Obiettivo
The Concerted Action, which began in December 1996, aimed to produce a status report on European estuarine habitats in relation to fish and macro-crustaceans, especially their importance for commercial species and aquaculture. The project focussed on seven main theme chapters covering all aspects of the use of estuarine habitats by fishes. The themes included recruitment, habitat use, trophic interactions, estuarine development and habitat creation, environmental quality, and endangered and rare species.
Chapter 1: Background to Research & Introduction
This Chapter introduces the project and the subsequent topic Chapters.
Chapter 2: Habitat Use by Fishes in Estuaries and other Brackish Areas
This Chapter has concentrated on the significance and roles of selected habitats in the life cycle of commercial and other selected fish species. The habitats considered include sand and mud intertidal flats, subtidal estuarine sandbanks and estuarine subtidal muddy beds, seagrass beds, salt marsh and reed beds, shallow rocky areas, and tidal freshwater areas. The synthesis quantifies the contribution of selected habitats to commercial species' production and assesses the wide-scale usage of estuaries as nursery grounds. In order to complete the task, the habitat availability in the main and representative estuarine areas were quantified.
Chapter 3: Recruitment of Commercial Species in Estuaries
This Chapter has identified which commercial species are using estuaries and their component habitats, and considered the adequacy of available data to determine the amount of production (yield) which estuaries contribute. The synthesis covers the early life stage mortality, larval transport and the links with spawning and nursery areas both within and outwith the estuaries. In addition, the effects of commercial fisheries (both inside and outside estuaries) on estuarine stocks and on the bycatch has been identified.
Chapter 4: Links between Fish and other Trophic Levels
This Chapter has covered the relationships and interactions between commercial fish species (both as adult and in juvenile stages) within estuaries and the relationships and interactions between fish and other top predators e.g. seals, birds, cetaceans, humans. It has allowed definition of the food web structure within European estuaries and their component habitats and thus has given the relationship and interactions with the lower consumers (cephalopoda, crabs, shrimps). In this way the synthesis has assessed the importance of mysids and other hyperbenthos and especially the macro-crustaceans. In particular, the study has defined the number of food-chains within estuarine habitats and the importance of detritus and primary-production generated systems.
Chapter 5: Endangered and Rare Species (including diadromous spp.)
Estuaries have long been considered important for endangered and rare species, especially as some of those species, e.g. sturgeon and shad, may be of commercial importance in other regions of Europe. The importance of various estuarine habitats is considered within this Chapter, and the influence of barriers (water quality and physical barriers) is assessed in relation to the endangered and rare species such as smelt (Osmerus), shad (Alosa), sturgeons (Acipenser) and salmonids (Salmo). The case for re-introductions, as shown at various European estuaries, e.g. the Forth for smelt, has also been considered on a wider scale. This Chapter has particular relevance to the Directive on Habitats and Species, and to coastal zone management for fisheries support, conservation and human-use. The value of re-introductions and their role for captive breeding and translocations of species, and for the transmission of other species as parasites and commensals on commercial species, and the genetic consequences are important topics in European estuaries.
Chapter 6: Estuarine Development/Habitat Restoration and Re-creation and their Role in Estuarine Management for the Benefit of the Aquatic Resources
The impact of estuarine human developments and uses is summarised by this Chapter. In particular, there is an assessment of the effects of the large use of polderising/land claim/channel management and the present movement towards restoration either naturally or man-made, or wetlands through depoldering, setback schemes or marsh creation. The suitability of restoring or modifying habitats for fish and other nekton has been considered together with an analysis of the importance of creek morphology and its dendritic structure. In some estuaries there has been a restoration of salinity gradients and thus it is necessary to consider this in relation to the fish and macro-crustaceans. This Chapter has discussed the changes to spawning grounds in relation to smothering, for example by dredging activities and the impact of artificial structures, port development, land-claim etc. as they change the habitat for estuarine fish. In this way, the project has assessed the management of estuaries as habitats for commercial and non-commercial fish and macro-crustaceans.
