The flora of the Pitcairn Islands: a review

vascular plant flora of the Pitcairn Islands, south-central Pacific Ocean, is described based on extensive new collections made in 1991 and previously published records. Two vascular plants occur on Ducie Atoll; one (Pemphis acidula) is a new record. Sixty-three native vascular plants occur on Henderson, of which nine are endemic; Canavalia rosea, Operculina lurpethum, Psilotum nudum and Solanum americanum are new records for the island. Oeno Atoll has 16 native vascular plants; the single endemic (Bidens hendersonensis var. oenoensis) was not found in 1991 despite careful searches. Triumfetta procumbens was new for Oeno. Sixty-six native vascular plants have now been recorded from Pitcairn Island, there are two endemic ferns and seven endemic angiosperms in this number. A number of non-native taxa were new to Pitcairn. Some of the previously described taxa could not be found on Pitcairn, probably because they are very rare and only a small amount of time was spent collecting on Pitcairn. Many of the Pitcairn taxa are threatened by the spread of introduced species, especially Syzygium jambos.     

Tropical and north Pacific teleconnections influence fire regimes in pine-dominated forests of north-eastern California, USA

Aim To assess the importance of drought and teleconnections from the tropical and north Pacific Ocean on historical fire regimes and vegetation dynamics in north‐eastern California. Location The 700 km² study area was on the leeward slope of the southern Cascade Mountains in north‐eastern California. Open forests of ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa var. ponderosa Laws.) and Jeffrey pine (P. jeffreyi Grev. & Balf) surround a network of grass and shrub‐dominated meadows that range in elevation from 1650 to 1750 m. Methods Fire regime characteristics (return interval, season and extent) were determined from crossdated fire scars and were compared with tree‐ring based reconstructions of precipitation and temperature and teleconnections for the period 1700–1849. The effect of drought on fire regimes was determined using a tree‐ring based proxy of climate from five published chronologies. The number of forest‐meadow units that burned was compared with published reconstructions of the El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO). Results Landscape scale fires burned every 7–49 years in meadow‐edge forests and were influenced by variation in drought, the PDO and ENSO. These widespread fires burned during years that were dryer and warmer than normal that followed wetter and cooler years. Less widespread fires were not associated with this wet, then dry climate pattern. Widespread fires occurred during El Niño years, but fire extent was mediated by the phase of the PDO. Fires were most widespread when the PDO was in a warm or normal phase. Fire return intervals, season and extent varied at decadal to multi‐decadal time scales. In particular, an anomalously cool, wet period during the early 1800s resulted in widespread fires that occurred earlier in the year than fires before or after. Main conclusions Fire regimes in north‐eastern California were strongly influenced by regional and hemispheric‐scale climate variation. Fire regimes responded to variation that occurred in both the north and tropical Pacific. Near normal modes of the PDO may influence fire regimes more than extreme conditions. The prevalence of widespread teleconnection‐driven fires in the historic record suggests that variation in the Pacific Ocean was a key regulator of fire regimes through its influence on local fuel production and successional dynamics in north‐eastern California.     

Larvae of Crystallodytes pauciradiatus(Perciformes: Creediidae) from Easter Island, South Pacific

Larvae of Crystallodytes pauciradiatus (Creediidae) are described from 47 individuals (2·9–21·3 mm). They are elongate, slender, lightly pigmented, have prominent preopercular spines and unique small spines on the lower jaw. Early stages are restricted to the nearshore water around Easter Island, South Pacific.     

