High-West and Low-East Distribution Patterns of Chlorophyll a, Primary Productivity and Diatoms in the Subarctic North Pacific Surface Waters, Midwinter 1996

We have determined chlorophyll a (Chla) concentration, primary productivity, cell density and species composition of diatoms, and the number of microzooplankton at the surface in the subarctic North Pacific in January 1996. The wet weight of copepods obtained by vertical tows from 150 m to the surface was also measured during the cruise. Chla concentration and primary productivity tended to be higher in the region west of 180°, the western subarctic North Pacific (WSNP), than east of 180°, the eastern subarctic North Pacific (ESNP). The same results were observed for the total diatom cell densities and for the genera Thalassiosira and Denticulopsis. Significant linear relationships were observed between the Thalassiosira cell density and Chla concentration and primary productivity, indicating that Thalassiosira contributes to the high-WSNP and low-ESNP distribution patterns of Chla concentration and primary productivity. Moreover, naked ciliate abundance tended to be lower in the WSNP than in the ESNP, whereas copepod biomass showed an inverse trend. Significantly negative Spearman rank correlations were found between the Thalassiosira cell density and the number of naked ciliates and between the number of naked ciliates and the wet weight of copepods. These results indicate that copepod grazing indirectly controls Thalassiosira cell density via predation on the naked ciliates. We conclude that the high copepod biomass in the WSNP is a factor controlling the high-WSNP and low-ESNP Thalassiosira abundance and hence Chla concentration and primary productivity patterns.     

Isotopic composition of dissolved inorganic carbon in subsurface sediments of gas hydrate-bearing mud volcanoes, Lake Baikal: implications for methane and carbonate origin

We report on the isotopic composition of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) in pore-water samples recovered by gravity coring from near-bottom sediments at gas hydrate-bearing mud volcanoes/gas flares (Malenky, Peschanka, Peschanka 2, Goloustnoe, and Irkutsk) in the Southern Basin of Lake Baikal. The δ¹³C values of DIC become heavier with increasing subbottom depth, and vary between ?9.5 and +21.4‰ PDB. Enrichment of DIC in ¹³C indicates active methane generation in anaerobic environments near the lake bottom. These data confirm our previous assumption that crystallization of carbonates (siderites) in subsurface sediments is a result of methane generation. Types of methanogenesis (microbial methyl-type fermentation versus CO₂-reduction) were revealed by determining the offset of δ¹³C between dissolved CH₄ and CO₂, and also by using δ¹³C and δD values of dissolved methane present in the pore waters. Results show that both mechanisms are most likely responsible for methane generation at the investigated locations.     

P–V–T equation of state of Mn3Al2Si3O12 spessartine garnet

The thermoelastic parameters of synthetic Mn₃Al₂Si₃O₁₂ spessartine garnet were examined in situ at high pressure up to 13 GPa and high temperature up to 1,100 K, by synchrotron radiation energy dispersive X-ray diffraction within a DIA-type multi-anvil press apparatus. The analysis of room temperature data yielded K ₀ = 172 ± 4 GPa and K ₀ ^′  = 5.0 ± 0.9 when V _0,300 is fixed to 1,564.96 Å³. Fitting of P–V–T data by means of the high-temperature third-order Birch–Murnaghan EoS gives the thermoelastic parameters: K ₀ = 171 ± 4 GPa, K ₀ ^′  = 5.3 ± 0.8, (?K _0,T /?T) _P  = ?0.049 ± 0.007 GPa K^?1, a ₀ = 1.59 ± 0.33 × 10^?5 K^?1 and b ₀ = 2.91 ± 0.69 × 10^?8 K^?2 (e.g., α _0,300 = 2.46 ± 0.54 × 10^?5 K^?1). Comparison with thermoelastic properties of other garnet end-members indicated that the compression mechanism of spessartine might be the same as almandine and pyrope but differs from that of grossular. On the other hand, at high temperature, spessartine softens substantially faster than pyrope and grossular. Such softening, which is also reported for almandine, emphasize the importance of the cation in the dodecahedral site on the thermoelastic properties of aluminosilicate garnet.     

