Abstract Despite their great importance, the sandy shores have not received the attention deserved. In Colombia they have been approached mainly from physical and geological standpoints, with few studies on the associated biodiversity, as is the case of the Johnny Cay Regional Natural Park in the Colombian Caribbean Region. To have a future frame of reference to evaluate and monitor the environmental impact on the sandy coast of Johnny Cay, the macrofaunal community of this ecosystem was characterized. Two stations were established, where three sediment samples were taken per beach zone (infralittoral, mesolittoral, and supralittoral), using a 16 cm diameter core, for a total of nine samples per station. The samples were sieved through a 500 µm mesh and processed in a laboratory. The macrofaunal community of Johnny Cay was represented by 1628 organisms, belonging to 20 families of the phyla Annelida, Nematoda, Mollusca, and Arthropoda (subphylum Crustacea). Annelids were the dominant group, representing 98% of total abundance, with two new family reports (Naididae and Enchytraeidae) for the Colombian Caribbean sandy beaches. The station EST_549 presented 67% of the macrofauna; this station is characterized by its hydro-dynamism, with a change of material due to the division in the opposite direction of the waves. Substrate samples were also taken in each beach zone for sedimentological analysis of grain size, carbonate content, organic matter content, and mineralogy; these variables were correlated with the community structure, obtaining a better correlation between the medium and coarse sands, and the width of the beach zone with the biological component. This work presents the baseline for the macrofaunal community of Johnny Cay sandy shore and sets the initial steps for its preservation and conservation. importance deserved standpoints biodiversity Region established infralittoral, infralittoral (infralittoral mesolittoral supralittoral, supralittoral , supralittoral) 1 core 50 laboratory 162 organisms 2 Annelida Nematoda Mollusca subphylum Crustacea. Crustacea . Crustacea) group 98 abundance Naididae Enchytraeidae beaches EST549 EST 549 EST_54 67 macrofauna hydrodynamism, hydrodynamism hydro dynamism, dynamism hydro-dynamism waves size content mineralogy structure sands component conservation 5 9 EST54 54 EST_5 6 EST5 EST_

ResumenEl cangrejo rey del Caribe Damithrax spinosissimus es un recurso pesquero catalogado en estado de vulnerabilidad y de cuya biología se conoce muy poco. Su distribución agregada en mosaico y la gran heterogeneidad ambiental dada por las características oceanográficas, paisajísticas y ecológicas del Caribe, pueden propiciar a que exista variabilidad fenotípica en función de la procedencia geográfica de los individuos. Por esta razón, el objetivo de esta investigación fue determinar si existe variabilidad morfogeométrica en los caparazones de ejemplares procedentes de tres islas del Caribe suroccidental: Providencia, Rosario y San Bernardo. La primera de ellas con una influencia netamente oceánica y las dos siguientes, cercanas al continente, con mayor influencia de las dinámicas costeras. Para ello se capturaron y fotografiaron 276 individuos: 103 hembras ovadas y 173 machos, sobre los cuales se realizaron análisis morfogeométricos, tomando 12 puntos anatómicos de referencia (Landmarks) en una de las mitades del caparazón. Las diferencias de tamaño entre sexos y entre orígenes geográficos se contrastaron mediante comparaciones pareadas de Fisher, el efecto alométrico se estimó mediante Análisis de Regresión Multivariada y el modelo de pendientes alométricas mediante Análisis Multivariado de Covarianza. La conformación promedio entre sexos y entre orígenes geográficos se computó de las deformaciones relativas, obtenidas mediante análisis de componentes principales; asimismo, las distancias Euclidianas entre las conformaciones promedio se utilizaron para construir un árbol con base en el algoritmo de Neighbour- Joining con una significancia calculada sobre 10 000 permutaciones. Los resultados mostraron diferencias en el tamaño y conformación del caparazón entre sexos y entre las tres islas, siendo más evidentes las diferencias en Providencia. Estos resultados pueden ser explicados de manera no excluyente por diferencias genéticas y plasticidad fenotípica debida a la heterogeneidad ambiental del sector. Este estudio, primero en su clase, es un aporte al conocimiento de la especie y de él se concluye que deberían existir estrategias de manejo diferentes para las tres islas.

