Anthropogenic carbon as a basal resource in the benthic food webs in the Neva Estuary (Baltic Sea). (September 2019)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Golubkov, Sergey M.; Golubkov, Mikhail S.; Tiunov, Alexei V.
• Is Part Of: Marine pollution bulletin. Volume 146(2019)
• Page Start: 190
• Page End: 200
• Publication Date: 2019-09
• Subjects: Organic pollution -- Gulf of Finland -- Macroinvertebrates -- Stable isotopes (Bayesian mixing model); Marine pollution -- Periodicals; Marine Biology -- Periodicals; Water Pollution -- Periodicals; Mer -- Pollution -- Périodiques; Publications périodiques; Pollution des mers; Lutte antipollution; Electronic journals; 363.7394
• DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2019.06.037
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0025-326X

Abstract

Abstract: Organic pollution is a serious environmental problem for the coastal zones of seas. The study tested the hypothesis that allochthonous organic carbon derived from St. Petersburg wastewaters is a significant basal resource of carbon for the benthic food webs. We analyzed stable isotope composition of carbon and nitrogen in suspended organic matter in the Neva Estuary and in the tissues of macroinvertebrates and fish. The Stable Isotope Bayesian mixing model showed that waste waters were an important source of carbon for the most of consumers in the Neva Estuary. The autochthonous carbon produced by phytoplankton was a significant source of carbon only for some macroinvertebrates. The main consumers of the carbon derived from waste waters were tubificid worms, chironomid larvae and alien polychaete, which currently dominate in the zoobenthos of the estuary. These species replaced the former dominants, native crustaceans, which to a lesser extent use anthropogenic carbon. Highlights: Organic pollution is a serious environmental problem for the estuaries located near megacities. According to the SIAR modeling, the wastewaters was an important source of carbon for benthic consumers. Species, which are able to use anthropogenic carbon, dominate in the bottom communities changing their natural composition.