Foraminifera in the diet of coral reef fish from the lagoon of New Caledonia: Predation, digestion, dispersion

Marine benthic Foraminifera are abundant and thus represent a potential food source for fish. Previous studies of Foraminifera in fish diets have examined only small samples, with significant input reported only for a single surface-feeding species of fish. The present study is the first based on a significant sample (247 fish belonging to 83 species, 291 species of Foraminifera identified from more than 20,000 specimens examined). It provides new information on the contribution of Foraminifera to fish diets, and on the impact of fish predation on Foraminifera. The planktonic Tretomphalus phases, selectively ingested by Pomacentrus amboinensis, were the only significant nutritional input from Foraminifera. Herbivorous fish accidentally ingested living epiphytic Foraminifera, which were still living after digestion, and were defecated, with a significant effect on their dispersion. Carnivorous fish ingested a small number of tests, which were generally altered by the acidic phase of digestion and had no impact on foraminiferal assemblages. Sediment feeders ingested large quantities of empty tests that were released elsewhere, suggesting a possible bias in paleontological interpretations by mixing the thanatocoenoses. Observations on gut contents showed that the fish sometimes fed on a wide range of food, changing with food availability and individual preferences of fish.     

Food-chain relationships in subtidal silty sand marine sediments and the role of meiofauna in stimulating bacterial productivity

Summary From bibliographic data the biomass correlations (organic dry weight) are constructed for the subsurface layer of a hypothetical 30 m deep silty sand station: 200 g/ml macrofauna (including 120 g/ml subsurface deposit feeders), 50 g/ml meiofauna, 20 g/ml Foraminifera, 1 g/ml Ciliata and Flagellata, and 100 g/ml bacteria. ATP-biomass is discussed.Meiofauna and Foraminifera contribute with 30 and 12% to the living biomass in the sediment, and it is assumed that their contribution to the food of deposit-feeding macrofauna is of a similar percentage. This is corroborated by productivity estimations.Bacteria are the main food of deposit feeding macrofauna, meiofauna, and microfauna. From different calculations it becomes evident that the productivity of bacteria in the sediment is far below figures achieved in experimental cultures: the conclusion is that sediment bacteria, in general, do not live under good environmental conditions.A rather large part of the bacterial population in the sediment seems to be in the stationary phase of life, and only a fraction of the total population exhibits high metabolic rates and rapid duplications. Only these active bacteria are of importance for the breakdown of relatively refractive organic matter in the sediment.In soft bottom marine sediments where the input of organic matter is higher than the remineralization rate, benthic animals stimulate by their activities and by nutrient cycling the decomposition of detritus via bacteria. Though meiofauna, in principle, feeds upon the same food resource as macrofauna, there is no real competition for food, because meiofaunal animals by their activities and by excreting metabolic end products induce a bacterial productivity which would not be there without them, and feed on it. There are a few examples where more specialized interactions exist between benthic animals and bacteria; these interactions have been termed gardening. They could be highly important in the benthic ecosystem.     

Food Web Assembly at the Landscape Scale: Using Stable Isotopes to Reveal Changes in Trophic Structure During Succession

Food webs are increasingly evaluated at the landscape scale, accounting for spatial interactions involving different nutrient and energy channels. Also, while long viewed as static, food webs are increasingly seen as dynamic entities that assemble during vegetation succession. The next necessary step is, therefore, to link nutrient flows between ecosystems to local food web assembly processes. In this study, we used a 100-year salt marsh succession in which we investigated the long-term changes in food web organization, especially focusing on the balance between internal versus external nutrient sources. We found that during food web assembly, the importance of internal (terrestrial) nutrient cycling increases at the expense of external (marine) inputs. This change from external to internal nutrient cycling is associated with strong shifts in the basis of energy channels within the food web. In early succession, detritivores are mostly fuelled by marine inputs whereas in later succession they thrive on locally produced plant litter, with consequences for their carnivores. We conclude that this 100 years of food web assembly proceeds by gradual decoupling of terrestrial nutrient cycling from the marine environment, and by associated rearrangements in the herbivore and detritivore energy channels. Food web assembly thus interacts with nutrient and energy flows across ecosystem boundaries.     

