Sharks and rays (Chondrichthyes, Elasmobranchii) from the late Miocene Gatun Formation of Panama

2013 ◽  
Vol 87 (5) ◽  
pp. 755-774 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catalina Pimiento ◽  
Gerardo González-Barba ◽  
Dana J. Ehret ◽  
Austin J. W. Hendy ◽  
Bruce J. MacFadden ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pacific Ocean ◽  
Shallow Water ◽  
Late Miocene ◽  
Habitat Preferences ◽  
Caribbean Sea ◽  
Shallow Waters ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Dental Measurements ◽  
The Pacific Ocean ◽  
The Caribbean

The late Miocene Gatun Formation of northern Panama contains a highly diverse and well sampled fossil marine assemblage that occupied a shallow-water embayment close to a purported connection between the Pacific and Atlantic (Caribbean) oceans. However, the diverse chondrichthyan fauna has been poorly documented. Based on recent field discoveries and further analysis of existing collections, the chondrichthyan fauna from this unit comprises at least 26 taxa, of which four species are extinct today. The remaining portion of the total chondrichthyan biodiversity has affinities with modern taxa and is therefore comprised of long-lived species. Based on known records of the modern geographic distribution range of the Gatun chondrichthyans, the fauna has mixed biogeographic affinities suggesting that around 10 million yr ago, a connection likely occurred between the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. Given the known habitat preferences for modern chondrichthyans, the Gatun fauna was primarily adapted to shallow waters within the neritic zone. Finally, comparisons of Gatun dental measurements with other faunas suggest that many of the taxa have an abundance of small individuals, in agreement with previous studies that proposed this area as a paleonursery habitat for the species Carcharocles megalodon.

scholarly journals Callogorgia spp. and Their Brittle Stars: Recording Unknown Relationships in the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine Mejía-Quintero ◽  
Giomar H. Borrero-Pérez ◽  
Erika Montoya-Cadavid
Keyword(s):  
Pacific Ocean ◽  
Caribbean Sea ◽  
Brittle Stars ◽  
Southern Caribbean ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Soft Bottoms ◽  
The Pacific Ocean ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
Specific Association ◽  
Colombian Pacific

The habitat formed by the Callogorgia species, with their abundance and colony sizes, provides an important refuge for a variety of brittle stars which are recognized as the epibionts of octocorals in both shallow and deep environments. In such a relationship, ophiurans benefit directly from being elevated because they facilitate their feeding by suspension, while octocorals do not seem to benefit or be harmed. During three different expeditions developed in the Colombian Pacific from 2012 to 2013 and in the Caribbean Sea during 1998 and 2012 by the INVEMAR - Marine and Coastal Research institute, different samplings were carried out on soft bottoms through trawls with an epibenthic net. For the Pacific Ocean, 33 fragments of the octocoral Callogorgia cf. galapagensis Cairns, 2018 with 178 specimens of the ophiuroid Astrodia cf. excavata (Lütken and Mortensen, 1899) were found in two stations at depths 530 and 668 m. Considering the abundance of A. cf excavata, other biological characters such as size, presence of mature gonads, and evidence of arm regeneration were also detailed. In contrast, in the Caribbean Sea, Callogorgia gracilis (Milne Edwards and Haime, 1857) was found with ophiuroids belonging to the genera Asteroschema and Ophiomitra. The octocoral Callogorgia americana (Cairns and Bayer, 2002) was also found, but without associated brittle stars. These findings constituted the first specific association reported in the Eastern Tropical Pacific, and new relationships for the Caribbean Sea. This further reflected a possible specific association between the Callogorgia and Astrodia species that needed to be further explored. Thus, the Callogorgia species and the brittle star A. cf. excavata represented new records for the Colombian Pacific Ocean and the southern Caribbean Sea.

