Characterisation of the South West European Marine Sites: Summary Report. Occasional Publication of the Marine Biological Association 14

The UK and EU have recently committed to an ecosystem-based approach to the management of our marine environment. In line with the requirements of the Habitats regulations, all consents likely to significantly affect Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) and Special Protection Areas (SPAs) are to be reviewed. As part of this process, 'site characterisation' is seen as an important first step towards the improved management of designated sites. This characterisation series, undertaken by the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom and funded by the Environment Agency and English Nature, sets out to determine the current status of designated marine sites in South West England, and how vulnerable (or robust) they are to contaminants (metals, organics, nutrients) and other anthropogenic pressures. Using published information and unpublished data-sets from regulatory agencies, conservation bodies and research institutes (particularly those of the PMPS*), evidence is compiled on the links between potentially harmful 'activities', environmental quality, and resultant biological consequences. This includes an evaluation of long-term change. The focus is the effect of water and sediment quality on the key interest features of European Marine sites in the South West of England, namely: - Fal and Helford cSAC (MBA Occasional Publication 8) - Plymouth Sound and Estuaries cSAC/ SPA (MBA Occasional Publication 9) - Exe Estuary SPA (MBA Occasional Publication 10) - Chesil and the Fleet cSAC/ SPA (MBA Occasional Publication 11) - Poole Harbour SPA (MBA Occasional Publication 12) - Severn Estuary pSAC/SPA (MBA Occasional Publication 13) Detailed analysis for each of these sites is provided individually. The summary report contains an overview of physical properties, uses and vulnerability for each of these sites, together with brief comparisons of pollution sources, chemical exposure (via sediment and water) and evidence of biological impact (from bioaccumulation to community-level response). Limitations of the data, and gaps in our understanding of these systems are highlighted and suggestions are put forward as to where future research and surveillance is most needed. Hopefully this may assist the statutory authorities in targeting future monitoring and remedial activities. * PMSP: Plymouth Marine Sciences Partnership, comprising the Marine Biological Association (MBA), University of Plymouth (UoP), the Sir Alister Hardy Foundation for Ocean Science, and Plymouth Marine Laboratories (PML)

Plankton Of The Fladen Ground During Flex-76 .3. Vertical-Distribution Population-Dynamics And Production Of Calanus-Finmarchicus (Crustacea Copepoda)

Samples taken in the northern North Sea with the Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR), the Undulating Oceanographic Recorder (UOR), the Longhurst Hardy Plankton Recorder (LHPR) and by our colleagues from other participating Institutes during the Fladen Ground Experiment (FLEX 76) were used to describe the vertical distribution and population dynamics of Calanus finmarchicus (Gunnerus) and to provide estimates of the production and carbon budget of the population from 19 March to 3 June, 1976. Total production of the 19 March to 3 June, 1976. Total production of the nauplii and copepodite stages (including adults), during the exponential growth phase in May, was estimated to be in the range of 0.49 to 0.91 g C m-2 d-1 or 29.0 to 55 g dry wt m-2 (14.5 to 27.8 g C m-2) for the three successive 10 d periods in May. Two gross growth efficiencies (K 1) (20 and 34%), together with the lower value of C. finmarchicus production, were used to calculate the gross ingestion levels of algae as 2.45 and 1.44 g C m-2 d-1 (73.5 and 43.2 g C m-2 over the May period). These ingestion levels, together with the algae ingested by other zooplankton species, are greater than the estimated total phytoplankton production of 45.9 g C m-2 over the FLEX period. A number of factors are discussed which could explain the discrepancies between the production estimates. One suggestion is that the vertical distribution of the development stages of this herbivorous copepod and their diel and ontogenetic migration patterns enable it to efficiently exploit its food source. Data from the FLEX experiment indicated that the depletion of nutrients limited the size of the spring bloom, but that it was the grazing pressure exerted by C. finmarchicus which was responsible for the control and depletion of the phytoplankton in the spring of 1976 in the northern North Sea.

European Project on Ocean Acidification (EPOCA): Objectives, products and scientific highlights

The European Project on Ocean Acidification (EPOCA) is Europe's first large-scale research initiative devoted to studying the impacts and consequences of ocean acidification. More than 100 scientists from 27 institutes and nine countries bring their expertise to the project, resulting in a multidisciplinary and versatile consortium. The project is funded for four years (2008 to 2012) by the European Commission within its Seventh Framework Programme. This article describes EPOCA and explains its different aspects, objectives, and products. Following a general introduction, six boxes highlight outcomes, techniques, and scientific results from each of the project's core themes.

20 Years of the Atlantic Meridional Transect — AMT

The AMT (www.amt-uk.org) is a multidisciplinary programme which undertakes biological, chemical, and physical oceanographic research during an annual voyage between the UK and a destination in the South Atlantic such as the Falkland Islands,South Africa, or Chile. This transect of >12,000 km crosses a range of ecosystems from subpolar to tropical, from euphotic shelf seas and upwelling systems, to oligotrophic mid-ocean gyres. The year 2015 has seen two milestones in the history of the AMT: the achievement of 20 years of this unique ocean going programme and the departure of the 25th cruise on the 15th of September. Both of these events were celebrated in June this year with an open science conference hosted by the Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML) and will be further documented in a special issue of Progress in Oceanography which is planned for publication in 2016. Since 1995, the 25 research cruises have involved 242 sea-going scientists from 66 institutes representing 22 countries.