Caribbean Sea

The first report of Kogia sima on the Caribbean coast of Honduras and second in Central America was documented from an individual found stranded in Punto Izopo National Park located in Tela-Atlántida (February 6th 2011). The identification of the individual as K. sima was based on a combination of morphological and meristic characteristics.

Las macroalgas benticas son consideradas un componente fundamental en el mantenimiento y equilibrio de los arrecifes coralinos. Dada la importancia de suministrar informacion sobre floristica y distribucion de nuevos taxones de este grupo vegetal, se determino la composicion de especies de macroalgas en los arrecifes submareales del Parque Nacional Archipielago Los Roques, Venezuela. Las muestras se colectaron mediante buceo autonomo entre 12-22 m de profundidad en nueve localidades del parque, durante agosto y septiembre de 2011. Se identifico un total de 53 especies: cinco pertenecientes al Phylum Chlorophyta, cinco al Phylum Ochrophyta y 43 al Phylum Rhodophyta, 29 de las cuales representan adiciones para el parque. El hecho de que mas del 50% de los registros citados son nuevos para esta localidad y que hasta el momento toda la investigacion se habia realizado en ambientes intermareales, enfatiza la importancia de la exploracion submareal para este parque y otras regiones de Ven...

Based on the Annual Reports of the United Fruit Company to its shareholders, this article reconstructs and quantifies the processes of land acquisition by the company in the countries of the Greater Caribbean where it operated during the first half of the twentieth century. The data allow tracing the movement of an important part of the banana commodity frontier from the historical core of Limón-Bocas del Toro to the North Central American countries and the Colombian Caribbean. In addition, the article discusses the socioeconomic and environmental causes of the accumulation of a large land reserve, much larger than the area actually exploited. We understand this strategy on the part of the company as a response to the counter-movement of nature in the face of the process of ecological simplification implicit in the formation of plantations.

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A mass stranding of 81 short-finned pilot whale (SFPW) Globicephala macrorhynchus along Manapad coast from 11th to 15th January, 2016 was reported. Along the same coast, 147 SFPW were reported to have stranded in the same month, 43 years ago. Morphometric measurements of stranded specimens were taken. Based on the necropsy and subsequent findings, the animals showed no obvious signs of health problems. The single most predominant cause to have triggered the recent mass stranding could be possibly biosonar dysfunction.

Resumen Macroinvertebrados intermareales de las playas turísticas en Cartagena de Indias, Caribe colom-biano y su uso potencial como bioindicadores de calidad ambiental. Con el propósito de caracterizar la biodiversidad de macroinvertebrados intermareales en las playas turísticas de Cartagena (Colombia), como paso previo para la identificación de bioindicadores de calidad ambiental de dichas playas, se recolectaron y cuantificaron los ejemplares de macroinvertebrados presentes en la zona arenosa y rocosa artificial (espigo-nes), de tres playas de esa ciudad. Asimismo, se midie-ron las variables fisicoquímicas, oxígeno disuelto, pH, conductividad, salinidad y sólidos suspendidos, y se consultaron los valores del nivel de marea y de la pre-cipitación. Los resultados indican la existencia de una mayor riqueza de especies en el sustrato rocoso (16 especies), con respecto al arenoso (siete especies), pre-dominando en ambos casos el grupo de los moluscos, el cual se caracterizó por presen...

Abstract: The geographical distribution of the family Limacinidae in the Northeastern coast of Brazil was analyzed by taking into account the most relevant ecological aspects, aiming to increase the knowledge about the Family. The material was collected during the 4th Oceanographic Expedition of the REVIZEE

The Lake Maracaibo estuarine system is a cooscillating coupled ocean-lake system connected through a partially mixed estuary. In this paper we examine the low frequency movements (ω < 0.1 cycles/day) in the different water bodies within this system. The harmonic and rotary spectral analyses of velocity data indicates the importance of tidal forcing within the whole system and its interaction with winds and fresh water discharge. In particular, the results indicate the existence of dominant semi-monthly oscillations in Lake Maracaibo, likely of non-linear tidal origin, and suggest that vertical stratificaction plays an important role in controlling the three-dimensional structure of tidal currents.

