Critical reappraisal of Late Mesozoic-Cenozoic Central and North Atlantic, Caribbean and Mediterranean evolution

(l) The Pacific basin (Pacific area) may be regarded as moving eastwards like a double zip fastener relative to the continents and their respective plates (Pangaea area): opening in the East and closing in the West. This movement is tracked by a continuous mountain belt, the collision ages of which increase westwards. (2) The relative movements between the Pacific area and the Pangaea area in the W-E/E-W direction are generated by tidal forces (principle of hypocycloid gearing), whereby the lower mantle and the Pacific basin or area (Pacific crust = roof of the lower mantle?) rotate somewhat faster eastwards around the Earth's spin axis relative to the upper mantle/crust system with the continents and their respective plates (Pangaea area) (differential rotation). (3) These relative West to East/East to West displacements produce a perpetually existing sequence of distinct styles of opening and closing ocean basins, exemplified by the present East to West arrangement of ocean basins around the globe (Oceanic or Wilson Cycle: Rift/Red Sea style; Atlantic style; Mediterranean/Caribbean style as eastwards propagating tongue of the Pacific basin; Pacific style; Collision/Himalayas style). This sequence of ocean styles, of which the Pacific ocean is a part, moves eastwards with the lower mantle relative to the continents and the upper-mantle/crust of the Pangaea area. (4) Similarly, the collisional mountain belt extending westwards from the equator to the West of the Pacific and representing a chronological sequence of collision zones (sequential collisions) in the wake of the passing of the Pacific basin double zip fastener, may also be described as recording the history of oceans and their continental margins in the form of successive Wilson Cycles. (5) Every 200 to 250 m.y. the Pacific basin double zip fastener, the sequence of ocean styles of the Wilson Cycle and the eastwards growing collisional mountain belt in their wake complete one lap around the Earth. Two East drift lappings of 400 to 500 m.y. produce a two-lap collisional mountain belt spiral around a supercontinent in one hemisphere (North or South Pangaea). The Earth's history is subdivided into alternating North Pangaea growth/South Pangaea breakup eras and South Pangaea growth/North Pangaea breakup eras. Older North and South Pangaeas and their collisional mountain belt spirals may be reconstructed by rotating back the continents and orogenic fragments of a broken spiral (e.g. South Pangaea, Gondwana) to their previous Pangaea growth era orientations. In the resulting collisional mountain belt spiral, pieced together from orogenic segments and fragments, the collision ages have to increase successively towards the West. (6) With its current western margin orientated in a West-East direction North America must have collided during the Late Cretaceous Laramide orogeny with the northern margin of South America (Caribbean Andes) at the equator to the West of the Late Mesozoic Pacific. During post-Laramide times it must have rotated clockwise into its present orientation. The eastern margin of North America has never been attached to the western margin of North Africa but only to the western margin of Europe. (7) Due to migration eastwards of the sequence of ocean styles of the Wilson Cycle, relative to a distinct plate tectonic setting of an ocean, a continent or continental margin, a future or later evolutionary style at the Earth's surface is always depicted in a setting simultaneously developed further to the West and a past or earlier style in a setting simultaneously occurring further to the East. In consequence, ahigh probability exists that up to the Early Tertiary, Greenland (the ArabiaofSouth America?) occupied a plate tectonic setting which is comparable to the current setting of Arabia (the Greenland of Africa?). The Late Cretaceous/Early Tertiary Eureka collision zone (Eureka orogeny) at the northern margin of the Greenland Plate and on some of the Canadian Arctic Islands is comparable with the Middle to Late Tertiary Taurus-Bitlis-Zagros collision zone at the northern margin of the Arabian Plate.

Historical Observations of Humpback And Blue Whales in the North Atlantic Ocean: Clues to Migratory Routes and Possibly Additional Feeding Grounds

The seasonal distributions of humpback and blue whales (Megaptera novaeangliae and Balaenoptera musculus, respectively) in the North Atlantic Ocean are not fully understood. Although humpbacks have been studied intensively in nearshore or coastal feeding and breeding areas, their migratory movements between these areas have been largely inferred. Blue whales have only been studied intensively along the north shore of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and their seasonal occurrence and movements elsewhere in the North Atlantic are poorly known. We investigated the historical seasonal distributions of these two species using sighting and catch data extracted from American 18th and 19th century whaling logbooks. These data suggest that humpback whales migrated seasonally from low-latitude calving/ breeding grounds over a protracted period, and that some of them traveled far offshore rather than following coastal routes. Also, at least some humpbacks apparently fed early in the summer west of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, well south of their known present-day feeding grounds. In assessing the present status of the North Atlantic humpback population, it will be important to determine whether such offshore feeding does in fact occur. Blue whales were present across the southern half of the North Atlantic during the autumn and winter months, and farther north in spring and summer, but we had too few data points to support inferences about these whales’ migratory timing and routes.

