Water and fine sediment dynamics in transient river plumes in a small, reef-fringed bay, Guam

Fouha Bay is a 400-m-long funnel-shaped, 10-m-deep, coral-fringed embayment on the southwest coast of Guam. It drains a small catchment area (5 km²) of steeply sloping, highly erodible lateritic soils. River floods are short-lived and the sediment load is very large, with suspended sediment concentration (SSC) exceeding 1000 mg l⁻¹. The resulting river plume is about 1 m thick and is pulsing in a series of 1–2 h-long events, with outflow velocity peaking at 0.05 m s⁻¹. Turbulent entrainment results in an oceanic inflow at depth into the bay. As soon as river flow stops, the plume floats passively and takes 5 days to be flushed out of Fouha Bay. The suspended fine sediment flocculates in 5 min and aggregates on ambient transparent exopolymer particles to form muddy marine snow flocs. In calm weather, about 75% of the riverine mud settles out of the river plume into the underlying oceanic water where it forms a transient nepheloid layer. This mud ultimately settles and is trapped in Fouha Bay. Under typhoon-driven, swell waves, the surface plume is at least 7 m thick and bottom entrainment of mud results in SSC exceeding 1000 mg l⁻¹ for several days. It is suggested that successful management of fringing coral reefs adjacent to volcanic islands may not be possible without proper land use management in the surrounding catchment.     

广东省电白县大放鸡岛滨珊瑚的重金属含量及其意义

采用等离子体质谱(ICP-MS)技术，测定了1982-2001年广东省电白县大放鸡岛(111^* 11’E、21^*21’N)滨珊瑚中的Pb、Cd、Cu、Co、Cr、Mn、Ni、Zn重金属元素的含量。结果表明，珊瑚中有高的Ni和Zn含量的平均值，且在1990和2001年Zn的含量高出平均值1．8和2．3倍；1997和1998年，Pb的含量高出平均值3．5和2．3倍；1987年Cu的含量高出平均值1．5倍。这表明珊瑚样品在上述的年段内受到了Zn、Ni、Pb和Cu较显著的污染。其他重金属元素未构成明显的影响。此外，还用多元统计分析的方法，探讨了重金属含量的年际变化率与气候环境和经济环境指标的相关性，以及重金属元素之间的相似性和差异性。     

中沙群岛春季珊瑚礁鱼类资源组成的初步研究

2003年5月采用延绳钓和底层刺网在中沙群岛珊瑚礁水域进行了1个航次的鱼类资源调查。两种作业投入的捕捞努力量分别为延绳钓5620钓、底层刺网16120m,单次作业努力量延绳钓80~600钓、底层刺网600~1200m。捕获鱼类105种,渔获量1067尾2645.76kg,其中延绳钓34种计134尾2294.32kg,底层刺网共86种计933尾351.44kg。按岛礁平均,渔获率和单位捕捞努力量渔获量(CPUE)延绳钓为2.38尾.(100钓)-1、40.82kg.(100钓)-1,底层刺网为57.88尾.(1km)-1、21.80kg.(1km)-1。捕获的主要经济种类有鲨鱼、裸胸鳝、石斑鱼、笛鲷、裸颊鲷、鱼参科鱼类和大眼鲷等。     

Sedimentation in mangroves and coral reefs in a wet tropical island, Pohnpei, Micronesia

A six-month-long study was conducted of the fate of turbid river plumes from the Enipein watershed in Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia. Pohnpei is one of the wettest places on earth, with a mean annual rainfall exceeding 4 m in the lowlands and 8 m in the highlands. The river waters were clear of sediment except after major storms with rainfall exceeding 5 cm day⁻¹. Following a storm, the river plume spread in the mangrove fringed estuary and in the coral reef lagoon. The waters were highly stratified in temperature, salinity, and suspended sediment concentration. The brackish water was flushed out in four days, while the suspended sediment all settled out in the estuary, in the mangroves, and in the lagoon including on the coral reefs, in less than one day. The mean rate of sedimentation exceeded 35 mg cm⁻² d⁻¹ both over the mangroves and on the adjacent coral reefs. While this leads to no detrimental effects on the mangroves, sediment smothers corals and leads to substantial coral mortality in the lagoon. The mud is not flushed out from the lagoon because there are no strong currents from waves or tides. This high sedimentation rate is attributable to poor farming and land-use practices on the upland areas.     

A New Plankton Sampler for Coral Reefs

Abstract. A new self-contained Horizontal Plankton Sampler (HOPLASA) collects near-reef plankton that is not captured by conventional net tows and emergence traps. An electrical motor-propeller assembly inside a large acrylic cylinder drives water past an in-line flowmeter and through a rigidly attached plankton net. When positioned in the coral reef environment this sampling gear filters known quantities of bottom water. Larvae and developmental stages of many invertebrates and some fishes that never migrate to upper water layers but constitute an important fraction of the food chain are captured. Larvae of sponges, corals, and gorgonians, the most important animal reef builders, are obtained live and undamaged and can be cultured in the laboratory for identification after metamorphosis.     

