Widespread rocky reef occurrence in the central English Channel and the implications for predictive habitat mapping   总被引：1，自引：1，他引：0  

Markus Diesing  Roger Coggan  Koen Vanstaen 《Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science》2009,83(4):647-658

Reefs are one of the marine habitats listed in Annex I of the European Union's Habitats Directive, which aims to establish a coherent European ecological network of Special Areas of Conservation. EU Member States are required to prepare and propose a national list of sites for evaluation under the scheme, but currently the occurrence of reefs in the United Kingdom's nearshore and offshore areas is not well documented. Here we report on our search for rocky reefs in the central English Channel, which unexpectedly revealed an extensive reef system covering an area of 1100 km². Prior to our work, it was generally perceived that the seabed in this area comprised mostly gravel, with a few isolated rock outcrops.Our approach to determining the location, extent and character of these reefs incorporated broad, medium and fine-scale analyses over a 3200 km² area of seabed, using single- and multi-beam acoustic data, ground-truthed by underwater video and stills imagery. A benthic terrain model was developed in ArcGIS to map topographic features at the broad and medium scales. Biotope assignments were made at the fine scale through detailed analysis of video footage obtained from 30 sampling stations. The study area has a complex geological history and lies at the centre of a major bedload-parting zone. Together, these strongly influence the seabed character and the distribution of biotopes. An integrated assessment of the physical and biological features was used to map the study area to level 4 of the EUNIS habitat classification system.Similar physical conditions exist in other areas of the UK continental shelf, raising the prospect of predicting where other rocky reef systems might occur. In the absence of a co-ordinated national seabed survey programme, such predictions, coupled with interpretation of existing single-beam bathymetry data, can help prioritise areas where limited survey resources could be most effectively deployed.  相似文献   

Top–down and bottom–up regulation of macroalgal community structure on a Kenyan reef     

Erik Mrk  Gustaf Lillieskld Sj  Nils Kautsky  Tim R. McClanahan 《Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science》2009,84(3):331-336

Top–down and bottom–up regulation in the form of grazing by herbivores and nutrient availability are important factors governing macroalgal communities in the coral reef ecosystem. Today, anthropogenic activities, such as over-harvesting of herbivorous fish and sea urchins and increased nutrient loading, are altering the interaction of these two structuring forces. The present study was conducted in Kenya and investigates the relative importance of herbivory and nutrient loading on macroalgal community dynamics, by looking at alterations in macroalgal functional groups, species diversity (H′) and biomass within experimental quadrats. The experiment was conducted in situ for 42 days during the dry season. Cages excluding large herbivorous fish and sea urchins were used in the study and nutrient addition was conducted using coated, slow-release fertilizer (nitrogen and phosphorous) at a site where herbivory is generally low and nutrient levels are relatively high for the region. Nutrient addition increased tissue nutrient content in the algae, and fertilized quadrats had 24% higher species diversity. Herbivore exclusion resulted in a 77% increase in algal biomass, mainly attributable to a >1000% increase in corticated forms. These results are in accordance with similar studies in other regions, but are unique in that they indicate that, even when prevailing nutrient levels are relatively high and herbivore pressure is relatively low, continued anthropogenic disturbance results in further ecological responses and increased reef degradation.  相似文献   

Reconstructing pre-colonial oyster demographics in the Chesapeake Bay, USA     

Roger Mann  Juliana M. Harding  Melissa J. Southworth 《Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science》2009,85(2):217-222

Recent estimates of growth and mortality rates in extant Chesapeake Bay, USA oyster (Crassostrea virginica) populations are used to quantify changes in both population abundance (dN/dT) and shell accretion (dS/dT) associated with modern population demographics. The demographics of oyster populations that would be required to maintain reef accretion rates commensurate with sea level rise over geological time frames are examined using estimates of oyster longevity in pre-colonial (pre -1600) times combined with parallel estimates of pre-disease endemic mortality. The analysis demonstrates that modern populations, with their disease related, age-truncated demographics, are generally not capable of maintaining and building biogenic reefs through accretion. Estimates of filtration rates associated with Chesapeake Bay oyster populations prior to 1600 considerably underestimate actual benthic-pelagic coupling during that period. Pristine oyster populations would have supported water column turnover rates on the order of minutes to hours. Thus, the spatial footprint of oyster reefs was limited by available productivity in the estuary. Accretion rate calculations for pristine (pre-1600) oyster reefs describe the intimate relationship between benthic-pelagic coupling and the presence or absence of oyster reefs and the associated communities.  相似文献   

