Overwintering of terrestrial Arctic arthropods: the fauna of Svalbard now and in the future

There are over 500 species of arthropods recorded from Svalbard. These animals overwinter either within the soil or on the ground surface, and have to tolerate an environment where the ground is frozen for over 9 months each year. Three cold-tolerance strategies have been described from Svalbard invertebrates: freeze avoidance, freeze tolerance and desiccation. Once in a cold-tolerant state the animals can be extremely cold tolerant in terms of both minimum exposure temperature and period of exposure. How the overwintering capabilities of these animals will be affected by climate changes during the next 100 years, as predicted by climate models, is not yet known. Four principle factors with an impact on overwintering of the terrestrial arthropod fauna are outlined here: (1) warmer winter temperatures, with an increased frequency of extreme events such as freeze–thaw cycles and surface icing; (2) changes in snow fall and snow lie; (3) pollutant load; and (4) dispersal of invertebrates to Svalbard. Finally, areas where further research is required are highlighted: including the development of controlled multi-season field experiments; effect of freeze–thaw cycles; changes in thickness and distribution of snow lie, with the subsequent effects on duration of the summer period; chill susceptibility of soil arthropods; assessing potential colonizing species and the likelihood of these species becoming established; assessing the effect of gene flow from surrounding populations; interactions between pollution and cold tolerance; anoxia stress; and the genetics of cold tolerance.     

Application of the UKCIP02 climate change scenarios: Reflections and lessons learnt

The UKCIP02 climate change scenarios have become the standard reference for climate change in the UK since their release in 2002. This paper describes and reflects on the ways in which they have been applied. It then identifies some strengths, weaknesses and barriers to their application, and extracts key lessons that may inform the development and provision of future climate change scenarios.Analysis of the application of UKCIP02 shows that the scenarios have been used primarily as a communication device, as well as for scientific research and to inform policy and decision-making on climate change. They have played a critical role in raising awareness on climate change and in engaging organisations in the need to adapt. Their presentation in an accessible style, and their availability in a variety of formats, greatly facilitated their uptake. However, analysis has also revealed weaknesses which served as barriers to their uptake. Some of these, such as file format and accessibility issues, were readily overcome through technical solutions. Others, such as the issue of how to use uncertain information in decision-making, have only been partially addressed and remain an outstanding challenge for future scenario packages. Two key lessons have emerged which may benefit the provision of future climate scenarios in the UK and elsewhere. First, it is not enough to simply make climate change scenarios available. Their provision must be accompanied by ongoing guidance and support to ensure widespread and appropriate uptake. Second, on-going dialogue between those providing scenarios and the communities using them is fundamental to constructively meet the challenges associated with delivering credible scenarios that balance user requirements and expectations with what the science can deliver.     

The first cuckoo in winter: Phenology,recording, credibility and meaning in Britain

Biological recording is a long-established feature of amateur natural history in Britain. Phenology (the recording of seasonal events) in particular has provided scientists with important long-term data sets. These data are of increasing interest as indicators of climate change and its impacts. Most scientists treat the data as the object of interest, while less attention has been paid to the two-way process of knowledge creation, and the significance of the inner, personal part of that. Phenological recording provides an interesting window on this because it is relatively straightforward (and therefore involves a wider range of people than more technically demanding recording), and because it is linked to the climate change discourse (and therefore connected with emotional and moral framings of the situation). This paper describes the rise of popular phenology in the UK and explores these dynamically related aspects of knowledge creation by drawing on accounts in the media and by participants. It concludes that reflexivity and credibility are important aspects of both personal and interpersonal meaning-making, and suggests that attention to both subjective integration of data, and the scale of local cultures of knowledge, are important in understanding the potential for connecting networks of citizen science. Phenology therefore appears to have a particular role to play in public understanding of climate change, which extends beyond the merely extractive collection of data to a more deeply integrated connection between observation and meaning.     

