Sarpa salpa, a fish species capable of causing long-lasting hallucinatory experiences in humans, has been caught far north of its normal range. Normally found in the warm waters of the Mediterranean and off the African west coast, Sarpa salpa is an unusual guest in northern Europe. Only three previous recordings exist from British waters, with the third being from 1983 when a single specimen was caught off the Channel Islands.

The most recent specimen of this mind altering Sparidae was caught six miles south of Polperro, Cornwall, by fisherman Andy Giles. When Giles found the strange looking creature entangled in his net he brought it back to shore to have it identified.

Picture by by Sam and Ian

“We were trawling for lemon sole but hauled up the net at the end of the day and almost immediately saw this striped fish”, Giles said. “I had never seen one before so brought it back for experts to have a look at it. But now I realise what it was – and the crazy effects it can have – perhaps I should have taken it into town to sell to some clubbers.”

Instead of selling it to clubbers, Giles could also have brought it home to the dinner table – without much risk of having any mind altering experiences. Within its native range, Sarpa salpa, commonly known as Salema porgy, is a popular food fish and suffering from hallucinations after ordering a plate of Salema in a Mediterranean restaurant is very rare.

According to marine experts, Sarpa salpa has to feed on a certain types of plankton in order to become hallucinogen. In 2006, two men were hospitalized in southern France after eating Sarpa salpa who evidently had feasted on vast amounts of psychedelic plankton before being caught.

“Plankton has very minute amounts of poison and fish that eat a great deal of it can develop this poisoning”, says Oliver Crimmen, fish curator at the Natural History Museum. Sarpa salpa are a popular fish to eat in the Mediterranean and I think the 2006 incident was a rare event.”

So, why can urge a Sarpa salpa to leave the pleasant waters of Africa and head for chilly Britain? According to James Wright, senior biologist at the National Marine Aquarium in Plymouth, the fish may simply have tagged along when some other species decided to head north, but it may also be possible that the species is on the rise in northern Europe.

“These are a fairly common fish off Tenerife, Malta and Cyprus but it is very rare to get them this far north. It could be a single fish that was shoaling with a different species, says Wright. But it could be that there are more of them in our waters.”

Genetic pattern analysis strongly suggests that California and British Columbia urchins are not connected via larval dispersal and comprise two distinct populations. Sea urchins have one of the longest larval periods of any known marine invertebrate and it has therefore been tempting to assume that ocean currents must be mixing urchin larvae all over the place, making it difficult for any distinct populations to form. But research results from the University of California now indicate that these two Pacific populations are two clearly separated ones.

Sea urchins –  Picture from the Red Sea

Together with former* graduate student Celeste Benham, marine biology professor Ron Burton of the University of California at San Diego have analyzed 500 adult sea urchins from Californian waters across five microsatellite markers and then compared the genetic patterns to an existing, similar database of 1,400 urchins from British Columbia. The Californian specimens were collected off the coast of San Diego, Los Angeles and Mendocino counties.

The genetic signatures found by Burton and Benham strongly suggest that the southern and northern populations are not connected via larval dispersal.

“From my evolutionary perspective, our results are important because they imply that, even on long time scales, there is no mixing, Burton explains. This means there is at least the potential for populations to adapt to different ocean conditions and gradually diverge. This is the first step in the two populations potentially becoming different species.”

This is the first time scientists have detected any population structure in the species. Similar studies carried out in the past have used fewer genetic markers and found no population genetics structure in the species despite having tested many different patches across its range.

“The take-home message of this study is that if you use more markers and newer techniques you will find some population differentiation that before nobody found,” says Burton.

* Benham is now a research assistant at the marine mammal laboratory at Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute in San Diego.

U.S. and Canadian scientists have documented the first known migration of blue whales from the coast of California to areas off British Columbia and the Gulf of Alaska since the 1965 ban of commercial whaling.

