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Species continuity under the harsh climatic conditions of the boreal forest requires trees to ensure the functioning of two main life processes, namely growth and reproduction. However, species survival becomes a challenge when environmental conditions become unstable and reach the taxa’s ecological tolerance limit. Survival in an unstable environment is possible through the concurring processes of phenotypic plasticity and local adaptation; each process has its advantages and shortcomings. Local adaptation allows attaining the best possible fitness under conditions of limited gene flow and strong directional selection, leading to specific adaptations to the local environment; however, there is a risk of maladaptation when conditions suddenly change. In turn, phenotypic plasticity provides trees an advantage when weather events change rapidly and enables a response expressed by the production of different phenotypes by the same genotype. However, this process is expensive in terms of costs in maintenance and causes developmental instability within the individual. Boreal trees utilize both processes as reflected in variations in their functional traits within the same species. In this chapter, we address the main life processes, presenting the variability of functional traits of flowering and seed production, xylem conductivity, bud and cambium phenology, as well as transpiration and photosynthesis, as a consequence of the interaction of genotype and environment. We describe the practical consequences of a variation in functional traits, as expressed in chemical and mechanical wood properties. Finally, we outline applications and perspectives for managing boreal forests in a context of heterogeneous and changing environmental conditions.

13 pages, 8 figures, supplemental material https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00338-016-1440-1, This study investigates the energetic investment during spawning of two Mediterranean gorgonians characterized by different reproductive strategies: Corallium rubrum (internal brooder) and Paramuricea clavata (surface brooder). Sexual products (number of oocytes and spermatic sacs) were quantified, and biochemical characteristics (lipid content and free fatty acid content and composition) were determined to investigate the parental energetic investment and demand in reproduction. Results suggested that the majority of the energetic cost was due to reproductive activity (i.e., gametogenesis and spawning). The two species exhibited different life history strategies, with P. clavata investing more energy in reproduction than C. rubrum. However, P. clavata is reproductively more sensitive to inter-annual changes in environmental conditions, N. Viladrich was funded by a FI AGAUR research grant (FI-2010-03824), S. Rossi by a Ramón y Cajal contract (RyC-2007-01327) and a Marie Curie International Outgoing Fellowship (Animal Forest Health, Grant Agreement Number 327845). This work was supported by the BENTOLARV project (CTM2009-10007). The authors want to thank the support of the Generalitat de Catalunya to MERS (2014 SGR-1356)

11 pages, 4 figures, 1 table, The principal fatty acids from the lipid profiles of two autochthonous dinoflagellates (Alexandrium minutum and Karlodinium veneficum) and one raphidophyte (Heterosigma akashiwo) maintained in bubble column photobioreactors under outdoor culture conditions are described for the first time. The biomass production, lipid content and lipid productivity of these three species were determined and the results compared to those obtained when the strains were cultured indoors. Under the latter condition, the biotic values did not significantly differ among species, whereas under outdoor conditions, differences in both duplication time and fatty acids content were observed. Specifically, A. minutum had higher biomass productivity (0.35 g·L−1 day−1), lipid productivity (80.7 mg lipid·L−1 day−1) and lipid concentration (252 mg lipid·L−1) at harvest time (stationary phase) in outdoor conditions. In all three strains, the growth rate and physiological response to the light and temperature fluctuations of outdoor conditions greatly impacted the production parameters. Nonetheless, the species could be successfully grown in an outdoor photobioreactor and were of sufficient robustness to enable the establishment of long-term cultures yielding consistent biomass and lipid production, We are grateful to the members of the L´Esfera Ambiental Laboratory, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, for their help with gas chromatography analyses. We thank S. Fraga for providing the clonal culture AMP4, L.del Río and X. Leal for their help with the experiments and the Experimental Aquarium Area (ZAE) of the ICM-CSIC for the use of their facilities. We gratefully acknowledge the National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICYT), Chile, for its support of the scholarship “Beca de Gestión Propia,” which finances the PhD studies of C. Fuentes-Grünewald. The work of E. Garcés and S. Rossi is supported by the Ramon y Cajal award from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation

12 pages, 6 figures, 1 table, supplementary material https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-013-2295-4, Current knowledge on the abundance and distribution patterns of different soft coral species is relatively limited when compared to other benthic suspension feeders such as gorgonians and hard coral species. To overcome this scarcity of information, the distribution patterns of the soft corals Alcyonium acaule and Alcyonium palmatum were investigated in northwestern Mediterranean benthic communities over a wide geographical (60 km of coastline) and bathymetrical (0-70 m depth) extent using a remotely operated vehicle. A. acaule was the most abundant species in the study area with highest recorded density of 18 col m-2 found at depths of 35-45 m in areas that are directly exposed to strong near-bottom currents. Conversely, A. palmatum was only found as scattered solitary colonies at greater depths in soft bottoms, with maximum density of 2.4 col m-2. Medium and large colonies of A. acaule were preferentially found on sloping and vertical rocky bottoms where they form dense patches. High-density patches of A. acaule were preferentially found on vertical rocky bottom, while isolated colonies were preferentially observed on coralligenous substrata as well as on flat soft and maërl substrates. A. acaule biomass distribution showed highest values between 40 and 45 m depth, and between 60 and 65 m depth. This suggests that deeper populations are formed by colonies that are bigger than the equivalent shallower ones. Although both species are almost genetically identical, ecologically they are very different. For this reason, conservation plans should consider the differential ecological traits shown by these two soft coral species. © 2013 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg, A. Gori has been financed by a I3P contract of the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (Ref. I3P-BPD2005), S. Rossi by a Ramón y Cajal contract (RyC-2007-01327), and M. Greenacre’s research has been partially supported by the BBVA Foundation in Madrid and Spanish Ministry of Education and Competitiveness Grant MTM2012-37195. This work is part of the 2003–2004 INTERREG project between Catalonia-Languedoc Rouissillon ‘‘Pirineus Mediterrànis: La muntanya que uneix’’ of the CSIC and CNRS and LIFE+INDEMARES project

10 pages, 6 figures, 1 table, Alcyonium acaule (Cnidaria, Octocorallia) is a common, hard-bottom soft coral in the northwestern Mediterranean Sea. This study describes sexual reproduction and the gamete development cycle of this soft coral. A population at 15–18 m depth in the Marine Protected Area of the Medes Islands (42º02′55″ N, 3º13′30″ E) was sampled from July 1994–August 1995. A. acaule is gonochoristic and a surface brooder, spawning once a year in early summer. The mean diameter of ripe spermatic sacs was 400 ± 91 (SD) μm, and the mean diameter of mature oocytes was 473 ± 37 (SD) μm. There were 30 spermatic sacs polyp−1 in males and 14 oocytes polyp−1 in females. Different phases of gametogenesis in female and male colonies were examined separately with respect to seasonal changes in bottom temperature and solar irradiance. The data suggest that the relatively constant temperatures in January–April are probably not related to oocyte maturation, but that rising temperatures in May could affect sperm maturation. Rapidly increasing solar irradiance in March may be the trigger for vitellogenesis and oocyte maturation, although the mechanism for this in anthozoans is not understood, This work has been financed by the project D.G.I.C.Y.T. 1995-1998 PB94-0014-C02-0 and BENTOLARV CTM2009-10007. IF was funded by a FPU grant of Spain’s Ministry of Education and Science. SR was funded by a Ramón y Cajal contract (RYC-2007-01327). The authors are especially grateful to Josep Pascual for environmental data collection. We also thank C. Linares for the preliminary treatment of data. C. Orejas and G. Tsounis and three anonymous referees improved previous versions of this manuscript with their useful comments

