Vicisitudes de las compañías de rescate de las naves hundidas en la batalla de Rande, 1719-1733

Tras el hundimiento de la flota procedente de Indias refugiada en la ría de Vigo en octubre de 1702 se iniciaron una serie de actividades de exploración submarinas para recuperar los restos de las naves. La idea de que gran parte del rico cargamento que portaban en sus bodegas se encontraba depositado en el fondo de la ría y, muy especialmente, la constancia de la presencia de elementos que a su valor material añadían su utilidad práctica (cañones y anclas), actuaron como catalizadores para la constitución de compañías extranjeras cuya única finalidad fue la recuperación de efectos de los pecios. Analizamos las trabas a las que tuvieron que hacer frente dos de estas sociedades que llegaron a Galicia y el papel jugado por el cuerpo consular francés.

Mixing and Phytoplankton Growth in an Upwelling System

Previous studies focused on understanding the role of physical drivers on phytoplankton bloom formation mainly used indirect estimates of turbulent mixing. Here we use weekly observations of microstructure turbulence, dissolved inorganic nutrients, chlorophyll a concentration and primary production carried out in the Ría de Vigo (NW Iberian upwelling system) between March 2017 and May 2018 to investigate the relationship between turbulent mixing and phytoplankton growth at different temporal scales. In order to interpret our results, we used the theoretical framework described by the Critical Turbulent Hypothesis (CTH). According to this conceptual model if turbulence is low enough, the depth of the layer where mixing is active can be shallower than the mixed-layer depth, and phytoplankton may receive enough light to bloom. Our results showed that the coupling between turbulent mixing and phytoplankton growth in this system occurs at seasonal, but also at shorter time scales. In agreement with the CTH, higher phytoplankton growth rates were observed when mixing was low during spring-summer transitional and upwelling periods, whereas low values were described during periods of high mixing (fall-winter transitional and downwelling). However, low mixing conditions were not enough to ensure phytoplankton growth, as low phytoplankton growth was also found under these circumstances. Wavelet spectral analysis revealed that turbulent mixing and phytoplankton growth were also related at shorter time scales. The higher coherence between both variables was found in spring-summer at the ~16–30 d period and in fall-winter at the ~16–90 d period. These results suggest that mixing could act as a control factor on phytoplankton growth over the seasonal cycle, and could be also involved in the formation of occasional short-lived phytoplankton blooms.

Amino Acid δ15N Can Detect Diet Effects on Pollution Risks for Yellow-Legged Gulls Overlooked by Trophic Position

The use of top-consumers as bioindicators of the health of food webs is hampered by uncertainties in their effective use of resources. In this study, the abundance of stable nitrogen isotopes in amino acids from homogenised eggs of the Yellow-legged Gull (Larus michahellis) allowed to identify variations in trophic resource exploitation between geographically adjacent nesting colonies in the Ria de Vigo (NW Spain) that exhibited marked differences in pollutants. Eggs from nests in the Cíes Islands (located in a National Park) showed a large variability in stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes in bulk egg content encompassing that of eggs from Vigo city (a major fishing harbour). However, both colonies differed in the relative concentration and abundance of nitrogen isotopes of lysine, an essential amino acid present in marine prey, but also extensively used in feed stocks for poultry and swine. Notwithstanding the similarity in trophic position for both colonies, gulls from Cíes Islands may have acquired a substantial fraction of lysine from garbage dump sites, while those of the urban colony relied on fish discards. This unexpected conclusion is partly supported by the large variability reported for gull’s diet in this region and calls for detailed estimations of diet when assessing the conservation status and pollution risks of marine ecosystems.

Reproductive cycle of the sea cucumber Holothuria forskali (Holothuriida: Holothuriidae) in the Ría de Vigo (NW of Spain)

Introduction: The exploitation of the sea cucumber (Holothuria (Panningothuria) forskali) in Ría de Vigo (NW Spain) is recent (2015) and it has been done until now with scarce or no information about some key biological aspects as reproduction, recruitment or growth. Objective: To describe the reproductive cycle of H. forskali in Ría de Vigo. Methods: We sampled fortnightly throughout 2018. We calculated gonadal condition indices (GCI) and gametogenic stages by classic histological methods. Results: The reproductive cycle of H. forskali in the Ría de Vigo is characterized by a sexual resting stage during spring, when temperature and daylight hours are lower; the beginning of gametogenesis during summer, when temperature is higher, daylight hours longer and the sea bottom is rich in nutrients; then, a period of spawns interspersed with a gonadal restoration during autumn and winter, when temperature is lower and food is scarce. Sex ratio is 1:1, however, the studied population is not synchronized, because females initiate maturation earlier. The comparison of the histological results with GCI indices suggest that GCI is a good indicator for gonadal stage. Fishery management strategies, such as a closure period, must be adapted to the reproductive stage. We recommend avoiding fishing between November and February to increase spawning potential ratio and, consequently, recruitment.

Weekly reconstruction of pH and total alkalinity in an upwelling-dominated coastal ecosystem through neural networks (A_TpH-NN): The case of Ría de Vigo (NW Spain) between 1992 and 2019

Short and long-term variability of seawater carbon dioxide (CO2) system shows large differences between different ecosystems which are derived from the characteristic processes of each area. The high variability of coastal ecosystems, their ecological and economic significance, the anthropogenic influence on them and their behavior as sources or sinks of atmospheric CO2, highlight the relevance to better understand the processes that underlie the variability and the alterations of the CO2 system at different spatiotemporal scales. To confidently achieve this purpose, it is necessary to have high-frequency data sustained over several years in different regions. In this work, we contribute to this need by configuring and training two neural networks with the capacity to model the weekly variability of pH and total alkalinity (AT) in the upper 50 m of the water column of the Ría de Vigo (NW Spain), with an error of 0.031 pH units and 10.9 µmol kg−1 respectively. With these networks, we generated weekly time series of pH and AT in seven locations of the Ría de Vigo in three depth ranges (0–5 m, 5–10 m and 10–15 m), which adequately represent independent discrete measurements. In a first analysis of the time series, a high short-term variability is observed, being larger for the inner stations of the Ría de Vigo. The lowest values of pH and AT were obtained for the inner zone, showing a progressive increase towards the outer/middle zone of the ría. The mean seasonal cycle also reflects the gradient between both zones, with a larger amplitude and variability for both variables in the inner zone. On the other hand, the long-term trends derived from the time series of pH show a higher acidification than that obtained for the open ocean, with surface trends ranging from −0.020 pH units per year in the outer/middle zone to −0.032 pH units per year in the inner zone. In addition, positive long-term trends of AT were obtained ranging from 0.39 µmol kg−1 per year in the outer/middle zone to 2.86 µmol kg−1 per year in the inner zone. The results presented in this study show the changing conditions both in the short and long-term variability as well as the spatial differentiation between the inner and outer/middle zone to which the organisms of the Ría de Vigo are subjected. The neural networks and the database provided in this study offer the opportunity to evaluate the CO2 system in an environment of high ecological and economic relevance, to validate high-resolution regional biogeochemical models and to evaluate the impacts on organisms of the Ría de Vigo by refining the ranges of the biogeochemical variables included in experiments.