Researchers identified 15 separate cases where Blue Whales were spotted in the waters off British Columbia and the Gulf of Alaska. Four of the observed animals were identified as Blue Whales previously seen swimming in Californian waters, which suggests that Blue Whales are re-establishing their old migration pattern.

The identifications were made by comparing pictures of Blue Whales photographed in the northern parts of the Pacific Ocean since 1997 with photographs of Blue Whales taken off the southern U.S. West Coast. The identity of individual Blue Whales was determined based on dorsal fin shape and pigmentation patterns in skin colour.

The Blue Whale was almost hunted to extinction during the 20^th century and even though commercial whaling has been prohibited (albeit not strictly enforced) since 1965 the populations are having a hard time recovering. Blue Whales are still listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species and no more than roughly 5,000 to 12,000 Blue Whales are believed to remain in our oceans, with 2,000 of them living of the U.S. West Coast.

The migration research was conducted by scientists from Cascadia Research Collective in Washington State, NOAA’s* Southwest Fisheries Science Center in California, and Canada’s Department of Fisheries and Oceans. You can read the full article in the most recent issue of the journal Marine Mammal Science.

* The United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

Basking sharks have surprised researchers by leaving the cold waters of the north Atlantic during fall and head down to Bahamas and the Caribbean.

“While commonly sighted in surface waters during summer and autumn months, the disappearance of basking sharks during winter has been a great source of debate ever since an article in 1954 suggested that they hibernate on the ocean floor during this time,” said Gregory Skomal of Massachusetts Marine Fisheries. “Some 50 years later, we have helped to solve the mystery while completely re-defining the known distribution of this species.”

Basking Shark

Basking sharks are notoriously difficult to study for several reasons. They feed exclusively on plankton which means you can’t catch them using traditional rod-and-reel methods and they disappear down to deep waters for extended periods of time. During the part of the year when they do stay close to the surface, they are only found in cool waters teaming with plankton where the underwater visibility is close to zilch.

This situation has led to a lot of speculation about their life style and where they actually spend the winters. Despite being the second largest fish in the world, the basking shark is remarkably elusive and mysterious.

What finally solved the puzzle was the aid of new satellite-based tagging technology and a novel geolocation system which made it possible to track the basking whales as they commenced their annual migration. Data sent out from the tags unveiled that basking sharks migrates to warm tropical waters in fall. Their migrations have been able to go undetected until know since the sharks travel at depths of 200 to 1,000 meters and sometimes remain at those depths for weeks or even months at a time.

Skomal said he and his fellow researchers were absolutely surprised when they first received a signal from the tagged sharks coming from the tropical waters of the western Atlantic, since virtually everyone assumed basking sharks to be cool-water dwellers found in temperate regions only.

This new breakthrough show just how little we still know about even the largest marine animals inhabiting the world’s oceans. The basking shark can reach a length of 10 metres and weigh up to seven metric tons, yet it has managed to spend every summer in the Caribbean without anyone noticing it.

You can find more information in the report published on May 7 in Current Biology.

The Florida legislature has unanimously passed a bill to create the “Florida Coral Reef Protection Act”.

The new act will protect Florida’s coral reefs from boat groundings and injuries caused by anchoring by providing penalties for anchoring on a coral reef or making any other vessel damages the corals. Depending on the nature and extent of the damage, wrongdoers will pay damages ranging form $150 to $250,000.

The “Florida Coral Reef Protection Act” applies to all State waters that contain coral reefs off the coasts of Broward, Martin, Miami-Dade, Monroe, and Palm Beach counties.

The legislature determined that coral reefs are valuable natural resources that contribute ecologically, aesthetically, and economically to the state of Florida. It also declared that it is in the best interest of the state of Florida to clarify the Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s powers and authority to protect coral reefs through timely and efficient recovery of monetary damages resulting from vessel groundings and anchoring related injuries.

