Biomorphogenic feedbacks and the spatial organisation of a dominant grass steer dune development

Nature-based solutions to mitigate the impact of future climate change depend on restoring biological diversity and natural processes. Coastal foredunes represent the most important natural flood barriers along coastlines worldwide, but their area has been squeezed dramatically because of a continuing urbanisation of coastlines, especially in Europe. Dune development is steered by the development of vegetation in interaction with sand fluxes from the beach. Marram grass (Calamagrostis arenaria, formerly Ammophila arenaria) is the main dune building species along most European coasts, but also in other continents where the species was introduced. Engineering of coastal dunes, for instance by building dunes in front of dikes, needs to be based on a solid understanding of the species' interactions with the environment. Only quantitative approaches enable the further development of mechanistic models and coastal management strategies that encapsulate these biomorphogenic interactions. We here provide a quantitative review of the main biotic and physical interactions that affect marram grass performance, their interactions with sand fluxes and how they eventually shape dune development. Our review highlights that the species spatial organisation is central to dune development. We further demonstrate this importance by means of remote sensing and a mechanistic model and provide an outlook for further research on the use of coastal dunes as a nature-based solution for coastal protection.

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Biomorphogenic Feedbacks and the Spatial Organization of a Dominant Grass Steer Dune Development

Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution ◽

10.3389/fevo.2021.761336 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 ◽

Author(s):

Dries Bonte ◽

Femke Batsleer ◽

Sam Provoost ◽

Valérie Reijers ◽

Martijn L. Vandegehuchte ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Species Interactions ◽

Spatial Organization ◽

Biological Diversity ◽

Mechanistic Model ◽

Coastal Dunes ◽

Future Climate Change ◽

Coastal Protection ◽

Ammophila Arenaria ◽

Marram Grass ◽

The Impact

Nature-based solutions to mitigate the impact of future climate change depend on restoring biological diversity and natural processes. Coastal foredunes represent the most important natural flood barriers along coastlines worldwide, but their area has been squeezed dramatically because of a continuing urbanization of coastlines, especially in Europe. Dune development is steered by the development of vegetation in interaction with sand fluxes from the beach. Marram grass (Calamagrostis arenaria, formerly Ammophila arenaria) is the main dune building species along most European coasts, but also in other continents where the species was introduced. Engineering of coastal dunes, for instance by building dunes in front of dikes, needs to be based on a solid understanding of the species’ interactions with the environment. Only quantitative approaches enable the further development of mechanistic models and coastal management strategies that encapsulate these biomorphogenic interactions. We here provide a quantitative review of the main biotic and physical interactions that affect marram grass performance, their interactions with sand fluxes and how they eventually shape dune development. Our review highlights that the species’ spatial organization is central to dune development. We further demonstrate this importance by means of remote sensing and a mechanistic model and provide an outlook for further research on the use of coastal dunes as a nature-based solution for coastal protection.

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Burial, erosion, and transformation of archaeological landscapes

Progress in Physical Geography Earth and Environment ◽

10.1177/0309133318795844 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 42 (5) ◽

pp. 607-627 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Michael Hilton ◽

Richard Walter ◽

Karen Greig ◽

Teresa Konlechner

Keyword(s):

New Zealand ◽

Archaeological Sites ◽

Ammophila Arenaria ◽

Dune Vegetation ◽

Dune System ◽

Dune Systems ◽

Marram Grass ◽

System Restoration ◽

The Impact ◽

Archaeological Landscape

A high proportion of archaeological sites are located on the world’s shorelines and recent research has documented the vulnerability of these sites to coastal processes and climate change. However, archaeological landscapes on many temperate coasts have already been degraded as a result of changes in dune dynamics related to changes in dune vegetation. These changes have produced marked spatial and temporal variations in patterns of burial and erosion in transgressive dune systems. This paper examines the modification and conservation of archaeological landscapes from a biogeomorphic perspective, using the example of marram grass ( Ammophila arenaria) invasion of dune systems in southern New Zealand. The impact of marram grass on dune system dynamics and the underlying archaeological landscape are complex. Full invasion may result in the general burial and protection of these landscapes, but the risk of degradation of sites is high during the invasion process. In southern New Zealand, marram invasion has resulted in the formation of stable foredunes, often associated with coastal progradation. Archaeological sites located close to the shoreline can be subject to either burial or erosion, or both, as marram grass establishes in the foredune zone. The spatial relationship between cultural sites and the shoreline may be lost as the coast progrades. The impact of marram invasion can extend throughout the hinterland dune system as a result of (i) dune mobility triggered by marram grass invasion and (ii) the development of a negative sand budget, which prevents or reduces beach-foredune-dune system sand exchange. The risk of degradation of the archaeological landscape can be significantly heighted by marram invasion, which can have profound implications for the preservation and interpretation of archaeological sites and materials. Paradoxically, dune system restoration may lead to the re-exposure of these sites, but the principal outcome of dune system restoration is expected to be a decline erosion (manifest as in deflation surfaces) and reburial of the archaeological landscape.

