Phylogeography of the pelagic fish Seriola lalandi at different scales: confirmation of inter-ocean population structure and evaluation of southern African genetic diversity

The study investigated the global and regional phylogeography of the yellowtail kingfish Seriola lalandi by examining genetic diversity and population genetic structure of this species at inter-and intra-ocean level and on a regional scale. DNA fragments of two mitochondrial genes, cytochrome b (Cytb) and cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) and one nuclear gene, recombination activating gene 1 (RAG1), were sequenced to investigate the global-scale phylogeography of this species. The population genetic structure within the South Pacific, as well as along the South African coastline, was examined further using six microsatellite markers. Three distinct clades were identified for S. lalandi, which correspond with previously described subspecies of the North-East Pacific, North-West Pacific and the Southern Hemisphere. Within the latter, additional divergence was observed between the South Pacific and the South-East Atlantic regions. Divergence estimates were indicative of a Pacific origin for S. lalandi populations, because of Pleistocene vicariant events. Microsatellite analyses revealed overall significant genetic differentiation between South African and South Pacific samples. This corroborates recent findings on the global phylogeography of the species. No population differentiation was observed within South Africa, indicating high levels of gene flow.     

Age of the Pomeranian ice‐marginal position in northeastern Germany determined by Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) dating of glaciofluvial sediments

Lüthgens, C., Böse, M. & Preusser, F. 2011: Age of the Pomeranian ice‐marginal position in northeastern Germany determined by Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) dating of glaciofluvial sediments. Boreas, 10.1111/j.1502‐3885.2011.00211.x. ISSN 0300‐9843 The Pomeranian ice margin is one of the most prominent ice‐marginal features of the Weichselian glaciation in northern Europe. Previous results of surface‐exposure dating (SED) of this ice margin disagree with established chronologies and ice retreat patterns, i.e. are much younger than previously expected. We crosscheck the age of the Pomeranian ice‐marginal position in northeastern Germany using single‐grain quartz Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) dating of glaciofluvial sediments. OSL dating indicates an active ice margin between 20.1±1.6 ka and 19.4±2.4 ka forming outwash plains attributed to the Pomeranian ice‐marginal position. On the basis of these results, we suggest a critical reassessment of previous SED data available for the Pomeranian ice‐marginal position within their respective regional geomorphological contexts. From a process‐based point of view, SED ages derived from glacigenic boulders document the stabilization of the landscape after melting of dead ice and landscape transformation under periglacial conditions rather than the presence of an ice margin. SED indicates a first phase of boulder stabilization at around 16.4±0.7 ka, followed by landscape stabilization within the area attributed to the recessional Gerswalder subphase around 15.2±0.5 ka. A final phase of accumulation of glaciolacustrine and glaciofluvial sediments at around 14.7±1.0 ka documents the melting of buried dead ice at that time.     

Analysis of bycatch in the South African midwater trawl fishery for horse mackerel Trachurus capensis based on observer data

The South African midwater trawl fishery targets adult horse mackerel Trachurus capensis. The bulk of the catch is taken by a single freezer-trawler, the biggest fishing vessel operating in South African waters. As fishing takes place off the south coast in ecologically sensitive areas, there are concerns about the potential impacts of this fishing operation on non-target species. Fishing behaviour and bycatch of this fishery from 2004 to 2014 were investigated by analysing observer records with regard to catch composition, volume and temporal and spatial patterns. The midwater trawl fishery was estimated to have caught 25 415 tonnes annually, with a bycatch of 6.9% of the total catch, by weight. There are species overlaps with various fisheries, namely the demersal trawl, small-pelagic, line, shark longline and squid fisheries, yet the total bycatch estimates from this fishery are generally small relative to catches taken in the target fisheries. Bycatch species with the highest average annual catches were chub mackerel Scomber japonicus, redeye roundherring Etrumeus whiteheadi, ribbonfish Lepidopus caudatus and hake Merluccius spp. Large-fauna bycatch species included sunfish Mola mola as well as a number of CITES II- and IUCN-listed species, such as Cape fur seal Arctocephalus pusillus, dusky shark Carcharhinus obscurus, smooth hammerhead shark Sphyrna zygaena and thresher sharks Alopias spp. The 97.9% observer coverage is high and the 6.9% bycatch rate low compared to other South African fisheries; however, due to the large size of the individual hauls (average of 46.3 t), the average sampling rate of 1.56% is low. Our analyses suggest that bycatch in the South African midwater trawl fishery has been lower than in other South African fisheries and similar fisheries elsewhere, but due to the combination of high catch volumes and low sampling rates, estimation errors for rare species are high and there is a substantial risk of incidental unmonitored bycatch of rare large fauna and aggregations of small fauna. This could be mitigated by spatio-temporal management of this fishery, to avoid fishing in high-risk areas, and the introduction of an electronic monitoring programme.     

