Implications of nutrient decline in the seagrass ecosystem success

The Mondego estuary (Portugal) suffered major changes in environmental quality due to eutrophication, however, in the late 1990s a restoration project was implemented in order to return the system to its original condition. The main goal of this paper is to evaluate the ecosystem response to the restoration measures applied at three different levels: water quality, primary producers and primary consumers.In post-restoration period a clear decline was observed in dissolved inorganic nitrogen which was reflected in the gradual recovery of Zostera noltii and a concomitant decline in green macroalgae.Macrobenthic assemblages responded variably to the recovery process. In the seagrass bed and intermediate area, there was a large increase in total biomass, but in the eutrophic area species diversity increased. Despite improvement in the ecological status of the system, full recovery has not been achieved yet, possible due to hysteresis in the dynamics of this system.     

Impact of flood events on macrobenthic community structure on an intertidal flat developing in the Ohta River Estuary

We investigated the effects of river floods on the macrobenthic community of the intertidal flat in the Ohta River Estuary, Japan, from 2005 to 2010. Sediment erosion by flood events ranged from about 2–3 cm to 12 cm, and the salinity dropped to 0‰ even during low-intensity flood events. Cluster analysis of the macrobenthic population showed that the community structure was controlled by the physical disturbance, decreased salinity, or both. The opportunistic polychaete Capitella sp. was the most dominant species in all clusters, and populations of the long-lived polychaete Ceratonereis erythraeensis increased in years with stable flow and almost disappeared in years with intense flooding. The bivalve Musculista senhousia was also an important opportunistic species that formed mats in summer of the stable years and influenced the structure of the macrobenthic community. Our results demonstrate the substantial effects of flood events on the macrobenthic community structure.     

日本早白垩世非海相软体动物群组合

日本具有4个标志早白垩世的半咸水和淡水软体动物群组合:欧特里沃期—早巴列姆期的立川和菖蒲动物群组合,晚巴列姆期的濑林动物群组合和早阿普特期动物群组合。纯非海相下白垩统大量分布于日本东北部(本州岛北部)的部分地区,以及日本中部、西南部的内带。在日本东北部的部分地区以及日本西南部的外带(四国岛与本州岛中部),从巴列姆阶下部往上有一些海相地层夹在非海相层中,这为研究非海相动物群提供了准确的年代依据。生物组合之间在种一级水平上的区别,主要由环境的差异而引起。1)立川动物群组合(欧特里沃期—早巴列姆期),含有半咸水Hayamina naumanni组合和淡水Megasphaerioides okurodaniensis组合;手取群的Okurodani、Kuwajima和Izuki三个组内的淡水软体动物可与本动物组合相对比;2)菖蒲动物群组合(欧特里沃期—早巴列姆期),含有Eomiodon nipponicus组合;3)濑林动物群组合(晚巴列姆期),含有Costocyrena radiatostriata组合,可与手取群的Kitadani组和日本东北部关门群的Sengoku组以及Monomiyama组的淡水软体动物组合相对比;4)日比原动物群组合(早阿普特期),含有Costocyrena minor组合,关门群Wakamiya组的淡水软体动物可与本动物组合相对比。     

Effects of reclamation on macrobenthic assemblages in the coastline of the Arabian Gulf: a microcosm experimental approach

Coastal reclamation and modifications are extensively carried out in Bahrain, which may physically smother the coastal and subtidal habitats resulting in changes to abundance and distribution of macrobenthic assemblages. A microcosm laboratory experiment using three common macrobenthic invertebrates from a proposed reclaimed coastal area was preformed to examine their responses to mud burial using marine sediment collected from a designated borrow area. Significant difference in numbers of survived organisms between control and experimental treatments with a survival percentage of 41.8% for all of the selected species was observed. The polychaete Perinereis nuntia showed the highest percentage of survival (57.1%) followed by the bivalve Tellinavaltonis (42.3%) and the gastropod Cerithidea cingulata (24.0%). Quantifying species responses to sediment burial resulted from dredging and reclamation will aid in predicting the expected ecological impacts associated with coastal developments and subsequently minimizing these impacts and maintaining a sustainable use of coastal and marine ecosystems in the Arabian Gulf.     

