Marine biodiversity and climate change: assessing and predicting the influence of climatic change using intertidal rocky shore biota. Occasional Publication of the Marine Biological Association 20

In the last 60 years climate change has altered the distribution and abundance of many seashore species. Below is a summary of the findings of this project. The MarClim project was a four year multi-partner funded project created to investigate the effects of climatic warming on marine biodiversity. In particular the project aimed to use intertidal species, whose abundances had been shown to fluctuate with changes in climatic conditions, as indicator species of likely responses of species not only on rocky shores, but also those found offshore. The project used historic time series data, from in some cases the 1950s onwards, and contemporary data collected as part of the MarClim project (2001-2005), to provide evidence of changes in the abundance, range and population structure of intertidal species and relate these changes to recent rapid climatic warming. In particular quantitative counts of barnacles, limpets and trochids were made as well as semi-quantitative surveys of up to 56 intertidal taxa.Historic and contemporary data informed experiments to understand the mechanisms behind these changes and models to predict future species ranges and abundances.

The Severn Estuary: Sediments, contaminants and biota. Occasional Publication of the Marine Biological Association 19

This report about the Severn Estuary provides an up to date appraisal of the following issues: Transport and fate of sediments; Transport, fate and trends in contaminants; Bioavailability of contaminants; Consequences for biota, and pinpoints the major knowledge gaps.

Isolation of microplastics in biota-rich seawater samples and marine organisms

Microplastic litter is a pervasive pollutant present in aquatic systems across the globe. A range of marine organisms have the capacity to ingest microplastics, resulting in adverse health effects. Developing methods to accurately quantify microplastics in productive marine waters, and those internalized by marine organisms, is of growing importance. Here we investigate the efficacy of using acid, alkaline and enzymatic digestion techniques in mineralizing biological material from marine surface trawls to reveal any microplastics present. Our optimized enzymatic protocol can digest >97% (by weight) of the material present in plankton-rich seawater samples without destroying any microplastic debris present. In applying the method to replicate marine samples from the western English Channel, we identified 0.27 microplastics m−3. The protocol was further used to extract microplastics ingested by marine zooplankton under laboratory conditions. Our findings illustrate that enzymatic digestion can aid the detection of microplastic debris within seawater samples and marine biota.

Salvia herbanica spec. nova (Labiatae) en la flora de Fuerteventura (Islas Canarias)

Se describe una especie nueva de Salvia, S. herbanica Santos & Fernández spec. nova, de la isla de Fuerteventura (I. Canarias). Muestra relaciones con el grupo de especies saharo-síndicas: S. aegyptiaca L., S. chudaei Battand. & Trab. y S. deserti Dcne.

La vegetación del litoral de Canarias, I. Arthrocnemetea

Se establece la sincorología de Arthrocnemetea en Canarias y se describen dos nuevas asociaciones: Zygophyllo fontanesii-Arthrocnemetum macrostachyii, típica del nivel superior de los saladares canarios, y Sarcocornietum perennis con la subasociación limonietosum canariense, que definen la vegetación permanentemente encharcada de estos saladares. En los aspectos floristicos se plantea la posibilidad de una nueva Suaeda en la flora de las islas y se esclarecen algunas dudas en la taxonomía y corologia de las especies que intervienen en estas comunidades.

Sobre la flora liquénica del Parque Nacional de Las Cañadas del Teide (Tenerife, Canarias)

Se citan o comentan una serie de táxones, en su mayoría nuevos para el catálogo liquénico de Canarias, recolectados en Las Cañadas del Teide, por encima de los 2.200 m. Se esbozan someramente las relaciones corológicas de la flora.