Fish and amphibians as bat predators

Although bats (Chiroptera) belong to the most diverse mammalian orders, study of diversity of their natural predators has been seriously neglected for a long time. While some recent reviews contain comprehensive overviews of our recent knowledge on these phenomena for some animal groups, such work is still lacking for anamniotes - fishes and amphibians. Here, I am summarising bat predation incidences by anamniotes that were published in scientific journals and public web domains. I found out that at least 14 species of fishes and 14 species of frogs were observed as feeding on bats. Moreover, 7 and 16 species of bats were recorded as victims of hunting activity of fishes and frogs, respectively. Majority of localised incidences came from the New World; frog (between latitude 49°N to 28°S) attacks were distributed mainly in tropical or subtropical areas < 30° from equator (70% of all records), fish (44°N to 20°S) incidences reach same proportion in colder areas (> 30° from equator) and warmer areas. In some cases, these predators can regularly feed on bats, especially when hunting near roosting places of bats; however, with respect to number of recorded cases (21 for fishes and 37 for amphibians), bat predation by anamniotes seems to be very rare and opportunistic with only very limited influence on bat populations or their behaviour

Regional and seasonal patterns of epipelagic fish assemblages from the central California Current

The coastal Pacific Ocean off northern and central California encompasses the strongest seasonal upwelling zone in the California Current ecosystem. Headlands and bays here generate complex circulation features and confer unusual oceanographic complexity. We sampled the coastal epipelagic fish community of this region with a surface trawl in the summer and fall of 2000–05 to assess patterns of spatial and temporal community structure. Fifty-three species of fish were captured in 218 hauls at 34 fixed stations, with clupeiform species dominating. To examine spatial patterns, samples were grouped by location relative to a prominent headland at Point Reyes and the resulting two regions, north coast and Gulf of the Farallones, were plotted by using nonmetric multidimensional scaling. Seasonal and interannual patterns were also examined, and representative species were identified for each distinct community. Seven oceanographic variables measured concurrently with trawling were plotted by principal components analysis and tested for correlation with biotic patterns. We found significant differences in community structure by region, year, and season, but no interaction among main effects. Significant differences in oceanographic conditions mirrored the biotic patterns, and a match between biotic and hydrographic structure was detected. Dissimilarity between assemblages was mostly the result of differences in abundance and frequency of occurrence of about twelve common species. Community patterns were best described by a subset of hydrographic variables, including water depth, distance from shore, and any one of several correlated variables associated with upwelling intensity. Rather than discrete communities with clear borders and distinct member species, we found gradients in community structure and identified stations with similar fish communities by region and by proximity to features such as the San Francisco Bay

The Fishes of Chadron Creek, Dawes County, Nebraska

This first modern comprehensive survey of fishes collected from Chadron Creek, Dawes County, Nebraska, documents collections made with a small seine and backpack electrofisher during November 2007 and February and March 2008. Chadron Creek’s fish community is of low diversity. The total of 3 collections at each of 9 stations along the length of Chadron Creek resulted in 254 individual fishes, which represented only 7 species within 4 families. Water quality parameters, including dissolved oxygen, pH, conductivity, total dissolved solids, temperature and fecal coliform counts indicate that Chadron Creek is a healthy stream capable of supporting a greater diversity of fishes. Land management practices may be responsible for elevated fecal coliform levels at one locality on the creek. Comparisons of fishes collected herein are made with historical records of fish collected between 1893 and 2000, and show that there are 50% fewer species present than those known from historical accounts

Drawn to the Sea: Charles Bradford Hudson (1865-1939), Artist, Author, Army Officer, with Special Notice of His Work for the United States Fish Commission and Bureau of Fisheries