Chapter 7: Environmental Quality of Estuaries including the Consideration of Environmental Quality Indices
This Chapter brings together information on the effects of pollutants and the development of water quality barriers both naturally, as often experienced in estuaries, and as the result of human activities. Information is given with regard to trends in the recovery of anthropogenically damaged estuaries, for example as the result of pollution remediation schemes. The influence of aquaculture (both intensive and extensive) on environmental quality is also considered. The report presents and discusses Environmental and Ecological Quality Objectives and Standards (EcoQO, EcoQS, EQO, EQS) and habitat classification schemes as mechanisms for managing estuaries to benefit the fish and macrocrustacean populations.
Chapters 8 & 9: Field Methods (Methodological Harmonisation & Standardisation) and Data Analysis & Interpretation (Analytical Quality Control/Quality Assurance)
This topic is divided into two Chapters, Field Methods (Chapter 8) and Data Analysis & Interpretation (Chapter 9). The Chapters describe the available scientific/commercial fishing methods, through a large matrix showing the main features and advantages and disadvantages, and subsequently presents means of standardisation and harmonisation between workers. This includes the nature and adequacy of techniques in use for studying fish and macro-crustaceans in estuaries, in particular analyses of data (including gear performance, suitability and efficiency and the adequacy of data produced), and the role and value of international and national methods' quality assurance schemes in the production of fisheries and fish biology data in estuaries. The synthesis considers the reproducibility and consistency of methods within groups and the value and possibility of an Analytical Quality Control and Quality Assurance scheme for the studies, both for taxonomy and the field and laboratory methods. The development of AQC/QA schemes for fish studies is a new and novel approach and is following similar schemes for environmental chemistry and benthic biology. The standardisation of methods between groups is particularly important although the studies of the estuarine and brackish habitats by definition require the use of many types of methods.
Chapter 10: Discussion, Recommendations and Further Work
This Chapter summaries the research undertaken within the Concerted Action and indicates which areas and aspects require further study.
The Concerted Action has succeeded by organising workshops and in bringing together workers from a variety of Institutions throughout Europe, together with corresponding members from South Africa and Australia.
A bibliographic database has been created containing over 2650 references searchable by author, editor, date, title, journal, abstract or keywords. The WWW page for the project has also been constructed and information about the Concerted Action can be found under the "Projects" heading on the Institutes website located at www.hull.ac.uk/iecs.
The format and result of the project has been, and continues to be disseminated through several avenues. As a first step, the description and components of the project, together with a request for information, was included in the Bulletin (Issue 24, February 1997) of the Estuarine and Coastal Sciences Association. This newsletter goes to 1000 members and libraries worldwide and resulted in several contacts being made and thus the access to further, unpublished studies.
The extended abstract for the project has been submitted to the EU publication summarising FAIR and MAST projects. Additionally, papers produced as the result of collaboration through the project have either been published/submitted, or are currently in press. Results from the Concerted Action were disseminated via presentation of papers at the ECSA 30 International Meeting held in Hamburg, Germany between 9-13 August 1999.
One of the aims of the project was for the final report to be published in its entirety in the open literature. Several publishers were contacted and expressed an interest in publishing the volume, and a contract has now been signed with Blackwell Sciences Ltd. for the manuscript of the Concerted Action to be published as a book with a provisional working title of "Fishes in Estuaries".
To date some of the information has been included in the papers published and/or presented as indicated below:
Blaber, S.J.M. Albaret, J-J., Chong Ving Ching, Cyrus, D.P. Day, J.W. Elliott, M., Fonseca, D., Hoss, J., Orensanz, J., Potter, I.C. & W. Silvert, 1999. Effects of fishing on the structure and functioning of estuarine and nearshore systems. ICES Journal of Marine Science, in press (solicited major review, approx. 75 pages).
Cabral, H.N. Salgado, J.P. & M.J. Costa. Do the Tagus estuary fish community changes reflect the environmental health of the system. Presented at the ECSA Symposium, Hamburg, Germany, August 1999.
Cattrijsse, A. Tidal and lunar feeding rhythms of juvenile common goby, Pomatoschistus microps in an intertidal estuarine marsh creek. Presented at the ECSA Symposium, Port Elizabeth, South Africa, July 1998
Cattrijsse, A. et al. Fish assemblages of European and South African tidal marshes: a functional guilds-based comparison. Submitted for publication, summer 1998.
