A century of fishery data documenting the collapse of smooth‐hounds (Mustelus spp.) in the Mediterranean Sea

1. Conservation and management of shark populations is increasingly becoming important in many marine regions, since there is a growing body of evidence showing that several species are threatened and continuing to decline because of unregulated fishing. Quantifying the extent of sharks' decline, the risk of species extinction, and the consequences for marine ecosystems have been challenging and controversial, mostly due to data limitations.
2. In this study, more than one century of multiple‐sources of bibliographic records on presence and frequency of occurrence of three species of commercial sharks, the smooth‐hounds Mustelus spp., in the Mediterranean Sea were compiled and analysed. Generalized additive models for location, scale and shape (GAMLSS) were used to estimate the rate of change of two of these species, Mustelus mustelus and Mustelus punctulatus, in four Mediterranean regions.
3. Model results showed that smooth‐hounds have declined by 80–90% since the beginning of last century to almost disappear in a large part of their original distributional range during the 1980s and 1990s.
4. Based on modelling results, a revision of the current International Union for Conservation of Nature classification of Mediterranean smooth‐hounds would be advisable along with the application of urgent conservation measures.

     

Otolith elemental characteristics of whitefish (Coregonus lavaretus) from brackish waters of the Gulf of Bothnia,Baltic Sea

To investigate whether European whitefish (Coregonus lavaretus) groups in the brackish (≤7%) Gulf of Bothnia (Baltic Sea) express specific otolith elemental characteristics, concentrations of elements (Ca, Ba, Sr, Zn, Mn, Fe) in whole otoliths were studied by inductively coupled plasma‐optical emission spectrometry. Whitefish (N = 67) were sampled from six different latitudinal sites; four in the sea and two in rivers along the west coast of Finland, and from a fresh water lake for comparison. The concentration of several elements showed significant differences among sampling sites. Otolith Ba concentrations were higher at the northern sampling sites compared to the southern ones, thereby showing negative association to capture‐habitat salinity. In contrast, otolith Sr and Zn concentrations were lower at the northern sampling sites, thereby associating positively to capture‐habitat salinity. Otolith Mn concentrations did not associate with latitude or salinity but markedly varied between sampling sites. Elevated Fe concentrations occurred in fish otoliths from the two northernmost sites. Ca concentrations were at the same levels in otoliths from all whitefish samples. Otoliths of whitefish from the lake had very high Ba and low Sr concentrations compared to concentrations in otoliths from whitefish in the sea and rivers. Our results show that otolith elemental characteristics of whitefish vary considerably at various geographic scales showing high potential for population identification using elemental fingerprints. Analysis of otolith elemental characteristics may therefore provide an efficient tool for the identification of main areas of residence, spawning locations, and migration routes, thus contributing towards the sustainable management of whitefish stocks.     

The quality of compliance: investigating fishers’ responses towards regulation and authorities

A substantial amount of scientific effort goes into understanding and measuring compliance in fisheries. Understanding why, how and when fishers follow or violate rules is crucial for designing effective fishery policies that can halt overfishing. Non‐compliance was initially explained almost exclusively with reference to economic and self‐interested motivations. More recently, however, most explanations involve a combination of economic, social, political and environmental factors. Despite this recent development towards more holistic explanations, many scientists continue to frame the issue in binary terms: fishers either follow rules, or they don't. In this article we challenge this binary interpretation and focus attention on the diversity of fishers’ dispositions and perceptions that underpin compliant behaviour. To this aim we construct a typology of fishers’ responses towards regulation and authorities, thereby developing conceptual tools to understand different motivations and attitudes that underlie compliance outcomes. For this purpose, we identify the motivational postures of ‘creativity’ and ‘reluctance’, and then highlight their empirical relevance with an interview study of Swedish fishers. Reasons for studying the quality and diversity of fishers’ motivations and responses are not purely academic. Conceptualizing and observing the quality of compliance can help policymakers and managers gauge and anticipate the potentiality of non‐compliant fishing practices that may threaten the resilience of marine ecosystems.     

