep waters of the Amundsen Basin show slightly higher 3H concentrations than those in the Nansen Basin, indicating the addition of a higher fraction of water that has been at the sea surface during the past few decades. Correction for the bomb 14C added to the deep waters along with bomb 3H yields isolation ages for the bulk of the deep and bottom waters of the Amundsen Basin similar to those estimated for the Nansen Basin. This finding agrees well with the 39Ar data. Deep and bottom waters in the Canadian Basin (Makarov and Canada Basins) are very homogeneous, with an isolation age of ca. 450 yr. Δ14C and 39Ar data and a simple inverse model treating the Canadian Basin Deep Water (CBDW) as one well-mixed reservoir renewed by a mixture of Atlantic Water (29%), Eurasian Basin Deep Water (69%) and brine-enriched shelf water (2%) yield a mean residence time of CBDW of ca. 300 yr.

Description: The main types of reproductive system structure, development and functions in cephalopods are described from personal observations and use of the literature. There is one type in males and three in females which are order specific. These have provided a basis for examining possible evolutionary trends in reproductive system development and in reproductive strategies within coleoid cephalopods and for developing a general scale for maturity staging for males and females. Development of the cephalopod reproductive system consists of two main phases. The first includes sexual cell differentiation, growth and maturation (i.e. juvenile phase and physiological maturation). The second begins after maturation of sexual cells. It includes their transport and accumulation in different parts of the reproductive system and their conversion into spermatophores in males and eggs with protective coverings in females (i.e. physiological maturity, functional maturation and maturity). It was found that species with different life styles within each order have similar reproductive systems. This may be attributable to the relative youth in an evolutionary sense of the main groups of living cephalopods. A general scale of seven maturity stages for cephalopods was developed. Distinct characteristics of each stage are described and supplemented with a generalized drawing of gonad structure. In the first phase of reproductive system development, maturity stages are distinguished by the degree of development of the gonad and accessory glands. In the second phase maturity stages are distinguished by the fate of the mature sexual cells, particularly by their transport and location in different parts of the reproductive system up to the time of spawning

Description: Alteration patterns in the lavas and dykes of the Troodos Ophiolite, Cyprus, record a complex history of axial hydrothermal alteration, crustal aging, and subsequent uplift and emplacement of the ophiolite. Field mapping shows that distribution of five alteration zones, each with distinct mineralogical, geochemical, and hydrologie characteristics, is influenced by igneous stratigraphy, structure, and the nature and thickness of the overlying sediments. Paragenetic sequences of secondary minerals indicate that alteration conditions changed progressively as the crust cooled and moved off-axis. Along spreading axes, low temperatures (≤50°C) were maintained by the rapid flow of seawater in and out of the lavas, and only minimal alteration took place. In contrast, lower water/rock ratios and higher temperatures (〉200°C) in the dykes promoted extensive seawater-rock interaction. Although the sharp rise in temperature between the two regimes generally coincides with the lava-dyke transition, late-stage intrusions or hydrothermal upwelling zones locally cause high-temperature alteration to extend upward into the lavas. As a segment of crust moved off-axis, temperatures remained low in the lavas and progressively decreased, from 〉250° to 〈80°C, in the dykes. High permeability in the uppermost lavas led to the downward migration of an oxidative alteration front whose thickness and spatial distribution was dependent upon the rate and nature of sedimentation and, thus, the original seafloor morphology. Although field relations show that alteration has a consistent vertical pattern in Troodos, the alteration zones are not laterally continuous, and the stratigraphie depth of their boundaries varies considerably.

Description: The diet of the Wandering Albatross at Subantarctic Marion Island was studied by inducing recently fed chicks to regurgitate and by stomach flushing adults about to feed chicks. Liquid comprised 70.2% of stomach content mass recovered from chicks. Solid material comprised cephalopods (58.6% by mass), fish (36.5%) and crustacean, cetacean and seabird material as minor items. Twenty-three taxa of cephalopods were identified, the onychcteuthid squid Kondakovia longimana being the most important. Estimated average mass of squid was 694 g with a maximum of over 8 kg. Diet of the Wandering Albatross at Marion Island was broadly similar to that at other studied localities. The high proportion of cephalopods known to float after death in the diet, and the deep-water habits of the few fish identified, suggest that scavenging plays an important role in foraging behaviour.

Description: The reproductive strategy of the cirrate octopods Opisthoteuthis agassizii and O. vossi (collected off Namibia from 1988 to 1990) was analyzed. Ovarian oocyte size frequency analysis for both species revealed continuous egg production over the entire adult life span. Mature eggs were stored in the single oviducal gland and distal oviduct, but oviducal gland fullness was not related to body size (p〉0.2). All O. agassizii male specimens from 95 to 5400 g total weight were sexually mature, as were all females from 190 to 1650 g, indicating that considerable growth takes place after the onset of sexual maturity. “Continuous spawning” is defined as a single, extended and continuous period of egg maturation and spawning. This model of reproductive strategy is previously unreported in cephalopods. All O. vossi male specimens from 750 to 3050 g total weight, and females from 800 to 1300 g, were sexually mature. Mature males and females of both species were collected in all seasons of the year. The adaptation of cirrate octopods to non-scasonal deep-sea environments is considered. The sexual maturity characteristics of males were analyzed, and examination of the spermatophore revealed opercular structures previously unreported in cephalopods. For females, the micropyle of the eggs are described and the mineral analysis of the egg shell disclosed that sulphur was the major element present.

Description: Eleven species of paralarvae belonging to the Chiroteuthidae and related families are described from Hawaiian waters. The doratopsis stage is shown to be a diagnostic feature of the family Chiroteuthidae. This family, as now defined, includes the genera Chiroteuthis, Asperoteuthis, Grimalditeuthis and Planktoteuthis. Doratopsis sagitta, Valbyteuthis, Tankaia, Echinoteuthis and Enoptroteuthis spinicauda are placed as junior synonyms of Grimalditeuthis bonplandi, Planktoteuthis, Chiroteuthis, Mastigoteuthis and Lepidoteuthis grimaldii respectively. An unknown type of paralarva referred to as “big-fin” is described. Members of the “chiroteuthid lineage” which apparently includes the Chiroteuthidae, Mastigoteuthidae, Joubiniteuthidae, Batoteuthidae, Promachoteuthidae and “big-fin” may all have secondarily derived tentacular clubs.

Description: The beaks of 9,994 cephalopods of 61 species, obtained mainly from chick regurgitations of wandering albatrosses (Diomedea exulans L.) at Gough, Auckland, Antipodes, Prince Edward and Macquarie Islands and South Georgia, were used to specify and calculate the biomass of cephalopods consumed. Histioteuthidae were most important by numbers and biomass at Gough Island (in warmest seas), but Onycboteuthidae increasingly superseded them southwards; Kondakovia longimana formed 59 to 75% of biomass eaten at the three localities nearest the Antarctic Polar Front. Other important families were Octopoteuthidae, Cranchiidae, Architeuthidae (juveniles) and Ommastrephidae (South Georgia only). Most frequently eaten were Histioteuthis atlantica 13.7%, Galiteuthis glacialis 12.4%, H. eltaninae 12.0% and Kondakovia longimana 11.6%. Wandering albatrosses rearing chicks can forage at least to 3,000 km in a single foray, and may exploit an important food source about 1200 km from the nest (as in the probable commensalism of South Georgian birds with the Falkland Islands fishery). They feed, sometimes opportunistically, on cephalopods active or moribund at the surface, or discarded or lost by trawlers, cetaceans or seals. Vertically migrating cephalopods, especially bioluminescent species, are disproportionately frequent in their non-commensal diet, suggesting that they often feed at night.

Description: During a study of Dark-romped Petrel (Pterodroma phaeopygia) breeding biology in the Galapagos Islands, we collected over 80 samples of food regurgitated by petrel chicks. We identified the prey to the lowest possible taxonomic level and determined the relative importance of each food class in the petrel's diet. We also monitored the daily changes in mass of 14 chicks on Floreana Island to determine the quantity of food delivered as well as the food delivery rate. Dark-romped Petrel hatchlings were fed a mixture of stomach oils, semi-digested fish, cephalopods and crustaceans. On the basis of mass composition, about 46% of the diet was cephalopods, about 37% fish, and about 17% crustaceans. Cephalopods, of at least 16 families, occurred with the greatest regularity. Fish were present in the samples more frequently than Crustacea: seven and five families, respectively. Feeding rates were highest in the month after hatching and lowest before fledging. Estimated food loads averaged 68 g and did not increase in size over the growth period. Dark-romped Petrels fed on mainly mesopelagic prey, taken presumably at night, while ranging up to 2,000 km from the colonies, largely southwards.

