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Introduction
Publications
Publications (99)
Purpose
The levels of metal(loid)s at the beginning of the coastal pelagic food web, providing an insight into accumulation in the suspended particulate matter (SPM) and size-fractionated plankton, were studied in the shallow coastal marine environment of the Gulf of Trieste (northern Adriatic Sea) affected by the metal polluted Isonzo/Soča River a...
Globally, there are 3 400 to 4 000 described species of marine microalgae but only 1 to 2 percent are considered to be harmful. Harmful algal blooms (HABs) have significant impacts on food safety and security through contamination or mass mortalities of aquatic organisms. The impacts and mass mortalities of marine species caused by harmful algae ar...
Diatoms are one of the most important phytoplankton groups in the world’s oceans. There are responsible for up to 40% of the photosynthetic activity in the Ocean, and they play an important role in the silicon and carbon cycles by decoupling carbon from atmospheric interactions through sinking and export. These processes are strongly influenced by...
Marine primary producers are highly sensitive to environmental deterioration caused by natural and human-induced stressors. Following the Water Framework Directive and the Marine Strategy Framework Directive requirements, the importance of using the different primary producers of the coastal marine ecosystem (pelagic: phytoplankton and benthic: mac...
Diatoms of the genus Pseudo-nitzschia H.Peragallo are known to produce domoic acid (DA), a toxin involved in amnesic shellfish poisoning (ASP). Strains of the same species are often classified as both toxic and nontoxic, and it is largely unknown whether this difference is also genetic. In the Northern Adriatic Sea, there are virtually no cases of...
In coastal seas, a variety of environmental variables characterise the average annual pattern of the physico-chemical environment and influence the temporal and spatial variations of phytoplankton communities. The aim of this study was to track the annual and interannual variability of phytoplankton biomass in different size classes in the Gulf of...
In the shallow and landlocked northeast Adriatic Sea, environmental factors have changed in recent decades. Their influence on seasonal and inter-annual variability of phytoplankton has been documented in the recent literature. Here, we decipher the long-term variability of phytoplankton phenology at a Long-Term Ecological Research site (Gulf of Tr...
While satellite remote sensing of ocean color is a viable tool for estimating large-scale patterns of chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) and global ocean primary production, its application in coastal waters is limited by the complex optical properties. An exploratory study was conducted in the Gulf of Trieste (Adriatic Sea) to assess the usefulness of Sentinel...
According to the methodological standards established by Marine Strategy Framework Directive, the assessment for the pelagic habitat under the Biodiversity Descriptor should be carried out at the regional or sub-regional level. In the case of Mediterranean Sea, the sub-regional assessment seems optimal to take into account biogeographic differences...
The Northern Adriatic Sea (NAS) and Chesapeake Bay (CB) are examples of semienclosed coastal ecosystems in which primary production is dominated by phytoplankton. We update an earlier comparative analysis of phytoplankton dynamics in these two systems by comparing spatial and temporal dynamics of nutrients, chlorophyll‐a biomass, community composit...
We review the spatial distribution of toxic marine microalgal species and the impacts of all types of harmful algal events (Harmful Algal Blooms, HABs) in the Mediterranean Sea (MS), including the Black Sea, the Sea of Marmara, coastal lagoons and transitional waters, based on two databases compiled in the Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OB...
For mitigation of the effects of pollution, the media, policy makers and, in turn, the scientific community and industry each provide contributions through development of a sense of urgency, and with guidelines and solutions. For non-indigenous species (NIS) that can frequently have negative impacts on the native biota, this is often conveyed in an...
Pseudo-nitzschia H. Peragallo (1900) is a globally distributed genus of pennate diatoms that are important components of phytoplankton communities worldwide. Some members of the genus produce the neurotoxin domoic acid, so regular monitoring is in place. However, the identification of toxic members in routine samplings remains problematic. In this...
The diatoms species belonging to Pseudo-nitzschia H. Pergallo, 1900 genus are extensively studied because
many of them are responsible for amnesic shellfish poisoning (ASP) via the production of domoic acid (DA).
Pseudo-nitzschia species are important members of the phytoplankton community and are regularly reported
in the Adriatic Sea. We present...
Production of domoic acid (DA) in the marine diatom
genus Pseudo-nitzschia H.Peragallo, 1900 is one of the
peculiarities of these organisms. Toxic blooms cause
damage to aquaculture industries worldwide and have
even lead to human death. Nowadays toxic species are
readily identified with genetic tools and electron microscopy but their toxin product...
