DOCSLIB.ORG

Blue Carbon Restoration in Northern Ireland – Feasibility Study

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Blue Carbon Restoration in Northern Ireland – Feasibility Study Blue Carbon Restoration in Northern Ireland – Feasibility Study J. A. Strong1, K. Mazik2, N. Piechaud1, L. Bryant2, C. Wardell1, S. Hull2, M. Tickle2, E-M. Norrie2, H. McIlvenny3, and A. Clements3 National Oceanography Centre, UK (1) University of Hull (2) Ulster Wildlife (3) Saltmarsh ©Paul Corbett This report was funded by the DAERA Challenge Fund Contents Summary .................................................................................................................................... 8 Research Briefing ..................................................................................................................... 10 Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 22 Policy context ....................................................................................................................... 22 Northern Ireland’s Marine Plan ....................................................................................... 22 Future Developments: Northern Ireland’s Climate Change Bill, Environment Strategy/Environmental Improvement Plans .................................................................. 23 UK Marine Strategy .......................................................................................................... 23 UK Climate Change Act and the UNFCCC’s Paris Climate Agreement ............................. 23 International conventions and agreements: ................................................................... 24 The scope of coastal habitats in Northern Ireland to act as ‘blue carbon’. ........................ 25 Seagrass............................................................................................................................ 25 Saltmarsh ......................................................................................................................... 26 Shellfish beds ................................................................................................................... 26 Threats to coastal blue carbon habitats .............................................................................. 27 Project aims and structure of this report ............................................................................ 28 Part I: A review of seagrass (Zostera marina) restoration potential ....................................... 30 Distribution of Zostera marina ........................................................................................ 30 Habitat requirements....................................................................................................... 31 Global decline and threats to Zostera marina ................................................................. 32 Restoration Techniques ....................................................................................................... 35 Transplantation/ Seedling transplantation ...................................................................... 35 Artificial seed germination ............................................................................................... 39 Re-seeding/Seed planting ................................................................................................ 40 Seed collection ................................................................................................................. 40 Broadcasting / direct sowing of seeds ............................................................................. 41 Burial ................................................................................................................................ 41 Mechanical planting ......................................................................................................... 41 Deployment of reproductive shoots from buoys ............................................................ 41 Deployment of seeds in hessian bags .............................................................................. 42 Habitat modification ........................................................................................................ 44 Seagrass restoration feasibility ............................................................................................ 44 Challenges to restoration................................................................................................. 44 Importance of habitat suitability ..................................................................................... 45 Wider ecological considerations ...................................................................................... 47 Societal aspects of seagrass restoration .......................................................................... 48 Recommendations for Z. marina restoration ...................................................................... 48 Part II: Habitat suitability modelling ........................................................................................ 50 An Introduction to Habitat Suitability Modelling ................................................................ 50 Methods ............................................................................................................................... 50 Estimation of Extent and Habitat Suitability.................................................................... 50 Gathering the Predictor Variables ................................................................................... 51 Presence and absence data for species and habitats ...................................................... 55 Variable selection............................................................................................................. 61 HS model training, prediction and validation .................................................................. 62 Mapping extent ................................................................................................................ 64 Value range for suitable habitat ...................................................................................... 65 Results .................................................................................................................................. 66 Estimation of Extent and Habitat Suitability.................................................................... 66 Estimation of current extent ............................................................................................ 66 Habitat suitability (medium and high suitability) ............................................................ 75 Confidence layers ............................................................................................................. 75 Blue carbon hotspots ....................................................................................................... 87 Value ranges for medium and high habitat suitability .................................................... 87 Estimation of Extent and Habitat Suitability within Northern Ireland’s Inshore MPA Network ........................................................................................................................... 91 Discussion............................................................................................................................. 96 Estimation of Extent and Habitat Suitability.................................................................... 96 Potential Blue Carbon Value ............................................................................................ 98 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................ 99 Part III: Blue Carbon Restoration Feasibility Workshop ........................................................ 100 An Introduction to the Workshop...................................................................................... 100 Kelp Forests ........................................................................................................................ 101 Case Study: Help Our Kelp ............................................................................................. 101 Discussion Questions ..................................................................................................... 102 Summary ........................................................................................................................ 104 Saltmarsh ........................................................................................................................... 106 Case Study: Experimental saltmarsh restoration in Essex ............................................. 106 Discussion Questions ..................................................................................................... 107 Summary ........................................................................................................................ 109 Seagrass Meadows............................................................................................................. 111 Case Study: Seagrass Ocean Rescue .............................................................................. 111 Discussion Questions ..................................................................................................... 112 Summary ........................................................................................................................ 114 Shellfish Beds ....................................................................................................................
