Reproductive cycles are determined from samples taken at regular intervals over a period of time related to the assumed periodicity of the breeding cycle. Fiscal, ship time and sampling constraints have made this almost impossible at deep-sea vents and seeps, but there is an accumulating mass of data that cast light on these processes. It is becoming apparent that most reproductive processes are phylogenetically conservative, even in extreme vent and seep habitats. Reproductive patterns of species occurring at vents and seeps are not dissimilar to those of species from the same phyla found in non-chemosynthetic environments. The demographic structure of most vent and seep animals is undescribed and the maximum ages and growth rates are not known. We know little about how the gametogenic cycle is initiated, though there is a growing body of data on the size at first reproduction. Gametogenic biology has been described from seasonal samples for only one organism from vent/seep environments. For other species, the pattern of gametogenesis has been described from serendipitous samples that allow determination of reproductive effort, but such samples reveal little about energy partitioning during the gametogenic process. Some notable adaptations have been described in mature gametes, including modified sperm. Spawning has been observed for a number of species both in situ and in vitro. Knowledge of the larvae of vent/seep organisms has been derived from laboratory fertilizations, from field collections over vent and seep areas and, for molluscs, from protoconch or prodissoconch size and shape. Larval dispersal has been perhaps the most intractable aspect of reproduction. Because the length of larval life is known for only a single seep organism and no vent organism, we cannot infer dispersal distance from a knowledge of current velocities. Modelling has been used to assess the maximum larval distance that allows effective migration between vent sectors. An indirect approach has been to estimate gene flow within, and between, vent sites using DNA sequencing and electrophoretic techniques. Although data are still equivocal, there are indications of considerable mixing among populations within and between vent sectors of the same ridge. Our knowledge of reproductive biology in vent and seep organisms remains fragmentary, but with molecular and biochemical techniques, emerging larval culture techniques, and increased sampling effort, the pieces of the jigsaw will eventually form an overall picture.

The estuary of the River Crouch, south-east England, as sampled annually by beam trawl between 1987 and 1989, and again in 1992. The aim of an initial transect survey was to describe and quantify the subtidal epifauna at a time of high ambient tributyltin (TBT) concentrations, arising from the use of tin-based anti-fouling paints on the hulls of moored pleasure craft. Subsequent surveys at representative stations sought to examine the progress of any changes with time in animal populations in relation to a decline in concentrations of TBT in the environment, following a ban on the use of tin-based paints for smaller vessels in July 1987.

Fieldwork on the estuary of the River Crouch in Essex between 1987 (when the use of TBT antifouling on boats less than 25 m in length was banned) and 1992 revealed marked increases in the species diversity of sublittoral benthic communities in the areas which had originally been most contaminated with TBT. These increases were mirrored by a decrease in the TBT contamination of the sediments. The bivalve molluscs and amphipod crustaceans showed the most marked increases in abundance and diversity.

Meio- and macrofauna density and biomass were estimated at the OMEX-transect across the continental slope of the Goban Spur at water depths ranging from 208 to 4460 m in the north-east Atlantic. A linear increase in the ratio between meio- and macrofauna densities with increasing water depth was found. At the continental shelf meiofauna densities were ∼50 times higher than macrofauna densities, whereas in the abyss meiofauna densities were more than 1000 times higher. This change in ratio was due to a significant decrease in macrofauna densities with increasing water depth, whereas the meiofauna densities stayed more or less at the same level. The ratio in biomass between meio- and macrofauna showed a dip at ∼1000 m. At this depth macrofauna biomass was ∼55 times higher than meiofauna biomass, whereas at ∼4500 m macrofauna biomass was only about three times higher. Macrofauna biomass was high at ∼1000 m, due to the high mean individual weight of the macrofauna, whereas meiofauna biomass and mean individual weight were low at this depth.

Meiofauna consisted of ∼90% nematodes. Within the macrofaunal fraction (>0.5 mm) a linear increase in the ratio between nematodes and macrofauna sensu stricto with depth was found. At the deepest station ∼20% of the macrofaunal fraction were nematodes, at the shallowest station only ∼2%. Thus, large nematodes became relatively more important with increasing water depth. Within the macrofauna a decrease in the abundance of filter- and surface deposit-feeders relative to the subsurface deposit-feeders with increasing water depth was observed, which may be related to a change in food input. As no decrease in mean individual weight with increasing water depth within either group could be observed, the change in meio:macrofauna ratios along the OMEX-transect merely reflects a change in taxonomic (functional) composition, rather than a change in size.

