Effect of increasing sea water pCO2 on the northern Atlantic krill species Nyctiphanes couchii

Surprisingly little is known about potential effects of ocean acidification on krill of the Northern Hemisphere as ecologically very important food web component. Sub-adult individuals of the northern Atlantic krill species Nyctiphanes couchii (caught at Austevoll near Bergen, Norway, in January 2013) were exposed in the laboratory to four different levels of pCO2 (430, 800, 1,100, and 1,700 µatm) for 5 weeks in order to assess potential changes in a set of biological response variables. Survival decreased and the frequency of moulting-related deaths increased with increasing pCO2. Survival was considerably reduced at relatively high pCO2 of 1,700 µatm and tended to be negatively affected at 1,100 µatm pCO2. However, the experimental results show no significant effects of pCO2 on inter-moult period and growth at pCO2 levels below 1,100 µatm. No differences in length measurements of the carapace and uropod were observed across pCO2 levels, indicating no effect of changing carbonate chemistry on the morphology of those calciferous parts of the exoskeleton. The results suggest that sub-adult N. couchii may not suffer dramatically from predicted near-future changes in pCO2. However, potential detrimental effects on the moulting process and associated higher mortality at 1,100 µatm pCO2 cannot be excluded. Further experiments are needed in order to investigate whether early life stages of N. couchii show a different sensitivity to elevated sea water pCO2 and whether those results are transferable to other krill species of the Northern Hemisphere.

Effects of ocean acidification on respiration, growth and C:N ratio of arctic Hyas araneus larvae

Early life stages of marine crustaceans respond sensitively to elevated seawater PCO2. However, the underlying physiological mechanisms have not been studied well. We therefore investigated the effects of elevated seawater PCO2 on oxygen consumption, dry weight, elemental composition, median developmental time (MDT) and mortality in zoea I larvae of the spider crab Hyas araneus (Svalbard 79°N/11°E; collection, May 2009; hatch, December 2009). At the time of moulting, oxygen consumption rate had reached a steady state level under control conditions. In contrast, elevated seawater PCO2 caused the metabolic rate to rise continuously leading to a maximum 1.5-fold increase beyond control level a few days before moulting into the second stage (zoea II), followed by a pronounced decrease. Dry weight of larvae reared under high CO2 conditions was lower than in control larvae at the beginning of the moult cycle, yet this difference had disappeared at the time of moulting. MDT of zoea I varied between 45 ± 1 days under control conditions and 42 ± 2 days under the highest seawater CO2 concentration. The present study indicates that larval development under elevated seawater PCO2 levels results in higher metabolic costs during premoulting events in zoea I. However, H. araneus zoea I larvae seem to be able to compensate for higher metabolic costs as larval MDT and survival was not affected by elevated PCO2 levels.

Respiration rates and abundances of dominant copepods of the northern Benguela Current System

Respiration rates of 16 calanoid copepod species from the northern Benguela upwelling system were measured on board RRS Discovery in September/October 2010 to determine their energy requirements and assess their significance in the carbon cycle. Individual respiration rates were standardised to a mean copepod body mass and a temperature regime typical of the northern Benguela Current. These adjusted respiration rates revealed two different activity levels (active and resting) in copepodids C5 of Calanoides carinatus and females of Rhincalanus nasutus, which reduced their metabolism during dormancy by 82% and 62%, respectively. An allometric function (Imax) and an energy budget approach were performed to calculate ingestion rates. Imax generally overestimated the ingestion rates derived from the energy budget approach by >75%. We suggest that the energy budget approach is the more reliable approximation with a total calanoid copepod (mainly females) consumption of 78 mg C m-2 d-1 in neritic regions and 21 mg C m-2 d-1 in oceanic regions. The two primarily herbivorous copepods C. carinatus (neritic) and Nannocalanus minor (oceanic) contributed 83% and 5%, respectively, to total consumption by calanoid copepods. Locally, C. carinatus can remove up to 90% of the diatom biomass daily. In contrast, the maximum daily removal of dinoflagellate biomass by N. minor was 9%. These estimates imply that C. carinatus is an important primary consumers in the neritic province of the northern Benguela system, while N. minor has little grazing impact on phytoplankton populations further offshore. Data on energy requirements and total consumption rates of dominant calanoid copepods of this study are essential for the development of realistic carbon budgets and food-web models for the northern Benguela upwelling system.

