Environmental changes during the middle to late Norian: An integrated record from the Southern Tethys, Ras Al-Khaimah, United Arab Emirates

In the United Arab Emirates, the Late Triassic events including the Carnian Pluvial Episode are relatively poorly studied compared to the carbon isotope excursion and extinction event at the Triassic-Jurassic boundary. This study presents an integrated approach using geochemical and sedimentological data to investigate the depositional and environmental changes through the Late Triassic into the earliest Jurassic. Upper Triassic sediments exposed in Wadi Milaha consists of the marine Milaha and Ghalilah formations. The upper part of the Milaha Formation comprises limestone (predominantly mudstones and wackestones), with subordinate sandstone, marl and shale deposited in a shallow marine environment with some evidence of high-energy shoal deposition represented by ooidal and bioclastic grainstones and packstones. Clastic input varies cyclically and correlates with higher-order sea-level fluctuations. Faunal content includes bivalves, green algae, echinoderms, and benthic foraminifers, and suggests deposition in a shallow semi-restricted to open marine environment. Elemental proxies including Fe and Mn enrichment factors show widespread oxygen deficiency during the Late Norian on this equatorial shelf of Panthalassa. The Late Norian-Hettangian Ghalilah Formation is further broken into the Asfal and Sumra members. The first of these members is dominated by floatstones and rudstones with a higher content of coarse siliciclastics, indicating deposition in regressive conditions. The Sumra Member shows a decrease in coarse siliciclastics and an increase in mudstones, wackstones and packstones indicating a transgressive sea level cycle following the sequence boundary at the top of Asfal. The XRF elemental data also indicate fluctuations in clastic input throughout the Asfal and Sumra members indicative of increased weathering fluxes likely associated with a change to more humid conditions through the Late Triassic. A loss of fauna as well as ooidal grainstones are present at the top of the Sumra Member and continue into the Sakhra Member of the Ghalilah Formation indicating the well-documented extinction at the Triassic–Jurassic boundary. These new data from the equatorial margin of Panthalassa highlight significant environmental and climatic shifts through the Late Norian to Hettangian.  

Paleoenvironmental interpretation of the Late Triassic Norian – Rhaetian boundary interval in the Whitehorse Trough (Stikine Terrane, northern Canadian Cordillera)

Reinventing the Sheikhdom: Clan, Power and Patronage in Mohammed bin Zayed’s UAE

BackgroundThe Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) provides a conservative estimate on rates of sea-level rise of 3.8 mm yr−1 at the end of the 21st century, which may have a detrimental effect on ecologically important mangrove ecosystems. Understanding factors influencing the long-term resilience of these communities is critical but poorly understood. We investigate ecological resilience in a coastal mangrove community from the Galápagos Islands over the last 2700 years using three research questions: What are the ‘fast and slow’ processes operating in the coastal zone? Is there evidence for a threshold response? How can the past inform us about the resilience of the modern system?Methodology/Principal FindingsPalaeoecological methods (AMS radiocarbon dating, stable carbon isotopes (δ13C)) were used to reconstruct sedimentation rates and ecological change over the past 2,700 years at Diablas lagoon, Isabela, Galápagos. Bulk geochemical analysis was also used to determine local environmental changes, and salinity was reconstructed using a diatom transfer function. Changes in relative sea level (RSL) were estimated using a glacio-isostatic adjustment model. Non-linear behaviour was observed in the Diablas mangrove ecosystem as it responded to increased salinities following exposure to tidal inundations. A negative feedback was observed which enabled the mangrove canopy to accrete vertically, but disturbances may have opened up the canopy and contributed to an erosion of resilience over time. A combination of drier climatic conditions and a slight fall in RSL then resulted in a threshold response, from a mangrove community to a microbial mat.Conclusions/SignificancePalaeoecological records can provide important information on the nature of non-linear behaviour by identifying thresholds within ecological systems, and in outlining responses to ‘fast’ and ‘slow’ environmental change between alternative stable states. This study highlights the need to incorporate a long-term ecological perspective when designing strategies for maximizing coastal resilience.

