Length-weight relationship of fishes caught by trawl off Alexandria, Egypt

This paper presents the length-weight relationship parameters (a and b) for 29 fish species, belonging to 16 families, taken by otter trawl fishing from Egyptian Mediterranean waters. The b values obtained ranged from 2.50 to 3.44 (with a mean of 2.926).

Informal fish retailing in rural Egypt: Opportunities to enhance income and work conditions for women and men

Poor rural consumers benefit from Egypt’s aquaculture sector through access to small and medium-sized farmed tilapia sold by informal fish retailers, many of whom are women. In fact, informal fish retail is the main, if not only, segment of the farmed fish value chain where women are found. This report aims to inform current and future strategies to improve conditions in informal fish retail by understanding in more depth the similarities and differences in employment quality and outcomes across different fish retailers. It is particularly focused on identifying whether and how gender inequality influences different dimensions of the work, and whether women and men have similar outcomes and employment conditions. This knowledge will help to design interventions to overcome gender-based constraints, as well as approaches that address shared obstacles and include both women and men in gender-responsive ways to ensure that all of those involved in the sector benefit.

The role of farmed fish in the diets of the resource-poor in Egypt.

The Egyptian aquaculture industry provides more than 100,000 full-time or part-time jobs and produces the country’s least-expensive farmed animal protein. Thus, aquaculture plays an important role in both sustaining livelihoods and improving the diet quality and nutritional health of Egyptians, including a significant proportion of the 25.5% who are resource-poor. Recognizing this dual role, WorldFish has promoted sustainable growth in Egyptian aquaculture for more than 20 years. Through its work, WorldFish has identified a lack of quality data about fish consumption preferences and practices. Eager to fill this knowledge gap, WorldFish partnered with the Environment and Development Group (EDG) to study consumption of fish, red meat and poultry among the resource-poor in Egypt. This study aimed to characterize current consumer preferences for and consumption patterns of animal-source foods, comparing red meat, poultry and fish. The resulting data is meant to contribute to a better understanding of what drives demand for fish among the resource-poor in Egypt, allowing value chain actors to more successfully market their products to this segment of the population.

Coastal development and pollution impact on the distribution of macrobenthic communities along the eastern coast of the Gulf of Suez (Egypt)

The configuration for the eastern side of the Gulf of Suez was studied over 241 km from Ras Mohammed to Ras Sudr including 35 station. Litters, tar balls and aged oil patches aggregated in considerable amounts on the beach and shore line of the middle part due to the oil spills from off-shore oil wells. A large reef flat in the shallow intertidal waters exists at stations 1 and 2 (Ras Mohammed, Protected area) and spars coral patches are less frequent at the Stations from 7 to 13. Density and diversity of marine benthos were higher on hard and cobble bottoms compared to muddy sand and sandy substrates. The assemblages of the benthic fauna are dominated by the gastropod Courmya (Thericium) vulgata; the bivalve Brachiodontes variabilis, and the barnacles Chthamalus stellatus, Balanus amphitrite and Tetraclita rubescens. The distribution of the algal cover in the intertidal region shows high abundance of the brown algae, Sargassum latifolium; padina pavonica and Cystoseira trinodis rather than the green and red algae. These species are found in both polluted and unpolluted areas. The changes in benthic structures in the study area depend not only on the state of pollution but also on the type of substrates.

Ecology and settlement of marine fouling in the Suez Bay, Egypt

This study deals with seasonal variations, natural correlations and similarities of fouling assemblages on exposure panels in the Suez Bay during January 1992 to January 1993. Three main sources of pollutions flow into the bay; industrial waste products, domestic drainage of Suez city and ships' oil and refuse.The fouling assemblages on the test pan els after various periods (1, 2 and 3 months) belonged mainly to the algae (Ulva rigida), polychaetes (Hydroides elegans), Cirripedes (Balanus amphitrite) and amphipods. The fouling at the lst station was relatively more dense than at the 2nd station during the summer and autumn seasons. The lowest productivity was achieved at the 3rd station which was considered less polluted being offshore water. The overall paucity of fouling in the bay is because of the silt covering the submerged surfaces, particularly at the 2nd station, leading to the prevention of the settlements or establishment of fouling organisms. The seasonal changes in the intensity of fouling assemblages on submerged surfaces in seawater seems to be closely related to seasonal variations in water temperature. The great fouling communities on the buoys and long exposure panels showed a remarkable variety of species and density rather than on short term exposures, which were more dense during warmer months.

