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1.
The current study provides long-term catch-rate, biological and feeding data for smooth hammerhead sharks, Sphyrna zygaena, caught in South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal bather protection programme. In total, 2 512 S. zygaena were caught in net installations between 1978 and 2014, and 72 S. zygaena were caught on drumlines between 2007 and 2014. There was no significant log-linear year trend in the net catch rate over time (slope = 0.0054, t = 1.808, p = 0.07). However, there was a significant temporal increase in mean size of the captured sharks (slope = 0.0012, t = 3.502, p < 0.001). A quasi-Poisson generalised additive mixed model showed that increasing latitude, winter months, colder sea temperatures and the deployment of drumlines all had a significant positive effect on the catch rate of sharks in nets. The size frequency of the catch was unimodal, with significantly more females caught in the nets and more males on the drumlines. The majority (93.1%) of all sharks caught were immature and measured between 80 and 120 cm precaudal length. Teleosts and cephalopods dominated the sharks’ diet in terms of all dietary indices. The prey species consumed indicate that immature S. zygaena are feeding primarily within the pelagic zone of shallow coastal habitats. 相似文献
2.
Stomach content analyses and measurements of gillraker morphology were used to assess the diet and feeding ecology of the East Coast redeye round herring Etrumeus wongratanai and provide data for comparisons with other small pelagic fishes off South Africa. Samples were collected by jigging from a kayak off Scottburgh, KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), over the period July 2013–May 2014. In total, 66 stomachs (containing 4 407 prey items) and 66 gill arches were examined. Stomach content analyses indicated that East Coast redeye round herring, at the time of sampling, fed on large (1 500–2 500?µm) particles, with ～2 500?µm particles making the greatest contribution to dietary carbon. The species feeds on larger particles than do anchovy Engraulis encrasicolus and sardine Sardinops sagax, but on particles of a similar size to those consumed by West Coast redeye round herring Etrumeus whiteheadi. There were significant differences in mean gillraker gaps between East Coast redeye round herring and both sardine and anchovy, but not between East Coast and West Coast redeye round herring. The differences in gillraker gaps between East Coast redeye round herring, sardine and anchovy are indicative of resource partitioning through differential feeding, based on zooplankton size. The data suggest that there is no resource partitioning between East and West coast redeye round herring, indicating that competition is likely to occur between them. However, such competition is minimised by limited spatial overlap between these two species. 相似文献
3.
Erik M. Horstman Kathelijne M. Wijnberg Alfons J. Smale Suzanne J.M.H. Hulscher 《Ocean & Coastal Management》2009,52(12):593-611
The potential impacts of climate change on coastal zones combined with the ever increasing number of people living in these areas, motivate a more long-term perspective in coastal management. To explore whether such a perspective raises the need for developing coastal management strategies at larger spatial scales, this paper presents a case study for the dune-protected Holland coast. Long-term (200 years) coastal management strategies are set-up at different levels of spatial aggregation, accounting for specific characteristics of the coast itself and for types of land use in the hinterland. Using a combination of multi-criteria analysis and cost-benefit analysis the new coastal management strategies are compared to the long-term continuation of present coastal management practice. It appears that the large uncertainties that inevitably accompany a long-term perspective do not preclude the comparison of long-term coastal management strategies. Additionally, it appears that a long-term perspective favors solutions for coastal defense enhancement that are more spatially extended and alongshore uniform than those emerging from continuing today's coastal management practice for two centuries. 相似文献
4.
The semi-permanent Durban Eddy is a mesoscale, lee-trapped, cold-core cyclonic circulation that occurs off the east coast of South Africa between Durban in the north and Sezela, some 70 km to the south. When present, strong north-eastward countercurrents reaching 100 cm s–1 are found inshore. It is hypothesised that the cyclone is driven by the strong south-westward flowing Agulhas Current offshore of the regressing shelf edge near Durban. Analysis of ADCP data and satellite imagery shows the eddy to be present off Durban approximately 55% of the time, with an average lifespan of 8.6 days, and inter-eddy periods of 4 to 8 days. After spin-up the eddy breaks loose from its lee position and propagates downstream on the inshore boundary of the Agulhas Current. The eddy is highly variable in occurrence, strength and downstream propagation speeds. There is no detectable seasonal cycle in eddy occurrence, with the Natal Pulse causing more variability than any seasonal signal. A thermistor array deployed in the eddy centre, together with ship CTD data, indicates upward doming of the thermal structure in the eddy core associated with cooler water and nutrients being moved higher in the water column, stimulating primary production. Together with the use of satellite imagery, our findings indicate a second mechanism of upwelling, viz. divergent upwelling in the northern limb of the eddy. Satellite-tracked surface drifters released in the eddy demonstrated the potential for nutrient-rich eddy water to be transported northwards along the inshore regions of the KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) Bight, thus contributing to the functioning of the bight ecosystem, as well as southwards along the KZN and Transkei coasts – both by the eddy migrating downstream and by eddy water being recirculated into the inshore boundary of the Agulhas Current itself. 相似文献
5.