Colonization of Pacific islands by parasites of low dispersal ability: phylogeography of two monogenean species parasitizing butterflyfishes in the South Pacific Ocean

Aim To investigate the phylogeographical patterns of two poorly dispersing but widely distributed monogenean species, Haliotrema aurigae and Euryhaliotrematoides grandis, gill parasites of coral reef fishes from the family Chaetodontidae. Location South Pacific Ocean (SPO). Methods Sequence data from the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) gene were obtained from samples from five localities of the SPO (Heron Island, Lizard Island, Moorea, Palau and Wallis) for the two parasite species. Phylogenetic and genetic diversity analyses were used to reconstruct phylogeographical patterns, and dates of cladogenetic events were estimated. Results Overall, 50 individuals of 17 Haliotrema aurigae and 33 of Euryhaliotrematoides grandis were sequenced from five localities of the SPO for COI mtDNA (798 bp). Our results revealed a deep phylogeographical structure in the species Euryhaliotrematoides grandis. The molecular divergence between individuals from Moorea and individuals from the remaining localities (7.7%) may be related to Pleistocene sea‐level fluctuations. In contrast, Haliotrema aurigae shows no phylogeographical patterns with the presence of most of the mitochondrial haplotypes in every locality sampled. Main conclusions Our study shows contrasting phylogeographical patterns of the two monogenean parasite species studied, despite many shared characteristics. Both parasites are found on the same host family, share the same geographical range and ecology, and are phylogenetically close. We propose two hypotheses that may help explain the diparity: the hypotheses involve differences in the evolutionary age of the parasite species and their dispersal capabilities. Additionally, the lack of phylogeographical structure in Haliotrema aurigae contrasts with its apparently restricted dispersion, which is likely to occur during the egg stage of the life cycle, inducing a passive dispersal mechanism in butterflyfish monogeneans.     

Blue whale population structure along the eastern South Pacific Ocean: evidence of more than one population

Blue whales (Balaenoptera musculus) were among the most intensively exploited species of whales in the world. As a consequence of this intense exploitation, blue whale sightings off the coast of Chile were uncommon by the end of the 20th century. In 2004, a feeding and nursing ground was reported in southern Chile (SCh). With the aim to investigate the genetic identity and relationship of these Chilean blue whales to those in other Southern Hemisphere areas, 60 biopsy samples were collected from blue whales in SCh between 2003 and 2009. These samples were genotyped at seven microsatellite loci and the mitochondrial control region was sequenced, allowing us to identify 52 individuals. To investigate the genetic identity of this suspected remnant population, we compared these 52 individuals to blue whales from Antarctica (ANT, n = 96), Northern Chile (NCh, n = 19) and the eastern tropical Pacific (ETP, n = 31). No significant differentiation in haplotype frequencies (mtDNA) or among genotypes (nDNA) was found between SCh, NCh and ETP, while significant differences were found between those three areas and Antarctica for both the mitochondrial and microsatellite analyses. Our results suggest at least two breeding population units or subspecies exist, which is also supported by other lines of evidence such as morphometrics and acoustics. The lack of differences detected between SCh/NCh/ETP areas supports the hypothesis that eastern South Pacific blue whales are using the ETP area as a possible breeding area. Considering the small population sizes previously reported for the SCh area, additional conservation measures and monitoring of this population should be developed and prioritized.     

Late Glacial and Holocene environmental and climatic changes from a limnological transect through Colombia, northern South America

We present a synthesis of the palaeolimnological and palaeoclimatic reconstructions of four sites in Colombia. The record from Lake El Caimito, the westernmost site on the Pacific Coast, dates from the Late Holocene and shows lacustrine sedimentation frequently interrupted by fluvial pulses. These pulses probably reflect periods of increased precipitation related to La Niña phases. East of El Caimito site is the Patía swamp, situated between the Western and Central Andean Cordilleras. The Patía records the dynamics of forest expansion/reduction and changes in water levels. Although the climatic signal of the Patia core is difficult to reconstruct, there is a clear increase in humidity in the Mid-Holocene. The Fúquene Lake record, on the Eastern Andean Cordillera, records dry and cold conditions during the Late Pleistocene, very humid conditions for the early Mid-Holocene, and dry conditions during the mid-Late Holocene. Las Margaritas site, on the eastern savannas, records dry conditions during the Early Holocene and overall humid conditions for the Mid- and Late Holocene. Climate conditions from the Fuquene and Las Margaritas sites seem to reflect the Holocene movements of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ); the latter site being more affected by humidity coming from the Amazon region.     

