A review of marine mammal,sea turtle and seabird bycatch in USA fisheries and the role of policy in shaping management

This paper reviews the available information (observer programs, estimates, statutes, regulations) for bycatch of marine mammals, sea turtles, and seabirds in fisheries of the United States. Goals of the review were to evaluate the state of knowledge of bycatch and the role of existing protective legislation in shaping bycatch management for different taxa. Pressing issues are identified, as well as knowledge gaps and policy limitations that hinder multi-species bycatch reduction. The USA has made important progress toward reducing bycatch in its fisheries, but the efficacy of its management has been limited somewhat by a focus on taxon- and fishery-specific regulation and the lack of consistent mandate across taxa for taking a cumulative perspective on bycatch. Applying consistent criteria across taxa for setting bycatch limits (e.g., extending the approach used for marine mammals to sea turtles and seabirds) would be the first step in a multi-species approach to bycatch reduction. A population-based multi-species multi-gear approach to bycatch would help identify priority areas where resources are needed most and can be used most effectively.     

Raman spectroscopic and calorimetric observations on natural gas hydrates with cubic structures I and II obtained from Lake Baikal

This study reports measurements of the Raman spectra of Lake Baikal gas hydrates and estimations of the hydration number of methane-rich samples. The hydration number of gas hydrates retrieved from the southern Baikal Basin (crystallographic structure I) was approx. 6.1. Consistent with previous results, the Raman spectra of gas hydrates retrieved from the Kukuy K-2 mud volcano in the central Baikal Basin indicated the existence of crystallographic structures I and II. Measurements of the dissociation heat of Lake Baikal gas hydrates by calorimetry (from the decomposition of gas hydrates to gas and water), employing the hydration number, revealed values of 53.7–55.5?kJ?mol^–1 for the southern basin samples (structure I), and of 54.3–55.5?kJ?mol^–1 for the structure I hydrates and 62.8–64.2?kJ?mol^–1 for the structure II hydrates from the Kukuy K-2 mud volcano.     

Thermal anomalies associated with shallow gas hydrates in the K-2 mud volcano, Lake Baikal

Thermal measurements and hydrate mapping in the vicinity of the K-2 mud volcano in Lake Baikal have revealed a particular type of association of thermal anomalies (29–121?mW?m^–2) near hydrate-forming layers. Detailed coring within K-2 showed that hydrates are restricted to two distinct zones at sub-bottom depths exceeding 70–300?cm. Temperature data from stations with hydrate recovery and degassing features all display low thermal gradients. Otherwise, the thermal gradients within the mud volcano are generally increased. These findings imply a more complicated thermal regime than often assumed for mud volcanoes, with important roles for both fluids and hydrates. The coexistence of neighbouring low and high thermal anomalies is interpreted to result from discharging and recharging fluid activity, rather than hydrate thermodynamics. It is suggested that hydrates play a key role in controlling the fluid circulation pattern at an early stage. At a later stage, the inflow of undersaturated lake water would favour the dissolution of structure I hydrates and the formation of structure II hydrates, the latter having been observed on top of structure I hydrates in the K-2 mud volcano.     

Interannual and decadal variability in zooplankton communities of the southeast Bering Sea shelf

The southeastern Bering Sea shelf ecosystem is an important fishing ground for fin- and shellfish, and is the summer foraging grounds for many planktivorous seabirds and marine mammals. In 1997 and 1998, Northern Hemisphere climate anomalies affected the physical and biological environment of the southeastern Bering Sea shelf. The resulting anomalous conditions provided a valuable opportunity to examine how longer-term climate change might affect this productive ecosystem. We compared historical and recent zooplankton biomass and species composition data for the southeastern Bering Sea shelf to examine whether or not there was a response to the atmosphere–ocean–ice anomalies of 1997 and 1998. Summer zooplankton biomass (1954–1994) over the southeastern shelf did not exhibit a decline as previously reported for oceanic stations. In addition, zooplankton biomass in 1997 and 1998 was not appreciably different from other years in the time series. Spring concentrations of numerically abundant copepods (Acartia spp., Calanus marshallae, and Pseudocalanus spp.), however, were significantly higher during 1994–1998 than 1980–1981; spring concentrations of Metridia pacifica and Neocalanus spp. were not consistently different between the two time periods. Neocalanus spp. was the only taxon to have consistent differences in stage composition between the two time periods—CV copepodites were much more prevalent in May of the 1990s than early 1980s. Since relatively high zooplankton concentrations were observed prior to 1997, we do not attribute the high concentrations observed in the summers of 1997 and 1998 directly to the acute climate anomalies. With the present data it is not possible to distinguish between increased production (control from below) and decreased predation (control from above) to explain the recent increase in concentrations of the species examined.     

