Taxonomic and metabolic shifts in the Coorong bacterial metagenome driven by salinity and external inputs

The Coorong estuary lies at the terminus of Australia's largest river system, the Murray-Darling; both are strongly influenced by human activities; including farming and extensive flow modification. Metagenomic approaches were used to determine the planktonic bacterial community composition and potential metabolic function at two extremes in the Coorong, the river mouth which exhibits marine-like salinity, and the hypersaline upper-reaches of the estuary. Significant shifts in taxa and metabolic function were seen between the two sites. The river mouth exhibited an increase in abundance of R hodobacteriaceae and Alteromonadaceae; families readily able to adapt to change in nutrient conditions; and the potentially pathogenic families B rucellaceae, Enterobacteriaceae and Vibrionaceae. Metabolisms over-represented include motility and chemotaxis, RNA metabolism and membrane transport, all of which are involved in actively searching for and obtaining nutrients. Also over-represented were metabolisms involved in population succession and stress response. An over-representation of taxa and metabolisms indicative of environmental change is reflective of anthropogenically af fected riverine input. In the hypersaline upper reaches of the estuary, the halophilic family Ectothiorhodospiraceae was over-represented, as were the families Flavobacteriaceae, Cytophagaceae and Nocardioidaceae, members of which are able to survive over a wide salinity range. Metabolisms over-represented here were reflective of increased bacterial growth, characteristic of hypersaline environments, and included DNA metabolism, nucleotide and nucleoside synthesis and cell cycle. Coorong metagenomes clustered taxonomically and metabolically with other planktonic metagenomes, but remained an outlier of this group with only 71% and 84% similarity, respectively. This indicates that the Coorong exhibits a unique planktonic bacterial community that is influenced by riverine input at the river mouth and salinity in the upper-reaches.

Virally-Mediated Versus Grazer-Induced Mortality Rates in a Warm-Temperate Inverse Estuary (Spencer Gulf, South Australia)

We investigated the seasonal dynamics of flow cytometrically-defined populations of viruses, heterotrophic bacteria, and the picoeukaryotic and prokaryotic phytoplankton at three sites in the temperate oligotrophic inverse estuary of Spencer Gulf (South Australia). We consistently identified two sub-populations of viruses, three sub-populations of heterotrophic bacteria, one population of picoeukaryotic phytoplankton and two populations of prokaryotic phytoplankton (cyanobacteria Prochlorococcus and Synechococcus). Both the cytometric community composition and the abundance of viruses, heterotrophic bacteria and both prokaryotic (Synechococcus and Prochlorococcus) and eukaryotic picophytoplankton were consistent with previous observations conducted in South Australian continental shelf waters. Noticeably LDNA bacteria (i.e. inactive or dormant cells) were consistently significantly the most abundant group of heterotrophic bacteria (totaling from 29% to 68% of total bacterial abundance) and were up to 10-fold more abundant than that previously reported in South Australian continental shelf waters, including the nearby Saint Vincent Gulf. These results suggest an overall low activity of the microbial community, and are consistent with previous evidence that LDNA cells may play a greater role in heterotrophic processes than HDNA cells in oligotrophic waters. In an attempt to further assess the qualitative and quantitative nature of the mortality of these organisms, we used a specific dilution assay to assess the relative contribution of viruses and microzooplankton grazers to the mortality rates of heterotrophic bacteria, and picoeukaryotic and prokaryotic phytoplankton. We consistently reported site-specific, population specific and sea-son-specific viral lysis and grazing rates of heterotrophic bacteria and the picoeukaryotic and prokaryotic (cyanobacteria Prochlorococcus and Synechococcus) phytoplankton across sites and seasons. Specifically, both viral lysis and micro-zooplankton grazing rates of heterotrophic bacteria were consistently relatively low across sites and seasons, even though their seasonality suggested an overall dominance of grazing over viral lysis in both summer and winter. In contrast, no seasonality is found in either lysis or grazing rates of prokaryotic and eukaryotic picophytoplankton, which are comparable to previous observations conducted in oligotrophic waters, suggesting the mortality dynamics of these populations is similar to those encountered in other oligotrophic waters. The observed patterns of mortality rates of heterotrophic bacteria and both prokaryotic and eukaryotic picophytoplankton are consistent with the low chlorophyll concentration and production previously observed in the waters of the Spencer Gulf.