Bioenergetic trade-offs in the sea cucumber Apostichopus japonicus (Echinodermata: Holothuroidea) in response to CO2-driven ocean acidification

Ocean acidification (OA) caused by excessive CO2 is a potential ecological threat to marine organisms. The impacts of OA on echinoderms are well-documented, but there has been a strong bias towards sea urchins, and limited information is available on sea cucumbers. This work examined the effect of medium-term (60 days) exposure to three pH levels (pH 8.06, 7.72, and 7.41, covering present and future pH variability) on the bioenergetic responses of the sea cucumber, Apostichopus japonicus, an ecologically and economically important holothurian in Asian coasts. Results showed that the measured specific growth rate linearly decreased with decreased pH, leading to a 0.42 %/day decrease at pH 7.41 compared with that at pH 8.06. The impacts of pH on physiological energetics were variable: measured energy consumption and defecation rates linearly decreased with decreased pH, whereas maintenance energy in calculated respiration and excretion were not significantly affected. No shift in energy allocation pattern was observed in A. japonicus upon exposure to pH 7.72 compared with pH 8.06. However, a significant shift in energy budget occurred upon exposure to pH 7.41, leading to decreased energy intake and increased percentage of energy that was lost in feces, thereby resulting in a significantly lowered allocation into somatic growth. These findings indicate that adult A. japonicus is resilient to the OA scenario at the end of the twenty-first century, but further acidification may negatively influence the grazing capability and growth, thereby influencing its ecological functioning as an "ecosystem engineer" and potentially harming its culture output.

Physiological responses and scope for growth upon medium-term exposure to the combined effects of ocean acidification and temperature in a subtidal scavenger Nassarius conoidalis

Physiological responses (ingestion rate, absorption rate and efficiency, respiration, rate, excretion rate) and scope for growth of a subtidal scavenging gastropod Nassarius conoidalis under the combined effects of ocean acidification (pCO2 levels: 380, 950, 1250 µatm) and temperature (15, 30 °C) were investigated for 31 days. There was a significant reduction in all the physiological rates and scope for growth following short-term exposure (1-3 days) to elevated pCO2 except absorption efficiency at 15 °C and 30 °C, and respiration rate and excretion rate at 15 °C. The percentage change in the physiological rates ranged from 0% to 90% at 15 °C and from 0% to 73% at 30 °C when pCO2 was increased from 380 µatm to 1250 µatm. The effect of pCO2 on the physiological rates was enhanced at high temperature for ingestion, absorption, respiration and excretion. When the exposure period was extended to 31 days, the effect of pCO2 was significant on the ingestion rate only. All the physiological rates remained unchanged when temperature increased from 24 °C to 30 °C but the rates at 15 °C were significantly lower, irrespective of the duration of exposure. Our data suggested that a medium-term exposure to ocean acidification has no effect on the energetics of N. conoidalis. Nevertheless, the situation may be complicated by a longer term of exposure and/or a reduction in salinity in a warming world.

Temperature and acidification variability reduce physiological performance in the intertidal zone porcelain crab Petrolisthes//cinctipes

We show here that increased variability of temperature and pH synergistically negatively affects the energetics of intertidal zone crabs. Under future climate scenarios, coastal ecosystems are projected to have increased extremes of low tide-associated thermal stress and ocean acidification-associated low pH, the individual or interactive effects of which have yet to be determined. To characterize energetic consequences of exposure to increased variability of pH and temperature, we exposed porcelain crabs, Petrolisthes cinctipes, to conditions that simulated current and future intertidal zone thermal and pH environments. During the daily low tide, specimens were exposed to no, moderate or extreme heating, and during the daily high tide experienced no, moderate or extreme acidification. Respiration rate and cardiac thermal limits were assessed following 2.5 weeks of acclimation. Thermal variation had a larger overall effect than pH variation, though there was an interactive effect between the two environmental drivers. Under the most extreme temperature and pH combination, respiration rate decreased while heat tolerance increased, indicating a smaller overall aerobic energy budget (i.e. a reduced O2 consumption rate) of which a larger portion is devoted to basal maintenance (i.e. greater thermal tolerance indicating induction of the cellular stress response). These results suggest the potential for negative long-term ecological consequences for intertidal ectotherms exposed to increased extremes in pH and temperature due to reduced energy for behavior and reproduction.

