Stauromedusae are cnidarians that have attracted relatively little ecological study, especially in the southern hemisphere. They are Scyphozoa that develop directly from the scyphistoma, and each consists of a calyx and a more or less distinct aboral peduncle that attaches to the substratum by an adhesive disc. The animals are mobile on the substratum, but have no pelagic phase. The present note originates from observations made on stauromedusae living in intertidal and shallow subtidal waters at Husvik Harbour, South Georgia (54°11′S 38°40′W) in early 1994. The species concerned was identified from Kramp (1961), Carlgren (1930) and Pfeffer (1889) as Haliclystus antarcticus Pfeffer, 1889. This species has attracted little previous study. The most detailed anatomical description was given by Carlgen (1930), while distributional details are given in O'Sullivan (1982) who followed Pfeffer (1889); at present there is no evidence that the species occurs other than at South Georgia.

Medusae were found on two substrata. Large animals (~30mm high, inconspicuous dark brown in colour) were found on the underside of boulders at extreme low spring tide level in a bay on the north of Husvik Harbour about 1·2 km from the whaling station and close to Brain Island. Locally they were common, often being close enough to touch one another. Smaller animals (pink-orange in colour; cryptic on the macroalga) were found attached to the brown macroalga Desmarestia menziesii J. Aghardh (Phaeophyceae) collected at low-water spring tide level from Kanin Point on the southern shore of the harbour. Medusae on boulders were briefly emersed on particularly low tides: they collapsed, hanging from the peduncle, when out of water, but did not risk desiccation as their habitat was wet and not exposed to the sun.

In the Forth Estuary, Scotland, parasitic rhizocephalan barnacle Sacculina carcini externae or scars occurred on 64% of Carcinus maenas from the subtidal channel of the middle estuary. These became more frequent downstream, infecting 46·9% in the lower estuary basin. Male and female crabs were infected equally, and infection rates in low-tide samples did not differ from high-tide. The parasites occurred most frequently on crabs of 40–50 mm carapace width (CW) rather than the modal crab size class of 50–60 mm. Downstream, proportionately more smaller than larger crabs bore parasites whereas, further upstream, more larger than smaller crabs bore parasites. There is evidence for the annual appearance of new externae in July-October, especially in the lower estuary basin, followed by their growth and loss after about a year.

Buried individuals of the bivalve Donax vittatus (Bivalvia: Donacidae) respond to change in incident light intensity by adjusting their position in the sediment. Video recordings of activity in aquarium tanks in natural daylight revealed that individuals responded to shading by moving upwards, causing some to partially emerge from the sand. Subsequent removal of the shading stimulated reburial to the normal position. Recordings in laboratory aquaria show similar upward movement and partial emergence occurring when illumination in the visible range is switched off. Upward movement and partial emergence of D. vittatus has also been observed to take place prior to spawning.

Observations on samples from Spanish trawlers between September and November of 1995 revealed the presence of mated females of Loligo gahi (Cephalopoda: Loliginidae) from 164–285 m depth, in the Western area of the Falkland Islands Conservation Zone. 93.8% of the mature females, and 31.0% of the maturing ones, were mated. Deposition of spermatophores always took place in the oral membrane between the connectives of arms IV. The relationships between sexual maturation and copulation have been analysed, and the hypothesis of mating acting as a ‘trigger’ of the final sexual maturation in Loligo gahi females is proposed and discussed.

Various marking techniques have been used in ecological studies of starfish as well as other benthic animals (Nielsen, 1992). They include the attachment of tags (Feder, 1955), staining with dye (Hancock, 1958), inscription with sharp pencil (Scheibling, 1980), and branding (T.K, unpublished data). These methods have been used in mark-recapture surveys over durations of several days in order to study the diurnal activity rhythmn (Burla et al., 1972), movement after displacement (Pabst & Vicentini, 1978), and feeding and movement rates (Keesing & Lucas, 1992). However, these marking techniques on starfish have never been quantitatively evaluated for their durability and detrimental effects on the starfish.

