Blue mussel beds as biodiversity hotspots on the rocky shores of the northern Baltic Sea

ABSTRACT The Baltic Sea is a vulnerable ecosystem currently undergoing a number of changes, both natural and human induced. The changes are likely to affect the species found on these shores, e.g. their distribution and interactions with other species. Blue mussels (Mytilus trossulus x Mytilus edulis) provide one of the main biogenic hard structures on the shallow shores of the Baltic Sea where they aggregate into dense beds and provide a number of resources for over 40 associated macrofaunal species, thus functioning as ecosystem engineers. The blue mussel, being a marine species, is highly likely to be affected by any changes in sea water salinity, circulation and/or water balance. These changes could trickle down also to affect the associated macrofaunal communities. The aims of this thesis were three-fold: first, I examined and described the macrofaunal communities found within blue mussel patches since the fauna associated with mussel patches had never been described in the study area prior to this thesis. Second, I explored how changes in mussel density, size as well as patch size and shape would affect the mussel communities. Finally, I tested how general landscape theories derived from terrestrial studies function in blue mussel systems. Theories included the structural heterogeneity hypothesis, species-area relationships, edge effects and patch isolation effects. The work shows that blue mussels in the northern Baltic Sea have an indisputable function as diversity hotspots and that the faunal assemblages found in mussel patches are extremely rich and unique. Further on, it shows that changes in mussel biomass, size, patch size and amount of edge have the potential to alter the faunal assemblages and diversity within patches. Finally, it shows that although some landscape theories, such as the structural heterogeneity hypothesis, seem to apply also in blue mussel communities, others cannot be directly applied due to the different prevailing conditions in the study system. This is a pioneering work looking at diversity shaping processes on the rocky shores of the Gulf of Finland, making up over 40% of the total water basin. A focus on niche construction, positive facilitation effects and ecosystem engineering could provide new insights and methods for conservation biology, but before this can be done, we need to fully understand the circumstances under which a species becomes an ecosystem engineer and recognize the systems in which it functions.

Microsite occupancy and spatial structure of regeneration in three late-successional Norway spruce forests in northern Europe

A comparison of microsite occupancy and the spatial structure of regeneration in three areas of late-successional Norway spruce dominated forest. Pallas-Ylläs is understood to have been influenced only by small-scale disturbance; Dvina-Pinega has had sporadic larger-scale disturbances; Kazkim has been affected by fire. All spruce and birch trees with diameter at breast height (DBH) ?10 cm were mapped in five stands on 40 m x 400 m transects, and those with DBH < 10 cm on 2 or 4 m x 400 m subplots. Microsite type was inventoried at 1m intervals along the centre line and for each tree with DBH < 10 cm. At all study areas small seedlings (h < 0.3 m, DBH < 10 cm) preferentially occupied disturbed microsites. In contrast, spruce saplings (h ? 1.3 m, DBH <10 cm) at all study areas showed less, or no, preference. At Pallas-Ylläs spruce seedlings (h < 1.3 m, DBH < 10 cm) and saplings (h ? 1.3 m, DBH < 10 cm) exhibited spatial correlation at scales from 32-52 m. At Dvina-Pinega saplings of both spruce and birch exhibited spatial correlation at scales from 32-81 m. At Kazkim spatial correlation of seedlings and saplings of both species was exhibited over variable distances. No spatial cross-correlation was found between overstorey basal area (DBH ? 10 cm) and regeneration (h ? 1.3 m, DBH < 10 cm) at any study area. The results confirm the importance of disturbed microsites for seedling establishment, but suggest that undisturbed microsites may sometimes be more advantageous for long-term tree survival. The regeneration gap concept may not be useful in describing the regeneration dynamics of late-successional boreal forests.