Sequence stratigraphy, pinning-point relative sea-level curves, and magnetostratigraphy provide the quantitative data necessary to understand how rates of sea-level change and different substrate paleoslopes are dominant controls on accumulation rate, carbonate depositional sequence location, and internal architecture. Five third-order (1-10 my) and fourth-order (0.1-1.0 my) upper Miocene carbonate depositional sequences (DS1A, DS1B, DS2, DS3, TCC) formed with superimposed higher-frequency sea-level cycles in an archipelago setting in SE Spain. Overall, our study indicates when areas of high substrate slope (> 15°) are in shallow water, independent of climate, the location and internal architecture of carbonate deposits are not directly linked to sea-level position but, instead, are controlled by location of gently sloping substrates and processes of bypass. In contrast, if carbonate sediments are generated where substrates of low slope ( 15.6 cm/ky to ~ 2 cm/ky and overall relative sea level rose at rates of 17-21.4 cm/ky. Higher frequency sea-level rates were about 111 to more than 260 cm/ky, producing onlapping, fining- (deepening-) upward cycles. Decreasing accumulation rates resulted from decreasing surface area for shallow-water sediment production, drowning of shallow-water substrates, and complex sediment dispersal related to the archipelago setting. Typical systems tract and parasequence development should not be expected in bypass ramp settings; facies of onlapping strata do not track base level and are likely to be significantly different compared to onlapping strata associated with coastal onlap. Basal and upper DS2 reef megabreccias (indicating the transition from cool to warmer climatic conditions) were eroded from steep upslope positions and redeposited downslope onto areas of gentle substrate during rapid sea-level falls (> 22.7 cm/ky) of short duration. Such rapid sea-level falls and presence of steep slopes are not conducive to formation of forced regressive systems tracts composed of downstepping reef clinoforms. The DS3 reefal platform formed where shallow water coincided with gently sloping substrates created by earlier deposition. Slow progradation (0.39-1.45 km/my) is best explained by the lack of an extensive bank top, progressively falling sea level, and low productivity resulting from siliciclastic debris and excess nutrients shed from nearby volcanic islands. Although DS3 strata were deposited during a third-order relative sea-level cycle, a typical transgressive systems tract is not recognizable, indicating that the initial relative rise in sea level was too rapid (>> 19 cm/ky). Downstepping reefs, forming a forced regressive systems tract, were deposited during the relative sea-level fall at the end of DS3, indicating that relatively slow rates of fall (10 cm/ky or less) over favorable paleoslope conditions are conducive to generation of forced regressive systems tracts consisting of downstepping reef clinoforms. The TCC sequence consists of four shallow-water sedimentary cycles that were deposited during a 400 ky to 100 ky time span. Such shallow-water cycles, typical of many platforms, form only where shallow water intersects gently sloping substrates. The relative thicknesses of cycles (< 2 m to 15 m thick), magnitudes of relative sea-level fluctuations associated with each cycle (25-30 m), high rates of relative sea-level fluctuations (minimum of 25-120 cm/ky), and the widespread distribution of similar TCC cycles in the Mediterranean and elsewhere are supportive of a glacio-eustatic influence. With rates of sea-level change so high, typical systems tracts do not form.

Sequence stratigraphy is the study of rock relationships within a framework of repetitive, unconformity-bounded depositional sequences and provides a methodology by which to study and understand stratigraphic, lithofacies, and paleogeographic relationships among the strata within a depositional basin. The primary premise of sequence stratigraphy is that stratal stacking patterns and lithofacies distributions are related to cycles of transgression and regression that result from cyclical changes in relative sea level; relative sea level changes, in turn, result from the combined effects of eustatic sea level changes, basin subsidence, sediment yield, and climatic conditions. While the concepts of sequence analysis have been applied in numerous studies of the ancient rock record, research into the applicability of this approach to the modern record is generally lacking. An understanding of the sequence stratigraphic setting and history of modern depositional systems, when combined with data from ancient analogs to which sequence analysis has been applied, may have predictive value in determining possible scenarios for change in modern coastal and offshore areas and the rates of such change. A major late Pleistocene sea level fall that exposed the continental shelf in the northern Gulf of Mexico area is well documented. During this lowstand, the exposed continental shelf was subjected to erosion and stream valley entrenchment, which resulted in an incised, type 1 unconformity surface. This surface forms the base of the late Pleistocene-Holocene sequence in the study area. Sediment bypassed the exposed shelf through these valley systems and accumulated as slope and basin lowstand systems tract deposits. In the northern central Gulf, studies have shown that the Mississippi Canyon and Fan formed during this sea level phase by these processes. On the Mississippi-Alabama shelf, incised valleys formed on the type 1 surface are much smaller than the Mississippi Canyon to the west, but are numerous and readily delineated on seismic reflection records. Preliminary data show that these features are filled with generally coarse-grained siliciclastics that were deposited as incised valley fill associated with renewed transgression. Progressive marine transgression during the Holocene eventually flooded the entire continental shelf, depositing backstepping sets of transgressive systems tract parasequences. Rapid deepening led to sediment starvation on the shelf as active depositional loci were translated landward. Submarine hardbottoms consisting of surficial rock and shell rubble are common in the offshore in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico. The thickness of the Holocene section in this area and the presence of these hardbottoms indicate that the Mississippi-Alabama shelf has been sediment starved throughout most of its Holocene history. Preliminary assessment of these hardbottom features indicates that they represent, in part, condensed section associated with the transgressive phase of the late Pleistocene-Holocene sea level cycle. This condensed section is probably correlative to that reported by Boyd et al. (1989) in the north-central Gulf area. Subsequent to maximum transgression, relative sea level has been falling in the north-central Gulf, and the Mississippi delta system has been prograding into the basin as a highstand systems tract. Sediment yield from rivers in the northeastern Gulf is not as great as that of the Mississippi River. Sequence stratigraphic analysis of late Pleistocene-Holocene strata of the Mississippi-Alabama shelf can be used as a tool for establishing the anticipated naturally-controlled lithostratigraphic succession, sea level position and rate of change, and distribution of modern geomorphic features. The recognition of deviations from the anticipated sequence stratigraphic framework may allow for the determination of physical environmental changes which may be attributed to anthropogenic events. End_of_Record - Last_Page 849-------

