Managing Bay and Estuarine Ecosystems for Multiple Services

Managers are moving from a model of managing individual sectors, human activities, or ecosystem services to an ecosystem-based management (EBM) approach which attempts to balance the range of services provided by ecosystems. Applying EBM is often difficult due to inherent tradeoffs in managing for different services. This challenge particularly holds for estuarine systems, which have been heavily altered in most regions and are often subject to intense management interventions. Estuarine managers can often choose among a range of management tactics to enhance a particular service; although some management actions will result in strong tradeoffs, others may enhance multiple services simultaneously. Management of estuarine ecosystems could be improved by distinguishing between optimal management actions for enhancing multiple services and those that have severe tradeoffs. This requires a framework that evaluates tradeoff scenarios and identifies management actions likely to benefit multiple services. We created a management action-services matrix as a first step towards assessing tradeoffs and providing managers with a decision support tool. We found that management actions that restored or enhanced natural vegetation (e.g., salt marsh and mangroves) and some shellfish (particularly oysters and oyster reef habitat) benefited multiple services. In contrast, management actions such as desalination, salt pond creation, sand mining, and large container shipping had large net negative effects on several of the other services considered in the matrix. Our framework provides resource managers a simple way to inform EBM decisions and can also be used as a first step in more sophisticated approaches that model service delivery.     

Arsenic in sediments, groundwater, and streamwater of a glauconitic Coastal Plain terrain, New Jersey, USA—Chemical “fingerprints” for geogenic and anthropogenic sources

Glauconite-bearing deposits are found worldwide, but As levels have been determined for relatively few. The As content of glauconites in sediments of the Inner Coastal Plain of New Jersey can exceed 100 mg/kg, and total As concentrations (up to 5.95 μg/L) found historically and recently in streamwaters exceed the State standard. In a major watershed of the Inner Coastal Plain, chemical “fingerprints” were developed for streambed sediments and groundwater to identify contributions of As to the watershed from geologic and anthropogenic sources. The fingerprint for streambed sediments, which included Be, Cr, Fe and V, indicated that As was predominantly of geologic origin. High concentrations of dissolved organic C, nutrients (and Cl⁻) in shallow groundwater indicated anthropogenic inputs that provided an environment where microbial activity released As from minerals to groundwater discharging to the stream. Particulates in streamwater during high flow constituted most of the As load; the chemical patterns for these particulates resembled the geologic fingerprint of the streambed sediments. The As/Cr ratio of these suspended particles likely indicates they derived not only from runoff, but from groundwater inputs, because As contributed by groundwater is sequestered on streambed sediments. Agricultural inputs of As were not clearly identified, although chemical characteristics of some sediments indicated vehicle-related inputs of metals. Sediment sampling during dry and wet years showed that, under differing hydrologic conditions, local anthropogenic fingerprints could be obscured but the geologic fingerprint, indicating glauconitic sediments as an As source, was robust.     

Water geochemical characteristic variations in and around a karst-dominated natural reserve area,southwestern China

This paper reports original data on the physical and chemical parameters of precipitation, river water and groundwater in and around the Longhushan Nature Reserve Area, located in southwestern China karst region, and provides a preliminary characterization of the hydrogeochemical process governing the natural water evolution in this area. The rainfall and river water mainly pertain to the HCO₃ ⁻–Ca²⁺ type and groundwater mainly pertain to the HCO₃ ⁻–Ca²⁺ + Mg²⁺ type. The HCO₃ ⁻ was the predominant anion and Ca²⁺ was the predominant cation in all waters, respectively. The Gibbs Boomerang Envelop model, the 1:1 relationship of Na⁺ plus K⁺ versus Cl⁻ as well as the 1:1 relationship of Ca²⁺ plus Mg²⁺ versus HCO₃ ⁻ all suggested geochemical weathering is the main controlling factor for the geochemical compositions of this natural water. In surface water, the Mg²⁺/Ca²⁺ ratios ranged from 0.32 to 0.42 and the Na⁺/Ca²⁺ varied between 0.04 and 0.05. In the groundwater, the Mg²⁺/Ca²⁺ ratios varied from 0.37 to 0.62 and were below the ideal ratio of 0.8. These ratios showed the presence of a dolomite source. Analysis of trace elements showed that As, B, Pb, Se, Sr, V and Zn elements were abundant in the natural water during summer in this region.     

Understanding and contextualizing social impacts from the privatization of fisheries: An overview

Fisheries management around the world has experimented with regulations to promote privatization, in order to reach such multifaceted goals as ending overfishing and reducing economic inefficiencies. This review surveys a wide range of empirical experiences in different contexts around the world to help provide a fuller picture of potential and sometimes disparate consequences from privatization in general and new ways of organizing around fishing that can follow in the wake of such measures. Looking at the many different participants in the fishing industry—from crew, small-boat owners, to households and communities—as well as the diverse sociocultural contexts in which fishing takes place, enables a better understanding of who and what is impacted, how they are impacted, why and with what further consequences, such that communities come to be seen less oppositional to economy, but rather constituted by multiple scalar processes and by economic relations comprising different motivations and behaviors.     

Interprétation des cisaillements ductiles vers le NE dans les gneiss de Torrox (Complexe Alpujarride,Cordillères Bétiques)

Résumén

Les Gneiss de Torrox font partie de l’Unité de Sayalonga, appartenant au Complexe Alpujarride des Cordillères Bétiques (Espagne). Ils ont subi une déformation hétérogène par cisaillement simple, caractérisée par le développement de zones mylonitiques à pendage subhorizontal et de linéations d’étirement de direction N070°E. Nous interprétons ces linéations comme la direction de transport dans un contexte de chevauchements ductiles vers l’Kst-Nord-est. Ce sens de mouvement est très répandu dans les Alpujarrides, et permet de mieux comprendre que les nappes Alpujarrides occidentales soient plus métamorphiques que celles des Alpujarrides centrales et orientales.     

