The effect of sulfate and nitrate on methane formation in a freshwater sediment

A freshwater sediment from a ditch of a peat grassland near Zegveld (Province of Utrecht, The Netherlands) was investigated for its potential methanogenic and syntrophic activity and the influence of sulfate and nitrate on these potential activities. Methanogenesis started after a 10 days lagphase. After 35–40 days aceticlastic methanogens were sufficiently enriched to cause a net decrease of acetate. In the presence of sulfate methane formation was only slightly affected. The addition of nitrate led to an outcompetion of aceticlastic methanogens by nitrate reducers. When inorganic electron acceptors were absent, substrates like propionate and butyrate were converted by syntrophic methanogenic consortia. Addition of inorganic electron acceptors resulted in an outcompetition of the syntrophic propionate and butyrate degrading consortia by the sulfate and nitrate reducers.     

Habitat and distribution of perforatella rubiginosa (Gastropoda,Pulmonata) in the freshwater tidal region of the Scheldt estuary,Belgium

The amphibious land-molluse,Perforatella rubiginosa, is a common, wide-spread and characteristic inhabitant of the freshwater tidal region of the river Scheldt and its tributaries in NW Belgium. The species occupies a rather narrow zone in the uppermost intertidal area, which is characterized by large amounts of tidal drift covering the bottom, and usually by a luxuriant vegetation of tall, nitrophilous herbs, often withUrtica dioica dominant. Other characteristic molluscs of this zone areCarychium minimum, Oxyloma pfeifferi, O. sarsi, Deroceras laeve, Vitrea crystallina andZonitoides nitidus, locally alsoNesovitrea hammonis. Communication nr. 143 of the Delta Institute for Hydrobiological Research, Yerseke, The Netherlands     

On the taxonomic status of a Dugesia species from Buenos Aires (Platyhelminthes: Turbellaria: Tricladida)

The taxonomic and distributional statuses of the freshwater planarians of South America are imperfectly understood, and a comprehensive review is sorely needed. The species known from the vicinity of Buenos Aires, Argentina, was first described by Böhmig (1902) under the name Planaria dubia Borelli, 1895. Subsequent authors (Kenk, 1930, 1974; Cazzaniga & Curino, 1987) have cast doubt on this assignation. Some have assigned it to Dugesia anceps Kenk; Hyman (1959) was inclined to regard the Buenos Aires planarian as a geographical variant of Dugesia sanchezi Hyman. A comparison of D. sanchezi from the mountainous region of central Chile with specimens from Buenos Aires confirms that the Argentinian material is a distinct species.The differences between the two species are subtle. The Argentinian specimens are distinctive in their possession of infranucleate epithelia of the atria, penis, and bursal canal, as well as in their penial structure. In both species, the epithelia of the atria and bursal canal are glandular. Those of D. sanchezi are nucleate and their secretions are cyanophilous. In the Argentinian specimens, these same epithelia are infranucleate; but while the secretion of the bursal canal is indeed cyanophilous, that of the atrium is erythrophilous. The presence, in these same specimens, of cyanophilous glands opening into the penial vesicles, and of erythrophilous glands whose secretions contribute to a viscous plug in the ejaculatory duct, suggests a difference in the physiology of copulation.It is apparent that the Argentinian specimens are distinct from D. sanchezi Hyman, and probably they represent a new species, one to be described in detail elsewhere. In any case, Hyman's (1959) suggestion that D. sanchezi occurs near Buenos Aires is mistaken; so also is Cazzaniga's & Curino's (1987) identification of specimens from Buenos Aires as D. anceps.     