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Climate Change Alters The Interaction of Two Invasive Beachgrasses With Implications For Range Shifts And Coastal Dune Functions

10.21203/rs.3.rs-529207/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Reuben G. Biel ◽

Sally D. Hacker

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Species Interactions ◽

Elevated Temperatures ◽

Species Coexistence ◽

Biotic Interactions ◽

Coastal Protection ◽

Ammophila Arenaria ◽

Sand Burial ◽

Southern Limit ◽

Physiological Tolerance

Abstract Forecasting the effects of climate change on the distribution of invasive species can be difficult because invaders often thrive under novel physical conditions and biotic interactions that differ from those in their native range. In this study, we experimentally examined how rising temperatures and sand burial could alter the abundance and biotic interactions of two invasive beachgrasses, Ammophila arenaria and A. breviligulata, along the U.S. Pacific Northwest coast. We asked whether the current geographic ranges of the two congeners, and thus their effects on dune morphology and coastal ecosystem services, might shift as a consequence of climate driven changes in warming and sand supply. Our results show that A. breviligulata had lower biomass and tiller production when exposed to warming and high rates of sand burial, while A. arenaria showed neutral or positive responses to those treatments. Nevertheless, under all experimental combinations, A. breviligulata had strong negative effects on A. arenaria, while A. arenaria had weaker effects on A. breviligulata. Our models predict that although A. breviligulata mostly excludes A. arenaria, elevated temperatures and high rates of sand burial also increase the likelihood of species coexistence. We suggest that under climate change, the differences in physiological tolerance and the mediation of species interactions could expand the northern distributional limit of A. arenaria but restrict the southern limit of A. breviligulata. Moreover, because beachgrass abundance has direct effects on biophysical functions of dunes, reductions in vigor from warming could alter coastal protection, biodiversity, and carbon sequestration.

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Modeling Bacterial Regrowth and Trihalomethane Formation in Water Distribution Systems

Water ◽

10.3390/w13040463 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (4) ◽

pp. 463

Author(s):

Gopinathan R. Abhijith ◽

Leonid Kadinski ◽

Avi Ostfeld

Keyword(s):

Distribution Systems ◽

Water Distribution ◽

Mechanistic Model ◽

Water Distribution Systems ◽

Sensitivity Study ◽

Operating Conditions ◽

Growth Rate Constant ◽

Model Parameters ◽

Bacterial Regrowth ◽

The Impact

The formation of bacterial regrowth and disinfection by-products is ubiquitous in chlorinated water distribution systems (WDSs) operated with organic loads. A generic, easy-to-use mechanistic model describing the fundamental processes governing the interrelationship between chlorine, total organic carbon (TOC), and bacteria to analyze the spatiotemporal water quality variations in WDSs was developed using EPANET-MSX. The representation of multispecies reactions was simplified to minimize the interdependent model parameters. The physicochemical/biological processes that cannot be experimentally determined were neglected. The effects of source water characteristics and water residence time on controlling bacterial regrowth and Trihalomethane (THM) formation in two well-tested systems under chlorinated and non-chlorinated conditions were analyzed by applying the model. The results established that a 100% increase in the free chlorine concentration and a 50% reduction in the TOC at the source effectuated a 5.87 log scale decrement in the bacteriological activity at the expense of a 60% increase in THM formation. The sensitivity study showed the impact of the operating conditions and the network characteristics in determining parameter sensitivities to model outputs. The maximum specific growth rate constant for bulk phase bacteria was found to be the most sensitive parameter to the predicted bacterial regrowth.

