Life Sciences Commons^™

The Status Of Seals In The Gulf Of Mexico With A Record Of Feral Otariid Seals Off The United States Gulf Coast, Gordon Gunter

Gulf and Caribbean Research

The only seal native to the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean area is the West Indian seal (family Phocidae). It is tan on the upper surface and a yellowish white underneath. It is now extinct or nearly so. Two seals were reported in Louisiana near the mouth of the Mississippi in January 1966. Photographs of one animal taken from a helicopter showed an otariid seal. In late June a light colored otariid seal began to reside on the buoys of the ship channel leading into Mobile Bay. It stayed there about two and a half weeks. The animal was …

Seasonal Occurrence Of The Pelagic Copepoda In Mississippi Sound, Thomas D. Mcilwain

Gulf and Caribbean Research

Collections of planktonic copepods from Mississippi Sound were made from January 1965 to March 1966. The following fifteen free­ living copepods were identified: Eucalanus pileatus, Paracalanus par­vus, Centropages hamatus, Centropages furcatus, Temora stylifera, Temora longicornis, Labidocera aestiva, Labidocera species, Acartia tonsa, Oithona brevicornis, Oithona species, Oncaea venusta, Cory­caeus species, Sappharina nigromaculata and Euterpina acutifrons.

It was found that there is a definite seasonal distribution of cope­pods in Mississippi Sound with peak populations of copepods occu­rring in the spring, summer and fall.

Meristic And Morphometric Data On The Flatfish Citharichthys Gilberti From Panama, C.E. Dawson

Gulf and Caribbean Research

Citharichthys gilberti Jenkins and Evermann, a common eastern Pacific flatfish, is known from Guaymas and Baja California, Mexico, south to Peru (Miller, 1966). It attains a total length of at least 260 mm (Meek and Hildebrand, 1928), frequently occurs on muddy bottoms and may enter rivers or other brackish water environments. Despite wide distribution there are apparently few literature references to the species and little is known of its life history or development. During a recent trip to the Pacific coast of Panama, C. gilberti was found to be the most abundant flatfish taken at a number of poisoned inshore …

A Supplement To The Fauna And Flora Of Horn Island, Mississippi, E. Avery Richmond

Gulf and Caribbean Research

Since the publication of “The Fauna and Flora of Horn Island, Mississippi’’ (Richmond 1962) search for unrecorded species present on this island, or in the waters surrounding it, has been continuing by myself and others. The premise that all of the plants and animals living in a given area can never be located completely is naturally well-founded. However, it seems advisable to continue the search for unlisted species of Horn Island.

Many unrecorded specimens have been collected and it seems proper at this time to make a supplementary list available to the public, particularly those interested in fields of science …

Observations On The Stone Crab, Menippe Mercenaria Say, In The Vicinity Of Port Aransas, Texas, Earnest H. Powell Jr., Gordon Gunter

Gulf and Caribbean Research

Observations on the stone crab, Menippe mercenaria Say, were started on December 16, 1947. The purpose of these observations was to study the natural history and behavior of this crab, with special reference to its importance as an oyster predator. Plans called for some simple laboratory experimentation and monthly field observations. Although the regularity of the observations was interrupted for various reasons, some information gained which may interest workers is herewith presented.

A Commensal Relationship Between A Foraminifer And A Bivalve Mollusk, Wayne D. Bock, Donald R. Moore

Gulf and Caribbean Research

During June, 1960, the M/V Hermes of the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory made several trawl hauls south of Horn Island, Mississippi. One haul was made June 27 at a depth of 20 m. on sandy mud botton at 30°04’30” N., 88”36’ W., or about 10 nautical miles south of Horn Island. A considerable number of animals, including starfish, hermit crabs and tube worms, were caught in the trawl. Pieces of the parchment-like worm tube of Chaetopterus variopedatus (Renier) were caught in the meshes of the net and were also collected.

A small bivalve mollusk, Notocorbula operculata (Philippi 1848) was found …