Marine Biology Commons^™

Natural And Anthropogenic Oil Impacts On Benthic Foraminifera In The Southern Gulf Of Mexico, M. L. Machain-Castillo, A. C. Ruiz-Fernández, Adolfo Gracia, J. A. Sanchez-Cabeza, A. Rodríguez-Ramírez, H. M. Alexander-Valdés, L. H. Pérez-Bernal, X. A. Nava-Fernández, L. E. Gómez-Lizárraga, L. Almaraz-Ruiz, Patrick Schwing, David Hollander

Marine Science Faculty Publications

The Campeche Sound is the major offshore oil producing area in the Southern Gulf of Mexico (SGoM). To evaluate the impact of oil related activities in the ocean floor sediments, we analyzed the geochemical (major and trace element, organic carbon and hydrocarbon concentrations) and biological (benthic foraminifera) composition of 62 superficial sediment samples, from 13 to 1336 m water depth. Cluster and Factor analysis of all the variables indicate that their distribution patterns are mainly controlled by differences between the terrigenous and carbonate platforms in the SGoM. Benthic foraminiferal assemblages were abundant and diverse, and their distribution patterns are mainly …

New Host Records And Range Extensions For Helminth Parasites From Wading Birds In Southeastern Florida, Sarah Gumbleton, David Kerstetter, Amy Hirons, Christopher Blanar

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

Six species of wading birds collected from wildlife centers throughout South Florida were dissected for parasites. Twenty-six species of parasites represent new host records and five parasite species represent new geographic range extensions.

Characterization Of Red Mangrove Proproot Epibiont Communities Of St. Johns Usvi, Alan M. Buob

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

In May 1989, Hurricane Hugo impacted St. Johns USVI destroying the Red Mangrove (Rhizophora mangle) Forest of Great Lameshur Bay. The impact restricted the tidal flow and caused massive destruction in the mangroves. Hurricane Marilyn (1995) hit St. John causing the storm wall formed by Hugo to be washed out. It returned limited tidal flow to the dead forest. It was not until a subsequent hurricane in 2010 broke down the sediment wall and natural flow returned. Up to that point, water quality restricted any fouling organisms’ survival on the prop roots. By using photo identification, three different bays of …

Evaluating Responses Of Benthic Macrofauna To Artificial Reef Presence In The Gulf Of Mexico, Douglas Faircloth

Theses and Dissertations

Artificial reef research has long concerned itself with the interactions of fishes and has tended to favor commercially valuable species. Because of this, a larger yet less known group that heavily benefits fishes have been overlooked; benthic macrofauna. Benthic macrofauna are marine invertebrates that live below the sediment-water interface and play many roles in the ecosystem. Macrofauna are important prey items, ecosystem engineers, and bioindicators, as well as being ubiquitous in the marine environment. Since macrofauna have been largely ignored in this field, not much is known regarding their interaction with the placement of artificial reefs. To try and fill …

Developing Multispectral Imaging Techniques To Determine Canopy Coverage And Carbon Storage Of Seagrasses In The Gulf Of Mexico, Ivy Michelle Hinson

Theses and Dissertations

Although seagrass beds provide global ecosystem services, coverage is in rapid decline, with the capacity of seagrasses to sequester carbon of special concern. Current seagrass monitoring methods are labor intensive and may not offer a complete picture of coverage. Remote sensing offers the ability to oversee landscapes but water in coastal environments presents challenges, as the commonly used near-infrared wavelength dissipates in water.

This project aimed to provide reliable methodology to assess seagrass coverage using multispectral imagery taken from an unmanned aerial vehicle and to provide evidence for the link between seagrass coverage and stored belowground carbon for common seagrasses …

Spatial And Temporal Variation In The Diet Composition Of Zooplankton In Mission Bay, Bryanna Paulson

Theses

Analyses of quantitative data on zooplankton diets are vital for understanding the drivers of zooplankton abundance within an ecosystem. Such analyses also provide insight into trophic pathways within the lower planktonic food web, which support populations of higher trophic level species. This study used carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios of size-fractionated plankton in Mission Bay, San Diego, CA to examine the spatial and temporal variation in zooplankton trophic ecology and determine potential environmental drivers of zooplankton community structure. Carbon stable isotopes reflect primary production sources in an organism’s diet, and nitrogen stable isotope ratios can be used to estimate …

Reconstruction Of Northeastern Pacific Ocean Holocene Production Using Marine Mammal Archaeofauna, Andrea M. Traffichini

