Shore Marine Research Articles

Lost, hidden, broken, cut-estimating and interpreting the shapes and masses of damaged assemblages of plesiosaur gastroliths.

Gastroliths are stones of uncertain purpose that are commonly found inside the rib cages of plesiosaur fossils worldwide. Gastroliths from four Alberta (Canada) plesiosaurs were studied to determine both their shapes and masses, and their mass fractions relative to body mass. One animal's set of gastroliths was 100% complete and fully visible, but the others showed varying degrees of loss, damage or obscuration, so estimations of their original states were needed. The studied animals were: Albertonectes vanderveldei, Fluvionectes sloanae, Nichollssaura borealis and Wapuskanectes betsynichollsae. The animals come from three different palaeoenvironments: open marine, near shore marine, and fluvial. Gastrolith shapes were classified as either xiphoid, cylindrical, discoidal or spherical based on observed and/or estimated dimensions. Although not all methods could be applied in all cases, gastrolith shapes and masses were estimated four different ways: (1) direct measurement and weighing of a subset and predicting the properties of the remaining obscured and hidden stones; (2) measuring triaxial ellipsoid dimensions of free stones to calculate volumes and multiplying by the mass density of chert; (3) measuring two visible triaxial dimensions of embedded stones, estimating the hidden third dimension three different ways, and then determining volumes and masses by calculation; and (4) predicting the density and mass of a densely packed cluster of small gastroliths using geometrical arguments. Total gastrolith mass never exceeded 0.2% of body mass in any plesiosaur, and is consistent with the idea that the amounts of gastroliths recovered with plesiosaurs would be ineffective as ballast. The largest plesiosaur in the sample had the largest single gastrolith and total gastrolith mass increases with body size. The shape characteristics of the gastroliths were different for different environments, but compositionally they are dominated by black cherts. A possible common source for the gastroliths was identified for the two geographically close and near-contemporanous Nichollssaura and Wapuskanectes.

Two new genera of coastal Talitridae (Amphipoda: Senticaudata) from Chile, with the first record of Platorchestia Bousfield, 1982 in the southeastern Pacific coast

Using samples of talitrid amphipods collected on the coast of Chile, we describe two new monotypic genera characterized by particular types of sexual dimorphism, and we report the first record of the genus Platorchestia Bousfield, 1982 in the southeastern Pacific coast. In the subfamily Platorchestiinae, the genus Atacamorchestia gen. nov. and its new species Atacamorchestia atacamensis sp. nov. was collected in marine rocky coasts, in several localities in northern Chile. This new taxon is characterized principally by presence of T setae in male appendages, a feature shared with the genus Vallorchestia from Australia, but with a different distribution of these structures. The first specimens of Platorchestia in the Southeastern Pacific were obtained in Antofagasta, northern Chile, however they were identified only to genus level because a more in-depth taxonomic analysis will be necessary to determine their status. Finally, in the subfamily Talitrinae, Lafkenorchestia gen. nov. and its new species Lafkenorchestia oyarzuni sp. nov. were found on rocky marine shores and in estuaries in southern Chile, between La Araucania and Los Lagos regions. This new taxon is characterized by distinct modifications in basis and merus of male pereopod 7, showing some morphological similarities with the New Zealand genera Subantarctorchestia and Pictonorchestia. For each species, descriptions and illustrations are presented.

Pandemic-driven changes in the nearshore non-commercial fishery in Hawai'i: catch photos posted to social media capture changes in fisher behavior.

Using social media, we collect evidence for how nearshore fisheries are impacted by the global COVID-19 pandemic in Hawai'i. We later confirm our social media findings and obtain a more complete understanding of the changes in nearshore non-commercial fisheries in Hawai'i through a more conventional approach-speaking directly with fishers. Resource users posted photographs to social media nearly three times as often during the pandemic with nearly double the number of fishes pictured per post. Individuals who fished for subsistence were more likely to increase the amount of time spent fishing and relied more on their catch for food security. Furthermore, individuals fishing exclusively for subsistence were more likely to fish for different species during the pandemic than individuals fishing recreationally. Traditional data collection methods are resource-intensive and this study shows that during times of rapid changes, be it ecological or societal, social media can more quickly identify how near shore marine resource use adapts. As climate change threatens additional economic and societal disturbances, it will be necessary for resource managers to collect reliable data efficiently to better target monitoring and management efforts.

