WestBanks:

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WestBanks understanding benthic, pelagic and
air-borne ecosystem interactions in shallow
coastal seas
Science for a Sustainable Development
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Partners and participants
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WestBanks

• continuation of TROPHOS
• both in science and network composition
• focus on Western Coastal Banks area

Source Een zee van ruimte
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Western Coastal Banks ecologically important!

• Special Protected Area under Birds Directive
• (Great Crested Grebe, Sandwich Tern)
• Very rich macrobenthos communities
• Functioning high benthic mineralisation rates
• Nursery area for juvenile fishes

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Benthic pelagic coupling (1)
From TROPHOS burial and degradation of OM
Diffusion model
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Benthic pelagic coupling (1)
From TROPHOS

• in the absence of high macrofauna densities
• vertical differences in food sources of
  nematodes

• Mineralisation rates (SOC) increase with
• macrobenthic densities (not only temperature
  effect)

Hypothesis macrobenthic densities/
identity/ functional groups influence ecosystem
functioning and food web structure
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Benthic pelagic coupling (1)
WestBanks
Nephtys bioturbation Abra alba bioturbation L
anice conchilega bio-irrigation
Different densities (1) Different seasons
(1) Different combination (2) With labeled food
(3)
SOC fluxes of NO3-/NO22-/NH4/N2/PO43- Bio-irrigat
ion (uranine tracer in water column) Bioturbation
(luminophores) Distribution of labeled food in
benthic food web
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Benthic pelagic coupling (2)
Lanice conchilega
Reef building polychaete
Increases habitat complexity
Positive effect on diversity Positive effect on
sole populations
But vulnerable to fisheries?
WestBanks trophic link Lanice
Solea resilience of Lanice to fisheries
disturbance (Marijn Rabaut)
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WestBanks molecular work
Populations are more resilient to disturbance
when molecular variation is higher Populations
are more resilient to disturbance when they are
connected
From TROPHOS
There are only subtle barriers to dispersal on
the BCS
But genetically distinct populations (eg.
gobies) are present
HOWEVER knowledge is too scarce at present
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WestBanks Molecular Research Traditional Way

• continuation of work on genetic variability
• of fish and parasites

• start work on genetic variability of Lanice
• conchilega (so far nothing in literature)

improve knowledge on genetic variability
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WestBanks Molecular Work the dispersal model
Particle tracks for 200 larvae, released at the
black dot. No vertical migration implemented.
Particle tracks of larvae re-leased at two
points. No ver-tical migration implemented.
Different genotypes connected/separated due to
physical characteristics at BCS?
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WestBanks pelagic airborne interactions
From TROPHOS
Breeding succes of Sandwich Tern
low prey densities bad chick conditions and low
breeding succes
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WestBanks pelagic airborne interactions
From TROPHOS
lack of appropiate food causes high chick
mortality
anomalies in breeding succes of top predators
reflects patterns in pelagic ecosystem
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WestBanks pelagic airborne interactions
WestBanks research

• sampling prey items (pelagic fish)

• study spatial distribution of 5 seabird species
• (Sandwich Tern, Common Tern, Great Crested
  Grebe,
• Common Guillemot, Razorbill) in relation to
  spatial
• distribution of prey

• diet analysis (terns breeding colonies other
  species
• beach-washed birds)

• breeding parameters of terns

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WestBanks Final goal

• to provide information on biodiversity-ecosystem
  
• functioning link gt what species/functional
  groups to be
• protected

• role of Lanice in sustaining fish populations
  and
• vulnerability to beam trawling gt fisheries
  management
• effect on sediment functioning

• molecular work particle modelling information
  on
• resilience of key species to disturbance at the
  population
• level

• develop monitoring tools using top predators