Influence of Biological Factors on Connectivity Patterns for Concholepas concholepas (loco) in Chile

In marine benthic ecosystems, larval connectivity is a major process influencing the maintenance and distribution of invertebrate populations. Larval connectivity is a complex process to study as it is determined by several interacting factors. Here we use an individual-based, biophysical model, to disentangle the effects of such factors, namely larval vertical migration, larval growth, larval mortality, adults fecundity, and habitat availability, for the marine gastropod Concholepas concholepas (loco) in Chile. Lower transport success and higher dispersal distances are observed including larval vertical migration in the model. We find an overall decrease in larval transport success to settlement areas from northern to southern Chile. This spatial gradient results from the combination of current direction and intensity, seawater temperature, and available habitat. From our simulated connectivity patterns we then identify subpopulations of loco along the Chilean coast, which could serve as a basis for spatial management of this resource in the future

Minimum drift times infer trajectories of ghost nets found in the Maldives

This study explores methods to estimate minimum drift times of ghost nets found in the Maldives with the aim of identifying a putative origin. We highlight that percentage cover of biofouling organisms and capitulum length of Lepas anatifera are two methods that provide these estimates. Eight ghost nets were collected in the Maldives and estimated drift times ranged between 7.5 and 101 days. Additionally, Lagrangian simulations identified drift trajectories of 326 historical ghost nets records. Purse seine fisheries (associated with Korea, Mauritius, the Philippines, Spain, France and Seychelles) and gill nets from Sri Lanka were identified as 'high risk' fisheries with regard to likley origins of ghost nets drifting into the Maldives. These fisheries are active in areas where dense particle clusters occured (drift trajectories between 30 and 120 days). Interestingly, ghost nets drifting less than 30 days however, remained inside the exclusive economic zone of the Maldivian archipelago highlighting potential illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing activity is occuring in this area. This study therefore points to the urgent need for gear loss reporting to be undertaken, especially by purse seine and gill net fisheries in order to ascertain the source of this major threat to marine life. This should also be coupled with an improvment in the data focused on spatial distribution of the abandoned, lost or discarded fishing gear originating from both large- and small-scale fisheries.N

Uncertainty in empirical estimates of marine larval connectivity

International audienc

Book of Abstracts submitted to the IV Congress of Marine Sciences

The Canary Upwelling System (CUS), a major eastern boundary upwelling system, sustains large crossborder fisheries of small pelagic fish, which poses the question of stock connectivity. Studies suggest that ichthyoplankton transport from the northwest African coast to the Canary Islands (CI) is facilitated by coastal- upwelling associated filaments. Here we analyze connections between larval supply to the CI and sardine and anchovy populations that spawn over the continental shelf. For both species, ichthyoplankton observations (1) at the shelf and (2) near the island of Gran Canaria (GC) are used. Predictions of ichthyoplankton transport to GC are obtained from the Ichthyop Lagrangian transport model, which is forced by a high-resolution hydrodynamic model (ROMS) that reproduces the regional circulation. Results show that upwelling filaments play an important role in the transport of larvae to GC. However, (1) filaments are not the only mechanism, and (2) filament presence does not necessarily imply larval transport. Anchovy and sardine larval presence at GC appears to be independent of the respective adult spawning seasonality. Combining of observed and modeled data does not succeed in reproducing the observed larval patterns at GC. Various hypotheses are proposed to explain this discrepancy in larval transport to GC

The genetic architecture of the human cerebral cortex

The cerebral cortex underlies our complex cognitive capabilities, yet little is known about the specific genetic loci that influence human cortical structure. To identify genetic variants that affect cortical structure, we conducted a genome-wide association meta-analysis of brain magnetic resonance imaging data from 51,665 individuals. We analyzed the surface area and average thickness of the whole cortex and 34 regions with known functional specializations. We identified 199 significant loci and found significant enrichment for loci influencing total surface area within regulatory elements that are active during prenatal cortical development, supporting the radial unit hypothesis. Loci that affect regional surface area cluster near genes in Wnt signaling pathways, which influence progenitor expansion and areal identity. Variation in cortical structure is genetically correlated with cognitive function, Parkinson's disease, insomnia, depression, neuroticism, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

Converging approaches for modeling the dispersal of propagules in air and sea

WOS:000501415400006Terrestrial plants seeds, spores and pollen are often dispersed by wind. Likewise, most eggs and larvae of marine organisms are dispersed by oceanic currents. It was historically believed that the spatial scale at which dispersal occurs was orders of magnitude smaller for plants than for fish. However, recent empirical estimates of seed and larval dispersal suggest that these dispersal scales are more alike than previously thought. The modeling approaches used to simulate aerial and aquatic dispersal are also converging. Similar biophysical models are developed, in which outputs of Eulerian models simulating the main physical forcing mechanism (wind or currents) are used as inputs to Lagrangian models that include biological components (such as seed terminal velocity or larval vertical migration). These biophysical models are then used to simulate trajectories of the biological entities (seeds, larvae) in three dimensions. We reflect on these converging trends by first putting them into an historical perspective, and then by comparing the physical and biological processes represented in marine larva vs. terrestrial seed dispersal models, the data used for the models output corroboration, and the tools available to perform simulations. We conclude that this convergence offers the opportunity to bridge the gap between two scientific communities which are currently largely disconnected. More broadly, we also see our comparison across systems as a useful way to strengthen the links between aquatic and terrestrial ecology by sharing knowledge, methods, tools, and concepts