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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences
Tracking A Marine Ecotourism Star: Movements Of The Short Ocean Sunfish Mola Ramsayi In Nusa Penida, Bali, Indonesia, Tierney Thys, John P. Ryan, Kevin C. Weng, Mark Erdmann, Joeharnani Tresnati
Tracking A Marine Ecotourism Star: Movements Of The Short Ocean Sunfish Mola Ramsayi In Nusa Penida, Bali, Indonesia, Tierney Thys, John P. Ryan, Kevin C. Weng, Mark Erdmann, Joeharnani Tresnati
VIMS Articles
Ocean sunfishes, Molidae, comprise the world’s heaviest bony fishes. They include the short mola, Mola ramsayi (Giglioli 1883), an important tourist draw at Nusa Penida and Nusa Lembongan, Bali, where SCUBA divers can observe ectoparasite-laden individuals being cleaned by smaller reef fishes. Despite widespread appeal, little is known about these fishes relative to regional oceanography. We present the first behavioral information for this species anywhere in the world. Satellite tag data indicate a wide thermal range (10–27.5°C) with depth occupation mostly (95%) in the upper 250 m and habitat preference near the bottom of the warm surface layer. One tag …
The Demographic Consequences Of Growing Older And Bigger In Oyster Populations, Jl Moore, Rom Lipcius, B Puckettt, Sj Schrieber
The Demographic Consequences Of Growing Older And Bigger In Oyster Populations, Jl Moore, Rom Lipcius, B Puckettt, Sj Schrieber
VIMS Articles
Structured population models, particularly size-or age-structured, have a long history of informing conservation and natural resource management. While size is often easier to measure than age and is the focus of many management strategies, age-structure can have important effects on population dynamics that are not captured in size-only models. However, relatively few studies have included the simultaneous effects of both age-and size-structure. To better understand how population structure, particularly that of age and size, impacts restoration and management decisions, we developed and compared a size-structured integral projection model (IPM) and an age-and size-structured IPM, using a population of Crassostrea gigas …
Oyster Planting Protocols To Deter Losses To Cownose Ray Predation, Roger L. Mann, Melissa Southworth, Robert A. Fisher, James A. Wesson, A. J. Erskine, T Leggett
Oyster Planting Protocols To Deter Losses To Cownose Ray Predation, Roger L. Mann, Melissa Southworth, Robert A. Fisher, James A. Wesson, A. J. Erskine, T Leggett
VIMS Articles
The utility of shell overlays to oyster (Crassostrea virginica) plantings as a cownose ray (Rhinoptera bonasus) predator deterrence mechanism was examined. Typical industry practice of oyster seed planting was followed in an experimental design employing treatment areas of 0.5-1.0 acre (0.2-0.4 hectare). Areas were prepared in the Lower Machodoc Creek, Virginia, by the initial application of shell to insure a stable substrate under planted seed oysters. Seed oysters were planted using standard industry methods. Experimental areas were located, two upstream and two downstream, of a constriction in the Lower Machodoc that dictated differing physical environments in the respective locations with …
Themed Issue Article: Conservation Physiology Of Marine Fishes Fisheries Conservation On The High Seas: Linking Conservation Physiology And Fisheries Ecology For The Management Of Large Pelagic Fishes, Andrij Z. Horodysky, Steven J. Cooke, John Graves, Richard Brill
Themed Issue Article: Conservation Physiology Of Marine Fishes Fisheries Conservation On The High Seas: Linking Conservation Physiology And Fisheries Ecology For The Management Of Large Pelagic Fishes, Andrij Z. Horodysky, Steven J. Cooke, John Graves, Richard Brill
VIMS Articles