Sources of land-derived runoff to a coral reef-fringed embayment identified using geochemical tracers in nearshore sediment traps     

Renee K. Takesue  Michael H. Bothner  Richard L. Reynolds 《Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science》2009

Geochemical tracers, including Ba, Co, Th, ⁷Be, ¹³⁷Cs and ²¹⁰Pb, and magnetic properties were used to characterize terrestrial runoff collected in nearshore time-series sediment traps in Hanalei Bay, Kauai, during flood and dry conditions in summer 2006, and to fingerprint possible runoff sources in the lower watershed. In combination, the tracers indicate that runoff during a flood in August could have come from cultivated taro fields bordering the lower reach of the river. Land-based runoff associated with summer floods may have a greater impact on coral reef communities in Hanalei Bay than in winter because sediment persists for several months. During dry periods, sediment carried by the Hanalei River appears to have been mobilized primarily by undercutting of low ⁷Be, low ¹³⁷Cs riverbanks composed of soil weathered from tholeiitic basalt with low Ba and Co concentrations. Following a moderate rainfall event in September, high ⁷Be sediment carried by the Hanalei River was probably mobilized by overland flow in the upper watershed. Ba-desorption in low-salinity coastal water limited its use to a qualitative runoff tracer in nearshore sediment. ²¹⁰Pb had limited usefulness as a terrestrial tracer in the nearshore due to a large dissolved oceanic source and scavenging onto resuspended bottom sediment. ²¹⁰Pb-scavenging does, however, illustrate the role resuspension could play in the accumulation of particle-reactive contaminants in nearshore sediment. Co and ¹³⁷Cs were not affected by desorption or geochemical scavenging and showed the greatest potential as quantitative sediment provenance indicators in material collected in nearshore sediment traps.  相似文献   

中国珊瑚礁资源状况及其药用研究调查 Ⅱ.资源衰退状况、保护与管理   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1  

傅秀梅  邵长伦  王长云  韩磊  李国强  刘光兴  管华诗 《中国海洋大学学报(自然科学版)》2009,39(4)

对中国珊瑚礁资源衰退状况和原因进行了调查和分析.结果表明,中国南海珊瑚礁资源衰退状况严重,珊瑚礁破坏率高达 90%以上,其中,占全国珊瑚礁总面积98%的海南,80%～95%的珊瑚礁受到破坏.除自然因素外,对珊瑚礁资源的不当的、过度的开发利用,社会经济发展带来的海洋环境污染等人为因素,是珊瑚礁资源衰退的主要原因.建立南中国海珊瑚礁生态系统保护与管理国际合作机制,正确评估珊瑚礁的生态功能与价值,建立珊瑚礁自然保护区及监测网络系统,是中国珊瑚礁资源保护性开发利用的可行对策.  相似文献   

Evaluation of sewage source and fate on southeast Florida coastal reefs     

Futch JC  Griffin DW  Banks K  Lipp EK 《Marine pollution bulletin》2011,62(11):2308-2316

Water, sponge and coral samples were collected from stations impacted by a variety of pollution sources and screened for human enteric viruses as conservative markers for human sewage. While human enteroviruses and adenoviruses were not detected, noroviruses (NoV; human genogroups I and II) were detected in 31% of samples (especially in sponge tissue). Stations near inlets were the only ones to show multiple sample types positive for NoV. Fecal indicator bacteria and enteric viruses were further evaluated at multiple inlet stations on an outgoing tide. Greatest indicator concentrations and highest prevalence of viruses were found at the mouth of the inlet and offshore in the inlet plume. Results suggest that inlets moving large volumes of water into the coastal zone with tides may be an important source of fecal contaminants. Efforts to reduce run-off or unintended release of water into the Intracoastal Waterway may lower contaminants entering sensitive coastal areas.  相似文献   

