Explore the vast range of titles available.

Ecological literature on abalone Haliotis discus hannai populations is reviewed to identify processes and factors driving ontogenetic shifts in habitat. Abalone recruitment is related to the algal community type, with abalone shifting with growth from deeper crustose coralline algal (CCA) habitats to shallower kelp bed habitats via algal turfs. Timing of the habitat shifts is linked to ontogenetic changes in diet, from benthic diatoms to a diet dominated by macroalgae. Susceptibility to predation appears to change, concomitant with the shift from cryptic microhabitats during early-life stages to more exposed habitats during latter-life stages. Interstitial spaces between cobbles and boulders in the CCA habitat are considered to be important for reducing predation risk. The loss of CCA nursery habitat through sedimentation and macroalgal overgrowth likely negatively affects abalone recruitment. Preservation of diverse algal communities, including suitable habitats for the different abalone growth stages, is critical for successful abalone recruitment.

Squid are characterized by flexible life-history traits (LHTs) that change in response to changing oceanic parameters. Male alternative reproductive tactics (ARTs), characterized by large-sized ‘consorts’ versus small-sized ‘sneakers’, are commonly observed in loliginid species. This study reports on LHTs flexibility in male squids displaying ARTs. LHTs of consorts and sneakers in Uroteuthis edulis, including body size, age, growth rate and gonado-somatic energy allocation, were compared among seasonal and geographical groups from Japan and Taiwan. The ratio of consorts to sneakers was highest in the group spawning in the ‘Japan-warm’ season (June–November), followed by that of the ‘Japan-cold’ season (December–May), and lowest in Taiwan (spring and autumn). LHTs were compared among cohorts separated by hatching season and catch location (Jwarm, Jcold and Taiwan cohorts). Mean body size of consorts showed no difference among cohorts, although Taiwan consorts were relatively younger than Japan consorts. Mean size and age of sneakers decreased with increased water temperature at hatching. Growth rates of consorts and sneakers were slightly different among cohorts, in accordance with differences of statolith increment widths during their early life stage (50–150 days). Growth rates of both consorts and sneakers were highest in the Taiwan cohort, followed by the Jwarm cohort, with the Jcold cohort lowest. Sneakers invested more both in mantle and gonadal weights than consorts in all cohorts. Gonado-somatic energy allocation patterns of consorts and sneakers were consistent at different temperatures. LHTs of U. edulis consorts and sneakers were strongly influenced by temperature, with higher flexibility in sneakers than consorts.

The temporal changes in the fish community structure before and after a tsunami in 2011 were investigated in Funakoshi and Otsuchi bays, Iwate prefecture, on the Pacific coast of northern Japan. Fish species richness, abundance, biomass, and species composition were analyzed in relation to temporal variability of biotic and abiotic environmental conditions in two sub-intertidal seagrass Zostera marina beds. Mean seagrass shoot density decreased to < 5.8% of its original density after the tsunami, and gradually increased during the following survey periods in both bays. A total of 5206 fishes (74 taxa, 36 families) were collected by quantitative sampling for 10 years from 2009 to 2018. The Embiotocidae fishes dominated in terms of biomass in both bays. Mean seagrass shoot density had the most significant positive effect on total fish biomass in Funakoshi Bay. Fish species richness decreased immediately after the tsunami in both bays, corresponding to the drastic decrease in seagrass shoot density. Thereafter, the species richness gradually increased during the post-disturbance period of 7 years. In summer 2017, after approximately 6 years since the tsunami occurred, the seagrass habitat had recovered, and the fish community became similar to that before the tsunami disturbance in both bays.

Epibenthic invertebrate assemblages in macroalgal beds generally show remarkable seasonal fluctuations in abundance and species composition, reflecting macroalgal host growth and defoliation. Notably, they often drastically decrease during macroalgal host defoliation. Though this reduction has been explained in terms of dispersal away from the macroalgal bed in relation to macroalgal host defoliation, this hypothesis has not previously been experimentally detailed. We conducted a field experiment using an imitation of Sargassum that was set 1 m away from a Sargassum yezoense bed to examine whether the epibenthic gammarids disperse away from the Sargassum bed as a result of Sargassum defoliation. The imitations were replaced monthly throughout the Sargassum defoliation season; subsequently, gammarids associated with the imitation (assumed as migrants from the Sargassum beds) as well as the gammarids that occurred in the Sargassum bed were investigated. Seasonal patterns of gammarid abundance in the Sargassum bed and their dispersal to the imitations were found to be quite different among gammarid species. In particular, 2 dominant gammarids, the suspension-feeding Jassa morinoi and Podocerus sp., drastically decreased in the Sargassum bed and coincidently increased in the imitations during the Sargassum defoliation season, indicating their defoliation-associated dispersal from the Sargassum bed. This is the first field experimental study demonstrating the defoliation-associated dispersal of epibenthic invertebrates in macroalgal beds. The dispersal is likely caused by a reduction of habitat space and quality due to thalli defoliation. Since many macroalgae show seasonal growth and defoliation, the concept of defoliation-associated dispersal is potentially applicable to various macroalgal species.