Populations of tunas, billfishes and pelagic sharks are fished at or over capacity in many regions of the world. They are captured by directed commercial and recreational fisheries (the latter of which often promote catch and release) or as incidental catch or bycatch in commercial fisheries. Population assessments of pelagic fishes typically incorporate catch-per-unit-effort time-series data from commercial and recreational fisheries; however, there have been notable changes in target species, areas fished and depth-specific gear deployments over the years that may have affected catchability. Some regional fisheries management organizations take into account the effects of time-and area-specific changes in the …
Short-Term Habitat Use Of Juvenile Atlantic Bluefin Tuna, Benjamin J. Marcek, Mary C. Fabrizio, John Graves
Short-Term Habitat Use Of Juvenile Atlantic Bluefin Tuna, Benjamin J. Marcek, Mary C. Fabrizio, John Graves
VIMS Articles
Bluefin Tuna Thunnus thynnus are highly sought after in commercial and recreational fisheries along the East Coast of North America. To appropriately assess and manage Atlantic Bluefin Tuna (ABT), it is necessary to understand their habitat use during multiple ontogenetic stages. We tagged 17 juvenile ABT in the northwest Atlantic Ocean with pop-up satellite archival tags (PSATs) to determine environmental factors that may affect habitat use. The PSATs were deployed off the coast of Massachusetts in August and September 2012. A generalized linear mixed model was applied to determine factors affecting the mean depth occupied by fish, and beta regression …
The Kinome Of Pacific Oyster Crassostrea Gigas, Its Expression During Development And In Response To Environmental Factors, Yanouk Epelboin, Laure Quintric, Eric Guevelou, Pierre Boudry, Vianney Pichereau, Charlotte Corporeau
The Kinome Of Pacific Oyster Crassostrea Gigas, Its Expression During Development And In Response To Environmental Factors, Yanouk Epelboin, Laure Quintric, Eric Guevelou, Pierre Boudry, Vianney Pichereau, Charlotte Corporeau
VIMS Articles
Oysters play an important role in estuarine and coastal marine habitats, where the majority of humans live. In these ecosystems, environmental degradation is substantial, and oysters must cope with highly dynamic and stressful environmental constraints during their lives in the intertidal zone. The availability of the genome sequence of the Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas represents a unique opportunity for a comprehensive assessment of the signal transduction pathways that the species has developed to deal with this unique habitat. We performed an in silico analysis to identify, annotate and classify protein kinases in C. gigas, according to their kinase domain taxonomy …
Seasonal Shifts In The Movement And Distribution Of Green Sea Turtles Chelonia Mydas In Response To Anthropogenically Altered Water Temperatures, Daniel P. Crear, Daniel D. Lawson, Jeffrey A. Seminoff, Et Al
Seasonal Shifts In The Movement And Distribution Of Green Sea Turtles Chelonia Mydas In Response To Anthropogenically Altered Water Temperatures, Daniel P. Crear, Daniel D. Lawson, Jeffrey A. Seminoff, Et Al
VIMS Articles
Anthropogenically altered water temperatures (AAWT) have the potential to affect the movement and distribution of marine ectothermic species. Green sea turtles (GSTs) Chelonia mydas are an ectothermic species observed inhabiting 2 sites with AAWT at the northern point of their geographical range in the eastern Pacific. An acoustic receiver array was deployed with temperature loggers at the San Gabriel River, Long Beach, CA, where 2 power plants discharge warm water into the river, and at the 7th St. Basin, Seal Beach, CA, a dredged shallow basin with warmer water compared to surrounding coastal habitats during the summer months. Juvenile GSTs …
Vertical Movements Of Shortfin Mako Sharks Isurus Oxyrinchus In The Western North Atlantic Ocean Are Strongly Influenced By Temperature, Jeremy J. Vaudo, Bradley M. Wetherbee, Anthony D. Wood, Kevin C. Weng, Et Al
Vertical Movements Of Shortfin Mako Sharks Isurus Oxyrinchus In The Western North Atlantic Ocean Are Strongly Influenced By Temperature, Jeremy J. Vaudo, Bradley M. Wetherbee, Anthony D. Wood, Kevin C. Weng, Et Al
VIMS Articles
