Seasonal changes in community composition and trophic structure of fish populations of five salt marshes along the Essex coastline, United Kingdom

European intertidal salt marshes are important nursery sites for juvenile fish and crustaceans. Due to the increasing threat of habitat loss, the seasonal changes of salt marsh fish communities need to be understood in order to appreciate the ecological and economic importance of the saltmarsh habitat. This study was the first in Great Britain to investigate the seasonal changes of salt marsh fish communities and the variation in community structure between closely located marsh habitats. Between February 2007 and March 2008, five marshes on three estuaries of the Essex coastline were sampled using flume nets to block off intertidal creeks at high tide. Fourteen fish species were caught. The community overall was dominated by three species that made up 91.6% of the total catch: the common goby Pomatoschistus microps (46.2% of the total catch), juvenile herring Clupea harengus (24.3%), and juvenile and larval sea bass Dicentrarchus labrax (21.2%). Cluster analysis demonstrated clear seasonal patterns, with some community structures unique to specific marshes or estuaries. The marsh fish community shifts from a highly diverse community during spring, to a community dominated by D. labrax and P. microps in autumn, and low diversity during winter months. Gravimetric stomach content analysis of fish community identified three main trophic guilds; macroinvertivores, planktivores and omnivores. The macroinvertivore feeding guild contained D. labrax and P. microps, the two most frequently occurring species. This investigation demonstrates the importance of British salt marshes as nursery habitats for commercial fish species.     

Mangrove expansion and rainfall patterns in Moreton Bay, Southeast Queensland, Australia

Changes in rainfall pattern have been suggested as a mechanism for the landward incursion of mangrove into salt marsh. The aim of the research was to assess the relationship between rainfall patterns and the spatial distribution of mangrove forests at study sites in Moreton Bay, Southeast Queensland, Australia, over a 32-year period from 1972 to 2004. To identify periods of relatively consistent rainfall patterns points at which rainfall patterns changed (change-points) were identified using the non-parametric Pettitt–Mann–Whitney-Statistic and the cumulative sum technique. The change-points were then used to define the temporal periods over which changes to mangrove area were assessed. Both mangrove and salt marsh area were measured by digitizing aerial photographs acquired in 1972, 1990 (the year with the most significant change-point), and 2004. The rates of change in mangrove area pre-1990 (a wetter period) and post-1990 (a drier period) were estimated. A significant positive relationship was demonstrated between rainfall variables and landward mangrove expansion, but not for seaward expansion. We concluded that rainfall variability is one of the principal factors influencing the rate of upslope encroachment of mangrove. However, the rate of expansion may vary from site to site due to site-specific geomorphological and hydrological characteristics and the level of disturbance in the catchment.     

内蒙孪井灌区土壤盐分运移规律分析

研究了孪井灌区典型地段包气带土层可溶盐分在灌溉前后的变化,分析了灌溉水和土壤水盐分动态特征,并在室内进行了不同类型土壤的淋滤试验。结果表明引黄灌溉是使土壤脱盐的过程,尤其是灌溉初期,土壤脱盐非常明显。灌溉洗盐与包气带岩性和灌水量有关,砂壤土较黏砂土易脱盐,土壤初始含盐量越大,灌溉量越大,土壤脱盐量就越大。     

Communities structure of the planktonic halophiles in the solar saltern of Sfax,Tunisia

The composition and distribution of the main planktonic halophilic micro-organisms (heterotrophic and autotrophic picoplankton, nanoplankton, phytoplankton, ciliates) and metazooplankton were investigated in six ponds of increasing salinity in the solar salt works of Sfax, Tunisia, from January to December 2003. Marked changes in the composition and biomass of the communities were found along the salinity gradient, especially at salinities of 150 and 350. Autotrophic picoplankton, nanoplankton, diatoms, dinoflagellates and ciliates characterized the less salted ponds. Planktonic biomass was the highest at intermediate salinity as a consequence of a bloom of Ochromonas. Species richness of phytoplankton, ciliates and zooplankton greatly decrease above a salinity of 150 and typical halophiles (Dunaliella salina, cyanobacteria, Fabrea salina and Artemia salina) were found between 150 and 350 salinity. In this environment, F. salina appeared more adapted than the brine shrimp to survive during phytoplankton blooms. The halophilic plankton was however almost entirely composed of heterotrophic prokaryotes in the crystallizers. We thus observed a progressive disappearance of the autotrophic planktonic communities along the salinity gradient. Multivariate analysis of the communities provides evidence that ponds represent discrete aquatic ecosystems within this salt works.     

