Most global and regional "greenhouse gas" budgets have neglected beaver ponds, but they have been found to be relatively high emitters of methane (CH$ sb4$) (Roulet et. al., 1992). Static chambers, bubble traps, benthic chambers. piezometers, and water column and sediment profiles were used to determine the dynamics of CH$ sb4$ production, oxidation, storage, and emissions from a northern boreal beaver pond, as part of the Boreal Forest Ecosystem-Atmosphere Study (BOREAS) from May 1 to September 15, 1994. Samples were analysed by gas chromatography, and isotopic analyses were performed by mass spectrometry. / The mean flux of CH$ sb4$ from the beaver pond (155 and 320 mg CH$ sb4$ m$ sp{-2}$ d$ sp{-1}$ for vegetated and open water sites, respectively) was greater than the flux from most other northern boreal wetlands (Bubier et. al., 1995). CH$ sb4$ availability was primarily controlled by sediment temperature, and CH$ sb4$ transport was controlled by windspeed (diffusion) and atmospheric pressure (bubbles). Bubbles comprised 20 to 52% of the net annual flux comprising the remainder. A large difference in bubble flux was observed between open water (15.7 g CH$ sb4$ m$ sp{-2}$ yr$ sp{-1}$) and vegetated sites (2.9 g CH$ sb4$ m$ sp{-2}$ yr$ sp{-1}$), and isotopic analyses indicate that this difference is due, in part, to a difference in CH$ sb4$ production pathways between sites. Greater oxidation also reduced the CH$ sb4$ flux from shallow, vegetated sites. / A preliminary CH$ sb4$ budget for the BOREAS northern study area indicates that beaver ponds contribute significantly (6% to 30%) to the regional CH$ sb4$ flux. The areal extent of beaver ponds needs to be determined for inclusion in regional and global CH$ sb4$ budgets.

L’aquaculture de la crevette bleue Litopenaeus stylirostris représente une activité profitable enNouvelle-Calédonie. Cependant, elle doit faire face à deux maladies bactériennes saisonnières quidiminuent les rendements et menacent le développement aquacole. D'après la littérature, lapolyculture avec des poissons pourrait diminuer l'occurrence des maladies, prévenir la dégradation del'environnement et au final augmenter la production des bassins. Cette étude porte sur la faisabilitéd'élever en bassins L. stylirostris avec Siganus lineatus. Les objectifs majeurs ont été 1) d’estimer lacapacité de S. lineatus à s’adapter aux bassins et d’évaluer les performances de croissance, 2)d’estimer la faisabilité technique de la polyculture de L. stylirostris avec S. lineatus et 3) d’estimer leseffets de cette polyculture sur les performances zootechniques des deux espèces et sur lefonctionnement écologiques des bassins par comparaison avec leur monoculture.Pour répondre au premier objectif, Siganus lineatus (5.7g) a été mis en culture à des densités de 7, 14et 21 poissons.m-2 en système clos. Après 8 semaines de culture, les performances de croissance de S.lineatus ont été similaires quelles que soient les densités. S. lineatus peut donc bien s’adapter etcroître dans ces systèmes clos, même à des températures basses, proches de 20°C, et à forte densité.Les fortes densités n’ont pas eu d’effets négatifs sur la croissance, mais sont à l’origine d’unedétérioration des conditions environnementales suite à un apport plus marqué en aliment générantdavantage de déchets organiques. En conséquence, une mortalité de S. lineatus peut apparaître lorsquela concentration en oxygène descend en dessous des 2 mg.L-1.Pour atteindre le 2ème et le 3ème objectif, une seconde expérience a montré que l’ajout de S. lineatus(25.5 g) à une culture de crevettes (2.9 g; 15 crevettes.m-2) à des densités de 0, 1.2 et 2.4 poissons.m-2n’a pas affecté les performances zooetchniques de L. stylirostris sur cette première phase d'élevage.La survie de S. lineatus a été de 100% et sa croissance a été similaire quelle que soit sa densité. Laproduction combinée totale pour les traitements polyculture a augmenté de 47 – 106 % et les indicesde conversions diminuent de 31.6 – 47.7% en comparaison avec le traitement "monoculture decrevettes". L'ajout de S. Lineatus n'a pas eu d'effets significatifs sur la production primaire, larespiration, les flux dissous et particulaires à l'interface eau-sédiment de l'écosystème bassin.Dans une troisième expérience, avec des biomasses initiales plus élevées de L. stylirostris (14 g) de156 g.m-2 en polyculture avec S. lineatus (19 g) (80 g.m-2) et de 237 g.m-2 en monoculture, nous avonsobservé une forte mortalité des crevettes. Inversement, avec des biomasses initiales de S. lineatus (19g) de 155 g.m-2 en polyculture avec L. stylirostris (14 g) (81 g.m-2) et de 235 g.m-2 en monoculture,nous avons montré une augmentation de la biomasse de S. lineatus. En utilisant l'aliment pour sapropre croissance non utilisé par les crevettes, S. lineatus est ainsi capable de limiter l'impact dû àl'eutrophisation de l'écosystème bassin.Les résultats des analyses isotopiques montrent que l'aliment n'est pas une source majeure de carbonepour L. stylirostris et S. lineatus alors qu'il l'est pour l'azote. Le biotope, en y incluant la matièreorganique des sédiments et la matière organique particulaire dans la colonne d'eau est la principalesource de carbone pour les deux espèces et une source secondaire pour l'azote.Pour conclure, S. lineatus est un candidat potentiel pour la culture commerciale / Blue shrimp Litopenaeus stylirostris farming is a major and profitable activity of aquaculture industryin New Caledonia. However, it is facing two seasonal bacterial diseases, which decrease rearedshrimp yield and threaten the sustainability of the aquaculture development. As reported by theliterature, polyculture with fish would have the potential to decrease the impact of these kind ofdiseases, prevent the deterioration of the environment and to increase the production of the ponds. Thefeasibility of L. stylirostris and Siganus lineatus polyculture in earthen ponds was carried out in thisstudy. The main objectives were 1) to estimate the adaptive capacity and growth performance of S.lineatus, and the environmental variations in a closed culture system, 2) to estimate the technicalfeasibility of L. stylirostris and S. lineatus polyculture, and 3) to estimate the effects of L. stylirostrisand S. lineatus polyculture on zootechnical performances and pond ecology in comparison withmonoculture of these species.To answer to the first objective, Siganus lineatus (5.7g) was stocked at 7, 14 and 21 fish.m-2 in aclosed culture system. After 8 weeks of culture period, S. lineatus growth performance was similarbetween all densities. S. lineatus could well adapt and grow in a closed system, even at lowtemperature, ca. 20oC and high stocking density, 21 fish.m-2. High stocking density did not havenegative effects on S. lineatus growth performance, but could cause the environmental deteriorationdue to increased nutrient input and accumulated organic wastes in the culture system. Asconsequence, S. lineatus could die when water oxygen depleted to below 2 mg.L-1.To reach the second and the third objective, a second experiment showed that adding S. lineatus (25.5g) to L. stylirostris (2.9 g) culture system (15 shrimp.m-2) at 1.2 and 2.4 fish.m-2 did not affect L.stylirostris zootechnical performance during the first stage of the rearing. S. lineatus gained 100% ofsurvival and similar growth performance in all densities. The polyculture system increased totalcombined production by 47 – 106 % and reduced FCR by 31.6 – 47.7% compared with those inshrimp monoculture. The addition of S. lineatus to the culture system did not have significantlyeffects on the gross primary productivity, the respiration, the nutrient and particulates fluxes at thewater-sediment interface of the pond ecosystem.In a third experiment, using higher stocking biomasses of L. stylirostris (14 g) at 156 g.m-2 in apolyculture with S. lineatus (19 g) (80 g.m-2) and at 237 g.m-2 in shrimp monoculture, we observed ahigh shrimp mortality. Conversely, stocking biomasses of S. lineatus (19 g) at 155 g.m-2 in apolyculture with L. stylirostris (14 g) (81 g.m-2) and at 235 g.m-2 in monoculture resulted in increasesof S. lineatus biomasses. This study showed that polyculture using S. lineatus is able to reduce organicwastes and nutrient release by consumption uneaten feed and retention input nutrients in biomass thatcontribute to limit the impact of the pond ecosystem eutrophication.Results of stable isotope analyses showed that the used pellet feed was not a major carbon source, butwas an important nitrogen source for both L. stylirostris and S. lineatus. Natural biota, includingsediment organic matter and particulate organic matter, was a main carbon source and represented asa secondary nitrogen source for both species.It may be concluded that S. lineatus is a suitable candidate for commercial culture in bothmonoculture and polyculture with L. stylirostris in earthen pond. Polyculture should be a properapproach that could partly contribute to sustainable development of aquaculture, but needs specificresearch to optimize the trophic status of the reared species.