中西太平洋鲣鱼围网渔业资源的热点分析和空间异质性

中西太平洋是世界鲣鱼围网主要作业水域。基于我国渔船2005—2009年的中西太平洋鲣鱼围网生产数据,运用空间统计方法对该水域鲣鱼资源的空间自相关性和空间异质性特征进行分析,并结合海洋环境特征分析资源分布的热点区域。(1)通过常规统计学计算获得鲣鱼资源的偏态Sk、峰态数Ku、变异值Cv、s2/m和全局空间自相关Geary c系数,发现中西太平洋鲣鱼资源总体上是以低密度区域为主,高密度区域较少;鱼类资源密度值差异较大,资源表现出强烈集聚分布,总体的空间自相关性中等偏弱。(2)通过局部空间自相关的热点分析方法计算,发现局部空间自相关性较强,存在多个在统计学上通过显著性检验的资源热点和冷点。(3)通过地统计方法研究鲣鱼资源的空间变异性特征和方向变异时,空间自相关类型上最优模型是球形模型,鲣鱼资源密度各向同性,最大相关距离1000km左右。发现空间自相关引起的差异占整个差异的50%左右,为中等强度变异;在方向性变异上,主要体现在南北向上,其该向上结构性误差占67%,而东西向结构性误差占49%。这一结果和海洋环境的南北向上结构性远好于东西向结构性有关;从各方向的分维数看,数值介于1.876—1.9之间,数值较大,空间自相关较弱。(4)以资源热点区域作为区域性渔场,结合海洋温度和叶绿素场海洋环境特征,将中西太平洋鲣鱼资源分为3个不同的局部渔场,即2个暖池渔场,1个冷舌渔场。冷舌渔场由中东太平洋赤道上升流引起,在锋面地带提供了较为丰富的初级生产力,便于鱼类获得丰富的食物;暖池渔场靠近岛屿和陆地区域,近岸上升流系统提供了丰富的初级生产力。(5)将热点分析和渔场重心方法及栖息地指数的优缺点做了对比,建议以后采用空间残差模型深入研究空间自相关问题。     

Four new species of Rhodophyceae from Fiji,Polynesia and Vanuatu,South Pacific

Four new species of Rhodophyceae are described from the South Pacific, with type localities in Fiji, French Polynesia and Vanuatu. Chondria bullata from the Tuamotus (French Polynesia), Vanuatu, Palmerston Atoll (Cook Islands) and Fiji is unique owing to its non‐constricted axes with markedly protruding, bubble‐like cortical cells. Halymenia nukuhivensis, from the Marquesas Islands in French Polynesia, is distinguished from others in the genus by its dichotomous, papery blades issued from a strap‐shaped basal region, and the equal proportion of anti‐clinal, periclinal and oblique filaments in its medullary layer. Jania articulata, so far known only from the Tuamotus in French Polynesia and Manihiki in the Northern Cook Islands, superficially resembles the genus Amphiroa with its articulated branches with numerous genicula between successive dichotomies, and its large axis diameter. Meristotheca peltata from the Fiji Islands is unique among the genus by its distinctly peltate, erect habit. The recent high number of newly described species from the South Pacific region emphasizes the need for more in‐depth surveys, particularly in deeper outer reef slope habitats, which remain for the most part unexplored and could yield particularly interesting new taxa or distributional records.     