Thermodynamics of zinc insertion in CuGaS2:Ti, used as a modulator agent in an intermediate-band photovoltaic material

An intermediate-bandphotovoltaicmaterial, which has an isolated metallic band located between the top of the valence band and bottom of the conduction band of some semiconductors, has been proposed as third generation solar cell to be used in photovoltaic applications. Density functional theory calculations of Zn in CuGaS2:Ti have previously shown that, the intermediate-band position can be modulated in proportion of Zn insertion in such a way that increasing Zn concentration can lead to aband-gap reduction, and an adjustment of the intermediate-band position. This could be interesting in the formation of an intermediate-bandmaterial, that has the maximum efficiency theoretically predicted for the intermediate-band solar cell. In this work, the energetics of several reaction schemes that could lead to the decomposition of the modulated intermediate-bandphotovoltaicmaterial, CuGaS2:Ti:Zn, is studied in order to assess the thermodynamic stability of this material. Calculations of the total free energy and disorder entropy have been taken into account, to get the reaction energy and free energy of the compound decomposition, which is found to be thermodynamically favorable

Principales efectos de la aplicación de una metodología destinada a inducir la muda en ponedoras comerciales sobre su producción cuantitativa y cualitativa durante el segundo ciclo de puesta

En la presente Tesis Doctoral se ha estudiado el efecto de una metodología para inducir la muda en dos estirpes de gallinas ponedoras comerciales, una ligera y otra semipesada, mediante el suministro de tres alimentos: salvado de trigo, cebada en grano y un pienso comercial de ponedoras aportado en cantidad restringida. Se realizaron dos pruebas en dos lotes diferentes de gallinas. En la primera de ellas se utilizaron 472 animales (236 de cada estirpe) alojados en jaulas con cuatro o seis gallinas por jaula, con una estructura factorial 2 x 3 x 2 (2 estirpes, 3 alimentos, 2 densidades) y una duración total de 32 semanas (4 de muda y 28 de producción posmuda). En la segunda prueba fueron 432 animales los utilizados (216 de cada estirpe), alojados en grupos de cuatro aves por jaula, con una estructura factorial 2 x 3 (2 estirpes, 3 alimentos) y una duración de 27 semanas (4 de muda y 23 de producción postmuda). En los dos experimentos realizados se estudió el efecto del uso de los alimentos citados para inducir de la muda sobre los resultados cuantitativos: pérdida de peso vivo durante la muda e intensidad de puesta, peso medio del huevo y masa de huevo diaria, durante y después de la muda, así como la distribución de la puesta en clases comerciales durante el segundo ciclo de puesta. Así como sobre los resultados cualitativos después de la muda: color de la cáscara de los huevos morenos, espesor de la cáscara, peso específico del huevo, altura del albumen, unidades Haugh y color de la yema. En la primera prueba se estudió, además, el efecto que la inducción de la muda mediante los tres alimentos considerados tuvo sobre la regresión del aparato reproductor de las gallinas durante este período de muda. En el primer experimento se observaron diferencias entre estirpes. Las gallinas ligeras tuvieron una más rápida regresión del aparato reproductor (ovario+oviducto) (P=0,003) que las semipesadas, aunque la regresión total no presentó diferencias significativas. Las gallinas semipesadas tuvieron mejores resultados después de la muda en intensidad de puesta (P<0,0001), en peso medio del huevo (P<0,0001) y en masa de huevo diaria (P=0,0002). También hubo diferencias significativas para las variables cualitativas espesor de la cáscara (mayor en huevos de gallinas semipesadas) mientras que los huevos procedentes de gallinas ligeras presentaron mejores valores de altura del albumen, de unidades Haugh y de color de yema; todas estas variables tuvieron un nivel de significación P<0,0001. El suministro restringido de pienso dio lugar a un mayor porcentaje de pérdida de peso vivo (P<0,0001) aunque la regresión de los órganos del aparato reproductor fue la más baja (P<0,003), no habiéndose encontrado diferencias entre los otros dos alimentos utilizados. Con este alimento también fue más lenta (P<0,0001) la disminución de la puesta durante la muda, aunque fue mayor la producción durante el segundo ciclo (P<0,0001). La única variable cualitativa afectada fue el espesor de cáscara (P<0,0001), con valores más altos en los huevos producidos por las gallinas mudadas con cebada. Los grupos de seis gallinas por jaula produjeron más huevos durante la muda (P<0,0001) aunque después de ésta la densidad de animales no tuvo efecto significativo, como tampoco lo hubo sobre los parámetros de calidad del huevo. En la segunda prueba las gallinas semipesadas experimentaron un menor porcentaje de pérdida de peso corporal (P<0,01) pero tuvieron mayores índices de puesta (P<0,001) y de huevos clasificables (P<0,001) durante la muda. En cambio, durante el segundo ciclo de producción las