Southeast Florida reefs are impacted by a number of stress factors, among which ship groundings are one of the most physically damaging. In particular, portion of Florida reef tract located near Port Everglades in Broward County has been severely damaged by ship groundings. In 2004, extensive physical damage of more than 30,000 m2 was caused by the groundings of two large cargo ships, the MV Eastwind and MV Federal Pescadores. The present study was designed to examine differences in the recruitment patterns of scleractinian corals and pioneering benthic communities settling to these physically impacted sites compared to undamaged reef sites. Coral recruitment and non-coral benthic settlers were measured on unglazed terracotta tiles deployed for a period of one year from February 2007 to February 2008 at five different locations: three control sites (including a high coral cover site) and the two ship grounding sites. Colony morphology and two genetic markers: mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit I and cytochrome b were used to identify the coral recruits. A whole genome amplification kit (REPLI-g, Qiagen) was used to obtain sufficient amounts of DNA from small coral spat. The image analysis software Coral Point Count with the Excel extension was used to quantify the percent cover of major benthic invertebrate and algal functional groups. Results revealed very low diversity of coral recruits and low recruitment rates (0.5-2.7 recruits m-2 yr-1), suggesting a low potential for recovery of the damaged areas. Other non-coral benthic groups, including turf algae, barnacles, sponges, tunicates and bryzoans, were found to proliferate and occupy almost the entire tile substrate, suggesting possible coral recruitment inhibition by space preemption or coral recruit mortality by overgrowth. Turf algae which comprised up to 50% of the total cover were the most dominant group settling to the tiles. This dominance of algae on the tiles reflects a similar pattern of algal dominance present on the reef system along the Florida coast.

This study analyzed non-breeding and wintering Osprey (Pandion haliaetus). Ospreys were surveyed from 2002-2005 along the Intracoastal Waterway in Port Everglades, Florida. The mean yearly sightings were 78 birds / yr. Sightings were not random and most frequent in the Upper-harbor, Mid-harbor and Dania Canal. There was no yearly difference in the number of Ospreys sighted. These results suggest a restoration project that removed all Australian pine trees (Casuarina equisetifolia) in a nearby state park appeared to have no impact on Ospreys in the area. There was a monthly difference in the number of Ospreys sighted, indicating that this area accommodated both migratory and residential Osprey. During the wintering season, October to March, sightings were at their highest. There was a difference in the sighting frequency of Ospreys based on perch type. Ospreys were perched more frequently in Red Mangrove trees (Rhizophora mangle) and on snags. There was a difference in the sighting frequency of Ospreys based on tidal state and water clarity. Ospreys were seen most frequently during low tide and most when water clarity was between 164-255 cm. There was a difference in the sighting frequency of Ospreys based on sky condition. Ospreys were seen most frequently on clear or cloudy days, although it only rained twice during the surveys, precluding statistical comparison to rainy conditions. Sixty four percent of the Ospreys in the Port Everglades area were males and 10% were females. Thirty one percent of photographed birds were individually identifiable. One individual observed on 14 occasions displayed site fidelity throughout the wintering season as well as between 2 yrs. No active nests were identified in the surveyed area of Port Everglades, therefore suggesting it is a possible important foraging and wintering area for resident and migratory birds.

No description available.

Eleven deep-sea coral sites off the eastern Florida coast were surveyed using the Johnson Sea Link I submersible from 8-18 November 2005. Seven of 14 dives contained usable transect data that were used to characterize benthic habitats and associated faunal assemblages. Forty-two taxa at various taxonomic levels were identified and their relative abundances and densities calculated. Coral Point Count with Excel extensions (CPCe) software was used to determine percent cover of substrate types. PRIMER-E was used to compare distributions of percent cover, and relative abundances and densities of organisms within and among sites. Distributions of some taxa were depth-related, while multiple factors appeared to be responsible for the distributions of others. Sites with relatively few dead standing coral colonies and high percentages of coral rubble, sediment and rocky substrates appeared to harbor similar assemblages. Overall organism densities correlated significantly with availability of hard substrates. Dead standing coral colonies did not affect organism density, but had a significant effect on assemblage composition at different sites.