基于ESDA的西北太平洋柔鱼资源空间热点区域及其变动研究

以西北太平洋(150°E—160°E、38°N—45°N)柔鱼Ommastrephes bartramii为研究对象,以2007和2010年鱿钓渔业的原始点位数据为基础,利用常规统计和探索性空间数据分析(ESDA)中的全局空间自相关分析方法,对西北太平洋柔鱼资源空间分布及其变动进行了研究。结果表明,西北太平洋柔鱼资源呈现较强的聚集分布特征,但不同空间位置差异较大。利用GIS和ESDA的局部自相关方法进行了柔鱼资源热冷点空间分布的制图,结果显示2007年研究区存在3个显著的热点和1个冷点,2010年与之存在较为明显的差异,具有1个热点和4个冷点。变化检测分析表明,两个年份间出现1个热点区域和1个冷点区域未发生变化,另有2个区域从2007年热点变成2010年冷点;此外,非热冷点之间的变动在研究区占据了主导地位。景观指数分析表明,研究区柔鱼资源热冷点格局的复杂性和自相似性并不高,但其异质性和聚集性非常强,且整体性和凝聚度均很高。分析认为,2007年西北太平洋柔鱼渔区的形成受温度和海流的影响,近一半作业渔区产量相对较高,但并未充分保证空间热点的大面积形成,空间热点和冷点分布面积大致相当;2010年整个西北太平洋柔鱼渔场受亲潮势力影响,空间热点较为集中、空间冷点较多且分散。     

Engyprosopon vanuatuensis, a new species of bothid flounder (Pleuronectiformes: Bothidae) from off Vanuatu, South West Pacific

A new bothid flounder, Engyprosopon vanuatuensis, is described on the basis of 15 specimens (9 males and 6 females, 41.1–55.8mm in standard length) collected from deep waters (163–165m) off Vanuatu Island in 1994 during the French exploratory cruise MUSORSTOM 8. The new species clearly differs from its congeners in having a short body, big eyes, large scales, and many gill rakers without serrations. Remarkable sexual dimorphism appears in interorbital width, anterior curve of head profile, rostral and orbital spines, length of ocular-side pectoral fin, small dots on eyes, and pigmentation of blind-side body.     

Changing perspectives on the biogeography of the tropical South Pacific: influences of dispersal, vicariance and extinction

Aim The biogeographical patterns and drivers of diversity on oceanic islands in the tropical South Pacific (TSP) are synthesized. We use published studies to determine present patterns of diversity on TSP islands, the likely sources of the biota on these islands and how the islands were colonized. We also investigate the effect of extinctions. Location We focus on oceanic islands in the TSP. Methods We review available literature and published molecular studies. Results Examples of typical island features (e.g. gigantism, flightlessness, gender dimorphism) are common, as are adaptive radiations. Diversity decreases with increasing isolation from mainland sources and with decreasing size and age of archipelagos, corresponding well with island biogeographical expectations. Molecular studies support New Guinea/Malesia, New Caledonia and Australia as major source areas for the Pacific biota. Numerous studies support dispersal‐based scenarios, either over several 100 km (long‐distance dispersal) or over shorter distances by island‐hopping (stepping stones) and transport by human means (hitch‐hiking). Only one vicariance explanation, the eastward drift of continental fragments (shuttles) that may have contributed biota to Fiji from New Caledonia, is supported by some geological evidence, although there is no evidence for the transport of taxa on shuttle fragments. Another vicariance explanation, the existence of a major continental landmass in the Pacific within the last 100 Myr (Atlantis theory), receives little support and appears unlikely. Extinction of lineages in source areas and persistence in the TSP has probably occurred many times and has resulted in misinterpretation of biogeographical data. Main conclusions Malesia has long been considered the major source region for the biota of oceanic islands in the TSP because of shared taxa and high species diversity. However, recent molecular studies have produced compelling support for New Caledonia and Australia as alternative important source areas. They also show dispersal events, and not vicariance, to have been the major contributors to the current biota of the TSP. Past extinction events can obscure interpretations of diversity patterns.     

