Following the accident of the oil tanker ‘Prestige’, we surveyed the large scale fuel deposition patterns on the Cantabrian shore (northern Spain) covering three regions (from west to east): (i) Asturias, west of Cape Peñas (24 segments surveyed); (ii) Asturias, east of Cape Peñas (33 segments surveyed); and (iii) Cantabria (also east of Cape Peñas, 256 segments surveyed). Fuel arrived to the Cantabrian Coast as a single oil wave which was more intense to the east than to the west of Cape Peñas. The mean percentage of coast length affected was 25, 41 and 15% in western Asturias, eastern Asturias and Cantabria, respectively. However, less than 10% of the substrate was covered by fuel in oiled patches, thus the impact was moderate. We conclude that these patterns are consistent with fuel transport by the Iberian Poleward Current, a hydrographic feature typical of this region during winter.

Skeletal form is the key to silicoflagellate taxonomy. Variations in skeleton morphology have been frequently described for the genera Dictyocha and Distephanus (Lemmerman, 1908; Deflandre, 1932; Hovasse, 1932; Frenguelli, 1935; Boney, 1973, 1976), and the wide ranging skeletal variations observed with clonal cultures of Dictyocha fibula Ehrenb. underline the potential plasticity of skeleton formation in this species, (Van Valkenberg & Norris, 1970). Sufficient information now appears available to indicate where taxonomic confusions may arise, particularly when single skeletons are observed either in phytoplankton samples or in fossil deposits. Paired skeletons are predivision stages (Gemeinhardt, 1930; Hovasse, 1932; Marshall, 1934; Boney, 1976). The juxtaposition of the two skeletons in this predivision stage allows a more critical assessment of the taxonomic significance of an aberrant form.

The sea anemone Anemonia viridis is one of the most common species of the North Aegean Sea. The variety in colour morphs exhibited by this species, causes problems to taxonomy and ecology, and suggests that A. viridis should be subdivided into two distinct species according to the colour of the individuals. The approach used in this study was based on the biometrical cnidae characteristics of the two colour morphs (rustica and smaragdina), as it is known that cnidae biometry has been used as a taxonomic tool for the phylum Cnidaria. More than 20,000 nematocysts were measured to try and find a correlation between these measurements and some body parameters indicative of the maturity grade of the individuals, as potential taxonomic characteristics. Stable cnidae characteristics of the two different colour morphs were compared. However, they differed only in the biometry of the tentacles' a-basitrichs. This slight difference does not support the proposal to subdivide Anemonia viridis into two different species.

We have estimated the length at maturity and length-weight relationships for five fish species inhabiting the deep-sea from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands off the Indian coast between 295–650 m deep in a trawl survey carried out in March–April 2017. Hauls were carried out by a high-speed Demersal Trawl Crustacean Version trawl net and analysis was performed for a total of 832 specimens. Length at first maturity of the five deep-sea fish species ranged from 14.28–105.73 cm while length at 90% maturity was in the range 17.87–159.83 cm. The length at maturity of the fish are Alepocephalus bicolor (male = 66.09, female = 105.73), Bathyclupea hoskynii (m = 15.14, f = 14.15), Chlorophthalmus corniger (m = 17.54, f = 15.31), Neoepinnula orientalis (m = 20.76, f = 16.76), and Neoscopelus microchir (m = 14.28, f = 15.40). The b value in the length-weight relationship ranged from 0.69–2.60, i.e. Alepocephalus bicolor (m = 1.93, f = 1.62), Bathyclupea hoskynii (m = 3.5, f = 1.66), Chlorophthalmus corniger (m = 2.07, f = 1.56), Neoepinnula orientalis (m = 2.86, f = 2.46) and Neoscopelus microchir (m = 0.89, f = 0.49). Based on these results, the b value showed an allometric relationship with length for all species studied, because these species have a similar morphometry, i.e. a flattened back. Since they are primary or secondary consumers at the bottom of consumer food webs, their roles are as predators of small–medium prey and as prey of top predators of food web chains.

The sipunculanPhascolion strombi (Montagu) is well known for its habit of sheltering in empty mollusc shells. In European waters, a variety of animals are to be found associated with this sipunculan in its shelter (see Kristensen, 1970), including the pyramidellid gastropodMenestho diaphana (Jeffreys) and the erycinacean bivalveMontacuta {Tellimya) phascolionis Dautzenberg & Fischer. Neither of these two species has been recorded as living in association withP. strombi in British waters but a recent examination ofP. strombi-inhabited shells in the vicinity of Plymouth has shown both to be present in the area.

