A benthic index of environmental condition of Gulf of Mexico estuaries

An index was developed for estuarine macrobenthos in the Gulf of Mexico that discriminated between areas with degraded environmental conditions and areas with undegraded or reference conditions. Test sites were identified as degraded or reference based on criteria for dissolved oxygen levels, sediment toxicity tests, and sediment contamination. Discriminant analysis was used to identify a suite of measures of benthic community composition and diversity that would most successfully distinguish degraded from undegraded sites. The resultant benthic index was composed of a linear combination of three factors: the Shannon-Wiener diversity index, the proportion of total benthic abundance as tubificid oligochaetes, and the proportion of total benthic abundance as bivalve molluscs. This index was used to evaluate the spatial patterns of degraded benthic resources in the Gulf of Mexico.     

Resident action groups in Sydney: people power or rat‐bags?

This paper presents an analysis of a neglected area of study by geographers; that of resident action groups. During the 1980s there has been a significant increase in the number of resident action groups throughout Sydney. Resident activism has influenced local planning processes, the location of noxious facilities and subsequent urban form. This has initiated important reactions by government at both the local and State levels. Urban collective activisms have been hypothesised as single‐issue, self‐serving nimby groups. However, RAGs are also empowering forces, in which women and men are introduced to the political structures and become engaged in protest and resistance that can challenge the social and spatial order. RAGs can, either singularly or cumulatively, force a re‐aligning of existing power relations, and they can necessitate changed modes of governance (or govern‐mentality).     

Climatic oscillations during the Precambrian era

A remarkably regular cyclicity with a fundamental period of ~11–12 cycles is preserved in the 680 million year old Elatina formation of South Australia. All but one of the many periods present can be interpreted as resulting from the combined influences of the sunspot cycle and the lunar nodal tide - in particular, beating between these two cycles gives rise to a long period phase alternation. Available paleontological evidence is used to constrain the lunar distance 680 Ma ago, thereby constraining the length of the lunar nodal tide. We then infer from the beat period that the sunspot cycle was 10.8 ± 0.2 years, which is in agreement with independent astronomical evidence suggesting that the sunspot cycle would then have been some 3–10% shorter than it is at present. Although this interpretation is not consistent with the 12.0 year sunspot cycle counted by Williams and Sonett (1985), we demonstrate that unavoidable random errors made in discriminating unusually indistinct varves gives rise to a systematic overcount of varves of this magnitude. The clarity of this evidence for solar and lunar signals in the climate 680 Ma ago lends support to reports of their importance today.National Research Council Postoctoral Associate.     

The geochemistry of Jurassic dolerites from Portal Peak,Antarctica

Geochemical and isotopic analyses have been performed on a suite of samples from a Jurassic quartz tholeiite sill of the Ferrar Group at Portal Peak, Queen Alexandra Range, near the Beardmore Glacier in Antarctica. The data include major and trace element (XRF and INAA) concentrations, as well as Sr and Nd isotopic compositions, and are combined with the results of other studies on samples from Antarctica. It is demonstrated that despite differences in the pre-intrusion (or eruption) evolution of the Ferrar Group magmas, the similarity in isotopic and chemical compositions for these rocks supports the existence of a remarkably uniform mantle source with unusual signature over a distance of thousands of kilometres. The favoured origin of this source involves the subduction of terrestrial sedimentary material into a depleted mantle reservoir.     

Early life history of spotted seatrout,Cynoscion nebulosus (Pisces: Sciaenidae), in Tampa Bay,Florida

During two years of sampling, 747 larval and 1,379 juvenile spotted seatrout,Cynoscion nebulosus, were collected in Tampa Bay, Florida; 93% were less than 75 mm SL. Length-frequency distributions and otolith analysis showed that spawning took place from early April until late October. Two seasonal spawning peaks (spring and summer) were made up of many smaller peaks, apparently timed with moon phases. Plankton samples contained larvae that measured up to about 7 mm SL (17 d old). Larvae collected from an upper bay station were less numerous and larger than those collected at other stations. The presence of small larvae from middle and lower bay stations indicated that spawning probably took place from the middle bay to nearshore Gulf waters. Juveniles used seagrass beds as their major habitat, but they were also found in unvegetated backwaters. Spotted seatrout grew to about 35 mm SL in 2 months, 84 mm SL in 4 months, and 140 mm SL in 6 months. Eighty-five percent of the alimentary tracts in larvae were empty; those with food contained primarily copepods. Eleven percent of the stomachs of juveniles were empty. Fish and shrimp were the most important food groups in the diets of fish >15 mm SL. Intraspecific comparisons of diets showed high dietary overlap between larval fish and those measuring 8–15 mm SL and among size classes >15 mm SL.     

The variability of chemical analyses as a function of sample heterogeneity,and the implications to the analyses of rock standards

The errors in the chemical analyses of a granodiorite rock powder for 6 constituents (K ₂O, Na₂O, CaO,∑Fe₂O₃, MgO, and MnO) have been determined by replicate analyses of the whole rock and of a series of different sieved fractions. Sample inhomogeneity is indicated. This is confirmed by analyses of the fused rock powder. Fusion to a glass is therefore recommended for the preparation of geochemical rock standards.     