Description: A link is proposed between the processes that led to the evolution of large species of squid and the highly variable, cyclic recruitment seen in squid fisheries. Maximum growth requires maximal feeding and minimal routine metabolism at optimum temperatures, which decrease as squid grow. Topographically induced upwelling zones, inshore of western boundary currents, provide productive environments with appropriate temperatures for all life stages. Most squid are small and live in the tropics or subtropics; locomotor constraints prevent them from swimming long distances. Long annual migrations to spawn upstream in current systems require short-lived squids to maximize rates of growth. Therefore, such systems provide the opportunity and a powerful selective advantage for large size and rapid growth. Increased fecundity and cannibalism provide additional directional selection for large individuals. Current systems show food production peaks (blooms); paralarval release must match these to increase survival. Because squid are semelparous, disruption of delicately balanced lifecycles by physical events can virtually annihilate stocks. Recovery probably requires that populations of large squid "re-evolve" from smaller, more-stable tropical populations of small squid. This recovery phase may extend the "down-side" of abundance cycles. Studies of squid/current systems have focused on western boundary currents, but the Illex complex also associates with eastern boundaries. Such populations are generally smaller than in larger systems, supporting the hypothesis, but more detailed comparisons are required.

Description: During a cruise in March 1988 dedicated to investigation of the marine resources of South Africa's continental slope, 62 species in 22 families of Cephalopoda were collected from the Cape Canyon and Cape Point Valley. Multivariate analysis revealed a clear distinction between cephalopods of the upper and lower continental slope in both benthic and epibenthic habitats. Todaropsis eblanae and Todarodes angolensis were indicator species for the upper slope benthic, from 300 to 500 m, but on the lower slope, in 700–900 m of water, they were replaced by Histioteuthis miranda and Opisthoteuthis agassizii. In the epibenthic, both upper and lower slopes were dominated by Abraliopsis gilchristi and Lycoteuthis ?diadema, but other species characteristic of the lower slope were the oceanic species Mastigoteuthis hjorti, Ctenopteryx sicula and Taonius sp. A. Cranchia scabra indicated the presence of oceanic water at stations 700–900 m deep. Other species of significance in the catches were Todarodes filippovae, Histioteuthis macrohista, Rossia enigmatica and Bathypolypus valdiviae. Species affinities indicate that the cephalopod fauna of the southern African continental slope includes the following zoogeographic components: southern African endemic, circum-Subantarctic species associated with Antarctic Intermediate Water, circum-global southern tropical/subtropical, tropical Indo-Pacific and cosmopolitan tropical/subtropical.

Description: Literature on trophic relationships in the Benguela ecosystem has stressed the importance of cephalopods as prey of groundfish. The groundfish community of the shelf and upper slope of southern Africa is dominated by the Cape hakes, and the results presented (1984–1991) confirm that both species of hake are important predators of cephalopods, especially taking into consideration the abundance of hake in the ecosystem. However, geographic, seasonal and species variability are evident in the patterns observed. The main prey species are Sepia spp. (predominantly Sepia australis), Loligo vulgaris reynaudii, Todaropsis eblanae and Lycoteuthis ?diadema. The last-named is an important food organism for fish. Its systematic status needs revision, however. Qualitative results of studies of cephalopod predation are also provided for kingklip and monkfish.

Description: Cephalopods of importance in the Benguela ecosystem include Loligo vulgaris reynaudii, Todarodes angolensis, Todaropsis eblanae, Lycoteuthis ?diadema, Sepia australis, Octopus spp. (up to three species) and Argonauta spp., and possibly also Ocythoe tuberculata and Rossia enigmatica. Species which may prove important as a result of further research are Lolliguncula mercatoris, Ommastrephes bartramii, Todarodes filippovae, Histioteuthis miranda and Abraliopsis gilchristi. "Importance" is defined on the basis of "survey abundance" (including commercial fisheries) and their trophic links with other organisms. Use of the latter criterion indicates that Sepia australis, Todaropsis eblanae and Lycoteuthis ?diadema are sufficiently abundant to be exploited by fisheries. Unknown factors are dispersal, availability and market considerations. The only examples of cephalopods feeding on commercial species of fish are Loligo v. reynaudii feeding on anchovy Engraulis capensis and Cape hakes Merluccius capensis and/or M. paradoxus in the southern Benguela and Todarodes angolensis preying on Cape hake in the northern Benguela. Such feeding is opportunistic and is not believed to threaten the fish stocks. Predators of cephalopods are mostly opportunistic, switching to other prey when cephalopods are not available. There is no evidence that such predators pose a threat to the Loligo fisheries. The opportunistic nature of cephalopods as prey and predators makes quantification of predation (in both directions) difficult. Data for such quantification are, as yet, unavailable.

Description: The present study contributes new information on the cephalopods off Namibia, contains the first record of Ornithoteuthis volatilis (Sasaki, 1915) in the Atlantic, and adds records of six species in the Benguela Current and three species in Namibian waters. The presence of certain species seldom encountered in the Benguela Current has been confirmed. A compilation of the cephalopod fauna off Namibia had also been included, listing 65 species. Additional morphological data on Stoloteuthis leucoptera, Lycoteuthis lorigera, Architeuthis sp., Pholidoteuthis boschmai, Ornithoteuthis volatilis, Eledone nigra, and Graneledone sp. have been provided. The status of the genus Lycoteuthis has been reviewed in the light of the first collection of Lycoteuthis lorigera (Steenstrup, 1875) males in the Atlantic, and Lycoteuthis diadema (Chun, 1900) has been considered to be a synonym for Lycoteuthis lorigera

Description: The results of ichthyoplankton surveys carried out by the Instituto Nacional de Pesca (INAPE) in the Argentine–Uruguayan Common Fishing Zone (AUCFZ) in summer 1980 and the winters of 1980–1982 are presented. In addition, the results of joint research with INIDEP, the Argentine and Japan Fisheries Agency, on larvae, juveniles and adults of the short-finned squid Illex argentinus carried out in winter 1989 are given, as are data obtained during the joint sardine and anchovy recruitment project carried out by R.V. Meteor in November/December 1989. The short-finned squid Illex argentinus is the most important cephalopod resource of the area, and an extended fishery is carried out on the Patagonian shelf and in the proximity of the Falkland Islands. The fishing season in the AUCFZ, for pre-spawning and spawning animals, extends from early autumn to winter (March–August). Abundance of rhynchoteuthion larvae (417–485 larvae·10 m−2) was greatest in winter in surface temperatures of 12,1–16,9°C and surface salinities of 34,8 – 35,2 × 10−3. The distribution of the larvae is related to the western boundary of the Brazil Current and the convergence front.

Description: Cephalopod paralarvae and juveniles were sampled with RMT8 and Bongo nets during 2 cruises of the MV 'Falklands Protector' in the southwest Atlantic Ocean in October/November 1990 and 1991. Each cruise had 2 phases, a northern phase over the Patagonian Shelf edge and adjacent waters, and a southern phase over the shelf around the Falkland Islands. Vertical temperature profiles were used to identify the major fronts and water masses. The subtropical water of the Brazil Current was characterized by the tropical/subtropical Abraliopsis pfefferi and Histioteuthis corona corona, the subtropical/subantarctic H. atlantica and the widespread Taningia danae, species of Brachioteuthis, Chiroteuthis and Galiteuthis, a single specimen of Illex argentinus and an ommastrephid rhynchoteuthion type B. The subantarctic surface water of the Falkland Current contained the richest assemblage of species and was characterised by the subtropical/subantarctic H. atlantica, the subantarctic Batoteuthis skolops, H. eltaninae, H. macrohista and the subantarctic/antarctic Gonatus antarcticus. With the exception of some small Gonatus antarcticus, the polar frontal zone water of the Falkland Current was relatively poor in species. The Falkland Islands Shelf yielded Loligo gahi, Gonatus antarcticus, Martialia hyadesi, Moroteuthis knipovitchi, Batoteuthis skolops, Semirossia patagonica and an Octopus sp. The data provide new information on the life cycles of Martialia hyadesi and Gonatus antarcticus and are consistent with the view that L. gahi reproduces in shallow water around the Falkland Islands with 1 major brood spawning in the late austral winter.