Se realizó una revisión bibliográfica de la información disponible sobre las especies registradas de diatomeas (Bacillariophyta) para las zonas costera y oceánica del mar Caribe colombiano. Se presenta el listado de 337 taxones correspondientes a 312 especies, 19 variedades y siete formas, agrupadas en 54 familias y 106 géneros. La clasificación taxonómica se basó en el sistema propuesto por Round et al. (1990).

The marine mucilaginous tube-forming benthic diatoms Berkeleya hyalina (Round et Brooks) Cox and Parlibellus berkeleyi (Kütz.) Cox are reported for the fist time for the Caribbean coast of Colombian, in Santa Marta area. These two species were found infrequently growing as macroscopic colonies inhabiting shallow rocky substrata. The report of P. berkeleyi species is the fist for the Caribbean Sea.

En la estación de monitoreo de arrecifes coralinos del SIMAC en isla Tesoro, archipiélago Nuestra Señora del Rosario, se evaluó la mortalidad y se identifiaron algunos signos de deterioro en corales escleractínios juveniles (colonias < 2-4 cm). Se marcaron y evaluaron 41 colonias por un período de seis meses (abril-octubre de 2006), de las cuales 31 pertenecieron a especies incubadoras de plánulas (con dominancia de Porites astreoides y Agaricia spp.) y 10 a especies liberadoras de gametos (con mayor abundancia de Montastraea cavernosa). La tasa de mortalidad encontrada (0.1) fue baja comparada con otras registradas, condición posiblemente relacionada con una presión moderada de los tensores presentes en el área durante la época del estudio. La abundancia de corales juveniles en los diferentes taxones y los signos de deterioro registrados son refljo de las estrategias de vida, en las que especies incubadoras de plánulas son usualmente más abundantes y vulnerables.

This paper reports for the fist time in Colombia the jellyfih Lychnorhiza sp., aff. L. lucerna, based on seventeen individuals collected in front of Isla de Rosario (Magdalena). This jellyfih is one of the most common inhabitants in coastal waters from southeastern Brazil to northern Argentina, but it was not recorded yet from the Caribbean coast of Colombia.

La presencia de la especie Plagiodiscus nervatus se informó de tiempo del puño en el mar de la costa caribeña de Colombia . Se encontraron tres muestras , dos células en Bahía Gaira en agosto de 2000 y de 2001 en muestras de superficie , la otra celda en Bahía Chengue en mayo de 2012 a 2 m de profundidad . Las observaciones mostraron dos formas particulares de la especie , una con nervadura y el otro sin ella , tanto más grandes en tamaño en comparación con los reportados por otros autores para el Mar Caribe y otras partes del mundo . Es muy importante informar especies adicionales para complementar y realizar inventarios y listas de las especies presentes en la zona.

A new amphipod species of the genus Elasmopus Costa, 1853 is described and illustrated based on material collected in a harbor on the northern Yucatan coast, southern Gulf of Mexico. Elasmopus yucalpeten sp. n. is recognized from its congeners by a two-articulate accessory flagellum, a group of long robust setae on the anterodistal margin of the gnathopod 2 basis, a distomedial concave portion on palm of gnathopod 2 propodus, long setae on basis posterior margin of pereopods 5-7, and an entire telson. The differences among closely related species are pointed out and they are compared with the new species. An identification key to species of the genus Elasmopus in the Gulf of Mexico and biogeographic comments at the regional and global scales are also provided.

La Reserva de Biosfera Seaflwer (RBS) es uno de los pocos sitios en Colombia que cuenta con un conjunto de estudios disponibles en valoración económica de ambientes coralinos. Este artículo busca revisar las aplicaciones de política de tales estudios y evaluar el uso de métodos de transferencia de benefiios (BT) para predecir estimaciones de valor en sitios de la RBS donde no se han desarrollado valoraciones. Primero, el artículo provee un análisis y categorización de usos de política de los estudios existentes; se identifió un conjunto de estudios de valoración económica con inflencia potencial en aplicaciones de política mediante la provisión de herramientas de sostenibilidad fianciera para Áreas Marinas Protegidas. Seguidamente, se seleccionó un estudio de caso del conjunto de estudios con potencial de inflenciar la toma de decisiones con el fi de evaluar la viabilidad de BT, mediante: i) la implementación de una función de transferencia de valor entre el Parque Regional Johnny Cay y el Parque Nacional Old Providence y McBean Lagoon; y ii) a través de la estimación de una función de transferencia metaanalítica con base en meta-datos mundiales sobre el valor recreacional de los arrecifes coralinos. Los resultados sugieren el uso potencial de BT como una nueva aplicación basada en los estudios existentes en la RBS. En particular, los resultados meta-analíticos indican errores de transferencia bajos y moderados para la RBS, sugiriendo la viabilidad de esta aproximación.