The role of disturbance in the establishment of indigenous and alien plants at Inaccessible and Nightingale Islands in the South Atlantic Ocean

Disturbances play an important role in the establishment of vegetation at Inaccessible and Nightingale Islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. Type, altitude and age of disturbance all influenced the species richness, life-form and abundance of seedlings. A few indigenous species appear to be dependent on small disturbances, such as the clearings around albatross nests, for their perpetuation, e.g. Acaena sarmentosa and Gnaphalium thouarsii. Alien forbs and grasses, e.g. Conyza albida, Holcus lanatus, Pseudognaphalium luteo-album and Rumex obtusifolius, tended to dominate large recent disturbances such as soil-slips and depressions, and to colonize man-modified sites. Alien plants were less common on the plateau at Inaccessible Island than on the lowlands. Their success appears to be enhanced by large-scale disturbances. The highest density and diversity of seedlings occurred on large soil-slips where mineral soil was exposed and vegetation cover was minimal.     

The Pacific Banyan in the Cook Islands: have its pollination and seed dispersal mutualisms been disrupted, and does it matter?

Fig trees (Ficus spp., Moraceae) are pollinated by species-specific fig wasps and have seeds that are mainly dispersed by fruit bats and birds. Consequently, they should be strongly dependent on mutualisms with animals for their reproductive success. As elsewhere in the Pacific, extinctions of potential seed dispersers have occurred on the islands in the southern Cook Islands archipelago. The abundance of the Pacific Banyan, Ficus prolixa, was found to be unrelated to the extent of potential seed disperser extinctions on different islands. There was no evidence of recruitment on Rarotonga, which has the most diverse bird and bat assemblage, and healthy populations on Mangaia, where all the native avian frugivores are extinct. Despite its very small population sizes on some of the islands, the trees pollinators are still present, showing that this mutualism has not yet been disrupted. Habitat loss, rather than a loss of mutualists, appears to be the main problem facing this species.     

Sebdenia cerebriformis sp. nov. (Sebdeniaceae, Sebdeniales) from the south and western Pacific Ocean

A new species of red alga, Sebdenia cerebriformis N'Yeurt et Payri sp. nov. (Sebdeniaceae, Sebdeniales), is described from various localities in the south and western Pacific including Fiji, New Caledonia, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and Indonesia (Java Sea). The new species is characterized by a ruffled thallus with multiple perennial stipitate holdfasts, large conspicuous inner cortical stellate cells, and a lax filamentous medulla.     

Fishy Business: The High Seas Boarding and Inspection Regime in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean

The Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) was created in 2004 to more effectively conserve and manage the region's tuna fishery. One of the Commission's principal enforcement tools is the high seas boarding and inspection regime, which authorizes each member state to board and inspect fishing vessels engaged in a regulated fishery to verify compliance with the Commission's conservation and management measures. This article examines the structure of the WCPFC's high seas boarding and inspection regime and analyzes its effectiveness in furthering the Commission's conservations and management mandate.     

Biodiversity loss under existing land use and climate change: an illustration using northern South America

Aim Species richness depends on climate and land use. Maintaining locations with favourable climate and land‐use patterns is critical for protecting biodiversity because the loss of either can reduce the species richness that an area supports. Currently, the Guiana Shield (GS) receives abundant precipitation and has relatively light land use. For species richness this constitutes a good–good combination of climate and land use, respectively. In contrast, much of eastern Brazil receives low levels of precipitation and has heavy land use, which is a bad–bad combination for species richness. Thus, the current distribution of precipitation and land use in northern South America is relatively favourable for biodiversity. Palaeoclimate and model studies suggest, however, that the precipitation patterns for the two regions have switched before and could switch in response to greenhouse gas emissions. This paper examines the potential consequences of reconfiguring climate with respect to existing land‐use patterns using South America as an example. Location South America north of 20° S and east of the Andes. Methods Ecosystem structure and function are modelled under (1) historical climate and (2) altered precipitation following a shift in the location of the Inter‐Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ). The distribution of precipitation, biomes, net primary productivity (NPP) and land use are then used to predict levels of species richness under the two climate scenarios. Results Climate changes could shift the distribution of vegetation and NPP such that conditions favourable for species richness in the GS region disappear. If land‐use patterns were not prohibitive in eastern Brazil, the improved climate conditions there could compensate for the GS loss (assuming migratory barriers are overcome). Instead, existing land‐use patterns cause the combined species richness projected for the two regions to plummet. Main conclusions Human activities will alter current configurations of land use and climate throughout the world. For species richness, new configurations are likely to include both positive and negative combinations of climate and land use. However, the irreversibility of past extinctions due to land‐use patterns loads the dice against species richness.     