Primary Structure and Conformation of a Tetrodotoxin-Binding Protein in the Hemolymph of Non-Toxic Shore Crab Hemigrapsus sanguineus

Tetrodotoxin (TTX)-binding proteins are present in toxic TTX-bearing animals, such as pufferfish and gastropods. These may prevent autotoxicity. However, TTX-binding proteins are also found in the nontoxic marine shore crab, Hemigrapsus sanguineus. Here, we isolated the TTX-binding protein, HSTBP (Hemigrapsus sanguineus TTX-binding protein), from the hemolymph of H. sanguineus and elucidated its primary structure using cDNA cloning. HSTBP, a 400 kDa acidic glycoprotein by gel filtration high-performance liquid chromatography, comprises 3 subunits, 88 kDa (subunit-1), 65 kDa (subunit-2), and 26 kDa (subunit-3) via sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis under reduced conditions. The open reading frame of the cDNA comprises 5049 base pairs encoding 1683 amino acid residues, and the mature protein contains 1650 amino acid residues from Arg34 to Ser1683. The three subunits are arranged in tandem in the following order: subunit-3 (Arg34-Gln261), subunit-1 (Asp262-Phe1138), and subunit-2 (Val1139-Ser1683). A BLAST homology search showed weak similarity of HSTBP to clotting proteins of crustaceans (29–40%). SMART analysis revealed a von Willebrand factor (vWF)-type (⇒delete hyphen) D domain at Phe1387-Gly1544. We confirmed that the recombinant protein of HSTBP subunit-2 containing the vWF-type (⇒delete hyphen) D domain bound to TTX at a molecular ratio of 1:1.

Some aspects on the bluespotted cornetfish, Fistularia commersonii Ruppell, Nagapattinam, Tamil Nadu, India

Cornetfishes are reported in tropical and temperate near shore marine waters in the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian oceans. The present study was performed on the Blue spotted Cornetfish, F. commersonii from Nagapattinam (Tamil Nadu, India) concerning morphometrics and meristic characters, length-weight relationship and food and feeding nature. The morphometrics and meristic characters of the cornetfish had been presented. The results revealed that regression plot of the data for LWR indicated a linear relationship among the two variables. The r value for the cornetfish, F. commersonii was 0.90. In the present study, various food items were identified as ‘fishes, crustaceans (shrimps, crabs etc.), molluscs (cephalopods, gastropods and so on) digested contents and others (unidentified)’ and they had been segregated for calculating percentage occurrence of each food items. It may be assumed that this species has been a success like others as a result of aggressive superiority and pre-adaptation as noticed in the present study.

The conquest of land by the Amphipoda (Senticaudata, Talitroidea) explained by global tectonics and vicariance

The Talitroidea originated from a marine ancestor in the amphipod family Hyalidae that colonised marshy land flooded occasionally by the sea. From there, some descendants migrated inland along river catchments, as their terrestrial adaptations evolved, becoming riparian. Over time they colonised moist habitats in fields and forests. The superfamily Talitroidea comprises all known terrestrial amphipods and it has an almost worldwide distribution, but families have discrete distributions. Because all amphipods release fully formed young and have no dispersive phase in their life history, their potential for dispersal is extremely limited. Terrestrial talitroids are particularly constrained on a global scale, because their adaptations for terrestrial life prevent them from crossing seas or oceans. It has been hypothesised that Talitridae living on marine shores might traverse oceans on rafts of detached wrack. Support for this might be the fact that beach hoppers are the most widely distributed of the Talitroidea. However, they have been shown to abandon floating objects actively and several attempts to explain specific cases of talitrid distributions by implicating rafting have been falsified. The broad distributions of Talitroidea across the globe can be explained parsimoniously only by vicariance. The family Arcitalitridae is, with one exception, endemic to Australasia and South Africa, which have been separated from one another since the late Jurrasic c.150Ma. The exception is provided by two genera in Indochina, which probably arrived in Laurasia when India, which had been part of east Gondwana, accreted to Laurasia in the Miocene. However, terranes separated from the margins of Gondwana in the late Triassic-early Jurrasic and then accreted as allochthonous terranes to Laurasia, so the possibility of arcitalitrids arriving in Laurasia at that time, cannot be excluded. The family Makawidae, which is endemic to Zealandia and Tasmania, probably attained it's current distribution through the expansion of the Tasman Sea in the Cretaceous.

