Application of a Conceptual Ecological Model to Predict the Effects of Sand Mining around Chilsan Island Group in the West Coast of Korea

Chilsan Island Group, located on the west coast of South Korea, has been recognized as a critical breeding and nursery ground for endangered seabirds because food is abundant and human activity is low. Chilsan Island Group has been under protection as a Natural Monument (Article no. 389) since 1997, but attempts were made in 2004 to exploit the coastal sands around the islands. A conceptual ecological model (CEM) was employed with energy flow diagram (EFD) to predict the effects of sand mining on the islands’ ecosystem. The results showed that sand mining activities caused long-term damage to benthic ecosystems and threatened seabird communities by reducing fish populations throughout the food web. The changes in energy flow in the ecosystem due to sand mining operations predict that reduction in secondary production of benthic animal communities might reduce energy transfer to humans and seabirds by 30%. Different ranges of uncertainty provided by the Monte Carlo simulation lead to the conclusion that sand mining could bring about undesirable consequences. One concern is that such negative consequences would have a much more severe impact on seabirds than humans because seabirds cannot compete effectively against humans for the limited food sources. In this study, the complex interrelationships between ecosystem members were simplified and a CEM was established to clearly identify which elements would be affected. The CEM with EFD was found to be helpful in promoting communication between stakeholders, and it is expected to be widely used as a decisionmaking tool by public officials.     

Pathways of organic matter through food webs of diverse habitats in the regulated Nakdong River estuary (Korea)

The benthic macroinvertebrates of the Nakdong River estuary were sampled at three different habitats: two salt marsh (Scirpus triqueter and Phragmites australis) beds and a bare intertidal flat. Fishes were sampled in the main channel. The trophic importance of marsh vascular plants, microphytobenthos, and riverine and channel particulate organic matter to macroinvertebrate and fish production was studied using stable carbon and nitrogen isotope tracers. There was a dramatic change in coverage of macrophytes (salt marshes and seagrass) after the construction of an estuarine barrage in 1987 in the Nakdong River estuary, with the S. triqueter bed increasing, the P. australis bed decreasing, and Zostera marina habitats being nearly lost. Although the invertebrate δ¹³C were within a narrower range than those of the primary producers, the values varied considerably among consumers in these habitats. However, the isotope signatures of consumers showed similarities among different habitats. Cluster analysis based on their isotopic similarity suggested that the isotope variability among species was related more to functional feeding groups than to habitats or taxonomic groups. While δ¹³C values of suspension feeders were close to that of the channel POM (mainly phytoplankton), other benthic feeders and predators had δ¹³C similar to that of microphytobenthos. Isotopic mixing model estimates suggest that algal sources, including microphytobenthos and phytoplankton, play an important role in supporting the benthic food web. Despite the huge productivity of emergent salt marshes, the contribution of the marsh-derived organic matter to the estuarine food webs appears to be limited to some nutrition for some invertebrates just within marsh habitats, with little on the bare intertidal flats or in the channel fish communities. Isotope signatures of the channel fishes also confirm that algal sources are important in supporting fish nutrition. Our findings suggest that benthic and pelagic microalgae made a large contribution to consumer diets, while marsh plants may not have a large role in supporting food webs in this estuarine system.     

Analytical solutions for long waves over a circular island

In this study, we derive an analytical solution for long waves over a circular island which is mounted on a flat bottom. The water depth on the island varies in proportion to an arbitrary power, γ, of the radial distance. Separation of variables, Taylor series expansion, and Frobenius series are used to find the solutions, which are then validated by comparing them with previously developed analytical solutions. We also investigate how different wave periods, radii of the island toe, and γ values affect the solutions. For a circular island with a small value of γ (e.g. γ = 2/3, as in the equilibrium beach (Bruun, 1954)), the wave rays approaching near the island center reach the coastline, whereas the rays approaching away from the center bend away from the coastline, leading to smaller wave amplitudes along the coast. However, for a circular island with a large value of γ, e.g. γ = 2, all the rays on the island reach the coast, giving large coastline wave amplitudes. If the island domain is small compared to the wavelength, the wave amplitudes on the coastline do not increase significantly; however, when the island domain is not small, the wave amplitudes increase significantly. If γ is also large, the amplitudes can be so large as to cause a disaster on the island.