Este estudio reporta el primer embrión dicefálico de la viuda amarilla Mustelus higmani, y el octavo caso en el tiburón azul Prionace glauca. Cada embrión fue removido del vientre de una hembra preñada, capturada en aguas costeras del mar Caribe en las cercanías del estado Nueva Esparta. Los embriones dicefálicos son exhibidos en el Museo Marino de Margarita.

Background: This study compiles the diversity of sea anemones in different shallow habitats (i.e. rocky shores, coral reefs, mangroves and sandy bottoms) in several locations of Venezuela, including the most important marine reserves of Venezuela:

Modeling suggests air pressure anomalies accompanying rainbands can trigger meteotsunamis similar to observations • High spatio-temporal resolution is needed to simulate sudden changes in air pressure and ensuing meteotsunami • Meteotsunami size and extent is dependent on atmospheric and oceanographic factors, including storm surge

Information regarding beaked whales is so sparse that even the most basic aspects of their biology, such as their distribution, remain poorly defined for some species. We have reviewed the known distribution of each beaked whale species and where possible, used this information to infer its global distribution. While for some species, such as the relatively commonly recorded Cuvier’s beaked whale, the inferred distribution is likely to be an accurate reflection of the species’ actual distribution, for other lesser known species, such as the spade-toothed whale, the inferred distribution is more tentative. However, even such limited distribution information is essential when assessing and mitigating potential anthropogenic impacts on beaked whales and serves to highlight gaps in our knowledge that need to be filled if assessment and mitigation are to be successfully conducted.

El microfitobentos es una comunidad que agrupa a los microorganismos fotosintéticos bentónicos. En Venezuela y el resto de los países del mar Caribe, este grupo ha sido escasamente estudiado, por lo que se desconoce su diversidad. Así, se propuso describir las variaciones espaciales y temporales de su composición y abundancia en la zona costera central de Venezuela. Los muestreos fueron realizados mensualmente desde junio 2014 hasta marzo 2015, en estaciones aleatorias con profundidades inferiores a 20 m. Los datos de riqueza y abundancia fueron procesados mediante pruebas de hipótesis multivariadas (Anosim – SIMPER – nMDS). Se identificaron 327 especies, dominadas por diatomeas y dinoflagelados, sin variaciones espaciales y temporales notables. En términos de abundancia, el grupo más representativo fue el de las diatomeas (68 %), seguido por las cianobacterias (28 %). El microfitobentos presentó una variabilidad temporal en la que se alcanzaron densidades mayores entre julio y agosto, mientras que el resto de los meses presentaron abundancias similares. En términos generales, se obtuvo abundancia estándar de acuerdo con lo encontrado en otras áreas del mundo, con diferencias notables entre el microfitobentos de los sustratos evaluados y una riqueza específica alta que se mantiene constante durante todo el año.

La laguna de Baconao es una laguna tropical costero-litoral, con constantes perturbaciones antrópicas y naturales; escenario que favorece la eutrofización, con tendencia a la proliferación del fitoplancton. El desarrollo de esta investigación comienza con un reporte de muerte masiva de peces en la laguna, en mayo de 2017, siendo el objetivo principal documentar la implementación de un protocolo de gestión del riesgo por contaminación con ficotoxinas, adaptado a las condiciones del ecosistema, a partir de la caracterización de la situación de riesgo, enfocado a la mitigación y prevención de impactos negativos. Se confirma la existencia de una Floración Algal Nociva (FAN) mixta en remisión, con implicaciones negativas en todo el ecosistema, así como la presencia de células vivas de Gymnodinium sp., Karlodinium micrum, y abundantes restos de células de otros dinoflagelados; altos valores de clorofila a, con una concentración máxima de 20,37 ± 0,04 μgL-1; bajos valores de oxígeno disuelto y elevada contaminación bacteriana, con predominio de cianobacterias. Se documenta la implementación de un protocolo de gestión del riesgo con importantes pautas metodológicas a seguir para el manejo de similares eventos de riesgo, donde la alianza intersectorial constituyó un factor clave de éxito.