Description: The question whether the chokka squid Loligo vulgaris reynaudii resource can be managed effectively is examined in the light of developments in the fishery and knowledge of the resource gathered in recent years. The history of the fishery since its inception in 1985, management controls and the current state of knowledge of stock identity, distribution, seasonality and abundance, life cycle and population dynamics are reviewed as a background to a discussion of management alternatives. Long-term measures, such as fleet limitation, seasonal closures and de facto closed areas and size limits, all appropriate in the early stages of a fishery when knowledge is limited, should be replaced by more-flexible alternatives as knowledge improves. Methods of stock assessment, stock-recruitment studies and further basic biological analyses are recognized as being crucial to improving management methods. An explanation embracing physical oceanographic features and plankton productivity in the vicinity of the spawning grounds is advanced for the mechanisms underlying hatchling survival. The possible contribution of trophic studies to squid management is recognized. Effective management of the chokka squid resource is concluded to be possible provided that the specific areas needing attention be addressed by means of goal-orientated research. Rational, but not necessarily optimal, management decisions can, however, be made even in the absence of stock-recruitment data, by the employment of common-sense measures which generally include some form of effort control.

Description: Gastric contents o f Merluccius australis polylepis Ginsburg y Macruronus magellanicus Lönnberg were examined in Order to know the cephalopods incidence. The samples were obtained from multiespecific fishing (whith bottom trawls) off chilean coast (45°-56°30’Sy 68°-76°W)between may and november 1986. Both species offish analized have low percentage of squids (5,6% and 4,8% respectively). The following species of cephalopods were identified: Loligo gahi Orbigny, Histioteuthis atlantica ? (Hoyle), Brachioteuthis picta Chun, Gonatus antarciicus Lönnberg Todarodes filippovae Adam y Kondakovia longimana Filippovae. L. gahi being the most abundant. Records of their geographic and batimetric distribution and a list of chilean cephalopods of Teuthoidea are given.

Description: In April 27, 1990 a specimen of Chiroteuthis veranyi (Ferussac, 1835) was collected near Isla Mocha, Chile. This record extends the southern limit of C. veranyi's geographic distribution in the South-east Pacific. Some anatomical characteristics of the specimen are included.

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: An investigation was carried out on larvae of the oceanic tropical squid Sthenoteuthis pteropus in the equatorial Atlantic (2°30′N–7°S;12°W –8°30′E) The age of the larvae was calculated from the statolith microstructure of 20 larvae; mortality was estimated from the size structure of 1128 larvae. The larval stage lasts 32–38 days. At ages ranging from 14 to 38 days. the daily relative growth rates of mantle length decrease from 7.5 to 2.8% day −1 and from 14–16 to 5.8% of body weight day −1 At age 12–24 days, mortality rates were estimated using both raw catch data and corrected data accounting for net avoidance. The mean value of raw mortality rates was 0.189, the corrected value was 0.158. During the proboscis division (transformation of the larva into juvenile) at age 25–35 days, a sharp decrease in larval growth rates and a simultaneous increase in mortality rates (raw 0.443, corrected 0.379) were observed.

Description: An investigation was carried out on the morphology, growth and microstructure of statoliths of 833 specimens of Sthenoteuthis pteropus (Steenstrup) mantle length (ML): 2–548 mm collected in the open waters of the Gulf of Guinea in 1984–1988. Statolith morphology is similar to that of other species of the subfamily Ommastrephinae and is similar to the sibling species S. oulaniensis. Statolith development includes five stages resembling those of Illex illecebrosus and other ommastrephids. Statolith growth is characterized by negative allometry. Increments visible in ground sections of statoliths can be grouped into four main growth zones, differing mainly in colour and increment width. Age and growth rates of S. pteropus were calculated using increment counts. The life span of females of all size groups does not exceed 1 yr, that of males is 1–2 months shorter, probably due to preliminary mating. Instantaneous relative growth rage (G) of paralarvae is high (up to 16% of body weight (BW)). G values for juveniles decline, but remain relatively high (7–8% BW). Juveniles attain 100–110 mm ML by age 100–110 days. G values for adults are the lowest (1.8–2% BW), but daily growth rates reach maximum values (40–70 g per day in large females of 450–500 mm ML). Each ontogenetic phase of S. pteropus corresponds to features of morphology, growth and microstructure of the statolith.

Description: Experimental light luring fishing was conducted in west coast of the Gulf of Thailand using a stick-held cast net. A variety of fishes were simultaneously caught with a higher proportion of commercially important Indian squid Loligo duvauceli. Three trends in catch of squid observed might directly be correlated to the catch of other species simultaneously captured. It was clearly shown that the catch of Indian squid reached its maximum level (10-20kg/haul) at the catch of other species approximately 0.5-1.0kg/haul. The relationship between the presence of other species and the amount of squids caught were analyzed in consideration of size structure of both Indian squid L. duvauceli, and Indian mackerel Rastrelliger kanagurta, commonly apperaring in the catches. The catch of larger size squid more than about 15cm mantle length seemed to be correlated with the presence of Indian mackerel.

Description: The foraging ecology of free—living King Penguins (Aptenodytes patagonicus) was studied during October and November 1991 on Possession Island (46°25' S, 51°45'E), Crozet Archipelago. Feeding was detected with stomach temperature sensors, which logged feeding activity as indicated by temperature drops. The penguins fed mainly on myctophid fish. Stomach temperature of 16 birds at sea was recorded for a total of 146 d. During 125 d a total of 16 474 food ingestion events was recorded, a mean of 132 events per day. Here, calculated food intake averaged 2320 g/d (range 11—12 889 g) with 〉80% (range 71—95%) of prey caught during daylight. During the remaining 21 d stomach temperature dropped below the detection limit of 20°C, which made determination of the number of ingestion events impossible and mass ingested determination inaccurate. We propose that there is selection pressure for King Penguins to ingest and digest large quantities of food quickly because these birds alternate fasting periods on land, during which time they care for their chicks, with foraging trips, during which time they must feed on patchily distributed prey.

Description: The proximate (protein, lipid, carbohydrate and ash) and elemental (C, H, N and P) composition of the major tissues were measured for 18 male and 51 female Illex argentinus sampled from the feeding grounds over the Patagonian Shelf. In most tissues the chemical composition did not vary with sexual maturity, although the mass of the tissue increased significantly because sexual maturation and growth were proceeding simultaneously. The composition of the ovary and associated tissues (nidamental gland, oviducal gland) did change significantly during sexual maturation. Several tissues contained significant amounts of one or more unknown components. The nitrogen content of an unknown component in the testis was similar to that of DNA. In the spermatophoric complex the nitrogen content suggested the unknown fraction may be an amino acid or short peptide, whereas in the nidamental gland the nitrogen content suggested an amino-sugar or polysaccharide derivative. The digestive gland was rich in lipid and continued to accumulate substantial reserves of energy throughout the period of sexual maturation on the feeding grounds. During this period there was no evidence for the utilization of either digestive gland or mantle tissues to supply energy for gonads. Accumulation of carbon and energy (estimated stoichiometrically from carbon) during the final 50 days on the feeding grounds indicated that energy demands for tissue synthesis in females were almost twice those of the smaller males, and that a relatively small fraction of the demands were for reproductive tissues (5% in males, 15% in females). Most energy intake in this period was directed to the digestive gland (40% in males, 47% in females) and other somatic growth (54% in males, 38% in females). A preliminary power budget suggested that during the final days of feeding before migrating to the spawning grounds, energy intake of Illex argentinus is 4-5% body energy content per day, growth efficiencies are low (17-22%) and that energy reserves in the digestive gland would fuel migration in the absence of feeding for 14 days in males and 21 days in females.

Description: Mean intracellular pH (pHi) and PCO2 (PiCO2) have been analysed based on pH and total CO2 measurements in tissue homogenates. Tissues were sampled from undisturbed worms (Sipunculus nudus), squid (Illex illecebrosus), trout (Salmo gairdneri), toads (Bufo marinus), and rats. Homogenate metabolism was inhibited by the addition of potassium fluoride and nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA). Model calculations revealed that the influence of dilution, medium buffers, and contamination by extracellular fluids was negligible. In white muscle tissue the resulting pHi values were virtually the same as found in studies using DMO (dimethyloxazolidinedione). If large fractions of mitochondria were present (e.g. in heart muscle), DMO derived pHi values were considerably higher, probably representing overestimates. Homogenate derived pHi values are concluded to represent the effective mean pHi by taking into account pH gradients, and the volumes and buffering of cellular compartments. High time resolution and small variability make this method especially useful to assess rapid changes in pHi, e.g. in exercising animals.