Paleoshoreline record of relative Holocene sea levels on Pacific islands

The Gulf of Thailand is ideal for studying eustatic sea level fluctuations in Southeast Asia due to its shallow basin and tectonic stability. However, our understanding of how this region’s relative sea level (RSL) has fluctuated over the Holocene epoch is far from complete. In this study, we used lithostratigraphy, loss on ignition, grain size, and pollen analyses to reconstruct the environmental changes in the Sam Roi Yot wetland, which was significantly influenced by seawater intrusion, driven by fluctuations in RSL in the Gulf of Thailand. Therefore, the analyzed pollen records of the sediment core from the wetland reflected variabilities in the RSL in the Gulf of Thailand. Subsequently, we found that after a sea level highstand prior to 4000 cal y BP, the RSL gradually fell with two significant regressions at c. 2950 and 1850–1450 cal y BP before rising at 1450–1050 cal y BP and declining after that. The inconsistency between RSL reconstruction based on our results and the global sea level changes simulated by the Glacial Isostatic Adjustment (GIA) model further suggests that long–term El Niño Southern Oscillations (ENSO) variabilities may have played a significant role in sea level changes in the Gulf of Thailand over the Late-Holocene period. Thus, during extended El Niño or La Niña conditions, the sea level would have been consistently lower or higher than expected from eustatic and isostatic processes alone. Overall, this study emphasizes the importance of considering regional factors such as ENSO to understand sea level changes in Southeast Asia.

Transgressive-regressive cycles involve environmental change and therefore, under the predictions of the theory of natural selection, biological response is expected. The nature, magnitude, and instrumentation of that response is, however, less well understood and difficult to predict. Generally the magnitude of biological response would be expected to be a direct function of the magnitude of the environmental change produced by alterations in sea level. However, this may not be the case. Moreover, the magnitude of environmental perturbation seen may itself not be a direct function of the magnitude, range, or even rate of sea level rise or fall.Biological responses to transgressive-regressive cycles are highly variable, yet may be empirically demonstrated. Although the reality of faunal changes can be observed, the precise forcing mechanism or mechanisms driving those changes may be hypothetical at best. The observed iterative morphological series seen in shallow water Jurassic ammonites, for example, appear to be produced by a complex interplay of species adaptation to changes in local habitat and response to immigration from oceanic realms, both of which are ultimately driven by relative sea level. Likewise, changes in diversity and species composition in Devonian shallow marine communities appear to be produced by the effect of variable sedimentation rates and shifts in the oxygen minimum zone, both of which also are related to changes in relative sea level.Published onlap-offlap sequence curves, as such, may offer very little to the paleobiologist interested in the evolutionary behavior of marine organisms. Additional geographic and areal data are required if any rigorous quantitative relationship between relative sea level and evolutionary biology is to be formulated. In the Devonian, for example, it can be demonstrated that a total lack of correlation exists between the evolutionary biology of major benthic marine organisms (brachiopods) and relative sea level as projected from onlap-offlap curves. It could be hypothesized that the rate of change of sea level is more important to organisms than relative sea level itself, though most hypotheses concerning the biological effect of sea level are explicitly framed in terms of relative sea level (usually invoking the species-area effect). Again, onlap-offlap curves alone offer little in testing such a rate hypothesis, as it can also be demonstrated that no correlation exists between the derivative of the Devonian relative sea level curve and the evolutionary biology of the Brachiopoda.