A reach‐scale biogeochemical model for temporary rivers

The RS‐tempQ Model ( r each– s cale t emporary flow biogeochemical model) is a conceptual model that can describe the hydrologic, sediment transport and biogeochemical processes of temporary rivers at the reach scale. The model takes into account the expansion–contraction of the inundated area of the river. It simulates the sediment transport and the nutrient fluxes that are transferred to the coastal area due to the first flash flood and during extreme rain events. The RS‐tempQ Model simulates the in‐stream processes during the wet and dry cycles as the river corridor expands and contracts. The model was used to assess and quantify the hydrologic and geochemical processes occurring in a temporary river reach (Krathis River) in Greece. Since the conventional gauging techniques cannot measure the flow in rivers that are split into small braided streams, discharge measurements could not be obtained in order to calibrate and verify the model. Other field measurements such as infiltration losses and sediment accumulation were used for model calibration. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Patterns in abundance and size of two deep-water gorgonian octocorals,in relation to depth and substrate features off Nova Scotia

Deep-water corals form unique ecosystems, yet very little is known about factors that regulate their distribution and growth. The abundance and size of two deep-water gorgonian coral species, Paragorgia arborea and Primnoa resedaeformis, and their relationship with depth and substratum cover, were investigated at Northeast Channel, off Nova Scotia, in July 2006. This is the first study to measure abundance and size of these two coral species at depths >500 m in the Canadian Atlantic region. A total of 5 transects between 500 and 1000 m depth were examined using video collected by the remotely operated vehicle ROPOS. Abundance of both species was patchy, but higher at these deeper depths than at <500 m. Abundance generally declined with depth, and was moderately correlated with cover of hard substratum (cobble, boulder, bedrock). These relationships were stronger and less variable for P. resedaeformis than for P. arborea, suggesting that factors such as topographic relief may play an additional role in regulating distributions of P. arborea. Maximum colony height was 125 and 240 cm for P. resedaeformis and P. arborea, respectively, and much greater than recorded for depths <500 m. Overall, colony height and depth relationships were strong for both species, but variable among transects. P. resedaeformis showed a negative relationship with depth, while the opposite was observed for P. arborea, suggesting that the two species are affected differently by factors that vary with depth (e.g. temperature, fishing disturbance). Relationships between colony size and size of attachment stone were stronger for P. arborea, especially for overturned colonies, than for P. resedaeformis, suggesting that availability of suitably coarse substrate may be more important for the long-term persistence of P. arborea colonies.     

Global change and marine communities: alien species and climate change

Anthropogenic influences on the biosphere since the advent of the industrial age are increasingly causing global changes. Climatic change and the rising concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere are ranking high in scientific and public agendas, and other components of global change are also frequently addressed, among which are the introductions of non indigenous species (NIS) in biogeographic regions well separated from the donor region, often followed by spectacular invasions. In the marine environment, both climatic change and spread of alien species have been studied extensively; this review is aimed at examining the main responses of ecosystems to climatic change, taking into account the increasing importance of biological invasions. Some general principles on NIS introductions in the marine environment are recalled, such as the importance of propagule pressure and of development stages during the time course of an invasion. Climatic change is known to affect many ecological properties; it interacts also with NIS in many possible ways. Direct (proximate) effects on individuals and populations of altered physical-chemical conditions are distinguished from indirect effects on emergent properties (species distribution, diversity, and production). Climatically driven changes may affect both local dispersal mechanisms, due to the alteration of current patterns, and competitive interactions between NIS and native species, due to the onset of new thermal optima and/or different carbonate chemistry. As well as latitudinal range expansions of species correlated with changing temperature conditions, and effects on species richness and the correlated extinction of native species, some invasions may provoke multiple effects which involve overall ecosystem functioning (material flow between trophic groups, primary production, relative extent of organic material decomposition, extent of benthic-pelagic coupling). Some examples are given, including a special mention of the situation of the Mediterranean Sea, where so many species have been introduced recently, and where some have spread in very large quantities. An increasing effort by marine scientists is required, not only to monitor the state of the environment, but also to help predicting future changes and finding ways to mitigate or manage them.     

