Structure and photosynthetic properties of phytoplankton assemblages in a highly dynamic system, the Northern Adriatic Sea

The photosynthetic properties of phytoplankton populations as related to physical–chemical variations on small temporal and spatial scales and to phytoplankton size structure and pigment spectra were investigated in the Northern Adriatic Sea off the Po River delta in late winter 1997. Large diatoms (fucoxanthin) dominated the phytoplankton in the coastal area whereas small phytoflagellates (mainly 19′-hexanoyloxyfucoxanthin, chlorophyll b, 19′-butanoyloxyfucoxanthin) occurred outside the front. The front was defined by the steep gradient in density in the surface layer separating low-salinity coastal waters from the offshore waters.Physical features of the area strongly influenced phytoplankton biomass distributions, composition and size structure. After high volumes of Po River discharge several gyres and meanders occurred in the area off the river delta in February. Decreasing river discharge and the subsequent disappearance of the gyres and the spreading dilution of the river plume was observed in March. The dynamic circulation of February resulted in high photosynthetic capacity of the abundant phytoplankton population (>3.40 mg m⁻³). In March, the slow circulation and an upper low-salinity water layer, segregated from the deeper layers, resulted in lack of renewal of this water mass. The huge phytoplankton biomass, up to 15.77 mg chl a m⁻³, became nutrient depleted and showed low photosynthetic capacity. In February, an exceptionally high P_max^B, 20.11 mg C (mg chl a)⁻¹ h⁻¹ was recorded in the Po River plume area and average P_max^B was three-fold in February as compared to the March recordings, 10.50 mg C (mg chl a)⁻¹ h⁻¹ and 3.22 mg C (mg chl a)⁻¹ h⁻¹, respectively.The extreme variability and values of phytoplankton biomass in the innermost plume area was not always reflected in primary production. Modeling of circulation patterns and water mass resilience in the area will help to predict phytoplankton response and biomass distributions. In the frontal area, despite a considerable variability in environmental conditions, our findings have shown that the phytoplankton assemblages will compensate for nutrient depression and hydrographic constraints, by means of size and taxonomic composition and, as a result, the variability in the photosynthetic capacity was much less pronounced than that observed for other parameters.     

Dissolved nutrient balance and net ecosystem metabolism in a Mediterranean-climate coastal lagoon: San Diego Bay

The temporal and spatial variability of dissolved inorganic phosphate (DIP), nitrogen (DIN), carbon (DIC) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) were studied in order to determine the net ecosystem metabolism (NEM) of San Diego Bay (SDB), a Mediterranean-climate lagoon. A series of four sampling campaigns were carried out during the rainy (January 2000) and the dry (August 2000 and May and September 2001) seasons. During the dry season, temperature, salinity and DIP, DIC and DOC concentrations increased from oceanic values in the outer bay to higher values at the innermost end of the bay. DIP, DIC and DOC concentrations showed a clear offset from conservative mixing implying production of these dissolved materials inside the bay. During the rainy season, DIP and DOC increased to the head, whereas salinity decreased toward the mouth due to land runoff and river discharges. The distributions of DIP and DOC also showed a deviation from conservative mixing in this season, implying a net addition of these dissolved materials during estuarine mixing within the bay. Mass balance calculations showed that SDB consistently exported DIP (2.8–9.8 × 10³ mol P d⁻¹), DIC (263–352 × 10³ mol C d⁻¹) and DOC (198–1233 × 10³ mol C d⁻¹), whereas DIN (5.5–18.2 × 10³ mol N d⁻¹) was exported in all samplings except in May 2001 when it was imported (8.6 × 10³ mol N d⁻¹). The DIP, DIC and DOC export rates along with the strong relationship between DIP, DIC or DOC and salinity suggest that intense tidal mixing plays an important role in controlling their distributions and that SDB is a source of nutrients and DOC to the Southern California Bight. Furthermore, NEM ranged from −8.1 ± 1.8 mmol C m⁻² d⁻¹ in September to −13.5 ± 5.8 mmol C m⁻² d⁻¹ in January, highlighting the heterotrophic character of SDB. In order to explain the net heterotrophy of this system, we postulate that phytoplankton-derived particulate organic matter, stimulated by upwelling processes in the adjacent coastal waters, is transported into the bay, retained and then remineralized within the system. Our results were compared with those reported for the heterotrophic hypersaline coastal lagoons located in the semi-arid coast of California–Baja California, and with those autotrophic hypersaline systems found in the semi-arid areas of Australia. We point out that the balance between autotrophy and heterotrophy in inverse estuaries is dependent on net external inputs of either inorganic nutrients or organic matter as it has been indicated for positive estuaries.     

Variable orientation within a natural population of the sandhopper Talitrus saltator (Crustacea: Amphipoda) as a response to a variable environment: The case-study of Berkoukesh beach,Tunisia

Sandy beaches are harsh environments, driving resident arthropod populations to various typical adaptations, particularly behavioural ones. Here we evaluated the effects of seasonal meteorological variability on the behaviour of Talitrus saltator on Berkoukesh beach (N-W Tunisia). The site is characterised by a Mediterranean climate, but is particularly exposed to seasonal winds and storms. The shoreline is in morphodynamic equilibrium. We tested sandhopper Talitrus saltator orientation in April, when sudden rainfall and storms are common, and in June, when as a rule the weather is warm and dry. The results were analysed with circular statistics and multiple regression models adapted to angular distributions, in order to highlight differences in orientation under the various conditions. Depending on the environmental conditions, amphipods from the same population appeared to utilise various orientation strategies as a response to different environmental constraints. The use of a range of behavioural mechanisms (sun-orientation seaward, sun-orientation landward, and phototaxis) resulted in links to the local landscape and to the animals’ life cycle. As a general conclusion, we can infer that the behavioural variability found within the same population represents a response to seasonal environmental fluctuation. Such an increase in variability is likely to develop on a beach in dynamic equilibrium, where landscape references are stable, and a variable behaviour represents a strategy for dealing with environmental fluctuations.     