Hydrographical conditions and benthic assemblages in the Suez Gulf, Egypt

The coastal development and human activities along the Suez Gulf leading to sedimentation, degrade the quality of water, disturbing the natural structure and functions of aquatic communities. The Suez Gulf is a large semi-closed area with a 346 km long coastline on the western beach side. The prevailing physicochemical parameters in shallow intertidal waters were measured seasonally over the year. Benthic faunas in the sampling sites were studied indicating their regional distribution in relation to the impact of different environmental parameters in the intertidal region. The concentration of copper in seawater reached high level at St. IV (4.57 ug/1), which is exposed to sewage and petroleum hydrocarbons. The grain size of the sediment is a determining factor for the organic carbon concentration and the sandy substrate enhances organic matter degradation processes. A large number of oil fields are present along the western coast of the Suez Gulf, therefore, cadmium and organic matter appeared to be high. The values of pH did not vary greatly among the different sampling sites. It was high at EI-Ein, El-Sukhna and Ras-Shukeir due to the disposal of mainly acidic sewage and industrial effluents of the two stations Adabiya and Ras-Gharib respectively. The macrobenthos included 71 species embraced mainly from Mollusca (53.5% Gastropoda and 12.7% Bivalvia) and the other invertebrates included 7 groups namely, Rhizostoma, Polychaeta, Cirripedia, Amphipoda, Isopoda, Decapoda and Echinodermata. The distribution of benthos is affected by the temperature and salinity of seawater. The concentration of organic matter in seawater and in sediments in shallow waters shows high values in the central part of the Gulf of Suez.

Evaluation of heavy metals along the Mediterranean coastal waters of the Nile Delta region, Egypt

This work focuses on four marine sites in the Mediterranean Sea around the Nile Delta, Egypt. Surface water samples were collected seasonally during 2003. The concentrations of some heavy metals in dissolved form (Fe, Mn, Zn, Cu, Ni and Pb) are evaluated. The levels of heavy metals in the coastal waters were 11.92-30.4512µglˉ¹ for Fe; 5.79-17.36 µglˉ¹ for Zn; 0.30-0.83µglˉ¹ for Cu; 0.51-2.90µglˉ¹ for Ni and 0.53-10.31µglˉ¹ for Pb. These are compared, with sites in the estuaries and outlets of the Nile Delta. Fe (19.72-60.33µglˉ¹); Mn (12.63-35.60µglˉ¹); Zn (2.67-22.00); Cu (0.56-1.67µglˉ¹); Ni (1.43-3.73µglˉ¹); Pb (1.72-59.7µglˉ¹). The results showed a remarkable decrease in the concentrations of different heavy metals with increased salinity. Comparing the present data with the minimal risk concentration reported by WQC, the distribution of heavy metals was significantly lower in coastal sea water of the Mediterranean Sea off Egypt. The study indicated also that the average contents of Ni and Pb are slightly high in the area of water exchange than those reported by WQC.

Impacts of environmental conditions on macrobenthic distribution along the Suez Gulf, Egypt

Increases in coastal development and human activities leading to sedimentation degrade the quality of water; disturb the natural structure and functions of aquatic communities. The Suez Gulf is a large semi-closed area (~625 km long coastline).The assemblages of bottom fauna were studied qualitatively and quantitatively in the shallow intertidal waters along the western coast of the Suez Gulf. The quality of seawater and sediment structures were analyzed. The distribution of macro-benthos included a total of 38 species of Gastropoda and 9 Bivalvia; and 25 species from the other invertebrates included 7 groups namely, Rhizostoma, Polychaeta, Cirripedia, Amphipoda, Isopoda, Decapoda and Echinodermata. The most dominant group among invertebrate groups was the Polychaeta which included 4 species: Hydroides elegans, Perinereis cultilifera, Perinereis nuntia and Ophelina acuminata. The Cirripedia were represented by 3 species namely, Balanus amphitrite, Chithamalus challengeri and Tetraclita squamosa. The variations in the numerical abundance and biomass of bottom fauna studied between the observation periods and at sampling sites. There was a marked increase in benthos biomass at St. IV (Ras Gharib) yielding an average of 318.8 g/m² in which the gastropod community represented the dominant species in collected samples reaching 270.28 g/m² (84.4% of the total biomass) and numerically numbered 116 ind./m². Veliger larvae of bivalves and gastropods appeared to be present in the plankton for long periods and their production seems to be continuous throughout the year. In the intertidal zone of the Suez Gulf, the values of pH varied within narrow limits. Water temperature and salinity seemed to be important in the distribution and abundance of the macro-benthos communities in the study areas. The organic content in shallow intertidal waters and sediments indicated high values in the central part of the Gulf of Suez.

Chemical forms of copper, zinc, lead and cadmium in sediments of the northern part of the Red Sea, Egypt

Total concentrations and chemical forms of heavy metals in sediment samples from the Gulf of Suez and the northern part of the Red Sea, collected during January 2003, were determined by atomic absorption spectrometry. Maximum concentrations of 49.56, 65.42, 33.52 and 3.52 µg/g were recorded for total Cu, Zn, Pb and Cd respectively at Adabiya location. These may reflect the high contribution of land-based activities in the northern part of the Gulf. Also, high percentages of heavy metals were found in the residual fraction (Cu=78.61, Zn=77.10 and Pb=66.80%) while a high percentage of Cd was found in the carbonate fraction (45.82%). However, few or negligible percentages were recorded in the exchangeable fractions (Cu=0.51, Zn=1.57 and Pb=1.74%). Concentration of Cd in the exchangeable fraction was too low to be detected.

