The phenomenon of chaotic genetic patchiness is a pattern commonly seen in marine organisms, particularly those with demersal adults and pelagic larvae. This usually associated sweepstakes recruitment variable reproductive success. Here we investigate the biological underpinnings this species goby Coryphopterus personatus. We find that populations show tell-tale signs including: small, but significant, differences structure over short distances; non-equilibrium or "chaotic" differentiation...

Introduced Indo-Pacific red lionfish (Pterois volitans/miles) have spread throughout the greater Caribbean and are associated with a number of negative impacts on reef ecosystems. Human interventions, in form culling activities, becoming common to reduce their numbers mitigate effects invasion. However, marine managers must often decide how best allocate limited resources. Previous work has identified population size thresholds needed limit lionfish. Here we develop framework that allows...

Diseases have caused unprecedent mortality in Caribbean coral communities. White band disease (WBD) has killed up to 95% of all endangered Acroporids since it was first observed 1979. Despite the devastating impacts WBD, its etiology is currently unknown although recent research identified two bacterial strains – ASVs classified as a Cysteiniphilum litorale and Vibrio sp., most likely pathogens. To better understand we pretreated corals with antibiotics determine how prophylactic use...

White band disease (WBD) has caused unprecedented declines in the Caribbean Acropora corals, which are now listed as critically endangered species. Highly disease-resistant cervicornis genotypes exist, but genetic underpinnings of resistance not understood. Using transmission experiments, a newly assembled genome, and whole-genome resequencing 76 A. from Florida Panama, we identified 10 genomic regions 73 single-nucleotide polymorphisms that associated with include functional protein-coding...

Abstract Coral diseases contribute to the rapid decline in coral reefs worldwide, and yet bacterial pathogens have proved difficult identify because 16S rRNA gene surveys typically tens hundreds of disease‐associate bacteria as putative pathogens. An example is white band disease (WBD), which has killed up 95% now‐endangered Caribbean Acropora corals since 1979, pathogen still unknown. The identified WBD‐associated amplicon sequencing variants (ASVs) from at least nine families with little...

North Atlantic humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae (Borowski, 1781)) are increasing in number, necessitating current data from winter areas for assessing potential interactions with humans. Occurrence patterns of wintering off Puerto Rico were investigated to predict where aggregate nearshore areas. Here we describe the relationship between group associations and bathymetric features western Rico. Data collected 2011 2014. Effort consisted 240.9 vessel h, 13.0 aerial 303.6 h land...

Abstract Coral species in the genus Acropora are key ecological components of coral reefs worldwide and represent most diverse scleractinian corals. While Indo-Pacific have annotated genomes, no genome has been published for either two Caribbean Acropora. Here we present first fully endangered staghorn coral, cervicornis. We assembled this using high-fidelity nanopore long-read sequencing with gene annotations validated mRNA sequencing. The size is 318 Mb, 28,059 genes. Comparative genomic...

The invasion of the western Atlantic Ocean by Indo-Pacific red lionfish (Pterois volitans) has had devastating consequences for marine ecosystems. Estimating number colonizing can be useful in identifying introduction pathway and inform policy decisions aimed at preventing similar invasions. It is well-established that least ten were initially introduced. However, estimate not faced probabilistic scrutiny based solely on haplotypes maternally-inherited mitochondrial control region. To...

Marine deep subsurface sediment is often a microbial environment under energy-limited conditions. However, life has been found to persist and even thrive in environments. The Mariana forearc represents an ideal location for determining how can withstand extreme conditions including pH 10-12.5 depleted nutrients. International Ocean Discovery Program Expedition 366 the Convergent Margin sampled three serpentinizing seamounts located along chain with elevated concentrations of methane,...

Abstract Aim Humans are unintentionally affecting the evolution of fishery species directly through exploitation and indirectly by altering climate. We aim to test for a relationship between biogeographic patterns in shell phenotypes an over‐exploited shellfish presence humans identify human‐mediated adaptive trade‐offs. The implications these trade‐offs discussed with respect sustainability fishery. Taxon endemic Hawaiian intertidal limpet, ‘opihi makaiauli (Patellagastropoda, Nacellidae,...

The invasion of the western Atlantic Ocean by Indo-Pacific red lionfish ( Pterois volitans ) has had devastating consequences for marine ecosystems. Estimating number colonizing can be useful in identifying introduction pathway and inform policy decisions aimed at preventing similar invasions. It is well-established that least ten were initially introduced. However, estimate not faced statistical scrutiny based solely on haplotypes maternally-inherited mitochondrial control region observed...

Microorganisms have the capability to produce antimicrobial compounds through secondary metabolism, which are not essential within their natural environments, but been found many effects on ecosystem. Antimicrobial production genes identified in a wide range of microorganisms; however, research into ecosystems has historically limited continental soil environments. deep subsurface and marine especially deeply buried sediments. We analyzed 466 high-quality metagenome assembled genomes (MAGs)...

The invasion of the western Atlantic Ocean by Indo-Pacific red lionfish ( Pterois volitans ) has had devastating consequences for marine ecosystems. Estimating number colonizing can be useful in identifying introduction pathway and inform policy decisions aimed at preventing similar invasions. It is well-established that least ten were initially introduced. However, estimate not faced statistical scrutiny based solely on haplotypes maternally-inherited mitochondrial control region observed...

The eastern oyster, Crassostrea virginica, is divided into four populations along the western North Atlantic, however, only published mitochondrial genome sequence was assembled using one individual in Delaware. This study aimed to (1) assemble C. virginica genomes from Texas with pooled restriction-site-associated DNA sequencing (ezRAD), (2) evaluate validity of assemblies including comparison Sanger data, and (3) genetic differentiation both between Delaware genomes, as well among three...