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The Direct and Indirect Contribution Made by the Wildlife Trusts to the Health and Wellbeing of Local People
    An independent assessment for The Wildlife Trusts: by the University of Essex The direct and indirect contribution made by The Wildlife Trusts to the health and wellbeing of local people Protecting Wildlife for the Future Dr Carly Wood, Dr Mike Rogerson*, Dr Rachel Bragg, Dr Jo Barton and Professor Jules Pretty School of Biological Sciences, University of Essex Acknowledgments The authors are very grateful for the help and support given by The Wildlife Trusts staff, notably Nigel Doar, Cally Keetley and William George. All photos are courtesy of various Wildlife Trusts and are credited accordingly. Front Cover Photo credits: © Matthew Roberts Back Cover Photo credits: Small Copper Butterfly © Bob Coyle. * Correspondence contact: Mike Rogerson, Research Officer, School of Biological Sciences, University of Essex, Wivenhoe Park, Colchester CO4 3SQ. [email protected] The direct and indirect contribution made by individual Wildlife Trusts on the health and wellbeing of local people Report for The Wildlife Trusts Carly Wood, Mike Rogerson*, Rachel Bragg, Jo Barton, Jules Pretty Contents Executive Summary 5 1. Introduction 8 1.1 Background to research 8 1.2 The role of the Wildlife Trusts in promoting health and wellbeing 8 1.3 The role of the Green Exercise Research Team 9 1.4 The impact of nature on health and wellbeing 10 1.5 Nature-based activities for the general public and Green Care interventions for vulnerable people 11 1.6 Aim and objectives of this research 14 1.7 Content and structure of this report 15 2. Methodology 16 2.1 Survey of current nature-based activities run by individual Wildlife Trusts and Wildlife Trusts’ perceptions of evaluating health and wellbeing.
    [Show full text]
  • Wildberkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire
    Winter 2020 Berkshire, Buckinghamshire Wild & Oxfordshire FARMING FOR WILDLIFE The truly green revolution poised to speed nature’s recovery WHAT’S IN A NAME? The magical relationship between language and nature WINTER WILDLIFE Heroic hedges Discover the wildlife that thrives in our hedgerows Farming and wildlife HAMBLIN/2020VISION MARK Welcome 10 They are compatible! Your wild winter Ready for nature’s recovery The best of the season’s wildlife and The pandemic continues, but with talk of a ‘green where to enjoy it on your local patch recovery’ there could yet be a silver lining that puts people and the environment first. These are unprecedented times and with the RIC MELLIS RIC Agriculture and Environment Bills currently making their way back through Parliament, nature’s recovery now rests in the hands 3 Wintertime wonders of politicians. We have been fighting hard alongside other Wildlife Trusts Wildlife wows this winter to ensure that the bold promises made on securing a future for wildlife come to fruition. We continue to lobby for the best possible outcome. Thank you The Agriculture Bill could transform our countryside. BBOWT will We achieve more by working facilitate this truly green revolution at the local level, offering the as one. Your membership helps expertise and vision for a landscape rich in wildlife, for all to enjoy. In fact, fund vital conservation and we’ve already started and this autumn launched our new Land Advice campaign work that protects vulnerable birds. Discover what Service to help farmers and landowners manage their land in a more else we are achieving together nature-minded way.
    [Show full text]
  • How Do Seagrasses Face Herbivory? a Case of Study in Cadiz Bay
    How do seagrasses face herbivory? A case of study in Cadiz bay Isabel Casal*1, Fernando G. Brun1 and Eva Zub´ıa2 *Corresponding author: [email protected] 1Department of Biology (Ecology Area), University of C´adiz,Puerto Real (C´adiz)Spain 2Department of Organic Chemistry, University of C´adiz,Puerto Real (C´adiz),Spain Keywords: Herbivory, Marine Angiosperms, Natural Products Introduction The marine angiosperms or seagrasses are vascular plants with leaves, rhizomes, roots, flowers and seeds that inhabit marine environment. Seagrasses are characterized by developing extensive crowded meadows in shallow coastal areas, forming one of the most important coastal habitats of the biosphere, bearing a great ecological value because of the services and functions they provide, both to humans and marine ecosystems. Seagrasses are distributed along all the coasts of the world, except in Antarctica (Robertson and Mann, 1984) while only four species are found in the Mediterranean Sea: Zostera noltei Hornemann (1832), Zostera marina Linnaeus (1753), Cymodocea nodosa Ascherson (1870) and Posidonia oceanica (Linnaeus) Delile (1813). With the exception of the P. oceanica, the other three species coexist in the Bay of Cadiz (Figure1, modified from Brun et al.(2015)). Figure 1: (A) Seagrass habitats in the Bay of Cadiz (B) Zostera noltei (C) Cymodocea nodosa (D) Zostera marina. 1 Marine angiosperms possess a secondary metabolism that synthetizes specific organic compounds known as natural products. These compounds play important roles in the survival of the plants, including their involvement in chemical defence mechanisms. One of the ecological functions played by these natural products could be their deterrent capacity against herbivores.