Otolith Increment Formation Reveals Growth Pattern in Early Life History of Tropical Clownfish Amphiprion Ocellaris

Planktonic stage is critical for survival, dispersal, and recruitment of marine shore fishes. As provide the most accurate estimates of daily growth, otolith has been used as a useful tool for studying larval dispersal and growth, and has been applied to several coral reef fish species. However, the early life history of Amphiprion ocelaris, the tropical clownfish, is not well studied. In this study, we investigated the otolith microstructure of the false clownfish A. ocellaris and validated the daily increment deposition in laboratory reared embryos and larvae stained with Alizarin Red S. A. ocellaris formed clear otolith increments during the embryo and early larval stage, with a pattern corresponding to physiological and ecological events and transitions. These findings are expected to be applied to estimate post settlement growth rates, age determination, distribution and population structure of wild clownfishes, and other damselfishes at early life.

The Danube River and its mouths area and coast line (delta) in documents and maps from the ancient times to the present.

The Danube River and its mouths area and coast line (delta) in documents and maps from the ancient times to the present. The Danube mouth as reported in documents and maps from the Antiquity to date.This mouth of the Danube and its Delta in particular, where a topic interest for many classical scholars (Herodotus, Erathostenes, Polybus, Ptolemey, Strabo etc) and recent scientific researchers who focused their attention on the number of Danube arms and the evolution of the Delta realm from the moment of its formation to the present configuration. The second half of the 19th century witnessed the publication of Sir Ch. Hartley’s map under the aegis of the Danube European Commission. The map was intended to help the selection of and correction works to one the arms in order to facilitate maritime navigation on it. Several other maps were printed in the 20th century by I.Vidraşcu, 1909-1911, the State Water Committee, 1964 and the Institute of Geography, 1983. In addition a series of topographical maps of Romania territory have also been produced. This sector was created as a result of accumulation processes, the north-south coastal marine currents, moving the river alluvia blocked the river mouth forming the Danube Delta and Halmyris lagoon, the whole becoming Razim Sinoie Lake Complex. This marine shore sector, due to the contribution of river alluvia, is characterized generally by the advance in the marine space, but the current conditions (reducing the volume of sediments from the Danube, marine minitransgression and anthropogenic interventions (by the dams raised at the mouth of the Sulina branch and Cape Midia) generate shoreline retreat in some areas. To identify portions of advancement and retreat, and setting the corresponding annual rates, existing topographic map series for a period of over 150 years, hydrographic measurements for 30 years and series of satellite images starting from 1975 were used.

Uniting the Global Gastroenterology Community to Meet the Challenge of Climate Change and Non-Recyclable Waste

Uniting the Global Gastroenterology Community to Meet the Challenge of Climate Change and Non-Recyclable Waste

Promoting Ocean Literacy in Elementary School Students Through Investigation Activities and Citizen Science