gallinas ligeras produjeron más huevos (P=0,0041), de menor peso (P<0,02) y con menor consumo de pienso (P<0,001). Los huevos puestos por las gallinas semipesadas tuvieron mayor espesor de cáscara y mayor color de yema, pero peor calidad de albumen (P<0,0001). La mayor pérdida de peso la experimentaron las gallinas mudadas con salvado (P<0,02). La producción durante la muda fue mayor (P<0,001) en las gallinas que consumieron pienso en cantidad restringida y también fueron las que tuvieron menor intensidad de puesta (P<0,006) y masa de huevo diaria (P<0,042) durante el segundo ciclo. El tratamiento de muda no tuvo efecto significativo sobre la calidad del huevo en esta segunda prueba. La principal conclusión que merece destacarse es que es posible inducir la muda a las gallinas ponedoras utilizando alimentos bajos en energía o en proteína, o altos en fibra, con un porcentaje de pérdida de peso vivo no tan alta como las recomendaciones tradicionales, y alcanzar buenos resultados productivos, tanto cuantitativos como cualitativos, durante el segundo ciclo de puesta. ABSTRACT Present Doctoral Thesis has studied the effect of a methodology to induce molting in two strains of commercial laying hens, one light and another semi-heavy one, through the provision of three feed: wheat bran, barley grain and a commercial laying hens feed provided in limited quantity. Two tests were performed in two different lots of layers. In the first 472 animals were used (236 of each strain) housed in cages with four or six hens per cage, with a structure 2 x 3 x 2 factorial (2 strains, 3 meals, 2 densities) and a total duration of 32 weeks (4 of molt and 28 of postmolting). In the second test 432 animals were used (216 each strain), housed in groups of four birds per cage, with a structure factorial 2 x 3 (2 strain, 3 meals) along 27 weeks (4 of molt and 23 of postmolting). In both experiments, we studied the effect of the use of above mentioned foods to induce molting on the quantitative results: body weight lost during the molt and laying index, average egg weight and egg mass daily during and after the molt, as well as on grading in commercial classes during the second laying cycle. As well as on qualitative outcomes after the molt: colour of Brown eggsshell, shell thickness, specific density, albumen height, Haugh units and yolk colour. In the first test was studied, in addition, the effect of induction of molting through the three feed considered on the regression of the reproductive tract of hens during molting period. In the first experiment, differences between strains were observed. Light hens had a faster regression of the reproductive tract (ovary+oviduct) (P=0,003) than semi-heavy hens, although the total regression did not present significant differences. Semi-heavy hens had better outcomes after the molt in laying index (P<0.0001), in average egg weight (P<0.0001) and daily egg mass (P=0, 0002). There were also significant differences for the qualitative variables (higher in semi-heavy hen eggs) as shell thickness while light chicken eggs showed better values of albumen height, Haugh units and yolk color; all these variables had the same level of significance (P<0.0001). Restricted supply of layer feed resulted in a greater percentage of live weight loss (P<0.0001) although the regression of the reproductive organs was the lowest (P<0.003), having not found differences between the other two feed used. With this food decreasing of laying during molting period was also slower (P<0.0001), although production was higher during the second cycle (P < 0.0001). The only qualitative variable affected was shell thickness (P<0.0001), with higher values in the eggs produced by hens molted with barley. Groups of six hens per cage produced more eggs during the moult (P<0.0001) but after this animal density had no significant effect, as neither had it on egg quality parameters. In the second trial hens semi-heavy experienced a lower percentage of body weight loss (P<0.01) but had higher rates of egg production (P<0.001) and of grading eggs (P<0.001) during the moult. On the other hand, during the second production cycle light hens produced more eggs (P=0,0041), of lower weight (P < 0.02) and with less feed intake (P<0.001). Eggs from semi-heavy hens had thicker shell and greater color yolk, but poorer quality of albumen (P<0.0001). The greater weight loss was experimented by the hens molted with wheat bran (P=0.02). Production during molting period was greater (P<0.001) in hens which consumed feed in restricted quantities and were also less the laying index (P=0.006) and daily egg mass (P=0.042) during the second cycle. The molting treatment had no significative effect on the quality of the egg in this second test. The main conclusion that deserves to stand out is that it is possible to induce molting hens using foods low in energy or in protein or high in fiber, with a percentage of live weight loss not as high as the traditional recommendations, and achieve good productive, both quantitative and qualitative results during the second implementation cycle.