Terra Ceia Research Articles

First record of a fossil coral (Anthozoa) from Pleistocene deposits at Terra Ceia, North Carolina

A fossil coral of the genus Solenastrea Milne Edwards & Haime (Anthozoa: Scleractinia: Faviidae) is reported from Pleistocene deposits exposed near the town of Terra Ceia in Beaufort County, North Carolina. The specimen is similar in gross and corallite morphology to Solenastrea hyades (Dana) which is common in Neogene and Quaternary sediments of North Carolina, but has been altered by vadose diagenesis, making confident assignment to species challenging. The specimen is the first coral recovered from the Terra Ceia locality which has, up to now, yielded only mollusks.

Environmental DNA detection tracks established seasonal occurrence of blacktip sharks (Carcharhinus limbatus) in a semi-enclosed subtropical bay

The integration of eDNA analysis into the population assessment and monitoring of sharks could greatly improve temporal and spatial data used for management purposes. This study aimed to compare eDNA detection against well-established seasonal changes in blacktip shark (Carcharhinus limbatus) abundance in Terra Ceia Bay (FL, USA). We used a species-specific real-time PCR approach to detect C. limbatus eDNA in the bay on a near monthly basis from spring through mid-fall in 2018 and 2019. Previous studies have shown that C. limbatus give birth in the bay in early summer and immature sharks occur there until late fall, when decreasing water temperatures cause them to move offshore and southwards. Water samples (2 L) were collected (4–6 per month) and filtered in the field, with each then being subjected to real-time PCR. Carcharhinus limbatus ‘positive’ filters were significantly more commonly collected during the April-July sampling period than during the August-October sampling period. While following the predicted pattern, eDNA concentration was generally too low for accurate quantification. Our results show that C. limbatus eDNA detection follows known seasonal residency patterns consistently over 2 years of monitoring. Species-specific eDNA analysis using real-time PCR could therefore represent a cost-effective, scalable sampling tool to facilitate improved shark population monitoring in semi-enclosed marine habitats.

Smells Like Home: The Role of Olfactory Cues in the Homing Behavior of Blacktip Sharks, Carcharhinus limbatus.

Animal navigation in the marine environment is believed to be guided by different sensory cues over different spatial scales. Geomagnetic cues are thought to guide long-range navigation, while visual or olfactory cues allow animals to pinpoint precise locations, but the complete behavioral sequence is not yet understood. Terra Ceia Bay is a primary nursery area for blacktip sharks, Carcharhinus limbatus, on southwestern Florida's Gulf of Mexico coast. Young-of-the-year animals show strong fidelity to a specific home range in the northeastern end of the bay and rapidly return when displaced. Older juveniles demonstrate annual philopatry for the first few years, migrating as far south as the Florida Keys each fall, then returning to Terra Ceia Bay each spring. To examine the sensory cues used in homing, we captured neonate (<3 weeks old) blacktip sharks from within their home range, fitted them with acoustic tags, and translocated them to sites 8 km away in adjacent Tampa Bay and released them. Intact animals returned to their home range, within 34 h on average, and remained there. With olfaction blocked, fewer animals returned to their home range and they took longer to do so, 130 h on average. However, they did not remain there but instead moved throughout Terra Ceia Bay and in and out of Tampa Bay. Since sharks from both treatments returned at night in tannic and turbid water, vision is likely not playing a major role in navigation by these animals. The animals in this study also returned on incoming or slack tides, suggesting that sharks, like many other fish, may use selective tidal stream transport to conserve energy and aid navigation during migration. Collectively, these results suggest that while other cues, possibly geomagnetic and/or tidal information, might guide sharks over long distances, olfactory cues are required for recognizing their specific home range.

Variable response of coastal sharks to severe tropical storms: environmental cues and changes in space use

We thank the staff and students of the Fishing and Fisheries Research Group, including F. de Faria, A. Schlaff, J. White, O. Li, P. Yates, S. Monroe and other volunteers who assisted with fieldwork related to this project. This research was funded by the Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation (DEEDI), under DEEDI's Marine Fish Habitat Scholarships Program, and additional funding was granted by AIMS@JCU and the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, James Cook University. Environmental data within Cleveland Bay were sourced from the Australian Institute of Marine Sciences (AIMS) and the Department of Environmental and Resource Management (DERM), and data within Terra Ceia Bay were sourced from the Mote Marine Laboratory Weather Station, Florida.