No description available.

Ten high mountain ponds in Mount Rainier National Park, Washington State, were studied from June through September 1992 to investigate the influences of fluctuating pond volumes on zooplankton communities. A temporary pond of short wet phase duration was inhabited by zooplankton taxa with short generation times and a crustacean taxa with the ability to encyst as drought-resistant resting bodies at immature stages of development. Relative to permanent ponds, rotifer densities typically were low in temporary ponds, although Brachionus urceolaris was abundant shortly before the ponds dried. High volume loss was associated with declining populations of crustaceans. Daphnia rosea was not present in the crustacean communities of temporary ponds after fall recharge. Deep-permanent ponds had slower copepod development and two additional large bodied crustacean taxa relative to shallow-permanent ponds. Because of their small sizes and sensitivity to environmental change, ponds such as these may provide an early signal of changes in aquatic systems from global warming. / Graduation date: 1994

[Truncated abstract] I have evaluated the effects of different types of ephemeral pools on the evolutionary dynamics of two large branchiopods in Australia, the clam shrimp Lynceus and the fairy shrimp Branchinella longirostris. Both shrimps are passive dispersers, relying on their sexually produced resting eggs for continuity of populations in time and space, although their actual dispersal ability remains speculative. The two currently recognised species of the genus Lynceus (L. tatei and L. macleyanus) are widespread across Australia, and they occupy a wide range of ephemeral fresh water habitats, while the fairy shrimp Branchinella longirostris is endemic to rock pools on granite outcrops in south-western Australia. Samples of populations were collected from a total of 96 ephemeral pools at 80 locations in New South Wales, Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia . . . This highlighted the contrast between the two species and their microhabitats, and implied that these microhabitats offered different opportunities for dispersal. These were identified as frequent disturbances of the clam shrimp’s egg-banks due to ‘wash-out’ effects during heavy rains and animal and human vectors attracted by the water stored in the deep pools. My comparative study shows that the difference in evolutionary dynamics observed between the two species was a consequence of their environmental interactions rather than of the microhabitats themselves. Similar to patterns detected in other passive dispersers with disjunct population distribution, evolutionary dynamics in Lynceus and B. longirostris seem to be a result of complex interactions among gene flow, population histories and ecology of their habitat. The results contribute to the emerging evidence that branchiopod crustaceans are poor dispersers and highlight the importance of local context in determining evolutionary processes within species.