Taking an Endemically Infected Bovine Tb Area Through to Livestock Clearance. A Case Study of West Taupo, New Zealand

The Pest Management Strategy for Bovine Tuberculosis (Tb) in New Zealand aims to achieve efficient freedom from Tb by 2013 and to eradicate the disease from livestock and wildlife. The West Taupo area, in the central North Island of New Zealand, was chronically infected with Tb in both domestic livestock herds (cattle and deer) and within wildlife populations (brushtail possum, ferret, feral deer and pigs). Through the development and implementation of a technically innovative management plan, this area is now approaching Tb free status. The case study / management plan reported here discusses the operational techniques and strategies that were implemented to achieve Tb clearance in the livestock herds and the possibilities of eradication from wildlife species. It particularly identifies the variations in control strategies that are required as population densities reduce and the challenges of maintaining strong effective control at low densities of some wildlife species, whilst not needing to control other species that were initially clinically diagnosed with Tb control. Use of diagnostic tools and education as an area moves through the cycle towards Tb freedom are as essential as the physical control activities. The use of intensive monitoring of both livestock and wildlife species as trend and performance indicators and the need to educate farmers, hunters and other land use groups become increasingly important.

Tidal Flexure of Jakobshavns Glacier, West Greenland

Jakobshavns Glacier, a floating outlet glacier on the West Greenland coast, was surveyed during July 1976. The vertical displacements of targets along two profiles perpendicular to the fjord wall bounding the north margin of the glacier were analyzed to determine the effect of flexure caused by tidal oscillations within the fjord. An analysis based on the assumption that vertical displacements of the glacier reflected pure elastic bending yielded the conclusion that the effective thickness of the ice (i.e., the thickness which remained unaffected by surface and basal cracking and which behaved as a continuum) was ∼160 m 2.6 km upglacier from the calving front and ∼110 m 0.6 km from the calving front. An analysis based on the more realistic assumption that observed bending reflected elastic and viscoplastic deformation yielded the conclusion that the average effective thickness of the ice was 316 ± 74 m (∼40% of the estimated 800-m total thickness) 2.6 km from the calving front and 160 ± 48 m (∼21% of the estimated 750-m total) 0.6 km from the calving front. A constitutive relationship appropriate for hard glide during flexure was used.

Post-colonial (American?) English Presence on the North-Western Pacific Island of Kosrae: A cross-linguistic analysis of the overlaps and divergences of Kosraean English compared to standard American English

Kosrae is the most remote island of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), with a population of less than 7,000 inhabitants, located in the Pacific Ocean between Hawaii and Guam. FSM is an independent sovereign nation consisting of four states in total: Pohnpei, Chuuk, Yap, and Kosrae. Having passed through the hands of Spain, Germany and Japan, the United States gained administrative control of FSM after WWII, as commissioned by the UN. The FSM became an independent nation in 1986 while still retaining affiliation with the US under a ‘Compact of Free Association’. Now both Kosraean and English are considered to be the two official languages and the variety of Kosraean English which has arisen proves for an interesting comparative study. In order to obtain the relevant data, I spent three months on the island of Kosrae, interviewing 90 local speakers, ranging in age (16-70), occupation, sex and time spent off island. The 45 minute long interviews were informal but supported by participant information to capture relevant data and conversations were guided in a way that aimed to reveal language and cultural attitudes. With reference to these samples, I examine the effects of American English on the language use in Kosrae. This paper aims to present a broad analysis of phonological, morphosyntactic and pragmatic features, such as pro-dropping, discourse markers and other practices in order to demonstrate the similarities and differences between the two varieties, which are coming to shape the variety developing on Kosrae. Having transcribed conversations using the tool Elan, I will put particular focus on [h] deletion and insertion, a rare occurrence found in a variety of post-colonial American English which I believe is of particular interest. I assess the presence of English in Kosrae with reference to sociological influences, past and present. First, I discuss the extralinguistic factors which have shaped the English that is currently used on Kosrae, including migration between US and FSM, and English as a language of administration, social media usage and visual media presence. Secondly, I assess the use of English in this community in light of Schneider’s (2007) ‘Dynamic Model’, with reference to America’s contribution as an ‘exploitation colony’ as defined by Mufwene (2001). Finally, an overview of the salient linguistic characteristics of Kosraean English, based on the data collected will be presented and compared to features associated with standard American English in view of examining overlap and divergence. The overall objective is to present a cross-linguistic description of a hitherto unexamined English emerging in a postcolonial environment with a juxtaposed contact variety. Mufwene, Salikoko S. 2001. The ecology of language evolution. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Schneider, E. (2007). Postcolonial Englishes. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Segal, H.G. (1989) Kosrae, The Sleeping Lady Awakens. Kosrae: Kosrae Tourist Division, Dept. Of Conservation and Development. Keywords: American English, Global English, Pacific English, Morphosyntactic, Phonological, Variation, Discourse