Cattrijsse, A., Costa, M.J. Elliott, M., Marchand, J. and S. Mathieson. Fish assemblages of European tidal marshes: a functional guilds-based comparison. Accepted for publication, Marine Ecology Progress Series, due 2000.
Costa, M.J. et al. The importance of the Tagus for estuarine fishes. Presented at the ECSA Meeting on the Tagus estuary, July 1997 and to be published in Aquatic Ecology.
Costello, M.J. Delgado, C.F. & R. Thiel. The conservation status of fish in Europe, with emphasis on the importance of estuaries. Presented at the ECSA Symposium, Hamburg, Germany, August 1999.
Elliott, M. The use of estuarine and marine fishes as indicators of environmental changes. Presented at the ECSA Symposium, Hamburg, Germany, August 1999.
Elliott, M. and S. Marshall (in press). The estuarine fish community of the Humber estuary. In press, Coastal Zone Topics.
Hostens, K. The mysid-feeding guild of demersal fishes in the brackish zone of the Westerschelde estuary, Journal of Fish Biology, 55(4), 704-719. Also presented at the ECSA Symposium, Port Elizabeth, South Africa, July 1998
Marshall, S. & M. Elliott, 1998. Environmental influences on the fish assemblage of the Humber estuary, UK. Estuar. Coastal and Shelf Sci., 46(2), 175-184.
Additionally, 3 of the participants (Dr. Mike Elliott, Dr. Andre Cattrijsse and Kris Hostens) were invited to a discussion workshop in Den Haag, The Netherlands in December 1997, to consider the research and management of the Westerschelde in relation to the fish fauna. The participants were able to include a wider discussion from the Concerted Action.
The Co-ordinator, M Elliott was also invited to join the SCOR105 (Standing Committee on Oceanographic Research) working group on the effects of fisheries on estuarine ecosystems, to bring the European perspective and to link with the Concerted Action. The summary from the present project is being incorporated into the report for the SCOR105 working group and was presented at its workshop held in Halifax, NS in March 1998. Finally, the project has established links with the XENOFISH (Effects of Xenobiotics on marine fishes) project (Concerted Action, ref. CT97.3827) and some results from it were presented at the latter's workshop held in Oslo, February 1998.
REFERENCES
Blaber, S.J.M. 1991. Deep sea, estuarine and freshwater fishes: life history strategies and ecological boundaries. Sth. Afr. J aquat. Sci. 17(1/2), 2-11.
Blaber, S.J.M. Brewer, D.T. & J.P. Salinin, 1989. Species composition and biomasses of fish in different habitats of a tropical northern Australian estuary: their occurrence in the adjoining sea and estuarine dependence. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 29, 509-531.
Cattrijsse, A. Makwaia, E.S. Dankwa, H.R. Hemminga, M. & O. Hamerlynck, 1994. Nekton communities of an intertidal creek of a European estuarine brackish marsh. Mar. Ecol. Progr. Ser., 109, 195-208.
Costa, M.J. 1988. The Tagus and Mira estuaries (Portugal) and their role as spawning and nursery areas. J Fish Biol. 33(A), 249-250.
Costa, M.J. & M. Elliott, 1991. Fish usage and feeding in two industrialised estuaries - the Tagus, Portugal, and the Forth, Scotland. In: Elliott, M & J-P Ducrotoy (Eds.) Estuaries and Coasts: spatial and temporal intercomparisons. Olsen & Olsen, Fredensborg, Denmark, pp.289-297.
Costa, M.J. Costa, J.L Raposo de Almeida, P. & C.A. Assis, 1994. Do eelgrass beds and salt marshes act as preferential nurseries and spawning grounds for fish? An example of the Mira estuary in Portugal. Ecol. Eng., 3, 187-195.
Drake, P. & A.M. Arias, 1991a. Ichthyoplankton of a shallow coastal inlet in southwest Spain: Factors contributing to colonization and retention. Estuarine, coastal and Shelf Science, 32, 347-364.
Drake, P. & A.M. Arias, 1991b. Composition and seasonal fluctuations of the ichthyoplankton community in a shallow tidal channel of the Cadiz Bay (SW Spain). J. Fish Biol., 39, 245-263.
Elliott, M, Griffiths, A.H. & C.J.L Taylor, 1988. The role of fish studies in estuarine pollution assessment. J Fish Biol., 33(A), 51-61.