Ecophysiological characteristics of invasive Spartina alterniflora and native species in salt marshes of Yangtze River estuary,China

Biological invasions represent one of the significant components of global change. A comparative study of invaders and co-occurring natives is a useful approach to gaining insights into the invasiveness of exotic plants. Spartina alterniflora, a C₄ grass, is a widespread invader in the coastal wetlands in China and other regions of the world. We conducted a comparative study of S. alterniflora and native C₃ species, Phragmites australis and Scirpus mariqueter, in terms of their gas exchange and efficiencies in resource utilization. We tested the hypothesis that S. alterniflora has growth-related ecophysiological advantages over the natives in its non-native range, which result in its rapid growth and enhance its invasiveness. Photosynthesis, leaf area index (LAI), specific leaf area (SLA), and the efficiency of resource use (light, water, and nitrogen) were examined monthly for eight months in 2004. Overall, S. alterniflora had greater LAI, higher maximal net photosynthetic rate (A_max), and longer growing season than those of the native species. On average, the efficiencies of S. alterniflora in light, water, and nitrogen utilization were respectively 10.1%, 26.1%, and 33.1% higher than those of P. australis, and respectively 70.3%, 53.5%, 28.3% higher than those of S. mariqueter. However, SLA of S. alterniflora was significantly lower than those of P. australis and S. mariqueter. Although there was no general pattern in the relationship between invasiveness and plant photosynthetic types, in this study, most of the ecophysiological characteristics that gave S. alterniflora a competitive advantage in the Yangtze River estuary were associated with photosynthetic pathways. Our results offer a greater understanding of the relationship between invasiveness and plant photosynthetic type. Our results also indicate that LAI and the length of the photosynthetic season, which vary with habitats, are also important in invasion success.     

Impact of dynamic feedbacks between sedimentation,sea-level rise,and biomass production on near-surface marsh stratigraphy and carbon accumulation

Salt marshes accrete both organic and inorganic sediments. Here we present analytical and numerical models of salt marsh sedimentation that, in addition to capturing inorganic processes, explicitly account for above- and belowground organic processes including root growth and decay of organic carbon. The analytical model is used to examine the bias introduced by organic processes into proxy records of sedimentation, namely ¹³⁷Cs and ²¹⁰Pb. We find that accretion rates estimated using ²¹⁰Pb will be less than accretion rates estimated using the ¹³⁷Cs peak in steadily accreting marshes if (1) carbon decay is significant and (2) data for ²¹⁰Pb extend below the ¹³⁷Cs peak. The numerical model expands upon the analytical model by including belowground processes such as compaction and root growth, and by explicitly tracking the evolution of aboveground biomass and its effect on sedimentation rates. Using the numerical model we explore how marsh stratigraphy responds to sediment supply and the rate of sea-level rise. It is calibrated and tested using an extensive data set of both marsh stratigraphy and measurements of vegetation dynamics in a Spartina alterniflora marsh in South Carolina, USA. We find that carbon accumulation in marshes is nonlinearly related to both the supply of inorganic sediment and the rate of sea-level rise; carbon accumulation increases with sea-level rise until sea-level rise reaches a critical rate that drowns the marsh vegetation and halts carbon accumulation. The model predicts that changes in carbon storage resulting from changing sediment supply or sea-level rise are strongly dependent on the background sediment supply: if inorganic sediment supply is reduced in an already sediment poor marsh the storage of organic carbon will increase to a far greater extent than in a sediment-rich marsh, provided that the rate of sea-level rise does not exceed a threshold. These results imply that altering sediment supply to estuaries (e.g., by damming upstream rivers or altering littoral sediment transport) could lead to significant changes in the carbon budgets of coastal salt marshes.     

The influence of the Sabatayn Evaporites on the hydrocarbon prospectivity of the Eastern Shabwa Basin, Onshore Yemen

The Shabwa Basin is the northeastern extension of the Marib-Al Jawf-Shabwa system of Mesozoic grabens, located onshore in the Republic of Yemen. An evaporitic sequence with an estimated maximum depositional thickness of 300 metres was deposited during the Tithonian. It is designated the Sabatayn Formation and exerts significant control on most of the play elements in the principal hydrocarbon play systems anticipated in the northeastern part of the basin. Migration of hydrocarbons from pre-salt source rocks into intra-and post-salt reservoirs is restricted by the evaporites. Localised heat flow perturbations introduced by the salt, increase the maturity of post-salt source rocks. Post and intra-salt reservoirs are structured by listric faulting on a salt detachment, salt pillowing due to post-depositional loading, by local salt dissolution and by late folding due to gravity sliding of the post-salt section on a salt detachment. Early dissolution and reprecipitation of salt is responsible for occlusion of porosity in intra-salt clastic reservoirs.     

