Saona Island hosts the last hawksbill turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata) nesting population in the Dominican Republic, which has experienced a severe decline in the last decades, mostly due to illegal egg take. Here we present the results of an artificial incubation programme started in 2007 to protect the clutches from human predation. A preliminary survey in 2006 showed that about 60% of clutches laid were taken by humans. Over the study period (2007–2010) we recorded 400 clutches, of which 38.2% were predated by humans, 40.7% were artificially incubated and 21% were incubated in situ. Overall, the artificial incubation programme allowed the release of 12,340 hatchlings. No differences were found in hatching and emergence success between clutches incubated in situ and clutches artificially incubated. However, incubation temperatures and incubation durations recorded suggest a male-biased hatchling sex-ratio in artificially incubated clutches. Although artificial incubation may mitigate the effect of egg take, our results indicate that other measures, such as clutch relocation to protected sections of the beach should be taken. Beach patrolling and education are currently implemented so that artificial incubation will be eventually phased out in favour of in situ incubation.

Three new species of Strongylacidon from north-east Brazil are described: Strongylacidon oxychaetum sp. nov. and Strongylacidon solangeae sp. nov. from Bahia State, and Strongylacidon chelospinata sp. nov. from Fernando de Noronha Archipelago, Pernambuco State. Strongylacidon oxychaetum sp. nov. has thinly encrusting shape with lobate projections, strongyles, oxychaetes and arcuate chelae; S. solangeae sp. nov. is characterized by having massive shape with hispid surface, strongyles and unguiferate chelae; and S. chelospinata sp. nov. present thinly encrusting shape, strongyles, and arcuate isochelae with large spines on the outer edge of the axis. An identification key for the nine valid species of Strongylacidon from the Tropical Western Atlantic is provided. New morphological characters, viz., oxychaetes and spined arcuate isochelae (here termed acanthochelae), are added to the definition of the genus Strongylacidon and of the family Chondropsidae.

The occurrence in British coastal waters of the swimming crab Liocarcinus vernalis is confirmed for the first time. Features are given to enable this species to be distinguished from the closely related L. holsatus and L. marmoreus. The zoogeographical distribution and bionomics of L. vernalis are briefly discussed.

Assessing and monitoring the environmental impact off Mar del Plata (38°S 57°W) led to the need to identify the cirratulid polychaetes. Cirratulids are indicators of moderately impacted areas or early indicators of organic contamination. Some subtidal sand patches affected by sewage discharge have high abundances of a new, rare and difficult to place species, such as Caulleriella trispina sp. nov. This species is characterized by having characters of three bitentaculate cirratulid genera, including three kinds of spines: unidentate, sub-bidentate and bidentate. The genera and their taxonomic characters are discussed as well as the need for monitoring and environmental assessments for correct identification. A key to the known species from the warm-temperate region of Argentine Cirratulidae is given.

Extensive beds of the mussel Perumytilus purpuratus are a common feature of the mid-intertidal along the Chilean coast. The beds are an alternative stable state that results from the anthropogenic removal of the keystone predator Concholepas concholepas. The mussel beds constitute an important microhabitat that supports a large number of small mobile macrofaunal and meiofaunal species. This paper seeks to determine if the absence of extensive mussel beds within a Marine Reserve results in a reduced species richness. We used ‘live’ artificial mussel beds on plates to determine the species richness of fauna both inside and outside the Marine Reserve. There were no significant differences in the species richness (Smean) on plates inside and outside the Marine Reserve but there were differences with the natural mussel beds. Though the assemblages on the plates did not reach maturity ‘live’, artificial mussel beds could prove a useful tool for assessing the species richness of small mobile macrofauna and meiofauna.

A review of the shallow-water species of the genus Tryphosella from the British Isles is presented and a new species, Tryphosella lowryi, is described. In addition, Tryphosella minima is recorded from this region for the first time. This brings to five the total number of species of this genus now known from the British Isles. All taxa are fully described and illustrated, and a key to the species is provided.

Cleaning mutualisms are important interactions on coral reefs. Intraspecific variation in cleaning rate and behaviour occurs geographically and is often attributed to local processes. However, our understanding of fine-scale variation is limited, but would allow us to control for geography and region-specific behavioural patterns. Here, we compare the cleaning activity of Pederson's cleaner shrimp (Ancylomenes pedersoni) on two neighbouring, yet ecologically dissimilar, reef systems in Honduras: Banco Capiro, an offshore bank close to significant land runoff with high coral cover but a depleted fish population, and an oligotrophic fringing reef around the island of Utila, with lower coral cover but high fish abundance and diversity. The proportion of realized to potential fish clientele was <60% at both sites, and the composition of clientele was neither reflective of the demographics of the resident assemblages at each site nor similar between sites. Parrotfishes represented 13–15% of total fish abundance at both sites yet accounted for >50% (Banco Capiro) and 10% (Utila) of all cleans. Conversely, the schoolmaster snapper (Lutjanus apodus) represented ~1% of total fish abundance at both sites yet accounted for 40% (Utila) and 1% (Banco Capiro) of all cleans. After standardizing our cleaning rate data by clientele abundance, we find that clientele at Banco Capiro engage in over four times as many cleaning encounters per hour with A. pedersoni than at Utila. Our study highlights the variable nature of coral reef cleaning interactions and the need to better understand the ecological and environmental drivers of this biogeographic variation.