Narrower grid structure of artificial reef enhances initial survival of in situ settled coral     

Suzuki G  Kai S  Yamashita H  Suzuki K  Iehisa Y  Hayashibara T 《Marine pollution bulletin》2011,62(12):2803-2812

The initial factors that cause a decline in the survival of in situ settled corals remain poorly understood. In this study, we demonstrated through field experiments that the design of artificial grid plates may influence the initial survival of Acropora corals, with narrower grids being the most effective. In fact, grid plates with a 2.5-cm mesh presented the highest recorded survival rate (14%) at 6 months after settlement (representing approximately 50 corals per 0.25 m² of plate). This is the first study where such high survival rates, matching those of cultures under aquarium conditions, were obtained in the field without using additional protective measures, such as guard nets against fish grazing after seeding. Therefore, our results provide a foundation for establishing new and effective coral restoration techniques for larval seeding, in parallel to clarifying the details of the early life stages of reef-building corals.  相似文献   

渤海湾全新世牡蛎礁:时空分布和海面变化标志点   总被引：2，自引：0，他引：2  

王海峰  裴艳东  刘会敏  范昌福  王宏 《地质通报》2011,30(9):1396-1404

以他人和本研究小组对渤海湾西北岸牡蛎礁平原、毗邻浅海区的全新世埋藏牡蛎礁和现生牡蛎礁的研究为基础,重新考订了与礁体有关的数据的沉积学意义及年龄,进一步厘定了牡蛎礁的形成时间、礁体顶板和底板的高度.在原有的9个礁群的基础上,增加了目前发现的最老的早全新世晚期礁群;在沿海低地新发现的滨海湖、空港牡蛎礁,暂作为北淮淀礁群的亚...  相似文献   

Effects of differential tectonic uplift on Late Quaternary coral reef diagenesis,Huon Peninsula,Papua New Guinea     

Z. Zhu  J. F. Marshall  J. Chappell 《Australian Journal of Earth Sciences》2013,60(5):463-474

Mineralogical, petrological and geochemical analyses of corals and associated skeletal limestones taken from three transects across the Late Quaternary raised coral reefs of the Huon Peninsula, Papua New Guinea, show that tectonic uplift can be related to the degree of subaerial diagenesis of the reefs. Where the uplift rate is high, Pleistocene corals frequently retain their aragonite mineralogy, even though the annual rainfall is relatively high. In contrast, similar age corals from low‐uplift areas are consistently altered neomorphically to calcite. The transformation of reef skeletal limestones shows a similar, but less pronounced, trend to the corals. Chemical analysis shows that the neomorphic calcite crystals of coral skeletons from the low‐uplift areas have relatively higher Sr and Mg concentrations, compared with those in high‐uplift areas. This may indicate that neomorphism of corals in the low‐uplift terraces takes place at a relatively higher rate and an earlier stage than that in the high‐uplift areas. The pattern of diagenesis of the Huon reefs can be explained by the effects of tectonic uplift on the regional hydrological regime. First, lower uplift rates allow a raised reef or any part of it to remain in the meteoric phreatic zone for a relatively long time. Second, river gorge slopes from low‐uplift regions have lower gradients and reef terraces in these areas have more extensive raised lagoon depressions than in high‐uplift areas. Thus, there is less runoff and consequently more extensive vadose percolation in the former areas. Third, the resulting low‐relief topography in low‐uplift areas prompts formation of soils on the terraces, and further increases the ability of interaction between coral reefs and formation water.  相似文献   

高密度电法技术在牡蛎礁勘查中的应用效果          下载免费PDF全文

秦磊  蔡运胜  许钦环  宋广明  张宝华 《地质找矿论丛》2013,28(2):305-309

天津牡蛎礁是全新世以来海侵海退过程中在天津滨海平原留下的重要地质遗迹,是海陆变迁的佐证,对推演天津滨海平原的成陆史具有重要的科学价值。选用物探高密度电法探测手段对宁河县七里海罾口河南岸的牡蛎礁分布进行了试验研究,并布设了7个钻孔对高密度电法的探测结果进行验证。结果表明:高密度电法技术能经济、快速、有效地探测地下牡蛎礁的分布。  相似文献