BERMUDA BIOLOGICAl: STATION FOR RESEARCH

1926·1976 50th ANNIVERSARY OF INCORPORATION1903 - 1976 73 YEARS OF SERVICE TO SCIENCE

SUMMER, FALL 1976VOL. 5 NOS. 2 and 3

SPECIAL 50th ANNIVERSARY ISSUE

Open House speakers, I. to r. Dr. I. W. Hughes, Dr. W. R. Wright,Ms. S. Schlee, Dr. W. E. Sterrer, & Dr. G. T. Scott.

Photo by G. Kris jensen.

50th ANNIVERSARY OPEN HOUSE

An estimated 600 guests - a record number - turned out forthis year's Open House celebration on July 17th. Festivities beganwith a champagne toast to the 50th Anniversary of BBS and anexcellent address by Ms. Susan Schlee of the Marine BiologicalLab in Woods Hole entitled "Dr. William Beebe & the BermudaBiological Station -- A Love Affair? Or a Case of Mutual Distrust?"The guests then toured the laboratory exh ibits and the electronmicroscope facility, enjoyed a buffet supper, and danced on intothe night to the music of the Somer's Isles Jazz Band.

The summer meeting of the Trustees was held the followingday. Two highlights were the announcements of another year ofsupport for BBS oil pollution work by the Atlantic Richfield

.Company and of a $25,000 gift from the Kresge Foundation forconstruction of a dockside wet lab and storage facility. Furtherdetails on the construction will be included in the Newsletterwhen plans are finalized. Other business included the election oftwo new Trustees, Mr. Samuel Riker" I and the Hon. John W.Swan.

* * * * *It is appropriate here to include a brief summary of the

Annual Meeting of Trustees and Corporation Members, held onApril 10th at the American Museum of Natural History in NewYork. President Dr. George T. Scott opened the meeting with atribute to Life Trustee Dr. Louis S. Mowbray who died on March15th. Bylaws were amended to enlarge the Board of Trusteesfrom 28 to 36 members, and three Trustees were elected: Mr.Maxwell Bruce, Dr. Beth Burnside, and Dr. Talbot Waterman.

Dr. Redwood Wright, Secretary, reported there were 377Corporation Members; Vice President Dr. I. W. Hughes announcedcontinued support by the Bermuda Government; TreasurerMr: E. Morton Holland presented the happy news that the Sta­tion had an excess of income over expenses during 1975 whichwould help replace funds borrowed in 1973; and BBS DirectorDr. Wolfgang E. Sterrer in his report made a plea for a concertedeffort to increase the endowment of the Station.

STAMPS COMMEMORATE BBS 50th ANNIVERSARY

Four commemorative issue stamps honoring the 50th Anni­versary of the Bermuda Biological Station were put on sale onMarch 29th:

.05: The bathysphere, invented by William Beebe, Otis Bartonand John Butler in 1929, and first tested several milessouth of Nonsuch Island, Bermuda, in June of 1930.

.17: View of BBS from Ferry Reach, showing the R/V PANUL/­RUS II and the MICMAC at dockside, with part of the MainBuilding and lab wing in the background.

.20: The H.M.s. CHALLENGER, which circumnavigated theglobe during the years 1872-1876, and whose collectionsmarked the beginnings of modern oceanography. One ofthe original 50 volume sets of reports from the CHALLEN­GER expeditions is in the BBS Library.

.25: Animal life in the deep waters off Bermuda, as seen fromBeebe's bathysphere in dives from 1930 to 1934. Thedeepest dive in these waters was to 3,028 feet, and thebathysphere's crew was amazed at the great wealth of ani­mal life at such depths.

First Day Covers were sent to all BBS Associates in April, andare still available for purchase from the Station at a cost of$3.00 each.

J. Cadwallader, R. F. Nunnemacher, Eds. Editorial office: Nunriemacher, Clark University, Worcester, Massachusetts 01610, U.s.

BERMUDA BIOLOGICAL STATION FOR RESEARCH

VOL. 5 NOS. 2 and 3 SUMMER, FALL 1976

1926 - 1976 50th ANNIVERSARY OF INCORPORATION 1903 - 1976 73 YEARS OF SERVICE TO SCIENCE

SPECIAL 50th ANNIVERSARY ISSUI

Open House speakers, I. to r. Dr. I. W. Hughes, Dr. W. R. Wright, Ms. S. Schlee, Dr. W. E. Sterrer, & Dr. G. T. Scott.