Description: The concentrations of intermediate and end products of anaerobic energy metabolism and of free amino acids were determined in mantle musculature and blood sampled from cannulated, unrestrained squid (Loligo pealei, Illex illecebrosus) under control conditions, after fatigue from increasing levels of exercise, and during postexercise recovery. Phosphagen depletion, accumulation of octopine (more so in Illex than in Loligo), and accumulation of succinate indicate that anaerobic metabolism contributes to energy production before fatigue. Proline was a substrate of metabolism in Loligo, as indicated by its depletion in the mantle. In both species, there was no evidence of catabolism of ATP beyond AMP. A comparison of the changes in the free and total levels of adenylates and the phosphagen indicates an earlier detrimental effect of fatigue on the energy status in Loligo. The acidosis provoked by octopine formation in Illex was demonstrated to promote the use of the phosphagen and to protect the free energy change of ATP such that the anaerobic scope of metabolism during swimming is extended and expressed more in Illex than in Loligo. In both species, there was no decrease in the sum of phospho-L-arginine, octopine, and L-arginine, and thus no release of octopine from the mantle, thereby supporting our earlier claim that octopine and associated protons are recycled in the mantle tissue. Overall, the metabolic strategy of Loligo is much less disturbing for the acid-base status. This strategy and the alternative strategy of Illex to keep acidifying protons in the tissue may be important for the protection of hemocyanin function in the two species.

Description: Horizontal starch gel electrophoresis was used to investigate levels of genetic differentiation between four samples of the nominate squid species Martialia hyadesi Rochbrune and Mabille, 1889, obtained from regions of the Patagonian Shelf and Antarctic Polar Fron-tal Zone over 1000 km apart. M. hyadesi is an ecologically important South Atlantic ommastrephid squid and it is probable that, in the future, fishing effort will be increasingly directed towards this species. Details regarding the population structure of the species are therefore required. In comparison with the other three samples of M. hyadesi, one of the samples from the Patagonian Shelf (PAT 89II) exhibited fixed allelic differences at 16 of the 39 enzyme loci which were resolved (genetic identity, I=0.51). This high level of genetic differentiation contradicts the apparent morphological similarity between samples, indicating the presence of a cryptic or sibling congeneric species. Deviations from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium and significant differences in allele distribution were also detected within and between the other three putative M. hyadesi samples, suggesting that the species fails to maintain effective panmixia across its geographical range. The occurrence of both temporal (1986 cf. 1989) and geographic structuring within the species complex is consequently indicated, caused possibly by an overlap of reproductively isolated stocks (stock mixing) outside their respective breeding areas. Low levels of genetic variability were detected throughout the samples examined, estimates of average heterozygosity per locus within the two species detected being in the order of 0.01 and 0.002. These values are discussed in relation to levels of genetic variability reported for other squid species, and in comparison with values typically expected for marine invertebrates.

Description: The in vitro oxygen-binding characteristics of haemocyanin were investigated in whole blood of two species of pelagic squid, Illex illecebrosus and Loligo pealei. pH-independent Haldane coefficients (ΔHCO3−/ΔHcyO2) (where HcyO2 is haemocyanin-bound oxygen) slightly smaller than —1 were found in both species. Oxygen-linked CO2 binding was not present. Buffer values ranged between 5 and 5.8 m mol l−1pH unit−1. For further analyses a pH/saturation diagram was selected to show the effect of pH on oxygen binding at constant POO2 in a continuous plot. The slopes of the resulting oxygen isobars (ΔHcyO2/ΔpH or ΔS/ΔpH) (where S is oxygen saturation) depend on pH. The diagram allows evaluation of both the Bohr coefficients (ΔlogP50/ΔpH) and the Hill coefficients (n50) at specific pH values. It provides an integrated illustration of the importance of the Bohr effect and cooperativity for oxygen binding. In accordance with Wyman's linkage equation, Bohr and Haldane coefficients are found to be identical. Both are pH-independent between pH7 and 8. The changing slopes of the oxygen isobars are likely to reflect changes in cooperativity with pH. Maximum values of n50 coincide with maximum steepness of the oxygen isobars in the physiological range of pH and POO2. Assuming that the haemocyanin acts as a buffer for venous POO2, this maximum in pH sensitivity and its decrease in the higher and lower pH ranges are discussed in the light of the maintenance of pigment function in vivo.

Description: Variations in the distribution and abundance of coastal cephalopods in the Cabo Frio (Brazil) region were studied from 71 trawl samples obtained between November 1986 and October 1988. Species abundance was compared over the depths sampled and their relationship with hydrological features investigated. Best catches were markedly associated with upwelling of nutrient-rich water (South Atlantic Central Water) during the spring-summer period, at depths from 45 to 60 m. Two species, Loligo sanpaulensis and Eledone massyae, account for most of this increase. Variations in abundance of these species are related to recruitment and periods of high productivity on the feeding grounds. Benthic octopods such as Octopus tehuelchus, O. vulgaris and Eledone gaucha occurred in small numbers at 60 m. Species broadly distributed in the western Atlantic, such as Semirossia tenera and Loligo plei, were also present.

Description: In the western equatorial Pacific, the El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phenomenon is characterized by precipitation variability associated with the migration of the Indonesian low pressure cell to the region of the date line and the equator. During ENSO events, Tarawa Atoll (1°N, 172°E) experiences heavy rainfall which has an estimated δ18O of about −8 to −10‰ δ18OSMOW. At Tarawa, sufficient precipitation of this composition falls during ENSO events to alter the δ18O and the salinity of the surface waters. Oxygen isotope records from two corals collected off the reef crest of Tarawa reflect rainfall variations associated with both weak and strong ENSO conditions, with approximately monthly resolution. Coral skeletal δ18O variations due to small sea surface temperature (SST) changes are secondary. These records demonstrate the remarkable ability of this technique to reconstruct variations in the position of the Indonesian Low from coral δ18O records in the western equatorial Pacific, a region which has few paleoclimatic records. The coral isotopic data correctly resolve the relative magnitudes of recent variations in the Southern Oscillation Index. Combining the Tarawa record with an oxygen isotopic history from a Galápagos Islands coral demonstrates the ability to distinguish the meteorologic (precipitation) and oceanographic (SST) anomalies that characterize ENSO events across the Pacific Basin over the period of common record (1960–1979). Comparison of the intensity of climatic anomalies at these two sites yields insight into the spatial variability of ENSO events. Isotope records from older corals can provide high-resolution, Pacific-wide reconstructions of ENSO behavior during periods of different climate boundary conditions.

Description: Species that reach the end of a life-history stage (transform) at relatively fixed sizes may often grow nonasymptotically before transforming. Many species of squid and at least some larval frogs, fish, and insects appear to follow this pattern. When data on body size at a range of ages are available for such taxa, they are often described well by exponential curves or by power curves that are concave upward. When such data are transformed to mean sizes for ages or age classes, they are likely to fit asymptotic growth models such as the logistic and Gompertz curves. These curves are good descriptions of the behavior of the population mean but poor descriptions of the pattern followed by any individual in the population. Analyzing and presenting data on size at age using mean sizes can thus lead to incorrect interpretations of growth patterns and should be avoided.

Description: As shown by the work of Dansgaard and his colleagues, climate oscillations of one or so millennia duration punctuate much of glacial section of the Greenland ice cores. These oscillations are characterized by 5°C air temperature changes, severalfold dust content changes and 50 ppm CO2 changes. Both the temperature and CO2 change are best explained by changes in the mode of operation of the ocean. In this paper we provide evidence which suggests that oscillations in surface water conditions of similar duration are present in the record from a deep sea core at 50°N. Based on this finding, we suggest that the Greenland climate changes are driven by oscillations in the salinity of the Atlantic Ocean which modulate the strength of the Atlantic's conveyor circulation.

