ALBERT

Description: The cartilaginous tubercles of the mantle of the squid Cranchia scabra have been examined with the scanning electron microscope. Some tubercles are small, simple nodules whereas others are large with a complex Maltese cross form. The varying shapes and sizes probably represent a developmental sequence. The possible role of the tubercles is discussed.

Description: Investigations indicate that the Iceland Ice Sheet was reduced in size during MIS 3 but readvanced to the shelf break at the LGM. Retreat occurred very rapidly around 15 k–16 k cal. yr BP. By contrast, the margin of the ice sheet on the East Greenland shelf, north of the Denmark Strait, was at or close to the shelf break during MIS 3 and 2 and retreat starting ∼17 k cal. yr BP. Quantitative X-ray diffraction analysis of the 〈2 mm sediment fraction was undertaken on 161 samples from Iceland and East Greenland diamictons, and from cores on the slopes and margins of the Denmark Strait. Weight% mineralogical data are used in a principal component analysis to differentiate sediments derived from the two margins. The first two PC axes explain 52% of the variance. These associations are used to characterise sediments as being affiliated with (a) Iceland, (b) East Greenland or (c) mixed. The contribution from Iceland becomes prominent during MIS 2. The extensive outcrop of early Tertiary basalts on East Greenland between 68° and 71° N is an alternative source for basaltic clasts and North Atlantic sediments with εNd(0) values close to ±0.

Description: Two cores were recovered in the southeastern part of Lake Shkodra (Montenegro and Albania) and sampled for identification of tephra layers. The first core (SK13, 7.8 m long) was recovered from a water depth of 7 m, while the second core (SK19, 5.8 m long) was recovered close to the present-day shoreline (water depth of 2 m). Magnetic susceptibility investigations show generally low values with some peaks that in some cases are related to tephra layers. Naked-eye inspection of the cores allowed the identification of four tephra layers in core SK13 and five tephra layers in core SK19. Major element analyses on glass shards and mineral phases allowed correlation of the tephra layers between the two cores, and their attribution to six different Holocene explosive eruptions of southern Italy volcanoes. Two tephra layers have under-saturated composition of glass shards (foiditic and phonolitic) and were correlated to the AD 472 and the Avellino (ca. 3.9 cal. ka BP) eruptions of Somma-Vesuvius. One tephra layer has benmoreitic composition and was correlated to the FL eruption of Mount Etna (ca. 3.4 cal. ka BP). The other three tephra layers have trachytic composition and were correlated to Astroni (ca. 4.2 cal. ka BP), Agnano Monte Spina (ca. 4.5 cal. ka BP) and Agnano Pomici Principali (ca. 12.3 cal. ka BP) eruptions of Campi Flegrei. The ages of tephra layers are in broad agreement with eight 14C accelerator mass spectrometric measurements carried out on plant remains and charcoal from the lake sediments at different depths along the two cores. The recognition of distal tephra layers from Italian volcanoes allowed the physical link of the Holocene archive of Lake Shkodra to other archives located in the central Mediterranean area and the Balkans (i.e. Lake Ohrid). Five of the recognised tephra layers were recognised for the first time in the Balkans area, and this has relevance for volcanic hazard assessment and for ash dispersal forecasting in case of renewed explosive activity from some of the southern Italy volcanoes. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Description: This paper presents a temperature reconstruction of the past 1000 years for Central Europe, based on chronological records. The advantages and limitations of this hermeneutic, text-based approach are discussed and the statistic methodology is introduced. Historical documents represent direct observation of weather and atmospheric conditions with highest temporal resolution available and precise dating. A major advantage of these extensive data is that they allow the reconstruction of large numbers of variables such as winter temperature, precipitation, pressure patterns or climate extremes as well as floods or storms. Within this hermeneutic climatological research approach, even human impacts and social dimensions of climate development can be examined. In order to quantify the historical information, statistical methods are applied, based on an index approach.

Description: The dry weight and the crest length of the upper and lower beak, the length of the radula ribbon, the average width of the base of the six proximal and distal rachidian teeth as well as the total number of these teeth have all been related to the live body weight of octopuses between 1.1 and 4440 g. From any one of these parameters it is possible to estimate the size and approximate age of the animal.

Description: Features of the brain of this oceanic squid have been investigated and related, as far as possible, to its habits and mode of life. The body and arms are much vacuolated for buoyancy and the animal probably lives with the head upwards. The very long whip-like tentacles are not vacuolated and perhaps hang downwards. They are covered by numerous minute pedunculated suckers, perhaps providing a sticky surface. A special nerve running outside the brain carries signals from the arms and tentacles to the magnocellular lobe, which is very large and of complex structure. However, there are no giant cells and the mantle is weak. Propulsion is mainly by the large fins, which are controlled from the magnocellular lobe, presumably using the information from the arms and tentacles.

Description: Meiobenthos densities and higher taxon composition were studied in an active gas seepage area at depths from 182 to 252 m in the submarine Dnieper Canyon located in the northwestern part of the Black Sea. The meiobenthos was represented by Ciliata, Foraminifera, Nematoda, Polychaeta, Bivalvia, Gastropoda, Amphipoda, and Acarina. Also present in the sediment samples were juvenile stages of Copepoda and Cladocera which may be of planktonic origin. Nematoda and Foraminifera were the dominant groups. The abundance of the meiobenthos varied between 2397 and 52,593 ind.·m−2. Maximum densities of Nematoda and Foraminifera were recorded in the upper sediment layer of a permanent H2S zone at depths from 220 to 250 m. This dense concentration of meiobenthos was found in an area where intense methane seeps were covered by methane-oxidizing microbial mats. Results suggest that methane and its microbial oxidation products are the factors responsible for the presence of a highly sulfidic and biologically productive zone characterized by specially adapted benthic groups. At the same time, an inverse correlation was found between meiofauna densities and methane concentrations in the uppermost sediment layers. The hypothesis is that the concentration of Nematoda and Foraminifera within the areas enriched with methane is an ecological compromise between the food requirements of these organisms and their adaptations to the toxic H2S.

Description: An automatic food dispenser was designed for use with Octopus vulgaris Lamarck. One live crab was delivered each time the octopus pulled a white shape attached to the dispenser. The apparatus provided a continuous record of the time and frequency of feeding over periods of up to 15 days.

Description: This paper presents an event stratigraphy based on data documenting the history of vegetation cover, lake-level changes and fire frequency, as well as volcanic eruptions, over the Last Glacial–early Holocene transition from a terrestrial sediment sequence recovered at Lake Accesa in Tuscany (north-central Italy). On the basis of an age–depth model inferred from 13 radiocarbon dates and six tephra horizons, the Oldest Dryas–Bølling warming event was dated to ca. 14 560 cal. yr BP and the Younger Dryas event to ca. 12 700–11 650 cal. yr BP. Four sub-millennial scale cooling phases were recognised from pollen data at ca. 14 300–14 200, 13 900–13 700, 13 400–13 100 and 11 350–11 150 cal. yr BP. The last three may be Mediterranean equivalents to the Older Dryas (GI-1d), Intra-Allerød (GI-1b) and Preboreal Oscillation (PBO) cooling events defined from the GRIP ice-core and indicate strong climatic linkages between the North Atlantic and Mediterranean areas during the last Termination. The first may correspond to Intra-Bølling cold oscillations registered by various palaeoclimatic records in the North Atlantic region. The lake-level record shows that the sub-millennial scale climatic oscillations which punctuated the last deglaciation were associated in central Italy with different successive patterns of hydrological changes from the Bølling warming to the 8.2 ka cold reversal. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Description: The movements of the isolated buccal mass of Octopus vulgaris have been investigated. The beaks undergo rhythmic cycles of activity in the absence of applied stimulation and after electrical stimulation of the inter-buccal connective. Initial opening, closing, retraction and re-opening phases of movement are described. This cycle of movements is taken to resemble those in the intact animal. Anatomical and electrical evidence identifies the superior mandibular muscle as being partly responsible for the closing and retraction phases of movement. The inferior buccal ganglion determines the sequence of these buccal movements, but modification by sensory feed-back from the musculature is also implied. The preparation will allow a closer comparison of the control of movement in cephalopods and gastropods.

Description: Taonius megalops is a neutrally buoyant oceanic squid, very different in form when young and old. The young, has a round, sac-like mantle and relatively long tentacles, while the adult has an elongated cone-like mantle and relatively short tentacles. The transition in shape and form is gradual and has been followed in animals of between 3 and 180 mm dorsal mantle length. Statistical tests on various parameters investigated, both external and internal, revealed good correlation with the dorsal mantle length and confirmed the descriptions of the development of the chromatophores and subocular light organs with growth. It was concluded that these animals, captured in the Atlantic Ocean, all belonged to the species T. megalops Prosch 1849. This study has permitted us to suggest a tentative outline of the life cycle, although no adults were present in the material available.

Description: A crab which has been captured and paralysed by an octopus but retrieved 1 1/2 min later cannot at first be pulled apart by the experimenter: 27 min later it can be dismembered easily. This demonstrates that there is external digestion when Octopus vulgaris feeds upon crabs. However, it is strictly limited at this stage to the arthrodial membrane and the musculo-skeletal attachment mechanisms as the exoskeleton separates at the joints allowing the muscles to be drawn out of the appendages. And yet, two hours after capture, pieces of crab meat are still recognizable in the octopus's stomach. The process of paralysing and cleaning a crab was noticeably slowed after the surgical removal of the radula, salivary papilla or the lateral buccal palps.