Seasonal fluctuations in blue-green algae, especially in heterocystous species in polluted coastal waters off Helsinki city, in the northern part of the Gulf of Finland

Tiivistelmä

Thunderstorm climatology and lightning location applications in northern Europe

Thunderstorm is a dangerous electrical phenomena in the atmosphere. Thundercloud is formed when thermal energy is transported rapidly upwards in convective updraughts. Electrification occurs in the collisions of cloud particles in the strong updraught. When the amount of charge in the cloud is large enough, electrical breakdown, better known as a flash, occurs. Lightning location is nowadays an essential tool for the detection of severe weather. Located flashes indicate in real time the movement of hazardous areas and the intensity of lightning activity. Also, an estimate for the flash peak current can be determined. The observations can be used in damage surveys. The most simple way to represent lightning data is to plot the locations on a map, but the data can be processed in more complex end-products and exploited in data fusion. Lightning data serves as an important tool also in the research of lightning-related phenomena, such as Transient Luminous Events. Most of the global thunderstorms occur in areas with plenty of heat, moisture and tropospheric instability, for example in the tropical land areas. In higher latitudes like in Finland, the thunderstorm season is practically restricted to the summer season. Particular feature of the high-latitude climatology is the large annual variation, which regards also thunderstorms. Knowing the performance of any measuring device is important because it affects the accuracy of the end-products. In lightning location systems, the detection efficiency means the ratio between located and actually occurred flashes. Because in practice it is impossible to know the true number of actually occurred flashes, the detection efficiency has to be esimated with theoretical methods.

A new Fuzzy-LOGIC based Model for Chlorophyll-a in Pulicat Lagoon, India

Coastal lagoons are complex ecosystems exhibiting a high degree of non-linearity in the distribution and exchange of nutrients dissolved in the water column due to their spatio-temporal characteristics. This factor has a direct influence on the concentrations of chlorophyll-a, an indicator of the primary productivity in the water bodies as lakes and lagoons. Moreover the seasonal variability in the characteristics of large-scale basins further contributes to the uncertainties in the data on the physico-chemical and biological characteristics of the lagoons. Considering the above, modelling the distributions of the nutrients with respect to the chlorophyll-concentrations, hence requires an effective approach which will appropriately account for the non-linearity of the ecosystem as well as the uncertainties in the available data. In the present investigation, fuzzy logic was used to develop a new model of the primary production for Pulicat lagoon, Southeast coast of India. Multiple regression analysis revealed that the concentrations of chlorophyll-a in the lagoon was highly influenced by the dissolved concentrations of nitrate, nitrites and phosphorous to different extents over different seasons and years. A high degree of agreement was obtained between the actual field values and those predicted by the new fuzzy model (d = 0.881 to 0.788) for the years 2005 and 2006, illustrating the efficiency of the model in predicting the values of chlorophyll-a in the lagoon.

Endemic malaria: an 'indoor' disease in northern Europe

Background: Endemic northern malaria reached 68°N latitude in Europe during the 19th century, where the summer mean temperature only irregularly exceeded 16°C, the lower limit needed for sporogony of Plasmodium vivax. Because of the available historical material and little use of quinine, Finland was suitable for an analysis of endemic malaria and temperature. Methods: Annual malaria death frequencies during 1800–1870 extracted from parish records were analysed against long-term temperature records in Finland, Russia and Sweden. Supporting data from 1750–1799 were used in the interpretation of the results. The life cycle and behaviour of the anopheline mosquitoes were interpreted according to the literature. Results: Malaria frequencies correlated strongly with the mean temperature of June and July of the preceding summer, corresponding to larval development of the vector. Hatching of imagoes peaks in the middle of August, when the temperature most years is too low for the sporogony of Plasmodium. After mating some of the females hibernate in human dwellings. If the female gets gametocytes from infective humans, the development of Plasmodium can only continue indoors, in heated buildings. Conclusion: Northern malaria existed in a cold climate by means of summer dormancy of hypnozoites in humans and indoor transmission of sporozoites throughout the winter by semiactive hibernating mosquitoes. Variable climatic conditions did not affect this relationship. The epidemics, however, were regulated by the population size of the mosquitoes which, in turn, ultimately was controlled by the temperatures of the preceding summer.

