Long-term changes in the benthic communities of the Sea of Azov related to the sedimentation and hydrological regime

The following periods reflected in the composition and distribution of benthic communities are distinguished in the development of the Sea of Azov during the last 80 years: (1) prior to the regulation of the Don River discharge, (2) after its regulation, (3) stabilization of the Don River hydrological regime, and (4) desalination of the sea. The distribution of benthic communities in the Sea of Azov is characterized by concentric patterns, which are distorted due to the changes in the hydrological and oxygen regimes after oxygen depletion. The basic factors that influence the distribution of macrozoobenthic communities are the aeration regime of the sea and the character of the sediment accumulation. The steady distribution of benthic communities composed largely of euryhaline species adapted to the conditions of an unstable salinity in the Sea of Azov shows no correlation with the salinity fluctuations from 9 to 14‰ during the 80-year-long period.     

Modelling of the Sea of Azov ecosystem

The method of mathematical model self-organization is applied to handle observations of the hydrological, chemical and biological parameters of the Sea of Azov, conducted from 1926 through to 1985, in order to identify model equations of the latter's ecosystem. A set of 43 evolutionary equations have been employed to generate a picture of the ecosystem parameters' continuous variability and to identify relationships between them. Model calculations of the total catch of freshwater fishes, primary productivity, zoobenthos, phytoplankton, and other characteristics have demonstrated their being in good agreement with the observations conducted from 1950 to 1985. A prediction of the ecosystem parameters' evolution for the period from 1985 to 1995 has been made. Translated by Vladimir A. Puchkin.     

Hellenic Trench sedimentation: An approach using terrigenous distributions

Sand-sized terrigenous material from 450 samples representing 24 piston cores is used to compare slope, perched slope basin, and trench apron, plain and margin depositional environments within the Hellenic Trench west of the Peloponnesus. Recognition of three stratigraphically defined layers in the core sections served as a basis for evaluating changes in time. Statistical testing showed that within the upper defined layer (0–5700 yrs. B.P.) terrigenous grains are distributed rather uniformly throughout the slope and basin complexes in contrast to distributions in underlying layers (5700–17,000 and 17,000–45,000 yrs. B.P., respectively. These distributions reflect intense reworking by gravitative processes as evidenced by sediment structures, incomplete slope sections, high accumulation rates, and dilution of sapropels. The homogeneity of the upper layer is explained by failure and downslope transport of sediments that were deposited on the slope during lower stands of sea level. The quantitative analyses performed highlight the rapidity by which land-derived sediments by-pass high-relief slopes, temporarily reside in perched basins on the slope, and ultimately are dispersed to distal trench apron and basin environments by sporadic gravity flows.     

Numerical study of the Azov Sea level seiche oscillations

Seiche oscillations of the Azov Sea level are studied on the basis of the developed two-dimensional numerical hydrodynamic model grounded on the shallow water theory and recent data on the morphometric characteristics of the Sea of Azov. Frequency and spatial characteristics of the first five modes corresponding to seiche oscillations of the Azov Sea level are computed. It is shown that the frequency and spatial characteristics of the first five modes obtained for the Sea of Azov level changes correspond to seiche oscillations. The calculated parameters are compared with the field observations, which show their realistic character.     

Comprehensive studies in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov in the Summer of 2012

The shelf zones of the Black Sea, Taman Bay, and the Sea of Azov are currently subjected to gross load related to the impact of invasive species, large-scale construction activities near the coast, intensive recreation activity, water pollution in large cities and ports, active navigation, unreasonable coastal arrangement, and dam construction. Another factor substantially affecting the composition of bottom sediments and, thus, the benthos environment is the terrigenous material carried by rivers in the course of catastrophic overflows. An example is the Kubansk flood in 2012, which significantly affected the sea coast near Novorossiysk, Gelendzhik, and Divnomorsk. The intensive onshore dumping results in the delivery of abundant allochthonous material, bottom silting causing changes in the dominants in the benthos associations, a decrease in the photic layer and the death of the phytobenthos, and also debris formation at the bottom. Debris can play the role of artificial reefs contributory for the formation of periphytic biocoenoses.     

