Influence of oceanography and larvae behaviour on recruitment of temperate fishes: the importance of physics-biology links to manage fisheries at a local scale

A central question in the ecology of fishing resources is understanding the mechanisms behind recruitment variability. This thesis aimed to analyse the factors responsible for recruitment variability of two economically relevant species, in Portugal, white seabream (Diplodus sargus) and two-banded seabream (Diplodus vulgaris). The temporal variability in sea surface temperature (SST) was studied over specific regions of the Portuguese coast, along the last decades. The effects of changes in environmental variables and fishing pressure on these resources were evaluated, using a multi-model approach. Swimming capabilities of fish larvae and their behavioural responses to environmental cues, potentially relevant for the selection of nursery areas and recruitment, were determined using Ria Formosa coastal lagoon and white seabream as a case study. The analysis of SST during the period 1980-2010 showed a generalized warming along the Portuguese coast, with region- and season-variable tendencies. The effects of environmental and fishing variability on the landings were species-specific, and also varied depending on region and season. The swimming ability of white seabream larvae, as well as their exploratory activity, increased during ontogeny. However, this species did not select any of the environmental stimuli tested. The exploratory behaviour of white seabream larvae presented consistent individual differences throughout ontogeny, indicating that the personality traits emerge early in their life cycle.The integration of these results into an individual-based model showed that both the location of spawning sites and directional swimming capabilities are important determinants of the ingress success of white seabream into a nursery area, as the Ria Formosa lagoon. Thus, the integration of region- and season-specific oceanographic and fishing processes, as well as fish larvae behaviour and dispersion modelling, and supported climate change scenarios, are required for improving the estimates of fish recruitment.Uma questão central na ecologia dos recursos pesqueiros é compreender os mecanismos que causam variabilidade no recrutamento. Esta tese teve como objetivo analisar os fatores responsáveis pela variabilidade do recrutamento de espécies economicamente relevantes em Portugal, o sargo-legítimo (Diplodus sargus) e a safia (Diplodus vulgaris). A variabilidade na temperatura da superfície do mar (SST) foi estudada em regiões específicas da costa portuguesa nas últimas décadas. Os efeitos das alterações nas variáveis ambientais e da pescada nestes recursos foram avaliados, usando uma abordagem multimodelo. As capacidades natatórias das larvas de peixe e as suas respostas comportamentais às pistas ambientais, potencialmente relevantes para a seleção de zonas nursery e recrutamento, foram determinadas utilizando a Ria Formosa e o sargo-legítimo como estudo de caso. A análise da SST durante o período 1980-2010 mostrou um aquecimento generalizado ao longo da costa portuguesa, com tendências regionais e sazonais variáveis. Os efeitos da variabilidade ambiental e da pesca nos desembarques foram específicos para cada espécie, e também variaram dependendo da região e estação do ano. A capacidade natatória das larvas de sargo-legítimo, bem como a sua atividade exploratória, aumentou durante a ontogenia. No entanto, esta espécie não selecionou nenhum dos estímulos testados. O comportamento exploratório das larvas de sargo-legítimo apresentou diferenças individuais consistentes ao longo da ontogenia, indicando que os traços de personalidade aparecem cedo no seu ciclo de vida. A integração destes resultados num modelo individual mostrou que a localização dos locais de postura e a natação direcional são determinantes do sucesso do ingresso das larvas de sargo-legítimo numa zona de nursery, como a Ria Formosa. Assim, a integração dos processos oceanográficos e da pesca específicos para cada região e estação, bem como o comportamento das larvas de peixe e a modelação da dispersão, suportados pelos senários de alterações climáticas, são necessários para melhorar as estimativas de recrutamento de peixes.Vânia Catarina Vieira Baptista was funded by a PhD grant (Reference: SFRH/BD/104209/2014) from the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia)

Correction to: Northerly wind trends along the Portuguese marine coast since 1950

