British Coastal Waters Research Articles

Talitrid amphipods (Crustacea) as biomonitors for copper and zinc

Data are presented on the copper and zinc concentrations of four talitrid amphipod species (standard dry weight 10 mg), i.e. Orchestia gammarellus (Pallas), O. mediterranea Costa, Talitrus saltator Montagu and Talorchestia deshayesii (Audouin), from 31 sites in S.W. Scotland, N. Wales and S.W. England. More limited data are also presented for cadmium in O. gammarellus (three sites) and T. deshayesii (one site). In S.W. Scotland, copper concentrations were raised significantly in O. gammarellus from Whithorn and Auchencairn (Solway) and Loch Long and Holy Loch (Clyde). In S.W. England, copper concentrations were highest at Restronguet Creek, Torpoint and Gannel (Cornwall). Samples of O. gammarellus from Islay (inner Hebrides) taken adjacent to the effluent outfalls of local whisky distilleries fell into two groups based on copper concentrations (presumably derived from copper stills), the higher copper levels deriving from the more productive distilleries. High copper levels were found in T. saltator and Tal. deshayesii from Dulas Bay (Wales). Zinc levels in O. gammarellus were high in Holy Loch and Auchencairn (Scotland), Gannel and Torpoint (England) but extremely elevated (as was Zn in O. mediterranea) at Restronguet Creek. Zinc was also high in T. saltator from Dulas Bay (Wales), but not in Tal. deshayesii. Cadmium levels in O. gammarellus from Kilve (Bristol Channel) were much raised. These differences (a) conform with expectations of elevated bioavailability of these metals from well researched areas (S.W. England & N. Wales), and (b) identify hitherto unappreciated areas of enrichment in S.W. Scotland. Orchestia gammarellus is put forward as a suitable biomonitor for copper and zinc in British coastal waters.

The structure and taxonomy of Rhinomonas pauca gen. et sp. nov. (Cryptophyceae)

Rhinomonas pauca gen. et sp. nov. is described from Australian waters. This diminutive cryptomonad previously has been described from British coastal waters as a species of Chroomonas (Butcher 1967), but is removed from Chroomonas on the basis of gullet structure, organization of the plastidial complex, and periplast structure. Three other species are also transferred from Chroomonas to Rhinomonas. The positioning of the nucleomorph within the pyrenoidal matrix allies Rhinomonas to Pyrenomonas, but these two genera can be distinguished by the organization of their vestibulum–furrow–gullet systems and their periplast structure.

Status report on aquatic pollution problems in Europe

Due to the high population densities in European countries and the fact that pollution prevention measures are either non-existent or have only recently begun to be implemented, the degree of coastal and freshwater pollution in Europe is quite high in certain regions. A number of examples from the marine and freshwater field are selected to illustrate specific pollution problems and to derive some general conclusions. These examples include studies on fish diseases in the North Sea, where two species of fish, dab ( Limanda limanda) and cod ( Gadus morhua), are frequently afflicted with externally visible diseases. In dab, the disease prevalences amounted to 40% in certain areas. The locations of prevalence “hot spots” led to the conclusion that pollution might be causing the phenomenon. Highest disease prevalences were found in a dumping area for wastes from titanium dioxide production, in certain German, Danish, and British coastal waters, and on the Dogger Bank (an offshore area characterized by high organochlorine and heavy metal residues in fish). For coastal waters off Germany and Denmark contamination of gonads with PCBs in certain fishes was negatively correlated with the viable hatch. Also malformation rates were higher in fish embryos from dumping areas and along shipping routes than from other stations. PCBs were suspected also to be causative factors in the population declines of marine mammals in the Baltic between 1900 and 1970. Mercury contamination was identified as the paramount pollution problem in the Mediterranean where fish for human consumption display high contamination levels. Consequences for human consumption have not yet been evaluated. Studies on biological effects of pollution in the river Rhine were inconclusive despite the fact that this river must be considered to be one of the most heavily polluted river systems in Europe. Skeletal deformities of certain fish occurred in higher prevalences in the polluted stretches of the river than in control areas. On the other hand, the prevalence of neoplasia in fish livers was not unusually high in the polluted river. The example of the river Elbe highlights long term degradation of river water quality and its impact on biota and illustrates the scientific and public debate on the changes. The changes were too slow, and not dramatic enough to elicit immediate preventive action. The scientific debate on biological changes in the river started in 1798 when fishermen complained that their fishery had deteriorated, and continues today as scientists struggle to determine whether fish populations have decreased or not. From these examples it is concluded that scientific evidence for biological changes in marine and freshwater ecosystems is frequently debated and does not provide the basis needed for sound pollution management measures. The ability has to be developed, therefore, to read and interpret the signs of environment deterioration and to collect circumstantial evidence of ecological malfunctions. Precautionary measures to reduce pollution loads have to be taken in order to protect aquatic ecosystems.