Physical and chemical data collected in three stations, with time series ranging from 1983, 1986 and 1989 to 2016, were analyzed in order to detect trends and frequency of occurrence of hypoxia events in bottom waters of the Gulf of Trieste (Adriatic Sea). The results of the analysis of 30-years data show a tendency toward increasing oxygen concent...
Microplate based sensor for quick detection of Pseudo-nitzschia in environmental samples. Our genosensor ensures high-throughput detection (80 samples in 2-3 hours) of harmful organisms that cause a lot of damage to the global aquculutre industry.
Introduction to the Proceedings of the 52nd European Marine Biology Symposium - Volume 98 Special Issue - Andreja Ramšak, Patricija Mozetič
Port baseline surveys (PBS) provide species inventories in and around ports, with a focus on non-indigenous species that may have been introduced by vessels, primarily via ballast water. PBS are an essential tool to support effective management strategies for non-indigenous as well as native harmful aquatic organisms and pathogens (HAOP). This pape...
We examined the relationship between phytoplankton primary production, biomass and community structure in a 2-year in situ survey in a predominantly bottom-up limited coastal sea (Gulf of Trieste, Adriatic Sea). Our results suggest that nutrient supply primarily shapes the phytoplankton community structure, which in turn governs the magnitude of pr...
Pseudo-nitzschia is a globally distributed genus of planktonic diatoms. Some species of Pseudo-nitzschia can produce domoic acid, a neurotoxin, which causes amnesic shellfish poisoning. Therefore, the species identification is extremely important for the maintenance of healthy marine ecosystems as well as human health. Since the species composition...
At present there is no consistent approach for the definition of Good Environmental Status (GES) and targets in the Mediterranean Sea, especially for Biodiversity Descriptors, according to the Article 12 of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD). The use of plankton indicators in the Mediterranean Sea refers mostly to pelagic habitats in co...
This paper describes the data processing that led to the definition of ecological classification criteria for the Biological Quality Element (BQE) phytoplankton in the coastal waters (CW) of the Adriatic and Tyrrhenian seas, according to the Water Framework Directive (2000/60/EC). The chosen metric was the annual geometric mean of chlorophyll a con...
The giant colonial ciliate Zoothamnium niveum harbors a monolayer of the gammaproteobacteria Cand. Thiobios zoothamnicoli on its outer surface. Cultivation experiments revealed maximal growth and survival under steady flow of high oxygen and low sulfide concentrations. We aimed at directly demonstrating the sulfur-oxidizing, chemoautotrophic nature...
Ballast water discharges may cause negative impacts to aquatic ecosystems, human health and economic activities by the introduction of potentially harmful species. Fifty untreated ballast water tanks, ten in each port, were sampled in four Adriatic Italian ports and one Slovenian port. Salinity, temperature and fluorescence were measured on board....
Physical and chemical data collected in three time-series stations, mostly on a regular monthly basis, from 1983/89 to 2016, together with data acquired by 2 meteo-oceanographic buoys since 1999 and data from monitoring programs were analyzed in order to detect trends and frequency of occurrence of hypoxia events in bottom waters. Hydrological, bio...
An inventory of phytoplankton diversity in 12 Adriatic ports was performed with the port baseline survey. Particular emphasis was put on the detection of harmful aquatic organisms and pathogens (HAOP) because of their negative impact on ecosystem, human health, and the economy. Phytoplanktonic HAOP are identified as species, either native or non-in...
This proof of concept study presents a Bayesian Network (BN) approach that integrates relevant biological and physical-chemical variables across spatial (two water layers) and temporal scales to identify the main contributing microbial mechanisms regulating POC accumulation in the northern Adriatic Sea. Three scenario tests (diatom, nanoflagellate...
A comprehensive review of ballast water sampling and analyses methods for CME indicative analyses and detailed test was conducted. Missing BWS sampling and analyses tools were identified and bought to provide each participating county with an indicative and detailed test for in-tank and at-discharge sampling. BWS and analyses methods were be tested...
Monitoring programmes and surveillance activities are generally of limited efficacy if carried out on a local scale. As such, it is clearly important to promote and ultimately establish an Adriatic monitoring and surveillance system in order to optimize the use of existing capacity; involve key societal sectors; and implement standardized procedure...
Dispersal plays a key role to connect populations and, if limited, is one of the main processes to maintain and generate regional biodiversity. According to neutral theories of molecular evolution and biodiversity, dispersal limitation of propagules and population stochasticity are integral to shaping both genetic and community structure. We conduc...