To enable the process of energy transition towards carbon neutrality, it is important to educate the community on the need for social, economic, environmental and institutional transformation, and to educate and inform citizens to participate proactively in this change. This study evaluated the effectiveness of participation by elementary school students in educational activities and citizen science actions in enhancing their scientific knowledge and skills related to Ocean Literacy in the context of climate change. The activities were directed to children (aged 9–11) and involved pre-service teachers, in-service teachers and researchers, in formal and non-formal contexts. A total of 329 elementary school students participated in interdisciplinary science activities, focusing on the cause & effect of climate change in the ocean. They learned to identify rocky shore marine species used to monitor climate change and acquired ICT skills by inserting species observations in a biodiversity mapping platform. Finally, students worked collaboratively to communicate to the community what they have learned through an exhibition at the Museum João de Deus. To assess the impact of the activities on acquisition of scientific knowledge and skills by the students, a mixed methodology was applied using pre and post-tests, analysis of the data inserted by students in the platform, and content analysis of the students’ work for the museum exhibition. The results of pre and post-tests revealed a significant increase in knowledge of the effects of climate change on the rocky shore species distribution, as well as of the importance of monitoring these species distribution. The data from the online biodiversity platform showed that 42% of the species identifications made by the students were correct. The ability of the students to communicate their learning to the wider community was evaluated by the scientific content, structure, presentation and creativity and of posters, models, videos and games produced. Most of students focused their communications and creations on the greenhouse effect, cause & effect of climate change in the ocean and biodiversity. This study reinforces the importance of addressing Ocean Literacy and climate change through formal and non-formal educational activities with an investigative nature.

A Tidal Flat Wetlands Delineation and Classification Method for High-Resolution Imagery

As an important part of coastal wetlands, tidal flat wetlands provide various significant ecological functions. Due to offshore pollution and unreasonable utilization, tidal flats have been increasingly threatened and degraded. Therefore, it is necessary to protect and restore this important wetland by monitoring its distribution. Considering the multiple sizes of research objects, remote sensing images with high resolutions have unique resolution advantages to support the extraction of tidal flat wetlands for subsequent monitoring. The purpose of this study is to propose and evaluate a tidal flat wetland delineation and classification method from high-resolution images. First, remote sensing features and geographical buffers are used to establish a decision tree for initial classification. Next, a natural shoreline prediction algorithm is designed to refine the range of the tidal flat wetland. Then, a range and standard deviation descriptor is constructed to extract the rock marine shore, a category of tidal flat wetlands. A geographical analysis method is considered to distinguish the other two categories of tidal flat wetlands. Finally, a tidal correction strategy is introduced to regulate the borderline of tidal flat wetlands to conform to the actual situation. The performance of each step was evaluated, and the results of the proposed method were compared with existing available methods. The results show that the overall accuracy of the proposed method mostly exceeded 92% (all higher than 88%). Due to the integration and the performance superiority compared to existing available methods, the proposed method is applicable in practice and has already been applied during the construction project of Hengqin Island in China.

Endless Novelties of Extraordinary Interest: The Voyage of H.M.S. Challenger and the Birth of Modern Oceanography, by Doug Macdougall

Reviewed by: Endless Novelties of Extraordinary Interest: The Voyage of H.M.S. Challenger and the Birth of Modern Oceanography by Doug Macdougall Stewart Weaver (bio) Endless Novelties of Extraordinary Interest: The Voyage of H.M.S. Challenger and the Birth of Modern Oceanography, by Doug Macdougall; pp. xvii + 257. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2019, $30.00. Doug Macdougall's Endless Novelties of Extraordinary Interest: The Voyage of H.M.S. Challenger and the Birth of Modern Oceanography tells the story of H.M.S. Challenger, a steam-assisted, 2,300 ton, Pearl-class corvette warship of the British Royal Navy. Laid down at Woolwich in 1858, she saw limited service during the Franco-Mexican War in 1862 and was flagship of Australia Station between 1866 and 1870. But her fame derives from her scientific, not military, service. Converted to the work of oceanographic research in 1872, she then set out from Portsmouth on a three-and-a-half-year voyage of discovery that would take her on a meandering course of almost 70,000 miles around the world and through its several seas. The Challenger Expedition (as it is usually called) was history's first major oceanographic undertaking. The brainchild of Charles Wyville Thomson, professor of natural history at Edinburgh University, and jointly sponsored by the Royal Society and the Admiralty, it undertook the first systematic investigations of the physical, chemical, and [End Page 286] biological properties of the deep seas and led to many astonishing discoveries, including that of the existence of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. The official expedition report, edited by Wyville Thomson and the naturalist John Murray, ran to fifty sumptuous volumes that in total effectively established the modern science of oceanography and remain touchstones for its study even today. Reflecting on the expedition as he neared the end of the final volume in 1895—some nineteen years after the Challenger had returned to England—Murray felt confident in claiming that it marked "the greatest advance in the knowledge of our planet since the celebrated discoveries of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries" (qtd. in Macdougall 241). Macdougall is a retired professor of earth sciences at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and the author of several previous books about the earth's history, geological time, ice ages, and the like. He first learned of the Challenger Expedition while studying deep-sea sediments as a graduate student, and over his years as a working earth scientist his interest in the ship's voyage grew, not just on account of its findings—many of which, as Macdougall tells us, have been superseded—but also for its "iconic place in the annals of ocean exploration" (x). The expedition was, he says, the Apollo project of its day, an ambitious, government-funded, "big science" leap into the unknown that captured and then lingered in the public imagination (xii). Many have written about it, starting with some veterans of the expedition itself and, more recently, several historians of ocean science and exploration. But Macdougall is an actual ocean scientist as well as a popular writer; he thus brings both a high level of professional understanding of his subject and a talent for making it accessible. Rather than give us a complete chronological account of the expedition as others have done, he chooses to proceed topically through its various discoveries and particular points of inquiry. We therefore get chapters focusing on extraterrestrial particles, sea-floor sediments, remote island geology, marine shore life (chiefly penguins and crabs), icebergs and glaciers, corals and coral reefs, tropical bird life, and, finally, marine bioluminescence. In each case, Macdougall tends to look forward from the expedition: that is, he takes us from the expedition's discovery or understanding of something—coral reef formation, for example—to how scientists understand it now. Historians might wish for a few more backward glances of the sort in which Macdougall indulges in his discussion of Charles Darwin and coral reefs. But the merit of the forward-looking approach is that it allows Macdougall to educate his readers in marine science and give some context to such contemporary concerns as coral bleaching, polar melt, and ocean acidification. In a quite...