Description: The myofilament protein compositions of muscle fibres from the transverse muscle mass of the tentacles and the transverse muscle mass of the arms of the loliginid squid Sepioteuthis lessoniana were compared. These two muscle masses are distinct types, differing in their ultrastructural and behavioural properties. The transverse muscle of the tentacles consists of specialized muscle fibres that exhibit cross-striation and unusually short sarcomeres and thick filaments. The transverse muscle of the arms consists of obliquely striated muscle fibres that are typical of cephalopod skeletal muscle in general. The specialization of the tentacle muscle results in a high shortening speed and reflects its role in creating rapid elongation of the tentacles during prey capture. Comparison of samples of myofilament preparations of the two muscle fibre types using sodium dodecyl sulphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and peptide mapping of myosin heavy chains from the two muscle fibre types, however, showed little evidence of differences in contractile protein isoforms. Thus, specialization for high shortening speed appears to have occurred primarily through changes in the dimensions and arrangement of the myofilament lattice, rather than through changes in biochemistry. The thick filament core protein paramyosin was tentatively identified in the squid muscle fibres. This protein was less abundant in the short thick filament cross-striated tentacle muscle cells than in the obliquely striated arm cells.

Description: There are three major breeding populations of southern elephant seals centered on Macquarie Island, Kerguelen-Heard Islands and South Georgia-Antarctic Peninsula. The composition of the diet differs between these populations based on published data from Signy Island and data presented here from Macquarie and Heard Islands. These differences in diet appear to be linked to the location at which seals were sampled ranging from the least Antarctic (Macquarie Island) to the most Antarctic (Signy Island). The major food remains consisted of cephalopod beaks and fish eye lenses. More benthic material was found at Heard Island than at Macquarie Island. The diet at Macquarie Island differed between summer and winter and between young animals and adults. The difficulty in collecting dietary samples of southern elephant seals near their main foraging areas makes the study of the feeding ecology of this species extremely difficult in comparison with other Southern Ocean species.

Description: The stomachsof 23 striped dolphins (Stenella coeruleoalba Meyen, 1833, Cetacea), stranded along the Ligurian coast (western Mediterranean Sea), contained 32 species of cephalopods, crustaceans and fishes, totalling an estimated 2,723 prey specimens representing about 36 kg in weight. Cephalopods and bony fishes were equally important in the diet (50%). Todarodes sagittatus (34.5%) and Micromesistius poutassou (25.9%) were found to be the most important food species. Other species belonging to six cephalopod families, three crustacean families and nine bony fish families, contributed to the diet with variable numbers, weights, and occurrences, demonstrating the opportunistic character of striped dolphin feeding.

Description: Using metabolic (in vivo) labeling methods and immunoblotting (Western) analysis, we determined the threshold induction temperature for enhanced synthesis of heat-shock proteins (HSP70 and HSP90) and the constitutive levels of these two classes of HSPs, respectively, in brain, gill, and liver of four species of marine teleost fishes acclimatized to a common temperature (10°C). For a given tissue of a species and among tissues of a species, little variation was found in HSP induction temperatures. However, among tissues of a species, the constitutive levels of HSPs differed substantially. Among species, wide variation was found in induction temperature (up to 8°C when averaged for all tissues) and HSP concentration (greater than 10-fobld differences for a single tissue). These results, obtained by analysis of animals from natural populations, contradict many of the assumptions, based largely on in vitro studies of isolated cells and tissues, about the dependence of the HSP threshold induction temperature and HSP concentrations on the previous acclimatization temperature. The wide variation in the HSP threshold induction temperatures among the different species and the wide variation in constitutive HSP levels among and within species may reflect, in addition to recent thermal exposure, the thermal history of the species during its evolution and the occurrence in the individual's habitat of other stressors that, like temperature, are capable of activating the heat-shock (stress) response.

Description: Time series (1965-1985) of Illex illecebrosus catch and morphometric data from the Northwest Atlantic were analysed to describe geographic variability in population structure. The areas studied were NAFO sub-areas 3 to 6, which range from Newfoundland to the northeastern USA shelf. Population components, reflecting seasonal spawning groups, were identified based on analysis of length frequency data. Components 3 and 4 represent two prominent life cycles: the summer spawners and winter spawners respectively. Components 1, 2, and 5 do not represent different life cycles, but result from the capacity to shift between life cycles by prolonging (or shortening) the life span. The presence of up to five components in the southern area illustrates a life history strategy involving protracted spawning and complex population structure. There was clear geographic variability in annual catch, with fluctuations being most extreme in the most northern area. Annual catch levels in all areas were significantly correlated with the abundance of the winter-spawning component, as represented by the number of squid within samples which belong to component 4. Population structure in the most northem area was simplest and catch levels therefore were most dependent on the highly migratory winter-spawning component. This leads to greater catch variability in the most northern area than in the other areas. The advantages of good feeding conditions may compensate for the risks associated with long-range migrations, especially recruitment failure. Life history strategies involving migratory and non-migratory population components limit the risk of recruitment failure. The overall resultant life history strategy for Illex illecebrosus is one that ensures survival of the species by stabilizing recruitment in at least one (southern) area through protracted spawning, complex population structure and interaction of spawning components. Time series (1965-1985) of Illex illecebrosus catch and morphometric data from the Northwest Atlantic were analysed to describe geographic variability in population structure. The areas studied were NAFO sub-areas 3 to 6, which range from Newfoundland to the northeastern USA shelf. Population components, reflecting seasonal spawning groups, were identified based on analysis of length frequency data. Components 3 and 4 represent two prominent life cycles: the summer spawners and winter spawners respectively. Components 1, 2, and 5 do not represent different life cycles, but result from the capacity to shift between life cycles by prolonging (or shortening) the life span. The presence of up to five components in the southern area illustrates a life history strategy involving protracted spawning and complex population structure. There was clear geographic variability in annual catch, with fluctuations being most extreme in the most northern area. Annual catch levels in all areas were significantly correlated with the abundance of the winter-spawning component, as represented by the number of squid within samples which belong to component 4. Population structure in the most northem area was simplest and catch levels therefore were most dependent on the highly migratory winter-spawning component. This leads to greater catch variability in the most northern area than in the other areas. The advantages of good feeding conditions may compensate for the risks associated with long-range migrations, especially recruitment failure. Life history strategies involving migratory and non-migratory population components limit the risk of recruitment failure. The overall resultant life history strategy for Illex illecebrosus is one that ensures survival of the species by stabilizing recruitment in at least one (southern) area through protracted spawning, complex population structure and interaction of spawning components.

Description: Finding of some uncommon cephalopods, Ancistroteuthis lichtensteinii, Histioteuthis bonnellii, H. reversa and the first record of Chiroteuthis veranyi in the Ionian Sea are reported here. Data were collected during a trawl survey carried out on red shrimp grounds during August 1993.

Description: Four research surveys of Falkland Island waters were carried out to determine the distribution and abundance of the early life-history stages of Loligo gahi (d'Orbigny, 1835) in the austral winter of 1988 and the austral springs of 1990, 1991 and 1992. Juveniles were caught during three of the four surveys in both Bongo nets and an RMT8 net. In each case, greatest numbers were consistently caught in waters of ≤100 m to the south and east of East Falkland. The use of an opening/closing net in 1992 showed that most L. gahi juveniles aggregate close to the sea floor and are more available to the sampling gear by night than by day. Limited temperature data for the 1991 and 1992 surveys suggest that distribution on the coastal shelf may be associated with water-column structure. In 1992 when temperature data implied a mixed water column, juveniles were caught in deeper water than in 1991 when the water column was stratified. The results suggest that the spawning grounds of L. gahi are probably situated to the south and east of the Falkland Islands, at least for squid hatched in the austral winter/spring.

Description: The periodicity of deposition of growth increments in the cuttlebone of juvenile Sepia officinalis was investigated under controlled conditions for a short period after hatching (19 days). The slope of time elapsed and increment counts was significantly different from 1 indicating that lamellae are not deposited on a daily basis. The relationship between increment counts and juvenile length was, however, highly significant. Also significant were the relationships between the number of growth increments and shell length and increment counts and cuttlebone area. These data show that the number of growth increments is related primarily to the growth rate of the juvenile rather than to its chronological age. Taking into account these data, the cuttlebone lamellae cannot be used for age determination in the juvenile cuttlefish just after hatching.