The Cenomanian/Turronian Boundary Event at ODP Hole 103-641A

Drilling at ODP Site 641 (on the western margin of Galicia Bank, off northwestern Spain) revealed a thin, but pronounced, interval of black shale and gray-green claystone. Our high-resolution study combines the sedimentology, micropaleontology (palynomorphs and others), organic and inorganic geochemistry, and isotopic values of this layer to demonstrate the distinct nature of the sediment and prove that the sequence represents the local sedimentary expression of the global Cenomanian/Turonian Oceanic Anoxic Event (OAE) of Schlanger and Jenkyns (1976), Arthur and Schlanger (1979), and Jenkyns (1980), also called the Cenomanian/Turonian Boundary Event (CTBE). The most striking evidence is that the strong positive d13C excursion characterizing the CTBE sequences in shallow areas can be traced into a pronounced deep-sea expression, thus providing a good stratigraphic marker for the CTBE in various paleosettings. The isotopic excursion at Site 641 coincides with an extremely enriched trace metal content, with values that were previously unknown for the Cretaceous Atlantic. Similar to other CTBE occurrences, the organic carbon content is high (up to 11%) and the organic matter is of dominantly marine origin (kerogen type II). The bulk mineralogy of the CTBE sediments does not differ significantly from the general trend of Cretaceous North Atlantic sediments (dominance of smectite and zeolite with minor amounts of illite and scattered palygorskite, kaolinite, and chlorite); thus, no evidence for either increased volcanic activity nor a drastic climatic change in the borderlands was found. Results from Site 641 are compared with the CTBE section found at Site 398, DSDP Leg 47B (Vigo Seamount at the southern end of the Galicia Bank).

Geochemistry and stable isotopes of peridotites of ODP Hole 103-637A

A ridge of strongly serpentinized, plagioclase-bearing peridotite crops out at the boundary between the Atlantic oceanic crust and the Galicia continental margin (western Spain). These peridotites, cored at Hole 637A (ODP Leg 103) have been mylonitized at high-temperature, low-pressure conditions and under large deviatoric stress during their uplift (Girardeau et al., 1988, doi:10.2973/odp.proc.sr.103.135.1988). After this main ductile deformation event, the peridotite underwent a polyphase metamorphic static episode in the presence of water, with the crystallization of Ti- and Cr-rich pargasites at high-temperature (800°-900°C) interaction with a metasomatic fluid or alkaline magma. Introduction of water produced destabilization of the pyroxenes and the subsequent development of hornblendes and tremolite at temperatures decreasing from 750° to 350°C. The main serpentinization of the peridotite occurred at a temperature below 300°C, and possibly around 50°C, as a consequence of the introduction of a large amount of seawater, which is suggested by stable isotope (d18O and SD) data. Finally, calcite derived from seawater precipitated in late-formed fractures or locally pervasively impregnated the peridotite at low temperature (~10°C).

Tritium concentrations of hydrography in the North Atlantic around 40°N

We report, numerically and in graphical form, meaured tritium concentrations from five hydrographic stations in the North Atlantic. Fairly homogeneous concentrations are observed in a surface layer typically 400 m deep. In the thermocline, concentrations decrease steadily down to the sigma-theta = 27.3 density horizon, and are more variable further down. The tritium in the lower part of the thermocline originates from the Subarctic Intermediate Water and the Mediterranean Water. There is a relative tritium maximum associated with the Mediterranean Water on the easternmost station of the section. In the deep water (sigma-theta > 27.8), concentrations east of the Midatlantic Ridge are close to the limit of detection down to 2500m, and undetectable further down, while west of the ridge tritium is found throughout the water column. The deep water tritium is associated with the deep-water advective cores of Arctic origin. The present tritium data can serve as northern boundary values in attempts to use tritium in studies of the North Atlantic main thermocline dynamics. The present data together with data from the literature point to a general division of the North Atlantic main thermocline into two layers separated by an isopycnal surface near sigma-theta = 27.3.