Description: The changes in body weight of 12 octopuses, fed on fish or crabs, were followed under laboratory conditions for periods of 1 to 7 1/2 months. The food intake was estimated and compared with the changes in body weight of the octopuses; 25 to 55% of the total intake of food appeared to be incorporated. The range of the average increase in weight over the whole observation period of each of the animals was 1.9 to 7.7g per day (1 to 7 1/2 months); the mean value was 4.8g per day. The effect of changing the diet of small octopuses (fish or crab)was followed for four weeks but there was no evidence that alteration of the diet affected the rate of changes in body weight of animals of more than 47g initial body weight.

Description: Diosmetin, 5,7,3′-trihydroxy-4′-methoxyflavone shows chemopreventive, antimutagenic, and antiallergic effects. On the other hand, chrysoeriol, 5,7,4′-trihydroxy-3′-methoxyflavone induced nodABC-lacZ in Rhizobium meliloti. Both of them belong to hydroxymethoxy- flavones. One major difference between diosmetin and chrysoeriol is the substituted position of hydroxyl and methoxyl groups. In order to elucidate the relationships between their structures and activity, one of the first things to be done is the determination of their structures. However, most flavones occur widely in nature, and thus it is difficult to obtain in sufficient amounts from natural sources to identify their structures. Assignments of NMR data of several hydroxymethoxyflavones may help us to identify novel flavonoid compounds isolated from natural sources based on their NMR experiments. Therefore, we report here the complete assignments of 1H and 13C NMR data of 13 hydroxymethoxyflavones.

Description: Reproductive mechanisms in the seven species of the thecosomatous pteropod genus Limacina are described and compared. All species are protandrous hermaphrodites. Five species–L. bulimoides, L. helicina, L. lesueuri, L. retroversa and L. trochiformis–have a similar reproductive anatomy in which the gonoduct leading from the gonad to the common genital pore functions as a seminal vesicle in the male and is elaborated into mucous and albumen glands in the female. The male system consists of a prostate gland and penis connected to the common genital pore by an external ciliary tract. All five species have a free-swimming veliger stage which hatches from free-floating egg masses. Limacina helicoides has the same reproductive anatomy but is ovoviviparous, with embryos retained in capsules in the mucous gland until they are juveniles of 50 mm in shell diameter. Limacina inflata lacks mucous and albumen glands and a penis; a spermatophore formed by the prostate gland is used in aphallic sperm transfer. This species exhibits brood protection with un-encapsulated embryos retained in the mantle cavity until they are released as veligers measuring 0067 mm in diameter. L. inflata is the most abundant of the seven species despite lowered fecundity; reasons for its ecological success are discussed.

Description: Myrionecta rubra, a ubiquitous planktonic ciliate, has received much attention due to its wide distribution, occurrence as a red tide organism, and unusual cryptophyte endosymbiont. Although well studied in coastal waters, M. rubra is poorly examined in the open ocean. In the Irminger Basin, North Atlantic, the abundance of M. rubra was 0–5 cells/ml, which is low compared with that found in coastal areas. Distinct patchiness (100 km) was revealed by geostatistical analysis. Multiple regression indicated there was little relationship between M. rubra abundance and a number of environmental factors, with the exception of temperature and phytoplankton biomass, which influenced abundance in the spring. We also improve on studies that indicate distinct size classes of M. rubra; we statistically recognise four significantly distinct width classes (5–16, 12–23, 18–27, 21–33 μm), which decrease in abundance with increasing size. A multinomial logistic regression revealed the main variable correlated with this size distribution was ambient nitrate concentration. Finally, we propose a hypothesis for the distribution of sizes, involving nutrients, feeding, and dividing of the endosymbiont.

Description: Understanding the influence of growth temperature and carbon dioxide (CO2) on seed quality in terms of seed composition, subsequent seedling emergence and early seedling vigour is important under present and future climates. The objective of this study was to determine the combined effects of elevated temperature and CO2 during seed-filling of parent plants on seed composition, subsequent seedling emergence and seedling vigour of red kidney bean (Phaseolus vulgaris). Plants of cultivar ‘Montcalm’, were grown at daytime maximum/nighttime minimum sinusoidal temperature regimes of 28/18 and 34/24 °C at ambient CO2 (350 μmol mol−1) and at elevated CO2 (700 μmol mol−1) from emergence to maturity. Seed size and seed composition at maturity and subsequent per cent emergence, early seedling vigour (rate of development) and seedling dry matter production were measured. Elevated CO2 did not influence seed composition, emergence, or seedling vigour of seeds produced either at 28/18 or 34/24 °C. Seed produced at 34/24 °C had smaller seed size, decreased glucose concentration, but significantly increased concentrations of sucrose and raffinose compared to 28/18 °C. Elevated growth temperatures during seed production decreased the subsequent per cent emergence and seedling vigour of the seeds and seedling dry matter production of seed produced either at ambient or elevated CO2.

Description: Laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) is a high spatial resolution analytical method which has been applied to the analysis of silicic tephras. With current instrumentation, around 30 trace elements can be determined from single glass shards as small as ∼ 40 µm, separated from tephra deposits. As a result of element fractionation during the ablation process using a 266 nm laser, a relatively complex calibration strategy is required. Nonetheless, such a strategy gives analyses which are accurate (typically within ±5%) and have an analytical precision which varies from ∼ ±2% at 100 ppm, to ∼ ±15% at 1 ppm. Detection limits for elements used in correlation and discrimination studies are well below 1 ppm. Examples of the application of trace element analysis by LA-ICP-MS in tephra studies are presented from the USA, New Zealand and the Mediterranean. Improvements in instrumental sensitivity in recent years have the potential to lower detection limits and improve analytical precision, thus allowing the analysis of smaller glass shards from more distal tephras. Laser systems operating at shorter wavelengths (e.g. 193 nm) are now more widely available, and produce a much more controllable ablation in glasses than 266 nm lasers. Crater sizes of 〈10 µm are easily achieved, and at 193 nm many of the elemental fractionation issues which mar longer wavelengths are overcome. By coupling a short wavelength laser to a modern ICP-MS it should be possible to determine the trace element composition of glass shards as small as 20 µm and, providing sample preparation issues can be overcome, the determination of the more abundant trace elements in glass shards as small as 10 µm is within instrumental capabilities. This will make it possible to chemically fingerprint tephra deposits which are far from their sources, and will greatly extend the range over which geochemical correlation of tephras can be undertaken.

Description: Absolute barriers to dispersal are not common in marine systems, and the prevalence of planktonic larvae in marine taxa provides potential for gene flow across large geographic distances. These observations raise the fundamental question in marine evolutionary biology as to whether geographic and oceanographic barriers alone can account for the high levels of species diversity observed in marine environments such as coral reefs, or whether marine speciation also operates in the presence of gene flow between diverging populations. In this respect, the ecological hypothesis of speciation, in which reproductive isolation results from divergent or disruptive natural selection, is of particular interest because it may operate in the presence of gene flow. Although important insights into the process of ecological speciation in aquatic environments have been provided by the study of freshwater fishes, comparatively little is known about the possibility of ecological speciation in marine teleosts. In this study, the evidence consistent with different aspects of the ecological hypothesis of speciation is evaluated in marine fishes. Molecular approaches have played a critical role in the development of speciation hypotheses in marine fishes, with a role of ecology suggested by the occurrence of sister clades separated by ecological factors, rapid cladogenesis or the persistence of genetically and ecologically differentiated species in the presence of gene flow. Yet, ecological speciation research in marine fishes is still largely at an exploratory stage. Cases where the major ingredients of ecological speciation, namely a source of natural divergent or disruptive selection, a mechanism of reproductive isolation and a link between the two have been explicitly documented are few. Even in these cases, specific predictions of the ecological hypothesis of speciation remain largely untested. Recent developments in the study of freshwater fishes illustrate the potential for molecular approaches to address specific questions related to the ecological hypothesis of speciation such as the nature of the genes underlying key ecological traits, the magnitude of their effect on phenotype and the mechanisms underlying their differential expression in different ecological contexts. The potential provided by molecular studies is fully realized when they are complemented with alternative (e.g. ecological, theoretical) approaches.

Description: Groundwater seeps are known to occur in Eckernförde Bay, Baltic Sea. Their discharge rate and dispersion were investigated with a new schlieren technique application, which is able to visualize heterogeneous water parcels with density anomalies down to Drt ¼ 0.049 on the scale of millimeters. With the use of an inverted funnel, discharged fluids can be captured and the outflow velocity can be determined. Overall, 46 stations could be categorized by three different cases: active vent sites, seep-influenced sites, and non-seep sites. New seep locations were discovered, even at shallow near-shore sites, lacking prominent sediment depression, which indicate submarine springs. The detection of numerous seeps was possible and the groundwater-influenced area was defined to be approximately 6.3 km2. Flow rates of between 0.05 and 0.71 l m)2 min)1 were measured. A single focused fluid plume, which was not disturbed by the funnel was recorded and revealed a flux of 59.6 ± 20 ml cm)2 min)1 and it was calculated that this single focused plume would be strong enough to produce a flow rate through the funnel of 1.32 ± 0.44 l m)2 min)1. The effect of different seep-meter funnel sizes is discussed.

Description: Quantitative X-ray diffraction analysis of the 〈2mm sediment fraction was carried out on 1257 samples (from the seafloor and 16 cores) from the Iceland shelf west of 188 W. All but one core (B997-347PC) were from transects along troughs on theNW to N-central shelf, an area that in modern and historic times has been affected by drift ice. The paper focuses on the non-clay mineralogy of the sediments (excluding calcite and volcanic glass). Quartz and potassium feldspars occupy similar positions in an R-mode principal component analysis, and oligoclase feldspar tracks quartz; these minerals are used as a proxy for ice-rafted detritus (IRD). Accordingly, the sum of these largely foreign minerals (Q&K) (to Icelandic bedrock) is used as a proxy for drift ice. A stacked, equi-spaced 100 a record is developed which shows both low-frequency trends and higher-frequency events. The detrended stacked record compares well with the flux of quartz (mg cm-2 a-1) at MD99-2269 off N Iceland. The multi-taper method indicated that there are three significant frequencies at the 95% confidence level with periods of ca. 2500, 445 and 304 a. Regime shift analysis pinpoints intervals when there was a statistically significant shift in the average Q&K weight %, and identifies four IRDrich events separated by intervals with lower inputs. There is some association between peaks of IRD input, less dense surface waters (from d18O data on planktonic foraminifera) and intervals of moraine building.

