The gastropod shell influences important aspects of the hermit crab's life; however, the shells are commonly a limited resource. Therefore, different hermit crab species that coexist in intertidal areas are commonly involved in intraspecific and interspecific competition for shells. We assess if differences in shell preference, exploitation ability, or competition by interference can explain the partitioning of shells between the coexisting species Calcinus californiensis and Clibanarius albidigitus. Clibanarius preferred shells of Nerita funiculata among the six gastropod shells tested, while Calcinus did not establish a hierarchy in shell preference. Therefore, the preference for gastropod shell species does not seem to diminish the competition for shells in the wild. Clibanarius identified and attended to chemical cues signalling potential sites of available shells (chemical cues of dead gastropods); Calcinus did not respond to these cues (competition by exploitation). However, Calcinus was more successful in obtaining a new shell by interspecific shell fighting than Clibanarius. Consequently, the use of better quality shells (intact shells) by Calcinus in the wild can be explained by its greater fighting ability compared with Clibanarius. The bias in shell distributions through dominance by shell fighting, more than by exploitation ability, has also been suggested for other hermit crab species of these genera.

The primarily bathypelagic gonostomatid Cyclothone microdon, amongst the most abundant of all vertebrates, remains poorly known. We describe its diet in The Gully, a very large submarine canyon off Nova Scotia, Canada, based on the stomach contents of specimens caught by midwater trawl. In The Gully, C. microdon had a shallower distribution than in open ocean and primarily fed at mesopelagic depths. Most of its diet comprised vertically migrant calanoid copepods, while its secondary prey was conchoeciinid ostracods. Both were typical of the food eaten in other regions by its mesopelagic congeners and were consistent with the results of the only previous dietary study of C. microdon.

The ocean quahog, Arctica islandica, is a commercially important bivalve in the eastern USA but very little is known about the recruitment frequency and rebuilding capacity of this species. As the longest-living bivalve on Earth, A. islandica can achieve lifespans in excess of 200 y; however, age determinations are difficult to estimate and age variability at size is extreme. Objectives for this study included the creation of an extremely large age-composition dataset to constrain age at length variability, development of reliable age-length keys (ALK), and descriptions of sex-based population dynamics for the quasi-virgin A. islandica population at Georges Bank (GB) within the greater US Mid-Atlantic stock. Sexually dimorphic characteristics are clearly present, as females are larger than males within age classes and males tend to dominate the oldest age classes. A male represented the maximum age of 261 years and is older than the maximum age previously documented for this region. Sex-specific ALKs were robust and reliable but not interchangeable. This population had higher estimated natural mortality rates than presumed for other regions in the Mid-Atlantic, and females have the highest mortality rate. However, recruitment expansion was also occurring which would affect the age-frequency data used to derive mortality estimates and result in higher mortality. Age frequencies at GB suggest effective recruitment to the population each year since 1867 CE. Reduced recruitment periods are documented and likely attributed to fluctuating environmental conditions. Sex-based demographics are clearly divergent in regard to growth rate, maximum size, longevity and mortality rates.

Cold-water coral reefs are biodiversity hotspots of the deep sea. The most dominant reef-building cold-water coral in the Atlantic is Lophelia pertusa, which builds vast and structurally complex habitats. Studying the behaviours of deep-sea species is challenging due to the technological difficulties in making prolonged observations in situ, so little is known about the behavioural ecology of this important species. Observations in laboratory studies can help to enhance our understanding of the range of behaviours these species exhibit. Here we present video evidence that the cold-water coral Lophelia pertusa is capable of producing mucus nets as part of their feeding strategy. This finding suggests that L. pertusa has a more diverse range of feeding strategies than previously thought.

Surface properties affect the attachment of micro- and macroscopic marine organisms. The current study examined the settlement response of the mussel Mytilus coruscus plantigrades to natural biofilms formed on surfaces of different wettability. The percentages of plantigrade settlement were not influenced by the biofilms formed on variously wettable surfaces in the short term, but after 10 days, the plantigrade settlement rates decreased on biofilms formed on lower wettability surfaces. In general, lower wettability of the surfaces resulted in the decrease of the dry weight, bacterial and diatom density and the thickness of natural biofilms when compared to high wettability surfaces. In contrast, chlorophyll-a concentration in biofilms was independent of the initial wettability of the surfaces. Comparative cluster analysis of bacterial denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis patterns revealed that high variability existed between the bacterial community on high wettability surfaces and that on low wettability surfaces. Thus, surface wettability affects the formation of natural biofilms, and this variation in biofilms developed on different wettability surfaces may explain the discrepancy in their corresponding inducing activities on M. coruscus plantigrade settlement. This finding provides new insight into interactions between mussel settlement, biofilm characteristics and surface properties.

