Estimating relative abundance of juvenile brown trout in rivers by underwater census and electrofishing

Underwater census and single‐pass electrofishing were compared for estimating relative abundance of juvenile brown trout in the Kakanui River, South Island, NZ. Mean sampling efficiency was lower, and the variability of sampling efficiency was much greater, for underwater census (0+ trout: x = 0.38, s = 0.368; 1+ trout: x = 0.62, s = 0.822) than for single‐pass electrofishing (0+ trout: x = 0.61, s = 0.143; 1+ trout: x = 0.74, s = 0.171). Sampling efficiency of both methods was dependent on temperature. Electrofishing became less efficient at higher temperatures whereas underwater census became less efficient at colder temperatures. The low, and highly variable, sampling efficiency for underwater census of 0+ brown trout was related to substrate hiding behaviour which is dependent on temperature. A ratio method for comparing relative abundance estimates is presented. Minimum significance values for the ratio (R) were derived for 0+ trout using temperature adjusted sampling efficiencies. To be statistically significant, relative abundance estimates made by underwater census had to differ by a factor of 6–7 times, whereas those made by single‐pass electrofishing had to differ only by about 2 times, depending on the number of fish counted. By confining comparisons of relative abundance estimates made by underwater census to the summer period, differences of about 3.5–4 times could be detected statistically. It was concluded that single‐pass electrofishing is superior to underwater census for estimating the relative abundance of juvenile brown trout in shallow (< 1 m) river habitat, especially when temperature varies widely as with season and time of day.     

Vertical distribution of living mangrove foraminifera from KwaZulu-Natal,South Africa

Modern foraminiferal assemblage zones can be used to reconstruct palaeo sea levels when applied to fossil foraminifera down a sediment core. Previous intertidal foraminiferal studies have predominantly focused on assemblages in surface sediments (0–1 cm), with the rationale that surface assemblages reflect the modern-day environment. Foraminifera live infaunally and therefore there is a need to document the infaunal vertical distribution of living foraminifera to fully capture the modern environment. Infaunal foraminiferal populations may compositionally differ from or be similar to those in the uppermost 1 cm of a core sample, but abundance is variable vertically, making it very complex to reconstruct and interpret past sea levels. This can have implications for the choice of assemblages to use as modern analogues for past sea-level reconstructions. This study documents the vertical infaunal distribution of living foraminifera, to allow for more informed interpretations of palaeo-reconstructions in mangrove environments. The down-core vertical distribution and abundance of living foraminifera, along with grain size and organic content, were documented using sediment cores along an elevational transect. Nine taxa were recorded as living at the time of collection, six of which were restricted to the top 4 cm. The majority of these were calcareous and found in the cores situated closer to the intertidal channel. Therefore, we argue that the diversity of living calcareous and agglutinated foraminifera could be restricted by grain size, with coarser grain sizes associated with lower species diversity. The findings suggest that foraminiferal species inhabiting the top 4 cm represent deeper living foraminiferal populations. Therefore, the top 4-cm interval can be used to establish a modern training set upon which reconstructions can be based. The findings from this study will provide guidance on the use of South African mangrove environments for future sea-level reconstructions.     

Intraplate deformation adjacent to the Macquarie Ridge south of New Zealand—The tectonic evolution of a complex plate boundary

The distribution of relocated seismicity and the evolving shape of fracture zones through time in the oceanic crust of the Australian Plate adjacent to the Australia:Pacific plate boundary south of New Zealand are used to constrain the deformation of this region of the Australian Plate, here called the Puysegur Block. Relocated seismicity reveals a broad distribution of earthquakes in the Puysegur Block on both inter- and intraplate structures, including two great (M8+) earthquakes in the region over the past twenty years, one of which occurred over 130 km from the plate boundary. Plate reconstructions from the Late Oligocene through Early–Mid Miocene allow us to determine the undeformed shape of fracture zones in the Puysegur Block, formed during the Paleogene when the plate boundary was dominantly a divergent mid-ocean ridge system. Comparing these reconstructions to the present-day shape of the fracture zones allows us to map the deformation that has occurred within the Puysegur Block since the fracture zones formed. These two sets of independent observations delineate a broad zone of deformation extending ~ 150 km into the plate interior from the Macquarie Ridge Complex, the modern plate boundary structure through the region. The persistence of this deformation through time indicates a link with the evolution of the plate boundary over the past ~ 25 Ma from divergence to translation and subduction of the Australian Plate further north at the Puysegur Trench. We infer that this deformation may be a result of stresses in the Puysegur Block resulting from the impingement of the subducting plate on the thickened lithosphere of southern New Zealand. Such a collision may resist subduction, and if resistance remains substantial, further deformation internal to the Puysegur Block may lead to a southward migration of the Australia:Pacific subduction interface and the capturing of this section of lithosphere onto the Pacific Plate.     

Evolution of the Tasman Sea reappraised

We reexamined available marine magnetics data from the Tasman Sea and reidentified sea-floor spreading anomalies in the southern portion of the basin. From the revised magnetic lineations and fracture zones we calculated new finite rotations which descrobe the evolution of the basin in terms of a simple two-plate spreading system active between about 82 and 60 m.y. ago. Allowing for the probable continental origin of the Dampier ridge, the predicted displacement of the western margin of the Lord Howe rise relative to the eastern Australian margin in the northern Tasman basin is consistent with their observed separation. Thus, the controversial episode of subduction of Tasman basin crust at the east Australian margin proposed in earlier studies is no longer necessary.     