Description: An experimental study was performed to disentangle parental and environmental effects on the growth of Atlantic cod Gadus morhua larvae and juveniles. Eggs were collected during the spawning season from spawning pairs (families) kept separately in specially designed spawning compartments. Newly hatched larvae were released simultaneously into two mesocosms of 2500 and 4400 m3. Larval growth was monitored by sampling over a 10 week period, after which juveniles were transferred to on-growing tanks, where they were tagged and kept for up to 2 years. Maternal origin was determined by individual microsatellite genotyping of the larvae (n = 3949, 24 families) and juveniles (n = 600). The results showed significant positive correlations between egg size and larval size during the whole mesocosm period. Correlations, however, weakened with time and were no longer significant at the first tank-rearing sampling at an age of 9 months. Significant family-specific differences in growth were observed. The coefficient of variation (c.v.) was calculated in order to examine variation in standard length of larvae during the mesocosm period. Inter-family c.v. was on average 69% of intra-family c.v. Differences in zooplankton densities between the two mesocosms were reflected in larval growth, condition factor and c.v. Low food abundance appeared to reduce c.v. and favour growth of larvae that showed relatively slow growth at high food abundance. It is suggested that genetically determined variation in growth potential is maintained by environmental variability.

Description: The annual cycle of extreme 1-day precipitation events across the UK is investigated by developing a statistical model and fitting it to data from 689 rain gauges. A generalized extreme-value distribution (GEV) is fit to the time series of monthly maxima, across all months of the year simultaneously, by approximating the annual cycles of the location and scale parameters by harmonic functions, while keeping the shape parameter constant throughout the year. We average the shape parameter of neighbouring rain gauges to decrease parameter uncertainties, and also interpolate values of all model parameters to give complete coverage of the UK. The model reveals distinct spatial patterns for the estimated parameters. The annual mean of the location and scale parameter is highly correlated with orography. The annual cycle of the location parameter is strong in the northwest UK (peaking in late autumn or winter) and in East Anglia (where it peaks in late summer), and low in the Midlands. The annual cycle of the scale parameter exhibits a similar pattern with strongest amplitudes in East Anglia. The spatial patterns of the annual cycle phase suggest that they are linked to the dominance of frontal precipitation for generating extreme precipitation in the west and convective precipitation in the southeast of the UK. The shape parameter shows a gradient from positive values in the east to negative values in some areas of the west. We also estimate 10-year and 100-year return levels at each rain gauge, and interpolated across the UK.

Description: Epipelagic pterotracheid heteropods and young cranchiid squids rely primarily on transparency for concealment; yet they have opaque structures, the eyes and visceral organs that compose the visceral nuclei, which can only be camouflaged in other ways. These two groups have achieved convergent solutions to this problem. The visceral nucleus has a narrow and conical shape and a covering layer of iridophores that lies parallel to the surface of the organ. The eyes also have iridophore layers and tapered shapes. A minimal ventral silhouette results when the long axes of the visceral nucleus and eyes are oriented vertically, with the narrowest ends directed downward. In pterotracheids, this is actively achieved by tilting the nucleus and eyes and flexing the body and proboscis. In cranchiids, tilting of the organs alone suffices and adjustments are accomplished much more rapidly than in the pterotracheids.

Description: Coccoliths were studied from the ODP Hole 1002C and core PL07-39PC in the Cariaco Basin. Increases in Emiliania huxleyi are synchronous with decreases of Gephyrocapsa oceanica and vice versa. A new index (GEX) based on the relative abundances of these two taxa is proposed, and correlates with various other proxies. It is shown that GEX can serve as upwelling proxy. This confirms that the Intertropical Convergence Zone shifted north during the Bølling/Allerød, south during the Younger Dryas and back north during the Preboreal. The upwelling proxy shows few discrepancies with the terrigenous record.

Description: A visible tephra horizon in the NGRIP ice core has been identified by geochemical analysis as the Fugloyarbanki Tephra, a widespread marker horizon in marine cores from the Faroe Islands area and the northern North Atlantic. An age of 26 740 ± 390 yr b2k (1s uncertainty) is derived for this tephra according to the new Greenland Ice Core Chronology (GICC05) based on multiparameter counting of annual layers. Detection of this tephra for the first time within the NGRIP ice core provides a key tie-point between marine and ice-core records during the transition between MIS 3 and 2. Identification of this volcanic event within the Greenland records demonstrates the future potential of using tephrochronology to precisely correlate palaeoarchives in widely separated localities that span the last glacial period, as well as providing a potential method for examining the extent of the radiocarbon marine reservoir effect at this time.

Description: A study of the diet of Sepia officinalis and S. elegans in the Ria de Vigo has shown that crustaceans are the most abundant prey in both species, followed by fish. Changes in the food composition of both species occur with growth. The type of prey eaten by the two sexes of these species is very similar. The possibility of trophic competition between juveniles of S. qficinalis and S. elegans is discussed.

Description: Natural communities are constantly changing due to a variety of interacting external processes and the temporal occurrence and intensity of these processes can have important implications for the diversity and structure of marine sessile assemblages. In this study, we investigated the effects of temporal variation in a disturbance regime, as well as the specific timing of events within different regimes, on the composition and diversity of marine subtidal fouling assemblages. We did this in a multi-factorial experiment using artificial settlement tiles deployed at two sites on the North East coast of England. We found that although there were significant effects of disturbances on the composition of assemblages, there were no effects of either the variation in the disturbance regime or the specific timing of events on the diversity or assemblage composition at either site. In contrast to recent implications we conclude that in marine fouling assemblages, the variability in disturbance regimes (as a driving force) is unimportant, while disturbance itself is an important force for structuring robust ecosystems.

Description: Archived scales and otoliths constitute a unique source of DNA that potentially enables extension of the temporal scale of genetic studies of fish populations by decades and even centuries. We review recent insights into fish population and conservation genetics obtained using analysis of DNA from archived samples. This involves both new knowledge about demographic parameters and population structure in wild populations and insights into consequences of anthropogenic pressure resulting from over-harvesting, habitat degradation and stocking. We show that the latter category of studies have led to significant changes of management practices. Ongoing improvement of genetic methods will undoubtedly further expand the ability to utilize historical DNA samples. We envisage that temporal comparisons of large numbers of coding genes will lead to novel insights into selective responses of fish populations to anthropogenic challenges, particularly fisheries-induced selection and global warming. However, both acquisition and storage of historical DNA samples can be hurdles to temporal genetic analyses, while degradation and low copy number in historical DNA samples render genetic data from such sources prone to technical artefacts. We summarize recommendations for storage of samples and DNA extraction and provide checklists for validation of genotyping results. Finally, we stress that validation procedures also involve documentation of the time and population of origin of historical samples, and the inferences drawn should account for the technical and statistical uncertainties associated with historical DNA analysis.

Description: Intra‐plate volcanism in western Europe shows statistically significant episodicity during the Quaternary period. By comparing the known ages for eruptions in France and Germany, which are compiled here, with a composite oxygen isotope record, we have investigated the link between this episodic volcanism and the climate record over the last two million years. We show that increased volcanism between 415–400 ka and 17–5 ka correlates with warming phases at the end of the last Weichselian (Devensian) and earlier Elsterian (Anglian) glacial stages. The three significant caldera explosions in the eastern Eifel, Germany, are all associated with warming phases at the onset of interglacials. The growth and decay of nearby ice sheets suggest that surface changes in continental mass distribution during glacial Milankovich cycles could provide a mechanism for this correlation by means of the distal effects of flexural loading on the lithosphere.

Description: An analysis of mass (M) and standard length (LS) data for larval, juvenile and adult sprat (Sprattus sprattus; Clupeidae) revealed marked changes in the allometric scaling factor (b in inline image). For sprat 〈44 mm LS, b was 5·0, whereas in larger juveniles and adults, b was c. 3·4 indicating a relatively protracted metamorphic period for this species.

Description: To investigate and disentangle the role of major histocompatibility complex (MHC)‐based ‘good genes' and ‘compatible genes' in mate choice, three‐spined sticklebacks Gasterosteus aculeatus with specific MHC IIB genotypes were allowed to reproduce in an outdoor enclosure system. Here, fish were protected from predators but encountered their natural parasites. Mate choice for an intermediate genetic distance between parental MHC genotypes was observed, which would result in intermediate diversity in the offspring, but no mate choice based on good genes was found under the current semi‐natural conditions. Investigation of immunological variables revealed that the less‐specific innate immune system was more active in individuals with a genetically more divergent MHC allele repertoire. This suggests the need to compensate for an MHC‐diminished T‐cell repertoire and potentially explains the observed mate choice for intermediate MHC genetic distance. The present findings support a general pattern of mate choice for intermediate MHC diversity (i.e. compatible genes). In addition, the potentially dynamic role of MHC good genes in mate choice under different parasite pressures is discussed in the light of present and previous results.

Description: Individual behaviour of Atlantic cod Gadus morhua in the presence of hypoxic water was measured in situ in the vertically stratified Bornholm Basin of the Baltic Sea. Considering all recaptured individuals, the use of hypoxic habitat was comparable to data derived by traditional survey data, but some G. morhua had migrated towards the centre of the c.100 m deep basin and spent about a third of their time at oxygen saturation 〈50%, possibly to forage on zoobenthos. Maximal residence time per visit in such hypoxic water was limited to a few hours, allowing for the digestion of consumed prey items in waters with sufficient dissolved oxygen.

