Can the nitrogen and carbon stable isotopes of the pygmy mussel,Xenostrobus securis, indicate catchment disturbance for estuaries in northern New South Wales, Australia?

The nitrogen and carbon stable isotope ratios (δ¹⁵N and δ¹³C) of the pygmy mussel,Xenostrobus securis, were determined for three estuaries with varying levels of catchment disturbance in northern New South Wales, Australia. The lower Manning River catchment supported the highest human population densities with 3% residential development and some livestock agriculture (41%); the Wallamba River catchment was mostly livestock agriculture (56%) while the Wallingat River catchment was mostly vegetated (79%). Mussels, estuarine particulate organic matter (POM), and livestock and human-derived waste were collected in two stages during the austral summers of 2001–2002 and 2002–2003 for dual carbon-nitrogen stable isotope analysis. The disturbed Manning and Wallamba River catchment mussels were enriched in¹⁵N by an average of 3.2‰ and 1.5‰, respectively, compared to the vegetated Wallingat River mussels. Mussel δ¹³C values ranged from −24.8‰ to −30.3‰ and showed an estuarine gradient becoming enriched with distance downstream within estuaries, but were unable to distinguish patterns in catchment disturbance between estuaries. The δ¹⁵N and δ¹³C values of POM showed a similar pattern to mussels, indicating a direct link between them within each estuary. A multiple regression model of mussel δ¹⁵N using the fractions of land used for livestock agriculture and residential development within 5 km zones from river networks to a distance equivalent to a tidal ellipse from sites explained 67% of the variation in mussel δ¹⁵N with 95% of the differences lying within 1.6‰ of observed values. Increasing fractions of land used for livestock agriculture depleted mussel δ¹⁵N values estimated by the regression equation, indicating the use of cow manure as a nutrient source with a value of 2.0‰. Increasing fractions of land used for residential development enriched estimated mussel δ¹⁵N, indicating the use of human-derived waste with a value of 20.8‰. Pygmy mussels are a useful long-term bio-indicator for the effects of anthropogenic catchment disturbance and nutrient enrichment in estuaries.     

Don’t Blame It on the Moonlight: Abiotic Drivers of Reproductive Development in an Estuarine-Dependent Prawn

Lunar phase is regarded as a key driver of reproductive development and spawning activity in prawns, but across smaller-temporal scales, other processes may have a significant influence. Here, we examined the effects of lunar phase and other abiotic variables on the reproductive development of an estuarine-dependent prawn, Metapenaeus bennettae Racek & Dall. We found that turbidity, salinity, water temperature and lunar phase each had a significant independent influence on the likelihood of female prawns being ripe throughout the spawning period. The likelihood of catching a ripe female increased on the new moon and first quarter of the moon and also during conditions of low turbidity, high salinity and high water temperature. For male prawns, however, significant interactions between salinity and lunar phase and also between turbidity and lunar phase were detected. These interactions indicated that salinity and turbidity have variable effects among the different lunar phases. Such complex relationships of reproductive timing and spawning success of M. bennettae, and potentially other aquatic species, are most likely adaptive responses to the highly variable conditions of estuarine environments.     

Exposure to sewage plumes and the incidence of deformities in larval fishes

Point-source impacts such as sewage plumes can cause significant degradation of larval habitat. Data on larval abundance, current speed and the shape of surface and subsurface sewage plumes off the coast of Sydney, Australia, indicated that long-shore currents can transport large numbers of larvae through plumes that can potentially affect the health of larvae. Deformities to the notochord, eyes and head were found in samples of preserved wild larvae. Some deformities (e.g. Lateral curl of the notochord) were probably caused by preservation and ‘packing effects’ (shaped by organisms and objects in the sample), while others (e.g. half-pigmented eyes and corrugated notochord) were unlikely to have been caused by sampling artefacts. Deformed larvae were found in waters around Sydney that are influenced by multiple sewage outfalls, and at locations up to 250 km from Sydney. It was concluded that deformities were caused by natural and potentially anthropogenic factors. Cyto- and histopathological studies of larvae are required. Moreover, relationships between oceanography and concentrations of pollutants in plumes are needed to further assess impacts of pollutants on assemblages of vulnerable planktonic animals.     

Mesoscale distribution of larval Euphausia similis in various water masses of the East Australian Current

Larval Euphausia similis were collected off temperate eastern Australia in spring 2004 and 2006 to evaluate the relationships between larval populations, mesoscale oceanographic variability, and the wider planktonic community. Larval E. similis were present in greater numbers in the East Australian Current (EAC) relative to productive coastal waters. Larval E. similis density was homogenous across the EAC—Tasman Sea frontal region, but larvae were smaller in the Tasman Sea. Larval E. similis density was not enhanced within a cold core eddy relative to the surrounding EAC. We observed a negative correlation between larval E. similis density and larval fish density, and a weak positive correlation with fluorescence. Evaluation of a significant fish density×fluorescence interaction term showed that the effect of fish density was reduced at high fluorescence values. Analysis of normalized biomass size spectrum (NBSS) provided evidence for potential competitive exclusion of copepods by krill. Data presented in this study suggest a predatory influence on surface E. similis populations by mesopelagic larval fish. The degree of predation appears to be dependent on food availability, potentially mediated by changes in the physiological condition of krill.     

Plankton dynamics due to rainfall,eutrophication, dilution,grazing and assimilation in an urbanized coastal lagoon

After a prolonged summer dry period, the effects of a distinctive and continuing rainfall on the nutrients and plankton of an urban coastal lagoon were investigated over 2 months. The lagoon filled up over 5 weeks from <10% of its maximum volume until it broke open to the sea. Nutrients (ammonia and oxidised nitrogen) significantly increased the day after initial rainfall, before returning to pre-rainfall conditions within 5 days. Phytoplankton biomass grew 10 fold within a week after initial rainfall in the 25–30 °C water and declined to near initial levels 2 weeks later. The assemblage of phytoplankton and zooplankton changed dramatically after 1 day and again by 6 days later, gradually returning to the original community by 2 weeks after the initial rainfall. Zooplankton responded within a day with a two fold increase in the adult stages of the calanoid copepod Oithona sp., followed a week later by nauplii and adult Acartia bispinosa. The influx of adult Oithona indicates resting populations that were previously under sampled by our plankton net. The plankton community returned to the initial state by 2 weeks, to being dominated by a centric diatom and A. bispinosa after 5 weeks. Dilution of the lagoon reached a maximum of 0.25 d⁻¹, while growth rates of the phytoplankton population reached a maximum of 1 d⁻¹, and A. bispinosa nauplii growth of 2.5 d⁻¹. Declines in chlorophyll biomass from the maximum 10 μg l⁻¹, at a rate of approximately 10% d⁻¹ are consistent with the modelled uptake by zooplankton. The nutrients from runoff, growth and the influx of new zooplankton into the water column, resulted in a depleted δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N stable isotope signature of A. bispinosa by 2–4 ppt within 1–2 weeks, consistent with diatom growth and the terrestrial supply of depleted nutrients. δ³⁴S of A. bispinosa was enriched by 2 ppt for 1–2 weeks after rainfall, but unlike C and N, returned to pre-rainfall levels by the end of the study period. We suggest that plankton studies in coastal lakes with variable water levels that are not tidally driven, should account for the influence of changes in water levels to help explain data variability.