Hippichthys albomaculosus, a new species of freshwater pipefish (Pisces: Syngnathidae) from Fiji

Hippichthys albomaculosus, a new species of freshwater pipefish
(Pisces: Syngnathidae) from Fiji

Aaron P. Jenkins and Kinikoto Mailautoka
Wetlands International-Oceania, Fiji Office,
School of Islands and Oceans, Faculty of Science, Technology and Environment, University of the South Pacific, Fiji Islands.

This paper describes a new species of Hippichthys collected by the second author durng a 2009 freshwater and estuarine ichthyofaunal survey of Vanua Levu, the second largest island of Fiji.

Abstract
A new species of freshwater pipefish, Hippichthys alboaculosus, is described on the basis of 22 specimens, collected from Vanua Levu Island, Republic of Fiji. 

This species is distinguished from its closest relatives by a combination of characters that include: 13 trunk rings, total rings usually 48; dorsal fin origin on first tail ring; scutella not keeled; pectoral fin rays modally 14, trunk depth about 1.7 in head length, anal ring depth about 2.8 in head length; series of 10-11 white ocelli with dark margins bilateral to median longitudinal ventral keel and below inferior trunk ridge.

"If you see this place, you would consider yourself the luckiest person on Earth." - Divester

That’s what marine biologist Aaron Jenkins says about Fiji’s Great Sea Reef. And it’s only getting better. That’s because Fiji is at the forefront of nations establishing marine protected areas (MPAs) in her territorial waters. By the year 2020, in fact, Fiji plans to have 30% of her waters under protection, which will make that island nation the largest system of underwater sanctuaries in the world.

Fiji’s Cakaulevu (a.k.a., the Great Sea Reef and the world’s third largest barrier reef) – is getting numerous waitui tabu (prohibited fishing zones) to provide sanctuary for thousands of marine species, including marine turtles, dolphins, sharks, and 43 new hard coral species. Similar MPAs have been implemented in other parts of Fiji. Locals agree that, as a result, not only do the flora and fauna appear healthier and happier, but personal incomes have risen by 35%.

I’m impressed with the fact that it isn’t just far-off government officials imposing strict regulations on remote islanders who fish for their livings. Rather, communities worked with the WWF, local politicians, NGOs and local village chiefs to help set up the MPA outside Naduri, the first of the network of marine protected areas in this part of the reef. As conservation practices spread, underwater communities are bound to become even more beautiful, meaning: Fiji will, no doubt, become even more of a premiere dive spot.

Found: The clearest ocean waters on Earth

• Catherine Brahic
• NewScientist.com news service
• 29 June 2007

As clear as the clearest lakes on the planet, salty as ocean waters, and roughly the size of the Mediterranean – this, say researchers, is the clearest and most lifeless patch of ocean in the world. And it is in the middle of the Pacific.

"Satellite images that track the amount of chlorophyll in ocean waters suggested that this was one of the most life-poor systems on Earth," explains Patrick Raimbault of the University of the Mediterranean, in Marseille, France (see image, right).

In October 2004, Raimbault and colleagues set out to study the remarkable patch of ocean water on a three month cruise – called BIOSOPE – that left from Tahiti in French Polynesia, passed by Easter Island and ended on the Chilean coast. Along the way, they sampled the water's chemistry, physics and biology.

Marc Tedetti, also from the University of the Mediterranean, was on the expedition to investigate the water's clarity. He was struck by the colour of the water, which he describes as closer to violet than to blue.

Beautiful but barren

Tedetti returned having found "unequivocally" the clearest ocean waters on the planet. "Some bodies of freshwater are equally clear, but only the purest freshwater," Tedetti told New Scientist. "For instance, researchers have found equivalent measurements in Lake Vanda in Antarctica, which is under ice, and is really extremely pure."

At the clearest point of the south-east Pacific, near to Easter Island, Tedetti found that UV rays could penetrate more than 100 metres below the surface.

This correlates with Raimbault's chlorophyll measurements, which suggest the patch contains roughly 10 times less chlorophyll that is found in most ocean waters. Raimbault says the patch of ocean is the least productive marine region known to man.

In a sense, the patch is isolated from the global river and ocean circulation, which explains its lack of life. Being far away from the coast it does not benefit from continental run-off, and the thermohaline circulation – the "global conveyer belt" – which ferries ocean waters around the world, also mostly runs along the continental shelves.

To compound things, this area of ocean does not benefit from seasonal variations which tend to bring nutrients up from the seabed.

Carbon rich

Elsewhere, winter temperatures cool surface waters, making them denser and causing them to sink and push deeper, nutrient-rich waters up to the surface. But the surface waters of the southeast Pacific are warm year-round, which means they tend to perpetually "float" on top of the deeper, colder waters.

