The Importance of Open Access in Technology Transfer for Marine Ornamental Aquaculture: the Case of Hobbyist-led Breeding Initiative

Access to peer-reviewed literature is often restricted to a limited segment of the target audience. Barriers are in place to prevent open access information. Here, I present a case study of how the internet and hobbyists are transforming both access and flow of information from closed circles to open dialogue within the field of marine ornamental fish rearing. This open approach is leading to innovation a rate remarkably faster and at a lower costs than could have been accomplished by traditional methods. Aquaculture societies, aquarium professionals, hobbyists, and scientists pursuing the captive production of species should embrace this movement. Whether production is for profit, conservation, or pure enjoyment, the free flow of information provides exciting new opportunities

Lysmata Rafa, a New Species of Peppermint Shrimp (Crustacea, Caridea, Hippolytidae) from the Subtropical Western Atlantic

Lysmata rafa n. sp. is described from freshly collected specimens from the Keys West Lakes, Florida Keys, and from a museum specimen collected at Bear Cut, Biscayne Bay, Florida. The new species is morphologically most similar to the western Atlantic Lysmata rathbunae Chace, 1970 and the eastern PaciWc Lysmata gracilirostris Wicksten, 2000, but can be distinguished from them by the number of carpal segments in the second pereiopod; the length and dentition of the rostrum; the shape and number of spines on the dactylus of the third to Wfth pereiopods; and the absence of a tooth on the pterygostomial margin of the carapace. Despite being a shallow-water species, L. rafa n. sp. has extremely elongate walking legs and third maxilliped that are more typical to deep-water or cave dwelling carideans

Experimental confirmation of protandric simultaneous hermaphroditism in a Caridean shrimp outside of the genus Lysmata

Caridean shrimps display a variety of sexual systems including gonochorism and various forms of protandry but rarely simultaneous hermaphroditism. Protandric simultaneous hermaphroditism (PSH) has thus far only been demonstrated in the genus Lysmata. The first report of simultaneous hermaphroditism in a caridean shrimp was with Exhippolysmata ensirostris. However, this was not confirmed, since this species was also considered to be strictly protandric. Therefore, inconclusive results about this species’ true sexual system led us to examine Exhippolysmata oplophoroides. Mating between female phase individuals resulted in successful spawning, embryonic development and hatching of viable larvae. Furthermore, we have confirmed that this species is not capable of self-fertilization. Juveniles reared in the laboratory matured in a similar manner to that of Lysmata. Data were limited due to the loss of all individuals to a Vibrio infection. However, the results obtained in this study conclusively affirm functionally that PSH occurs outside the genus Lysmata, in E. oplophoroides. Theories examining the evolution of PSH within decapods must be re-examined in light of the present data

Trends in the Marine Aquarium Trade: the Influence of Global Economics and Technology

The marine aquarium hobby is a global industry with trade chains on six continents. This industry is undergoing rapid changes in hob byist preferences that are in part driven by global economies and technology. In an effort to better assess the past trends and help provide insight into future growth and demand, we assessed three different trade data sources, the United States-State of Florida Marine Life Landings, CITES stony coral imports, and United States Fish and Wildlife Service’s Law Enforcement Information Systems import data for ‘live rock’. Data for the past 10 years were analyzed and a clear trend of growth followed by decline was observed with the peak and degree of decline varying for the different trade categories. While the global economic downturn decreased trade volumes across the board other forces have dramatically affected the importation of coral reef products. ‘Live Rock’ and Florida produced ‘live sand’ dramatically decreased two years prior to the global economic recession. The decline of these trade categories coincides with rapid changes in technology used to maintain captive reef aquariums which allowed for the advent of the smaller “nano” reef tanks. Importing and exporting countries, CITES and other international government bodies, concerned Non-Governmental Organizations and scientist would greatly benefit from a deeper understanding of this industry from a producer and consumer standpoint in order to better predict how the marine aquarium hobby will be shaped by external forces in the future

Viability of subitaneous eggs of the copepod, Acartia tonsa (Dana), following exposure to various cryoprotectants and hypersaline water