Fishing and Farming at Lake Chad: Responses to Lake-level Fluctuations

Lake Chad lies at the southern extreme of the Sahara Desert and is well known for large fluctuations in its surface area this century. Seasonal fluctuations, however, have received much less attention. This paper presents the results of two complimentary research efforts on the south-west shore of the lake. These illustrate how important both inter and intra-annual fluctuations in the level of the lake are, both in terms of their impact on the environment and in the response of the communities living on the lake shore. The paper compares a time series of the fluctuations in the level of Lake Chad as monitored by the TOPEX/POSEIDON satellite with findings from participatory research with the communities of the south-west lake shore. It shows how the communities of the lake have responded to lake-level fluctuations with their livelihood choices. These results are used to show that although vastly different in scope, a high degree of complimentarity exists between remotely-sensed information and community-based research and that they are of potentially great value to development initiatives on the shores of Lake Chad.     

Community ecology of the metazoan parasites of snoek Thyrsites atun (Euphrasen, 1791) (Perciformes: Gempylidae) off South Africa

The parasite assemblage of snoek Thyrsites atun, a commercially important fish in the Benguela system, was examined over a one-year period. In all, 16 parasite taxa including eight new host records (Bolbosoma vasculosum, Caligus coryphaenae, Caligus dakari, Corynosoma australe, Hatschekia conifera, Nothobomolochus fradei, Rhadinorhynchus cadenati, Tentacularia coryphaenae) and four new locality records (B. vasculosum, C. dakari, Molicola uncinatus, Pseudoterranova sp.) were recovered from 210 specimens. The dominance of larval helminths in the component community suggests that T. atun occupies an intermediate position in the food web. The ‘nestedness metric based on overlap and decreasing fill’ (NODF) indicated that the parasite assemblage exhibited no nestedness (NODF = 73.3, p = 0.103). Generalised additive mixed modelling results indicated that host length is the main determinant of parasite species richness in T. atun. PERMANOVA and ANOSIM suggested that infracommunity structure varied little with respect to the sex, length, seasonality and capture region of the host. The stability and randomness in parasite acquisition, as indicated by the lack of nestedness of the parasite assemblage, can be ascribed to the opportunistic feeding behaviour and nomadic movement of T. atun in the southern Benguela. The homogeneity of the community structure of long-lived endoparasites suggests that a single T. atun stock occurs off South Africa.     