Links Between Bottom-Water Anoxia,the Polychaete <Emphasis Type="Italic">Nereis diversicolor</Emphasis>, and the Growth of Green-Algal Mats

Sediment–water incubations were used to study effects of episodic anoxia on filamentous Ulva sp. Treatments included undisturbed sediment with (AnoxSed) and without (NatSed) exposure to 5 days of anoxia, and cores with only the top 0.5 cm of sediment (SurfSed; no macrofauna, restricted pore-water nutrient pool). All three treatments contained Ulva propagules. An Ulva mat developed in the SurfSed, and after the anoxic period in the AnoxSed cores. No growth was observed in the NatSed treatment. In the AnoxSed, Ulva was progressively removed upon reoxygenation through grazing by Nereis. The results suggest that episodic anoxia stimulates the growth of macroalgal mats not only by increasing the availability of nutrients from the sediment, but also by reducing macrofaunal grazing pressure. Infauna (grazing and bioturbation), benthic microalgae (nutrient competition and retention), and pore-water nutrients appear key components in a biogeochemical network with complex feedbacks controlling the growth of green-algal mats in shallow-water systems.     

The “suevite” conundrum,Part 1: The Ries suevite and Sudbury Onaping Formation compared

The term “suevite” has been applied to various impact melt‐bearing breccias found in different stratigraphic settings within terrestrial impact craters. Suevite was coined initially for impact glass‐bearing breccias from the Ries impact structure, Germany, which is the type locality. Various working hypotheses have been proposed to account for the formation of the Ries suevite deposits over the past several decades, with the most recent being molten‐fuel‐coolant interaction (MFCI) between an impact melt pool and water. This mechanism is also the working hypothesis for the origin of the bulk of the Onaping Formation at the Sudbury impact structure, Canada. In this study, the key characteristics of the Ries suevite, the Onaping Formation and MFCI deposits from phreatomagmatic volcanic eruptions are compared. The conclusion is that there are clear and significant lithological, stratigraphic, and petrographic observational differences between the Onaping Formation and the Ries suevite. The Onaping Formation, however, shares many key similarities with MFCI deposits, including the presence of layering, their well‐sorted and fine‐grained nature, and the predominance of vitric particles with similar shapes and lacking included mineral and lithic clasts. These differences argue against the viability of MFCI as a working hypothesis for genesis of the Ries suevite and for a required alternative mechanism for its formation.     

Relocation effects of dredged marine sediments on mercury geochemistry: Venice lagoon,Italy

Understanding the biogeochemical process of Hg is critical in the overall evaluation of the ecological impacts resulting from the reuse of Hg-contaminated dredged sediment. Sediment banks (V1 and V2) were constructed with freshly dredged sediments from a navigational channel in Venice Lagoon, Italy, with the goal of clarifying potential differences in the biogeochemistry of Hg between the reused dredged sediments and those from surrounding sites (SS1 and S2). Toward this purpose, Hg and monomethylmercury (MMHg) concentrations, and Hg methylation rates (MMRs) in the surface 2.5 cm sediments were monitored, along with ammonium, iron, sulfate and sulfide concentrations in the pore waters of banks and surrounding sites from November 2005 to February 2007. Pore water analyses indicate that the bank sediments are characterized by lower levels of sulfate and iron, and by higher levels of ammonium and sulfide compared to the surrounding sediments. With respect to Hg speciation, the fractions of MMHg in total Hg (%MMHg/Hg) and the MMRs were significantly lower in the bank V1 compared to those in the reference site SS1, whereas the %MMHg/Hg and the MMRs were similar between V2 and S2. A negative correlation is found between the logarithm of the particle-water partition coefficient of Hg and the MMR, indicating that the reduced MMRs in V1 are caused by the limited concentrations of dissolved Hg. Organic matter appears to play a key role in the control of MMR via the control of Hg solubility.