ANATOLE Petrovich Andriashev, the preeminent Russian ichthyologist of our day, Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Full Member of the Academy of Natural Sciences, and Professor of Ichthyology in the Zoological Institute of St. Petersburg, died on 4 January 2009 at the age of 98. He authored or coauthored about 300 papers, including five books and many substantial reviews in fish taxonomy and systematics and marine zoogeography. He was especially interested in the origin and radiation of Arctic and Antarctic fishes. His extraordinary talent for systematic studies, exceptional capacity for work, unabated perseverance and devotion to science made
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DOI: 10.1643/CH-08-063
Three new species of Atractus are described from the northern Cordillera Central of Colombia. The new species, previously confused with older names, are easily distinguished from any currently recognized Atractus by unique combinations of morphological characters. Additionally, we provide comments on the Atractus diversity and distribution pattern in the Colombian Andes.Abstract
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DOI: 10.1643/CH-08-119
Studies of interactions between invasive and native species often focus on impacts on natives. We report potential impacts of a native predator, the Lake Erie Watersnake (Nerodia sipdeon insularum) on an invasive fish, the Round Goby (Apollonia melanostomus). Round Gobies have increased exponentially in the Great Lakes and now constitute >90% of prey consumed by Lake Erie Watersnakes. We investigated the effects this shift may have on round goby populations by estimating total prey consumption by Lake Erie Watersnakes. Digestive rate trials and maximum voluntary prey consumption trials indicate that gastric digestion is rapid (digestion was 90% complete after just 16.4 hours at 30°C and 20.1 hours at 25°C) and voluntary prey consumption is high (from 30.0% of adult female body mass to 117% of neonate body mass in five days). Based on palpation of wild-caught snakes, prey were detected more frequently in adult females than adult males, but no such difference was observed in subadults. The proportion of snakes containing prey varied over time with season-long averages of 11.6% for adult females, 6.9% for adult males, and 22.4% for subadults. Systematic surveys by boat indicate that nearly 90% of foraging occurs <150 m from shore. Projected annual consumption, based on gastric digestion rate, maximum voluntary prey consumption, feeding frequency of free-ranging snakes, and published energetic data and a population size of 12,000 adult watersnakes, ranges from 200,000–3,300,000 Round Gobies (4,455–56,178 kg) per year. Although impressive, this rate of prey consumption is unlikely to have more than local effects on Round Goby populations.Abstract
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DOI: 10.1643/CI-08-150
Acestridium gymnogaster and A. scutatum are described as new from small tributaries to the middle Rio Madeira, Amazonas, Brazil. Acestridium gymnogaster is most similar to A. discus from which it differs in the number of medial unpaired predorsal plates, the arrangement of chromatophores in predorsal area, and the absence of contact midventrally between the lateral abdominal plates. Acestridium scutatum is most similar to A. triplax from which it differs in having a longer snout and by the shape of the preanal plate. A key to the species of Acestridium is provided.
Acestridium gymnogaster e Acestridium scutatum, espécies novas, são descritas de pequenos rios tributários do médio Rio Madeira, Estado do Amazonas, Brasil. Acestridium gymnogaster é mais semelhante à A. discus, de quem difere pelo número de placas ímpares médias pré-dorsais, arranjo dos cromatóforos na área pré-dorsal, e a ausência de contato entre as placas laterais abdominais na linha media. Acestridium scutatum é mais semelhante à A. triplax, de quem difere por ter o focinho mais longo e pela forma da placa pré-anal. Uma chave para as espécies de Acestridium é apresentada.Abstract
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DOI: 10.1643/CE-08-105
Species inhabiting habitats with different predators are expected to show divergent phenotypes for antipredator traits. Here, we used a predator–prey system of dragonfly larvae and tadpoles to determine if vulnerability to a common predator differs in species with contrasting antipredator strategies. We examined the vulnerability of tadpoles of Rana temporaria and Bufo bufo to predation by Aeshna larvae when the two species co-occur in the same arena. Our results demonstrated that tadpoles of Bufo were more vulnerable than tadpoles of Rana despite the observation that dragonfly larvae did not show initial preferences for either prey species. Differences in susceptibility to predation seem to be associated with their low performance in evasive responses. Most important, our data suggest that despite chemical protection that effectively prevented the consumption of B. bufo by Aeshna larvae, injured tadpoles that otherwise had survived are at a high risk of being cannibalized. This loss of survival advantage of a chemical defense is an indirect result of two antipredator responses: the effectiveness of the chemical defense itself and the immobility of refused tadpoles.Abstract