An account of the attempted control of an introduced marine alga, Sargassum muticum, in Southern England

This paper details the attempted eradication and clearance programme for the introduced brown seaweed Sargassum muticum (Yendo) Fensholt. Since the introduction of this alga to British coastal waters in the early 1970s, populations have increased rapidly, causing a number of recreational and ecological problems. Various methods including handpicking, herbicides and biological control to combat the spread of the weed have been unsuccessful. Mechanical clearance, a costly alternative, has proved to be a viable proposition; the stages in the development of a working system are presented here.

The Nest Structure of the Corkwing Wrasse, Crenilabrus Melops (Labridae: Teleostei)

There are five common species of wrasse (Labridae) in British coastal waters, two of which are hermaphrodite, (Labrus bergylta Ascanius and Labrus mixtus L.) and three are gonochorists with discrete sexes (Ctenolabrus rupestris) (L.), Centrolabrus exolelus (L.) and (Crenilabrus melops (L)) (Dipper & Pullin, 1979; Dipper, 1981). L. bergylta (Sjolander, Larson & Engstrom, 1972; Potts, personal observation) and L. mixtus (Wilson, 1958; Potts, 1984) lay their eggs in shallow depressions excavated in coarse paniculate substrates often closely associated with sublittoral reefs. Ctenolabrus rupestris, the smallest of the species is most usually associated with sublittoral crevices, and is the only one to produce pelagic eggs despite showing territorial aggression in the spawning season, a behaviour mostly confined to species with demersal eggs. Little is known about Centrolabrus exoletus, but from the striking sexual dichromism at maturity and its association with rocky reefs it may be supposed that it exhibits some form of parental care for the demersal eggs (Potts, 1984). Crenilabrus melops shows parental care of its eggs which are laid in large and complex algal nests, a feature which is common to all this genus (Fiedler, 1964; Quignard, 1966; Potts, 1984). The corkwing wrasse is one of the commonest coastal species which at maturity show sexual dimorphism and dichromism, a feature which led to taxonomic confusion among earlier workers and which is discussed by Potts (1974).

Some responses of transplanted Mytilus edulis to metal-enriched sediments and sewage sludge

Approximately 25 % of the sewage sludge produced in the United Kingdom (about 10 million wet tonnes anually) is disposed of to British coastal waters at 15 sites. A series of tests is being evaluated in order to determine the effects of this practice in relation to the effects due to other polluting inputs, both natural and man-made, to the marine environment. The results presented here are for one site on the south-west coast of Britain. They indicate that the increased metal content of the tissue and the presence of sulphydryl-rich metal-binding proteins in the lysosomes of digestive cells in transplanted mussels can be correlated with exposure at sites overlying metal-rich sediments and to a lesser extent an area used for the disposal of sewage sludge containing metallic contaminants.

A new genus and species of marine leech from British Coastal waters

Brumptiana lineata n.gen. et sp., from oro-nasal region of Raja, has a subcylindrical body, 2 pairs of eyes, 13 or 14 annuli per mid-body somite, 12 pairs of small pulsatile vesicles, 5 postcaecal fenestrae, 5 or 6 pairs of testes, a large muscular atrium with accessory glands, a thick-walled vagina and no receptaculum, conducting tissue or spermatheca.

Quantities of some dangerous substances discharged to British coastal waters

Estimation of the quantities of cadmium, mercury, lindane, DDT, ‘drins’ (aldrin, dieldrin and endrin), PCBs, copper, lead, chromium, nickel, zinc and arsenic discharged to the tidal waters of the UK is described and the results are presented for the major geographic regions of the UK. Consideration is also given to the significance of different sources of discharge of these substances in terms of their contribution to the overall loads reaching the sea. For most of these substances, rivers contribute the major proportion of the quantities discharged.

