A New Cockroach Genus of the Family Fuziidae from Northeastern China (Insecta: Blattida)

A new genus and two new species of fossil Fuziidae are described and illustrated: Parvifuzia gen. nov., P. marsa sp. nov. and P. brava sp. nov.. Both species were collected from the Middle Jurassic Jiulongshan, Formation of Daohugou, Inner Mongolia of China. In conjunction with Fuzia Vr?ansky, Liang et Ren, 2009, the present findings allow us to demonstrate that members of the family were morphologically diverse, with body length ranging from medium (17 mm) in Fuzia to small (9.7 mm) in the present genus. Wing venation of F. dadao is complicated, but simple in the present species, and apex of male’s cerci are sharp and forceps-like in F. dadao, but strongly curved inward and round in the new genus.     

Spatial patterns of epifaunal communities in San Francisco Bay eelgrass (Zostera marina) beds

Epifaunal invertebrate species, such as amphipods and isopods, have been shown to play key but varying roles in the functioning of seagrass habitats. In this study, we characterized patterns in the poorly known epifaunal communities in eelgrass (Zostera marina) beds in San Francisco Bay as a first step in understanding the individual and collective importance of these species, while testing predictions on spatial patterns derived from previous studies in other regions. Surveys conducted at five beds across multiple time periods (April, June, August and October 2007) showed that San Francisco Bay eelgrass beds varied strongly in epifaunal community composition, total, and relative abundance, and that abundance differed markedly among time periods. In contrast to findings by others, morphologically complex flowering shoots frequently harbored greater numbers of epifauna (>2× and up to 10× more individuals) than vegetative shoots, but not different species assemblages. Similar to previous studies, several abiotic factors did not explain patterns in distribution and abundance among beds. The proportion of introduced species was very high (>90% of all individuals), a finding unique among seagrass epifaunal studies to date. Defining numerical patterns in epifaunal communities will inform related efforts to understand effects of epifaunal species and assemblages on eelgrass growth dynamics, seed production, and higher order trophic interactions over space and time.     

Biofilm: A crucial factor affecting the settlement of seaweed on intertidal rocky surfaces

We hypothesized that the presence of biofilm accelerated the settlement of dominant seaweed species and maintained high levels of species richness by regulating the blooming of particular species on an intertidal rocky shore. The coverage and species richness of macroalgae on sterile and cleared substrates (225 cm²) were measured to investigate the effects of biofilm on the settlement of macroalgae in intertidal zones at Noryang, Songmoon, and Sangnam in Gawngyang Bay on the southern coast of the Korean peninsula. Green algae coverage on cleared substrates was significantly higher than that on sterile substrates at both Noryang and Songmoon during the study period. This suggests that the presence of biofilm enhances the settlement of green algae by providing various habitat structures and, consequently, may lead to serious ‘green tide’ events. However, the coverage of algae other than green algae and algal species richness on cleared substrates remained high at Sangnam during the experimental period. Biofilm facilitated the settlement of macroalgae and inhibited the blooming of specific algae by inducing inter-specific space competition. Therefore, biofilm plays an important role on seaweed assemblages on intertidal rocky shores by accelerating the settlement of seaweed.     

High mortality of Zostera marina under high temperature regimes but minor effects of the invasive macroalgae Gracilaria vermiculophylla

The present study tested for density-dependent effects of the invasive drift macroalgae Gracilaria vermiculophylla (Ohmi) Papenfuss on growth and survival of the native eelgrass, Zostera marina L., under different temperature levels. Three weeks laboratory experiments were conducted in Odense, Denmark, combining three algae densities (control, low 1.9 kg WW m⁻², high 4.5 kg WW m⁻²) with typical Danish summer temperatures (18 °C) and elevated temperatures (21 °C and 27 °C). There was a significant effect of temperature on shoot survival with on average 68% mortality in the high temperature treatment but almost no mortality at the two lower temperatures. The higher mortality was probably caused by high sulphide levels in the sediment pore water (0.6 mmol l⁻¹ at 18 °C compared to 3.7 mmol l⁻¹ at 27 °C). Above-ground growth of the surviving shoots was also significantly affected by temperature, with leaf elongation rates being negatively affected, while the leaf plastochrone interval increased. Relative growth rate was significantly higher at 21 °C than at 18 °C or 27 °C, whereas rhizome elongation was significantly lowest at 27 °C. Elemental sulphur content in the plant tissues increased significantly with temperature and was up to 34 times higher (S⁰ in rhizomes) at 27 °C compared to the lower temperatures. In contrast to the temperature effects, cover by G. vermiculophylla did not cause significant effects on any seagrass responses. However, there was a (non-significant) negative effect of algal cover at the highest temperature, where the seagrass is already stressed. The latter results suggest that more studies should test for interaction effects between temperature and other anthropogenic stressors given that temperature is predicted to increase in the near future.     

