Summary The hermit crabs that most people encounter are terrestrial, occupying a a variety of snail shells (and even plastic trash when shells are rare) throughout the tropics. Despite their iconic presence on tropical beaches, few people are aware that the taxonomy of terrestrial hermit crabs is still not fully resolved. All terrestrial hermit crabs…

Summary Blue carbon ecosystem (BCE) is composed of mangroves, seagrasses, and seaweeds that have the capacity to absorb large amount of carbon from the atmosphere. With the rising global temperatures and carbon emissions, BCEs can help in mitigating the potential impacts of human-induced global changes by storing and sequestering carbon through the years. The Philippine…

Summary Despite the growing knowledge on the significance of submarine groundwater discharge (SGD), mapping its occurrence is a continuing challenge. This study explores the utility of low-cost, accessible, recreational-grade echosounders (RGESs) to image different types and identify specific locations of bubble-dominated coastal SGD. Standard and systematic methodologies for efficient imaging and processing were established. The…

Summary This research mapped the active offshore faults in Batangas Bay and part of Verde Island Passage. It is of such importance since the area of interest is the site of the 1994 Mindoro Earthquake and the 2017 Batangas Earthquake. The only known fault in the vicinity is the Verde Passage Fault but the characteristics…

Summary Collectively known as eucheumatoids, Eucheuma denticulatum, Kappaphycus alvarezii, K. malesianus, and K. striatus are the main farmed seaweed species in the Philippines. This group of seaweeds is the main source of the high-value carrageenan. There are three major types of carrageenan, each having properties that make one type more suitable for a specific application…

Summary The non-degradability of most plastic packaging materials and the deficiency in recycling infrastructure on aglobal scale causes huge environmental problems. Production of packaging materials from natural macroalgae polymers is a very promising alternative to address the problems. The cultivation potential for macroalgae is huge and they are not in competition to food crops. Although…

Summary Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are areas where extraction of marine organism are prohibited to promote fisheries conservation and population recovery, specifically for reef fishes. In order to determine if MPAs are effective, annual monitoring survey is conducted wherein technical skills are required. Monitoring of reef fish can be done either by snorkeling and/or SCUBA…

Summary Bleaching or the expulsion of the photosynthetic symbiont Symbiodiniaceae (‘zooxanthellae’) caused by the increase in seawater temperatures causes massive mortalities in giant clams. After a bleaching disturbance, population recovery is heavily dependent on reproduction and recruitment success. However, how bleaching directly affects the reproductive performance of giant clams is, to date, unknown. In our…

Summary Mismanaged plastic wastes resist decomposition and accumulate in the environment. Plastic-polluted environments provide opportunities for naturally-occurring marine microorganisms to associate with marine plastic debris. Initial bacterial colonizers of plastic, called ‘primo-colonizers’, possess functional capabilities that enable them to survive on the plastic surface. To demonstrate these surface-associated activities and their effect on the plastic,…

Summary A hatchery experiment was conducted to determine the individual and combined effects of lowered pH and elevated temperature on the feeding of two seagrass-associated invertebrate grazers, namely the sea cucumber Stichopus cf. horrens and the topshell Trochus maculatus, after 5 days exposure. The study found that elevated temperature increased the nighttime activity of the…