Evidence of Závora Bay as a critical site for reef manta rays, Mobula alfredi, in southern Mozambique.

The largest known reef manta ray (Mobula alfredi) population in Africa has been monitored for more than 20 years at several locations on the coast of the Inhambane Province in southern Mozambique. Nonetheless, before this study, little had been reported on the population dynamics of M. alfredi from Závora, a remote bay in the region. Photographic mark-recapture was used to investigate the size and structure of M. alfredi that aggregate at "Red Sands," a reef cleaning station in Závora Bay. An 11 year photographic data set was used to identify 583 M. alfredi individuals between 2010 and 2021. More than half of M. alfredi individuals were resighted at least once, with most encounters (up to 18 for one individual) occurring during the peak sighting period in July-November each year. An even sex ratio was observed, 44% females and 50% males, with no significant difference in resightings between the sexes. Pollock's robust design population models were used to estimate annual abundance, emigration, annual apparent survival and capture probability at Red Sands from July to November over a 6 year period (2016-2021). Abundance estimates varied year to year, ranging from 35 (95% c.i. [30, 45]) up to 233 (95% c.i. [224, 249]) M. alfredi individuals. Given the seasonal affinity of M. alfredi observed at Red Sands, this study highlights the importance of understanding fine-scale site use within the larger home range of this population to develop local management strategies.

An Integrated Assessment Model for Valuing Water Quality Changes in the U.S.

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) often requires expertise from environmental assessors, hydrologists, economists, and others to analyze the benefits of regional and national policy decisions related to changes in water quality. This led EPA to develop two models to form an Integrated Assessment Model (IAM): HAWQS is a web-based water quantity and quality modeling systems and BenSPLASH is a modeling platform for quantifying the economic benefits of changes in water quality. This paper discusses the development of the component models and applies HAWQS and BenSPLASH to a case study in the Republican River Basin.

Adaptation, Sea Level Rise, and Property Prices in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed.

Coastal communities are facing the dual threat of increasing sea level rise (SLR) and swelling populations, causing challenging policy problems. To help inform policy makers, this paper explores the property price impact of structures that help protect against SLR using a novel and spatially explicit dataset of coastal features. Results indicate that adaptation structures can have a significant positive impact on waterfront home prices, with the most vulnerable homes seeing the largest impacts. The Chesapeake Bay is facing increasing pressure from SLR, and this is one of the first papers to report that local property markets are incorporating that threat.

Hierarchical biogeographical processes largely explain the genomic divergence pattern in a species complex of sea anemones (Metridioidea: Sagartiidae: Anthothoe).

The phylogenetic resolution provided by genome-wide data has demonstrated the usefulness of RAD sequencing to tackle long-standing taxonomic questions. Cnidarians have recently become a model group in this regard, yet species delimitation analyses have been mostly performed in octocorals. In this study, we used RAD sequencing to test the species hypotheses in a wide-spread complex of sea anemones (genus Anthothoe), contrasting this new line of evidence with their current classification. The alternative hypotheses were tested using a Bayes Factors delimitation method, and the most probable species tree was then evaluated under different biogeographic scenarios. Our results decisively rejected the current morphology-informed delimitation model and infer the presence of several cryptic species associated with distinct marine ecoregions. This spatial pattern was remarkably consistent throughout the study, highlighting the role of geographic distribution as a powerful explanatory variable of lineages diversification. The southern Gondwana pattern with episodic, jump dispersal events is the biogeographic historical representation that best fits the Anthothoe species tree. The high population differentiation possibly amplified by the occurrence of asexual reproduction makes it difficult to identify genes responsible for local adaptation, however, these seem to be mainly associated with cellular and metabolic processes. We propose a new set of species hypotheses for the Southern Hemispheric Anthothoe clade, based on the pronounced genomic divergence observed among lineages. Although the link between the genetic and phenotypic differentiation remains elusive, newer sequencing technologies are bringing us closer to understanding the evolution of sea anemone diversity and, therefore, how to appropriately classify them.

A framework for engaging stakeholders on the management of alien species.

