Cape Tribulation Research Articles

Cover Picture and Issue Information

Journal of EcologyVolume 111, Issue 5 p. 967-969 COVER PICTURE AND ISSUE INFORMATIONFree Access Cover Picture and Issue Information First published: 02 May 2023 https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.13916AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Graphical Abstract Cover image: Fruiting bodies of the fungus Microporus xanthopus sprout from a dead log in the Daintree rainforest of Queensland, Australia, near Cape Tribulation. Fungi are the main drivers of wood decay here, while termites play a secondary role. Photograph by Steven D. Allison. For full details see pages 982–993. Volume111, Issue5May 2023Pages 967-969 RelatedInformation

Spectrophotometric properties of materials observed by Pancam on the Mars Exploration Rovers: 4. Final mission observations

The last sets of Panoramic Camera (Pancam) visible/near-infrared (432–1009 nm) multispectral observations made under varying viewing and illumination geometries by the Mars Exploration Rovers Spirit and Opportunity were examined using radiative transfer models to study the surface scattering and microphysical nature of rock and soil units at both sites. Nearly 12,000 individual measurements were collected for this study of soil, dust, and rock units over phase angles of ~0° to ~150°. Images were acquired on sols 1944–1946 (June 2009) at Troy, the final resting place of Spirit on the western side of Home Plate in Gusev crater, and by Opportunity at three locations on the western rim of Endeavour crater in Meridiani Planum between sols 2785 (November 2011) and 3867 (December 2014). Sky models were developed from observations of atmospheric opacity, which enabled corrections for diffuse skylight when combined with surface facet orientations determined from stereo images. Model results were improved by removing data affected by scattered light evident in some high phase angle images (resulting from minor dust contamination on the camera windows). At Troy, relatively dust-free “gray” rock units exhibited narrow, forward scattering behaviors akin to previous analyses of similar gray rock units at Gusev crater. Soils and “red” rocks coated with greater amounts of dust were more backscattering. Red rocks exhibited higher single scattering albedo (w), macroscopic roughness (θ), and opposition effect width (h) parameters, indicative of rough, low-porosity surfaces perhaps with more uniform grain size distributions. At Meridiani Planum, rubbly soils near São Gabriel crater and Cape Tribulation exhibited w values typical of previous soil analyses. However, the large drift “dust” deposits found in depressions on the northern tip of Cape York near Turkey Haven demonstrated elevated w values with a downturn toward 1009 nm, consistent with minor hydration of these materials. The dust deposits were modeled with the lowest θ values and highest h values of all soil units analyzed during the Opportunity mission, indicative of a smooth surface with homogeneous grain size distribution and/or lower porosity than other units. The dust unit scattering function was dissimilar to those for atmospheric and airfall-deposited dusts, however, suggesting that the originally deposited materials had been modified, perhaps by hydration and ongoing aeolian effects. Analyses of phase curve ratios among the units studied here and from laboratory data of analog soils suggested that surface scattering is a major control on the peak phase angle position of the “arch” in phase curve ratios, alongside the effects of particle-scale roughness.

New species of Austroboletus (Boletaceae) in Australia

Three new species of Austroboletus are described from Australia. Austroboletus austrovirens has been collected repeatedly in northern Queensland and the Northern Territory, and is primarily distinguished by its dry, green pileus and stipe ornamentation, and boletoid spores with meandering ridges and pits. Austroboletus viscidoviridis is known from southeastern coastal Queensland and Cape Tribulation; it is recognized by a glutinous-viscid, olive-green pileus, brown reticulum on the stipe, and amygdaliform spores with nodulose-tuberculate ornamentation. Austroboletus roseialbus has only been collected in eastern New South Wales and is characterized by a white pileus with subtle rosy tints, and flattened, white, lanose patches; the spores are amygdaliform with irregular alveolate-reticulate ornamentation.

