Cristele Chevalier

3D modeling of phytoplankton seasonal variation and nutrient budget in a southern Mediterranean Lagoon

A 3D coupled physical-biogeochemical model is developed and applied to Bizerte Lagoon (Tunisia), in order to understand and quantitatively assess its hydrobiological functioning and nutrients budget. The biogeochemical module accounts for nitrogen and phosphorus and includes the water column and upper sediment layer. The simulations showed that water circulation and the seasonal patterns of nutrients, phytoplankton and dissolved oxygen were satisfactorily reproduced. Model results indicate that water circulation in the lagoon is driven mainly by tide and wind. Plankton primary production is co-limited by phosphorus and nitrogen, and is highest in the inner part of the lagoon, due to the combined effects of high water residence time and high nutrient inputs from the boundary. However, a sensitivity analysis highlights the importance of exchanges with the Mediterranean Sea in maintaining a high level of productivity. Intensive use of fertilizers in the catchment area has a significant effect on phytoplankton biomass increase.

Impact of cross-reef water fluxes on lagoon dynamics: a simple parameterization for coral lagoon circulation model, with application to the Ouano Lagoon, New Caledonia

This manuscript presents a combined experimental and numerical study of the impact of cross-reef fluxes on coral reef lagoon dynamics. The selected field site is the Ouano Lagoon (New Caledonia Island, France) in the South Western Pacific Ocean. Measurements of wave transformation above the reef and current profiles through passages and reef openings have been carried out during a 3-month survey. Data analysis reveals the preponderant roles played by both tides and waves on the lagoon dynamics. Based on field data, a simple parameterization of cross-reef fluxes is implemented in a coastal lagoon circulation model and a satisfactory agreement is found between parameterized model and field results. The model is thus used as a numerical experimental tool in order to analyse the cross-reef flows’ possible influence on a narrow lagoon dynamics. The results highlight the importance of cross-reef fluxes induced by wave breaking over the reef barrier on the whole lagoon circulation and water properties.

The salinity responses of tropical estuaries to changes in freshwater discharge, tidal mixing and geomorphology: case study of the man-affected Senegal River Estuary (West Africa)

Salinity in estuaries is influenced by a variety of processes including tidal advection and diffusion and river discharge. The effect of hydrodynamic features on salinity was studied in the Senegal River Estuary (SRE). This estuary is of strategic importance for large populations, but it has been greatly affected by human action (regulation of the freshwater inflow, change in the location of the river mouth ...), which has caused major changes in salinity and ecological functioning. To analyse the impacts of these changes and to determine the spatial and temporal variations in salinity in the SRE, we used a combination of three-dimensional modelling and field measurements. The overall salinity depends on freshwater inflow and tidal fluctuations. Salinity variation is mainly driven by ebb and flood near the mouth and by fortnightly cycles upstream. The enlargement of the mouth increases salinity, whereas its shifting location changes the location of the salinity front and creates a slack water zone downstream. Connection and disconnection of the tributaries also affects the salinity. The present study explains how the recent modifications have increased spatial variation and reduced seasonal differences of salinity and provides a tool for managing the water in the estuary.

The same but different: stable isotopes reveal two distinguishable, yet similar, neighbouring food chains in a coral reef

Stable isotope compositions were studied in particulate organic matter (POM), zooplankton and different trophic groups of teleosts to compare food chains based on plankton at two sites (lagoon and outer slope) in a New Caledonian coral reef. For each trophic compartment, d 13 C values were always lower in the outer slope than in the lagoon. This result may be explained by potential differences in POM composition between the two environments, suggesting that the two food chains are based on different primary sources of carbon. In contrast, d 15 N values did not vary between the lagoon and the outer slope, indicating that these two food chains presented similar length and trophic levels, despite being distinguishable.

Water Masses Exchanges Within Boughrara Lagoon-Gulf of Gabes System (Southeastern Tunisia)

Coastal lagoons are saline water bodies partially isolated from ocean or seas by one or more barrier islands, and linked to the sea by one or more relatively small channels. Lagoons naturally grade into other types of wetland habitat including semi enclosed marine bays, freshwater lakes and estuaries (Barnes in Coastal lagoons. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, p. 106, 1980).

Effects of the sandbar breaching on hydrobiological parameters and zooplankton communities in the Senegal River Estuary (West Africa)

This study describes the changes in hydrology, zooplankton communities and abundance in the Senegal River Estuary (SRE) before and after the breaching of the sandbar in October 2003. Samples were taken in 2003 at 3 stations located upstream (DI), in mid estuary (HY) and downstream (RM), and in 2005 at the same stations (RM becoming Old River Mouth: ORM), plus the new river mouth (NRM) resulting from the morphological evolution of the SRE. The study showed marked seasonal variations that affected the structure and distribution of zooplankton as well as major changes caused by the sandbar opening: increased marine influence throughout the whole SRE, changes in the horizontal gradients, arrival of euryhaline species and increase in meroplankton, in particular decapod larvae, transformation of the ORM area into a slackwater area with limited exchanges and the highest zooplankton numbers during high waters.