Summer habitat affinities of estuarine fish in US mid-Atlantic coastal systems

Fisheries management strategies based on habitat protection require definitive assessment of fish habitat affinities, but most habitat association information is based on disparate data from multiple sampling strategies. Habitat affinities were quantitatively defined using consistently collected data with a 16-m high-rise otter trawl at 314 Virginian Province (US) sites from 1990 to 1993. Catch rates and field-recorded salinity, depth, sea bed type, and geography (coastal system) associated with each trawl were analysed. Habitat affinity was quantified by comparing the concentration of fish in a particular habitat with the prevalence of that habitat. Fishes exhibited a specific habitat affinity even though they occurred across a range of environmental gradients. Fish were most associated with salinity (14 of 19 species/life-stage groups had a significant affinity for at least one salinity zone). Three-quarters of the flatfish displayed an affinity for a selected sea bed type; the same percentage of sciaenids had an affinity for a particular salinity zone.     

Functional trait differences between native bunchgrasses and the invasive grass Bromus tectorum

We conducted 30- and 60-d greenhouse experiments to compare functional traits of Bromus tectorum (invasive annual grass) and four perennial bunchgrasses under well-watered or drought conditions. Even under drought, B. tectorum experienced significantly less stress (i.e., higher xylem pressure potential and greater shoot water content, water use per day and water-use efficiency) and biomass production than the perennial grasses after 30 d. However, after 60 d, its superiority was reduced under infrequent watering. Differences among perennial grasses were more pronounced for physiological traits under infrequent watering and for morphological traits under frequent watering. Elymus multisetus (fast-growing species) had a higher transpiration rate, lower leaf temperature, and lower water-use efficiency than the other grasses after 30 d. In contrast, Pseudoroegneria spicata (slow-growing) had lower xylem pressure potential and higher leaf temperature than all other grasses under infrequent watering. Under frequent watering, shoot dry mass and specific leaf area of B. tectorum was matched by Elymus wawawaiensis (moderate-growing species). Our results indicate that multiple-species plantings or seedings are necessary to foster greater weed resistance against B. tectorum. We also emphasize that when choosing plant material for restoration, performance during both pulse (resource-rich) and inter-pulse (resource-poor) periods should be considered.     

Characterising reef fish populations and habitats within and outside the US Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument: a lesson in marine protected area design

Abstract  Marine protected areas are an important tool for management of marine ecosystems. Despite their utility, ecological design criteria are often not considered or feasible to implement when establishing protected areas. In 2001, the Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument (VICRNM) in St John, US Virgin Islands was established by Executive Order. The VICRNM prohibits almost all extractive uses. Surveys of habitat and fishes inside and outside of the VICRNM were conducted in 2002–2004. Areas outside the VICRNM had significantly more hard corals, greater habitat complexity, and greater richness, abundance and biomass of reef fishes than areas within the VICRNM. The administrative process used to delineate the boundaries of the VICRNM did not include a robust ecological characterisation of the area. Because of reduced habitat complexity within the VICRNM, the enhancement of the marine ecosystem may not be fully realised or increases in economically important reef fishes may take longer to detect.     

The effect of Phelipanche ramosa infection on the quality of tomato fruit

The influence of the root holoparasite Phelipanche ramosa on the physical characteristics and chemical composition of greenhouse-grown tomato fruits was studied over two growing seasons. The presence of the parasite significantly reduced fruit fresh and dry weight, mesocarp thickness, fruit colour, firmness and titratable acidity. The content of reducing sugars, soluble solids, ash and ascorbic acid was also reduced, but the number of seeds per fruit increased with the parasite. Since some of these traits are important determinants of fruit quality from the consumers' point of view, it is clear that P. ramosa infection reduces the marketable value of tomato. The deterioration in fruit quality worsens over time and hence, by inference, with the intensity of the parasite infection.     