All figure captions are not accurate. Also, there is a repeated error in most figures because the vertical scales incorrectly show Wind Strenght instead of Wind Strength and in Fig. 4 (mid-panel) 2003 instead of 2004.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Reconstrucción del perfil de descartes pesqueros en capturas no declaradas

In Portugal it has been estimated that unreported catches represent one third of total catches. Herein, information on landings and total unreported catches (discards) by commercial métier were disaggregated into high taxonomic detail using published scientific studies. Fish accounted for 93.5% (115493 t) of overall unreported catches per year, followed by cephalopods (2345 t, 1.9%) and crustaceans (1754 t, 1.4%). Sharks accounted for 1.3% of total unreported catches in weight (1638 t/y). Unreported taxa consisted mostly of the commercial landed fish species: Scomber colias, Boops boops, Trachurus picturatus, T. trachurus, Merluccius merluccius, Sardina pilchardus, Liza aurata and Micromesistius poutassou, which together accounted for 70% of the unreported discarded catches. The number of unreported/discarded species was highest in artisanal fisheries, followed by trawl and purse seine. In artisanal fisheries, L. aurata, S. colias, S. pilchardus, Trachinus draco and B. boops accounted for 76.4% of the unreported discards. B. boops, S. colias and S. pilchardus were also among the most discarded purse seine species, together with Belone belone accounting for 79% of the unreported catches. In trawl fisheries, T. picturatus (16%), M. merluccius (13%), S. colias (13%) and M. poutassou (13%) accounted for 55% of the trawl discarded unreported catches. The discarded species that most contribute to overall unreported catches are those that are most frequently landed and that most contribute to overall landings in weight.Para Portugal se estima que las capturas no declaradas representan un tercio de las capturas pesqueras totales. Aquí se aporta información sobre las descargas y las capturas totales no declaradas (descartes) por estrategia de pesca, detalladas al máximo nivel taxonómico posible, a partir del análisis de estudios científicos publicados. Los peces óseos constituyen el 93.5% (115493 toneladas) de las capturas no declaradas anuales, seguidos por los cefalópodos (2345 toneladas, 1.9%) y los crustáceos (1754 toneladas, 1.4%). Los peces cartilaginosos representan el 1.3% de las capturas totales no declaradas, con un volumen de 1638 toneladas anuales. La composición taxonómica de las capturas no declaradas se corresponde con las especies de mayor volumen en las descargas: Scomber colias, Boops boops, Trachurus picturatus, T. trachurus, Merluccius merluccius, Sardina pilchardus, Liza aurata y Micromesistius poutassou que conforman un 70% de las capturas no declaradas descartadas. El número de especies no declaradas/descartadas es más elevado en las pesquerías artesanales, seguido del arrastre y el cerco. En las pesquerías artesanales, el 76.4% de los descartes no declarados corresponden a L. aurata, S. colias, S. pilchardus, Trachinus draco and B. boops. En la pesca de cerco B. boops, S. colias y S. pilchardus, así como Belone belone, representan el 79% de las capturas no declaradas. En arrastre T. picturatus (16%), M. merluccius (13%), S. colias (13%) y M. poutassou (13%) proporcionan el 55% de las capturas no declaradas/descartadas. Las especies descartadas que más contribuyen al total de las capturas no declaradas coinciden con las especies más frecuentemente presentes en las descargas y que más contribuyen al volumen total de descargas

