Rachael M Wade

• PhD
• Assistant Professor at California State Polytechnic University Humboldt

The relative rates of sexual versus asexual reproduction influence the partitioning of genetic diversity within and among populations. During range expansions, asexual reproduction often facilitates colonization and establishment. The arrival of the green alga Avrainvillea lacerata has caused shifts in habitat structure and community assemblages si...

The relative rates of sexual versus asexual reproduction influence the partitioning of genetic diversity within and among populations. During range expansions, uniparental reproduction often facilitates colonization and establishment. The arrival of the green alga Avrainvillea lacerata has caused shifts in habitat structure and community assemblage...

Partial rbcL sequences from type specimens of three of the earliest described Corallina species showed that C. arbuscula (type locality: Unalaska Island, Alaska, USA) and C. pilulifera (type locality: Okhotsk Sea, Russia) are synonymous, with C. pilulifera as the taxonomically accepted name, and that C. vancouveriensis (type locality: Botanical Bea...

Transitions to terrestriality have been associated with major animal radiations including land snails and slugs in Stylommatophora (>20 000 described species), the most successful lineage of ‘pulmonates’ (a non-monophyletic assemblage of air-breathing gastropods). However, phylogenomic studies have failed to robustly resolve relationships among tra...

Two specimens of the crustose red algal genus Ramicrusta were collected off Lehua Island, Hawai‘i, at 11 m and 49 m depth in September 2018, and are here described as new species on the basis of both molecular and morphological comparisons. Ramicrusta hawaiiensis sp. nov. is distinguished from the 12 other known species in the genus by the combinat...

The brown algae (Phaeophyceae) are a group of multicellular heterokonts that are ubiquitous in today’s oceans. Large brown algae from multiple orders are the foundation to temperate coastal ecosystems globally, a role that extends into arctic and tropical regions, providing services indirectly through increased coastal productivity and habitat prov...

Sacoglossans, or "sap-sucking" sea slugs, are primarily algivorous, with many taxa exhibiting kleptoplasty, the feeding and retaining of photosynthetically active chloroplasts from algae. The Plakobranchus species complex exhibits some of the longest kleptoplast retention and survival times under starvation conditions, but the contributions of thes...

The airborne environment is a critical juncture linking terrestrial and aquatic habitats, yet the algae of this environment are not well-characterised and understood. The goal of this study was to examine seasonality patterns of airborne algae in a tropical environment. Airborne algae were collected monthly in spore traps on a building rooftop on t...

Ex situ seed banking was first conceptualized and implemented in the early 20th century to maintain and protect crop lines. Today, ex situ seed banking is important for the preservation of heirloom strains, biodiversity conservation and ecosystem restoration, and diverse research applications. However, these efforts primarily target microalgae and...

Udotea geppiorum is reported to form meadows in deep-water, soft sediment habitats in the Main Hawaiian Islands. The identification of the species, initially published as U. argentea in the archipelago, is revised and confirmed based on morphological assessment and comparative DNA sequencing with western Pacific specimens. Udotea geppiorum is fully...

Fifty-six specimens of the red algal genus Martensia from the Main and North-western Hawaiian Islands, representing both shallow (36 specimens from 0–20 m depth) and mesophotic habitats (20 specimens from 62–93 m depth), were collected and characterized using morphological and molecular analyses. Phylogenetic analyses of the rbcL gene resolved five...

Algal assemblages are critical components of marine ecosystems from the intertidal to mesophotic depths; they act as primary producers, nutrient cyclers, and substrate providers. Coral reef ecosystems can be disrupted by stressors such as storm events, effluent inundation, sudden temperature shifts, and non-native invaders. Avrainvillea amadelpha i...

A second species in the siphonous green algal genus Avrainvillea was recently discovered off the island of O‘ahu in the Main Hawaiian Islands. Specimens were collected from Honolulu Harbor, including its entrance channel, and near Ke‘ehi Harbor. These locations are both in Mālama Bay on O‘ahu’s south shore in or adjacent to urbanized estuaries, res...

Avrainvillea sp. records and site information for the 2014 seagrass survey in Honolulu Harbor.

