High-resolution lab measurements of plankton community oxygen production and respiration rates in Narragansett Bay
by Vitul Agarwal
Institution: Graduate School of Oceanography, University of Rhode Island (USA)

Summary: As oxygen is a necessary by-product of primary production in the natural environment, changes in marine oxygen concentration reflect changes in the underlying processes of photosynthesis and respiration for plankton. The goal of this project was to perform high-resolution measurements of surface seawater collected weekly to estimate changes in oxygen levels in incubated phytoplankton communities. Measuring such rates would help inform biogeochemical models which simulate and predict conditions in the present and future ocean.

More at Pyroscience report.

How about plasticity? Native and invasive crabs exposed to a new generation pesticide
by Lénia Rato
Institution: MARE – Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, ESTM, Polytechnic of Leiria, Peniche, Portugal; NIOZ – Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Department of Coastal Systems, Texel, The Netherlands

Summary: Marine bioinvasions and global change scenarios are hot topics within Marine Biology and Ecology research fields. Brachyuran crabs’ conspicuousness as coastal and marine invaders is poorly understood. This project aimed to unravel adaptive plasticity in crab species with different ecological status (native and invasive) and gauge species specific competitive advantages under pollution stressful scenarios through exposure to a new generation pesticide. Functional and behavioural responses (feed intake and motricity) were addressed. In the project, measurements of oxygen consumption in the array of addressed responses were newly added.

More at Pyroscience report.

Incubation Experiment of TRANSLATES (Trace Gases in Selected Aquaculture Sites in Southern Portugal)
by Riel Carlo O. Ingeniero, Guanlin Li
Institution: GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research and Christian-AlbrechtsUniversität Kiel (Germany)

Summary: The research activity received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program through the ASSEMBLE+ program. Our research aims to observe the potential impact of aquaculture on the nitrogen cycle, on deoxygenation, and the production and consumption of climate relevant trace gases such as nitric oxide, carbon monoxide, nitrous oxide, and methane. On 18 May 2021, we collected effluent waters in 3.5L glass bottles from the aquaculture facility of Estação Piloto de Piscicultura em Olhão (EPPO) in Portugal. The collected samples were then transferred to an area exposed to ambient light conditions with constant flow of water (to minimize temperature fluctuations) at the CCMAR in the Universidade do Algarve. Bottles were incubated in incubation vessels under conditions of light and dark to interrogate the impact of UV on photochemical pathways of NO and CO. A further set of incubations were poisoned with sodium azide to prevent microbial production of nitric oxide. Aside from trace gases concentration, ancillary parameters such as nutrient, O2, pH, marker pigments, CDOM, flow cytometry were determined at the start and end of the incubation. In this part of our research activity, the lab bench pH, dissolved oxygen, and temperature sensors with high sensitivity and accuracy from PyroScience were integrated as a good alternative to conventional methods such as the Winkler method.

More at Pyroscience report.