Photo by G. Kris Jensen.

50th ANNIVERSARY OPEN HOUSE

An estimated 600 guests - a record number - turned out for this year's Open House celebration on July 17th. Festivities began with a champagne toast to the 50th Anniversary of BBS and an excellent address by Ms. Susan Schlee of the Marine Biological Lab in Woods Hole entitled "Dr. William Beebe & the Bermuda Biological Station - A Love Affair? Or a Case of Mutual Distrust?" The guests then toured the laboratory exhibits and the electron microscope facility, enjoyed a buffet supper, and danced on into the night to the music of the Somer's Isles Jazz Band.

The summer meeting of the Trustees was held the following day. Two highlights were the announcements of another year of support for BBS oil pollution work by the Atlantic Richfield Company and of a $25,000 gift from the Kresge Foundation for construction of a dockside wet lab and storage facility. Further details on the construction will be included in the Newsletter when plans are finalized. Other business included the election of two new Trustees, Mr. Samuel Riker III and the Hon. John W. Swan.

It is appropriate here to include a brief summary of the Annual Meeting of Trustees and Corporation Members, held on April 10th at the American Museum of Natural History in New York. President Dr. George T. Scott opened the meeting with a tribute to Life Trustee Dr. Louis S. Mowbray who died on March 15th. Bylaws were amended to enlarge the Board of Trustees from 28 to 36 members, and three Trustees were elected: Mr. Maxwell Bruce, Dr. Beth Burnside, and Dr. Talbot Waterman.

Dr. Redwood Wright, Secretary, reported there were 377 Corporation Members; Vice President Dr. I. W. Hughes announced continued support by the Bermuda Government; Treasurer Mr. E. Morton Holland presented the happy news that the Sta- tion had an excess of income over expenses during 1975 which would help replace funds borrowed in 1973; and BBS Director Dr. Wolfgang E. Sterrer in his report made a plea for a concerted effort to increase the endowment of the Station.

STAMPS COMMEMORATE BBS 50th ANNIVERSARY

Four commemorative issue stamps honoring the 50th Anni- versary of the Bermuda Biological Station were put on sale on March 29th:

.05: The bathysphere, invented by William Beebe, Otis Barton and John Butler in 1929, and first tested several miles south of Nonsuch Island, Bermuda, in June of 1930.

.1 7: View of BBS from Ferry Reach, showing the R/V PANULI- RUS II and the MICMAC at dockside, with part of the Main Building and lab wing in the background.

.20: The H.M.S. CHALLENGER, which circumnavigated the globe during the years 1872-1876, and whose collections marked the beginnings of modern oceanography. One of the original 50 volume sets of reports from the CHALLEN- GER expeditions is in the BBS Library.

.25: Animal life in the deep waters off Bermuda, as seen from Beebe's bathysphere in dives from 1930 to 1934. The deepest dive in these waters was to 3,028 feet, and the bathysphere's crew was amazed at the great wealth of ani- mal life at such depths.

First Day Covers were sent to all BBS Associates in April, and are still available for purchase from the Station at a cost of $3.00 each.

J. Cadwallader, R. F. Nunnemacher, Eds. Editorial office: Nunriemacher, Clark University, Worcester, Massachusetts 01610, U.S.

CLiONA, DARK FUTURE FOR AN OCEANIC ISLAND?Dr. Klaus Rutzler

A gigantic tremor cut through the wee hours of last nightwhen several hundred square meters of the Paynter's Isle GolfCourse slid into the submarine canyon, once known as Harring­ton Sound. The rumbling, contrasted by the dead calm air, couldbe heard on all four of our Islands. We awoke the Director of theBiological Station in St. David's Lighthouse, and he gave us thefollowing statement via laserphone: "I am afraid that this inci­dent confirms our recent observations that The Sponge, Cliona,has entered a new activity phase. We have records that about200 years ago, when Bermuda consisted of 300 islands covering53 square kilometers, Cliona went through a population explo­sion and, for several decades, converted all its energy into lime­stone eroding processes. Today's Gibb's (Tourist) Isle, Town(Government) Isle, Paynter's (Residential) Isle and Lighthouse(BBS) Isle used to be hills which resisted until The Sponge fellback into its inactive stage. A grant proposal for the study of thenew situation has already been submitted."

BERMUDA GAZETTE Summer, 2176

extremely thin coatings on the substrate surface under whichmost of the sponge mass is hidden. This species is fast growingand very corrosive. It is abundant only in shallow bays and la­goons with frequent currents. Extended rock areas entirelycovered and penetrated by Cliona lampa can be seen from thebridge crossing Flatts Inlet.