Assessment of the ecological quality status of soft-bottoms in Reunion Island (tropical Southwest Indian Ocean) using AZTI marine biotic indices

The ability of the two synthetic marine biotic indices, AMBI and M-AMBI, to account for changes in the ecological quality of coastal soft bottoms of Reunion Island according to disturbances was assessed from macrobenthic samples collected in five sectors between 1994 and 2004. Samples were collected under non-perturbed conditions and at two sites subjected to heavy organic enrichment. Both indices are based on a classification of macrofauna into ecological groups (EG), and their transfer to tropical waters required some adaptations. These indices proved efficient in detecting a degradation of habitat quality. Their use resulted in the classification of all sites sampled between 1996 and 1998 as "good" or "high". M-AMBI nevertheless tended to result in the attribution of a slightly worse ecological quality status than AMBI. Together with an update of the EG species list for the Indian Ocean area, our results support the extension of both indices for the assessment of tropical soft bottoms.     

A study of the young open cluster Collinder 359

We present the first deep, optical, wide‐field imaging survey of the young open cluster Collinder 359, complemented by near‐infrared follow‐up observations. This study is part of a large programme aimed at examining the dependence of the mass function on environment and time. We have surveyed 1.6 square degree in the cluster in the I and z filters with the CFH12K camera on the Canada‐France‐Hawaii 3.6m telescope down to completeness and detection limits in both filters of 22.0m and 24.0m, respectively. Based on their location in the optical (I‐z ,I ) colour‐magnitude diagram, we have extracted new cluster member candidates in Collinder 359 spanning 1.3‐0.04 M_⊙, assuming an age of 100 Myr and a distance of 450 pc for the cluster.We have used the 2MASS database as well as our own near‐infrared photometry to confirm the membership of the optically‐selected cluster candidates. Additionally, we have obtained optical spectroscopy and employed chromospheric activity as a further criterion to assess the membership of candidates. (© 2005 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

New stellar and substellar candidate members of the Coma Berenices open star cluster

We present the results of a survey of the open star cluster Melotte 111 in Coma Berenices, undertaken using the USNO‐B1.0 and 2MASS Point Source catalogues. On the basis of their astrometric and photometric properties, we have identified 60 new candidate members with masses in the range 1.007 < M < 0.269 M_⊙. We estimate a membership probability for each by extracting control clusters from the proper motion vector diagram. All 60 are found to have greater than 60 per cent probability of being cluster members, which if they are confirmed as members, more than doubles the number of known cluster members. We also have I and Z photometry for 100 low mass candidate members of the cluster, 13 of which we suggest may be brown dwarfs. (© 2005 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

The lower mass function of young open clusters: clues to (sub)stellar formation

We report the present day mass functions (PDMFs) of 4 young open clusters over a mass range from 30 Jupiter masses to 3M_ . Three of these clusters have been chosen to have a similar age of ∼100 Myr. Their PDMFs are remarkably similar and are comparable to the field mass function. This suggests little impact of initial conditions (stellar density, metallicity) on the mass distribution and raises some issues concerning the currently debated star and brown dwarf formation theories. The fourth cluster is older (600 Myr) which allow us to investigate the effect of the cluster dynamical evolution on the shape of the mass function. (© 2005 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Praesepe – two merging clusters?

A membership catalogue for Praesepe was compiled and split into four mass bins. A contour plot indicates the presence of a subcluster some 3 pc from the centre of the cluster, of approximately 30 M_⊙. A tidally truncated King profile was fitted to the remainder of the cluster and the tidal radius is found to be 12.1 pc; the mass of the cluster (excluding the subcluster) is 630 M_⊙. From the calculated velocity dispersions we find that the cluster appears to have too much kinetic energy and should be rapidly disintegrating. X-ray data suggest that there may be an age spread between the main core stars and the subcluster stars. This leads us to the conclusion that Praesepe is two merging clusters.     

The region of Collinder 121

The distribution of bright B-type stars in a field with a radius of 5° centred at the Galactic open cluster Cr 121 is studied utilizing Strömgren and H β photometry. All PPM stars earlier than spectral type A0 are used, revealing a loose nearby structure at a distance of 660–730 pc, and a compact more distant group, which appears to be a genuine cluster: Cr 121. Based on similar coordinates, distances and positions on the colour–magnitude (CM) and Hertzsprung–Russell (HR) diagrams, 11 photometric cluster members are selected at a mean distance of 1085(±41 standard error) pc. The results are discussed in the light of both classical and Hipparcos points of view.