Description: A survey on squid catches was dine in coastal waters off Kuala Terengganu, Terengganu, Malaysia, in 1989 and 1990. Data were taken from three gears: two commercial boats employing jigs and a purse seine, respectively, and a newly developed squid net. Fishing operations were carried out in open water during moonless nights. Emphasis was placed on the catch of the two most common and dominant squids found in the area, Loligo chinensis and Loligo sibogae. It was found that both L. chinensis and L. sibogae can be caught throughout the water column by the purse seine while mainly L. sibogae was obtained from near surface by the squid net. Jigs caught only L. chinensis and these were much bigger than the same species taken by the other two gears.

Description: Migration, stock size and ecology of chokka squid Loligo vulgaris reynaudii off the West Coast of South Africa were studied and their relationship to other regions compared by analysis of distributional, biomass, and size composition, and biological data collected from biannual research cruises from 1983-1987. Biomass was lower than on the South Coast, higher in summer than in winter and declined over the duration of the study. The distribution of squid was generally continuous from the east up to between Cape Point and Cape Columbine. North of Cape Columbine it was more sporadic and occurred only occasionally in the far north (north of 31°S). Depth distribution, at up to 350 m, was much greater than on the S. Coast where an insignificant percentage of the biomass occurs over 200 m. The size composition was unimodal compared to a polymodal distribution on the S. Coast, and mean and modal sizes were smaller. Maturity rates and gonado-somatic indices were also much lower. The percentage of feeding squid was, however, considerably higher. These findings, together with distributional and commercial catch data, showed that cyclic immigration and emigration occurs between the two areas, probably to enable subadult squid to exploit the good foraging opportunities on the W. Coast. A multiple correlation analysis and regression model showed that catches were correlated with a combination of bottom depth, bottom temperatures and bottom oxygen levels. Bottom temperatures of below 8°C and bottom oxygen levels of below 3,5 ml.1-1 appeared to represent important limiting factors in the distribution. Trekgewoontes, stapelgrootte en die ekologie van die tjokka Loligo vulgaris reynaudii aan die Weskus van Suid-Afrika is bestudeer en verwantskappe met ander gebiede vergelyk aan die hand van ontleding van verspreidings-, biomassa-, grootteverspreidings-en biolog ¡ese data wat twee maal jaarliks tussen 1983 en 1987 versamei is. Biomassa was laer as aan die Suidkus, hoër in die somer as gedurende die winter en biomassaskattings het tydens die studie gedaal. Die verspreiding van tjokka was oor die algemeen aaneenlopend vanaf die ooste tot tussen Kaappunt en Kaap Columbine. Noord van Kaap Columbine was dit meer sporadies, en het slegs af en toe in die verre noorde (noord van 31 °S) voorgekom. Diepteverspreiding was tot 350 m, heel wat dieper as aan die Suidkus waar 'n onbeduidende persentasie van die biomassa dieper as 200 m voorkom. Die grootteverspreiding was unimodaal vergeleke met 'n polimodale verspreiding aan die Suidkus, en gemiddelde en modale groottes was kleiner. Die mate van geslagsrypheid en gonado-somatiese indekse was ook baie laer. Voedingstempos was egter heelwat hoër. Hierdie bevindings, tesarne met verspreidings-en vangsdata, het daarop gedui dat daar 'n sikliese immigrasie en emigrasie tussen die twee gebiede plaasvind, waarskynlik sodat voorvolwasse pylinkvis die goeie voedingspotensiaal aan die Weskus kan benut, 'n Meerveranderlike korrelasie-analise en regressiemodel het bewys dat vangste gekorreleerd was met 'n kombinasie van bodemdiepte, bodemtemperatuur en bodemsuurstofvlakke. Bodemtemperatuur onder 8°C en bodemsuurstofvlakke onder 3,5 ml.l-1 is blykbaar belangrike fakore wat beperkend inwerk op verspreiding.

Description: In the first half of the 20th century small founder groups of the Amur sleeper, Perccottus glenii, have been transferred from their native range in the Far East to some regions of the European part of Russia. In order to investigate the consequences of the introductions, 15 Far East populations and 11 European populations, that originated from two transfers, were studied for their variability on two enzyme loci (Sod and Odh) using polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. For both loci, divergence between populations and heterozygosity in the populations were higher in the colonized regions than in the native range. Heterozygote advantage in small founder populations seems to be a factor resisting genetic drift and determining the changes observed in the genetic structure of the introduced populations.

Description: Die Terra Nova Expedition (1910-1913) von Robert Falcon Scott wird bis heute überschattet von dem tragischen Ende des Vorstoßes zum Südpol, den Scott mit seinen vier Begleitern im Januar 1912 - einen Monat nach Amundsen - erreichte. Dabei gerat leicht in den Hintergrund, daß neben dem Vorstoß zum Pol umfangreiche wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen einen wichtigen Schwerpunkt der Expedition bildeten. So wurden zahlreiche meteorologische, geologische und biologische Untersuchungen und Erkundungen von mehreren, unabhängig voneinander operierenden, wissenschaftlichen Feldgruppen durchgeführt. Eine dieser Feldgruppen war die Western Geological Party', die im Sommer 1911/12 unter der Leitung des Geologen Griffith Taylor von Granite Harbour ausgebend, einem tiefen natürlichen Hafen auf 77°S, die Küste von Süd Victoria Land erkundete. Die Forschungsergebnisse mit Hinweisen auf eine außergewöhnlich reiche Vegetation wurden im Reisebericht der Terra Nova Expedition bereits 1913 veröffentlicht (TAYLOR 1913). Aufgrund seiner abgeschiedenen Lage ist dieses Gebiet seitdem jedoch nur sehr selten besucht worden und in Vergessenheit geraten, ast 1989 wurde die außergewöhnlich reiche Vegetation wiederentdeckt.

Description: In der letzten Ausgabe der "Mitteilungen zur Kieler Polarforschung" habe ich über die Gefrierschutzproteine bei Pleuragramma antarcticum berichtet. Dabei habe ich unter anderem ein bislang unbekanntes Glykoprotein vorgestellt, welches nur bei dem antarktischen Silberfisch nachgewiesen werden konnte. Heute möchte ich auf die anderen Arten des Weddellmeeres und Lasarewmeeres eingehen, die ich im Rahmen meiner Promotion auf den Gefrierschutz hin untersucht habe ( WÖHRMANN & ZIMMERMANN 1992; WÖHRMANN 1993).

Description: During the years 1989–1993 an intensive collection of fishes from the aphotic zone (below 150 m) of the northern part of the Gulf of Aqaba was conducted. This survey recorded 69 fish species, 8 elasmobranchs, and 61 teleosts, belonging to 45 families. Fifteen species are endemic to the Red Sea: Mustelus mosis, Narcine bentuviai, Rhinobatos punctifer, Ophichthus echeloides, Rhynchoconger sp., Physiculus marisrubri, Ostichthys hypsipterygion sufensis, Pterygotrigla sp., Uranoscopus marisrubri, Parascolopsis sp.1 and sp. 2, Atrobucca geniae, Chromis pelloura, Samariscus sp., Thamnaconus modestoides erythraeensis. Eleven species are new records for the Red Sea: Gymnothorax johnsoni, Rhynchoconger sp., Synodus doaki, Pterygotrigla sp., Chelidoperca pleurospilus, Carangoides equula, Parascolopsis sp. 1 and sp. 2, Bodianus leucostictus, Paracaesio sordidus, and Samariscus sp. Two species, Cociella crocodilo and Parascolopsis eriomma, are first substantiated records for the Red Sea. None of the species recorded in this list is considered conventional deep-sea fishes. The ichthyofauna of the aphotic zone of the Gulf of Aqaba is composed of species of shallower origin.

Description: Die resultierende Kraft aus dem Kräftedreieck Fischerei. Fischereiforschung und Fischereiverwaltung soll die nachhaltige Nutzung mariner und limnischer Fischbestände sichern. Der Informationsfluß von der Forschung (Wissenschaft)über das Management (Politik) zur Administration (einschl. Kontrolle) soll die Fischerei nach wirtschaftlichen und populationsdynamischen Kriterien steuern. Da weltweit zahlreiche Fischbestände zusammengebrochen sind, stellt sich die Frage, warum das System versagt hat. Warum schaffen wir, die wir regeln wollen, keine Ordnung in der Fischerei?