Community cats are increasingly visible in Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) and the wider United Arab Emirates (UAE), highlighting animal welfare, public health, and community well-being challenges. This policy brief draws from ethnographic research conducted with local rescuers and feeders since October 2024, which reveals widespread burnout due to overwhelming suffering, insufficient resources, high levels of pet abandonment, lack of education about best practices around managed cat colonies, and gaps in current animal welfare policies. While Trap-Neuter-Vaccinate-Microchip-Return (TNVMR) programs show promise as humane and effective solutions, their expansion is hampered by cultural misunderstandings, structural barriers, and lack of education. This policy brief advocates for a community-centered approach, combining expanded TNVMR programs, targeted education campaigns, clearer legal frameworks, low-cost veterinary care, and stronger enforcement of cruelty laws. Practical recommendations include creating a network of rescuers as active stakeholders, enhancing oversight of pest control practices, “adopt-don’t-shop” initiatives, increasing the capacity and influence of the Ras Al Khaimah Animal Welfare Centre (RAKAWC), and mobile veterinary units. These steps aim to reduce suffering, improve public health, and foster a compassionate, sustainable coexistence between communities and street animals, positioning Ras Al Khaimah as a model for animal welfare in the UAE.

Introduction: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) are among the most complex health problems in the world. Young people are at high risk of HIV infection and, therefore, are in need of targeted prevention. Aims and objectives: The aims of the study were to assess knowledge of and attitudes to HIV/AIDS among high-school adolescents in Ras Al Khaimah (RAK), United Arab Emirates (UAE), and to assess the effectiveness of an awareness programme on knowledge of and attitudes to HIV/AIDS among high-school adolescents in RAK, UAE. Materials and methods: The study, which followed a pretest – post-test, one-group design, with the intervention being a single session awareness programme on HIV/AIDS, was carried out among 133 students in two high schools in RAK, UAE. Data analysis was carried out using IBM SPSS version 20 (IBM Corporation, Armonk, NY, USA). Results: The pretest results showed that 89.5% had an average level of knowledge regarding HIV/AIDS, 9.8% had a poor level and 0.8% had a good level; post test 29.3% had a good level of knowledge of HIV/AIDS and 70.7% had an average level of knowledge. A paired t -test showed a pretest knowledge mean of 8.27 [standard deviation (SD) 2.273] and post-test mean of 12.35 (SD 2.082, P =0.000). The majority of students (88%) had an unfavourable attitude towards HIV/AIDS pretest but, post test, 98.5% of students were found to have a favourable attitude. The difference between the pretest attitude mean (37.72, SD 5.929) and post-test mean (44.14, SD 5.640) was significant ( P =0.000), illustrating the effectiveness of the awareness programme on knowledge of and attitudes to HIV/AIDS. Conclusion: This study suggests that awareness programmes of HIV/AIDS are effective and beneficial to high-school students in improving their knowledge of HIV/AIDS and in cultivating a favourable attitude towards the disorders. Acknowledgements: We thank our supervisor, Dr Priyalatha, for her support and guidance and we also thank the schools and students who participated in our research.

A conceptual sea-level-driven depositional model for individual fanlobes (channel-overbank systems) of the Mississippi Fan does not permit direct application of the sequence stratigraphic principles of Vail and colleagues. Deep Sea Drilling Project Leg 96 results suggest that, during initial relative lowering of sea level, the canyon and upper fan channel were formed; excavated fine-grained slope sediments may have formed a debris flow deposit base for the fanlobe. Continued lowering produced constructional channel-levee-overbank deposits. Rising relative sea level inhibited input of coarse clastics, and channel depressions filled with muds. A blanket of (hemi)pelagics represents relative high sea level stand.