In October 1994, 39 macrobenthic samples, divided between two areas, were taken on the western Belgian Coastal Banks. The two areas could not be clearly divided, concerning their macrobenthic communities. Multivariate techniques revealed five coherent communities, linked with typical sedimentological factors: (1) the Barnea candida community in a very compact muddy sediment (median 14 μm); (2) a second community characterized by the presence of spat of Mytilus edulis, with a medium sandy sediment (median 456 μm); (3) the Lanice conchilega community inhabiting a fine sandy sediment (median 211 μm); (4) the Nephtys cirrosa–Echinocardium cordatum community in a coarser fine sandy sediment (median 242 μm); and (5), closely related to the latter, the N. cirrosa community also occurring in a fine sandy sediment (median 224 μm). Only the L. conchilega community belongs to the diverse transition zone. The other four communities seem to be part of the heterogeneous, species-poor coastal zone associations. No open sea communities have been detected in the area.

On the western Coastal Banks only the L. conchilega community, because of the high numbers of Abra alba, Tellina fabula, and Spisula subtruncata, can be interesting as feeding grounds for the common scoter (Melanitta nigra (Aves: Mergini)). Comparison of the spatial distribution of the wintering common scoters and the L. conchilega community revealed no direct similarity. The factors possibly causing this dissimilarity have been discussed.

Nematode assemblages were sampled seasonally at three subtidal stations along the Belgian coast. The stations were characterized by muddy sediments (station 115), fine sand (station 702) and fine to coarse sand (station 790). The forces structuring vertical distribution were investigated by evaluating abundance, species composition, diversity and trophic composition, and relating these to sediment composition, redox state and food sources.

The nematode assemblages at the two finer grained stations (115, 702) were dominated by Daptonema tenuispiculum and Sabatieria punctata. For both species, the vertical distribution in the sediment seemed not dependent on the redoxchemistry, as former believed for S. punctata, but primarily influenced by food availability. This feature could also be recognized for Ixonema sordidum and Viscosia langrunensis, the most abundant nematodes at the coarse sandy station (790).

In general, nematode diversity was regulated primarily by sediment granulometry. Coarser sediments (station 790) yielded more diverse communities compared to the fine sediments (station 115, 702), however seasonal fluctuations and variations with depth into the sediment were not obvious. At the silty stations, when the sediment column was more oxidized in March, overall diversity was higher and showed a positive relationship to the mud content which varied with depth into the sediment. This positive relation is probably explained by an enhanced deposition of organic matter associated with the accumulation of fine particles near the river-mouths. Furthermore, the higher abundance, the lower diversity and the higher dominance found at the two silty stations of the eastern and the western part of the Belgian coast, pointed to a stressed, organically enriched environment.

The results demonstrate that controls on nematode community structure are complex and that information at both species and community level are required to properly evaluate the effects of natural and anthropogenic impacts.

The common cockle Cerastoderma edule is intermediate host to several species of digenean trematodes. However, little is known about the factors influencing the settlement of trematode larvae in cockles as well as their effects on the host. Aspects of the transmission ecology, behaviour and effects on juvenile host specimens of trematode larvae belonging to the genus Himasthla and utilizing mudsnails Hydrobia ulvae as their first intermediate host and various waterbirds as their definitive host have been studied. Cercariae of Himasthla spp. (more than 90% of the metacercariae were identified as H. continua post-experimentally) exhibited a host size-dependent selection within the host size range from 2 to 6 mm. Infection efficiency was reduced by the presence of substratum allowing cockles to burrow, suggesting that the foot and visceral region may be attacked by cercariae. No increased mortality due to parasite infections could be demonstrated within 5 d after infestation. The metacercariae within experimentally infected cockles were primarily located in the connective tissue within the foot and visceral region. Although some cockles were completely filled with metacercariae only small functional effects were detected, such as a slightly prolonged burrowing time of infected specimens.

