Bioluminescence is a common phenomenon in marine organisms, especially in deep water where faint blue light remains. Among elasmobranchs, three families display the ability to emit light, the ...Etmopteridae, the Dalatiidae, and the Somniosidae. Luminous sharks have thousands of minute light organs, called photophores, that are mainly present ventrally and produce light. The main function of shark luminescence is counterillumination to camouflage the shark silhouette by mimicking the residual ambient light and avoiding being spotted by predators underneath. To perform counterillumination efficiently, luminescence needs to be finely adjusted. A new type of control was recently demonstrated via extraocular photoreception at the level of the light organ. An encephalopsin (i.e., opsin 3) was shown to be expressed in the vicinity of the photophore of an Etmopteridae species, Etmopterus spinax. This opsin was also demonstrated to be expressed concomitantly with the photophore development (i.e., when photophores become able to produce light) during E. spinax embryogenesis. To understand the photophore morphogenesis of different shark families, we analyzed the smalleye pygmy shark, Squaliolus aliae, with a photophore formation which represents the first report on the Dalatiidae family. Since Dalatiidae and Etmopteridae are phylogenetically closely related, the photophore morphogenesis was compared with an Etmopteridae representative, Etmopterus spinax. The results also reveal that Squaliolus aliae shares similar encephalopsin expression pattern as in Etmopterus spinax, which further supports evolutionary conservation of photophore morphogenesis as well as its own encephalopsin-based light perception across the two luminous shark families.
In his monograph on Cirripedia from 1851, Darwin pointed to a highly unusual, plateless, and most likely parasitic barnacle of uncertain phylogenetic affinity. Darwin's barnacle was Anelasma ...squalicola, found on deep-water sharks of the family Etmopteridae, or lantern sharks. The barnacle is uncommon and is therefore rarely studied. Recent observations by us have shown that they occur at an unusually high prevalence on the velvet belly lantern shark, Etmopterus spinax, in restricted fjord areas of western Norway. A phylogenetic analysis based on ribosomal DNA data (16S, 18S, and 28S) from 99 selected barnacle species, including all available pedunculate barnacle sequences from GenBank, shows that A. squalicola is most closely related (sister taxon) to the pedunculate barnacle Capitulum mitella. Both C. mitella and species of Pollicipes, situated one node higher in the tree, are conventional suspension feeders from the rocky intertidal. Our phylogenetic analysis now makes it possible to establish morphological homologies between A. squalicola and its sister taxon and provides the evolutionary framework to explain the unprecedented transition from a filter-feeding barnacle to a parasitic mode of life.
Luminous deep-sea etmopterid sharks use hormonal control to regulate bioluminescence. Melatonin and prolactin trigger light emission and, conversely, α-melanocyte stimulating hormone actively reduces ...ongoing luminescence. Interestingly, these hormones are also known as regulators of skin pigment motion in teleost fish and epipelagic elasmobranchs. On the other hand, the melanin-concentrating hormone (MCH) is another regulator of the skin pigment motion in fish melanophores. Here, we studied the putative effect of MCH on the light emission control of the velvet belly lanternshark,
Etmopterus spinax
(Etmopteridae). In parallel, the presence of the MCH receptor in our model is investigated through database searches. Our results show that MCH is not involved in the bioluminescence triggering in the velvet belly lanternshark. Moreover, no MCH receptor transcript was found in a specific transcriptome of the luminous ventral skin of
E. spinax
.
The importance of cold-water coral (CWC) mounds and sponge-beds as habitat for demersal fish was examined in the Træna Deep marine protected area and adjacent areas of the Norwegian continental ...shelf. Standardised longline fishing was conducted twice, in June and March, and predetermined fishing effort was allocated to multiple plots with varying densities of small CWC mounds and sponges, plus control plots with neither of these habitats. Catches within all examined habitats were dominated by the commercially exploited Brosme brosme (representing >70% of the total catch) followed by Galeus melastomus, Chimaera monstrosa, Etmopterus spinax and the commercially exploited Molva molva. Positive correlations were found between catch rates of B. brosme, G. melastomus and C. monstrosa and the density of small CWC mounds at one or both sampling occasions. No correlations were found between the catch rates of the same three species and sponge density; thus the sponge-beds did not seem to represent an ecologically equivalent habitat to the CWCs. On a local scale the CWC habitat appeared to attract higher abundances of B. brosme, G. melastomus and C. monstrosa; however, the differences in catch rates between coral and non-coral areas were quite low (2–4 times) and for most species the fish–habitat relationships varied temporarily and with the spatial scale used to delineate the habitat. Based on the methods and the results of this study and the fact that CWCs only occupy a very small proportion of the Norwegian shelf, the importance of CWCs as habitat for the populations of the demersal fish species examined is judged as marginal.
