Paradigm shifts in community ecology: Open versus closed units,challenges and limits of connectivity studies

Due to the presence of the complex life cycles involving a benthic adult and a pelagic larval phase, the study of benthic community dynamics cannot ignore investigations of the processes occurring in the water column. Current investigations focus mainly on larval dispersal from an evolutionary and a biogeographic perspective, taking into account also population connectivity, conservation planning and coastal management. In the present paper we underline the need to improve knowledge of the main traits of marine invertebrate life cycles, highlighting the limits and challenges of current approaches. Firstly, we summarized the changing approaches within community studies, following the paradigm shifts found in recent marine ecological research, from supply‐side ecology to connectivity, and involving the concepts of open and closed populations. Secondly, we analysed the main larval traits influencing dispersal, paying particular attention to pelagic larval duration in light of the few available data for connectivity studies. The difficulty in estimating many of the main traits of larval ecology make numerical simulation fundamental for a better understanding of the relationship between propagule dispersal and seawater dynamics, both being highly variable. We conclude that some essential biological information is still lacking for the proper integration of the modeling approaches. Thus it is necessary to further investigate the life‐cycle traits and physiological and ecological characteristics of each species, an approach known as autecology or natural history. All too frequently modern ecologists ignore such reductionist approaches, although they are essential for a full understanding of processes, such as connectivity and metapopulation dynamics.     

The Role of a Macroalgal Covering Event on the Microphytobenthos Community in Intertidal Sediment (Marano Lagoon, Northern Adriatic Sea)

Abstract. This study examines the variation in microphytobenthos structure and functioning in an intertidal lagoon during a macroalgal covering event. Multivariate techniques, applied on the recorded data, highlighted a clear seasonal pattern except for the July sample. The sudden macroalgae ( Cladophora sp.) development, which occurred in that month, enabled us to identify the massive covering as a disturbance factor on the benthic ecosystem. This biotic anomaly affected benthic microalgal production and community respiration, shifting the ecosystem from a highly photoautotrophic to an heterotrophic condition as shown by the BTS Index. This trophic index is therefore a useful tool for identifying episodic stress events mainly in intertidal habitats.     

Field observations of waves generated by passing ships: A note

This short contribution reports the results of a field study on the nearshore characteristics of waves generated by both conventional and high speed passenger ferries. The field observations took place in the late summer of 2005, at a beach close to the port of Mytilene (Island of Lesbos, Greece), and involved the visual observation of ship waves, using digital video recordings and image processing techniques. The results showed that passage of the fast ferry was associated with a longer, more complex and energetic nearshore event; this event not only did include higher nearshore waves (up to 0.74 m) and was organised in different wave packets, but it was also an order of magnitude longer (∼ 680 s) than the conventional ferry event. Regarding the effects on beach sediment dynamics, the fast ferry waves were estimated to be very efficient in mobilising the nearshore sediments in contrast to those of the conventional ferry. The fast ferry service appears to generate daily prolonged nearshore events, which contain waves with higher energy than those expected from the normal summer wind wave regime of the area; these events also include some high and very steep waves, which can be particularly erosive. Therefore, fast ferry wakes may have considerable impacts on the seasonal beach sediment dynamics/morphodynamics and the nearshore benthic ecology, as well as they may pose significant risks to bathers, affecting the recreational use of the beaches exposed to fast ferry traffic. Finally, the study has shown that satisfactory field observations of the nearshore characteristics of ship-generated (and wind) waves can be obtained using inshore deployments of calibrated poles, digital video cameras and appropriate image processing algorithms.     

上层海洋浮游生物地理分布

确定海洋浮游生物的分布区域是海洋浮游生态学研究的首要任务之一,本文总结了上层海洋(0-200 m)浮游生物地理分布的研究历史、已有的认知及全球变化的影响.对浮游生物地理分布的研究可以分为19世纪末期至20世纪70年代、20世纪80年代至2000年,以及2000年以后三个时期.根据分布区资料的时间长短,浮游生物分布区分为...     

