New records of deep-sea fishes from the waters around the Falkland Islands

The manefish Caristius groenlandicus , the spiny eel Notacanthus sexspinis , the cutthroat eel Diastobranchus capensis and the Giant Grenadier Albatrossia pectoralis are new records for the waters of the Falkland Islands, and the latter is a new record in the Atlantic Ocean.     

New Philippine moss records for Luzon and Mindanao Islands

Introduction. The Philippine moss flora is updated and this shows that its richness and diversity is far from fully understood.

Methods. The status of 15 new records has been verified through recent publications. Type specimens of these new records were also examined to confirm their identity. Voucher specimens have been deposited in PNH. The taxa are listed in alphabetical order for ease of referencing.

Key Results. Fifteen new records for Luzon and Mindanao Islands are reported, derived from recent and older collections held in the Philippine National Herbarium (PNH).: Breutelia pendula (Sm.) Mitt., Chaetomitrium cucullatum Dixon, Ectropothecium filicaule M.Fleisch., Ectropothecium pseudocyperoides M.Fleisch., Entodon scariosus Renauld & Cardot, Hypnum plumaeforme Wilson, Leptodontium flexifolium (Dicks.) Hampe, Leucobryum sumatranum Broth. ex M.Fleisch., Oxyrrhynchium savatieri (Schimp. ex Besch.) Broth., Pelekium minusculum (Mitt.) Touw, Rhodobryum ontariense (Kindb.) Paris, Rhizogonium hattorii Nog., Sanionia uncinata (Hedw.) Loeske, Schlotheimia emarginatopilosa Herzog and Wijkia surcularis (Mitt.) H.A.Crum.

Chaetomitrium cucullatum and Ectropothecium filicaule are reinstated as species. Leptodontium flexifolium and Sanionia uncinata are new generic and species records for the Philippines.

Conclusions. These reported updates in Philippine moss flora indicate the importance of continued studies of unidentified bryological collections at PNH and elsewhere. Likewise, the necessity of field collecting to improve knowledge of the Philippine flora is also highlighted.     

New bryophyte records from the Balearic Islands

Abstract

New localities are given for 22 bryophyte taxa from Ibiza and 11 from Mallorca. Nine species and two varieties are believed to be new to the Balearic Islands.     

New records of bryophytes from the Canary Islands

Abstract

Two members each of the Adelanthaceae and Schistochilaceae and three of the Porellaceae are recorded from Mulanje Mountain, of which Adelanthus lindenbergianus (Lehm.) Mitt., Porella abyssinica (Nees) Trev. var. hoehnelii (Steph.) Pócs, Porella capensis (Gott.) Mitt. and P. subdentata (Mitt.) Steph. are first records for Malawi.     

New records of ahermatypic scleractinian corals from the Kuril Islands

Four species of caryophyllid scleractinians, Caryophylla ambrosia, C. scobinosa, C. alaskensis, and Polymyces montereyensis, were recorded for the first time in the Sea of Okhotsk off the Kuril Islands. These findings extend the range for the species, of which three had previously been considered to be restricted to the tropical and warm Indopacific waters. These data will supplement regional reports on the bottom fauna of the most fertile and extensively commercially exploited continental shelf region of the North Pacific.Original Russian Text Copyright © 2004 by Biologiya Morya, Latypov.     

New records of Acari from the sub-Antarctic Prince Edward Islands

Sixty species of Acari are recorded from the sub-Antarctic Marion and Prince Edward Islands (the Prince Edward archipelago). Twenty of the 45 species collected on recent expeditions are new and currently undescribed. Other new taxa include a family of Mesostigmata, four new genera, and the first sub-Antarctic records of Cillibidae (Mesostigmata) and Eryngiopus (Prostigmata). Fifteen of the 31 species previously reported from the islands are confirmed, although eight of the previous accounts remain doubtful. The fauna, which shows a distinction between the shoreline and terrestrial components, comprises endemic, South Indian Ocean Province and sub-Antarctic mite species. Accepted: 18 July 1998     

Demographic parameters of black-browed albatrosses Thalassarche melanophris from the Falkland Islands

Black-browed albatrosses Thalassarche melanophris are currently classified as globally endangered. The most important populations of this species are believed to be declining due to, amongst other factors, unsustainable levels of incidental mortality in fishing gear. However, detailed demographic data are lacking for several critical populations, including the largest of all, nesting in the Falkland Islands. Here, we present data from the first Falkland Islands detailed demographic study (at New Island) and show that, from 2003 to 2009, the mean adult survival probability was 0.942 (95% CI: 0.930–0.952). Nesting frequency of adults is amongst the highest recorded for Thalassarche albatrosses and breeding success (0.564 chicks per egg) is within normal values. The nesting population in the intensively studied plots experienced an increase of 4% per year from 2004 to 2009. These results indicate that the Falklands population may not be as threatened as previously supposed, although studies from more sites and a longer time series are needed to confirm or refute this. The high survival rates may partly reflect recent efforts to mitigate bycatch made by the Falkland Islands and other fisheries in the region. The reinforcement of such initiatives may be critical to buffer the black-browed albatross population against ecosystem shifts and natural disasters (such as harmful algal blooms) that will likely become more frequent with ongoing global changes.     