Alien species can have major ecological and socioeconomic impacts in their novel ranges and so effective management actions are needed. However, management can be contentious and create conflicts, especially when stakeholders who benefit from alien species are different from those who incur costs. Such conflicts of interests mean that management strategies can often not be implemented. There is, therefore, increasing interest in engaging stakeholders affected by alien species or by their management. Through a facilitated workshop and consultation process including academics and managers working on a variety of organisms and in different areas (urban and rural) and ecosystems (terrestrial and aquatic), we developed a framework for engaging stakeholders in the management of alien species. The proposed framework for stakeholder engagement consists of 12 steps: (1) identify stakeholders; (2) select key stakeholders for engagement; (3) explore key stakeholders' perceptions and develop initial aims for management; (4) engage key stakeholders in the development of a draft management strategy; (5) re-explore key stakeholders' perceptions and revise the aims of the strategy; (6) co-design general aims, management objectives and time frames with key stakeholders; (7) co-design a management strategy; (8) facilitate stakeholders' ownership of the strategy and adapt as required; and (9) implement the strategy and monitor management actions to evaluate the need for additional or future actions. In case additional management is needed after these actions take place, some extra steps should be taken: (10) identify any new stakeholders, benefits, and costs; (11) monitor engagement; and (12) revise management strategy. Overall, we believe that our framework provides an effective approach to minimize the impact of conflicts created by alien species management.

Improving Water Quality in an Iconic Estuary: An Internal Meta-analysis of Property Value Impacts around the Chesapeake Bay.

This study conducts a meta-analysis and benefit transfer of the value of water clarity in the Chesapeake Bay estuary to estimate the property value impacts of pollution reduction policies. Estimates of the value of water clarity are derived from separate hedonic property value analyses of 14 counties bordering the Bay. The meta-analysis allows us to: 1) estimate the average effect of water clarity in the Chesapeake Bay, 2) investigate heterogeneity of effects across counties based on socioeconomic and ecological factors, 3) evaluate different measures of water clarity used in the original hedonic equations, and 4) transfer the values to Bayfront counties in nearby jurisdictions to estimate the property value impacts of the Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL), a policy to reduce nutrient and sediment pollution entering the Bay that is expected to improve water clarity and ecological health. We also investigate the in-sample and out-of-sample predictive power of different transfer strategies and find that a simpler unit value transfer can outperform more complex function transfers. We estimate that aggregate near-waterfront property values could increase by roughly $400 million to $700 million in response to water clarity improvements from the TMDL.

Cryptic diversity and phylogeographic patterns of Deto echinata (Isopoda: Detonidae) in southern Africa.

Recent phylogeographic studies of poorly-dispersing coastal invertebrates in highly biodiverse regions have led to the discovery of high levels of cryptic diversity and complex phylogeographic patterns that suggest isolation, geological, and ecological processes have shaped their biodiversity. Studies of southern African coastal invertebrates have uncovered cryptic diversity for various taxa and phylogeographic patterns that, although sharing some similarities across taxa, do differ. These findings underscore the need for additional studies to better understand the biodiversity levels, distributional patterns, and processes responsible for producing coastal biodiversity in that region. The coastal isopod Deto echinata is of particular interest, as its complex taxonomic history, poor dispersal capabilities, and broad geographic distribution suggest the potential for cryptic diversity. We use mitochondrial and nuclear sequences to characterize D. echinata individuals from localities ranging from northern Namibia to Glentana, about 2,500 km along the coastline on the south coast of South Africa. These are used to assess whether D. echinata harbors cryptic genetic diversity and whether phylogeographic distributional patterns correlate with those previously documented for other coastal isopods in the region. Analysis of mitochondrial and nuclear sequences revealed two deeply-divergent lineages that exhibit a distributional break in the Cape Peninsula region. These findings suggest D. echinata is a cryptic species complex in need of taxonomic revision and highlight the need for further taxonomic and phylogeographic studies of similarly poorly-dispersing coastal invertebrates in southern Africa.

South African Acrothoracica (Crustacea: Cirripedia).

