Genetic evidence of two sibling species within the Contracoecum ogmorhini Johnson & Mawson 1941 complex (Nematoda; Anisakidae) from otariid seals in boreal and austral regions

Genetic variation of Contracaecum ogmorhini (sensu lato) populations from different otariid seals of the northern and southern hemisphere was studied on the basis of 18 enzyme loci as well as preliminary sequence analysis of the mitochondrial cyt b gene (260 bp). Samples were collected from Zalophus californianus in the boreal region and from Arctocephalus pusillus pusillus, A. pusillus doriferus and A. australis from the austral region. Marked genetic heterogeneity was found between C. ogmorhini (sensu lato) samples from the boreal and austral region, respectively. Two loci (Mdh-2 and NADHdh) showed fixed differences and a further three loci (Iddh, Mdh-1 and 6Pgdh) were highly differentiated between boreal and austral samples. Their average genetic distance was DNei = 0.36 at isozyme level. At mitochondrial DNA level, an average proportion of nucleotide substitution of 3.7% was observed. These findings support the existence of two distinct sibling species, for which the names C. ogmorhini (sensu stricto) and C. margolisi n. sp., respectively, for the austral and boreal taxon, are proposed. A description for C. margolisi n. sp. is provided. No diagnostic morphological characters have so far been detected; on the other hand, two enzyme loci, Mdh-2 and NADHdh, fully diagnostic between the two species, can be used for the routine identification of males, females and larval stages. Mirounga leonina was found to host C. ogmorhini (s.s.) inmixed infections with C. osculatum (s.l.) (of which C. ogmorhini (s.l.) was in the past considered to be a synonym) and C. miroungae; no hybrid genotypes were found,confirming the reproductive isolation of these three anisakid species. The hosts and geographical range so far recorded for C. margolisi n. sp. and C. ogmorhini (s.s.) are given.

Perspectives of marine biodiversity studies in Argentina

This paper provides an overview of the research being carried out at the moment by a group of Argentinean scientists working on the subjects of marine biodiversity and oceanography. When the idea of the Census of Marine Life (CoML)was proposed following the Symposium held during the IAPSO-IABO conference in Mar del Plata in October 2001, there was a wide response from the marine scientific community. Information about current research projects, as well as plans for future work in the context of the CoML, were then obtained from about 70 scientists (Appendix I) belonging to 12 institutions located along the Argentinean coast (Appendix II, Figure 1). This has been used to illustrate what is currently being pursued in marine biodiversity in Argentina and which subjects are considered as priority for future research in the area. This paper is, thus, not an historical update of the knowledge of marine biodiversity, but it attempts to give an idea of the current situation and what is planned for the future. The development of an extensive database of what is known on marine biodiversity in the region is considered to be a necessity, but it constitutes a complete project on its own; as such it is included in the proposals for future work (see Future Work in this paper). It is emphasised that this synthesis is not exhaustive in the content of the topics being studied or in the number of researchers working in marine biodiversity in the country. It is, though, considered to be a representative sample of the knowledge in marine science in Argentina today. This is a starting point for the CoML project in South America and it is hoped that, as it develops, it will be improved by the active participation, advice and experience of many other scientists in the region.

Fishery-dependent livelihoods, conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity: the case of marine and coastal protected areas in India

The lacunae in fishing-community engagement in the management and governance of marine and coastal protected areas (MCPAs) were discussed in the 2009 Chennai Workshop organized by the International Collective in Support of Fishworkers (ICSF). To continue the discussion, a second, two-day workshop to review existing legal and institutional mechanisms for implemention and monitoring of MCPAs, titled ‘Fishery-dependent Livelihoods, Conservation and Sustainable Use of Biodiversity: The Case of Marine and Coastal Protected Areas in India’, was held in New Delhi during 1-2 March 2012. The objective was to understand the impact of MCPAs on fishing communities, from an environmental-justice and human-rights perspective, and make specific proposals for better conservation while securing the livelihoods of small-scale fishers. The workshop also served to underscore these issues in light of the upcoming Conference of the Parties (COP) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), to be held at Hyderabad in October 2012. This publication contains the prospectus of the workshop and a report of the proceedings. It will be useful for fishworkers, non-governmental organizations, policymakers, trade unions, researchers and others interested in natural resource management and coastal and fishing communities.