Minimizing the impact of the mosquito adulticide naled on honey bees, Apis mellifera (Hymenoptera: Apidae): aerial ultra-low-volume application using a high-pressure nozzle system.

The impact of the mosquito adulticide naled on honey bees, Apis mellifera L., was evaluated by exposing test beehives to nighttime aerial ultra-low-volume (ULV) applications using a high-pressure nozzle system. The tests were conducted during routine mosquito control missions at Manatee County, Florida, in summer 2000. Two treatment sites were sprayed a total of four times over a 10-wk period. Honey bees, which clustered outside of the hive entrances, were subjected to naled exposure during these mosquito control sprays. The highest average naled ground deposition was 2,688 microg/m2 at the Port Manatee site, which resulted in statistically significant bee mortality (118) compared with the controls. At the Terra Ceia Road site, an intermediate level of naled deposition was found (1,435 microg/m2). For this spray mission, the range of dead bees per hive at Terra Ceia was 2 to 9 before spraying and 5 to 36 after naled application. Means of all other naled ground depositions were < 850 microl/m2. We concluded that substantial bee mortality (> 100 dead bees) resulted when naled residue levels were > 2,000 kg/m2 and honey bees were clustered outside of the hive entrances during mosquito adulticide applications. Compared with the flat-fan nozzle systems currently used by most of Florida's mosquito control programs, the high-pressure nozzle system used in this experiment substantially reduced environmental insecticide contamination and lead to decreased bee mortality. Statistical analysis also showed that average honey yield at the end of the season was not significantly reduced for those hives that were exposed to the insecticide.

Genetic heterogeneity among blacktip shark, Carcharhinus limbatus , continental nurseries along the U.S. Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico

Genetic population structure of the blacktip shark, Carcharhinus limbatus, a commercially and recreationally important species in the southeast U.S. shark fishery, was investigated using mitochondrial DNA control region sequences. Neonate blacktip sharks were sampled from three nurseries, Pine Island Sound, Terra Ceia Bay, and Yankeetown, along the Gulf of Mexico coast of Florida (Gulf) and one nursery, Bulls Bay, on the Atlantic Ocean coast of South Carolina (Atlantic). Sequencing of the complete mitochondrial control region of 169 neonates revealed 10 polymorphic sites and 13 haplotypes. Overall haplotype diversity and percent nucleotide diversity were 0.710 and 0.106%, respectively. Haplotype frequencies were compared among nurseries to determine if the high mobility and seasonal migrations of adult blacktip sharks have maintained genetic homogeneity among nurseries in the Atlantic and Gulf. Chi-square analysis and AMOVA did not detect significant structuring of haplotypes among the three Gulf nurseries, P(χ2)=0.294, ΦST=−0.005 to −0.002. All pairwise AMOVA between Gulf nurseries and the Atlantic nursery detected significant partitioning of haplotypes between the Gulf and Atlantic (ΦST=0.087–0.129, P<0.008), as did comparison between grouped Florida Gulf nurseries and the Atlantic, ΦCT=0.090, P<0.001. Based upon the dispersal abilities and seasonal migrations of blacktip sharks, these results support the presence of philopatry for nursery areas among female blacktip sharks. Our data also support the treatment of Atlantic and Gulf blacktip shark nursery areas as separate management units.

Importance of prey density in relation to the movement patterns of juvenile blacktip sharks (Carcharhinus limbatus) within a coastal nursery area

Previous research suggests that nursery areas provide an abundant food source as well as protection from predation for young sharks, and that these benefits are the reasons they use these areas. This study examined the abundance of prey species within a known nursery area, Terra Ceia Bay, Florida, and compared those data with the amount of time blacktip sharks spent within various geographic zones within the nursery. The most abundant prey species within the study site were pinfish, Lagodon rhomboides, pigfish, Orthopristis chrysoptera, spotfin mojarra, Eucinostomus argenteus, and silver perch, Bairdiella chrysoura. Prey species were found to be most abundant in the mid to southern portion of the nursery area, whereas sharks spent the majority of their time within the northern portion of the study site. There was no correlation between the amount of time sharks (as a whole and by individual) spent within a geographic zone and the abundance of prey species within that area. These results suggest that prey abundance is not the main factor directing the movement patterns and habitat choice of juvenile Carcharhinus limbatus within Terra Ceia Bay. Predator avoidance may be more important in the use of the nursery grounds by these young animals than prey abundance.