Relatório de prática educativa supervisionada

O presente relatório surgiu no âmbito do Mestrado em Educação Préescolar. Nele estão descritas e analisadas as ações mais relevantes para o meu processo de desenvolvimento profissional. O trabalho apresentado neste documento reflete atividades desenvolvidas no âmbito dos estágios em contexto de creche e de educação pré-escolar. Foram valorizadas as atividades de cariz exploratório como sejam a exploração de um tapete sensorial, o jogo heurístico e as atividades de cariz experimental realizados no âmbito da metodologia de trabalho de projeto. Estas atividades foram consideradas fundamentais na medida em que foi privilegiado um ambiente de aprendizagem pela ação, pois as crianças adquirem mais competências quando agem sobre os objetos, quando os manipulam. A par com este trabalho foram desenvolvidas na creche atividades para trabalhar os medos das crianças, com o intuito de responder a uma necessidade emergente. Sendo algo natural em crianças pequenas, é importante que sejam abordados e desconstruídos para que as crianças se sintam mais confiantes, tornando-se mais autónomas. Todo o processo demonstrado ao longo do presente trabalho é fruto de uma profunda reflexão sobre as ações desenvolvidas, bem como das atividades implementadas com vista ao aprimoramento da minha atividade profissional no futuro.This report came within the scope of the MSc in Pre-School Education. It describes the actions that I consider most relevant to my professional development process. The work presented in this document reflects activities developed in the context of the stages in the context of day care and pre-school. Exploratory activities such as the exploration of a sensorial carpet, the heuristic game and the experimental activities carried out within the framework of the Project Work Methodology were valued. These activities were considered fundamental in that an action learning environment was privileged because children acquire more skills when they act on objects when they manipulate them. Along with this work, a project was developed in the nursery about how to deal with children's fears, in order to respond to an emerging need in day care valency. Being natural in young children, it is important that they be addressed and deconstructed so that children feel more confident and more autonomous. The whole process demonstrated throughout the present work is the result of a deep reflection on the actions developed, as well as the activities implemented with a view to improving my professional activity in the future

Capela Real do Palácio Nacional de Sintra : estudo em elementos de madeira

Trabalho final de mestrado para obtenção do grau de Mestre em Engenharia Civil – Ramo EdificaçõesA Parques de Sintra – Monte da Lua é uma entidade responsável pela gestão e manutenção de monumentos e espaços naturais de Sintra e Queluz. Esta entidade propôs ao Departamento de Engenharia Civil do ISEL fazer um estudo sobre o estado de conservação de alguns elementos de madeira da tribuna da Capela Real do Palácio Nacional de Sintra. A Capela Real faz parte de um monumento de elevada importância para a história e cultura de Portugal. Construída com robustas paredes de alvenaria e tendo em madeira toda a estrutura horizontal, bem como a estrutura de cobertura. O presente estudo pretende detetar anomalias não visíveis e analisar o estado estrutural de um pavimento na zona da tribuna. Para a realização do presente estudo, foi necessário proceder uma intensa revisão bibliográfica acerca de diversos aspetos relacionados com a madeira como material utilizado na construção, a sua durabilidade, que anomalias se esperam encontrar, como elaborar o seu diagnóstico, efetuar uma avaliação de segurança global e conhecer métodos de preservação de estruturas de madeira. O estudo aos elementos de madeira in situ foi levado a cabo por uma inspeção visual e pela aplicação de ensaios não destrutivos e semi-destrutivos. Mediu-se o teor de humidade, a resistência à perfuração e à penetração. Com base na literatura científica e nos dados obtidos estimaram-se propriedades físicas e mecânicas.Também foi possível estimar propriedades de resistência com base em normas de classificação visual. Em Portugal, a NP 4305:1995 classifica uma peça de Pinho bravo português para estruturas, quanto à sua qualidade para Estruturas (E), ou Especial para Estruturas (EE). A BS 4978:2007 é a norma britânica que também classifica visualmente peças de madeiras resinosas, atribuindo as classes GS (General Structural) e SS (Special Structural). Esta classificação baseia-se na inspeção visual e definição dos seus defeitos (nós, inclinação do fio, taxa de crescimento, fendas, descaio, empenos, bolsas de resina e a existência de degradação por agentes biológicos). Com os resultados obtidos, e alguns cálculos de verificação estrutural, de acordo com o Eurocódigo 5, conseguiram-se obter informações importantes. Verificou-se a existência de degradação por térmitas subterrâneas e por fungos nos montantes da parede da capela, e degradação por caruncho grande e fungos de podridão nas vigas do pavimento da tribuna. Neste último local, também se chegou à conclusão que é aconselhável limitar o número de visitantes simultâneos à tribuna.The Parques de Sintra – Monte da Lua is an entity responsible for the management and maintenance of monuments and natural spaces of Sintra and Queluz. It was proposed to the Engineer Civil Department of ISEL to make a study about the state of conservation of some wooden elements of the Royal Chapel of Palácio Nacional de Sintra. The Royal Chapel is part of a monument with high importance to the Portuguese history and culture. It was built with strong masonry walls and with all horizontal structure made in wood, as well as the roof structure. This study claims to detect anomalies not visible and analyze the pavement structure of the tribune. To elaborate this study, it was necessary to proceed an intensive bibliographic review about some aspects in relation to wood as a material used in construction, its durability, what pathologies were expected to find, how to make the diagnosis, do a global safety evaluation and know methods of preservation in wood structures. The work was carried out in situ by visual inspection and by non-destructive and semi-destructive tests. Water content measurements, resistance drillings and penetration drillings were made. Physical-mechanical properties of the timber members were estimated based on the in situ measurements and the scientific literature. It was possible to achieve resistance properties based in norms of visual classifications. In Portugal, the NP 4305:1995 classify a piece regarding their quality for Structures (E - Estruturas) or Special for Structures (EE – Especial para Estruturas). The BS 4978:2007, the British norm, visually classifies a piece as GS (General Structural) and SS (Special Structural). These classifications are based on a visual inspections and definition of his defects (knots, grain deviation, rate of growth, checks, gems, bent, resin ducts and biological agents). From the results obtained and structural verification calculus within the Eurocode 5, several important information was taken. It was verified the existence of damage by subterranean termites and fungi on the walls of the chapel, and degradation by woodworms and rot fungi on the floor. Here, it was also concluded that it is advisable to limit the number of visitors to the tribune.N/