In spite of this, the expedition found the clear water is able to support a food chain, which Raimbault suspects relies heavily on the organisms' ability to recycle nutrients. "As there is no supply, there cannot be any loss either," he says.

Raimbault made another surprising discovery: the patch of the ocean that is poorest in life appears to be extremely rich in dissolved organic carbon.

He is currently teasing apart data in an attempt to explain the apparent contradiction, but believes it may be that the limited availability of nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus means the bacteria that would normally degrade the dissolved organic matter are not able to complete the task.

Journal reference: Geophysical Research Letters (DOI: 10.1029/2007GL029823)

Mysteries of the Deep Sea – The deep sea is one of the harshest habitats on Earth, but is home to many remarkable creatures. Learn more in our comprehensive special report.

http://environment.newscientist.com/article/dn12162-clear-waters-run-deep-in-the-pacific.html

Scientists go hi-tech to save coral

BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Scientists go hi-tech to save coral:

Scientists go hi-tech to save coral

At cold depths, the rate of growth is very slow

Less is known about the floor of the world's oceans than the surface of the Moon.

It is only in the past few decades that technology allowing humans to peer into the previously uncharted depths has become available to scientists.

Remote Operated Vehicles (ROVs) and manned submersible craft have opened up to exploration a whole new world of deep marine ecosystems.

One of the most startling discoveries has been the number of coral reefs living hundreds of metres beneath the surface, in temperatures ranging from 4-13C (39-55F).

The existence of cold-water corals has been known since the 18th Century, but the vast number of reefs found in the deeper reaches of the world's waters has amazed researchers.

Yet just as scientists are beginning to understand the significance of the coral to the surrounding environment, they are also witnessing destruction.

'Glacial' growth

Environmentalists point the finger of blame at the fishing industry and the practice of bottom-trawling with drag nets.

This method of fishing involves scouring the sea bed with huge nets that are some 60m-wide; they are held apart by two huge metal plates weighing up to five tonnes.

Submersibles have brought a revolution in understanding

"It's heavy gear, and the reefs and the coral colonies are very fragile and easily damaged," Jan Helge Fossa, chief scientist at the Norwegian Institute of Marine Research, tells TVE's Earth Report programme for BBC World.

"So it was quite obvious that this was an activity that couldn't go on," he adds.

Cold corals are very slow growing. Some individuals are estimated to be up to 1,800 years old, and many reefs began forming at the end of the last Ice Age.

Damage inflicted by bottom-trawling can result in catastrophic consequences for the species living amid the reefs.

Onboard the institute's research vessel, Dr Helge Fossa is leading a survey for cold corals off the northern coast of Norway.

Robot eyes

The Institute provides advice on the marine environment to the Norwegian government, which is one of the few nations that have introduced laws to protect cold-water corals.

After performing a multibeam sonar sweep that provides a real-time map of the search area, the team launches a ROV through the side of the ship.

I have never heard a person in Norway, after looking at the videos, who objects to protection Dr Jan Helge Fossa, Norwegian marine scientist

Once the vehicle reaches the site 200m below the surface, its four powerful lights allow the onboard camera to beam pictures back to the scientists on the surface.

"What we see here is only coral rubble, and it's trawled out to small pieces," Dr Helge Fossa observes. "We have so far seen no live coral."

It is not long before the prime suspect is located: discarded trawling equipment. Closer inspection reveals that the nets and gear are likely to be about 20 years old.

Norway's Coral Act 1999 protects all coral reefs in the nation's waters from intentional damage, and bottom-trawling has been completely banned in areas surrounding five specific reefs.

However, the country has the longest coastline in Europe, making monitoring and policing the region a tough task.

Video campaign

To date, there have been no prosecutions from data gathered by the space-borne Vessel Monitoring System (VMS), but Dr Helge Fossa's team hopes images obtained by its high-definition submersible-camera system will help change that.

The Norwegian expedition finds evidence of discarded gear

"We know that it is important to get our results out, not only to the government but also to the public," he says. "That's why we use a lot of videos, it tells more than a thousand words."

He said it made people understand why the complex ecosystems needed protecting: "I have never heard a person in Norway, after looking at the videos, who objects to protection."

Some scientists believe that other nations should adopt similar protection measures as Norway, otherwise many more deep cold-water reefs will resemble a lunar surface.

The Television Trust for the Environment's (TVE) Earth Report - Cold Corals Deep will be broadcast on BBC World on 21 and 23 October 2006. Please check schedules for further details

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/science/nature/6067806.stm

Published: 2006/10/20 12:17:05 GMT

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