Denitrification in the River Estuaries of the Northern Baltic Sea

Estuaries have been suggested to have an important role in reducing the nitrogen load transported to the sea. We measured denitrification rates in six estuaries of the northern Baltic Sea. Four of them were river mouths in the Bothnian Bay (northern Gulf of Bothnia), and two were estuary bays, one in the Archipelago Sea (southern Gulf of Bothnia) and the other in the Gulf of Finland. Denitrification rates in the four river mouths varied between 330 and 905 mu mol N m(-2) d(-1). The estuary bays at the Archipelago Sea and the Gulf of Bothnia had denitrification rates from 90 mu mol N m(-2) d(-1) to 910 mu mol N m(-2) d(-1) and from 230 mu mol N m(-2) d(-1) to 320 mu mol N m(-2) d(-1), respectively. Denitrification removed 3.6-9.0% of the total nitrogen loading in the river mouths and in the estuary bay in the Gulf of Finland, where the residence times were short. In the estuary bay with a long residence time, in the Archipelago Sea, up to 4.5% of nitrate loading and 19% of nitrogen loading were removed before entering the sea. According to our results, the sediments of the fast-flowing rivers and them estuary areas with short residence times have a limited capacity to reduce the nitrogen load to the Baltic Sea.

Status Survey of the Malabar Pied Hornbill in the Dandeli Region, Northern Western Ghats, India

The Malabar Pied Hornbill, Anthracoceros coronatus, is a near threatened species, endemic to the tropical deciduous forests of central and southern India and Sri Lanka. The Dandeli region in Karnataka (India) is believed to be the last stronghold of this species in the Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot. Being a rapidly developing area with a growing human population, the threats to this species and their habitat are mounting, especially due to a large number of hydroelectric projects and habitat fragmentation caused by paper and plywood industries. This study evaluated the change in population status of the Malabar Pied Hornbill over a 23 year period and defined priorities for the long term conservation and monitoring of hornbills in Dandeli. Encounter rates of hornbills were also analysed in relation to the density and species richness of trees and fruiting trees, basal area, canopy cover and distance from river. Hornbill encounters were not significantly different compared to the earlier study carried out by Reddy in 1988, but were significantly different across the five sites in the current study. Higher numbers of hornbills were encountered closer to the river, but these results were only marginally significant. The mean numbers of hornbills recorded at the two roost sites identified in Dandeli were 26 +/- 4.47 (n=16 counts) and 31.78 +/- 3.53 (n=14 counts) respectively. The study also helped build local awareness about the species, train local Forest Department staff in monitoring hornbills and develop a management plan for its conservation.

Influences of the springtime northern Indian biomass burning over the central Himalayas

The influences of the springtime northern Indian biomass burning are shown for the first time over the central Himalayas by using three years (2007-2009) of surface and space based observations along with a radiative transfer model. Near-surface ozone, black carbon (BC), spectral aerosol optical depths (AODs) and the meteorological parameters are measured at a high altitude site Nainital (29.37 degrees N, 79.45 degrees E, 1958 m amsl) located in the central Himalayas. The satellite observations include the MODIS derived fire counts and AOD (0.55 mu m), and OMI derived tropospheric column NO(2), ultraviolet aerosol index and single scattering albedo. MODIS fire counts and BC observations are used to identify the fire-impacted periods (372 h during 2007-2009) and hence the induced enhancements in surface BC, AOD (0.5 mu m) and ozone are estimated to be 1802 ng m(-3) (similar to 145%), 0.3 (similar to 150%) and 19 ppbv (similar to 34%) respectively. Large enhancements (53-100%) are also seen in the satellite derived parameters over a 2 degrees x 2 degrees region around Nainital. The present analysis highlights the northern Indian biomass burning induced cooling at the surface (-27 W m(-2)) and top of the atmosphere (-8 W m(-2)) in the lesser polluted high altitude regions of the central Himalayas. This cooling leads to an additional atmospheric warming of 19 W m(-2) and increases the lower atmospheric heating rate by 0.8 K day(-1). These biomass burning induced changes over the central Himalayan atmosphere during spring may also lead to enhanced short-wave absorption above clouds and might have an impact on the monsoonal rainfall.