The passage of the act has been preceded by several months of negotiations among various state agencies, stakeholder and environmental groups, including the Marine Industry Association and Reef Relief whose involvement greatly contributed to the act becoming a reality. Another important participant was the Palm Beach County Reef Rescue which has worked with the regulatory community for several years to develop a more effective enforcement strategy against coral reef anchoring.

To see a link to the legislation click here

The elusive Megamouth shark (Megachasma pelagios) is such an uncommon sight that only 42 confirmed reports of this fish exists since the species was first scientifically described in 1976.

The most recent report, the 42nd one, comes from a group of Philippine fishermen from the city of Donsol who accidently caught a four-metre long specimen while trawling for mackerel.

Mega mouth shark exhibited at the Aburatsubo Marine

Worldwide Fund for Nature project manager Elson Aca examined the fish and identified it as a megamouth shark. The shark weighed an estimated 500 kg and was captured at a depth of 200 metres off the eastern coast of Burias Isle. This wasn’t the shark’s first encounter with fishing gear; it had scars on its face from gill nets.

Soon after being landed at Barangay Dancalan in Donsol, the shark died. Aca entreated the fishermen not to butcher the shark, but the fishermen had a more traditional than scientific approach to caught fish and promptly cooked it with coconut milk, malunggay leaves and chilli to make a Philipine dish known as kinunot.

According to Aca, the the Donsol-Masbate region deserve more attention from conversationalists.

“The presence of two of the world’s three filter feeding sharks warrants special attention for the Donsol-Masbate region”, Aca said. “Whale and megamouth sharks, manta rays, dolphins and other charismatic giants indicate that the region’s ecosystem is still relatively healthy. By protecting megafauna, we help maintain the dynamic balance of our seas, and ensure the entire ecosystem’s resilience and natural productivity.”

New laws proposed for managing the seas around Scotland include a year round ban against killing seals. If passed by MSPs, the new laws will make killing or injuring a seal an offence except under licence or for animal welfare concerns.

Licences will be given in certain circumstances, e.g. to prevent serious damage to fisheries. Killing without a licence will only be allowed in certain situations where animal welfare is a consideration, e.g. “mercy killing”.

Current legislation on seal conservation dates back to the 1970s and only makes license a requirement during the breeding season.

The curbs are a part of Scotland’s very first Marine Bill. The proposed laws will cover the Scottish sea from the shoreline to the 12-mile limit and is an attempt to balance competing interests through a legal planning framework.

The Marine Bill is not only focused on wildlife but aims to provide better protection for marine archaeology and wrecks as well. Under the Bill’s wider provisions, marine planning partnerships will be formed with local bodies, and a more straightforward licensing system involving less red tape is planned for areas like renewable energy.

As part of a reef restoration study, researchers removed 20 specimens of the Caribbean giant barrel sponge from the Conch Reef off of Key Largo, Florida and then re-attached them using sponge holders consisting of polyvinyl chloride piping. The sponge holders were anchored in concrete blocks set on a plastic mesh base. Some sponges were reattached at a depth of 15 meters and some further down at 30 metres.

Venus Flower Basket sponge. A deep sea glass species.

The results of the study now show that sponges are capable of reattaching themselves to reefs if we help them by keeping them properly secured during the recuperation period. After being held stationary by sponge holders for as little as 6 months the sponges had reattached themselves to the Conch Reef. Of the 20 specimens reattached in 2004 and 2005, 62.5 percent survived at least 2.3-3 years and 90 percent of the sponges attached in deep water locations survived. During the study period, the area endured no less than four hurricanes.

This is very good news for anyone interested in reef restoration, since the new technique can be used to rescue sponges that have been dislodged from reefs by human activities or storms. Each year, a large number of sponges are extricated from reefs by human activities such as vessel groundings and the cutting movements of chains and ropes moving along with debris in strong currents. Severe storms can also rip sponges from the reef, which wouldn’t be a problem if it weren’t for the fact that so many sponges are also being removed by human activities. When combined, storms and human activities risk decimating sponge populations. Old sponges can be hundreds or even thousands of years old and their diameter can exceed 1 meter (over 3 feet). Sponges of such an impressive size and age can naturally not be rapidly replaced by new sponges if they die.