Like all pyramidellids, M. diaphana is an ectoparasite although for many years after its description by Jeffreys (1848, as Odostomia) from Exmouth, Devon, its host animal(s) remained unknown. It was first discovered associated with P. strombi by Perez (1924, 1925) at Roscoff, Brittany, and subsequently described by Dautzenberg & Fischer (1925) under the name Odontostomia (Auristomia) perezi. The possibility ofO. perezi being synonymous with the speciesdiaphana, placed in the genus Menestho by Fretter & Graham (1962), was first suggested by Thorson (Thorson, in Robertson & Orr, 1961), a view supported by Ockelmann (Ockelmann, in Ankel & Christensen, 1963) and Kristensen (1970). Recently, Rodriguez-Babio & Thiriot-Quievreux (1974) demonstrated that the protoconchs of the' free-living' individuals (M.diaphana-type) are similar to those of individuals living withP. strombi (O.perezi-xype). In shell shape, specimens associated withP. strombi at Plymouth closely resemble the holotype ofO. diaphana, now in the collections of the Smithsonian Institution (V. Fretter, personal communication). Thus & Fischer named O. perezi without reference to it would appear that Dautzenberg O. diaphana material, or perhaps were impressed sufficiently by its regular association strombi as to regard it as a distinct species. In either case, it seems to have been now established that perezi is a synonym of diophana.

Acrothoracican barnacles of the genus Trypetesa are obligate symbionts of hermit crabs that burrow into the gastropod shells occupied by their hosts. In the present study, hermit crabs were examined for the presence of trypetesids, based on collections from the United States, Jamaica, and the Philippines made between 1997 and 2008. Shells from Jamaica and New York contained Trypetesa lateralis, a trypetesid previously documented from central California. Trypetesa lateralis is redescribed based on light and scanning electron microscopy, showing the presence of an external mantle flap and asymmetrical opercular bars diagnostic for this species. The mean prevalence of trypetesids in Jamaica was 8.3% and most barnacles were associated with Calcinus tibicen; in New York the barnacles were found in 1.6% of shells occupied by Pagurus longicarpus. Specimens from the Philippines were identified as Trypetesa spinulosa (formerly known only from Madagascar) based on the presence of their diagnostic orificial palps. The mean prevalence of T. spinulosa in the Philippines was 3.7% and most barnacles were associated with Calcinus spp. Hermit crab eggs were observed in the guts of T. lateralis from Jamaica and T. spinulosa from the Philippines. In both of these regions the trypetesids were found significantly more often in shells occupied by female hermit crab hosts (80–87% with females). These findings suggest the barnacles be classified as transient parasites. The biology of trypetesids is reviewed and a key to the family is provided. Further studies are needed to determine if egg predation occurs in all trypetesids and the impacts on hosts.

With the growth of modern, industry the problem of the influence of polluted waters on the bionomics of fishes is becoming very important. Fortunately, biologists anticipated this and many works on the subject have appeared, especially during the last twenty-five years. The polluting substances can be divided into two main classes, namely, (i) those that are directly poisonous to organisms, e.g. gas liquor, sulphites, oils, etc., and (ii) those that give rise to poisonous substances or otherwise make the water undesirable after putrefying, e.g. organic matter in solution and the decomposing bodies of plants and animals. The substances in the first category act in a relatively straightforward manner, and numerous investigators have studied them from several aspects (Shelford, '17; Matthews, '04; Powers, Wells, '15, etc.); it is with regard to those in the second class that many questions are yet unsettled and the present communication deals. We roughly know that the effect of the putrefying substances is to increase the hydrogen ion concentration and decrease the oxygen content of water. It has also been suggested that the byproducts of putrefaction themselves may be poisonous to animals.

The hitherto unknown hydroid of the anthomedusa Bougainvillia principis has been found in the Firth of Clyde, and medusae from it have been reared. The hydroid and the stages of development of the medusa are described and figured. The medusa is commonly present in the plankton in this area, and its seasonal occurrence is described.

The historical development of our knowledge of B. principis and of B. superciliaris, which have been confused, is discussed. The hydroid and the young medusae of B. principis are shown to be identical with those described by Hartlaub and attributed by him to B. superciliaris.