Temporary ice microalgae community in Taganrog Bay of the Azov Sea

The temporary ice algae community in the mixing zone of brackish and fresh waters of the Taganrog Bay of the Azov Sea is described. A high abundance and biomass of planktonic algae and a high chlorophyll a concentration have been registered in samples of under-ice water taken on February 2013. The mass development of the diatom Stephanodiscus hantzschii Grunow blooming on the ice in the eastern part of Taganrog Bay is described for the first time. The quantitative data on the under-ice microalgae community and the related hydrochemistry are published. The obtained results could be used in total productivity estimates in the Azov Sea.     

Investigation of the characteristics of surge phenomena in the Sea of Azov

We present the results of numerical simulation of currents and sea level for the Sea of Azov. In calculations, we use a three-dimensional nonlinear mathematical model taking into account the tangential wind stresses. We present the results of numerical analysis of the fields of currents and the amplitudes of oscillations of the sea level at the coastal stations as functions of the maximum velocity and the period of constant action of the west wind. __________ Translated from Morskoi Gidrofizicheskii Zhurnal, No. 1, pp. 12–25, January–February, 2008.     

Currents of the Azov Sea during the Don River Low-Water Period

Oceanology - The water exchange between the Black Sea and the Azov Sea is investigated on the base of the marine observations aboard the R/V Deneb in 2018 and 2019. The surveys were conducted under...     

Petroleum hydrocarbons and particulate organic matter in the Sea of Azov waters

The paper discusses the results of investigations on contamination of the Sea of Azov by petroleum hydrocarbons and particulate organic matter. After cessation of open sea observations in 1992, the contamination of the sea by petroleum hydrocarbons is predicted for the period from 1993 to 1997. Translated by Vladimir A. Puchkin.     

Changes in Salinity and Species Composition of Ichthyofauna in the Sea of Azov

Oceanology - Impact of salinity changes on the composition of the Sea of Azov ichthyofauna is considered. To date, not only the quantitative, but also the qualitative composition of ichthyofauna...     

A model of the dynamics of the ecosystem of the Sea of Azov

We use many-year archival observations of hydrologic and hydrobiologic state of the Sea of Azov for the identification of the structure of a model of its ecosystem. The ecosystem model, supplemented with expert estimates of bioresource consumption (fish reserve), contamination level, and possible ecologic fines for violation of the sea natural state, is formalized by the method of system dynamics. Hereat, the major part of influence functions is found in terms of observational data with application of self-organization algorithms. We also present the results of simulated experiments with the model of the ecosystem, which enable us to analyse scenarios of its behaviour under the influence of various external factors (wind, river discharge, water exchange with the Black Sea, etc.). Translated by Peter V. Malyshev and Dmitry V. Malyshev     

Paleogeographic sedimentation settings in the northern Baltic Sea

The grain-size and chemical composition of the bottom sediments and their diatom assemblages from the northern Baltic Sea is discussed. Characteristic layers are distinguished based on the lithostratgraphy and sediment core correlation, which reflect the transition from the lacustrine to marine sedimentation settings during the initial Holocene. Sediment cores demonstrate lateral variations in the sedimentation patterns during the marine (Yoldia Sea), the lacustrine (Ancylus Lake), and the subsequent marine (Littorina Sea) stages: first two stages were characterized by the clay deposition, while the latter one featured accumulation of silty-clayey and clayey muds in bottom depressions. Sea-level fluctuations and corresponding environmental changes are recorded in microlaminated sequences, in particular, sapropelic muds.     

Simulation of seiche oscillations in the Sea of Azov,using the finite element technique

A mathematical model based on the finite element technique is applied to study seiche oscillations in the Sea of Azov in an approximation of the linear theory for long waves. The model has been used to compute periods of the initial ten seiche modes.Translated by Vladimir A. Puchkin.     