Description: The seasonal growth trajectories of wild Atlantic salmon Salmo salar juveniles by age group within the Margaree River, Canada, are described. Circuli counts from scales were used to infer growth rates at different ages and these were used to predict the proportions of age 2‐ and 3‐year old smolts from different portions of the watershed. In the wild Atlantic salmon juveniles from the Margaree River, there was no bimodality in fork length frequencies and no 1 year old smolts were produced. Water temperature differences during the growing season were insufficient to explain the differences in growth rates and size at age among the sites sampled. There was a positive association between the growth rate in the first year and the subsequent age at smoltification. In the Margaree River, differences in tributary specific growth rates and size at age were expected to produce important differences in the relative ages at smoltification.

Description: Speciation and the maintenance of recently diverged species has been subject of intense research in evolutionary biology for decades. Although the concept of ecological speciation has been accepted, its mechanisms and genetic bases are still under investigation. Here, we present a mechanism for speciation that is orchestrated and strengthened by parasite communities acting on polymorphic genes of the immune system. In vertebrates, these genes have a pleiotropic role with regard to parasite resistance and mate choice. In contrasting niches, parasite communities differ and thus the pools of alleles of the adapted major histocompatibility complex (MHC) also differ between niches. Mate choice for the best‐adapted MHC genotype will favour local adaptations and will accelerate separation of both populations: thus immune genes act as pleiotropic speciation genes –‘magic traits’. This mechanism should operate not only in sympatric populations but also under allopatry or parapatry. Each individual has a small subset of the many MHC alleles present in the population. If all individuals could have all MHC alleles from the pool, MHC‐based adaptation is neither necessary nor possible. However, the typically small optimal individual number of MHC loci thus enables MHC‐based speciation. Furthermore, we propose a new mechanism selecting against species hybrids. Hybrids are expected to have super‐optimal individual MHC diversity and should therefore suffer more from parasites in all habitats.

Description: Human activities have differentially altered biogeochemical cycling at local, regional and global scales. We propose that a stoichiometric approach, examining the fluxes of multiple elements and the ratio between them, may be a useful tool for better understanding human effects on ecosystem processes and services. The different scale of impacts of the elements carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus and the different nature of their biogeochemical cycles, imply a large variation of their stoichiometric ratios in space and time and thus divergent impacts on biota. In this paper, we examine the effects of anthropogenic perturbations on nutrient ratios in ecosystems in two examples and one case study. Altered stoichiometry in agricultural systems (example 1) can affect not only crop yield and quality but also the interactions between plants and their pollinators, pests and pathogens. Human activities have also altered stoichiometry in coastal ecosystems (example 2). Increased N loading has especially lead to increased N:P and reduced Si:N ratios, with detrimental effects on ecosystem services derived from coastal pelagic food webs, such as fish yield and water quality. The terrestrial–aquatic linkage in stoichiometric alterations is illustrated with a case study, the Mississippi River watershed, where anthropogenic activities have caused stoichiometric changes that have propagated through the watershed into the northern Gulf of Mexico. Coupled with altered stoichiometric nutrient inputs are the inherent differences in variation and sensitivity of different ecosystems to anthropogenic disturbance. Furthermore, the connections among the components of a watershed may result in downstream cascades of disrupted functioning. Applying a multiple element perspective to understanding and addressing societal needs is a new direction for both ecological stoichiometry and sustainability.

Description: A new technique for the harmonic analysis of current observations is described. lt consists in applying a linear band pass filter which separates the various species and removes the contribution of non-tidal effects at intertidal frequencies. The tidal constituents are then evaluated through the method of least squares. In spite of the narrowness of the fitter, only three days of data are lost through the filtering procedure and the only requirement on the data is that the time interval between samples be an integer fraction of one day. This technique is illustrated through the analysis of a few French current observations from the English Channel within the framework of INOUT. The characteristics of the main tidal constituents are given.

Description: 14C concentrations, as weil as 13C, hydrographic and nutrient data are reported for 5 hydrographic stations that form a transatlantic section near 40° N ("Meteor" cruise no. 23, 1971). Precision (for 14C ± 0.3% or better) and comparability with literature data are specified. A planned intercomparison with the US GEOSECS program within the Newfoundland Basin deep water failed because of variability of water characteristics. The observed 14C values decrease from about Δ 14C = + 80‰ at the surface to -70‰ at 2000 m depth. Deeper down, the values west of the Midatlantic Ridge remain similar, whereas those east of the ridge decrease further, to about -110‰. It is shown that bomb-14C is prominent down to about 1500 m depth. Beyond this depth the bomb 14C component is small and is negligible in the eastern basin below 2800 m. On the basis of the 14C-tritium correlation, the distribution of natural 14C below about 1500 m depth is derived from the observations. In the deep and bottom water east of the ridge the 14C-salinity relationship seemingly is non-linear. Contrary to expectation, the 14C concentration in the bottom water is not lower than found on an US GEOSECS station near 10° N. Apparently, lateral concentration differences in the Northeast Atlantic bottom water as well as nonlinearity of the 14C-salinity relationship at 40°N do not exceed 10‰ in Δ 14C.

Description: The grazing of different copepodite stages of Calanus finmarchicus on natural phytoplankton populations was measured at different times of day and night during the Fladen Ground Experiment (FLEX), from the end of May to the beginning of June 1976, at the central position of the "FLEX box" (58° 55' 00" N, 0° 32' 05" E), on board of the R.V. "Meteor". A big difference between nocturnal and diurnal food intake was found, particularly for the stages V & IV, which at night ingest 4 to 10 times more than during daytime. The maximal daily food intake (24 hours), taking into account the different feeding rates at the different times of the day and expressed as percent of own carbon weight, was found to be 31 %, 83 %, 115 % and 148 % for the copepodite stages V, IV, III, II and I together, respectively, with an initial feeding threshold at about 50-60 µg C · l-1. The total grazing for the upper 40 m depth layer was calculated for each sampling time; a very pronounced grazing rhythm was found, due to the higher ingestion rates at night combined with the vertical migrations. Maximal night ingestions were 100-200 mg C/m2/hour at the end of May to 300-400 mg C/m2/hour at the beginning of June, compared with 1-20 mg C/m2/hour at midday. Making a balance of the positive influence of particulate primary production and the negative influence of grazing on the stock of particulate carbon, we could show that the main cause of the decline of the phytoplankton bloom in this period was Calanus grazing. Other zooplankton activities, namely respiration, production and faecal pellets excretion as measured by four other authors are in balance with our results of ingestion.

Description: "Auftrieb 75" was a joint cruise of R.V. "Meteor" and R.R.S. "Discovery" performed in the area 21-26° N off the northwest African coast during January-March, 1975. Current meter observations from six moorings and CTD/STD observations from three repeatedly covered sections of the cruise are analysed in order to describe the distribution of the water masses and its variability with the changes in the current system. The Canary Current is seen to pass through the northwestern corner of the expedition area, carrying with it a geostrophic eddy with a period in excess of 30 days. The eddy is probably another example of the type generally found in the open ocean circulation. Further south, offshore currents display large variations in strength and direction with a typical time scale of 10-14 days which are believed to reflect largescale mixing processes along the boundary of the Canary Current and the poleward flow of the coastal region, involving North Atlantic Central Water (NACW) and South Atlantic Central Water (SACW). The coastal upwelling undercurrent has been observed along the shelf edge but undergoes large variations in response to the wind and to variations in the horizontal divergence of the offshore currents. On the shelf the circulation responds to the local longshore wind to some extent but is also strongly affected by variations of the currents at the shelf edge. The distribution of water masses at intermediate depth ( 100-800 m) is analysed quantitatively based on the assumption that mixing between NACW and SACW is effective along surfaces of constant density only. lt is shown that most intense mixing occurs at about 22-23° N and is still very important further south. At 25-26° N SACW has been absorbed into the surrounding NACW water mass to a high degree, even in the undercurrent. Isolated bodies of water are found in the southern part of the expedition area, some of which are carried north in the undercurrent. The large variability in the water mass distribution at the source level of the upwelling probably has important consequences for the variations in the efficiency of biological production of the upwelling region.

Description: The main objectives of the Fladen Ground Experiment (FLEX) 1976 were an investigation of the dynamics of the mixed layer and the development of the spring plankton bloom. A quantitative consideration of individual chemical parameters (nutrients, particulate nitrogen and phosphorus) showed it to be advantageous to divide the water column into several layers which are separated from one another by measured temperature gradients. Measurements of particulate matter (phosphorus and nitrogen) revealed two plankton blooms at the central station. The first one (21.4.-14.5.76) was much more extensive than the second one, since the limiting thermocline was at a depth of about 60 m. Silicate was consumed most rapidly during this bloom and almost completely exhausted. The second bloom (19.-30.5.76) produced concentrations of particulate matter which were almost as high as the first one but were limited in only a few meters' water depth by a secondary thermocline, which prevented an influx of nutrients. Nitrate was completely exhausted during the second bloom. A high degree of nutrient depletion in the mixed layer from 24.4.-29.4. and from 22.5.-27.5.76 make these periods appear well-suited for determination of uptake rates. These periods are characterized. by a parallel course of concentration curves in the upper water layers for all nutrients except ammonium, and by the absence of !arge short-term fluctuations. Thus, disturbances due to hydrodynamic effects were minimal. The effects of tidal changes were minimized by using daily averages of the various concentrations. However, from 9.5.-13.5.7 6 in the upper layer a relatively strong and rapid increase was observed in the concentrations of all nutrients, which can probably only be explained by hydrodynamic influences. The nitrogen and phosphorus budgets can only be approximately balanced without considering dissolved organic matter. The strong decrease in dissolved inorganic nutrients during the first plankton bloom is almost comple,tely compensated by the increase in particulate matter. Not considering hydrodynamic influences, deficits after the plankton bloom could be explained by the fact that dissolved organic substances, as weil as sedimentaty matter and zooplankton, either were not considered at all, or at least not quantitatively. The time periods from 2.-7.4. and from 21.4.-14.5.76 show no strong short-term fluctuations in the nitrogen and phosphorus budgets and appear most suitable for calculations of mass fluxes, uptake and production rates, since biological-chemical processes seem to be dominant over hydrodynamic ones during these periods.