HCNSO Student Theses and Dissertations

Changes in marine production play a key role in determining the trophic structure of the northeastern Pacific Ocean. This is a region of great environmental fluctuations due to modern, historical, and paleo-environmental variability recorded throughout the Holocene. These fluctuations are recorded in the bone collagen of the marine mammals that reside in these waters. Marine mammal remains from four previously excavated archaeological deposits on Unalaska Island, Alaska are used as a proxy for marine production changes throughout the Holocene (4,500 BP to 350 BP). Historic and modern samples from museum collections, subsistence harvests, and previously published data provide a distinct …

A Characterization Of A Southeast Florida Stony Coral Assemblage After A Disease Event, Nicole K. Hayes

HCNSO Student Theses and Dissertations

Coral reefs have declined globally due to anthropogenic stressors increasing the frequency and severity of bleaching and disease events. In 2014, a stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD) outbreak occurred off the coast of southeast Florida and subsequently spread throughout the region. Data collected by the Southeast Florida Reef Evaluation and Monitoring Project (SECREMP) were used to examine the regional impacts of the disease event on the Southeast Florida stony coral assemblage. A long-term annual monitoring project, SECREMP samples permanent sites along the Southeast Florida Reef Tract (SEFRT) from Miami-Dade County north to Martin County. Analysis of stony coral demographic …

Spatial And Temporal Trends In The Xestospongia Muta (Giant Barrel Sponge) Population On The Southeast Florida Reef Tract, Alanna D. Waldman

HCNSO Student Theses and Dissertations

Xestospongia muta, the giant barrel sponge, is a key component of coral reef benthic communities in Southeast Florida and the Caribbean. Xestospongia muta increases habitat complexity and stability, and filters large volumes of water, enhancing water quality and facilitating nutrient cycling. Therefore, it is important to investigate trends in the X. muta population on Southeast Florida reefs in response to anthropogenic stressors, changing environmental conditions and acute disturbances and how these events affect its ecological role in the benthic community. This study identified trends in X. muta population density, volume, and size class distribution over time and across reef …

Short-Lived Radioisotope (Slrad) Data Collected Aboard R/V Weatherbird Ii Cruise Wb-0517 In The Gulf Of Mexico From 2017-05-11 To 2017-05-23, Gregg R. Brooks, Rebekka A. Larson, Patrick Schwing

C-IMAGE data

This dataset contains short-lived radioisotope (SLRad) data collected aboard R/V Weatherbird II cruise WB-0517 in the Gulf of Mexico from 2017-05-11 to 2017-05-23. SLRad data are generated for selected core sub-samples at 2mm sampling intervals for “surficial unit” and 5mm sampling resolution intervals to the base of cores. SLRad data generated include sample activity as disintegrations per minute per gram(dpm/g) of 1) Excess Thorium-234 (234Thxs) activity, which is calculated by measuring the total Thorium-234 (234ThTot) activity and the subtraction of the measured or estimated “Supported” Thorium-234 (234ThSup) activity, 2) Excess Lead-210 (210Pbxs) activity, which is calculated by measuring the total …

Timing And Potential Drivers Of Symbiont Selection In The Early Life Stages Of The Massive Starlet Coral Siderastrea Siderea, Sarah G. Koerner

HCNSO Student Theses and Dissertations

The ability of corals to build reefs can be attributed to their relationship with single-celled algae of the familySymbiodiniaceae.Through the process of photosynthesis, these algae can provide their coral hosts with over 90% of their daily energy requirements. Most coral species acquire multiple species of symbionts from the surrounding water during their larval stage or immediately after settling. However, over time, the coral will select a dominant symbiont speciesthat can depend on the local environment. Until this study, the size or age of the coral at which this transition from multiple Symbiodiniaceaespecies to one dominant species occurs has remained …

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 …

Desperate Coral Larvae? Behavioral Responses To Settlement Cues In Aging Agaricia Agaricites Larvae, Helena Sasha Fulmore

HCNSO Student Theses and Dissertations

The global stressors of ocean warming and acidification, as well as local stressors such as eutrophication, overfishing, and coastal construction, have all contributed to the severe decline in coral populations worldwide. Recovery of coral reefs depends partly on recruitment, which relies on the response of larvae to settlement cues indicative of habitat quality; however, it remains unclear whether recruitment in disturbed areas will be compromised. Specifically, as reefs become more disturbed and dominated by macroalgae, it is important to understand larval behavior in response to changes in habitat quality. In this study, we first assessed the settlement success of newly …

Optimizing Lighting Regimes For Rearing Orbicella Faveolata And Acropora Cervicornis Recruits, Paul D. Kreh