Coastal seas are composed of relatively independent ecosystems, such as estuaries, rocky shores, mangroves, and coral reefs. Such individual ecosystems (IEs) are linked closely to each other by the dispersal and circulation of nutrients and organic matter and the movement of organisms, and form a coastal ecosystem complex (CEC). The CEC is understood as a unit of structure and function of coastal seas. It is characterized by a high degree of species diversity and it plays a large role in fishery and aquaculture production, as it provides important marine services for humans. This special volume compiles recent ecological studies of target species and IEs, to facilitate the conservation of coastal seas and the sustainability and production of their fisheries and aquaculture based on our understanding of the structure and function of the CEC in these environments.

Visual display is a crucial aspect of courtship, and their success relies on both display quality and the surrounding environment, such as the visual background. Cephalopods may release ink when attacked by predators or during aggressive interactions with conspecifics. Here, we report that ink is used as a part of the courtship display by males of the cuttlefish species Sepia andreana. Males of this species engage in a highly ritualized multimodal courtship using a pair of markedly long sexually dimorphic arms. At the climax of the courtship, the male releases a diffuse backdrop of ink near himself and then performs the specific courtship display by extending his sexually dimorphic arms and altering his body pattern to pale in front of this ink backdrop, and then proceeds to mate. This novel use of cephalopod ink could make the surroundings darker and more homogeneous, potentially serving as a temporary modification of the visual environment for courtship display. Cephalopods may release ink when attacked by predators, but we have discovered that ink is used as a part of the courtship display by males of the cuttlefish species Sepia andreana. Males of this species engage in a highly ritualized multi‐modal courtship using a pair of markedly long sexually dimorphic arms, and at the climax of the courtship, the male releases a diffuse backdrop of ink near himself and then performs the specific courtship display in front of this ink backdrop. This novel use of cephalopod ink could potentially serve as a temporary modification of the visual environment for courtship display.

A slipper lobster species Chelarctus virgosus recently separated from C. cultrifer (Ortmann 1897 ) by Yang and Chan (2012) was caught by a baited trap at a depth of 30 m, from off Onagawa, Oshika Peninsula (southern end of the Sanriku Coast), northeastern Japan. This record verified the distribution of C. virgosus in Japan. Also, this is the first record of scyllarid lobsters from the coastal waters of the Kuroshio-Oyashio Mixing Zone, updating the northern limit of distribution by more than 300 km. In addition, possible Japanese records tentatively listed in the original description of C. virgosus are revisited, and the distribution on the Pacific coast at the Boso Peninsula to the Ryukyu Archipelago was confirmed.

The strontium-to-calcium ratio (Sr/Ca) in aragonitic shells and statoliths often depends on temperature, and has been investigated for its potential availability as a sclerochronological record of the temperatures experienced during the life of the animal. Only a few cephalopod species have been subjected to rearing experiments to validate the temperature dependence of statolith Sr/Ca despite the strong demand for estimating their historical ecology, particularly of migratory squid populations. In this context, we examined the relationship between temperature and statolith Sr/Ca in the spear squid, Heterololigo bleekeri, by maintaining wild-caught immature individuals at one of three constant temperatures: 12, 14 or 16°C. A portion of statolith precipitated during the experiment was optically identified by daily increment analysis, and then subjected to Sr/Ca measurement using an electron probe micro-analyser. Regression analysis (N = 29) demonstrated the dependence of statolith Sr/Ca on temperature and the relationship was estimated as an equation Y = 9.93 (±0.29) − 0.11 (±0.02) X. However, ~90% of the total residual variance was accounted for by the among-individual variation of statolith Sr/Ca within each temperature group. Consequently, the 95% confidence interval ranged over ± 7.85°C when the temperature was estimated by inserting a Sr/Ca value into this equation. The statolith Sr/Ca values are unlikely to provide reliable estimates for absolute temperatures, but it may allow reconstruction of a time-series of relative temperatures experienced by a particular individual.

A new species of ampithoid amphipod, Sunamphitoe gigantea sp. nov., is described from Katsurakoi, Hokkaido, Japan. The new species most closely resembles S. eoa , but can be distinguished from it by the shorter flagellum of antenna 1, the maxilla 1 inner plate that bears two slender setae, the short dactylus of male gnathopod 2, and the presence of a group of long setae on anterior margins of pereopods 3 and 4 bases. Nucleotide sequences of mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I obtained from the type specimens also differentiated this new species from the congeners. Ontogenetic morphological changes of the male gnathopod 2 are briefly discussed.

Offshore migration of Pacific salmon Oncorhynchus spp. is partly triggered by increasing body size and high motility in the early stages of life. The survival of juvenile salmon may depend on their growth rate during the first few months in the sea, and this factor partly regulates the dynamics of adult populations. Here, we assessed the effects of water temperature and food availability on the growth of juvenile chum salmon O. keta. In addition, by combining the measurements of metabolic performance for growth and activity (Absolute Aerobic Scope: AAS) with a bioenergetics model, we estimated the energy allocation for different activities in the juveniles. Under high temperatures (14 °C), juveniles reared at low food levels (1% body weight) allocated less than half their energy for growth than those reared at high food levels (4% body weight). These findings suggest that high temperature and low food level constrain the growth of juveniles, providing an insight into the effect of the recent increase in warm and low-nutrient water masses on survival of juveniles and catches of adult chum salmon on the Pacific side of Honshu Island, Japan.