Jellyfish populations in the southeastern Atlantic off the coast of Namibia have increased subsequent to the decline of small pelagic fisheries at the end of the 1960s, although the environment there has also become warmer and the waters off Walvis Bay have become richer in zooplankton in recent years. Laboratory experiments were conducted with the scyphozoan jellyfish Chrysaora fulgida to investigate the effects of food density (0, 30, 70, 100 or 150 Artemia nauplii 200 ml?1), feeding frequency (once daily or once every third day) and water temperature (12, 16 or 20 °C) on the asexual reproduction, growth and development of polyps. The results of a generalised linear mixed-effects model reveal that all variables impacted asexual reproduction, with greater polyp production attained at higher food concentrations, increased feeding frequencies and increased temperatures. The most common mode of asexual reproduction was by lateral budding. These laboratory results suggest that polyps of C. fulgida may have proliferated off Namibia in recent times, which would contribute to increased numbers of jellyfish there. 相似文献
6.
D.A. Smale G.A. Kendrick K.I. Waddington K.P. Van Niel J.J. Meeuwig E.S. Harvey 《Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science》2010
At regional scales, the distribution of species and the structure of assemblages vary with latitude within many marine and terrestrial systems. The oligotrophic coastal waters of Western Australia (WA) support highly speciose and endemic assemblages, yet spatial patterns in benthic structure are currently poorly known. We examined benthic assemblage composition along a latitudinal gradient of 28.5–33.5°S and a depth gradient of 14–62 m, on subtidal reefs in warm-temperate WA. We surveyed benthos using a remotely triggered digital stills camera. In total, we sampled macroalgae and sessile invertebrates at 201 sites spread across four locations. Percent cover of coarse taxonomic groups and dominant species was estimated from over 2000 photoquadrat samples. We recorded significant differences in benthic assemblage composition between locations, and along depth gradients within each location. However, the magnitude of change with depth was not consistent between locations, and shifts in assemblage composition along the depth gradients were not as pronounced as expected. The percent cover of all dominant benthic groupings differed between locations, and several key taxa, such as the kelp Scytothalia dorycarpa, brown foliose macroalgae, hard corals and sponges, changed predictably along the latitudinal gradient. Our study adopted a coarse taxonomic, but assemblage-wide, approach to describing macrobenthic assemblages, and clear differences between locations and depths were detected. The surveys have provided baseline data on broad scale ecosystem structure against which to detect future ecological change. 相似文献
7.
Zooplankton biomass and distribution in the KwaZulu-Natal Bight were investigated in relation to environmental parameters during summer (January–February 2010) and winter (July–August 2010). Mean zooplankton biomass was significantly higher in winter (17.1 mg dry weight [DW] m–3) than in summer (9.5 mg DW m?3). In summer, total biomass was evenly distributed within the central bight, low off the Thukela River mouth and peaked near Durban. In winter, highest biomass was found offshore between Richards Bay and Cape St Lucia. Zooplankton biomass in each size class was significantly, negatively related to sea surface temperature and integrated nitrate, but positively related to surface chlorophyll a and dissolved oxygen. Zooplankton biomass was significantly related to bottom depth, with greatest total biomass located inshore (<50 m). Distribution across the shelf varied with zooplankton size. Seasonal differences in copepod size composition suggest that a smaller, younger community occupied the cool, chlorophyll-rich waters offshore from the St Lucia upwelling cell in winter, and a larger, older community occurred within the relatively warm and chlorophyll-poor central bight in summer. Nutrient enrichment from quasi-permanent upwelling off Durban and Richards Bay appears to have a greater influence on zooplankton biomass and distribution in the bight than the strongly seasonal nutrient input from the Thukela River. 相似文献
8.