Phosphorus in Drainage Water from Sugarcane in the Everglades Agricultural Area as Affected by Drainage Rate

AbstractSugarcane (interspecific hybrids of Saccharum spp.) is grown on 78% (156,000 ha) of the cultivated organic soils of the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) of southern Florida. Recently, the EAA has come under scrutiny because of concerns with the impact of nutrient‐rich drainage water from organic soils on the ecology of adjoining bodies of water and wetlands. The objectives of our research were to determine the effects of field drainage rate on P concentration and off‐field P loads in drainage water from sugarcane grown on organic soils of the EAA and to determine the effect of field drainage rate on sugarcane productivity and sugar yield. The research site was on a Terra Ceia muck soil (euic, hyperthermic Typic Medisaprist) on a commercial sugarcane farm located in the EAA. The treatments were fast and slow field drainage rates. Nine drainage events were monitored between Nov. 1988 and Aug. 1990. Average drainage water total P (TP) and total dissolved P (TDP) concentrations were significantly higher for the slow drainage rate treatment. In order to minimize off‐farm P loading, main‐farm canal water should be discharged off‐farm while field drainage water is retained on‐farm. Field drainage rate should be fast and drainage event duration should be as short as possible. Plant‐cane crop yield and yield component data were not collected. The first‐ratoon crop total aerial dry weight and harvested sugarcane and sugar yields were not affected by drainage rate.

Availability of phosphorus in calcium silicate slag

Abstract Significant yield increases of sugarcane and rice have been observed in the Everglades Agricultural Area of Florida from application of soluble silicon as calcium silicate slag. Although calcium silicate slag contains trace quantities of P, significant quantities of P can be applied using commercial rates of slag. This may be of concern to both the agronomists responsible for determining P fertilization rates for these crops and to land managers attempting to limit the application of P in this region. The objective of our research was to determine the biological availability of P applied as calcium silicate slag. Two sugarcane studies and two rice studies were conducted on a Terra Ceia muck (Euic, hyperthermic Typic Medisaprist), Pahokee muck (Euic, hyperthermic Lithic Medisaprist), and a Okeelanta muck (sandy or sandy‐skeletal, siliceous, euic hyperthermic Terric Medisaprist) at five locations for one to three years each. Calcium silicate slag was applied at rates ranging from 0 to 20 Mg ha‐1. For each crop, plant tissues were sampled for analysis of Si and P: sugarcane leaves were sampled during the “grand‐growth”; period, rice Y‐leaves were collected at panicle initiation, and rice straw was collected at harvest. Soils used for sugarcane production were also sampled and analyzed for water‐soluble P and acetic acid‐soluble P. Leaf Si concentration increased with slag application, however, neither the P concentration in leaf nor soil were influenced by the application of slag. Although the total quantities of P applied as slag can be significant, P was shown to remain biologically unavailable to rice and sugarcane. Because of the low solubility of P in calcium silicate slag, it appears unlikely that P enrichment of drainage waters can occur by application of calcium silicate slag.

Soil and leaf nutrient interactions following application of calcium silicate slag to sugarcane

