Genotoxicity biomarkers are widely measured in ecotoxicology as molecular toxic endpoints of major environmental pollutants. However, the long-term consequences of such damage still have to be elucidated. Some authors have suggested that the accumulation of unrepaired DNA lesions could explain the embryotoxicity of certain chemical pollutants. As embryotoxicity exerts a direct impact on the recruitment rate, genotoxicity could be closely related to disturbances of ecological concern and produce a possible impact upon population dynamics. The aim of the present work was to study the genotoxicity and the embryotoxicity of three relevant pollutants for oyster embryos: the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon, benzo[a]pyrene (BaP), the synthetic estrogenic hormone, 17alpha-ethinylestradiol (EE2), and the organochlorine pesticide, endosulfan (ES). For each substance, gamete fertilization was performed and embryo development followed in contaminated reference seawater. Following exposure, embryotoxicity was evaluated by calculating the percentage of abnormal D-larvae obtained at 20 h development. Genotoxicity was measured in parallel by conducting a comet assay on enzymatically dissociated cells of pre-shelled larvae (16 h development). The oxidized DNA base, 8-oxodGuo, was also measured by HPLC coupled to electrochemical detection. For each contaminant, the relationship between genotoxicity and embryotoxicity was then studied to check for the possible significance of genotoxicity in the population dynamics of marine bivalves from polluted areas. For BaP, embryotoxicity and DNA strand breakage were both observed from the lowest tested concentration of 0.2 nM. Induction of 8-oxodGuo was significant from 20 nM. Endosulfan exposure resulted in similar effects for oyster embryos but from higher concentrations and followed a concentration-dependent manner. Embryotoxicity and genotoxicity in terms of DNA strand breaks were observed for endosulfan from 300 and 150 nM, respectively. No change in 8-oxodGuo level was observed following endosulfan exposure. EE2 displayed no toxic effect for oyster embryos within the range of tested concentrations (from 0.02 to 1.7 nM). Taking into account all the data collected during this study, a positive and significant correlation was demonstrated in oyster embryos between genotoxicity as measured by the comet assay and embryotoxicity.

Pearl oysters are farmed in oligotrophic tropical atoll lagoons where planktonic communities are dominated by production from cyanobacteria smaller than 2 µm. Paradoxically, the pearl oyster Pinctada margaritifera only retains particles larger than 2 µm. In this study, we assess the relative contribution of hetero/mixotrophic microbiota to the available planktonic resource. In Takapoto Atoll, picocyanobacteria are the dominant biomass (20 µg C l -1 ). The carbon biomass of ciliates and dinoflagellates ranges from 1 to 24 and 0.5 to 5 µg C l -1 respectively, with a mean of 6 µg C l -1 for ciliates and 2 µg C l -1 for dinoflagellates. The possible retention by P. margaritifera on a natural protist suspension was investigated. Due to its high clearance rates (ca 20 l h -1 g -1 ) the pearl oyster retained 85 µg C h -1 g -1 from ciliates and 65 µg C h -1 g -1 from dinoflagellates. Conversely, cyanobacteria were not efficiently retained by the bivalve and did not efficiently contribute to its diet. From our experiments, we concluded that hetero/mixotrophic protists rapidly and efficiently process the picoplanktonic resource towards filter-feeders, particularly pearl oysters. KEY WORDS: Protists · Atoll lagoon · Pearl oysters · Pinctada margaritifera · Picoplankton · Trophic resourceResale or republication not permitted without written consent of the publisher

The ontogenic variations of nitrogen and carbon stable isotopic signatures (δ 15 N and δ 13 C) were investigated in two spider crab (Maja brachydactyla) populations inhabiting in different biotopes of Western Europe. The Iroise Sea population is localized in Western Brittany and characterized by a seasonal migration occurring on a large bathymetric and habitat gradient while the Seine Bay population, in the Eastern English Channel, remains in a more homogeneous environment during its migration. In the Iroise Sea population, δ 13 C values increased significantly both with body size and age, revealing a shift towards "benthic-component" prey with spider crab growth. On the contrary, neither body size nor ageing gave rise to a significant trophic level change (derived from the δ 15 N). In this M. brachydactyla population, the seasonal migrations from coastal waters in summer to offshore habitats in winter involved significant but slight differences in both δ 13 C and δ 15 N. In the Seine Bay population, low variations for both carbon and nitrogen were recorded related to either sex or size or seasonal migration. Thus, the δ 13 C and δ 15 N variability in the spider crab depends on the availability and diversity of prey in its different living habitats, as well as on the morphological aptitudes of individuals to feed on prey (individual's size).

Underwater imagery is increasingly used as an effective and repeatable method to monitor benthic ecosystems. Nevertheless, extracting ecologically relevant information from a large amount of raw images remains a time-consuming and somewhat laborious challenge. Thus, underwater imagery processing needs to strike a compromise between time-efficient image annotation and accuracy in quantifying benthic community composition. Designing and implementing robust image sampling and image annotation protocols are therefore critical to rationally address these trade-offs between ecological accuracy and processing time. The aim of this study was to develop and to optimize a reliable image scoring strategy based on the point count method using imagery data acquired on tide-swept macroepibenthic communities. Using a stepwise approach, we define an underwater imagery processing protocol that is effective in terms of (i) time allocated to overall image, (ii) reaching a satisfactory accuracy to estimate the occurrence of dominant benthic taxa, and (iii) adopting a sufficient taxonomic resolution to describe changes in community composition. We believe that our method is well adapted to investigate the composition of epibenthic communities on artificial reefs and can be useful in surveying colonization of other human structures (wind turbine foundations, pipelines, etc.) in coastal areas. Our strategy meets the increasing demand for inexpensive and time-effective tools for monitoring changes in benthic communities in a context of increasing coastal artificialization pressures.

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