New in situ time-series data were acquired by two ADCP moorings placed on the shelf off Richards Bay on the east coast of South Africa at depths of 25 m and 582 m between October 2009 and August 2010. The 11-month inshore bottom-temperature record revealed five substantial upwelling events lasting 5–10 days each where temperatures decreased by about 7 °C to 17–18 °C. Satellite sea surface temperature data showed these events to coincide with cold-water plumes occupying the northern wedge of the KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) Bight. Numerous shorter duration (1–2 days) upwelling events with less vivid surface expressions were also observed throughout the entire record where bottom temperature dropped by 2–3 °C. The last four months of the record were characterised by a protracted cool period lacking a seasonal trend but punctuated with oscillations of warm and cooler bottom water. In contrast to earlier studies that suggested upwelling was topographically and dynamically driven by the juxtaposition of the Cape St Lucia offset and the Agulhas Current (a solitary mechanism), our analysis showed almost all major and minor cold-water intrusions to coincide with upwelling-favourable north-easterly winds that simultaneously force a south-westerly coastal current. Ekman veering in the bottom boundary layer of the Agulhas Current, and the concomitant movement of cold water up the slope, was found to coexist at times with coastal upwelling, but its absence did not impede inshore cold-water intrusions, calling into question its role as a primary driver of upwelling. Both major and minor upwelling events were observed to promote phytoplankton blooms in the northern KZN Bight which commonly extended to the Thukela River. Wind-driven upwelling was also observed in the inner bight between Richards Bay and Port Durnford, explaining the ribbon of coastal chlorophyll continuously observed on ocean colour images between Cape St Lucia and the Thukela River. Similarities in upwelling character and mechanisms are observed between the northern KZN Bight and the Florida Current shelf systems. 相似文献
9.
The KwaZulu-Natal Bight comprises the only sizeable shelf region on the eastern coast of South Africa, and is influenced by both the Agulhas Current on its seaward side and rivers and estuaries on its landward side. Established knowledge of the effect of the Agulhas Current includes the influence on nutrient concentrations in the bight of a semi-permanent upwelling cell at its northern border (St Lucia) and, to a much lesser extent, of a semi-permanent eddy feature at its southern extremity. Current modelling efforts, however, point to a very important role of land-derived nutrients, which supplement the productivity of food webs of the bight. This connectivity of the bight to its adjacent ecosystems has various implications. First, its productivity has traditionally been viewed via phytoplankton growth, whereas ecosystem modelling efforts point to a very high reliance on imported detritus (mainly land-derived) in order to sustain especially the rich benthic food web. The benthos in the bight dominates the food web, and is in marked contrast to the upwelling system of the west coast of South Africa (Atlantic Ocean) where water-column productivity dominates. Second, the importance of the connectivity of the Thukela Bank prawn-trawling ground to estuarine nursery areas, which has been modelled quantitatively, highlights the significance of this particular ecosystem connectivity for fisheries and also for the Thukela Bank food web. Heterogeneity across the bight is apparent for nutrient turnover rates (carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus), CNP content and stoichiometry, whereas nitrogen is a limiting nutrient across the entire bight. The food web near the Thukela River is richer in nutrient content and more active (higher turnover rates) compared to the northern and southern parts of the bight. This environmental heterogeneity was also apparent from the CNP content and stoichiometry of the various species and species groups in the bight. Requirements to take the hydrodynamic, biogeochemical and first ecosystem modelling efforts towards a meaningful predictive capability are discussed. The importance of adopting a system-level view of the bight and its connected systems for realistic exploration of global change scenarios is highlighted. 相似文献
10.
River water quality, particularly in lowland catchments, is a matter of concern to the New Zealand public. We assessed river water quality and biological state and trends using data from more than 900 monitoring sites. Parallel state and trend analyses were carried out using all sites and a subset of lowland river sites. Median water-quality state in urban and pastoral land-cover classes was poorer than in exotic forest and natural land-cover classes, and lowland sites in the urban and pastoral classes had the poorest water quality. Nutrient and Escherichia coli concentrations increased and visual clarity and Macroinvertebrate Community Index scores decreased as proportions of catchments in high-intensity agricultural and urban land cover increased. Ten-year trends (2004–2013) indicated recent improvements in ammoniacal nitrogen, dissolved reactive phosphorus and total phosphorus in the pastoral and urban classes, possibly reflecting improved land management. In contrast, trends in nitrate-nitrogen in the exotic forest and cool-dry/pastoral classes indicated worsening conditions. 相似文献