Investigation into Settlement Behaviour of Mussels and the Hydrology of a Selected Area with a View to Farming the Shellfish

<p>Physical observations in the Beatrix Basin, Marlborough Sounds, New Zealand, revealed four distinct regions: a partially exposed northern region with moderate water currents, low rainfall, small catchment area and scant freshwater inflow; a central highly exposed region with strong currents, moderate rainfall, no land catchment area and no direct freshwater inflow; an eastern region with a high degree of exposure and strong water movement, moderate rainfall, extensive catchment and seasonally high freshwater inflow; a southern sheltered region with sluggish water movement, comparatively high rainfall, extensive catchment and the highest rainfall in the study area. Differences between the four regions in monthly mean temperature and salinity were slight and there was an indication of more mixing in the central region than elsewhere. No thermocline was observed and surface water temperature demonstrated a diurnal rhythm in summer. Mean winter temperature fell to 10 degrees C and rose to 17 degrees C in summer. Mean salinity ranged from 32.8 degrees C in winter to 34.8 degrees C in summer and no halocline was present. Salinity fell occasionally after heavy rain, but tidal currents soon dissipated the freshwater except in the southern region where it persisted for a short time. The reproductive cycles of Perna canaliculus and Mytilus edulis aoteanus, the occurrence of their larvae in plankton samples, their season of settlement and peaks in settlement activity, were monitored. Physical environmental conditions preceeding or accompanying spatfall were recorded. A broad temporal relationship was found between spawning adult mussels, pelagic larvae, environmental conditions, and settlement of Perna canaliculus in Elie Bay. It appears that P. canaliculus spawned in early summer and in autumn when the water temperature was 18 plus-minus 0.5 degrees C. However, it was not possible to predict spatfall since the duration of the pelagic phase was not known and settlement is a function of larval survival and dispersal, as well as the presence of a suitable substrate. Accurate spatfall prediction is required to facilitate timed immersion of spat-collecting ropes while ensuring "seasoning" and avoiding fouling. As it was not possible to predict settlement by relating it to other biological or physical phenomena, this study sought an alternative spat-collecting material not so susceptible to fouling but still attractive to mussels. Carbon black fibrillated polypropylene film proved to be such an alternative. The determination of available food for mussels within the study area was attempted using particulate organic nitrogen as the indicator. The problems encountered are discussed. The concentration of particulate organic nitrogen was 11.78 microgram at N/litre. The larvae of Mytilus edulis aoteanus and Aulacomya maoriana were reared in the laboratory to the late veliger stage. The most likely causes of their failure to metamorphose were a too high larval density, an excess of food organisms and the lack of a suitable substrate for settlement. It was not possible to induce spawning of Perna canaliculus under controlled conditions.</p>

Investigation into Settlement Behaviour of Mussels and the Hydrology of a Selected Area with a View to Farming the Shellfish

<p>Physical observations in the Beatrix Basin, Marlborough Sounds, New Zealand, revealed four distinct regions: a partially exposed northern region with moderate water currents, low rainfall, small catchment area and scant freshwater inflow; a central highly exposed region with strong currents, moderate rainfall, no land catchment area and no direct freshwater inflow; an eastern region with a high degree of exposure and strong water movement, moderate rainfall, extensive catchment and seasonally high freshwater inflow; a southern sheltered region with sluggish water movement, comparatively high rainfall, extensive catchment and the highest rainfall in the study area. Differences between the four regions in monthly mean temperature and salinity were slight and there was an indication of more mixing in the central region than elsewhere. No thermocline was observed and surface water temperature demonstrated a diurnal rhythm in summer. Mean winter temperature fell to 10 degrees C and rose to 17 degrees C in summer. Mean salinity ranged from 32.8 degrees C in winter to 34.8 degrees C in summer and no halocline was present. Salinity fell occasionally after heavy rain, but tidal currents soon dissipated the freshwater except in the southern region where it persisted for a short time. The reproductive cycles of Perna canaliculus and Mytilus edulis aoteanus, the occurrence of their larvae in plankton samples, their season of settlement and peaks in settlement activity, were monitored. Physical environmental conditions preceeding or accompanying spatfall were recorded. A broad temporal relationship was found between spawning adult mussels, pelagic larvae, environmental conditions, and settlement of Perna canaliculus in Elie Bay. It appears that P. canaliculus spawned in early summer and in autumn when the water temperature was 18 plus-minus 0.5 degrees C. However, it was not possible to predict spatfall since the duration of the pelagic phase was not known and settlement is a function of larval survival and dispersal, as well as the presence of a suitable substrate. Accurate spatfall prediction is required to facilitate timed immersion of spat-collecting ropes while ensuring "seasoning" and avoiding fouling. As it was not possible to predict settlement by relating it to other biological or physical phenomena, this study sought an alternative spat-collecting material not so susceptible to fouling but still attractive to mussels. Carbon black fibrillated polypropylene film proved to be such an alternative. The determination of available food for mussels within the study area was attempted using particulate organic nitrogen as the indicator. The problems encountered are discussed. The concentration of particulate organic nitrogen was 11.78 microgram at N/litre. The larvae of Mytilus edulis aoteanus and Aulacomya maoriana were reared in the laboratory to the late veliger stage. The most likely causes of their failure to metamorphose were a too high larval density, an excess of food organisms and the lack of a suitable substrate for settlement. It was not possible to induce spawning of Perna canaliculus under controlled conditions.</p>

