Digital library

  • Distribution Survey, biomass estimation and atlas providing from Seaweeds in the Oman Sea and Persian Gulf coasts (Oman Sea stage)

    In order to sample, identify and determine Seaweed biomass in the Oman Sea coast (Sistan & Baluchestan Province) with 300 Km length from Gwatr area (with 25 10 N & 61 30 E) to Mydani (25 24 N & 59 5 E) during two years (from Octobr 2001 to September 2003), eleven regions of Gwatr, Passabandar, Beris, kachoo, Ramin, Chabahar, Pozm, Gurdim, Tang, Jood and Mydani were selected as sampeling stations from east to west. Seaweed growth area in intertidial zones determind by measuring and recording of geographic positions by metertape and GPS, then with the help GIS system and satellite maps, area, situation and maps of survey areas, were obtained 15 transects were determind with equal distance in coast area and monthly sampling were done randomly by quadrate 50*50 Cm the samples were transfered to the lab and the weight of each species was obtained after being cleaned, and separating. The biomass of each species per area unit and in the total area was obtained after determing the average weight of species. 

    Also the prefered zones of each species were determined through the maximum number of presence in the transects. 

    Along with this research, the Seaweed species were reconized according to the present references. The photographs were taken and the herbarium sheet was obtained. The samples were sent to experts for final approval. To compare the biomass changes during two years (2002 & 2003), this research was with the same methods of first year from October 2002 to September 2003 in Gwatr, Beris, Ramin, Tang and Jood. 

    During this research 180 species were collected. Among these seaweeds, 160 species (composed of 39 species green algea, 39 species brown algae and 82 species red algae) were identified. There were some important families including green algae (Ulvaceae & Caulerpaceae), brown algae (Sargassaceae & Dictyotaceae) and red algae (Gracilariaceae, Gelidiaceae and Hypneaceae ). 

    Wet biomass of Seaweeds in the total area of Sistan & Baluchestan coasts were 10269399 kg in 2002.
    Among this biomas, 2645223 kg (%25.7) green algae, 2953279 kg (%28.8) brown algae and 4670897 kg (%45.5) red algae were estimated and the monthly average for then were obtained 264522.3 kg, 295327.9 kg and 467089.7 Kg respectively. The maximum biomass was obtained 922246 kg in Chabahar and minimum biomass was obtained 1418 kg in pozm.
    The amount of alginophyte (Sargassum Spp.), agarophyte (Gracilaria, Gelidium & Gelidiella) and karaginophyte (Hypnea musciformis) were 159777 kg, 806915 kg and 188783 kg respectively. In second year (2003), the biomass of wet weight was 4114655 kg in 5 zones. Among this biomass, 849227.5 kg (%20.6) green algae, 1669792 kg (%40.6) brown algae and 1595636 kg (%38/8) red algae were obtained. The monthly average were 70769 kg, 139149.3 kg and 132969.7 kg respectively. The biomass of alginophyte, agarophyte and karaginophyte were 163776.4 kg, 481642.6 kg and 64310.1 kg respectively this year. 

    Author(s): Byram Mohammad Gharanjik , Sh. Ghasemi, A.B. Delokiyan, N. Khodaparast, Gh. Rahimi, M. DJahanbakhsh, N.M. Tatari