Description: The monthly mean meteorologically induced circulation of the North Sea for the period 15 March to 15 April 1976 (JONSDAP '76 INOUT period) is computed using two numerical models. One has a fine grid resolution, is two-dimensional, comprehensively non-linear and covers the North Sea. The other has a coarser grid resolution, is three-dimensional, and linear except for the inclusion of quadratic bottom friction. The depth variation of the two horizontal components of current in this model is accomplished using an expansion of time and horizontally dependent coefficients and depth dependent functions. The three-dimensional modelling technique presented here is sufficiently flexible to allow an arbitraty space and time variation of vertical eddy viscosity, although still retaining a continuous representation of current in the vertical, and allowing for variable bottom topography. Preliminary results presented here for the meteorologically induced circulation of the North Sea during JONSDAP '76 agree weil with present knowledge of the circulation of the North Sea. Comparing surface and bottom currents computed with the 3 D shelf model, it is evident that the windinduced flow varies considerably in both magnitude and direction between sea surface and sea bottom. The distribution of depth mean current computed with the 3 D shelf model over the North Sea is nearly identical to that computed with the 2 D North Sea model. This is particularly encouraging since the 3 D shelf model does not contain the advective terms, which are present in the 2 D model, and has a coarser resolution.

Description: The ecology of the lower marine fungi, namely the thraustochytrids, in the Fladen Ground area (FLEX box) and other parts of the North Sea was studied during 5 cruises in 1975 and 1976. The number of fungi/liter and the number of species showed seasonal fluctuations in the surface water samples from all the stations. A high number was found in September 1976 and a low number in March 1976. These numbers, however, revealed no seasonal fluctuations in the underlying sediments. In both the surface waters and the sediments, a consistently low number of fungi was recorded for certain stations and a high number of fungi for others, the reason for this being unknown. The sediments revealed a very high number of fungi/liter. Observations on the distribution of various species are presented. Certain species occurred more frequently at some stations than at others; certain species occurred more in the water column, e. g. Ulkenia minuta, and still others in the sediments, e. g. Thraustochytrium multirudimentale.

Description: In the framework of the Fladen Ground Experiment 1976, zooplankton samples were taken during the phytoplankton spring bloom in April-May and after the bloom in June. The plankton was collected with two samplers, a towed multiple high-speed sampler and a newly developed swing net for local sampling. The results of both methods are compared. The mean number and dry weight per m3 are given for the common species, as weil as the density of fecal pellets. The calanoid copepod Calanus finmarchicus formed 63 %, resp. 90 % of the biomass. The population composition, distribution, dry weight/length relationship and productivity of this species is studied in more detail. The high abundance of fecal pellets, eggs and young stages during the spring bloom indicate a high zooplankton activity in this period. The low density of these indicators and the apparent descent of the older Calanus stages to deep water layers in June signify the dependency of the zooplankton activity on the phytoplankton density. The estimated daily production of Calanus during the phytoplankton bloom was 20 mgC/m2. The significance of the seasonal vertical migration and the role of zooplankton in the northern North Sea ecosystem is discussed. lt is concluded that the Zooplankton could have checked the low algal density in May-June after the spring bloom, but it is far from certain that it stopped the phytoplankton outburst at the end of April and early May.

Description: During the culmination of the phytoplankton spring bloom in the Fladen Ground area in April-Mai 1976, gross primary production was between 1500 and 2000 mg particulate C m-2 day-1, at a crop density (mainly diatoms of the genus Chaetoceros) of about 1500-3500 mg C m-2. Estimates of the C : chlorophyll a ratio in living cells were much lower than those reported in the literature, possibly because part of what is measured as "chlorophyll a" by the common fluorometric method is associated with particles that are not reported as cells. Most of the dark 14C fixation during the bloom's climax was due to abiotic processes. Excretion of 14C-labeled carbohydrates did not account for a significant fraction of the total photosynthetic rate. The low crop after the bloom period, in June, corresponded with nutrient depletion of the euphotic zone. The low photosynthetic efficiency in June may have been a gross underestimate. The presence of relatively high concentrations of chlorophyll derivatives signifies that the algal crop was consumed by heterotrophs, but at a lower rate in April/May than during the June cruise when particularly high molar ratios of phaeophorbide a and phaeophytin a relative to chlorophyll a were found. The high respiratory rate relative to autotrophic production in June manifested itself also in high dark 14C fixation values. The high concentration of phaeophorbide a in the upper 40 m and its scarcity below this depth during the spring bloom climax in April/May implies that copepod grazing at that time took place principally in the euphotic zone. The remarkably high concentration of chlorophyllide a in the surface layer during the bloom period indicates that the part of the crop that was destroyed by the grazers while eating was occasionally as high as the part that was actually ingested.

Description: During the Fladen Ground Experiment (FLEX, March 26-June 6, 1976) quantitative investigations of herbivorous zooplankton were performed. For that purpose 1785 water samples (5 or 10 l) were taken with a rosette sampler at the central station (pos. 58° 55' N, 0° 32' E) from nine to ten standard depths and filtered through 30 µm gauze filters. The development of the most important Zooplankton groups at the central Station is presented in depth-integrated time series (0-100 m) of individuals per m2. The number of individuals of Calanus finmarchicus was converted to biomass (dry weight). At the end of the sampling at the central station the standing stock of Calanus finmarchicus showed about 18 g dry weight per m2. Numerical values for the time lags between different plankton groups are calculated with the aid of the cross-correlation function. The time lag between the diatom ad copepod egg peaks is only up to 2.75 days; that between diatoms and the larvae of bottom invertegrates is 5 days. Between the copepod eggs and the maximum number of nauplii (N I-N VI) there is a time lag of 10.75 days. Another 10.25 days lie between the maximum numbers of nauplii and copepodites (C I-C VI). Considering the depth-integrated time series of the abundance of Calanus finmarchicus copepodites, a succession of the Stages seems to exist. Nevertheless, numerical values for the time lags between the different developmental stages cannot be calculated unambiguously by the cross-correlation technique. This is probably caused by extreme simultaneous fluctuations, especially of the numbers of all stages of Calanus finmarchicus in the last phase of the sampling at the central station.

Description: The third phase of the cooperative data collection program JONSDAP begun in 1970 by the countries bordering on the North Sea was planned to include for the first time biological and chemical measurements in 1976, as well as physical ones. Intensive measurement programs were performed, one concentrating on the currents flowing into and out of the open boarders of the North Sea (INOUT) for 40 days in March/ April and one in which the dependence of the spring plankton bloom on the vertical temperature structure was studied in the Fladen Ground area for 100 days from March to June (FLEX). Around 90 % of the planned program with moored systems and 75 % of the measurements from moving ships were able to be carried out successfully. The large quantities of data required the establishment of two data centers. The current data were collected in Liege, all data from the FLEX box in Hamburg. A cooperative JONSDAP format was agreed on for the exchange of data. Graphic presentations of the data have been compiled in the two-volume Draft FLEX/IN OUT Atlas and distributed to all JONSDAP '76 participants, one of the main purposes of which being the facilitation of interdisciplinary evaluations, now that the intradisciplinary data processing has almost been completed - as presented in this volume.

Description: Measurements of nutrients and the elements phosphorus and nitrogen from the central station in FLEX '76 were used to calculate mass fluxes and budgets for these elements in defined time and depth intervals. The intervals were defined using hydrodynamic and biological criteria. Within these periods rates of increase and decrease were calculated for nitrate, ammonium, phosphate, particulate nitrogen and phosphorus. These rates were also calculated for the layer above and below the main thermocline. The element budget was balanced within some of the defined intervals. This was possible by only considering biological, chemical, and vertical physical interactions at the central station. At the beginning of the phytoplankton bloom we found fluxes with a maximum of 28 ngat · l-1 · d-1 for phosphorus and 590 ngat · l-1 · d-1 for nitrogen. Interaction diagrams are shown for mass fluxes for three periods during the plankton bloom.

Description: Since both German research vessels „Meteor" played a major role in G. Dietrich's work, it seemed appropriate to present his bibliography in this series. An assessment of his scientific achievements was given at an earlier date (H. U. ROLL 1973: In memoriam GüNTER DIETRICH 1911-1972. - ,,Meteor" Forsch.­ Ergebn. A, No. 12: V-X).

Description: Vertical velocity spectra can be determined by three different indirect methods: Following isopycnal surface displacements, following isothermal surface displacements, or calculating water particle displacements from temperature time series at fixed pressure levels, with the mean vertical temperature gradient used for the conversion factor. This third method is the easiest to perform. Data from GATE 1974, obtained by CTD profiling onboard R. V. "Meteor" and by temperature measurements on moorings, are used to check whether the three methods are equivalent. lt is shown that autospectra do not differ significantly within the 95 % confidence intervals, and either method can be applied. This does not infer an equivalence with respect to the actual data points since individual events were found in the low-passed time series with deviations occurring between displacement curves obtained by the different methods. These events were apparently due to the advection of another water mass.

