A Landscape-Scale Assessment of Above- and Belowground Primary Production in Coastal Wetlands: Implications for Climate Change-Induced Community Shifts

Above- and belowground production in coastal wetlands are important contributors to carbon accumulation and ecosystem sustainability. As sea level rises, we can expect shifts to more salt-tolerant communities, which may alter these ecosystem functions and services. Although the direct influence of salinity on species-level primary production has been documented, we lack an understanding of the landscape-level response of coastal wetlands to increasing salinity. What are the indirect effects of sea-level rise, i.e., how does primary production vary across a landscape gradient of increasing salinity that incorporates changes in wetland type? This is the first study to measure both above- and belowground production in four wetland types that span an entire coastal gradient from fresh to saline wetlands. We hypothesized that increasing salinity would limit rates of primary production, and saline marshes would have lower rates of above- and belowground production than fresher marshes. However, along the Northern Gulf of Mexico Coast in Louisiana, USA, we found that aboveground production was highest in brackish marshes, compared with fresh, intermediate, and saline marshes, and belowground production was similar among all wetland types along the salinity gradient. Multiple regression analysis indicated that salinity was the only significant predictor of production, and its influence was dependent upon wetland type. We concluded that (1) salinity had a negative effect on production within wetland type, and this relationship was strongest in the fresh marsh (0–2 PSU) and (2) along the overall landscape gradient, production was maintained by mechanisms at the scale of wetland type, which were likely related to plant energetics. Regardless of wetland type, we found that belowground production was significantly greater than aboveground production. Additionally, inter-annual variation, associated with severe drought conditions, was observed exclusively for belowground production, which may be a more sensitive indicator of ecosystem health than aboveground production.     

Insights into the morphology of the Serra da Cangalha impact structure from geophysical modeling

Forward modeling is commonly applied to gravity field data of impact structures to determine the main gravity anomaly sources. In this context, we have developed 2.5‐D gravity models of the Serra da Cangalha impact structure for the purpose of investigating geological bodies/structures underneath the crater. Interpretation of the models was supported by ground magnetic data acquired along profiles, as well as by high resolution aeromagnetic data. Ground magnetic data reveal the presence of short‐wavelength anomalies probably related to shallow magnetic sources that could have been emplaced during the cratering process. Aeromagnetic data show that the basement underneath the crater occurs at an average depth of about 1.9 km, whereas in the region beneath the central uplift it is raised to 0.5–1 km below the current surface. These depths are also supported by 2.5‐D gravity models showing a gentle relief for the basement beneath the central uplift area. Geophysical data were used to provide further constraints for numeral modeling of crater formation that provided important information on the structural modification that affected the rocks underneath the crater, as well as on shock‐induced modifications of target rocks. The results showed that the morphology is consistent with the current observations of the crater and that Serra da Cangalha was formed by a meteorite of approximately 1.4 km diameter striking at 12 km s^?1.     

Adaptive meshing in a mixed regime hydrologic simulation model

Problems in hydrology frequently have moving fronts and dynamic driving mechanisms such as wells. Since the location of important features changes during a simulation, accurate modeling requires uniformly fine resolution or the ability to change resolution during the simulation. We will describe an algorithm for refinement and unrefinement of tetrahedral/triangular meshes that has been implemented in the adaptive hydrology (ADH) code. The codes including the refinement/unrefinement algorithms are implemented in parallel to accommodate problems with large run time and memory requirements. In this paper, we describe the parallel, adaptive grid algorithm used in ADH and show the resulting grids from some example problems.     

The structure and origin of Prydz Bay and MacRobertson Shelf, East Antarctica

A marine geophysical survey in early 1982, conducted by the Australian Bureau of Mineral Resources, indicated that much of Prydz Bay is underlain by a sedimentary basin. Severe seismic multiples preclude an accurate estimate of total sediment thickness, but interpretation of the seismic and magnetic data suggest that it is probably at least 5 km. The trends of the southeast basin margin and of mild faulting and folding in the southwest indicate an overall NNE trend, roughly orthogonal to the continental margin.In the south of Prydz Bay, two series of seismic sequences are evident, separated by a mildly erosional unconformity. The lower series ranges from poorly- to well-stratified, has minor folding and faulting, and probably derives from continental and perhaps shallow marine pre-breakup sediments. The upper series is generally well-stratified, and prograded near the shelf edge; it probably represents shallow marine post-breakup sediments. The seabed is distinctly unconformable with the underlying sediments, implying both that much of the upper series sediments and some of the lower series sediments have been bulldozed off by advances of the Amery Ice Shelf, and that present sedimentation rates are very low. Possible thin moraines or tillites in the northeast part of the Prydz Bay are also attributed to these glacial advances.The continental slope and rise sedimentary section ranges from at least 3 km thick off Prydz Bay, to thin off the MacRobertson Shelf to the west, reflecting the more prolific sediment source in Prydz Bay. The deep water section includes several seismic sequences, the most distinctive being interpreted as sheet volcanics and turbidite fans. The deepest visible unconformity is locally strongly faulted and may separate the pre-breakup and post-breakup sediments.Indo-Antarctic breakup has been tentatively dated as Early Neocomian (130 Ma) and the E-W orientation of the resultant Antarctic coast invites interpretation of the Lambert Glacier-Prydz Bay structure as a possible failed rift arm of a triple junction. Direct information on the age and nature of the sediments under Prydz Bay is lacking, but Permian continental sediments cropping out at Beaver Lake, to the south, may correspond to the lower pre-breakup series. This interpretation gains some support from analogies with fault-bounded intracratonic basins in India which contain Permian to Triassic continental strata and which may have been juxtaposed prior to breakup. The upper series probably consists of Upper Cretaceous and Cainozoic sands and shales, with moraines or tillites at the top of the section.     