The gastric mill on the genus Cyrtograpsus (Varunidae) has not been described previously. A morphological comparative study of the gastric mill ossicles within its species (C. angulatus, C. altimanus and C. affinis) was carried out. This research attempts to give new evidence to validate the existence of these three species and to serve as a guide to identify them. Urocardiac (dorsal median tooth shape), zygocardiac (shape and number of ridges and molar processes—cusps and plates—and their arrangement in the lateral teeth) and pectineal (number and shape of accessory teeth) ossicles, and cardiopyloric valve descriptions and comparisons are based on microscopical, stereomicroscopical, scanning electron microscope observations, and digital images. Morphological differences found in zygocardiac (lateral teeth) and urocardiac (dorsal-median tooth) ossicles allow to identify species. Considering these ossicles morphology in C. altimanus and C. affinis it can be concluded that the studied specimens belong to a single species as stated in morphometric and molecular comparative studies of the above species. These new data validate the existence of only two species (C. affinis and C. angulatus). This information will also be useful to recognize the species in the stomach content of their predators throughout the ossicles morphology.

The possible existence of any cause–effect relationships between the concentrations of organochlorines (OCs) and the presence of Morbillivirus and Toxoplasma gondii infections was investigated in both free-living and stranded specimens of Stenella coeruleoalba, Tursiops truncatus, Globicephala melas, Balaenoptera physalus and Physeter macrocephalus from the Mediterranean Sea. High blubber concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) were recorded in free-ranging G. melas. Tissue concentrations of PCBs and DDT in stranded T. truncatus (367 lipid weight (l.w.) and 143.7 mg/kg l.w., respectively) and S. coeruleoalba (139.9 l.w.; 92.9 mg/kg l.w.) were beyond the PCB threshold value for the appearance of adverse effects in marine mammals. Evidence of T. gondii infection was molecularly detected in three S. coeruleoalba and six T. truncatus.

This study investigated the presumed nursery function of mangroves for the ichthyofauna in East African swamp forests, Mida Creek. The species and size composition of the fish fauna and their trophic interactions were studied for five stations. Samples were collected during 5–6 consecutive days close to spring tide in mid-July 2011. Fish were caught using different types of passive fishing gear, such as large and small fyke nets, gill nets and, additionally, beach seines. All individuals were identified to species level, measured and preserved for further analyses. Stomach content analysis was applied to provide information about their diet. Stable isotope analysis was used to detect whether the source of primary production for the higher trophic levels is mangrove-related or not. A total of 27 fish species was recorded in a catch of 938 teleost specimens. Our analyses showed that a majority of fish belonged to the zoobenthivorous/omnivorous trophic mode, since they were partially feeding on invertebrates and on various other food sources. Two species (Sphyraena barracuda and Synodus variegatus) exhibited a mixed diet, with a piscivorous preference. Results concerning the population structure suggested that the fish community of Mida mainly consists of transient species. Juveniles were numerically more abundant in the whole Creek than adults. These findings support the hypothesis of a nursery function of the mangrove forests, Mida Creek.

Annual population changes of four species of Stauromedusae at Plymouth are described. Three of these, Haliclystus auricula, Lucernariopsis campanulata and L. cruxmelitensis, have one generation in a year; Craterolophus convolvulus has two. The completion of the life-cycle of the four Plymouth species within a year is in agreement with Berril's (1962) studies of three species on the west Atlantic coast and with a reinterpretation of Sars's (1846) observations on Lucernaria quadricomis on the coast of Norway.

Samples of common two-banded seabream Diplodus vulgaris (N = 1097), used in this study, were caught in the Gulf of Gabès (Tunisia) from March 2008 to February 2010. Total length ranged from 7 to 25 cm. Diplodus vulgaris is a protandric hermaphrodite. The overall ratio of females to males was 1:1.66. The reproductive season extended from October to February, and the peak spawning activity occurred in December–January. The total length at which 50% of the population reached maturity was 14.14 ± 0.16 cm for females and 13.57 ± 0.01 cm for males. Parameters of the length–weight relationship (TW = aTLb) for all individuals were a = 0.0185 and b = 2.9319. The youngest specimen in this study was 0+ years, whereas the oldest one was 9 years. The von Bertalanffy growth parameters for the whole sample were: L∞ = 25.4 cm, k = 0.179 and t0 = −1.631 year. The instantaneous rate of natural mortality was: M = 0.333 year−1.

There are just a few records of giant squid of the species Architeuthis captured alive. Two living sub-adult females of Architeuthis of 180 and 135 cm mantle length with total weights of 148 and 81 kg respectively, were caught 34 miles offshore in northern Spanish Atlantic waters (43°52.54′N–05°18.4′W) in December 1999 and January 2001. From April 1999 to January 2000 in the same area, another giant squid of 102 kg as well as a single tentacle measuring 5 m, and another tentacle of 2 m long were caught. Another five living specimens were captured and 11 more animals were caught dead during the last 15 years in the same area.