Subitaneous eggs were obtained from monocultures of the calanoid copepod Acartia tonsa (Dana), Gulf of Mexico strain. Eggs were exposed to methanol, ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, glycerine, and DMSO at 0.0, 0.1, 0.5, 1.0, 2.0, and 5.0 M and hypersaline water at 50, 75, 100, 150, and 200 g/L. Treatments were evaluated after 10 and 20 min of exposure and at 4 and 26 °C. Viability (percent hatched) was determined after 24 h of incubation in 35 g/L saltwater at 26 °C. Methanol, ethylene glycol, and glycerine had high viability up to 2M, and all experienced large decreases at 5M when the exposure temperature was 26 °C compared to 4 °C. Eggs exposed to propylene glycol had lower mean viability with greater variability at the lower concentrations although viability was greater than 81.4% at 2 M. Significant decreases in viability were observed at 5 M, and the decreases were much greater at an exposure temperature of 26 °C versus 4 °C. DMSO exposed at 26 °C produced high viability up to 1 M before significant decreases occurred, while an exposure temperature of 4 °C produced high viability up to 2 M. Viability of eggs exposed to hypersaline water of 50, 75, and 100 g/L were not significantly different from controls for all treatment combinations except the 26 °C temperature exposed for 20 min, which was significantly lower at 100 g/L. Concentrations of 150 and 200 g/L produced very few to no viable eggs. These results indicate further research is justified to investigate if viability of A. tonsa eggs can be protected by these cryoprotectants and hypersaline water after exposure to cryopreservation conditions

Density-dependent effect on reproductive behaviour of Lysmata amboinensis and L. boggessi (Decapoda: Caridea: Hippolytidae)

We compared the reproductive behaviours of two protandric simultaneous hermaphroditic species (Lysmata amboinensis and L. boggessi) that belong to two groups of Lysmata shrimp with different morphology, geographical distribution, and density. Lysmata amboinensis occurs in tropical waters at low population densities, and L. boggessi is found in aggregation in sub-tropical and temperate areas. Reproductive behaviour of L. boggessi under two densities and L. amboinensis in different habitats were compared. Results show that L. amboinensis was much less active during mating than L. boggessi. Male shrimp of L. amboinensis did not display obvious pre-copulation behaviour. They also took significantly longer to transfer spermatophores and lay eggs after mating than L. boggessi shrimp did. For L. boggessi, moulting time of female shrimp, copulation time and the interval between moulting and mating were significantly shorter when three male shrimp were present than when only one male shrimp was present. Our study suggests that the reproductive behavioural differences in the two shrimp species are possibly the results of density-dependent effect

Reproductive isolation between two sympatric simultaneous hermaphroditic shrimp, Lysmata wurdemanni and L. boggessi

To investigate pre- and post-zygotic isolation between two sympatric and phylogenetically related species of Lysmata shrimp, two assays were conducted in the laboratory: (1) no specific mate choice where mating between the two species was ‘forced’; (2) specific mate choice or preference where a female had a choice between conspecific and heterospecifc males. Behavioural studies reveal that female L. wurdemanni accepted only conspecific male shrimp, whereas L. boggessi females would mate with an interspecific male if there was no conspecific male present. When males of both species were present, L. boggessi females always mated with the conspecific male. Male L. boggessi in general did not respond to the sex pheromones secreted by female L. wurdemanni and did not display any pre-copulatory behaviour to newly moulted female L. wurdemanni. On the other hand, some male L. wurdemanni responded to female L. boggessi. Although mating was successful between male L. wurdemanni and female L. boggessi, the resulting embryos lived at most for 10 days and failed to hatch. The results indicate that the two species are both pre-zygotically and post-zygotically isolated. Behavioural observation suggests that chemical cues are most likely responsible for pre-zygotic isolation

Effects of Salinity on Reproduction and Survival of the Calanoid Copepod Pseudodiaptomus Pelagicus

Four experiments were conducted on the calanoid copepod, Pseudodiaptomus pelagicus, to determine the effects of salinity on survival, development time, reproductive output, and population growth in order to define the optimal salinity for culture. To determine the appropriate experimental salinity range we exposed nauplii and adults to abrupt salinity changes from 35 g/L to 5, 10, 15, 35, 42, and 48 g/L at 30 °C and determined survival after 24 hours. The second experiment stocked early stage nauplii into 1 L beakers after which they were cultured using standard procedures for 10 days at six salinities (10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35 g/L); from this survival, sex ratio, time to maturation, and fecundity were measured. The third experiment evaluated the effects of salinity on brood size, brood interval, and nauplii production by stocking individual adult pairs and monitoring nauplii production daily for 10 days. The fourth experiment determined the effects of salinity on population growth and composition of the population produced by stocking 10 adult pairs and culturing them until five days after the first mature adults were observed. Results from the abrupt salinity change experiment showed nauplii survival decreased following abrupt changes in salinity from 35 g/L to \u3c 15 g/L and \u3e 35 g/L. Additionally, adults do not tolerate rapid changes in salinity from 35 g/L to \u3c 15 g/L but are rather tolerant of changes in salinity up to 48 g/L. Survival from early nauplii to adult was not significantly affected by salinity but survival declined at 35 g/L. Time to first maturation and maturation of the entire population was significantly influenced by salinity and took from 6.3 to 9.5 days. In the individual paired adults experiment, salinity significantly affected nauplii production by affecting brood interval and brood size. The percentage of ovigerous females peaked at 20 g/L and declined at salinities above and below this value. When developing production objectives, aquaculturists must consider salinity because of its numerous effects on the culture of P. pelagicus. The optimal salinity range to achieve high survival and the greatest nauplii production is 15–25 g/L

