Steffen De Vreese

Polytechnic University of Catalonia | UPC

Statoil deployed three acoustic recorders from fall 2013 to 2014 in the Arctic region as part of a broad scientific campaign. One recorder was installed in the Barentsz Sea south-east of Spitsbergen. Two other recorders were installed in the Greenland Sea north-east of Greenland. All recorders were operating at a duty cycle of 2 min on and 30 min o...

Cetaceans descend from land mammals. Consequently, their hearing apparatus basically consists of the same anatomical components. Whales, as land mammals, feature an outer, middle and inner ear. However, these structures show strong evolutionary adaptations to underwater hearing. In addition, other morphological elements, such as the mandibles and t...

This paper presents some of the bioacoustics related analysis that was performed on the ANTARES data, focussing on the year 2014. The data was processed for sperm whale, dolphin and shipping presence and grouped by hour of the day. It seemed that dolphins were more socially active during the day and foraging during the night. Sperm whales were most...

Simple Summary Cetaceans, which include dolphins, porpoises, and whales, show astounding and distinctly specialised adaptations of their senses that allow them to thrive in the aquatic environment. They possess the abilities to echolocate, are likely to discern bioelectric fields, sense water currents, and perform various other sensory tasks, amids...

The sea anemone Calliactis parasitica, which is found in the East Atlantic (Portugal to Senegal) and the Mediterranean Sea, forms a symbiotic relationship with the red hermit crab, Dardanus calidus, in which the anemone provides protection from predators such as the octopus while it gains mobility, and possibly food scraps, from the hermit crab. Ac...

Cetaceans, including dolphins, have evolved unique mechanisms to detect sound waves, involving adaptations of structures such as the lower jaws and acoustic fat. While the external ear canal is not directly involved in hearing, it has also adapted to the underwater environment with changes in its morphofunctionality and the involvement of a complex...

In studying anatomopathology, the classical methods used in classroom education are 2D images or videos. Since they are used to explain 3-or 4-dimensional processes, they often require creative approaches that inherently leave an amount of uncertainty to the understanding of in-vivo structures and processes, and are therefore accompanied by hands-o...

Although much research has focused on marine mammal sensory systems over the last several decades, we still lack basic knowledge for many of the species within this diverse group of animals. Our conference workshop allowed all participants to present recent developments in the field and culminated in discussions on current knowledge gaps. This repo...

Video S1. Blue crab foraging behaviour in one of the box trials. The image is sped up 5 times. Red arrow signs to the food dispenser location.

Video S2. Blue crab foraging behaviour in one of the maze trials. The image is sped up 5 times. Red arrow signs to the food dispenser location.

Underwater noise pollution is an increasing threat to marine ecosystems. Marine animals use sound in communication and orientation processes. The introduction of anthropogenic noise in their habitat can interfere with sound production and reception as well as with the acquisition of vital information through other sensory systems. In the blue crab...

A changing marine environment with emerging natural and anthropogenic stressors challenges the marine mammal immune system. The skin and adnexa form a first protective barrier in the immune response, although this is still relatively understudied in cetaceans. The cellular and tissue morphology of the nodular and diffuse lymphoid tissue are not ful...

The installation of marine renewable energy devices (MREDs, wind turbines and converters of wave, tidal and ocean thermal energy) has increased quickly in the last decade. There is a lack of knowledge concerning the effects of MREDs on benthic invertebrates that live in contact with the seabed. The European common cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis) is...

Cetacean behavior and life history imply a role for somatosensory detection of critical signals unique to their marine environment. As the sensory anatomy of cetacean glabrous skin has not been fully explored, skin biopsy samples of the flank skin of humpback whales were prepared for general histological and immunohistochemical (IHC) analyses of in...

The salmon louse Lepeophtheirus salmonis is a major disease problem in salmonids farming and there are indications that it also plays a role in the decline of wild salmon stocks. This study shows the first ultrastructural images of pathological changes in the sensory setae of the first antenna and in inner tissues in different stages of L. salmonis...

The last hundred years have seen the introduction of many sources of artificial noise in the sea environment which have shown to negatively affect marine organisms. Little attention has been devoted to how much this noise could affect sessile organisms. Here, we report morphological and ultrastructural changes in seagrass, after exposure to sounds...

The issue of underwater noise pollution is of concern to the community at large, while the effects it can have on marine fauna and its sensory systems are not yet understood. Also, it is not fully clear how cetaceans, dolphins and whales, receive sound through the alternative auditory pathways, including the acoustic fat bodies. Although the extern...

Coronaviruses (CoVs) are worldwide distributed RNA-viruses affecting several species, including humans, and causing a broad spectrum of diseases. Historically, they have not been considered a severe threat to public health until two outbreaks of COVs-related atypical human pneumonia derived from animal hosts appeared in 2002 and in 2012. The concer...

Vibrissae are tactile hairs found mainly on the rostrum of most mammals. The follicle, which is surrounded by a large venous sinus, is called "follicle-sinus complex" (FSC). This complex is highly innervated by somatosensitive fibers and reached by visceromotor fibers that innervate the surrounding vessels. The surrounding striated muscles receive...

The function of the external ear canal in cetaceans is still under debate and its morphology is largely unknown. Immunohistochemical (IHC) analyses using antibodies specific for nervous tissue (anti-S100, anti-NSE, anti-NF, and anti-PGP 9.5), together with transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and various histological techniques, were carried out...

Like all mammals, toothed whales possess an outer, middle, and inner ear, all of which present major evolutionary adaptations to underwater hearing. Moreover, the development of acoustical fat bodies, which collect and propagate sound waves to the middle ear, has created alternative acoustic pathways that bypass the external ear canal. As such, the...

Abstract While the Greenland and Barents Seas are known habitats for several cetacean and pinniped species there is a lack of long-term monitoring data in this rapidly changing environment. Moreover, little is known of the ambient soundscapes, and increasing off-shore anthropogenic activities can influence the ecosystem and marine life. Baseline ac...

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The external ear canal of cetaceans, vestigial or not?

Cetaceans descend from land mammals. Consequently, their hearing apparatus basically consists of the same anatomical components. Whales, as land mammals, feature an outer, middle and inner ear. However, these structures show strong evolutionary adaptations to underwater hearing. In addition, other morphological elements, such as the mandibles and t...