(Table 2) Observations of anticyclonic lenses of Mediterranean water in the Central North Atlantic

Analyses of spatial structure of hydrophysical fields and its vertical evolution in the Northeast Atlantic in a layer from the surface down to 2-2.5 km are carried out based on results of measurements in a testing area (31°-36°N, 20°-26°W) southeast of the Azores in autumn 1993. A description of an anti-cyclonic lens (ACL) of Mediterranean water (MW), which was found in the eastern part of the testing area from data of sets of sequential surveys, is presented. Analysis of CTD and XBT measurements in an area west of the lens allows to conclude that despite some contraction of width of the Azores Current directed eastward (from 60-80 km to 50-60 km) its total eastward volume transport for a period of time from October to November does not vary much. It is shown that intermediate salinity maxima in the northern part of the testing area formed by advection of MW and meddy destruction weakens while intersecting the Azores frontal zone (AFZ) from north to south, displacing itself to larger depth, and increases in thickness. Analysis of data shows that the number of lenses observed within the selected area north of the AFZ is two times more than that observed south of it. North of the AFZ observed salinity maximum and local temperature maxima may be associated with accumulation of heat and salt because of the fact that the AFZ is not only a southern boundary of penetration of MW into the North Atlantic, but also is a "semitransparent" boundary for Mediterranean lenses.

Concentration and composition of aerosols over the North Atlantic in August 1995

Data on composition of aerosols are considered. Investigations include electron microscopy, grain size, mineralogical and chemical analyses. Samples of aerosols were collected Cruise 37 of R/V Akademik Mstislav Keldysh along a transatlantic section along 40°-50°N. Variability of concentrations and composition of aerosols with distance from continents is shown: concentrations of aerosols decrease by factor of ten and more. Significant portion of mineral components in aerosols collected over the continent is replaced by organic matter due to mechanical differentiation during transportation. Such anthropogenic components as soot, ash, and combustion spheres were detected in all samples. North African dust was found in one sample in the western part of the section.

Abundance and biomass of macrobenthic infauna of the offshore northern North Sea

Between 1980 and 1985 ninety-seven stations were sampled by Smith-Mclntyre grab from the offshore northern section of the North Sea. Four hundred and nine infaunal species were identified from the 76 selected macrofaunal stations. The number of species per station varied from 25 to 80 with a maximum abundance of 9,600 individuals m**2. The biomass ranged from 0.13 to 18.86 g dry weight m**2. At most stations, however, biomass varied between 1 and 4 g dry weight m**2. Diversity and abundance were highest in the 120-140 m zone, characterised by fine sand containing variable amounts of silt. The highest biomasses were recorded in two areas; firstly where stronger currents predominate and the sediments are coarser (east of Shetland and west of the Norwegian Trough), and secondly in the fine sandy deposits of the centrally located area. In the silty sediments (Fladen Ground and smaller depressions) there was a predominantly subsurface deposit-feeding community, whereas in the coarser area east of the Shetlands carnivores predominated. Over the remaining area surface deposit feeders were dominant.

European lobsters (Homarus gammarus) captured around the rocky island of Helgoland (German Bight, North Sea) from 2005 to 2015 - A mark-recapture program -

European lobsters were captured by employees of the Marine Biological Station and local fishermen from the rocky subtidal zone around the island of Helgoland (North Sea, 54°11.3'N, 7°54.0'E) and from the Helgoland Deep Trench, located south west of the island. The animals were captured by pots, traps, trawl and divers. All measured lobsters were tagged and released. A tagged lobster was classified by the absence or presence of colour tag and/or T-bar tag. Data of lobsters contains capture date, fresh weight, carapace lengths, sex and the information if lobsters were egg-bearing and tagged. Furthermore, data of commercial landed lobsters are included.