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Dynamics of soil organic carbon in the steppes of Russia and Kazakhstan under past and future climate and land use

Regional Environmental Change ◽

10.1007/s10113-021-01799-7 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (3) ◽

Author(s):

Susanne Rolinski ◽

Alexander V. Prishchepov ◽

Georg Guggenberger ◽

Norbert Bischoff ◽

Irina Kurganova ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Land Use ◽

Organic Carbon ◽

Land Use Change ◽

Soil Organic Carbon ◽

Arable Land ◽

Future Climate ◽

Future Climate Change ◽

Climate Scenarios ◽

The Impact

AbstractChanges in land use and climate are the main drivers of change in soil organic matter contents. We investigated the impact of the largest policy-induced land conversion to arable land, the Virgin Lands Campaign (VLC), from 1954 to 1963, of the massive cropland abandonment after 1990 and of climate change on soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks in steppes of Russia and Kazakhstan. We simulated carbon budgets from the pre-VLC period (1900) until 2100 using a dynamic vegetation model to assess the impacts of observed land-use change as well as future climate and land-use change scenarios. The simulations suggest for the entire VLC region (266 million hectares) that the historic cropland expansion resulted in emissions of 1.6⋅ 1015 g (= 1.6 Pg) carbon between 1950 and 1965 compared to 0.6 Pg in a scenario without the expansion. From 1990 to 2100, climate change alone is projected to cause emissions of about 1.8 (± 1.1) Pg carbon. Hypothetical recultivation of the cropland that has been abandoned after the fall of the Soviet Union until 2050 may cause emissions of 3.5 (± 0.9) Pg carbon until 2100, whereas the abandonment of all cropland until 2050 would lead to sequestration of 1.8 (± 1.2) Pg carbon. For the climate scenarios based on SRES (Special Report on Emission Scenarios) emission pathways, SOC declined only moderately for constant land use but substantially with further cropland expansion. The variation of SOC in response to the climate scenarios was smaller than that in response to the land-use scenarios. This suggests that the effects of land-use change on SOC dynamics may become as relevant as those of future climate change in the Eurasian steppes.

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Potential Impacts of Future Climate Change Scenarios on Ground Subsidence

Water ◽

10.3390/w12010219 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (1) ◽

pp. 219 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Antonio-Juan Collados-Lara ◽

David Pulido-Velazquez ◽

Rosa María Mateos ◽

Pablo Ezquerro

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Land Subsidence ◽

Ground Subsidence ◽

Lower Percentage ◽

Future Climate Change ◽

Climate Change Scenarios ◽

Fine Grained ◽

Fine Grained Material ◽

The Impact

In this work, we developed a new method to assess the impact of climate change (CC) scenarios on land subsidence related to groundwater level depletion in detrital aquifers. The main goal of this work was to propose a parsimonious approach that could be applied for any case study. We also evaluated the methodology in a case study, the Vega de Granada aquifer (southern Spain). Historical subsidence rates were estimated using remote sensing techniques (differential interferometric synthetic aperture radar, DInSAR). Local CC scenarios were generated by applying a bias correction approach. An equifeasible ensemble of the generated projections from different climatic models was also proposed. A simple water balance approach was applied to assess CC impacts on lumped global drawdowns due to future potential rainfall recharge and pumping. CC impacts were propagated to drawdowns within piezometers by applying the global delta change observed with the lumped assessment. Regression models were employed to estimate the impacts of these drawdowns in terms of land subsidence, as well as to analyze the influence of the fine-grained material in the aquifer. The results showed that a more linear behavior was observed for the cases with lower percentage of fine-grained material. The mean increase of the maximum subsidence rates in the considered wells for the future horizon (2016–2045) and the Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP) scenario 8.5 was 54%. The main advantage of the proposed method is its applicability in cases with limited information. It is also appropriate for the study of wide areas to identify potential hot spots where more exhaustive analyses should be performed. The method will allow sustainable adaptation strategies in vulnerable areas during drought-critical periods to be assessed.

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Impact of an accelerated melting of Greenland on malaria distribution over Africa

Nature Communications ◽

10.1038/s41467-021-24134-4 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Alizée Chemison ◽

Gilles Ramstein ◽

Adrian M. Tompkins ◽

Dimitri Defrance ◽

Guigone Camus ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Malaria Transmission ◽

Ice Sheet ◽

Transmission Risk ◽

Future Climate Change ◽

Climate Change Scenarios ◽

Climate Change Risk ◽

System A ◽

Climate Simulations ◽

The Impact

AbstractStudies about the impact of future climate change on diseases have mostly focused on standard Representative Concentration Pathway climate change scenarios. These scenarios do not account for the non-linear dynamics of the climate system. A rapid ice-sheet melting could occur, impacting climate and consequently societies. Here, we investigate the additional impact of a rapid ice-sheet melting of Greenland on climate and malaria transmission in Africa using several malaria models driven by Institute Pierre Simon Laplace climate simulations. Results reveal that our melting scenario could moderate the simulated increase in malaria risk over East Africa, due to cooling and drying effects, cause a largest decrease in malaria transmission risk over West Africa and drive malaria emergence in southern Africa associated with a significant southward shift of the African rain-belt. We argue that the effect of such ice-sheet melting should be investigated further in future public health and agriculture climate change risk assessments.

