垦利碱蓬Suaeda kenliensis J.W.Xing sp.nov.——碱蓬属一新种

报道了中国碱蓬属植物一新种——垦利碱蓬Suaeda kenliensis J.W.Xing sp.nov.。该种与南方碱蓬Suaeda australis(R.Br.)Moq.相近,但系一年生,种子具圆盘状和卵形两种形状,直径约2～3mm,叶长可达5～7 cm,无不定根,与南方碱蓬相区别。垦利碱蓬生长于潮间带和海水周期性淹没处。耐高盐,区域内海水盐度为25,滩涂表层含盐量在退潮后经日晒蒸发可达60‰以上。常形成单一种群的红海滩植被景观。模式标本存:中国科学院海洋生物标本馆;编号:MBM286537。采集地:莱州湾垦利海域潮间带泥滩。采集人:邢军武、曲宁、钟芳。     

防城河口湾鱼类群落结构及其与环境因子关系研究

文章根据2016年5月、8月、11月和2017年2月在防城河口湾海域进行的渔业资源和环境调查数据, 研究了河口湾鱼类群落结构及其空间和季节变化, 分析了鱼类群落结构与主要环境因子的关系。结果表明: 全年调查共渔获鱼类95种, 隶属于2纲12目37科69属, 适温性以暖水性鱼类为主, 生态类型以底层和近底层鱼类为主。其中, 春季60种, 夏季59种, 秋季54种, 冬季46种, 夏—秋季间种类相似性指数最高。全年优势种为褐菖鲉Sebastiscus marmoratus和长鳍篮子鱼Siganus canaliculatus, 主要种有黄鳍棘鲷Acanthopagrus latus、条马鲾Equulites rivulatus、李氏?Callionymus richardsoni和真赤鲷Pagrus major等10种; 夏、秋季的最大优势种均为长鳍篮子鱼, 春、冬季的最大优势种分别为褐菖鲉和条马鲾。全湾鱼类年均资源密度为45836尾·km ^-2和 435.21kg·km ^-2, 资源密度具有明显的空间差异和季节变化。全年各站位种数变化范围在2~21种, 多样性指数H′在0.468~4.031, 丰富度指数d在0.120~1.926, 均匀度指数J在0.181~0.969。聚类分析、单因子相似性分析(ANOSIM)及相似性百分比(SIMPER) 分析表明该海域鱼类群落存在一定程度的时空异质性。相关性分析表明影响防城河口湾鱼类群落结构的主要环境因子为水温、盐度和硝酸盐。     

热带西太平洋砂壳纤毛虫的多样性

为了探明热带西太平洋海区砂壳纤毛虫的多样性、垂直分布及纬向变化,我们于2012年11-12月在该海区四个断面采集了0-200 m的水样。共检出砂壳纤毛虫39属124种,多数种类喜好生活在表层和次表层。砂壳纤毛虫种丰富度、丰度以及多样性指数的高值主要出现在比叶绿素浓度最大值稍浅的位置,与温度和叶绿素浓度显著正相关,与盐度和采样深度显著负相关。多数优势种与环境因子间的相关性不显著。热带西太平洋海区砂壳纤毛虫多样性极高,各站种丰富度在25-52之间。在从表层至75 m处的多数采样点香农指数均大于3。该海区砂壳纤毛虫冗余种的比例很高,占砂壳纤毛虫总种类数的87.90%,贡献了砂壳纤毛虫60.38%的丰度,表明热带西太平洋海区砂壳纤毛虫群落对饵料组成和摄食压力改变的应对能力很强,稳定性很高。     

烟台港和邻近锚地及其入境船舶压舱水中的浮游植物

本文根据2003年5月到2004年4月间烟台港和邻近锚地水域及其船舶压舱水中的浮游植物调查资料,对浮游植物的群落结构和压舱水对其影响进行了初步研究。结果表明,烟台港和临近锚地的浮游植物群落主要由温带沿岸性物种组成,以硅藻为主,还有少量甲藻和金藻;对比船舶压舱水中浮游植物群落发现:压舱水中浮游植物群落和本地群落的结构有很大差异,有害物种在压舱水中出现的频率较高。     

Enoplus taipingensis, a new species of marine nematode from the rocky intertidal seaweeds in the Taiping Bay, Qingdao

One new species of free-living marine nematodes Enoplus taipingensis sp.nov.from the rocky intertidal seaweeds in the Taiping Bay,Qingdao is described and illustrated with scanning electron microscopy observation and 18S rRNA gene sequence analysis.Enoplus taipingensis is characterized by special arrangement of lateral setae on the tail,three cervical setae,distal structure on the supplement,and much longer body length with bigger De Man ratio "a".Type specimens are deposited in the College of Marine Life Science,Ocean University of China.     