The trophic ecology of the chihuil sea catfish Bagre panamensis was studied through high-resolution variations in its feeding habits and trophic position (TP) in the SE Gulf of California, relevant to sex, size and season. The combined use of stomach content (SCA) and stable isotope analysis (SIA) allowed us to perform these analyses and also estimate the TP of its preys. Results of this study show that the chihuil sea catfish is a generalist and opportunistic omnivore predator that consumes primarily demersal fish and peneid shrimps. Its diet did not vary with climatic season (rainy or dry), size or sex. Results from the SIA indicated high plasticity in habitat use and prey species. The estimated TP value was 4.19, which indicates a tertiary consumer from the soft bottom demersal community in the SE Gulf of California, preying on lower trophic levels, which aids in understanding the species' trophic role in the food web. Because this species and its prey are important to artisanal and industrial fisheries in the Gulf of California, diet assimilation information is useful for the potential establishment of an ecosystem-based fisheries management in the area.

Thyone and Havelockia are worldwide-distributed genera represented in the Western Atlantic by eight and three species, respectively. In this paper, we describe two new shallow-water species from the Brazilian coast: Thyone waltinhoi sp. nov. and Havelockia oraneae sp. nov. These genera are very similar morphologically but the presence of subdivisions in their calcareous rings separates them into different families, Thyone in Phyllophoridae and Havelockia in Sclerodactylidae. To observe the presence of subdivisions, we submerged the calcareous rings in an iodine solution prior to morphological analyses. Thyone waltinhoi sp. nov. differs from its Western Atlantic congeners in its dermal ossicles and Havelockia oraneae sp. nov. differs from its South-western Atlantic congeners in the composition of its introvert ossicles. In addition to species descriptions, illustrations and morphological diagnoses of both genera are provided, along with a synoptic table of their Western Atlantic species, and a discussion of the taxonomic significance of the dermal ossicles and the calcareous ring.

One species of the cheilostome family Membraniporidae Busk is recorded for the first time in the Bay of Biscay. Observations were made on a dead fragment of Membranipora arborescens (Canu & Bassler), previously known in the Atlantic littoral of America (from the Cape Hatteras to Brazil), in the eastern Pacific (from Mexico to Equador) and in the coasts of western Africa.

Namanereids are an interesting group because of their success, remarkable amongst polychaetes, in colonizing freshwater habitats, particularly damp-terrestrial situations in tropical rainforests (see reviews by Feuerborn, 1932; Corrêa, 1948; Wesenberg-Lund, 1958; Hartman, 1959). Species assigned to the subfamily Namanereidinae Hartman, 1959 are now known from world-wide localities but there are few records from European waters.

The abundance of the harbour seal (Phoca vitulina) was recorded on a tidal bar in the Dover Strait off Calais, over a six-year period between 1999 and 2004. Despite clear seasonal and interannual variability in the number of individuals hauled out on the bar, underwater activities devoted to the installation of industrial wastewater pipes conducted during seven weeks 1 km away from the bar led to a dramatic decline in the number of seals hauling out. A full 19 months after the end of the operations the harbour seal population had not recovered their initial abundance. The results of this study have critical consequences on the conservation of P. vitulina in areas impacted by anthropogenic activities.

Sampling in subtidal waters of the Persian Gulf revealed a new species of ghost shrimp from the family Gourretiidae. Gourretia qeshmensis sp. nov. resembles G. sinica from the South China Sea and G. manihinae from Tanzania. Gourretia qeshmensis sp. nov. differs from these two species by characters of the ischium of the large cheliped, pereopod 3, exopod of the uropod and maxilliped 3.

A previous study detected mixing of two deeply split mtDNA clades (Clade I and Clade II) for Atlantic and Mediterranean populations of the medusozoan Pelagia noctiluca. The north hemisphere glaciations and the Messinian salinity crisis have been proposed as the two main biogeographic events related to the isolation between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. We tested if the splitting time between Clade I and Clade II of P. noctiluca was associated with one of these geological events. Our study was based on DNA sequence data of mitochondrial (COI and 16S ribosomal RNA) and nuclear (18S ribosomal RNA, internal transcribed spacer 1 and 5.8S ribosomal RNA) genes from populations of the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. The rise of the Isthmus of Panama was used to calibrate substitution rates for COI. This calibration was based on the detection of a shallow but significant genetic structure between P. noctiluca populations from the Pacific and the Atlantic Oceans. Considering our calibration for COI, we refute a possible origin of Clades I and II during the Messinian salinity crisis. Our estimates suggest the origin for a putative common ancestor of Clades I and II around 2.57 Ma (with 95% 2.91–2.22 HPD), roughly corresponding to the Gelasian stage of the early Pleistocene. These alterations include changes in the sea level and oceanic currents at the Strait of Gibraltar and other regions of the Mediterranean basin, and could explain the origin of the two P. noctiluca clades.

