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Marine habitat mapping.
No full textEMB Future Science Brief No. 11 ‘Marine habitat mapping’ presents science and policy needs and recommendations to advance next-generation marine habitat mapping. This document highlights current methods and future trends in the acquisition of data from the seabed and water column via remote sensing and direct, in situ techniques. It discusses combining data to produce maps using modelling approaches and presents recommendations for adopting fit-for-purpose habitat classification schemes. It also provides an overview of what has been mapped and where within the European sea-basins, highlights the need to increase the quality and resolution of marine habitat maps. It identifies critical gaps in habitat types and geographic extent, including the coastal areas, the deep sea, Natura 2000 sites and other Marine Protected Areas across all regional seas. Finally, it describes the need to improve the assessment and communication of uncertainty and confidence in maps, and to make maps more easily accessible to a variety of stakeholders to increase their value for end-users and to the public for Ocean literacy.PublishedReferee
Bioaccumulation of Organochlorine Pesticides (DDT, DDE, Heptachlor, and Aldrin) in Oysters (Pinctada nested radiata) from Soumbedioune Beach (Dakar/Senegal) by GC-MS/MS
No full textSocio-economic activities have led to the dispersion of polluting agents in all compartments of the environment. The latter largely reach the sea by air, water or land. Thus they can alter the balance of its ecosystems due to their harmful properties. In return, these physical, chic or biological entities can reach humans through the food chain. Hence knowledge of these contaminants is necessary. Indeed, in Senegal, there is little data relating to fishery products, particularly seafood. Hence such work could contribute to good food security but also would allow us to become better aware of the consequences of the destruction of our environment. In this work the profile of the contamination of Soumbedioune beach by OCPs was studied using gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry. The average values of 30,470; 149,983 µg/Kg respectively for heptachlor and aldrin are well above the reference 0.1 µg/Kg. And the values 4,255; 149,98 µg/Kg respectively for DDE and DD. This is greater than 50 µg/Kg for the last. This shows that there is a real environmental and health problem that exists on this Dakar coast. Faced with such a situation, it is appropriate to set up wastewater treatment plants and ensure compliance with the ban on these products dangerous to health. Consequently, awareness on the part of decision-makers, populations and industrialists could probably lead to solutionsResearch ArticlePublishedReferee
Relationship of Acanthuridae and Scaridae with biotic and abiotic factors in western Cuba
No full textAcanthuridae y Scaridae son familias de peces herbívoros que constituyen los principales controladores de macroalgas en arrecifes coralinos. Sobre su distribución y abundancia inciden factores bióticos y abióticos, naturales u originados por el hombre. El objetivo de esta investigación fue analizar la relación de la densidad y biomasa de Acanthuridae y Scaridae con variables bióticas y abióticas en arrecifes con diferente nivel de protección del occidente de Cuba. Para esto, se usaron comparaciones múltiples de media por rangos y pruebas de correlaciones por rangos de Spearman en tres localidades muestreadas entre 2014 y 2017: Municipio Playa (La Habana), Bahía de Cochinos (Matanzas) y María la Gorda (Pinar del Río), las dos últimas ubicadas en Áreas Marinas Protegidas. Las Áreas Marinas Protegidas analizadas mostraron los indicadores más satisfactorios de Scaridae, que disminuyeron en las localidades con impacto antrópico. La contaminación y la presión de pesca en La Habana, mantenida por años, parecen ser las causas principales de la ausencia de adultos de Scaridae. La mayor densidad y biomasa de peces carnívoros (familia Lutjanidae) pudieran ser factores limitantes para la familia Acanthuridae, la cual exhibió mayor densidad y biomasa en sitios con mayor disponibilidad de alimento (macroalgas de los géneros Sargassum, Amphiroa y Galaxaura), menor complejidad topográfica y mayor antropización.Acanthuridae and Scaridae are families of herbivorous fishes that are the main controllers of macroalgae in coral reefs. Its distribution and abundance are affected by biotic and abiotic factors, natural or originated by man. The objective of this research was to analyze the relationship of the density and biomass of Acanthuridae and Scaridae with biotic and abiotic variables in reefs with different levels of protection in western Cuba. For this, multiple comparisons of means by ranks and Spearman’s rank correlation tests were used in three localities sampled between 2014 and 2017: Municipio Playa (Havana), Bahía de Cochinos (Matanzas) and María la Gorda (Pinar del Rio), the last two located in Marine Protected Areas. The Marine Protected Areas analyzed showed the most satisfactory indicators of Scaridae, which decreased in localities with anthropogenic impact. Pollution and fishing pressure in Havana, maintained for years, seem to be the main causes of the absence of Scaridae adults. Higher densities and biomass of carnivorous fishes (Lutjanidae family) could be limiting factors for the Acanthuridae family. Acanthuridae exhibited higher density and biomass in sites with greater food availability (macroalgae of the genera Sargassum, Amphiroa and Galaxaura), less topographic complexity and more anthropized.PublishedReferee
Ocean Decade Vision 2030 White Papers – Challenge 2: Protect and Restore Ecosystems and Biodiversity.