Prior to this review, only three publications, all species descriptions published over 50 years ago, had focussed on South African acrothoracicans. We collected samples from three of South Africa's major marine ecoregions (Benguela, Agulhas and Natal) and used these to produce a revised account of the known regional fauna. This includes a key to known South African acrothoracicans and a systematic account of the species, each description being accompanied by scanning electron and light microscopy images. The number of known South African acrothoracicans is increased from four to eight species, with three new distribution records and two new species added to the fauna, while one existing record is determined to be a nomen nudum. Although this represents a doubling of the known regional acrothoracican fauna, much more remains to be explored, and further research in deeper waters and examination of other potential hosts (such as corals and hermit crabs) are likely to reveal many additional taxa.

Exposure to formaldehyde and asthma outcomes: A systematic review, meta-analysis, and economic assessment.

BACKGROUND: Every major federal regulation in the United States requires an economic analysis estimating its benefits and costs. Benefit-cost analyses related to regulations on formaldehyde exposure have not included asthma in part due to lack of clarity in the strength of the evidence. OBJECTIVES: 1) To conduct a systematic review of evidence regarding human exposure to formaldehyde and diagnosis, signs, symptoms, exacerbations, or other measures of asthma in humans; and 2) quantify the annual economic benefit for decreases in formaldehyde exposure. METHODS: We developed and registered a protocol in PROSPERO (Record ID #38766, CRD 42016038766). We conducted a comprehensive search of articles published up to April 1, 2020. We evaluated potential risk of bias for included studies, identified a subset of studies to combine in a meta-analysis, and rated the overall quality and strength of the evidence. We quantified economics benefit to children from a decrease in formaldehyde exposure using assumptions consistent with EPA's proposed formaldehyde rule. RESULTS: We screened 4,821 total references and identified 150 human studies that met inclusion criteria; of these, we focused on 90 studies reporting asthma status of all participants with quantified measures of formaldehyde directly relevant to our study question. Ten studies were combinable in a meta-analysis for childhood asthma diagnosis and five combinable for exacerbation of childhood asthma (wheezing and shortness of breath). Studies had low to probably-low risk of bias across most domains. A 10-µg/m3 increase in formaldehyde exposure was associated with increased childhood asthma diagnosis (OR = 1.20, 95% CI: [1.02, 1.41]). We also found a positive association with exacerbation of childhood asthma (OR = 1.08, 95% CI: [0.92, 1.28]). The overall quality and strength of the evidence was rated as "moderate" quality and "sufficient" for asthma diagnosis and asthma symptom exacerbation in both children and adults. We estimated that EPA's proposed rule on pressed wood products would result in 2,805 fewer asthma cases and total economic benefit of $210 million annually. CONCLUSION: We concluded there was "sufficient evidence of toxicity" for associations between exposure to formaldehyde and asthma diagnosis and asthma symptoms in both children and adults. Our research documented that when exposures are ubiquitous, excluding health outcomes from benefit-cost analysis can underestimate the true benefits to health from environmental regulations.

Trace Metal Residues in Marine Mussels: A Global Survey.

Pressures from anthropogenic activities are causing degradation of estuarine and coastal ecosystems around the world. Trace metals are key pollutants that are released and can partition in a range of environmental compartments, to be ultimately accumulated in exposed biota. The level of pressure varies with locations and the range and intensity of anthropogenic activities. The present study measured residues of trace metals in Mytilus mussel species collected from a range of locations around the world in areas experiencing a gradient of anthropogenic pressures that we classified as low, moderate, or high impact. The data showed no grouping/impact level when sampling sites in all countries were incorporated in the analysis, but there was significant clustering/impact level for most countries. Overall, high-impact areas were characterized by elevated concentrations of zinc, lead, nickel, and arsenic, whereas copper and silver were detected at higher concentrations in medium-impact areas. Finally, whereas most metals were found at lower concentrations in areas classified as low impact, cadmium was typically elevated in these areas. The present study provides a unique snapshot of worldwide levels of coastal metal contamination through the use of Mytilus species, a well-established marine biomonitoring tool. Environ Toxicol Chem 2021;40:3434-3440. © 2021 SETAC.