Regularization of Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter CRISM along‐track oversampled hyperspectral imaging observations of Mars

Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM) hyperspectral image data have been acquired in an along-track oversampled (ATO) mode with the intent of processing the data to better than the nominal ∼18m/pixel ground resolution. We have implemented an iterative maximum log-likelihood method (MLM) that utilizes the instrument spectral and spatial transfer functions and includes a penalty function to regularize the data. Products are produced both in sensor space and as projected hyperspectral image cubes at 12m/pixel. Preprocessing steps include retrieval of surface single scattering albedos (SSA) using the Hapke Function and DISORT-based radiative modeling of atmospheric gases and aerosols. Resultant SSA cubes are despiked to remove extrema and tested to ensure that the remaining data are Poisson-distributed, an underlying assumption for the MLM algorithm implementation. Two examples of processed ATO data sets are presented. ATO0002EC79 covers the route taken by the Curiosity rover during its initial ascent of Mount Sharp in Gale Crater. SSA data are used to model mineral abundances and grain sizes predicted to be present in the Namib barchan sand dune sampled and analyzed by Curiosity. CRISM based results compare favorably to in situ results derived from Curiosity's measurement campaign. ATO0002DDF9 covers Marathon Valley on the Cape Tribulation rim segment of Endeavour Crater. SSA spectra indicate the presence of a minor component of Fe3+ and Mg2+ smectites on the valley floor and walls. Localization to 12m/pixel provided the detailed spatial information needed for the Opportunity rover to traverse to and characterize those outcrops that have the deepest absorptions. The combination of orbital and rover-based data show that the smectite-bearing outcrops in Marathon Valley are impact breccias that are basaltic in composition and that have been isochemically altered in a low water to rock environment.

Smectite deposits in Marathon Valley, Endeavour Crater, Mars, identified using CRISM hyperspectral reflectance data

AbstractThe ~100 m wide Marathon Valley crosscuts the Cape Tribulation rim segment of the 22 km diameter, Noachian‐age Endeavour impact crater on Mars. Single‐scattering albedo spectra retrieved from three Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM) Full‐Resolution Targeted (FRT, regularized to 18 m/pixel) and two Along Track Oversampled (ATO, regularized to 12 m/pixel) observations indicate the presence of Fe3+‐Mg2+ smectite exposures located in Marathon Valley with combination vibration metal‐OH absorption strength comparable to smectite spectral signatures in Mawrth Vallis. The Opportunity rover was directed to the exposures and documented the presence of Shoemaker formation impact breccias that have been isochemically altered, likely by fracture‐controlled aqueous fluids.

Vegetation and floristics of a lowland tropical rainforest in northeast Australia.

BackgroundFull floristic data, tree demography, and biomass estimates incorporating non-tree lifeforms are seldom collected and reported for forest plots in the tropics. Established research stations serve as important repositories of such biodiversity and ecological data. With a canopy crane setup within a tropical lowland rainforest estate, the 42-ha Daintree Rainforest Observatory (DRO) in Cape Tribulation, northern Australia is a research facility of international significance. We obtained an estimate of the vascular plant species richness for the site, by surveying all vascular plant species from various mature-phase, remnant and open vegetation patches within the site. We also integrate and report the demography and basal areas of trees ≥ 10 cm diameter at breast height (dbh) in a new 1-ha core plot, an extension to the pre-existing forest 1-ha plot under the canopy crane. In addition, we report for the canopy crane plot new demography and basal areas for smaller-size shrubs and treelets subsampled from nine 20 m2 quadrats, and liana basal area and abundance from the whole plot. The DRO site has an estimated total vascular plant species richness of 441 species, of which 172 species (39%) are endemic to Australia, and 4 species are endemics to the Daintree region. The 2 x 1-ha plots contains a total of 262 vascular plant species of which 116 (1531 individuals) are tree species ≥ 10 cm dbh. We estimate a stem basal area of 34.9 m2 ha-1, of which small stems (tree saplings and shrubs <10cm dbh) and lianas collectively contribute c.4.2%. Comparing the stem density-diversity patterns of the DRO forest with other tropical rainforests globally, our meta-analysis shows that DRO forests has a comparatively high stem density and moderate species diversity, due to the influence of cyclones. These data will provide an important foundation for ecological and conservation studies in lowland tropical forest.New informationWe present a floristic checklist, a lifeform breakdown, and demography data from two 1-ha rainforest plots from a lowland tropical rainforest study site. We also present a meta-analysis of stem densities and species diversity from comparable-sized plots across the tropics.