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DOI: 10.1643/CH-07-171
Drymarchon couperi (Eastern Indigo Snake), a threatened species of the southeastern Coastal Plain of the United States, has experienced population declines because of extensive habitat loss and degradation across its range. In Georgia and northern Florida, the species is associated with longleaf pine habitats that support Gopherus polyphemus (Gopher Tortoise) populations, the burrows of which D. couperi uses for shelter. The extent that D. couperi uses these burrows, in addition to the use of other underground shelters and the microhabitat features associated with these structures is largely unknown. From 2003 through 2004, we conducted a radiotelemetry study of D. couperi (n = 32) to examine use of shelters and microhabitat in Georgia. We used repeated measures regression on a candidate set of models created from a priori hypotheses using principal component scores, derived from analysis of microhabitat data to examine microhabitat use at underground shelters. Proportion of locations recorded underground did not differ seasonally or between sexes. In winter, we recorded >0.90 of underground locations at tortoise burrows. Use of these burrows was less pronounced in spring for males. Females used abandoned tortoise burrows more frequently than males year-round and used them on approximately 0.60 of their underground locations during spring. Microhabitat use at underground shelters was most influenced by season compared to sex, site, or body size. Females in spring and summer used more open microhabitat compared to males, potentially in response to gestation. Our results suggest that the availability of suitable underground shelters, especially G. polyphemus burrows, may be a limiting factor in the northern range of D. couperi, with important implications for its conservation.Abstract
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DOI: 10.1643/CI-07-253
Although the type specimen of California Grunion (Leuresthes tenuis) was described from a local fish market in 1860, this coastal marine fish was not seen in San Francisco again until 2001, when California Grunion were taken during trawl surveys in San Francisco Bay. In 2005, spawning California Grunion were confirmed on a sandy beach in San Francisco Bay for the first time. Fish were sampled from three locations to assess the Bay population's relationship to southern California Grunion populations in the traditional range of California Grunion, between Point Conception and northern Baja California, Mexico. Size differences, microsatellite loci, and mitochondrial sequences were examined to assess variation within and between these populations. Spawning adult California Grunion from San Francisco Bay are significantly smaller in length and mass from the southern California Grunion. Genetic data do not indicate substantial genetic divergence among the three populations, but there is evidence of a large number of single, unique haplotypes observed at all three sites. A large number of haplotypes suggests a large effective population size. We suggest the most likely scenario for the San Francisco population is a very recent colonization event following a northerly warm water pulse, possibly the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) event of 1998–99, with the small population finding a thermal refuge in the Bay. Cold coastal water temperatures north of Point Conception may prevent colonization of the outer coast by northern populations of California Grunion. The differences in egg and adult size between the northern and southern populations are likely the result of phenotypic plasticity rather than genetic differences.Abstract
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DOI: 10.1643/CE-08-094
We studied the effects of various shelter and prey odor combinations on selection of microhabitat characters by the Desert Nightsnake, Hypsiglena chlorophaea, a dipsadine snake. We also examined the activity patterns of these snakes over a 23-h period. Three prey odors were tested, based on field work documenting natural prey in its diet: lizard, snake, mouse (plus water as control). In the first experiment, each odor was tested separately in various shelter and odor combinations. We found that snakes preferred shelter to no shelter quadrants, and most often selected a quadrant if it also had prey odor in the form of lizard or snake scent. However, snakes avoided all quadrants containing mouse (adult) odor. In the second experiment, all three odors plus water were presented simultaneously. We found that snakes showed a preference for lizard odor over the others, but again showed an aversion to mouse odor, even compared to water. The circadian rhythms in both experiments showed generally the same pattern, namely an initial peak in activity, falling off as they entered shelters, but then again increasing even more prominently from lights off until about midnight. Thereafter, activity tapered off so that several hours before lights on in the morning, snakes had generally taken up residence in a shelter. Prey preference correlates with field studies of dietary frequency of lizards, while activity exhibits strong endogenous nocturnal movement patterns.Abstract
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DOI: 10.1643/CI-08-192
A new genus and species of anglerfish, Dibrachichthys melanurus, of the antennarioid family Tetrabrachiidae, is described on the basis of 42 specimens collected in near-shore coastal waters of Queensland, Northern Territory, Western Australia, and the Aru Islands, southeastern Indonesia. It differs most strikingly from its sister species, Tetrabrachium ocellatum, the only previously described tetrabrachiid, in having the pectoral fin entire, rather than having the rays divided into two distinct sections, a feature that was heretofore diagnostic for the family. The new taxon is diagnosed, described, and compared osteologically with its sister taxon using high-resolution, X-ray computed tomography.Abstract
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DOI: 10.1643/CI-07-070
With more than 200 cyprinid genera, Phoxinus is the only genus of minnows with a Holarctic distribution. With ten described species, the genus has received only minimal attention with respect to their phylogenetic relationships, despite the broad distribution of the genus, the brilliant coloration of most species, and the frequency of species in cold-water stream ecosystems. Once recognized in three genera (Phoxinus, Chrosomus, Pfrille), monophyly of the genus has been questioned through previous morphological and molecular investigations. Analyses of all North American species and the Eurasian species Phoxinus phoxinus from across its range using variation in complete sequences of cytochrome b, corroborate previous, less taxon-rich molecular studies using either nuclear or mitochondrial genes, that the genus is an unnatural assemblage. The revised taxonomy for the genus recognizes the North American genus Chrosomus inclusive of the monotypic subgenus Pfrille as the sister group to the remaining species of the subgenus Chrosomus and the whole clade as part of a lineage inclusive of the previously identified North American shiner and western clades. Given the limitations to the taxon sampling of this analysis, the Eurasian Phoxinus is a basal clade of leuciscine cyprinids. With the exception of C. neogaeus, the six North American species form three clades of paired sister species (C. erythrogaster + C. eos; C. cumberlandensis + C. saylori; C. oreas + C. tennesseensis). The phylogenetic relationships provided herein offer opportunities for detailed evolutionary studies of their ecologies, distributions, and behaviors.Abstract
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DOI: 10.1643/CP-08-121
Sound production by many fish species has been studied extensively, but little is known about sound production by rockfishes (genus Sebastes), and only a few species have been reported to be soniferous. To determine if additional rockfish species produce sounds, passive acoustic recordings were made during 2007/08 at Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute and Southwest Fisheries Science Center in tanks containing Bocaccio (S. paucispinis), Cowcod (S. levis), Starry Rockfish (S. constellatus), and Sunset Rockfish (S. crocotulus). Data were collected using pre-amplified hydrophones (HTI-94-SSQ) and digitized at sample rates of 44,100 or 8,000 Hz (using an Edirol R-09 recorder or Edirol UA-5 sound card and Ishmael software, respectively). Three distinct sounds were recorded in tanks containing only S. paucispinis and two of those sounds occurred at different rates during light and dark conditions. Their common characteristics were low frequency (below 800 Hz), short duration (<4 s), and low source levels (103–113 dB re: 1 µPa at 1 m). Also, there was evidence one or more other species produced sounds. These findings indicate that more rockfishes produce sounds, and suggest passive acoustics could be a useful tool for remotely monitoring their populations.Abstract
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DOI: 10.1643/CI-08-186
Rhizosomichthys totae, the Pez Grasso, greasefish, or runcho of Lago de Tota, Colombia, is known from ten specimens and thought to be extinct. The species is unique among trichomycterids in possessing remarkable rings of extensive adipose tissues surrounding the body. Although its internal anatomy is poorly known, diagnosis of Rhizosomichthys totae and taxonomic status within Trichomycteridae have not been questioned. Non-destructive reconstruction of the osteology of one paratype based on computed microtomography, combined with broad character surveys of representatives of other trichomycterid genera, formed the basis for a redescription of R. totae and revealed the presence of four additional autapomorphies involving features of the cranium, autopalatine, and branchiostegal rays. This evidence further confirms the membership of Rhizosomichthys within the putatively non-monophyletic subfamily Trichomycterinae. We evaluate in R. totae the characters serving to diagnose the genera presently included in the Trichomycterinae.