    [Show full text]
  • Sub-Regional Report On
    EP United Nations Environment UNEP(DEPI)/MED WG 359/Inf.10 Programme October 2010 ENGLISH ORIGINAL: ENGLISH MEDITERRANEAN ACTION PLAN Tenth Meeting of Focal Points for SPAs Marseille, France 17-20 May 2011 Sub-regional report on the “Identification of important ecosystem properties and assessment of ecological status and pressures to the Mediterranean marine and coastal biodiversity in the Adriatic Sea” PNUE CAR/ASP - Tunis, 2011 Note : The designations employed and the presentation of the material in this document do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of UNEP concerning the legal status of any State, Territory, city or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of their frontiers or boundaries. © 2011 United Nations Environment Programme 2011 Mediterranean Action Plan Regional Activity Centre for Specially Protected Areas (RAC/SPA) Boulevard du leader Yasser Arafat B.P.337 – 1080 Tunis Cedex E-mail : [email protected] The original version (English) of this document has been prepared for the Regional Activity Centre for Specially Protected Areas by: Bayram ÖZTÜRK , RAC/SPA International consultant With the participation of: Daniel Cebrian. SAP BIO Programme officer (overall co-ordination and review) Atef Limam. RAC/SPA International consultant (overall co-ordination and review) Zamir Dedej, Pellumb Abeshi, Nehat Dragoti (Albania) Branko Vujicak, Tarik Kuposovic (Bosnia ad Herzegovina) Jasminka Radovic, Ivna Vuksic (Croatia) Lovrenc Lipej, Borut Mavric, Robert Turk (Slovenia) CONTENTS INTRODUCTORY NOTE ............................................................................................ 1 METHODOLOGY ....................................................................................................... 2 1. CONTEXT ..................................................... ERREUR ! SIGNET NON DÉFINI.4 2. SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE AND AVAILABLE INFORMATION........................ 6 2.1. REFERENCE DOCUMENTS AND AVAILABLE INFORMATION ...................................... 6 2.2.
    [Show full text]
  • BROWN ALGAE [147 Species] (
    CHECKLIST of the SEAWEEDS OF IRELAND: BROWN ALGAE [147 species] (http://seaweed.ucg.ie/Ireland/Check-listPhIre.html) PHAEOPHYTA: PHAEOPHYCEAE ECTOCARPALES Ectocarpaceae Acinetospora Bornet Acinetospora crinita (Carmichael ex Harvey) Kornmann Dichosporangium Hauck Dichosporangium chordariae Wollny Ectocarpus Lyngbye Ectocarpus fasciculatus Harvey Ectocarpus siliculosus (Dillwyn) Lyngbye Feldmannia Hamel Feldmannia globifera (Kützing) Hamel Feldmannia simplex (P Crouan et H Crouan) Hamel Hincksia J E Gray - Formerly Giffordia; see Silva in Silva et al. (1987) Hincksia granulosa (J E Smith) P C Silva - Synonym: Giffordia granulosa (J E Smith) Hamel Hincksia hincksiae (Harvey) P C Silva - Synonym: Giffordia hincksiae (Harvey) Hamel Hincksia mitchelliae (Harvey) P C Silva - Synonym: Giffordia mitchelliae (Harvey) Hamel Hincksia ovata (Kjellman) P C Silva - Synonym: Giffordia ovata (Kjellman) Kylin - See Morton (1994, p.32) Hincksia sandriana (Zanardini) P C Silva - Synonym: Giffordia sandriana (Zanardini) Hamel - Only known from Co. Down; see Morton (1994, p.32) Hincksia secunda (Kützing) P C Silva - Synonym: Giffordia secunda (Kützing) Batters Herponema J Agardh Herponema solitarium (Sauvageau) Hamel Herponema velutinum (Greville) J Agardh Kuetzingiella Kornmann Kuetzingiella battersii (Bornet) Kornmann Kuetzingiella holmesii (Batters) Russell Laminariocolax Kylin Laminariocolax tomentosoides (Farlow) Kylin Mikrosyphar Kuckuck Mikrosyphar polysiphoniae Kuckuck Mikrosyphar porphyrae Kuckuck Phaeostroma Kuckuck Phaeostroma pustulosum Kuckuck