LITOSTROMA,A NEW GENUS OF PROBLEMATICAL ALGAE FROM THE PENNSYLVANIAN OF OKLAHOMA

Mamay , Sergius H. (U. S. Geological Survey, Washington, D. C.) Litostroma, a new genus of problematical algae from the Pennsylvanian of Oklahoma. Amer. Jour. Bot. 46(4): 283–292. Illus. 1959.—Litostroma oklahomense, gen. et sp. nov. is described on the basis of fossil plant material found in a Pennsylvanian marine limestone from the vicinity of McAlester, Oklahoma. Litostroma is a simple plant consisting of a small, irregularly shaped thallus 1 cell thick. Some thalli have small perforations and filament-like marginal outgrowths. The reproductive organs are not known. A marine fauna is intimately associated with Litostroma, and includes epiphytic Foraminifera preserved in actual growth positions on surfaces of the plants. The evidence indicates a marine habitat for Litostroma and, accordingly, algal affinity. Without information bearing on its reproductive organs or pigmentation, however, Litostroma cannot with assurance be assigned to any known group of algae. It possibly represents a group of green, brown, or even red algae.     

Food quantity and quality regulation of trophic transfer between primary producers and a keystone grazer (Daphnia) in pelagic freshwater food webs

The transfer of energy and nutrients from plants to animals is a key process in all ecosystems. In lakes, inefficient transfer of primary producer derived energy can result in low animal growth rates, accumulation of nuisance phytoplankton blooms and dissipation of energy from the ecosystem. Most research on carbon transfer efficiency in pelagic food webs has focused on either food quantity or food quality, with the latter considered separately as either elemental stoichiometry or biochemical composition. The natural occurrence and magnitude of these types of growth limitations and their combined effects on Daphnia , a keystone grazer in pelagic freshwater ecosystems, are largely unknown. Our empirical models predict that the strength and nature of food quantity and quality limitation varies greatly with lake trophic state (total phosphorus, TP) and that Daphnia growth rates and thus energy and nutrient transfer efficiency are highest in lakes with intermediate trophic status (TP 10–25 μg l⁻¹). We predict that food availability place the greatest constraint on Daphnia growth in nutrient poor lakes (TP≤4 μg l⁻¹). Phosphorus limitation of Daphnia growth increased with decreasing TP, but the overall effect was never predicted to be the dominant constraining factor. Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, 20:5ω3) limitation was predicted to occur in both nutrient poor and nutrient rich lakes and placed the primary constraint on food quality in the most productive lakes. Two contrasting EPA-models gave different results on the magnitude of EPA-limitation, implying that additional food quality factors decrease Daphnia growth at high TP. In conclusion, the model predicts that Daphnia growth should peak in mesotrophic lakes, food quantity will place the greatest constraint on growth in oligotrophic lakes and EPA will primarily limit growth in eutrophic lakes.     

STUDIES ON THE METABOLISM OF THE AUTOTROPHIC BACTERIA : III. THE NATURE OF THE ENERGY STORAGE MATERIAL ACTIVE IN THE CHEMOSYNTHETIC PROCESS

In the autotrophic bacterium, Thiobacillus thiooxidans, the oxidation of sulfur is coupled to transfers of phosphate from the medium to the cells. CO₂ fixation is coupled to transfers of inorganic phosphate from the cells to the medium and is dependent, in the absence of concomitant sulfur oxidation, upon the amount of phosphate previously taken up during sulfur oxidation. The energy reservoir, which is formed by sulfur oxidation in the absence of CO₂ and which can be released for the fixation of CO₂ under conditions which do not permit sulfur oxidation, is a phosphorylated compound and the data suggest that the energy is stored in the cell as phosphate bond energy. It is possible to oxidize sulfur at a constant rate for hours in the absence of CO₂. The phosphate energy formed during this process is probably released by cell phosphotases. It is possible to inhibit these phosphotases by means of inorganic phosphate and thus to inhibit sulfur oxidation in the absence of CO₂. In the presence of CO₂, where alternative uses for the phosphate energy are available, the inhibition is relieved. Sulfur oxidation (energy input) is coupled, not to CO₂ fixation, but to phosphate esterification. CO₂ fixation (energy utilization) is coupled with phosphate release.     

DEVELOPMENT OF THE SEA-STAR, ASTERINA BATHERI GOTO

Using natural spawning and artificial fertilization, the entire process of development from eggs to juveniles was observed in the sea-star, Asterina batheri Goto.
The breeding season of this animal in Tsukumo Bay and Toyama Bay is estimated to be late summer. The spawned eggs are approximately 430 μm in diameter and float near the surface of sea water. They develop, through a wrinkled blastula stage by holoblastic. radial cleavage, into a pear-shaped brachiolaria bearing 3 blunt brachiolar arms. Metamorphosis takes place while the brachiolariae are swimming. Ten days after fertilization, metamorphosis is complete; the resulting juveniles are about 800 μm in diameter and colored pale brown with a green tint. They bear 2 pairs of tube-feet and a terminal tentacle in each arm.
Development of this species is thus of the direct type, and very similar in every respect to that of Asterina coronata japonica , which is closely related to the present species.     

