Browsing by Author "Biscoito, Manuel"
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- Ichthyofauna of the Selvagens Islands. Do small coastal areas show high species richness in the northeastern Atlantic?Publication . Almada, Frederico; Abecasis, D.; Villegas-Ríos, David; Henriques, Sofia; Pais, Miguel P.; Batista, Marisa; Horta e Costa, Barbara; Martins, Joana; Tojeira, Inês; Rodrigues, Nuno Vasco; Araújo, Ricardo; Souto, Miguel; Alonso, Hany; Falcón, Jesús M.; Henriques, Filipe; Catry, Paulo; Cabral, Henrique; Biscoito, Manuel; Almada, Vítor C.The Selvagens Islands are located in the northeastern Atlantic between the Canary Islands and Madeira Island. As a result of their small size, remote location and harsh sea conditions only a few studies have been conducted to describe their marine species diversity. We were able to identify 29 new coastal fish species, an increase of 33% in the ichthyofauna described for these islands (n = 88). There is a prevalence of species with tropical affinities and only 2.3% (n = 2) are endemic to Macaronesia. Considered a stepping-stone colonization vector from the nearest continental shore, as proposed by other authors for this region, the Selvagens Islands host 34.1% of the ichthyofauna described for the much larger Canary Islands (nspecies = 258, submerged area nSelvagensIs. = 2.3%) and 47.3% of the ichthyofauna described for the more distantly located Madeira Island (nspecies = 186, submerged area nSelvagensIs. = 17.9%). Interestingly, 6.8% (n = 6) of the species failed to bridge the gap between the Selvagens Islands and Madeira Island. Data collected so far showed no trend toward an increasing number of species with high dispersal capability. The Selvagens Islands are an example of a high coastal species diversity occurring even in very small areas of the northeastern Atlantic Ocean.
- A pioneering longterm experiment on mesophotic macrofouling communities in the North AtlanticPublication . Canning-Clode, João; Gizzi, Francesca; Braga-Henriques, Andreia; Ramalhosa, Patrício; Abreu, Pedro; Álvarez, Soledad; Biscoito, Manuel; Buhl-Mortensen, Pål; Delgado, João; Esson, Diane; Freitas, Mafalda; Freitas, Magno; Henriques, Filipe; Jakobsen, Joachim; Jakobsen, Kirsten; Kerckhof, Francis; Lüter, Carsten; Moura, Carlos J.; Radeta, Marko; Rocha, Rosana M.; Santos, Romana; Sepúlveda, Pedro; Silva, Rodrigo; Silva, Teresa; Souto, Javier; Triay-Portella, Raül; Wirtz, Peter; Xavier, Joana R.; Bastida-Zavala, Rolando; Bellou, Nikoleta; Gueroun, Sonia K. M.; Monteiro, João G.The mesophotic zone represents one of our planet's largest and least explored biomes. An increasing number of studies evidence the importance of macrofouling species in marine ecosystems, but information on these communities and the factors influencing their structures at mesophotic depths remain poor. This lack of understanding limits our ability to predict anthropogenic impacts or conduct restoration operations in the mesophotic and the lower boundary of the euphotic zones. In this study, we performed a 24-month experiment in a natural environment to investigate three factors influencing the macrobenthic community structure of the mesophotic and the euphotic lower boundary: depth, substrate orientation and substrate material. Using a manned submersible, several recruitment panels of two different materials were deployed at 100, 200 and 400 meters in vertical and horizontal positions. All three factors contributed to structuring the macrofouling communities, but depth and substrate orientation displayed the strongest effects. This study not only advances our understanding of lower boundary euphotic and mesophotic macrofouling communities but also establishes a foundation for future research and restoration efforts of mesophotic environments in the Madeira archipelago, where mesophotic habitats are amongst the least studied marine habitats in the Northeast Atlantic.
- The distribution of Mola alexandrini in the Subtropical Eastern Atlantic, with a note on Mola molaPublication . Wirtz, Peter; Biscoito, Manuelhe presence of the “Bump-head sunfish” Mola alexandrini (Ranzani 1839) is recorded, via photographic evidence, from the Azores, Madeira Island, the Canary Islands, and the Cape Verde Islands. Eastern Atlantic individuals of Mola mola can also have a bump on the head.