Alfonso Aguilar-Perera, Nancy J. Brown-Peterson, Virginia Nóh-Quiñoes
{"title":"Reproductive Traits of Red Lionfish, Pterois volitans, at Two Sites Off the Northern Coast of the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico","authors":"Alfonso Aguilar-Perera, Nancy J. Brown-Peterson, Virginia Nóh-Quiñoes","doi":"10.18475/cjos.v53i2.a14","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.18475/cjos.v53i2.a14","url":null,"abstract":"El pez león Pterois volitans fue introducido en el Océano Oeste Atlánico desde hace más de 30 años, pero fue registrado por vez primera en el Golfo de México en 2010. Dada su expansión poblacional en la región, el pez león se ha convertido en una invasión biológica que amenaza el ecosistema marino. El objetivo de este trabajo fue describir algunas características reproductivas básicas de este pez por vez primera para el sureste del golfo frente a la costa norte de la península de Yucatán, México. Las muestras fueron recolectadas a través de un programa de ciencia ciudadana, en el cual los pescadores buzos-langosteros arponearon pez león entre 2010 y 2018. La distribución de frecuencias de talla del pez león fue significativamente diferente entre sexos, con los machos más grandes que las hembras. La proporción en sexos fue signitificativa con predominancia de machos. Los análisis histológicos revelaron que la hembra y macho maduros más pequeños tuvieron 160 mm LT and 196 mm LT, respectivamente. Las hembras alcanzaron una madurez sexual (50%) a una talla menor comparada con los machos. Ambos sexos estuvieron en fase de desove capaz durante todos los meses de muestreo (junio a diciembre), con picos de índice gonadosomático en junio, septiembre y diciembre en las hembras. La estimación del intervalo de desove es cuatro días. En el sureste del golfo, el pez león madura a una talla mayor que el pez león del norte del golfo y el de otras regiones en el Océano Atlántico Oeste, con la excepción de Bermuda. Aunque el tamaño de muestra en nuestro estudio es limitado, la oportunidad para identificar la talla de madurez es útil para establecer una línea base para la historia de vida del pez león en el sureste del golfo.","PeriodicalId":55274,"journal":{"name":"Caribbean Journal of Science","volume":"90 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-11-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135635417","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A Review of Endosymbiont-Assisted Reproductive Isolation and Speciation","authors":"Courtney Wayne Simons","doi":"10.18475/cjos.v53i2.a13","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.18475/cjos.v53i2.a13","url":null,"abstract":"Changes in the genome of an organism can cause changes in phenotype. Its phenotype can then determine how well-suited the organism is to its environment. The hologenome concept expands this view by suggesting instead, that it is not only the host genome at play in natural selection, but also the genome of endosymbiotic microorganisms (viruses, bacteria, and fungi) associated with their hosts. The concept is an area of growing interest. It directs the study of biology from an individual-centric approach to one that is more community-centric. This approach opens more opportunities to carefully examine host-community interactions and strategies to ensure a balance between counterparts. However, more intriguing is the potential that the hologenome concept may provide a glimpse into the biological mechanisms of speciation. This paper is a literature review presenting cases in endosymbiont interactions that affect reproductive competence of host and hence, may be an important mechanism of speciation.","PeriodicalId":55274,"journal":{"name":"Caribbean Journal of Science","volume":"21 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-11-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135635234","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Céline Valin, Célia Ortolé, Aurore Feunteun, Nathalie Duporge, Morjane Safi, Benjamin De Montgolfier
{"title":"First Study of Invasive Lionfish (Pterois sp.) Population Dynamics in Martinique, Lesser Antilles Using Photo-Identification Method","authors":"Céline Valin, Célia Ortolé, Aurore Feunteun, Nathalie Duporge, Morjane Safi, Benjamin De Montgolfier","doi":"10.18475/cjos.v53i2.a12","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.18475/cjos.v53i2.a12","url":null,"abstract":"The invasive alien species Pterois sp. has strongly invaded the Western Atlantic and the Caribbean Sea since the 1980s. Many studies have been set up to monitor this species. This study is the first to carry out a follow-up of these populations by capture-marking-recapture with photo-identification in a natural environment. The monitoring was carried out over a period of five months at two sites to the south of Martinique. The photo-identification technique showed a high efficiency of the method with important recapture rates (36.51% on Acropora and 43.59% on Trois Rivières). The study allowed an estimation of the population sizes and density on the sites (619 individuals per hectare on Acropora and 341 individuals per hectare on Trois Rivières). The recolonization of individuals according to their size class was also studied and showed greater movements of small individuals and a high site fidelity of larger ones.","PeriodicalId":55274,"journal":{"name":"Caribbean Journal of Science","volume":"8 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-11-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135634241","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Aslin Almeda Castro, Alberto R. Puente Rolón, Alondra M. Díaz-Lameiro
{"title":"First Report of Reptarenavirus in the Invasive Red-tail boa, Boa constrictor Linnaeus, 1758, from Puerto Rico","authors":"Aslin Almeda Castro, Alberto R. Puente Rolón, Alondra M. Díaz-Lameiro","doi":"10.18475/cjos.v53i2.a16","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.18475/cjos.v53i2.a16","url":null,"abstract":"Reptarenavirus es un arenavirus que mayormente ha sido detectado en serpientes en cautiverio. Se cree que el mismo es el agente etiológico de la enfermedad conocida como Boid Inclusion Body Disease (BIBD), la cual es mortal para los miembros de las familias Boidae y Pythonidae. En Puerto Rico, la boa de cola roja (Boa constrictor) fue introducida durante la década de los 1990 a través de la trata de mascotas. Establecer un programa de monitoreo para este virus es esencial debido a que individuos de Boa constrictor podrían actuar como vectores y propagar el virus a serpientes endémicas, algunas en peligro de extinción, como la Boa Puertorriqueña, Chilabothrus inornatus. En este estudio, se realizó la primera encuesta sobre el Reptarenavirus en Puerto Rico, utilizando muestras de Boa constrictor del oeste de la isla. Para cuantificar la incidencia del patógeno en entornos silvestres, se extrajo y amplificó el ARN del Reptarenavirus a partir de 34 muestras de hígado frescas. Un resultado positivo fue identificado, una hem-bra adulta capturada en el municipio de Hormigueros. Se realizaron intentos para confirmar el resultado; sin embargo, ambos fueron negativos, posiblemente debido a la degradación del ARN. Considerando esto, no podemos definitivamente concluir si el virus está presente en Puerto Rico. Sin embargo, continuaremos el monitoreo para la detección temprana del virus en la isla. Este análisis representa el primer reporte de este peligroso patógeno ambiental en la isla de Puerto Rico.","PeriodicalId":55274,"journal":{"name":"Caribbean Journal of Science","volume":"3 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.4,"publicationDate":"2023-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139029032","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
José Manuel Mora, Ronald Vargas, Randy Alvarado, Lucía I. López
{"title":"Two Neotropical Snakes Attacked as Prey by Army Ants in Costa Rica","authors":"José Manuel Mora, Ronald Vargas, Randy Alvarado, Lucía I. López","doi":"10.18475/cjos.v53i2.a18","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.18475/cjos.v53i2.a18","url":null,"abstract":"Geophis hoffmanni y Ninia sebae pertenecen al grupo de serpientes “comedoras de gusanos” pues su dieta consiste exclusivamente en invertebrados de cuerpo blando. Geophis hoffmanni es nocturna, terrestre, fosorial y se encuentra frecuentemente en la vegetación herbácea y la hojarasca de áreas húmedas. Ninia sebae es terrestre, fosorial y se encuentra comúnmente debajo de troncos, montones de hojas y tablas entre otros. Uno de los depredadores más formidables en bosques tropicales son las hormigas guerreras, que se alimentan en grandes grupos en áreas confinadas. Eciton burchelli está ampliamente distribuida en toda la región neotropical. En Costa Rica, Labidus spininodis también es común y habita principalmente áreas de bosque húmedo. El 2 de enero de 2022, observamos una colonia de Eciton burchellii atacando y matando a una Geophis hoffmanni en Selva Verde Lodge, aunque no pudimos observar qué sucedió después. El 23 de septiembre de 2022, encontramos un grupo de Labidus spininodis atacando a una Ninia sebae en el Centro Soltis. No pudimos determinar si las hormigas mataron a la serpiente, pero esta permaneció inmóvil después de aproximadamente 40 minutos de ataques de las hormigas, e incluso se observó a algunas obreras cortando trozos del cuerpo de la serpiente. Los dos sitios