We examine the large-scale distribution patterns of the nano- and microphytoplankton collected from 145 oceanic stations, at 3 m depth, the 20% light level and the depth of the subsurface chlorophyll maximum, during the Malaspina-2010 Expedition (December 2010-July 2011), which covered 15 biogeographical provinces across the Atlantic, Indian and Pa...
Note on principal component analysis.
(DOCX)
Spatial distribution of PC3 and PC4.
(A, C, E) PC3. (B, D, F) PC4. Top, 3 m depth. Centre, 20% light level. Bottom, SCM depth.
(TIF)
Samples with extreme scores for the first four components.
List of the 20 samples (approximately a 5% from a total of 406) with the highest or lowest scores for each component.
(DOCX)
Properties of samples with extreme scores for PC4.
Average ± standard deviation of major nutrient concentrations (μmol L-1) and the ratio silicate: (nitrate+nitrite) at 200 m depth for the low and high PC4 samples. See S2 Table for the sample list.
(DOCX)
Distribution of taxa with positive or negative correlation with PC2.
(A, B) taxa positively correlated with PC2. (C, D) Taxa negatively correlated with PC2 (see Table 6, with the exception of Algirosphaera robusta and Hemiaulus hauckii, not included in the table because their correlation coefficients with PC2 were -0.15 and -0.13, respectively). (A...
Distribution of phytoplankton taxa with positive or negative correlation with PC3.
(A, B) taxa positively correlated with PC3. (C, D) Taxa negatively correlated with PC3 (see Table 7, with the exception of Planktoniella sol, not included in the table because its correlation coefficient with PC3 was -0.28). (A) Calcidiscus leptoporus, (B) Helicospha...
Properties of samples with extreme scores for the first four components.
Average ± standard deviation of principal component scores and biological and environmental variables corresponding to the samples with the highest or lowest scores for each component (listed in S2 Table).
(DOCX)
Distribution of taxa with positive or negative correlation with PC1.
(A, B) taxa positively correlated with PC1. (C, D) Taxa negatively correlated with PC1 (see Table 5). (A) Discosphaera tubifer, (B) Oxytoxum minutum, (C) Ophiaster hydroideus, (D) Pseudo-nitzschia spp. For each taxon: Top, 3 m depth; centre, 20% light level; bottom, SCM depth.
(TI...
Distribution of phytoplankton taxa with positive or negative correlation with PC4.
(A, B) taxa positively correlated with PC3. (C, D) Taxa negatively correlated with PC4 (see Table 8). (A) Pennate diatom sp. 2, (B) Pterosperma moebii, (C) Rhabdosphaera clavigera, (D) Calciopappus rigidus. For each taxon: Top, 3 m depth; centre, 20% light level; bot...
Spatial distribution of PC1 and PC2.
(A, C, E) PC1. (B, D, F) PC2. Top, 3 m depth. Centre, 20% light level. Bottom, SCM depth.
(TIF)
Position of samples in NMDS space and relationships with salinity.
Left: Position of the sample points in the space of axes 1 (NMDS1) and 2 (NMDS2) of the NMDS. The numbers indicate the sampling depth (1 = 3 m, 2 = 20%, 3 = SCM). Right: Relationship between salinity and the coordinates of the sample points for the third axis (NMDS3) of the NMDS.
(T...
Taxa loadings.
Loadings (correlation coefficients) of the 76 taxa selected for the analysis with the first four principal components.
(DOCX)
Relationship between PC2 and the second axis (NMDS2) of the NMDS with Chl a concentration for the three sampling depths.
Left, relationship between PC2 and Chl a concentration. Right, relationship between NMDS2 and Chl a concentration. The three sampling depths (3 m, 20% light level and SCM) are indicated by different colours. The corresponding reg...
Distribution of the sample scores of the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans in the space of PC3 and PC4.
(A, D, G) Atlantic Ocean. (B, E, H) Indian Ocean. (C, F, I) Pacific Ocean. (A, B, C) 3 m depth. (D, E, F) 20% light level. (G, H, I) SCM. The letters in different colours indicate the provinces (see Table 2 for interpretation).
(TIF)
Date and position of the Malaspina-2010 stations.
(DOCX)
The Indo-Pacific egg-carrying copepod Pseudodiaptomus marinus Sato, 1913 was recorded for the first time in the Port of Koper, Slovenia (Gulf of Trieste) in February 2015. This is the fourth finding of this species in the Mediterranean Sea, and the third for the Adriatic Sea. A rather high abundance of 73 ind. m-3 was recorded, which is considerabl...
