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    Habitat-type and temporal comparison of the meiobenthic composition of Taklong Island National Marine Reserve
    Burgos, Lorelie A. (Division of Biological Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences, University of the Philippines Visayas, 2009-03)
    Meiofauna are very important indicators of human disturbances in the natural ecosystem. It plays a major role in the primary production, rapid nutrient cycling and other benthic chemical processes. Knowledge regarding marine benthic communities is scarce and is limited only to temperate regions. Moreover, only a few have been conducted in the Philippines, while no studies have been conducted in the Taklong Island National Marine Reserve, Nueva Valencia, Guimaras, so this serves as the baseline for further studies to be conducted in the place. This study provides a characterization of the spatial and temporal distribution of meiobenthic fauna in the Taklong Island National Marine Reserve. Specifically, the study aimed to compare the composition of meiobenthic infauna in different habitat types and to examine changes in their abundance and distribution from 4, 16 and 26 weeks after the oil spill. Meiobenthic samples were collected in Taklong Island National Marine Reserve during the Rapid and Monitoring Phases of the Benthos Project of the UPV Oil Spill Response Program. Surveys were conducted in September 2 and November 23, 2006 and February 9 2007, respectively 4, 16 and 26 weeks after the spill. Nine stations within the area were chosen based on the station grid for the biological surveys. A total of 20 taxa were identified, with nematodes being numerically dominant. It also showed the highest mean abundance in all the sampling period and for the entire habitat type. The over all mean density was (80276.71494 ind. m2, SD =19988.37), with the highest peak in February 20072007 which is 26 weeks after the oil spill (143,508.4 ind/m2). And the lowest density was recorded in the month of September 2006, 4 weeks after the oil spill (47,205.43 ind. m2). For the habitat type soft bottom has the highest recorded mean density in the entire sampling period. For the temporal variation food source, organic matter and temperature dictates the changes in distribution of meiofauna but in the study it mostly because of the oil spill happened before the sampling period.
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    A comparison of the gut contents of two Cardinal Fish, Fowleria vaiulae (Jordan & Seale 1906) and Fowleria variegata (Valenciennes 1832) in seagrass beds of Palompon, Leyte
    Biantan, Lindsay S. (Division of Biological Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences, University of the Philippines Visayas, 2015-06)
    Seagrass ecosystems support much of the Philippines’ coastal marine resources with the presence of a rich diversity of species, including the economically important ones. Understanding the diet composition of fishes through gut content analysis is essential for selecting species for aquaculture. Specimens of Fowleria vaiulae and Fowleria variegata were obtained through a trawl survey in the seagrass beds of Palompon, Leyte from November 2011 to February 2012. A total of 291 guts were analysed in this study. Results showed diet composition of both species is mostly made up of benthic invertebrates. A high percentage of chyme was observed in both species (46-65%), suggesting the consumption of easily digested materials. Also for both Fowleria species, it was observed that smaller size classes consume a higher number of small preys while larger size classes feed on larger preys. Small invertebrates such as tanaids and amphipods were more abundant in the guts of F. vaiulae and large preys of shrimps and crabs dominate the diet of F. variegata. This difference may be due to food partitioning in co-occurring species to avoid competition.
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    Abundance, composition and distribution of phytoplankton in West Central Sulu Sea
    Bria, Jed B. (Division of Biological Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences, University of the Philippines Visayas, 2008-11)
    A total of 28 stations were sampled for abundance, composition and distribution of phytoplankton in the West Central Sulu Sea. The samples were taken from 15-30 April 2007. Samples were collected by filtering 50L of surface water through a 20 pm mesh plankton net. A total of 96 phytoplankton genera were identified and were grouped into four major taxa. The overall mean density was 444.6 cells/L. Diatoms were the most abundant, with the mean density of 213.5 cells/L. The most abundant diatom genus was Chaetoceros. Blue-green algae showed the second-highest mean density of 127.6 cells/L. Trichodesmium was the most abundant genus among the two blue-green algae identified. Trichodesmium was also the most abundant genus, comprising 28.1% of all phytoplankton identified. Dinoflagellates and silicoflagellates were ranked third and fourth among the four major taxa with 77.5 cells/L and 28 cells/L, respectively. Protoperidinium was the most abundant dinoflagellate, while Amphorella was the most abundant silicoflagellate. They made up 6.2% and 1.2 % of all phytoplankton identified, respectively. The stations located along the coast of Palawan and near the Tubattaha Reef Marine National Park showed the highest phytoplankton concentrations.