scholarly journals The Size of Diatoms II. Further Observations on Rhizosolenia styliformis (Brightwell)

Author(s):  
R. S. Wimpenny

1. Diameter measurements of Rhizosolenia styliformis from the Antarctic, the subtropical Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and from the North Sea and neighbouring waters have made it appear necessary to set up two varieties, oceanica and semispina, in addition to the type of the species R. styliformis. The type as I describe it has been called var. longispina by Hustedt, but elsewhere it has often been figured as the var. oceanica of this paper. Var. semispina is synonymous with the form represented by Karsten as R. semispina Hensen. It differs from R. semispina as drawn by Hensen and its synonym R. hebetata forma semispina Gran, but is thought likely to be linked by intermediates. If this is so R. hebetata may have to be extended to include and suppress R. styliformis, as var. semispina is linked to the type by intermediates. Var. oceanica has no intermediate forms and, if R. hebetata is to be extended, this variety should be established as a separate species.2. Var. oceanica is absent from the southern North Sea and appears to be an indicator species related to oceanic inflow.3. Auxospore formation was observed for the type in the southern North Sea in 1935 and biometric observations suggest that a period of 3-4 years elapsed between the production of auxospore generations in that area. Outside the southern North Sea for the type, measurements give no indication of auxospore generations occurring at intervals exceeding a year. While auxospore formation has been seen in var. oceanica from the Shetlands area samples of June 1935 and July 1938, this phenomenon has not been observed for var. semispina.

Author(s):  
M. Edwards ◽  
A.W.G. John ◽  
H.G. Hunt ◽  
J.A. Lindley

Continuous Plankton Recorder records from the North Sea and north-east Atlantic from September 1997 to March 1998 indicate an exceptional influx of oceanic indicator species into the North Sea. These inflow events, according to historical evidence, have only occurred sporadically during this century. This exceptional inflow and previous inflow events are discussed in relation to their similarity in terms of their physical and climatic conditions.


2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 841-863 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Brenner ◽  
U. Braeckman ◽  
M. Le Guitton ◽  
F. J. R. Meysman

Abstract. It has been previously proposed that alkalinity release from sediments can play an important role in the carbonate dynamics on continental shelves, lowering the pCO2 of seawater and hence increasing the CO2 uptake from the atmosphere. To test this hypothesis, sedimentary alkalinity generation was quantified within cohesive and permeable sediments across the North Sea during two cruises in September 2011 (basin-wide) and June 2012 (Dutch coastal zone). Benthic fluxes of oxygen (O2), alkalinity (AT) and dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) were determined using shipboard closed sediment incubations. Our results show that sediments can form an important source of alkalinity for the overlying water, particularly in the shallow southern North Sea, where high AT and DIC fluxes were recorded in near-shore sediments of the Belgian, Dutch and German coastal zone. In contrast, fluxes of AT and DIC are substantially lower in the deeper, seasonally stratified, northern part of the North Sea. Based on the data collected, we performed a model analysis to constrain the main pathways of alkalinity generation in the sediment, and to quantify how sedimentary alkalinity drives atmospheric CO2 uptake in the southern North Sea. Overall, our results show that sedimentary alkalinity generation should be regarded as a key component in the CO2 dynamics of shallow coastal systems.


Author(s):  
Chadi Mallat ◽  
Alistair Corbett ◽  
Glyn Harris ◽  
Marc Lefranc

It is reputed in the Oil & Gas industry that marine growth is overestimated in the North Sea. Can we quantify this overestimation to better tackle the challenges marine growth incurs? This paper provides insight into the intrinsic and diverse nature of marine growth. It documents the biofouling development and the factors that affect it globally. Focus is made on fixed steel platforms in the North Sea approaching the end of their economic lives. A methodology to quantify the weight of marine growth is proposed and illustrated. 28 years after its installation, the weight of marine growth accumulated on Valhall 2/4G jacket located in Southern North Sea is evaluated based on the proposed method. It is confirmed that the current regulations overestimate the weight of marine growth in the North Sea.