Sediment contamination and toxicity of Marine Protected Areas in southeastern Brazilian coast: A baseline for management planning

Recent studies have shown that the effectiveness of establishing Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) is threatened by toxic effects of contaminants. São Paulo is the most economically developed state of Brazil, and its coast is protected by a system of MPAs, including the North Shore Marine Protected Area (NSMPA). The present study provides a first assessment of sediment quality in NSMPA and two reference sites. Concentrations of arsenic (As), metals (Al, Fe, Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and its sources were determined. Comparisons with sediment quality guidelines indicated low contamination, as confirmed by the Geoaccumulation Index, which classified the results as background levels. Whole-sediment exposures of the amphipod Tiburonella viscana were performed to estimate possible acute effects, but samples exhibited no toxicity. The results presented in this study represent a baseline for further monitoring programs of MPAs, supporting conservation actions of management plans.

Isolation and Characterization of Nocardiae Associated with Foaming Coastal Marine Waters.

Nocardiosis is an infectious disease caused by Nocardia species that occurs worldwide, albeit more prevalently in tropical/subtropical regions. It can appear as either acute, subacute or as a chronic infection mostly with those with a compromised/weakened immune system. Inhalation of spores and or mycelium fragments is the main transmission route for developing pulmonary nocardiosis. In contrast, cutaneous nocardiosis usually occurs via direct contact. In the subtropical region of the Sunshine Coast in Australia foaming events with thick and persistent and orange-brown color foam have been observed during summer seasons in the near shore marine environments. This study reports the existence of nocardiae in these near shore marine environments by the use of a novel isolation method which used the gas requirements of nocardiae as a selective battery. A total of 32 nocardiae were isolated with the use of this novel method and subsequently conducted molecular identification methods confirmed that the isolates belonged to the genus Nocardia. Twenty-one isolates out of the 32 were closely related to N. nova strains MGA115 and one was related to CBU 09/875, in addition when compared with human pathogenic nocardiae twenty of the isolates were found to be related to N. nova strain JCM 6044. Isolates displayed varied resistance against some of the antibiotics tested when interpretation threshold recommended the Comite de L’Antibiogramme de la Societe Francaise de Microbiologie were used. The highest level of resistance against cefotaxime (n = 27) and ceftriaxone (n = 24). Some of the isolates (n = 6) that displayed resistance to selected antibiotics also possessed potential human pathogenic characteristics such as adherence and translocation through human long epithelial cells as well as displaying phage resistance (n = 26). They might thus present a potential public health risk if frequently encountered through exposure to aerosols generated by the foam as well as direct contact through a wound. Preventative measures to control the growth of nocardiae in such environments such as the control of pollutants, might prevent potential infections that might be caused by these bacteria in humans as well as in marine animals.