Hydrogen isotope fractionation in lipids of the methane-oxidizing bacterium Methylococcus capsulatus

Hydrogen isotopic compositions of individual lipids from Methylococcus capsulatus, an aerobic, methane-oxidizing bacterium, were analyzed by hydrogen isotope-ratio-monitoring gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The purposes of the study were to measure isotopic fractionation factors between methane, water, and lipids and to examine the biochemical processes that determine the hydrogen isotopic composition of lipids. M. capsulatus was grown in six replicate cultures in which the δD values of methane and water were varied independently. Measurement of concomitant changes in δD values of lipids allowed estimation of the proportion of hydrogen derived from each source and the isotopic fractionation associated with the utilization of each source.All lipids examined, including fatty acids, sterols, and hopanols, derived 31.4 ± 1.7% of their hydrogen from methane. This was apparently true whether the cultures were harvested during exponential or stationary phase. Examination of the relevant biochemical pathways indicates that no hydrogen is transferred directly (with C-H bonds intact) from methane to lipids. Accordingly, we hypothesize that all methane H is oxidized to H₂O, which then serves as the H source for all biosynthesis, and that a balance between diffusion of oxygen and water across cell membranes controls the concentration of methane-derived H₂O at 31%. Values for α_l/w, the isotopic fractionation between lipids and water, were 0.95 for fatty acids and 0.85 for isoprenoid lipids. These fractionations are significantly smaller than those measured in higher plants and algae. Values for α_l/m, the isotopic fractionation between lipids and methane, were 0.94 for fatty acids and 0.79 for isoprenoid lipids. Based on these results, we predict that methanotrophs living in seawater and consuming methane with typical δD values will produce fatty acids with δD between −50 and −170‰, and sterols and hopanols with δD between −150 and −270‰.     

Characterization of synthetic nanocrystalline mackinawite: crystal structure, particle size, and specific surface area

Iron sulfide was synthesized by reacting aqueous solutions of sodium sulfide and ferrous chloride for 3 days. By X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD), the resultant phase was determined to be primarily nanocrystalline mackinawite (space group: P4/ nmm) with unit cell parameters a = b = 3.67 Å and c = 5.20 Å. Iron K-edge XAS analysis also indicated the dominance of mackinawite. Lattice expansion of synthetic mackinawite was observed along the c-axis relative to well-crystalline mackinawite. Compared with relatively short-aged phase, the mackinawite prepared here was composed of larger crystallites with less elongated lattice spacings. The direct observation of lattice fringes by HR-TEM verified the applicability of Bragg diffraction in determining the lattice parameters of nanocrystalline mackinawite from XRPD patterns. Estimated particle size and external specific surface area (SSA_ext) of nanocrystalline mackinawite varied significantly with the methods used. The use of Scherrer equation for measuring crystallite size based on XRPD patterns is limited by uncertainty of the Scherrer constant (K) due to the presence of polydisperse particles. The presence of polycrystalline particles may also lead to inaccurate particle size estimation by Scherrer equation, given that crystallite and particle sizes are not equivalent. The TEM observation yielded the smallest SSA_ext of 103 m²/g. This measurement was not representative of dispersed particles due to particle aggregation from drying during sample preparation. In contrast, EGME method and PCS measurement yielded higher SSA_ext (276-345 m²/g by EGME and 424 ± 130 m²/g by PCS). These were in reasonable agreement with those previously measured by the methods insensitive to particle aggregation.     

Chemical and structural characterization of As immobilization by nanoparticles of mackinawite (FeSm)

The mobility and availability of arsenite, As(III), in anoxic environments is largely controlled by adsorption onto iron sulfides and/or precipitation of arsenic in solid phases. The interaction of As(III) with synthetic mackinawite (FeS_m) in pH 5 and 9 suspensions was investigated using high-angle annular dark field (HAADF) scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM), STEM elemental mapping, high resolution TEM, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). At pH 5, arsenic sulfide phases precipitate among the FeS_m particles as discrete particles that are an amorphous hydrous phase of arsenic sulfide. The oxidation state of As in the surface layers of the arsenic sulfide precipitates is ‘realgar-like’ based on XPS results showing that > 75% of the As 3d peak area is due to As with oxidation states between 0 and 2+. Discrete, arsenic sulfide precipitates are absent at pH 9, but elemental mapping in STEM-EDX mode shows that arsenic is uniformly distributed on the FeS_m, suggesting that uptake is caused by the sorption of As(III) oxyanions and/or the precipitation of highly dispersed arsenic sulfides on FeS_m. XPS also revealed that the FeS_m that equilibrated without As(III) has a more oxidized surface composition than the sample at pH 9, as indicated by the higher concentration of O ( three times greater than that at pH 9) and the larger fraction of Fe(III) species making up the total Fe (2p_3/2) peak. These findings provide a better understanding of redox processes and phase transitions upon As(III) adsorption on iron sulfide substrates.