12 pages, 4 figures, 4 tables, Obelia dichotoma is a thecate hydroid with a worldwide distribution, occurring mainly on shallow water hard substrates. Since the trophic ecology of hydroids in polar waters is badly understood, the aim of the present work was to study qualitatively and quantitatively the diet of these organisms in an Arctic environment and to determine their trophic significance. For this purpose, the density of the hydroid population was documented, and simultaneously, zooplankton was sampled in two different years (1997 and 1998). Prey capture rates were estimated by analysing the gastrovascular content of the polyps in a diurnal cycle. Additionally, the digestion time of O. dichotoma was measured by laboratory feeding experiments using diatoms as food items. The analyses of the gastrovascular cavities of the polyps sampled during the diurnal cycles showed that O. dichotoma fed mainly on faecal pellets, organic matter and microalgae. Zooplankton prey was also observed, but gastrovascular contents and zooplankton abundance did not show any correlation in both years. The consumption rates of the hydroid populations differed between the 2 years. It was almost double (8.9 mg Carbon m−2) in 1998 compared to 1997 (5.5 mg Carbon m−2). The significance of the environmental variability in the feeding ecology and population dynamics of hydroids under Arctic conditions is discussed, The support of the scientific and technical staff of the Koldewey-Station, the members of the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) diving team and the Ny-A° lesund International Research and Monitoring Facility is gratefully acknowledged. Thanks are due to the AWI for technical and financial support. The first author was financially supported by a Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst (DAAD) fellowship (A/96/13073) and a European Commission fellowship from the programme Training and mobility of researchers (TMR-CT97-2813). S. Rossi was funded by a Ramón y Cajal contract (RYC-2007-01327). Special thanks to Prof. Dr. Wolf E. Arntz who supported enthusiastically the development of this work. We would like to dedicate this paper to the memory of our colleague Francesc Page`s, great cnidarian researcher and best friend

12 pages, 3 figures, 3 tables, Two different strains of microalgae, one raphidophyte and one dinoflagellate, were tested under different abiotic conditions with the goal of enhancing lipid production. Whereas aeration was crucial for biomass production, nitrogen deficiency and temperature were found to be the main abiotic parameters inducing the high-level cellular accumulation of neutral lipids. Net neutral lipid production and especially triacylglycerol (TAG) per cell were higher in microalgae (>200% in Alexandrium minutum, and 30% in Heterosigma akashiwo) under treatment conditions (25°C; 330 μM NaNO3) than under control conditions (20°C; 880 μM NaNO3). For both algal species, oil production (free fatty acids plus TAG fraction) was also higher under treatment conditions (57 mg L−1 in A. minutum and 323 mg L−1 in H. akashiwo). Despite the increased production and accumulation of lipids in microalgae, the different conditions did not significantly change the fatty acids profiles of the species analyzed. These profiles consisted of saturated fatty acids (SAFA) and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) in significant proportions. However, during the stationary phase, the concentrations per cell of some PUFAs, especially arachidonic acid (C20:4n6), were higher in treated than in control algae. These results suggest that the adjustment of abiotic parameters is a suitable and one of the cheapest alternatives to obtain sufficient quantities of microalgal biomass, with high oil content and minimal changes in the fatty acid profile of the strains under consideration., We are grateful to the members of the L Esfera Ambiental Laboratory, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, for their help in gas chromatography analyses. We thank S. Fraga for providing the clonal culture AMP4. We thank L. del Río for help with the experiments, and the Zona Acuarios Experimentales (ZAE) of the ICMCSIC for the use of their facilities. We gratefully acknowledge the Comisión Nacional de Investigación Ciencia y Tecnología (CONICYT), Chile, for its support of the scholarship “Beca de Gestión Propia,” which Wnances the PhD studies of C. Fuentes-Grünewald. The work of S. Rossi is supported by the Ramon y Cajal award of the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation.

9 pages, 4 figures, 4 tables, Biochemical characteristics of seafloor sediment off Austasen in the southeastern Weddell Sea were assayed in samples recovered in the early autumn and late spring of 2000 and 2003, respectively. Sediment was separated in the grain-size fractions >200 μm and, The authors wish to thank the Captain and crew of the RV “Polarstern” for their eYcient help during the Weld work. The present work was partially funded by the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science through the project FILANT (REN2003-04236). The original manuscript improved with the comments of C.R. Smith and one anonymous reviewer

12 pages, 4 figures, 5 tables, The long-term benthic disturbance experiment (BENDEX) was started on the eastern Weddell Sea shelf off Austasen (Antarctica) during ‘Polarstern’ cruise ANT XXI/2 in December 2003 to simulate the impact of grounding icebergs on the seabed and follow the steps and timescales of recovery of disturbed benthos and demersal fish communities. Here, we report the basic approach and first results for this experimental field study. By means of 11 densely-placed hauls with a modified bottom trawl, a seabed area of approximately 100 × 1000 m was artificially scoured to inflict a similar damage to the benthic habitats as a grounding iceberg. Before the disturbance event and 11 days after it, the seafloor communities were sampled (invertebrate assemblages by multibox corers, the fish fauna by trawl hauls) and comparatively analyzed. Sediment texture and chemistry was not significantly altered by the heavy disturbance inflicted by repeated trawling, whereas the fauna was negatively affected. Invertebrate benthic biomass was drastically reduced by a factor of 10, while mean abundances were only slightly reduced. Demersal fish biomass and abundance were slightly but not significantly smaller after the disturbance. Effects of disturbance became more evident in the composition of the fish fauna, with Trematomus pennelli and T. hansoni being dominant at disturbed sites, whereas Chionodraco myersi was the dominant species in trawl catches from undisturbed stations

