Cristiane Maria Rocha Farrapeira

Ship hull fouling in the port of Recife, Pernambuco

Ports of big coastal cities are exposed to exotic species as a consequence of shipping traffic. As the Port of Recife receives an annual average of 491 ships from other regions of Brazil and from all over the world, this work was aimed at knowing which marine animals were passively transported on such vessels hulls, in order to map and monitor new bioinvasions in the area. Thus, 32 vessels of several origins were investigated between November 2005 and March 2006, samples were taken and the macrofauna identified. Sixty species of associated animals were identified, consisting of 28 sessile species, particularly the Cirripedia Balanomorpha and Lepadomorpha as dominants, 8 sedentary animals, namely Mytillidae and Dreissenidae and 23 free-living species, particularly, Caprellidae, Gammaridae, Tanaidacea, Turbellaria, Nemertea and Polychaeta. The first occurrence of Conchoderma virgatum was recorded with exact location for the Brazilian littoral, and Conchoderma auritum, Amphibalanus subalbidus and Haliplanella lineata were recorded for the first time at the littoral of Pernambuco State. The invasion pathway was confirmed for Amphibalanus reticulatus and Mytilopsis leucophaeta, invader species of the estuarine area of Recifes city. Megabalanus coccopoma was considered as a risk invader species for the region.

Sessile and sedentary macrofauna from the Pirapama Shipwreck, Pernambuco, Brazil

Shipwrecks are considered artificial reef environments - structures immersed in aquatic environments (especially marine ones) that provide fauna with shelter, hard substrates, food and nursery areas. This study aimed to survey the benthic animal biodiversity of the Pirapama shipwreck, located 23 m deep and six miles off Recife harbor. From 2001 to 2007, species were observed, photographed and collected through scuba diving. The material was later sorted and identified in the laboratory. A total of 76 sessile and sedentary animal taxa were recorded belonging to the following phyla: Porifera (Demospongiae and Calcarea), Cnidaria (Hydrozoa and Anthozoa), Mollusca (Bivalvia and Gastropoda), Annelida (Polychaeta), Arthropoda (Cirripedia), Bryozoa (Gymnolaemata), Echinodermata (Asteroidea and Echinoidea), and Chordata (Ascidiacea). The greatest richness was for Porifera and Bryozoa - 13 listed species for each. Eleven new occurrences were recorded for the state of Pernambuco, the hydroid Halopteris polymorpha and ten bryozoan species, one of them being the first record for Brazil (Scrupocellaria curacaoensis). The Pirapamas biodiversity was considered typical when compared to other shipwrecks that have been studied around the world.

Zonación vertical del macrobentos de sustratos sólidos del estuario del río Massangana, Bahía de Suape, Pernambuco, Brasil

The estuarine area of the Massangana River (Pernambuco, Brazil) undergoes several kinds of interventions as a result of the activities of the Suape Industrial and Harbor Complex, which could affect local biotic communities. Thus, this study aimed to verify the composition of the benthic macrofauna of hard substrates regarding their vertical distribution in order to support the future biomonitoring of possible changes in this complex. The invertebrates found in an area of 519 m 2 were collected and their distribution on the biogenic and abiogenic substrates was described. A total of 79 species were found, primarily in the mangroves and distributed in three intertidal zones: a Chthamaletum, which comprised the intertidal and upper shore, the balanid zone, with barnacles and oysters in the mid intertidal, and the Bostrychietum, in the lowest region. In general, this matched the Brazilian and international vertical distribution patterns for mangrove invertebrates. The presence of rocky substrate and the areas high salinity made possible the occurrence of 28 species- including the coral Siderastrea stellata - in an estuarine area. The enlarged distribution of the bivalve Isognomon alatus, the barnacle Amphibalanus reticulatus, and the bryozoans Biflustra savartii, Bowerbankia gracilis, and Conopeum reticulum on the Brazilian coast can be explained by the proximity to the Port of Suape, which allows for passive transportation on ships. The scattered distribution of the fouling organisms among the substrates and the absence of characteristic animals of this ecosystem (such as the mussels) suggest that the environment is already undergoing some stress due to the diverse human interventions occurring in this area.

Intra-regional transportation of a tugboat fouling community between the ports of recife and natal, northeast Brazil

Este trabalho objetivou identificar os animais incrustantes e sedentarios associados ao casco de um rebocador que atuava nos Portos de Pernambuco e foi cedido para o Porto de Natal, Rio Grande do Norte. Areas com densa bioincrustacao foram raspadas e as especies foram posteriormente classificadas em relacao ao status de bioinvasao no litoral brasileiro. Dentre as especies identificadas, seis eram nativas do Brasil, duas criptogenicas e 16 exoticas. Destas, oito foram classificadas como estabelecidas (Musculus lateralis, Sphenia fragilis, Balanus trigonus, Biflustra savartii, Botrylloides nigrum, Didemnum psammatodes, Herdmania pallida, Microscosmus exasperatus, Symplegma rubra) e tres como invasoras (Mytilopsis leucophaeta, Amphibalanus reticulatus e Striatobalanus amaryllis). A presenca de M. leucophaeata, Amphibalanus eburneus e A. reticulatus no casco da embarcacao, propiciou sua introducao na costa de Natal. A ocorrencia de grande numero de especies de tunicados em Natal refletiu a biodiversidade bentica da area portuaria e facilitou a inclusao de dois bivalves, Musculus lateralis e Sphenia fragilis, encontrados em seus sifoes e nos intersticios entre colonias ou individuos, respectivamente. Os dados obtidos indicam que a incrustacao em cascos de embarcacoes tem um papel preponderante na introducao de especies exoticas, e que o Porto do Recife atuou como fonte de algumas destas especies.

Biological features on epibiosis of Amphibalanus improvisus (Cirripedia) on Macrobrachium acanthurus (Decapoda)

O objetivo deste trabalho foi relatar a epibiose de cirripedes Amphibalanus improvisus em oito camaroes machos adultos da especie Macrobrachium acanthurus provenientes da Laguna Mundau, Alagoas, Brasil. O numero de cirripedes epibiontes variou desde 247 ate 1.544 especimes por camarao, distribuidos predominantemente no cefalotorax e pereiopodos, mas presentes tambem no abdome e demais apendices. A grande maioria dos cirripedes era recem-recrutada ou ainda estava sexualmente imatura, embora de alguns estivessem ja em reproducao, sugerindo a chegada recente de seu hospedeiro no ambiente estuarino. Apesar de ocorrem outros cirripedes na regiao, A. improvisus foi a unica especie relatada como epibionte em Macrobrachium acanthurus e isto se constituiu o primeiro registro de epibiose de Amphibalanus improvisus A ocorrencia de inumeros especimes nas articulacoes dos pereiopodos e o recobrimento quase total da carapaca de alguns camaroes (incrementando peso aos mesmos) indicam que a especie epibionte esta adaptada a fixacao neste substrato biogenico e que a relacao entre estas duas especies traz prejuizos biologicos ao basibionte.

Intertidal native and introduced barnacles in Brazil: distribution and abundance

aline dos santos klôh, cristiane maria rocha farrapeira, ana paula r rigo and rosana moreira rocha Graduate Program in Ecology and Conservation, Universidade Federal do Paraná—UFPR, Caixa Postal 19031, 82531-980 Curitiba, PR, Brazil, Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco, Departamento de Biologia, Rua D. Manoel de Medeiros, s/no, 52171-900, Recife, PE, Brazil, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Departamento de Zoologia, Caixa Postal 19020, 82531-980 Curitiba, PR, Brazil