Meals For Two: Foraging Activity Of The Butterflyfish Chaetodon Striatus (perciformes) In Southeast Brazil.

The banded butterflyfish (Chaetodon striatus) from the tropical and subtropical western Atlantic is a territorial, diurnal forager on benthic invertebrates. It is usually seen moving singly or in pairs, a few meters above the sea floor. We studied the foraging activity of C. striatus on rocky reefs in southeastern Brazil. This fish spent about 11 h and 30 min per day on feeding activities, and preferred colonies of non-scleratinian anthozoans over sandy and rocky substrata while foraging. The lowest feeding rates were recorded in the early morning and late afternoon, but we found no further differences between feeding rates throughout the day. We also found no differences between the feeding rates of paired and single individuals.65221121

Study protocol for the multicentre cohorts of Zika virus infection in pregnant women, infants, and acute clinical cases in Latin America and the Caribbean: The ZIKAlliance consortium

Background: The European Commission (EC) Horizon 2020 (H2020)-funded ZIKAlliance Consortium designed a multicentre study including pregnant women (PW), children (CH) and natural history (NH) cohorts. Clinical sites were selected over a wide geographic range within Latin America and the Caribbean, taking into account the dynamic course of the ZIKV epidemic. Methods: Recruitment to the PW cohort will take place in antenatal care clinics. PW will be enrolled regardless of symptoms and followed over the course of pregnancy, approximately every 4 weeks. PW will be revisited at delivery (or after miscarriage/abortion) to assess birth outcomes, including microcephaly and other congenital abnormalities according to the evolving definition of congenital Zika syndrome (CZS). After birth, children will be followed for 2 years in the CH cohort. Follow-up visits are scheduled at ages 1-3, 4-6, 12, and 24 months to assess neurocognitive and developmental milestones. In addition, a NH cohort for the characterization of symptomatic rash/fever illness was designed, including follow-up to capture persisting health problems. Blood, urine, and other biological materials will be collected, and tested for ZIKV and other relevant arboviral diseases (dengue, chikungunya, yellow fever) using RT-PCR or serological methods. A virtual, decentralized biobank will be created. Reciprocal clinical monitoring has been established between partner sites. Substudies of ZIKV seroprevalence, transmissio

Parrotfish predation on massive Porites on the Great Barrier Reef

Parrotfish grazing scars on coral colonies were quantified across four reef zones at Lizard Island, Northern Great Barrier Reef (GBR). The abundance of parrotfish grazing scars was highest on reef flat and crest, with massive Porites spp. colonies having more parrotfish grazing scars than all other coral species combined. Massive Porites was the only coral type positively selected for grazing by parrotfishes in all four reef zones. The density of parrotfish grazing scars on massive Porites spp., and the rate of new scar formation, was highest on the reef crest and flat, reflecting the lower massive Porites cover and higher parrotfish abundance in these habitats. Overall, it appears that parrotfish predation pressure on corals could affect the abundance of preferred coral species, especially massive Porites spp, across the reef gradient. Parrotfish predation on corals may have a more important role on the GBR reefs than previously thought

Spatial variation in the effects of grazing on epilithic algal turfs on the Great Barrier Reef, Australia

Of all benthic components on tropical reefs, algal turfs are the most widespread and the main source of primary productivity. We compared the importance of grazing by herbivores on algal turfs on two zones with marked differences in terms of benthic composition, herbivore biomass and grazing pressure, the inner flat and crest, of an inshore reef on the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. A combination of herbivore exclusion cages and transplants of coral rubble covered by algal turfs between reef zones was used to examine changes in algal turfs over a 4-day experimental period. In situ crest turfs had lower algal height, sediment loads and particulate content than reef flat turfs. Caged samples on the crest exhibited an increase in all three variables. In contrast, in situ and caged treatments on the flat presented algal turfs with similar values for the three analysed variables, with high algal height and heavy particulate and sediment loads. In the absence of cages, reef flat turfs transplanted to the crest had decreased algal height, total particulate material and particulate inorganic content, while the opposite was found in crest turf samples transplanted to the flat. Our results highlight the dynamic nature of algal turfs and the clear differences in the relative importance of herbivory in shaping turf length and sediment load between the reef crest and inner flat