First record of Terpios fugax Duchassaing and Michelotti, 1864 (Demospongiae: Suberitidae) in the Eastern Pacific Ocean

ABSTRACT

The brightly blue shallow water species Terpios fugax Duchassaing and Michelotti, 1864 was originally described from the Caribbean and has been extensively recorded in the Atlantic Ocean, but rarely found in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. In the Pacific Ocean it has been only reported from Sulawesi, Indonesia and from the Caroline and Marshall Islands. Here we report the first record of Terpios in the Eastern Pacific, based on the presence of T. fugax at Caldera, Región de Atacama, northern Chile. Although this species may have been inadvertently introduced to the area by human activity, it should also be considered that the geographically distant populations of this sponge (from the Caribbean to the Eastern Pacific) may represent different species.     

“Strictly for the Birds”: Science, the Military and the Smithsonian's Pacific Ocean Biological Survey Program, 1963–1970

Between 1963 and 1970, the Smithsonian Institution held a grant from the US Army to observe migratory patterns of pelagic birds in the Central Pacific. For six years, the Pacific Ocean Biological Survey Program (POBSP) collected a vast amount of data from a quarter of the globe little known to science, and difficult for civilians to access. Its reports were (and remain) of great value to science. In 1969, however, the Program became embroiled in controversy. Some alleged that the Smithsonian, by accepting the military's coin, had violated its own rules governing the receipt of government funds and the publication of research. Recent investigations have pointed to a number of unexplained relationships between the POBSP and the Army, during a period of intense activity in chemical and biological weapons testing. The controversy marked a watershed in Smithsonian-military relations. As yet, its history is incomplete. What is known, however, suggests that the POBSP involved a highly problematic mésalliance between science and secrecy during the height of the Cold War. Its gradual unfolding prompts questions of contemporary relevance that await contemporary answers. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Cancer risk reduction in the US Affiliated Pacific Islands: Utilizing a novel policy,systems, and environmental (PSE) approach

BackgroundThe Health Directors of the US Affiliated Pacific Islands (USAPI) declared a State of Emergency due to epidemic proportions of lifestyle diseases: cancer, obesity and other non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in 2010. This paper describes the development, implementation, and evaluation of a USAPI policy, system and environment (PSE) approach to address lifestyle behaviors associated with cancer and other NCDs.MethodsEach of USAPI jurisdictions applied the PSE approach to tobacco and nutrition interventions in a local institution, faith based, or community setting. A participatory community engagement process was utilized to: identify relevant deleterious health behaviors in the population, develop PSE interventions to modify the context in which the behavior occurs in a particular setting, implement the PSE intervention through five specified activities, and evaluate the activities and behavior change associated with the intervention.ResultsPSE interventions have been implemented in all USAPI jurisdictions. Current human and financial resources have been adequate to support the interventions. Process and behavior change evaluations have not been completed and is ongoing. Personnel turnover and maintaining the intervention strategy in response due to shifting community demands has been the biggest challenge in one site.ConclusionFrom 2014 through 2016 the PSE approach has been used to implement PSE interventions in all USAPI jurisdictions. The intervention evaluations have not been completed. The PSE intervention is novel and has the potential to be a scalable methodology to prevent cancer and modify NCD risk in the USAPI and small states.