No full textThis draft White Paper has been prepared as part of the Vision 2030 process being undertaken in the framework of the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development. The Vision 2030 process aims to achieve a common and tangible measure of success for each of the ten Ocean Decade Challenges by 2030. From a starting point of existing initiatives underway in the Ocean Decade and beyond, and through a lens of priority user needs, the process determines priority datasets, critical gaps in science and knowledge, and needs in capacity development, infrastructure and technology required for each Challenge to ensure that it can be fulfilled by the end of the Ocean Decade in 2030. The results of the process will contribute to the scoping of future Decade Actions, identification of resource mobilization priorities, and ensuring the ongoing relevance of the Challenges over time. The process identifies achievable recommendations that can be implemented in the context of the Decade, or more broadly before 2030 to achieve the identified strategic ambition and indicators that will be used to measure progress. This draft White Paper is one of a series of ten White Papers all of which have been authored by an expert Working Group. Accompanied by a synthesis report authored by the Decade Coordination Unit, this white paper was discussed at the 2024 Ocean Decade Conference (Barcelona. Spain). Input received from diverse groups through public consultation and at the Conference was reviewed and incorporated as relevant.PublishedReferee
Ocean Decade Vision 2030 White Papers – Challenge 8: Create a digital representation of the ocean.
No full textOcean Decade Challenge 8 of the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development 2021-2030 (the ‘Ocean Decade’) seeks to create an adaptive and dynamic digital representation of the ocean to make the ocean accessible to a broader community, to enhance decision-making and to support sustainable ocean management. While creating a comprehensive digital representation of the Ocean is the ultimate objective of Decade Challenge 8, the focus in this White Paper is on delivering concrete outcomes and the transformational change needed to create the enabling environment and initial digital content, by 2030, that will allow us to fully deliver on the ambitions of Challenge 8 on the longer term. An Implementation Plan (IP) for the Ocean Decade’s Data and Information Strategy is currently under development by the Data Strategy Implementation Group (DSIG). This IP will outline how data systems participating in the Ocean Decade can co-create a distributed, robust, and collaborative ‘digital ecosystem’ that leverages open, scalable, easily implementable, and responsive technologies and management solutions. An interoperable, distributed data and information sharing system must be both deployed and maintained to allow the realization of Challenge 8, addressing specific challenges such as data interoperability, accessibility, and inclusivity. Additionally, potential issues related to data privacy, cybersecurity, and equitable access to technological infrastructure should be addressed to ensure the comprehensive development of the strategic ambition. In developing the Strategic Ambition for Challenge 8, we consider the data and information needs and priorities identified by the other Decade Challenges and their working groups, as our primary users (and contributors), representing as they do the key sustainability challenges for the Decade, and encompassing all relevant stakeholders. Guided by the Decade’s ambition to ‘leave no one behind’ we recognize that this challenge must deliver outputs that are relevant and useful for the global ocean science community, and in fact by extension the widest possible range of users and stakeholders, including the eight billion people on this planet, who should be able to access and use what is delivered by the Decade in ways adapted to their needs and capacities, if so desired. By 2030, the Strategic Ambition for Ocean Decade Challenge 8 is to have in place the enabling environment for the creation of and access to an increasing number of digital representations and twin applications of the Ocean as well as the underpinning data and information needed to develop them, delivering at minimum 10 societally relevant 0global base-layers accessible via a global online Digital Atlas, complemented by a minimum of 10 local use cases (prioritizing SIDS and LDCs) to address challenges in using and contributing to the Decade’s distributed digital ecosystem and to demonstrate and stress test its relevance, effectiveness and inclusiveness.PublishedReferee
Ocean Decade Vision 2030 White Papers – Challenge 9: Skills, Knowledge, Technology, and Participatory Decision-Making for All.
