Origin of nitrogen in the English Channel and Southern Bight of the North Sea ecosystems

The distribution of sole (Solea solea) eggs and larvae were described from two cruises conducted in April and May 1995 along the French coast of the eastern English Channel and the Belgian coast of the Southern Bight of the North Sea. Sole migration was investigated using larval stages and univariate spatial analysis as geostatistics (variograms). Important environmental parameters were selected by comparison with larval distribution. Path analysis was used to remove spatial correlation and to define links between abundance and environmental variables. Sole larvae were found to be coastal throughout their development. Strong links between larval distribution and environmental parameters were identified, particularly for the younger stages which were found in higher abundance in areas of high chlorophyll-a concentration. The association was not direct, suggesting that the larval spatial distribution was influenced by an undetermined, intermediate variable, such as larval prey. Sole larvae are retained in the coastal area throughout ontogeny despite the strong hydrodynamics which characterize the region. Larval distribution resulted from behavioural mechanisms as well as environmental influences.

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Long-term hydrological and phytoplankton monitoring (1992–2007) of three potentially eutrophic systems in the eastern English Channel and the Southern Bight of the North Sea

ICES Journal of Marine Science ◽

10.1093/icesjms/fsr149 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 68 (10) ◽

pp. 2029-2043 ◽

Cited By ~ 37

Author(s):

Alain Lefebvre ◽

Natacha Guiselin ◽

Frederique Barbet ◽

Felipe L. Artigas

Keyword(s):

North Sea ◽

Inorganic Nitrogen ◽

Regional Scale ◽

Nutrient Concentrations ◽

English Channel ◽

Southern Bight ◽

The North ◽

The North Sea ◽

Phytoplankton Monitoring

Abstract Lefebvre, A., Guiselin, N., Barbet, F., and Artigas, F. L. 2011. Long-term hydrological and phytoplankton monitoring (1992–2007) of three potentially eutrophic systems in the eastern English Channel and the Southern Bight of the North Sea. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 68: 2029–2043. The spatial and main temporal variations in nutrient concentrations and phytoplankton abundance were investigated between 1992 and 2007 in the eastern English Channel and the Southern Bight of the North Sea, zones of consistent presence of Phaeocystis globosa and diatom blooms. Silicate and phosphate were the main nutrients potentially limiting phytoplankton growth, but the dynamics of the limitation seemingly differ between sites. Phosphate concentration showed a clear monotonic decreasing trend, whereas dissolved inorganic nitrogen and silicate trends were more complex. Nitrate was rarely or never a limiting factor. Results highlight three main periods with a Phaeocystis- or diatom-dominated system in the 1990s, and a more complex pattern in the 2000s. The composition of the phytoplanktonic community is described and an attempt made to establish a link between the community and its environment in terms of variability, shifts, and trends. The effects of larger- vs. regional-scale controlling factors are also discussed.

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Macrobenthos of a Sublittoral Sandbank in the Southern Bight of the North Sea

Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom ◽

10.1017/s002531540001972x ◽

1982 ◽

Vol 62 (3) ◽

pp. 521-534 ◽

Cited By ~ 21

Author(s):

C. Vanosmael ◽

K. A. Willems ◽

D. Claeys ◽

M. Vincx ◽

C. Heip

Keyword(s):

North Sea ◽

Tidal Currents ◽

English Channel ◽

Marine Transgression ◽

Sea Floor ◽

Southern Bight ◽

Glacial Origin ◽

The North ◽

Belgian Coast ◽

The North Sea

In the Southern Bight of the North Sea, off the Belgian coast, exists a series of parallel sublittoral sandbanks, the Flemish Banks, situated in a southwest-northeastern direction, 15–25 km long and 3–6 km wide. They are separated by channels, 4–6 km wide, and rise about 25 m above the surrounding sea-floor (Fig. 1). These sandbanks resulted from the accumulation of sandy deposits of glacial origin sedimented by the giant stream draining the waters from the present Rhine, Meuse, Scheldt and Thames before the Flandrian marine transgression about 12000 years ago. When from boreal times onwards the North Sea became slowly inundated, a connexion existed with the small English Channel which gradually enlarged, resulting in the very strong tidal currents which are responsible for the present geomorphology of the region.

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Assessment of benthic ecosystem functioning through trophic web modelling: the example of the eastern basin of the English Channel and the Southern Bight of the North Sea

Marine Ecology ◽

10.1111/j.1439-0485.2011.00428.x ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 32 ◽

pp. 72-86 ◽

Cited By ~ 20

Author(s):

Clément Garcia ◽

Pierre Chardy ◽

Jean-Marie Dewarumez ◽

Jean-Claude Dauvin

Keyword(s):

North Sea ◽

Ecosystem Functioning ◽

English Channel ◽

Eastern Basin ◽

Trophic Web ◽

Southern Bight ◽

The North ◽

The North Sea

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Distribution and particle size of suspended matter in the Southern Bight of the North Sea and the eastern [English] channel

Deep Sea Research Part B Oceanographic Literature Review ◽

10.1016/0198-0254(80)95842-2 ◽

1980 ◽

Vol 27 (12) ◽

pp. 862

Keyword(s):

Particle Size ◽

North Sea ◽

Suspended Matter ◽

English Channel ◽

Southern Bight ◽

The North ◽

The North Sea

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Trend analysis of the published concentrations of heavy metals in aerosols above the North Sea and the English Channel for the period 1971-1994

Environmental Reviews ◽

10.1139/a99-012 ◽

1999 ◽

Vol 7 (4) ◽

pp. 191-202

Author(s):

Stefaan Hoornaert ◽

Boris Treiger ◽

René Van Grieken ◽

Remi Laane

Keyword(s):

Heavy Metals ◽

Trace Metals ◽

Literature Review ◽

Trend Analysis ◽

North Sea ◽

English Channel ◽

Southern Bight ◽

The North ◽

The North Sea ◽

Marine Areas

A literature review is given of atmospheric trace metal concentrations in aerosols above the North Sea and the English Channel over the period 1971-1994. Literature data have been gathered and intercompared to look for possible trends in the reported concentrations. Six trace metals are considered: Cd, Cu, Pb, Zn, Ni, and Cr. A distinction is made between measurements in different regions of the North Sea, and between coastal and marine areas. The majority of the data deals with the Southern Bight, providing the most reliable trends. Strong decreasing trends are observed for the Pb and Zn concentrations above the North Sea during the years 1971-1994. For Cd, Cu, Ni, and Cr, much less data are available in the literature. Despite this, also for Cd and Cu a decreasing trend is present. Cr and Ni concentrations are fluctuating, mostly without a certain pattern. The trends in the concentrations are also compared to changes in the European emission profiles. Key words: heavy metals, aerosols, North Sea, trend analysis, literature.

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Mean Heat and Salt Budgets for the Eastern English Channel and Southern Bight of the North Sea

Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom ◽

10.1017/s0025315400019755 ◽

1982 ◽

Vol 62 (3) ◽

pp. 559-575 ◽

Cited By ~ 16

Author(s):

Linda Maddock ◽

R. D. Pingree

Keyword(s):

North Sea ◽

Eddy Diffusion ◽

English Channel ◽

Southern Bight ◽

The North ◽

Temperature Distributions ◽

Lack Of Information ◽

Run Off ◽

Salt Budget ◽

The North Sea

In an earlier study Pingree, Pennycuick & Battin (1975) used a diffusion model to study the monthly temperature distribution and heat exchange in the English Channel. This showed that the diffusion would have to be adjusted according to the tidal ellipses for an improvement in the predicted temperature distributions, and that advection was probably an important factor at certain times of year. An attempt to use the same model for prediction of the salinity distributions was unsuccessful due partly to lack of information on run-off, precipitation and evaporation. The present study is an attempt to provide an overall monthly mean heat and salt budget for the eastern English Channel and Southern Bight of the North Sea which could serve as a preliminary to a two-dimensional mixing/advection model in which the horizontal eddy diffusion is represented as a tensor based on the tidal ellipse properties (Hunter, 1975).

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