Invasions in Marine Communities: Contrasting Species Richness and Community Composition Across Habitats and Salinity

While many studies of non-native species have examined either soft-bottom or hard-bottom marine communities, including artificial structures at docks and marinas, formal comparisons across these habitat types are rare. The number of non-indigenous species (NIS) may differ among habitats, due to differences in species delivery (trade history) and susceptibility to invasions. In this study, we quantitatively compared NIS to native species richness and distribution and examined community similarity across hard-bottom and soft-sediment habitats in San Francisco Bay, California (USA). Benthic invertebrates were sampled using settlement panels (hard-bottom habitats) and sediment grabs (soft-bottom habitats) in 13 paired sites, including eight in higher salinity areas and five in lower salinity areas during 2 years. Mean NIS richness was greatest in hard-bottom habitat at high salinity, being significantly higher than each (a) native species at high salinity and (b) NIS richness at low salinity. In contrast, mean NIS richness in soft-bottom communities was not significantly different from native species richness in either high- or low-salinity waters, nor was there a difference in NIS richness between salinities. For hard-bottom communities, NIS represented an average of 79% of total species richness per sample at high salinity and 78% at low salinity, whereas the comparable values for soft bottom were 46 and 60%, respectively. On average, NIS occurred at a significantly higher frequency (percent of samples) than native species for hard-bottom habitats at both salinities, but this was not the case for soft-bottom habitats. Finally, NIS contributed significantly to the existing community structure (dissimilarity) across habitat types and salinities. Our results show that NIS richness and occurrence frequency is highest in hard-bottom and high-salinity habitat for this Bay but also that NIS contribute strongly to species richness and community structure across each habitat evaluated.     

Biosorption of Rare-Earth Elements and Yttrium by Heterotrophic Bacteria in an Aqueous Environment

This paper reports the results of the experimental determination of the coefficient of sorption of rare-earth elements and yttrium (REY) under conditions of acidic pH using several strains of heterotrophic bacteria (Microbacterium sp., Curtobacterium sp., Bacillus subtilis, Pseudomonas putida, and Bacillus pumilis) that are widespread in natural and technogenic waters of the Far East (Russia). Insignificant fractionation between heavy and light rare-earth elements, negative cerium and dysprosium anomalies, and a positive europium anomaly were revealed. The selectivity of REY biosorption by gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, as well as inertia of the biosorption process under more acidic conditions of the medium, were shown.     

PGE distribution in deformed lherzolites of the Udachnaya kimberlite pipe (Yakutia)

The results of the first study of the PGE distribution in deformed lherzolites of the Udachnaya kimberlite pipe (Yakutia) are presented here. The complex character of evolution of the PGE composition in the Deformed lherzolites is assumed to be the result of silicate metasomatism. At the first stage, growth in the amount of clinopyroxene and garnet in the rock is accompanied by a decrease in the concentration of the compatible PGE (Os, Ir). During the final stage, the rock is enriched with incompatible PGE (Pt, Pd) and Re possible due to precipitation of submicron-sized particles of sulfides in the interstitial space of these mantle rocks.     

Ferromanganese crusts from submarine volcanoes of backarc basins as a new genetic type of gallium deposits

Study of the material composition of Fe-Mn crusts from submarine rises in the central part of the Sea of Japan, with modern precision methods applied, has yielded a high (up to 854 g/t) concentration of gallium contained in sorbed form. The new data obtained have allowed a new genetic type of gallium deposits—hydrothermal-sedimentary—to be distinguished.     

Crustal structure across the Grand Banks–Newfoundland Basin Continental Margin – II. Results from a seismic reflection profile

New multichannel seismic reflection data were collected over a 565 km transect covering the non-volcanic rifted margin of the central eastern Grand Banks and the Newfoundland Basin in the northwestern Atlantic. Three major crustal zones are interpreted from west to east over the seaward 350 km of the profile: (1) continental crust; (2) transitional basement and (3) oceanic crust. Continental crust thins over a wide zone (∼160 km) by forming a large rift basin (Carson Basin) and seaward fault block, together with a series of smaller fault blocks eastwards beneath the Salar and Newfoundland basins. Analysis of selected previous reflection profiles (Lithoprobe 85-4, 85-2 and Conrad NB-1) indicates that prominent landward-dipping reflections observed under the continental slope are a regional phenomenon. They define the landward edge of a deep serpentinized mantle layer, which underlies both extended continental crust and transitional basement. The 80-km-wide transitional basement is defined landwards by a basement high that may consist of serpentinized peridotite and seawards by a pair of basement highs of unknown crustal origin. Flat and unreflective transitional basement most likely is exhumed, serpentinized mantle, although our results do not exclude the possibility of anomalously thinned oceanic crust. A Moho reflection below interpreted oceanic crust is first observed landwards of magnetic anomaly M4, 230 km from the shelf break. Extrapolation of ages from chron M0 to the edge of interpreted oceanic crust suggests that the onset of seafloor spreading was ∼138 Ma (Valanginian) in the south (southern Newfoundland Basin) to ∼125 Ma (Barremian–Aptian boundary) in the north (Flemish Cap), comparable to those proposed for the conjugate margins.     

Volcanogenic massive sulfide deposits of ophiolite associations

Volcanogenic massive sulfide deposits in ophiolite complexes are usually attributed to the Cyprus type. They associate with basaltic volcanics that are formed in mid-ocean or back-arc spreading centers and much less frequently in intra-plate settings. The deposits are characterized by copper or copper-zinc ores that are enriched in Ni, Co, and in places Mn and As, but are very poor in Pb and demonstrate a low to moderate content of Ag and Au. Typically, the deposits are low to very low in ore and metal reserves. Cyprus-type deposits were irregularly distributed during geological history. The most ancient of them were formed in the Neoproterozoic, while the bulk of the deposits are Ordovician or Cretaceous in age. Their possible Paleoproterozoic analogues can be found in the Svecofennian belt (Outokumpu ore district), while modern ones are confined to the Explorer and Endeavour Ridges and southern segment of the Juan de Fuca Ridge.     

Chironomids as indicators of climate change: a 100‐lake training set from a subarctic region of northern Sweden (Lapland)

Multivariate numerical analyses (DCA, CCA) were used to study the distribution of chironomids from surface sediments of 100 lakes spanning broad ecoclimatic conditions in northern Swedish Lapland. The study sites range from boreal forest to alpine tundra and are located in a region of relatively low human impact. Of the 19 environmental variables measured, ordination by CCA identified mean July air temperature as one of the most significant variables explaining the distribution and the abundance of chironomids. Lossonignition (LOI), maximum lake depth and mean January air temperature also accounted for significant variation in chironomid assemblages. A quantitative transfer function was created to estimate mean July air temperature from sedimentary chironomid assemblages using weightedaveraging partial least squares regression (WAPLS). The coefficient of determination was relatively high (r² = 0.65) with root mean squared error of prediction (RMSEP, based on jack-knifing) of 1.13 °C and maximum bias of 2.1 °C, indicating that chironomids can provide useful quantitative estimates of past changes in mean July air temperature. The paper focuses mainly on the relationship between chironomid composition and July air temperature, but the relationship to LOI and depth are also discussed.