Description: The research programmes of the German groups in JASIN 1978 are summarized, comprising projects that concern the planetary boundary layer, the radiation budget, the oceanic mixed layer and thermocline and the trace element exchange. Lists of the participating scientists and technicians are included. Brief descriptions of the field activities on board the three ships and the aircraft are given, including maps and stations lists.

Description: A first survey of the entire temperature data base from the central station is presented. The development and the changes of the sea surface temperature, the thermocline, and the heat content due to meteorological forces, are described.

Description: A description is given of part of the data on residual currents which were obtained during the INOUT phase of JONSDAP '76. This current measuring programme was the result of a concerted effort of North Sea bordering countries and was aimed at a better understanding of residual water movements in the North Sea. One of the first results of INOUT is the possibility to compare estimates of simultaneously occurrmg inflow/outflow through several North Sea boundary sections. It appears that major inflow/outfow occurs in the neighbourhood of the Norwegian Trench. Estimates for other boundaries are significantly lower. Matching the objectives of INOUT several charts are presented showing measured residual water movements under influence of some "persistent" winds that is to say, during situations with spatial homogeneous windfields not changing too rapidly in time. Under such conditions it is possible to identify residual current systems. However, as can be expected, in cases of spatially inhomogeneous winds and/or winds changing rapidly in time it is harder to interpret the current measurements. In those cases it is necessary to use mathematical North Sea models with the proper wind field input. The Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI) took care that these windfields were stored on magnetic tape during INOUT for this purpose.

Description: Recordings were made of the voltage differences between the ends of two submarine cables crossing the Pentland Firth; the recordings covered the period from February to October 1976 and thus included the period of the JONSDAP '76 oceanographic experiment in the North Sea. The noise level on these recordings was found to be greater than for similar recordings on cables crossing the Dover Strait and the North Channel of the Irish Sea; reasons for this increased noise level are discussed. Tidal analyses of the recordings were made for six discrete sets of recordings, each of 29 days duration; these analyses produced consistent results for the five major semi-diurnal constituents, namely N2, V2, M2, S2 and K2. However, an examination of the propagation of the M2 tidal constituent in this region showed that the phase of M2, as calculated from the cable recordings, did not obviously aeeord with the ove1·all pattern of propagation of that constituent. Tentatively it was concluded that cable measurements represent the integrated effect of flow over an area surrounding the Pentland Firth where this flow varies widely in both phase and direction. A calibration coefficient for the cable, relating voltage to flow, was calculated by equating the annual variation in the amplitude of the M2 constituent (measured by the cable) with the annual variation in the conduetivity of sea water in the region. The residual component of cable voltage was compared with residual components of (a) the sea surface elevation at Wick and (b) currents derived from current meter measurements at a nearby location in the North Sea; also with wind recordings at Wick. These comparisons indicated that there was neither a significant wind-driven flow through the Pentland Firth, nor a seasonally varying residual flow. It is suggested that a significant component of both the residual flow (as measured by the cables and by the current meters) and the residual elevations at Wick is associated with the propagation of "external surges" into this region.

Description: A simple model is used to simulate the dynamics of phytoplankton and phosphate from April 19 to May 16 during the Fladen Ground Experiment. The model describes the development of vertical profiles in time. lt allows changes of phytoplankton standing stock by turbulent diffusion, sinking of cells, primary production, respiration, mortality and grazing, and changes of phosphate concentration by turbulent diffusion, nutrient uptake and remineralization. The model is used as a means of checking the consistency of the biological assumptions made with the observed phosphate concentration, phytoplankton cell counts and primary production. Local turbulent diffusion coefficients, underwater light climate and Zooplankton standing stock in terms of total copepods are given quantities, the former from a physical upper layer model, the latter two from data. Simulations show that if phytoplankton standing stock and primary production are reproduced fairly well, then phosphate is still too high and vice versa. lt appears that the conversion factor expressing the amount of phosphate necessary to produce l g carbon is crucial. Relating this ratio to the observed decrease of phosphate and the primary production the simulation reproduces the exponential growth phase weil but fails for the rest. This indicates the need of a variable conversion factor in the model, depending on the status of the bloom. lt can be shown that turbulent diffusion is indispensable for the development of the spring bloom. Further it is shown that as a consequence of the assumptions made about two thirds of primary production are taken up by zooplankton. An estimate of potential grazing of copepods shows that copepods starve or have other food sources than living phytoplankton.

Description: The figures contain section data of S, t, total P, N03, chlorophyll a, total particulate P and total phytoplankton. The data indicate that primary production had started only along Norway, probably due to the high stability caused by the presence of water of Baltic origin. Three runs were made; differences between them are discussed in relation to results of current measurements.

Description: Tracking a balloon with a single ship-based theodolite, is a method which has been used for a long time to determine the wind profile over the sea. There are two main sources of error: (a) the incorrect estimate of the height of the balloon and (b) the pitch and roll motions of the ship. In this paper the effects of both errors are investigated. The ship's motion is simulated with use of a transformation from a fixed (earth) to a moving (ship) coordinate system. Some examples are presented to illustrate the magnitude of these effects.

Description: From 8 April to 4 May 1976 chemical changes in the marine environment and primary production were studied in the area of the northern North Sea (Fladen Ground). During most of the observation time, when the ship was keeping close to the central position, the influence of patchiness and advection by currents was relatively small. Under such favourable conditions it was possible to follow the temporal changes and processes in the water during the first phase of the spring phytoplankton bloom. After 19 April a distinct thermocline was established. At the same time the nutrient and C02 concentrations in the surface water began to decrease, due to the uptake by the growing phytoplankton. Before the start of the phytoplankton bloom the ratios (by atoms) were N : Si : P = 14 : 6.5 : 1.0. The ratios of nutrient and C02 uptake into the phytoplankton were ΔC : ΔN : ΔSi : ΔP = 120 : 19 : 9 : 1.0. During periods with high irradiance a remarkable diurnal rhythm of temperature and 02 concentration in the surface water could be observed. From the pH, temperature, salinity und alkalinity data the mean net primary production during the first 12 days of the phytoplankton bloom ( 19 April to 1 May) was calculated. lt was about 2.0 ± 0.4 gC · m-2 • d-1. The same result was obtained from the phosphate data.

Description: During the 1971 "Meteor" survey of the Mediterranean Outflow, seven current meter moorings were deployed and several hydrographic stations executed. The time series data from almost all the current meters revealed a solitary increase in temperature with an amplitude of ≃ 1 °C and a duration of 2-4 days. The present analysis of the event shows that it was due to a thickening of the Mediterranean Outflow and an increase in the volume transport. The origin of the event is traced to the source of the Outflow from where it propagated with a speed of 16 cm s-1. Coinciding with the time at which the event passed the Strait of Gibraltar, the cross channel water level difference revealed an anomalous variation of about 8-cm amplitude and 3-day duration. Through conversion the magnitude of this fluctuation is now shown to simply a significant increase in the Outflow volume transport. An investigation of the reigning meteorological conditions indicates that, simultaneously, an impulse of water in the Alboran Sea was transported westwards by the wind. Through a qualitative and quantitative approach, the atmospheric forcing of the Western Mediterranean is thus linked to a large variation in the Outflow structure.

Description: Measurements by CTDs (Multisonde, Bathysonde) and current profilers were carried out onboard the research vessels "Meteor" and "Planet" during the Joint Air-Sea Interaction Project (JASIN) in 1978. Data from these observations are presented in the form of mean distributions with their standard deviations, as time series and as profiles during the "multiship experiments". Selected time series of terms derived from the data are added: current shear, Vaisala frequency and Richardson Number. The text also contains information concerning instrument calibration and data processing.

Description: The three Federal German research vessels "Planet", "Meteor" and "Poseidon" participated in the Second Multiship Experiment during JASIN 1978 as stationary ships with CTD yo-yo profiling. The analysis is concerned mainly with the weakly stratified layer between the seasonal thermocline and the turbulent mixed layer. The thermoclinic structure of a front in that layer and its tidal/inertial displacement is described and is shown to be in accordance with current meter data from the H2 mooring. It is shown that the CTD yo-yos cannot be treated as pure time-series but that the movement of the ships relative to the seabed and relative to the front has to be taken into account. The method of isopycnic analysis was used to eliminate the effect of internal waves. Temporal coordinates can be converted to spatial coordinates allowing for the tidal/inertial movements. Thus high resolution sections through the front can be given. The thermohaline structure is described on density levels in the seasonal thermocline and in the weakly stratified layer above it.

Description: On a cruise from the eastern into the western Mediterranean Sea in November/December 1978 a total of 126 samples were collected from 8 vertical profiles and 7 coastal stations for trace metal analysis. The sampling, processing and analysis was performed under strict "clean room" conditions. The concentration of the open-sea samples are close to oceanic results gathered under similar conditions. The grand averages from all profiles ( ± st. dev. of the individual samples) of 0.40 ± 0.16 µg l-1 Zn, 17.4 ± 7.4 ng l-1 Cd, 0.21 ± 0.07 µg l-1 Cu, 0.21 ± 0.13 µg l-1 Mn and 0.25 ± 0.09 μg l-1 Fe indicate that a "metal problem" does not exist in the open Mediterranean. A biologically mediated depletion in surface waters or correlation with nutrients have not been observed under the conditions established on this cruise. This is probably due to low primary production and seasonal advection processes prevailing in this sea. The data for manganese show generally higher values in the surface layer (0-75 m) than in deep waters. This could evidently proved in the nearshore profile indicating a terrigenous source for manganese.

