Marine Biology Commons^™

Marine Bioactives From Saccharina Latissima, Orlaith O'Connell

Masters

Due to rapid global urbanization and therefore increased adoption of a 'Westernized' lifestyle, including decreased physical activity and increased consumption of highly processed and refined foods with a high sugar, fat and salt content, prevalence of gastrointestinal disorders are on the rise. Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in particular is closely associated with this type of lifestyle. IBD is a term used to describe chronic inflammatory conditions which affects all or parts of the gastrointestinal tract. It includes conditions such as Crohn's Disease, which affects all the gastrointestinal tract and Ulcerative Colitis which mainly affects the colan. Due to the role …

High Frequency Temperature Variability Reduces The Risk Of Coral Bleaching, Aryan Safaie, Nyssa J. Silbiger, Timothy R. Mcclanahan, Geno Pawlak, Daniel J. Barshis, James L. Hench, Gareth J. Williams, Kristen A. Davis

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Coral bleaching is the detrimental expulsion of algal symbionts from their cnidarian hosts, and predominantly occurs when corals are exposed to thermal stress. The incidence and severity of bleaching is often spatially heterogeneous within reef-scales (km), and is therefore not predictable using conventional remote sensing products. Here, we systematically assess the relationship between in situ measurements of 20 environmental variables, along with seven remotely sensed SST thermal stress metrics, and 81 observed bleaching events at coral reef locations spanning five major reef regions globally. We find that high-frequency temperature variability (i.e., daily temperature range) was the most influential factor in …

Sea Turtles And Survivability In Demersal Trawl Fisheries: Do Comatose Olive Ridley Sea Turtles Survive Post-Release?, Sara M. Maxwell, Matthew J. Witt, Gaspard Abitsi, Marie Pierre Aboro, Pierre Didier Agamboue, Georges Mba Asseko, Francois Boussamba, Emmanuel Chartain, Micheline Schummer Gnandji, Brice Didier Koumba Mabert

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Incidental capture of air‑breathing species in fishing gear is a major source of mortality for many threatened populations. Even when individuals are discarded alive, they may not survive due to direct injury, or due to more cryptic internal physiological injury such as decompression sickness. Post‑release mortality, however, can be difficult to determine. In this pilot study, we deployed survivorship pop‑up archival tags (sPAT) (n = 3) for an air‑breathing species, the olive ridley sea turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea), one of the first studies to do so. We found that at least two of the three turtles survived after being …

Integrating Dynamic Subsurface Habitat Metrics Into Species Distribution Models, Stephanie Brodie, Michael G. Jacox, Steven J. Bograd, Heather Welch, Heidi Dewar, Kylie L. Scales, Sara M. Maxwell, Dana M. Briscoe, Christopher A. Edwards, Larry B. Crowder, Rebecca L. Lewison, Elliott L. Hazen

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Species distribution models (SDMs) have become key tools for describing and predicting species habitats. In the marine domain, environmental data used in modeling species distributions are often remotely sensed, and as such have limited capacity for interpreting the vertical structure of the water column, or are sampled in situ, offering minimal spatial and temporal coverage. Advances in ocean models have improved our capacity to explore subsurface ocean features, yet there has been limited integration of such features in SDMs. Using output from a data-assimilative configuration of the Regional Ocean Modeling System, we examine the effect of including dynamic subsurface …

Clarifying The Range Of The Endangered Largetooth Sawfish In The United States, Jason C. Seitz, John D. Waters

Gulf and Caribbean Research

The United States population of the endangered Largetooth Sawfish (Pristis pristis) has a high probability of extinction. It is critical to identify areas with valid historical records as these areas may be important to the recovery of the species. The U.S. range is reported to extend as far east as Florida based on one vouchered specimen and 3 historical records from this state. Three of these reports presume a local capture location despite a lack of locality data. The vouchered specimen was presumed captured in southern Florida, but evidence suggests otherwise. Dried specimens observed in Florida were most likely imported …