Copper and manganese forms in Lake Edku sediments, Alexandria, Egypt

Lake Edku is one of the Nile Delta lakes. It is subjected to contaminations by several anthropogenic materials such as trace elements and other wastes. The distribution of the different chemical forms of copper and manganese has been studied using sequential extraction techniques. Chemical analysis of the sediments shows that CaCO sub(3) ranged from 3.7% to 9.6% and organic matter from 3.06% to 8.11%. The results indicate that the distribution of manganese among the six chemical forms in the sediments of the lake obeys the following order: Mn-residual>Mn-carbonate>Mn-moderately reducible>Mn-organic form>Mn-exchangeable > Mn-easily reducible fraction. Also, the data revealed that more than 50% of the total manganese was found in the residual form, while the remainder was distributed among the other forms. In contrast, more than 70% of the total copper content was associated with the five chemical forms (exchangeable, carbonate, easily and moderately reducible and organic forms). Generally, the enrichment of manganese in the residual form revealed the important role in building up of clay minerals, while the distribution of copper among the different forms reflects an important role in biological and biochemical processes.

Trace metal (Cu, Zn, Pb, Cr and Cd) concentrations of three subfractions of organic matter from Lake Mariut sediments, Egypt

Trace elements associated with organic subfractions (humic, fulvic, and non-humic substances) were identified for seven core sediments from Lake Mariut, Egypt. Results indicated that the amounts of trace metals in humic acid and non-humic substances decreased in the following order: Zn>Cu>Pb>Cr>Cd, while in fulvic acid the order the order was Cu>Zn>Pb>Cr>Cd. There is a higher contribution of Zn, Pb, Cu and Cr in humic acid compared to fulvic acid in most samples. Slight changes in the amounts of cadmium bounded with humic and fulvic acids was also found.

A water budget study of Lake Manzalah, Egypt

Based on the freshwater and seawater budgets, the mean in/out water fluxes as well as the monthly changes in freshwater content were determined in Lake Manzalah. About 6693 x 10^6m^3 of fresh and brackish water inflow to the lake annually through the main drains discharging into the southeastern basin. Allowances of precipitation (105.7 x 10^6m^3/y) and evaporation (1075 x 10^6m^3/y) yield a net runoff of 5723 x 10^6m^3/y. The average changes in the freshwater content (dF) of the lake was 547.0 x 10^6m^3 with the maximum i.e. 72.4 x 10^6m^3 in July. Using the quantity of inflowing and outflowing water through Boughaz El-Gamil (Lake-Sea connection), the change in water volume relative to sea level change was 549 x 10^6m^3/y. The sea-level height (dh) induced an average monthly change of 6.5 cm. Using the amount of freshwater discharge as well as the lake volume, the lake water is replaced every 48 days.

Size distribution of heavy mineral grains in some modern Nile Delta coastal sands, Egypt

This study includes determination and discussion of the texture and heavy mineral compositions of some modem Nile Delta coastal sands (river, coastal dune, beach-face, and nearshore marine) in order to delineate the process and factors that regulate the size distribution of heavy mineral grains comprising these coastal sands. Textural analysis of unseparated bulk samples indicate that the examined four types of sands differ in their mean grain sizes and degree of sorting. However, analysis of size distribution curves of 10 heavy mineral species or group of species in the four environments having the same general shape and nearly similar in that general order of arrangement. However, these curves vary both in median sizes and sorting. The size distribution of a heavy mineral in the Nile Delta coastal sands appear to depend on: (1) range of grain size fractions in each sample, (2) relative availability of heavy mineral in each size grade of the sample, (3) specific gravity of minerals comprising these sands, and (4) some other unknown factor or factors. Results of size measurement of heavy minerals indicated that increasing specific gravity is accompanied by increasing fineness of the heavy minerals. This study may be useful in search for marine placers and understanding the processes of grain-sorting on the sea beaches.

Dinoflagellate "brown tides" in Alexandria, Egypt waters during 1997-1998

Charles Darwin the research ship undertook an Oceanographic Cruise in 1986, CD 86/17 of the North Arabian Sea. Sediment cores were collected between 15° and 25°N. In this study sediment cores collected from deep Indus and Oman basins (CD 1715, CD 1730, CD 1738) have been analyzed for mineralogy, water content and porosity. In general, the cores are mainly composed of clay to silt sized terrigenous and biogenic constituents. Quartz, chlorite and illite are the common minerals of Arabian Sea sediments. Porosity determined by water content of sediments has been correlated with quartz/chlorite and quartz/illite peak ratios to show a relationship between mineral composition and physical properties.

Speciation of some trace metals (Fe, Cu, and Cd) in El-Mex Bay waters, Alexandria, Egypt

Surface- and bottom-water samples were collected from October 1996 to August 1997 to study levels of iron, copper, and cadmium species in their dissolved labile as well as non-labile and particulate forms in the waters of El-Mex Bay. The results showed that the non-labile concentration of the metals was generally more abundant than that of the labile form: its content reached more than 90% of the total dissolved metal for Cu and more than 80% for Fe. The particulate form was almost at the level of the labile form. The annual concentration of the trace metals of the labile form was 13 µglˉ¹ for Fe; 3µglˉ¹ for Cu, and 1.2 µglˉ¹ for Cd in the surface- and bottom-waters.