Residues and efficacy of fluazifop-butyl in strawberries

Residues of fluazifop-butyl were determined in strawberries from New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, Canada and North Carolina, U.S.A. using a High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) system. Strawberries harvested within 28 days of treatment (pre-harvest interval= PHI) had detectable residues of fluazifop, ranging from 0.05 ppmw with a split application of 0.25 kg ha-¹ and a 18-day PHI to 3.24 ppmw with a split application of 0.5 kg ha^?1 and a 12-day PHI. Fluazifop was not detected in samples treated 287 days or more before harvest (prior growing season) at 0.25–1.65 kg ha^?1 (three applications of 0.55 kg ha^?1). Fluazifop-butyl did not provide acceptable control (50% with two applications of 0.25 kg ha^?1) of Elymus repens (L.) Gould in a commercial planting in New Brunswick. Control of Digitaria sanguinalis (L.) Scop. was better than 90% with two applications of 0.30 kg ha^?1 in North Carolina. Fluazifop-butyl did not injure strawberries at any of the rates or sites tested. Résidus et efficacité du fluazifop-butyle en culture de fraises Les résidus du fluazifop-butyle dans des fraises provenant de New Brunswick et Nova Scotia au Canada et de North Carolina aux Etats-Unis ont été déterminés en utilisant un système de chromatographie liquide à haute performance (HPLC). Des fraises récoltées avant 28 jours après le traitement (PHI 28) contenaient des résidus de fluazifop décelables, allant de 0.05 ppmw après un apport fractionné de 0,25 kg ha^?1 et PHI 18 à 3,24 ppmw après un apport fractionné de 0,5 kg ha^?1 et PHI 12. Nulle trace de fluazifop n'a été décelée dans des échantillons traités au moins 287 jours avant la récolte, c'est-à-dire pendant la saison précédente, aux doses de 0,25 à 1,65 kg ha^?1 (trois pulvérisations à 0,55 kg ha^?1). Le fluazifop-butyle n'a pas permis une destruction convenable d'Elymus repens (L.) Gould dans une exploitation commerciale au New Brunswick (50% suivant deux pulvérisations à 0,25 kg ha^?1). La destruction de Digitaria sanguinalis (L.) Scop. avec deux pulvérisations à 0,30 kg ha^?1 en North Carolina dépassait 90%. Le fluazifop-butyle n'a provoqué de dégâts dans les fraises à aucune des doses testées ni à aucune localité. Rückstände und Wirkung von Fluazifop-Butyl in Erdbeeren Erdbeeren von Neu-Braunschweig, Neu-Schott-land (Kanada) und Nord-Karolina (U.S.A.) wurden mittels Hochleistungs-Flüssigkeits-Chromatographie (HPLC) auf Rückstande von Fluazifop-Butyl untersucht. Innert 28 Tagen nach der Behandlung (Intervall vor der Ernte = PHI) geerntete Erdbeeren enthielten messbare Rückstande von Fluazifop; sie betrugen zwischen 0,05 ppmw nach einer Split-Applikation von 0,25 kg ha^?1 und einem PHI von 18 Tagen und 3,24 ppmw nach Split-Applikation von 0,5 kg ha^?1 und 12 Tagen PHI. Es wurden keine Rückstände in Proben gefunden, die 287 oder mehr Tage vor der Ernte mit 0,5–1,65 kg ha^?1 (drei Applikationen von je 0,55 kg ha^?1) behandelt worden waren (vor der Wachstumsperiode). Fluazifop-Butyl erzielte keine genügende Kontrolle von Elymus repens (L.) Gould (50% Erfolg nach zwei Behandlungen mit 0,25 kg ha^?1) in einer Produktionspflanzung in Neu-Braunschweig. Der Erfolg gegen Digitaria sanguinalis (L.) Scop. war in Nord-Karolina nach zwei Applikationen von 0,30 kg ha^?1 höher als 98%. Fluazifop-Butyl schädigte die Erdbeeren an keinem der Standorte und mit keiner Dosierung.     

Morphological and physiological responses of the invasive weed Isatis tinctoria to contrasting light, soil-nitrogen and water

We evaluated the morphological and physiological responses to contrasting above- and below-ground resources for the invasive weed, Isatis tinctoria L. (dyer's woad). Plants were grown under low and high levels of light [shade (50% of ambient) and full sun], soil water (50 and 100 mL day⁻¹), and soil nitrogen (N) (0 and 20 mg N kg⁻¹ soil) in 8 L pots in 63 day glasshouse experiments conducted during winter and spring. Soil-N enrichment did not increase any of the growth variables (shoot and root dry mass, shoot:root ratio, leaf area, and specific leaf area) or physiological variables (stomatal conductance and ¹³C discrimination) in either experiment. The absence of plasticity in response to changes in soil-N supply suggests that I. tinctoria may survive and persist in nutrient-poor conditions by having low-N requirements, low-N productivity, or both. In contrast, plants compensated for shaded conditions by altering leaf area, specific leaf area, and shoot:root ratio to improve light capture. We discuss the potential mechanisms whereby response to these variable resources may be associated with a series of adaptations that favour the ability to tolerate and colonize harsh, nutrient-poor conditions, as well as invade shaded and undisturbed sites.