Conservation Priority Index for Estuarine Fish (COPIEF)

Public awareness regarding environmental issues has increased in recent decades. The increasing number of impact assessment studies, management and conservation plans, as well as ecological monitoring studies, demand new and more efficient techniques. Indices are an important tool to aid biologists in these studies and should allow an easier comprehension of the data by managers, decision-makers and the general public. This study presents the first multi-metrical index able to establish a hierarchical ordination of the conservation priority of the estuarine fish species using 72 species from 16 estuarine systems (W and S coasts of Portugal). The index is composed of 10 metrics, comprising species life traits, distribution and population trends. The information needed to score each metric was gathered from the published literature and the index validation was done by external means. This methodology allowed the definition of those fish species most in need of conservation planning, and those less prone to extinction in Portuguese estuarine systems. The proposed index fills a gap in our knowledge and provides a useful tool to the scientific community and to the decision-makers, being a breakthrough in the field of conservation planning of estuarine fish species.     

Sulfide and iron control on mercury speciation in anoxic estuarine sediment slurries

In order to understand the role of sulfate and Fe(III) reduction processes in the net production of monomethylmercury (MMHg), we amended anoxic sediment slurries collected from the Venice Lagoon, Italy, with inorganic Hg and either potential electron acceptors or metabolic byproducts of sulfate and Fe(III) reduction processes, gradually changing their concentrations. Addition of sulfide (final concentration: 0.2–6.3 mM) resulted in an exponential decrease in the sulfate reduction rate and MMHg concentration with increasing concentrations of sulfide. Based on this result, we argue that the concentration of dissolved sulfide is a critical factor controlling the sulfate reduction rate, and in turn, the net MMHg production at steady state. Addition of either Fe(II) (added concentration: 0–6.1 mM) or Fe(III) (added concentration: 0–3.5 mM) resulted in similar trends in the MMHg concentration, an increase with low levels of Fe additions and a subsequent decrease with high levels of Fe additions. The limited availability of dissolved Hg, associated with sulfide removal by precipitation of FeS, appears to inhibit the net MMHg production in high levels of Fe additions. There was a noticeable reduction in the net MMHg production in Fe(III)-amended slurries as compared to Fe(II)-amended ones, which could be caused by a decrease in the sulfate reduction rate. This agrees with the results of Hg methylation assays using the enrichment cultures of anaerobic bacteria: whereas the enrichment cultures of sulfate reducers showed significant production of MMHg (4.6% of amended Hg), those of Fe(III), Mn(IV), and nitrate reducers showed no production of MMHg. It appears that enhanced Fe(III)-reduction activities suppress the formation of MMHg in high sulfate estuarine sediments.     

Formation and stability of mixed Mg/Ca/phytate species in synthetic seawater media: Consequences on ligand speciation

