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Marine Alliance for Science and Technology for Scotland

Aquatic Stressors Forum

Welcome to the MASTS Aquatic Stressors Forum

This Forum promotes research, monitoring, training and an enhanced understanding of the effects of environmental (single or preferably multiple) stressors, both natural and anthropogenic, on aquatic organisms and communities. Investigations into stressor impacts range from empirical through to restoration and governance perspectives. The Forum is a centre for dialogue and networking and offers expertise, collaboration and advice. 

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Forum Activities & Resources

2024: MASTS Open Forum Session “Quantifying Levels and Intensities of Environmental Stressors across a wide range of pond types”

Speaker: Frances Orton, School of Energy, Geoscience, Infrastructure and Society at Heriot-Watt University

Small freshwater bodies, such as ponds are likely to be subject to a wide range of environmental pressures due to their small water volume and proximity to anthropogenic structures. In our study, we sought to quantify intensity of six environmental stressors across these study ponds (n = 80): pollution (metals, pesticides, pharmaceuticals), eutrophication (nitrate/phosphate pollution), the presence of the invasive signal crayfish (Pacifasticus leniusculus: eDNA), heat wave occurrence/intensity, freshwater salinisation and the presence of Perkinsea infection.

The study encompassed isolated depressions, ditches, river floodplains, wet woodland, as well as urban and agricultural retention ponds, located in five geographical clusters in the UK: South-East England, East Anglia, South-West Scotland, Central-West Scotland and Central Belt Scotland. 
Pond selection was based on estimated anthropogenic pressure and the presence of Rana temporaria, according to citizen science spawn count data. Predicted anthropogenic pressure levels based on publicly available data did not accurately predict measured levels of pollutions nor eutrophication. Eutrophication levels were generally low, however, we found high levels of organic pollutants across all ponds. 

MASTS Open Forum Sessions aim at connecting the MASTS community with its diverse Research Forums and Steering Groups. At these sessions, Forums “open their doors” to present their members’ work and network with the community.

2024: Travel Bursaries Awarded to PGRs/ECRs

The Forum awarded 4 travel bursaries to representatives from Heriot-Watt University, the University of the West of Scotland, the University of Edinburgh and the University of Aberdeen.

Resources

Need an expert in an area related to aquatic stressors? Download the Forum’s database here or contact MASTS at masts@st-andrews.ac.uk

“Science, Sustainability and Society” was the 2023 theme of the MASTS Annual Science Meeting in Glasgow. The Aquatic Stressors Forum hosted a Special Session with a variety of interesting talks. Take a look at the abstracts below and for more detail visit the programme here!

Abstracts:

  • “Physiological response and skeletal dissolution of the cold-water coral Desmophyllum pertusum to multiple environmental stressors”
  • “Investigating cumulative stressor impacts: challenges and approaches in the context of estuarine biofilms”
  • “Combined Effects of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons and Microplastics on a Model Marine Amphipod, Parhyale hawaiensis”
  • “Developing a Health Indices for Cetaceans as a Tool for Measuring the Impacts of Multiple Stressors”
  • “Let there be Light: Marine Oil Snow formation and its associated Bacterial Communities”
  • “Stressor Identity versus Stressor Burden as Drivers of Observed Effects on Life History Traits in Lymnaea stagnalis (Gastropoda)”
  • “What makes polar diatoms polar?”

Forum Objectives

Environmental stressors include any physical, chemical or biological factor that negatively impact organisms at individual, population, community or ecosystem levels. The range of possible aquatic stressors encompass chemical (incl. oil and oilfield relates, nanoparticles, microplastics and litter), noise, electrical and light pollution as well as climate change-related parameters, such as water temperature, pH and salinity, furthermore fishery and changes in species interactions, such as predation and resource competition. Our knowledge of whether and how different stressors interact is minimal, which is a major obstacle to adequately considering multiple stressors in routine environmental risk assessments.  