Beach in the province of Holguin. The samples were taken in the year 2005, in three biotopes: sea grasses, rocky planes and back reefs, both during dry and rain seasons. 79 species of macro algae were collected and 3 of marine plants. Among the algae, 30 belong to the Phylum Rhodophyta, 18 to the Ochrophyta, and 31 to Chlorophyta. The water plants were Thalassia testudinum Banks & Solander, Syringodium filiforme Kutzing and Halodule wrightii den Hartog.

Caribbean Current AMO AMOC Climate change Global warming Intra-Americas Sea Gulf of Mexico Caribbean Sea This study examines the potential impact of anthropogenic greenhouse warming on the Intra-Americas Sea (IAS, Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico) by downscaling the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phase-5 (CMIP5) model simulations under historical and two future emission scenarios using an eddy-resolving resolution regional ocean model. The simulated volume transport by the western boundary current system in the IAS, including the Caribbean Current, Yucatan Current and Loop Current (LC), is reduced by 20-25% during the 21st century, consistent with a similar rate of reduction in the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC). The effect of the LC in the present climate is to warm the Gulf of Mexico (GoM). Therefore, the reduced LC and the associated weakening of the warm transient LC eddies have a cooling impact in the GoM, particularly during boreal spring in the northern deep basin, in agreement with an earlier dynamic downscaling study. In contrast to the reduced warming in the northern deep GoM, the downscaled model predicts an intense warming in the shallow (≤200 m) northeastern shelf of the GoM especially during boreal summer since there is no effective mechanism to dissipate the increased surface heating. Potential implications of the regionally distinctive warming trend pattern in the GoM on the marine ecosystems and hurricane intensifications during landfall are discussed. This study also explores the effects of 20th century warming and climate variability in the IAS using the regional ocean model forced with observed surface flux fields. The main modes of sea surface temperature variability in the IAS are linked to the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation and a meridional dipole pattern between the GoM and Caribbean Sea. It is also shown that variability of the IAS western boundary current system in the 20th century is largely driven by wind stress curl in the Sverdrup interior and the AMOC.

Humpback whales are known to migrate from Antarctica to the breeding grounds in Ecuador, however, there is little information about the obstacles they need to surpass through the western coast of South America. This work is focused to determine if humpback whales are being impacted by human activities around them during the inbound/outbound run through Ecuador and Peru. We searched for evidence of human harassment in Eastern South Pacific humpback whales between S0°55''676" W80°49'59.52" and S13°17'1.30 W76°16'33.41" from 2001 to 2008. A total of 35 whales were assessed near the coast of the research area, and were classified by site of location, time of the year, gender, age class, and type of harassment. Cases were reported through emergency calls, sightings or strandings. 80% of the cases were reported in Ecuador, 20% in Peru. Whale reports only happened during winter (77%) and spring (23%). 62.85% of the animals showed human impact, all of them due to fisheries: net entanglement or sharp wounds, and most of them 54% were adults; meanwhile 40% were juveniles and calves. Of the assessed whales, 71% ended up dead. Important information about gaps regarding whale conservation was collected during this survey: fishermen in both countries are afraid of losing fishing gear with entangled whales; however, broken or old fishing gear is dumped in to the ocean when whales are around. Legal protection for humpback whales in both countries does exist, but there is little reinforcement from Navy or Environmental Police arguing lack of logistic and information. In Ecuador, there is no veterinary support to respond for harassed whales, so there is a need to develop rescue operations. It has been proposed to expand ORCA's Stranding Network to Ecuador and develop educational workshop for fishermen to understand both whales and human impact in the ocean.

