Effects of sediment instabilities on benthic microhabitats : case of Kongsfjorden
Sediment depositional events often occur in coastal areas and have major consequences on benthic ecosystems and biogeochemistry. In the Arctic, fjords are transitional environments subjected to glacier melting and large sedimentary inputs. In a context of current climate change, projections predict...
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Other Authors: | , , , , , , |
Format: | Doctoral or Postdoctoral Thesis |
Language: | French |
Published: |
HAL CCSD
2023
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Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://theses.hal.science/tel-04584565 https://theses.hal.science/tel-04584565/document https://theses.hal.science/tel-04584565/file/GUILHERMIC.pdf |
Summary: | Sediment depositional events often occur in coastal areas and have major consequences on benthic ecosystems and biogeochemistry. In the Arctic, fjords are transitional environments subjected to glacier melting and large sedimentary inputs. In a context of current climate change, projections predict an increase of this melting in the future. In Kongsfjorden (Svalbard), a gradient of turbidity highly affects primary production, benthic faunas and microhabitat stability. In order to understand the effects of these environmental gradients in this fjord on the benthic compartment, this Ph.D. proposes an experimental/environmental approach allowing to assess the recovery processes of benthic foraminifera communities and redox gradients after sediment disturbances. Experimentally highlighted burial markers allowed us to observe the effects of this strong summer sedimentation in the fjord which can be seen both in recovery states of early diagenesis processes and seasonal benthic foraminiferal community biozonations on a kilometric scale. Foraminiferal distributionand sediment redox states were proven to be relevant indicators to survey interannual effects of glacier melting on benthic microhabitats Des évènements de dépôts sédimentaires surviennent dans les zones côtières et ont des conséquences majeures sur les écosystèmes benthiques. En Arctique, les fjords sont des environnements soumis à la fonte des glaciers et à d'importants apports sédimentaires. Avec le changement climatique actuel, les projections prévoient une augmentation de cette fonte dans le futur. Dans le Kongsfjord (Svalbard), cette décharge sédimentaire affecte fortement la productivité primaire, les faunes benthiques et la stabilité des microhabitats. Pour comprendre les effets de ces gradients environnementaux sur le compartiment benthique, cette thèse propose une approche couplant des études expérimentales et environnementales permettant de comprendre les processus de rétablissement des communautés de foraminifères benthiques et des gradients ... |
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