Although shortfin mako sharks Isurus oxyrinchus are regularly encountered in pelagic fisheries, limited information is available on their vertical distribution and is primarily restricted to cooler areas of their geographic range. We investigated the vertical movements of mako sharks across differing temperature regimes within the western North Atlantic by tagging 8 individuals with pop-up satellite archival tags off the northeastern United States and the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico. Depth and temperature records across 587 d showed vertical movements strongly associated with ocean temperature. Temperatures150 m compared to only 1% in the coldest water columns. The sharks showed diel diving behavior, with …
Critical Assessment And Ramifications Of A Purported Marine Trophic Cascade, R. Dean Grubbs, John K. Carleson, Jason G. Romine, Tobey H. Curtis, W. David Mcelroy, Camilla T. Candless, Charles F. Cotton, John A. Musick
Critical Assessment And Ramifications Of A Purported Marine Trophic Cascade, R. Dean Grubbs, John K. Carleson, Jason G. Romine, Tobey H. Curtis, W. David Mcelroy, Camilla T. Candless, Charles F. Cotton, John A. Musick
VIMS Articles
When identifying potential trophic cascades, it is important to clearly establish the trophic linkages between predators and prey with respect to temporal abundance, demographics, distribution, and diet. In the northwest Atlantic Ocean, the depletion of large coastal sharks was thought to trigger a trophic cascade whereby predation release resulted in increased cownose ray abundance, which then caused increased predation on and subsequent collapse of commercial bivalve stocks. These claims were used to justify the development of a predator-control fishery for cownose rays, the “Save the Bay, Eat a Ray” fishery, to reduce predation on commercial bivalves. A reexamination of data …
Embryonic Development And A Quantitative Model Of Programmed Dna Elimination In Mesocyclops Edax (S. A. ) (Copepoda: Cyclopoida), Mk Clower, As Holub, Rt Smith, Ga Wyngaard
Embryonic Development And A Quantitative Model Of Programmed Dna Elimination In Mesocyclops Edax (S. A. ) (Copepoda: Cyclopoida), Mk Clower, As Holub, Rt Smith, Ga Wyngaard
VIMS Articles
The highly programmed fragmentation of chromosomes and elimination of large amounts of nuclear DNA from the presomatic cell lineages (i.e., chromatin diminution), occurs in the embryos of the freshwater zooplankton Mesocyclops edax (S. A. Forbes, 1891) (Crustacea: Copepoda). The somatic genome is reorganized and reduced to a size five times smaller even though the germline genome remains intact. We present the first comprehensive, quantitative model of DNA content throughout embryogenesis in a copepod that possesses embryonic DNA elimination. We used densitometric image analysis to measure the DNA content of polar bodies, germline and somatic nuclei, and excised DNA “droplets.” …
Data-Limited Population-Status Evaluation Of Two Coastal Fishes In Southern Angola Using Recreational Catch Length-Frequency Data, Jennifer Beckensteiner, David M. Kaplan, Warren M. Potts, Carmen V. Santos, Michael R. O'Farrell
Data-Limited Population-Status Evaluation Of Two Coastal Fishes In Southern Angola Using Recreational Catch Length-Frequency Data, Jennifer Beckensteiner, David M. Kaplan, Warren M. Potts, Carmen V. Santos, Michael R. O'Farrell
VIMS Articles
Excessive truncation of a population's size structure is often identified as an important deleterious effect of exploitation, yet the effect on population persistence of size-structure truncation caused by exploitation is often not quantified due to data limitations. In this study, we estimate changes in eggs per recruit (EPR)using annual length-frequency samples over a 9 year period to assess persistence of the two most important recreational fishes in southern Angola: west coast dusky kob (Argyrosomus coronus) and leerfish (Lichia amia). Using a length-and age-structured model, we improve on an existing method to fit this type of model to length-frequency data and …
The Dilemma Of Derelict Gear, Andrew M. Scheld, Donna M. Bilkovic, Kirk J. Havens
The Dilemma Of Derelict Gear, Andrew M. Scheld, Donna M. Bilkovic, Kirk J. Havens
VIMS Articles