Long-term variability of the water transparency (Secchi Depth) in the Sea of Azov

The spatial, seasonal, and interannual variability of the water’s transparency (Secchi depth) in the Sea of Azov is studied using the database of long term transparency measurements for the 1922–2009 period and relevant materials on the meteorological, hydrological, and hydrobiological parameters of the environment. We identified four main types of seasonal variability of the water’s transparency depending on the local conditions. The mean values of the Secchi depth are calculated for the different periods, which are distinguished by the differences in the relative role of the water transparency factors associated both with the climatic variations and the human activities.     

Specific features of temporal and spatial distributions of light hydrocarbons in the Sea of Azov

New data from recent surveys investigating the geochemistry of light hydrocarbons over a 4-year period in the Chernomorneftegaz petroleum license area in the central Sea of Azov are presented in this paper. The distributions of light hydrocarbons in both marine sediments and seawater were studied, and stable anomalies of hydrocarbons detected. Based on complex interpretations of geochemical and geophysical data, it has been shown that migration from the deep part of the sediment cover to the surface (seabed) is the main factor which determines the spatial distribution of hydrocarbons in the modern seabed sediments and seawater. The contribution of microbial and anthropogenic processes is insignificant.     

Reviewing the far-reaching ecological impacts of human-induced terrigenous sedimentation on shallow marine ecosystems in a northern-New Zealand embayment

ABSTRACT

Human settlement in Bay of Islands, New Zealand, beginning ～1300 AD, wrought immense, conspicuous and enduring change to local shallow-water marine ecologies, this review addressing those transformations attributable to increased rates of anthropogenically induced, land-derived sedimentation. Elevated silt inflow, particularly after the late-1800s, in course led to ～130% expansion in mangrove (Avicennia marina) cover, with concomitant loss of saltmarsh, uppershore coarse-shell beaches/cheniers, and (probably) intertidal seagrass (Zostera muelleri). Sedimentation also led to widespread loss of estuarine shellfish habitat, and, although not necessarily categorically causal, seems, at the same time to have contributed to such degradation among cockle (Austrovenus stutchburyi) populations that few individuals attain their potential size. Most changes, many seemingly irreversible, can be described as ecologically catastrophic, with ecosystems altered and destroyed, and uncommon habitats threatened. Sedimentation appears the single-most important and enduring contributor to ecological degradation in shallow waters of this northern harbour, with time lags between stressor-onset and realisation of impact (decades to centuries) that only now are becoming clear. Outstanding issues concern establishing the extent of relationship between levels of terrigenous sedimentation and cockles seldom attaining their previous maximum sizes, and origins of the possibly new, widespread phenomenon of living cockles accumulating and dying atop beach surfaces.     

刻赤海峡和亚速海的生成年代

为了普查和勘探陆架上的新油田和固体矿产,研究俄罗斯南部海洋具有非常现实的意义。正是在这里,解决着亚速海一黑海盆地的地层和古地理,以及与同时代形成的地中海和里海沉积层对比的主要问题。     

Contemporary condition of macrozoobenthos in ultrashallow zone of Taman Bay,Sea of Azov

The distribution of macrozoobenthic communities was studied in a vast ultrashallow (0–1.2 m deep) zone of northwestern Taman Bay (separated from the Kerch Strait by Chushka spit) in 2008–2009. Fifty-two species of benthic invertebrates were recorded. The species number, as well as Shannon and Pielou diversity indices, increased along Chushka spit from base to tip. The usual inhabitants of lagoons and estuaries of the Mediterranean Basin and the open Sea of Azov dominated in benthic communities: mollusks Abra segmentum and Hydrobia acuta and polychaetes Heteromastus filiformis and Hediste diversicolor (the latter only in summer). Changes in the community structure were largely determined by the seasonal dynamics of dominant species populations, which was similar to their dynamics in certainother transitional water bodies of the Mediterranean Basin. These changes indicate normal running of seasonal processes in the macrobenthic communities of Taman Bay in 2008 rather than the consequences of a catastrophic black oil spill in the Kerch Strait in November 2007.