Sponges can survive for quite a while after being dislodged but is difficult for them to reattach themselves to reefs without any help since they tend to be swept away by currents and end up between reef spurs on sand or rubble, where they slowly erode and eventually die.

“The worldwide decline of coral reef ecosystems has prompted many local restoration efforts, which typically focus on reattachment of reef-building corals,” says Professor Joseph Pawlik of the University of North Carolina-Wilmington, co-author of the study. “Despite their dominance on coral reefs, large sponges are generally excluded from restoration efforts because of a lack of suitable methods for sponge reattachment.”

The results of the study, which were published in Restoration Ecology, show that we can help the sponges to survive by using the new technique. Earlier attempts were less successful since they relied on cement or epoxy; two types of adhesives that do not bind well to sponge tissue.

A NOAA* expedition by has discovered seven new species of Bamboo corals (family Isididae) in the deep waters off Hawaii Six of them may belong to en entirely new genus.

The findings were made within the Papah Naumoku Kea Marine National Monument, one of the biggest marine conservation areas in the world.

“These discoveries are important, because deep-sea corals support diverse seafloor ecosystems and also because these corals may be among the first marine organisms to be affected by ocean acidification,” said Dr Richard Spinrad, NOAA’s assistant administrator for Oceanic and Atmospheric Research.

The NOAA expedition made a lot of other interesting findings in addition to the new species, including a five foot (roughly 150 cm) tall Yellow bamboo coral tree and a 600 meter deep coral graveyard comprising an area of more 1 square kilometre. It is difficult to determine when the corals in the graveyard died; it could have happened a few thousand years back as well as more than one million years ago – or anytime in between.

Old corals can provide us with a lot of information about Earth’s history and how the oceans have changed over time since corals produce growth rings in a fashion similar to that of trees.

“Studying these corals can help us understand how they survive for such long periods of time, as well as how they may respond to climate change in the future,” said Rob Dunbar, a Stanford University scientist.

* The US Department of Commerce’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

Japanese eel (Anguilla japonica) larvae have amazing buoyancy compared to other oceanic plankton, and the reason may be a type of gelatinous goo contained within the body.

When researchers from the University of Tokyo measured the specific gravity of Japanese eel larvae, they found it to be as low as 1.019, rising to 1.043 – showing the larvae to be potentially lighter than seawater itself. (Sea water has an average specific gravity of 1.024.)

When they checked other marine creatures for comparison, such as juvenile jellyfish and the sea snail Hydromyles, their specific gravity turned out range from 1.020 to 1.425. Of 26 plankton creatures tested, the Japanese eel larva was the lightest.

The food consumed by Japanese eel larvae and many other planktons tend to be found in the greatest abundance really close to the water’s surface where there is plenty of light. The low specific gravity may therefore increase the survival rate of Japanese eels by making it easier for them to find a lot of things to eat.

So, why does the Japanese eel float so well? According the Japanese study, the answer may rest in gelatinous goo – or more specifically in a matrix of transparent gelatinous glycosamino-glycans. Controlled by osmoregulation through the chloride cells that cover the body of a Japanese eel larva, this marvellous adaptation makes it possible for the larva to stay close to the surface. Researchers have also suggested that it might help the larva to stay away from predators.

For more information, see the paper: Tsukamoto K, Yamada Y, Okamura A, Kaneko T, Tanaka H, Miller MJ, Horie N, Mikawa N, Utoh, T and S Tanaka (2009) – Positive buoyancy in eel leptocephali: an adaptation for life in the ocean surface layer. Marine Biology, vol. 156, no. 5. pp. 835-846.