SynopsisIn the marine environment, both external fertilization and settlement are critical processes linking adult and early juvenile life-history phases. The success of both processes can be tightly linked in organisms lacking a larval dispersive phase. This review focuses on synchronous gamete release (¼ spawning) in fucoid algae. These brown macroalgae are important components of temperate intertidal ecosystems in many parts of the world, and achieve synchronous gamete release by integrating various environmental signals. Photosynthesis-dependent sensing of boundary-layer inorganic carbon fluxes, as well as blue light and green light signals, possibly perceived via a chloroplast-located photoreceptor(s), are integrated into pathways that restrict gamete release to periods of low water motion. Avoidance of turbulent and/or high flow conditions in the intertidal zone allows high levels of fertilization success in this group. Temporal patterns and synchrony of spawning in natural populations are reviewed. Most species/populations have a more or less semilunar periodicity, although phase differences occur both between and within species at different geographical locations, raising the possibility that tidal and diurnal cues are more important than semilunar cues in entraining the response. The ecological and evolutionary role(s) of synchronous spawning in the intertidal zone are considered, particularly with regard to hybridization/reproductive isolation in species complexes, and reproductive versus recruitment assurance in the intertidal zone, where synchronous spawning during calm periods may be important for recruitment assurance in addition to fertilization success. Ways in which the roles of spawning synchrony could be tested in closely related species with contrasting mating systems (outcrossing versus selfing) are discussed. IntroductionBroadcast spawning and external fertilization are common in many groups of marine organisms, despite the pitfalls of ensuring reproductive success in the sea. Perhaps the single most important factor favoring successful syngamy is the synchronous release of gametes from reproductive individuals. Indeed, the literature contains many striking examples of spawning synchrony, from the Palolo worm in the south Pacific (see Caspers 1984) to the mass spawning of many species of corals (Harrison and others 1984; Babcock and others 1986). In these and other examples, organisms respond to 1 or more cues from multiple environmental cycles, including daily (light-dark), tidal, semilunar, lunar, and seasonal, to synchronize gamete release (Morgan and Christy 1994;Yamahira 2004; Skov and others 2005). Tight control over the timing of gamete release, and therefore sensitivity to environmental cues, is very important for reproductive assurance in externally fertilizing species. Until recently, the prevailing paradigm has been that sperm limitation is widespread in the sea (reviewed by Levitan and Petersen 1995; but also see Yund 2000). This conclusion is mainly based on experimental stu...

Glacial vicariance is regarded as one of the most prevalent drivers of phylogeographic structure and speciation among high-latitude organisms, but direct links between ice advances and range fragmentation have been more difficult to establish in marine than in terrestrial systems. Here we investigate the evolution of largely disjunct (and potentially reproductively isolated) phylogeographic lineages within the amphi-boreal kelp Saccharina latissima s. l. Using molecular data (COI, microsatellites) we confirm that S. latissima comprises also the NE Pacific S. cichorioides complex and is composed of divergent lineages with limited range overlap and genetic admixture. Only a few genetic hybrids were detected throughout a Canadian Arctic/NW Greenland contact zone. The degree of genetic differentiation and sympatric isolation of phylogroups suggest that S. latissima s. l. represents a complex of incipient species. Phylogroup distributions compared with paleo-environmental reconstructions of the cryosphere further suggest that diversification within S. latissima results from chronic glacial isolation in disjunct persistence areas intercalated with ephemeral interglacial poleward expansions and admixture at high-latitude (Arctic) contact zones. This study thus supports a role for glaciations not just in redistributing pre-existing marine lineages but also as a speciation pump across multi-glacial cycles for marine organisms otherwise exhibiting cosmopolite amphi-boreal distributions.