Killer whales (Orcinus orca) are a widely distributed species around the world, however, little is known about this species as the top predator of marine mammals along the coast to Peru. With data collected by the ORCA Stranding Network in Peru between 2003 and 2023, these observations aim to reveal interspecific interactions between O. orca and marine mammal species as prey next to seasonal fisheries activities. Critical information such as gender, age-class, geo-position, physical lesions in the predated specimens, and the seasonality of these interactions was collected with the forensic analysis of the strandings. Findings revealed evidence of predatory interactions in 21.64% specimens (n1=268) of 12 species of stranded marine mammals including bites of lips and tongue, lesions on blowhole, neck and genitalia, "rake" bite markings on flippers, tailstock or flukes in cetaceans, with large body loss on predated pinnipeds. All specimens died after the predatory attack. The stranding locations indicated 60.34% of these interactions occurred on the central coast of Peru during the Southern Hemisphere spring months, having the highest incidence in October. It is important to note that the predatory behavior of O. orca is particularly close to the most densely human populated area in Peru, where human aggression plays a large role in cetacean mortality with 59.27% (N=496) cases recorded and attributed to entanglement or other fisheries related interactions. This seasonality also compares to previous studies of predatory Cookie-cutter shark (Isistius brasiliensis) bites along the central coast with a majority 79.16% (n2=24) occurring in the spring months in the same geospatial region. This study contributes to understand O. orca ecological preferences in Peru, acknowledging its seasonal presence, specialized diet, and predatory behavior closely related to the spatial-temporal distribution of fisheries, something to consider for further research on the species distribution along the Eastern Pacific ocean.

The region offshore the Guajira Peninsula of Colombia in the western Caribbean is a frontier exploration area known primarily from 2 and 3D seismic reflection surveys and a handful of well penetrations. After analyzing a grid of 2D seismic reflection profiles, we have identified the widespread presence of bottom-simulating reflections (BSRs) in this area. BSR events are present on 50% of the 1975 km line of 2D seismic reflection profiles. These BSR events are classified into four types: continuous, discontinuous, pluming and clustered. Continuous and discontinuous BSR events make up the majority (93%) of the BSRs in the study area. Pluming events are the rarest type of BSR (1.4%) and are associated with areas of active mud diapirism and seafloor mud volcanoes. Clustered BSRs are also infrequent (5.6%) and appear to be associated with sand-rich facies close to the BSR level within the sediment column. We use the depth of the BSR to infer pressure and temperature conditions within the sediment column and to calculate the geothermal gradient for the sediment within the gas hydrate stability zone.

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Late Cretaceous-to-present-day mixed carbonate-clastic deposition along the Nicaraguan platform, western Caribbean Sea, has evolved from a tectonically controlled, rifted upper Eocene shallow-to-deep-marine carbonate-siliciclastic shelf to an upper Miocene-to-present-day tectonically stable shallow-marine carbonate platform and passive margin. By integrating subsurface data of 287 two-dimensional seismic lines and 27 wells, we interpret the Cenozoic stratigraphic sequence as 3 cycles of transgression and regression beginning with an upper Eocene rhodolitic-algal carbonate shelf that interfingered with marginal siliciclastic sediments derived from exposed areas of Central America bordering the margin to the west. During the middle Eocene, a carbonate platform was established with both rimmed reefs and isolated patch reefs. A late Eocene forced regression produced widespread erosion and subaerial exposure across much of the platform and was recorded by a regional unconformity. The Oligocene-upper Miocene sedimentary record includes a southeastward prograding delta of the proto-Coco river, which drained the emergent area of what is now northern Nicaragua. The late Miocene-to-present-day period marks a period of strong subsidence with the development of small pinnacle reefs. We describe favorable petroleum system elements of the Nicaraguan platform that include (1) Eocene fossiliferous limestone source rocks documented as thermally mature in