STUDIES ON PLANT CUTICLE: THE COMPOSITION OF THE CUTICLE OF APPLE LEAVES AND FRUITS

The levels of deposition of the waxy and cutin components of the cuticles of the mature leaves and developing fruits of the Merton Worcester and Cox's Orange Pippin varieties of apple over a period of 4 months are reported. The waxy materials on the leaves remain approximately constant at 20 μg./cm.², and the cutin at about 100 μg./cm.² of surface. The waxy and cutin deposits on the fruits increase markedly during the period of development, the wax and oil present on the surface and embedded within the cutin rising to 500 μg./cm.² and the cutin to a little under 1000 μg./cm.² of surface. Phenolic and acidic substances in the cuticles of the fruits are determined, and the possibility of their occurrence in surface deposits on the leaves is discussed.
An examination is made of the effect of nutrient deficiency upon the formation of waxy and phenolic substances in the leaves. Nitrogen deficiency in Worcester Pearmain leaves leads to a reduced deposition of waxy materials, and nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium deficiency results in higher contents of phenolic compounds. The separation and nature of the waxy covering on leaves, the effect of environmental conditions on its formation, and its importance in relation to the application of crop protection chemicals are discussed.     

The influence of cell size on marine bacterial motility and energetics

The influence of Brownian motion on marine bacteria was examined. Due to their small size, marine bacteria rotate up to 1,400 degrees in one second. This rapid rotation makes directional swimming difficult or impossible, as a bacterium may point in a particular direction for only a few tens of milliseconds on average. Some directional movement, however, was found to be possible if swimming speed is sufficiently great, over approximately 100 μm sec⁻¹. This led to the testable hypothesis that marine bacteria with radiii less than about 0.75 μm should exceed this speed. The result of the increased speed is that marine bacteria may spend in excess of 10% of their total energy budget on movement. This expenditure is 100 times greater than values for enteric bacteria, and indicates that marine bacteria are likely to be immotile below critical size-specific nutrient concentrations.     

Revised small subunit rRNA analysis provides further evidence that Foraminifera are related to Cercozoa

There is accumulating evidence that the general shape of the ribosomal DNA-based phylogeny of Eukaryotes is strongly biased by the long-branch attraction phenomenon, leading to an artifactual basal clustering of groups that are probably highly derived. Among these groups, Foraminifera are of particular interest, because their deep phylogenetic position in ribosomal trees contrasts with their Cambrian appearance in the fossil record. A recent actin-based phylogeny of Eukaryotes has proposed that Foraminifera might be closely related to Cercozoa and, thus, branch among the so-called crown of Eukaryotes. Here, we reanalyze the small-subunit ribosomal RNA gene (SSU rDNA) phylogeny by removing all long-branching lineages that could artifactually attract foraminiferan sequences to the base of the tree. Our analyses reveal that Foraminifera branch together with the marine testate filosean Gromia oviformis as a sister group to Cercozoa, in agreement with actin phylogeny. Our study confirms the utility of SSU rDNA as a phylogenetic marker of megaevolutionary history, provided that the artifacts due to the heterogeneity of substitution rates in ribosomal genes are circumvented.     

EFFECT OF POLYOXIN ON THE MORPHOGENESIS OF THE FUNGUS, ALTERNARIA TOMATO WITH SPECIAL REFERRENCE TO PHOTOSPORULATION

Photosporulation of Alternaria tomato was very little influenced by polyoxin at concentrations below 10 μg/ml, although hyphae and conidia were morphologically affected. The hyphae grown in the presence of polyoxin were easily disrupted.     