海洋纳米塑料污染现状及其对双壳类的生态毒理效应

随着纳米塑料在海洋中的分布越来越广泛,纳米塑料逐渐演变成目前海洋生态系统中面临的严重环境问题之一,引起人们的广泛关注。纳米塑料比微塑料粒径更小,具有更大的比表面积与吸附力,成为海洋中污染物的重要载体之一,影响深远。双壳类具有滤食特殊摄食方式,可通过食物链影响其他营养级生物,是食物链中重要一环。本文主要就纳米塑料的定义与来源、在海洋中的污染现状、对海洋双壳类的生态毒理效应进行阐述。纳米塑料可以通过海洋生物呼吸和进食过程中摄入体内,在吞噬细胞中诱导氧化应激、线粒体损伤和细胞毒性并产生严重的炎症反应。研究表明,在有其他污染物的存在下,纳米塑料的存在,会增加污染物在海洋生物体内的留滞时间,从而加大其毒性。纳米塑料可以通过食物网对海洋生态系统构成威胁。     

Storm Enhanced Bottom Shear Stress and Associated Sediment Entrainment in a Moderate Energetic Estuary

Several important mechanisms for storm-induced entrainment of estuarine cohesive sediments are analyzed using field measurements collected in a moderately energetic estuary, central Long Island Sound, U.S.A. The sediment concentration and hydrographic data were obtained by an array of sensors mounted at 1 m above the bottom. The bottom sediment in the study site composed mostly of silt and silty sand. The study showed that the bottom shear stress, computed using a wave-current interaction model, increased significantly during the episodic wind events. A large resuspension event was triggered by a frontal passage when strong wind-driven currents augmented the tidal currents. The timing of storm waves with respect to the tidal phase also was a critical factor. Based on the changes of suspended sediment concentration, the bottom appeared to respond to the shear stress in two phases: the tidal resuspension and the storm-induced erosion. During each tidal cycle, entrainment was associated with resuspension of high water content, loosely consolidated material. During episodic events, a thin layer of more consolidated bed below the sediment-water interface was eroded by the enhanced bottom stress.     

Episodic Cenozoic tectonism and the development of the NW European ‘passive’ continental margin

The North Atlantic margins are archetypally passive, yet they have experienced post-rift vertical movements of up to kilometre scale. The Cenozoic history of such movements along the NW European margin, from Ireland to mid-Norway, is examined by integrating published analyses of uplift and subsidence with higher resolution tectono-stratigraphic indicators of relative movements (including results from the STRATAGEM project). Three episodes of epeirogenic movement are identified, in the early, mid- and late Cenozoic, distinct from at least one phase of compressive tectonism. Two forms of epeirogenic movement are recognised, referred to as tilting (coeval subsidence and uplift, rotations <1° over distances of 100s of Kilometres) and sagging (strongly differential subsidence, rotations up to 4° over distances <100 km). Each epeirogenic episode involved relatively rapid (<10 Ma) km-scale tectonic movements that drove major changes in patterns of sedimentation to find expression in regional unconformity-bounded stratigraphic units. Early Cenozoic tilting (late Paleocene to early Eocene, c. 60–50 Ma) caused the basinward progradation of shelf-slope wedges from elongate uplifts along the inner continental margin and from offshore highs. Mid-Cenozoic sagging (late Eocene to early Oligocene, c. 35–25 Ma) ended wedge progradation and caused the onset of contourite deposition in deep-water basins. Late Cenozoic tilting (early Pliocene to present, <4±0.5 Ma) again caused the basinward progradation of shelf-slope wedges, from uplifts along the inner margin (including broad dome-like features) and from offshore highs. The early, mid- and late Cenozoic epeirogenic episodes coincided with Atlantic plate reorganisations, but the observed km-scale tectonic movements are too large to be accounted for as flexural deflections due to intra-plate stress variations. Mantle–lithosphere interactions are implied, but the succession of epeirogenic episodes, of differing form, are difficult to reconcile with the various syn-to post-rift mechanisms of permanent and/or transient movements proposed in the hypothetical context of a plume beneath Iceland. The epeirogenic movements can be explained as dynamic topographic responses to changing forms of small-scale convective flow in the upper mantle: tilting as coeval upwelling and downwelling above an edge-driven convection cell, sagging as a loss of dynamic support above a former upwelling. The inferred Cenozoic succession of epeirogenic tilting, sagging and tilting is proposed to record the episodic evolution of upper mantle convection during ocean opening, a process that may also be the underlying cause of plate reorganisations. The postulated episodes of flow reorganisation in the NE Atlantic region have testable implications for epeirogenic movements along the adjacent oceanic spreading ridge and conjugate continental margin, as well as on other Atlantic-type ‘passive’ margins.     