Author(s):  
J. N. Carruthers

In July, 1924, 250 floating, and an equal number of bottom-trailing, bottles were put out at selected places in the western English Channel. Fifty of each type were put out at each of the two routine Stations E2 and E3, and the same number was “liberated” at each of three selected stretches along the steamship route from Southampton to St. Malo. Those surface bottles, which did not strand locally, travelled rapidly up Channel towards the North Sea and across it. Many bottles arrived in the Skager-Rack after performing their journey of some 700 miles at the rate of 6 miles a day and more. An adequate study of wind conditions, as recorded at several stations along the length of the Channel and at one station in the southern North Sea, revealed the fact that there was, for some 5½ months (counting from the time of liberation of the bottles), an almost uninterrupted predominance of south-westerly winds—as recorded at all stations considered. The whole area of the Channel was swept by south-westerly winds of average speed of some 9 miles a day for at least 5½ months subsequent to the time of putting out of the bottles. July, 1924, had (according to the Falmouth Observatory records) the largest proportion of westerly winds experienced for 54 years; 20 days of this month had winds with westerly components. The association of the unusually persistent westerly winds with the rapid travel of surface bottles towards and across the North Sea is interesting.


2007 ◽  
Vol 64 (8) ◽  
pp. 1543-1550 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. S. T. Ferro ◽  
E. G. Jones ◽  
R. J. Kynoch ◽  
R. J. Fryer ◽  
B-E. Buckett

Abstract Ferro, R. S. T., Jones, E. G., Kynoch, R. J., Fryer, R. J., and Buckett, B-E. 2007. Separating species using a horizontal panel in the Scottish North Sea whitefish trawl fishery. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 64: 1543–1550. In the North Sea, Scottish vessels target haddock, cod, whiting, monkfish, saithe, and flatfish in a mixed whitefish trawl fishery. These species mature at different sizes and hence have a range of minimum landing sizes. Their different shapes and swimming capabilities imply different selection characteristics when escaping from trawl gear. However, they are often caught at the same time on the same grounds. Optimal exploitation can only be achieved by ensuring that the selection of each species varies appropriately with length during the fishing process. This paper describes one part of a large European project to develop species-selective trawl gear to improve the exploitation pattern of North Sea cod, while maintaining the catch of other important commercial species. A gear suitable to the Scottish mixed whitefish fishery was fitted with a horizontal panel in the tapered part of the net to separate species into an upper and lower compartment. Trials were conducted on research vessels to measure separation performance for nine species in different light conditions, at different towing speeds, and with different lengths of panel. Most haddock, whiting, and saithe pass above the panel, whereas most cod, flatfish, and monkfish pass below it. Towing speed and panel length had no significant effect on separation. At lower light levels during the night (April at latitude 58° to 61°N), fewer dab, sole, plaice, and cod pass below the panel. Observations and measurements of fish behaviour using acoustic methods are described. They suggest that the height at which fish enter the net mouth may be influenced by light level and water clarity.


2010 ◽  
Vol 6 (6) ◽  
pp. 773-776 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. A. Lindley ◽  
G. Beaugrand ◽  
C. Luczak ◽  
J.-M. Dewarumez ◽  
R. R. Kirby

A long-term time series of plankton and benthic records in the North Sea indicates an increase in decapods and a decline in their prey species that include bivalves and flatfish recruits. Here, we show that in the southern North Sea the proportion of decapods to bivalves doubled following a temperature-driven, abrupt ecosystem shift during the 1980s. Analysis of decapod larvae in the plankton reveals a greater presence and spatial extent of warm-water species where the increase in decapods is greatest. These changes paralleled the arrival of new species such as the warm-water swimming crab Polybius henslowii now found in the southern North Sea. We suggest that climate-induced changes among North Sea decapods have played an important role in the trophic amplification of a climate signal and in the development of the new North Sea dynamic regime.


2000 ◽  
Vol 137 (4) ◽  
pp. 381-394 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. LOUWYE ◽  
J. DE CONINCK ◽  
J. VERNIERS

