Life Sciences Commons^™

Population Genomic Dynamics Of Mesopelagic Lanternfishes Diaphus Dumerilii, Lepidophanes Guentheri, And Ceratoscopelus Warmingii (Family: Myctophidae) In The Gulf Of Mexico, Andrea Bernard, Kimberly A. Finnegan, Tracey Sutton, Ron Eytan, Max Weber, Mahmood Shivji

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

Assessing the impacts of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill (DWHOS) on deep-sea fish assemblages of the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) has been hindered by an absence of baseline (pre-spill) data concerning the population genetic dynamics of these fishes. The lanternfishes (Myctophidae) are a speciose, yet understudied, taxonomic group, that comprise a significant portion of the global deep-sea biomass, making them integral members of meso- and bathy-pelagic food webs. Herein, we used a genomic approach (double digest restriction site associated DNA sequencing) to investigate the temporal genetic dynamics of three species of lanternfishes within the northern GOM in the region of …

Trophic Structure And Sources Of Variation Influencing The Stable Isotope Signatures Of Meso- And Bathypelagic Micronekton Fishes, Travis M. Richards, Tracey Sutton, R. J.David Wells

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

To better understand spatiotemporal variation in the trophic structure of deep-pelagic species, we examined the isotope values of particulate organic matter (POM) (isotopic baseline) and seven deep-pelagic fishes with similar diet compositions but contrasting vertical distributions across mesoscale features in the Gulf of Mexico using stable isotope and amino acid compound-specific isotope analyses. Species examined included four migratory (Benthosema suborbitale, Lepidophanes guentheri, Melamphaes simus, Sigmops elongatus) and three non-migratory zooplanktivorous fishes (Argyropelecus hemigymnus, Cyclothone obscura, Sternoptyx pseudobscura). Isotopic values of POM increased with depth, with meso- and bathypelagic samples characterized by higher δ C and δ N values relative to …

First Insights Into The Vertical Habitat Use Of The Whitespotted Eagle Ray Aetobatus Narinari Revealed By Pop‐Up Satellite Archival Tags, L. R. Brewster, B. V. Cahill, M. N. Burton, C. Dougan, J. S. Herr, L. Issac Norton, S. A. Mcguire, M. Pico, E. Urban-Gedamke, K. Bassos-Hull, J. P. Tyminski, R. E. Hueter, Bradley M. Wetherbee, Mahmood S. Shivji, N. Burnie, M. J. Ajemian

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

The whitespotted eagle ray Aetobatus narinari is a tropical to warm‐temperate benthopelagic batoid that ranges widely throughout the western Atlantic Ocean. Despite conservation concerns for the species, its vertical habitat use and diving behaviour remain unknown. Patterns and drivers in depth distribution of A. narinari were investigated at two separate locations—western North Atlantic (Islands of Bermuda) and Eastern Gulf of Mexico (Sarasota, Florida, USA). Between 2010 and 2014, seven pop‐up satellite archival tags (PSATs) were attached to A. narinari using three methods: a through‐tail suture; external tail‐band; and through‐wing attachment. Retention time ranged from 0–180 days, with tags attached via …

Taxonomic Richness And Diversity Of Larval Fish Assemblages In The Oceanic Gulf Of Mexico: Links To Oceanographic Conditions, Corinne R. Meinert, Kimberly Clausen-Sparks, Maëlle Cornic, Tracey Sutton, Jay R. Rooker

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

Biodiversity enhances the productivity and stability of marine ecosystems and provides important ecosystem services. The aim of this study was to characterize larval fish assemblages in pelagic waters of the northern Gulf of Mexico (NGoM) and identify oceanographic conditions associated with areas of increased taxonomic richness (T ) and Shannon diversity (H’). Summer ichthyoplankton surveys were conducted in the NGoM in 2015 and 2016 using neuston net (surface layer; upper 1 m) and oblique bongo net (mixed layer; 0–100 m) tows. Over 17,000 fish larvae were collected over the two-year study, and 99 families of fish larvae were present. Catch …

Hiding In Plain Sight: Elopomorph Larvae Are Important Contributors To Fish Biodiversity In A Low-Latitude Oceanic Ecosystem, Jon A. Moore, Dante Fenolio, April Coan, Tracey Sutton

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

Leptocephalus larvae of elopomorph fishes are a cryptic component of fish diversity in nearshore and oceanic habitats. However, identifying those leptocephali can be important in illuminating species richness in a region. Since the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010, sampling of offshore fishes in the epi-, meso-, and upper bathypelagic depth strata of the northern Gulf of Mexico resulted in 8989 identifiable specimens of leptocephalus larvae or transforming juveniles, in 118 taxa representing 83 recognized and established species and an additional 35 distinctive leptocephalus morphotypes not yet linked to a known described species. Leptocephali account for ∼13% of the total …

Pelagic Habitat Partitioning Of Late-Larval And Juvenile Tunas In The Oceanic Gulf Of Mexico, Nina Pruzinsky, Rosanna Milligan, Tracey Sutton

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

Tunas are ecologically important in pelagic ecosystems, but due to their high economic value, large-bodied species are overfished. Declines in fishery landings of large-bodied tuna species in the Gulf of Mexico (GoM) are expected to increase fishing pressures on unmanaged, small-bodied tuna species, whose life history traits are less known. While predicting spawning stocks and recruitment success typically focuses on estimates of larval abundances, juveniles may provide a better estimate of future adult stock sizes, as they are more likely to survive to adulthood because mortality rates scale inversely with body size. However, distributional studies on juveniles are rare, leading …