Description Of A New Sound Produced By Nassau Grouper At Spawning Aggregation Sites, Timothy J. Rowell, Michelle T. Schärer, Richard S. Appeldoorn

Gulf and Caribbean Research

This study identified a new sound produced by Nassau Grouper in association with, although potentially not exclusive to, an agonistic interaction at a spawning aggregation. We have also provided a behavioral and acoustic description for identification of this sound in future studies. The discovery of a third type of sound produced by Nassau Grouper further highlights the importance of acoustic communication coupled with visual displays in fishes. Furthermore, identification of a new sound increases the ability to document the presence of this endangered species at spawning sites. Future efforts may reveal that the sound is produced within additional behavioral contexts …

Diel Activity Patterns And Movement Of Invasive Lionfish (Pterois Volitans/P. Miles) In The Florida Keys Identified Using Acoustic Telemetry, Michael Mccallister, Jeffrey Renchen, Benjamin Binder, Alejandro Acosta

Gulf and Caribbean Research

The invasion of Indo—Pacific lionfish (Pterois volitans/P. miles) throughout the Caribbean and southeastern U.S. Atlantic represents a significant ecological threat, yet few studies have examined the daily activity and movement patterns of this invasive species. In this study, passive acoustic telemetry was used to track lionfish at 4 coral reef sites in the Florida Keys. Fourteen lionfish were tagged among the 4 sites, and the total number of days tagged fish were detected ranged from 5 to 141 days. Hourly detection data revealed diel activity patterns with peaks at dawn and dusk. Mixed model analysis of detection data indicated a …

Characterizing Habitat Suitability For A Central‐Place Forager In A Dynamic Marine Environment, Dana K. Briscoe, Sabrina Fossette, Kylie L. Scales, Elliott L. Hazen, Steven J. Bograd, Sara M. Maxwell, Elizabeth A. Mchuon, Patrick W. Robibson, Carey Kuhn, Daniel P. Costa, Larry B. Crowder, Rebecca L. Lewison

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Characterizing habitat suitability for a marine predator requires an understanding of the environmental heterogeneity and variability over the range in which a population moves during a particular life cycle. Female California sea lions (Zalophus californianus) are central‐place foragers and are particularly constrained while provisioning their young. During this time, habitat selection is a function of prey availability and proximity to the rookery, which has important implications for reproductive and population success. We explore how lactating females may select habitat and respond to environmental variability over broad spatial and temporal scales within the California Current System. We combine near‐real‐time …

Impact Of Increased Green Turtle Nesting On Loggerhead Fitness, Amanda R. Carmichael

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Marine turtles exhibit strong fidelity to their nesting beaches, making the conservation of nesting beaches important for ensuring successful sea turtle populations. Conservation of these nesting beaches involves understanding how species interact with the environment and each other, and understanding how environmental change and population growth can affect the suitability of the nesting habitat. The Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge (ACNWR) is unusual in its high density of sea turtle nesting by two species: green (Chelonia mydas) and loggerhead (Caretta caretta) turtles. The ACNWR in Melbourne Beach, Florida was established in 1991 due to the high density of loggerhead nesting, …

Oyster Reef Restoration: Impacts On Infaunal Communities In A Shallow Water Estuary, Katherine P. Harris

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Oyster reefs are important estuarine ecosystems that provide habitat to many species including threatened and endangered wading birds and commercially important fishes and crabs. Infaunal organisms (i.e. small, aquatic animals that burrow in the sediment) are also supported by oyster reef habitats. Infaunal organisms are critical to marine food webs and are consumed by many important species that inhabit coastal estuaries. However, over the past century 85% of shellfish reef habitats have been lost, making restoration of these areas vital. Due to their important role in coastal food webs, infauna is hypothesized to be a strong indicator of habitat productivity …