To determine whether modern theories predict snail growth responses to trematode infestation a field growth study of Onoba aculeus, Littorina saxatilis and L. obtusata infected with two closely related Microphallidae trematodes was conducted in the White Sea. In each of the three host–parasite combinations studied trematode infection causes inhibition of snail reproduction. However, contrary to the classical interpretation of the gigantic growth of infected snails as a side effect of parasitic castration, the presented study failed to demonstrate that Microphallus piriformes causes gigantism in Littorina. The infection tended to stunt growth in L. obtusata and had no significant effect on growth rate of L. saxatilis. In contrast, gigantic growth was observed in O. aculeus infected with M. pseudopygmaeus. Considering that both trematode species are very similar biologically, the discrepancy is attributed to differences in the life history of the snail's hosts. Onoba aculeus is a relatively short-lived snail (2.5–3 y). The lifespan of L. saxatilis and L. obtusata is much longer (up to 9–11 y). These findings agree with a previously reported ‘energetic’ hypothesis that predicts growth alterations in accordance with life history variations of the snail species.

The behavioural repertoire of the Scopimerinae crab, Dotilla fenestrata, is the result of a juxtaposition of rigid and plastic patterns, as an adaptation to the intertidal habitat. On the one hand, the activity of D. fenestrata can be classified in a number of stereotyped behavioural patterns, the occurrence of which may change throughout the low water or on the basis of the crabs' relative size, according to an expected schedule. For example, digging is more pronounced in larger individuals and mostly occurs when the crab emerges or just before it seals itself inside the burrow at the flooding tide. In contrast, maintenance of the burrow is a constant behaviour. Feeding rate, estimated from the number of pseudofaecal pellets emitted, is constant both throughout low water, with the exception of noon when it decreases, and with the feeding crab's size. The behavioural patterns that assure water uptake and temperature regulation (sponging and visits inside the burrow) are more frequently performed around noon. Agonistic patterns are mostly performed by larger individuals; the rate of aggression by resident crabs, against neighbours but mostly against smaller passers-by, increases with the flooding tide. On the other hand, for a surface deposit-feeder like D. fenestrata, plastic behaviour is mainly caused by the unpredictable distribution of food over the emerged platform. The result is a number of adaptive flexible behaviours, like: (1) the presence within the same population of both burrow-centred crabs and wanderers; (2) the construction by the former subpopulation of two types of burrows (feeding-trench burrows and igloos); and (3) significant differences in the behavioural budgets of the inhabitants of the two burrows. The ability to ‘switch’ modes of activity allows responses to both the predictable and unpredictable elements of intertidal environments, the mangrove swamp included.

Sexual maturity in brachyurans is often associated with an allometric change in the relative growth of the animal. Maturity of Liocarcinus depurator was examined by analysing the monthly percentages of mature females (determined by the stage of gonad maturation and the presence of brood and sperm plugs) by size-class and the relative growth of different body parts: length and width of the carapace, length, height and width of the cheliped propodus; width of the abdominal segments in females and length of the first pleopod in males. Using the reproductive criteria the size at the onset of sexual maturity (carapace width at which 50% females are mature) in females of L. depurator is around 30–34 mm cephalothorax width. Principal component analysis (PCA) showed that the main source of morphometric variation for both sexes was due to heterochelia and allometric changes in growth. Morphometric variables were fitted using different regression techniques to one and two-phase growth models. The length of the first pleopod and the propodus of the right cheliped in males, and width of abdominal segments in females showed two clearly differentiated phases. Estimated maturity size (carapace width) corresponding to 50% mature animals was greater in males than in females. In males, size at the onset of maturity ranged between 31.4 and 35.7 mm, depending on the methods and variables used. The size at the onset of maturity in females ranged between 25.5 and 31.5 mm. In the Ría de Arousa, the size at maturity in females of L. depurator estimated using reproductive criteria is considerably greater than the size found based on morphometric criteria. The size at maturity based on morphometric criteria is greater in males than in females.