Tri-locus sequence data reject a "Gondwanan origin hypothesis" for the African/South Pacific crab genus Hymenosoma.

Crabs of the family Hymenosomatidae are common in coastal and shelf regions throughout much of the southern hemisphere. One of the genera in the family, Hymenosoma, is represented in Africa and the South Pacific (Australia and New Zealand). This distribution can be explained either by vicariance (presence of the genus on the Gondwanan supercontinent and divergence following its break-up) or more recent transoceanic dispersal from one region to the other. We tested these hypotheses by reconstructing phylogenetic relationships among the seven presently-accepted species in the genus, as well as examining their placement among other hymenosomatid crabs, using sequence data from two nuclear markers (Adenine Nucleotide Transporter [ANT] exon 2 and 18S rDNA) and three mitochondrial markers (COI, 12S and 16S rDNA). The five southern African representatives of the genus were recovered as a monophyletic lineage, and another southern African species, Neorhynchoplax bovis, was identified as their sister taxon. The two species of Hymenosoma from the South Pacific neither clustered with their African congeners, nor with each other, and should therefore both be placed into different genera. Molecular dating supports a post-Gondwanan origin of the Hymenosomatidae. While long-distance dispersal cannot be ruled out to explain the presence of the family Hymenosomatidae on the former Gondwanan land-masses and beyond, the evolutionary history of the African species of Hymenosoma indicates that a third means of speciation may be important in this group: gradual along-coast dispersal from tropical towards temperate regions, with range expansions into formerly inhospitable habitat during warm climatic phases, followed by adaptation and speciation during subsequent cooler phases.

Four notable additions to the South African echinoid fauna (Echinodermata, Echinoidea).

Although a comprehensive guide to the South African echinoid fauna was published as recently as 2017, four notable additions to the fauna have emerged since that time and are reported on here. The first South African records for Histocidarispurpurata (Thomson, 1872), Echinothrixdiadema (Linnaeus, 1758), Microcyphusrousseaui L. Agassiz, in Agassiz and Desor 1846, and Pseudoboletiamaculata Troschel, 1869 are presented. All four species have previously been recorded from the Atlantic and/or Indian Oceans and their ranges are thus extended southwards here. These additions increase the total number of echinoid species known from South Africa to 74.

Welfare Analysis in a Two-Stage Inverse Demand Model: An Application to Harvest Changes in the Chesapeake Bay.

Like many agricultural commodities, fish and shellfish are highly perishable and producers cannot easily adjust supply in the short run to respond to changes in demand. In these cases it is more appropriate to conduct welfare analysis using inverse demand models that take quantities as given and allow prices to adjust to clear the market. One challenge faced by economists conducting demand analysis is how to limit the number of commodities in the analysis while accounting for the relevant substitutability and complementarity among goods. A common approach in direct demand modeling is to assume weak separability of the utility function and apply a multi-stage budgeting approach. This approach has not, however, been applied to an inverse demand system or the associated welfare analysis. This paper develops a two-stage inverse demand model and derives the total quantity flexibilities which describe how market clearing prices respond to supply changes in other commodity groups. The model provides the means to estimate consumer welfare impacts of an increase in finfish and shellfish harvest from the Chesapeake Bay while recognizing that harvests from other regions are potential substitutes. Comparing the two-stage results with single-stage analysis of the same data shows that ignoring differentiation of harvests from different regions, or the availability of substitutes not affected by a supply shock, can bias welfare estimates.

Molecular approaches uncover cryptic diversity in intertidal Ligia isopods (Crustacea, Isopoda, Ligiidae) across the southern Africa coastline.