Cosmopolitan habitat-forming taxa of algae such as the genus Corallina provide an opportunity to compare patterns of biodiversity over wide geographic scales. Nematode assemblages inhabiting Corallina turves were compared between the south coasts of the British Isles and South Korea. A fully nested design was used with three regions in each country, two shores in each region and replicate samples taken from three patches on each shore to compare differences in the taxonomic and biological trait composition of nematode assemblages across scales. A biological traits approach, based on functional diversity of nematodes, was used to make comparisons between countries, among regions, between shores and among patches. The taxonomic and biological trait compositions of nematode assemblages were significantly different across all spatial scales (patches, shores, regions and countries). There is greater variation amongst nematode assemblages at the scale of shore than at other spatial scales. Nematode assemblage structure and functional traits are influenced by the local environmental factors on each shore including sea-surface temperature, the amount of sediment trapped in Corallina spp. and tidal range. The sea-surface temperature and the amount of sediment trapped in Corallina spp. were the predominant factors determining nematode abundance and composition of assemblages and their functional diversity.

Ethylacetate extract of the gorgonian coral Suberogorgia reticulata was obtained and its effects on the larval settlement by acorn barnacle Balanus (=Amphibalanus) reticulatus and pearl oyster Pinctada martensii and spore germination of green algae Ulva linza and U. lactuca and red alga Gracilaria tenuistipitata was assessed in this study. Results showed that no larval settlement or spore germination occurred at the dose of 100 μg cm−2. Both larval settlement and spore germination were significantly inhibited by the extract at doses of 1 μg cm−2 for B. reticulatus, 0.1 μg cm−2 for U. linza and U. lactuca, and 0.01 μg cm−2 for P. martensii and G. tenuistipitata. It could be concluded that the gorgonian coral S. reticulata may produce bioactive substances with a broad spectrum of activity against a range of marine sessile organisms including macroalgae and invertebrates.

A theory that an ancient population of Isarachnanthus from the eastern Atlantic originated the current species is discussed. Based on analysis of DNA barcoding and cnidome it was possible to identify some specimens from Ascension Island. These specimens were identified as Isarachnanthus maderensis, since the divergence of DNA barcoding was very small and the cnidome data agreed with published data. This material permitted an enhanced discussion about the origin of this population.

Between 2013 and 2015, 2092 chondrichthyan fish belonging to eight species were collected along the Tunisian coast and examined for parasitic copepods. Eleven different species of copepods representing five families, Caligidae, Eudactylinidae, Kroyeriidae, Lernaeopodidae and Pandaridae, were collected. Three of these species are reported for the first time in Tunisia (Pseudocharopinus malleus, Perissopus dentatus and Nesippus orientalis) and one new species of Kroyeria was found. In addition, we identified a number of new host records including: the presence of Eudactylinella alba on Bathytoshia centroura, Dasyatis pastinaca, Mustelus mustelus and Scyliorhinus canicula. This is the first record of Nemesis sp. on B. centroura in Tunisia. We report here for the first time the presence of Pseudocharopinus bicaudatus and Pseudocharopinus concavus on Bathytoshia centroura and Lernaeopoda galei on Raja clavata.

A new species of Leptostraca, Nebalia cambodiana sp. nov. (Crustacea: Malacostraca), is described from Cambodia. The specimen was collected by light traps on a diving deck where the bottom consisted of fine sand and gravel. The new species is distinguished from all other known species of Nebalia by the following characteristics: rostrum very long, length nearly 3.5 times width; a compound eye with one distinct dorsal papilla and four small lobes on distal margin; an antennular flagellum with nine articles; the fourth article of the antennular peduncle with only one distal thick seta; the antennular scale is elliptical, with a length that is 2 times the width; exopod of the second maxilla is the same length as first article of its endopod; pleonites 5 to 7 with rounded denticles along their posterior dorsal margins; the protopod of pleopod 4 lacks serration along the posterior margin; and anal plates with distinct lateral ‘shoulder’.

The new species is the first species of Leptostraca found in South-east Asia. In this paper, we provide illustrations and a detailed description of the diagnostic characteristics of N. cambodiana sp. nov.

The global distribution of the 12 described, deep-living megacalanid species is presented in a report on collections made in the Southern Ocean during the United States Antarctic Research Program. Included are four species and one subspecies described in 1967 from samples obtained early in the program. In the material lent to the author by the Smithsonian Oceanographic Sorting Center, only six of the described species were found. Bathycalanus bradyi, common in those samples and elsewhere, is made a synonym of B. richardi. The predominant forms are, in order, B. richardi, Megacalanus princeps, and B. princeps, with Bradycalanus sarsi, B. typicus and B. gigas also present. Knowledge of their distribution and ecology is discussed.