Accordingly, in the present study, brand marks on Asterina pectinifera (Müller & Troschel) were examined in the laboratory in terms of their durability and impact on mortality and growth. For Echinodermata, branding has been used mainly on Holothuroidea like Stichopus japonicus (Arakawa, 1990). However, it can also be used for starfish to identify individuals by marking patterns on the body (T.K., unpublished data). The present study tested the effects on the growth and mortality of A. pectinifera. It also examined the durability of brands for distinguishing individuals of a branded group from individuals of an unbranded group, and the durability for identifying individuals with specific coded brand marks.

Two hundred starfish were collected in Maizuru Bay (35°29′N 135°22′E) in September 1995, and the size was measured. The five arms of each individual were measured from the centre of the disc to the arm tip (mm) to determine the mean radius (R0).

Many morphological, chemical, and behavioural characteristics of echinoderms have been implicated as defences against ultraviolet light, though no studies have investigated whether adult echinoderms are damaged by this form of radiation. This study tests whether the brittlestar Ophioderma brevispinum (Ophiuroidea: Echinodermata) is damaged by solar ultraviolet radiation. Specimens of O. brevispinum were exposed to sunlight at a field station on the North Carolina coast. After 4 d of exposure, 12 out of 13 animals were dead and the remaining animal was moderately damaged. The animals in the control treatment, protected by a UV-opaque filter, suffered almost no damage.

On 8 November 1996, a female thresher shark (Figure 1) was caught in a purse seine full of bluefish (Pomatomus saltator), off Şile (41°15′24″N 29°35′30″E). The shark was photographed and tooth samples from lower and upper jaws were removed, and placed in the personal collection of the author. The total length of the shark was 453 cm.

Alopias vulpinus (Bonnaterre, 1788) is one of the three species of the family Alopiidae (Compagno, 1984). The thresher shark occurs worldwide, usually far offshore in temperate to tropical oceans, but where there are schools of bluefish, mackerel and squid, it may come close to the shore in pursuit. It is one of the most common shark species in the Mediterranean Sea (Quero, 1984). According to Devedjian (1926), Rhasis Erazi (1942) and Slastenenko (1955–1956) thresher sharks occur in the Sea of Marmara, the Bosphorus and the Black Sea, however, over the last 40 years there have been no reports of this species in these areas (Ak§iray, 1987).

The capture of a single specimen of Kyphosus sectator (Osteichthyes: Kyphosidae) is reported from the island of Mallorca. It represents the first record of this species in the Balearic Sea (western Mediterranean). Some aspects relative to its distribution and ecology are also given.

On 16 September 1996, a single specimen of Bermuda sea chub, Kyphosus sectator (Linnaeus, 1766) (Osteichthyes: Kyphosidae), was caught with a surrounding purse seine by an artisanal fishing vessel involved in the dolphin-fish (Coryphaena hippurus Linnaeus, 1758) fishery carried out in Mallorcan waters (western Mediterranean) (Massutí & Morales-Nin, 1995). The set was made around drifting wooden flotsam, in waters approximately 600 m deep, and 9 nautical miles from the eastern coast of Mallorca (Figure 1). The surface temperature was approximately 23°C throughout the thermocline, down to a depth of 40 m (S. Devdero, unpublished data).

The status of the two indigenous species of sea horse, the British sea horse (spiny sea horse) (Hippocampus ramulosus) and the European sea horse (short snouted sea horse) (Hippocampus hippocampus) are not exactly known. The British Sea Horse Survey has been set out to identify sites and populations around the British Isles.

The native British sea horses Hippocampus ramulosus Leach and Hippocampus hippocampus Linnaeus are thought to be facing an uncertain future but not from collecting as in tropical species used in the Chinese medicine trade, but from direct interference with their habitat. It was therefore proposed that a survey be carried out to find the extent of their ranges and populations and whether they required protection under the Wildlife and Countryside Act.

In the description of the two species for the survey it was decided to use size and presence or absence of appendages on the dorsal region to identify species. Relative snout to head ratios were not used as it was felt that this had to be discouraged as it would have meant handling the animals and the subsequent stress involved was not acceptable to an animal that is easily stressed.