围海造陆条件下排海高温浓盐水对渤海湾温盐场分布影响模拟及预测

自2000年以来围绕渤海湾的围海工程剧增,致使工程区附近潮流场发生变化,进而影响排海高温浓盐水的时空分布特征。本文通过建立2000年和2015年两种不同岸线、地形条件下的三维数学模型对渤海湾沿岸3个电厂高温浓盐水表层排海问题进行模拟,研究结果表明,渤海湾的潮流场和高温浓盐水输移扩散特征在近十几年发生了较大变化:工程后,渤海湾平均盐度增大0.203,平均温度升高了0.105℃,同时曹妃甸附近海域浓盐水输移扩散速度明显增加。增大排放口流量至12.7 m3/s,湾内最高温度为26.46℃,较2015年最高温度增加了2.72℃。本文模型可准确模拟及预测排海废水盐度、温度分布特征,为合理布置水电联产设备排放口的位置提供理论基础。     

Protracted Environmental Issues on a Proposed Titanium Minerals Development in Kenya's South Coast

This study takes cognizance of the fact that the TIOMIN (TIOMIN Resources Inc. of Canada) project has resulted in controversy over its handling of environmental issues and especially the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). The authors address many of the protracted issues that have slowed the development of the mining project in Kwale. The main emphasis is on the impacts of the mining and mineral separation processes on the environment, including the governing legislation, the role of consultation and public participation, and socioeconomic issues. In their public documents TIOMIN has specified neither the type of minerals it wants to extract from the area nor their chemical composition. It is well known, however that the titanium minerals and zircon targeted have impurities of iron, thorium and uranium. In the absence of an Environmental Management Plan, the effects of stockpiling radioactive wastes and other impurities that could possibly lead to environmental degradation in both the terrestrial and marine environments have not been publically addressed. The measures proposed to mitigate ecological damage as a result of the establishment of a minerals processing plant in the area seem inadequate. Pollution resulting from accidental spillage or breakage could have significant impact on marine life and residents living near the mining site. Other issues that have not been addressed satisfactorily pertain to the use of surface and underground water. The area already faces a huge water deficit and the calculations presented on aquifer recharge and stream flow rates do not indicate the large quantities of water that would be required in the mineral processing plant. The project, if approved in its present state, risks violation of international conventions. Furthermore, it could cause a conflict between Kenya and Tanzania in the event of an oil spill at the proposed ship loading facility at Shimoni. The proposed mining area includes the district's most fertile land, is home to many fisherfolk and is a major tourist destination. An analysis of the effects of this project on other available opportunities must be thoroughly understood to ascertain the economic and environmental benefits and costs of the mining venture. The proposed compensation rate of $1,000 per acre, for resettlement for example, appears to be grossly inadequate. Compensation should take into account family size and structure family assets and the cost of relocation.     

东菲律宾海帕里西维拉海盆第四纪黏土矿物组合特征及物源分析

应用X射线衍射(XRD)方法对东菲律宾海帕里西维拉海盆的两个重力柱状样F090815和F100609的第四纪沉积物进行了黏土矿物分析。结果表明,南北两个柱状样黏土矿物呈现不同的组合特征。南部的F090815岩心蒙皂石含量(平均50%)最高,伊利石(平均37%)次之,含少量的绿泥石和高岭石(平均13%);北部的F100609岩心为伊利石含量(平均47%)最高,蒙皂石(平均39%)次之,含少量的绿泥石和高岭石(平均14%)。根据黏土矿物含量及特征变化可将两根柱状样划分为4段,并根据黏土矿物组合特征及化学指数和结晶度,认为蒙皂石主要来源于研究区东部紧邻的马里亚纳海槽基性火山物质的蚀变;伊利石主要来源于物理风化作用强烈的陆地,并很可能与亚洲风尘有关;绿泥石与伊利石有着相同的来源;高岭石在此区含量非常低,也证明了与伊利石和绿泥石来源相同。另外,两柱状样黏土矿物特征变化趋势不同,是由于整个F090815孔所揭示的地层大概只相当于F100609孔的第IV段沉积期,是该沉积期更高分辨率的反映。