Description: We present field measurements of air-sea gas exchange by the radon deficit method that were carried out during JASIN 1978 (NE Atlantic) and FGGE 1979 (Equatorial Atlantic). Both experiments comprised repeated deficit measurements at mixed position over periods of days or longer, using a previously described precise and fast-acquisition, automatic radon measuring system. The deficit time series exhibit variations that only partly reflect the expected changes in gas transfer. By evaluating averages over each time series we deduce the following average gas transfer velocities (average wind velocity and water temperature in parentheses): JASIN phase 1: 1.6 ± 0.8 mid (at -6 mis, 13 °C) JASIN phase 2: 4.3 ± 1.2 mid (at -8 mis, 13 °C) FGGE: 1.2 ± 0.4 mid (at -5 mis, 28 °C) 0.9 ± 0.4 mid (at -7 mis, 28 °C) 1.5 ± 0.4 mid (at -7 mis, 28 °C) The large difference between the JASIN phase 2 and FGGE values despite quite similar average wind velocity becomes even larger when the values are corrected to a common temperature. Both values are, however, fully compatible with the range of gas transfer velocities observed in laboratory experiments and the conclusion is suggested that their difference is caused by the highly different wind variability in JASIN and FGGE. We conclude that in gas exchange parameterization it is not sufficient to consider wind velocity only. A comparison of our observations with laboratory results outlines the range of variation of air-sea gas transfer velocities with wind velocity and sea state. We also reformulate the radon deficit method, in the light of our observed deficit variations, to account explicitely for non-stationarity and horizontal inhomogeneity in the near-surface radon deficit layer (i.e., mixed-layer and upper thermocline). We show that neglection of non-stationarity and horizontal inhomogeneity in previous radon work introduces considerable uncertainty in deduced gas transfer velocities. We furthermore discuss the observational requirements that have to be met for an adequate exploitation of the radon deficit method, of which an observation area of minimum horizontal inhomogeneity and monitoring of the remaining inhomogeneities are thought to be the most stringent ones.

Description: In general the natural aerosol reacts very sensitively to the change of relative humidity. This behaviour could be observed from August to September during the Atlantic "Meteor" -Expedition 1965, but not during the periods January to May 1969 and July to August 1974. There are some reasons for the assumption that this is an effect of organic material in the surfaces of the particles. But we do not know if this is an effect of different seasons or of increasing pollution of the atmospheric aerosol.

Description: Data from two current meter moorings and thermosa�linograph records from the Scotia Sea are presented. Results from the first mooring site demonstrate the ex�change of Antarctic Bottom Water between the northern Scotia Sea and the Argentine Basin. The sec�ond current data set illustrates the permanent deep counter current on the continental rise of the southern Drake Passage. Surface temperature and salinity rec�ords describe the position of the Polar Front and the Weddell-Scotia-Confluence during early austral sum�mer 1980/81.

Description: From 27 Janua1y to 23 June 1979 R. V. "Meteor" surveyed the central equatorial Atlantic on a section along 22° W from 3° N to 2° S. During the observation period, a hydrographic section down to 600 m was repeated ten times with a continuous "Howaldt-Bathysonde" CTD and a rosette sampler. The station distance was 10 to 15 nm. The water samples were used to recalibrate salinity and to determine oxygen, nutrients and chlorophyll a. An undulating CTD system ("Delphin") was towed on 11 sections. A profiling distance of one to two nautical miles and a profile depth of 90 m was obtained. Five current meter arrays were moored along 22° W between 3° N and 1° S from January to March 1979. In May and June two moorings were installed at 2° N and at the equator. On the buoys measurements of wind speed and direction were obtained. At 43 stations a wire-guided Aanderaa profiling current meter was successfully lowered. Drifting buoy experiments were repeated three times with clusters of 5 to 10 buoys. A fourth experiment took place in 1978 in the Gulf of Guinea. On the way from and to port XBT sections were carried out. The data sets obtained by these instruments are presented in this data report.

Description: The benthic foraminiferal populations along three traverses across the Northwest African continental margin were analyzed on the base of ea. 60 surface sediment samples. Depth ranges of 213 species were established and the main trends of vertical distribution are compared with those known from adjacent regions. Main faunal breaks occur at 100/200 m and 1OOO/ 1500 m depth of water. Some species show latitudinal distribution boundaries and the same applies to population density (standing stock), reflecting the regional distribution of nutrients supply by river discharge and upwelling processes. - High proportions of Bolivina tests at the lower slope indicate extended downslope transport.

Description: Surface sediments from the continental slope and rise off North-West Africa between the Canary Islands and the Cape Verde Islands are mainly composed of silt-sized material (2-63 µm). A number of sampling profiles were run normal to the coast and the composition of the silt fraction was determined quantitatively by scanning electron microscope analysis. The carbonate portion of the sediment was found to be nearly exclusively of biogenic origin. The most important contributors are planktonic foraminifers and coccoliths with minor contributions derived from pteropods. Plankton-produced biogenic opal such as diatoms and radiolarians play a very minor role. The high production rates of opal-silica plankton which exists in the surface waters of the NW-African upwelling system does not give rise to corresponding increases of opal accumulation in the bottom sediment. Benthic producers consist mainly of foraminifers and molluscs but the entire input from benthic producers is extremely small. An exception to this occurs in the prodelta sediments of the Senegal river. Downslope particle transport is indicated by the occurrence of shallow-water coralline algae, ascidian sclerites and cliona boring chips and can be traced as far down as the continental rise. The non-carbonate silt fraction mostly consists of quartz which is derived as eolian dust from the Sahara desert by the Harmattan and the NE-Trade-wind system. The percentage of carbonate in the surface sediments directly indicates the relative proportions of autochthonous biogenic components and terrigenous allochthonous quartz particles.

Description: Water depth zonation of fifty nine benthonic foraminiferal species in marine sediment surfaces has been described. Some species are combined to groups which mark particular depth zones: an upper and lower shelf-fauna, an upper and lower slope fauna, and a shelf-slope fauna. Dependence on latitude could be ascertained for Textularia panamensis) and submergence effects for Hyalinea balthica.

Description: Five reflection seismic profiles from the borderland between Messina Abyssal Plain and Malta Ridge (= Medina Rise), recorded during "Meteor" cruise no. 50 in 1978, are described. The subbottom/bottom structures are interpreted as a pattern of broad grabens and intercalated SW-NE striking narrow horsts. Within the grabens great thicknesses of Messinian evaporites as well as of Quaternary turbiditic sediments, depending on the respective differential sinking, were accumulated. Some of the horsts rise above the surrounding seafloor. Ontop of the horsts, being mainly composed of pre-Messinian series, only little or no evaporites at all were deposited. The cover of Quaternary sediments depends on the position of the horst with respect to the seafloor. The thickness of Pliocene sediments is constant within the whole studied area. The authors conclude from the observations that the pattern of horsts and grabens acted already during Messinian time producing the variable thickness of the evaporite layer. The relative movements between grabens and horsts as well as a general sinking of the whole area must have acted also in Pliocene and Quaternary time.

Description: During cruise VA 18 of R.V. "Valdivia" an area of 15 X 18 km, lying on a horst within the Clarion fracture zone south-southeast of Hawaii at 14° N and 153° W was studied in detail by reflection seismic measurements and geological sampling. The horst lies between two fracture-zone-parallel grabens. Its top displays a typical abyssal hill topography which is a result of block faulting within the oceanic crust, with faults parallel to the fracture zone and in north-southerly directions. It is assumed that the horst represents an already faulted block of oceanic crust which was included into the fracture zone when it tectonically developed into a system of horsts and grabens upon its transform stage. The surveyed horst differs from its neighbouring grabens by reduced sediment-accumulation rates and hiatuses. Its basement relief has led to a further differentiation of the internal sedimentary pattern. The northward-tilted horse block shows on its southern, more elevated part, frequently signs of erosion or reduced sedimentation, whereas the low lying part is characterized by an increased sediment accumulation. In the area of low accumulation rates and erosion volcanic ash layers with manganese-oxide crusts occur at or near the surface of the sediment layer. Also manganese nodules occur in this area. In the area of high accumulation rates the volcanic ash layers were observed with increased thicknesses in deeper sections of the cores. Crusts and nodules were not found here. This is also the case for the graben south of the horst, where high accumulation rates prevented the formation of manganese crusts and nodules. The reduced accumulation in the southern part of the horst has favored the dissolution of radiolarians as well as the authigenic formation of zeolites and manganese micronodules. The correlation between the reflectors seen in the 3.5 kHz subbottom profiler records and the lithostratigraphic boundaries found via geological sampling was generally good. It allowed the determination of the areal distribution of sedimentary sequences and magmatic rock outcrops.

Description: Three sediment cores from the continental shelf and slope off NW Africa (Banc d'Arguin; 52 m, 665 m, and 973 m water depth) have been investigated by means of a coarse fraction analysis. The two shallower cores have been deposited during less than 10,000 years, the deeper one during the last 36,000 years. The Holocene sedimentation (〈 4000 years) in the deeper part of core 79 from the edge of the Banc d'Arguin is strongly influenced by reworking of Late Glacial dune sands and biogenic particles from shallower water (〈 40 m), as well as eroding current influence. A decrease in grain size of silicate material and a decrease in lateral supply, correlated to a doubling of accumulation rates in the upper part of the core, indicates a more autochthonous sedimentation with less sorting influence in the youngest Holocene. In core 86 from 665 m water depth a turbidite consisting mainly of silicate sand and silt separates two layers of autochthonous Holocene sediments. This turbidite shows a complete bioturbational mixing, only at its bottom the original bedding can be detected. Gradational changes in sediment composition indicate the decreasing admixture of allochthonous material from the bottom of the turbidite in 300 cm to about 140 (100) cm core depth. The depth of provenance of the allochthonous material can be assumed in 100-300 m water depth as indicated by various biogenous particles. Small amounts of shallow water particles in the autochthonous layers indicate a supply from shallow water, which probably occurred by the mechanism of "particle by particle supply". None of the three cores indicates upwelling influence, although oceanographers found intense upwelling in the area of the Banc d'Arguin. The Holocene climate in that area probably has been arid, small variations in terrigenous matter composition and grain size in the Early Holocene might be due to decreased wind strength or to an increase in rain fall. The Peak Glacial section (14,000-22,000 y.B.P.) of the deepest core 88 indicates a very much intensified eolian silt supply and an additional bottom supply of quartz sand. In the interval 22,000-36,000 y.B.P. wind strength decreased, but probably no increase in humidity occurred. So this area in about 19° 40' N had an arid climate in the Late Holocene and in the Peak Glacial. The fragmentation of planktonic foraminifers and the abundance of aragonitic tests of pteropods in core 88 indicate an Early Holocene (8330 y.B.P.) preservation spike. Two minima in fragmentation correlated to maxima in pteropod content at about 15,700 and 21,000 y.B.P. are correlated to maxima in shallow water supply and thus do not reflect preservation conditions, but only lateral supply from the carbonate dissolution minimum zone in about 300 m water depth.