This study investigated factors affecting the metabolic rate of Cancer pagurus eggs. The oxygen uptake of portions of the egg mass and recently hatched zoeae was measured. Oxygen uptake of the eggs of an individual animal was found to vary widely, with measured mean values under normoxic conditions ranging from 38 to 250 μmoles O2 kg−1 min−1. Mean values for the oxygen uptake of zoeae ranged from 958 to 1168 μmoles O2 kg−1 min−1. Mean rates of oxygen uptake of the eggs generally increased with increasing seasonal temperature and advancing developmental stage. Rates of oxygen uptake were maintained over a wide range of ambient oxygen partial pressures. As oxygen partial pressure in the seawater surrounding the eggs fell from a critical value (Pc) of between 60 and 90 mm Hg, the oxygen uptake of the eggs also declined. Mean values for ambient oxygen partial pressures within the egg mass in vivo ranged from 34 to 98 mm Hg. Adult female C. pagurus appear to be able to detect conditions within the egg mass and adjust their egg ventilation behaviour accordingly. Active egg mass ventilation by the adult increased as the eggs became more developed and their oxygen demands increased.

The mantle muscle tissue of cuttlefish is predominantly made up of circular muscle fibres which run around the body. This circular muscle tissue is divided into discrete blocks by radial fibres, which run perpendicular to the main axis of the body. Growth of mantle muscle tissue was described in the tropical cuttlefish Sepia elliptica by examining muscle block size and the density and size distribution of muscle fibres. Changes in these variables were assessed in juvenile and adult cuttlefish. Generation of new muscle fibres, both within new and existing muscle blocks, occurred as animals grew across the size range. Anterior muscle blocks were smaller than muscle blocks in the middle and posterior regions of the mantle, suggesting that new blocks were generated anteriorly. Muscle blocks were also created in the middle and posterior regions by division of existing large blocks into small blocks by generation of circular and radial muscle fibres. The examination of cuttlefish muscle growth dynamics provided an alternative way of assessing cephalopod growth mechanisms.

The sea urchin egg has proved a reliable and robust system for measuring intracellular calcium release in response to three independent mechanisms: inositol 1,4,5 trisphosphate, cyclic ADP-ribose and the recently identified molecule, nicotinic acid adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NAADP). These calcium release mechanisms have been studied in homogenates of Lytechinus pictus and Spongylocentrotus purpuratus, which are two sea urchin species located off the west coast of the USA. A new calcium-release model from a species of sea urchin present off the coasts of Britain, Psammechinus miliaris is characterized and described. Although the Ca2+-release characteristics in this species do not differ from those of the other two sea urchin species, it may provide a more economical and convenient model for European scientists.

In March 1997 one male and one female brown wrasse Labrus merula spawned spontaneously in aquaria conditions. Eggs were incubated at ambient temperature, salinity, oxygen and pH. The development of the eggs, yolk-sac larvae and larvae is described and illustrated with particular emphasis on features of practical value for identification of specimens from plankton. The ripe egg of brown wrasse is a typical labrid egg with a mean diameter of 0.93±0.05 mm. The incubation period was 106 h 45 min at a mean temperature of 14.3°C. Newly hatched yolk-sac larvae were 3.8±0.02 mm, while the yolk-sac was resorbed when larvae reached 4.68±0.15 mm in total length. Some characteristics which may be useful for identification are described and compared with some other labrid yolk-sac larvae and larvae. The length of newly hatched yolk-sac larvae of brown wrasse was significantly larger (t-test, P<0.05) than those of the other labrid species, but it is similar to that of Labrus bergylta. During the first 16 d (after resorption of yolk-sac) brown wrasse larvae does not possess a double crescent of melanophores on top of the head, but has a few melanophores on the anal fin which is very similar to the pigmentation of Symphodus (Crenilabrus) melops larvae, although there is a difference in length between them. Larvae older than 16 d have a double crescent of melanophores on the top of the head with melanophores on the anal fin-fold identical to L. bergylta larvae, but the difference in larvae length also exists.