HCNSO Student Theses and Dissertations

Coral reef decline worldwide has led to the need for coral reef restoration. The use of sexual reproduction in restoration efforts is required to increase genetic diversity; however, the procedures for rearing newly-settled coral recruits ex situ still need to be optimized. Recruits initially require low light irradiance, but it is unclear when higher irradiances are required to enhance growth and survival. Here we determined the optimal light regime for Orbicella faveolata and Acropora cervicornis recruits. Newly settled recruits were reared under treatments with varied rates of increasing irradiance (after reaching 5 weeks of age), and their survival, growth, and …

The ‘Law Of Environmental Dependence’ - Biology And Ethics In The Work Of Ernest Everett Just: + Found – Some 251 Mostly Typed Pages, Theodore Walker

Perkins Faculty Research and Special Events

Abstract-

“The Origin of Man’s Ethical Behavior” (circa October 1941) by Ernest Everett Just and Hedwig A. Schnetzler Just - is an unpublished book manuscript about the biological origins and evolution of ethical behavior, and about “the law of environmental dependence.” Missing since Just’s death in October 1941, it was found and identified in May 2018 among the collected papers of Ernest Everett Just preserved at the Howard University Moorland-Spingarn Research Center in Washington, DC. In addition to the 1996 US postage with the caption “Ernest E. Just, Biologist,” we now have reason to add two new postage stamps with …

Bulk Density/Porewater Of Sediment Cores Collected Aboard R/V Weatherbird Ii Cruise Wb-0517 In The Gulf Of Mexico From 2017-05-11 To 2017-05-23, Gregg R. Brooks, Rebekka A. Larson

C-IMAGE data

This dataset contains Bulk Density/Porewater of sediment cores collected aboard R/V Weatherbird II cruise WB-0517 in the Gulf of Mexico from 2017-05-11 to 2017-05-23. Twelve sites were sampled using a multi-corer between 316 and 1670 m depth around northwest Cuba. The dataset contains the location, date, water depth, core ID, and top depth of interval (mm), bottom depth of interval (mm), average depth of interval (mm), wet weight (g), dry weight (g), sample volume (cm3), bulk density (g/cm3), and % pore water. Measurement of sediment sample wet weight (g) and dry weight (g) for core sub-samples at 2mm sampling intervals …

Sediment Texture & Composition Data Collected Aboard R/V Weatherbird Ii Cruise Wb-0517 In The Gulf Of Mexico From 2017-05-11 To 2017-05-23, Gregg R. Brooks, Rebekka A. Larson

C-IMAGE data

This dataset contains sediment texture & composition data collected aboard R/V Weatherbird II cruise WB-0517 in the Gulf of Mexico from 2017-05-11 to 2017-05-23. Twelve sites were sampled using a multi-corer between 316 and 1670 m depth around northwest Cuba. Sediment texture and composition data are generated for selected core sub-samples at 2mm sampling intervals for “surficial unit” and 5mm sampling resolution intervals to the base of cores. Sediment texture values are expressed as % Gravel, % Sand, % Silt and % Clay as calculated by dry weight (g), % Mud can be calculated by combining % Silt and % …

Microbial Analysis Of Surfactant-Associated Bacteria In The Sea Surface Microlayer And Remote Sensing Of Associated Slicks, Georgia Parks

HCNSO Student Theses and Dissertations

The sea-surface microlayer (SML) is the boundary layer at the air-sea interface where many biogeochemical processes occur. Many organisms (e.g., bacteria) produce surface active agents (surfactants) for life processes, which accumulate in the SML and dampen short gravity-capillary waves, resulting in sea surface slicks. Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) is capable of remotely sensing these features on the sea surface by measuring reflected backscatter from the ocean surface in microwaves. This study coordinates SAR overpasses with in situ SML and subsurface (SSW) microbial sample collection to guide subsequent analysis after 16s rRNA sequencing on the Illumina MiSeq. In April …

An Index To Better Estimate Tropical Cyclone Intensity Change In The Western North Pacific, Woojeong Lee, Sung-Hun Kim, Pao-Shin Chu, Il-Ju Moon, Alexander Soloviev

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

A revised predictor called the net energy gain rate (NGR) is suggested by considering wind dependent drag coefficient based on the existing maximum potential intensity theory. A series of wind speed dependent NGR, known as NGR‐w, is calculated based on pre‐tropical cyclone (TC) averaged ocean temperatures from the surface down to 120 m (at 10‐m intervals) to include the TC‐induced vertical mixing for 13 years (2004–2016) in the western North Pacific. It turns out that the NGR50‐w (NGR‐w based on temperature averaged over top 50 m) has the highest correlation with 24‐h TC intensity …

