We analyzed concentrations of dissolved and particulate trace metals, including iron (Fe), manganese (Mn), vanadium (V), molybdenum (Mo), thallium (Tl), and rare earth elements (REE), during a mesocosm-based phytoplankton summer bloom mimicking the intertidal zone of the southern North Sea (Jade Bay). The studies aimed to identify key drivers controlling their biogeochemical cycling in dynamic, high-productivity coastal environments. Our results highlight the tidally influenced coastal zone as a critical interface that alters the behavior of supposedly conservative elements such as Mo and Tl (Mori et al., 2021) as well as natural and anthropogenic REE (incl., lanthanum, samarium, and gadolinium) (Mori et al., under review). Trace metal concentrations and shale-normalized REE patterns, determined by quadrupole inductively coupled plasma–mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and inductively coupled plasma–optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES), were combined with biogeochemical bulk parameters and pigment-based assessments of phytoplankton growth and community composition (Mustaffa et al., 2020). Trace metal and REE cycling were evaluated in relation to phytoplankton dynamics, particulate organic matter composition (C, N, P), dissolved organic carbon, total dissolved nitrogen, and macronutrient concentrations (nitrate, ammonium, silicate, and inorganic phosphate). The dataset was obtained during a Planktotron-based mesocosm experiment conducted within the framework of the Coastal Ocean Darkening project (Mustaffa et al., 2020).
This dataset describes the physiological temperature response of the intertidal macroalga Vaucheria sp. collected from the Wadden Sea near Sylt, Germany. The dataset provides insights into the thermal sensitivity of respiration and photosynthesis in Vaucheria sp. and can be used to assess physiological limits and potential responses of intertidal Vaucheria sp. to warming in temperate coastal ecosystems. Samples were collected in September 2024 from the lower intertidal zone and cultivated for three weeks under controlled laboratory conditions (15 °C, ~100 µmol photons m⁻² s⁻¹, 12:12 h light:dark cycle) before experimentation. The experiment was conducted in October 2024 in climate chambers at six temperature treatments (16, 20, 24, 28, 32, 36 °C). Physiological responses were assessed after 54 h of incubation. Each temperature treatment included four biological replicates. Respiration and net photosynthesis were quantified as oxygen consumption and production using fibre-optic optodes under four irradiance levels (0, 100, 500, 900 µmol photons m⁻² s⁻¹). Oxygen rates were normalised to algal wet weight. Photosynthetic performance was assessed using pulse-amplitude modulated (PAM) fluorometry, including measurements of maximum quantum yield of PSII (Fv/Fm), effective quantum yield (ΦPSII), non-photochemical quenching (NPQ) and rapid light curves.
Ocean warming and acidification may substantially affect the reproduction of keystone species such as Fucus vesiculosus (Phaeophyceae). In four consecutive benthic mesocosm experiments, we compared the reproductive biology and quantified the temporal development of Baltic Sea Fucus fertility under the single and combined impact of elevated seawater temperature and pCO2 (1100 ppm). In an additional experiment, we investigated the impact of temperature (0–25°C) on the maturation of North Sea F. vesiculosus receptacles. A marked seasonal reproductive cycle of F. vesiculosus became apparent in the course of 1 year. The first appearance of receptacles on vegetative apices and the further development of immature receptacles of F. vesiculosus in autumn were unaffected by warming or elevated pCO2. During winter, elevated pCO2 in both ambient and warmed temperatures increased the proportion of mature receptacles significantly. In spring, warming and, to a lesser extent, elevated pCO2 accelerated the maturation of receptacles and advanced the release of gametes by up to 2 weeks. Likewise, in the laboratory, maturation and gamete release were accelerated at 15–25°C relative to colder temperatures. In summary, elevated pCO2 and/or warming do not influence receptacle appearance in autumn, but do accelerate the maturation process during spring, resulting in earlier gamete release. Temperature and, to a much lesser extent, pCO2 affect the temporal development of Fucus fertility. Thus, rising temperatures will mainly shift or disturb the phenology of F. vesiculosus in spring and summer, which may alter and/or hamper its ecological functions in shallow coastal ecosystems of the Baltic Sea.
Warming and acidification of the oceans as a consequence of increasing CO2-concentrations occur at large scales. Numerous studies have shown the impact of single stressors on individual species. However, studies on the combined effect of multiple stressors on a multi-species assemblage, which is ecologically much more realistic and relevant, are still scarce. Therefore, we orthogonally crossed the two factors warming and acidification in mesocosm experiments and studied their single and combined impact on the brown alga Fucus vesiculosus associated with its natural community (epiphytes and mesograzers) in the Baltic Sea in all seasons (from April 2013 to April 2014). We superimposed our treatment factors onto the natural fluctuations of all environmental variables present in the Benthocosms in so-called delta-treatments. Thereby we compared the physiological responses of F. vesiculosus (growth and metabolites) to the single and combined effects of natural Kiel Fjord temperatures and pCO2 conditions with a 5 °C temperature increase and/or pCO2 increase treatment (1100 ppm in the headspace above the mesocosms). Responses were also related to the factor photoperiod which changes over the course of the year. Our results demonstrate complex seasonal pattern. Elevated pCO2 positively affected growth of F. vesiculosus alone and/or interactively with warming. The response direction (additive, synergistic or antagonistic), however, depended on season and daylength. The effects were most obvious when plants were actively growing during spring and early summer. Our study revealed for the first time that it is crucial to always consider the impact of variable environmental conditions throughout all seasons. In summary, our study indicates that in future F. vesiculosus will be more affected by detrimental summer heat-waves than by ocean acidification although the latter consequently enhances growth throughout the year. The mainly negative influence of rising temperatures on the physiology of this keystone macroalga may alter and/or hamper its ecological functions in the shallow coastal ecosystem of the Baltic Sea.