利用卫星遥感和再分析数据刻画2017-2018年格陵兰北部罕见冰间湖事件

以90%海冰密集度为阈值,基于卫星遥感数据,2017-2018年冰季在格陵兰北部识别了两次冰间湖事件,分别出现在冬季和夏季。冬季的冰间湖事件从2018年2月20日持续至3月3日,夏季的事件从8月2日持续到9月5日。AMSR2被动微波的海冰密集度产品表明,冬季和夏季冰间湖事件对应的最低海冰密集度分别为72%和65%。两次冰间湖事件都与格陵兰北部东西气压梯度异常引起的南风加强有关,而气压梯度的异常则与对流层中部极涡的扰动有关。冬季冰间湖事件期间,相对暖和的气温和频繁出现的冰间湖,导致冬季海冰生长不持续,海冰热力增厚较小,这为夏季海冰发生破碎并形成冰间湖创造了条件。南风减弱和新冰生成是冬季冰间湖消失的主要原因。对于夏季的冰间湖,导致其消失的主要原因则是从北部输入的浮冰增加。Sentinel-1 合成孔径雷达产品相对AMSR2被动微波观测产品更加适合于应用到冰间湖事件伴随的新冰生长,这与前者具有更高的空间分辨率有关。格陵兰北部是北冰洋多年冰的聚集地,该区域被认为是北冰洋海冰的“避难所”。因此区域在2017-2018年出现罕见的冰间湖事件,对于整个北冰洋海冰的快速减少具有重要意义,也助于北冰洋海冰,尤其是多年冰的消退。     

Multiple late Quaternary episodes of exceptional diatom production in the Gulf of Alaska

Hole 887B of the Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) comprises a 44 m (750 kyr) long continuous section recovered from the Patton–Murray Rise, an elevated plateau that is largely isolated from turbidite deposition. The Patton–Murray area is centered under the Alaska Gyre, a region characterized by the domal upwelling of nutrient-rich waters. Marked increases in productivity and rapid settling of biogenic matter are suggested throughout the section by the episodic accumulation of diatomaceous oozes up to ∼1 m thick that are accompanied by barium enrichments. Significant δ¹³C_org maxima in the major diatomaceous bands suggest that mixed-layer [CO_2(aq)] may have been drawn down significantly during some of the productivity events. The episodes of enhanced productivity at Site 887 occur synchronously with short-lived minima in planktonic foram δ¹⁸O, suggesting a direct link to low salinity, or less likely, warming, events in the Gulf of Alaska. There is no obvious explanation for the events, but they may be related to seasonal incursions of meltwater from Alaska. We speculate that episodic input of meltwater- or dust-borne iron from Asian or Alaskan sources may have promoted the extraordinary diatom production events recorded in the sedimentary record.     

Factors responsible for catastrophic extinction of marine organisms at the Mesozoic-Cenozoic boundary

The mass death of organisms at the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary (KT boundary) resulted in the extinction of approximately half of marine genera. Some taxa had degraded by the end of the Cretaceous to become eventually extinct either before or precisely at the KT boundary. Most of them became extinct immediately at this boundary. The terminal Cretaceous was marked by changes in many environmental processes, which influenced the biota. These included tectonic events, powerful basalt eruptions, falls of large asteroids (impact events), anoxia, transgressions and regressions, cooling and warming episodes, and the chemistry of the atmosphere and seawater. All these factors, except for impact events, could stimulate degradation of some groups of organisms, not their extinction. The Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary was marked by major impact events, which are reflected in the occurrence of the Chicxulub, Shiva, Boltysh, Silverpit, and, probably some other impact craters. Some known craters were left by asteroids at that time or slightly earlier. At least as many asteroids undoubtedly fell into the ocean. The combination of many factors in the terminal Cretaceous harmful for organisms and seemingly unrelated to each other may be likely explained only by a single supreme cause beyond the Solar System.     