Phytotoxicity assessment of γ-Fe2O3 nanoparticles on root elongation and growth of rice plant

This study was conducted to determine the phytotoxicity of 6 nm γ-Fe₂O₃ nanoparticles (IONPs) in terms of root elongation and the physiological performance of rice plants. Rice seeds (Oryza sativa L. var. Koshihikari) exposed to IONPs at 500, 1,000 and 2,000 mg/L, had a significantly higher root elongation than the control and its bulk counterparts (IOBKs), indicating that the effect can be nanospecific. In a 14-week greenhouse pot experiment, the CO₂ assimilation rate in IOBK and IONP-treated pots (500 and 1,000 mg/pot) decreased over time, with the decline (maximum 42.5 %) being less pronounced for IONPs, indicating that the effect cannot be inferred from the toxicity of nanoscale size iron oxide. Excessive adsorption of IONPs onto soil colloids with subsequent low water extractable iron was responsible for the unremarkable phytotoxic nature of IONPs in the rice plants. Amendment of IONPs coated with 20 mmol citric acid (IONPs-Cit) significantly diminished the CO₂ assimilation rate and the decrease was similar to its bulk counterpart (IOBKs-Cit). However, maximum shoot growth inhibition (37 %) was associated with the application of IOBKs-Cit. It was concluded that massive accumulations of Fe plaque on the root surfaces of IOBKs-Cit treatments due to a decline in the pH of rhizoplane soils compared to the IONPs-Cit treatments were responsible for the remarkable shoot growth reduction. This study provided evidence of the phytotoxicity of γ-Fe₂O₃ nanoparticles, demonstrating the lower toxicity of nanosized iron oxide compared to a microsized preparation under reductive conditions.     

Upper Eocene travertine-lacustrine carbonate in the Jianchuan basin,southeastern Tibetan Plateau: Reappraisal of its origin and implication for the monsoon climate

The Asian monsoon is one of the largest climatic systems in the world, but age of its onset has been estimated differently ranging from the late Eocene to the Quaternary. We investigated the sedimentology and stable isotopic compositions of the upper Eocene Jiuziyan Formation, a terrestrial limestone unit in the Jianchuan basin, Yunnan Province in China. This limestone formation is restricted in several localities in the central part of the basin. Previously, this has been characterized as palustrine carbonate and the transition to the sublacustrine deposit of the overlying Shuanghe Formation was interpreted as the appearance of wetter climate during the late Eocene. Our observations of macro- and microfacies revealed sedimentary fabrics indicating rapid CaCO₃ precipitation, such as dendritic calcite and calcified reed stems, which are unlikely to develop in a simple lacustrine setting. High carbonate content (mostly >90 %) and restricted distribution of the Jiuziyan limestone indicate a depositional setting spatially limited and isolated from clastic influx. These findings, together with clearly higher δ¹³C values (−0.7 ‰ to +6.9 ‰) and lower δ¹⁸O values (−14.6 ‰ to −10.5 ‰) than those of the Shuanghe Formation, indicate that the limestone was mainly travertine, carbonate formed from endogenic spring water. The elevated δ¹³C resulted from a large amount of CO₂ degassing from spring water with high pCO₂. In addition, the occurrence of centimeter-scale lamination coupled with cyclic changes in δ¹³C and δ¹⁸O is almost identical with the modern annually-laminated travertine reported from Baishuitai in northern Yunnan Province, implying comparable amplitude of seasonal temperature and precipitation changes to the record of the modern travertine at Baishuitai. Our results do not contradict the previous interpretation of late Eocene wetting and additionally suggest the existence of the late Eocene monsoon climate in the Jianchuan basin.     

Sequentially sampled gas hydrate water,coupled with pore water and bottom water isotopic and ionic signatures at the Kukuy mud volcano,Lake Baikal: ambiguous deep-rooted source of hydrate-forming water

The isotopic and ionic composition of pure gas hydrate (GH) water was examined for GHs recovered in three gravity cores (165–193 cm length) from the Kukuy K-9 mud volcano (MV) in Lake Baikal. A massive GH sample from core St6GC4 (143–165 cm core depth interval) was dissociated progressively over 6 h in a closed glass chamber, and 11 sequentially collected fractions of dissociated GH water analyzed. Their hydrogen and oxygen isotopic compositions, and the concentrations of Cl^– and HCO₃ ^– remained essentially constant over time, except that the fraction collected during the first 50 minutes deviated partly from this pattern. Fraction #1 had a substantially higher Cl^– concentration, similar to that of pore water sampled immediately above (135–142 cm core depth) the main GH-bearing interval in that core. Like the subsequent fractions, however, the HCO₃ ^– concentration was markedly lower than that of pore water. For the GH water fractions #2 to #11, an essentially constant HCO₃ ^–/Cl^– ratio of 305 differed markedly from downcore pore water HCO₃ ^–/Cl^– ratios of 63–99. Evidently, contamination of the extracted GH water by ambient pore water probably adhered to the massive GH sample was satisfactorily restricted to the initial phase of GH dissociation. The hydrogen and oxygen isotopic composition of hydrate-forming water was estimated using the measured isotopic composition of extracted GH water combined with known isotopic fractionation factors between GH and GH-forming water. Estimated δD of ?126 to ?133‰ and δ¹⁸O of ?15.7 to ?16.7‰ differed partly from the corresponding signatures of ambient pore water (δD of ?123‰, δ¹⁸O of ?15.6‰) and of lake bottom water (δD of ?121‰, δ¹⁸O of ?15.8‰) at the St6GC4 coring site, suggesting that the GH was not formed from those waters. Observations of breccias in that core point to a possible deep-rooted water source, consistent with published thermal measurements for the neighboring Kukuy K-2 MV. By contrast, the pore waters of core St6GC4 and also of the neighboring cores GC2 and GC3 from the Kukuy K-9 MV show neither isotopic nor ionic evidence of such a source (e.g., elevated sulfate concentration). These findings constrain GH formation to earlier times, but a deep-rooted source of hydrate-forming water remains ambiguous. A possible long-term dampening of key deep-water source signatures deserves further attention, notably in terms of diffusion and/or advection, as well as anaerobic oxidation of methane.     

