Search publications of the members of the Royal Belgian institute of natural Sciences
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Developing priority variables (“ecosystem Essential Ocean Variables” — eEOVs) for observing dynamics and change in Southern Ocean ecosystems
- Abstract Reliable statements about variability and change in marine ecosystems and their underlying causes are needed to report on their status and to guide management. Here we use the Framework on Ocean Observing (FOO) to begin developing ecosystem Essential Ocean Variables (eEOVs) for the Southern Ocean Observing System (SOOS). An eEOV is a defined biological or ecological quantity, which is derived from field observations, and which contributes significantly to assessments of Southern Ocean ecosystems. Here, assessments are concerned with estimating status and trends in ecosystem properties, attribution of trends to causes, and predicting future trajectories. eEOVs should be feasible to collect at appropriate spatial and temporal scales and are useful to the extent that they contribute to direct estimation of trends and/or attribution, and/or development of ecological (statistical or simulation) models to support assessments. In this paper we outline the rationale, including establishing a set of criteria, for selecting eEOVs for the \SOOS\ and develop a list of candidate eEOVs for further evaluation. Other than habitat variables, nine types of eEOVs for Southern Ocean taxa are identified within three classes: state (magnitude, genetic/species, size spectrum), predator–prey (diet, foraging range), and autecology (phenology, reproductive rate, individual growth rate, detritus). Most candidates for the suite of Southern Ocean taxa relate to state or diet. Candidate autecological eEOVs have not been developed other than for marine mammals and birds. We consider some of the spatial and temporal issues that will influence the adoption and use of eEOVs in an observing system in the Southern Ocean, noting that existing operations and platforms potentially provide coverage of the four main sectors of the region — the East and West Pacific, Atlantic and Indian. Lastly, we discuss the importance of simulation modelling in helping with the design of the observing system in the long term. Regional boundary: south of 30°S.
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Have we so far only seen the tip of the iceberg? Exploring species diversity and distribution of the giant amphipod Eurythenes
- Additional material of the iconic giant amphipod Eurythenes was investigated. Recently, the species E. gryllus has been separated into 12 distinct species-level lineages of which several have been described as distinct species, based on both morphology and genetics. This study revealed three additional species-level lineages from unique sampling localities, showing that with minimal sampling effort, species diversity within Eurythenes can still increase. One species-level lineage was found in the Indian Ocean and another one in the Pacific, which was subsequently identified as E. thurstoni. In addition to the three species already reported from the Southern Ocean (E. maldoror, E. gryllus s.s. and E. andhakarae), a supplementary bathyal species was found in the Weddell Sea. E. gryllus was confirmed to be amphitropical including newly sampled localities around the Kerguelen Islands and additional samples from the Svalbard Archipelago. Building on new and earlier data, geographic and bathymetric distributions of the different species that have been discovered so far are presented here and several factors are evaluated for their likelihood of having triggered past speciation events in this scavenger. Topographic and hydrographical features are discussed but rejected as sufficient reasons for the distributional patterns observed. Bathymetric segregation is interpreted with regard to what is known about the ecology of the species. The previously reported genetic break around 3000 m persists in this new data-set for all species but one. This study underlines the need of processing all individuals sampled, since two or more sympatric species are found in different proportions, and that conclusions regarding diversity and distribution may drastically change when increasing sampling intensity and coverage. Finally, I suggest here that only a mere fraction of all Eurythenes species has yet been discovered and that a more complete knowledge of the ecology of the species is of paramount importance for interpreting their evolution.
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Biomimetic and bio-inspired uses of mollusc shells
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Eerste advies bruinvisonderzoek
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Aanvraag van NEMO LINK Ltd voor een machtiging voor een geofysisch en geotechnisch zeebodemonderzoek: Milieueffectenbeoordeling (MEB) en advies van het Bestuur
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Grey seals Halichoerus grypus choking on common sole Solea solea
- Between 2007 and 2015, we recorded three cases of asphyxiation of grey seals Halichoerus grypus caused by a fish lodged in the respiratory tract. In all cases, the fish involved was a common sole Solea solea, which had found its way to the trachea of the unfortunate seal, as such completely blocking it. That this fish species was involved, is not surprising: it has a very agile body, with a spectacular ability to bend longitudinally into a circular shape, as well as laterally into the form of a cigar - the way it was found in the gluttonous grey seals. The common sole currently occurs abundantly in coastal waters of the southern North Sea, and it constitutes an important part of the diet of grey seals in this area. Asphyxiation due to fish has been described in odontocetes, including in harbour porpoise Phocoena phocoena, bottlenose dolphin Tursiops truncatus, and very recently in long-finned pilot whale Globicephala melas. To our knowledge however, this cause of death has not been described before in grey seals. Furthermore, the significance of this cause of mortality in a single population has not been documented, with in particular aspects of prey abundance, seal behaviour and the limited number of stranded adult grey seals that are being investigated to be considered. Keywords: grey seal; Halichoerus grypus; common sole; Solea solea; asphyxiation; respiratory tract
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A suspected scavenging event by red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) on a live, stranded harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena)
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The Taxonomic status of Sehirus aeneus Walker, 1867 (Hemiptera: Heteroptera; Cydnidae: Sehirinae)
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Life and after-life of the Roman ornamental stones within the civitas Tungrorum (Germania inferior).
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Roman ornamental stones in North-Western Europe. Natural resources, manufacturing, supply, life & after-life?
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Découverte d’un atelier de potiers à Arlon/Orolaunum (province de Luxembourg, Belgique).
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Verslag Sint-Maria-Oudenhove (analyses de céramiques gallo-romaines)
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Rapport technique (expertise) : analyse macro-, méso-, microscopique et diffractométriques de briques médiévales issues du site de Veurnes
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Ancient and modern DNA reveal dynamics of domestication and cross-continental dispersal of the dromedary
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Myrmecophilous Laboulbeniales (Ascomycota) in Belgium
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Spider Stowaways: molecular Data Support the Synonymization of Selenops galapagoensis with Selenops mexicanus (Araneae: Selenopidae) and Indicate Human-Mediated Introduction to the Galapagos Islands
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The arachnid fauna of an urban garden in the hamlet of Essenbeek (Halle, Province of Vlaams-Brabant)
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Zeezoogdieren in Belgïe in 2014 [Marine mammals in Belgium in 2014]
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New Remains of the Multituberculate Mammal Barbatodon from the Upper Cretaceous of the Hațeg Basin (Romania)
- The so-called "Hațeg Island" (Transylvania, Romania) is well known for its rich and peculiar Late Cretaceous vertebrate assemblages, including dwarf dinosaurs, first reported at the end of the 19th century. Besides dinosaurs, other important members of the "Hațeg Island" terrestrial ecosystems were the multituberculate mammals. Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) multituberculates are extremely rare in Europe, being known exclusively from the "Hațeg Island". Two genera are reported from this area: Kogaionon, with the single species K. ungureanui, and Barbatodon, with two species: B. transylvanicus and B. oardaensis. Both genera belong to the European endemic family Kogaionidae. We report herein new remains of B. transylvanicus from the Maastrichtian locality of Pui (Hunedoara District) in the Hațeg Basin, including the most complete dentaries found to date with complete cheek teeth rows. Intraspecific variability of this species in dentary shape, tooth morphology, and size difference is highlighted.
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Maculergithus, a new subgenus in Gergithus Schumacher, 1915 with two new species from northern Vietnam (Hemiptera: Fulgoromorpha: Issidae)
