No abstract

Marine fungi are an ecological rather than a taxonomic group that has been widely researched. Significant progress has been made in documenting their phylogeny, biodiversity, ultrastructure, ecology, physiology, and capacity for degradation of lignocellulosic compounds. This review (concept paper) summarizes the current knowledge of marine fungal diversity and provides an integrated and comprehensive view of their ecological roles in the world’s oceans. Novel terms for ‘semi marine fungi’ and ‘marine fungi’ are proposed based on the existence of fungi in various oceanic environments. The major maritime currents and upwelling that affect species diversity are discussed. This paper also forecasts under-explored regions with a greater diversity of marine taxa based on oceanic currents. The prospects for marine and semi-marine mycology are highlighted, notably, technological developments in culture-independent sequencing approaches for strengthening our present understanding of marine fungi’s ecological roles.

Blue whales Balaenoptera musculus are the most abundant and widely distributed cetacean species in Sri Lankan waters. A vessel-based opportunistic line transect survey focusing on marine mammals was conducted in Sri Lankan waters between 24 June to 12 July 2018, while an ecosystem survey was performed by the R/V Dr. Fridtjof Nansen. The entire transect length was 2090 km within an area of 3895 km2. Overall, 72% (n = 57) of blue whale observations were group assemblages ranging between 1 and 5 individuals out of a total of 79 sightings. The largest aggregations of blue whales were recorded at the intersection of the submarine canyon off the coastline of Mirissa and busy shipping lanes between Dondra Head and Galle, where previous ship strikes were recorded. Overall, the average observed group size was 2.64 (CV, 12.34%; 95% CI, 2.07–3.38), the average group density was 0.0029 km−2 (CV, 35.96%; 95% CI, 0.00145–0.00610), and the total blue whale abundance within the survey area was 513 individuals (CV, 38.02%; 95% CI, 243–1083). These survey results fill vital knowledge gaps regarding the abundance and distribution of blue whales in Sri Lanka, which is essential for the establishment of management and conservation strategies.