scholarly journals Ocean warming threatens southern right whale population recovery

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (42) ◽  
Author(s):  
Macarena Agrelo ◽  
Fábio G. Daura-Jorge ◽  
Victoria J. Rowntree ◽  
Mariano Sironi ◽  
Philip S. Hammond ◽  
...  
2020 ◽  
pp. 171-176
Author(s):  
Peter B. Best ◽  
Victor M. Peddemors ◽  
Victor G. Cockcroft ◽  
Nan Rice

Between 1963 and 1998, 55 mortalities of southern right whales and a further three ‘possible right whale’ mortalities were recorded on theSouth African coastline. Of the known right whale mortalities, 31 could be classified as ‘calves of the year’, 8 as juveniles and 14 as adults.Relatively few (6.5-16.1%) of the calf mortalities could be attributed to anthropogenic factors, compared to juveniles (25-50%) and adults(35.7-57.1%). Apparent causes of death included ship strikes (4 definite, 7 possible) and entanglement (4 definite, 1 possible), with oneharpooning incident. Five non-fatal ship strikes and 16 instances of non-fatal entanglement were also recorded. Whilst the gear mostcommonly involved in non-fatal entanglement was crayfish trap lines, three of the four entanglement fatalities involved longline gear. Theincidence of scars attributable to previous entanglement remained constant amongst mature females from 1979-1997, at 3-4%. Recordedmortalities increased over the period 1963-1997 at a rate no different from that of population growth over the same period. The current levelof anthropogenic mortality does not seem to be affecting population recovery.


Author(s):  
M Gouezo ◽  
E Wolanski ◽  
K Critchell ◽  
K Fabricius ◽  
P Harrison ◽  
...  

2019 ◽  
Vol 629 ◽  
pp. 219-234 ◽  
Author(s):  
MLK Nielsen ◽  
KR Sprogis ◽  
L Bejder ◽  
PT Madsen ◽  
F Christiansen

Gaia Scientia ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
D. Mameri ◽  
C. Sousa Santos ◽  
M. F. Magalhães ◽  
J. I. Robalo

Cyprinid fauna endemic to the Iberian Peninsula is currently facing several human-caused threats which enhance their risk of extinction. The populations of the critically endangered Achondrostoma occidentale, occurring only in three small and intermittent Portuguese river basins, have been reinforced with fish bred ex-situ in order to minimize their risk of extinction. This study aimed to describe the restocking actions conducted and to identify and characterize the summer refugia that should become targets for restoration and further restocking. The results evidence population increments and a high representativeness of younger age classes in the restocked populations. The importance of annual monitoring of fish abundance to assess how the species is coping with the stochastic and deterministic stressors that may eventually compromise its survival is highlighted.


Plants ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (8) ◽  
pp. 1522
Author(s):  
Hikaru Endo ◽  
Toru Sugie ◽  
Yukiko Yonemori ◽  
Yuki Nishikido ◽  
Hikari Moriyama ◽  
...  

Ocean warming and the associated changes in fish herbivory have caused polarward distributional shifts in the majority of canopy-forming macroalgae that are dominant in temperate Japan, but have little effect on the alga Sargassum fusiforme. The regeneration ability of new shoots from holdfasts in this species may be advantageous in highly grazed environments. However, little is known about the factors regulating this in Sargassum species. Moreover, holdfast tolerance to high-temperature and nutrient-poor conditions during summer has rarely been evaluated. In the present study, S. fusiforme holdfast responses to the combined effects of temperature and nutrient availability were compared to those of sexually reproduced propagules. The combined effects of holdfast fragmentation and irradiance on regeneration were also evaluated. Propagule growth rate values changed from positive to negative under the combination of elevated temperature (20 °C–30 °C) and reduced nutrient availability, whereas holdfasts exhibited a positive growth rate even at 32 °C in nutrient-poor conditions. The regeneration rate increased with holdfast fragmentation (1 mm segments), but was unaffected by decreased irradiance. These results suggest that S. fusiforme holdfasts have a higher tolerance to high-temperature and nutrient-poor conditions during summer than propagules, and regenerate new shoots even if 1-mm segments remain in shaded refuges for fish herbivory avoidance.


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