Sulfate reduction and S-oxidation in a moorland pool sediment

In an oligotrophic moorland pool in The Netherlands, S cycling near the sediment/water boundary was investigated by measuring (1) SO₄ ^2– reduction rates in the sediment, (2) depletion of SO₄ ^2– in the overlying water column and (3) release of³⁵S from the sediment into the water column. Two locations differing in sediment type (highly organic and sandy) were compared, with respect to reduction rates and depletion of SO₄ ^2– in the overlying water.Sulfate reduction rates in sediments of an oligotrophic moorland pool were estimated by diagenetic modelling and whole core³⁵SO₄ ^2– injection. Rates of SO₄ ^2– consumption in the overlying water were estimated by changes in SO₄ ^2– concentration over time in in situ enclosures. Reduction rates ranged from 0.27–11.2 mmol m^–2 d^–1. Rates of SO₄ ^2– uptake from the enclosed water column varied from –0.5, –0.3 mmol m^–2 d^–1 (November) to 0.43–1.81 mmol m^–2 d^–1 (July, August and April). Maximum rates of oxidation to SO₄ ^2– in July 1990 estimated by combination of SO₄ ^2– reduction rates and rates of in situ SO₄ ^2– uptake in the enclosed water column were 10.3 and 10.5 mmol m^–2 d^–1 at an organic rich and at a sandy site respectively.Experiments with³⁵S^2– and³⁵SO₄ ^2– tracer suggested (1) a rapid formation of organically bound S from dissimilatory reduced SO₄ ^2– and (2) the presence of mainly non SO₄ ^2–-S derived from reduced S transported from the sediment into the overlying water. A³⁵S^2– tracer experiment showed that about 7% of³⁵S^2– injected at 1 cm depth in a sediment core was recovered in the overlying water column.Sulfate reduction rates in sediments with higher volumetric mass fraction of organic matter did not significantly differ from those in sediments with a lower mass fraction of organic matter.Corresponding author     

The Abundance of Different Peritrich Ciliates on Stone Surfaces in Contrasting Lowland Streams Throughout the Year

ABSTRACT. Pentrich ciliates attached to small stones from the beds of two streams, one large with hard water, the other small with soft water, were enumerated throughout an annual cycle. Throughout the year, Platycola was the dominant peritrich in both streams, except for a brief period during the spring when Vorticella and Carchesium predominated. Vorticella reached peak levels of 89 ciliates cm² of stone surface, and up to 102 Platycola per cm² of stone surface were found. Mean volumes of samples of the main species were calculated, and used to estimate the standing stock biomasses. using a standard value of dry weight per unit volume. Published values of the growth rates of representatives of the main genera were used to estimate production values, which totalled about 6.5 g dry weight of peritrich cytoplasm/m² of stream bed per annum in the large stream (mean annual density = 8.3 peritrichs/cm² of stone surface), and 33 g dry weight/m² of stream bed per annum in the small stream (mean annual density = 47 peritrichs/cm² of stone surface). Food supply, temperature and predation were the primary factors determining peritrich abundance     

Effects of acid wastes from titanium dioxide production on biomass and species richness of benthic algae

Titanium dioxide wastes are suspected to be toxic to rocky shore communities in an estuary in southeast Norway. An experimental project lasting two years examined whether titanium dioxide wastes affected recolonization by rocky shore organisms. The experiments were performed in situ in six tanks (each with 9 m³ brackish water) at two different levels of salinity. Three different concentrations of industrial waste water were used. The growth season in 1986 was dry and sunny compared to 1987, causing reduction of growth on exposed granite chips compared to controls. At the two highest waste concentrations in the tanks, Fucus serratus was observed with necrotic tissue both years, and in 1986 benthic diatoms were scarce.     

Effects of planktivore abundance on chlorophyll-a and Secchi depth

We used two analyses to test the hypothesis that planktivore abundances contribute to the residual variations of Secchi depth or chlorophyll-a plotted with respect to mean summer epilimnetic total phosphorus. The first analysis involved 15 lake years of data from six lakes. The data set comprised mark-recapture assessments of piscivore and planktivore numbers and estimates of mean summer chlorophyll-a, total phosphorus and Secchi depth. We found that residual chlorophyll-a variation was not significantly (p>0.05) correlated with planktivore densities, but that planktivore densities did contribute (p<0.02) to the residual variation of Secchi depth on mean total phosphorus. The second analysis included all of the data used in the first plus an additional 13 lake years of data from the literature. These data showed that the percentage of the total fish community comprising planktivores did not significantly (p>0.05) contribute to the residual variation in chlorophyll-a with respect to mean summer total phosphorus. Together, our results suggest that planktivore abundance has a significant cascading impact on water clarity, but no long term statistically significant impact on mean summer chlorophyll-a concentration.     

A study on biological activity measurements and heterotrophic bacteria in a small freshwater lake

A 6-m-deep lake has been sampled to measure the temporal and depth-wise distribution of heterotrophic bacteria and biological activity in the water. Surface, mid-depth and bottom waters were analysed at monthly intervals for a period of one year. The coefficient of heterotrophic activity, alkaline phosphatase activity and biological oxygen demand are used as an index of biological activity. The bacterial community was at maximum during spring, coinciding with high values of biological activity. Highest biological activity was observed in the bottom waters. Dissolved organic carbon showed a significant positive correlation with most of the biological activity parameters. This suggests that biological activity, as measured by the coefficient of heterotrophic activity, was more closely related to the concentration of substrates than to population density of heterotrophic bacteria.