Detailed dinoflagellate cyst analysis of the Lower–Middle Miocene Berchem Formation at the southernmost margin of the North Sea Basin (northern Belgium) allowed a precise biostratigraphical positioning and a reconstruction of the depositional history. The two lower members of the formation (Edegem Sands and decalcified Kiel Sands) are biostratigraphically regarded as one unit since no significant break within the dinocyst assemblages is observed. The base of this late (or latest) Aquitanian–Burdigalian unit coincides with sequence boundary Aq3/Bur1 as defined by Hardenbol and others, in work published in 1998. A hiatus at the Lower–Middle Miocene transition separates the upper member (the Antwerpen Sands) from the underlying member. The greater part of the Antwerpen Sands were deposited in a Langhian (latest Burdigalian?)–middle Serravallian interval. The base of this unit coincides with sequence boundary Bur5/Lan1. Biostratigraphical correlation points to a diachronous post-depositional decalcification within the formation since parts of the decalcified Kiel Sands can be correlated with parts of the calcareous fossil-bearing section, up to now interpreted as Antwerpen Sands. The dinoflagellate cyst assemblages are dominated by species with a inner neritic preference, although higher numbers of oceanic taxa in the upper part of the formation indicate incursions of oceanic watermasses into the confined depositional environment of the southern North Sea Basin.


1982 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. 9-26
Author(s):  
Claus Andersen ◽  
Jens Christian Olsen ◽  
Olaf Michelsen ◽  
Erik Nygaard

The Central Graben is a broad, complex trough with a long history of differential subsidence. It was probably initiated in the Permian and was controlled by major rifting during the Mesozoic. To the south in the Dutch sector the trough is divided into two parts. From here it passes northwards and divides the southern North Sea Basin into the Anglo-Dutch Basin and the Northwest German Basin. It also separates the Mid North Sea High from the Ringkøbing-Fyn High. These highs form broad, east-west trending, relative stable ridges. The further continuation of the Central Graben is to the northwest, towards the centre of the North Sea, where it passes into the Viking Graben and the Moray Firth Basin at about 58° N. Where the Central Graben divides the two major highs, there is an elongate central narrow horst, the Dogger High, which is the southernmost of a row of mid-Graben highs. Both sides of the Graben are clearly defined by normal rotational faults that were intermittently active from Triassic to Early Cretaceous times.


2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 1561-1611 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. van der Molen ◽  
J. van Beek ◽  
S. Augustine ◽  
L. Vansteenbrugge ◽  
L. van Walraven ◽  
...  

Abstract. Three different models were applied to study the reproduction, survival and dispersal of Mnemiopsis leidyi in the Scheldt estuaries and the southern North Sea: a high-resolution particle tracking model with passive particles, a low resolution particle tracking model with a reproduction model coupled to a biogeochemical model, and a dynamic energy budget (DEB) model. The results of the models, each with its strengths and weaknesses, suggest the following conceptual situation: (i) the estuaries possess enough retention capability to keep an overwintering population, and enough exchange with coastal waters of the North Sea to seed offshore populations; (ii) M. leidyi can survive in the North Sea, and be transported over considerable distances, thus facilitating connectivity between coastal embayments; (iii) under current climatic conditions, M. leidyi may not be able to reproduce in large numbers in coastal and offshore waters of the North Sea, but this may change with global warming – however this result is subject to substantial uncertainty. Further quantitative observational work is needed on the effects of temperature, salinity and food availability on reproduction and on mortality at different life stages to improve models such as used here.


Geosciences ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 270 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vincent Gaffney ◽  
Simon Fitch ◽  
Martin Bates ◽  
Roselyn L. Ware ◽  
Tim Kinnaird ◽  
...  

Doggerland was a landmass occupying an area currently covered by the North Sea until marine inundation took place during the mid-Holocene, ultimately separating the British landmass from the rest of Europe. The Storegga Event, which triggered a tsunami reflected in sediment deposits in the northern North Sea, northeast coastlines of the British Isles and across the North Atlantic, was a major event during this transgressive phase. The spatial extent of the Storegga tsunami however remains unconfirmed as, to date, no direct evidence for the event has been recovered from the southern North Sea. We present evidence of a tsunami deposit in the southern North Sea at the head of a palaeo-river system that has been identified using seismic survey. The evidence, based on lithostratigraphy, geochemical signatures, macro and microfossils and sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNA), supported by optical stimulated luminescence (OSL) and radiocarbon dating, suggests that these deposits were a result of the tsunami. Seismic identification of this stratum and analysis of adjacent cores showed diminished traces of the tsunami which was largely removed by subsequent erosional processes. Our results confirm previous modelling of the impact of the tsunami within this area of the southern North Sea, and also indicate that these effects were temporary, localized, and mitigated by the dense woodland and topography of the area. We conclude that clear physical remnants of the wave in these areas are likely to be restricted to now buried, palaeo-inland basins and incised river valley systems.


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