Rhizosomichthys totae, el Pez Grasso, bagre gordo, o runcho del Lago de Tota, Colombia, es conocido de diez ejemplares y se piensa extinto. La especie es única entre los tricomictéridos en poseer marcados anillos de abundante tejido adiposo rodeando el cuerpo. Aunque su anatomía interna es conocida pobremente, la diagnosis de Rhizosomichthys totae y el estatus taxonómico no ha sido cuestionado dentro de Trichomycteridae. Reconstrucción osteológica no destructiva de un paratipo basado en microtomografía computada, combinada con un amplia búsqueda de caracteres en representantes de otros géneros de tricomictéridos, constituye la base para la redescripción de R. totae y revela la presencia de cuatro autopomorfías adicionales involucrando rasgos del cráneo, autopalatino, y radios branquiostegos. Esta evidencia además lo confirma como miembro de Rhizosomichthys dentro de la no monofilética subfamilia Trichomycterinae. En R. totae evaluamos los caracteres que sirven para diagnosis del género, actualmente incluido en los Trichomycterinae.Abstract
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DOI: 10.1643/CI-08-047
The Yazoo Darter, Etheostoma raneyi (Percidae: subgenus Ulocentra), is a narrowly restricted endemic occurring in small tributaries in the Loessial Hills of the upper Yazoo River basin in northern Mississippi. The range of the species is shared between the Little Tallahatchie and adjacent upper Yocona rivers, but populations in the two rivers are separated by unsuitable habitat in the Mississippi Alluvial Plain. The Chickasaw Darter, Etheostoma cervus, and Firebelly Darter, E. pyrrhogaster, show analogous distributions in the Forked Deer and Obion rivers, respectively, of western Tennessee and Kentucky. Phylogenetic analyses of cyt b and control region mtDNA (1497 sites) data from E. raneyi (n = 12), E. cervus (n = 4), and E. pyrrhogaster (n = 5) recovered two clades of E. raneyi with high bootstrap and decay support that are congruent with localities of specimens from the Little Tallahatchie and Yocona drainages, respectively. Divergence between the clades of E. raneyi was 1.3% (SE = 0.3%). Within drainage divergence was 0.3% (SE = 0.1%) for the Little Tallahatchie clade and 0.1% (SE < 0.1%) for the Yocona clade. Etheostoma cervus and E. pyrrhogaster showed interspecific divergence of 1.3% (SE = 0.2%) and intraspecific divergence of 0.7% (SE = 0.2%) and 0.8% (SE = 0.2%), respectively. These results suggest isolation by vicariance as a mode of speciation in fishes restricted to the Upper Coastal Plain. Conservation action may be in order for E. raneyi as populations from the Little Tallahatchie and Yocona rivers should be treated as separate management units with the latter known from only five small streams, some of which are threatened by encroaching development.Abstract
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DOI: 10.1643/CH-08-011
How climate change may affect parasite–host assemblages and emerging infectious diseases is an important question in amphibian decline research. We present data supporting a link between periods of unusually warm summer water temperatures during 2006 and 2008 in a northern California river, outbreaks of the parasitic copepod Lernaea cyprinacea, and malformations in tadpoles and young of the year Foothill Yellow-legged Frogs (Rana boylii). Relative to baseline data gathered since 1989, both 2006 and 2008 had significantly longer periods when daily mean water temperatures exceeded 20°C compared to years without copepod outbreaks. Infestation varied spatially in the watershed, as prevalence increased concomitantly with temperature along a 5.2 km longitudinal transect. At breeding sites of R. boylii with copepods in 2006, infestation ranged from 2.9% of individuals upstream to 58.3% downstream. In 2008, copepods were absent from the most upstream sites and infested up to 28.6% of individuals sampled at downstream locations. Copepods most frequently embedded near a hind limb or the cloaca. Among individuals with parasites in 2006, 26.5% had morphological abnormalities compared to 1.1% of un-infested individuals. In 2008 when the infestation peak occurred late in development (post Gosner stage 39), abnormalities were not associated with copepod infestation. In both years, recently metamorphosed frogs with copepods were, on average, slightly smaller than those not infested. These occurrences represent a sudden increase in local prevalence atypical for this river ecosystem. Previously we had only once seen copepods on amphibians (on non-native Bullfrogs, Rana catesbeiana), six km further downstream. Pacific Chorus Frogs, Pseudacris regilla, which co-occur with R. boylii in shallow near shore habitats were not used as hosts. The data suggest that increasing summer water temperatures, decreased daily discharge, or a combination of both, promote outbreaks of this non-native parasite on an indigenous host, and could present a threat to the long-term conservation of R. boylii under the flow regime scenarios predicted by climate change models.Abstract
