Metabolic changes in Phaeocystis poucheti (Hariot) Lagerheim during the spring bloom in Belgian coastal waters

Incorporation of ¹⁴C-bicarbonate into the major intracellular end-products of photosynthesis (protein, polysaccharide, lipid) and two classes of exoproducts (oligomers and polymers) was measured in Belgian coastal waters at different stages of the spring phytoplankton bloom, entirely dominated by the alga Phaeocystis poucheti. It was shown that intracellular protein synthesis contributed 20–42% of the total intracellular ¹⁴C fixed and was positively correlated with the inorganic nitrogen content of the surrounding medium. The decrease of protein synthesis following nitrogen depletion is balanced by an increase of intracellular polysaccharide synthesis, which varies from 22 to 42% of the intracellular ¹⁴C fixed, and by an increase in extracellular release of high molecular weight material (18–60% of total ¹⁴C fixed) which forms a mucous envelope where cells are embedded. Lipid synthesis is not correlated with the ambient inorganic nitrogen content and represents a rather constant proportion (about 20%) of the intracellular ¹⁴C fixed.     

Climate shifts vs. edaphic humidity and the difficulty of palaeoreconstructions – a malacological study on stable isotopes in Quaternary dune sequences of Fuerteventura

Dune palaeosurface sequences on the Eastern Canary Islands were investigated for stable isotope records in gastropod shells of the genus Theba. Due to the ecology of the taxon and the special oceanic insularity of the study site, we assume that δ¹⁸O_shell signals in our case mainly reflect shifts in δ¹⁸O signals of sea surface water. We found that a rapid decrease in δ¹⁸O_shell signals is associated with significant changes in gastropod associations. We suggest that these faunal changes were caused by strong (hot) winds at the end of glacial phases, that were described previously by Moreno et al. In addition, we assume that rapid declines in δ¹⁸O_shell signals due to marine transgressions were followed by geomorphologically stable phases, dominated by dust enrichment. Such palaeosurfaces correlate with maxima of gastropod biodiversity and with more negative δ¹³C_shell signals indicating a higher proportion of C3 plants. Based on our results, we also assume that these silty palaeosurfaces were associated with increased soil moisture conditions due to a higher water storage capacity of the finer substrate, independent of climatic moisture conditions.     

Characterization of a landslide-triggered debris flow at a rainforest-covered mountain region in Brazil

Natural Hazards - Debris flows represent great hazard to humans due to their high destructive power. Understanding their hydrogeomorphic dynamics is fundamental in hazard assessment studies,...