Impact of climate warming upon the fish assemblages of the Portuguese coast under different scenarios

Impact of sea-surface warming upon the fish assemblages of the Portuguese coast was assessed under two scenarios, the A2 and the B2 scenarios (Special Report on Emission Scenarios), which when coupled with a regional circulation model HadRM3 predict 1 and 2°C of sea-surface warming until the year 2100. Species richness increased in the Portuguese coast. In both scenarios, there was a latitudinal gradient in the amount of lost and gained species, increasing from north to south. An anomaly in the latitudinal gradient of species richness was detected in the southernmost area, which presented the lowest species richness of all areas, in the A2 scenario, and appears to be particularly vulnerable to climate change. Very few species were totally eliminated from Portuguese waters. For the Portuguese coast as a whole, there were more new than lost species, in both scenarios. Most of the new species were commercially important species, in the majority subtropical in the north and tropical in the south, mainly demersal and reef-associated. Reef-associated species also increased in relative importance. A commercial opportunity for fisheries may arise from climate warming, since most of the new species were commercial species and not many commercial species were lost. An increasing gradient from north to south was detected in the colonization of new species of herbivores, planktivores, and omnivores, as well as lower mean trophic level, which might have consequences for the future of trophic webs.     

Contrasting impacts of climate change across seasons: effects on flatfish cohorts

The Senegal sole, Solea senegalensis, is a species of flatfish that has several distinct cohorts of 0-group juveniles which use estuarine nurseries in summer and winter. The early cohort is more abundant and grows faster than the late cohort that stays in the nurseries during winter; however, climate warming may have an impact on the dynamics of this species’ juveniles. This study aimed to compare mortality, metabolic response and growth of S. senegalensis juveniles at different temperatures, reflecting present-day temperature (winter—12 °C; summer—24 °C) and future temperature (plus 3 °C) conditions, in estuarine nurseries in the southern European population. Mortality was low at 12 °C, being only 10 %, increasing to 30 % at 15 °C, 40 % at 24 °C and at 27 °C it hit 70 %. Metabolic rate increased steadily with increasing temperatures, yet it increased steeply from 24 to 27 °C. Thermal sensitivity was high for the temperature interval between 24 and 27 °C. Growth was very slow at 12 °C, at a rate of 0.03 mm day^?1, increasing to 0.22 mm day^?1 at 15 °C, and to 0.60 mm day^?1, at 24 °C. However, at 27 °C growth rapidly declined to 0.12 mm day^?1. Warming will be beneficial for the late cohort, resulting in a major increase in growth. However, the early cohort will not benefit from warming, due to high mortality and arrested growth, which clearly indicates that this species is under severe thermal stress at 27 °C. Thus, here we show, for the first time, that climate change may induce contrasting seasonal impacts on fish bio-ecology and physiology, namely in species with several cohorts over the course of the year. Phenotypic and/or genotypic plasticity may limit the impacts of climate change.     

Abundance,population structure and claw morphology of the semi-terrestrial crab <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pachygrapsus marmoratus</Emphasis> (Fabricius, 1787) on shores of differing wave exposure