mencionados se ubican en las tierras bajas de la vertiente norte de Costa Rica. Estos son dos casos sin precedentes de depredación de serpientes dipsádidas neotropicales por dos especies de hormigas guerreras. Estas instancias marcan los primeros casos documentados de estos emblemáticos depredadores terrestres capturando vertebrados relativamente grandes.","PeriodicalId":55274,"journal":{"name":"Caribbean Journal of Science","volume":"9 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.4,"publicationDate":"2023-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139029034","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Wessley Merten, Shuai Zhang, Chuanmin Hu, Margaret Rodrigue, Richard Appeldoorn, Nilda Jimenez
{"title":"Increase in Dolphinfish (Coryphaena hippurus) Fishing Success Off the North Coast of Puerto Rico during Hurricane Leslie","authors":"Wessley Merten, Shuai Zhang, Chuanmin Hu, Margaret Rodrigue, Richard Appeldoorn, Nilda Jimenez","doi":"10.18475/cjos.v53i2.a15","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.18475/cjos.v53i2.a15","url":null,"abstract":"Documenting how storms and environmental variability affect the population dynamics, trends, and abundance of dolphinfish (Coryphaena hippurus) on short temporal scales is important for improving dolphinfish resource monitoring, conservation, and management. Here, a multifaceted technique was used to document an abrupt increase in fishing success among small-scale fishing sectors off the north coast of Puerto Rico during the 2018 Hurricane Leslie event. Seven datasets were used to document this event, and each provided substantiating information, but the combination of vessel catch and effort and seven-day averages of floating-algae density (FD), derived from the satellite-based alternative floating algae index (AFAI) imagery, present the newest technique to monitor dolphinfish fishing success on short and near-real time scales. Results revealed vessel effort and FD co-occurrence, with several vessel tracks within FD coverage of .01%-0.4%. Catch records from outings confirmed landings of dolphinfish from Sargassum and during the episode, 87% of total dolphinfish catch occurred at Sargassum habitat, with the remaining associated with nearby fish aggregating devices (FADs). Scuba visual census and fish tracking provided additional evidence of dolphinfish abundance and movements associated with Sargassum and nearby FADs. The combination of these methods provided a new technique to support insight into documenting changes in fishing success for dolphinfish, a key pelagic fishery. Expanding the spatiotemporal coverage of these methods could lead to the underpinnings of robust dolphinfish (and other pelagic fish, e.g., tuna and billfish) resource monitoring, improving data collection, and enhansing regulatory and data reporting compliance among small-scale fisheries.","PeriodicalId":55274,"journal":{"name":"Caribbean Journal of Science","volume":"9 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.4,"publicationDate":"2023-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139029072","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Are R. Berentsen, Caroline C. Sauvé, Mel J. Rivera-Rodriguez, Fabiola B. Torres-Toledo, Richard B. Chipman, Amy T. Gilbert
{"title":"Population Density of the Small Indian Mongoose (Urva auropunctata) Across Multiple Habitat Types and Seasons in Puerto Rico","authors":"Are R. Berentsen, Caroline C. Sauvé, Mel J. Rivera-Rodriguez, Fabiola B. Torres-Toledo, Richard B. Chipman, Amy T. Gilbert","doi":"10.18475/cjos.v53i2.a17","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.18475/cjos.v53i2.a17","url":null,"abstract":"The small Indian mongoose (Urva auropunctata) is a rabies reservoir on several Caribbean Islands including Puerto Rico. In the continental United States, oral rabies vaccination (ORV) has been used to control and locally eliminate rabies viruses targeting meso-carnivores including raccoons (Procyon lotor), grey foxes (Urocyon cinereoargenteus), and coyotes (Canis latrans), and has more recently been proposed to mitigate and control mongoose rabies in Puerto Rico. A fundamental understanding of the population density of the target species is an important factor in planning bait application rates prior to ORV operations. In Puerto Rico, most ecological studies on mongooses have been restricted to the rainforest region in the northeastern portion of the island. We calculated population density estimates for mongooses at seven sites representing four habitat types in Puerto Rico. We marked 445 unique mongooses across 593 capture events during 12,530 trap days during 2016–2021. Mean (SE, 95% CI) population densities were greater