Blooms Of Dinoflagellate Mixotrophs In A Lower Chesapeake Bay Tributary: Carbon And Nitrogen Uptake Over Diurnal, Seasonal, And Interannual Timescales, Margaret R. Mulholland, Ryan Morse, Todd Egerton, Peter W. Bernhardt, K. C. Filippino

OES Faculty Publications

A multi-year study was conducted in the eutrophic Lafayette River, a sub-tributary of the lower Chesapeake Bay during which uptake of inorganic and organic nitrogen (N) and C compounds was measured during multiple seasons and years when different dinoflagellate species were dominant. Seasonal dinoflagellate blooms included a variety of mixotrophic dinoflagellates including Heterocapsa triquetra in the late winter, Prorocentrum minimum in the spring, Akashiwo sanguinea in the early summer, and Scrippsiella trochoidea and Cochlodinium polykrikoides in late summer and fall. Results showed that no single N source fueled algal growth, rather rates of N and C uptake varied on seasonal …

River Report. State Of The Lower St. Johns River Basin, Florida: Water Quality, Fisheries, Aquatic Life, Contaminants, 2018, Environmental Protection Board, City Of Jacksonville, University Of North Florida, Jacksonville University, Gerry Pinto, Gretchen Bielmyer-Fraser, Nisse Goldberg, Anthony Ouellette, An-Phong Le, Radha Pyati, Charles Closmann, Brian P. Zoellner

State of the River Report

No abstract provided.

Negatively Correlated Abundance Suggests Competition Between Red Abalone (Haliotis Rufescens) And Red Sea Urchins (Mesocentrotus Franciscanus) Inside And Outside Established Mpas Closed To Commercial Sea Urchin Harvest In Northern California, Johnathan Centoni

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Red abalone and sea urchins are both important herbivores that potentially compete with each other for resources like food and space along the California coast. Red abalone supported a socioeconomically important recreational fishery during this study (which was closed in 2018) and red sea urchins support an important commercial fishery. Both red sea urchins and red abalone feed on the same macroalgae (including Pterygophora californica, Laminaria setchellii, Stephanocystis osmundacea, Costaria costata, Alaria marginata, Nereocystis leutkeana), and a low abundance of this food source during the period of this project may have created a highly competitive environment for urchins and …

Parasitaemia Data And Molecular Characterization Of Haemoproteus Catharti From New World Vultures (Cathartidae) Reveals A Novel Clade Of Haemosporida, Michael J. Yabsley, Ralph E.T. Vanstreels, Ellen S. Martinsen, Alexandra G. Wickson, Amanda E. Holland, Sonia M. Hernandez, Alec T. Thompson, Susan L. Perkins, Christopher A. Lawrence Bryan, Christopher A. Cleveland, Emily Jolly, Justin D. Brown, Dave Mcruer, Shannon Behmke, James C. Beasley

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Background: New World vultures (Cathartiformes: Cathartidae) are obligate scavengers comprised of seven species in five genera throughout the Americas. Of these, turkey vultures (Cathartes aura) and black vultures (Coragyps atratus) are the most widespread and, although ecologically similar, have evolved differences in morphology, physiology, and behaviour. Three species of haemosporidians have been reported in New World vultures to date: Haemoproteus catharti, Leucocytozoon toddi and Plasmodium elongatum, although few studies have investigated haemosporidian parasites in this important group of species. In this study, morphological and molecular methods were used to investi- gate the epidemiology and molecular biology of haemosporidian parasites of …

Diversity And Phylogenetic Relationships Of European Species Of Crepidostomum Braun, 1900 (Trematoda: Allocreadiidae) Based On Rdna, With Special Reference To Crepidostomum Oschmarini Zhokhov & Pugacheva, 1998, Romualda Petkevičiūtė, Virmantas Stunžėnas, Alexander E. Zhokhov, Larisa G. Poddubnaya, Gražina Stanevičiūtė