Several doubtful species of Bougainvillia medusae described from British waters are considered and are identified with accepted species. Medusa ocilia and M. duodecilia are probably synonymous with Bougainvillia pyramidata and B. principis respectively; and B. nigritella is identified with B. muscoides, B. simplex with B. principis, B. dinema with B. britannica., and B. charcoti with Nemopsis crucifera, itself a probable synonym of N. bachei. The medusa B. alderi is a probable synonym of B. ramosa.

The hydroids and the medusae of the British species of Bougainvillia are reviewed and compared; and records of B. superciliaris and B. macloviana are given.

The sea urchin Diadema africanum is considered a key herbivore in sublittoral ecosystems of the Canary Islands. Spatial and temporal variability in population structure was carried out at Gran Canaria. We performed a morphometric and population density analysis during 2005, 2006 and 2007 at four sites in zones of Gran Canaria. The study considered a vertical gradient (5, 10 and 20 m depth) during both seasons, the cold season (February and March) and the warm season (October and November). The sea urchin D. africanum in Gran Canaria exhibited an overall density of 7.59 ± 2.92 urchin m−2. A two-way ANOVA evidenced spatial differences in mean abundance of the species, while seasonality was not relevant. The vertical analysis of the abundance of D. africanum showed differences, the smaller sizes appeared at greater depths. The Aristotle's lantern width decreased in a vertical gradient, being remarkable between 10 and 20 m. Findings of uniformity in size over time, a stable range of high densities and the lack of a relationship between the size of the sea urchins and the season reveals that the density–size strategy displayed by D. africanum which explains in turns the high stability of the urchin barrens, which, once developed, remain as areas of permanent desertification in subtidal depths throughout the Canary Archipelago.

This article reports on a new species originating from the northern Chilean fjord region, which argued for the resurrection of Cornulotrocha, here classified as a new subgenus of Clathria, for sponges with choanosomal acanthostyles, ectosomal quasidiactinal monactines and rosettes of palmate (an)isochelae. Clathria (Cornulotrocha) rosetafiordica sp. nov. was collected at 23 m depth at Quintupeu fjord (∼42°S), and is unique within this very large genus, in possessing rosettes of palmate anisochelae. The new species is compared to the only other known Clathria (Cornulotrocha), viz. C. (Cornulotrocha) cheliradians n. comb.; to the single other Clathria known with anisochelae, viz C. (Thalysias) dubia; to other crustose Clathria from southern South America, the subantarctic and Antarctic areas; and also to other sponges bearing rosettes; and is considered clearly distinct from all. The phylogenetic significance of rosettes is discussed, a likely adaptive value being discarded in view of the variable location of such structures in the distinct poecilosclerid taxa in which they occur.

Fatty acids (FA) analysis is a well-established approach for qualitatively studying feeding preferences. In the Argentinean Continental Shelf, Argentine hake Merluccius hubbsi supports the major demersal finfish fishery. The Patagonian stock of the species spawns and nurses in austral summer in the north Patagonian shelf (NPS, 43°–45°30′S). Previous studies about larval feeding in the NPS have solely focused on gut contents, indicating selectivity upon calanoid copepods. Hence, our main objective was to apply the FA approach to confirm and/or broaden M. hubbsi larval food selection. Hake larvae and copepod FA profiles overlapped significantly, dominated by the saturated FA 16:0, the monounsaturated FAs 18:1n-9 and 22:1n-9, and the polyunsaturated FA 22:6n-3. Moreover, identified markers typical of bacteria (15:0, 17:0) and dinoflagellates (18:4n-3, 22:6n-3) suggest a microbial input at the base of the NPS food web, with the latter probably acting as an intermediate step between bacteria and hake larvae. Possible direct predation upon protozoans by larvae is postulated, broadening the known trophic spectrum derived from classical diet analyses. The FA approach allowed us to clarify feeding preferences in the NPS, with data being relevant in the context of hake recruitment studies.

Nuchalosyllis Rullier & Amoureux, 1979 is an extremely rare syllid genus, only known from the holotype of its type species, N. lamellicornis Rullier & Amoureux, 1979. The genus is characterized by the dorso-ventrally flattened body and the unique comb-like nuchal epaulettes. We herein describe the second specimen of this genus ever found, which is also a new species, Nuchalosyllis maiteae sp. nov.; it differs from N. lamellicornis in having different morphology of nuchal epaulettes, spinose papillae on cirrophores of dorsal cirri throughout and sub-bidentate posterior body falcigers.