Seventeen chondrichthyan species were caught in the Cantabrian Sea (southern Bay of Biscay) during a multidisciplinary survey carried out in the Avilés canyon system in May 2011. This survey provided the first records of three species (Galeus murinus, Neoraja iberica, and Neoraja caerulea) in these waters, and a further record of Rajella kukujevi. To confirm the identity of these species, the cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) of the specimens was sequenced. Genetic analyses revealed that the DNA sequences of the two Neoraja species were identical in all the specimens analysed. Morphometric analyses, based on 40 characters, showed 3.66% dissimilarity between the two species. The morphometric character that contributed most to this discrepancy was disc width.

The patterns of mitochondrial genetic diversity were studied in Chelonibia caretta, commensal barnacles of the endangered hawksbill sea turtle Eretmochelys imbricata from Mona Island of Puerto Rico. Two mitochondrial genes were sequenced: the large subunit of ribosomal RNA (16S rRNA) and the cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI). Haplotypic diversity (h) for 16S (N = 34) and COI (N = 26) varied from 0.763 to 0.468, respectively. The nucleotide diversity (π) of 16S/COI (0.00284/0.0013) of C. caretta was low compared to all other published sequences from population studies of barnacles attached to fixed substrate. However, the estimated levels of π from C. caretta were comparable to those reported from C. testudinaria, an epibiont barnacle on loggerhead turtles. Analysis of molecular variance and parsimony network analysis of the sampled turtle epibionts from Mona Island indicated that they are genetically homogeneous, irrespective of the host or its gender. Albeit that the sampling size is small, our results are consistent with the general prediction that higher rates of dispersal reduce population divergence and estimates of nucleotide diversity. Conservation concerns are raised about the status of Chelonibia caretta whose host (the hawksbill sea turtle) has been included in the Endangered Species List.

This is the first study estimating cetacean by-catch in the Turkish western Black Sea turbot fishery. One turbot fishing boat was observed during two fishing seasons, from April through July 2007 and April through mid-September 2008. During this time, 24 harbour porpoises and one bottlenose dolphin were caught in turbot trammel nets. The by-catch rate was found to be 0.18 for harbour porpoise and 0.01 for bottlenose dolphin individuals per kilometre in 2007, and 0.19 for harbour porpoise individuals in 2008. It is estimated that the total numbers of harbour porpoises killed in the Turkish western Black Sea during the legal fishing period (April and July) were 167 ± 153 (CV: 0.92) in 2007 and 329 ± 220 (CV: 0.67) in 2008, and the number killed during both legal and illegal periods of turbot fishing were 2011 ± 742 (CV: 0.37) in 2007 and 2294 ± 806 (CV: 0.35) in 2008. The estimated range of harbour porpoise by-catch in the turbot fishery on the Turkish western Black Sea coast is between these two estimates. The by-caught harbour porpoises were between 1–8 years of age. About half of them were within the age range of 4 (26%) and 5 (21%) years old, and 78% were physically immature individuals. Turbot fishing carried out with bottom nets, especially in May and June, when turbot fishing is banned, is a threat to the sustainability of harbour porpoise stocks.

The morphology and reproduction of Trichodina branchicola n.sp. are described. Its total diameter is 30–54μ, and its height is 20–36μ,; the diameter of the striated ring is 19–33μ, and the diameter of the denticulate ring 10–20μ. There are 20–26 denticles in the ring, with 6–8 striations to each denticle. The denticles measure 1·5–2μ, in thickness, 3·5μ in length, each with a broad outer hook 2·3μ long and an inner ray 3·2μ long. The aboral cilia are fused at their base to form a complete membranelle.

This organism is found on the gills of the following marine fishes at Plymouth: Ciliata mustela, Gaidopsaurus tricirratus, Cottus bubalis, Spinachia spinachia, Blennius pholis, B. guttorugine, Trigla lucerna and Pleuronectes platessa.

The genus Vauchomia Mueller 1938 is regarded as a synonym of Trichodina.