Aristotle as an ichthyologist: Exploring Aegean fish diversity 2,400 years ago

In an attempt to trace the origins of the science of ichthyology, we studied Aristotle's zoological works (21 books in total), aiming to give an exhaustive catalogue of his fishes, suitable for use by modern marine biologists, and to evaluate the great philosopher's knowledge of fish biology. Our investigation yielded 135 ichthyonyms used to describe 109 individual fish taxa (13 fishes had multiple names) and 12 terms that corresponded either to fish developmental stages or behavioural patterns. Because of the variable amount of information given in the texts, 54 fishes were identified to species or genus level, 24 fishes to higher categories (family, order), 27 fishes could only be classified as Actinopterygii or Elasmobranchii, while four could not be classified at all. Among the most easily recognizable fishes were Lophius spp., Conger conger, Muraena helena, Anguilla anguilla and Mugil cephalus. The latter two and the tunas (Τhunnus spp.) were the most frequently recorded fishes. Aristotle's inquiry was not limited or focused on fish that were of human interest, but he also reported or described species that fascinated him by their peculiar life history. He was interested in a wide array of aspects of fish biology ranging from body structure and function, reproduction and development to fish feeding habits, migrations and diseases. As evidenced by his work, Aristotle should be considered the first ichthyologist, preoccupied with the zoological, scientific study of fish, and a review of his writings can prove useful for current ichthyological research.     

Habitats for the Atlantic sturgeons in Russia

1. The critically endangered Atlantic sturgeon, Acipenser sturio, inhabited the Russian section of the Baltic Sea basin until recent times. Eight rivers were indicated as their habitats in local literature.
2. The Atlantic surgeon disappeared in Russia because of overfishing, not because of habitat loss.
3. Nowadays, potential spawning grounds for sturgeons occur in six rivers of the Russian section of the Baltic Sea basin. The largest river (Neva) is not blocked by dams and the whole river provides the ecological requirements of sturgeons on a stretch 75 km long.
4. Restocking of other sturgeon species in Russia demonstrated that the release of reared fishes into the sea is ineffective, whereas the release into rivers could result in successful acclimatization.
5. Recent climatic changes are rather favourable for sturgeon restocking in the Baltic Sea area. The main problem for the restoration of sturgeon populations is the intensive fishery.

     

Neuroprotective Metabolites from Vietnamese Marine Derived Fungi of Aspergillus and Penicillium Genera

Low molecular weight secondary metabolites of marine fungi Aspergillus flocculosus, Aspergillus terreus and Penicillium sp. from Van Phong and Nha Trang Bays (Vietnam) were studied and a number of polyketides, bis-indole quinones and terpenoids were isolated. The structures of the isolated compounds were determined by 1D and 2D NMR and HR-ESI-MS techniques. Stereochemistry of some compounds was established based on ECD data. A chemical structure of asterriquinone F (6) was thoroughly described for the first time. Anthraquinone (13) was firstly obtained from a natural source. Neuroprotective influences of the isolated compounds against 6-OHDA, paraquat and rotenone toxicity were investigated. 4-Hydroxyscytalone (1), 4-hydroxy-6-dehydroxyscytalone (2) and demethylcitreoviranol (3) have shown significant increasing of paraquat- and rotenone-treated Neuro-2a cell viability and anti-ROS activity.     

多目标资源调查站位优化设计——以渤海为例

本研究以渤海为研究区域,通过数值模拟,分析了种类出现率(将基于渤海调查的17个主要渔业种类分为3类:Ⅰ类出现率≥70%,Ⅱ类出现率50%～70%,Ⅲ类出现率50%)和栖息水层对单种类资源量相对误差(Relative error, REE)的影响,不同调查站位数量(48和60)对定点采样与分层随机采样分析结果的影响,并优化了渤海多目标渔业资源调查的设计方案。结果显示,Ⅰ类中5种资源量REE在20%以内,Ⅱ类中3种资源量REE在30%以内,Ⅲ类中6种资源量REE在35%以内,即单种资源量评估值随种类出现率下降,相对误差变大;种类的栖息水层对种类资源量REE无明显影响。定点采样评估值随站位数量减少,精度下降(鱼类、虾类、蟹类、头足类的资源量指数和Margalef丰富度指数的REE分别增加了1.1%、2.5%、8.4%、4.4%和3.3%);分层随机采样可弥补站位数减少带来的精度下降,如站位数为48的分层随机采样获得的鱼类资源量指数评估精度(REE为4.6%)高于站位数为60的定点采样的精度(REE为7.7%),有助于减少调查成本和保护资源量低的种类。然而,每种采样方法并不能完全满足多目标最优,不同站位分配方案影响分层随机采样的精度,按照抽样费用最优准则设置站位,可获得精确度较高的鱼类、虾类、蟹类、头足类及黄鲫(Setipinnataty)、口虾蛄(Oratosquillaoratoria)、日本枪乌贼(Loligojaponica)、鳀鱼(Engraulis japonicus)、叫姑鱼(Johniusgrypotus)、泥脚隆背蟹(Carcinoplaxvestita)、中国对虾(Fenneropenaeus chinensis)等主要种类资源量评估结果,可作为渤海多目标种类资源调查的站位设计方案。     