Considering that dissolved oxygen represents an important indicator for the ecological classification of coastal waters, inserted by the European Community Marine Strategy Framework Directive within the descriptor of eutrophication, we have analyzed some of the existing multidecadal time series of dissolved oxygen concentration in the Gulf of Tries...
Different phytoplankton analysis methods (pulse-amplitude modulated fluorometry (PAM) and microscopy) were compared in preparation for compliance monitoring and enforcement with ballast water discharge standards. The key objective was to practically evaluate the performance of different new methods and tools to identify indicatively living phytopla...
Nitrogen concentrations and isotopic composition were used to identify nitrate sources and processes in the catchments of two Slovenian coastal rivers, Rižana and Dragonja, and to investigate whether they have any notable influence on the Gulf of Trieste. The sampling was performed from May 2010 to March 2011. The data indicated that δ15NNO3δ15NNO3...
The temperature dependence of planktonic metabolism in the subtropical North
Atlantic Ocean was assessed on the basis of measurements of gross primary
production (GPP), community respiration (CR) and net community production
(NCP), as well as experimental assessments of the response of CR to
temperature manipulations. Metabolic rates were measured...
The potential link between the microbial dynamics and the environmental parameters was investigated in a semi-enclosed and highly dynamic coastal system (Gulf of Trieste, northern Adriatic Sea, NE Mediterranean Sea). Our comprehensive 2 year time - series study showed that despite the shallowness of this area there was a significant difference betw...
We investigated how variability in physical-chemical properties influences photosynthetic parameters and phytoplankton community structure in the coastal waters of the Adriatic Sea (Gulf of Trieste). During the study period (May 2009–July 2010) the stratification of the water column, induced by freshwater inputs and high sea surface temperatures, i...
We investigated how variability in physicochemical properties influenced photosynthetic parameters and the phytoplankton community in the shallow coastal waters of the Adriatic Sea (Gulf of Trieste), where local rivers greatly influenced the dynamics of the system. During the study period (May 2009–July 2010), high sea-surface temperatures in summe...
The temperature dependence of planktonic metabolism in the Subtropical North Atlantic Ocean was assessed on the basis of measurements of gross primary production (GPP), community respiration (CR) and net community production (NCP), as well as experimental assessments of the response of CR to temperature manipulations. Metabolic rates were measured...
The shallow and land-locked northern Adriatic basin has undergone several changes at different trophic levels over the last decades, of which the most recent and basin-wide is the negative trend in concentrations of chlorophyll a over the last decade. To investigate it in detail, we performed a robust analysis of abiotic parameters and plankton com...
The purpose of this preliminary study was to define the vertical migration pattern in the dinoflagellate community in the shallow coastal sea. Migrations were followed in an area of mussel farming, through two 24-hour samplings, first during mixed and second during stratified water column conditions. Despite variable physical environment we were ab...
The results of the updated and quality-checked data base of field observations on chlorophyll a (Chl a) collected in the period 1970–2007 in the Northern Adriatic Sea are presented. From the last decade, SeaWiFS satellite information
was also considered. Results demonstrate a global tendency towards Chl a reduction in the period of investigation, w...
Carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios of particulate organic matter (POM) were studied approximately weekly during spring and summer 2003 and 2004 in the Gulf of Trieste (northern Adriatic Sea) in order to track the temporal variations and differences between two years. In parallel, particulate organic carbon (POC) and particulate nitrogen (PN)...
This paper presents the first recording of a rare dinoflagellate species, Ceratoperidinium yeye, in the Gulf of Trieste, northern Adriatic, in the summer of 2003, which coincided chronologically with its first finding along the eastern Adriatic coast. The northward spread of C. yeye is discussed in relation to the exceptional meteorological conditi...
A case study was carried out in 2000 in the shallow coastal area of the Northern Adriatic Sea (Gulf of Trieste) where untreated domestic sewage and industrial wastes are discharged at rate of 5500 m3·day−1. The sewage plume above the outfall was followed using faecal coliforms (FC) and overturning length scale (lT). The latter was rejected as a mar...
The photosynthetic properties of phytoplankton populations as related to physical–chemical variations on small temporal and spatial scales and to phytoplankton size structure and pigment spectra were investigated in the Northern Adriatic Sea off the Po River delta in late winter 1997. Large diatoms (fucoxanthin) dominated the phytoplankton in the c...