Comunidade de mamíferos de médio e grande porte em um mosaico de fitofisionomias na Mata Atlântica no estado do Espírito Santo, Brasil

A Mata Atlântica é considerada como um dos cinco hotspots mais diversos, sendo um conjunto complexo de ecossistemas que abriga uma parcela significativa da diversidade biológica do Brasil. O Estado do Espírito Santo, localizado na região Sudeste, possuía quase 90% de sua superfície coberta por Mata Atlântica, entretanto com o processo de colonização portuguesa, ocupação do território e industrialização, restou apenas 8% da cobertura florestal original. Com toda a informação existente acerca das espécies neotropicais de mamíferos de médio e grande porte ainda há muitas lacunas no nosso conhecimento. Nesse sentido, esta dissertação foi desenvolvida em quatro capítulos com o objetivo de realizar um levantamento de dados de riqueza, composição, abundância, densidade populacional, período de atividade, distribuição e uso do hábitat por espécies de mamíferos de médio e grande porte, da Reserva Natural Vale (RNV), norte do Espírito Santo. Espera-se que as informações aqui geradas possam contribuir com o incremento no conhecimento da ecologia dos mamíferos neotropicais, bem como fornecer informações desse grupo para subsidiar as políticas e ações ambientais que visem à conservação da biodiversidade. Para este estudo foi realizado amostragens mensais no período de abril de 2013 até junho de 2014 na RNV, através de armadilhamento fotográfico (39 armadilhas fotográficas) e também transecções lineares Os registros obtidos nas39 armadilhas fotográficas resultaram em um total de 7.020 dias de monitoramento. Foram observadas 23245 fotos de 26 espécies de mamíferos de médio e grande porte. Uma maior riqueza e frequência de registros ocorreram nas armadilhas estabelecidas na região norte da RNV. A distância do recurso hídrico estava positivamente relacionada com a composição de mamíferos e a quantidade de registros de caça no presente estudo teve um efeito marginalmente negativo na frequência de registros nas regiões oeste e sul, onde apresentaram uma maior incidência de caça. Nossos resultados mostram que essas espécies não estão distribuídas uniformemente dentro da reserva, com a ocupação das mesmas tendo sido afetada por quatro principais covariáveis: (1) distância entre árvores; (2) distância da estrada; (3) distância do recurso hídrico mais próximo e (4) densidade de lianas por hectare. A detectabilidade das espécies que são consideradas cinegéticas foi afetada pelo histórico de registros de caça. A maioria das espécies registradas que tiveram uma probabilidade de ocupação alta são raras ou até mesmo localmente extintas em outras áreas de domínio da Mata Atlântica. Adicionalmente nossos dados confirmam que a RNV abriga uma fauna de mamíferos de médio e grande porte rica, incluindo grandes herbívoros, dispersores de sementes e alguns carnívoros. Embora o estudo tenha sido realizado em apenas uma área, vale lembrar que a RNV, juntamente com a ReBio Sooretama, formam o maior bloco de área protegida dentro do estado do Espírito Santo e também um dos maiores blocos de Mata de Tabuleiro. Assim, para a conservação das espécies que habitam a RNV, é preciso considerar não apenas a reserva isolada, mas todo o bloco Linhares-Sooretama, uma vez que estão conectados permitirão o incremento populacional e as trocas genéticas entre as populações. Somente desse modo será aumentada a probabilidade de sobrevivência e manutenção das espécies em longo prazo, das espécies de mamíferos de médio e grande porte

Muitiobjective pressurized water reactor reload core design by nondominated genetic algorithm search

The design of pressurized water reactor reload cores is not only a formidable optimization problem but also, in many instances, a multiobjective problem. A genetic algorithm (GA) designed to perform true multiobjective optimization on such problems is described. Genetic algorithms simulate natural evolution. They differ from most optimization techniques by searching from one group of solutions to another, rather than from one solution to another. New solutions are generated by breeding from existing solutions. By selecting better (in a multiobjective sense) solutions as parents more often, the population can be evolved to reveal the trade-off surface between the competing objectives. An example illustrating the effectiveness of this novel method is presented and analyzed. It is found that in solving a reload design problem the algorithm evaluates a similar number of loading patterns to other state-of-the-art methods, but in the process reveals much more information about the nature of the problem being solved. The actual computational cost incurred depends: on the core simulator used; the GA itself is code independent.

Genetic improvement of freshwater prawn, Macrobrachium rosenbergii (de Man) in India. Phase two: annual report for period January to December 2012

Macrobrachiurn rosenbergii is one of the widely cultured freshwater prawn species globally. India was the third largest producer of this species in 2007 and its aquaculture production rose to 43,000 metric tons (t) in 2005 froin less than 500 t in 1995. However, since then production has been declining and in 2008-09 it was 12,856 t, a reduction of more than 70% compared to 2005. There are several contributing factors to this decline, such as slow growth rate, poor survival, disease outbreaks, increase in cost of production, and availability of low risk alternative fish species. However, there is a consensus that poor seed quality leading to unsatisfactory growth and survival rates in ponds is one of the major reasons. Hence, the development of a systematic selective breeding program aimed at improving growth rate and ensuring high survival rate of this species was deemed a high priority. The Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture (CIFA), Bhubaneswar, India in collaboration with the WorldFish Center, Malaysia initiated a selective breeding program for this species in 2007.