For sessile organisms, dispersal and recruitment are typically spatially stochastic, but there is little understanding of how this variability scales up to influence processes such as competitive coexistence. Here we argue that coexistence of benthic marine animals is enhanced by stochastic differences between species in the spatial distribution of larval settlement. Differentiation of settleme...

Sewage pollution is an increasing problem in tropical marine environments. In this revlew we synthesize present knowledge of the effects of sewage pollution on coral-reef communities, and suggest directions for future research. A wide range of sewage impacts on coral-reef communities has been reported. Little or no impact has been observed on some reefs in well-flushed waters that receive small...

Belews Lake, North Carolina, was contaminated by selenium in wastewater released from a coal-fired electric generating facility during 1974-1985. Selenium bioaccumulated in aquatic food chains and caused severe reproductive failure and teratogenic deformities in fish. Beginning in 1986, the electric utility company changed its ash disposal practices and selenium-laden wastewater no longer enter...

For my parents, for introducing me to the wonders of coral reefs from an early age and for their everlasting support " Coral reefs are threatened, not doomed – if we can avoid extreme climate change, runoff and over-fishing. Prevention is better than cure, but recovery is possible. The decisions we make now, or don't make, will have profound long-term consequences. " und Alex, die mich zu jeder...

Nine organophosphorus flame retardants (PFRs) were detected in a pelagic and benthic food web of the Western Scheldt estuary, The Netherlands. Concentrations of several PFRs were an order of magnitude higher than those of the brominated flame retardants (BFRs). However, the detection frequency of the PFRs (6-56%) was lower than that of the BFRs (50-97%). Tris(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate (TBOEP), t...

19. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION OF ABSTRACT 18. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION OF THIS PAGE 16. PRICE CODE 15. NUMBER OF TEXT PAGES: 40 13. ABSTRACT Laboratory methods for measuring body burdens of low-level chemical contaminants in aquatic organisms traditionally have required sizeable amounts of tissue for analysis (i.e., 10 to 30 grams wet weight of tissue per sample). Predisposal testing of dredged ma...

Ecosystem uptake and transfer processes of Sellafield-derived radiocarbon (14C) within the Irish Sea were examined. Highly variable activities in sediment, seawater and biota indicate complex 14C dispersal and uptake dynamics. All east basin biota exhibited 14C enrichments above ambient background while most west basin biota had 14C activities close to background, although four organisms includ...

The interactions between invertebrates and micro-organisms living in streambed sediments often play key roles in the regulation of nutrient and organic matter fluxes in aquatic ecosystems. However, benthic sediments also constitute a privileged compartment for the accumulation of persistent organic pollutants such as PAHs or PCBs that may affect the diversity, abundance and activity of benthic ...

Seagrass beds and salt marshes are important in the life histories of many fish, invertebrates, and aquatic birds, such that population size and production of these organisms can be limited by the loss of these habitats. Therefore, restoring seagrass or salt marsh would be expected to benefit species dependent on these resources. Following the ‘North Cape’ oil spill of January 1996 in Rhode Isl...

Effects of warming and nutrient enrichment on intact unvegetated shallow-water sediment were investigated for 5 weeks in the autumn under simulated natural field conditions, with a main focus on trophic state and benthic nitrogen cycling. In a flow-through system, sediment was exposed to either seawater at ambient temperature or seawater heated 4°C above ambient, with either natural or nutrient...