The offshore South Caribbean deformed belt (SCDB) is a 100-km-wide (62 mi), late Cenozoic sedimentary accretionary prism formed where the Caribbean plate is obliquely subducted beneath northern South America. Progradation of deltaic deposits of the 1500-km-long (932 mi) Magdalena River over the SCDB and tectonic deformation of the deltaic sedimentary rocks has created one of the youngest (last 10 Ma) and thickest (5-18 km [3-5 mi]) accretionary prisms in the world. We use three types of data (deep-penetration, seismic-reflection profiles, gravity modeling collinear with the seismic lines, and structural restorations) to describe the late Miocene to Recent thrust kinematics of the 10-to 18-km-thick (6.2-11.1 mi) SCDB formed above the subducting Caribbean Oceanic Plateau whose crust varies in thickness from 17 km (10.6 mi) in the southern part of the 180-km-long (111 mi) study area to 8 km (4.9 mi) in the north. In the southern area of thicker subducted plateau crust, the structural style is characterized by Neogene growth strata defining a major thrusted sequence that is backthrust in a landward direction, deformed by reactivation of preexisting faults as out-of-sequence thrust (OOST) faults, common shale diapirism, and active, margin-parallel strike-slip faults that accommodate the oblique-slip component of subduction. In the northern area of thinner oceanic crust (6-8 km [3.7-4.9 mi]), the structural style includes seaward-verging, imbricated thrust fans with less prominent backthrusting and strikeslip faulting, and more prominent shale diapirism. Proposed controls for the observed structural differences between the northern and southern areas include (1) more buoyancy of the subducted plate in the southern area due to its greater crustal thickness, and (2) the presence of more overpressured and ductile deformed shale layers with associated shale diapirs in the north.

Previous studies along the Andean subduction zones of South America have shown that forearc basins can develop over shallow-dipping the subduction zone dips horizontally or up to 15°, and that these shallow-dipping subduction zones can alternate with more steeply dipping (>30°) subduction zones over distances of 400-1500 km (249-932 mi). This study describes the Cenozoic structural and depositional history of the Lower Magdalena Basin (LMB)-an Oligocene to Recent forearc basin covering an area of 42,000 km 2 (16,216 mi 2 ) and overlying a zone of shallow subduction (the depth to the top of the Caribbean slab ranges from 30 km to 90 km [19 to 56 mi] beneath the LMB). Using 7000 km (4350 mi) of two-dimensional (2-D) seismic reflection lines tied to 33 wells, we describe the initial Oligocene subsidence of the forearc basin along a radial array of 70°-to 110°-striking normal faults that remained active until the early Miocene. During this period, the LMB was underfilled by 1-3 seconds twoway-time (TWT) (1500 m [4921 ft]) of shallow-marine and deep-marine facies. During middle Miocene the LMB remained underfilled with marine sediments deposited in water depths of 200-2600 m (656-8530 ft). An angular unconformity spanning the interval of 11-7 Ma marks a shortening and uplift affecting the Sinu accretionary prism west of the LMB that became emergent to form a prominent forearc high along the western edge of the LMB. The regional structure of the LMB is a broad syncline that folds all units older than early Miocene and produces an asymmetrical shape-in profile-with the western edge of the LMB (against the Sinu accretionary prism), steeper than the eastern edge of the LMB. After the late

Known hydrocarbon occurrences are indicative of a widespread and active, offshore petroleum system of the Nicaraguan Rise (western Caribbean Sea). We identify key petroleum system elements and processes using geological, geophysical, and geochemical data integrated into a three-dimensional petroleum system model that includes an early and late Eocene / Oligo-Miocene (!) petroleum system. Early and late Eocene source rocks identified on the Nicaraguan Rise include clayey, calcareous limestone and pelagic shale containing kerogen type II and III with TOC values ranging from 0.85% to 3.74%. Potential reservoirs include transitional to deep marine environments with clastic pinch-outs, dolomitized shallow marine carbonate complexes, and reefal buildups. Potential seal rocks include gray calcareous shale, siltstone, and silty shale deposited above regional and local unconformities and as intercalations within carbonate formations. The complex tectonic history of the area has produced known structural and stratigraphic traps effective for hydrocarbon accumulation with recovered hydrocarbons ranging from 21° API to 45° API. Thermal history modeling based on paleo-heat flows, burial histories, and transformation ratio maps shows that the initiation of hydrocarbon generation began during the early Oligocene (35 Ma) at 69 mW/m 2 with an average hydrocarbon expulsion of 7.15 MMBOE per km 2 from Eocene source rock intervals. Our proposed model predicts vertical migration on the Nicaraguan Rise with a predicted generation-accumulation efficiency of 3.5%.