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The impact of indole-3-lactic acid on immature intestinal innate immunity and development: a transcriptomic analysis

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-021-87353-1 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Wuyang Huang ◽

Ky Young Cho ◽

Di Meng ◽

W. Allan Walker

Keyword(s):

Lactic Acid ◽

Mechanistic Model ◽

Transcriptomic Analysis ◽

Dependent Manner ◽

Protective Effects ◽

Very Preterm Infants ◽

Anti Inflammatory ◽

The Impact

AbstractAn excessive intestinal inflammatory response may have a role in the pathogenesis of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) in very preterm infants. Indole-3-lactic acid (ILA) of breastmilk tryptophan was identified as the anti-inflammatory metabolite involved in probiotic conditioned media from Bifidobacteria longum subsp infantis. This study aimed to explore the molecular endocytic pathways involved in the protective ILA effect against inflammation. H4 cells, Caco-2 cells, C57BL/6 pup and adult mice were used to compare the anti-inflammatory mechanisms between immature and mature enterocytes in vitro and in vivo. The results show that ILA has pleiotropic protective effects on immature enterocytes including anti-inflammatory, anti-viral, and developmental regulatory potentials in a region-dependent and an age-dependent manner. Quantitative transcriptomic analysis revealed a new mechanistic model in which STAT1 pathways play an important role in IL-1β-induced inflammation and ILA has a regulatory effect on STAT1 pathways. These studies were validated by real-time RT-qPCR and STAT1 inhibitor experiments. Different protective reactions of ILA between immature and mature enterocytes indicated that ILA’s effects are developmentally regulated. These findings may be helpful in preventing NEC for premature infants.

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Predicted Future Benefits for an Endemic Rodent in the Irano-Turanian Region

Climate ◽

10.3390/cli9010016 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

pp. 16

Author(s):

Suzanna Meeussen ◽

Anouschka Hof

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Climate Models ◽

Species Distribution Modelling ◽

Geographic Range ◽

Future Climate ◽

Future Climate Change ◽

Distribution Ranges ◽

Bioclimatic Variables ◽

Suitable Area ◽

The Impact

Climate change is expected to have an impact on the geographical distribution ranges of species. Endemic species and those with a restricted geographic range may be especially vulnerable. The Persian jird (Meriones persicus) is an endemic rodent inhabiting the mountainous areas of the Irano-Turanian region, where future desertification may form a threat to the species. In this study, the species distribution modelling algorithm MaxEnt was used to assess the impact of future climate change on the geographic distribution range of the Persian jird. Predictions were made under two Representative Concentration Pathways and five different climate models for the years 2050 and 2070. It was found that both bioclimatic variables and land use variables were important in determining potential suitability of the region for the species to occur. In most cases, the future predictions showed an expansion of the geographic range of the Persian jird which indicates that the species is not under immediate threat. There are however uncertainties with regards to its current range. Predictions may therefore be an over or underestimation of the total suitable area. Further research is thus needed to confirm the current geographic range of the Persian jird to be able to improve assessments of the impact of future climate change.

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The importance of species interactions in eco-evolutionary community dynamics under climate change

Nature Communications ◽

10.1038/s41467-021-24977-x ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Anna Åkesson ◽

Alva Curtsdotter ◽

Anna Eklöf ◽

Bo Ebenman ◽

Jon Norberg ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Species Interactions ◽

Community Dynamics ◽

Evolutionary Dynamics ◽

Negative Impact ◽

Trophic Levels ◽

Temperature Dependent ◽

Modeling Framework ◽

Impact Of Climate Change ◽

The Impact

AbstractEco-evolutionary dynamics are essential in shaping the biological response of communities to ongoing climate change. Here we develop a spatially explicit eco-evolutionary framework which features more detailed species interactions, integrating evolution and dispersal. We include species interactions within and between trophic levels, and additionally, we incorporate the feature that species’ interspecific competition might change due to increasing temperatures and affect the impact of climate change on ecological communities. Our modeling framework captures previously reported ecological responses to climate change, and also reveals two key results. First, interactions between trophic levels as well as temperature-dependent competition within a trophic level mitigate the negative impact of climate change on biodiversity, emphasizing the importance of understanding biotic interactions in shaping climate change impact. Second, our trait-based perspective reveals a strong positive relationship between the within-community variation in preferred temperatures and the capacity to respond to climate change. Temperature-dependent competition consistently results both in higher trait variation and more responsive communities to altered climatic conditions. Our study demonstrates the importance of species interactions in an eco-evolutionary setting, further expanding our knowledge of the interplay between ecological and evolutionary processes.

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