The behavior of slow mass movements like soil creep is well known to be governed by soil composition, slope, and cycles in temperature and rainfall. However, their magnitude and importance vary dramatically in often unpredictable ways, with important consequences for creep rate and infrastructure damage prediction. Here, we present long-term (2015–2022) creep measurements for four regions of the UK characterized by intense mas...

This study tested the effect of oat catch crops on mineral nitrogen (N) leaching losses from cool season fodder beet grazing. Undisturbed soil monolith lysimeters were collected from two grassland sites with soils featuring contrasting texture and water holding capacity (WHC) characteristics. After simulated fodder beet grazing in late autumn or winter, synthetic dairy cow urine was applied. Nitrogen leaching losses were measu...

The predation of cookie‐cutter sharks Isistius spp. upon the early life stages of yellowfin tuna Thunnus albacares , skipjack tuna Katsuwonus pelamis and little tunny Euthynnus alletteratus are described. New evidence suggesting a connection between commercial fishing and predation by Isistius sp. is presented, with these sharks biting tunas hooked in surface waters during daylight. The healing patterns of the wounds made by t...

Understanding soil organic carbon ( SOC ) sequestration is important to develop strategies to increase the SOC stock and, thereby, offset some of the increases in atmospheric carbon dioxide. Although the capacity of soils to store SOC in a stable form is commonly attributed to the fine (clay + fine silt) fraction, the properties of the fine fraction that determine the SOC stabilization capacity are poorly known. The aim of thi...

The feeding habits of the European eel Anguilla anguilla (>300 mm total length, L T ) were compared in two lakes of different environmental state: Lake Großer Vätersee (LGV), Germany (clear water, mesotrophic and submerged macrophytes), and Lake Vallum (LV), Denmark (turbid, eutrophic and no submerged macrophytes). The density of macrozoobenthos was higher in LV (3500 individuals m −2 ) than in LGV (1500 individuals m −2 ). Th...

Recent trends in the abundance, distribution and growth of bluemouth in Scottish waters are described. The observations are all based on an ecologically important time‐series database of trawl surveys conducted annually between 1925 and 2004 by Fisheries Research Services, Aberdeen. We examine the period 1985–2004 in detail. Bluemouth abundance has increased over the last decade both along the continental shelf west of Scotlan...

A bstract Interannual, seasonal, and regional variation in the diet of porpoises, Phocoena phocoena , in Scottish (UK) waters was studied using stomach contents of animals stranded between 1992 and 2003. Most samples came from the east coast (including many porpoises killed by bottlenose dolphins), with smaller numbers from the west coast and from Shetland. The most important prey types, in terms of contribution by number and...

The spring/early summer distribution of Calanus spp. in the north‐eastern Atlantic and the northern North Sea was studied from data collected on three cruises between 1992 and 1995, and compared against estimates from Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR) data obtained between 1958 and 1993. The patterns observed in both data sets were examined in relation to the hypothesis proposed by Backhaus et al . (1994 ) to explain the annu...

The population of Calanus finmarchicus in the North Sea is replenished each spring by invasion from an overwintering stock located beyond the shelf edge. A combination of field observations, statistical analysis of Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR) data, and particle tracking model simulations, was used to investigate the processes involved in the cross‐shelf invasion. The results showed that the main source of overwintering...

The use of Generalized Additive Models in the analysis of Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR) distribution and abundance data for C alanus finmarchicus and C. helgolandicus is demonstrated. Strong emphasis is placed on the influence of long‐term trend, seasonality and location. The preponderance of zeros in the data, as well as the particular problems associated with the CPR recording protocol, are adequately handled by the mod...

Generalized linear models were used to assess the influence of diel vertical migration (DVM) on Continuous Plankton Recorder data for adult (stages V and VI) Calanus finmarchicus . To simplify interpretation, the data were first divided into individual months and modelled using a Generalized Linear Model incorporating factors for long‐term trend and daylight. The fitted models reveal that, at certain times of the year and part...