6 pages, 1 figure, 1 table, The red coral Corallium rubrum (L 1758) is a long-lived, slow-growing gorgonian, endemic to Mediterranean rocky bottoms. Because of its high economic value, red coral has long been harvested, and most populations have been depleted. In the present study, 54 marble tiles were placed in June 2003 within red coral populations over 3 different geographic areas (Calafuria–Livorno and Elba MPA in Italy and Medes Islets MPA, in Spain), on vertical cliffs between 25 and 35 m. In each area 2 different sites were randomly selected. Tiles were subsequently sampled photographically. Between July and August 2003 red coral recruits settled on tiles in all the geographic areas and sites, exhibiting wide variability in their density. On the basis of a 2-factors nested ANOVA a significant variability between different sites at a few hundred metres distance occurred, indicating high variations in the recruitment process within the same red coral population. Mortality, measured in June 2004, widely varied between different geographic areas, This research was supported by a CSIC/ICM (Spain) – CNR (Italy) common research project: Population dynamics of the red coral

11 pages, 6 figures, 5 tables, Red coral (Corallium rubrum) is an important component of the Mediterranean coralligenous habitat. The present study analyzes the relationship between energy storage molecule concentration (i.e. tissue balance of protein-carbohydrate-lipid levels) and the gonadal output in two populations located at different depths (16-18 m and 40-45 m depth) through a seasonal cycle (2002-2003). In June 2003, another six populations have been sampled to compare medium-scale geographical variation. The colonies sampled were less than 6 cm high, thus representing the majority of the population in the studied area. There was no clear relationship between energy storage (i.e. carbohydrate and lipid levels) and gonadal output, nor in the seasonal cycle or the spatial variation. A clear-cut seasonal trend of energy storage was detected only in the shallower population. The water temperature was warmer at 20 m depth and the water transparency (Secchi disk) was also higher (lower seston concentration) in 2003 when the same periods in 2002 and 2003 were compared (May-August). Carbohydrates seemed to be more sensitive to food constraints than lipids. The partial mortality detected in summer 2003 in the sampling area appeared to be recorded in the carbohydrate and lipid levels of this species, especially in the shallow population. The biochemical levels prove to be a useful tool to detect unusual environmental conditions that may cause partial or total mortality in benthic suspension feeders. © 2007 Springer-Verlag, G.T. was supported by a PhD scholarship from the University of Bremen, Germany. This study was funded by European Funds to the Department of Fisheries and Agriculture of the Government of Catalonia (Spain), PCC:30103

12 pages, 5 figures, 6 tables, Octocorals are an important part of many ecosystems as they add three-dimensional complexity to the benthos and thereby increase biodiversity. The Mediterranean red coral (Corallium rubrum, L. 1758) is a longevous octocoral that is harvested commercially, yet natural and anthropogenic influences on its population size structure are little understood. This study found that some harvested red coral populations had a significantly different size structure when compared to populations at the nearby Marine Protected Area (MPA) of Medas Islands at the Spanish Costa Brava (NW Mediterranean). Eighty-nine percent of the red corals in the harvested Costa Brava area are less than 10 years old and 96% of all colonies have not yet grown more than second-order branches. The size/age distribution of the harvested population is notably skewed towards younger and smaller colonies. Thus, although red coral is still abundant, its population structure is strongly distorted by harvesting. The results confirm that MPAs are useful to distinguish between anthropogenic and natural influences on population structure. However, 14 years of protection appears to be an insufficient recovery time for a longevous octocoral population such as red coral, G.T. was supported by a PhD scholarship from the University of Bremen, Germany. This study was funded through European Union Funds by the Department of Fisheries and Agriculture of the Government of Catalonia (Spain), PCC:30103