Contribution to the bryoflora of Australia, V. Colura streimannii sp. nov. from Queensland

Abstract A new species of Colura (Dumort.) Dumort., was collected in the Cape Tribulation area of Queensland, in the mangrove forests of Daintree National Park. It is a member of subgenus Colura, section Harmophyllum Grolle, and differs from the superficially similar Colura pulcherrima Ast and C. queenslandica B. M. Thiers (both belong to another subgenus or section) by its easily detachable valve or by its acutely papillose lobule surface. Cheilolejeunea occlusa (Herz.) Kodama &amp; Kitagawa occurs in the same habitat. This is a new record for Australia.

Low host specificity of beetles associated with fruit falls in lowland tropical rainforest of north‐east Australia

AbstractMost host‐specificity studies of tropical rainforest insects have focused on those species feeding on leaves. Apart from the fruit flies, the level of specialisation among fruit‐associated insects is poorly known. The relative contribution to local species richness made by insects feeding or associated with fallen fruits is also unknown. Beetles from fruit falls over a 5‐year period in lowland tropical rainforest at Cape Tribulation, Australia were sampled. A total of 5157 individual beetles of 73 species were sampled from the fruits of 18 different plant species. Only a few species were of frugivorous families, and most species are likely utilising resources associated with the breakdown of the fruits. The size of the fruit fall‐associated beetle assemblage (73 spp) was small compared with the number of species collected during a 4‐year sampling program conducted at the same site prior to the current study using 10 combined Malaise‐Flight Interception Traps (1473 spp, 77 families). The number of beetles and species collected from fruit that were very strongly correlated with the number of times fruit falls from a particular species of plant were sampled. The locally common palm, Normanbya normanbyi, produced fruit throughout the year and supported the largest number of fruit‐associated species. It is suggested that this might be a keystone resource for local fruit fall‐associated insect species. Although most beetle species showed a preference for the fruits of a particular plant species, overall host specificity for beetles was low. This is probably because fruit resources at this site are spatially and temporally patchy. Our results challenge the notion that most insects associated with fruit falls in tropical rainforests are highly host‐specific.

The Gondwanan relict oribatid genus Crotonia (Acari: Oribatida: Crotoniidae) from rainforests in Queensland and Northern New South Wales: new species show a mixed pattern of short-range and long-range endemism

Twelve new species of Crotonia are described from rainforests in Queensland and Northern New South Wales, Australia. Crotonia sterigma sp. nov. belongs to a new species group, Borbora, to which C. borbora Luxton, 1987, redescribed here, and for which a lectotype is designated, is re-assigned from the Capistrata group. Six species belong to the Capistrata group (C. brisbanensis sp. nov., C. maculata sp. nov., C. monteithi sp. nov., C. daviesae sp. nov., C. weiri sp. nov., and C. yeatesi sp. nov.). Previously-known Australian members of the Capistrata group, C. ardala Luxton, 1987 and C. capistrata Luxton, 1987, are redescribed and lectotypes are designated. Four species, C. cameroni sp. nov., C. queenslandiae sp. nov., C. eungella sp. nov. and C. seemani sp. nov., belong to the Cophinaria species-group and one, C. raveni sp. nov. is morphologically so different from other Crotonia spp. that it is also assigned to a new species-group. This brings the number of species of Crotonia recorded from Australia to 27, almost half of the global fauna. Mostspecies show localised distribution in rainforest remnants, characteristic of short-range endemics with apparently low dispersal capabilities, are subject to constraints of body water balance and thus confined to wet habitats. They can be divided into those associated with a northern region (ca. 16–18°S) centred around the Wet Tropics from Cape Tribulation to the Walter Hill Range (C. ardala, C. borbora, C. capistrata, C. monteithi), a central region (ca. 20–18°S) from Mount Dryander to Byfield (C. cameroni, C. eungella, C. seemani) and a southern region (ca. 26-28°S) from the Conondale Range to Whian Whian (C. brisbanensis, C. daviesae, C. queenslandiae, C. raveni, C. weiri, and C. yeatesi). Other species are long-range endemics. Crotonia maculata sp. nov. is found throughout all three regions and C. sterigma sp. nov. is found in both the central and southern regions. Several species show a series of characters that are considered to function in aiding the accumulation and retention of mineral soil and organic debris adhering to the cerotegument. These characters include the elongation of the caudal apophyses, expansion or elongation of the notogastral shield, retention of the elongated, flagelliform nymphal form of the notogastral setae and retention of nymphal exuviae in the caudal region. The layer of detritus covering the cerotegument was dissected off the cuticle of adult female and tritonymphal C. raveni sp. nov. and was found to constitute more than the mean wet weight of the mites. The acquisition by the mites of the detrital layer after each moult is considered to function as a general anti-predator system and in the reduction of body water loss.