No full textChallenge 9 aims to ensure comprehensive capacity development and equitable access to data, information, knowledge, technology, and participatory decision-making across all aspects of ocean science and for all stakeholders. It is based on the understanding that everyone has something to contribute through shared knowledge, resources, ideas, or partnerships. Challenge 9 therefore is focused on equity and justice in access to capacity, resources, and decision making. By 2030, success for Ocean Decade Challenge 9 will be reached when: Technical, transdisciplinary, and transversal skills required by scientists, resource users, educators, communicators, managers, and policymakers, to deliver the Decade’s challenges, are strengthened and evenly distributed with an emphasis on least developed countries (LDCs) and Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and other under-represented groups. Funding mechanisms, multi-directional partnerships, multi-directional partnerships, infrastructure, and technology required to deliver the Decade’s challenges across regions and communities are enhanced and evenly distributed with emphasis on promoting access to LDCs and SIDS and on promoting greater cooperation between regions. Users and stakeholders from currently under-represented groups (i.e., women; ECOPs; Indigenous communities; LDCs and SIDS; people with disabilities; and others) are well-represented and participatory in ocean science, communication, management, decision making, and policy within the Decade framework. Wider promotion of ethically-driven actions and access to open-source software, ocean data, knowledge, and information among different users of the ocean has been achieved, and language barriers/restrictions have been mediated, including sharing knowledge in forms that are well articulated by non-scientific audiences. Recognition for Indigenous and local knowledge and traditional beliefs that promote conservation receives backing by the Decade and is integrated into all the Decade challenges. Success will include fulfilment of the following critical capacity development needs: skills enhancement; representation and meaningful participation; equitable funding; infrastructure; technology; access to data and information; publishing of research findings; better representation of scientists and knowledge from LDCs, SIDS and other under-represented groups in international publications and decision-making bodies and procedures; and promotion of the use of multiple languages in ocean science communication.PublishedReferee
Food and feeding habits of Pomadasys kaakan (Cuvier, 1830) (family: Haemulidae) from Karachi Coast, Pakistan-northern Arabian Sea
No full textThis study focused on the feeding habits of P. kaakan, collected from Karachi fish harbor during January to December 2022. A total of (N=119) specimens were analyzed for gut content to understand their diet composition and monthly variations. The primary diet components identified were crustaceans, molluscs, fish, and miscellaneous items. The fullness index (FI) and coefficient of variance (CV%) also varied monthly, with the highest (FI) in July (50.0%) and the lowest in April (25.0%), while the (CV%) peaked in April (75.0%) and lowest in July (50.0%). Frequency of occurrence (FO%) of food items were highest in February, August, and September and lowest in March, April, and May. This research is pioneering in its comprehensive analysis of the P. kaakan diet composition from the Pakistani coastal waters those providing crucial insights into their feeding ecology. These findings offer valuable data for the effective management and conservation of this commercially important species, highlighting the importance of understanding their dietary habits for fisheries development and ecological sustainability.PublishedReferee
Varamiento masivo de Physalia physalis (Hydrozoa: Physaliidae) en la costa noroccidental de Cuba.