11 pages, 7 figures, 2 tables, In the present paper we suggest an effect of seasonal variations in food availability on two ecophysiological parameters in a warm temperate benthic suspension feeder: the tissue concentrations of proteins, carbohydrates and lipids on the one hand, and the expression of stress proteins (HSP 70 and 90, inducible and/or constitutive) on the other hand. The concentrations of biomacromolecules have already been used to describe bentho-pelagic and reproductive processes, but this is the first time that stress protein expression is suggested to be directly related with food constraints in marine organisms. Paramuricea clavata (Cnidaria: Gorgonacea) express HSP 70 and 90 (constitutive and/or inducible) throughout the seasonal cycle, and HSP 70 levels are twice as high as the levels of HSP 90. In summer and autumn, when seston availability to suspension feeders was low, P. clavata showed low levels of carbohydrates and lipids, but high levels of HSPs expression. The levels of HSP 70 and 90 expression fit with negative exponential functions of carbohydrate and lipid concentrations. We suggest a direct effect of food availability on the studied ecophysiological parameters while the effect of temperature may be rather indirect. HSP expression as well as the tissue concentrations of carbohydrate and lipids may be used as biomarkers of environmental changes and seston availability to benthic suspension feeders, Funding for this work was provided by F.P.I. fellowship from Spain’s Ministry of Education and Science to SR under projects DGICYT 1995–1998, PB94-0014-C02-01, and by the National Sea Grant College Program, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, US Department of Commerce (grant#NAO6RGO142, project# R/CZ-168)

11 pages, 5 figures, 5 tables, There is increasing evidence that suspension feeders play a significant role in plankton-benthos coupling. However, to date, active suspension feeders have been the main focus of research, while passive suspension feeders have received less attention. To increase our understanding of energy fluxes in temperate marine ecosystems, we have examined the temporal variability in zooplankton prey capture of the ubiquitous Mediterranean gorgonian Leptogorgia sarmentosa. Prey capture was assessed on the basis of gut content from colonies collected every 2 weeks over a year. The digestion time of zooplankton prey was examined over the temperature range of the species at the study site. The main prey items captured were small (80-200 μn), low-motile zooplankton (i.e. eggs and invertebrate larvae). The digestion time of zooplankton prey increased when temperature decreased (about 150% from 21°C to 13°C; 15 h at 13°C, 9 h at 17°C, and 6 h at 21°C), a pattern which has not previously been documented in anthozoans. Zooplankton capture rate (prey polyp-1 h-1) varied among seasons, with the greatest rates observed in spring (0.16 ± 0.02 prey polyp-1 h -1). Ingestion rate in terms of biomass (μg C polyp-1 h-1) showed a similar trend, but the differences among the seasons were attenuated by seasonal differences in prey size. Therefore, ingestion rate did not significantly vary over the annual cycle and averaged 0.019 ± 0.002 μg C polyp-1 h-1. At the estimated ingestion rates, the population of L. sarmentosa removed between 2.3 and 16.8 mg C m -2 day-1 from the adjacent water column. This observation indicates that predation by macroinvertebrates on seston should be considered in energy transfer processes in littoral areas, since even species with a low abundance may have a detectable impact, Support for this work was provided by a F.P.I. fellowship from the Spanish Ministry of Education and Culture (MEC), which was granted to S.R. under D.G.I.C.Y.T. project PB94-0014-C02-01, a “Ramón y Cajal” research contract granted to M.R. by the MEC, a research contract granted to R.C. by the MEC, and by D.G.I.C.Y.T. projects REN2000-0633-C03-01/MAR and REN2002-01631/MAR

Polychaetes are widespread across marine ecosystem reaching high density in various seabed habitats, where they play a relevant role in the functioning of benthic communities. Many polychaetes are sessile and tube-dwelling forms, often gregarious, which are able to create primary biogenic structures or to modify the abiotic characteristics of the pre-existing substrate. They act as real builders of forest-like structures that offer new substrates for other benthic species, affect habitat conditions and regulate ecosystem functioning. Thus, polychaetes are ascribed to the engineers of animal forests. In this chapter, the main evidences of polychaetes as habitat formers on both rocky and sedimentary bottoms are reported; the time-scale variations of the biogenic structures are considered and the sensitivity and threats of polychaete forests are exhibited for contributing in decision-making regarding protection measures and management of coastal ecosystems.