in closed to open broadleaved evergreen forest habitat (0.79 ±0.13, 0.67–0.92 mongooses/ha) compared to grasslands (0.43 ± 0.10; 0.35–0.55 mongooses/ha), rainfed croplands (0.26 ±0.10, 0.18–0.38 mongooses/ha), and shrub/herbaceous habitat (0.19 ±0.05, 0.15–0.25 mongooses/ha). We did not detect seasonal variation in mongoose population density (0.48 [0.06; 0.35–0.62] and 0.39 [0.06; 0.27–0.50] mongooses/ha measured in the wet (May–November) and dry (December–April) seasons, respectively. Multiple ORV applications may be needed annually for adequate population immunity, particularly in habitats with high mongoose population densities and rapid population turnover.","PeriodicalId":55274,"journal":{"name":"Caribbean Journal of Science","volume":"9 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.4,"publicationDate":"2023-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139029076","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Dex Yorman Barrios-Barrios, Pedro María Alarcón-Elbal, Mónica Elisa Barrientos-Juárez, Julio César Bobadilla-Balseis, Jaime Abraham Juárez-Sandoval, Lorenzo Diéguez-Fernández, Sergio Ibáñez-Bernal
{"title":"Phlebotomine Sand Flies (Diptera: Psychodidae) of Endemic Foci of Leishmaniosis in Guatemala","authors":"Dex Yorman Barrios-Barrios, Pedro María Alarcón-Elbal, Mónica Elisa Barrientos-Juárez, Julio César Bobadilla-Balseis, Jaime Abraham Juárez-Sandoval, Lorenzo Diéguez-Fernández, Sergio Ibáñez-Bernal","doi":"10.18475/cjos.v53i2.a11","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.18475/cjos.v53i2.a11","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":55274,"journal":{"name":"Caribbean Journal of Science","volume":"138 3-4","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136316460","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The Morphology and Feeding Ecology of the Ground Croaker, Bairdiella ronchus (Cuvier, 1830), in Salt River Bay, Jamaica","authors":"Tremaine Bowman, Eric J. Hyslop","doi":"10.18475/cjos.v53i2.a10","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.18475/cjos.v53i2.a10","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":55274,"journal":{"name":"Caribbean Journal of Science","volume":"50 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136318278","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Histological Observations of the Sharpnose Pufferfish, Canthigaster rostrata (Bloch, 1786), Collected Along the Caribbean Coast Affected by Mass Mortality Episodes","authors":"Lourdes Vásquez-Yeomans, Rebeca Vásquez-Yeomans, Eloy Sosa-Cordero, Yanet Guerrero Rentería, Jorge Cáceres-Martínez","doi":"10.18475/cjos.v53i2.a8","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.18475/cjos.v53i2.a8","url":null,"abstract":"El pez globo de nariz afilada Canthigaster rostrata es uno de los integrantes de los ecosistemas de arrecifes coralinos del Caribe; sin embargo, no existen estudios sobre su histología. El pez globo se ha visto afectado periódicamente por episodios de mortalidad en el Caribe desde 2008. Los estudios histológi-cos brindan información sobre las condiciones del sistema, e indican presencia de parásitos u otras alteraciones como enfermedades que pueden provocar la muerte del pez. En septiembre de 2017 se recolectaron 102 peces globo de nariz afilada en cuatro localidades, tres del Caribe mexicano: Punta Herrero (PH), Xcalak (XC) y Santuario Manatí (SM). El cuarto es de Belice, en Bacalar Chico (BC). Durante el seguimiento se presentó un evento de mortalidad en XC. No se detectaron signos externos de enfermedad en ningún pez. El análisis histológico no mostró la presencia de machos, sólo de hembras y organismos indiferenciados en las localidades muestreadas. Además, se observaron trematodos en peces globo de XC, SM y BC. En un pez de XC se detectó una inclusión similar a epiteliocistis. En peces de XC se encontraron artrópodos degradados en la luz del estómago. Se observaron alteraciones del tejido branquial y renal en ejemplares de todas las localidades, posiblemente relacionadas con el proceso de fijación del tejido. La abundancia de lípidos en el hígado parece ser una característica normal. No se detectaron diferencias histológicas ni parasitarias entre los peces donde se observó mortalidad y los peces de las otras localidades que permitan encontrar una asociación con mortalidades masivas en la zona. Este es el primer estudio histológico de C. rostrata en la costa Caribeña que muestra datos sobre reproducción, parásitos y otras alteraciones tisulares.","PeriodicalId":55274,"journal":{"name":"Caribbean Journal of Science","volume":"30 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136114295","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}