Silicon spicule of Cliona lampa. (scanning electron photomicro­graph,4,200X).

Galleries excavated by C1iona lampa in shell of jewel Box clam.(2-3X).

Similar fiction was on my mind when I commenced a study ofthe world of limestone excavating sponges at Bermuda. In 1826,just 150 years ago, R. E. Grant described Cliona celata, a "zoo­phyte" that perforated oyster valves in the Firth of Forth. Todaymore than 100 species are known that share morphological char­acteristics and the ability to bore into limestone with this firstCliona. Only four of these had been observed in Bermuda, until1974 when I added five species to the list, three of them new toscience.

Most c1ionid sponges are difficult to detect because of theircryptic habit. The major part of the body is hidden in excavatedgalleries inside rock, coral or shell. Small isolated tissue areas atthe substrate surface (papillae) bear contractile incurrent and ex­current openings (ostia, oscula). Water circulation is maintainedby the beat of flagella bearing cells that are arranged in smallspherical chambers (choanocyte chambers) scattered throughoutthe body. Minute attractive silicon spicules form an internal skele­ton and are used as the main diagnostic feature in systematicstudy.

Yellow, orange and red are the most common colors of Cliona.Some greenish brown species (e.g., Cliona caribbaea) containsymbiotic algae (zooxanthellae), as reef-building corals do. Aparticularly conspicuous and pretty species, Cliona lampa, wasfirst discovered in Bermuda. It is brilliant vermilion and forms

2

The question, "How do sponges excavate lime-stone?," hadoccupied biologists for almost a century. When I became inter­ested in the subject, it had already been demonstrated repeatedlythat minute particles ofthe calcium carbonate substrate are freedby etching, comparable to carving out rocks by acid dispensedfrom a pipette. The chips are expelled by the sponge throughits oscula and form an important part of the mud-size fraction ofreef sediments. As conventional light microscopy could notreveal much new information, my collaborator G. Rieger and Iresorted to techniques of scanning and transmission electron mic­roscopy. We could show how an amoeboid type of cell uses awickerwork of exceedingly fine filamentous processes to etch anarrow circular crevice into the limestone, which is deepeneduntil one characteristic chip has been freed. Although each parti­cle measures no more than two billionths of a cubic inch, a oneinch cube of coral rock can be riddled with sponge in a matter ofmonths.

To study the destructive powers of Cliona I have carried onwork pioneered, also in Bermuda, by my colleague C. Neumann.We have conducted experiments and calculated that Cliona at itsbest, and occupying an area exclusively, can erode as much as1,000 tons of limestone per acre each year. Considering that thesponge faces heavy competition, that it occupies but a small per­centage of available substrate space, that its peak activity is re­stricted to special stimuli and followed by long passive phases,and that much energy must be converted into reproduction, wecan modify our figures to average a mere 2,300 Ibs. per acre peryear. Knowing that 90% of this amount remains in particulateform to be deposited and recemented, we can breathe a sigh ofrelief, I trust. The next 200 years will show.

EQUIPMENT PURCHASES

A considerable amount of equipment has been purchasedwithin the last year, both by the Station itself and by BBS grantswith the understanding that such equipment reverts to BBS at thetermination of the grant. Such equipment includes time-lapsephotography apparatus, 2 incubator ovens, 2 precision balances, 2triple-beam balances, 16 student microscopes, a battery-poweredpH meter, and Wild microscopes M-7 zoom, M-ll phase contrast,and MAO inverted.

The 1975 Vollmer Foundation gift was used in the purchase ofa new engine for the MicMac, for repairs to the engines of theR/V Panulirus II, for Library acquisitions, and for improvementsto the laboratories and to lab equipment. We are most grateful tothe Vollmer Foundation for its 1976 donation as well; thesefunds have not yet been allocated.

