In situ and remote sensing signature of meddies east of the mid-Atlantic ridge

[EN] Mediterranean Water eddies (meddies) are thought to play an important climatic role. Nevertheless, their dynamics are not sufficiently known because of difficulties encountered in their observation. Though propagating below the main thermocline, a number of pieces of evidence of sea surface manifestation of meddies are collected. The present work is based on joint in situ and altimetry data analyses to prove that the meddies can be followed with remote sensing data for long periods of time. The in situ observations are based on data from an oceanographic cruise, which crossed three meddies, and reanalysis of historical data sets, including RAFOS floats paths. Suggested methodology permitted us to obtain uninterrupted tracks for several meddies for a period from several months to more than 2 years. It was found that the dynamically calm region to the north of the Azores current presents favorable conditions for meddy tracking. The meddy surface signal may become shattered and difficult to follow during interaction with a strong dynamic structures (the Azores current/surface vortexes) or peaking topography. Theoretical considerations support the observations and lead to the conclusion that the dynamic signature of meddies at the sea surface is an intrinsic property of meddy dynamics

Isolation and characterization of microsatellite loci in Sorbus aria (Rosaceae)

[EN] Sorbus aria (L) Crantz (Common Whitebeam) is native to Europe, east of the Balkans and in North Africa; it is also present in the Canary Islands. To evaluate the genetic diversity in natural populations of this vulnerable species, nine novel polymorphic microsatellite markers were isolated from enriched libraries. Microsatellite loci were screened in 97 individuals from La Palma (Canary Islands) and Sierra Nevada (Granada, Spain). Examination of the microsatellite profiles shows that S. aria individuals have up to three alleles per locus. The cloned sequences in microsatellite loci confirmed the polyploidy status of the plants. The number of alleles ranged from 5 to 14 per locus. The phenotype diversities across loci (H0 T) ranging from 0.653 to 0.847