1755, Lisbon

Tsunami ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 151-160
Author(s):  
James Goff ◽  
Walter Dudley
Keyword(s):  
Pacific Ocean ◽  
Atlantic Ocean ◽  
North Africa ◽  
Tsunami Waves ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
The Pacific Ocean ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
The City

Most Europeans do not worry about tsunami waves as much as those who live around the rim of the Pacific Ocean, but they should. On All Saint’s Day, 1755, a huge earthquake struck Lisbon, Portugal, causing most stone buildings to collapse, including churches, monasteries, nunneries, and chapels, trapping the faithful inside the ruins, which votive candles quickly turned into burning pyres. Voltaire would write, “The sole consolation is that the Jesuit Inquisitors of Lisbon will have disappeared.” To add to the irony, among the few buildings safely left standing following the disaster were the lightly constructed wooden bordellos of the city. Most of Lisbon’s prostitutes but few of her nuns survived. Tsunami waves would not only kill thousands around Lisbon’s harbor but also travel south to Spain and North Africa, north to Ireland and Wales, and across the Atlantic Ocean to the Caribbean, flooding the streets of Barbados.

Terrestrial isopods from Costa Rica and a redescription of Ischioscia variegata (Dollfus, 1893) (Crustacea: Isopoda: Oniscidea)

1997 ◽  
Vol 75 (9) ◽  
pp. 1415-1464 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas Leistikow
Keyword(s):  
Costa Rica ◽  
Caribbean Sea ◽  
The United States ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Two New Species ◽  
The Status ◽  
Small Collection ◽  
The Pacific Ocean ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
Philoscia Muscorum

Examination of a small collection of Oniscidea from Costa Rica revealed the presence of two species new to science (Ischioscia martinae sp.nov. and Scleropactes talamancensis sp.nov.). Further specimens from the collection of the United States National Museum were reexamined to reconsider the status of Philoscia muscorum (Scopoli, 1793) and Ischioscia variegata (Dollfus, 1893), both of which have been reported from Costa Rica. The specimens belong to two new species (Ischioscia muelleri sp.nov. and Ischioscia elongata sp.nov.). Redescriptions of Ligia baudiniana Milne Edwards, 1840 from the shores of both the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean and the type material of Ischioscia variegata (Dollfus, 1893) from Venezuela are also presented.

scholarly journals Mangrove Forests Evolution and Threats in the Caribbean Sea of Colombia

Water ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 1113 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diego Andrés Villate Daza ◽  
Hernando Sánchez Moreno ◽  
Luana Portz ◽  
Rogério Portantiolo Manzolli ◽  
Hernando José Bolívar-Anillo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Human Impacts ◽  
Local Population ◽  
Caribbean Sea ◽  
Mangrove Forests ◽  
Illegal Logging ◽  
Hydrological Conditions ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Multispectral Satellite Images ◽  
The Pacific Ocean ◽  
The Caribbean

Colombia has approximately 379,954 hectares of mangrove forests distributed along the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea coasts. Such forests are experiencing the highest annual rate of loss recorded in South America and, in the last three decades, approximately 40,000 hectares have been greatly affected by natural and, especially, human impacts. This study determined, by the use of Landsat multispectral satellite images, the evolution of three mangrove forests located in the Colombian Caribbean Sea: Malloquín, Totumo, and La Virgen swamps. Mangrove forest at Mallorquín Swamp recorded a loss of 15 ha in the period of 1985–2018, associated with alterations in forest hydrology, illegal logging, urban growth, and coastal erosion. Totumo Swamp lost 301 ha in the period 1985–2018 associated with changes in hydrological conditions, illegal logging, and increased agricultural and livestock uses. La Virgen Swamp presented a loss of 31 ha in the period of 2013–2018 that was linked to the construction of a roadway, alterations of hydrological conditions, illegal logging, and soil urbanization, mainly for tourist purposes. Although Colombian legislation has made efforts to protect mangrove ecosystems, human activities are the main cause of mangrove degradation, and thus it is mandatory for the local population to understand the value of the ecosystem services provided by mangroves.

scholarly journals Diel cycle of sea spray aerosol concentration over vast areas of the tropical Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Michel Flores ◽  
Guillaume Bourdin ◽  
Alexander Kostinski ◽  
Orit Altaratz ◽  
Guy Dagan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pacific Ocean ◽  
Caribbean Sea ◽  
Global Scale ◽  
Number Concentration ◽  
Sea Spray ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Sea Spray Aerosol ◽  
The Pacific Ocean ◽  
Size Of Particles

