Biological and functional responses of the benthic surf zone community to different beach types.

In this study, we analyzed the biological descriptors and functional traits of the benthic community inhabiting the water/bottom layer in the surf zones of three sandy beaches: a tide-dominated flat, and two intermediate beaches, from tide-modified to wave-dominated. Samples were collected seasonally in the inner surf zone by hand-towing a benthic sledge equipped with two nets, one above the other, across transects parallel to the shore, capturing the benthic community in two levels, close to the seafloor. A total of 116 species were collected, with a total of 327,678 specimens.

Microplankton dynamics under heavy anthropogenic pressure. The case of the Bahía Blanca Estuary, southwestern Atlantic Ocean.

Quantifying biotic feedbacks in response to environmental signals is fundamental to assess ecosystem perturbation. We analyzed the joint effects of eutrophication, derived from sewage pollution, and climate at the base of the pelagic food web in the Bahía Blanca Estuary (SW Atlantic Ocean). A two-year survey of environmental conditions and microplankton communities was conducted in two sites affected by contrasting anthropogenic eutrophication conditions.

Pseudobranchiomysis arenae, a new genus and species of Leptomysinae (Crustacea: Mysida) in Argentinian sandy beaches.

A new genus of Leptomysinae Hansen, 1910, constituting a new type species for science, is described: Pseudobranchiomysis arenae. This new mysid is characterized by a combination of the following characters: antennal scale lanceolate and setose all around with a pointed apex, telson with apical cleft armed with many fine spines on the convex margins, and well-developed pseudobranchial lobes in male pleopods. Individuals of this species were found in the surf zone of two sandy beaches in Argentina and constitute a stable population.