Processes of 30-90 days sea surface temperature variability in the northern Indian Ocean during boreal summer

During summer, the northern Indian Ocean exhibits significant atmospheric intraseasonal variability associated with active and break phases of the monsoon in the 30-90 days band. In this paper, we investigate mechanisms of the Sea Surface Temperature (SST) signature of this atmospheric variability, using a combination of observational datasets and Ocean General Circulation Model sensitivity experiments. In addition to the previously-reported intraseasonal SST signature in the Bay of Bengal, observations show clear SST signals in the Arabian Sea related to the active/break cycle of the monsoon. As the atmospheric intraseasonal oscillation moves northward, SST variations appear first at the southern tip of India (day 0), then in the Somali upwelling region (day 10), northern Bay of Bengal (day 19) and finally in the Oman upwelling region (day 23). The Bay of Bengal and Oman signals are most clearly associated with the monsoon active/break index, whereas the relationship with signals near Somali upwelling and the southern tip of India is weaker. In agreement with previous studies, we find that heat flux variations drive most of the intraseasonal SST variability in the Bay of Bengal, both in our model (regression coefficient, 0.9, against similar to 0.25 for wind stress) and in observations (0.8 regression coefficient); similar to 60% of the heat flux variation is due do shortwave radiation and similar to 40% due to latent heat flux. On the other hand, both observations and model results indicate a prominent role of dynamical oceanic processes in the Arabian Sea. Wind-stress variations force about 70-100% of SST intraseasonal variations in the Arabian Sea, through modulation of oceanic processes (entrainment, mixing, Ekman pumping, lateral advection). Our similar to 100 km resolution model suggests that internal oceanic variability (i.e. eddies) contributes substantially to intraseasonal variability at small-scale in the Somali upwelling region, but does not contribute to large-scale intraseasonal SST variability due to its small spatial scale and random phase relation to the active-break monsoon cycle. The effect of oceanic eddies; however, remains to be explored at a higher spatial resolution.

The hazard potential of the western segment of the Makran subduction zone, northern Arabian Sea

Evaluating the hazard potential of the Makran subduction zone requires understanding the previous records of the large earthquakes and tsunamis. We address this problem by searching for earthquake and tectonic proxies along the Makran Coast and linking those observations with the available constraints on historical seismicity and the tell-tale characteristics of sea floor morphology. The earthquake of Mw 8.1 of 1945 and the consequent tsunami that originated on the eastern part of the Makran are the only historically known hazardous events in this region. The seismic status of the western part of the subduction zone outside the rupture area of the 1945 earthquake remains an enigma. The near-shore shallow stratigraphy of the central part of Makran near Chabahar shows evidence of seismically induced liquefaction that we attribute to the distant effects of the 1945 earthquake. The coastal sites further westward around Jask are remarkable for the absence of liquefaction features, at least at the shallow level. Although a negative evidence, this possibly implies that the western part of Makran Coast region may not have been impacted by near-field large earthquakes in the recent past-a fact also supported by the analysis of historical data. On the other hand, the elevated marine terraces on the western Makran and their uplift rates are indicative of comparable degree of long-term tectonic activity, at least around Chabahar. The offshore data suggest occurrences of recently active submarine slumps on the eastern part of the Makran, reflective of shaking events, owing to the great 1945 earthquake. The ocean floor morphologic features on the western segment, on the contrary, are much subdued and the prograding delta lobes on the shelf edge also remain intact. The coast on the western Makran, in general, shows indications of progradation and uplift. The various lines of evidence thus suggest that although the western segment is potentially seismogenic, large earthquakes have not occurred there in the recent past, at least during the last 600 years. The recurrence period of earthquakes may range up to 1,000 years or more, an assessment based on the age of the youngest dated coastal ridge. The long elapsed time points to the fact that the western segment may have accumulated sufficient slip to produce a major earthquake.