The biography of Charles Bradford Hudson that follows this preface had its seeds about 1965 when I (VGS) was casually examining the extensive files of original illustrations of fishes stored in the Division of Fishes, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution. I happened upon the unpublished illustration of a rainbow trout by Hudson and was greatly impressed with its quality. The thought occurred to me then that the artist must have gone on to do more than just illustrate fishes. During the next 20 years I occasionally pawed through those files, which contained the work of numerous artists, who had worked from 1838 to the present. In 1985, I happened to discuss the files with my supervisor, who urged me to produce a museum exhibit of original fish illustrations. This I did, selecting 200 of the illustrations representing 21 artists, including, of course, Hudson. As part of the text for the exhibit, Drawn from the Sea, Art in the Service of Ichthyology, I prepared short biographies of each of the artists. The exhibit, with an available poster, was shown in the Museum for six months, and a reduced version was exhibited in U.S. and Canadian museums during the next 3 years

Spot sampling of nutrient concentrations in the Puarenga catchment, Rotorua

The Centre for Biodiversity and Ecology Research was approached by Tūhourangi Tribal Authority for assistance with measuring water quality in streams in the Puarenga Stream catchment. Water sampling was subsequently undertaken on 18 July 2011 and samples were analysed to determine concentrations of total and dissolved fractions of nitrogen and phosphorus. Nitrogen and phosphorus are both essential plant nutrients which, when present in excess, can cause eutrophication and associated water quality decline of freshwaters. High concentrations of dissolved forms of nitrogen can also be toxic to aquatic organisms. Excessive nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations are typically the result of pollution due to human activities, although groundwater in the Central Volcanic Plateau region can have elevated concentrations of phosphorus arising from natural geological sources. This report summarises the methods used, presents the results and places measured concentrations in context by drawing comparisons with both guideline and regional mean values

Putting pharmaceuticals into the wider context of challenges to fish populations in rivers

The natural range of fish species in our rivers is related to flow, elevation, temperature, local habitat and connectivity. For over 2000 years, humans have altered to varying degrees the river habitat. In the past 200 years, we added to the environmental disruption by discharging poorly treated sewage, nutrients and industrial waste into our rivers. For many rivers, the low point arrived during the period of 1950s–1970s, when rapid economic development overrode environmental concerns and dissolved oxygen concentrations dropped to zero. In these more enlightened times, gross river pollution is a thing of the past in the Developed World. However, persistent legacy chemical contaminants can be found in fish long after their discharge ceased. Changes in habitat quality and morphology caused and continue to cause the disappearance of fish species. The range of fish stressors has now increased as temperatures rise, and non-native fish introductions bring new diseases. The threat from pharmaceuticals to fish populations remains hypothetical, and no studies have yet linked change in fish populations to exposure

Observations on the downstream movements of brown trout fry (Salmo trutta L.)in the Lissuraga [Translation from: Bulletin Francais de la Pisciculture No.274 1-17, 1979]

The phenomenon of the downstream movement of brown trout fry has been noticed for a very long time by fish biologists. The work presented here, and taking place in the framework of the hydrobiological research of the INRA, represents the results of three years' observation of the movement downstream in the Lissuraga, a small stream in the French Basque country, in connection with certain environmental factors, which are shown. The authors have used a live experiment to compare, in an artificial stream, the ”descending” (or ”Nomadic”) fry with the ”resident” fry, caught by electric fishing in other parts of the stream

Aspects of the washout of salmonid eggs. 4. Effects of a standard mechanical shock, applied at different stage of development, upon survival and development of eggs of brown trout (Salmo trutta L.)

It is generally accepted by fish culturists that salmonid eggs are sensitive to mechanical shock and that the sensitivity varies with the stage of development of the eggs. In general, the period of greatest sensitivity is thought to occur between fertilization and ”eyeing”. However, it is reasonable to expect that, during a period (perhaps of several hours) following fertilization, sensitivity will be low because in nature during this period the eggs may be subject to some mechanical shock caused by the parent fish covering them with gravel. In 1983-4 and 1984-5 experiments were performed on brown trout (Salmo trutta L.) eggs to examine the effect of a standard mechanical shock (c. 2,500 eggs in 1983-4 and c. 8,400 eggs in 1984-5) at various stages of development upon survival to hatching and time of hatching.The results of these experiments are reported in this study