Wave action is known to influence the abundance and distribution of intertidal organisms. Wave action will also determine the duration and suitability of various foraging windows (high-tide and low-tide, day and night) for predation and can also affect predator behaviour, both directly by impeding prey handling and indirectly by influencing prey abundance. It remains uncertain whether semi-terrestrial mobile predators such as crabs which can access intertidal prey during emersion when the effects of wave action are minimal, are influenced by exposure. Here, we assessed the effect of wave action on the abundance and population structure (size and gender) of the semi-terrestrial intertidal crab Pachygrapsus marmoratus on rocky shores in Portugal. The activity of P. marmoratus with the tidal cycle on sheltered and exposed shores was established using baited pots at high-tide to examine whether there was activity during intertidal immersion and by low-tide searches. Because prey abundance varies along a wave exposure gradient on most Portuguese shores and because morphology of crab chelipeds are known to be related to diet composition, we further tested the hypothesis that predator stomach contents reflected differences in prey abundance along the horizontal gradient in wave exposure and that this would be correlated with the crab cheliped morphology. Thus, we examined phenotypic variation in P. marmoratus chelipeds across shores of differing exposure to wave action. P. marmoratus was only active during low-tide. Patterns of abundance and population structure of crabs did not vary with exposure to wave action. Stomach contents, however, varied significantly between shores of differing exposure with a higher consumption of hard-shelled prey (mussels) on exposed locations, where this type of prey is more abundant, and a higher consumption of barnacles on sheltered shores. Multivariate geometric analysis of crab claws showed that claws were significantly larger on exposed shores. There was a significant correlation between animals with larger claws and the abundance of mussels in their stomach. Variation in cheliped size may have resulted from differing food availability on sheltered and exposed shores.     

Endocrine disruptors in the Leça River and nearby Porto Coast (NW Portugal): presence of estrogenic compounds and hypoxic conditions

The Leça River and two beaches close to the north and south margins of the estuary, nowadays an important seaport harbor, show signs of contamination. However, the chemical nature of that contamination is uncertain. Therefore, this study checked for the presence of 11 endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs) of animal (17β-estradiol and estrone), pharmaceutical (17α-ethynylestradiol), and industrial (alkylphenols, alkylphenol ethoxylates, and bisphenol A) origins in water samples collected from six points at the river gradient and at two sites in the coastline (Atlantic Ocean). Along with the EDCs, evaluated by gas chromatography – mass spectroscopy (GC-MS) during spring, summer, and autumn, physico-chemical parameters were also assessed and particular attention was given to dissolved oxygen (DO) levels. Data showed the presence of high amounts of estrogens (up to 10?ng?L^?1 for estrone) and industrial compounds (up to 2?µg?L^?1 for the nonylphenol ethoxylates) at both river and seacoast. Along with this, clear signs of hypoxia were found in the river (DO??1 at several sampling sites). Taking into account these issues, it was concluded that there are local conditions for the occurrence of endocrine disruption in aquatic animals.     

Eucalyptus ESTs related to genes for oxidative stress

Oxidative stress generating active oxygen species has been proved to be one of the underlying agents causing tissue injury after the exposure of Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus spp.) plants to a wide variety of stress conditions. The objective of this study was to perform data mining to identify favorable genes and alleles associated with the enzyme systems superoxide dismutase, catalase, peroxidases, and glutathione S-transferase that are related to tolerance for environmental stresses and damage caused by pests, diseases, herbicides, and by weeds themselves. This was undertaken by using the eucalyptus expressed-sequence database (https//forests.esalq.usp.br). The alignment results between amino acid and nucleotide sequences indicated that the studied enzymes were adequately represented in the ESTs database of the FORESTs project.     

Rebuilding others’ communities: a critical analysis of race and nativism in non-profits in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina

The devastation of Hurricane Katrina and the federal levee failures facilitated the unprecedented proliferation of non-profits in some areas of the city. While the short- and moderate-term experiences of non-profits in the aftermath of Katrina have been examined, their long-term successes and failures remain unknown. In this paper we look at how race and nativism hindered the success of non-profits in rebuilding New Orleans. We likewise seek to demonstrate how the reactions on the part of non-profits to being the racial other or that of an outsider often further impeded the effectiveness of non-profits. The three authors, using data from participant observation, interviews, and ethnography, over a four-year period, describe generalisable lessons learned from rebuilding New Orleans’ communities, including the recognition of competing racial discourses in redevelopment; the valuing of local knowledge; and coming to terms with the paradoxes of the affect economy.     

