Comparative feeding preference of Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis (Echinoidea) for the invasive seaweed Codium fragile ssp. tomentosoides (Chlorophyceae) and four other seaweeds

Laboratory experiments conducted during 1987 on Appledore Island, Maine, USA, tested whether feeding preference or the absence of an attractant was the cause for the occurrence of beds of Codium fragile ssp. tomentosoides (herein referred to as Codium fragile) within rocky barrens grazed clear of kelp by the sea urchin Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis. Consumption of C. fragile in single-diet experiments (1 seaweed/sea urchin) was highly variable and was not significantly different from that for several other seaweeds (Agarum cribrosum, Ascophyllum nodosum, Chondrus crispus, and Laminana saccharina) important in the field diet of the green sea urchin. In multiple-diet experiments (5 seaweeds/sea urchin) significantly less Codium fragile was eaten than Chondrus crispus, but significantly more Codium fragile was eaten than A. cribrosum. Chemosensory experiments suggest that C. fragile does not attract the sea urchin. Sea urchins are unable to detect C. fragile but will eat it when they come in contact with it.     

Measurement of dry deposition of ammonia on a forest

Ammonia concentration gradients above a Douglas fir canopy were measured from 16 August to 31 December 1989 by two automated high-precision thermodenuders at the location Speulderbos in The Netherlands. Concentration gradients were used to calculate the dry deposition flux of ammonia via flux-gradient theory. Meteorological data were obtained from a nearby tower. Ammonia concentrations were highly variable with highest values during the night. Concentration gradients were very small during daytime and quite large at night. Median values of the calculated deposition flux and deposition velocity were 0.1 microg m(-2) s(-1) and 3.2 cm s(-1) respectively (N=1624).     

Critical loads for Finnish lakes: comparison of three steady-state models

Three simple steady-state water-chemistry models are used to calculate critical loads of sulfur for lakes in Finland. Because of the high concentrations of organic matter in Finnish lakes, the influence of organic anions on the calculation of critical loads has been given special attention. The first two methods are well known ion-balance methods which have been used in many previous lake-acidification studies. The third method, developed for this study, includes the numerical solution of equilibrium equations for organic anions, inorganic carbon species and inorganic monomeric aluminum. The original pH and aluminum concentration of the lakes are estimated with this model, and a method to estimate the original acid neutralizing capacity (ANC) by simulating a Gran-titration is also tested on the lake data. Uncertainty in the predictions is estimated by varying the most critical model parameters.     

The response of stream-dwelling fish to liming

The fish fauna in 22 limed and seven unlimed small streams was monitored using yearly electrofishing to assess the effects of liming on species occurrence and abundance. The liming techniques were divided into three main methods, lake liming, doser liming and wetland liming, to evaluate whether different strategies had different effects on the fish fauna. The predominant species at the investigated stations were salmonids, mainly brown trout (Salmo trutta) and Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar). Other species generally occurred in low numbers. The average number of fish species did not increase significantly after liming, which was probably due to recolonization difficulties caused by the frequent occurrence of migration obstacles in the streams. After liming the density of salmonids increased significantly, irrespective of the liming method. Other fish species showed no general increase, but in individual streams significant increases of European minnow (Phoxinus phoxinus) and bullhead (Cottus gobio) occurred. Some unlimed streams had acid spates with a pH below 6, which immediately lowered the numbers of salmonid parr. Other unlimed streams lost fish species progressively due to increasing acidification. pH, and probably increased levels of metals, were the major factors regulating the fish fauna. Few examples of biotic interactions were observed, but with an increase of Atlantic salmon parr after liming, brown trout abundances decreased in three streams.     

Contribution of canopy leaching to sulphate deposition in a Scots pine forest

Radioactive sulphate (35SO4) was applied to the soil below a Scots pine forest on 23 June 1989, and its movement into the canopy and into throughfall and stemflow was measured over 4 months. The specific activity, Bq (mg S)(-1), of the canopy increased monotonically; uptake by current-year (1989) expanding needles was initially twice as fast as by older needles or live twigs. By 10 October the canopy average specific activity was 62 Bq (mg S)(-1). The specific activity of net throughfall (throughfall + stemflow - rain), deduced from measurements from six throughfall collectors, six stemflow collectors and two rain collectors, fell rapidly from 12.6 Bq (mg S)(-1) in late July to <1 Bq (mg S)(-1) in mid-August. The results suggest (assuming rapid equilibration of 35S with sulphate in soil) that root-derived sulphate contributed c. 3% of sulphate in net throughfall and that dry deposition of SO2 and sulphate particles contributed c. 97% of the 0.56 g S m(-2) measured in net throughfall over the period. Simultaneous measurements of SO2 at canopy height and of NH3 above and within the canopy gave mean concentrations of 5.9 and 0.86 microg m(-3), respectively, sufficient to account for the sulphate measured in net throughfall only if codeposition of NH3 and SO2 occurred to canopy surfaces. The large values of specific activity observed in July, however, indicate that throughfall composition may be closely related to recent soil input of sulphate, and that equilibrium cannot be safely assumed. The possibility of a significant contribution of soil-derived sulphate to sulphate deposition in net throughfall cannot be ruled out on the basis of this experiment.     