Groundwater supply and demand from southern Africa’s crystalline basement aquifer: evidence from Malawi

Failure of borehole sources in weathered and fractured crystalline basement aquifers in Malawi in southern Africa has been linked with poor borehole design, mechanical failure and badly sited boreholes. However, recent work in Malawi indicates that demand may now exceed long-term resource potential in some places and that this is also a cause of water point failure. An 11-year climate cycle (including a wet and dry period) necessitates overdraft from groundwater storage during the dry-cycle years before episodic rainfall events in the wetter part of the cycle again recharge the aquifers. Data, particularly groundwater hydrograph data, are sparse, but sufficient to evaluate the long-term renewable groundwater potential for both fractured and weathered basement-aquifer types in each of the 15 management areas in Malawi. The groundwater potential or long-term renewable resource (recharge) is given by the sum of Darcian throughflow and dry-season depletion of storage. Estimated rural demand exceeds the renewable resource in the fractured-rock aquifer in two management units and in the weathered-rock aquifer in two other units. Although there is inherent uncertainty in the water-balance estimates, the likelihood that rural demand is exceeding long-term average recharge in some areas is cause for concern.     

Estuary/ocean exchange and tidal mixing in a Gulf of Maine Estuary: A Lagrangian modeling study

A Lagrangian particle method embedded within a 2-D finite element code, is used to study the transport and ocean–estuary exchange processes in the well-mixed Great Bay Estuarine System in New Hampshire, USA. The 2-D finite element model, driven by residual, semi-diurnal and diurnal tidal constituents, includes the effects of wetting and drying of estuarine mud flats through the use of a porous medium transport module. The particle method includes tidal advection, plus a random walk model in the horizontal that simulates sub-grid scale turbulent transport processes. Our approach involves instantaneous, massive [O(500,000)] particle releases that enable the quantification of ocean–estuary and inter-bay exchanges in a Markovian framework. The effects of the release time, spring–neap cycle, riverine discharge and diffusion strength on the intra-estuary and estuary–ocean exchange are also investigated.The results show a rather dynamic interaction between the ocean and the estuary with a fraction of the exiting particles being caught up in the Gulf of Maine Coastal Current and swept away. Three somewhat different estimates of estuarine residence time are calculated to provide complementary views of estuary flushing. Maps of residence time versus release location uncover a strong spatial dependency of residence time within the estuary that has very important ramifications for local water quality. Simulations with and without the turbulent random walk show that the combined effect of advective shear and turbulent diffusion is very effective at spreading particles throughout the estuary relatively quickly, even at low (1 m²/s) diffusivity. The results presented here show that a first-order Markov Chain approach has applicability and a high potential for improving our understanding of the mixing processes in estuaries.     

Contaminant concentrations and toxicity of sea-surface microlayer near Los Angeles, California

Sea-surface microlayer samples were collected from six nearshore areas receiving different amounts of anthropogenic inputs. The samples were analyzed for selected trace metals, chlorinated hydrocarbons, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. The relative toxicities of the samples were determined with fish embryo bioassays.Contaminant concentrations generally increased from offshore to the inshore stations. Contaminant concentrations were several orders of magnitude higher in microlayer samples from the highly industrialized Los Angeles and Long Beach harbors compared to samples from a site 15km offshore. Microlayer samples from the inshore stations were significantly more toxic, and induced significantly more developmental abnormalities and chromosome aberrations, than samples from the offshore stations.