Pollution by oestrogenic endocrine disruptors and β-sitosterol in a south-western European river (Mira,Portugal)

The Mira River is a Portuguese water body widely known for its wilderness and is advertised as one of the less polluted European rivers. On this presumption, the levels of endocrine-disrupting compounds (EDCs) in Mira waters were never measured. However, because environmentalists have claimed that the Mira could be moderately polluted, a range of 17 EDCs were measured not only at the estuary but also along the river. The targeted EDCs included natural and pharmaceutical oestrogens (17β-oestradiol, oestrone and 17α-ethynylestradiol), industrial/household pollutants (octylphenols, nonylphenols and their monoethoxylates and diethoxylates and bisphenol A), phytoestrogens (formononetin, biochanin A, daidzein, genistein) and the phytosterol sitosterol (SITO). For this propose, waters from six sampling sites were taken every 2 months, over a 1-year period (2011), and analysed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. Unexpectedly high levels of oestrogens and of industrial/household pollutants were measured at all sampling sites, including those located inside natural protected areas. Indeed, the annual average sum of EDCs was ≈57 ng/L for oestrogens and ≈1.3 μg/L for industrial/household chemicals. In contrast, the global average levels of phytoestrogens (≈140 ng/L) and of SITO (≈295 ng/L) were lower than those reported worldwide. The EDC concentrations were normalised for ethynylestradiol equivalents (EE_2eq). In view of these, the oestrogenic load of the Mira River attained ≈47 ng/L EE_2eq. In addition, phosphates were above legal limits at both spring and summer (>1 mg/L). Overall, data show EDCs at toxicant relevant levels in the Mira and stress the need to monitor rivers that are allegedly less polluted.     

PAHs in water and surface sediments from Douro River estuary and Porto Atlantic coast (Portugal)—impacts on human health

This study investigated the presence of 16 priority polycyclic aromatic compounds (PAHs) in waters from the Douro River estuary and nearby Atlantic seacoast, which both bath the Porto metropolis. In the area, there is an oil refinery, an important harbour, an intense maritime traffic, small marinas and highly inhabited cities. For the analysis of PAHs, water samples were taken from four sampling sites, at six different times of the year (2011), and extracted by solid-phase extraction (dissolved fraction) and by ultrasound technique (suspended fraction), before their quantification by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. Results not only proved the ubiquitous distribution of all analysed PAHs in the present habitat, but also that their global amounts (∑₁₆PAHs) were extremely high at all sampling sites. Their average concentrations attained ≈ 55 ng/L and ≈ 52 μg/g dry weight (dw), respectively, in water and surface sediments. Accordingly, the surveyed area was classified as highly polluted by these organics and so, in view of the concentrations, mutagenic/carcinogenic responses in both humans and aquatic animals are possible to occur. The percentages of carcinogenic PAHs for humans (group 1) dissolved in water and in surface sediments were ca. 5 and 6%, respectively. These results are the first reported in the area and can be used as a baseline for future control of the PAHs levels locally while serving the building of global scenarios of PAHs pollution in Europe.

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Graphical abstract Percentage of PAHs, from different categories acordingly to WHO (2016), in both surface sediments and surface waters from Douro River estuary and Porto Atlantic seacoast; group 1 - carcinogenic, group 2A - probably carcinogenic, group 2B - possibly carcinogenic, and group 3 - not classifiable as carcinogenic to humans

     

Statistical analysis in MSW collection performance assessment

The increase of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) generated over the last years forces waste managers pursuing more effective collection schemes, technically viable, environmentally effective and economically sustainable. The assessment of MSW services using performance indicators plays a crucial role for improving service quality. In this work, we focus on the relevance of regular system monitoring as a service assessment tool. In particular, we select and test a core-set of MSW collection performance indicators (effective collection distance, effective collection time and effective fuel consumption) that highlights collection system strengths and weaknesses and supports pro-active management decision-making and strategic planning. A statistical analysis was conducted with data collected in mixed collection system of Oporto Municipality, Portugal, during one year, a week per month. This analysis provides collection circuits’ operational assessment and supports effective short-term municipality collection strategies at the level of, e.g., collection frequency and timetables, and type of containers.