Chemically-induced genetic damage in fish: Isolation and characterization of the dab (Limanda limanda) ras gene

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) have been implicated in the aetiology of carcinogenesis in fish liver. In mammalian models, such compounds cause characteristic DNA mutations at codons 12, 13 and 61 of the ras gene, leading to oncogene activation. In this report, the isolation and characterization of the normal ras gene of the North Sea flatfish dab (Limanda limanda) is described. Two ras genes have been identified using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) which showed extensive sequence homology to other fish and mammalian ras gene counterparts. The sequence information reported here will enable the subsequent identification of mutated dab ras alleles in feral fish taken from areas of high PAH contamination in the North Sea, and from fish exposed experimentally to specific PAHs under controlled laboratory conditions.     

The first description and confirmation of the Vista Alegre impact structure in the Paraná flood basalts of southern Brazil

Abstract– The Vista Alegre structure, centered at 25°57′S and 52°41′W, has been recently proposed as a meteorite impact structure. The 9.5 km‐diameter structure is located in the Paraná state of southern Brazil, within the Paraná Basin, which contains one of the largest and most extensive flood basalt provinces on Earth. The Paraná flood basalts belong to the Serra Geral Formation and are temporally related to the opening of the South Atlantic Ocean, having been dated at about 133–132 Ma. Tholeiitic basalts dominate the western portion of Paraná state, with some minor rhyodacites. Morphologically, Vista Alegre has a prominent circular outline, in the form of an incomplete ring of escarpments, and an inner depression. The presence of a central uplift is not obvious, but it is inferred by the occurrence of deformed sandstone blocks near the center of the structure. These sandstones are possibly related to the Triassic Pirambóia Formation and/or to the Cretaceous Botucatu Formation. These units are normally at stratigraphic depths of about 700–800 m below the present surface in this portion of the Paraná Basin. The structure appears to be in an advanced erosion stage and its interior is occupied by a soil cover several meters thick, extensively used for agriculture. As a result there are limited outcrops in the interior of the structure, all of polymict breccias, some of them melt‐bearing. We report the extensive occurrence of shatter cones, in the form of fine‐grained rock clasts within the polymict breccias. The shatter cone‐bearing breccias occur at different locations within the structure, separated by several kilometers. The nested shatter cones range in size from about 0.5 to 20 cm for individual cones, and up to half a meter for complete assemblages. The shatter cones formed in fine‐grained Parana flood basalt and might be the first examples of shatter cones in such a rock type. In addition, planar deformation features (PDFs) were found in quartz grains within sedimentary rock clasts of the polymict breccia. These findings confirm the impact origin of the Vista Alegre structure.     

Photo-identification and habitat use of Atlantic humpback dolphins Sousa teuszii around the Río Nuñez Estuary in Guinea,West Africa

Ecological data for the Atlantic humpback dolphin Sousa teuszii are scant. Six on-effort Sousa teuszii sightings were recorded during 817.6?km of boat-based effort in the Río Nuñez region of Guinea during October and November 2013. Two incidental sightings were also reported. Groups comprised 1–25 animals. Photo-identification produced a minimum population estimate of 47 animals. Most sightings (n = 5) were located close (<1?km) to shore along a 5.7?km stretch of coast on the west side of Île de Taïdi, primarily over shallow, sand–mud habitat. Two very distinctive individuals were present in all four Taïdi photo-identification encounters, suggesting high site fidelity and stable associations. Two sightings occurred in the outer Río Nuñez Estuary much farther from the coast (5–12?km) but in relatively shallow water (≤15?m) over sand–mud sediment. Focal follows (n = 5: 0.2–3.8?h duration) produced 9.02?h of behavioural data. Travel (51%), foraging (39%) and feeding (9.2%) dominated, with Taïdi dolphins spending more time foraging and feeding than the outer estuary groups. Three individuals had linear-severed dorsal fins consistent with injuries from fishing line. Some management implications of variation in habitat, site fidelity and movements of Sousa teuszii groups are discussed.     

Paralytic shellfish poisoning toxins induce xenobiotic metabolising enzymes in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar).

Paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) toxins have been implicated as the causative agent of a number of fish kills. Exposure experiments indicate that fish are susceptible to PSPs by intraperitoneal (i.p.) and oral administration, while sampling of fish affected by toxic blooms reveals that these toxins can be accumulated. In spite of the potential impact to marine fisheries, little research has been conducted on the potential metabolism and detoxification of PSPs in marine fishes. Previous work by this group has shown that the xenobiotic metabolising enzyme (XME) cytochrome P-450 (CYP1A) is induced in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) following i.p. exposure to saxitoxin (STX). Salmon injected i.p. with sub-lethal doses of STX show a four- to eight-fold induction of hepatic CYP1A (as shown by ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase activity) over controls after 96 h. Results presented here show that the phase II XME glutathione S-transferase (GST) is also induced in salmon following PSP exposure. Post smolts were exposed to three injections of PSPs (2 micrograms STXeq/kg) over 21 days. Injection of both STX and PSPs extracted from a toxic strain of dinoflagellate (Alexandrium fundyense, CCMP 1719) resulted in induction of hepatic GST, as measured by activity for 1-chloro 2,4-dinitrobenzene. Such inductions indicate a potential role for XMEs in PSP metabolism. Possible roles for other enzymes are also discussed.     

Almost-square orbits in the restricted problem of three bodies

In the restricted problem of three bodies, it has been discovered that, in a nonrotating frame, almost perfectly square orbits can result. Numerical investigations of these orbits have been made, and a brief explanation of their behaviour is given.