Coral reefs depend on the assimilation of off-reef nutrients, particularly from zooplankton, to fuel on-reef productivity. Planktivorous reef fishes thus play a critical role in sustaining a key ecosystem function as the major consumers of plankton. The importance of gelatinous zooplankton to the nutritional ecology of larger-bodied planktivorous fishes is becoming increasingly apparent. Yet, the extent to which feeding on gel...

All continents, excluding Antarctica and the Artic, have been affected by incursion from alien freshwater fish species. Australia has not been spared. Four hundred and fifty species have now been declared on the ornamental importation list, making management a real challenge. With approximately 25 non-native species documented, Papua New Guinea (PNG) has likely some problems with invasive freshwater fish. Many of these species...

Population irruptions of crown-of-thorns seastar (CoTS, Acanthaster spp.) represent a perennial threat to Indo-Pacific coral reefs. Age determination of CoTS is challenging, thereby hindering understanding and management of this nuisance species. Telomeres, which are protective DNA structure found at the ends of eukaryotic chromosomes that shorten at each cell division, have been used to estimate age in wild animals. To invest...

Population structure of many marine organisms is spatially patchy and varies within and between years, a phenomenon defined as chaotic genetic patchiness. This results from the combination of planktonic larval dispersal and environmental stochasticity. Additionally, in species with bi‐partite life, postsettlement selection can magnify these genetic differences. The high fecundity (up to 500,000 eggs annually) and protracted la...