Extensional tectonics and mid-Paleozoic massive sulfide occurrences in Europe

The age and lithologic settings of mid-Paleozoic massive sulfide deposits in Central Europe and southwest Iberia are suggestive of extensional tectonic environments. This inference is supported by the facies configurations of contemporaneous clastic sediments, the presence of deepwater lithologies and pelagic faunas, and marked mafic-felsic bimodalism in associated volcanic rocks.The massive sulfide deposits of the Moravia-Silesia area, Rammelsberg, Meggen, and other deposits appear to have formed in the same tectonic environment: one dominated by crustal extension. The important massive sulfide deposits of the southwest Iberian province formed somewhat later, but appear to be related to a phase of crustal extension initiated in late Devonian time.These two sets of rifting (sensu latu) events correlate in time with Caledonide collision in the north and subsequent Acadian collision further south. The postulated extensional events thus may relate directly to these collisions.All the areas under consideration were subsequently affected by Hercynian compressional events. The high potash granites associated with Hercynian collisions are largely the products of crustal melting and consequently have associated with them ore deposits characterized by lithophile elements such as tin, tungsten and uranium. A significant fraction of the Paleozoic metallogeny of Europe can thus be understood in terms of extensional tectonic events followed by compressional events less than 100 m.y. later.

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Zusammenfassung Das Alter und die lithologische Zusammensetzung von massiven Sulfiderzlagerstätten des Devons in Mittel-Europa und Südwest-Iberien deuten auf eine Ausweitungstektonik. Diese Hypothese wird bekräftigt durch die Fazieskonfiguration gleichalter klastischer Sedimente, das Auftreten von Tiefseeablagerungen und pelagischen Faunen, und die ausgesprochen mafisch-felsische Bimodalität von assoziierten Vulkaniten.Die massiven Sulfidlagerstätten von Mähren und Schlesien, Rammelsberg, Meggen und andere Vorkommen scheinen sich unter den gleichen tektonischen Bedingungen gebildet zu haben, nämlich unter Dehnungseffekten der Kruste. Die wichtigsten massiven Sulfidlagerstätten der südwestlichen Iberischen Provinz entstanden etwas später, sie scheinen einer Dehnungsphase beginnend im höheren Devon zugeordnet zu sein.Diese zwei Phasen eines Riftings (sensu lato) stimmen zeitlich mit der kaledonischen Kollision im Norden und der darauffolgenden akadischen Kollision weiter südlich überein. Die angenommenen Dehnungsvorgänge können daher direkt mit diesen Kollisionen in Verbindung gebracht werden.Alle besprochenen Gebiete sind in der Folge von herzynischen Einengungs-Erscheinungen betroffen worden. Die hochgradig kali-haltigen Granite, die den herzynischen Kollisionen zugeordnet sind, sind größtenteils die Ergebnisse von krustalen Schmelzvorgängen und haben deshalb assoziierte Erzlagerstätten, die durch lithophile Elemente wie Zinn, Wolfram und Uran gekennzeichnet sind. Ein beträchtlicher Teil der paläozoischen Metallogenese Europas kann daher aus der Sicht distraktiver tektonischer Erscheinungen gesehen werden, deren Einengungs-Vorgänge weniger als 100 Millionen Jahre später folgten.

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Résumé L'âge et la composition lithologique des gisements de sulferes massifs du Paléozoïque moyen de l'Europe Centrale et du sud-ouest de la Péninsule ibérique suggèrent un environement tectonique de distension. Cette hypothèse est appuyée par la configuration des facies des sédiments clastiques contemporains, la présence de lithologies d'eau profonde et de faunes pélagiques et par l'existence d'un net bimodalisme mafique-felsique dans les roches volcaniques associées.Les importants gisements de sulfere de Moravie et de Silésie, du Rammelsberg, de Meggen et autressemblent s'être formés sous un régime tectonique semblable, principalement sous l'effet de distensions de la croûte. Les gisements du sud-ouest de la Péninsule ibérique se sont formés un jeu plus tard, mais semblent être liés à une phase de distension crustale ayant débutéau Dévonien supérieur.Ces deux séries de ruptures (sensu latu) sont corrélés dans le temps avec la collision calédonienne au nord et la collision acadienne subséquente plus au sud.Les évènements de distension invoqués peuvent done être directement liés à ces collisions.Toutes les régions considérées ici furent affectées plus tard par la compression hercynienne. Les granites à haute teneur en potasse, liés aux collisions hercyniennes sont, en grande partie, des produits de la fusion crustale. Ils sont par conséquent associés à des gisements de minerais d'étain, de tungstène et d'uranium. Une partie importante de la métallogénie paléozoïque de l'Europe peut être ainsi comprise en termes d'événements tectoniques de distensions suivis moins de 100 millions d'années plus tard, par une compression.

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