AbstractThe Caribbean King Crab, Damithrax spinosissimus is a fishery resource, but few biological studies are available. Its patchy distribution, and the high environmental heterogeneity due to the oceanographic, landscape, and ecological characteristics of the Caribbean Sea, can favor the phenotypic variability according to the geographic origin. For this reason, the objective of our study was to determine morphometic variability in the carapace of the crabs from three Southwestern Caribbean islands: Providence, Rosario and San Bernardo. The former has an oceanic influence, whereas the two latter islands, which are closer to the mainland, have more influence of the coastal dynamic. A total of 276 individuals from the three islands were captured and photographed: 103 females and 173 males; their variation was analyzed from 12 anatomical landmarks marked on one half of the carapace. The differences in the carapace size were calculated using a Fisher’s pairwise comparison; the allometric effect was calculated by Multivariate Regression Analysis; and the Allometric model via Multivariate Analysis of Covariance. The average shape was calculated from the relative wraps RW obtained through PCA analysis; and the Euclidian distances between the shape averages, were used to construct a tree using the Neighbour-Joining algorithm over 10 000 permutations. The results showed significant differences in the size and shape of the carapace between sexes and among the three islands. The differences in the shape of the crabs from Providencia were significantly greater than those found between the crabs of Rosario and San Bernardo. These results can be explained inclusively due to the genetic differences and phenotypic plasticity, due to environmental heterogeneity of the sector. This study, the first of its kind, is a contribution to the knowledge of the species. We concluded that different management strategies should be differently adopted in each of the three studied islands. Rev. Biol. Trop. 64 (2): 667-681. Epub 2016 June 01.

Los cangrejos ermitaños son un grupo representativo de la fauna marina del Caribe colombiano, además, son importantes en el mantenimiento del equilibrio dinámico, en los ecosistemas por sus interacciones ecológicas y también por el impacto en la estabilidad de las redes tróficas. Sus patrones de distribución se identificaron mediante análisis multivariados de clasificación y ordenación espacial, se usaron registros históricos desde 1916 hasta el 2006. Los resultados indican diferencias por profundidad entre la fauna costera y la del talud continental y diferencias en la distribución latitudinal, en donde se encontraron tres grupos: Noreste, Centro y Suroeste, sustentados por diferencias en la composición faunística. Con base en los mapas de ecosistemas marinos de Colombia, se determinó que los principales factores que afectan su distribución son la influencia del talud Caribaná (profundidad), la temperatura de las masas de agua, las praderas de pastos marinos de la Guajira y las condiciones particulares de las ecorregiones Archipiélagos coralinos y Darién. Se identificó la distribución mundial de las especies colombianas y su afinidad geográfica, y se encontró mayor afinidad con el Atlántico norte y las Antillas que con el Atlántico sur y el Golfo de México, asimismo, las subprovincias geográficas que incluyen a Colombia son zonas de transición dentro de la subprovincias septentrionales y australes del Gran Caribe

Hermit crabs (Anomura: Paguroidea) distribution patterns in the Colombian Caribbean Sea. Hermit crabs represent the marine life in the Colombian Caribbean, and are important for the dynamic equilibrium maintenance in ecosystems, the ecological interactions and their impact on food web stability. Generally, in order to come up with some conservation strategies, strong bio-geographical information is needed for policies definition. With this aim, this study analyzed the distribution patterns of hermit crabs in the Colombian Caribbean Sea, through classification and spatial ordination multivariate analyses, using historical records from years 1916 to 2006. Besides, the world distribution of Colombian species and their geographic affinity in the Caribbean and Western Atlantic were identified. The results show deep differences between coastal and continental slope faunas, and latitudinal differences in the assemblages, with the identification of three groups: Northeast, Center and Southwest. The differences in faunal composition that support these three groups were determined. Based on maps of the Colombian marine ecosystems, it was found that the main factors affecting the distribution of hermit crabs were the Caribaná slope (depth), water-mass temperature, Guajira sea-grass beds, and particular conditions of “Coralline Archipelagos” and “Darién” eco-regions. Colombian hermit crab fauna is more related to the North Atlantic and the Antilles, than to the South Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico. Additionally, geographical sub-provinces in which Colombia is included, these were found as transition zones among Northern and Austral subprovinces of the Greater Caribbean.