(Table 2) Horizontal ice flow velocities, azimuths (relative to true north), and vertical ice-particle velocities in the vicinity of Vostok Station, Antarctica

In the austral summer seasons 2001/02 and 2002/03, Global Positioning System (GPS) data were collected in the vicinity of Vostok Station to determine ice flow velocities over Lake Vostok. Ten GPS sites are located within a radius of 30 km around Vostok Station on floating ice as well as on grounded ice to the east and to the west of the lake. Additionally, a local deformation network around the ice core drilling site 5G-1 was installed. The derived ice flow velocity for Vostok Station is 2.00 m/a ± 0.01 m/a. Along the flowline of Vostok Station an extension rate of about 10**-5/a (equivalent to 1 cm/km/a) was determined. This significant velocity gradient results in a new estimate of 28700 years for the transit time of an ice particle along the Vostok flowline from the bedrock ridge in the southwest of the lake to the eastern shoreline. With these lower velocities compared to earlier studies and, hence, larger transit times the basal accretion rate is estimated to be 4 mm/a along a portion of the Vostok flowline. An assessment of the local accretion rate at Vostok Station using the observed geodetic quantities yields an accretion rate in the same order of magnitude. Furthermore, the comparison of our geodetic observations with results inferred from ice-penetrating radar data indicates that the ice flow may not have changed significantly for several thousand years.

Documentation of sediment cores from the Great Meteor Seamount, North Atlantic

Sedimentological and biostratigraphic investigations of 15 cores (total length: 88 m) from the vicinity of Great Meteor seamount (about 30° N, 28° W) showed that the calcareous ooze are asymmetrically distributed around the seamount and vertically differentiated into two intervals. East and west of the seampunt, the upper "A"-interval is characterized by yellowish-brown sediment colors and bioturbation; ash layers and diatoms are restricted to the eastern cores. On both seamount flanks, the sediment of the lower "B"-interval are white and very rich in CaCO3 with a major fine silt (2-16 µ) mode (mainly coccoliths). Lamination, manganese micronodules, Tertiary foraminifera and discoasters, and small limestone and basalt fragments are typical of the "B"-interval of the eastern cores only. The sediments contain abundant displaced material which was reworked from the upper parts of the seamount. The sedimentation around the seamount is strongly influenced by the kind of displaced material and the intensity of its differentiated dispersal: the sedimentation rates are generally higher on the east than on the west flank /e.g. in "B": 0.9 cm/1000 y in the W; 3.1 cm/1000 y in the E), and lower for the "A" than for the "B"-interval. The lamination is explained by the combination of increased sedimentation rates with a strong input of material poor in organic carbon producing a hostile environment for benthic life. The CaCO3 content of the core is highly influenced by the proportion of displaced bigenous carbonate material (mainly coccoliths). The genuine in-situ conditions of the dissolution facies are only reflected by the minimum CaCO3 values of the cores (CCD = about 5,500 m; first bend in dissolution curve = 4,000 m; ACD = about 3,400 m). The preservation of the total foraminiferal association depends on the proportions of in-situ versus displaced specimens. In greater water depths (stronger dissolution), for example, the preservation can be improved by the admixture of relatively well preserved displaced foraminifera. Carbonate cementation and the formation of manganese micronodules are restricted to microenvironments with locally increased organic carbon contents (e.g. pellets; foraminifera). The ash layers consist of redeposited, silicic volcanic glass of trachytic composition and Mio-Pliocene age; possibly, they can be derived from the upper part of the seamount. Siliceous organisms, especially diatoms, are frequent close to the ash layers and probably also redeposited. Their preservation was favoured by the increase of the SiO2 content in the pore water caused by the silicic volcanic glass. The cores were biostraftsraphically subdivided with the aid of planktonic foraminifera and partly alsococcoliths. In most cases, the biostratigraphically determined cold- and warm sections could be correlated from core to core. Almost all cores do not penetrate the Late Pleistocene. All Tertiary fossils are reworked. In general, the warm/cold boundary W2/C2 corresponds with the lithostratigraphic A/B boundray. Benthonic foraminifera indicate the original site deposition of the displaced material (summit plateau or flanks of the seamount). The asymmetric distribution of the sediments around the seamount east and west of the NE-directed antarctic bottom current (AABW) is explained by the distortion of the streamlines by the Coriolis force; by this process the current velocity is increased west of the seamount and decreased east of it. The different proportion of displaced material within the "A" and "B" interval is explained by changes of the intensity of the oceanic circulation. At the time of "B" the flow of the AABW around the seamount was stronger than during "A"; this can be inferred from the presence of characteristic benthonic foraminifera. The increased oceanic circulation implies an enhanced differentiation of the current velocities, and by that, also of the sedimentation rates, and intensifies the winnowed sediment material was transported downslope by turbid layers into the deep-sea, incorporated into the current system of the AABW, and asymmetrically deposited around the seamount.