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

Background

Within the genus Crepidostomum Braun, 1900, identification of species and taxonomic decisions made only on the basis of adult morphology have resulted in great problems associated with evaluating actual diversity and validity of species. Life cycle data, while equal in importance to adult characters, are scarce, controversial or incomplete for most Crepidostomum spp. In this study, rDNA sequences generated from adult and larval Crepidostomum spp. and some other allocreadiid species were analyzed to reveal the diversity and phylogenetic relationships of the species and their host range. Detailed morphological description based on light microscopy, SEM tegumental surface topography and genetic …

Reproductive Biology Of The Tiger Shark In The Western Atlantic Ocean, Chelsea Shields

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Although tiger sharks are an important apex predator in many ecosystems, little is known about their reproduction. The goal of this study was to determine the size-at-maturity and the reproductive seasonality of tiger sharks in the western Atlantic Ocean. This was achieved using a combination of ultrasonography and measurements of plasma hormone concentrations; in particular, testosterone for males and estradiol and progesterone for females. Steroid hormone concentrations were measured using chemiluminescent assays (CLIA). Maturity was also examined through histology of reproductive organs in females and clasper calcification in males. Females were found to mature between 270 and 310 cm total …

An Investigation Into The Physiological Impacts Of Ocean Acidification On Recruits Of The Temperate Coral, Oculina Arbuscula, Brianne Varnerin

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Ocean acidification is well-researched with respect to adult scleractinian corals, however information on whether adults and recruits of the same species respond similarly to this environmental stress is lacking. I investigated the responses to increased pCO₂ of recruits of the temperate coral, Oculina arbuscula, whose adults are known to withstand high levels of pCO₂ with no depression in calcification (up to 1000 ppm CO₂). I addressed the hypothesis that O. arbuscula recruit health is not affected by increased pCO₂ by exposing small colonies (5-12mm diameter) to 475, 711, and 1270 ppm CO₂ for …

Environmental Factors Affecting Hatch Success In The Loggerhead Sea Turtle (Caretta Caretta), Mattie J. Whitesell

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) is a species federally listed as “threatened” whose global populations are declining. Georgia Department of Natural Resources conservation protocols for this species require the daily monitoring of nesting activity and permit physical relocation of nests which are at risk of being eroded or flooded by storms and high tides in order to increase hatch success--the proportion of hatched to unhatched eggs. Relocated nests are moved to an area with higher elevation in order to avoid flooding, but other variables such as increased temperature and decreased moisture are introduced when relocating. For years temperature …

Preliminary Multivariate Comparison Of Coral Assemblages On Carbonate Banks In The Western Gulf Of Mexico, Rebekah E. Rodriguez, Erin E. Easton, Thomas C. Shirley, John W. Tunnell, David Hicks

School of Earth, Environmental, & Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

Hermatypic corals flourished on reefs in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) in the late Pleistocene and early Holocene. Today, many of these relict reefs are mesophotic banks that have unique coral assemblages and provide critical habitat; however, the South Texas Banks (STB) lack quantitative surveys. Therefore, we used a remotely operated vehicle to conduct quantitative surveys of 5 banks: Baker, Aransas, Dream, Blackfish Ridge, and Harte. Coral communities, based on estimated coral densities (colonies/m2), significantly differed among banks for terraces, slopes, and overall (combined terrace and slope) communities for most banks examined. Within banks, terrace and slope communities significantly differed …

First Record Of The Yellowfin Soldierfish, Myripristis Chryseresjordan & Evermann, 1903, In The Easter Island Ecoregion, Erin E. Easton, Javier Sellanes, Matthias Gorny

School of Earth, Environmental, & Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

Myripristis chryseres Jordan & Evermann, 1903, is recorded for the first time in the Easter Island Ecoregion. Two specimens were observed swimming along a rock cliff and entering a cavern at ∼163 m depth near the peak of Pukao seamount, located ∼85 km (46 nm) west of Easter Island. This report expands the geographic range of M. chryseres eastward by ∼3,800 km and is the first report of the species for the eastern Pacific. It is unclear whether this new record is indicative of a relatively recent range expansion or a lack of visual surveys in the region, which …