Morphological characters used to identify the new Avrainvillea specimens and comparison with related species.

Specimen and sequence information for those used in both morphological and molecular assessment.

Although the literature on the diversity of airborne algal communities in various locations around the world is increasing, little is known about their temporal and spatial patterns. We compared airborne algal communities from Honolulu, Hawai‘i, USA, over three 24-h sampling periods to examine diurnal patterns in diversity and abundance. Using a cu...

Sacoglossa, the “sap sucking” sea slugs, are highly specialized herbivores and the only metazoans that exhibit kleptoplasty, the sequestration and retention of chloroplasts from algae. Plakobranchus is one of the most generalistic herbivores within this order, with as many as 12 reported “algal host” (i.e. kleptoplast source) species. However, klep...

Sacoglossa, the "sap sucking" sea slugs, are highly specialized herbivores and the only metazoans that exhibit kleptoplasty, the sequestration and retention of chloroplasts from algae. Plakobranchus is one of the most generalistic herbivores within this order, with as many as 12 reported "algal host" (i.e. kleptoplast source) species. However, klep...

Although the literature on the diversity ofairborne algal communities in various locationsaround the world is increasing, little is known abouttheir temporal and spatial patterns. We comparedairborne algal communities from Honolulu, Hawai‘i,USA, over three 24-h sampling periods to examinediurnal patterns in diversity and abundance. Using aculture-b...

Throughout the world DNA banks are used as storage repositories for genetic diversity of organisms ranging from plants to insects to mammals. Designed to preserve the genetic information for organisms of interest, these banks also indirectly preserve organisms’ associated microbiomes, including fungi associated with plant tissues. Studies of fungal...

Clermontia DNA bank sample information and extended metadata

Observed fungal OTU accumulation curves over the corresponding number of DNA sequence reads for Clermontia DNA bank samples pooled by island

OTU table used for all analyses

Observed fungal OTU accumulation curves over the corresponding number of DNA sequence reads, colors display the different Clermontia species

PCR volumes and thermal cycler settings for each amplicon library of the first amplicon PCR and second index PCR

Observed fungal OTU accumulation curve for all Clermontia plant bank phylloplane samples using the rarefied OTU matrix with 95% confidence intervals shown in grey

Mapping file for each sample

Pair-wise physical distances in kilometers (km) for each plant bank sample over pair-wise time between sampling in days (Mantel test: r = 0.455, p = 0.048)

Community dissimilarity for each plant bank sample over pair-wise time in days (Mantel test: r = 0.619, p = 0.051)

Sample interpolation (solid lines) and extrapolation (dashed lines) curves for phylloplane fungi from all eight Clermontia species Based Hill’s numbers three different diversity estimators were used (Chao1 richness, exponential of Shannon entropy, and inverse Simpson concentration indices) and are shown by the different colors with 95% confidence i...

R code used for all analyses and figures

The sacoglossan sea slug species complex Plakobranchus ocellatus is a common algivore throughout the tropical Pacific, including the Hawaiian Islands. Plakobranchus ocellatus is kleptoplastic - it sequesters and retains algal chloroplasts - a characteristic that can be exploited to molecularly characterize diminutive bryopsidalean algae that are ty...

Procedures for a viral replication in excised fin tissue (VREFT) assay were adapted to Pacific herring, Clupea pallasii, and optimized both to reduce processing time and to provide the greatest resolution between naïve herring and those previously exposed to viral haemorrhagic septicaemia virus (VHSV), Genogroup IVa. The optimized procedures includ...

Laboratory challenges using specific-pathogen-free Pacific herring Clupea pallasii from three distinct populations indicated that stock origin had no effect on susceptibility to viral hemorrhagic septicemia (VHS). All of the populations were highly susceptible to the disease upon initial exposure, with significantly greater cumulative mortalities o...

Losses from infectious diseases are an important component of natural mortality among marine fish species, but factors controlling the ecology of these diseases and their potential responses to anthropogenic changes are poorly understood. We used viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus (VHSV) and a laboratory stock of Pacific herring Clupea pallasii to...