Se presenta una caracterización de la variación espacial y temporal de las macroalgas del mesolitoral rocoso del sector Aguadores-Baconao, determinándose 47 especies, 33 géneros y 16 familias. Del total de especies, 19 pertenecen a Rhodophyta, 11 a Heterokontophyta y 17 a Chlorophyta; consignándose por primera vez las especies Amphiroa beauvoisii, Centroceras clavulatum, Ceramiun brasiliense, Yuzurua poiteaui, Ceratodictyon intricatum, Gracilaria damaecornis, Laurencia obtusa, Polysiphonia scopulorum, P. sphaerocarpa, Dictyota ciliolata, Anandyomene saldanhae, Chaetomorpha gracilis y Dictyosphaeria ocellata para la plataforma suroriental. Los valores más elevados de riqueza específica se obtuvieron en marzo (35). La composición varía entre los meses (55% de disimilitud) y localidades (30-100% de disimilitud). Estas variaciones responden a las características del microhábitat y la presencia de fuentes puntuales de enriquecimiento con nutrientes.

Abstract: The geographical distribution of the family Limacinidae in the Northeastern coast of Brazil was analyzed by taking into account the most relevant ecological aspects, aiming to increase the knowledge about the Family. The material was collected during the 4th Oceanographic Expedition of the REVIZEE

The chiropteran fauna of the island of Saint Vincent, represented by 12 species, is among the most complex in the Lesser Antilles, being represented by four families including Noctilionidae (1 species), Mormoopidae (1), Phyllostomidae (8), and Molossidae (2). This fauna includes four trophic guilds as represented by Noctilio leporinus (piscivore/insectivore); Glossophaga longirostris and Monophyllus plethodon (nectarivore/pollenivore); Artibeus lituratus, A. schwartzi, Brachyphylla cavernarum, Ardops nichollsi, and Sturnira paulsoni (frugivore); and Pteronotus fuscus, Micronycteris buriri, Molossus molossus, and Tadarida brasiliensis (insectivore). One species—Micronycteris buriri—and two subspecies—Sturnira paulsoni paulsoni and Ardops nichollsi vincentensis—are endemic to the island. Recent advancements in population genomics have led to the discovery of the reticulated evolutionary history of Artibeus schwartzi and it is likely that the formation of the hybrid evolutionary trajec...

Abstract: The geographical distribution of the family Limacinidae in the Northeastern coast of Brazil was analyzed by taking into account the most relevant ecological aspects, aiming to increase the knowledge about the Family. The material was collected during the 4th Oceanographic Expedition of the REVIZEE

Risso's dolphins are known for the persistency of their natural markings, possibly due to the loss of pigment during the healing process of skin wounds. Nonetheless, the actual longevity and reliability of each mark type has never been assessed. In this paper, we used photographs to investigate the etiology of skin marks in the species, analyze their distribution and temporal variability, and discuss implications for photo identification. Nineteen mark types were described on the dorsal fin of Risso's dolphin, including 2 new to the literature: the snakelike mark and the protruding fat. Longevity of skin marks ranged from 6 years for the protruding fat to several decades for scrapes and dots. Persistent and reliable marks were notch, tooth-rake, and thick single and parallel scrapes. Mark change was sufficiently low that all mark types could be used for photo identification, provided that backlit or underexposed images were discarded as photographs taken under suboptimal light conditions proved to be unreliable. Finally, mark distribution and variability were unequal between age classes; juveniles were less marked and showed a higher rate of mark change than older individuals so that, even if they possessed enough notches to be classified as reliably marked, they could be confidently matched over a time interval of up to 3 years.

The false killer whale (Pseudorca crassidens) exhibits one of the widest and most continuous distributions among cetaceans, inhabiting tropical and subtropical oceanic waters around the world (Jefferson et al., 1993). However, basic information about its biology is scarce due to the low frequency of sightings and its offshore habits. For this reason, most of the knowledge of this species has been obtained from stranded animals (Odell and McClune, 1999). In the Western Atlantic, it is common from Cape Hatteras, USA, to Tierra del

This paper describes Elops smithi, n. sp., and designates a lectotype for E. saurus. These two species can be separated from the five other species of Elops by a combination of vertebrae and gillraker counts. Morphologically, they can be distinguished from each other only by myomere (larvae) or vertebrae (adults) counts. Elops smithi has 73-80 centra (total number of vertebrae), usually with 75-78 centra; E. saurus has 79-87 centra, usually with 81-85 centra. No other morphological character is known to separate E. smithi and E. saurus, but the sequence divergence in mtDNA cytochrome b (d = 0.023-0.029) between E. smithi and E. saurus is similar to or greater than that measured between recognized species of Elops in different ocean basins. Both species occur in the western Atlantic Ocean, principally allopatrically but with areas of sympatry, probably via larval dispersal of E. smithi by oceanographic currents.