THE BOTTOM-ICE MICROALGAL COMMUNITY FROM ANNUAL ICE IN THE INSHORE WATERS OF EAST ANTARCTICA1

The structure, productivity and heterotrophic potential of an extensive microalgal community growing on the underside of sea ice near the Australian Antarctic Station of Casey, are described. Underwater observations made near the Australian Antarctic stations of Davis and Mawson are also reported. This community develops during September, is largely suspended from the bottom surface of annual sea ice and often extends into the underlying water column as conspicuous strands up to 15 cm long. The algal community structure in the strands is dominated by an unidentified tube diatom belonging to the Amphipleura/Berkeleya group and chains of a species of Entomoneis cf. Amphiprora paludosa var. hyperborea (Grunow) Cleve. Unlike previously described bottom ice environments, a brash ice layer under the hard sea ice is absent. Living cells, predominantly Nitzschia frigida Grunow, also occur in microbrine channels in the bottom 3 cm of the ice. Maximal primary production rates of 81 μg C · L^-1· h^-1 occurred during November, then began declining near the end of December. Minimal rates (2.8 μg C · L^-1· h^-1) were reached in mid-January and coincided with changes in the physical structure of the sea ice and in the stability of the water column. An abundant epibacterial community associated with the microalgal strands assimilated ³H-labelled amino acids suggesting significant heterotrophic recycling of dissolved organic matter. Turnover times of assimilated amino acids in the bottom ice community averaged 55 h during November while negligible turnover of these substrates occurred in the water column 1.5 m below the ice. These bottom ice communities have higher primary productivity than typical brash ice communities; they are also accessible to marine herbivores and so may be more important to the Antarctic marine food chain than previously supposed.     

Freshwater foraminiferans revealed by analysis of environmental DNA samples

Sediment-dwelling protists are among the most abundant meiobenthic organisms, ubiquitous in all types of aquatic ecosystems. Yet, because their isolation and identification are difficult, their diversity remains largely unknown. In the present work, we applied molecular methods to examine the diversity of freshwater Foraminifera, a group of granuloreticulosan protists largely neglected until now. By using specific PCR primers, we detected the presence of Foraminifera in all sediment samples examined. Phylogenetic analysis of amplified SSU rDNA sequences revealed two distinct groups of freshwater foraminiferans. All obtained sequences branched within monothalamous (single-chambered), marine Foraminifera, suggesting a repeated colonization of freshwater environments. The results of our study challenge the traditional view of Foraminifera as essentially marine organisms, and provide a conceptual framework for charting the molecular diversity of freshwater granuloreticulosan protists.     

Costs, benefits and characteristics of mixotrophy in marine oligotrichs

1. Oligotrich ciliates are an important part of most marine plankton communities. Mixotrophic (chloroplast-sequestering) oligotrichs, a common component of marine oligotrich communities, obtain fixed carbon from both photosynthesis as well as the ingestion of particulate food. Mixotrophy, in general, is often considered an adaptation permitting exploitation of food-poor environments. We examined the hypothesis that, among oligotrichs, mixotrophs may be at a disadvantage relative to heterotrophs in food-rich conditions in a nutrient-enrichment experiment. We compared growth responses of mixotrophic and heterotrophic oligotrichs in natural communities from the N.W. Mediterranean Sea in microcosms with daily nutrient additions resulting in increases in nanoflagellates and Synechococcus populations. The results indicated that both mixotrophic and heterotrophic oligotrichs respond to prey increases with rapid growth (μ=1.2 d−1).
2. To examine the hypothesis that the proportion of mixotrophic to heterotrophic oligotrichs changes with the trophic status of a system, increasing with oligotrophy, we examined data from a variety of marine systems. Across systems ranging in chlorophyll concentration from about 0.1 to 40 μg L−1, oligotrich cell concentrations are correlated with chlorophyll concentrations, and mixotrophs are a consistent component of oligotrich communities, averaging about 30% of oligotrich cell numbers.
3. We discuss the costs, benefits and possible uses of mixotrophy in marine oligotrichs and suggest that mixotrophy in marine oligotrichs is not closely linked to the exploitation of food-poor environments, but probably serves a variety of purposes.     

GROWTH RATE RELATIONSHIPS TO PHYSIOLOGICAL INDICES OF NUTRIENT STATUS IN MARINE DIATOMS

The growth of two species of marine diatom, Thalassiosira weissflogii (Grunow) and Thalassiosira pseudonana (Hustedt), was followed in batch cultures at four concentrations of dissolved inorganic carbon from N- and C-replete lag phase into N- and/or C-deplete stationary phase. Results describe the relationship between carbon-specific growth rate (μ_C) and chl a :carbon (chl a :C) and glutamine:glutamate (gln:glu) ratios with changes in the cells' nutritional status (N:C), during the utilization of either NO₃ ⁻ or NH₄ ⁺ . The use of the gln:glu ratio as an index of N:C requires further clarification. For both species and N sources, N stress resulted in a decrease in μ_C, chl a :C, and N:C relative to μ_Cmax values, whereas C stress resulted in a decrease in μ_C and an increase in chl a :C and N:C relative to μ_Cmax values. Both species attained a chl a :C ratio of approximately 15 μg·g ^{− 1} at μ_Cmax using either N source. However, this value was not necessarily an indicator of maximal growth rate. NC colimitation resulted in decreased μ_C to values less than 20% of μ_Cmax with only minor changes in chl a :C and N:C relative to μ_Cmax values. Chl a :C results suggest a similarity between the light stress and C stress responses of marine diatoms. The potential for C stress in the marine environment needs to be addressed.     

