An examination of the feasibility of passive transport from coastal spawning grounds to estuarine nursery areas for English sole

English sole recruitment has been linked to environmental conditions occurring during their 6–10 week pelagic egg and larval stages, prior to their appearance in nursery estuaries during their first summer. The purpose of this study was to predict the spawning locations of juvenile English sole observed in estuaries to assess the feasibility of passive transport of egg and larval stages. Current meter data were used to back-calculate the transport trajectories of 19 cohorts of English sole observed as juveniles during estuarine trawl surveys. Only six of these cohorts were predicted to be spawned outside the Oregon–Washington shelf system, assuming passive transport of eggs and larvae. Predicted egg and larval trajectories indicate that most of the English sole found in Oregon and Washington estuaries were spawned off the coast of Washington, with some spawning off northern California and central Oregon. Although these results are not consistent with the presumed spawning locations for the Oregon and Washington shelf, they indicate that passive transport assumptions may be adequate to preserve the larvae in the coastal system until settlement.     

Paradigm shifts in community ecology: Open versus closed units,challenges and limits of connectivity studies

Due to the presence of the complex life cycles involving a benthic adult and a pelagic larval phase, the study of benthic community dynamics cannot ignore investigations of the processes occurring in the water column. Current investigations focus mainly on larval dispersal from an evolutionary and a biogeographic perspective, taking into account also population connectivity, conservation planning and coastal management. In the present paper we underline the need to improve knowledge of the main traits of marine invertebrate life cycles, highlighting the limits and challenges of current approaches. Firstly, we summarized the changing approaches within community studies, following the paradigm shifts found in recent marine ecological research, from supply‐side ecology to connectivity, and involving the concepts of open and closed populations. Secondly, we analysed the main larval traits influencing dispersal, paying particular attention to pelagic larval duration in light of the few available data for connectivity studies. The difficulty in estimating many of the main traits of larval ecology make numerical simulation fundamental for a better understanding of the relationship between propagule dispersal and seawater dynamics, both being highly variable. We conclude that some essential biological information is still lacking for the proper integration of the modeling approaches. Thus it is necessary to further investigate the life‐cycle traits and physiological and ecological characteristics of each species, an approach known as autecology or natural history. All too frequently modern ecologists ignore such reductionist approaches, although they are essential for a full understanding of processes, such as connectivity and metapopulation dynamics.     

Estuary/ocean exchange and tidal mixing in a Gulf of Maine Estuary: A Lagrangian modeling study

A Lagrangian particle method embedded within a 2-D finite element code, is used to study the transport and ocean–estuary exchange processes in the well-mixed Great Bay Estuarine System in New Hampshire, USA. The 2-D finite element model, driven by residual, semi-diurnal and diurnal tidal constituents, includes the effects of wetting and drying of estuarine mud flats through the use of a porous medium transport module. The particle method includes tidal advection, plus a random walk model in the horizontal that simulates sub-grid scale turbulent transport processes. Our approach involves instantaneous, massive [O(500,000)] particle releases that enable the quantification of ocean–estuary and inter-bay exchanges in a Markovian framework. The effects of the release time, spring–neap cycle, riverine discharge and diffusion strength on the intra-estuary and estuary–ocean exchange are also investigated.The results show a rather dynamic interaction between the ocean and the estuary with a fraction of the exiting particles being caught up in the Gulf of Maine Coastal Current and swept away. Three somewhat different estimates of estuarine residence time are calculated to provide complementary views of estuary flushing. Maps of residence time versus release location uncover a strong spatial dependency of residence time within the estuary that has very important ramifications for local water quality. Simulations with and without the turbulent random walk show that the combined effect of advective shear and turbulent diffusion is very effective at spreading particles throughout the estuary relatively quickly, even at low (1 m²/s) diffusivity. The results presented here show that a first-order Markov Chain approach has applicability and a high potential for improving our understanding of the mixing processes in estuaries.     

Ecological and biological strategies of Etropus crossotus and Citharichthys spilopterus (Pleuronectiformes:Paralichthyidae) related to the estuarine plume, Southern Gulf of Mexico

Differences in the biological and ecological strategies of two tropical flatfishes, Etropus crossotus (fringed flounder) and Citharichthys spilopterus (bay whiff) are discussed. The comparative analysis was based on the seasonal distribution of relative abundance of the two species and flatfish movements utilizing estuarine plume influenced areas as part of their life cycles. Growth parameters of the von Bertalanffy equation and recruitment were estimated (FISAT software) to compare life cycle patterns. The recruitment patterns illustrate the key difference between “estuarine-dependent” and “estuarine-related” nekton strategies. Both species have a short life cycle with a continuous recruitment activity. E. crossotus is an estuarine-related species, with two recruitment pulses (winter frontal season), in the estuarine plume on the shelf. C. spilopterus is an estuarine-dependent species, with a main recruitment pulse during the rainy season in the estuarine plume, and a residual secondary pulse inside the adjacent estuarine system (Terminos Lagoon). The results show that the ecological success of these tropical coastal marine flatfish, with similar biological patterns, is based upon the sequential use (in time and space) of estuarine plume influenced habitats, suggesting that fish migration to shallow waters is related to food availability changes as a strategy towards optimum recruitment.     

深水浊流形成过程的水动力学模拟:以南海北部琼东南盆地浊流形成过程为例

Turbidity currents represent a major agent for sediment transport in lakes, seas and oceans. In particu-lar, they formulate the most significant clastic accumulations in the deep sea, which become many of the world＇s most important hydrocarbon reservoirs. Several boreholes in the Qiongdongnan Basin, the north-western South China Sea, have recently revealed turbidity current deposits as significant hydrocarbon res-ervoirs. However, there are some arguments for the potential provenances. To solve this problem, it is es-sential to delineate their sedimentary processes as well as to evaluate their qualities as reservoir. Numerical simulations have been developed rapidly over the last several years, offering insights into turbidity current behaviors, as geologically significant turbidity currents are difficult to directly investigate due to their large scale and often destructive nature. Combined with the interpretation of the turbidity system based on high-resolution 3D seismic data, the paleotophography is acquired via a back-stripping seismic profile integrated with a borehole, i.e., Well A, in the western Qiongdongnan Basin; then a numerical model is built on the basis of this back-stripped profile. After defining the various turbidity current initial boundary conditions, includ-ing grain size, velocity and sediment concentration, the structures and behaviors of turbidity currents are investigated via numerical simulation software ANSYS FLUENT. Finally, the simulated turbidity deposits are compared with the interpreted sedimentary bodies based on 3D seismic data and the potential provenances of the revealed turbidites by Well A are discussed in details. The simulation results indicate that a sedimen-tary body develops far away from its source with an average grain size of 0.1 mm, i.e., sand-size sediment. Taking into account the location and orientation of the simulated seismic line, the consistence between normal forward simulation results and the revealed cores in Well A indicates that the turbidites should ha