In certain areas of the Everglades Agricultural Area, plant and ratoon sugarcane (Saccharum L.) yields are increased by application of Si from calcium silicate slag. The greatest yield responses are obtained in the plant crop the first year after application of slag and when plant uptake of Si is increased. Magnesium deficiencies have been reported after slag application. The objective of this study was to quantify interactions of soil and leaf nutrients on sugarcane grown on a Terra Ceia muck (Euic, hyperthermic Typic Medisaprist) that had previously received calcium silicate slag. Slag was applied at five rates, and yields were evaluated from plant, first-ratoon, and second-ratoon (stubble) crops at two locations. Soil and leaf from each crop were sampled for nutrient analysis and the results were used to interpret the yield data. Although slag increased cane yield by as much as 39% and sugar yield by 50%, for each 100 mg L−1 drop in extractable soil Mg, cane yields declined by 5.3 Mg ha−1 and sugar yields by 0.9 Mg ha−1. At leaf Si concentrations exceeding 10 g kg−1, optimum cane and sugar yields were observed, while leaf Mg concentrations approached critical leaf concentrations below 1.5 g kg−1. Estimates of total leaf nutrient uptake during each crop indicated that uptake of Mg did not meet nutrient demands at high biomass production. Nutrient antagonism between Si and Mg is suggested. Low soil Mg may contribute to the marked crop responses to slag and for the decline in stubble production. Application of a magnesium fertilizer may be necessary to maintain high nutrient availability.

Multi‐Year Response of Sugarcane to Calcium Silicate Slag on Everglades Histosols

AbstractPlant crops of sugarcane (Saccharum spp.) grown in the Eveiglades respond to calcium silicate slag. Substantial cost is associated with application of slag. Thus, it is important to know whether yields of successive ratoon crops of sugarcane respond to residual soil Si applied as slag. Our objective was to determine the long‐term response of sugarcane grown on a Terra Ceia muck (euic, hyperthermic Typic Medisaprist) at two locations in the Everglades Agricultural Area to slag applied (0, 2.5, 5, 10, 20 Mg ha−3.1) before either a rice (Oryza sativa L.)/sugarcane rotation or immediately before sugarcane. Slag increased cane and sugar yields as well as tissue Si concentrations. Application of 20 Mg slag ha−1 increased cumulative cane yields as much as 39% and sugar yields as much as 50% over the three crop years. Yield response to slag was generally greater from application immediately prior to sugarcane planting than to the preceding rice rotation crop. Without slag, ratoon yield production decreased as much as 45% in cane and 50% in sugar, whereas with slag, yields decreased only 28% in cane and 29% in sugar. Our data indicate that the critical level for leaf Si may be greater than the previously reported value of 10 g kg−1, and that reduced yields in ratoon crops vs. plant crops were associated with lower Si levels. Consequently, more extensive Si deficiencies may exist in the Everglades than were previously considered. Other yield‐limiting factors such as low soil Mg concentrations were also shown to contribute to the decline of sugarcane ratoon yields.

Response of a Rice‐Sugarcane Rotation to Calcium Silicate Slag on Everglades Histosols1

AbstractRice (Oryza sativa L.) and sugarcane (Saccharum spp.), grown on organic soils of the Everglades, have been shown to respond favorably to the application of Si from calcium silicate slag. Since these crops may be grown in rotation, it is important to know if slag applied to one crop will benefit the second crop. The objective of the study was to determine the response of rice and sugarcane grown on a Terra Ceia muck (Euic, hyperthermic Typic Medisaprist) to calcium silicate slag applied prior to planting rice, and to slag applied before the planting of sugarcane. Five rates of slag were applied for production of a rice crop, after which time the same plots were planted to sugarcane. Other plots received the same rates of slag just prior to planting sugarcane. Slag applications increased both rice straw Si and sugarcane leaf Si concentrations. A single application of slag prior to planting rice increased production of both the rice and sugarcane crops in the rotation. The combined plant and ratoon rice grain yields were significantly increased 50% by slag application. Slag application also increased harvested cane (biomass) yields 23%, and sugar yields by 25%. Somewhat greater sugarcane plant responses were observed from slag applied immediately before planting than from slag applied before the rice and cane rotation treatment. On the average, slag applied at 20 Mg ha−1 before rice increased sugar yield by 16%, compared to a 21% increase when slag was applied before cane.

