Tail reconnection triggering substorm onset

Magnetospheric substorms explosively release solar wind energy previously stored in Earth's magnetotail, encompassing the entire magnetosphere and producing spectacular auroral displays. It has been unclear whether a substorm is triggered by a disruption of the electrical current flowing across the near-Earth magnetotail, at approximately 10 R(E) (R(E): Earth radius, or 6374 kilometers), or by the process of magnetic reconnection typically seen farther out in the magnetotail, at approximately 20 to 30 R(E). We report on simultaneous measurements in the magnetotail at multiple distances, at the time of substorm onset. Reconnection was observed at 20 R(E), at least 1.5 minutes before auroral intensification, at least 2 minutes before substorm expansion, and about 3 minutes before near-Earth current disruption. These results demonstrate that substorms are likely initiated by tail reconnection.     

The Collection, Identification and Reconstruction of Lengths of Fish Prey from their Remains in Pike Stomachs

A simplified Seaburg sampler was used to obtain stomach contents from anaesthetized pike. Well-digested remains of fish prey were identified from pharyngeal bones (Cyprinidae) or the skeletal structure of the caudal region, by comparison with type material collected from fresh fish. The original lengths of the prey were estimated from linear relationships between fish length and size of the caudal fin, or size of the pharyngeal bone. Estimation of prey size from scales or otoliths using length-for-age data gave only approximate values.     

Limb-loss in pond-reared blue swimmer crabs Portunus pelagicus (L.): effect on growth in an indoor shedding system

Limb‐loss in crustaceans can reduce moult increment and delay or advance the timing of moulting, both aspects that are likely to impact upon soft‐shell crab production. Pond‐reared blue swimmer crabs Portunus pelagicus were harvested and maintained in a crab shedding system. The wet weight, carapace width (CW) and the occurrence of limb‐loss were assessed before stocking in the shedding system and after each of the next three moults. Many of the crabs were initially missing one or two limbs and these did not grow as much as the crabs that were intact at the start of the trial. Despite its strong correlation with wet weight, CW changes proved to be misleading. Limb‐loss reduced the %CW increment but not the per cent weight increment (where the later is calculated from the actual pre‐moult weight). Pre‐moult weight explained much of the variation in post‐moult weight, with crabs moulting to approximately double their weight. Limb‐loss reduced ‘growth’ and production from the pond because it reduced pre‐moult weight but limb‐loss did not alter the weight change on shedding a given weight of crabs, although some of that change now included regeneration of limbs. One can hypothesize that much of the size variation seen in pond‐reared crabs may be due to accumulated effects of repeated limb‐loss, rather than genetic variation.     

Growth of Mytilus edulis L. in a waste recycling aquaculture system

The mussel, Mytilus edulis, was grown in a waste recycling aquaculture system at 14°C on a diet of Phaeodactylum tricornutum and Skeletonema costatum cultured in a 15% sewage—seawater mixture. Mussels exhibited a 116% increase in mean live weight (5.5 to 11.9 g), a 718% increase in mean dry meat weight (0.11 to 0.90 g), and 4% mortality over a 28-week period.     

An assessment of the use of pigment content as a feeding index in oysters

The content of acetone-extractable material in samples of Crassostrea gigas Thunberg collected from a field population over a period of 20 months is reported. Values are compared with those obtained in laboratory studies of fed and starved Ostrea edulis L. The acetone-extractable content is shown to be capable of marked change over a short time period. Caution is advised in the use of such data as a quantitative feeding index in field sampling.