Relative impact of parrotfish grazing scars on massive Porites corals at Lizard Island, Great Barrier Reef

Scraping and excavating parrotfishes are well known for their marked differences in jaw morphology and feeding behaviour. Despite the importance of parrotfishes to reef systems and the well-known differences within the group, few studies have compared the functional importance of scraping versus excavating parrotfishes in shaping coral reef benthic communities. We compared the abundance, depth and dynamics of scraping and excavating parrotfish grazing scars on massive Porites spp. colonies along a reef gradient at Lizard Island, northern Great Barrier Reef. Scraping grazing scars were more abundant at most study sites than excavating scars. Excavating grazing scars were relatively rare but exposed more coral skeleton than scraping scars. Approximately 70% of excavating scars had some degree of filamentous algal growth in the scar compared with just 5% of scraping scars. Scraping grazing scars on massive Porites spp. completely disappeared after 2 mo whereas excavating grazing scars remained almost unchanged over this period. Groups of excavating scars were more tightly clustered, exposed more coral skeleton and presented higher algal cover than grouped scraping scars. The deep, long-lasting excavating scars probably provide more suitable sites for the settlement of benthic algae and other invasive taxa on coral colonies. In contrast, the abundant and frequent grazing scars of scraping parrotfish may represent a more constant drain on energy supplies for coral colonies. These results highlight the differences between parrotfishes with distinct feeding modes and indicate that they differently impact not only algal communities but also coral colonies

Clustered parrotfish feeding scars trigger partial coral mortality of massive Porites colonies on the inshore Great Barrier Reef

Coral predation by parrotfishes can cause damage to coral colonies, but research into the dynamics of their feeding scars on Indo-Pacific corals is limited. We monitored feeding scars of the parrotfish Chlorurus microrhinos on massive Porites colonies at Orpheus Island (inshore Great Barrier Reef) over 4 months. Of the 30 marks monitored, 11 were single feeding scars, which all healed completely. The remaining 19 feeding marks consisted of clusters of scars. Eight began to recover, while 11 increased in size by 1,576 ± 252 % (mean ± SE). A logistic regression predicted that a single feeding scar on a Porites colony had a 97 % probability of healing; however, where more than three feeding scars were present, this dropped below 50 %. As excavating parrotfishes in the Indo-Pacific often take multiple focused bites, they may have a significant impact on the growth and mortality of massive Porites colonies at Orpheus Island

Spatial and temporal variation in coral predation by parrotfishes on the GBR: evidence from an inshore reef

There have been few studies of coral predation by fishes on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR). However, these studies have indicated that it is an important factor that may shape coral demographics. Here, for the first time, we document the spatial and temporal variation in coral predation by parrotfishes on an inshore reef on the GBR. The densities of parrotfish feeding scars on massive Porites spp. were compared within core and non-core areas of three Chlorurus microrhinos home ranges. The density of parrotfish feeding scars on massive Porites is among the highest recorded on the GBR and elsewhere with a higher abundance of excavating feeding scars within core areas, reflecting the higher occupancy of these areas by C. microrhinos. Furthermore, excavating scars were more abundant in October than in April. This may be related to the higher nutritional quality of coral colonies in October, as coral spawning usually occurs in November at this study location. No spatial or temporal variation was noted in the abundance of feeding scars from scraping parrotfishes. The lack of temporal differences may be a result of the shallow scraping scars which would not be able to reach the gonads within coral polyps. The frequency of parrotfish predation on Porites and the spatial and temporal variation recorded herein highlight the potential importance of parrotfish corallivory on the GBR