南海污损生物研究的现状及展望

污损生物的研究包括生态学、附着机理和防除研究3个方面，其中生态学是基础，附着机理是核心，而防除研究则是解决生物污损问题的终极目标。回顾了中国南海多年来污损生物研究的发展历程，论述了该海区污损生物的主要生态特点，并从生态学角度、生物附着机理和防除手段的研究开发等方面探讨了下一阶段的研究重点和发展方向。     

Characteristics of the hepatic microsomal cytochrome P-450 system of the minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata)

The whales are an interesting group in several aspects of science, including evolutionary biology, marine ecology and toxicology. Some of the whale species, including the minke whale, graze at the top of the food chains, where they become susceptible to the accumulation of marine pollutants ingested by organisms at lower levels. The northern stock of the minke whale grazes in Arctic waters in the summer, an area of increasing interest in the development of new oil fields. Studies on the metabolism, disposition and effects of xenobiotics in marine mammals are few. The only reports in the open literature so far have dealt with these questions in seals.^1–3 Although the marine mammals comprise a particularly interesting group in marine ecology and toxicology, no data have to our knowledge been presented on the xenobiotic metabolising enzyme systems of the whales. In this study, components of the microsomal cytochrome P-450 system were measured in liver samples from several females, one male, and two foetal minke whales, caught in the Norwegian whaling season of 1983. Because of the limited number of samples studied we have treated the samples individually and not performed any statistical analysis of the data. The trends discussed below must therefore be considered with this background.     

Climate change and coral reef bleaching: An ecological assessment of long-term impacts,recovery trends and future outlook

Since the early 1980s, episodes of coral reef bleaching and mortality, due primarily to climate-induced ocean warming, have occurred almost annually in one or more of the world's tropical or subtropical seas. Bleaching is episodic, with the most severe events typically accompanying coupled ocean–atmosphere phenomena, such as the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO), which result in sustained regional elevations of ocean temperature. Using this extended dataset (25+ years), we review the short- and long-term ecological impacts of coral bleaching on reef ecosystems, and quantitatively synthesize recovery data worldwide. Bleaching episodes have resulted in catastrophic loss of coral cover in some locations, and have changed coral community structure in many others, with a potentially critical influence on the maintenance of biodiversity in the marine tropics. Bleaching has also set the stage for other declines in reef health, such as increases in coral diseases, the breakdown of reef framework by bioeroders, and the loss of critical habitat for associated reef fishes and other biota. Secondary ecological effects, such as the concentration of predators on remnant surviving coral populations, have also accelerated the pace of decline in some areas. Although bleaching severity and recovery have been variable across all spatial scales, some reefs have experienced relatively rapid recovery from severe bleaching impacts. There has been a significant overall recovery of coral cover in the Indian Ocean, where many reefs were devastated by a single large bleaching event in 1998. In contrast, coral cover on western Atlantic reefs has generally continued to decline in response to multiple smaller bleaching events and a diverse set of chronic secondary stressors. No clear trends are apparent in the eastern Pacific, the central-southern-western Pacific or the Arabian Gulf, where some reefs are recovering and others are not. The majority of survivors and new recruits on regenerating and recovering coral reefs have originated from broadcast spawning taxa with a potential for asexual growth, relatively long distance dispersal, successful settlement, rapid growth and a capacity for framework construction. Whether or not affected reefs can continue to function as before will depend on: (1) how much coral cover is lost, and which species are locally extirpated; (2) the ability of remnant and recovering coral communities to adapt or acclimatize to higher temperatures and other climatic factors such as reductions in aragonite saturation state; (3) the changing balance between reef accumulation and bioerosion; and (4) our ability to maintain ecosystem resilience by restoring healthy levels of herbivory, macroalgal cover, and coral recruitment. Bleaching disturbances are likely to become a chronic stress in many reef areas in the coming decades, and coral communities, if they cannot recover quickly enough, are likely to be reduced to their most hardy or adaptable constituents. Some degraded reefs may already be approaching this ecological asymptote, although to date there have not been any global extinctions of individual coral species as a result of bleaching events. Since human populations inhabiting tropical coastal areas derive great value from coral reefs, the degradation of these ecosystems as a result of coral bleaching and its associated impacts is of considerable societal, as well as biological concern. Coral reef conservation strategies now recognize climate change as a principal threat, and are engaged in efforts to allocate conservation activity according to geographic-, taxonomic-, and habitat-specific priorities to maximize coral reef survival. Efforts to forecast and monitor bleaching, involving both remote sensed observations and coupled ocean–atmosphere climate models, are also underway. In addition to these efforts, attempts to minimize and mitigate bleaching impacts on reefs are immediately required. If significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions can be achieved within the next two to three decades, maximizing coral survivorship during this time may be critical to ensuring healthy reefs can recover in the long term.     