  • Creating and maintaining an inter- and trans- disciplinary network across the MASTS community supporting MASTS members as partners for consortium bids, while engaging with external partners.
  • Providing the Scottish Government with a contact point for up-to-date advice on the impact of environmental stressors in Scottish waters to inform relevant policies

Forum Steering Group

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Forum Convenor:
Frances Orton (Heriot-Watt University)

Associate Professor | School of Energy, Geoscience, Infrastructure and Society

Interests:
Freshwater (FW) ecotoxicology & protection of FW biota from threatening processes | Use of environmentally realistic exposure scenarios

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Forum Convenor:
Karen Diele (Edinburgh Napier University)

Professor of Marine Ecology | Head of the ENU Centre for Conservation and Restoration Science (CCRS)

Interests:
Coastal ecosystems | Benthic marine invertebrates | Responses to environmental change

Catriona Harris (University of St Andrews)

Principal Research Fellow, Centre for Research into Ecological and Environmental Modelling (CREEM)

Interests:
Impact of anthropogenic noise on marine mammals and the development of methods for modelling the distribution of marine mammals across space for risk mitigation purposes, for quantitatively assessing cumulative risk associated with noise exposure, and for analysing behavioural responses to sound | Population consequences of disturbance and of multiple stressors modelling frameworks, particularly in relation to marine mammals.

Hannah Anderson (Scottish Government)

Marine Directorate | Senior Environmental Toxicologist | Climate Change, Biodiversity and Ecosystems (CCBE) delivery area of the Science, Evidence, Data and Digital (SEDD) portfolio | Lead of the biological effects of contaminants work in CCBE

Interests:
Advice and monitoring of the marine environment, including the measurement of contaminant concentrations in sediment and biota (fish and shellfish) | Effects of contaminant exposure upon wildlife, and assessments of environmental status | Environmental monitoring and assessments for OSPAR and the UK Marine Strategy (MS).

Mark G. J. Hartl (Heriot-Watt University)

Associate Professor | Centre for Marine Biodiversity & Biotechnology | Institute for Life and Earth Sciences | School of Energy, Geoscience, Infrastructure and Society

Interests:
Development and application of ecotoxicological biomarkers of exposure to aqueous and sediment-associated contaminants in the marine and estuarine environment | Impacts engineered nanomaterials and microplastics on marine and estuarine organisms, ranging from bacteria to fish | Ecotoxicology of deep-sea benthic organisms, the general effects of anthropogenic activity on benthic community structure and the fate of organic and inorganic pollutants in the marine and estuarine environment.

Matt Wale (Edinburgh Napier University)

Lecturer in Life Sciences | School of Applied Sciences | Member of the Centre of Conservation and Restoration Science

Interests:
Interactions between aquatic invertebrates and humans, and reducing human impacts on the environment | Effects of anthropogenic stressors, including noise and artificial light, on marine and freshwater invertebrates across multiple levels of biological organisation | Work with adult and juvenile stages of several invertebrate species to investigate stress induced changes in behaviour, physiology, biochemistry, and genetics (Crustaceans, molluscs, echinoderms, and cnidaria) | Investigations of anthropogenic stressors in multi-variable systems alongside other stressors, such as temperature, ocean acidification, and chemical pollutants.

Sinead Collins (University of Edinburgh)

Professor of Microbial Evolution

Interests:
Prediction of how primary producers in the ocean will respond to global change in the coming decades | Use of microbial evolution experiments and simulations to link short-term responses such as phenotypic plasticity and epigenetic changes, to evolution | Work on how different patterns and numbers of environmental changes affect organismal responses to them.
Marine diatoms.

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MASTS Resources

We’re working behind the scenes to bring you a suite of useful, and updateable, resources including: 

  • Find an expert
  • Find facilities & equipment
  • MASTS Publications

 

If you would like to be updated when the resources section is live please let us know.