The ocean in a box: water density gradients and discontinuities in water masses are important cues guiding fish larvae towards estuarine nursery grounds

Discontinuities and gradients in water density are predominant features that may guide coastal fish larvae towards their estuarine nursery grounds when within the influence of an estuarine plume (Lindeman et al. 2000; Atema et al. 2002; Kingsford et al. 2002; Hale et al. 2008; James et al. 2008). When larvae are away from the estuarine plume zone, larvae may follow patchy estuarine cues that may lead them towards or away from the estuarine nursery—i.e., infotaxis strategy (sensu Vergassola et al. 2007, see Teodósio et al. (2016) for details on its applicability to fish larvae). So, recreating any of such conditions with the existing experimental apparatuses is far from resembling the natural conditions. Nonetheless, scientists have been relying on existing apparatuses to advance our understanding of which environmental cues are prioritized by fish larvae to find their nursery grounds (Radford et al. 2012; Morais et al. 2017; O'Connor et al. 2017; Vicente et al. 2020), how they respond to the presence of conspecifics (Døving et al. 2006; Vicente et al. 2020), prey, and predators (Lecchini et al. 2005), and even how climate change may disrupt sensory-driven social behaviors and habitat-choice responses (Munday et al. 2009; Pecl et al. 2017; Pistevos et al. 2017; Rossi et al. 2018).UIDB/04326/2020info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersio

A glimpse into the trophic ecology of deep‐water sharks in an important crustacean fishing ground