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DOI: 10.1643/CI-07-103
Gymnotus omarorum is described from coastal and interior drainages of Uruguay, where it is locally abundant in streams and lagoons, and is not known to occur sympatrically with congeners. This species has been used for more than 30 years as a model organism in neurophysiological research, where it has been referred to as G. carapo or G. cf. carapo. Gymnotus omarorum is a member of the G. carapo species group, with which it shares the presence of two pores in the dorsolateral portion of the preopercle, irregular (wavy) dark pigment bands which usually become broken and/or lose contrast with the ground color through growth, a clear patch at the caudal end of an otherwise darkly pigmented anal fin, and more than four arrowhead-shaped (anteroposteriorly compressed) teeth in the anterior portion of the dentary. Gymnotus omarorum is readily differentiated from other members of the G. carapo species group by the following unique combination of character states: a short distance to first ventral lateral-line ramus (39–45% TL vs. 47–58%), few pored scales to first ventral ramus (27–35 vs. 40–78), many ventral lateral line rami (16–37 vs. 0–14), and ovoid (vs. elongate) scales on the posterior portion of body.Abstract
DOI: 10.1643/CE-08-025
The high densities of freshwater turtles, along with their longevities and tendencies toward omnivory, can make them critical influences on the energy flow in lakes and the resilience of lake food webs. Despite this potential importance, there is little understanding of whether turtle abundances are driven by bottom-up (productivity) or top-down (predation) vectors. In this study I examined the environmental correlates of abundance of three dominant turtle species in 17 northern Florida lakes that span a gradient in primary productivity. I examined the associations between the abundances of the Yellow-Bellied Slider (Trachemys scripta), Florida Cooter (Pseudemys floridana), and Florida Softshell Turtle (Apalone ferox) and 18 environmental factors that varied either discretely or continuously across the lakes. Mantel analyses revealed significant associations between abundance of T. scripta, P. floridana, and A. ferox and periphyton and presence of mud and muck substrates, revealing a significant bottom-up influence. However, abundances were also associated with the presence or absence of alligators, important predators of turtles, indicating a significant top-down influence. The abundances of P. floridana and A. ferox were correlated with additional factors that suggest a role for specific dietary items and trophic position. The results indicate that both bottom-up and top-down controls are important limiting factors to turtle populations and implicate turtles as critical elements in the structure and, perhaps, the stability, of food webs in southeastern lakes.Abstract
DOI: 10.1643/CE-07-245
Terrestrial habitats around wetlands are important in wetland conservation because many vertebrate animals use them during part of their life cycle. There is relatively little information concerning terrestrial habitat use by aquatic snakes adjacent to wetlands. Radiotelemetry was used to study the spatial ecology and terrestrial habitat use of Nerodia e. erythrogaster in the upper coastal plain of northern South Carolina. Snakes used terrestrial habitats extensively during the summer and fall. Use of both wetlands and southern mixed hardwood forest were significantly greater than predicted by habitat availability within the snakes' home ranges. Agricultural fields were used significantly less than predicted. A distance of 344 m from wetlands is necessary to encompass 95% of the terrestrial localities documented in this study. Home range estimates based on 95% fixed kernels were significantly larger than those calculated using the 95% minimum convex polygon methods. Home range estimates for this species are comparable to those of large terrestrial colubrids and are greater than home range estimates reported for congeners. Snakes spent an average of about ten days out of wetlands during terrestrial movements with a maximum of 23 consecutive days spent out of a wetland. These results suggest that in excess of 300 m of forest habitat buffering wetlands may be necessary to sustain populations of N. erythrogaster.Abstract
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DOI: 10.1643/CG-08-066
