scholarly journals Long-Term Trends in Calcifying Plankton and pH in the North Sea

PLoS ONE ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 8 (5) ◽  
pp. e61175 ◽  
Author(s):  
Doug Beare ◽  
Abigail McQuatters-Gollop ◽  
Tessa van der Hammen ◽  
Marcel Machiels ◽  
Shwu Jiau Teoh ◽  
...  
Author(s):  
S. H. Coombs ◽  
C. E. Mitchell

The distribution, abundance and seasonal occurrence of larvae of mackerel (Scomber scombrus L.) are described from routine Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR) sampling around the British Isles over the period 1948–78, and from more intensive CPR sampling in the Celtic Sea in 1977. There were two main areas of larval concentration: in the North Sea and over and adjacent to the Celtic Plateau; subsidiary aggregations were observed to the northwest of Ireland and to the west of Norway. There were some similarities between the distribution of larvae around the British Isles and that of adult Calanus spp. In the North Sea there was a southerly shift of larval distribution over the period 1948–77; over a similar period the abundance of larvae increased to reach high numbers by the late 1950s and subsequently declined after the mid-6os. To the south-west of the British Isles numbers of larvae showed a long-term decline. The long-term trends of distribution and abundance are discussed in relation to concurrent biological and environmental change. The clearest relationship was found between the numbers of mackerel larvae in the North Sea and sea-surface temperature in the North Atlantic, which suggests a common causative agent for both sets of observations; also, there was a weak relationship with both spawning stock biomass and sea-surface temperature at the spawning areas. In the North Sea the seasonal occurrence of larvae was from May to August, the majority being taken in June and July; over the period 1948–77 the seasonal time of occurrence of highest numbers of larvae has remained relatively constant. In the Celtic Sea the seasonal occurrence of larvae was spread over a longer period, from March to August, with relatively high numbers from March to June; over the period 1950–78 the time of occurrence has been variable, possibly with a tendency towards later timing in more recent years.


Author(s):  
N.J.P. Owens ◽  
D. Cook ◽  
M. Colebrook ◽  
H. Hunt ◽  
P.C. Reid

The effects of nutrient enrichment of natural water bodies range from small increases in plant biomass and production, to gross deterioration of water quality. The input of nutrients (e.g. nitrogen and phosphorus) to the sea off NW Europe (especially the North Sea) has increased dramatically over the last three or four decades (Folkard & Jones, 1974; Bennekom et al., 1975; Postma, 1978; Cadee, 1986a) but there is uncertainty about the effects on the ecosystem. One possible effect might be to induce changes in the phytoplankton community. Such an effect has been reported for the North Sea, where increases in flagellate algae have been observed (Gieskes & Kraay, 1977; Postma, 1985; Cadee, 1986b; Batje & Michaelis, 1986). Phaeocystis is one such alga, and its purported involvement in the formation of large quantities of foam, observed on European beaches (Batje & Michaelis, 1986; Weisse et al, 1986), together with evidence that the alga is a source of atmospheric sulphur compounds (Barnard et al, 1984) (with implications for atmospheric acidity), has attracted particular attention and concern


1998 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 113-121 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Woehrling ◽  
Geneviève Le Fèvre-Lehoërff
Keyword(s):  

2015 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 743-754
Author(s):  
Matthias van Rossum

Since direct shipping routes between Europe and Asia opened up at the end of the 15th century, the growing intercontinental and regional shipping connections resulted in increasing entanglements between European and Asian maritime labour markets. This article analyses the long term development of the connections between European and Asian maritime labour markets and its impact on socio-cultural (and labour) relations through three elements: first, the changing connections between European and Asian maritime labour markets; second, the changing nature of European and Asian maritime labour markets and its influence on the positions of sailors; and third, the changing relations between European and Asian sailors and its effects on the reactions and interactions in a globalising maritime labour market. It explores how these changing global connections shaped encounters between European and Asian sailors on (intercontinental) shipping in and from the North Sea region, and how it affected the positions and reactions of its workers.


Author(s):  
P. E. P. Norton

SynopsisThis is a brief review intended to supply bases for prediction of future changes in the North Sea Benthos. It surveys long-term changes which are affecting the benthos. Any prediction must take into account change in temperature, depth, bottom type, tidal patterns, current patterns and zoogeography of the sea and the history of these is briefly touched on from late Tertiary times up to the present. From a prediction of changes in the benthos, certain information concerning the pelagic and planktonic biota could also be derived.


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.


2019 ◽  
Vol 76 (4) ◽  
pp. 813-823 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert B Thorpe ◽  
José A A De Oliveira

Abstract Maximum sustainable yield (MSY) is a well-established concept that is mandated by legislation, and has a clear theoretical meaning in terms of a single stock. However, its definition is problematic in a multispecies setting, which makes it more difficult to apply the MSY principle. In this study of the North Sea fish community, we consider several possible MSY candidates, and evaluate them in terms of their ability to produce optimum long-term yield whilst avoiding unacceptable risk of stock impairment. We perform this evaluation with an ensemble of size-structured models using a management strategy evaluation approach, in which harvest control rules (HCRs) are used to determine levels of fishing as a function of the proposed MSY target and stock status, taking account of recruitment and model parameter uncertainties. We find that HCRs of the type considered here are always useful in the scenarios we tested, as they reduce overfishing risk much more than average long-term yield. This is independent of the precise form of the HCR, so it is more important to implement one rigorously than obsess over the rule details. For a lax definition of overfishing, which accepts relatively severe stock depletion (B < 10% B0), and using HCRs, risks are “low” across all strategies, and the Nash equilibrium is the best performing MSY approach considered here. For more stringent definitions of “at risk” (e.g. likelihood of B < 20% of B0), the application of HCRs can allow a range of alternative formulations of MSY. Thus, the definition of MSY may be sensitive to judgements about acceptable levels of risk, and consistent application of a sensible management framework may be more important than developing the best possible theoretical definition of MSY.


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