Light regime and components of turbidity in a Mediterranean coastal lagoon

The underwater light regime of a Mediterranean coastal lagoon (Albufera des Grau, Balearic Islands) was studied during four years in order to characterise the spatial and temporal variations in the light attenuation coefficient (K) and to assess the relative contribution of the different water components to total light attenuation.     

Seasonal changes in submarine groundwater discharge to coastal salt ponds estimated using Ra and Ra as tracers

Submarine groundwater discharge (SGD) to coastal southern Rhode Island was estimated from measurements of the naturally-occurring radioisotopes ²²⁶Ra (t_1/2 = 1600 y) and ²²⁸Ra (t_1/2 = 5.75 y). Surface water and porewater samples were collected quarterly in Winnapaug, Quonochontaug, Ninigret, Green Hill, and Pt. Judith–Potter Ponds, as well as nearly monthly in the surface water of Rhode Island Sound, from January 2002 to August 2003; additional porewater samples were collected in August 2005. Surface water activities ranged from 12–83 dpm 100 L^− 1 (60 dpm = 1 Bq) and 21–256 dpm 100 L^− 1 for ²²⁶Ra and ²²⁸Ra, respectively. Porewater ²²⁶Ra activities ranged from 16–736 dpm 100 L^− 1 (2002–2003) and 95–815 dpm 100 L^− 1 (2005), while porewater ²²⁸Ra activities ranged from 23–1265 dpm 100 L^− 1. Combining these data with a simple box model provided average ²²⁶Ra-based submarine groundwater fluxes ranging from 11–159 L m^− 2 d^− 1 and average ²²⁸Ra-derived fluxes of 15–259 L m^− 2 d^− 1. Seasonal changes in Ra-derived SGD were apparent in all ponds as well as between ponds, with SGD values of 30–472 L m^− 2 d^− 1 (Winnapaug Pond), 6–20 L m^− 2 d^− 1 (Quonochontaug Pond), 36–273 L m^− 2 d^− 1 (Ninigret Pond), 29–76 L m^− 2 d^− 1 (Green Hill Pond), and 19–83 L m^− 2 d^− 1 (Pt. Judith–Potter Pond). These Ra-derived fluxes are up to two orders of magnitude higher than results predicted by a numerical model of groundwater flow, estimates of aquifer recharge for the study period, and values published in previous Ra-based SGD studies in Rhode Island. This disparity may result from differences in the type of flow (recirculated seawater versus fresh groundwater) determined using each technique, as well as variability in porewater Ra activity.     

A 44-year high-resolution ocean and atmospheric hindcast for the Mediterranean Basin developed within the HIPOCAS Project

A set of 44-year (1958–2001) homogeneous and high-resolution hindcasts of atmospheric, sea level residuals, and wave states was performed for the Mediterranean Basin within the framework of the HIPOCAS European Project. To this aim, different numerical models were used. As a first step, a Mediterranean high-resolution atmospheric database, suitable to provide realistic and homogeneous forcing for ocean hindcast runs was generated. The HIPOCAS atmospheric database was created by means of dynamical downscaling from the global reanalysis NCEP, using for that the limited area model SN-REMO along with a spectral nudging technique. In a second stage, different Mediterranean oceanic hindcasts were performed. On one hand a long-term database of sea state over the western Mediterranean was generated by means of the wave model WAM and on the other hand a sea level residual database containing storm surge events was obtained from a long-term integration of the HAMSOM model over the entire basin. The three different hindcast runs have been exhaustively validated. On that score, various simulated parameters have been compared to both satellite and in situ measurements. Such comparisons provide a measure of the skills of the different simulated fields to realistically reproduce the observed features. Once these skills are evaluated, a study of the ocean and atmospheric climate trends as well as the interannual variability for the whole 44-year period was carried out with the hindcasted data. The reliability of the data as shown by its comparison to measurements and a proven temporal homogeneity over the 44 years of simulation make the Mediterranean HIPOCAS ocean–atmosphere hindcasted database a useful tool for studies focused on regional climatic variability, as well as for further applications in coastal and environmental decision processes in the Mediterranean area.     

Geographic structure of European anchovy: A nuclear-DNA study

Atlantic–Mediterranean anchovies were genetically characterized at two polymorphic nuclear loci (intron 6 of two creatine-kinase genes) and compared to reference Engraulis albidus and E. encrasicolus samples from the northern Western Mediterranean to provide new insights into their geographic structure. Northeastern Atlantic anchovy, represented by one sample from the Canary archipelago and one sample from the Alboran Sea, were genetically distinct from Mediterranean E. encrasicolus (Weir and Cockerham's ^θ = 0.027–0.311), indicating geographic isolation from either side of the Almería–Oran oceanographic front. Generally smaller genetic differences were evident among anchovy populations from different sub-basins in the Mediterranean (^θ = − 0.019–0.116), the genetic differences between Black Sea and Ionian Sea/Aegean Sea anchovies being the strongest (^θ = 0.002–0.116). There was no evidence of the presence of E. albidus in our samples outside Camargue (northern shore of the Western Mediterranean). However, a sample from the southern Western Mediterranean appeared to be genetically intermediate between E. albidus and Mediterranean E. encrasicolus, indicating possible hybridization. Anchovy from the Benguela current system off southern Africa possessed allele frequencies characteristic of E. albidus at one locus and Northeastern Atlantic anchovy at the other locus, suggesting past introgression.