  • Diversification of Seaweed Industries in Pacific Island Countries

    Seaweeds are produced for food and as industrial products throughout the Pacific and many communities rely on this production for significant portions of their income. This industry is diverse in the types of seaweeds produced, whether they are cultured or harvested from the coastline , the way that they are processed and in the final use of the seaweeds. However, the production of seaweed is fragmented across th e Pacific region, and the range of opportunities is not well understood and has rarely been evaluated. The overarching aim of this project was to diversify the activities and, correspondingly, the opportunities available to the seaweed industry in the Pacific Islands. The project conducted a diverse range of research for development activities relating to seaweed production and bioproduct evaluation in three partner countries (Fiji, Samoa and Kiribati) working with government fisheries departments, university researchers, community groups and the private sector. The first research objective of the project was t o improve production levels and post - harvest quality of carrageenan gel - producing red seaweed Kappaphycus in Fiji and Kiribati . During t he project , p artners identif ied bottlenecks in the production of this commodity seaweed , evaluated technical barriers for expansion of seaweed production into new communities and how to sustain these efforts, and conduct ed scientific analyses of the quality of the seaweed biomass produced with a view to understanding how the value of the seaweed can be maximised . This work include d activities such as environmental monitoring of the key production sites in each country, reporting on the volumes and value of seaweed in th e domestic supply chains, empirical investigations of growth of different seaweed strains and insights from the communities regarding the socio - economic importance of seaweed farming . In Fiji, 15 Kappaphycus production sites were studied across the Central, Western and Northern divisions, working with the Ministry of Fisheries and Forests and the University of the South Pacific . Through a concurrent effort by government, a number of farm clusters were established and communities were producing seaweed in 2014 ( 35 tonnes) and 2015 (3 9 tonnes), with the majority of production in the Yasawa Islands (70% of national volume). Environmental monitoring of key sites was not able to differentiate any effects of the main physical variables ( temperature, current speed, light levels, nutrients - nitrogen and phosphorus), nor any distinction in terms of the culture methods and drying techniques on production volume and quality . Our insights suggest that it is likely a combination of singular environmental events and human factors that contributed to variation in output, i ncluding that many sites were pre - selected that had previously been farming sites. This was confirmed by social studies that highlighted most of the current crop of farmers had farmed seaweed before, as well as other insights including that 2/3 of farmers were male, many were over 50 years old (30%), most conducted seaweed farming as a family activity (95%), and identified weather and transportation as the main barriers for production. National production i n Fiji was halted by Cyclone Winston in 2016 (one of the strongest cyclones to hit Fiji), and recovery has been slow (2016 - 4 tonnes; 2017 ~9 tonnes) . Data and analysis from project activities were submitted and presented to the Fijian government and shared through the National Seaweed Taskforce which included members of the project team . Efforts in Fiji continue for the export production of Kappaphycus , but farming remain s heavily dependent on government support and initiatives. In Kiribati, 4 Kappaphycus production sites were studied on 3 islands in the Gilbert Group (Tarawa, Aranuka and Abaiang) with project scientists from the Ministry of Fisheries & Marine Resources Development . Production of seaweed from Kiribati is primarily from Fanning Island, in the Line Islands, however dried seaweed is typically stockpiled by the Central Pacific Producers Ltd (CPPL) on Tarawa as the supply chain is broken and sales to Asian processors are sporadic. O n the capital Tarawa, seaweed farming had not occurred for many years and seaweed strains had to be sourced from other locations for project trials . These trials were run with two strains – one of the original Kappaphycus strains (collected from Fanning Island) and one of the new temperature - tolerant strain s (“ maumere ” ) imported by MFMRD from Indonesia . Cyclone Winston in 2016 led to significant wave damage to the coastline, including the study sites. Small seaweed farms have continued after the project with farmers affiliated with Fisheries continuing to produce, dry and sell to the CPPL company. The key findings for this objective mirrored in many ways those of Fijian efforts, which are a narrative of environmental challenges (storms, sedimentation of the seaweed, and high temperatures), supply chain challenges (intermittent buyers that question product quality) and issues around the value of seaweed farming for farmers, especially those on the outer islands with the competition from copra with its regulated prices. Kiribati Fisheries and the CPPL have developed a taskforce to address these concerns, focussing on the potential of short supply chains and local use of the seaweed product to diversify the end use away from export in the near term.

    Author(s): Aisake Batibasag, Joji Vuakaca, Neomai Ravitu, Magele Ropeti, Justin Aiafi, Esmay Tanielu, Ulusapeti Tiitii, Shirleen Bala, Cherie Morris, Tooreka Temari, Tereere Tioti, Tentaku Teata, Karibanang Tamuera, Libby Swanepoel, Ana Wegner, Ian Tuart, Nicholas Paul

  • Diversification Of The Aquaculture Sector - Seaweed Cultivation, Integrated Multi-Trophic Aquaculture, Integrated Sequential Biorefineries

    To retain sustainability as the world’s need for seafood grows, aquaculture’s business models will likely have to change from “one species/one process/one product” to a streamed bioeconomic web involving different industry sectors. Evolving aquaculture practices will require a conceptual shift toward understanding the working of food production systems rather than focusing on monospecific technological solutions. As aquaculture expands to open-ocean operations, deployment footprints should make sense from environmental, economic and production perspectives, and also have an acceptable societal impact.