Recent phylogeographic studies along the coastline of southern Africa have uncovered cryptic diversity in several coastal invertebrates, including direct developing crustaceans in the superorder Peracarida. These findings indicating the possible existence of additional cryptic diversity in other yet to be studied peracarids, particularly those known to harbor said cryptic diversity in other regions of the world. Isopods in the genus Ligia are one such taxon. They inhabit patchy rocky beaches, are direct developers, avoid the open water, and exhibit other biological traits that severely constrain their dispersal potential (e.g., poor desiccation resistance). These traits are thought to have led to long-term isolation of populations, and allopatric diversification in Ligia species around the world; however, Ligia species in southern Africa, where three endemic Ligia species of uncertain validity are known to exist, remain unstudied to date. In this study, we used mitochondrial and nuclear markers to characterize Ligia collected in 18 localities from Namibia to the KwaZulu-Natal region of South Africa. We report the presence of cryptic lineages within Ligia species in the region that suggest the need for taxonomic reevaluation of these isopod species.

A micro X-ray computed tomography dataset of South African hermit crabs (Crustacea: Decapoda: Anomura: Paguroidea) containing scans of two rare specimens and three recently described species.

Background: Along with the conventional deposition of physical types at natural history museums, the deposition of 3-dimensional (3D) image data has been proposed for rare and valuable museum specimens, such as irreplaceable type material. Findings: Micro computed tomography (µCT) scan data of 5 hermit crab species from South Africa, including rare specimens and type material, depicted main identification characteristics of calcified body parts. However, low-image contrasts, especially in larger (>50 mm total length) specimens, did not allow sufficient 3D reconstructions of weakly calcified and fine characteristics, such as soft tissue of the pleon, mouthparts, gills, and setation. Reconstructions of soft tissue were sometimes possible, depending on individual sample and scanning characteristics. The raw data of seven scans are publicly available for download from the GigaDB repository. Conclusions: Calcified body parts visualized from µCT data can aid taxonomic validation and provide additional, virtual deposition of rare specimens. The use of a nondestructive, nonstaining µCT approach for taxonomy, reconstructions of soft tissue structures, microscopic spines, and setae depend on species characteristics. Constrained to these limitations, the presented dataset can be used for future morphological studies. However, our virtual specimens will be most valuable to taxonomists who can download a digital avatar for 3D examination. Simultaneously, in the event of physical damage to or loss of the original physical specimen, this dataset serves as a vital insurance policy.

MicroCT imaging applied to description of a new species of Pagurus Fabricius, 1775 (Crustacea: Decapoda: Anomura: Paguridae), with selection of three-dimensional type data.

A new species of hermit crab, Pagurus fraserorum n. sp. (family Paguridae) is described from rocky subtidal reefs off KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, and illustrated using both conventional drawings and colour photographs, and via three-dimensional (3D) X-ray micro-computed tomography (µCT). Because of the limitation µCT has in detecting very fine and soft structures, a novel approach of manually drawing setation and spinulation onto the two-dimensional images of the 3D visualizations was used to illustrate the pereopods. In addition, an interactive figure and rotation movie clips in the supplement section complement the species description, and the 3D raw data of the 3D type data are downloadable from the Gigascience Database repository. The new species is the sixth species of Pagurus Fabricius, 1775 reported from South Africa and is closely allied to the Indo-Pacific P. boriaustraliensis Morgen, 1990 and P. pitagsaleei McLaughlin, 2002, from which it differs by its shorter ocular peduncles, by the armature of the carpus of the right cheliped, and also in colouration. This study presents the first description of a hermit crab in which a majority of taxonomic details are illustrated through 3D volume-rendered illustrations. In addition, colour photographs and COI molecular barcodes are provided, and the latter compared to COI sequences of specimens from Western Australia previously identified as P. boriaustraliensis and of specimens of P. pitagsaleei from Taiwan, as well as to three additional South African members of the genus. The South African taxon was confirmed to be genetically distinct from all species tested.

Summer at the beach: spatio-temporal patterns of white shark occurrence along the inshore areas of False Bay, South Africa.