Hepatic microsomal monooxygenases of sea birds

The present study was part of an investigation into the biochemical basis for the strong bioaccumulation of persistent organochlorine pollutants by many fish-eating birds. Hepatic microsomal monooxygenase was assayed in six species of sea birds from British and Irish coastal waters using as substrates the organochlorine compounds aldrin (1,2,3,4,10,10hexachloro1,4,4a,5,8,8a-hexahydro-exo1,4-endo-5,8-dimethanonaphthalene) and HCE (1,2,3,4,9,9-hexachloro-l,4,4a,5,6,7,8,8a,octahydroexo-7,8-epoxy-l,4-methanonaphthalene). The razorbill (Alca torda), guillemot (Uria aalge), shag (Phalacrocorax aristotelis), cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo) and Manx shearwater (Puffinus puffinus) had much lower activities than the puffin (Fratercula arctica). When these values were compared with other data from the literature on a scale of relative activity, the high activities of the puffin were similar to those of mammals and certain omnivorous or herbivorous birds, whereas the low activities of the other five species were similar to those of fish (Walker & Knight, 1981). In the three auks, enzyme activities were highly variable and resolved into two or more peaks when frequency diagrams were plotted. This was not so with the shag. In the razorbill, individuals of low activity (Group I) were compared with individuals of higher activity (Group II) (Knight & Walker, 1982). Individuals from Group II had, on average, 5.6-8.5-fold higher monooxygenase activity at saturating substrate concentrations than did Group I, although there was only a 1.6-fold difference in microsomal cytochrome P-450 between the groups. Lineweaver-Burke plots for

Some species of the ostracod genus <i>Bythocythere</i> Sars from British waters

Abstract. A reappraisal of the genus Bythocythere shows that five species (B. bradyi Sars, B. intermedia Elofson, B. zetlandica sp. nov., B. robinsoni sp. nov. and B. bradleyi sp. nov.) live in British coastal waters. A sixth species, found in Quaternary deposits in Scotland and the North Sea, is not thought to live in this area today. Past records of B. turgida Sars and B. constricta Sars from the Recent of the British Isles are shown to be incorrect.

Statistical distributions for tidal elevations

Summary. Recent developments in the analysis of extreme sea-levels using the joint density function of surges and tides has generated interest in statis- tical modelling of the distributions of tidal elevations as encountered in British coastal waters. In this paper some relatively simple stochastic models are proposed and their suitability examined and compared using tidal heights determined for Newlyn and Portsmouth. Particular attention has been paid to the computational procedures involved in order to illustrate the theoretical and practical difficulties which may be encountered.

Further studies on the distribution of 137Cs in British coastal waters—I. Irish Sea

The concentrations of 137Cs, discharged to the northeast Irish Sea from the British Nuclear Fuels Limited (BNFL) Windscale Works, Cumbria, have been measured in the Irish Sea and its approaches during 1970 to 1978. Seawater labelled by 137Cs has been used to study the variability of local and distant dispersion and to estimate residence times and volume transports. In the immediate vicinity of the outfall a release rate of 1 Ci d −1 produces a mean annual concentration of 4.2 pCi l −1 (2.6 to 6.3 pCi l −1) with an approximate 30-fold reduction to 0.15 pCi l −1 in the northern exit to the Irish Sea and at least a 300-fold reduction at the southern entrance. The release rate ranged from 60 to 400 Ci d −1 (annual average) during the study period. The main flow patterns are deduced and show a substantial change before and after 1976. Using estimated inventories of the radionuclide in various areas, the rate of input into the system, and a simple exponential model, the residence ‘half time’ of water east of a line south from Scotland through the Isle of Man to Anglesey is estimated to be 200 days. The estimate for the whole northern Irish Sea was 1 year between 1970 and 1976, with a sharp reduction thereafter. The change is confirmed by estimating the volume transport through the North Channel from data from the Stranraer-Larne, Fishguard-Rosslare, and Swansea-Cork ferries. The mean flow through the Irish Sea for the period October 1971 to May 1978 was 5 km 3 d −1 with mean flows of 3.4 km 3 d −1 prior to January 1976 and 7.9 km 3 d −1 thereafter to May 1978. Transit times from the discharge point to the North Channel have also been estimated from the change in concentration of the radionuclides 137 Cs( t 1 2 = 30.1 y) and 134 Cs( t 1 2 = 2.1 y) and from serial correlation of rates of discharge and concentrations of 137Cs at distance.