In connection with the inquiries which I undertook at the beginning of the present year into the question of the destruction of immature fish I have been investigating since the issue of the last number of the Journal the development of eggs in the ovary of some flat fishes and the history of the ovary before and after maturity is attained. I have made it my special object to trace the history of the ovary from one spawning period to the next, in order that it might be possible to understand more clearly than at present, from the appearance of an ovary examined at any given time, in what stage of development it was. Mr. Holt has made some observations on this subject, and discussed them in his paper in the number of this Journal for November, 1892. He states there that the first approach to maturity in the ovary is denoted by an enlargement of some of the ova, and the assumption by them of an opaque condition. He terms those ova which have begun to get opaque, “active,” and those which have not, “inactive.” In a footnote it is stated that the changes which give rise to the opaque condition are not the same in all species, but that they appear to possess the same significance. Mr. Holt leaves undecided the question whether all the active ova are expelled during the spawning period, so that there is a period following the process of spawning when only “inactive” ova being present, the condition of the ovary is not distinguished by internal structure from that of a fish which has not begun to breed, which is immature.

A Synopsis of the Aphroditidre of the English Channel by Mr. T. V. Hodgson is given in the Journal Marine Biological Association, Vol. VI, No. 2, 1900.

APhrodita aculeata, Lin. McIntosh, Mon. Brit. Ann., Vol. II, p. 247.

The following list brings up to date a previous publication and has been classified, so far as practicable, according to subjects, in order that it may be useful for purposes of reference. The list does not include publications recording the results of observations made on material supplied by the Association to workers in different parts of the country, of which a considerable amount is sent out each year.

This study aimed to qualitatively and quantitatively analyse the molluscan assemblages associated with a Halodule wrightii seagrass bed in a rarely studied area within a conservation unit in north-eastern Brazil. Seasonal and spatial changes in several seagrass meadow characteristics, including sediment, were evaluated to explain temporal and spatial variations in the molluscs found there. The molluscan community differed in its structure among periods and meadows, as well as in the composition of its infaunal and epifaunal assemblages. The results of this study indicated that molluscs are affected by the particular characteristics of a seagrass meadow, especially by its location in the intertidal zone, more than by the area of the meadow. Molluscs were also affected by other characteristics of the seagrass meadow, such as above-ground biomass and shoot density. Changes in all molluscan assemblages were also mediated by differences among months and seasons in this region of the western equatorial Atlantic, but not by seasonal changes of the meadow. The studied meadow was found to be one of the densest in Brazil, which has considerable importance to its associated fauna.

During the last four years collections of plankton from deep water have been made regularly on the cruises of R.V. ‘Sarsia’. The opportunity has been taken to study the biology of the scyphomedusa Atolla wyvillei. It was hoped that with material collected from the same area at different times of the year it might be possible to gain some information on the growth and length of life of this medusa. The collections have been supplemented by a number of specimens taken on recent cruises of R.R.S. ‘Discovery II’, and a total of nearly 300 medusae have been examined. The collections were made with the 2 m stramin ring trawl and the Isaacs-Kidd pelagic trawl mostly from the Bay of Biscay.

The structure of the fifth pair of pleopods, modified as secondary sexual characters, in male Euchaeta norvegica is described in detail. The pleopods are biramous. The right pleopod, of relatively simple structure, is used solely to grasp the urosome of the female during transfer and placement of the spermatophore. The left pleopod is complex in form and is used to grasp the spermatophore as it is extruded from the ductus ejaculatorius. The method of grasping the spermatophore is described. The optimal mating position is deduced from the structure and functioning of the pleopods.

When red blood cells are subjected to mechanical stresses, they change shape with very little resistance. Such deformability of erythrocytes plays a crucial role in their function and survival in the circulation since they must undergo large deformation whenever they pass through narrow capillary vessels. While this mechanical characteristic of erythrocytes has been attributed to their unique cellular structure, it has also been shown that considerable alterations in this property result from changes in cellular metabolism and in surrounding plasma physicochemistry (Weed, LaCelle & Merrill, 1969; Kikuchi & Koyama, 1984a, b). It might be supposed, therefore that red blood cell deformability would be modified, when animals are exposed to different environmental conditions, with significant effects on their acclimatization or survival under the varied conditions. However, little is known of this aspect of fish cardiovascular physiology.