Coastal ecosystems are subjected to both large natural variability and increasing anthropogenic impact on environmental parameters such as changes in salinity, temperature, and pH. This study documents the distribution of living benthic foraminifera under the influence of multiple environmental stressors in the Skagerrak-Baltic Sea region. Sediment core tops were studied at five sites along a transect from the Skagerrak to the Baltic Sea, with strong environmental gradients, especially in terms of salinity, pH, calcium carbonate saturation and dissolved oxygen concentration in the bottom water and pore water. We found that living foraminiferal densities and species richness were higher at the Skagerrak station, where the general living conditions were relatively beneficial for Foraminifera, with higher salinity and Ωcalc in the water column and higher pH and oxygen concentration in the bottom and pore water. The most common species reported at each station reflect the differences in the environmental conditions between the stations. The dominant species were Cassidulina laevigata and Hyalinea balthica in the Skagerrak, Stainforthia fusiformis, Nonionella aff. stella and Nonionoides turgida in the Kattegat and N. aff. stella and Nonionellina labradorica in the Öresund. The most adverse conditions, such as low salinity, low Ωcalc, low dissolved oxygen concentrations and low pH, were noted at the Baltic Sea stations, where the calcareous tests of the dominant living taxa Ammonia spp. and Elphidium spp. were partially to completely dissolved, probably due to a combination of different stressors affecting the required energy for biomineralization. Even though Foraminifera are able to live in extremely varying environmental conditions, the present results suggest that the benthic coastal ecosystems in the studied region, which are apparently affected by an increase in the range of environmental variability, will probably be even more influenced by a future increase in anthropogenic impacts, including coastal ocean acidification and deoxygenation.
Phytoplankton populations can display high levels of genetic diversity that, when reflected by phenotypic variability, may stabilize a species response to environmental changes. We studied the effects of increased temperature and CO2 availability as predicted consequences of global change, on 16 genetically different isolates of the diatom Skeletonema marinoi from the Adriatic Sea and the Skagerrak (North Sea), and on eight strains of the PST (paralytic shellfish toxin)-producing dinoflagellate Alexandrium ostenfeldii from the Baltic Sea. Maximum growth rates were estimated in batch cultures of acclimated isolates grown for five to 10 generations in a factorial design at 20 and 24 °C, and present day and next century applied atmospheric pCO2, respectively. In both species, individual strains were affected in different ways by increased temperature and pCO2. The strongest response variability, buffering overall effects, was detected among Adriatic S. marinoi strains. Skagerrak strains showed a more uniform response, particularly to increased temperature, with an overall positive effect on growth. Increased temperature also caused a general growth stimulation in A. ostenfeldii, despite notable variability in strain-specific response patterns. Our data revealed a significant relationship between strain-specific growth rates and the impact of pCO2 on growth-slow growing cultures were generally positively affected, while fast growing cultures showed no or negative responses to increased pCO2. Toxin composition of A. ostenfeldii was consistently altered by elevated temperature and increased CO2 supply in the tested strains, resulting in overall promotion of saxitoxin production by both treatments. Our findings suggest that phenotypic variability within populations plays an important role in the adaptation of phytoplankton to changing environments, potentially attenuating short-term effects and forming the basis for selection. In particular, A. ostenfeldii blooms may expand and increase in toxicity under increased water temperature and atmospheric pCO2 conditions, with potentially severe consequences for the coastal ecosystem.
| Organisation | Count |
|---|---|
| Bund | 218 |
| Europa | 23 |
| Kommune | 1 |
| Land | 19 |
| Schutzgebiete | 1 |
| Weitere | 2 |
| Wissenschaft | 163 |
| Zivilgesellschaft | 2 |
| Type | Count |
|---|---|
| Daten und Messstellen | 38 |
| Ereignis | 2 |
| Förderprogramm | 201 |
| Text | 15 |
| unbekannt | 9 |
| License | Count |
|---|---|
| Geschlossen | 22 |
| Offen | 243 |
| Language | Count |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | 189 |
| Englisch | 90 |
| Resource type | Count |
|---|---|
| Archiv | 6 |
| Bild | 5 |
| Datei | 35 |
| Dokument | 12 |
| Keine | 133 |
| Webseite | 87 |
| Topic | Count |
|---|---|
| Boden | 207 |
| Lebewesen und Lebensräume | 265 |
| Luft | 203 |
| Mensch und Umwelt | 263 |
| Wasser | 228 |
| Weitere | 265 |