Description: Abnormal geopressure results from disequilibrium between excess fluid, which must be removed to maintain normal compaction, and the fluid expelling capacity of sediments. The effects of two factors affecting geopressure, namely compaction and aquathermal pressuring, are studied using a hydrodynamic model based on the solution of simultaneous equations (mainly Darcy's law and Athy's porosity-depth relationship). Geopressures are computed on a one-dimensional sediment profile and based on four environments that may significantly influence the excess pore-fluid volume and the permeability of sediments. The quantitative excess analysis demonstrates that in actual geologic environments, the aquathermal factor has no practical significance in abnormal pressure occurrence.

Description: The present manuscript seeks to review the nature, occurrence, origin, genesis and palaeoceanographic accumulation record of marine Mn crusts which are widespread on the sea floor of the World Ocean. Interest in Mn crusts is based on two main topics: scientifically the composition of Mn crusts acts as record for palaeochemistry and palaeoceanography of the environment, and economicially the potential of Co and Pt in the crusts has been considered to be very high.

Description: Digitised outlines of a serially sectioned K-feldspar grain from a Cordilleran granitoid have been analysed for their fractal dimension. Although the grain boundary outlines are not truly fractal in the sense of Mandlebrot (1982), they do show a self-similarity over a statistically definable range, and can thus be assigned a dimensional value between 1 and 2. Each grain section has fractal dimension (D) 〉 1, ranging from 1.21-1.30. Scatter within the data sets have been used to define separate (pseudo)fractal elements that further characterise each grain outline. The development of fractal geometries within a particular granitoid can be broadly related to crystallisation within Ab-An-Or-Qz space. For example, Cordilleran T-type granitoids that crystallise from An-rich liquids may be expected to show both Euclidean and fractal geometries, while minimum melts and 'S'-type granites that crystallise in broadly eutectic proportions will have textures dominated by (pseudo)fractal grain outlines. The non-integer values that describe grain shape may also be useful in estimating the total grain (porosity) volume within the rock.

Description: Current measurements from two consecutive yearlong deployments of three moored stations at the western end of the equator in the Atlantic, along 44°W, are used to determine the northwestward flow of warm water in the upper several 100 m and of the southeastward counterflow of North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW). Measurements from three acoustic Doppler current profilers (ADCPs) looking upward from 300 m toward the surface allowed calculation of a time series of upper layer transports over 1 year. Mean transport through the array for the upper 300 m is 23.8 Sv with an annual cycle of only ±3 Sv that has its maximum in June-August and minimum in northern spring. Estimated additional mean northwestward transport in the range 300–600 m is 6.7 Sv, based on moored data and shipboard Pegasus and lowered ADCP profiling. In the depth range 1400–3100 m a current core with maximum annual mean southeastward speed of 30 cm s−1 is found along the continental slope that carries an estimated upper NADW transport of 14.2–17.3 Sv, depending on the extrapolation used between the mooring in the core and the continental slope. This transport is higher than off-equatorial estimates and suggests near-equatorial recirculation at the upper NADW level, in agreement with northwestward mean flow found about 140 km offshore. Below 3100 m and above the 1.8°C isotherm, only a small core of lower NADW flow with speeds of 10–15 cm s−1 is found over the flat part of the basin near 1.5°N, clearly separated from the continental slope by a zone of near-zero mean speeds. Estimated transport of that small current core is about 4.5 Sv, which is significantly below other estimates of near-equatorial transport of lower NADW and suggests that a major fraction of lower NADW may cross the 44°W meridian north of the Ceara Rise. Intraseasonal variability is large, although smaller than observed at 8°N near the western boundary. It occurs at a period of about 1 month when it is dominant in the near-surface records and corresponds to earlier observations in the equatorial zones of all oceans and at a period of about 2 months when it is dominant at the NADW level and could be imported either from the north along the boundary or from the east along the equator. The existence of an annual cycle in the deep currents of a few centimeters per second amplitude, as suggested by high-resolution numerical model results, could neither be proven nor disproven because of the high amount of shorter-period variability.

Description: The carbon isotopic composition of methane emitted by the Alaskan emergent aquatic plants Arctophila fulva, a tundra mid-lake macrophyte, and Carex rostrata, a tundra lake margin macrophyte, was −58.6 ± 0.5 (n=2) and −66.6±2.5 (n= 6) ‰ respectively. The methane emitted by these species was found to be depleted in 13C by 12‰ and 18‰, relative to methane withdrawn from plant stems 1 to 2 cm below the waterline. As the macrophyte-mediated methane flux represented approximately 97% of the flux from these sites, these results suggest the more rapid transport of 12CH4 relative to 13CH4 through plants to the atmosphere. This preferential release of the light isotope of methane, possibly combined with CH4 oxidation, caused the buildup of the heavy isotope within plant stems. Plant stem methane concentrations ranged from 0.2 to 4.0% ( math formula, 1.4; standard deviation (sd), 0.9; n=28) in Arctophila, with an isotopic composition of −46.1±4.3 ‰ (n = 8). Carex stem methane concentrations were lower, ranging from 150 to 1200 ppm ( math formula, 500; standard deviation, 360; n = 8), with an isotopic composition of −48.3±1.4‰ (n=3). Comparisons of the observed isotopic fractionations with those predicted from gas phase effusion and diffusion coefficients suggest a combination of one or both of these gas transport mechanisms with bulk (non-fractionationating) flow.

Description: This study compiles results obtained during the years 1984-1989 from a number of field experiments and studies concerning substrate specificity, biomass, population development, growth rates, life cycle and reproduction of Halichondria panicea (Pallas) in Kiel Bight. Data on biomass development of H. panicea during the year show a general increase in biomass from spring to summer and a subsequent decrease during the fall; biomasses and growth rates are higher in shallower water depths, while abundance increases with depth between 6 and 12 m. Sexual reproduction takes place during a short period in early summer by means of larvae. While salinity does not influence reproductive processes, temperature is very important. Low water temperatures in winter and early spring can delay the release of larvae for about one month. Data on the relationship between the sponges and their substrate algae show how differences and changes in the depth distribution and population dynamics of the sessile fauna on red algae can only be interpreted correctly by including data on fauna! growth rates, time and mode of reproduction, as well as biomass, distribution and dynamics of the substrate algae. The merits of different sampling strategies for the acquisition of different kinds of biological information in this biotope are discussed.

Description: About 1500 photographs from three different areas along the eastern Weddell Sea shelf and slope were analysed with respect to their sponge fauna. On the basis of material collected in concurrent bottom trawls, 34 sponge taxa were identified. Cluster and multidimensional scaling analysis showed the sponges to belong to different associations. Spatial extension of the associations is judged to be between several hundred meters and about 2 km. A deeper association (390–1125 m) on predominantly muddy substrates along a transect at Halley Bay is characterized by four opportunistic demosponge species; a second association on harder substrate in shallower depths (99–225m) off Kapp Norvegia is more diverse, with hexactinellids as one dominant component. A third cluster, comprising both Halley Bay and Kapp Norvegia stations (458–626 m), is dominated by four species which constitute a subcluster within the Kapp Norvegia sponge association. Densities vary strongly within clusters and in between geographically close stations. The species associations are related to different substrates, not to depth. Within single stations most species are patchily distributed. Both association structure and species distribution within single stations can be explained on the basis of the biology of the single sponge species.

Description: Turbulent fluxes have been measured in the atmospheric surface layer from a boom extending upwind from the Dutch offshore research platform Meetpost Noordwijk (MPN) during HEXMAX (Humidity Exchange over the Sea Main Experiment) in October–November, 1986. We started out to study eddy flux of water vapour, but discrepancies among simultaneous measurements made with three different anemometers led us to develop methods to correct eddy correlation measurements of wind stress for flow distortion by nearby objects. We then found excellent agreement among the corrected wind stress data sets from the three anemometers on the MPN boom and with eddy correlation measurements from a mast on a tripod. Inertial-dissipation techniques gave reliable estimates of wind stress from turbulence spectra, both at MPN and at a nearby ship. The data cover a range of wave ages and the results yield new insights into the variation of sea surface wind stress with sea state; two alternative formulas are given for the nondimensional surface roughness as a function of wave age.

