First record of Cassis tuberosa spawning in the wild (north-east Brazil)

2015 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thelma Lúcia Pereira Dias ◽  
Ellori Laíse Silva Mota

Spawning ofCassis tuberosais recorded and described for the first time, based on observations carried out in the Tamandaré reefs, north-eastern Brazil. The specimen was laying over gravel substrate surrounded by macroalgae at a depth of 2 m.Cassis tuberosauses an algal frond of the genusPadinato lay its eggs. The oothecae consists of approximately 200 vasiform capsules, orange in colour. The spawn ofCassis tuberosais quite similar to that produced by its congener,Cassis madagascariensis; however,Cassis tuberosaspawns in the soft substrate provided by algal fronds whileCassis madagascariensisutilizes coarse, carbonate sand. Considering thatCassis tuberosais the target of multiple commercial purposes, to expand our knowledge about its biology could contribute towards protecting the essential habitat of reproductively active individuals.

2003 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-5 ◽  
Author(s):  
José Martins Silva-Jr ◽  
Ivan Sazima

The whalesucker Remora australis (Echeneidae) is an oceanic diskfish found attached to cetaceans only and its habits are therefore poorly known. At the Fernando de Noronha Archipelago, off North-eastern Brazil, spinner dolphins Stenella longirostris (Delphinidae) regularly congregate in large groups in a shallow bay, which allows for underwater observations of their behaviour and their fish associates. In the course of a broader study of this elusive diskfish, we had the opportunity to made multiple records of two whalesucker couples (three of the fish naturally marked) attached to the same individual dolphin in two different years, over periods of 47 and 87 days respectively. In all the sightings the whalesucker individuals of a couple were recorded side-by-side and positioned on their host’s belly. We surmise that at least one of the couples was a reproductive pair, as the belly of the larger fish was noticeably swollen in the last sighting, and the bulge on its belly was bilateral and extended almost uniformly to the vent, a strong indication of fully mature gonads. Moreover, its size matched those of the mature females of this diskfish species. To our knowledge, this is the first time that attachment fidelity of the whalesucker to any cetacean host is documented in the wild. We hypothesize that attachment fidelity to the same individual host increases the whalesucker’s chance to mate, and suggest further that the highly social nature of the spinner dolphins facilitates encounters between potential mating partners. Our study indicates that host fidelity possibly is not an uncommon feature of the whalesucker behaviour, albeit difficult to recognise. In one of the above recorded whalesuckers the natural marking was a crescentic scar characteristic of the wounds inflicted by the cookiecutter Isistius brasiliensis (Dalatiidae), a first record of the attack of this shark to any diskfish species.


2017 ◽  
Vol 98 (7) ◽  
pp. 1619-1644 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandre Dias Pimenta ◽  
Bruno Garcia Andrade ◽  
Ricardo Silva Absalão

A taxonomic revision of the Nystiellidae from Brazil, including samples from the Rio Grande Rise, South Atlantic, was performed based on shell morphology. Five genera and 17 species were recognized. For the richest genus,Eccliseogyra, the three species previously recorded from Brazil were revised:E. brasiliensisandE. maracatu, previously known only from their respective type series, were re-examined. Newly available material ofE. maracatuexpanded the known geographic range of this species to off south-east Brazil.Eccliseogyra nitidais now recorded from north-eastern to south-eastern Brazil, as well as from the Rio Grande Rise. Three species ofEccliseogyraare newly recorded from the South Atlantic:E. monnioti, previously known from the north-eastern Atlantic, occurs off eastern Brazil and on the Rio Grande Rise; its protoconch is described for the first time, confirming its family allocation.Eccliseogyra pyrrhiasoccurs off eastern Brazil and on the Rio Grande Rise, andE. folinioff eastern Brazil. The genusIphitusis newly recorded from the South Atlantic.Iphitus robertsiwas found off northern Brazil, although the shells show some differences from the type material, with less-pronounced spiral keels. Additional new finds showed thatIphitus cancellatusranges from eastern Brazil to the Rio Grande Rise, and Iphitusnotiossp. nov. is restricted to the Rio Grande Rise.Narrimania, previously recorded from Brazil based on dubious records, is confirmed, including the only two living species described for the genus:N. azelotes, previously only known from the type locality in Florida, andN. concinna, previously known from the Mediterranean. A third species,Narrimania raquelaesp. nov. is described from eastern Brazil, diagnosed by its numerous and thinner cancellate sculpture. To the three species ofOpaliopsispreviously known from Brazil, a fourth species,O. arnaldoisp. nov., is added from eastern Brazil, and diagnosed by its very thin spiral sculpture, absence of a varix, and thinner microscopic parallel axial striae.Papuliscala nordestina, originally described from north-east Brazil, is recorded off eastern Brazil and synonymized withP. elongata, a species previously known only from the North Atlantic.


2005 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 95 ◽  
Author(s):  
PM Johnson ◽  
S Lloyd ◽  
T Vallance ◽  
MDB Eldridge

THE musky rat-kangaroo (Hypsiprymnodon moschatus) is endemic to the tropical rainforests of north-east Queensland (Johnson and Strahan 1982). It is the smallest (510 ? 530 g) and most unusual member of the marsupial superfamily Macropodoidea (Dennis and Johnson 1995). Unlike other macropodoids, H. moschatus is frugivorous, diurnal, has an opposable first digit on the pes, a running quadrupedal gait and possesses a relatively unspecialised digestive tract (Johnson and Strahan 1982; Dennis 2002). It also differs from all other macropodoids in typically giving birth to multiple young, usually twins ? although single young and triplets are regularly reported both in the wild and in captivity (Troughton 1967; Johnson and Strahan 1982; Johnson et al. 1983; Dennis and Marsh 1997; Lloyd 2001). However, the birth of more than three young has not previously been observed in H. moschatus or any other macropodoid, even though all species possess four teats.


