Systematic marine conservation planning in data-poor regions: Socioeconomic data is essential

Systematic planning for conservation is highly regarded but relies on spatially explicit data that are lacking in many areas of conservation concern. The decision support tool Marxan is applied to a reef system in the central Philippines where 30 marine protected areas (MPAs) have been established in communities without much use of biophysical data. The intent was to explore how Marxan might assist with the legally required expansion to protect 15% of marine waters, and how existing MPAs might affect that process. Results show that biophysical information alone did not provide much guidance in identifying patterns of conservation importance in areas where the data are poor. Socioeconomic data were needed to distinguish among possible areas for protection; but here, as elsewhere in marine environments, the availability of such data was very limited. In the final analysis, local knowledge and integrated understanding of socioeconomic realities may offer the best spatially explicit information. The 30 existing MPAs, which encompassed a small proportion of the reef system, did not limit future options in developing a suite of MPAs on a broader scale. Rather, they appeared to generate the support for MPAs that is obligatory for any larger zoning effort. In summary, establishing MPAs based on community-driven criteria has biological and social value, but efforts should be made to collect ecological and socioeconomic data to guide the continued creation of MPAs.     

Large bio-geographical shifts in the north-eastern Atlantic Ocean: From the subpolar gyre, via plankton, to blue whiting and pilot whales

Pronounced changes in fauna, extending from the English Channel in the south to the Barents Sea in the north-east and off Greenland in the north-west, have occurred in the late 1920s, the late 1960s and again in the late 1990s. We attribute these events to exchanges of subarctic and subtropical water masses in the north-eastern North Atlantic Ocean, associated with changes in the strength and extent of the subpolar gyre. These exchanges lead to variations in the influence exerted by the subarctic or Lusitanian biomes on the intermediate faunistic zone in the north-eastern Atlantic. This strong and persistent bottom-up bio-physical link is demonstrated using a numerical ocean general circulation model and data on four trophically connected levels in the food chain – phytoplankton, zooplankton, blue whiting, and pilot whales. The plankton data give a unique basin-scale depiction of these changes, and a long pilot whale record from the Faroe Islands offers an exceptional temporal perspective over three centuries. Recent advances in simulating the dynamics of the subpolar gyre suggests a potential for predicting the distribution of the main faunistic zones in the north-eastern Atlantic a few years into the future, which might facilitate a more rational management of the commercially important fisheries in this region.     

Scleractinian coral population size structures and growth rates indicate coral resilience on the fringing reefs of North Jamaica

Coral reefs throughout the world are under severe challenges from many environmental factors. This paper quantifies the size structure of populations and the growth rates of corals from 2000 to 2008 to test whether the Discovery Bay coral colonies showed resilience in the face of multiple acute stressors of hurricanes and bleaching. There was a reduction in numbers of colonies in the smallest size class for all the species at all the sites in 2006, after the mass bleaching of 2005, with subsequent increases for all species at all sites in 2007 and 2008. Radial growth rates (mm yr⁻¹) of non-branching corals and linear extension rates (mm yr⁻¹) of branching corals calculated on an annual basis from 2000–2008 showed few significant differences either spatially or temporally. At Dairy Bull reef, live coral cover increased from 13 ± 5% in 2006 to 20 ± 9% in 2007 and 31 ± 7% in 2008, while live Acropora species increased from 2 ± 2% in 2006 to 10 ± 4% in 2007 and 22 ± 7% in 2008. These studies indicate good levels of coral resilience on the fringing reefs around Discovery Bay in Jamaica.     

Benthic nitrate biogeochemistry affected by tidal modulation of Submarine Groundwater Discharge (SGD) through a sandy beach face, Ria Formosa, Southwestern Iberia

To investigate both the role of tides on the timing and magnitude of Submarine Groundwater Discharge (SGD), and the effect on benthic nitrogen biogeochemistry of nitrate-enriched brackish water percolating upwards at the seepage face, we conducted a study of SGD rates measured simultaneously with seepage meters and mini-piezometers, combined with sets (n = 39) of high resolution in-situ porewater profiles describing NH₄⁺, NO₃⁻, Si(OH)₄ and salinity distribution with depth (0–20 cm). Sampling took place during two consecutive spring tidal cycles in four different months (November 2005, March, April and August 2006) at a backbarrier beach face in the Ria Formosa lagoon, southern Portugal. Our results show that the tide is one of the major agents controlling the timing and magnitude of SGD into the Ria Formosa. Intermittent pumping of brackish, nitrate-bearing water at the beach face through surface sediments changed both the magnitudes and depth distributions of porewater NH₄⁺ and NO₃⁻ concentrations. The most significant changes in nitrate and ammonium concentrations were observed in near-surface sediment horizons coinciding with increased fraction of N in benthic organic matter, as shown by the organic C:N ratio. On the basis of mass balance calculations executed on available benthic profiles, providing ratios of net Ammonium Production Rate (APR) to Nitrate Reduction Rate (NRR), coupled to stoichiometric calculations based on the composition of organic matter, potential pathways of nitrogen transformation were speculated upon. Although the seepage face occasionally contributes to reduce the groundwater-borne DIN loading of the lagoon, mass balance analysis suggests that a relatively high proportion of the SGD-borne nitrogen flowing into the lagoon may be enhanced by nitrification at the shallow (1–3 cm) subsurface and modulated by dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium (DNRA).     