Impact of atrazine-bearing agricultural tile drainage discharge on planktonic drift of a natural stream

Preliminary results are reported from a co-operative study between Agriculture Canada and Environment Canada on environmental impacts of atrazine measured in a field stream receiving agricultural drainage. Systematically, tile drained plots of known crop rotation, area, flow and pesticides use were used in the study. A maximum tile drainage concentration of 13.9 microg liter(-1) atrazine was measured while the maximum measured stream concentration was 1.89 microg liter(-1). Phytoplankton and zooplankton samples were collected on a bi-monthly basis during the growing season. The study indicated possible negative impacts of low concentrations of atrazine on planktonic drift populations, when natural stream flow was reduced, resulting in a lower dilution capacity. A 20 m section of the stream was affected by the tile drainage waters as measured by the resident biological community. Both atrazine and ambient environmental conditions were felt to be contributing to the measured results. No negative impacts on planktonic drift populations were evident beyond 50 m downstream of the tile drainage and stream confluence.     

A review of the likely causal pathways relating the reduced density of breeding dippers Cinclus cinclus to the acidification of upland streams

Previous work has shown that the breeding density of a bird characteristic of upland streams, the dipper Cinclus cinclus, is markedly reduced at low pH in both Wales and Scotland. Populations also declined when streams became more acidic. Evidence of causal explanation for these relationships is that: (1) Food quantity is reduced in acidic streams, and important prey, including those rich in calcium, are scarce; (2) Blood chemistry in pre-breeding birds differs between acid and circumneutral streams, with plasma calcium reduced in those breeding at low pH. Skeletal sources of calcium are probably limited; (3) The time spent foraging by pre-breeding birds on acidic streams is markedly increased, even though overall energy costs on acidic and circumneutral streams are similar. Body condition is inferior to birds on circumneutral streams; (4) Egg laying is significantly delayed on acidic streams irrespective of an effect on laying of altitude, and clutch and brood sizes are significantly reduced; (5) Eggs are lighter and shells thinner at low pH; (6) Chick growth is reduced at low pH; (7) Contamination by heavy metals and persistent organochlorines is low in the populations on acidic streams and cannot explain the impaired breeding performance. None of these features can exclude the possibilities that acidic streams either hold populations of poor quality birds, which show the above features, or that acidity affects the breeding ecology of all dippers that attempt to breed at low pH. The qualitative outcome of these two alternatives is identical.     

Deposition of atmospheric ammonia to moorlands

Micrometeorological methods were applied to measure fluxes of atmospheric ammonia (NH3) to moorlands. Measurements were made in a wide variety of surface conditions and included both Calluna vulgaris (L.) Hull and Eriophorum vaginatum L. dominated sites. NH3 was found to deposit rapidly to all the sites investigated, providing large deposition velocities (Vd, typically 10-40 mm s(-1)) and usually minimal surface resistances (rc). A small number of measurements were made in frozen conditions and suggest a possible exception to this pattern with mean rc of 50-200 s m(-1). The effect of vegetation drying was also investigated and a possible increase in rc observed, though this was small (< 10 s m(-1)). The results are interpreted in terms of the processes controlling exchange; it is shown that NH3 deposition is predominantly to the leaf surfaces and that the net NH3 compensation point approaches zero. Annual estimates show that dry deposition of NH3 is a major source of atmospheric nitrogen to moorland ecosystems. For two typical UK sites subject to background air concentrations, NH3 dry deposition is of similar magnitude to equivalent NH4+ inputs in wet deposition. In the vicinity of emission sources, NH3 dry deposition is expected to dominate inputs of atmospheric nitrogen.     

Modelling episodic acidification of surface waters: the state of science

Field studies of chemical changes in surface waters associated with rainfall and snowmelt events have provided evidence of episodic acidification of lakes and streams in Europe and North America. Modelling these chemical changes is particularly challenging because of the variability associated with hydrological transport and chemical transformation processes in catchments. This paper provides a review of mathematical models that have been applied to the problem of episodic acidification. Several empirical approaches, including regression models, mixing models and time series models, support a strong hydrological interpretation of episodic acidification. Regional application of several models has suggested that acidic episodes (in which the acid neutralizing capacity becomes negative) are relatively common in surface waters in several regions of the US that receive acid deposition. Results from physically based models have suggested a lack of understanding of hydrological flowpaths, hydraulic residence times and biogeochemical reactions, particularly those involving aluminum. The ability to better predict episodic chemical responses of surface waters is thus dependent upon elucidation of these and other physical and chemical processes.     

Comparison of episodic acidification in Canada, Europe and the United States

Episodic acidification is practically a ubiquitous process in streams and drainage lakes in Canada, Europe and the United States. Depressions of pH are often smaller in systems with low pre-episode pH levels. Studies on European surface waters have reported episodes most frequently with minimum pH levels below 4.5. In Canada and the United States, studies have also reported a number of systems that have had minimum pH levels below 4.5. In all areas, change in water flowpath during hydrological events is a major determinant of episode characteristics. Episodic acidification is also controlled by a combination of other natural and anthropogenic factors. Base cation decreases are an important contributor to episodes in circumneutral streams and lakes. Sulphate pulses are generally important contributors to episodic acidification in Europe and Canada. Nitrate pulses are generally more important to episodic acidification in the Northeast United States. Increases in organic acids contribute to episodes in some streams in all areas. The sea-salt effect is important in near-coastal streams and lakes. In Canada, Europe and the United States, acidic deposition has increased the severity (minimum pH reached) of episodes in some streams and lakes.