Some Environmental And Biological Determinants Of Coral Richness, Resilience And Reef Building In Galápagos (Ecuador), Bernhard Riegl, Matthew Johnston, Peter W. Glynn, Inti Keith, Fernando Rivera, Mariana Vera-Zambrano, Stuart Banks, Joshua Feingold, Peter J. Glynn

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

Throughout the Galápagos, differences in coral reef development and coral population dynamics were evaluated by monitoring populations from 2000–2019, and environmental parameters (sea temperatures, pH, NO₃⁻, PO₄³⁻) from 2015–19. The chief goal was to explain apparent coral community differences between the northern (Darwin and Wolf) and southern (Sta. Cruz, Fernandina, San Cristóbal, Española, Isabela) islands. Site coral species richness was highest at Darwin and Wolf. In the three most common coral taxa, a declining North (N)-South (S) trend in colony sizes existed for Porites lobata and Pocillopora spp., but not for Pavona spp. …

Decomposition Of Sediment-Oil-Agglomerates In A Gulf Of Mexico Sandy Beach, Ioana Bociu, Boryoung Shin, Wm Brian Wells, Joel E Kostka, Konstantinos T Konstantinidis, Markus Huettel

C-IMAGE Publications

Sediment-oil-agglomerates (SOA) are one of the most common forms of contamination impacting shores after a major oil spill; and following the Deepwater Horizon (DWH) accident, large numbers of SOAs were buried in the sandy beaches of the northeastern Gulf of Mexico. SOAs provide a source of toxic oil compounds, and although SOAs can persist for many years, their long-term fate was unknown. Here we report the results of a 3-year in-situ experiment that quantified the degradation of standardized SOAs buried in the upper 50 cm of a North Florida sandy beach. Time series of hydrocarbon mass, carbon content, n-alkanes, PAHs, …

Comparison Of Age And Growth Parameters Of Invasive Red Lionfish (Pterois Volitans) Across The Northern Gulf Of Mexico, Alexander Q. Fogg, Joseph T. Evans, Mark S. Peterson, Nancy Brown-Peterson, Eric R. Hoffmayer, G. Walter Ingram Jr.

Faculty Publications

Invasive red lionfish (Pterois volitans) have spread rapidly throughout the northern Gulf of Mexico (GOM) partly because of their high growth rate. Red lionfish were collected from the northern GOM across 3 ecological regions from 2012 through 2015. For male and female red lionfish, relationships between weight and total length (TL) were differnt by ecological region. Males acheives a greater mean weight adjusted for TL (333.6 g [standar errer (SE) 3.6]) than females (195.1 g [SE 3.7]). A subsample of 1607 pairs of sagittal otoliths (from 744 males, 716 females, and 147 fish of unknown or undetermined sex) …

Transcriptomics Of Female Golden Tilefish (Lopholatilus Chamaeleonticeps) Collected Aboard Multiple R/V Weatherbird Ii Cruises In The Gulf Of Mexico From 2015-08-15 To 2016-09-09, Steven Murawski, Kristina Deak, Larry Dishaw

C-IMAGE data

This dataset contains transcriptomics of female golden tilefish (Lopholatilus chamaeleonticeps) collected from the Gulf of Mexico aboard R/V Weatherbird II cruises WB-1602, WB-1603 and WB-1701 from 2015-08-15 to 2016-09-09. Transcriptome analysis was performed in fifteen female (by macroscopic gonad evaluation) golden tilefish livers collected during 2015-2016 C-IMAGE demersal longline cruises in the Gulf of Mexico. These fish were caught at three stations, including one impacted by the Deepwater Horizon spill in the northern Gulf, one within the Campeche Bay oil fields, and one offshore the Yucatan peninsula, with no surrounding oil extraction activity. Differential gene expression between stations was evaluated …

Hepatic Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (Pahs) Concentrations In Groupers Collected Aboard Multiple Research And Fishing Vessels In The Gulf Of Mexico From 2011-07-07 To 2017-07-30, Erin Pulster, Justin Mrowicki, Steven A. Murawski, Brigid Carr

C-IMAGE data

This dataset contains hepatic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) concentrations in groupers collected aboard multiple research and fishing vessels (R/V Weatherbird II, F/V Brandy, F/V Pisces, F/V SeaFox) in the Gulf of Mexico from 2011-07-07 to 2017-07-30. The dataset contains the location, date, type of grouper, concentrations of various PAHs in liver tissue (ng/g w.w.), and the total or sum of the low and high molecular weight PAHs (ng/g w.w.). PAHs were extracted from homogenized liver tissues using QuEChERS EMR (Agilent Technologies, Bond Elut) and confirmed and quantified using an Agilent’s 7890B gas chromatograph (GC) coupled to a 7010 tandem mass …