Description: 86 sediment cores retrieved from water depths greater than 500 m off NW Africa between 12° and 28° N, were investigated by means of X-ray radiographs. Biogenic sedimentary structures occupy more than 90% of the examined area of sediment sections with the remaining 2% being turbidites and 8% slump masses. More than 20 types of lebensspuren can be distinguished. Most of them correspond to ichnogenera known from the fossil record: Chondrites, Corophioides, Helminthopsis, Lophoctenium, Planolites, Scolicia, Skolithos) Teichichnus) Thalassinoides) Trichichnus and Zoophycos. The observations are "uniformitarian" with respect to the lebensspuren encountered. Nevertheless, fossil counterparts to our sediments are not known, because (i) similar sedimentation processes at present are restricted to small areas, (ii) all of them are situated on passive continental margins, which are rarely preserved in the fossil record, and (iii) biogenic structures in silty marlstones are normally not very conspicuous in the fossil state. The sediments are highly bioturbated; in most cases biogenic reworking occurs repeatedly. The behaviour of the infaunal organisms and thus the formation of lebensspuren depends from the nutrient supply: In sediments with Corg greater than 2% only biodeformational structures are observed, while with Corg lower than 2% lebensspuren predominate. The lebensspuren inventory was found to be systematically arranged in a number of "bioturbation levels" below the sediment surface. With increasing sediment depth, a higher specialisation in the behaviour of the fauna is observed. Moreover, in each group of lebensspuren, the diameter decreases. The following levels are established: i. Level with biologically homogenized sediment, ii. Scolicia level (tubes, 2-4 cm diameter), iii. Planolites level tubes, 1 cm diameter), iv. level with small burrows of Chondrites) Helminthopsis (tube systems, 1-3 mm diameter) and spreiten burrows of Corophioides) Lophoctenium) and Teichichnus, v. Zoophycos level (spreiten burrows). With increasing water depth, the thickness of the bioturbated sediment decreases from 80 cm at 500 m to 40-60 cm at 2000 m and 15-25 cm at 4750 m. Based on the levels, biogenic sedimentary structures are grouped into "associations" having ecological significance. The following associations are established: (1) biodeformational association dominating in sediments with Corg greater than 2% ; (2) Scolicia association, (3) Planolites association [(2) and (3) depend on the sediment grain size: (2) in sediments with high content of silicate particles 〉 20 μm, (3) in sediments with clay content 〉 50%] ; ( 4) Vertical spreiten association, (5) Chondrites association, (6) Zoophycos association [( 4) through ( 6) predominate in glacial sediments, (4) in water depth about 1000 m, (5) below 1000 m, and (6) between 2000 and 4000 m]. The formation of different biogenic sedimentary structures and thus the distribution of lebensspuren associations depends on the environmental conditions. Generally, the diversity of lebensspuren is higher in glacial than interglacial sediments. This phenomenon is attributed to a higher rate of Corg accumulation and preservation in glacial sediments, possibly because of changes in the circulation of water masses. The sediments become mixed in different style by different lebensspuren types. Because biogenic reworking is - as a rule - repeated several times, the vertical mixing effect is considerable, though difficult to estimate. Stratigraphic resolution is optimal in core sections with Scolicia, where vertical mixing is restricted. Here stratigraphic resolution reaches an accuracy of about 200-300 years where the sedimentation rate is 10-20 cm/1000 years.

Description: The terrigenous sediment proportion of the deep-sea sediments from off Northwest Africa has been studied in order to distinguish between the aeolian and the fluvial sediment supply. The present and fossil Saharan dust trajectories were recognized from the distribution patterns of the aeolian sediment. The following time slices have been investigated: Present, 6,000, 12,000 and 18,000 y.B.P. Futhermore, the quantity of dust deposited off the Saharan coast has been estimated. For this purpose, 80 surface sediment samples and 34 sediment cores have been analysed. The stratigraphy of the cores has been achieved from oxygen isotopic curves, 14 C-dating, foraminiferal transfer temperatures, and carbonate contents. Silt sized biogenic opal generally accounts for less than 2% of the total insoluble sediment proportion. Only under productive upwelling waters and off river mouths, the opal proportion exceeds 2% significantly. The modern terrigenous sediment from off the Saharan coast is generally characterized by intensely stained quartz grains. They indicate an origin from southern Saharan and Sahelian laterites, and a zonal aeolian transport in midtropospheric levels, between 1.5 and 5.5 km, by "Harmattan" Winds. The dust particles follow large outbreaks of Saharan air across the African coast between 15° and 21° N. Their trajectories are centered at about 18° N and continue further into a clockwise gyre situated south of the Canary Islands. This course is indicated by a sickle-shaped tongue of coarser grain sizes in the deep-sea sediment. Such loess-sized terrigenous particles only settle within a zone extending to 700 km offshore. Fine silt and clay sized particles, with grain sizes smaller than 10-15 μm, drift still further west and can be traced up to more than 4,000 km distance from their source areas. Additional terrigenous silt which is poor in stained quartz occurs within a narrow zone off the western Sahara between 20° and 27° N only. It depicts the present dust supply by the trade winds close to the surface. The dust load originates from the northwestern Sahara, the Atlas Mountains and coastal areas, which contain a particularly low amount of stained quartz. The distribution pattern of these pale quartz sediments reveals a SSW-dispersal of dust being consistent with the present trade wind direction from the NNE. In comparison to the sediments from off the Sahara and the deeper subtropical Atlantic, the sediments off river mouths, in particular off the Senegal river, are characterized by an additional input of fine grained terrigenous particles (〈 6 μm). This is due to fluvial suspension load. The fluvial discharge leads to a relative excess of fine grained particles and is observed in a correlation diagram of the modal grain sizes of terrigenous silt with the proportion of fine fraction (〈 6 μm). The aeolian sediment contribution by the Harmattan Winds strongly decreased during the Climatic Optimum at 6,000 y.B.P. The dust discharge of the trade winds is hardly detectable in the deep-sea sediments. This probably indicates a weakened atmospheric circulation. In contrast, the fluvial sediment supply reached a maximum, and can be traced to beyond Cape Blanc. Thus, the Saharan climate was more humid at 6,000 y.B.P. A latitudinal shift of the Harmattan driven dust outbreaks cannot be observed. Also during the Glacial, 18,000 y.B.P., Harmattan dust transport crossed the African coast at latitudes of 15°-20° N. Its sediment load increased intensively, and markedly coarser grains spread further into the Atlantic Ocean. An expanded zone of pale-quartz sediments indicates an enhanced dust supply by the trade winds blowing from the NE. No synglacial fluvial sediment contribution can be recognized between 12° and 30° N. This indicates a dry glacial climate and a strengthened atmospheric circulation over the Sahelian and Saharan region. The climatic transition phase, at 12,000 y.B.P., between the last Glacial and the Interglacial, which is comparable to the Allernd in Europe, is characterized by an intermediate supply of terrigenous particles. The Harmattan dust transport was weaker than during the Glacial. The northeasterly trade winds were still intensive. River supply reached a first postglacial maximum seaward of the Senegal river mouth. This indicates increasing humidity over the southern Sahara and a weaker atmospheric circulation as compared to the Glacial. The accumulation rates of the terrigenous silt proportion (〉 6 μm) decrease exponentially with increasing distance from the Saharan coast. Those of the terrigenous fine fraction (〈 6 μm) follow the same trend and show almost similar gradients. Accordingly, also the terrigenous fine fraction is believed to result predominantly from aeolian transport. In the Atlantic deep-sea sediments, the annual terrigenous sediment accumulation has fluctuated, from about 60 million tons p.a. during the Late Glacial (13,500-18,000 y.B.P., aeolian supply only) to about 33 million tons p.a. during the Holocene Climatic Optimum (6,000-9,000 y.B.P., mainly fluvial supply), when the river supply has reached a maximum, and to about 45 million tons p.a. during the last 4,000 years B.P. (fluvial supply only south of 18° N).

Description: Psephitic particles in the region of the Iceland-Faeroe-Ridge have been transported and deposited by means of a complex interplay of glacier movements and drifting icebergs. The composition of the particle association is controlled by the sedimentation of basaltic rock particles derived from the ridge itself and, in addition to that and in southern parts of the ridge, from the Faeroe Islands, the Faeroe-Bank and the Bill Baileys-Bank. Besides, there are crystalline and sedimentary dropstones showing a very varied petrography and a wide range of particle sizes. Their percentage becomes greater as the distance from the ridge increases. The association of dropstones is relatively homogeneous in the region of the ridge and only at greater distances from the ridge it becomes more differentiated. Owing to their composition and distribution, as well as on the basis of characteristic fossils and rock types, the dropstones are derived from Scandinavia and Great Britain. During periods of maximum glaciation, the Iceland-Faeroe-Ridge, the Faeroe-Bank and the Bill Baileys-Bank were under ice.