The results of a potentiometric investigation (by ISE-H⁺, glass electrode) on the speciation of phytate ion (Phy¹²⁻) in an ionic medium simulating the major components (Na⁺, K⁺, Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, Cl⁻ and SO₄²⁻) of natural seawater, at different salinities and t = 25 °C, are reported. The work was particularly aimed at determining the possible formation of mixed Ca²⁺–Mg²⁺–phytate ion pairs, and to establish how including the formation of these mixed species would affect the speciation modeling in seawater media. After testing various speciation models, that considering the formation of the MgCaH₃Phy⁵⁻, MgCaH₄Phy⁴⁻, Mg₂CaH₃Phy³⁻ and Mg₂CaH₄Phy²⁻ species was accepted, and corresponding stability constants were determined at two salinities (S = 5, 10). A discussion is reported both on the choice of the experimental conditions and on the possibility to extend these results to those typical of real seawater. A detailed procedure is also described to demonstrate that the stability of these species is higher than that statistically predicted. As reported in literature, a parameter, namely log X, has been determined in order to quantify this extra stability for the formation of each mixed species at various salinities. For example, at S = 10, log X₁₁₃ = 2.67 and log X₁₁₄ = 1.37 for MgCaH₃Phy⁵⁻ and MgCaH₄Phy⁴⁻ (statistical value is log X_stat = 0.60), and log X₂₁₃ = 6.11 and log X₂₁₄ = 2.15 for Mg₂CaH₃Phy³⁻ and Mg₂CaH₄Phy²⁻ (log X_stat = 1.43), respectively. Results obtained also showed that the formation of these species may occur even in conditions of low salinity (i.e. low concentration of alkaline earth cations) and low pH (i.e., more protonated ligand).     

Method‐dependent influence of environmental variables on reef fish assemblages when comparing trap and video surveys

Despite substantial survey effort and a large body of literature on abiotic and biotic factors in temperate reef ecosystems, knowledge of the complex and interactive effects of environmental variables on those communities is limited. Various survey methods have been developed to study environmental predictors of biodiversity, but there remains a gap in our understanding of how survey results are influenced by environmental factors. Here, we surveyed the fish assemblage associated with southeastern U.S. temperate marine reefs with simultaneous, paired trap, and camera gears throughout a ~50,000 km² area during 2011–2013 and assessed the influence of environmental variables on the trap‐ and video‐surveyed assemblages. Predictor variables in the multivariate general linear models included depth, temperature, month, year, location, substrate relief, percent sessile biota, biota type, and turbidity. Depth and latitude had the greatest influence on the fish assemblage for both gears. The influence of habitat variables differed between methods and percent biota explained more variation in the fish assemblage when assessed by traps, while substrate relief and biota type explained more variation in the fish assemblage when assessed by video. In general, habitat complexity was positively related to the abundance of fishes in the video survey, but there was a negative relationship in the trap survey. Differences between gears were species‐specific and the influences of environmental variables were similar for some species such as Haemulon plumierii and Hyporthodus niveatus. The methods presented here can be used to assess method‐dependent differences in fish assemblages, which is a necessary precursor to assess the effect of environmental variables on the accuracy of surveys.     

A laboratory study on capillary sealing efficiency of Iranian shale and anhydrite caprocks

Caprock has the most important role in the long term safety of formation gas storage. The caprocks trap fluid accumulated beneath, contribute to lateral migration of this fluid and impede its upward migration. The rapid upward passage of invasive plumes due to buoyancy pressure is prevented by capillary pressure within these seal rocks. In the present study, two main seal rocks, from the Zagros basin in the southwest of Iran, a shale core sample of Asmari formation and an anhydrite core sample of Gachsaran formation, were provided. Absolute permeabilities of shale and anhydrite cores, considering the Klinkenberg effect, were measured as 6.09 × 10⁻¹⁸ and 0.89 × 10⁻¹⁸ m², respectively. Capillary sealing efficiency of the cores was investigated using gas breakthrough experiments. To do so, two distinct techniques including step by step and residual capillary pressure approaches were performed, using carbon dioxide, nitrogen and methane gases at temperatures of 70 and 90 °C, under confining pressures in the range 24.13–37.92 MPa. In the first technique, it was found that capillary breakthrough pressure of the cores varies in the range from 2.76 to 34.34 MPa. Moreover, the measurements indicated that after capillary breakthrough, gas effective permeabilities lie in range 1.85 × 10⁻²¹ – 1.66 × 10⁻¹⁹ m². In the second technique, the minimum capillary displacement pressure of shale varied from 0.66 to 1.45 MPa with the maximum effective permeability around 7.76 × 10⁻²¹ – 6.69 × 10⁻²⁰ m². The results indicate that anhydrite caprock of the Gachsaran formation provides proper capillary sealing efficacy, suitable for long term storage of the injected CO₂ plumes, due to its higher capillary breakthrough pressure and lower gas effective permeability.