    [Show full text]
  • Plantlife—Annual Review 2013
    Plantlife in numbers Patron: HRH The Prince of Wales Plantlife HQ targeted for meadow 14 Rollestone Street restoration under Salisbury SP1 1DX our new Save 01722 342730 [email protected] Our Magnificent Plantlife Scotland, Stirling Meadows scheme 01786 478509 [email protected] by Plantlife staff Plantlife Cymru, Cardiff and volunteers 02920 376193 [email protected] running the Virgin London Marathon www.plantlife.org.uk attended Plantlife created or restored as part of Scotland’s workshops, our Coronation Meadows project events, demonstration days, walks and talks We are Plantlife doing amazing Plantlife is the organisation that is speaking up for our wild flowers, work for Plantlife plants and fungi. From the open spaces of our nature reserves Plantlife is a charitable to the corridors of government, we’re here to raise their profile, company limited by guarantee, to celebrate their beauty, and to protect their future. aged from four to 90, company no. 3166339 Registered in England and Wales, Wild flowers and plants play a fundamental role for wildlife, and have contributed their own patchwork charity no. 1059559 their colour and character light up our landscapes. But without our to our Patchwork Meadow exhibition, Registered in Scotland, help, this priceless natural heritage is in danger of being lost. charity no. SC038951 which is touring Europe Join us in enjoying the very best that nature ISBN 978-1-910212-09-7 has to offer. September 2014 banned from sale designbyStudioAde.com after campaigning by Printed using
    [Show full text]
  • English Nature Research Report
    LOCAL'REGIONAL BIODIVERSITY ACTION PLANS Plan name c. "K;IOL'JJ:: Ref. No Area $,:rev countv Regton CC.JTH LAST Organisations involved SJrrey WT Coordinating Surrey County Council Coordinating E-gltsh Nature Funding ~5x3 source of information 7#*/AG Source of information Eiv Age C:k WWF-UK and Herpetological Consewation Trust Purpose Outline long term (50 yrs) vision for arEa set targets for existing work Identify priorities Coordinate partners Audience Local CouncillorIdecisionmakers Timescale First draft Contact Jtil Barton IDebbie Wicks Surrey Wildlife Trust 01 483 488055 -~"__--_I-___"___- I --_I--.-- - Plan name Unknown Ref. No. Area Greater London Region SOUTH EAST Organisations involved Role London Wildlife Trust Coordinating London Ecology URlt Coordinating ENIEA Coordinating 3TCVIRSPB Coordinating WTINat.His. Soc. Source of information Tne above make up the steering group together vvlth another Six Purpose Outline long term (50 yrs) vision for area Set targets for existing work Identify priorities Coordinate partners Audience General public Conservation staff in paltnerirelated organisations Local CouncillorIdecisionmakers Mern bersivolunteers Timescale Unknown Contact Ralph Gaines London Wildlife Trust 0171 278 661213 __-______-_I ~ ---^_---_--__-+_-- +"." ---I--7-_-_+ 01 '20198 Page 27 LOCAURECIONAL BlODlVERSlTY ACTION PLANS Plan name UnKfiOVIC Ref. No. Area ilmpsnire county Region SCUTH EAST Organisations involved Role Hampshire Wildlife Trust Caord!nating Hampshire County Council Coordinating Local Authorities Funding Engllsh Nature ' Env Age Source of information RSPB Source of information CLA NFU CPRE.FA.FE Purpose Set targets for existing work Identify priorities Coordinate partners Audience General public Local CouncillorIdecision makers Timescale First drafi Audit planned summer 1998 Contact Patrick Cloughley Hampshire and IOWWildlife Trust 01 703 61 3737 -___ , _____.__x """ ____---I_--_____-__I ___-_I ---_ ~ "....
