Harvard University Cambridge, Massachusetts Volume 7, Number 2 Winter, 1978 (yl rewsletler SEUM OF COMPARATIVE ZOOLOGY FISH DEPARTMENT RECEIVES IMPORTANT COLLECTION ° ° RO, 00 , PP 0 0 ° 998 . — 00! ° ys z (ee ° ° la Sh 2° ° eee The dots on this map represent the localities from which the fishes in the WHOI collection were taken. The range covers practically the entire Atlantic Ocean, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. A major event in the history of the MCZ Fish Department started this February with the beginning of a three year project to transfer over 300,000 specimens of Atlantic fishes from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) to the MCZ. This major collection represents well over 13 years of re- search by MCZ Research As- sociates Drs. Richard Backus, James Craddock and _ Richard Haedrich in almost all areas of the Atlantic Ocean. The addition of this marine fish collection, unparal- Laszlo Meszoly leled in the history of the MCZ, is one of the high points of a long relationship between the MCZ and WHOIT started by Dr. Henry Bryant Bigelow and continued by Drs. William Schroeder, Giles Mead, Karel Liem and William Fink. The current project is made pos- sible by a three year grant from the National Science Foundation co- authored by the MCZ’s current ichthyologists, Drs. Liem and Fink, and will provide $165,200 to inte- grate the collection into the reno- vated Fish Department. Accession- ing of this material would not have been possible without these major renovations, supported by a previ- ous NSF facilities grant (1973-78), which has transformed the MCZ into an excellently equipped re- search facility currently rated an In- ternational Center for Ichthyology by the American Society of Ich- thyologists and Herpetologists. The material being transferred is probably the most important (and extensive) aquisition since Louis Agassiz’ initiation of the Thayer and Hassler Expeditions of the mid and late 1800’s. All of the specimens have been collected on modern re- search vessels with fine mesh net and preserved under optimal con- ditions. In addition, the 40,000 lots of fishes, representing over 100 families, are accompanied by ex- tensive data, most of which is on computer printouts at WHOI. The fishes have already been studied extensively by the WHOI researchers in their work on Atlan- tic Zoogeography and zonation and by most of the authors of the - “Fishes of the Western North At- lantic’, a series currently filling seven large volumes, published by the Sears Foundation of ‘Yale Uni- versity. Volume seven is just off the press and covers the lanternfishes, family Myctophidae. About sixty percent of the fishes which will be transferred belong in this excep- tionally rich family and have been used extensively by Drs. Backus and Craddock who are co-authors of the current volume. This elaborately documented col- lection, from various ocean depths and habitats, and representing great phyletic diversity, will be a prime souce for marine biologists of this and future generations. EVA JONAS, NEW MCZ LIBRARIAN Mrs. Eva Stanovska Jonas has been appointed MCZ Librarian as of February 1. With her background in Biology (she received an undergraduate degree in Biology and a master’s degree in Library Science from Charles University in her native Czechoslovakia and also holds a master’s degree in Cell and Developmental Biology from Harvard), her extensive science library experience, and her urgent concern for the future of the MCZ Library she is ideally suited for her challeng- ing new position. Mrs. Jonas, whois fluent in five languages, has been reference librarian at Harvard’s Cabot Science Library since 1973; she has been an Associate of Adams House since 1975; and she has been involved in individual and course-related instruction of Harvard students on how to use the library effectively, especially those reference tools developed by modern information science. In 1976 Harvard University published her slide tape pro- gram on How to Use Biological Abstracts. She is also responsible for introducing an analytical hand oper- ated information retrieval system into both the Cell and Developmental Biology Library at Harvard and the Library of the Czechoslovakia Academy of Arts and Sciences. Mrs. Jonas plans to apply her considerable energy to improving three major areas of the MCZ Library in- cluding: a) rearranging the journal holdings, a major project since more than 1900 journals are received by the Library; b) rehousing the rare books in an area equipped with temperature and humidity controls to prevent their deterioration; and c) joining the Library of Congress classification system to update the Li- brary’s retrieval capabilities. Like most institutions, the Library faces two major shortages—space and funds. Space is a constant prob- lem since the historical value of many of the books prevents their being weeded out. Unlike other more modern libraries, a large number of the MCZ’s hold- ings, rather than becoming obsolete, grow more valu- able with age. Preserving these rare books is one of the Library’s urgent priorities. She hopes that the museum will eventually receive government or foundation grants or find support from individuals interested in . i Mrs. Eva S. Jonas preserving what is actually the museum’s most valu- able collection—the MCZ Library. E. O. WILSON HONORED Professor Edward O. Wilson, Curator in Entomol- ogy, has received the National Medal of Science in recognition of his pioneering research into the organi- zation of insect societies and the evolution of social behavior in insects and other animals. He received the award from President Carter on November 22. A baby elephant’s sunburn is a sure sign that mother is missing. This baby’s back is greasy from lo- tion applied by its foster parents, the game wardens of Tzavo Na- tional Park, who found it after its mother was presumably killed by poachers. Among other comforts that mother elephants provide is shade from the sun for their off- spring’s untoughened skin. Pro- fessor Charles P. Lyman, Curator of Mammalogy, takes a close look on a visit to Kenya last Spring. Photo by Ann Taylor ee tink: fo. Coty orntan. abo “leg weh< War teny/ for Fas / 7 Gabby / acne B a 871 : why ray tetirk pode mem Medes, D Bas, Hh , hs i kh 4 Toe OL a ae sein dey i 4, AF LL he thor pit } > ‘ — fA g WERUA ALLA 7 x wh A fi wey mk é 4) vhak yeu oe ‘g gi 0 bane ~ Garment Sani ha tome, a aaah ~ ey 4c ee 4 : & "2 { % : R 2 D> LN : Tr D DY nang mack hapa A 7 ft ia er . ~ <3 { ‘se : ~S cai aes a b Wc. ee ; ae Sui ee ote ee Fo, (.. yer . ae ey ad "A fy 7 q oy rw tte Baagoter pe J ‘ } es . LA os a ante “ aed Nene ee 8 aA, PD ad PY eg 9s cae this te mpl: ——— Beall how, A hip he yarn “fp nm 47 swewtl be Henk we Kite Tee | fund WY isn a ¢ Before carbon paper and copying machines there were tissue paper ‘‘letter books.”’ Fifteen of these now very brittle letter books containing copies of the correspondence of founder Louis Agassiz and his son, Alexander (second MCZ director) will be preserved for future researchers on microfilm, thanks to a grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission. This letter from Louis Agassiz to Joseph Henry of the Smithsonian ts one illustration of why these copy books area rich source for the history of science. HUSBAND AND WIFE VISIT FROM SANTA CRUZ Dr. Vicki B. Pearse Dr. Vicki B. Pearse, who received her A.B. and Ph.D. degrees from Stanford University, works on the symbiosis between sea anemones and photosynthetic dinoflagellates (single-celled algae which cause the anemones’ response to light) and on calcification by corals and sea urchins when she’s in her cus- tomary habitat at the University of California at Santa Cruz where she is a research associate. However, during her semester sojourn in Cambridge this Spring she plans to concentrate exclusively on the cur- rent family project—the revision of her father, Ralph Buchsbaum’s well-known text Animals Without Backbones together with her father, mother Mildred Buchsbaum, and husband John Pearse. The Buchsbaums’ retirement from the University of Pittsburgh and subsequent move to central Dr. John S. Pearse Dr. John S. Pearse, Associate Professor of Biology at the Univer- sity of California at Santa Cruz and Visiting Associate Professor at the MCZ this Spring, is an invertebrate biologist whose special interest is reproduction in echinoderms. While at the MCZ, Dr. Pearse and Dr. Robert M. Woollacott, As- sociate Professor of Biology and Dr. John Pearse at the transmission electron microscope. Dr. Vicki B. Pearse California had made the joint proj- ect feasible and plans are to con- tinue this Spring despite the long- distance telephone calls. Associate Curator of Invertebrates, will teach a course on the reproduc- tive ecology of marine inverte- brates. They will also examine sea urchins with both the scanning and transmission electron microscopes in an attempt to explain the mys- tery of synchronous reproduction in these animals. The aboral nerve ring in sea urchins has not yet been closely studied and Dr. Pearse thinks its function might have bear- ing on the unknown mechanism which triggers simultaneous re- production in these echinoderms. Dr. Pearse’s research into echi- noderm reproduction has led him to compare populations in several different far-flung study sites. For his Ph.D. (Stanford 1965) research, he spent a year at the McMurdo research station in the Antarctic and concluded that perhaps the synchronous reproduction in this area may be triggered by the spring phytoplankton — bloom. Sub- sequently, his research in the Gulf of Suez, while he was Assistant Professor at the American Univer- sity in Cairo from 1965 to 1968, led him to conclude that temperature was the main environmental factor involved in synchronizing repro- duction in this subtropical area. This line of research requires ample time and patience since most echinoderms have an annual re- productive cycle and the normal cycle has to be observed before ex- perimentation can begin. Another aspect of echinoderm . reproduction, closer to home in central California, has involved Dr. Pearse in an advisory capacity to wildlife managers and _ conser- vationists who are concerned about the balance of nature in the central California kelp forests. There are several factors which play an ecological part: a) The kelp, from which alginic acid is derived, is the basis of a multimillion dollar industry in California; it is used as a stabilizer in many foods, beverages, phar- maceutics, cosmetics, paint, rub- ber, ceramics, insecticide sprays, textiles, and paper products. b) The sea urchins, which are major grazers in the kelp forests and whose populations have greatly increased over recent years. c) The sea otters, natural sea ur- chin predators, which were nearly extinct (less than 100 individuals) at the turn of the century and now, with legislated controls, number almost 2,000. The sea otters, how- ever, do not take only sea urchins but also abalones, clams and crabs. d) The shell fishermen, who are perturbed over the loss of their catch to the sea otters and feel the otter population should be re- stricted. Dr. Pearse, who studies this problem at Stanford’s Hopkins Marine Station, points out that there are other factors to be taken into account and stresses that a thorough understanding of the en- tire kelp forest ecology is essential to making enlightened legislative decisions. For one thing, the sea otters live in a very limited 130-mile range from Monterey Bay south to Pismo Beach. The sea urchins out- side their range are more numerous than within. A perfect opportunity to document the changes caused by sea otters present itself this year humancontributionto this ecologi- _ sulted from heavy fishing pressure. since they have just arrived in cal imbalance. The major decline in Dr. Pearse will present an illus- Santa Cruz. The complaints of the — the abalone catches, for example, _ trated lecture to the Friends of the shell fishermen against the sea ot- —_ have been outside the range of the © MCZ on this complex topic on ters do not take into account the sea otters, and has probably re- Tuesday, March 7, 1978. NTS " aie @ CENTRAL CALIFORNIA KELP FOREST INHABITA a. A diver descends into the murky kelp forest to collect data. b. Giant kelp plants, the basis of a multi-million dollar industry, surrounded by rockfishes. c. Sea urchins on the ocean floor. d. Sea stars feeding on kelp. Abalone shell on right. e. Abalones hiding in crack. f. A sea otter with a sea urchin. f Photo by R. Mattison TWO FISH DEPARTMENT GRADUATE STUDENTS RECEIVE AWARDS George Lauder wins top student prize ss arn aa st