La limite Pliocène-Pleistocène en Bretagne

The end of the Pliocene transgression is represented in Brittany, above sands and gravels, by clay or sandy clay containing an estuarian plankton and sometimes shells of molluses.
New borings at Pont-Rouz in Quemperven (Brittany) permit a biostratigraphical study, by means of pollen analysis, of the period corresponding to the Pliocene-Pleistocene transition. In the lower part of the deposit, rich in Ostrea shells, many floral element characteristics of the Reuver-clay are present: Sequoia, Taxodium, Sciadopitys , in relatively high percentages, Nyssa, Symplocos, Liquidambar , sporadically. The 'Tertiary' elements disappear in the upper part of the clay when other relicts like Tsuga, Pterocarya , and Carya are still present. Thus the Reuverian-Praetiglian boundary can be traced in the littoral sequence of Pont-Rouz. As in the Netherlands, the deterioration of the climate is clearly indicated by a sudden increase of Graminaceae pollen. A same evolution of the flora can be noticed at Mernel and Saint-Jean-la-Poterie, also in grey clay, along the river system of the Vilaine.
The Upper-Pliocene transgression has followed the same river system as the present one. The estuarian sediments lie in Brittany between 55 and 30 metres above zero NGF. The maximum of the transgression is situated in the Reuverian at La Salle, near Pont-Rouz, at 55 m (NGF). The post-Pliocene regression begins with the Praetiglian and continues in the Lower Pleistocene.     

Reconstruction of ice flow directions south of the Baltic Sea during the Saalian and Weichselian glaciations

Till stratigraphical investigations in Berlin have been evaluated using the gravel counting method (4–12.5 mm). The results are compared with studies of several authors from the coastal area north of Berlin (Rügen and Stoltera Cliff near Warnemünde); the gravel counting results from Stoltera Cliff (Cepek 1973) are re-evaluated by means of cluster analysis, and a new stratigraphical interpretation of the sequence in the cliff is given. These results, together with a discussion of correlation problems of Weichselian and especially Saalian tills south of the Baltic Sea, lead to the following hypothesis: it is proposed that the ice margin of each glaciation has been nourished by several ice flows coming from different directions, for the most part turning from north-northeast at onset to east-northeast in later phases. Consequently, differences of composition are found in tills of the same age.     

Dark times for dageraad Chrysoblephus cristiceps: evidence for stock collapse

The declaration of a state of emergency in the South African linefishery in 2000 has had a positive impact on a few overexploited endemic seabreams (Family Sparidae). However, the population of the reef-dwelling dageraad Chrysoblephus cristiceps has been unresponsive to progressively stricter management regulations. After decades of unsustainable fishing mortality the species is in a critical state. In this paper, a method based on standardised probability of capture is used to develop an index of relative abundance for rare species, such as dageraad, which is more robust to changes in output control regulations than conventional methods. The results show a severe decline in dageraad capture probability in the south-west region of South Africa, from 8% in 1985 to <0.1% in 2011. The east region experienced a more rapid decline, from 24% in 1999 to <0.1% in 2011. A spatial comparison of the distribution of historical and recent dageraad probability of capture along the South African coastline indicates a range contraction commonly associated with the collapse of a population. The once-widespread species is now largely limited to a few locations in the Eastern Cape province and dageraad is mostly absent across its former western distribution. Although the historical decline has commonly been attributed to commercial overexploitation, the recreational sector had an estimated 3–5 times greater impact on the dageraad population than the commercial sector in recent years. Given that previous management regulations have been unsuccessful in arresting the decline of dageraad populations, assertive management is necessary to ensure the species’ sustainability. Rehabilitation of dageraad stocks will require a further decrease in fishing mortality, in conjunction with maintaining an appropriate marine protected area (MPA) network.     

Correlation of Barremian-Aptian (mid-Cretaceous) dinoflagellate cyst assemblages between the Tethyan and Austral realms