Two morphologically distinct forms of the Stonecat Madtom, Noturus flavus, are found in lowland and Eastern Highland drainages of North America. Evolutionary diversity of aquatic organisms in these regions has been attributed to divergence during the Pliocene and Pleistocene epochs followed by dispersal into previously glaciated regions. We surveyed mitochondrial DNA sequence variation across the range of this widely distributed species to determine the evolutionary relationship between the two forms, and to investigate the possible roles of pre-Pleistocene vicariance and post-Pleistocene dispersal on phylogeographic patterns within the species. Analysis revealed four distinct clades, two within the lowland form and two within the highland form, with no geographic overlap. A deep phylogenetic split between the two forms implies historical fragmentation during the Pliocene. Shallow divergences and limited geographic structuring in the lowland form imply recent fragmentation in two glacial refugia during the Pleistocene, followed by dispersal across much of the modern range of the species. The highland form is common to the Cumberland and Tennessee rivers and clades correspond to each drainage, apparently owing to their separation during the Pleistocene. Phylogeographic patterns echo those of other eastern North American stream fishes, with the persistence of deep phylogenetic divergence predicted by the pre-Pleistocene Vicariance Hypothesis and widespread distribution of closely related haplotypes in glaciated regions consistent with the Leading Edge Model of population expansion.Abstract
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DOI: 10.1643/CH-08-190
The arboreal boa Corallus caninus is widely distributed across northern South America (the Guianas and Amazonia). We examined geographic variation based on examination of 192 specimens from throughout the range, and revised its taxonomy on the basis of quantitative and qualitative analyses of morphological characters (meristics, morphometrics, and color patterns). Based on the high number of lateral blotches on the body and the high number of scales across the snout, populations south of the Rio Amazonas and west of the Rio Negro are identified as a species (or, potentially, a species complex) separate from C. caninus, and the name Corallus batesii is resurrected for those populations. The distribution of Corallus caninus is restricted to the Guiana Shield (north of the Rio Amazonas and east of the Rio Negro).Abstract
DOI: 10.1643/CI-08-048
Chiasmodon is a genus of meso- and bathypelagic fishes, commonly known as swallowers. The genus has a wide distribution in the Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, and Southern Oceans. Five species previously described are considered valid and two are described as new: C. niger, from tropical North Atlantic, including the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean; C. subniger from the eastern Pacific; C. braueri from the Indian, western and Central Pacific, and western South Atlantic; C. microcephalus, from southern parts of the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific, and the Southern Ocean; C. pluriradiatus from tropical Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific; C. asper n. sp., from the temperate North Pacific; and C. harteli n. sp., from the temperate North Atlantic. Chiasmodon bolangeri is considered a junior synonym of C. niger, and C. lavenbergi a junior synonym of C. pluriradiatus. Taxonomic keys to the family Chiasmodontidae and to the species of Chiasmodon, as well as updated maps of distribution are provided.Abstract
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DOI: 10.1643/CP-08-131
Hitherto, aglomerular kidneys have been found in some species within three groups of teleosts: Elopomorpha, Paracanthopterygii, and Percomorpha. Here we report the presence of an aglomerular kidney in the benthopelagic deep-sea fish Ateleopus japonicus (Ateleopodidae: Jellynose fish). The kidney consists of a pair of strap-like bands located in the typical retroperitoneal position. Light microscopic observation of serial longitudinal and cross sections revealed no glomerulus. The kidney is composed of renal tubules, sinusoidal capillaries of the renal portal system, and extensive interstitial lymphoid tissues. Each renal tubule is highly convoluted and surrounded by the well-developed renal portal system. The tubules are well separated within the kidney. An updated species list of teleosts with aglomerular kidneys is presented. Water content of A. japonicus was found to be very high for a marine fish (ca. 90%), and we discuss the functional significance of the aglomerular kidney in A. japonicus in terms of neutral buoyancy.Abstract
