Keeping Lagocephalus sceleratus off the Table: Sources of Variation in the Quantity of TTX, TTX Analogues, and Risk of Tetrodotoxication

The invasion of the tetrodotoxin (TTX)-bearing silver-cheeked toadfish and potential poisoning due to its consumption (tetrodotoxication) threatens public safety in the Mediterranean Sea. In this study, TTX and TTX analogues of Lagocephalus sceleratus (Gmelin, 1789) were measured using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) in fish collected off the island of Crete (Southern Mediterranean). We tested the synergistic effect of a suite of factors potentially affecting toxins’ levels and tetrodotoxication risk using general and generalized linear models, respectively. The type of tissue, geographic origin (Cretan Sea, Libyan Sea), sex, and fish maturity stage were significant predictors of toxin concentrations. Mean TTX was higher in gonads and lower in muscles, higher in the Libyan Sea and in female fish, and lower in juvenile (virgin) fish. The concentration of TTX was also significantly and positively correlated with the concentration of several TTX analogues (4-epiTTX, 4,9-anhydroTTX, 11-deoxyTTX, 5,11/6,11-dideoxyTTX, 5,6,11-trideoxyTTX, 11-norTTX-6-ol). The analysis showed that fish originating from the Libyan Sea had significantly higher probability to cause tetrodotoxication in case of consumption. The variability explained by the models developed in this study was relatively low, indicating that toxin levels are hard to predict and the consumption of L. sceleratus should therefore be avoided.

Grazing effect of flagellates on bacteria in response to phosphate addition in the oligotrophic Cretan Sea, NE Mediterranean

ABSTRACT The planktonic food web in the oligotrophic Mediterranean Sea is dominated by small-sized (<20 μm) microbes, with nanoflagellates being the major bacterial grazers and the main participants in nutrient cycling. Phosphate is a key nutrient in the P-limited Cretan Sea (NE Mediterranean) and P-availability can affect its trophic dynamics. Here, we examined the grazing potential of heterotrophic (HF) and pigmented (PF) nanoflagellates as a response mechanism to phosphate amendment. Flagellate grazing effect on bacteria was quantified in P-amended nutrient-depleted water from the Cretan Sea over the course of 4 days using microcosm experiments. P-addition positively affected HF abundance, while PF abundance remained unchanged. At the community level, P-addition had a negative effect on PF bacterial removal rates. In the control, PF-grazing rate was significantly higher than that of HF throughout the experiment. Pigment analysis showed no changes in phytoplankton community composition as a result of P-addition, indicating that PF grazing rate declined as a physiological response of the cells. The present study emphasizes the dominant grazing role of PF under P-depleted conditions and reveals that during the late stratified season PF respond to P-addition by lowering their grazing rates, enhancing the relative importance of bacterial removal by HF.

Extreme wave events recorded in sedimentary archives of the Geropotamos River (north-central Crete, Greece)

Recent tsunami events have shown that tsunamis may propagate far inland by entering rivers mouths and may cause massive damage along the river banks. However, so far, only a few studies have been conducted such a search for studying tsunami signals in incised valley systems along the Mediterranean coasts although the tsunami hazard is high. The island of Crete is known to have been affected several times by strong tsunamis, e. g., by the AD 365 and the Late Bronze Age (LBA) Santorini tsunamis. The narrow Geropotamos River valley, distinctly incised into local bedrock and located at the northern coast of Crete and fully exposed to the Cretan Sea, was selected as a promising natural setting to search for palaeotsunami signatures in fluvial sedimentary archives. Based on a multi-electrode geoelectrical survey and a set of sediment cores, we investigated the event-geochronostratigraphic record of both the Geropotamos River mouth area and the river valley ca. 1 km upstream by means of sedimentological, geo-chemical, geochronological, geomorphological, and micropalaeontological methods. The sedimentary environment towards the present-day river mouth is dominated by (fluvio-)lagoonal muds since the mid- Holocene. These lagoonal sediments are intersected by six coarse-grained sand layers each representing an extreme wave event (EWE). EWE layers are up to several decimetres thick and are characterized by an allochthonous foraminiferal assemblage comprising shallow marine to open marine species. Also ca. 1 km further upstream, the sedimentary record revealed grain size and microfossil evidence of two high-energy events showing a clear marine imprint. Based on this, we suggest inundation from the seaside that reached minimum 1 km inland and left EWE signatures in a presently inactive external bank position of the Geropotamos River. Considering the sedimentary characteristics, the local wind and wave climate of the Cretan Sea, and the overall geomorphological setting, we interpret these EWE layers as tsunami- related. A major hiatus identified in the Geropotamos River mouth sediments seems to be related to the LBA Santorini tsunami as can be inferred based on local age-depth relations. The LBA tsunami is known to have severely hit the northern coast of Crete. However, the hiatus may also reflect changes in the subsidence rate and the local accommodation space architecture. The youngest EWE signal in the Geropotamos River archive appears to have been caused by the AD 365 tsunami event. Candidate deposits for both tsunami deposits were identified ca. 1 km further inland. Evidence of EWE impact documents channelling and acceleration effects of intruding water masses caused by the narrow and steeply incised Geropotamos River valley in an upstream direction. Further geochronological studies based on OSL dating are necessary for a reliable age control of these EWE candidate layers.

An integrated open-coastal biogeochemistry, ecosystem and biodiversity observatory of the eastern Mediterranean – the Cretan Sea component of the POSEIDON system

There is a general scarcity of oceanic observations that concurrently examine air–sea interactions, coastal–open-ocean processes and physical–biogeochemical processes, in appropriate spatiotemporal scales and under continuous, long-term data acquisition schemes. In the Mediterranean Sea, the resulting knowledge gaps and observing challenges increase due to its oligotrophic character, especially in the eastern part of the basin. The oligotrophic open Cretan Sea's biogeochemistry is considered to be representative of a greater Mediterranean area up to 106 km2, and understanding its features may be useful on even larger oceanic scales, since the Mediterranean Sea has been considered a miniature model of the global ocean. The spatiotemporal coverage of biogeochemical (BGC) observations in the Cretan Sea has progressively increased over the last decades, especially since the creation of the POSEIDON observing system, which has adopted a multiplatform, multivariable approach, supporting BGC data acquisition. The current POSEIDON system's status includes open and coastal sea fixed platforms, a Ferrybox (FB) system and Bio-Argo autonomous floats that remotely deliver fluorescence as a proxy of chlorophyll-a (Chl-a), O2, pH and pCO2 data, as well as BGC-related physical variables. Since 2010, the list has been further expanded to other BGC (nutrients, vertical particulate matter fluxes), ecosystem and biodiversity (from viruses up to zooplankton) variables, thanks to the addition of sediment traps, frequent research vessel (R/V) visits for seawater–plankton sampling and an acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP) delivering information on macrozooplankton–micronekton vertical migration (in the epipelagic to mesopelagic layer). Gliders and drifters are the new (currently under integration to the existing system) platforms, supporting BGC monitoring. Land-based facilities, such as data centres, technical support infrastructure, calibration laboratory and mesocosms, support and give added value to the observatory. The data gathered from these platforms are used to improve the quality of the BGC-ecosystem model predictions, which have recently incorporated atmospheric nutrient deposition processes and assimilation of satellite Chl-a data. Besides addressing open scientific questions at regional and international levels, examples of which are presented, the observatory provides user-oriented services to marine policy makers and the society, and is a technological test bed for new and/or cost-efficient BGC sensor technology and marine equipment. It is part of European and international observing programs, playing a key role in regional data handling and participating in harmonization and best practices procedures. Future expansion plans consider the evolving scientific and society priorities, balanced with sustainable management.

Acoustic Doppler current profiler observations of migration patternsof zooplankton in the Cretan Sea

The lack of knowledge of the mesopelagic layer inhabitants, especially those performing strong vertical migration, is an acknowledged challenge. This incomplete representation leads to the exclusion of an active carbon and nutrient pathway from the surface to the deeper layers and vice versa. The vertical migration of mesopelagic inhabitants (macroplanktonic and micronektonic) was observed by acoustical means for almost 2.5 years in the epipelagic and mesopelagic layers of the open oligotrophic Cretan Sea (south Aegean Sea, eastern Mediterranean) at the site of an operational fixed-point observatory located at 1500 m depth. The observed organisms were categorized into four groups according to their migration patterns. The variability of the migration patterns was inspected in relation to the physical and biological environmental conditions of the study area. The stratification of the water column does not act as a barrier for the vertical motion of the strongest migrants that move up to 400 m every day. Instead, changes in light intensity (lunar cycle, daylight duration, cloudiness) and the presence of prey and predators seem to explain the observed daily, monthly and seasonal variability. The continuous presence of these organisms, which are capable of vertical motion despite the profound circulation variability at the site of the observatory, implies their presence in the broader study area. The fundamental implications of the above regarding biogeochemical processing in oligotrophic seas due to the intimate link between the carbon (C) and nutrient cycles, are discussed.

ADCP observations of migration patterns of zooplankton in the Cretan Sea

The lack of knowledge of the mesopelagic layer inhabitants, especially of those performing strong vertical migration, is an acknowledged challenge as its incomplete representation leads to the exclusion of an active carbon and nutrient pathway from the surface to the deeper layers and reversely. The vertical migration of mesopelagic inhabitants (macro-planktonic and micro-nektonic) was observed by acoustical means in the epi- and mesopelagic layer of the open oligotrophic Cretan Sea (Eastern Mediterranean) for almost 2.5 years at the site of an operational fixed-point observatory located at 1500 m depth. The observed organisms were categorized in four groups according to their migration patterns. The variability of the migration patterns was inspected in relation to the physical and biological environmental conditions of the study area. The stratification of the water column does not act as a barrier for the vertical motion of the strongest migrants, moving up to 400 m every day. Instead, changes of light intensity (lunar cycle, daylight duration, cloudiness) and the presence of prey and predators seem to explain the observed daily, monthly and seasonal variability. The continuous presence of these organisms, yet capable of vertical motion and despite the profound seasonal circulation variability at the site of the observatory, implies their presence in the broader study area. The fundamental implications of the above for biogeochemical processing in oligotrophic seas due to the intimate link of the C and nutrient cycles, are discussed.