Does male secondary sexual trait size reveal fertilization efficiency in Australian Drosophila bipectinata Duda (Diptera: Drosophilidae)?

Males developing relatively large, costly sexually selected traits may be of superior body condition compared to small-ornamented males. Thus, males developing the largest secondary sexual trait in a given environment may also be able to augment their investment into ejaculate quality, and fertilize a larger proportion of a female's eggs. We tested the prediction that the degree of expression of a condition-dependent secondary sexual trait, the male sex comb, in a Cape Tribulation (northeastern Australia) population of Drosophila bipectinata Duda, reveals male ability to fertilize eggs in the absence of sperm competition. This test permitted us also to evaluate whether pre-copulatory sexual selection and fertilization efficiency might act additively to influence male reproductive success because a previous study of the same population demonstrated a positive association between comb size and copulation probability. The results obtained indicate that, although genotypes developing smaller sex combs collectively had a significantly higher rate of insemination failure compared to larger comb genotypes, the hatch rate and the number of eggs laid by females inseminated by the two genotypic categories were not statistically different. The results fail to support the prediction that comb size reveals noncompetitive fertilization efficiency of males in this Australian population. © 2009 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2009, 98, 406–413.

Population genetics of Ryparosa kurrangii (Achariaceae), a rare lowland rainforest tree

Ryparosa kurrangii B.L. Webber (Achariaceae) is a rare lowland rainforest tree found in dense, discrete populations between the Daintree River and Cape Tribulation in Far North Queensland, Australia. It is one of many Australian rainforest trees thought to rely on the Southern Cassowary ( Casuarius casuarius johnsonii) for long-distance seed dispersal. A survey of chloroplast non-coding DNA found no genetic variation at any of four non-coding chloroplast loci. Seedlings of three populations separated by a mountain range were then examined for amplified fragment length polymorphisms. High levels of genetic diversity were found within each population. Only two percent of the variation in this study was explained by separation due to the mountain range. This finding of high genetic diversity but minimal distinction between populations accords with general expectations for outcrossing, large-fruited, animal-dispersed trees. Either continuing or historical long-distance gene flow (mediated by cassowaries) could explain these results.

Seasonality of a Diverse Beetle Assemblage Inhabiting Lowland Tropical Rain Forest in Australia

ABSTRACTOne of the least understood aspects of insect diversity in tropical rain forests is the temporal structuring, or seasonality, of communities. We collected 29,986 beetles of 1473 species over a 4‐yr period (45 monthly samples), with the aim to document the temporal dynamics of a trophically diverse beetle assemblage from lowland tropical rain forest at Cape Tribulation, Australia. Malaise and flight interception traps were used to sample adult beetles at five locations at both ground and canopy levels. Beetles were caught throughout the year, but individual species were patchy in their temporal distribution, with the 124 more abundant species on average being present only 56 percent of the time. Climatic variables (precipitation, temperature, and solar radiation) were poorly correlated with adult beetle abundance, possibly because: (1) seasonality of total beetle abundance was slight; (2) the peak activity period (September–November) did not correspond to any climatic maxima or minima; or (3) responses were nonlinear owing to the existence of thresholds or developmental time‐lags. Our results do not concur with the majority of tropical insect seasonality studies suggesting a wet season peak of insect activity, perhaps because there is no uniform pattern of insect seasonally for the humid tropics. Herbivores showed low seasonality and individual species’ peaks were less temporally aggregated compared to nonherbivores. Canopy‐caught and larger beetles (&gt; 5 mm) showed greater seasonality and peaked later in the year compared to smaller or ground‐caught beetles. Thus seasonality of adult beetles varied according to the traits of feeding ecology, body size, and habitat strata.

English

Romnalda ophiopogonoides Conran, P.I.Forst. et Donnon sp. nov. from the Cape Tribulation -Daintree area in the Wet Tropics bioregion of north-east Queensland is described, illustrated and compared with related species. A conservation status of Endangered is proposed. Notes on habitat, distribution and cytology and a key to the species of Romnalda are provided.