Observations on marine algicolous fungi, including the hyphomycete Sigmoidea marina sp.nov.

Sigmoidea marina sp.nov., a marine hyphomycete growing on drift Fucus serratus and Laminaria saccharina , is described and compared with the freshwater hyphomycetes Anguillospora and Condylospora . Ascomycetes, Fungi Imperfecti and thraustochytrids isolated from seaweeds are listed, and Corollospora intermedia is recorded for the first time from British coastal waters.

Munitions in British coastal waters

Munitions are now widely distributed throughout the coastal waters of the British Isles following accidental losses or deliberate dumping in the past. Substantial quantities have been discovered by the general public, and occasional injuries or fatalities have resulted from the improper handling of a small proportion found in dangerous condition.

Photosynthesis in some British coastal waters may be inhibited by zinc pollution

RIVER drainage from mineral-bearing and industrialised regions has produced elevated concentrations of heavy metals in several parts of the coastal waters around the UK, including Liverpool Bay1,2, Cardigan Bay1, the Bristol Channel1–3, off the mouth of the River Tees4 and in the Firth of Clyde5. Little attention has been paid, however, to the possibility that the presence of the metals might be affecting the planktonic marine life of these sea areas. Phytoplankton represent the basic food resource on which the majority of marine animals and fish directly or indirectly depend, and it is thus conceivable that inhibition of their growth by toxic metals could have repercussions throughout the local marine food webs. We are investigating the role of trace quantities of both biologically beneficial and toxic substances in regulating the ‘quality’ of seawater, that is, its capacity to support and maintain, through photosynthesis, the production of living matter from the inorganic nutrients present in the water. As part of this research programme, we have examined how carbon fixation rates in natural populations of phytoplankton are affected by zinc concentrations encompassing those observed in the areas mentioned. Although zinc is a component of many enzyme systems6 and therefore essential for the growth of phytoplankton7, it becomes toxic if present greatly in excess of their basic requirements. We report here data which suggest that phytoplankton growth could be depressed by the zinc concentrations present in some British coastal waters.

The distribution of Vibrio parahaemolyticus in British coastal waters: report of a collaborative study 1975--6.

A collaborative survey has shown that V. parahaemolyticus is widely distributed in British coastal waters, sediments and shellfish, especially in southern and western areas. The relatively small numbers in the environment do not present significant health hazards from marine products, provided that processing, storage and distribution are adequate. The presence of this organism in small numbers in British coastal waters or in shellfish should not in itself be regarded as cause for concern.

The EEC bathing water directive

In June 1977 the French Minister of Culture and the Environment and the Minister of Health and Social Security made it known bacteriological tests on French bathing beaches had shown 77°70 to be of very good or good quality, 19070 of average quality and 4070 of poor quality. Three weeks later, the Central Press Agency of Paris had ferreted out a complete list of the unsatisfactory beaches, 28 of them in all at 23 coastal resorts, and this list was published in the French press and in the Times of 7 July 1977. From 1980 onwards this kind of bacteriological grading of bathing beaches will figure in the reports on bathing waters all member states of the community must submit to the Commission at regular intervals. By then also, no doubt, the tourist interests of the different countries will, in the spirit of fair competition embodied in the Treaty of Rome, blazon abroad their high percentage of good quality beaches and question the validity of competitors' bathing water rankings. The four grades of bathing water quality cited in the French statement are based on conformity or failure to conform to the requirements of the EEC Council 'Directive of 8 December 1975 concerning the quality of bathing water'. This Directive has already been strongly criticized by Lord Ashby (in 1975) because of the spurious uniformity it seeks to impose on bathing beaches from the Mediterranean to the north of Scotland, and also for the enormous cost of implementing it when no significant health hazard from sea bathing has so far been demonstrated. In Britain, the Directive also invites critical scrutiny for another reason. Here, the conclusion based on extensive work over two decades bathing water standards were irrelevant and impracticable has been generally accepted for many years past. Has this been a misguided view? The background to the EEC Directive and its technical aspects are scrutinized from this standpoint in what follows. Perhaps the first significant point emerges from the preamble to the Directive is the EEC was committed to bathing water standards before these were discussed at expert level. The programme of action of the European Communities, promulgated in 1973, included a provision that quality objectives are to be jointly drawn up fixing the various requirements which an environment must meet, inter alia the definition of parameters for water, including bathing water. How to define water quality objectives was the subject of a Service committee studied bathing water contamination in British coastal waters in the nineteen-fifties. He has acted as rapporteur at W H O expert meetings on bathing water hygiene. He is now Chairman of the Joint Committee on the Medical Aspects of Water Quality was set up in 1976 by the Department of Health and Social Security and the Department of the Environment.