Quantified organic-walled dinoflagellate cyst (dinocyst) assemblages are presented for two sedimentary successions deposited in neritic environments of the Tethys Ocean during the Barremian and Aptian in an attempt to reconcile established dinocyst biostratigraphic schemes for Tethyan and Austral regions. One section is at Angles, southeast France (the Barremian stratotype section); the other is at Deep Sea Drilling Project Site 263, off northwest Australia. We also construct a carbon isotope record for Site 263 using bulk organic carbon.Both sections contain abundant, well-preserved dinocyst assemblages. These are diverse, with 89 taxa identified at Angles and 103 taxa identified at Site 263. Of these, more than 93% are cosmopolitan. When combined with other work at Angles and Site 263, we found that nine dinocysts have their first occurrence (FO) or last occurrence (LO) at both locations. These dinocyst events are, in alphabetical order: LO of Cassiculosphaeridia magna, FO of Criboperidinium? tenuiceras, LO of Kleithriasphaeridium fasciatum, LO of Muderongia staurota, FO of Odontochitina operculata, LO of Phoberocysta neocomica, FO of Prolixosphaeridium parvispinum, FO of Pseudoceratium retusum var. securigerum, and FO of Tehamadinium sousense. Although these events support a Barremian–Aptian age for both sections, their stratigraphic order is not the same in the sections. The δ¹³C_org record at Site 263 displays a characteristic series of changes that have also been recorded in other carbon isotope curves spanning the Late Barremian–Early Aptian. Such independent dating (along with ammonite zones at Angles) suggests that three of the nine dinocyst events are approximately isochronous at Angles and Site 263: the LO of K. fasciatum in the mid Barremian, the FO of P. retusum var. securigerum and the FO of C.? tenuiceras in the earliest Aptian; the other six dinocyst events are diachronous. Dinocyst assemblages at Site 263 can be loosely placed within existing Australian zonation schemes, providing much-needed calibration. Our data suggest that the Muderongia testudinaria Zone ends in sediments of mid Barremian age, the succeeding Muderongia australis Zone extends into the Early Aptian, and the younger Odontochitina operculata Zone begins in Early Aptian deposits. The boundary between the M. australis and O. operculata zones, and the Ovoidinium cinctum (as Ascodinium) Subzone, positioned at the top of the M. australis Zone when present, could not be recognized incontrovertibly. Interestingly, however, this horizon broadly correlates with the onset and extent of the Selli Event, a time of major biogeochemical change.     

The geochemical controls on vent fluids from the Lucky Strike vent field, Mid-Atlantic Ridge

Hydrothermal vent fluids were collected from the Lucky Strike site at 37°17′N on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge in both 1993 and 1996. Seven vents were sampled with the DSV Alvin in 1993 and six vents were sampled in 1996 using the ROV Jason during the LUSTRE '96 Cruise. As three of the vents were sampled in both 1993 and in 1996, a time series of vent fluid chemistry is also reported. Measured temperatures ranged from 202 to 333°C at the 1618–1726 m depth of the vent field, which is located on Lucky Strike Seamount. These fluids are either equal to or less than the local bottom seawater in chlorinity. While the range in fluid compositions at Lucky Strike is generally within that observed elsewhere, the unusual aspects of the fluid chemistries are the relatively high pH and low Fe, Mn, Li and Zn. We attribute this, as well as an usually low Sr/Ca ratio, to reaction with a highly altered substrate. The high Si and Cu contents suggest a deep, as well as hot, source for these fluids. The fluid compositions therefore suggest formation by super-critical phase separation at a depth not less than 1300 m below the seafloor, and reaction with a relatively oxic, and previously altered, substrate. There is temporal variability in some of the vent fluid compositions as Li, K, Ca and Fe concentrations have increased in some of the vents, as has the Fe/Mn (molar) ratio, although the chlorinities have remained essentially constant from 1993 to 1996. While there is not a simple relationship between vent fluid compositions (or temperatures) and distance from the lava lake at the summit of the seamount, the vent fluids from many of the vents can be shown to be related to others, often at distances >200 m. The most southeasterly vents (Eiffel Tower and the Marker/Mounds vents) are distinct in chlorinity and other chemical parameters from the rest of the vents, although closely related to each other within the southeastern area. Similarly all of the vents not in this one area, appear closely related to each other. This suggests one or two source fluids for many of the vents, as is also inferred to be the case at TAG, but which is in contrast to observations on faster spreading ridges. This may suggest inherently different plumbing for hydrothermal systems at slower versus faster spreading ridges.