Whales, dolphins, and porpoises of the eastern North Pacific and adjacent Arctic waters: a guide to their identification

This is an identification guide for cetaceans (whales, dolphins, and porpoises), that was designed to assist laymen in identifying cetaceans encountered in eastern North Pacific and Arctic waters. It was intended for use by ongoing cetacean observer programs. This is a revision of an earlier guide with the same title published in 1972 by the Naval Undersa Center and the National Marine Fisheries Service. It includes sections on identifying cetaceans at sea as well as stranded animals on shore. Species accounts are divided by body size and presence or lack of a dorsal fin. Appendices include illustrations of tags on whales, dolphins, and porpoises, by Larry Hobbs; how to record data from observed cetaceans at sea and for stranded cetaceans; and a list of cetacean names in Japanese and Russian. (Document contains 245 pages - file takes considerable time to open)

Parasitology and pathology of marine organisms of the world ocean

The Symposium in which the communications, as they were called during the meeting, comprising this volume were presented was held at the Zoological Institute of the Academy of Sciences of the U.S.S.R. in Leningrad during 13 to 16 October 1981. Conducted as part of the cooperative program of the U.S.A.-U.S.S.R. Working Group on Biological Productivity and Biochemistry of the World Ocean, the Leningrad meeting was sponsored by the Academy of Sciences of the U.S.S.R. (the Zoological Institute) and the Ministry of Fisheries of the U.S.S.R. (The Scientific Council on Fish Diseases of the Ichthyological Commission). It was an extremely interesting and successful Symposium, offering all participants the opportunity to describe the results of their studies and reviews during the course of the formal presentations and direct interchange between scientists during breaks in the program and the organized and casual social activities. The facilities provided by the Zoological Institute were quite adequate and the assistance offered by its Director, O. A. Scarlato and his staff in organization,logistics, and translation was excellent. Several of our Soviet colleagues presided over the proceedings, as did I. All were businesslike and efficient, yet graceful and accommodating. To O. N. Bauer Jell the brunt of programmatic detail and follow-up. He bore his burdens well and, with Director Scarlato and his staff, including A. V. Gussev and others of the professional and technical staffs of the Zoological Institute, helped make our stay pleasant and the Symposium productive. These organizations and individuals deserve much credit and praise as well as the thanks of their American and British colleagues. (PDF file contains 141 pages.)

A GEOPASS-NERC project on diatom deposition and sediment accumulation in Lake Baikal, Siberia

This new project is multidisciplinary, with physical and chemical palaeolimnological aspects mainly the responsibility of Swiss and Russian scientists, and the biological limnology and palaeolimnology components mainly undertaken by the British and Russian groups. The overall project aim is to improve palaeoclimate reconstructions using sedimentary diatoms by promoting better understanding of diatom ecology and sediment-forming processes. The initial work plan is divided into four main parts: To understand diatom phytoplankton ecology more fully, to assess taphonomic changes associated with the transformation of phytoplankton diatom communities into sediment assemblages, to demonstrate sediment core integrity and representativity and to calibrate modern diatom assemblages against contemporary climate records. The preliminary results from the interrelated studies of phytoplankton, sediment traps and sediment cores used in GEOPASS-NERC, demonstrate the complexity of links between the living and fossil systems. Furthermore, the nature of recent sedimentation in Lake Baikal is spatially variable and incompletely known. This poses a major challenge to palaeolimnological interpretation. Turbidite deposits and differential preservation of microfossils, combined with inadequate knowledge of the modern ecology of endemic diatoms, all conspire to obfuscate the sedimentary record of environmental change.

Occurrence and distribution of fish species off Yemen (Gulf of Aden and Arabian Sea)

The species list is drawn from an analysis of catches taken by Sumalian and Russian trawlers in the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea between 1985 and 1990. The southern coastline of the Republic of Yemen has been divided into 7 areas, including waters around Socotra Island. The average depth of each trawl was recorded in 50 m increments. Non-appearance of the species in the area does not mean that the species do not occur in that area or depth, merely that it was not recorded in any of the samples analyzed. Specimens that could not be identified to species level have been excluded. A total of 195 species from 75 families was recorded and is summarized. Most of the identification of species was from FAO species identification literature. Confirmation of some species and usage of common names is from ICLARM's FishBase and Al Sedfy, et al. (1982).

Bestandserfassung und -überwachung des atlanto-skandischen Herings. EU-Studie "Hydroacoustic Surveys of Atlanto-Scandian Herring in the Norwegian Sea, 1998-2000 (ASH-II)"

The atlanto-scandian herring consists of two major stocks, i.e. the Icelandic summer spawner and the Norwegian spring spawner. Both stocks have recovered well after complete collapse in the seventies and allow for a controlled fishery. The total allowable catch of the Norwegian spring spawner is currently 1.3 mill. t. The resumption of the fishery is accompanied by an annual and multi-national survey with Norwegian, Faeroe Islands, Icelandic and Russian contribution. In 1998 the EU will contribute to the survey with the Swedish vessel ”Argos” and in 1999 with the ”Walther Herwig III” under Dutch, Swedish and German participation. About half of the survey costs are covered by the EU by means of a funded study, the other half is contributed by the participating nations.

Coastal management measures for the lower Maumee Watershed, Lake Erie

In January 2006 the Maumee Remedial Action Plan (RAP) Committee submitted a State II Watershed Restoration Plan for the Maumee River Great Lakes Area of Concern (AOC) area located in NW Ohio to the State of Ohio for review and endorsement (MRAC, 2006). The plan was created in order to fulfill the requirements, needs and/or use of five water quality programs including: Ohio Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Watershed Coordinator Program; Ohio EPA Great Lakes RAP Program; Ohio DNR Coastal Non-point Source Pollution Control Program; Ohio EPA Total Maximum Daily Load Program; and US Fish & Wildlife Service Natural Resources Damage Program. The plan is intended to serve as a comprehensive regional management approach for all jurisdictions, agencies, organizations, and individuals who are working to restore the watershed, waterways and associated coastal zone. The plan includes: background information and mapping regarding hydrology, geology, ecoregions, and land use, and identifies key causes and sources for water quality concerns within the six 11-digit hydrological units (HUCs), and one large river unit that comprise the Maumee AOC. Tables were also prepared that contains detailed project lists for each major watershed and was organized to facilitate the prioritization of research and planning efforts. Also key to the plan and project tables is a reference to the Ohio DNR Coastal Management Measures that may benefit from the implementation of an identified project. This paper will examine the development of the measures and their importance for coastal management and watershed planning in the Maumee AOC. (PDF contains 4 pages)