Previous work by Moss et al. (2001) reported surface associated protists on the ctenophore Mnemiopsis sp. They frequently observed the ciliate Trichodina ctenophorii and a Flabellula-like amoeba attached to the comb plate surface. They noted that the ciliate and the amoeba were found on the subsagittal, subtentacular, and the auricular comb plates. The amoeba had a maximum width of about 15 μm and cells were crescent shaped. Ultrastructural evidence suggested that these protists were parasites although the exact nature of the association remained to be determined. This was the background for the present study. The present investigation documented the frequency of occurrence of gymnamoebae on ctenophores around Florida to assess the universality of this association. In addition, the study estimated the number of Flabellula-like comb plate amoebae per comb surface. The study also set out to isolate all surface associated amoebae, including the Flabellula-like amoeba ‘symbiont’, using a variety of media formulations. The goal was to provide material to facilitate the identification and characterization of this amoeba. Over the 2 year duration of the project, 140 Mnemiopsis sp. were collected from 16 locations around Florida and surface tissue was processed for attached gymnamoebae. Eleven morphotypes of amoebae were isolated from 52 of the 140 Mnemiopsis sp. The Flabellula-like gymnamoeba was present on 85% of the specimens, and the greatest concentration on Florida ctenophores was 946 amoebae mm-2 of comb plate surface. One isolated amoeba closely resembled the Flabellula-like amoeba described by Moss et al. (2001). It is interesting to note that although most ctenophores harbored the ‘symbiont’ it was only isolated into culture 2% of the time. No geographic factors appeared to favor the presence of amoebae on ctenophores. The shortest generation time (ie. fastest growth) calculated for the flabellulid amoeba was 20.9 hours at a salinity of 10 ppt and a temperature of 23°C. The amoeba grew best in seawater supplemented with malt/yeast extract to stimulate the growth of attendant prey bacteria. The results suggest that this amoeba, which was numerous on the surface, was predisposed to life on the ctenophore surface and could only be switched to laboratory conditions with difficulty. The amoeba had an unusual stage in the life cycle forming large fused, multinucleate cells in old cultures. This, together with its unique appearance (not resembling any published species) and the problems in amplifying its DNA by PCR (encountered by collaborators at Wood’s Hole Oceanographic Center) suggest that it an interesting amoeba new to science.

No description available.

No description available.