Two Distinct, Geographically Overlapping Lineages of the Corallimorpharian Ricordea Florida (Cnidaria: Hexacorallia: Ricordeidae)

We examined the genetic variation of the corallimorpharian Ricordea florida; it is distributed throughout the Caribbean region and is heavily harvested for the marine aquarium trade. Eighty-four distinct individuals of R. florida were sequenced from four geographically distant Caribbean locations (Curaçao, Florida, Guadeloupe, and Puerto Rico). Analysis of the ribosomal nuclear region (ITS1, 5.8S, ITS2) uncovered two geographically partially overlapping genetic lineages in R. florida, probably representing two cryptic species. Lineage 1 was found in Florida and Puerto Rico, and Lineage 2 was found in Florida, Puerto Rico, Guadeloupe, and Curaçao. Because of the multi-allelic nature of the ITS region, four individuals from Lineage 1 and six from Lineage 2 were cloned to evaluate the levels of hidden intra-individual variability. Pairwise genetic comparisons indicated that the levels of intra-individual and intra-lineage variability (\u3c1%) were approximately an order of magnitude lower than the divergence (~9%) observed between the two lineages. The fishery regulations of the aquarium trade regard R. florida as one species. More refined regulations should take into account the presence of two genetic lineages, and they should be managed separately in order to preserve the long-term evolutionary potential of this corallimorpharian. The discovery of two distinct lineages in R. florida illustrates the importance of evaluating genetic variability in harvested species prior to the implementation of management policies

The evolution of euhermaphroditism in caridean shrimps: a molecular perspective of sexual systems and systematics

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The hippolytid genus <it>Lysmata </it>is characterized by simultaneous hermaphroditism, a very rare sexual system among Decapoda. Specialized cleaning behavior is reported in a few pair-living species; these life history traits vary within the genus. Unfortunately, the systematics of <it>Lysmata </it>and the Hippolytidae itself are in contention, making it difficult to examine these taxa for trends in life history traits. A phylogeny of <it>Lysmata </it>and related taxa is needed, to clarify their evolutionary relationships and the origin of their unique sexual pattern. In this study, we present a molecular phylogenetic analysis among species of <it>Lysmata</it>, related genera, and several putative hippolytids. The analysis is based upon DNA sequences of two genes, 16S mtDNA and nuclear 28S rRNA. Phylogenetic trees were estimated using Bayesian Inference, Maximum Likelihood, and Maximum Parsimony.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Phylogenetic analysis of 29 species of <it>Lysmata</it>, eight genera of Hippolytidae and two genera of Barbouriidae based on a single (16S, 28S) and combined gene approach (16S+28S) indicates that three groups of <it>Lysmata </it>differentiate according to antennular morphology: (1) <it>Lysmata</it>, having a multi-segmented accessory branch, (2) <it>Hippolysmata </it>(prior to Chace 1972), with a one-segmented accessory branch, and (3) a third group of <it>Lysmata </it>outliers, with one-segmented unguiform accessory branch, and close affinity to the genera <it>Exhippolysmata </it>and <it>Lysmatella</it>. The monophyly of the clade bearing a multi-segmented accessory branch is robust. Within the short accessory branch clade, species with specialized cleaning behaviors form a monophyletic clade, however, the integrity of the clade was sensitive to alignment criteria. Other hippolytid and barbouriid genera used in the analysis are basal to these three groups, including one displaying simultaneous hermaphroditism (<it>Parhippolyte</it>). The two barbouriid species occur in a separate clade, but among hippolytid taxa.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The data support the historical morphological division of <it>Lysmata </it>into clades based on accessory branch morphology. The position of the "cleaner" shrimps, indicates that specialized cleaning behavior is a derived trait. The topologies of the cladograms support the monophyly of the barbouriids, but do not support their elevation to familial status. Taxa ancestral to the genus <it>Lysmata </it>display simultaneous hermaphroditism, suggesting that this life history trait evolved outside the genus <it>Lysmata</it>.</p