Stratigraphy of the mid‐ to upper‐Cretaceous System in the Aridagawa area,Wakayama, Southwest Japan

The litho‐ and biostratigraphy of the mid‐ to upper‐Cretaceous System around the Yagumaike Pond in the Aridagawa area, Wakayama, Southwest Japan, were investigated. Many Middle to Late Albian megafossils were found in the strata of a block bounded by faults. It was also revealed that the Upper Cretaceous System of other blocks ranges from the Middle Turonian to Santonian. The Albian megafossil assemblage contains few benthic organisms, in contrast with the abundance of nektons found (e.g. cephalopods). Sedimentological observations of the mudstone profiles also indicate that scarcely or weakly bioturbated, well‐laminated mudstone is dominant among the Albian deposits. These results suggest deposition of the Albian mudstone under a dysaerobic to anoxic environment. It is comparable to the extended oceanic anoxia (OAEs) in mid‐Cretaceous time. Albian deposits with similar characteristics are also known to exist in Shikoku, Southwest Japan. A wide sedimentary basin that was directly affected by global environmental events, such as OAEs, seemed to be formed on the Chichibu Belt in the Albian. The Upper Cretaceous strata in the study area are extremely thin, similar to the coeval deposits on the Chichibu Belt in Shikoku. It is suggested that the sedimentation rate in the sedimentary basin on the Chichibu Belt was extremely low during early Late Cretaceous time.     

Aerodynamic Scaling for Estimating the Mean Height of Dense Canopies

We used an aerodynamic method to objectively determine a representative canopy height, using standard meteorological measurements. The canopy height may change if the tree height is used to represent the actual canopy, but little work to date has focused on creating a standard for determining the representative canopy height. Here we propose the ‘aerodynamic canopy height’ h _a as the most effective means of resolving the representative canopy height for all forests. We determined h _a by simple linear regression between zero-plane displacement d and roughness length z ₀, without the need for stand inventory data. The applicability of h _a was confirmed in five different forests, including a forest with a complex canopy structure. Comparison with stand inventory data showed that h _a was almost equivalent to the representative height of trees composing the crown surface if the forest had a simple structure, or to the representative height of taller trees composing the upper canopy in forests with a complex canopy structure. The linear relationship between d and z ₀ was explained by assuming that the logarithmic wind profile above the canopy and the exponential wind profile within the canopy were continuous and smooth at canopy height. This was supported by observations, which showed that h _a was essentially the same as the height defined by the inflection point of the vertical profile of wind speed. The applicability of h _a was also verified using data from several previous studies.     

Lithostratigraphy and biostratigraphy of the Campanian–Maastrichtian Toyajo Formation in Wakayama, southwestern Japan

The Upper Cretaceous Toyajo Formation is distributed around the Mt. Toyajo in the Aridagawa area, Wakayama, southwestern Japan. The formation is subdivided into three newly defined members, the Nakaibara Siltstone Member, Hasegawa Muddy Sandstone Member, and Buyo Sandstone Member, in ascending order. Close field observation elucidated the detailed biostratigraphy of the Toyajo Formation, and high-precision biostratigraphic correlation was made with the Yezo Group in Hokkaido (northern Japan) and Sakhalin and the Izumi Group in southwestern Japan.The Toyajo Formation contains diversified lower Campanian to upper Campanian heteromorph ammonoid assemblages, including Eubostrychoceras and Scaphites. Discovery of the heteromorph fauna demonstrates that scaphitid ammonoids survived until Campanian time in the northwestern Pacific region. Although Eubostrychoceras elongatum has been known in the northeastern Pacific region, the occurrence of this species in the northwestern Pacific region has been uncertain before. The rich occurrence of E. elongatum in the Aridagawa area indicates that this species was distributed widely in the northern Pacific realm.The Toyajo Formation is similar to the Izumi Group in various geologic features, and may indicate that the Toyajo Formation was deposited in a strike-slip basin along the Chichibu Belt formed by the movement along the Kurosegawa Tectonic Zone in the latest Cretaceous, like the Izumi Group, along the Median Tectonic Line.