Benthic mineralization rates at two locations in the southern North Sea

Benthic oxygen uptake, sulphate reduction and benthic bacterial production were measured at two contrasting locations in the southern North Sea: the shallow and turbulent Broad Fourteens area in the Southern Bight, and the deeper Oyster Grounds, a deposition area, where thermohaline stratification occurs during summer. Oxygen uptake and sulphate reduction showed a clear seasonal pattern in the Broad Fourteens area, indicating a supply of carbon to the benthic system that is closely related to the standing stock of carbon in the water column. This close benthic-pelagic coupling is probably due to the influence of the tide in this part of the North Sea, which keeps the water column permanently mixed. At the Oyster Grounds, no seasonal pattern was observed. Peaks in oxygen uptake and sulphate reduction were found in winter. Irregularly occurring events, such as storms and fishery-related activities, are likely to affect the benthic mineralization patterns in this area. Annual benthic carbon mineralization rates estimated from oxygen uptake rates were 44 gC·m⁻² at the Broad Fourteens, and 131 gC·m⁻² at the Oyster Grounds, of which 26 and 28%, respectively, could be attributed to sulphate reduction (assuming an annual sulphide reoxidation rate of 100%). Although sulphate reduction rates in the southern North Sea are higher than previously suggested, aerobic respiration is the most important pathway for benthic carbon mineralization at the stations visited. Production rates of benthic bacterial carbon measured with labelled leucine were much higher than carbon mineralization rates based on oxygen uptake or sulphate reduction. This may either imply a very high bacterial carbon conversion efficiency, or point to shortcomings in the accuracy of the techniques. A critical evaluation of the techniques is recommended.     

Geometrical aspects of a sonar-based navigation system for underwater vehicles

A novel self-contained navigation system has been devised for underwater vehicles operating in and around offshore installations. This system matches data from a sector-scanning sonar device to a computer model of the installation. The paper begins by highlighting the existing approaches to subsea navigation before outlining the main features of the proposed system. It then concentrates on a key component of this system which is a method for calculating the position and heading of an underwater vehicle navigating in the vincinity of tubular steel structures. An iterative solution method is presented which incorporates six degree of freedom vehicle motions and this is verified in a series of laboratory experiments with various arrangements of structural members and using a commercial sonar device. The key features, applications and performance of this method are discussed. The main conclusion is that the proposed method for calculating the position and heading of an underwater vehicle contributes towards achieving an accurate and reliable subsea navigation capability.     

Analytical investigations on loop-manoeuvre of underwater towed cable-array system

The paper reports on analytical case studies on the loop manoeuvre of an underwater towed cable-array system to give an insight into the tactical aspects of their naval applications. The analytical formulation and the solution procedure adopted for this three dimensional dynamic problem is also described. The case studies have been carried out for different loop radii, tow lengths, tow speeds and truncated loops. The resulting X,Y,Z co-ordinates of the towed cable-array and tow-point tensions have been computed. Based on these results, the tow-length to loop radii ratio, leading to cable-array system looping, has been found. The values of speed reduction and turning radius, causing dangerous relaxation in tow-point tension have been worked out. After exit from the loop, the timing required for realignment of the cable-array system with the ship's heading can be obtained from plots of the results. These timings help to plan ship manoeuvres to optimise reestablishment of stable listening conditions during underwater surveillance.     

Near-surface seismic facies at the Korea Strait shelf margin and trough region

High-resolution seismic profiles across the shelf margin and trough region of the Korea Strait reveal five shallow, near-surface facies units. These are relict coastal deposits, relict delta deposits, slumps and slides, and trough lag deposits. Most deposits represent a lowstand systems tract, formed during the last lowstand of sea level. Relict coastal deposits represent a linear sediment body along the present shelf margin at water depths of 120–150 m, whereas relict delta deposits occur on the gentle, southwestern slope of the trough at water depths of about 150–200 m. Slumps and slides are dominant at the base of slope in the central trough region. Sediments on the central trough floor were partly eroded and redistributed by strong currents, resulting in lag deposits.     

Cenozoic tectonics of Amazon Mouth Basin

 The Cenozoic shelf margin of the Amazon Mouth Basin is characterized by a thick prograding prism of siliciclastic sediments. This prism, composed mainly of Upper Miocene and younger sediments, overlies a Lower Tertiary carbonate shelf. Two tectonic–sedimentary models for the area were developed with the aid of new deep-reflection seismic data. Gravitational tectonics dominate the regional geological framework. Tensional stresses are created near the shelf margin, and compressional features dominate at the base of the slope. The morphology of this compressional zone is closely associated with the St. Paul Fracture Zone and the boundary between continental and oceanic crusts. Received: 20 August 1996 / Revision received: 11 June 1998     

On the choice of data transformation for modelling time series of significant wave height

Autoregressive models have been shown to adequately model the time series of significant wave height. However, since this series exhibits a seasonal component and has a non-gaussian nature, it is necessary to transform the series before a model can be fit to the data. Two different transformations that have been used in earlier work are shown not to be appropriate for all types of applications. A third transformation is proposed here, which combines the better features of the two earlier ones and which is appropriate for simulation work. This is demonstrated with an example of a series from Figueira da Foz, a location of the Portuguese Coast.