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This article documents the addition of 512 microsatellite marker loci and nine pairs of Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) sequencing primers to the Molecular Ecology Resources Database. Loci were developed for the following species: Alcippe morrisonia morrisonia, Bashania fangiana, Bashania fargesii, Chaetodon vagabundus, Colletes floralis, Coluber constrictor flaviventris, Coptotermes gestroi, Crotophaga major, Cyprinella lutrensis, Danaus plexippus, Fagus grandifolia, Falco tinnunculus, Fletcherimyia fletcheri, Hydrilla verticillata, Laterallus jamaicensis coturniculus, Leavenworthia alabamica, Marmosops incanus, Miichthys miiuy, Nasua nasua, Noturus exilis, Odontesthes bonariensis, Quadrula fragosa, Pinctada maxima, Pseudaletia separata, Pseudoperonospora cubensis, Podocarpus elatus, Portunus trituberculatus, Rhagoletis cerasi, Rhinella schneideri, Sarracenia alata, Skeletonema marinoi, Sminthurus viridis, Syngnathus abaster, Uroteuthis (Photololigo) chinensis, Verticillium dahliae, Wasmannia auropunctata, and Zygochlamys patagonica. These loci were cross-tested on the following species: Chaetodon baronessa, Falco columbarius, Falco eleonorae, Falco naumanni, Falco peregrinus, Falco subbuteo, Didelphis aurita, Gracilinanus microtarsus, Marmosops paulensis, Monodelphis Americana, Odontesthes hatcheri, Podocarpus grayi, Podocarpus lawrencei, Podocarpus smithii, Portunus pelagicus, Syngnathus acus, Syngnathus typhle,Uroteuthis (Photololigo) edulis, Uroteuthis (Photololigo) duvauceli and Verticillium albo-atrum. This article also documents the addition of nine sequencing primer pairs and sixteen allele specific primers or probes for Oncorhynchus mykiss and Oncorhynchus tshawytscha; these primers and assays were cross-tested in both species.

BackgroundMolecular markers are revealing a much more diverse and evolutionarily complex picture of marine biodiversity than previously anticipated. Cryptic and/or endemic marine species are continually being found throughout the world oceans, predominantly in inconspicuous tropical groups but also in larger, canopy-forming taxa from well studied temperate regions. Interspecific hybridization has also been found to be prevalent in many marine groups, for instance within dense congeneric assemblages, with introgressive gene-flow being the most common outcome. Here, using a congeneric phylogeographic approach, we investigated two monotypic and geographically complementary sister genera of north-east Pacific intertidal seaweeds (Hesperophycus and Pelvetiopsis), for which preliminary molecular tests revealed unexpected conflicts consistent with unrecognized cryptic diversity and hybridization.ResultsThe three recovered mtDNA clades did not match a priori species delimitations. H. californicus was congruent, whereas widespread P. limitata encompassed two additional narrow-endemic species from California - P. arborescens (here genetically confirmed) and P. hybrida sp. nov. The congruence between the genotypic clusters and the mtDNA clades was absolute. Fixed heterozygosity was apparent in a high proportion of loci in P. limitata and P. hybrida, with genetic analyses showing that the latter was composed of both H. californicus and P. arborescens genomes. All four inferred species could be distinguished based on their general morphology.ConclusionsThis study confirmed additional diversity and reticulation within NE Pacific Hesperophycus/Pelvetiopsis, including the validity of the much endangered, modern climatic relict P. arborescens, and the identification of a new, stable allopolyploid species (P. hybrida) with clearly discernable ancestry (♀ H. californicus x ♂ P. arborescens), morphology, and geographical distribution. Allopolyploid speciation is otherwise completely unknown in brown seaweeds, and its unique occurrence within this genus (P. limitata possibly representing a second example) remains enigmatic. The taxonomic separation of Hesperophycus and Pelvetiopsis is not supported and the genera should be synonymized; we retain only the latter. The transitional coastline between Point Conception and Monterey Bay represented a diversity hotspot for the genus and the likely sites of extraordinary evolutionary events of allopolyploid speciation at sympatric range contact zones. This study pinpoints how much diversity (and evolutionary processes) potentially remains undiscovered even on a conspicuous seaweed genus from the well-studied Californian intertidal shores let alone in other, less studied marine groups and regions/depths.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12862-017-0878-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.