Isolation and characterization of eight polymorphic microsatellite loci in the rainforest canopy tree, Syzygium sayeri (Myrtaceae)

AbstractEight polymorphic microsatellite loci were isolated from the rainforest canopy tree, Syzygium sayeri, in order to study parentage and subsequently pollen dispersal among individuals in wild populations. Screening of one natural population (n = 64) mapped in a 500 × 500 m area at Cape Tribulation, north Queensland, Australia, yielded two to 11 alleles per locus with observed levels of heterozygosity ranging from 0.07 to 0.70. One locus was significantly out of Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium after Bonferroni correction for multiple tests. These loci should provide a useful tool in further understanding the dispersal patterns of this species.

Temporal and spatial variation in an Australian tropical rainforest

Abstract This study describes the floristics and structure of a 0.95‐ha lowland tropical rainforest plot at the Australian Canopy Crane Research Facility at Cape Tribulation, Queensland. Five years of post‐cyclonic change in forest floristics and structure following the passage of Tropical Cyclone ‘Rona’ in February 1999 are examined. Local and regional variation in tropical rainforest is examined in comparison with other lowland plots established nearby and mid‐elevation plots located elsewhere in north Queensland at Eungella, Paluma and the Atherton Tablelands. These plots are placed in a broader Australasian context along with lowland rainforest plots at Baitabag and Oomsis, Papua New Guinea. The 2005 survey found 680 stems of 82 species ≥10 cm d.b.h. on the crane plot, an increase of 30.3% in stems and 16.4% of species in the 5 years since the previous survey. The most abundant families were Meliaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Lauraceae, Myrtaceae and Apocynaceae and the most abundant species were Cleistanthus myrianthus, Alstonia scholaris, Myristica insipida, Normanbya normanbyi and Rockinghamia angustifolia. Temporal floristic and structural variation suggests that the crane site remains in an active stage of post‐cyclonic recovery. Local spatial variability in floristics and structure at Cape Tribulation exceeded the variation exhibited by a single plot over a period of 5 years, despite the impact of Cyclone Rona. This finding suggests a high degree of temporal stability within this stand of rainforest despite frequent catastrophic disturbances. The rainforests of Cape Tribulation constitute a relatively unique floristic community when observed in an Australasian context. Variation in rainforest community composition across the region shows the importance of biogeographical connections, the impacts of local topography, environmental conditions and disturbance history.

Assessing the above‐ground biomass of a complex tropical rainforest using a canopy crane

Abstract Current estimates of the total biomass in tropical rainforests vary considerably; this is due in large part to the different approaches that are used to calculate biomass. In this study we have used a canopy crane to measure the tree architectures in a 1 ha plot of complex mesophyll vine forest at Cape Tribulation, Australia. Methods were developed to measure and calculate the crown and stem biomass of six major species of tree and palm (Alstonia scholaris (Apocynaceae), Cleistanthus myrianthus (Euphorbiaceae), Endiandra microneura (Lauraceae), Myristica insipida (Myristicaceae), Acmena graveolens (Myrtaceae), Normanbya normanbyi (Arecaceae)) using the unique access provided by the crane. This has allowed the first non‐destructive biomass estimate to be carried out for a forest of this type. Allometric equations which relate tree biomass to the measured variable ‘diameter at breast height’ were developed for the six species, and a general equation was also developed for trees on the plot. The general equation was similar in form to equations developed for tropical rainforests in Brazil and New Guinea. The species equations were applied at the level of families, the generalized equation was applied to the remaining species which allowed the biomass of a total of 680 trees to be calculated. This has provided a current estimate of 270 t ha−1 above‐ground biomass at the Australian Canopy Crane site; a value comparable to lowland rainforests in Panama and French Guiana. Using the same tree database seven alternative allometric equations (literature equations for tropical rainforests) were used to calculate the site biomass, the range was large (252–446 t ha−1) with only three equations providing estimates within 34 t ha−1 (12.5%) of the site value. Our use of multiple species‐specific allometric equations has provided a site estimate only slightly larger (1%) than that obtained using allometric equations developed specifically for tropical wet rainforests. We have demonstrated that it is possible to non‐destructively measure the biomass in a complex forest using an on‐site canopy crane. In conjunction the development of crown maps and a detailed tree architecture database allows changes in forest structure to be followed quantitatively.