Description: Burrowing activities of the only European fiddler crab, Uca tangeri, and its resulting influence on biotope in mudflats were investigated during 1989-1990 at Ria Formosa, Portugal. Individuals use the same burrow for ca 1 wk, then occupy another or dig a new one. Overall a burrow is inhabited for ca 3 mo by several individuals before it is abandoned. Vacated burrows decay within 2 to 3 wk. Burrow size and number vary with the season. Burrow density was highest in spring and early summer with ca 17 burrows m-2, and then decreased. Deepest burrows (up to 90 cm long) were found in winter, the shallowest (up to 40 cm long) in summer. Volume of the sediment moved by U. tangen varied monthly between 3000 and 6000 cm3 per m2 of mudflat. Water is only found in the lower third of the burrow. Burrow water contains less oxygen and more nitrate than the surrounding water of the Ria Formosa.

Description: Studies of laboratory cultures of Chordaria linearis (Hooker et Harvey) Cotton from southernmost South America revealed that this species has an obligate sexual life history in which a macroscopic sporophyte alternates with a monoecious microscopic gametophyte. Sexual reproduction is isogamous and under photoperiodic control. Gametes are produced only in short days, whereas in long days, asexual zoospores are formed that recycle the gametophyte generation. Unfused gametes develop into gametophytes, and sporophytes originate only from zygotes. Unlike other sexual members of the Chordariales, gametes of C. linearis have a reduced stigma and do not show phototaxis. They are released at the beginning of the night, not in the morning. In nature, C. linearis seems to be regularly infected by a dictyosiphonalean epiphyte resembling the rare arctic species Trachynema groenlandicum (Lund) Pedersen. The epiphyte is responsible for previous contradictory results obtained in laboratory cultures of C. linearis. This is the first record of Trachynema in the southern hemisphere.

Description: Commercial fish species from the east Nigerian coast were examined for external lesions and flesh parasitic infections that may affect their consumability. Altogether, 2 886 specimens from 43 species representing 34 genera were sampled. The occurrence of lymphocystis disease in the pleuronectiform Cynoglossus senegalensis is here reported for the first time from an African marine teleost. Other external lesions of fishes encountered were fin rot, granulomas, pseudotumours and ulcers with total prevalences not exceeding 1%; The following commercial fish species were infected by muscle parasites at the given prevalences: Cynoglossus browni (metacercariae, 18%, Capillaria spinosa eggs, 27%; Echinocephalus sinensis L3 larvae, 9%; Philometra beninensis, 27%); C. senegalensis (Kudoa sp., 10%; metacercariae, 87%); Pseudotolithus brachygnathus (Hysterothylacium sp. larvae, 2%); P. senegalensis (Poecilancistrum cf caryophyllum plerocercoid, 1%; Philometra beninensis, 1% P. typus (Kudoa sp., 3%); Synaptura cadenati (Echinocephalus sinensis, 12%); Stromateus fiatola (trypanorhynch plerocer-coid, 44%); Epinephelus aeneus (didymozoid trematode, 44%; Hysterothylacium sp. larvae, 6%). Capillaria and Echinocephalus, representing helminths with zoonotic potential, present low risks to publie health due to their low prevalences and the local methods of preparing fish for consumption. Apart from C. spinosa eggs in soles and trypanorhynch plerocercoids in S.fiatola, none of the other flesh parasites are likely to affect the market value of their hosts at the recorded levels of occurrence. Carcharhinid sharks influence the occurrence in the locality of most fesh-parasitic helminths for which they serve as definitive hosts. The absence of the third stage larvae of zoonotic Anisakidae common in marine fishes from many other parts of the world is related to the unavailability of suitable hosts. Compared to the results from most temperate locations where similar studies have been carried out, the present study shows remarkably low prevalences and diversity for external lesions and flesh parasites in West African marine fishes

Description: We noted whether Adélie penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae), when travelling over snow, walked or tobogganed according to gradient, snow friction, or snow penetrability. Both walking and tobogganing penguins reduced stride length and stride frequency, and thus speed, with increasing uphill gradient although tobogganing birds travelled faster and with fewer leg movements. The incidence of tobogganing increased with decreasing friction between penguin and snow. The percentage of penguins tobogganing was also highly positively correlated with increasing snow penetrability. Penguins walking on soft snow must expend additional energy to pull their feet through the snow, whereas tobogganing birds do not sink. It is to be expected that Adélie penguins would utilize the most energetically favourable form of travel which, under almost all conditions, appeared to be tobogganing. Although tobogganing appears to be energetically more efficient than walking, rubbing the feathers over snow increases the coefficient of friction in unpreeened plumage. We propose that a high incidence of tobogganing necessitates increased feather care and that the decision whether to walk or toboggan probably represents a balance between immediate energy expenditure and subsequent energy and time expended maintaining plumage condition.

Description: A vertical flux pulse related to spring phytoplankton development was recorded ·by moored sediment traps at 42°N 06°E in the Gulf of Lions. May 1990 trap samples from 200m to 2000m depth were comprised of freshly produced organic matter and selected microplankton species from the overlaying water column. This vertical flux event was transmitted to the deep sea floor with a high particle sinking velocity of 〉140 m day-1. Maximal vertical fluxes of 35 mg C m-2 day-1 and 1.2 mg chl.a m-2 day-1 recorded during this event are low compared to the exports from collapsing spring blooms at higher latitudes but demonstrate that particle production and degradation within the spring pelagic system were not in balance.

Description: The presented data on indirect and direct calorimetry in Halicryptus spinulosus, a species with prominent ecological significance in parts of the Baltic Sea, provide a basis for a better understanding of the metabolic adaptation of these animals to low oxygen availability in their environment. Metabolic rates in H. spinulosus were measured respirometrically as oxygen consumption and calorimetrically as heat dissipation. Oxygen uptake rates are in the range of M O2 = 3.81 ± 1.37 μmol O2·g−1 dry mass·h−1. Upon reimmersion into normoxic seawater after an anoxic incubation of 7 days, the animals exhibit an overshoot of oxygen consumption by a factor of 2.4. It takes at least 2 days for the animals to balance their oxygen consumption to previously measured rates. Direct calorimetry exhibits different strategies of H. spinulosus to cope with declining oxygen and anoxia. During the first 2 transitional days to anoxia in the calorimeter, the animals decreased heat dissipation moderately down to 53.4 and 26%, respectively, of aerobic values. The animals are not necessarily quiescent at the beginning of anoxia, but at the end of the experiments after 14 days metabolic rates have dropped substantially down to ≈2% of normoxic values. These findings are discussed with regard to an effective adaption to frequently changing oxygen regimes in deeper parts of the Baltic Sea.

Description: Trends in the hydrographic properties and nutrient concentrations of the Western Baltic from 1980 to 1990 are identified from national and HELCOM data (GESPA) and compared with those of the preceding decades. Found to be generally weak, these trends are analysed and discussed as integrated effects of the biological and chemical sink capacities of the ecosystem, natural effects (meteorological and hydrographic changes and water exchange), and anthropogenic factors. Measurements in the Kiel Bight are used to study modifications of annual cycles due to climatic fluctuations. It is demonstrated that the Kiel Bight area is representative of a considerable part of the Baltic Sea. The generation of artificial trend signals is discussed as a consequence of non-matching scales of processes and sampling frequencies and of changes in annual cycles, and effects of non-random properties of the data used for statistical treatment. The results of this discussion are used to evaluate the trends observed during the past decades. The congruence of the observed nutrient trends in the Kiel Bight and the descriptive and prognostic results of the Wulff and Stigebrandt budget model for the Baltic Sea and some subareas are examined.

Description: Respiration and activity of eelpouts Zoarces viviparus L. were measured in an underwater respiration chamber in Kiel Bay (Germany) under short-term hypoxia. Respiration and swimming activity both declined almost continuously with decreasing oxygen saturation...

Description: Canopy regeneration by vegetative regrowth from damaged holdfasts has been examined in two species of rockweed, Fucus vesicu/osus and Fucus evanescens. About 20- 30% of experimentally damaged holdfasts sprouted large numbers of adventitious shoots, even when the basal tissue had been cut to less than 2 mm thickness. Vegetative regrowth was observed from minute amounts of holdfast tissue. This vegetative sprouting appears more important in the F vesiculosus zone than in the F evanescens zone. Comparison of Fucus growth in plots with sterilized or damaged holdfasts provided estimates of the relative importance of recruitment and vegetative regrowth to canopy recovery. We consider that vegetative regrowth from basal tissues may make variable but important contributions to succession in this community, and to the persistence of rockweed populations. We argue that the possibility of vegetative regrowth must be considered in interpreting successional patterns, particularly those which followed a recent, severe ice-scour of exposed seashores near Halifax, Nova Scotia.