Chondrichthyans are a very important taxon that plays a top predator role in the trophic level of the food web, and species are particularly vulnerable to exploitation in the marine ecosystem. The ...deep waters of the eastern Mediterranean Sea have been less studied than the continental shelf, especially for the chondrichthyans. Therefore, the present study was conducted to investigate the spatio-temporal distribution of chondrichthyans collected monthly in eight different (200–900 m) depth strata during different periods (2010–2011 and 2019–2021) using an otter bottom trawl. A total of 17 species were identified in upper bathyal, composed of 6 batoids, 10 sharks, and one chimaera. The constant species (dominance: DO% > 50) in the study area were
Galeus melastomus
,
Scyliorhinus canicula
,
Etmopterus spinax
, and
Raja clavata
. The most abundant species was
E. spinax
, followed by
G. melastomus
. Fourteen and 15 species were caught during the first and the second survey, respectively. Biodiversity characteristics (number of species, abundance, and diversity indices) varied only with bottom depth. Two different depthwise assemblages were estimated along the bottom depth gradient; ≤ 500 m and > 500 m. The discriminator species were
R. clavata
,
S. canicula
,
G. melastomus
,
Dipturus oxyrinchus
, and
Squalus blainville
found on the upper slope and
E. spinax
,
G. melastomus
, and
Centrophorus cf. uyato
found on the lower slope. With our results, total number of demersal chondrichthyan species found in the bottom (bathyal and continental shelf) of Antalya Bay was reached to 26 species.
An important character on several taxonomic levels for shark identification is the tooth morphology. Sharks show a variety of highly specialized dentitions reflecting adaptations to their feeding ...habits. Intraspecific variation of tooth morphology such as sexual or ontogenetic dimorphism is poorly known in many species, even though tooth morphology plays a decisive role in the characterization of the fossil record of sharks, which comprises mostly fossil teeth. Here we analyzed the dentition of 40 jaws of the Velvet Belly Lantern Shark
Etmopterus spinax
and identified ontogenetic and sexual dimorphic characters such as total number of teeth, number of upper teeth, cusplet numbers in upper jaw teeth and width of lower jaw teeth. Dimorphic characters may reduce intraspecific competition for food, as
E. spinax
segregates by sex and size and may allow for identifying the male sex. The lower jaw tooth height, a sexually non-dimorphic character, was used to re-calculate the total length of specimens, which represents the first such approach for a squaliform shark. Results derived from the extant
E. spinax
are subsequently applied to fossil
Etmopterus
sp. teeth (Miocene) to gain individual information such as sex or size, but also characterize the extinct population from the excavation site by a size distribution profile in comparison to data from extant populations. This approach indicates the presence of multiple ontogenetic stages in the extinct population.
Modeling sensitive elasmobranch habitats Pennino, M. Grazia; Muñoz, Facundo; Conesa, David ...
Journal of sea research,
10/2013, Letnik:
83
Journal Article, Conference Proceeding
Recenzirano
Basic information on the distribution and habitat preferences of ecologically important species is essential for their management and protection. In the Mediterranean Sea there is increasing concern ...over elasmobranch species because their biological (ecological) characteristics make them highly vulnerable to fishing pressure. Their removal could affect the structure and function of marine ecosystems, inducing changes in trophic interactions at the community level due to the selective elimination of predators or prey species, competitors and species replacement. In this study Bayesian hierarchical spatial models are used to map the sensitive habitats of the three most caught elasmobranch species (Galeus melastomus, Scyliorhinus canicula, Etmopterus spinax) in the western Mediterranean Sea, based on fishery-dependent bottom trawl data. Results show that habitats associated with hard substrata and sandy beds, mainly in deep waters and with a high seabed gradient, have a greater probability registering the presence of the studied species than those associated with muddy shallow waters. Temperature and chlorophyll-α concentration show a negative relationship with S. canicula occurrence. Our results identify some of the sensitive habitats for elasmobranchs in the western Mediterranean Sea (GSA06 South), providing essential and easy-to-use interpretation tools, such as predictive distribution maps, with the final aim of improving management and conservation of these vulnerable species.
