Additions to the marine decapod (Crustacea: Decapoda) fauna of South Africa

This report adds five previously unreported species to the decapod crustacean fauna of South Africa, as well as removing one species previously listed in error. It also documents locality (and/or reference specimen) data for 12 other species, most of which had been depicted in regional field guides, but without reporting when and where they had been collected. Almost all the species added were already known from adjacent African countries and their ranges are here extended into South Africa. Although some of these records are based on photographs, rather than collected specimens, it is argued that such records should be accepted as adequate evidence for inclusion of at least visually-distinctive crustacean species into the regional fauna

Flexible prey handling, preference and a novel capture technique in invasive, sub-adult Chinese mitten crabs

This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The attached file is the published version of the article

Cryptic species in a well-known habitat: applying taxonomics to the amphipod genus Epimeria (Crustacea, Peracarida)

Taxonomy plays a central role in biological sciences. It provides a communication system for scientists as it aims to enable correct identification of the studied organisms. As a consequence, species descriptions should seek to include as much available information as possible at species level to follow an integrative concept of ‘taxonomics’. Here, we describe the cryptic species Epimeria frankei sp. nov. from the North Sea, and also redescribe its sister species, Epimeria cornigera. The morphological information obtained is substantiated by DNA barcodes and complete nuclear 18S rRNA gene sequences. In addition, we provide, for the first time, full mitochondrial genome data as part of a metazoan species description for a holotype, as well as the neotype. This study represents the first successful implementation of the recently proposed concept of taxonomics, using data from highthroughput technologies for integrative taxonomic studies, allowing the highest level of confidence for both biodiversity and ecological research

How Do They Do It? – Understanding the Success of Marine Invasive Species

From the depths of the oceans to the shallow estuaries and wetlands of our coasts, organisms of the marine environment are teeming with unique adaptations to cope with a multitude of varying environmental conditions. With millions of years and a vast volume of water to call their home, they have become quite adept at developing specialized and unique techniques for survival and – given increasing human mediated transport – biological invasions. A growing world human population and a global economy drives the transportation of goods across the oceans and with them invasive species via ballast water and attached to ship hulls. In any given 24-hour period, there are about 10,000 species being transported across different biogeographic regions. If any of them manage to take hold and establish a range in an exotic habitat, the implications for local ecosystems can be costly. This review on marine invasions highlights trends among successful non-indigenous species (NIS), from vectors of transport to ecological and physiological plasticity. Apart from summarizing patterns of successful invasions, it discusses the implications of how successfully established NIS impact the local environment, economy and human health. Finally, it looks to the future and discusses what questions need to be addressed and what models can tell us about what the outlook on future marine invasions is

Unique ‘spring-loaded’ gnathopod in the recently re-discovered and highly range-restricted estuarine amphipod Quadrivisio aviceps

The amphipod Quadrivisio aviceps (KH Barnard 1940), previously known from just three records collected at two small estuaries in the Western Cape, South Africa, was re-discovered at one of the original collection sites (the Palmiet River lagoon). The population at the second site (the Klein River estuary) appears to have died out, and surveys of other nearby estuaries failed to detect any additional populations. The species thus now appears to be restricted to a few hundred metres within a single small estuary, making it perhaps South Africa’s most range-restricted marine crustacean. The gnathopod 2 of males has an extremely unusual shortened and elbowed dactyl, as well as a newly discovered and unique horseshoe-shaped ‘spring’ of elastic resilin tissue inserted within the muscles of the propodus. The function of the structure could not be confirmed, but it is thought to be a previously unknown vibration or sound-generating mechanism.Keywords: click mechanism, endemicity, Maeridae, nano-CT scan, range restriction, South Africa, taxonom

Three-dimensional visualisation of brooding behaviour in two distantly related brittle stars from South African waters

Brooding in ophiuroids (Echinodermata: Ophiuroidea) is a highly-developed reproduction strategy and has evolved independently several times. In South African waters, brooding occurs both in the very small amphiurid Amphipholis squamata, which is hermaphroditic, and in the large ophiodermatid Ophioderma wahlbergii, which is gonochoric. For the first time, microcomputed tomography was applied to visualise and compare brooding and brooded young of these two brittle star species from two distantly related families. The scanned A. squamata brooded six young, whereas O. wahlbergii brooded 13 young. Volume measurements of the adults revealed that A. squamata dedicated about 25% of its disc volume to brooding and O. wahlbergii about 14%. Although the brooded young of O. wahlbergii are thought to be among the largest of all known ophiuroids, young of A. squamata were four times larger in relation to adult body disc volume. Other than differences in the sizes of brooded young, these distantly related species have evolved very similar brooding adaptations. All juveniles were found lying with the mouth upward, pressed against the mother’s bursal wall, strengthening the hypothesis that the bursal wall acts as a nutritive organ. In both species, the large size of the young can only be explained by maternal nutrient supply. Both brittle star species, therefore, are regarded as truly viviparous.Keywords: convergent evolution, fecundity, microcomputed tomography, μCT, Ophiuroidea, ophiuroid

Prevalence, population structure and burrow morphology of the kelp-boring amphipod Sunamphitoe roberta

The recently described amphipod Sunamphitoe roberta lives only on the kelp Ecklonia maxima, where it excavates slit-like burrows along the distal  margins of thicker primary fronds. Oval chambers along the bases of these slits may represent feeding areas. As burrowing proceeds, the damage  progressively erodes back the frond margins, giving them characteristic attenuated and irregular profiles, and probably impacting secondary frond  survival and growth, and hence kelp productivity. A kelp forest in False Bay, South Africa, was surveyed to determine what proportion of kelp was  infected as well as which individuals were selected as hosts. Forty kelp heads were also dissected to ascertain numbers of amphipods per host and  their size composition, and to document details of burrow structure. Of 305 adult kelps inspected, 117 (38.4%) showed visible amphipod damage.  Rate of infestation was not correlated with stipe length but was positively correlated with head circumference and negatively correlated with the  proportion of secondary fronds remaining. The 40 kelp heads dissected contained 786 S. roberta specimens. These comprised 154 adults (>8 mm),  including 33 ovigerous females, and 632 juveniles (<8 mm). The number of amphipods per host ranged from 1 to 112 (mean 19.7 [SD 25.1]). Size  distribution was bimodal, and the largest individual measured 20 mm