Assessment of River Water Inflow into the Sasyk Estuary-Reservoir According to RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 Climate Change Scenarios for 2021-2050

The paper relevancy is determined by the need to substantiate the feasibility of restoring the ecosystem of the Sasyk estuary after its transformation into a reservoir (1978) and the unsuccessful desalination by the Danube waters for irrigation purposes. The paper is aimed at assessment of the possible inflow of fresh water to the Sasyk estuary from the Kohylnyk and Sarata rivers and their role in the formation of fresh water balance in the first half of the 21st century according to the climate change scenarios RCP4.5 and RCP8.5. The main calculation method is the ‘climate-runoff’ model, which uses meteorological data as input data. Estimates of freshwater inflow into the estuary-reservoir are provided for various calculation periods: before 1989 (before the beginning of significant climate change in the North-Western Black Sea Region); in the period of 1989-2018 according to the hydrometeorological observations; in 2021-2050, according to the averaged data from 14 runs of scenarios RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 under the EVRO-CORDEX project. Estimates of the average long-term values of freshwater inflow in natural conditions and the conditions transformed by water management activity were obtained for each calculation period. It is found that owing to changes in the regional climate for the period of 2021-2050, the total inflow of freshwater from rivers to the estuary in natural conditions will decrease by 23.5 % (by RCP4.5) and by 38.5 % (by RCP8.5) in comparison with the reference period (before 1989). Taking into account the impact of artificial reservoirs, the reduction in the river runoff will be 52.1 % (by RCP4.5) and 64.7 % (by RCP8.5). It is defined, that in case of renaturalization of the Sasyk reservoir into the estuary and the water inflow cut-off from the Danube river, the changes in climatic conditions expected in the first half of the 21st century, combined with water management activity, will result in the increased deficit of annual freshwater balance of the Sasyk reservoir up to 62 % under the RCP4.5 scenario and up to 75 % under the RCP8.5 scenario compared to the period before the emergence of climate change (before 1989). This change must be considered in scientific substantiation of the project on a reversion of the Sasyk Reservoir to the original status of the estuary to ensure such conditions of water exchange with the sea (for compensation of the water balance deficit), which will prevent the long-term trend of salinization.

Main tendencies of temporal changes for concentration of priority pollutants in sediments of the coastal areas at Vladivostok (Peter the Great Bay, Japan Sea)

Concentrations of hydrocarbons, phenols, DDT and its metabolites, Cu, Pb, Fe, Ni, DDD/DDE and DDD+DDE/DDT ratios, and total level of chemical contamination (TPF index) in the bottom sediments are traced for 16 stations in the coastal areas at Vladivostok in 1982−2017. Temporal variations of the concentrations and derived indices are classified to 4 types of dynamics, using the methods of exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, crosscorrelation analysis, and fuzzy set classification procedure. They are: primary contamination; secondary contamination; exponential growth; and polymodal dynamics. These variations are induced by two main sources of pollution, such as the industrial influx including wastes from Vladivostok and nearby settlements, aeolian transfer and polluted precipitations, and the terrigenous influx with polluted freshwater discharge. Impact of the first source prevails in the Golden Horn Bay, Diomid Inlet and Eastern Bosphorus Strait, and the second source is important for the Amur and Ussuri Bays (the coast of Vladivostok in these bays is influenced by both sources with predominance of the second). The terrigenous impact has two modes depended on certain processes of contamination: the permanent pollution inherent in the types of secondary contamination and exponential growth and the extreme pollution that forms the polymodal dynamics. The secondary contamination follows the primary one with a lag of 6–7 years. The secondary contamination of terrigenous usually has inverse correlation with the Razdolnaya/Suifen River discharge; for instance, strengthening of the freshwater inflow causes lower concentrations of Cu and Pb in the bottom sediments due to dilution effect. On the contrary, contamination depends directly on the Razdolnaya/Suifen River discharge for the exponential growth of terrigenous — the stronger the freshwater inflow, the higher the concentrations of Fe, Ni, and phenols (the latter is a sign of eutrophication). The types of dynamics change following the balance between pollution and self-cleaning of the sediments that is determined by external factors, as a drop in economic activity and its subsequent recovery, limitation and finally ban for using of tetraethyl lead additive, extreme floods on rivers, etc.