A first for Southern Africa: description of a new Heterobothrium (Monogenea: Diclidophoridae) parasitizing the evileye pufferfish Amblyrhynchotes honckenii (Tetraodontiformes: Tetraodontidae).

The monogenean genus Heterobothrium (Monogenea: Diclidophoridae) currently consists of 12 accepted species described globally from various pufferfishes (Tetraodontidae). This includes the economically important Heterobothrium okamotoi Ogawa 1991 that causes severe disease in the cultured tiger puffer Takifugu rubripes in Japan. During parasitological surveys targeting near shore marine fishes of South Africa, a new Heterobothrium was discovered on the gills of five evileye pufferfish Amblyrhynchotes honckenii with a prevalence of 100% and mean intensity of 23 (4-72). Specimens were morphologically studied using both light and scanning electron microscopy and molecularly characterized by sequencing the partial ribosomal gene 28S. Heterobothrium victorwepeneri n. sp. differs from its 12 congeners by a combination of morphological characters, such as fourth clamp pair (anteriormost, 180° inverted) as the smallest with some of the sclerites differing in shape from the other pairs, 8 to 9 genital hooks, number of testes 40-50, and absent isthmus. The 28S tree depicted two main branches, one clustering together species of mazocraeidean families while the other clustered together only species of the Diclidophoridae. Heterobothrium victorwepeneri n. sp. is the first species of its genus to be recorded and described from South Africa and from the tetraodontid A. honckenii. This study also provides for the first time 28S sequence for a species of this highly host-specific genus.

Marine macrophyte composition during summer, southwest and northeast monsoons in Verde Island, Batangas City, Batangas, Philippines

Verde Island Passage is the world’s center of the center of marine shore fish biodiversity, located in southwestern Luzon Island in the Philippines. The passage is named after Verde Island, which is located at its middle. Although the island is located within a key biodiversity area, studies on its marine macrophyte biodiversity are scant. The present study was conducted to determine the composition, distribution, and dominance of marine macrophytes, specifically seaweeds and seagrass, during the northeast monsoon, summer, and southwest monsoon in four coastal areas in Verde Island using the line transect-quadrat method. Results revealed 63 macrophyte species, of which 92% were seaweeds and 8% were seagrass. The majority of the seaweeds were green (41%), followed by red (35%) and brown (16%) seaweeds. In most sites, the brown seaweed Padina sp. was dominant during summer and cover decreased during both monsoons. The green seaweed Neomeris annulata was present in all sites and seasons. The differences in cover across sites may be due to substratum type and topography where a relatively wider intertidal zone with different substratum such as rocky and sandy to muddy provides complex habitat promoting higher macrophyte cover. Temporal differences in marine macrophyte composition were more pronounced in macroalgae-dominated sites than in the seagrass-dominated site. Several important seaweeds that could be studied as bioindicators were recorded, such as Padina sp., which registered high cover especially in sites near populated areas and backyard pig pens. Ulva spp., which are known to form green tide blooms, and Caulerpa verticillata were also noted and should be monitored. Some red seaweeds with potential for cultivation were observed (i.e., Halymenia durvillei and Portieria hornemannii). Claudea sp., an uncommon red seaweed with limited distribution in the Philippines, was recorded and needs verification. This study is the first extensive marine macrophyte assessment at the heart of the Verde Island Passage. KEYWORDS: biodiversity, bioindicator, eutrophication, microbenthic algae, seagrass, Verde Island Passage

Tourism Design and Development Based on the Bay Shore Route and Marine Resources

Chen, Y., 2020. Tourism design and development based on the bay shore route and marine resources. In: Li, L. and Huang, X. (eds.), Sustainable Development in Coastal Regions: A Perspective of Environment, Economy, and Technology. Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 112, pp. 70-72. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208.In recent years, with the implementation of marine strategy, the development of marine resources and marine tourism projects has become a hot spot in coastal area construction. More and more people participate in marine tourism projects, which bring new opportunities to the development of marine tourism. Based on this, this paper first analyzes the current situation and problems of the utilization of coastline and sea area resources, then studies the theoretical basis and SWOT analysis of the tourism design and development of coastline and sea area resources, and finally gives the development and design strategy of coastal zone and sea area tourism resources.