Vertical stratification of feeding guilds and body size in beetle assemblages from an Australian tropical rainforest

Abstract The vertical stratification of insect species assemblages inhabiting tropical rainforests is well established but few have examined whether these patterns are reflected in vertical stratification of body size or feeding guilds. We used Malaise and Flight Interception Traps to sample beetle assemblages from five locations, at both canopy and ground zones of a tropical lowland rainforest site near Cape Tribulation, Australia. Beetles from 4 years of sampling were sorted to Family and morphospecies, and allocated to one of five feeding guilds. Within feeding guilds the number of species and individuals, from canopy‐ and ground‐caught traps were compared. The body lengths of species were measure and compared within feeding guilds and families. Herbivores was the dominant guild but was not the majority of all species or individuals. Most beetle species (69%) were less than 5 mm in length and the mean size of canopy‐caught species was greater than that for ground‐caught species. This was probably due to slightly more species of plant feeders (herbivores and xylophages) present in the canopy, which were significantly larger than saprophages, fungivores and predators. Among feeding guilds, there were few overall canopy–ground differences. These results contrast with species composition results presented elsewhere where strong differences between the canopy and the ground were evident. We suggest that our guild groupings may have been too coarse to detect fine‐scale differences and that resource partitioning may have also masked faunal stratification. We propose that fine‐scale differences in resources between the canopy and the ground, together with strong microclimate gradients, are likely to be important in structuring the vertical stratification of insect assemblages at the level of species, but not with respect to functional groups.

Visitor assemblages at flowers in a tropical rainforest canopy

Abstract Canopy crane‐based studies have been carried out to quantify the sets of arthropods that visit the flowers of a suite of common species of trees, palms and vines within the Cape Tribulation study area. Those Orders that increase significantly in abundance between the budding and flowering stages of inflorescences are identified, and multivariate and univariate comparisons have been made first, among coflowering plant species and second, at different seasons for the same plant species. The analysis has been repeated for both the profile of higher arthropod taxa in the samples and for the relative abundances of families of Coleoptera: one of the Orders most frequently suggested as critical in the pollination biology of Australian rainforests. In all cases significant differences are identified among species confirming that the visitor profile is a plant species‐specific phenomenon. Profiles within plant species at different times also differed. At the ordinal level significant differences in visitor profiles associated with coflowering plants, were observed, variously, in Thysanoptera, Diptera, Lepidoptera, Coleoptera and Hymenoptera. Within the Coleoptera significant differences occurred in relative abundances of Scarabaeidae, Phalacridae, Latridiidae and Curculionidae. Seasonal differences in visitation to Syzygium gustavioides, Normanbya normanbyi and Calamus radicalis, reflected differences in Diptera, Lepidoptera, Homoptera, Thysanoptera, Hymenoptera and Araneida. Within the Coleoptera, the Elateridae and Curculionidae varied significantly between occasions. The various forms of flower/arthropod interaction that may be represented in these results are discussed, as are the implications for pollination.

Heterotrophic euglenids from marine sediments of cape tribulation, tropical australia

This paper presents new data on free-living heterotrophic euglenids (Euglenozoa, Protista) that occurred in the marine sediments at Cape Tribulation, Queensland, Australia. Twenty-nine species from 9 genera are described with uninterpreted records based on light microscopy, including one new taxon:Notosolenus capetribulationi n. sp. There was little evidence for endemism because the majority of heterotrophic euglenid species encountered here have been reported or were found from other habitats.

Some Free-Living Heterotrophic Flagellates from Marine Sediments of Tropical Australia

The diversity of heterotrophic flagellates was examined at marine sediments around Cape Tribulation, Australia. The species described belong to the Alveolates, Apusomonadidae, Cercomonadida, Choanoflagellida, Cry ptomonadida, Diplomonadida, Euglenozoaincertae sedis, Kathablepharidae, Kinetoplastida, Pedinellids, Stephanopogonidae, Stramenopiles, Stramenopilesincertae sedis, Thaumatomonadidae and Protistaincertae sedis. Among the 51 species from 38 genera encountered in this study is one new taxon:Glissandra similis n. sp., and two new names are introduced:Goniomonas abrupta (Skvortzov 1924) nomen nodum andCercomonas skvortzovi (Skvortzov 1977) nomen nodum. There was little evidence for endemism because most flagellates including one new taxon described here have been reported.