Evidence for a New Avian Paramyxovirus Serotype 10 Detected in Rockhopper Penguins from the Falkland Islands

The biological, serological, and genomic characterization of a paramyxovirus recently isolated from rockhopper penguins (Eudyptes chrysocome) suggested that this virus represented a new avian paramyxovirus (APMV) group, APMV10. This penguin virus resembled other APMVs by electron microscopy; however, its viral hemagglutination (HA) activity was not inhibited by antisera against any of the nine defined APMV serotypes. In addition, antiserum generated against this penguin virus did not inhibit the HA of representative viruses of the other APMV serotypes. Sequence data produced using random priming methods revealed a genomic structure typical of APMV. Phylogenetic evaluation of coding regions revealed that amino acid sequences of all six proteins were most closely related to APMV2 and APMV8. The calculation of evolutionary distances among proteins and distances at the nucleotide level confirmed that APMV2, APMV8, and the penguin virus all were sufficiently divergent from each other to be considered different serotypes. We propose that this isolate, named APMV10/penguin/Falkland Islands/324/2007, be the prototype virus for APMV10. Because of the known problems associated with serology, such as antiserum cross-reactivity and one-way immunogenicity, in addition to the reliance on the immune response to a single protein, the hemagglutinin-neuraminidase, as the sole base for viral classification, we suggest the need for new classification guidelines that incorporate genome sequence comparisons.Viruses from the Paramyxoviridae family have caused disease in humans and animals for centuries. Over the last 40 years, many paramyxoviruses isolated from animals and people have been newly described (16, 17, 22, 29, 31, 32, 36, 42, 44, 46, 49, 58, 59, 62-64). Viruses from this family are pleomorphic, enveloped, single-stranded, nonsegmented, negative-sense RNA viruses that demonstrate serological cross-reactivity with other paramyxoviruses related to them (30, 46). The subfamily Paramyxovirinae is divided into five genera: Respirovirus, Morbillivirus, Rubulavirus, Henipavirus, and Avulavirus (30). The Avulavirus genus contains nine distinct avian paramyxovirus (APMV) serotypes (Table ​(Table1),1), and information on the discovery of each has been reported elsewhere (4, 6, 7, 9, 12, 34, 41, 50, 51, 60, 68).

TABLE 1.

Characteristics of prototype viruses APMV1 to APMV9 and the penguin virus

The non-native vascular flora of the Falkland Islands

Summary

Non-native species form a significant, but under-recorded, component of the Falkland Islands vascular flora. With this in mind a comprehensive re vie w of the non-native flora of the Falkland Islands was undertaken for the first time since the publication of the definitive Flora in 1968. We have recorded 175 non-native taxa, from 46 families, from the Falkland Islands which are listed with accompanying notes on habitat, status and distribution. Twenty-nine of these are likely to be commonly encountered, though only Aira praecox, Cerastium fontanum, Rumex acetosella and Sagina procumbens are near ubiquitous throughout. The origins of much of the non-native flora are obscure, however most species seem to be of European descent, and a significant proportion of taxa seem to have become established after introductions for agricultural and horticultural purposes.     

Evolutionary ecomorphology of the Falkland Islands wolf Dusicyon australis

The Falkland Islands wolf Dusicyon australis is an extinct canid that was once the only endemic terrestrial mammal to inhabit the Falkland Islands. There is still a puzzling picture of the morphological adaptations of this wolf that quickly evolved from its mainland fossil ancestor: Dusicyon avus. We employ a geometric morphometric approach to identify patterns of skull shape variation in extant canids and Dusicyon spp. The Falkland Islands wolf and its fossil ancestor show a more carnivorous feeding morphology than other South American foxes, and they cluster morphologically with jackals. This supports convergence in skull shape between Dusicyon and Old World canids, although the convergence is not as strong as that exhibited by their sister hyper‐ and hypocarnivorous taxa.     

Trophic segregation of Falkland Islands seabirds: insights from stable isotope analysis

Seabird colonies provide rare opportunities to study trophic segregation in an entire bird community. We here present data on nitrogen and carbon isotope ratios of eight species of seabirds from New Island, Falkland Islands, and compare trophic levels (TL) and foraging distributions. We included adult feathers representing the interbreeding season, as well as chick feathers or down representing the breeding season. The stable isotope ratios indicated differences in feeding areas and TLs between species, consistent with the data of previous conventional diet analyses and observations at sea. We further reviewed conventional and stable isotope seabird community studies calculating the means and ranges of TLs observed across these studies. The mean TL (3.7) of the seabird community on New Island was at the lower end of the mean value range (3.5–4.5), but not significantly different, from the reviewed seabird communities. Seabirds on New Island had a range of 1.3 TLs, which is on the upper end of ranges within a community (0.4–1.5), indicating strong trophic structuring.     

Spiders from Beauchêne Island, Falkland Islands, South Atlantic

A collection of 55 spiders, which was made on Beauchêne Island, Falkland Islands archipelago, in December 1980, contains seven species. Three of these are known from the main body of the Falkland Islands, one is a new subspecies of a species previously known from Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego, and the remaining three are endemic to Beauchêne Island. New taxa described are Auximus fuegianus bransfieldi nssp. and Emmenomma beauchenicum n.sp.