    Author(s): Thierry Chopin, Amir Neori, Alejandro H. Buschmann, Shaojun Pang, M. Sawhney

  • Diversity and biomass dynamics of marine algae in Biosphere II’s tropical reef macrocosm

    Macrocosms can be used to study complex ecological processes in a small physical space, but the validity of the studies depends on how well the macrocosm simulates natural ecosystem functions. We measured the standing crop of macroalgae and nutrient levels over 4 years in the Biosphere II macrocosm tropical reef biome at Oracle, Arizona. Ten years after this system was closed to outside introductions, it still contained 35 species of macroalgae, within the range found on natural reefs. The macroalgae community was recognizable as a late-successional, coralline algal turf community similar to those found in the low-energy portions of inner tropical reefs. However, biomass values for the most abundant species were in a continual state of flux over the study, and no single species was dominant. Nutrient levels were also unexpectedly dynamic, with dissolved inorganic phosphorous, nitrate, and ammonium each varying by a factor of 10 over the study. The dynamic nature of biomass and nutrient cycles would make it difficult to use this macrocosm for controlled studies. On the other hand, the community dynamics in the Biosphere II ocean may shed light on processes controlling biodiversity and succession on natural reefs. The apparently chaotic swings in biomass and nutrient levels suggested that the paradox of the plankton, which explains how seemingly uniform aquatic environments can support a wide diversity of planktonic forms, may apply to reef macroalgae as well. The Biosphere II ocean biome demonstrates that a diverse macroalgal reef community can be restored relatively easily, supporting the feasibility of actively restoring damaged natural reefs. Macrocosms such as this could be used in manipulative experiments to study the effects of nutrient enrichment and herbivory on coral–algal phase shifts.

    Author(s): Leah Bymers, Edward P. Glenn, Stephen G. Nelson, Kevin Fitzsimmons

  • Diversity of halophilic microorganisms: Environments, phylogeny, physiology, and applications

    The phylogenetic diversity of microorganisms living at high salt concentrations is surprising. Halophiles are found in each of the three domains: Archaea, Bacteria, and Eucarya. The metabolic diversity of halophiles is great as well: they include oxygenic and anoxygenic phototrophs, aerobic heterotrophs, fermenters, denitrifiers, sulfate reducers, and methanogens. The diversity of metabolic types encountered decreases with salinity. The upper salinity limit at which each dissimilatory process takes place is correlated with the amount of energy generated and the energetic cost of osmotic adaptation. Our understanding of the biodiversity in salt-saturated environments has increased greatly in recent years. Using a combination of culture techniques, molecular biological methods, and chemotaxonomic studies, we have obtained information on the nature of the halophilic Archaea as well as the halophilic Bacteria that inhabit saltern crystallizer ponds. Several halophilic microorganisms are being exploited in biotechnology. In some cases, such as the production of ectoine, the product is directly related to the halophilic behavior of the producing microorganism. In other cases, such as the extraction of beta-carotene from Dunaliella or the potential use of Haloferax species for the production of poly-beta-hydroxyalkanoate or extracellular polysaccharides, similar products can be obtained from non-halophiles, but halophilic microorganisms may present advantages over the use of non-halophilic counterparts.

    Author(s): A. Oren

  • Do plant density, nutrient availability, and herbivore grazing interact to affect phlorotannin plasticity in the brown seaweed Ascophyllum nodosum

    Plants have different strategies to cope with herbivory, including induction of chemical defences and compensatory growth. The most favourable strategy for an individual plant may depend on the density at which the plants are growing and on the availability of nutrients, but this has not been tested previously for marine plant–herbivore interactions. We investigated the separate and interactive effects of plant density, nutrient availability, and herbivore grazing on the phlorotannin (polyphenolic) production in the brown seaweed Ascophyllum nodosum. Seaweed plants grown at low or high densities were exposed either to nutrient enrichment, herbivorous littorinid gastropods (Littorina obtusata), or a combination of nutrients and herbivores in an outdoor mesocosm experiment for 2weeks. Seaweeds grown at a low density tended to have higher tissue nitrogen content compared to plants grown at a high density when exposed to elevated nutrient levels, indicating that there was a density dependent competition for nitrogen. Herbivore grazing induced a higher phlorotannin content in plants grown under ambient, but not enriched, nutrient levels, indicting either that phlorotannin plasticity is more costly when nutrients are abundant or that plants responded to herbivory by compensatory growth. However, there were no significant interactive or main effects of plant density on the seaweed phlorotannin content. The results indicate that plants in both high and low densities induce chemical defence, and that eutrophication may have indirect effects on marine plant–herbivore interactions through alterations of plant chemical defence allocation.