夏季渤海网采浮游植物群落和叶绿素a分布特征及其对渔业资源的影响

本研究基于2015年夏季(6、8月)渤海网采浮游植物和叶绿素a调查数据,对渤海浮游植物的种类组成、丰度、多样性以及优势类群的分布特征进行分析。通过与历史数据进行对比发现,渤海浮游植物群落具有以下变化趋势:叶绿素a浓度近年来未发生明显变化,但较20世纪80、90年代明显升高,且低值区(1.0μg/L)较20年前明显缩小;就优势类群而言,6月角毛藻属(Chaetoceros)和圆筛藻属(Coscinodiscus)的优势较往年有所减弱,以往在渤海具有突出优势地位的中肋骨条藻(Skeletonema costatum)在2015年夏季6、8月均未检测到,甲藻(6月:夜光藻Noctiluca scientillans;8月:三角角藻Ceratium tripos)、具槽帕拉藻(Paralia sulcata)继续占优,而短柄曲壳藻(Achnanthes brevipes)、尖刺伪菱形藻(Pseudo-nitzschia pungens)的优势地位较以往明显上升。浮游植物多样性(Shannon多样性、物种丰富度、均匀度)与往年相比处于适中的水平。渤海浮游植物群落结构的变化主要是由渤海营养盐结构改变引起的,这一变化趋势可能会对渤海食物链结构以及对具有浮游植物食性的经济鱼虾[如斑(Konosirus punctatus)、鱼(Liza haematocheila)、毛虾(Acetes chinensis)]的生长繁殖造成影响,进而影响到渤海渔业资源产量以及生态系统结构和功能。     

Investigation of crop evapotranspiration and irrigation water requirement in the lower Amu Darya River Basin,Central Asia

High water consumption and inefficient irrigation management in the agriculture sector of the middle and lower reaches of the Amu Darya River Basin(ADRB)have significantly influenced the gradual shrinking of the Aral Sea and its ecosystem.In this study,we investigated the crop water consumption in the growing seasons and the irrigation water requirement for different crop types in the lower ADRB during 2004–2017.We applied the FAO Penman–Monteith method to estimate reference evapotranspiration(ET0)based on daily climatic data collected from four meteorological stations.Crop evapotranspiration(ETc)of specific crop types was calculated by the crop coefficient.Then,we analyzed the net irrigation requirement(NIR)based on the effective precipitation with crop water requirements.The results indicated that the lowest monthly ET0 values in the lower ADRB were found in December(18.2 mm)and January(16.0 mm),and the highest monthly ET0 values were found in June and July,with similar values of 211.6 mm.The annual ETc reached to 887.2,1002.1,and 492.0 mm for cotton,rice,and wheat,respectively.The average regional NIR ranged from 514.9 to 715.0 mm in the 10 Irrigation System Management Organizations(UISs)in the study area,while the total required irrigation volume for the whole region ranged from 4.2×109 to 11.6×109 m3 during 2004–2017.The percentages of NIR in SIW(surface irrigation water)ranged from 46.4%to 65.2%during the study period,with the exceptions of the drought years of 2008 and 2011,in which there was a significantly less runoff in the Amu Darya River.This study provides an overview for local water authorities to achieve optimal regional water allocation in the study area.     

Genetic diversity of sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides) populations in northeastern and northwestern China as revealed by ISSR markers

As a N₂-fixing tree species, sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides) is well adapted to arid regions and is utilized for multiple purposes in China. Current knowledge of genetic variability of H. rhamnoides is limited in terms of rangewide distributions. Eleven natural populations of sea buckthorn in northeastern and northwestern China were analyzed to detect genetic variation among and within populations, by use of ISSR (inter-simple sequence repeats) markers. Using eight primers, 207 polymorphic loci were observed, ranging in size from 250 to 2500 bp. The coefficient of gene differentiation (Gst = 0.0679) showed that the total molecular variance of 11 populations was mainly existed within populations. The genetic variation within and among the 11 populations was 93.21 and 6.79%, respectively. No significant correlation between genetic and geographic distances of the populations was found using ISSR markers. Our study provides a population-level genetic profile for further investigation and conservation of genetic diversity of sea buckthorn.