Deep-water sharks are among the most vulnerable deep-water taxa because of their extremely conservative life-history strategies (i.e., late maturation, slow growth, and reproductive rates), yet little is known about their biology and ecology. Thus, this study aimed at investigating the trophic ecology of five deep-water shark species, the birdbeak dogfish (Deania calcea), the arrowhead (D. profundorum), the smooth lanternshark (Etmopterus pusillus), the blackmouth catshark (Galeus melastomus) and the knifetooth dogfish (Scymnodon ringens) sampled onboard a crustacean bottom-trawler off the south-west coast of Portugal. We combined carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes with RNA and DNA (RD) ratios to investigate the main groups of prey assimilated by these species and their nutritional condition, respectively. Stable isotopes revealed overall small interspecific variability in the contribution of different taxonomic groups to sharks' tissues, as well as in the origin of their prey. S. ringens presented higher delta N-15 and delta C-13 values than the other species, suggesting reliance on bathyal cephalopods, crustaceans and teleosts; the remaining species likely assimilated bathy-mesopelagic prey. The RD ratios indicated that most of the individuals had an overall adequate nutritional condition and had recently eaten. This information, combined with the fact that stable isotopes indicate that sharks assimilated prey from the local or nearby food webs (including commercially important shrimps), suggests a potential overlap between this fishing area and their foraging grounds, which requires further attention.LA/P/0101/2020; SOSF 501info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Feeding ecology of sicydium bustamantei (Greeff 1884, Gobiidae) post-larvae: the little fish of São Tomé Island

The rivers of São Tomé Island are colonized by Sicydium bustamantei (Greeff 1882), an amphidromous fish that spawns in those areas. After hatching, larvae drift to the ocean with the river flow. In the marine realm, the planktonic larvae develop and migrate to freshwater as post-larvae. The migrations of post-larvae support important local fisheries at the mouth of rivers in tropical volcanic islands. Amphidromous post-larvae rely on plankton as their main source of organic matter. However, the biology and ecology of S. bustamantei in the West African islands are understudied, despite its importance for local fisheries. Thus, this study aimed to start bridging this gap by studying its feeding ecology. Our objectives were to identify the main prey of S. bustamantei post-larvae, combining gut content with stable isotope analyses. The gut contents included zooplankton (Chaetognatha, Ostracoda, and unidentified crustaceans), debris from plant and/or macroalgae-derived material, and microplastics (including microfibers). The stable isotopes analysis indicated that zooplankton and macroalgae detritus were the main sources of organic matter assimilated by this species. We also demonstrated that S. bustamantei post-larvae are omnivorous and secondary consumers. These data provide pioneering information that can be used in management plans that still need to be developed.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Swimming abilities of temperate pelagic fish larvae prove that they may control their dispersion in coastal areas

The Sense Acuity and Behavioral (SAAB) Hypothesis proposes that the swimming capabilities and sensorial acuity of temperate fish larvae allows them to find and swim towards coastal nursery areas, which are crucial for their recruitment. To gather further evidence to support this theory, it is necessary to understand how horizontal swimming capability varies along fish larvae ontogeny. Therefore, we studied the swimming capability of white seabream Diplodus sargus (Linnaeus, 1758) larvae along ontogeny, and their relationship with physiological condition. Thus, critical swimming speed (U-crit) and the distance swam (km) during endurance tests were determined for fish larvae from 15 to 55 days post-hatching (DPH), and their physiological condition (RNA, DNA and protein contents) was assessed. The critical swimming speed of white seabream larvae increased along ontogeny from 1.1 cm s(-1) (15 DPH) to 23 cm s(-1) (50 and 55 DPH), and the distance swam by larvae in the endurance experiments increased from 0.01 km (15 DPH) to 86.5 km (45 DPH). This finding supports one of the premises of the SAAB hypothesis, which proposes that fish larvae can influence their transport and distribution in coastal areas due to their swimming capabilities. The relationship between larvae's physiological condition and swimming capabilities were not evident in this study. Overall, this study provides critical information for understanding the link between population dynamics and connectivity with the management and conservation of fish stocks.Funding Agency Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology SFRH/BD/104209/2014 Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology UID/Multi/04326/2019 FCT, under the Transitional Norm DL57/2016/CP[1361]/CT[CT0008 CLIMFISH project-A framework for assess vulnerability of coastal fisheries to climate change in Portuguese coast n2/SAICT/2017-SAICTinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio