Geographic variation of parasitic and predatory traces on mollusks in the northern Adriatic Sea, Italy: implications for the stratigraphic paleobiology of biotic interactions

Paleobiology ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 134-153 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Warren Huntley ◽  
Daniele Scarponi
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Temporal Trends ◽  
Biotic Interactions ◽  
Diversity Indices ◽  
Northern Adriatic Sea ◽  
Po River ◽  
Northern Adriatic ◽  
Ideal System ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Po Delta

AbstractParasitic trematode worms leave characteristic pits in their bivalve mollusk hosts and represent an ideal system for analyzing parasite-host interactions through space and time with statistically meaningful sample sizes. Previous work in Late Pleistocene–Holocene sequences from the Po plain revealed significant long-term fluctuations in trematode prevalence values: higher prevalence in retrogradational environments (TST) and negligible prevalence in progradational environments (HST). Here we expand upon this work by investigating traces of parasitism, kleptoparasitism, and predation on mollusk death assemblages from two domains along the northern Adriatic coastline. The domain north of the Po delta (TST-like) and the southern domain (including the Po delta; HST-like) comprise environments comparable to those recovered in late Holocene (<6 Kyr) subsurface progradational deposits. We collected 17,299 specimens representing 111 species from 11 locations on the northern Adriatic coast of Italy. Our results reveal high predation pressure, a high diversity of host taxa, and widespread presence of trematode infestation in starved, oligotrophic, environmentally more stable (i.e., TST-like) settings north of the Po delta. Immediately south of the Po delta, in settings with strong and variable sedimentary input, almost no infestation is recorded. The reappearance of infestation is evident in the southern portion of the study area (i.e., Cattolica-Montemarciano), relatively far from the highly stressed environments south of the Po River. There is no significant difference in trematode prevalence values between fossil and modern samples. The distribution of spionid traces (an indicator of stressed environments) was nearly the opposite of that displayed by trematodes. Drilling frequency is highest in TST-like environments and is not correlated with diversity indices. These results suggest that temporal trends of trematode prevalence (and possibly also other biotic interactions) in sedimentary successions are controlled by environmental changes driven by glacio-eustatic dynamics, and reaffirm the importance of interpreting temporal trends in the context of spatial variation.

scholarly journals Untargeted In Silico Compound Classification—A Novel Metabolomics Method to Assess the Chemodiversity in Bryophytes

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (6) ◽  
pp. 3251
Author(s):  
Kristian Peters ◽  
Gerd Balcke ◽  
Niklas Kleinenkuhnen ◽  
Hendrik Treutler ◽  
Steffen Neumann
Keyword(s):  
In Silico ◽  
Structural Integrity ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Light Availability ◽  
Biotic Interactions ◽  
Plant Ecology ◽  
Chemical Diversity ◽  
Classification Framework ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Compound Classification

In plant ecology, biochemical analyses of bryophytes and vascular plants are often conducted on dried herbarium specimen as species typically grow in distant and inaccessible locations. Here, we present an automated in silico compound classification framework to annotate metabolites using an untargeted data independent acquisition (DIA)–LC/MS–QToF-sequential windowed acquisition of all theoretical fragment ion mass spectra (SWATH) ecometabolomics analytical method. We perform a comparative investigation of the chemical diversity at the global level and the composition of metabolite families in ten different species of bryophytes using fresh samples collected on-site and dried specimen stored in a herbarium for half a year. Shannon and Pielou’s diversity indices, hierarchical clustering analysis (HCA), sparse partial least squares discriminant analysis (sPLS-DA), distance-based redundancy analysis (dbRDA), ANOVA with post-hoc Tukey honestly significant difference (HSD) test, and the Fisher’s exact test were used to determine differences in the richness and composition of metabolite families, with regard to herbarium conditions, ecological characteristics, and species. We functionally annotated metabolite families to biochemical processes related to the structural integrity of membranes and cell walls (proto-lignin, glycerophospholipids, carbohydrates), chemical defense (polyphenols, steroids), reactive oxygen species (ROS) protection (alkaloids, amino acids, flavonoids), nutrition (nitrogen- and phosphate-containing glycerophospholipids), and photosynthesis. Changes in the composition of metabolite families also explained variance related to ecological functioning like physiological adaptations of bryophytes to dry environments (proteins, peptides, flavonoids, terpenes), light availability (flavonoids, terpenes, carbohydrates), temperature (flavonoids), and biotic interactions (steroids, terpenes). The results from this study allow to construct chemical traits that can be attributed to biogeochemistry, habitat conditions, environmental changes and biotic interactions. Our classification framework accelerates the complex annotation process in metabolomics and can be used to simplify biochemical patterns. We show that compound classification is a powerful tool that allows to explore relationships in both molecular biology by “zooming in” and in ecology by “zooming out”. The insights revealed by our framework allow to construct new research hypotheses and to enable detailed follow-up studies.

scholarly journals Seasonal and Interannual Trends of Oceanographic Parameters over 40 Years in the Northern Adriatic Sea in Relation to Nutrient Loadings Using the EMODnet Chemistry Data Portal

Water ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (8) ◽  
pp. 2280 ◽  
Author(s):  
Federica Grilli ◽  
Stefano Accoroni ◽  
Francesco Acri ◽  
Fabrizio Bernardi Aubry ◽  
Caterina Bergami ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Changes ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Adriatic Sea ◽  
Nutrient Concentrations ◽  
Data Series ◽  
Mean Flow ◽  
Northern Adriatic Sea ◽  
Po River ◽  
Northern Adriatic

Long-term data series (1971–2015) of physical and biogeochemical parameters were analyzed in order to assess trends and variability of oceanographic conditions in the northern Adriatic Sea (NAS), a mid-latitude shallow continental shelf strongly impacted by river discharges, human activities and climate changes. Interpolation maps and statistical models were applied to investigate seasonal and spatial variability, as well as decadal trends of temperature, salinity, chlorophyll-a and nutrients. This analysis shows that sea surface temperature increased by +0.36% year−1 over four decades. Annual mean flow of the Po River markedly changed due to the occurrence of periods of persistent drought, whereas the frequency of flow rates higher than 3000 m3 s−1 decreased between 2006 and 2015. Moreover, we observed a long-term decrease in surface phosphate concentrations in Po River water (−1.34% year−1) and in seawater (in summer −2.56% year−1) coupled, however, to a significant increase in nitrate concentration in seawater (+3.80% year−1) in almost all seasons. These changes indicate that the nutrient concentrations in the NAS have been largely modulated, in the last forty years, by the evolution of environmental management practices and of the runoff. This implies that further alteration of the marine environment must be expected as a consequence of the climate changes.

scholarly journals Assessing Po River Deltaic Vulnerability Using Earth Observation and a Bayesian Belief Network Model

Water ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (10) ◽  
pp. 2830
Author(s):  
Andrea Taramelli ◽  
Emiliana Valentini ◽  
Margherita Righini ◽  
Federico Filipponi ◽  
Serena Geraldini ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hot Spots ◽  
Spatial Planning ◽  
Bayesian Belief Network ◽  
Earth Observation ◽  
Po River ◽  
Northern Adriatic ◽  
Belief Network ◽  
Time Series Dataset ◽  
Po Delta ◽  
Definition Of

Deltaic systems are broadly recognized as vulnerable hot spots at the interface between land and sea and are highly exposed to harmful natural and manmade threats. The vulnerability to these threats and the interactions of the biological, physical, and anthropogenic processes in low-lying coastal plains, such as river deltas, requires a better understanding in terms of vulnerable systems and to support sustainable management and spatial planning actions in the context of climate change. This study analyses the potential of Bayesian belief network (BBN) models to represent conditional dependencies in vulnerability assessment for future sea level rise (SLR) scenarios considering ecological, morphological and social factors using Earth observation (EO) time series dataset. The BBN model, applied in the Po Delta region in the northern Adriatic coast of Italy, defines relationships between twelve selected variables classified as driver factors (DF), land cover factors (LCF), and land use factors (LUF) chosen as critical for the definition of vulnerability hot spots, future coastal adaptation, and spatial planning actions to be taken. The key results identify the spatial distribution of the vulnerability along the costal delta and highlight where the probability of vulnerable areas is expected to increase in terms of SLR pressure, which occurs especially in the central and southern delta portion.

Micro- and macrofaunal responses to major environmental changes in Holocene highstand sediments from the Northern Adriatic Sea

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michaela Berensmeier ◽  
Adam Tomašových ◽  
Martin Zuschin
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metal ◽  
Metal Pollution ◽  
Adriatic Sea ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Benthic Communities ◽  
Time Averaging ◽  
Surface Mixed Layer ◽  
Northern Adriatic Sea ◽  
Northern Adriatic ◽  
Ecological Changes

&lt;p&gt;Benthic communities in the Northern Adriatic Sea experienced major environmental and ecological changes during the late Holocene, particularly in the late 20&lt;sup&gt;th&lt;/sup&gt; century due to anthropogenic induced stressors such as hypoxic events. These events lead to mass mortalities and changes in benthic communities. Here, we assess stratigraphic changes in bulk sediment geochemistry and sedimentological attributes to quantify the magnitude and timing of environmental changes and to correlate them to ecological changes. We focus on the reconstruction of the micro- to macrobenthic community composition (foraminifera, ostracods, bivalves and gastropods) prior and after major anthropogenic impacts. We investigate the differences in responses of these taxonomic groups to environmental changes and account for the impact of time-averaging.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The 3-m-long gravity core was collected at 31 m water depth, off the Po prodelta in the western part of the northern Adriatic Sea. The upper 60 cm of the core represent a condensed record determined by sediment bypassing and winnowing during the early and late sea level highstand. In total, 50 shells of the common bivalve &lt;em&gt;Corbula gibba&lt;/em&gt; were dated by &lt;sup&gt;14&lt;/sup&gt;C-calibrated amino acid racemization (AAR) from the upper 30 cm and plant remains were dated by &lt;sup&gt;14&lt;/sup&gt;C from deeper parts. These analyses show that median shell ages of &lt;em&gt;Corbula&lt;/em&gt; decline downcore, from ~50 years in the top 2.5 cm to 1,400 years in the 5-7.5 cm increment, 2,900 years in the 10-12.5 cm increment, and 4,500 years in the 17.5-20 cm increment. Median age in the 28-33 cm increment is again 3,600 years, indicating effects of mixing. The youngest shell corresponds to 24 years BP in the top 2.5 cm and the oldest shell to to 7800 years BP at the base at 30 cm.&amp;#160; The 60 cm-long highstand record can be divided in 4 major intervals:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;(1) Early-highstand sediments cover the development of a baseline community. Total abundances of micro-and macrobenthic species increase upwards (2) In the late-highstand sediments (around 12.5-15 cm), micro-and macrobenthic absolute species abundance are highest. Increase in eutrophication and heavy metal pollution is indicated by rising N levels and Pb content in bulk sediments. (3) At 5 cm depth, a major anthropogenic environmental shift indicated by strong pollution (Pb and Hg) and eutrophication (TOC) coincides with a strong decline in micro-and macrobenthic abundance and diversity (4) The surface-mixed layer yields a slight increase in micro-to macrobenthic abundances, next to a slight decrease of heavy metal pollution and eutrophication.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;sup&gt;14&lt;/sup&gt;C-calibrated AAR shell ages indicate a relatively limited, centennial time averaging (measured by interquartile age ranges) of &lt;em&gt;Corbula&lt;/em&gt; in the uppermost increment but then show a millennial-scale time-averaging below the uppermost surface-mixed layer. This can be linked to a decrease in bioturbation in the 20&lt;sup&gt;th&lt;/sup&gt; century and to a slight increase in sedimentation rate. Although the record is affected by time-averaging, the micro-and macrobenthic community abundances show a distinct pattern that can be related to environmental changes from geochemical sediment proxies. Benthic foraminifers, ostracods and mollusks abundance show similar responses to sedimentological and geochemical tracers in these condensed sediments.&lt;/p&gt;

scholarly journals The infaunal community in experimentally seeded low and high density Manila clam (Tapes philippinarum) beds in a Po River Delta lagoon (Italy)

2006 ◽  
Vol 63 (5) ◽  
pp. 860-866 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Mantovani ◽  
G. Castaldelli ◽  
R. Rossi ◽  
E.A. Fano
Keyword(s):  
Subsequent Development ◽  
River Delta ◽  
Manila Clam ◽  
Macrobenthic Community ◽  
In Situ Experiment ◽  
Northern Adriatic Sea ◽  
Tapes Philippinarum ◽  
Po River ◽  
Northern Adriatic ◽  
Infaunal Community

Abstract The Sacca di Goro is a shallow, brackish, eutrophic coastal lagoon in the southernmost part of the Po River Delta (northern Adriatic Sea, Italy). It is heavily exploited for rearing the Manila clam (Tapes philippinarum), mean annual production since 1986 being 10 000 t. Commercial cultivation of bivalves can exert severe impact on a local environment, especially on the invertebrate community, reducing species richness and abundance. An in situ experiment was conducted from March 2003 to February 2004 to examine the effect of clam cultivation on the macrobenthic community. Replicated sites within an area licensed for clam farming were seeded with low (500 m−2) and high (1500 m−2) clam densities; the surrounding unseeded areas were used as a control. There were only weak effects of clam presence and density on macrobenthic community abundance and functional group composition. The main determinants regulating the macrobenthic community were seasonal variations in other biota, particularly proliferation of the invasive mussel, Musculista senhousia, in August, which in turn caused a significant increase in the biomass of surface deposit-feeders and the subsequent development of Ulva rigida beds in September.

scholarly journals Ecological Importance of Alkaline Phosphatase Activity in Changing Marine Environmental Conditions

Water ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (19) ◽  
pp. 2750
Author(s):  
Ingrid Ivančić ◽  
Romina Kraus ◽  
Mirjana Najdek ◽  
Stefano Cozzi
Keyword(s):  
Alkaline Phosphatase ◽  
Phosphatase Activity ◽  
Alkaline Phosphatase Activity ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Nutrient Loads ◽  
Northern Adriatic Sea ◽  
Po River ◽  
Coastal System ◽  
Northern Adriatic ◽  
P Limitation

The effects of changing hydrological and climatic conditions on the dynamics of phosphorus (P) were studied in the Northern Adriatic Sea (NA), a coastal system currently affected by these changes. P limitation is one of the key stresses in the NA and it is a globally important phenomenon in aquatic ecosystems. Therefore, the response to P stress by inducing alkaline phosphatase activity (APA) was studied in characteristic water types in the NA, formed by the changing freshwater input in different thermic conditions. APA was important in providing P for microbial growth in upper waters dominated by assimilation during the warmer part of the year in stratified conditions. Contrarily, APA was not important during mixing in the colder part of the year, as well as in waters dominated by regeneration. In waters influenced by freshwater, temperature had no effect on APA, while in high-salinity waters, temperature was an important factor for APA increase. The highest APA occurred during riverine nutrients supply, indicating that the alteration of anthropogenic nutrient loads might strongly change P status in this coastal system. Furthermore, predicted increases in winter sea temperature and summer Po River discharge could delay the water column mixing, prolonging periods of P limitation.

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