Congratulations Professor Anya Reading!
RST Apology to Tasmanian Aboriginal people 2021.
RST Apology to Tasmanian Aboriginal people 2021.
Amathamides comprise a group of brominated alkaloids found in the bryozoan, Amathia wilsoni Kirkpatrick (Gymnolaemata: Ctenostomata). We tested a crude bryozoan extract and purified amathamide C for their ability to deter feeding by fish, Acanthaluteres spilomelarnurus (Quoy and Gaimard, 1824 ) (Leatherjacket), in laboratory assays. Food pellets made with crude extracts (1 % dry weight) caused 94% inhibition of artificial pellet acceptance, while amathamide C at 0.1 % dry weight caused 86% inhibition. These results suggest amathamides serve as chemical defences of A. wilsoni. Because bryozoans are often colonised by epibionts, we also examined representatives of the epizoic community on A. wilsoni , using gas chromatography! mass spectrometry (GCMS) for the presence of amathamides. Of 34 epizoic species tested, only one, the sea spider Stylopallene longicauda Stock which was present in high average densities, contained amathamides in concentrated amounts even when deprived of food for 36 hours. In view of the demonstrated feeding deterrence of amathamides in bryozoans, the relatively high epizoic density of S. longicauda and its apparent aposematic colouration suggest that amathamides may also function as chemical defences for S. longicauda.
Royal Society of Tasmania, RST, Van Diemens Land, natural history, science, ecology, taxonomy, botany, zoology, geology, geography, papers & proceedings, Australia, UTAS Library
Published Papers
The Royal Society of Tasmania acknowledges, with deep respect, the traditional owners of this land, and the ongoing custodianship of the Aboriginal people of Tasmania. The Society pays respect to Elders past, present and emerging. We acknowledge that Tasmanian Aboriginal Peoples have survived severe and unjust impacts resulting from invasion and dispossession of their Country. As an institution dedicated to the advancement of knowledge, the Royal Society of Tasmania recognises Aboriginal cultural knowledge and practices and seeks to respect and honour these traditions and the deep understanding they represent.
On 15 February 2021, the Royal Society of Tasmania offered a formal Apology to the Tasmanian Aboriginal people.