Abstract Ocean-atmosphere interactions such as sea spray aerosol (SSA) formation have a major role in the climate system, but a global-scale assessment of this micro-scale process is highly challenging. We measured high-resolution temporal patterns of SSA number concentration over the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, and the Pacific Ocean covering 42,000 km of open ocean waters. We discovered a ubiquitous 24-hour rhythm to the number concentration, clearly seen for particle diameters > ~ 0.58 µm, with spikes at dawn and drops at dusk throughout the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea, showing more than doubling of the SSA number concentration during the day than at night. No correlation with surface winds, atmospheric radiation, pollution nor oceanic physical properties were found. Instead, parallel diel patterns in particle sizes detected in near-surface waters, attributed to variations in the size of particles smaller than ~ 1 µm, point to microbial day-to-night modulation of bubble-bursting dynamics as the cause of the SSA cycle.

scholarly journals Species Diversity of Shallow Water Zoanthids (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Hexacorallia) in Florida

2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Davis Reimer ◽  
Colin Foord ◽  
Yuka Irei
Keyword(s):  
Species Diversity ◽  
Shallow Water ◽  
Ribosomal Dna ◽  
Common Component ◽  
Isthmus Of Panama ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Coral Reef Ecosystems ◽  
Traditional Taxonomy ◽  
The Pacific Ocean ◽  
The Caribbean

Shallow water zooxanthellate zoanthids are a common component of the coral reef ecosystems of the Caribbean. Despite this, their species diversity remains poorly understood. In this study, collectedPalythoa, Zoanthus, Isaurus, andTerrazoanthusspecimens from the waters of Florida were phylogenetically examined to obtain a better understanding of zoanthid species diversity in the Caribbean. Surprisingly, the results from analyses utilizing three DNA markers (mitochondrial 16S ribosomal DNA, cytochrome oxidase subunit I, and the internal transcribed spacer of ribosomal DNA) showed the presence of at least eleven species, of which up to four appear undescribed. Additionally, the presence of the genusTerrazoanthusin the Caribbean was confirmed for the first time. Attempts to match phylogenetic species or clades with original literature were hampered by vague and short original descriptions, and it is clear that for AtlanticPalythoaandZoanthusspecies an in-depth and multidisciplinary investigation is needed to reconcile recent phylogenetic results such as in this study with traditional taxonomy. Furthermore, most shallow water zoanthid species from Florida were observed to have close, sister-species relationships with previously investigated species in the Pacific Ocean. These results indicate that many brachycnemic zoanthid species likely had a Caribbean-Pacific distribution until the formation of the Isthmus of Panama. However, due to inadvertent redescriptions, overall species diversity in these two common genera is likely much lower than literature indicates.

A checklist of the Medusae (Hydrozoa, Scyphozoa and Cubozoa) of Mexico

Zootaxa ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 194 (1) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
LOURDES SEGURA-PUERTAS ◽  
EDUARDO SUÁREZ-MORALES ◽  
LAURA CELIS
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Pacific Ocean ◽  
Gulf Of Mexico ◽  
Caribbean Sea ◽  
Number Of Species ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Mexican Caribbean ◽  
The Pacific Ocean ◽  
First Time

A list of 169 medusae species in 45 families recorded in Mexican waters is presented for the first time. 86 species (50.8%) were found in the Pacific Ocean, 75 species (44.3%) in the Gulf of Mexico, and 88 (52%) in the Mexican Caribbean Sea. Only 17 species (10%) were common to the three regions. The superclass Hydrozoa, the most diverse one, is represented by 151 species (89%), the Scyphozoa by 16 species (9.5%) and the Cubozoa by 3 (1.8%). Among the Hydrozoa, up to 6 new species have been described from Mexican waters. It is expected that the number of species will grow as surveys that include the hydroid stages and their laboratory-released medusae, as well as benthic and deep-living medusofauna are undertaken in both the Atlantic and the Pacific coasts of Mexico.

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