    Author(s): Carl Johan Svensson , Henrik Pavia, Gunilla B. Toth

  • Doctoral Thesis Proposal: DEMAND MODELLING AND CALIBRATION FOR HYDRAULIC NETWORK MODELS

    Water distribution network models are used by water companies in a wide range ofapplications. A good calibration of these models is required in order to increase theconfidence of the applications’ results. The aim of this doctoral thesis is to developan adaptive water distribution model which both calibrates its parameters and discernsbetween faults and system evolution. In previous projects, nodal demands were themajor uncertainty within the model parameters. A demand calibration methodologywas developed during the master project. The results obtained were promising, althoughthe work done fulfils only a small part of the whole application. In order to accomplishthe remaining tasks, further work must be done. First, system identifiability will beperformed in order to determine the number of required sensors that make the systemobservable. The identifiability study will lead to sampling design methodologies andnetwork reduction (skeletonization). Once the model is identifiable, two calibrationtechniques based on non-linear least squares and artificial intelligence techniques willbe studied and adapted for the final application. A methodology for distinguishingbetween faults and parameter evolution will be developed too. All the subprocesses willbe assembled in an open source software which combines the simulating engine fromEPANET with the computational power from MATLAB, becoming a full calibrationand monitoring application for water networks. Finally, at least two real scenarios willbe monitored through the proposed application.This thesis proposal sets the basis for the thesis development, presenting the work doneon the subject, organising the future tasks and proposing a working plan.

    Author(s): Gerad Sanz Estapé

  • Does salinity affect growth and carrageenan yield of Kappaphycus alvarezii (Gigartinales/Rhodophyta)?

    Kappaphycus alvarezii (Doty) Doty ex. P. C. Silva is one of the most important sources of raw material for the carrageenan industry (Ask & Azanza 2002). In Brazil, only Hypnea musciformis(Wulfen) J.V. Lamouroux is used as raw material and its natural stocks are not su⁄cient to supply the Brazilian demand (Bulboa & Paula 2005; Reis, Yoneshigue-valentin & Santos 2008). This was one of the reasons why, in 1995, K. alvarezii was introduced at the Brazilian Southeastern coast, in Sao Paulo State (Bulboa & Paula 2005). The carrageenan yield (CY) can change in accordance to environmental parameters as a mechanism of prevention against stressful situations like salinity £uctuations (Hayashi, Oliveira, Bleicher-lhonneur, Boulenguer, Pereira,Von Seckendor¡, Shimoda, Le£amand,Valle¤e & Critchley 2007; Reis et al. 2008). Few works discuss the salinity e¡ects on daily growth rate (DGR) and CYof eucheumatoids in spite of its importance (Ask & Azanza 2002). This information could help the identi¢cation of good sites for cultivation and would help mitigation activities (Ask, Batibasaga, Zertuche-gonzaŁlez & De San 2003). Thus, the aim of this study was to analyse the e¡ect of the salinity on DGR and CY values of K. alvarezii in vitro

    Author(s): Renata Perpetuo Reis, Frederico Sampaio Mesquita, Rafael Rodrigues Loureiro

  • Domestic waste and its impact on production of Caulerpa racemosa (Forssk.) Weber v. Bosse at Minicoy Island, Lakshadweep

    The present study deals with the impact of domestic waste on Caulerpa recemosa collected from a densely populated village of Minicoy Island. Length of erect foliar portion of C. racemosa collected from the polluted site was only 2.15 cm while at control site it was 6.16 cm. Similarly weight of the plant was also low (0.26 g) when compared to unpolluted site (0.95 g). Length – weight relationship indicated wider variability in the size of the plant at polluted site with lower values. Net primary production values showed 7.2 fold more production at control site than that of polluted site. Environmental parameters such as temperature, salinity, turbidity and nutrients were monitored.

    Author(s): Mohamed, Gulshad, Nasser, A K V, Koya, C N Haneefa

  • Domestication of indigenous Porphyra (nori) species for commercial cultivation in Northeast America

    The red alga Porphyra (commonly called nori), is a major source of food for humans throughout the world and is the most valuable maricultured seaweed in the world today. In 1995, approximately 12 billion sheets (approximately 36,000 metric tons) were produced, with an annual value of more than $1.8 billion. Porphyra is primarily used as the reddish-black wrapping, consisting of chopped, pressed, and toasted blades, around sushi rolls. Nori also is a major source of taurine, which controls blood cholesterol levels, and it is a staple in macrobiotic diets. Nori contains high levels of proteins (25-50 percent), vitamins (higher vitamin C content than in oranges), trace minerals and dietary fiber. It also serves as a preferred source of the red pigment r-phycoerythrin, which utilized as a fluorescent tag in the medical diagnositic industry. The U.S. is primarily dependent upon Japan and to a lesser extent China and Korea, for imports of nori. 

    Author(s): Yarish, Charles Ira A. Levine, Grant Gregory Mitman, Chris Neefus, Anita S. Klein, A.C. Mathieson, X.G. Fei, Thierry Chopin, Robert J. Wilkes

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