Obesity is a global issue whose prevalence continues to rise at a concerning rate. Over the past 30 years, many countries have witnessed the doubling or tripling of obesity rates. The growing prevalence of obesity in children is particularly worrying given that it indicates a future burden on healthcare systems. Herein, we aim to evaluate the knowledge, attitudes, and practices related to childhood obesity among parents of school children in Ras Al-Khaimah (RAK) and Fujairah, United Arab Emirates (UAE). This cross-sectional study was conducted between January and May 2024 and involved parents/guardians of children from grades 1 to 12 in governmental schools in RAK and Fujairah. A standardized questionnaire adapted from the "We Can Program" was used after modification to make it suitable for the study participants. The appropriate sample size was calculated and found to be 471. A total of 510 questionnaires were included in the analysis. The study participants comprised 89.6% females, 77.6% middle-aged individuals, and 61.8% RAK residents. The results show that 96.3% of parents have good knowledge; 88.4% have a positive attitude; and 97.8% have good practices. Younger and less educated parents have a less positive attitude {odds ratio (OR) = 0.052 (0.28-0.98), p = 0.03 and OR = 0.057 (0.33-1.009), p = 0.03, respectively}. In contrast, having good knowledge increases the chances of having a positive attitude {OR = 3.81 (1.39-10.45), p = 0.015}. Males were found to have a lower probability of having good practices {OR = 0.29 (0.07-0.15), p = 0.09}. However, having good knowledge and a positive attitude increases the chances of having good practices {OR = 6.30 (1.26-31.41), p = 0.05 and OR = 23.42 (6.02-91.09, p = 0.00), respectively}. In conclusion, overall, parents/guardians from RAK and Fujairah have good knowledge, positive attitudes, and good practices with regard to childhood obesity. Young parents with lower educational levels tend to have a negative attitude. In general, living in RAK or Fujairah is not a contributing factor affecting the levels of overall knowledge, attitudes, and practices. However, parents in Fujairah have worse practices according to the majority of the individual practice questions related to physical activity and healthy food compared to parents in RAK. Particular emphasis should be placed on walking, biking, and using the stairs, when possible, among parents in Fujairah. National programs should be developed, targeting young parents with lower educational levels to improve their attitudes and hence their practices.

Sea level, biotic and carbon-isotope response to the Paleocene–Eocene thermal maximum in Tibetan Himalayan platform carbonates

This work analyzes the results of the SP2 core (50.30 m length) collected in the coastal plain of Sepetiba Bay (SB; SE Brazil), 2 km away from the Guandu River mouth (latitude 22° 55′S, longitude 43° 46′W). It aims to study the influence of the Holocene relative sea level (RSL) on the coastal plain of SB. After description, the SP2 core was sampled at every 5 cm for grain size, geochemical, mineralogical and foraminiferal analyses. Four radiocarbon dates obtained in the first 18 m were modulated with Bayesian statistics. The SP2 core is composed of basement rocks, gneisses (50.30–43.80 m); river sediments (43.80–21.00 m) up to about ≈ 5.0 kyr BP; a sediment package marked by sudden textural and compositional changes, accumulated between ≈ 5.0 and 4.7 kyr BP; muddy sediments deposited between 4.7 and 0.8 kyr BP (18.80–3.35 m) with intercalations of sandy levels; an upper part of disturbed embankment sediments used for the implantation of Santa Cruz Thermoelectric Power Plant. The fluvial sands accumulated before ≈ 5.0 kyr BP were deposited before the maximum Mid-Holocene relative sea level. They were probably eroded and transported by the drainage network of the N region of SB, namely by the Guandu River. Between ≈ 4.5 and 3.5 kyr BP, the foraminiferal abundance and assemblage composition indicate that the study site was a shallow marine environment, due to the Mid-Holocene relative sea-level highstands (MHSLH). Between ≈ 3.5 and 3.0 kyr BP, the sediment accumulation rate (SAR) was the lowest of the last ≈ 5 kyr BP and the study site was exposed to subaerial weathering processes, in a scenario of the relative sea-level drop. A new phase of marine influence was recorded between ≈ 3.0 and 1.9 kyr BP, associated with the highest SAR of this record, up to ≈ 27.4 m/kyr BP. Between ≈ 1.9 and 1.8 kyr BP, the study site was under subaerial weathering processes. Since then the SAR reduced significantly to a mean value of ≈ 4.5 m/kyr and, between ≈ 1.8 and 0.8 kyr BP, the study site was again under the marine influence. Foraminifera were not found, after ≈ 0.8 kyr BP, in the SP2 core. However, the occurrence of a shallow marine environment was identified in another core, between ≈ 1.4 and 0.35 kyr BP, in the Guaratiba Mangrove, NE of SB. The results of the SP2 core suggest that MHSLH left a striking record in the study area, although some of the identified environmental changes are probably related to adjustments of the lower course of Guandu River and tidal channels and variations in the configuration of sandy littoral strands. The growth of a barrier–island system, the Marambaia barrier island, since the last ≈ 8–7.5 kyr BP may also have induced changes in the study area.