2015 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fabilene Gomes Paim ◽  
Maria Cecília Guerrazzi ◽  
Michela Borges

In this study, we present descriptions, illustrations, comments, and bathymetric and geographic distributions of the brittle star species related to the estuary region of Camamu Bay, located in the State of Bahia, Brazil. The brittle star fauna lives on biological substrates, sand bottoms, mud and rubble in the Camamu Bay and comprises 12 species divided into five families. Almost all of them are common in the tropical and subtropical fauna of the regions of shallow water.Ophiophragmus filograneusis reported for the first time in Bahia, and nine other species are recorded for the first time in Camamu Bay:Amphipholis januarii, Amphipholis squamata, Ophiophragmus filograneus, Ophiostigma isocanthum,Ophioderma cinerea, Ophioderma januarii, Ophiactis lymani, Ophiactis savignyi andOphiocoma echinata.The results suggest that the ophiuroid assemblages are strongly affected by marine currents as well as by different kinds of bottom substrate.


2012 ◽  
Vol 49 (3) ◽  
pp. 187-188
Author(s):  
E. Dzika

AbstractOctomacrum europaeum (Monogenea: Octomacridae) was collected, for the first time in north-eastern Europe, from the gills of spirlin (Alburnoides bipunctatus). Morphometric characters were compared with those of other populations and conform to the original description of the species.


2015 ◽  
Vol 90 (6) ◽  
pp. 779-783 ◽  
Author(s):  
C.H. Bezerra ◽  
R.W. Ávila ◽  
D.C. Passos ◽  
D. Zanchi-Silva ◽  
C.A.B. Galdino

AbstractParasites represent a great, unknown component of animal biodiversity. Recent efforts have begun to uncover patterns of infection by helminth parasites in several Neotropical lizards. The present study reports, for the first time, levels of helminth infection in a population of the flat lizard Tropidurus semitaeniatus. One hundred and thirty-nine lizards were examined and evidence of five intestinal helminth species was found, comprising four species of nematodes, one species of cestode and an unidentified encysted larval nematode. The most frequently occurring species was the intestinal nematode Parapharyngodon alvarengai, which did not exhibit differences in prevalence and intensity of infection relative to host sex or age/body size. Furthermore, helminth species richness was not related to host body size.


Zootaxa ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 4543 (4) ◽  
pp. 581
Author(s):  
IONUȚ ȘTEFAN IORGU ◽  
DRAGAN CHOBANOV ◽  
MARIUS SKOLKA ◽  
RĂZVAN ZAHARIA ◽  
ELENA IULIA IORGU

Although the fauna of Dobrogea (south-eastern Romania and north-eastern Bulgaria) is relatively well studied, the discovery of a crevice cricket was quite unexpected. Described from Ukraine and known to occur in Bulgaria, Greece, Turkey, Kazakhstan and possibly Uzbekistan, Gryllomorpha miramae is now recorded for the first time in Romania. 


2014 ◽  
Vol 90 (1) ◽  
pp. 48-53 ◽  
Author(s):  
M.I.N. Di Azevedo ◽  
V.L. Carvalho ◽  
A.M. Iñiguez

AbstractAnisakid nematodes are parasites with an indirect life cycle, involving many hosts, including cetaceans that act as definitive hosts. Identification at species level is crucial for a better understanding of the epidemiology and ecology of these parasites, but an accurate diagnosis based only on morphology is difficult. In Brazil, genetic characterization of anisakids is still rare, with Anisakis typica and A. physeteris being the only two species identified by genetic markers until now. The definitive hosts of A. nascettii are Mesoplodon grayi, M. bowdoini, M. layardii and M. mirus. Geographical locations of A. nascettii include the coasts of New Zealand, South Africa and Europe. In this study, a nematode was collected from a Gervais' beaked whale, Mesoplodon europaeus, stranded in Ceará State, north-east Brazil. Genetic analysis based on 18S rDNA, internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region and mtDNA cox2 gene revealed 100% identity with Anisakis sp. U94365, 99% with Anisakis sp. (MP-2005 EU718477 A. nascettii) and 99% with A. nascettii DQ116431, respectively. Phylogenetic analyses of ITS and cox2 sequences using both neighbour-joining and maximum-likelihood methods provided strong support for a clade with only A. nascettii specimens. This study demonstrated for the first time the identification of A. nascettii in the Brazilian Atlantic Coast, revealing a wider geographical distribution of this parasite worldwide and extending the range of its definitive hosts to a new Mesoplodon species, M. europaeus, the Gervais' beaked whale.


Oryx ◽  
1990 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 224-228 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tony Juniper ◽  
Carlos Yamashita

An expedition recently mounted in north-eastern Brazil gathered evidence strongly indicating that Spix's macaw Cyanopsitta spixii is effectively extinct in the wild. The only hope of saving the species from total extinction now rests with the small captive population. Fieldwork suggested that habitat degradation played a part in the decline of the species and it was concluded that habitat conservation should be a major consideration in future efforts to save it. A fully integrated conservation package is proposed that reflects the multiplicity of conservation needs of Spix's macaw.


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