Donegal Bay, Ireland
Main Contributors:
Johanna Yletyinen
Other Contributors:
Summary
Donegal Bay experienced mortalities of marine fauna in 2005. It has been suggested that the kills were brought about by oxygen depletion, which was caused by intense blooms of Karenia mikimotoi, the most common local dinoflagellate species causing red tides. The large scale of the blooms had never been observed before. Large quantities of dead sea urchins and lugworms were deposited on the beaches of west Ireland, and several cultured and wild fish species died. Hypoxia may have been caused by dinoflagellate respiration or decompostion and it may have acted as a cause to mortalities or as a significant stress factor indirectly leading to the death of fauna.
Type of regime shift
Ecosystem type
- Marine & coastal
Land uses
- Fisheries
- Tourism
Spatial scale of the case study
- Local/landscape (e.g. lake, catchment, community)
Continent or Ocean
- Europe
Region
- Northwest Ireland
Countries
- Ireland
Locate with Google Map
Key References
-
O'Boyle S, Silke J. 2010. A review of phytoplankton ecology in estuarine and coastal waters around Ireland. Journal of Plankton Research 32, 99-118.
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Silke J, O’Beirn F, Cronin M. 2005. Karenia mikimotoi: An exceptional dinoflagellate bloom in western Irish waters, summer 2005. Marine Environment and Health Series 21.
Citation
Johanna Yletyinen.
Donegal Bay, Ireland.
In: Regime Shifts Database, www.regimeshifts.org.
Last revised 2012-01-11 13:33:32 GMT.