Elliott, M. & C.J.L Taylor, 1989. The structure and functioning of an estuarine/marine fish community in the Forth estuary, Scotland. Proceedings of the 21st European Marine Biology Symposium Gdansk. Polish Academy of Sciences, Institute of Oceanology, Warsaw, pp.227-240.
Elliott, M., O'Reilly, M.G. & C.J.L Taylor, 1990. The Forth estuary: a nursery and overwintering area for North Sea fishes. Hydrobiologia, 195 89-103.
Elliott, M. & F. Dewailly, 1995. The structure and components of European estuarine fish assemblages. Neth. J. of Aquatic Ecology, 29, 397-417
Haedrich, R.L. 1983. Estuarine fishes, Chapter 7. In: Ketchum, B. (Ed.) Ecosystems of the World, 26 Estuarine and Enclosed Seas, Elsevier, Amsterdam, pp183-207.
Henderson, P., 1989. On the structure of the inshore fish community of England and Wales. J Mar. Biol. Ass. UK., 69, 145-163.
Hovekamp, F. & H.W. van der Veer, 1993. De vis fauna van de Nederlandse estuaria: een Vergelijkeud ouderzoek. NIOZ-Rapport 1993-13, Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Texel, NL.
Marchand, J., 1993. The influence of seasonal salinity and turbidity maximum variations on the nursery function of the Loire estuary (France). Netherlands Journal of Aquatic Ecology 27(2-4), 427-436.
Pomfret, J.R. Elliott, M., O'Reilly, M.G. & S. Phillips, 1991. Spatial and temporal patterns in the fish communities in two UK North Sea estuaries. In: Elliott M & J-P Ducrotoy (Eds.) Estuaries and Coasts: spatial and temporal intercomparisons, Olsen & Olsen, Fredensborg, Denmark, pp 277-284.
Thiel, R., Sepulveda, A., Kafemann, R. & W. Nellen, 1995. Environmental factors as forces structuring the fish community of the Elbe estuary. J. Fish Biol. 46, 47-69.
INTRODUCTION
Estuaries have long been regarded as important sites for fish, both as nursery and over wintering sites, migration routes and areas which naturally support large numbers of fish (Haedrich, 1983). Similarly, the impact of human activities on the fishes' habitat and the role of fish study in estuarine management has received much attention (e.g. Elliott et al., 1988; Costa & Elliott, 1991; Pomfret et al., 1991). Much of the previous information has been the result of studies on single estuaries (e.g. Hamerlynck et al., 1993; Elliott & Taylor, 1989) or at most on two or three estuaries (Pomfret et al., 1991;, Costa & Elliott, 1991; Hovenkamp & van der Veer, 1993). There have been studies of inshore fish assemblage structure within countries (e.g. Henderson, 1989) and of environmental factors influencing fishes (Thiel et al., 1995). Within the southern hemisphere, there have been extensive studies of estuarine fish assemblages (Blaber 1991; Blaber et al., 1989) but it is of note that prior to the study of Elliott & Dewailly (1995) within Europe there have been no previous studies which compare estuarine fish assemblages over large geographical areas. Similarly, although there have been studies identifying the general role of estuaries as nursery areas (e.g. Elliott et al., 1990; Marchand, 1993), the nursery function of differing habitats within estuaries has not been quantified.
The public interest in Europe is increasingly focusing on the protection, conservation and surveillance of the natural environment, including estuaries. This is especially so as estuaries are regions where marine and diadromous fish are in a intensive contact with anthropogenic water pollution and other forms of environmental degradation (e.g. channelisation). This is of particular importance for the estuarine nursery function such that the understanding of processes determining the present nursery function of estuaries is necessary in order to develop restoration and preservation programmes for estuarine and marine habitats and to exploit the living fish resources without threatening the aquatic ecosystems. The development of estuaries as a habitat and biologically sustainable resource is necessary. This feature requires an understanding of the value of the different estuarine habitats found within Europe (e.g. Drake & Arias 1991a,b; Costa et al., 1994; Cattrijsse et al., 1994). Because of these features, the present study attempts to produce a synthesis of current and recent studies within Europe although information is also included from studies worldwide.
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