BACKGROUND: Understanding white shark (Carcharodon carcharias) habitat use in coastal areas adjacent to large cities, is an important step when formulating potential solutions to the conservation conflict that exists between humans and large predatory sharks. In this study, we present the findings of a 2.5-year study of white shark occurrence and movement patterns adjacent to the City of Cape Town in False Bay, South Africa, with a focus on spring and summer months. Fifty-one white sharks were monitored annually at three offshore and twelve inshore sites by VR2 acoustic receivers, over 975 days from 1 May 2005 to 31 December 2007. RESULTS: Occurrence patterns at inshore sites during spring and summer were analysed using a generalized additive mixed model (GAMM) with a spatial term (longitude, latitude), time of day and year included as explanatory variables for site use. We found that sharks occurred more frequently at inshore sites along the northern and northwestern shores, compared to the rest of the bay, and they transitioned most frequently between four adjacent beach sites that encompass the most popular recreational water use areas in Cape Town. There was significant diel variation, with higher shark occurrence around midday, and a peak in shark occurrence in 2005, when human-shark interactions also peaked. However, we found no effect of shark size on occurrence patterns at inshore sites. CONCLUSIONS: White sharks showed the highest levels of occurrence at specific inshore sites between Muizenberg and Strandfontein beach, and thus inclusion of these sites within False Bay's marine protected area (MPA) network or recognition as Ecological or Biological Significant Areas (EBSAs) should be a future consideration. These insights into white shark habitat use at inshore sites in False Bay are important for successfully applying the principles of marine spatial planning (MSP) and for making science-based policy decisions. Furthermore, this information can be used to reduce potential shark-human conflict by incorporating it into future shark safety education campaigns.

A comparison of the monetized impact of IQ decrements from mercury emissions.

OBJECTIVE: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reports that the upper bound of benefits from removing mercury emissions by U.S. power plants after implementing its Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR) is $210 million per year. In contrast, Trasande et al. [Environ Health Perspect 113:590-596 (2005)] estimated that American power plants impose an economic cost of $1.3 billion due to mercury emissions. It is impossible to directly compare these two estimates for a number of reasons, but we are able to compare the assumptions used and how they affect the results. DATA SOURCES AND DATA EXTRACTION: We use Trasande's linear model with a cord/maternal blood ratio of 1.7 and calculate health effects to children whose mothers had blood mercury levels >/= 4.84 microg/L. DATA SYNTHESIS: We introduce the assumptions that the U.S. EPA used in its Clean Air Mercury Rule (CAMR) analysis and discuss the implications. Using this approach, it is possible to illustrate why the U.S. EPA assumptions produce a lower estimate. CONCLUSIONS: The introduction of all the U.S. EPA assumptions, except for those related to discounting, decreases the estimated monetized impact of global anthropogenic mercury emissions in the Trasande model by 81%. These assumptions also decrease the estimated impact of U.S. sources (including power plants) by almost 97%. When discounting is included, the U.S. EPA assumptions decrease Trasande's monetized estimate of global impacts by 88% and the impact of U.S. power plants by 98%.

Three new species of Heteromysis (Mysida, Mysidae, Heteromysini) from the Cape Peninsula, South Africa, with first documentation of a mysid-cephalopod association.

Faunistic studies in sublittoral and littoral marine habitats on the Cape Peninsula, South Africa, have yielded three new species belonging to the genus Heteromysis, subgenus Heteromysis: H. cancellisp. n. associated with the diogenid hermit crab Cancellus macrothrix Stebbing, 1924, and H. fosterisp. n. extracted from 'empty' urchin and gastropod shells. The first documented mysid-cephalopod association is reported for H. octopodissp. n. which was found in dens occupied by Octopus vulgaris Cuvier, 1797, but was also captured from tide pools. The three new species differ from previously known E. Atlantic species, among other characters, by a single spine on the endopods of uropods in combination with large cornea and absence of median sternal processes on thoracic somites. They are also characterized by a white stripe along the dorso-lateral terminal margin of the eyestalks in living specimens. The new species appear quite similar to each other, but are distinguished by different depths of the telson cleft, different distributions of spines on the lateral margins of the telson, different numbers of segments on thoracic endopod 4, and by differently modified setae on the carpus of the third thoracic endopod, as well as on the carpopropodus of the fourth endopod. An updated key to the species of Heteromysis known from the E. Atlantic is given.