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This paper aims to describe the spatial-temporal variability in catch of the main fishery resources of the Amazon River and floodplain lakes of the Lower Amazon, as well as relating the Catch per Unit of Effort with anomalies of some of the Amazon River, atmosphere and Atlantic Ocean system variables, determining the influence of the environment on the Amazonian fishery resources. Finfish landings data from the towns and villages of the Lower Amazon for the fisheries of three sites (Óbidos, Santarém and Monte Alegre), were obtained for the period between January 1993 and December 2004. Analysis of variance, detrended correspondence analysis, redundancy analysis and multiple regression techniques were used for the statistical analysis of the distinct time series. Fisheries production in the Lower Amazon presents differences between the Amazon River and the floodplain lakes. Production in the Amazon River is approximately half of the one of the floodplain lakes. This variability occurs both along the Lower Amazon River region (longitudinal gradient) and laterally (latitudinal gradient) for every fishing ground studied here. The distinct environmental variables alone or in association act differently on the fishery stocks and the success of catches in each fishery group studied here. Important variables are the flooding events; the soil the sea surface temperatures; the humidity; the wind and the occurence of El Niño-Southern Oscillation events. Fishery productivity presents a large difference in quantity and distribution patterns between the river and floodplain lakes. This variability occurs in the region of the Lower Amazon as well as laterally for each fishery group studied, being dependent on the ecological characteristics and life strategies of each fish group considered here. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasing our knowledge about the spatial ecology of apex predators and their interactions with diverse habitats and fisheries is necessary for understanding the trophic mechanisms that underlie several aspects of marine ecosystem dynamics and for guiding informed management policies. A preliminary assessment of tiger shark (Galeocerdo cuvier) population structure off the oceanic insular system of Fernando de Noronha (FEN) and the large-scale movements performed by this species in the equatorial Atlantic Ocean was conducted using longline and handline fishing gear and satellite telemetry. A total of 25 sharks measuring 175–372 cm in total length (TL) were sampled. Most sharks were likely immature females ranging between 200 and 260 cm TL, with few individuals < 200 cm TL being caught. This contrasts greatly with the tiger shark size-distribution previously reported for coastal waters off the Brazilian mainland, where most individuals measured < 200 cm TL. Also, the movements of 8 individuals measuring 202–310 cm TL were assessed with satellite transmitters for a combined total of 757 days (mean = 94.6 days∙shark-1; SD = 65.6). These sharks exhibited a considerable variability in their horizontal movements, with three sharks showing a mostly resident behavior around FEN during the extent of the respective tracks, two sharks traveling west to the South American continent, and two sharks moving mostly along the middle of the oceanic basin, one of which ending up in the northern hemisphere. Moreover, one shark traveled east to the African continent, where it was eventually caught by fishers from Ivory Coast in less than 474 days at liberty. The present results suggest that young tiger sharks measuring < 200 cm TL make little use of insular oceanic habitats from the western South Atlantic Ocean, which agrees with a previously-hypothesized ontogenetic habitat shift from coastal to oceanic habitats experienced by juveniles of this species in this region. In addition, this study adds evidence that tiger sharks are able to connect marine trophic webs from the neritic provinces of the eastern and western margins of the Atlantic Ocean across the equatorial basin and that they may experience mortality induced by remote fisheries. All this information is extremely relevant for understanding the energetic balance of marine ecosystems as much as the exposure of this species to fishing pressure in this yet poorly-known region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pseudorhabdosynochus Yamaguti, 1958 is a species-rich diplectanid genus, mainly restricted to the gills of groupers (Epinephelidae) and especially abundant in warm seas. Species from the Mediterranean are not fully documented. Two new and two previously known species from the gills of Mycteroperca spp. (M. costae, M. rubra, and M. marginata) in the Mediterranean and Eastern Atlantic Ocean are described here from new material and slides kept in collections. Identifications of newly collected fish were ascertained by barcoding of cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) sequences. Pseudorhabdosynochus beverleyburtonae (Oliver, 1984) Kritsky & Beverley-Burton, 1986 and P. sosia Neifar & Euzet 2007 are redescribed from type-specimens and new specimens collected off Tunisia and Libya from M. marginata and M. costae, respectively. Pseudorhabdosynochus oliveri n. sp., from M. marginata (type-host) off the Mediterranean coast of France (type-locality), is described from specimens found among voucher specimens of P. beverleyburtonae deposited by Guy Oliver in the collection of the Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris. Pseudorhabdosynochus oliveri is distinguished by the shape of its sclerotised vagina; it was not found in the other localities investigated. Pseudorhabdosynochus hayet n. sp. is described from M. rubra (type host) off Senegal (type-locality) and Tunisia. Pseudorhabdosynochus hayet is morphologically similar to P. sosia (type-host: M. costae) but was distinguished by differences in measurements of the vagina and male copulatory organ, different host, and divergent COI sequences. The four species (P. beverleyburtonae, P. sosia, P. oliveri, and P. hayet) share common characteristics such as squamodiscs with 2 innermost circular rows of rodlets and a similar general structure of the sclerotised vagina; we propose to group them into a ‘beverleyburtonae group’ within Pseudorhabdosynochus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The shortfin mako (Isurus oxyrinchus) is a highly migratory pelagic shark that preferentially inhabits oceanic regions in practically all oceans. The wide distribution range of this species renders it susceptible to coastal and oceanic fishing operations. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) consider this species to be highly vulnerable, especially due to its biological parameters, which are different from those of other sharks that occupy the same niche (e.g., Prionace glauca). Consequently, considerable declines in abundance have been detected over various parts of its range, most of which are linked to oceanic longline fishing. The species has conflicting life history parameters in studies conducted in the last 30 years, especially with regard to age and growth. The main discrepancies regard the interpretation of the periodicity of the deposition of band pairs (BPs) on vertebrae and the possibility of ontogenetic variations in growth. Shortfin mako sharks (n = 1325) were sampled by onboard observers of the Brazilian chartered pelagic longline fleet based in northeast Brazil from 2005 to 2011. Lengths were 79 to 250 and 73 to 296 cm (fork length, FL) for males and females, respectively, with a statistically significant difference in size between sexes and differences in the proportion of individuals in each size class. The onboard observers collected a subsample of vertebrae (n = 467), only 234 of which were suitable for analyses. Reliability between readings was satisfactory. However, it was not possible to validate periodicity in the formation of age bands in the sample. Thus, the von Bertalanffy growth function was used to calculate growth rates for the species through the interpretation of BPs in different scenarios: one BP per year (s1), two BPs per year (s2) and two BPs per year until five years of life (s3). Growth parameters varied for both females (Linf = 309.7[s3] to 441.6[s1]; k = 0.04[s1] to 0.13[s3]; t0 = -7.08[s1] and -3.27[s3]) and males (Linf = 291.5[s3] to 340.2[s1]; k = 0.04[s1] to 0.13[s3]; t0 = -7.08[s1] and -3.27[s3]). To advance the understanding of the use of habitat, the first analysis of the spatial distribution of the life stages of the shortfin mako sharks caught by commercial longline fishing operations in the South Atlantic was performed. The findings indicate that the portion of the population exploited by the fleets is predominantly juvenile and future actions should take the following issues into account: improvements in the efficiency of data collection procedures, the reestablishment of the onboard observer program, emergency investments in studies that can contribute to a better understanding of habitat use and life history theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examine the large-scale distribution patterns of the nano- and microphytoplankton collected from 145 oceanic stations, at 3 m depth, the 20% light level and the depth of the subsurface chlorophyll maximum, during the Malaspina-2010 Expedition (December 2010-July 2011), which covered 15 biogeographical provinces across the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans, between 35°N and 40°S. In general, the water column was stratified, the surface layers were nutrient-poor and the nano- and microplankton (hereafter phytoplankton, for simplicity, although it included also heterotrophic protists) community was dominated by dinoflagellates, other flagellates and coccolithophores, while the contribution of diatoms was only important in zones with shallow nutriclines such as the equatorial upwelling regions. We applied a principal component analysis to the correlation matrix among the abundances (after logarithmic transform) of the 76 most frequent taxa to synthesize the information contained in the phytoplankton data set. The main trends of variability identified consisted of: 1) A contrast between the community composition of the upper and the lower parts of the euphotic zone, expressed respectively by positive or negative scores of the first principal component, which was positively correlated with taxa such as the dinoflagellates Oxytoxum minutum and Scrippsiella spp., and the coccolithophores Discosphaera tubifera and Syracosphaera pulchra (HOL and HET), and negatively correlated with taxa like Ophiaster hydroideus (coccolithophore) and several diatoms, 2) a general abundance gradient between phytoplankton-rich regions with high abundances of dinoflagellate, coccolithophore and ciliate taxa, and phytoplankton-poor regions (second principal component), 3) differences in dominant phytoplankton and ciliate taxa among the Atlantic, the Indian and the Pacific oceans (third principal component) and 4) the occurrence of a diatom-dominated assemblage (the fourth principal component assemblage), including several pennate taxa, Planktoniella sol, Hemiaulus hauckii and Pseudo-nitzschia spp., in the divergence regions. Our findings indicate that consistent assemblages of co-occurring phytoplankton taxa can be identified and that their distribution is best explained by a combination in different degrees of both environmental and historical influences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Data are presented on the biomass of the invertebrate megafauna at 22 stations on the continental slope in the Porcupine Seabight (PSB) (northeast Atlantic Ocean). Samples were collected between 1980 and 1982. Several units of biomass are used, all of which illustrate a decrease by a factor of about 30 from 500 to 4100 m. Lognormal curves were fitted to the data, the gradients of which were very similar for all biomass units and similar to the value for a transect down the continental slope in the western Atlantic. Biomass levels in the PSB are compared with those from other deep-sea environments. Some published values are more than ten times higher than the values reported here, while others are less than a tenth. The reasons for these differences and trends are discussed in terms of food supply. Sampling variability was examined at two stations, but by chance one (at 1300 m) appeared to encompass a sharp faunal discontinuity of the dominant fauna and the other (at 4000 m) contained very small numbers of large animals. For these reasons, sample variability was high at the repeat stations. Suspension-feeders and crustaceans dominated the biomass at upper-slope depths, while echinoderms were dominant on the middle and lower slope. As a result of this phyletic change, there was a small but insignificant decrease in mean body weight with increasing depth. Within phyla there was also a small but insignificant decrease with depth. If large species are excluded from the biomass/depth regression, the gradient changes considerably, demonstrating the increasing importance of small species at greater depths. The size distribution of megafaunal biomass was examined at several stations. This indicated that the megafauna form a functional group distinct from the macrofauna, just as the macrofauna are distinct from the meiofauna. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]