by Kristen Minogue
Slide of an oyster completely infected with Dermo.
by Monaca Noble
Infected crab. The sacs on its abdomen contain thousands of parasite larvae the crab will later release into the water.
The invasive parasite Loxothylacus panopaei (Loxo for short) is a type of barnacle, but looks and acts nothing like the typical barnacles growing on rocks along the shoreline. Loxo has a highly evolved life cycle, essentially custom-made for acting as a crab parasite. As a free-swimming larva, Loxo resembles a typical barnacle larva. A female larva infects a recently molted crab by burying into its shell. Once inside, she undergoes a series of changes and assumes control over the host crab, dictating major functions such as molting and reproduction.
by Cora Johnston
The waters beneath mangroves are teeming with marine life, in part due to the refuge provided by the tangled complexity of their underwater roots. (Cora Johnston)
Mangrove roots, both dangling from above (prop roots) and growing up from the sand (pneumatophores), not only mine for nutrients and allow for oxygen and carbon dioxide exchange for the plant; they also provide apparently crucial food and refuge for a stunning array of marine species. Fish, worms, crabs, shrimp, barnacles, and many other organisms take shelter among the roots – gluing right to the wood, hiding in crevices, and peering out through the maze. In such harsh intertidal conditions, where waves break, salt builds up, and the sun beats down, the shade and nooks formed by mangroves may be the key to survival for juvenile fish and crustaceans that will someday populate coral reefs and fishing hotspots farther offshore.
Over the coming months, I will be investigating how and why young fish and crustaceans use mangroves and marshes. By understanding the refuge provided by these very different coastal plants, I hope to better understand how the northward march of mangroves will influence the survival, abundance, and composition of marine species utilizing these now changing coastal nurseries.
Juvenile fish and crustaceans find safety in red mangrove roots during the early, vulnerable stages of their life. This young barracuda may be looking for a snack while hiding from larger predators. (Cora Johnston)
Even mangrove tree crabs that spend most of their time foraging in the canopy climb down to the safety of the mangrove roots to shed their old exoskeletons and harden their new ones. (Cora Johnston)
-Cora Johnston is a PhD student at the University of Maryland.
by Tuck Hines
Smithsonian Environmental Research Center
by Kristen Minogue
Blue mussels (Credit: Meriseal)
by Kristen Minogue
Bat infected with deadly white-nose syndrome.
(U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)
by Kristen Minogue
Intern Ginny Leviton (left) and Vienna Saccomanno sample groundwater from a drainage ditch, trying to pin down the exact spot where the nitrogen goes missing. (Credit: Tom Jordan)
As summer wanes in the Chesapeake Bay, many female blue crabs are preparing for an epic journey. Come September they will walk and swim their way toward the mouth of the Chesapeake to release their eggs. Some will travel more than 150 miles. SERC scientists have studied the blue crab’s migratory patterns for more than a decade. Their findings have revealed new insight into the life history of this important species and have helped inform management policies. Tracking these invertebrates is not easy: it involves thousands of pink plastic tags, a unique collaboration with watermen and a blue crab hotline…
SERC senior scientist Denise Breitburg will lead the NOAA-funded study of hypoxia and acidification in the Chesapeake Bay.
Marine ecologist Denise Breitburg and her colleagues have thought up many novel ways to investigate the impacts of dead zones and acidification on Chesapeake Bay fish and invertebrates. Among their ideas: attaching tiny transmitters to fish and monitoring their movement in relation to oxygen and pH levels. A new $1.4 million grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will enable them to pursue this experiment and a host of others.
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If you’re a fish or crab living in the Chesapeake Bay, it’s quite possible that at some point during your life, you’ll make your way into one of the creeks, rivers or subestuaries that feed the Chesapeake. These areas provide important nursery and spawning habitat for many of the Bay’s aquatic residents. For more than 25 years, researchers from the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center’s Fish and Invertebrate Ecology Lab have taken a weekly survey of the species that make their way into and out of one of these creeks. Its name is Muddy Creek and it feeds into the Rhode River, which flows into the Chesapeake Bay.
View Muddy Creek and the Rhode River in a larger map
To survey the animals swimming up and down Muddy Creek, the researchers use a fish weir — an expanse of nets, gates and boardwalks — that temporarily blocks aquatic traffic. Once a week, the researchers close the weir, set out the nets and identify and count all the species that get trapped. Their data go back to 1983.
This type of fine-scale surveying, that’s done on a weekly basis, is rare. It’s even more unique to have such long-term data. Many ecological studies are funded for just a few years at a time. These short time frames can make it difficult for scientists to observe changes and patterns in species populations and composition.
Human activity and environmental conditions can affect which species are swimming in Muddy Creek. The water is brackish and salinity levels change seasonally and from year to year. During winter and early spring, when freshwater flow is usually the highest, researchers will generally catch more freshwater species like bluespotted and banded sunfish – two protected species in Maryland. During periods of high salinity, researchers can catch many species indicative of the higher saline lower Bay such as, red drum, spotted sea trout, and Spanish mackerel.
In honor of the 2010 U.S. Census, we thought we’d share photos from one of this month’s surveys. The salinity on this April day was fairly low (~ 5 ppt) and nearly a dozen golden shiners (a freshwater minnow) were caught along with several estuarine-resident and a few diadromous (fish that migrate between fresh and saltwater) species. Among the highlights: a sizeable snapping turtle, many white perch in spawning condition, juvenile American eels and a parasite.
You can read more about SERC’s Muddy Creek survey on our Web site.