Existing population studies of deep-sea amphipods have focused on species that inhabit deep-sea vent or trench environments but few cosmopolitan species have been studied. Here we provide new insight into the life history and population ecology of the pan-oceanic scavenging amphipod Paralicella caperesca and discuss the influence of nutrient-rich submarine canyon environments on the growth and reproduction of this species. Data were collected through the dissection and measurement of 2997 P. caperesca from 14 samples taken from abyssal plains, continental slopes and submarine canyons in the North-East Atlantic. Sexual dimorphism was less pronounced than observed for other scavenging amphipod species but females were significantly larger and had shorter antennae than males. The size of oostegites in female P. caperesca varied considerably within size classes, ovaries contained a relatively large number of oocytes, and no empty ovaries were observed. These factors, in combination with absence of mature females, suggest that P. caperesca practices semelparity, a reproductive strategy that complements the feeding strategy of this obligate necrophage. Five male and seven female size-grouped cohorts were identified for P. caperesca. Cohorts from deep-sea submarine canyon populations showed consistently larger mean total body lengths than non-canyon cohorts. Individuals from canyon samples also expressed sexual characteristics at smaller sizes than non-canyon individuals. We hypothesize that these trends are indicative of nutrient-mediated growth, maturation, and reproduction in P. caperesca. The species is able to grow and reproduce relatively quickly in response to increased nutrient input in canyon environments and therefore dominates scavenging amphipod assemblages.

The biology of the marine leech Oceanobdella blennii, ectoparasitic on the littoral fish Blennius pholis, was studied on the coast of North Wales from 1964 to 1966. Leeches first appeared on the fish in large numbers in December, but were less common in January. During February and March they became more abundant on individual fish and among the host population as a whole, but in April and May the leeches began to disappear and none was ever found from June to November.

Five species of crabs were recorded in the Forth Estuary, of which Liocarcinus depurator and Cancer pagurus were confined to the lowest reaches where salinities are 24–35%‰. Carcinus maenas, Liocarcinus holsatus and Hyas araneus also occurred in the middle estuary where salinities are 22–31%‰ in summer but often fall to ~12%‰ in winter. A very few L. depurator and Cancer pagurus were confined to the lower estuary and mostly occurred in low tide trawls in summer. Carcinus maenas alone was recorded much further up the estuary where salinities rarely exceed 0–5·7%‰. Carcinus maenas predominated numerically throughout with an overall mean density of 0·0075 m−2 in the middle and lower estuary. Carcinus maenas in the estuary channel measured 16·6–82·9 mm carapace width (CW) with a modal size–class of 50–60 mm. Males were outnumbered by females (0·68:1 overall), and more markedly in summer than winter. Yet males were significantly bigger on average than females. Egg-masses were borne by 7·5% of all trawled females, but by 31·1% in April–May. On adjacent shores, by contrast, the much higher numbers of C. maenas were nearly all <20 mm CW. Low water trawls yielded significantly more C. maenas, but significantly lower proportions of males, than high water trawls. Liocarcinus holsatus was most abundant within the mid-lower estuary basin, with numbers decreasing both upstream and at the estuary mouth. Males outnumbered females by 2·26:1 overall, and most markedly at the extremities of the range. Males were significantly bigger than females, although sizes of both generally increased towards the mouth of the estuary. Only three of the 101 females bore eggs. Low water trawls yielded slightly more L. holsatus than high water trawls. Numbers of H. araneus increased markedly from mid-estuary to the estuary mouth where counts averaged 0·0021 m−2. Males outnumbered females by 2·17:1, and more so among those >40 mm CW. No female bore eggs. Records of the presence of C. maenas, Liocarcinus sp. and Hyas sp. all increased in the estuary from 1985 to 1995 reflecting increases in intertidal faunal diversity and changes in industrial practices since the early 1980s.

Egg-producing Lernaeocera branchialis (L.) are usually found in the gill cavity of cod (Gadus morhua (L.)) and whiting (Merlangius merlangus (L.)) (Kabata, 1979). The early larval development of the copepod includes two free-swimming nauplius stages followed by the first infective stage, the copepodite (Sproston, 1942). On an intermediate host, usually flounder (Platichthys flesus (L.)), the copepodite moults into a chalimus larva which is attached by its frontal filament to the gill tips of its host. After four successive chalimus stages, the parasite reaches maturity and copulation occurs on the flatfish host.

Two hundred Chlamys varia (L.) from Roskeeda Bay (W. Ireland) and Lough Hyne (S. Ireland) were collected and labelled in December 1979. One hundred individuals from the L. Hyne sample were then transferred to Roskeeda; similarly, 100 Roskeeda scallops were transferred to L. Hyne. At each site 100 indigenous scallops were held as controls.

After a period of approximately 1 year, survivors at each site were scored at 13 enzyme/protein loci using starch gel electrophoresis. Significant genetic differences were observed at the Pgm and Lap loci between native L. Hyne and native Roskeeda scallops. These differences persisted between surviving Roskeeda scallops (92% of the original sample) transferred to L. Hyne. However, after one year L. Hyne scallops transferred to Roskeeda (61% of original sample) did not differ significantly from indigenous Roskeeda scallops. Possible reasons for the observed selective mortality at this site are discussed.