Looking at the soft-bottom around a coastal coral reef: the impact of terrigenous input on Polychaeta (Annelida) community

Abstract Erosion on coral reefs produces fragments of the constructor organisms that are scattered all around, thus enlarging the reef boundaries. Statistical modelling approach was used to investigate whether the Polychaeta community around Sebastião Gomes reef (Abrolhos Bank, Brazil) is influenced equally by sediment characteristics and/or by position related to the reef, that are variables related to the terrigenous input influence. In July 2007, a period dominated by winds that resuspend fine sediment from the land to coastal reefs, sediment samples were taken on four transects perpendicular to the reef (S, W, N and E) and a total of 121 species of polychaetes were recorded. The most abundant species was the carnivorous Goniadides carolinae and the model selected for it approximates to the best models fitted for both total macrofauna and polychaete abundance. These models represented higher abundance in coarse carbonate sediments on windward reef faces, where there is almost no terrigenous sediment. On the other hand, the Polychaeta richness did not depend on the transects. Sebastião Gomes reef is one of the many coastal reefs from Abrolhos Bank, whose healthy is probably in danger because of the increase of mud related to human activities, as deforestation and, recently, mining waste

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) calves appear to model their signature whistles on the signature whistles of community members

Bottlenose dolphins are unusual among non-human mammals in their ability to learn new sounds. This study investigates the importance of vocal teaming in the development of dolphin signature whistles and the influence of social interactions on that process. We used focal animal behavioral follows to observe six calves in Sarasota Bay, Fla., recording their social associations during their first summer. and their signature whistles during their second. The signature whistles of five calves were determined. Using dynamic time warping (DTW) of frequency contours, the calves' signature whistles were compared to the signature whistles of several sets of dolphins: their own associates, the other calves' associates, Tampa Bay dolphins, and captive dolphins. Whistles were considered similar if their DTW similarity score was greater than those of 95% of the whistle comparisons. Association was defined primarily in terms of time within 50 in of the mother/calf pair. On average, there were six dolphins with signature whistles similar to the signature whistles of each of the calves. These were significantly more likely to be Sarasota Bay resident dolphins than non-Sarasota dolphins, and (though not significantly) more likely to be dolphins that were within 50 in of the mother and calf less than 5% of the time. These results suggest that calves may model their signature whistles on the signature whistles of members of their community, possibly community members with whom they associate only rarely.</p

A Time-Series Assessment of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Fish Communities Before and After the DWH Event

A time-series assessment of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) content in fish communities was conducted in the northern Gulf of Mexico (GoM). Two fish communities (shallow- and deep-water) were examined to determine levels of exposure in contrasting environments and ecologies, to establish baseline levels, and to infer trends in chemical composition before and years after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill (DWHOS). Deep-water mesopelagic fishes (from 25 to 1250 m depth) collected in 2007 contain a baseline level of muscle PAH concentrations of 0.3-1.3 μg/g dry wt, which increased in 2010 and 2011 by up to 10-fold. Similarly, shallow-water reef fishes (from 15 to 80 m depth) collected in summer 2010 have liver PAH concentrations of ~0.3 μg/g dry wt, which increased in fall 2010 and in 2011 by up to 20-fold. Differences in PAH concentrations among feeding behaviors were also observed. For both communities, average concentrations were higher than the established threshold PAH level for adverse biological effects (4.0 μg/g dry wt). After 2012, a decline in the concentration of PAHs was observed reaching values close to baseline levels. Temporal variability of PAH concentrations and composition up to 2015, and its relationships to species composition in both reef and mesopelagic environments will be discussed

Repatriation of a historical North Atlantic right whale habitat during an era of rapid climate change

Abstract Climate change is affecting species distributions in space and time. In the Gulf of Maine, one of the fastest-warming marine regions on Earth, rapid warming has caused prey-related changes in the distribution of the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis). Concurrently, right whales have returned to historically important areas such as southern New England shelf waters, an area known to have been a whaling ground. We compared aerial survey data from two time periods (2013–2015; 2017–2019) to assess trends in right whale abundance in the region during winter and spring. Using distance sampling techniques, we chose a hazard rate key function to model right whale detections and used seasonal encounter rates to estimate abundance. The mean log of abundance increased by 1.40 annually between 2013 and 2019 (p = 0.004), and the mean number of individuals detected per year increased by 2.23 annually between 2013 and 2019 (R2 = 0.69, p = 0.001). These results demonstrate the current importance of this habitat and suggest that management options must continually evolve as right whales repatriate historical habitats and potentially expand to new habitats as they adapt to climate change