A review of international,regional and national biosecurity risk assessment frameworks

Aquatic nonindigenous species (ANS) have dramatic impact on environmental, economic, social, cultural, and human health values in a variety of coastal, estuarine, and inland ecosystem. Despite efforts to develop biosecurity risk assessment frameworks for the improvement of ANS management, responsible agencies lack a standardized framework to identify and mitigate risk from ANS. This paper reviews the biosecurity risk assessment frameworks of seven international bodies, four regional bodies, and three countries and highlights the similarities, differences and deficiencies in their respective frameworks. Specific deficiencies found by the review include: (i) a lack of national implementation of the international and regional frameworks; (ii) gaps in ANS knowledge; (iii) insufficient guidance for various components of the risk assessment; (iv) limited number and scope of standards and measures related to ANS; and (v) inconsistent terminology between frameworks. To reduce the risk of ANS introductions, this paper concludes with a set of six recommendations to develop aquatic biosecurity risk frameworks that are both comprehensive and precautionary while also in accord with mandates established by other international bodies such as the World Trade Organization.     

Assembly processes in upper subtidal macroalgae: The effect of wave exposure

The structure and diversity of sixteen macroalgal assemblages originating from two coastal locations in the Northern (Kavala gulf) and Central (Maliakos gulf) Aegean in Greece were explored by examining their relative abundance distributions (RADs) and fitting five stochastic niche-based models. A mechanistic interpretation of the underpinning assembly processes was attempted by relating the assumptions of the fitted models with available abiotic data corresponding to each assemblage. The random fraction niche-based model, assuming a random niche apportionment to species, was fitted to the majority of Maliakos assemblages characterized by more evenly distributed and speciose RADs, whereas the random assortment model, assuming no relationship among species abundance and niche size, was fitted to most of the Kavala assemblages characterized by steeper RADs with fewer species. Among the possible underlying mechanisms, wave exposure seems to play a key role in macroalgal assembly processes; however factors such as biogeography and hard substrate availability must be also taken into consideration. Short-term processes as changes in resource availability (nutrients and light), known as drivers of assembly rules in other primary producers (e.g. phytoplankton), do not considerably affect macroalgae in the oligotrophic Eastern Mediterranean, possibly due to their longer life spans.     

Species composition and diversity of pelagic fishes based on a longline fishery catch in the North Pacific Ocean

Evaluation of spatial-temporal variability of species composition and diversity in oceanic ecosystems is not easy because it is usually difficult to obtain sufficient data quantifying such variability.In this study,we examined pelagic species diversity indicators,species richness,Shannon-Wiener index of diversity and Hurlbert's species evenness,for fish assemblages from two areas(north and south) in the North Pacific Ocean(2°±12°N,178°E±165°W) during May±July 2008.The assemblages were based on data collecte...     

2009年葫芦岛附近海域鱼卵仔稚鱼种类组成与数量分布

2009年5、8、10和12月,利用浅水Ⅰ型浮游生物水平和垂直拖网对葫芦岛海域鱼卵、仔稚鱼种类组成与数量分布进行了4个季度的调查。调查结果表明:4个季度共采到鱼卵44粒,仔稚鱼79尾,共鉴定出13个种,隶属于6目10科11属,其中有2种舌鳎类的鱼卵未能鉴定到种。优势种为赤鼻棱鳀(Thrissa kammalensis)、沙氏下鱵鱼(Hyporhamphus sajo-ri)、绯(Callionymus beniteguri)。春季垂直拖网采集到5粒鱼卵、8尾仔稚鱼。鱼卵、仔稚鱼的出现频率分别为25%和33.33%,平均密度分别为24.272和38.835ind/100m3;夏季水平和垂直拖网分别采集31粒鱼卵、47尾仔稚鱼和5粒鱼卵、24尾仔稚鱼,鱼卵、仔稚鱼的出现频率分别为100%、66.67%和20%、73.33%,平均密度分别为4.463、6.767ind/100m2和17.934、86.083ind/100m3;秋季和冬季都仅在水平拖网采到鱼卵,出现频率分别为10%和25%,密度分别为0.259和0.324ind/100m2。分析结果表明:随着季节的变化,暖水种、暖温种、冷温种间出现交替。春、秋、冬季鱼卵、仔稚鱼群落Margalef丰富度指数(D)、Shannon-Wiener多样性指数(H′)和Pielou均匀度指数(J′)平均值均较低,且各值均低于夏季,说明夏季种类结构相对其余3季稳定,多样性指数高、种类组成复杂、种间分布较均匀。本研究结果与该海域1998年同期(5、8月)调查结果在数量分布上有明显差异,鱼卵、仔稚鱼的种类组成与数量分布发生了显著变化。     

大亚湾春秋季鱼类种类组成及年龄结构分析

2006年4月和9月对大亚湾海域通过拖网和流刺网捕获的鱼类进行初步调查.结果表明,渔获物中出现18目76科135属200种鱼类,其中软骨鱼纲4目5科5属6种,占调查鱼类总种数的3.0%;硬骨鱼纲14目71科130属194种,占调查鱼类总种数的97.0%.根据其适温类型可分为暖水性种、暖温性种和冷温性种,其中暖水性鱼类有183种,占总种数的91.5%;暖温性鱼类有16种,占总种数的8.0%;冷温性鱼类仅有1种,占总种数的0.5%.渔获物中底层和近底层鱼类占多数,其中,底层鱼类共有74种,占总种数的37.0%;近底层鱼类共有68种,占总种数的34.0%;中上层鱼类共有45种,占总种数的22.5%;岩礁鱼类有13种,占总种数的6.5%.大亚湾鱼类的年龄普遍偏低,以1 a龄鱼为主.与相邻海区鱼类区系特征比较,大亚湾海域具有我国热带和亚热带性海湾的鱼类区系特征.