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DOI: 10.1643/CP-08-128
In anurans, cutaneous resistance (RS) to evaporative water loss (EWL) correlates with ecological features and is influenced by taxonomic position. For example, bufonids are regarded as exhibiting a permeable skin that seems typical for terrestrial anurans. However, this assumption is supported by information on only four bufonid species; therefore, the enormous ecological diversity of the family remains poorly investigated. To assess whether variation in RS within related bufonids correlates with environmental aridity, we measured area-specific rates of EWL of two Brazilian populations of Rhinella granulosa (previously Bufo granulosus), one from the Atlantic Forest and other from the semi-arid Caatinga, and compared both with the forest species R. ornata. Rhinella granulosa from the Atlantic Forest had higher cutaneous resistance than conspecifics from Caatinga and R. ornata. Rhinella ornata presented the lowest cutaneous resistance values. However, RS were very close to zero in all three populations. We conclude that enhanced RS is not part of the suite of traits allowing R. granulosa to exploit the Caatinga, and that variation in RS within bufonids may relate to traits other than water conservation. Some information on microhabitat occupation and ventral skin morphology supports the idea that exceptional abilities for detecting and taking up water may be the key factors enhancing the survival of R. granulosa, and possibly other bufonids, in xeric environments.Abstract
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DOI: 10.1643/CP-08-155
Fluorescent powder is gaining attention as an effective method for tracking terrestrial amphibian movements, particularly for species that are too small for conventional tracking equipment. The technique requires coating portions of an animal with fluorescent powder, releasing the animal, and following the trail of powder as it is progressively lost during movement. Recent studies have shown that fluorescent powder has no negative effects on survival or growth. However, a substance that coats the skin, a major respiratory organ in most amphibians, may have sublethal effects on performance and consequently behavior. We tested the effect of fluorescent powder application on the respiration of lungless Red-Backed Salamanders, Plethodon cinereus, and lunged terrestrial Red-Spotted Newts, Notophthalmus viridescens. In comparing species with contrasting skin textures and primary modes of respiration, we expected to find P. cinereus, the species relying solely on cutaneous respiration, more sensitive to fluorescent powder. Standard metabolic rate (SMR) and total oxygen consumption for both species were measured before and after application of the powder. We found no significant differences in respiration between control and powdered salamanders. Independent of treatment, SMR was 6–16% higher during the post-treatment trial in both species, and likewise, total oxygen consumed increased by 8–20% in P. cinereus and by 7–10% in N. viridescens. Our results, in combination with other recent work, suggest that fluorescent powder is a safe technique for tracking amphibians.Abstract
Editorial Notes and News
DOI: 10.1643/OT-09-098
THE Southeastern Fishes Council (SFC) is a non-profit scientific organization dedicated to the study and conservation of freshwater and coastal fishes of the southeastern United States. The council was formed in 1975 by a group of scientists concerned with the increasing environmental threats to rivers and long-term protection of the southeastern fish fauna. SFC publishes papers focused on southeastern fishes in its bi-annual, peer-reviewed Proceedings. The SFC held its 33rd annual meeting 13–14 November 2008 at the Chattanooga Convention Center in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The World Wildlife Fund and the Tennessee Aquarium sponsored theSOUTHEASTERN FISHES COUNCIL
Temperature Manipulation Induces Ecdysis in Lab-Held Rattlesnakes
Maxwell D. Carnes-Mason and
Steven J. Beaupre
Integrative Taxonomy Reveals a New Species of Imparfinis (Siluriformes: Heptapteridae) from the Upper Xingu River Basin
Gabriel de Souza da Costa e Silva,
Mark Henry Sabaj,
Kaylane Rodrigues de Carvalho, and
Claudio Oliveira
A New Species of Psalidodon (Characiformes: Acestrorhamphidae) from the Upper Rio São Francisco Basin, Brazil, with Comments on Hasemania
Tulio F. Teixeira,
Gilberto N. Salvador,
Juan Marcos Mirande, and
Flávio C. T. Lima
SUMMARY OF THE MEETINGS
Mark Sabaj
Illuminating the Early Life of Salamanders: Exploring Biofluorescence During Development
Jennifer Y. Lamb,
Holden Cooper,
Alexander Seymour,
Matthew P. Davis, and
Lynne Beaty
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