不同强度El Nio事件长期变化规律的若干统计特征

本文对1763～1987年间历次强、中、弱El Nio事件的发生频率、各次事件的间隔年数,以及当某类强度事件发生后下一次事件的强度级别与发生时间的概率等做了统计分析。结果表明,El Ni(?)o事件的长期变化具有一定的规律性。这些规律可作为预测El Ni(?)o事件的参考。     

10种蟹类18S rDNA 和COⅠ基因序列分析及其分子系统发育研究

应用分子系统发育学的方法,以蟹类18S rDNA和线粒体细胞色素C氧化酶亚单位Ⅰ(COⅠ)基因序列片段为分子标记,结合形态学特征对10种蟹类的分类地位进行探讨。实验共获得10 条18S rDNA序列,长度为1780~1787 bp,其中A、T, G,C平均含量分别为23.72%, 24.58%,24.52%和27.17%;通过序列对比,发现18S rDNA序列相对保守,只含有1个从88 bp 到130 bp 约 50 bp的高可变区;物种间碱基距离比较小,从0.001到0.017。18S rDNA系统发育树为方蟹总科、沙蟹总科和梭子蟹总科起源于同-海洋蟹类祖先提供了分于生物q证惦,开上火亚N内尔量分别为26.88%.弓蟹科。获得的5条CO Ⅰ基因序列,长度均为709 bp,A、T,G、C平均含量分别为26.88%,37.62%,17.50%和18.00%;COⅠ基因片段变异性高,物种间碱基距离从0.016到0.138。COⅠ基因系统发育树真实地反映了住属各物种之间的进化关系,和传统分类非常吻合,为形态特征相似的姆类鉴定提供了-种快速准确的方法。     

中国近海有害藻华研究现状与展望

海洋或淡水环境中的一些藻类生物量暴发性增长会形成有害藻华(harmfulalgalblooms,HAB),对人类健康、生态安全和社会经济发展构成威胁。近50年来,近海有害藻华问题不断加剧,已经成为一类全球性的海洋生态环境问题。在"全球有害藻华生态学与海洋学研究计划(GEOHAB)"和"全球变化下有害藻华研究计划(GlobalHAB)"支持下,有害藻华研究不断深入,在"有害藻华原因种多样性、生物地理分布特征与适应策略"、"典型有害藻华的生态学与海洋学研究"、"富营养化和气候变化对有害藻华的影响"、"藻毒素与人类健康"、"有害藻华的监测、预警和防控"等方面取得了重要进展。有害藻华是我国近海最突出的生态灾害之一,自2000年以来,我国近海大规模有害藻华不断出现,藻华原因种表现出多样化、小型化和有害化的演变趋势,对沿海地区社会经济发展和生态系统健康构成严重威胁。针对我国近海的有害藻华,本文从有害藻华原因种基础生物学研究、有害藻华生态学与海洋学研究、近海有毒藻和藻毒素研究、有害藻华监测与治理研究等四个方面对主要研究进展进行了总结和分析。综合国内外有害藻华现状和相关研究进展,建议进一步深化对我国近...     