Presence and risk assessment of herbicides in the marine environment of Camps Bay (Cape Town, South Africa)

The present study was conducted during a time of drought to assess the concentration of herbicides and their potential for accumulation in marine biota found in the near shore marine environment of an urban setting (Camps Bay, Cape Town, South Africa). The purpose was to establish whether raw sewage containing selected persistent chemicals that are released through a local marine outfall would be sufficiently diluted by the ocean to prevent impact on the near-shore marine environment of the suburb Camps Bay. Samples of seawater, sediment, seaweed, and selected marine organisms present in the near shore environment, such as limpets (Cymbula granatina), mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis), and sea urchins (Parechinus angulosus), were analysed for five indicator herbicides, namely atrazine, alachlor, simazine, metolachlor, and butachlor, with gas chromatography coupled with a mass spectrometer. The concentration of the compounds detected ranged from below the limit of detection (<LOD) to 4.2 ng/L in seawater, <LOD to 45.3 ng/g dry weight (dw) in sediments, <LOD to 157.8 ng/g dw in marine organisms, and between 12.3 and 87.0 ng/g dw in seaweed. Results of ecological risk assessment for acute and chronic risk, calculated following the US Environmental Protection Agency method, showed a possible threat to the near shore environment from sewage released by the marine outfall, as the herbicide contamination in the biota posed a low to high ecotoxicological risk for marine organisms. The hazard quotients and carcinogenic risk caused by herbicide pollution in Camps Bay seawater were above the acceptable level indicating that these chemicals pose adverse health effects, should an average sized human (70 kg) consume any of the marine species analysed herein on a daily basis (daily consumption of 54 g), over a lifetime period (life expectancy of 70 years). The study also indicated the extensive use of these herbicides for cosmetic and ornamental purposes in gardening, or for weed control in an urban setting, thus, it is apparent that consumers and municipalities need to be educated about their inadvertent use and safe disposal of these compounds. The use of these herbicides to control weeds within the area and discharge of sewage to Camps Bay must be checked through adequate control of the trade, handling of herbicides, and enforcement of appropriate sanctions and development of suitable regulations.

Talking Trash in the Big Apple: Mitigating Bird Strikes Near the North Shore Marine Transfer Station

Talking Trash in the Big Apple: Mitigating Bird Strikes Near the North Shore Marine Transfer Station

Palaeoenvironment, sequence stratigraphy and palaeogeography of the Lower Cretaceous deposits of Mehdi Abad, Yazd Block, Central Iran

Four Lower Cretaceous sections in the southern Yazd Block were measured and studied to interpret the palaeoenvironments, synsedimentary tectonics, and sequence stratigraphy. The Early Cretaceous sedimentary record of this block, consisting of the Sangestan, Taft, Abkuh, and Darreh Zanjir formations, was mainly influenced by synsedimentary tectonic activities in a tectonically unstable basin. Field observations and laboratory studies were used to identify lithofacies and microfacies, based on which six depositional environments were identified: upper coastal plain (alluvial fans), shore, tidal flat, lagoon, shoal, and open marine. A carbonate-siliciclastic shallow platform including an alluvial-coastal plain and an inner platform is suggested for the depositional environment of the Sangestan Formation. The depth of the overall shallow sedimentary basin of Sangestan Formation increases from west to east and deposition was controlled by long- term sea-level changes. A carbonate platform consisting of inner and outer parts, including tidal flat, lagoon, open marine belts, is suggested for the depositional environment of the Taft and Abkuh formations, while the Darreh Zanjir Formation accumulated in a deep basin. The predominant facies demonstrate an overall transgression-regression cycle (the 2rd order cycle) during the depositional time of these formations in the southern Yazd Block.