New Evidence for Bottlenose Dolphin (Tursiops spp.) Population Connectivity between Kangaroo Island and South Australian Mainland Waters

Limited information still exists on the movements of bottlenose dolphins in South Australian coastal waters. There is, however, a need to overcome this paucity of information for an effective development and implementation of conservation and management initiatives in these waters that are increasingly threatened by anthropogenic activities. This study infers potential movements of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops spp.) between Kangaroo Island that separate and shelter South Australian coastal waters from the Southern Ocean swell, and the South Australian mainland (The Fleurieu Peninsula and The Adelaide Dolphin Sanctuary). Bottlenose dolphins were identified from three separate photo-identification catalogues collated from around the South Australian coastline. Of the 3518, 654 and 181 dolphins sighted in Kangaroo Island, Fleurieu Peninsula and the Adelaide Dolphin Sanctuary, 233, 74 and 40 individuals were recognizable, respectively. Resighting rates were similar in Kangaroo Island (70.4%) and Fleurieu Peninsula (75.7%), but much lower in the Adelaide Dolphin Sanctuary (35%). Ten individuals were resighted between Kangaroo Island and the Fleurieu Peninsula, whilst no matches were made between these two locations and the Adelaide Dolphin Sanctuary catalogue. This suggests a longitudinal connectivity between Kangaroo Island and South Australian mainland waters, but a lack of latitudinal connectivity that may result from the physical stratification processes that separate northern and southern South Australian waters. Our results also demonstrate the highly mobile nature of this species within South Australian waters as well as establish photo-identification as an effective non-invasive tool in which to monitor long-term movement patterns).

Towards a Standardized Approach of Cetacean Habitat: Past Achievements and Future Directions

The understanding of what habitat means for an organism as well as the underlying factors driving patterns of habitat use is still unknown for many species. Cetacean habitat has been described using a range of methodologies and variables measured over various temporal and spatial scales?that are often author-dependent. However, in order to develop an objective and sound understanding of what habitat actually means for cetaceans, a standardized approach needs to be developed. Here, after briefly reviewing the fundamental differences between terrestrial and marine habitats, we highlight the difficulty in defining a marine habitat, with a special focus on marine mammals. We subsequently provide six recommendations by which future cetacean habitat studies might be approached. This recommended approach aims to amend the way in which we think about and undertake investigations into cetacean habitat. It is believed that through this broadened approach, future cetacean habitat studies will increase our understanding of underlying driving factors of cetacean habitat, rather than just describing distribution patterns. Finally, it is stressed how the proposed approach will be more directly applicable within management frameworks and of benefit to conservation initiatives.

Strength May Lie in Numbers: Intertidal Foraminifera Non-Negligible Contribution to Surface Sediment Reworking

The contribution of benthic foraminifera to sediment bioturbation has widely been overlooked despite their huge abundance in intertidal soft sediments. In this preliminary study, we specifically chose to focus on two key species of benthic foraminifera in temperate intertidal mudflats, Quinqueloculina seminula and Ammonia tepida, and first experimentally investigated their individual movements at the sediment surface. We subsequently derived from these observations the individual-level surface sediment reworking rates, and used the actual abundance of these species to extrapolate these rates at the population level. Individual surface sediment reworking rates SSRRi ranged between 0.13 and 0.32 cm2·ind-1·day-1 for Q. seminula, and between 0.12 and 0.28 cm2·ind-1·day-1 for A. tepida. Population-level surface sediment reworking rates were subsequently estimated as ranging between 11,484 and 28,710 cm2·m-2·day-1 for Q. seminula and 27,876 and 65,044 cm2·m-2·day-1 for A. tepida. Noticeably, these reworking rates are comparable to, and eventually even higher than, the rates reported in the literature for populations of intertidal macro-invertebrates, such as the annelid polychaete Melinna palmata and the bivalve Abra ovata. Taken together these results suggest that despite their minute size intertidal benthic foraminifera are, thanks to their abundance, non-negligible contributors to the reworking of surface sediment, and may then play an unanticipated role in the benthic ecosystem functioning, through e.g. the enhancement of fluxes at the sediment-water interface.

Marine Biology: A Sub-Sample of a Vast Topic

Marine Biology: A Sub-Sample of a Vast