Beach in the province of Holguin. The samples were taken in the year 2005, in three biotopes: sea grasses, rocky planes and back reefs, both during dry and rain seasons. 79 species of macro algae were collected and 3 of marine plants. Among the algae, 30 belong to the Phylum Rhodophyta, 18 to the Ochrophyta, and 31 to Chlorophyta. The water plants were Thalassia testudinum Banks & Solander, Syringodium filiforme Kutzing and Halodule wrightii den Hartog.

De muestras colectadas en agosto de 2006 en varios puntos de la bahia de Cienfuegos, se registraron seis nuevos hallazgos de macroalgas marinas para Cuba, cuatro rodoficeas: Gelidiella sanctarum Feldmann et Hamel, Gelidiopsis variabilis (Grev. ex J. Agardh) F. Schmitz, Gracilaria flabelliformis (P. Crouan et H. Crouan) Fredericq et Gurgel subsp. flabelliformis y G. pauciramosa (N. Rodr. Rios) Bellorin, M.C. Oliveira et E.C. Oliveira, y dos cloroficeas: Cladophora dalmatica Kutzing y C. sericea (Hudson) Kutzing. G. pauciramosa se registra por primera vez para las Antillas. En el presente trabajo se ofrecen ademas comentarios sobre la biogeografia, taxonomia y ecologia de las mencionadas especies

Se adicionan seis especies de algas marinas a la flora ficológica de Cuba: Botryocladia shanksii E.Y.Dawson, Pleonosporium flexuosum (C.Agardh) Bornet, Seirospora purpura M.Howe, Dasya punicea (Meneghhini) Meneghhini in Zanardini, Padina boergesenii Allender y Kraft, Caulerpa paspaloides var wurdemanni Weber-van Bosse.

Jor ge Ba rrios y Oscar Díaz De par ta men to de Bio lo gía Ma ri na, Insti tu to Ocea no grá fi co de Ve ne zue la. Cu ma ná, esta do Sucre. Apdo. 245. E-mail: je bar@su cre.udo.edu.ve Re su men. Se rea li zo un in ven ta rio de las al gas epí fi tas de Tha las sia tes tu di num en el Par que Na cio nal Mo chi ma, es ta do Su cre, Ve ne zue la. Se co lec ta ron men sual men te mues tras de T. tes tu di num en cua tro es tacio nes, de ene ro a di ciem bre de 2002. Se iden ti fi ca ron 40 taxa (30 espe cies y 10 gé ne ros) de ma croal gas (38 epí fi tas y dos aso cia das a las por cio nes ri zoi da les de T. tes tu di num), en las di vi sio nes Chlo roph yta, Phaeoph yta y Rho doph yta. Las es pe cies más cons tan tes para to das las es ta cio nes fue ron: Ente ro morp ha sp. (98%), Chae to morp ha gra ci lis (90%), Cla dop ho ra dal ma ti ca (92%), Der be sia sp. (75%), Spha ce laria ri gi du la (75%), Erythro tri chia car nea (100%), Hydro lit hom fa rino sum (100%), Cen tro ce ras cla vu la tum (100%), Ce ra mium diap hanum (100%), Her po sip ho nia se cun da (94%) y Poly sip ho nia at lan ti ca (90%). El coe fi cien te para la co mu ni dad de Va res chi (52,5%) re sul tó alto. Las es pe cies fi la men to sas con ci clos vi ta les cor tos pre do mi naron, en con trán do se las epí fi tas so la men te en las por cio nes más vie jas de las ho jas. Tha las sia tes tu di num per mi te el de sa rro llo de ma croal gas en áreas en don de el sus tra to blan do cons ti tu ye una li mi tan te para su es ta ble ci mien to. Pa la bras cla ve: Epí fí tas, es ta do Su cre, in ven ta rio, ma croal gas, Parque Na cio nal Mo chi ma, Tha las sia tes tu di num, Vene zue la.