Chlorine-containing pesticides and polychlorinated biphenyls in British coastal waters

Gas chromatographic procedures have been developed for the determination of PCBs, DDT residues (∑DDT) and dieldrin in seawater, marine sediments and marine air. In order to minimize contamination, chlorinated hydrocarbons were concentrated from seawater in situ using a towed ‘fish’. Sampling was carried out in 1974 in the eastern Irish Sea, the Firth of Clyde, northern Scottish coastal waters, the English Channel and North Sea. Concentrations of PCBs in areas subject to least pollution averaged ~0·2 ng l −1, a value considerably lower than that found by most previous workers, which may reflect a continuation of the decline in their surface concentration reported by Harvey et al., (1974). The chromatograms of the PCB concentrates from all these areas closely matched that of Aroclor 1254. Higher concentrations (up to 1·5 ng l −1) were found in the Clyde Estuary, Liverpool Bay and the North Sea, particularly in the vicinity of sludge dumping areas, and the chromatograms of samples from such areas often matched that of Aroclor 1260. The levels of ∑DDT in the English Channel and northern Scottish waters ranged from below detection level (< 0·01 ng l −1) to 0·03 ng l −1. Samples from the Liverpool Bay area and the mouth of the River Wyre were considerably higher (~0·2 ng l −1); such samples were also the richest in dieldrin (0·04 – 0·3 ng l −1) which was usually at, or below, the detection limit (0·01 ng l −1) in samples from offshore areas. Determinations of chlorinated hydrocarbons were carried out on sediments and suspended particulates from the Irish Sea; in general, the levels in the latter were considerably higher than those in the former. A limited number of estimations were carried out on marine air, these showed the presence of 0·2 – 0·8 ng PCBs m −3, usually matching a mixture of Aroclor 1254 and 1242.

Distribution of caesium-137 in British coastal waters

The safe discharge of wastes into the sea depends upon achieving adequate dilution of the effluent, otherwise inshore biological reserves may be damaged. Water in the north-east Irish Sea can be identified because of its content of radioactive caesium emanating from the Windscale nuclear fuel processing plant. A survey shows how closely this water hugs the coasts as it travels across the Irish Sea and along the west and north coasts of Scotland. Inshore waters receive almost all our effluents and this report suggests that the dilution capacity of the sea may be far less than is supposed.

Distribution of dissolved mercury in the Irish sea.

PRESTON et al.1 have recently examined the distribution of a number of heavy metals in British coastal waters. They have found that the average concentrations of these elements in waters and marine organisms were significantly higher in samples from the eastern Irish Sea than in those from other areas. Fish and shellfish from this region (particularly the Mersey Estuary and Lune Deep) have been observed to have the highest average contents of mercury of any from around the British Isles2. No data are available for the concentration of the element in the seawater of the Irish Sea, nor is anything known about whether significant mercury pollution arises from liquid wastes discharged into the sea from the populous, highly industrialized areas of Lancashire. Trade effluents from the many chemical and industrial plants (including three chlorine-alkali works) would probably be the principal sources of mercury, but the input from sewage, which may contain a significant concentration of mercury (2–150 p.p.m. on the dry weight)3,4, would also be important, as the total daily discharge of (mainly untreated) sewage to the area amounts to about 0.7 × 106 m3 (ref. 3). We describe here the distribution pattern of dissolved mercury in the Irish Sea, and have demonstrated that significant pollution occurs in the eastern coastal strip.