Spatial and seasonal variability of polygonal tundra water balance: Lena River Delta, northern Siberia (Russia)

The summer water balance of a typical Siberian polygonal tundra catchment is investigated in order to identify the spatial and temporal dynamics of its main hydrological processes. The results show that, besides precipitation and evapotranspiration, lateral flow considerably influences the site-specific hydrological conditions. The prominent microtopography of the polygonal tundra strongly controls lateral flow and storage behaviour of the investigated catchment. Intact rims of low-centred polygons build hydrological barriers, which release storage water later in summer than polygons with degraded rims and troughs above degraded ice wedges. The barrier function of rims is strongly controlled by soil thaw, which opens new subsurface flow paths and increases subsurface hydrological connectivity. Therefore, soil thaw dynamics determine the magnitude and timing of subsurface outflow and the redistribution of storage within the catchment. Hydraulic conductivities in the elevated polygonal rims sharply decrease with the transition from organic to mineral layers. This interface causes a rapid shallow subsurface drainage of rainwater towards the depressed polygon centres and troughs. The re-release of storage water from the centres through deeper and less conductive layers helps maintain a high water table in the surface drainage network of troughs throughout the summer.     

The Indigenous Aetas of Bataan,Philippines: Extraordinary genetic origins,modern history and land rights

The Aeta Magbukún of Bataan in Luzon, the Philippines remain one of the least known and documented Indigenous tribes. They retain primarily subsistence hunter‐gathering strategies to supply their basic needs. They also strive for recognition of their ancestral connection with, and rights to inhabit their ancestral forest domains, which is threatened by the expansion of agriculture and urban development by non‐Aetas, primarily the majority Tagalog population. The Aeta continue to endure dispossession, poverty and political discrimination through decades of protracted land rights processes. This review explores the potential use of recent genetic evidence in anthropology and human geography to legitimize the Aeta's status as Indigenous people and contradict the perspective of some governments in the Asia Pacific region who question the existence of Indigenous peoples generally, often from fear of land tenure and associated political repercussions. The acquisition and use of genetic research on Indigenous populations is both socially and politically contested through fear of the potential to jeopardize sovereignty claims and lead to biologically‐based discrimination. However, the full implications of the potential use of genetic research to legitimize Indigenous status, as described within this research, has yet to be thoroughly explored. By exploring both the genetic and anthropological evidence using a case study of the Indigenous Aeta, this paper provides a unique approach to building a case for Indigenous rights, occupation, use of ancestral lands, self‐determination, and ultimately, recognition as Indigenous people.     

Total particulate and reactive gaseous mercury in ambient air on the eastern slope of the Mt. Gongga area,China

Total particulate mercury (TPM) and reactive gaseous mercury (RGM) concentrations in ambient air on the eastern slope of the Mt. Gongga area, Sichuan Province, Southwestern China were monitored from 25 May, 2005 to 29 April, 2006. Simultaneously, Hg concentrations in rain samples were measured from January to December, 2006. The average TPM and RGM concentrations in the study site were 30.7 and 6.2 pg m⁻³, which are comparable to values observed in remote areas in Northern America and Europe, but much lower than those reported in some urban areas in China. The mean seasonal RGM concentration was slightly higher in spring (8.0 pg m⁻³) while the minimum mean concentration was observed in winter (4.0 pg m⁻³). TPM concentrations ranged across two orders of magnitude from 5.2 to 135.7 pg m⁻³ and had a clear seasonal variation: winter (74.1 pg m⁻³), autumn (22.5 pg m⁻³), spring (15.3 pg m⁻³) and summer (10.8 pg m⁻³), listed in decreasing order. The annual wet deposition was 9.1 μg m⁻² and wet deposition in the rainy season (May–October) represented over 80% of the annual total. The temporal distribution of TPM and RGM suggested distinguishable dispersion characteristics of these Hg species on a regional scale. Elevated TPM concentration in winter was probably due to regional and local enhanced coal burning and low wet deposition velocity. The RGM distribution pattern is closely related to daily variation in UV radiation observed during the winter sampling period indicating that photo-oxidation processes and diurnal changes in meteorology play an important role in RGM generation.     

Sexual traits plasticity of the potentially invasive limpet Bostrycapulus odites (Gastropoda: Calyptraeidae) within its natural distribution in South America

The slipper limpet Bostrycapulus odites has recently been reported as an introduced species on the Spanish Mediterranean coast. Another species in the family Calyptraeidae, Crepidula fornicata, is a problematic invasive species in the Northeast Atlantic, which makes the closely related Bostrycapulus introduction a matter of concern. Information on the biology of B. odites in its natural environment can facilitate predictions on where the species could find favourable conditions for settlement and expansion. Size and sex were recorded for individuals in four populations over 2600 km of the Southwestern Atlantic shoreline, in Argentina and Brazil, covering the whole native latitudinal range of this widely distributed species. Animals were collected by hand in the intertidal or by SCUBA in subtidal locations; specimens were examined to determine shell length, sex, and the presence and number of brooded egg capsules in females. Mean shell length for the whole population did not differ significantly among populations. However, this species experiences sequential hermaphroditism (protandrism), and the size at sexual maturity (minimum male size) increased significantly with latitude. The fecundity of females at all sites increased with size, and the number of brooded egg capsules as well as the average size of capsules was larger in bigger individual females; however, mean fecundity varied among sites independent of mean female body size. This limpet species modifies its reproductive traits with local conditions, and sexual characters develop earlier in more temperate localities.