Changes in soils and vegetation in a Mediterranean coastal salt marsh impacted by human activities

This paper reports changes in vegetation distribution and species cover in relation to soil factors and hydrology in a semiarid Mediterranean salt marsh adjacent to the Mar Menor saline lagoon. Species cover, soil salinity, and the groundwater level were monitored between 1991 and 1993 and between 2002 and 2004, and total organic carbon, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, nitrates, ammonium and exchangeable phosphorus were measured in the soils in both study periods. In addition, three soil profiles were described in August 1992 and August 2004. The results indicate an elevation of the water table throughout the 13-year period, which was attributable to water flowing from areas with intensive agriculture. Flooding increased and soil salinity dropped in the most saline sites and increased in the least saline ones. The morphology of the soil profiles reflected the increase in flooding periods, due to the appearance of a greyer matrix in the deeper horizons and a more diffuse pattern of Fe mottles. Following these environmental changes, Sarcocornia fruticosa, Phragmites australis and Juncus maritimus strongly expanded at the wettest sites, which led to the disappearance of the original zonation pattern. The cover of Limonium delicatulum, in turn, decreased with the increase in moisture but increased following the increase in salinity. Changes in soil nutrients were only very evident in the sandy soils of the beach, probably due to the influence of organic debris deposited on the shoreline by the storms and due to the strong increase in the colonisation of this habitat by perennial species. According to the results obtained, control measures are needed in order to preserve habitat diversity in this and other salt marshes of this area. Monitoring of the vegetation distribution could be a useful tool to identify environmental impacts, in order to implement remedial actions.     

In situ and satellite observations of the eastward migration of the Western Alboran Sea Gyre

During October 2003 an intensive oceanographic survey (BIOMEGA) was carried out in the Alboran Sea, coinciding with a migration event of the Western Alboran Sea Gyre (WAG). The observations gathered during that cruise constitute the first field evidence of a migrated stage of the WAG. In this work we present the main differences between the 3D hydrodynamic fields observed during BIOMEGA and those corresponding to a WAG located at its usual position. The migration of the gyre was followed by satellite (altimetry and sea surface temperature) imagery. The causes of the gyre migration are explored in terms of the quasi-geostrophic tendency equation, in particular of the dynamics governing scales larger than the Rossby radius of deformation. It is shown that the steady state gyre must be almost equivalent barotropic and that the key process to break down the stationarity would be a density advection at gyre scale. The mechanisms to explain the migration of the WAG proposed by previous authors are discussed in light of the explanation proposed in this work.     

Coping with disaster: Rehabilitating coastal livelihoods and communities

This paper examines lessons from past approaches to natural disasters, as well as early lessons from the post-2004 Asian tsunami rehabilitation, to draw out general principles for rehabilitating livelihoods in poor coastal communities. We contend that avoiding the mistakes of the past requires: (1) a framework for understanding the diversity of coastal people's livelihood strategies and the sources of their vulnerability, (2) a process for designing interventions that build on this understanding in order to strengthen and revitalize coastal communities, including a means of assessing and selecting the most promising livelihood options, and (3) a focus on the longer-term challenge of building future resilience and sustainability in the communities by addressing the root causes of vulnerability.     

Effects of crab–halophytic plant interactions on creek growth in a S.W. Atlantic salt marsh: A Cellular Automata model

The Bahía Blanca Estuary (38° 50′ S, and 62° 30′ W) presents salt marshes where interactions between the local flora (Sarcocornia perennis) and fauna (Chasmagnathus granulatus) generate some kind of salt pans that alter the normal water circulation and condition its flow and course towards tidal creeks. The crab–vegetation dynamics in the salt marsh presents variations that cannot be quantified in a reasonable period of time. The interaction between S. perennis plant and C. granulatus crab is based on simple laws, but its result is a complex biological mechanism that causes an erosive process on the salt marsh and favors the formation of tidal creeks. To study it, a Cellular Automata model is proposed, based on the laws deduced from the observation of these phenomena in the field, and then verified with measurable data within macroscale time units. Therefore, the objective of this article is to model how the interaction between C. granulatus and S. perennis modifies the landscape of the salt marsh and influences the path of tidal creeks. The model copies the basic laws that rule the problem based on purely biological factors.The Cellular Automata model proved capable of reproducing the effects of the interaction between plants and crabs in the salt marsh. A study of the water drainage of the basins showed that this interaction does indeed modify the development of tidal creeks. Model dynamics would likewise follow different laws, which would provide a different formula for the probability of patch dilation. The patch shape can be obtained changing the pattern that dilates.     

Casualties in dry bulk shipping (1963–1996)

In recent years, bulk carriers have been identified with high risks of catastrophic structural failure and foundering, and with heavy loss of human life. This study, based upon Lloyd's of London casualty records, identified four risk factors that had significant, independent effect upon the likelihood of a bulk carrier foundering. The risk of foundering increased with the age of the ship, and was related to the ship's flag of registration. Most importantly, however, increased risks were found for heavy cargoes of iron ore and scrap steel or iron, and for trading routes to the Far East and from Europe to North America. Additional safety measures, in particular regarding ship design and high-risk trades, may well be necessary to reduce the high casualty rates.     

Expression of P-glycoprotein in southeastern oysters, Crassostrea virginica

These studies provide important fundamental information regarding the expression of P-glycoprotein (p-gp) in southeastern oysters (Crassostrea virginica). Using rhodamine transport studies, p-gp activity was detected in newly fertilized embryos. A monoclonal antibody (C219) was used to evaluate p-gp expression in oyster tissues. On the basis of laboratory studies, p-gp expression tended to be higher in gill tissues than mantle tissues, and was generally not related to salinity differences. Seasonal studies were conducted with oysters collected monthly for 1 year from Lighthouse Creek, an unpolluted site. There was a general pattern of higher p-gp expression in the warmer months and lower expression in the colder months. In contrast, total gill protein concentrations decreased during the warmer months and increased during the colder months. These studies indicate that there are seasonal patterns in p-gp expression which may represent an adaptive response to natural stressors associated with summer conditions.     

A model of ocean current flow and drifter motion

A minor generalization of the theory of random walk is used as a basis for a model of ocean current flow. The model is then applied in a computer simulation of drifter motion. The results of simulation indicate that the geometry of a coastline can have significant impact on the distribution of drifter landings.     

Cometary collisions and the dark material on Iapetus

Iapetus (S8) is unique in our solar system in that the albedo of its leading hemisphere is only 0.05 while that of the trailing side is 0.5. Several existing hypotheses are examined and found inadequate. Photometric studies of the dark side are compared to comet nuclei and class D asteroids. It is hypothesized that in the last 10⁶–10⁸ yrs the leading side suffered a high-velocity collision with a cometary body of mass 10¹³–10¹⁵ kg and traveling at a speed of 20 km s^–1. About 5–16% of the excavated material was ejected into space, where the vaporized ices dissipated while the dark carbonaceous/silicate material was reaccreted on the leading side. The collision, although not sufficient to break Iapetus' tidal lock, resulted in a period of oscillation of about 5 yr. Until tidal friction reasserted a lock, the oscillation gave rise to the longitude effect, viz., the observed fact that the dark material covers more than 220 of longitude but only 110 of latitude.