Derelict vessels are commonly deployed as artificial reefs in theUnited States, mainly for recreational fishers and divers.Broward County,Floridaalone has more than 70 vessel-reefs located in its coastal waters. Despite their popularity, few studies have rigorously examined fish assemblages on these structures and compared them to natural reefs. Resource managers need information about fish assemblages on vessel-reefs and natural reefs to better understand the dynamics of local fish populations, understanding which can then effect more informed management decisions. The nearshore environment ofBroward County,Floridaconsists of three reef terraces, each separated by sand substrate, running parallel to the coastline in sequentially deeper water. All vessel-reefs in this study were located in 19 to 21 m of water, on the sand flat, which separates the middle and offshore reef terraces. SCUBA diving was used to perform a non-destructive point-count method to visually assess the fish assemblages at both artificial and natural reef sites. A total of 279 point-counts were performed to characterize the fish assemblages on six vessel-reefs and neighboring natural reefs offshore of Broward County, Florida over 25 months in two intervals (March 2000 to March 2001 and March 2002 to February 2003). This study tested the hypotheses of no difference in fish assemblages between vessel- and natural reefs and also of no difference in fish assemblages between individual vessel-reefs. In a second study, initial fish colonization on a newly deployed vessel-reef, the Ebinizer II, a 25.5m merchant marine vessel, was studied from May 2002 – February 2004. The ship was scuttled in May 2002 off Broward County, Florida and was censused 13 times during the study period. Adjacent natural reefs and the McAllister, a nearby, 30m vessel-reef deployed in June 1998, were also censused during the same period. This study tested the hypothesis that vessel-reefs simply attract fish from surrounding areas rather than increase fish production. If this was the case, initial fish colonization of the vessel-reef would be primarily composed of adult fishes. In general, vessel-reefs had significantly greater mean abundance, species richness, and biomass than nearby natural reefs (p < 0.05, Mixed model ANOVA). Vessel-reef fish assemblages were found to be unique when compared to the nearby natural reefs (SIMPER, MDS, ANOSIM) and the trophic structure differed strikingly between the two reef types. Planktivores dominated on vessel-reefs where these fishes may be utilizing food resources and habitat characteristics not accessible from or found at natural reefs. These results support recent research which suggests artificial reefs that provide unique habitat characteristics not found at local natural reefs may develop a distinct fish assemblage. Additionally, observations of recruitment and growth of particular species (e.g., Lutjanus buccanella, Haemulon aurolineatum, Chromis scotti), which was not observed at nearby natural reefs provides evidence for species-specific production at vessel-reef sites. The initial colonization of the Ebinizer II did reveal attraction of transient piscivores from the family Carangidae, as well as attraction of adult herbivores. However, juvenile fishes dominated (63% of total fish abundance) during the first two sample periods and data from subsequent censuses provided some evidence for continued growth and survival of these recruits. The results also reveal some economically important fish species (i.e. lutjanids and carangids) seem to prefer vessel-reefs, as there was a greater abundance of these species on vessel-reefs than surrounding natural reef areas. Vessel-reef locations are public knowledge and many of these sites are popular fishing spots. The concentration of these valuable species on vessel-reefs should concern local resource managers as these fishes may be exposed to considerable amounts of fishing pressure. Fish assemblages at natural reef sites within artificial reef permit areas were compared to those found in areas with no artificial reefs nearby (> 1.9 km) to further elucidate the potential effects of attraction. Mean fish abundance, mean fish biomass and mean species richness were greater at natural reefs neighboring vessel-reefs (< 1.9 km away), but were not significantly different from natural reefs with no artificial structures nearby. This suggests vessel-reefs are not simply attracting fish away from neighboring natural reefs. As a whole, the results of my studies demonstrate the importance of species-specific analyses when trying to determine the extent to which attraction and/or production may be occurring at a specific artificial reef.

The effectiveness of heat therapy in combination with 1-(2-chloroethyl)-3-cyclohexyl-l-nitrosourea (CCNU) on a murine ependymoblastoma was investigated. Based on survival time and the number of survivors, whole-body hyperthermia (40°C) increased the therapeutic effectiveness of CCNU. Heat alone did not modify the course of the tumor. Microscopic evidence of accelerated tumor destruction in hyperthermic mice was apparent within 24 hours of drug administration. A temporary decrease in body weight was observed with hyperthermia at the higher dose levels of drug. Further investigation determined that heat therapy did not enhance the toxicity of CCNU. This was evident in rebound of animal weight loss and in the absence of drug-related deaths at therapeutic doses. Hyperthermia was found to markedly increase the peritoneal absorption of the ionic compound, cyclophosphamide, while exhibiting no comparable effect on the lipophilic compound, antipyrine. In contrast to the brain and spleen tissue levels of cyclophosphamide, levels in tumor tissue more accurately reflected the increase in plasma-drug levels with hyperthermia. There were no distinguishing differences in tissue uptake of antipyrine.

Vertical profiles of current shear, temperature, and salinity were recorded at two locations in the Florida Current. These measurements extend from the bottom of the surface mixed layer to below the thermocline (50 m to 250 m). Values of shear up to 2 X 10-2 sec-1 were observed in the thermocline. Density and shear profiles (and resulting Richardson Number profiles) are determined to a resolution of about 3 m. Fine structure temperature profiles are presented with resolution of a few centimeters. In measurements made close to the western edge of the current, Richardson Number profiles reveal a stable water column (for wavelengths down to 3 m) through most of the thermocline. However, the lower region of the thermocline reveals considerable instability resulting from a decrease in density gradient while shear remains relatively intense. Measurements obtained at the location closer to the current axis reveal more intense horizontal structure throughout the steepest gradient of the thermocline. This appears to be internal wave activity with roughly 60 m wavelength and 10 m to 20 m amplitude. These waves are compared with Kelvin-Helmholtz rolls. While both sets of measurements reveal what appear to be internal waves, the observations taken closer to the stream axis reveal considerably more of this activity.