•Bayesian spatial models were used to map the sensitive habitats of elasmobranchs.•Greater probabilities of presence result mainly in deep waters, sandy beds with high slope.•Species show different optimum depths, probably for bathymetric segregation.•Maps of predicted occurrence were provided to improve fishery management.
Canyons play a fundamental role in enhancing the abundance and diversity of marine organisms through the transport of organic matter and food resources, the presence of complex physical habitats and ...the absence of trawl fishing. During four baited lander deployments carried out in the Bari Canyon (Southern Adriatic Sea, Central Mediterranean), at depths of 443–788 m, about 43 h of video records were taken, for a total of 619,200 video frames. A total of 12 benthopelagic fish species (five chondrichthyes and seven osteichthyes) were identified. The blackspot seabream (Pagellus bogaraveo) was the most often observed fish species. The depth of 787 m represents a new depth record for this fish in the Adriatic Sea. Groups of up to 40 individuals of P. bogaraveo were attracted to the bait and were shown in single frames. The individuals were observed both exploring the area and feeding actively on the bait. The European conger (Conger conger) was recorded at each deployment. Clear scavenger behaviour was also observed in this teleost fish and in the shark Etmopterus spinax. The shark species Centrophorus granulosus and Hexanchus griseus, which are considered ‘vulnerable’ on the published IUCN Mediterranean Regional Red List, were also recorded but, although attracted by the bait, they were never seen feeding on it. Other fish species, harvested on fishing grounds, such as Merluccius merluccius, Helicolenus dactylopterus and Polyprion americanus, were also recorded. This study represents the first in situ documentation, at very low impact, of the fish fauna in the Bari Canyon, providing new insights into its small scale distribution and behaviour, the first in situ direct observation of the variable feeding behaviour of P. bogaraveo and its gregarious habits, as well as indicating that this canyon could act as a refuge area for species that are vulnerable to fishing on the open slope.
Etmopterus spinax is a deep-sea shark species that inhabits the northeast Atlantic and the western Mediterranean Sea. Skagerrak and Kattegat are reported to be part of the distribution of the ...species, but it has never been noted in the southern Baltic. Lacking any commercial value and commonly discarded in trawl and longline fisheries, E. spinax has been poorly studied. We reported on the first record of one specimen of E. spinax caught in the Pomeranian Bay on October 13, 2016 at a depth of 10m. It was a female measuring 42.7cm in total length. The morphological examination of the specimen was supported with COI barcode analysis, whereas species assignment to the population of origin was conducted based on a control region (CR) sequence of mtDNA. COI and CR sequence searches against GeneBank confirmed its identity as E. spinax and revealed that the specimen shared identical haplotypes with fish from populations in the Azores, Rockall Trough, and west of Ireland in the northeast Atlantic. The stomach contents, parasitic fauna, and hepatosomatic index of the individual were also examined. Only one L3 larval Anisakis simplex nematode specimen was collected from the stomach lumen of the shark. The specimen could have arrived in the Pomeranian Bay along with an inflow from the North Sea. In December 2014, a strong Major Baltic Inflow brought large amounts of water into the Baltic Sea, followed by some inflows of moderate intensity.
The deep-sea lantern shark Etmopterus spinax occurs in the northeast Atlantic on or near the bottoms of the outer continental shelves and slopes, and is regularly captured as bycatch in deep-water ...commercial fisheries. Given the lack of knowledge on the impacts of fisheries on this species, a demographic analysis using age-based Leslie matrices was carried out. Given the uncertainties in the mortality estimates and in the available life history parameters, several different scenarios, some incorporating stochasticity in the life history parameters (using Monte Carlo simulation), were analyzed. If only natural mortality were considered, even after introducing uncertainties in all parameters, the estimated population growth rate (λ) suggested an increasing population. However, if fishing mortality from trawl fisheries is considered, the estimates of λ either indicated increasing or declining populations. In these latter cases, the uncertainties in the species reproductive cycle seemed to be particularly relevant, as a 2-year reproductive cycle indicated a stable population, while a longer (3-year cycle) indicated a declining population. The estimated matrix elasticities were in general higher for the survivorship parameters of the younger age classes and tended to decrease for the older ages. This highlights the susceptibility of this deep-sea squaloid to increasing fishing mortality, emphasizing that even though this is a small-sized species, it shows population dynamics patterns more typical of the larger-sized and in general more vulnerable species.
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