大亚湾珊瑚礁痕量金属的研究

作者采用阳极溶出伏安法测定大亚湾珊瑚礁痕量金属铜、铅、镉的含量 ,并讨论了相关的影响因素。测定结果发现 :A组、B组珊瑚礁礁体中铜、铅、镉的含量从里到外有递增的趋势 ,这与近年来大亚湾水体中铜、铅、镉含量的变化是一致的。而 A组珊瑚礁变化明显 ;B组珊瑚礁礁体中铜、铅、镉含量呈现较复杂的变化。分析认为 ,这是因珊瑚礁的形成受多种因素影响所致 :(1)海水组成对珊瑚礁化学成分的影响 ;(2 )海洋生物种类、数量及其矿物组成是制约元素分布的主要因素 ;(3)陆源碎屑组分对大亚湾珊瑚礁的化学组成有一定的影响。各因素在不同情况下所起的作用不同。     

Large amplitude, leaky, island-generated, internal waves around Palau, Micronesia

Three years of temperature data along two transects extending to 90 m depth, at Palau, Micronesia, show twice-a-day thermocline vertical displacements of commonly 50–100 m, and on one occasion 270 m. The internal wave occurred at a number of frequencies. There were a number of spectral peaks at diurnal and semi-diurnal frequencies, as well as intermediate and sub-inertial frequencies, less so at the inertial frequency. At Palau the waves generally did not travel around the island because there was no coherence between internal waves on either side of the island. The internal waves at a site 30 km offshore were out-of-phase with those on the island slopes, suggesting that the waves were generated on the island slope and then radiated away. Palau Island was thus a source of internal wave energy for the surrounding ocean. A numerical model suggests that the tidal and low-frequency currents flowing around the island form internal waves with maximum wave amplitude on the island slope and that these waves radiate away from the island. The model also suggests that the headland at the southern tip of Palau prevents the internal waves to rotate around the island. The large temperature fluctuations (commonly daily fluctuations ≈10 °C, peaking at 20 °C) appear responsible for generating a thermal stress responsible for a biologically depauperate biological community on the island slopes at depths between 60 and 120 m depth.     

华南珊瑚礁的海岸生物地貌过程

海岸生物地貌学研究海岸带生物过程和动力-沉积-地貌过程之间的双向相互作用，是海岸生态系统响应和反馈全球变化的重要机制，被列为全球变化核心项目海岸带陆海相互作用研究的重点内容。20世纪90年代以来对华南珊瑚礁热带生物海岸生物地貌过程的调查研究显示：①造礁石珊瑚的高生长率和珊瑚礁高堆积速率是珊瑚礁生物地貌过程的物质基础；②珊瑚礁海岸地貌结构分带性和生物地貌类型和动力地貌类型叠加并共存；③潮汐水位严格控制珊瑚礁群落分布格局并形成重要的生物地貌界限；④珊瑚礁海岸生物地貌过程有利于消除或减缓海平面上升的浸淹效应；⑤珊瑚礁海岸不断加剧的人类活动干扰和生态破坏导致生物地貌功能削弱和海岸资源环境恶化。急需加强珊瑚礁管理和保护。     

Characteristics of Growth Rate of Coral Porites from Sanya Bay, Hainan Island and its Relationship to Environmental Variables

The time series of annual and seasonal growth rate of two coral Porites, collected at different sites of fringe reef in the Sanya Bay, Hainan Island have been obtained by analyzing X-radiograph of skeletal band. There are obvious seasonal variations of the growth rate in two corals, the average low rate in winter and the average high rate from spring to autumn. Compared with the time series of environmental variables, the coral growth rote is only correlated statistically with seawater temperature and not related to rainfall and sunshine. Furthermore, the growth rate in spring and summer is correlated directly with seawater temperature of the winter-early spring ( between December and March ) and the other seasonal growth rate has no relationship with seasonal variations of seawater temperature. We propose that seawater temperature is one of the factors affecting the coral growth rate in the area and the low seawater temperature is a primary control of the seasonal growth rate.     

Food Selection in Two Corallivorous Butterflyfishes, Chaetodon austriacus and C. trifascialis, in the Northern Red Sea

Abstract. Using an in situ observational approach, the food preferences among hard corals were examined for the two obligate coral‐feeding butterflyfishes Chaetodon austriacus and C. trifascialis in the Northern Red Sea, Gulf of Aqaba, Egypt. Chaetodon austriacus is a generalist coral feeder that feeds mainly on three genera of abundant hard corals (Acropora, Porites and Pocillopora). In contrast, C. trifascialis is a specialist coral feeder on Acropora spp. and Pocillopora verrucosa. In general, C. austriacus had a lower feeding rate than C. trifascialis (both species in the Northern Red Sea reefs had high feeding rates compared with other reefs). Ivlev's electivity index was calculated for the two species. This index shows that C. austriacus prefers Montipora and Pocillopora, and avoids Lobophyllia and Favites. On the other hand, C. trifascialis prefers Acropora valida and avoids Porites solida. Thus, the feeding preference and avoidance of these chaetodontids depend on both biting rate and food availability in the environment rather than on biting rate alone.