Silicon Fertilization of Rice on Everglades Histosols

AbstractRice (Oryza sativa L.), one of the world's most widely grown grain crops, is seldom grown on Histosols, in part because of many problems related to plant nutrition. Studies were conducted on Terra Ceia muck (Typic Medisaprists) in the Everglades to determine the effect of calcium silicate slag on ‘Lebonnet’ rice production. Grain yields were increased in excess of 30% in each of 3 yr by preplant application of slag at 10 Mg ha−1 or more. Rice in plots receiving slag had greater height, greater number of panicles per square meter, heavier grains, and less disease. Although the slag contained a number of plant nutrients, Si appeared to be the factor most responsible for the observed results. A positive linear relationship was observed in all years between straw Si and grain yield. First crop straw averaged 1.3, 5.0, and 5.9 dag Si kg−1 in plots receiving 0, 10, and 20 Mg slag ha−1, respectively. A first crop straw Si concentration &lt;3.0 dag Si kg−1 was associated with reduced rice yield. Perhaps Si application should be considered in other regions when difficulties are encountered with rice production on Histosols.

Adsorption of Cadmium on Soil Constituents in the Presence of Complexing Ligands

AbstractThe objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of natural and synthetic complexing agents on Cd2+ adsorption characteristics of metal hydroxides and silicate clay minerals. The solution pH at which 50% of the initial solution Cd2+ was adsorbed was 5.40, 7.00, 7.80, and 8.30 for Al(OH)3, Fe(OH)3, montmorillonite, and kaolinite, respectively. The presence of citrate (C6H5O73‐) depressed Cd adsorption on Al(OH)3, by approximately 25% in acidic solutions. The addition of EDTA (C10H16O8N2) depressed the Cd adsorption on both Al and Fe hydroxides, montmorillonite, and kaolinite in acidic and alkaline solutions. The water‐soluble organic fraction from sewage sludge enhanced Cd adsorption by both kaolinite and montmorillonite in alkaline solutions. The water‐soluble organic fraction from an organic soil (Terra Ceia muck) increased Cd adsorption by Fe(OH)3 only under acidic conditions.Preliminary results indicated that considerations of Cd retention by soil constituents should include not only the aqueous chemistry of Cd and the surface chemistry of the adsorbent, but also the chemistry of natural and synthetic complexing agents. The interaction of Cd and various complexing agents can play an important part in determining the fate of this metal in the soil‐water‐plant environment.

The Effect of High 2,4‐D Concentrations on Degradation and Carbon Dioxide Evolution in Soils

AbstractA laboratory experiment was conducted to determine the degradation of high concentrations of 2,4‐D (2,4‐dichlorophenoxyacetic acid) and CO2 evolution in three soils. Two forms of 2,4‐D, technical grade and formulated, were added to each soil at rates of 50, 500, 5,000 and 20,000 µg/g of soil (ppm). Degradation of the 2,4‐D was measured by 14CO2 evolution resulting from the oxidation of uniformly ringlabeled carbon. At an application rate of 500 ppm, all three soils degraded 2,4‐D. At 5,000 and 20,000 ppm, degradation occurred in the Webster silty clay loam and Terra Ceia organic soil, but not in the Cecil sandy loam during 80 days of incubation. The degradation rate was generally higher for the formulated 2,4‐D than the technical grade material. For the higher 2,4‐D concentrations, 5,000 or 20,000 ppm, when extensive degradation occurred, total CO2 evolution was also greatly stimulated, and the pattern of total CO2 evolution rate exhibited a two‐peak response. Carbon dioxide‐carbon (CO2‐C) from the first peak appeared to be mainly from the formulation materials or from the impurities and CO2‐C from the second peak was mainly from 2,4‐D‐C.

THE NASAL GANGLION AND CHOREA: Case of a Patient Permanently Relieved by the Injection of Alcohol

Early in the spring of 1924 I had the first case in which there was distinct evidence of pathologic currents registering in the motor nerves. Mr. L. of Terra Ceia had been experiencing a drawing of the muscles of one side of the face and neck. The year previously I had had a patient with a twitching of the muscles about the eye. I had cocainized the ganglion, and the twitching had stopped, but that case was not conclusive since the twitching occurred at varying intervals and completely disappeared between paroxysms. But in the case of Mr. L., the drawing of the muscles was more or less constant; it was less severe on some days than on others, and on some days it scarcely occurred at all. When the phenomenon was present, not only was the patient conscious of it, but it was plain to bystanders. The arrest of this