Monitoring bay-scale ecosystem changes in bivalve aquaculture embayments using flow cytometry.

Bay-scale empirical evaluations of how bivalve aquaculture alters plankton composition, and subsequently ecological functioning and higher trophic levels, are lacking. Temporal, inter- and within-bay variation in hydrodynamic, environmental, and aquaculture pressure complicate plankton monitoring design to detect bay-scale changes and inform aquaculture ecosystem interactions. Here, we used flow cytometry to investigate spatio-temporal variations in bacteria and phytoplankton (< 20 μm) composition in four bivalve aquaculture embayments.

Temporal Bacterial Surveillance of Salmon Aquaculture Sites Indicates a Long Lasting Benthic Impact With Minimal Recovery.

Coastal aquaculture has experienced substantial growth in the last few decades and associated impacts on natural environments are of increasing importance. Understanding both the effects of aquaculture on marine ecosystems and the processes of recovery during fallowing periods is crucial for the development of a more environmentally sustainable industry. Because bacteria are sensitive to environmental change, surveying fluctuations in bacterial communities is a promising tool for monitoring the status of benthic environments.

Linking the presence of visual indicators of aquaculture deposition to changes in epibenthic richness at finfish sites installed over hard bottom substrates.

Effects of finfish aquaculture on benthic communities at hard bottom sites can be assessed using visual indicators of organic enrichment, namely bacterial mats, opportunistic polychaetes, and/or barren substrates (i.e., with no visible epifauna).

The usage of visual indicators in regulatory monitoring at hard-bottom finfish aquaculture sites in Newfoundland (Canada).

Finfish aquaculture can be installed over hard and patchy substrates where grab sampling is challenging and use of video can be an appropriate tool to document benthic changes. Video monitoring can show visual indicators of enrichment, namely flocculent matter, Beggiatoa-like mats, and opportunistic polychaete complexes (OPC). We examined factors influencing presence of indicators using 52 video monitoring reports collected in Newfoundland, Canada.

Lipid Classes and Fatty Acids in Ophryotrocha cyclops, a Dorvilleid from Newfoundland Aquaculture Sites.

A new opportunistic annelid (Ophryotrocha cyclops) discovered on benthic substrates underneath finfish aquaculture sites in Newfoundland (NL) may be involved in the remediation of organic wastes. At those aquaculture sites, bacterial mats and O. cyclops often coexist and are used as indicators of organic enrichment.

A new annelid species from whalebones in Greenland and aquaculture sites in Newfoundland: Ophryotrocha cyclops, sp. nov. (Eunicida: Dorvilleidae).

A new species of Ophryotrocha was discovered on whalebones in Greenland (120 m depth) and at finfish aquaculture sites in Newfoundland (30-70 m depth), where it is considered to be a bioindicator of aquaculture-related organic enrichment. Phylogenetic analyses based on three genes (COI, 16S mitochondrial and H3 nuclear genes) show close affinities with O. lobifera and O.

Divergent chemosymbiosis-related characters in Thyasira cf. gouldi (Bivalvia: Thyasiridae).

Within the marine bivalve family Thyasiridae, some species have bacterial chemosymbionts associated with gill epithelial cells while other species are asymbiotic. Although the abundance of symbionts in a particular thyasirid species may vary, the structure of their gills (i.e.

Correlation between perkinsosis and growth in clams Ruditapes spp.

Perkinsosis is one of the most widespread diseases affecting commercially important species of molluscs globally. We examined the impact of Perkinsus spp. on shell growth at the individual scale in 2 clam species: Ruditapes decussatus from Mundaka Estuary (Spain) and R.