Although picophytoplankton (PP) (0.2-2 µm) are ubiquitous in lakes and oceans, their importance in rivers has rarely been studied. We examined PP assemblages during the ice-free period in five rivers of a temperate region varying in trophic state (9-107 µg/L total phosphorus) and water discharge (1-87 m3/s). In these rivers, PP abundance reached concentrations as high as those observed in lakes...

An environmental DNA (eDNA) analysis method has been recently developed to estimate the distribution of aquatic animals by quantifying the number of target DNA copies with quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR). A new quantitative PCR technology, droplet digital PCR (ddPCR), partitions PCR reactions into thousands of droplets and detects the amplification in each droplet, thereby allowing direct qua...

We describe the distribution and abundance of the brain-encysting trematode Euhaplorchis californiensis and its second intermediate host, the California killifish (Fundulus parvipinnis), in 3 estuaries in southern California and Baja California. We quantified the density of fish and metacercariae at 13-14 sites per estuary and dissected 375 killifish. Density (numbers and biomass) was examined ...

Environmental DNA (eDNA) promises to ease noninvasive quantification of fish biomass or abundance, but its integration within conservation and fisheries management is currently limited by a lack of understanding of the influence of eDNA collection method and environmental conditions on eDNA concentrations in water samples. Water temperature is known to influence the metabolism of fish and conse...

Phytoplankton study has become more significant in the Caspian Sea due to the occurrence of ecological events such as algal blooms and the introduction of the invader species(Ctenophore, Mnemiopsis leidyi). A seasonal study was conducted to investigate the features of phytoplankton community one decade after this invasion in the Iranian coast of Caspian Sea during 2009-2010. According to the re...

mnemiopsis leidyi population activities first were recorded during the coastal observations in 2001 in which its population considerably increased afterward and now sustained the southern caspian sea. maximum summer-autumn m. leidyi abundance was recorded in euphotic layer in 2002 (851±85 ind.m-3) and maximum biomass was in 2001 with 48.1±14.4 g.m-3) while minimum were in aphotic layer. in year...

species composition, relative abundance, absolute abundance and biomass of sturgeon species were studied during the years 2008-2009. eighty five stations were covered in the stratified random sampling design in depths less than 1om using 9m bottom trawl (head line) and in depths more than 10m using 24.7m bottom trawl (head line). more than 70 specimens of acipenser persicus were caught during t...

The global geographic distribution of subseafloor sedimentary microbes and the cause(s) of that distribution are largely unexplored. Here, we show that total microbial cell abundance in subseafloor sediment varies between sites by ca. five orders of magnitude. This variation is strongly correlated with mean sedimentation rate and distance from land. Based on these correlations, we estimate glob...

The choice of a specific microhabitat represents a compromise among a number of different factors organisms use to monitor habitat suitability. Grassland vegetation structure can vary widely along environmental gradients over a relatively small area. This vegetation structure can have a large influence on habitat selection by grasshoppers (Orthoptera). However, it is not clear which vegetation ...

We measured bacterial abundance, cell size distribution, and related microbiological and geochemical parameters in 20 stratified lakes from three regions in the U.S. Both largest cell size and greatest bacterial abundance occurred in anoxic waters. Bacterial size distributions from the hypolimnia of lakes that were oxic were identical to those in surface waters. Bacteria from anoxic hypolimnia ...