The Vertical And Horizontal Distribution Of Deep-Sea Crustaceans In The Order Euphausiacea In The Vicinity Of The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, Tamara Frank, Charles Douglas Fine, Eric A. Burdett, April Cook, Tracey Sutton

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

The vertical and horizontal distributions of Euphausiacea in the northern Gulf of Mexico (GOM), including the location of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, were analyzed from 340 trawl samples collected between April and June 2011. This study is the first comprehensive survey of euphausiid distributions from depths deeper than 1000 m in the GOM and includes stratified sampling from five discrete depth ranges (0–200 m, 200–600 m, 600–1000 m, 1000–1200 m, and 1200–1500 m), and expands the depth ranges of 30 species. In addition, this study demonstrates significantly higher abundance and biomass of the euphausiid assemblage from slope vs. offshore …

Shallow- Water Hardbottom Communities Support The Separation Of Biogeographic Provinces On The West- Central Florida Gulf Coast, Shelby Eagan

HCNSO Student Theses and Dissertations

Several studies have found separation of biogeographic provinces on the West Florida Shelf (WFS), but the location of this separation differs depending on different organisms with faunal boundaries proposed at Apalachicola, Cedar Key, Anclote Key. Tampa Bay, Charlotte Harbor, Cape Romano, or Cape Sable. Biogeographic boundaries can be gradual over a given space and are often species-specific. Analyses of marine benthic mapping and community characterization of Florida’s West-central coast shallow water (depth) hardbottom habitats indicate a major shift in the benthos across Tampa Bay. Quantitative benthic surveys of 29 sites yielded a total of 4,079 individuals of nine stony coral …

The Vertical And Horizontal Distribution Of Deep-Sea Crustaceans Of The Order Euphausiacea (Malacostraca: Eucarida) From The Northern Gulf Of Mexico With Notes On Reproductive Seasonality., Charles Douglas Fine

HCNSO Student Theses and Dissertations

The vertical and horizontal distributions of Euphausiacea in the northern Gulf of Mexico, including the location of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, were analyzed from 340 trawl samples collected between April-June, 2011. This study is the first comprehensive survey of euphausiid distributions from depths deeper than 1000 m in the Gulf of Mexico and included stratified sampling from five discrete depth ranges (0-200 m, 200-600 m, 600-1000 m, 1000-1200 m, and 1200-1500 m). In addition, this study encompasses the region heavily impacted by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Data presented here could potentially be used in ecosystem models investigating trophic …

Ecology, Population Dynamics, And Sexual Characteristics Of Commensal Leucothoid Amphipods With The Sponge Cliona Varians In The Florida Keys (Crustacea: Amphipoda), Stephanie Lynn Andringa

HCNSO Student Theses and Dissertations

Recent observations have identified a new species of leucothoid amphipod, Leucothoe “sp. F,” associated with the sponge Cliona varians. This project examined the relationship between this amphipod and its sponge host at three sites in the Florida Keys with differing hydrodynamic regimes. Ninety-eight sponge samples with a total of 2,030 amphipods were collected between December 2011 and September 2012. Leucothoe “sp. F” is currently a common species in the Florida Keys strongly associated with C. varians; its distribution strongly coincides with open tidal currents from the Gulf of Mexico. Seasonality, depth, and tidal regimes not only influence population …

Midwater Fishes And Shrimps As Competitors And Resource Partitioning In Low Latitude Oligotrophic Ecosystems, T. L. Hopkins, Tracey Sutton

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

Oligotrophic tropical-subtropical oceanic regimes constitute the largest and most ancient ecosystem on earth, with these enormous areas being characterized by high faunal diversity. The stability and age of the ecosystem have enabled the evolution of many similar species niches where there is considerable overlap in niche parameters such as food and space, resulting in high species packing, especially in the epi- and mesopelagic zones. Competition for limited resources undoubtedly exists and has been described by MacArthur (1972; Geographical ecology, Harper and Row, New York) as diffuse competition where each species is impacted by many other species sharing the environment. Most …

Trophic Diversity Of A Mesopelagic Fish Community., Tracey Sutton, Thomas L. Hopkins, Thomas M. Lancraft

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Proceedings, Presentations, Speeches, Lectures

To understand the character of prey partitioning in a low latitude oligotrophic region, a composite picture of the trophic structure of a mesopelagic fish community was made from the eastern Gulf of Mexico. Two hundred and twenty three species were collected in the area of which I61 species were abundant enough for analyses. Fifteen major categories of prey biomass are identified for diet analyses: viz. copepods, ostracods, amphipods, euphausiids, decapods, larvaceans, salps, coelenterates (primarily siphonophores), unidentified gelatinous prey, polychaetes, gastropods, cephalopods, chaetognaths, fish, other food. Prey partitioning is minimal across major prey categories as the vast majority of mesopelagic fishes …

Environmental Correlates Of Hermatypic Coral (Montastrea Annularis) Growth On The East Flower Gardens Bank, Northwest Gulf Of Mexico, Richard E. Dodge, Judith C. Lang

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

Time series of annual linear growth increments from 12 Montastrea annularis (E. and S.) collected at the East Flower Gardens Bank reef in the northwestern Gulf of Mexico have a common pattern. This is best expressed in an index master chronology (average by year of the annual percentage deviations from the mean of each coral.)

Comparisons with time series of environmental data indicate that coral extension rates vary positively with seasonal (February through May - 4 months) surface water temperature and negatively with annual discharge of the Atchafalaya River. We propose that secular variations of water temperature and other parameters …