The feeding habits of John Dory (Zeus faber) were studied, based on the analysis of stomach contents from fish sampled in five groundfish surveys. These surveys were carried out off the Portuguese coast during different seasons between 1990 and 1992. The main aspects of feeding biology analysed in this paper are: ontogenetic diet changes, temporal variations in food composition and feeding intensity. Multivariate methods were used to investigate ontogenetic diet shifts. Two main length groups were identified: 8.0–24.9 cm fish, feeding mainly on dragonets and silvery pout, and 25.0–55.9 cm fish whose diet was mainly composed of blue whiting and snipefish. A transitional phase (24.0–30.9 cm fish) with a mixed food composition was observed. This ontogenetic diet shift does not seem to correspond to any important change in body morphology but it does coincide with the onset of sexual maturity in the species.

John Dory switched from a diet of small prey species with more pronounced benthic behaviour to a diet of larger schooling pelagic species. This suggests parallel evolution to more pelagic foraging behaviour. However, John Dory feeding habits appear to be largely controlled by the availability and accessibility of prey species: (i) the diet of adult John Dory is dominated by very abundant species; (ii) shifts in the main prey items between different times of the year and between different areas seem to be related both with their absolute and relative abundance in the environment and with the overlap between the depth distribution of predator and prey.

The distribution and abundance of Ascophyllum nodosum, Fucus serratus and F. vesiculosus were described at four sheltered, rocky shores in the south of the Isle of Man. Canopy removal experiments were performed at mid tide level of one sheltered, canopy dominated shore to investigate the interactions between the dominant canopy alga, Ascophyllum nodosum and the competitively inferior canopy species of Fucus serratus and F. vesiculosus. Ascophyllum was removed from replicated plots, 2×2 m in size, in both winter and summer; the early growth and survival of fucoids in the presence and absence of the Ascophyllum canopy were monitored and the eventual development of a new canopy described. Juveniles of F. serratus originally present beneath the undisturbed canopy of Ascophyllum died following canopy removal but new recruitment resulted in some canopy development, principally in the winter experiment. Fucus vesiculosus, despite being completely excluded from the Ascophyllum zone of all four shores described, dominated the canopy removal plots of both winter and summer experiments. The Ascophyllum canopy did not recover over a five year period of observation, although a considerable increase in the abundance of Ascophyllum juveniles occurred.

Three macroalgae were studied: Enteromorpha sp. (Chlorophyceae), Hormosira banksii (Turner) Descaisne (Phaeophyceae), Corallina sp. (Rhodophyceae). Fractal dimensions (D) for the outlines of the three species were 1.24, 1.07 and 1.35 respectively in the step range 0.5–5.0 mm. All three species showed loss of epifauna on the falling tide; loss was greatest in Enteromorpha, least in Corallina. In Enteromorpha and Hormosira, most loss of epifauna was in the form of harpacticoid copepods; in Corallina loss was spread more evenly across the taxa. Epifaunal biomass and retention was much greater in Corallina than in the other two species, partially because of better water-retention properties. Enteromorpha and Hormosira both showed marked decreases in epifaunal diversity during emersion; Corallina did not.

The effects of surface roughness and microsolubility on fouling levels are examined using glass and acrylic samples. It is found that both of these, often overlooked, physical characteristics have a noticeable effect on the rate of fouling. The microsolubility of acrylic results in lower fouling than found on glass despite the higher hydrophobicity of acrylic and the resultant increase in initial attraction for fouling organisms. Fouling levels were found to increase with increasing surface roughness and therefore studies on the fouling susceptibility of different materials should report the roughness values of the samples examined.

Towed underwater TV observations at 440 m in the northern Evoikos Gulf, Greece, revealed a soft mud plain heavily bioturbated by the thalassinidean Calocaris macandreae, with Callianassa subterranea and Nephrops norvegicus also present. Ejecta mounds and feeding traces indicated the presence of a large echiuran, provisionally identified as Maxmuelleria gigas. The locality also supported a dense population of a second echiuran, Bonellia viridis, a species not previously recorded as an inhabitant of sedimentary environments.

The lengths of chthamalid cyprids collected during August 1996 on six rocky shores in County Cork, Ireland are reported. The lengths showed a bimodal distribution. The smaller length mode corresponded well with the length range of laboratory-reared cyprids of Chthamalus montagui (Crustacea: Cirripedia), whilst the larger length mode was greater than the length range reported for laboratory-reared C. stellatus. Size may be a useful means to identify Chthamalus cyprids in field investigations.