Every year, millions of pots and traps are lost in crustacean fisheries around the world. Derelict fishing gear has been found to produce several harmful environmental and ecological effects, however socioeconomic consequences have been investigated less frequently. We analyze the economic effects of a substantial derelict pot removal program in the largest estuary of the United States, the Chesapeake Bay. By combining spatially resolved data on derelict pot removals with commercial blue crab (Callinectes sapidus) harvests and effort, we show that removing 34,408 derelict pots led to significant gains in gear efficiency and an additional 13,504 MT in harvest valued …
Influence Of Biological Factors On Connectivity Patterns For Concholepas Concholepas (Loco) In Chile, Lysel Garavelli, Franois Colas, Philippe Verley, David Michael Kaplan, Beatriz Yannicelli, Christophe Lett
Influence Of Biological Factors On Connectivity Patterns For Concholepas Concholepas (Loco) In Chile, Lysel Garavelli, Franois Colas, Philippe Verley, David Michael Kaplan, Beatriz Yannicelli, Christophe Lett
VIMS Articles
In marine benthic ecosystems, larval connectivity is a major process influencing the maintenance and distribution of invertebrate populations. Larval connectivity is a complex process to study as it is determined by several interacting factors. Here we use an individual-based, biophysical model, to disentangle the effects of such factors, namely larval vertical migration, larval growth, larval mortality, adults fecundity, and habitat availability, for the marine gastropod Concholepas concholepas (loco) in Chile. Lower transport success and higher dispersal distances are observed including larval vertical migration in the model. We find an overall decrease in larval transport success to settlement areas from northern …
Diel Variations In Survey Catch Rates And Survey Catchability Of Spiny Dogfish And Their Pelagic Prey In The Northeast Us Continental Shelf Large Marine Ecosystem, Skyler R. Sagarese, Michael G. Frisk, Robert M. Cerrato, Kathy A. Sosebee, John A. Musick
Diel Variations In Survey Catch Rates And Survey Catchability Of Spiny Dogfish And Their Pelagic Prey In The Northeast Us Continental Shelf Large Marine Ecosystem, Skyler R. Sagarese, Michael G. Frisk, Robert M. Cerrato, Kathy A. Sosebee, John A. Musick
VIMS Articles
This study examines the potential uncertainty in survey biomass estimates of Spiny Dogfish Squalus acanthias in the Northeast U.S. Continental Shelf Large Marine Ecosystem (NES LME). Diel catch-per-unit-effort (CPUE) estimates are examined from the Northeast Fisheries Science Center bottom trawl surveys conducted during autumn (1963-2009) and spring (1968-2009). Influential environmental variables on survey catchability are identified for Spiny Dogfish life history stages and five pelagic prey species: Butterfish Peprilus triacanthus, Atlantic Herring Clupea harengus, shortfin squid Illex spp., longfin squid Doryteuthis spp., and Atlantic Mackerel Scomber scombrus. Daytime survey catchability was significantly higher than nighttime catchability for most species during …
Habitat Disturbance Combined With Life History Traits Facilitate Establishment Of Rapana Venosa In The Chesapeake Bay, Juliana M. Harding, Roger L. Mann
Habitat Disturbance Combined With Life History Traits Facilitate Establishment Of Rapana Venosa In The Chesapeake Bay, Juliana M. Harding, Roger L. Mann
VIMS Articles
The veined rapa whelk (Rapana renosa) invasion of the Chesapeake Bay in the United States was first observed in 1998. Chesapeake Bay rapa whelk population demographics, age-at-length relationships, and invasion progression (temporal, spatial) from 1998 to 2009 are described. Between June 1998 and November 2009, 27,624 rapa whelks, ranging from 11- to 195 mm shell length (SL), were collected from the lower Bay. Using a Von Bertalanffy age-at-length model (R-2=0.99), the 195-mm SL whelk collected in 2007 was 26 y old, making 1981 the estimated year of first introduction. Age-frequency distributions for Ocean View, Hampton Bar, and the lower James …