Histological Examination Of Livers Of Golden Tilefish (Lopholatilus Chamaeleonticeps) Collected Aboard Multiple R/V Weatherbird Ii Cruises In The Gulf Of Mexico From 2012-08-14 To 2016-09-06, Erin Pulster, S. Fogelson, S. Synder

C-IMAGE data

This dataset contains a histological examination of livers of golden tilefish (Lopholatilus chamaeleonticeps) collected aboard the R/V Weatherbird II cruises WB-1304, WB-1403, WB-1502, WB-1602, WB-1603, and WB-1701 in the Gulf of Mexico from 2012-08-14 to 2016-09-06. The dataset includes the identified presence of histological changes and images of the gross and histological evaluations. Formalin-fixed tissues were individually evaluated for color, texture, size, shape, and consistency. Photographs were taken with a Sony-Cybershot camera (Sony Corporation, Minato, Tokyo, Japan). At least two photographs were taken of the samples from each container. The first photo contained the label along with the tissues from …

Density-Dependent Condition And Growth Of Invasive Lionfish In The Northern Gulf Of Mexico, Kristin A. Dahl, Morgan A. Edwards, William F. Patterson Iii

C-IMAGE Publications

Absent natural population control, invasive red lionfish Pterois volitans (hereafter, lionfish) have reached record densities in the northern Gulf of Mexico (nGOM), though the role of density dependence on their population dynamics remains poorly understood. This study examined the effects of population density, sex, and habitat on lionfish condition (i.e. mass relative to total length) and size-at-age. Lionfish density was estimated with a remotely operated vehicle during 2010-2017 at a series of nGOM natural (n = 16) and artificial (n = 22) reefs, and individual lionfish (n = 3296) were sampled at additional reefs in the same system between 2013 …

Nutrient Controls Over Cyanobacterial Synthesis Of The Neurotoxin Β-N-Methylamino-L-Alanine (Bmaa) And Its Potential Accumulation In The Blue Crab (Callinectes Sapidus), Madeline M. Hummel

OES Theses and Dissertations

Cyanobacteria are known to produce a variety of toxins that negatively impact both aquatic and terrestrial organisms. One putative neurotoxic compound is the non-protein amino acid β-N-methylamino-L-alanine (BMAA), which has epidemiological linkages to the development of several human neurological diseases. Three cyanobacterial species thought to produce BMAA —Microcystis aeruginosa, Synechococcus bacillaris, and Nostoc sp. —were grown in nutrient replete cultures to examine its synthesis and cellular distribution over a growth cycle. Production of BMAA was also examined in nutrient (nitrogen and phosphorus) deplete cultures of Microcystis aeruginosa. In addition, natural assemblages of phytoplankton dominated by …

Energetic Consequences Of Human Impacts For Bioindicator Atlantic Ghost Crab (Ocypode Quadrata), Mustafa Remzi Gül

Theses and Dissertations

Human activities have caused notable changes in ecosystems globally over the past century, which cause substantial ecological issues. The degree of these ecological issues is often investigated using the responses of bioindicator species. Bioindicator species often reduce their population densities and individual sizes as a response to the human disturbance. Observing these variations in the demographics is often an effective way to measure the strength of the ecological changes. However, they do not provide any mechanistic reason (s) for the shifts in the demographics, which is important for making predictions about responses of the species to the future conditions. Therefore, …

Coral Reef Change Detection In Remote Pacific Islands Using Support Vector Machine Classifiers, Justin J. Gapper, Hesham El-Askary, Erik Linstead, Thomas Piechota

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Despite the abundance of research on coral reef change detection, few studies have been conducted to assess the spatial generalization principles of a live coral cover classifier trained using remote sensing data from multiple locations. The aim of this study is to develop a machine learning classifier for coral dominated benthic cover-type class (CDBCTC) based on ground truth observations and Landsat images, evaluate the performance of this classifier when tested against new data, then deploy the classifier to perform CDBCTC change analysis of multiple locations. The proposed framework includes image calibration, support vector machine (SVM) training and tuning, statistical assessment …

Diversity Of The Brown Alga Dictyota Between Deep And Shallow Reefs Of Hawaii, Mary Ade, Rachael M. Wade, Heather L. Spalding, Alison R. Sherwood

Celebration of Learning

In this presentation, I compile the results of 10 weeks of an NSF-funded REU during the summer of 2018. This research is regarding the biodiversity of Dictyota species found in the mesophotic and shallow reef ecosystems in the Hawaiian islands.