How a Simple Question About Freshwater Inflow to Estuaries Shaped a Career

Chance and good luck led to a career studying how freshwater inflow drives estuary processes. In 1986, someone asked me: How much fresh water has to flow to a bay for it to be healthy? The question shaped my career. There is probably no better place on Earth to compare effects caused by inflow differences than the Texas coast, because the major estuarine systems lie in a climatic gradient where runoff decreases 56—fold from the Louisiana border in the northeast to the Mexico border in the southwest. This estuary—comparison experiment was used to study inflow effects. The science evolved from the idea in the 1990’s that organisms responded directly to inflow rates to the domino theory in the 2000’s of indirect effects where inflow drives estuary conditions and that organisms respond to those habitat conditions. Today it is hypothesized that climate drives hydrology, which drives estuary dynamics; and thus, climatic factors can indirectly shape estuarine structure and function. Assuming change along the inflow gradient is analogous to effects of altering estuaries over time, we can now predict ecosystem change with changing climate or land—use change.

Modelling the variability of hydrological parameters of the Sasyk reservoir impoundment under various options of its operation

This paper highlights the results of adaptation and verification of the Delft3D Flexible Mesh numerical model under the conditions of the Sasyk reservoir. The objective of this work is to evaluate the expected spatio-temporal variability of water salinity in the Sasyk reservoir after completion of the Sasyk renaturalization project by means of establishing a constant water exchange with the sea through the artificial channel. The Sasyk Lagoon was separated from the sea and transformed into a freshwater reservoir in the late 1970s. However, due to the poor water quality in the Sasyk reservoir in the modern period, the solution of the problem of transforming the reservoir to its original coastal conditions, i.e. the renaturalization, has acquired particular importance. Model results, obtained under conditions of 2019, indicate the possibility of using a hydrodynamic model to evaluate the effectiveness and possible consequences of various scenario-based decisions to be implemented for the management of the hydrological regime of the reservoir under various options of its operation. The model runs were used to evaluate the flushing time of the Sasyk Lagoon and the pattern of the salinity fluctuations in the reservoir after the restoration of the artificial channel in the sand bar with a width of 100 m and a depth of 1.5 m and the establishment of the constant “sea-lagoon” interconnection. Applying the hydrometeorological conditions of 2019, a scenario-based modelling for two consecutive years was performed. For the first year of the simulation, a variant of water management under the absence of freshwater inflow from the Danube and the presence of sea water inflow throughout the year was considered. The model results at the end of the first year of the simulation were set as the initial conditions for the second year, and the rest of the external forcing remained unchanged. Additionally, the variant considering the Danube discharge into the lagoon during May-July for the second year of simulation was investigated. Based on the simulation results, it was found that in the case of a constant water exchange with the sea through the connecting “sea-lagoon” channel (with the abovementioned morphometric characteristics) and under the absence of the Danube freshwater inflow throughout the year: 1) the flushing time of the lagoon will be 1 year and 5 months; 2) stabilization of water salinity in the lagoon will not occur, i.e. the salinization of the lagoon water takes place in the long-term perspective; 3) the time period from the moment of initiating the water exchange with the sea, during which the lagoon reaches the water salinity limit of 7-8 ‰, that is critical for the existence of freshwater species of flora and fauna, is expected to amount to 4 months for the southern part and to 5.5 months for the northern part of the lagoon; after which the formation of the marine ecosystem of the reservoir will begin. It is shown that the stabilization of water salinity in the lagoon in the second year of the simulation can be achieved under conditions of ensuring the Danubian freshwater discharge in the period of significantly higher water level in the Danube River, compared to the lagoon water level (May-July 2019).

Spatial and Temporal Patterns of δ13C and δ15N of Suspended Particulate Organic Matter in Maryland Coastal Bays, USA

The suspended particulate organic matter (SPOM) in transitional waters such as the Maryland Coastal Bays (MCBs) is derived from allochthonous and autochthonous sources. Little is known, however, about the contribution of terrestrially derived organic matter to SPOM in the MCBs. The sources of SPOM in the MCBs were evaluated using stable isotope ratios of nitrogen (δ15N) and carbon (δ13C), and C/N molar ratios. The values of SPOM δ15N, δ13C and C/N ratios from samples collected seasonally (July 2014 to October 2017) at 13 sites ranged from −0.58 to 10.51‰, −26.85 to −20.33‰, and 1.67 to 11.36, respectively, indicating a mixture of terrestrial SPOM transported by tributaries, marine organic matter from phytoplankton, and sewage. SPOM δ13C levels less than −24‰, suggesting the dominance of terrestrially derived carbon, occurred mainly at sites close to the mouths of tributaries, and were less depleted at sites near the ocean. The mean value of SPOM δ13C was higher in October 2014 (−22.76‰) than in October 2015 (−24.65‰) and 2016 (−24.57‰) likely due to differences in river discharge. Much lower values (<4‰) of δ15N observed in February 2016 coincided with a high freshwater inflow that accompanied a major storm, indicating a strong influence of untreated sewage. Results from a two end-member mixing model suggest that on average, the SPOM in the MCBs is composed of 44% terrestrial materials with the highest percent contributions in October 2015 and 2016 (61%), and lowest (28%) in July 2015. The contribution of terrestrial materials to the SPOM was highest (58%) near the mouth of St. Martin River and lowest (25%) near the Ocean City inlet. SPOM composition and distribution in MCBs are, therefore, a function of land use, freshwater inflow, and water circulation that influence in situ phytoplankton production, and the transport and distribution of terrestrially derived materials.