南沙海区更新世以来的放射虫丰度低值事件及其古海洋学意义

根据南沙海区17957－2柱1．34Ma以来的放射虫定量研究发现,在0．88－0．91Ma和1．14－1．16Ma两个时期放射虫堆积率和丰度突然降到最低值,造成两次丰度低值事件。第一次丰度低值事件与0．9Ma发生的“中更新世革命”事件有关。这两次丰度低值事件可能是由于高的放射虫碎壳率所反映的强硅质溶解作用、含量较高的碳酸盐和火山灰的稀释作用以及较低的表层初级生产力三者的共同作用所造成的,反映了硅质生物沉积过程的复杂性。     

Geomicrobial transformation of manganese in Gorda Ridge event plumes

Event plumes form as episodic discharges of large volumes of hydrothermal solutions in response to magmatic diking/eruptive events. In consequence, event plumes represent the sudden injection of exploitable reduced chemical substrates, as well as inhibitory constituents, and likely induce successional changes in the microbial community structure and activity within event plume waters. In response to a major seismic event detected beginning 28 February 1996 at the northern Gorda Ridge, a series of three rapid response and follow-up cruises (GREAT 1, 2 and 3) were mounted over a period of three months. This report focuses on time-series measurements of manganese geomicrobial parameters in the two event plumes found in association with this seismic event.Scanning transmission electron microscopy, elemental microanalysis, and radioisotope (⁵⁴Mn) uptake experiments were employed on samples collected from vertical and tow-yo casts from the three cruises. Numbers of bacteria and ratios of metal precipitating capsuled bacteria to total bacteria were greatest in the youngest (days old) plume, EP96A, found during GREAT 1; however, when normalized to the hydrothermal temperature anomaly, the greatest values were found in a second event plume, EP96B, discovered during GREAT 2 (up to 1 month old). Early capsule bacteria and particulate Mn distributions may have been influenced by entrainment of resuspended sediment, while those of the oldest (2–3 months) plume sample may have been subjected to preferential aggregation and particle settling.     

红树林区底栖动物污染生态学研究进展

综述了底栖动物污染生态学研究的现状。目前有关底栖动物的污染生态学研究主要有以下几个方面：（1）污染物在底栖动物体中含量测定及一些污染物在底栖动物中累积分布的研究。（2）污染物对底栖动物生理特性影响的研究。（3）污染物如城市污水对底栖动物群落的影响研究。（4）底栖动物在水质和底质污染中的监测应用。分别综合和评述了红树林底栖动物污染生态学在重金属、城市污水和有机物污染对红树林区底栖动物的生态效应等方面的研究现状。提出今后红树林区底栖动物污染生态学的研究，应着重生态毒理学和实验生态学的研究。     

Offspring of aged mothers of rotifer Brachionus calyciflorus shows lower sexual propensity than their elder siblings under crowded conditions

Maternal eff ects are one of the most interesting topics in evolutionary ecology as they can aff ect the rate of evolution and population dynamics by phenotypic manipulation of off spring related to fi tness. At present, studies examining the interaction between maternal environment eff ects and maternal age (birth order) eff ects are scarce. We designed an experiment to reveal whether environmentally induced maternal manipulation works equally on off spring across birth orders in rotifer Brachionus calycifl orus. In the experiment, newborn amictic mothers (F0) were cultured parallelly in low (LD) and high (HD) population density. Off spring (F1) of young (YF0) and old (OF0) mothers in both LD and HD groups were cultured under a crowded condition and the mixis ratios of both F1 and F2 were examined. Results show that F1 from HD-YF0 had a signifi cantly higher mixis ratio and those amictic ones produced daughters (F2 ) with higher mixis ratio in response to crowding than those from HD-OF0. In contrast, no such diff erences among F1 siblings were found in the LD-F0 group. Therefore, the eff ect of maternal age on the sexual propensity of the off spring can be aff ected independently by the maternal population density.