Vermicompost reduces the invasiveness of the earthworm species Dichogaster bolaui compared to the use of compost in a degraded tropical soil in Northern Vietnam

In Northern Vietnam, organic fertilization programmes are being tested to restore soil fertility and reduce soil erosion. However, the amendment of organic matter in soil is also associated with the development of the invasive earthworm species Dichogaster bolaui. The objective of this study was to investigate the influence of organic matter amendment quality (compost vs. vermicompost) on D. bolaui. Our study confirmed D. bolaui development in organic patches in the field. However, we also observed that the flat-backed millipede Asiomorpha coarctata proliferated in these organic patches. Native to Asia, this millipede species is also considered as invasive in America. Both D. bolaui and A. coarctata more rapidly colonized compost than vermicompost patches. A laboratory experiment confirmed this trend and showed the limited development of D. bolaui in vermicompost. This is probably because of the decreased palatability of this substrate to soil fauna. In conclusion, any restoration practice that aims to increase the organic stocks in soils degraded by erosion should consider the quality of the organic amendment. In Northern Vietnam, vermicompost may be the preferred substrate for restoring soils while limiting the spread of D. bolaui. (C) 2014 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

An assessment of terrestrial water storage, rainfall and river discharge over Northern India from satellite data

Terrestrial water storage (TWS) plays a key role in the global water cycle and is highly influenced by climate variability and human activities. In this study, monthly TWS, rainfall and Ganga-Brahmaputra river discharge (GBRD) are analysed over India for the period of 2003-12 using remote sensing satellite data. The spatial pattern of mean TWS shows a decrease over a large and populous region of Northern India comprising the foothills of the Himalayas, the Indo-Gangetic Plains and North East India. Over this region, the mean monthly TWS exhibits a pronounced seasonal cycle and a large interannual variability, highly correlated with rainfall and GBRD variations (r > 0.8) with a lag time of 2 months and 1 month respectively. The time series of monthly TWS shows a consistent and statistically significant decrease of about 1 cm year(-1) over Northern India, which is not associated with changes in rainfall and GBRD. This recent change in TWS suggests a possible impact of rapid industrialization, urbanization and increase in population on land water resources. Our analysis highlights the potential of the Earth-observation satellite data for hydrological applications.

Impact of compost, vermicompost and biochar on soil fertility, maize yield and soil erosion in Northern Vietnam: A three year mesocosm experiment

Compost, vermicompost and biochar amendments are thought to improve soil quality and plant yield. However, little is known about their long-term impact on crop yield and the environment in tropical agro-ecosystems. In this study we investigated the effect of organic amendments (buffalo manure, compost and verrnicompost) and biochar (applied alone or with vermicompost) on plant yield, soil fertility, soil erosion and water dynamics in a degraded Acrisol in Vietnam. Maize growth and yield, as well as weed growth, were examined for three years in terrestrial mesocosms under natural rainfall. Maize yield and growth showed high inter-annual variability depending on the organic amendment. Vermicompost improved maize growth and yield but its effect was rather small and was only significant when water availability was limited (year 2). This suggests that vermicompost could be a promising substrate for improving the resistance of agrosystems to water stress. When the vermicompost biochar mixture was applied, further growth and yield improvements were recorded in some cases. When applied alone, biochar had a positive influence on maize yield and growth, thus confirming its interest for improving long-term soil productivity. All organic amendments reduced water runoff, soil detachment and NH4+ and NO3- transfer to water. These effects were more significant with vermicompost than with buffalo manure and compost, highlighting that the beneficial influence of vermicompost is not limited to its influence on plant yield. In addition, this study showed for the first time that the combination of vermicompost and biochar may not only improve plant productivity but also reduce the negative impact of agriculture on water quality. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.