No full textHistorically, Physalis physalis (Linnæus, 1758) massive stranding events have been either infrequent or poorly documented. However, their occurrence can significantly affect human health and the stability of coastal ecosystems. This study analyzes a massive P. physalis stranding that affected Cuba’s NW coast in December 2022. During the event, eighty-five people were stung, with 38 having strong allergic reactions. To determine P. physalis abundance, we counted all colonies during the massive event along ~ 3 km coast within a 5 m strip. Density, dimorphic form (left/right-handed), and colony size were quantified using a 0,25 m2 quadrat placed every 50 m, 10 m from the shoreline. Over ten thousand beach cast colonies were recorded, making this the event with the highest mean colony density (29,3 per m2) ever reported. The massive stranding coincided with the lowest Arctic Oscillation index (-2,59) in the past 11 years during December, which led to northeasterly winds reaching up to 24 km/h, which might have favored the landings. Wind direction and speed, coupled with the dominance of left-handed colonies (71,4%), suggest the North Atlantic Subtropical Gyre as a possible origin source of the bloom. The high prevalence of juvenile P. physalis colonies (68%) likely aligns with the autumn breeding season in the northern hemisphere. The potential causes of P. physalis blooms are still poorly understood. Systematic monitoring of the distribution and abundance of this species should be a research priority considering the potential risk to human health and the fact that the blooms could become more frequent on the Atlantic coasts due to its eutrophication and climate change.Los varamientos masivos de Physalia physalis (Linnæus, 1758) han sido poco frecuentes o mal documentados. Sin embargo, pueden tener un impacto significativo en la salud humana y los ecosistemas costeros. En este estudio, analizamos un varamiento masivo en la costa NO de Cuba en diciembre de 2022. Durante el evento, 85 personas sufrieron picaduras y 38 experimentaron reacciones alérgicas graves. Para cuantificar la abundancia, se contó el número de colonias que vararon a lo largo de ~ 3 km de costa. Adicionalmente, se cuantificó la densidad, la forma dimórfica y el tamaño de las colonias utilizando cuadrantes de 0,25 m2 colocados cada 50 m a 10 m de la orilla. Se registraron más de diez mil colonias, convirtiendo este evento en el de mayor densidad media de colonias (29,3 por m2) reportada hasta la actualidad. El varamiento masivo coincidió con el Índice de Oscilación del Atlántico más bajo (-2,59) en los últimos 11 años durante diciembre, que provocó vientos del noreste de hasta 24 km/h, lo cual pudo favorecer los varamientos. La dirección y velocidad del viento, junto con la dominancia de colonias con velas orientadas a la izquierda (71,4%), sugieren que el Giro Subtropical del Atlántico Norte podría ser una posible fuente de origen de la floración. La prevalencia de colonias juveniles (68%) coincidió con la temporada de reproducción en el hemisferio norte. Las causas potenciales de las floraciones de P. physalis han sido poco estudiadas. El monitoreo sistemático de la distribución y abundancia de esta especie debe ser una prioridad de investigación, dado el riesgo potencial para la salud humana y la posibilidad de que las floraciones se vuelvan más frecuentes en las costas del Atlántico debido a su eutroficación y al cambio climático.PublishedReferee
Bioecological characteristics of mangrove snail in Langsa mangrove forest, Aceh, Indonesia: Diversity and community structure.
No full textThe most crucial aspect of managing an ecosystem or habitat is knowledge about accompanying biota, such as snails. The research on mangrove snails in the KPH Region III Aceh City of Langsa area was conducted in November 2021 with the goal of evaluating species diversity, density, ecological index, distribution, and their link to surrounding environmental conditions. Snail data was obtained via quadrat transects, with observation stations established using purposive sampling.The snail diversity was found to be five species from four families, with the highest density found in N. planospira (03.13 ind/m2). The diversity index was low (H' ≤ 2.0), dominance was moderate (0.5 1), with C. cingulata being abundant (83.33%), and C. capucinus being frequently found (50.00%), N. planospiraonly found occasionally (36.11%), and L. scabra and T. telescopium are relatively uncommon (11.11% and 0.56%, respectively), with a link to environmental variables indicating that T. telescopium prefers fine mud substrates. Meanwhile, C. cingulata, C. capucinus, L. scabra, and N. planospiralive in habitats with fine mud substrates that are more solid than T. telescopium’s habitats.PublishedReferee
Quantitative analysis of water quality parameters and their influence on the Pacific white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) culture: A case study of Rancong mariculture area in Lhokseumawe, Aceh, Indonesia.
No full textWater quality is one of several aspects that affect the success of aquaculture business. This study analyzes water quality and assesses its impact on aquaculture enterprises in the Rancong pond region of Lhokseumawe City. The study ran from November to December 2018. The water quality of the Rancong pond was sampled directly and tested in multiple labs. The field survey and purposive sampling strategy separated the research location into four stations with three water sampling points. Temperature, salinity, turbidity, brightness, pH, dissolved oxygen, alkalinity, total organic matter, BOD5, total ammonia nitrogen, nitrite, nitrate, phosphate, lead (Pb), total Vibrio bacteria, total general bacteria, and phytoplankton types and abundance were measured. The suitability of water quality is assessed using descriptive analysis, scoring, and matching. The investigation indicates that the quality and maintenance of the source water are highly suitable (S1). Traditional vannamei shrimp ponds in Rancong, Lhokseumawe City, should be maintained as fisheries cultivation areas.PublishedReferee