THE ECOLOGY OF CLADOPHORA

Cladophora is found in a variety of marine and fresh-waters and provides habitat and food for numerous organisms. It may be the most ubiquitous macroalga in fresh-waters worldwide. This filamentous green alga can reach nuisance levels as a result of cultural eutrophication. Taxonomic identification of Cladophora species is difficult. Taxonomy may be clarified by the simultaneous culture of known taxa and material derived from field collections under the same sets of culture conditions. This should eliminate ecotypic variations in morphology. Cladophora is predominantly benthic and is often found in regions of unidirectional flow or periodic wave action. Its metabolism, and morphology are related to hydrodynamic conditions. Nitrogen and phosphorus are the most commonly reported limiting nutrients. Cladophora is a mid- to late successional species in freshwaters where it is grazer resistant. In marine communities, however, it is considered an early opportunist and relatively palatable to invertebrates. Cladophora is colonized by a wide variety of epiphytes and motile animals because it can offer protection from predation, food (in the form of epiphytes or Cladophora itself), or a substrate that is anchored against flow disturbance. Species interactions that occur within Cladophora communities include 1) competition with other primary producers, 2) top-down control of biomass, 3) association with nitrogen-fixing epiphytes, 4) grazing on epiphytes by invertebrates, and 5) complicated foodwebs in marine intertidal and freshwater communities. Because Cladophora is found in many different habitats, its ecology varies significantly with locale.     

THE UBIQUITOUS PRESENCE OF CHLOROPHYLL D IN RED ALGAE FROM THE MONTEREY PENINSULA

Domoic acid (DA) is a neurotoxic amino acid produced by several members of the diatom genus Pseudo-nitzschia. Trophic transfer of DA up the food chain has been implicated in the deaths of 100's of marine birds and marine mammals along the central California Coast. The physiological function of DA in Pseudo-nitzschia spp. has not been defined, although some evidence indicates that elevated metal concentrations can induce DA accumulation (Subba RAO et al. , 1998, P.S.Z.N. Mar. Ecol. 19:31). Although California coastal waters have experienced a decline in several heavy metals from 1977–1990, copper concentrations have increased by as much as 25% (Stephenson, M. D. & Leonard, G. H., 1994, Mar. Poll. Bull. 28:148). Many algae produce chelators, including amino acids, in response to toxic [Cu²+] (Wu et al. 1998, J. Phycol. 34: 113). Domoic acid, a tricarboxylic acid, has 4 functional groups that may readily form chelation complexes with transition metals like copper. Copper enrichment experiments indicate that while Cu²+ is toxic to Pseudo-nitzschia multiseries at total [Cu] greater than 16.1μM (pCu 6.0), intracellular DA accumulation increases up to this point with no decline in growth rates relative to cultures grown in standard enriched seawater. These data suggest that DA may be accumulated by P. multiseries to mitigate the toxicity of elevated [Cu²+]. Chemiluminescence will be used to quantify the binding affinity (expressed as conditional stability constants, Kc) of DA for Cu²+. Defining the Cu-DA dose response relationship in Pseudo-nitzschia can facilitate prediction of future toxic bloom events.     

Determination of the daily selenium intake in slovakia

Three models were used to determine the daily dietary Selenium intake in Slovakia. The Selenium content of food produced and consumed in the Slovak Republic was used to estimate and calculate the daily Selenium intake based on food consumption data per capita and seven days, (24 h) eating protocol models. In a duplicate portion model, Selenium was analyzed in a whole day hospital diet during an eight-day period. According to these models the daily dietary Selenium intake was 38.2 μg; 43.3 ±6.5 μg for men and 32.6 ±6.6 μg for women; 27.1 ±7.8 μg for normal and 32.3 ±4.8 μg for nourishing hospital diets. The main contributors of Selenium to daily intake were the following: eggs, pork, and poultry. The obtained results indicate that the daily dietary intake of Selenium of the Slovak people is below the recommended values.