CLIONA, DARK FUTURE FOR AN OCEANIC ISLAND"? Dr. Klaus Rutzler

BERMUDA GAZETTE Summer, 2176

A gigantic tremor cut through the wee hours of last night when several hundred square meters of the Paynter's Isle Golf Course slid into the submarine canyon, once known as Harring- ton Sound. The rumbling, contrasted by the dead calm air, could be heard on all four of our Islands. We awoke the Director of the Biological Station in St. David's Lighthouse, and he gave us the following statement via laserphone: "I am afraid that this inci- dent confirms our recent observations that The Sponge, Cliona, has entered a new activity phase. We have records that about 200 years ago, when Bermuda consisted of 300 islands covering 53 square kilometers, Cliona went through a population explo- sion and, for several decades, converted all its energy into lime- stone eroding processes. Today's Gibb's (Tourist) Isle, Town (Government) Isle, Paynter's (Residential) Isle and Lighthouse (BBS) Isle used to be hills which resisted until The Sponge fell back into its inactive stage. A grant proposal for the study of the new situation has already been submitted."

extremely thin coatings on the substrate surface under which most of the sponge mass is hidden. This species is fast growing and very corrosive. It is abundant only in shallow bays and la- goons with frequent currents. Extended rock areas entirely covered and penetrated by Cliona lampa can be seen from the bridge crossing Flatts Inlet.

Silicon spicule of Cliona lampa. (scanning electron photomicro-

Galleries excavated by Cliona lampa in shell of Jewel Box clam.

Similar fiction was on my mind when I commenced a study of the world of limestone excavating sponges at Bermuda. In 1826, just 150 years ago, R. E. Grant described Cliona celata, a "zoo- phyte" that perforated oyster valves in the Firth of Forth. Today more than 100 species are known that share morphological char- acteristics and the ability to bore into limestone with this first Cliona. Only four of these had been observed in Bermuda, until 1974 when I added five species to the list, three of them new to science.

Most clionid sponges are difficult to detect because of their cryptic habit. The major part of the body is hidden in excavated galleries inside rock, coral or shell. Small isolated tissue areas at the substrate surface (papillae) bear contractile incurrent and ex- current openings (ostia, oscula). Water circulation is maintained by the beat of flagella bearing cells that are arranged in small spherical chambers (choanocyte chambers) scattered throughout the body. Minute attractive silicon spicules form an internal skele- ton and are used as the main diagnostic feature in systematic study.

Yellow, orange and red are the most common colors of Cliona. Some greenish brown species (e.g., Cliona caribbaea) contain symbiotic algae (zooxanthellae), as reef-building corals do. A particularly conspicuous and pretty species, Cliona lampa, was first discovered in Bermuda. It is brilliant vermilion and forms

The question, "How do sponges excavate lime-stone?," had occupied biologists for almost a century. When I became inter- ested in the subject, it had already been demonstrated repeatedly that minute particles of the calcium carbonate substrate are freed by etching, comparable to carving out rocks by acid dispensed from a pipette. The chips are expelled by the sponge through its oscula and form an important part of the mud-size fraction of reef sediments. As conventional light microscopy could not reveal much new information, my collaborator G. Rieger and I resorted to techniques of scanning and transmission electron mic- roscopy. We could show how an amoeboid type of cell uses a wickerwork of exceedingly fine filamentous processes to etch a narrow circular crevice into the limestone, which is deepened until one characteristic chip has been freed. Although each parti- cle measures no more than two billionths of a cubic inch, a one inch cube of coral rock can be riddled with sponge in a matter of months.

To study the destructive powers of Cliona I have carried on work pioneered, also in Bermuda, by my colleague C. Neumann. We have conducted experiments and calculated that Cliona at its best, and occupying an area exclusively, can erode as much as 1,000 tons of limestone per acre each year. Considering that the sponge faces heavy competition, that it occupies but a small per- centage of available substrate space, that its peak activity is re- stricted to special stimuli and followed by long passive phases, and that much energy must be converted into reproduction, we can modify our figures to average a mere 2,300 lbs. per acre per year. Knowing that 90% of this amount remains in particulate form to be deposited and recemented, we can breathe a sigh of relief, I trust. The next 200 years will show.

EQUIPMENT PURCHASES

A considerable amount of equipment has been purchased within the last year, both by the Station itself and by BBS grants with the understanding that such equipment reverts to BBS at the termination of the grant. Such equipment includes time-lapse photography apparatus, 2 incubator ovens, 2 precision balances, 2 triple-beam balances, 16 student microscopes, a battery-powered pH meter, and Wild microscopes M-7 zoom, M-11 phase contrast, and M-40 inverted.

The 1975 Vollmer Foundation gift was used in the purchase of a new engine for the MicMac, for repairs to the engines of the R/V Panulirus II, for Library acquisitions, and for improvements to the laboratories and to lab equipment. We are most grateful to the Vollmer Foundation for its 1976 donation as well; these funds have not yet been allocated.