    [Show full text]
  • Research Article Analysis by Vibrational Spectroscopy of Seaweed Polysaccharides with Potential Use in Food, Pharmaceutical, and Cosmetic Industries
    Hindawi Publishing Corporation International Journal of Carbohydrate Chemistry Volume 2013, Article ID 537202, 7 pages http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2013/537202 Research Article Analysis by Vibrational Spectroscopy of Seaweed Polysaccharides with Potential Use in Food, Pharmaceutical, and Cosmetic Industries Leonel Pereira,1 Saly F. Gheda,2 and Paulo J. A. Ribeiro-Claro3 1 IMAR-CMA, Department of Life Sciences, FCTUC, University of Coimbra, 3004-516 Coimbra, Portugal 2 Phycology Lab., Botany Department, Faculty of Science, Tanta University, Tanta 31527, Egypt 3 Department of Chemistry, CICECO, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal Correspondence should be addressed to Leonel Pereira; [email protected] Received 14 November 2012; Accepted 8 February 2013 AcademicEditor:OttoHolst Copyright © 2013 Leonel Pereira et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Polysaccharides present in several seaweeds (Kappaphycus alvarezii, Calliblepharis jubata,andChondrus crispus—Gigartinales, Rhodophyta; Gelidium corneum and Pterocladiella capillacea—Gelidiales, Rhodophyta; Laurencia obtusa—Ceramiales, Rhodophyta; Himanthalia elongata, Undaria pinnatifida, Saccorhiza polyschides, Sargassum vulgare,andPadina pavonica— Phaeophyceae, Ochrophyta) are analyzed by spectroscopic techniques. The nature of the polysaccharides (with extraction and without any type of extraction) present in these seaweeds was determined with FTIR-ATR and FT-Raman analysis of extracted phycocolloids and ground dry seaweed. 1. Introduction The different phycocolloids used in food industry as nat- ural additives are (European codes of phycocolloids) Many species of seaweed (marine macroalgae) are used as food and they have also found use in traditional medicine (i) alginic acid—E400, because of their perceived health benefits.
    [Show full text]
  • Public Engagement and Wildlife Recording Events in the UK Matt Postles & Madeleine Bartlett, Bristol Natural History Consortium
    - DRAFT - The rise and rise of BioBlitz: public engagement and wildlife recording events in the UK Matt Postles & Madeleine Bartlett, Bristol Natural History Consortium Abstract A BioBlitz is a collaborative race against the clock to discover as many species of plants, animals and fungi as possible, within a set location, over a defined time period - usually 24 hours. A BioBlitz usually combines the collection of biological records with public engagement as experienced naturalists and scientists explore an area with members of the public, volunteers and school groups. The number of BioBlitz events taking place in the UK has increased explosively since the initiation of the National BioBlitz programme in 2009 attracting large numbers of people to take part and gathering a large amount of biological data. BioBlitz events are organised with diverse but not mutually exclusive aims and objectives and the majority of events are considered successful in meeting those aims. BioBlitz events can cater for and attract a wide diversity of participants through targeted activities, particularly in terms of age range, and (in the UK) have engaged an estimated 2,250 people with little or no prior knowledge of nature conservation in 2013. BioBlitz events have not been able to replicate that success in terms of attracting participants from ethnic minority groups. Key positive outcomes for BioBlitz participants identified in this study include enjoyment, knowledge and skills based learning opportunities, social and professional networking opportunities and inspiring positive action Whilst we know that these events generate a lot of biological records, the value of that data to the end user is difficult to quantify with the current structure of local and national recording schemes.
    [Show full text]
  • 100 Years of the Wildlife Trusts: a Potted History
    100 years of The Wildlife Trusts: a potted history 1912-15: Charles Rothschild and the move to protect wild places On 16 May 1912, a banker, expert entomologist and much-travelled naturalist named Charles Rothschild formed the Society for the Promotion of Nature Reserves (SPNR) in order to identify and protect the UK’s best places for wildlife. The SPNR would later become The Wildlife Trusts. At that time, concern for nature focussed on protecting individual species from cruelty and exploitation, but Rothschild’s vision was to safeguard the places where wildlife lived – the moors, meadows, woods and fens under attack from rapid modernisation. In 1910, at the age of 33, Rothschild had bought 339 acres of wild fenland in Cambridgeshire, which later became the SPNR’s first nature reserve. From its base at the Natural History Museum in London, the SPNR started putting Rothschild’s vision into practice. By 1915, Rothschild and his colleagues – among them future Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain – had prepared a list of 284 special wildlife sites around the British Isles they considered ‘worthy of permanent preservation’, and presented this to the Board of Agriculture. The list of potential reserves included the Farne Islands and the Norfolk Broads in England, Tregaron Bog in Wales, Caen Lochan Glen in Scotland, and Lough Neagh in Ireland.1 However, despite Rothschild’s efforts he became ill and the list was not adopted by government. It would take many more years for the protection of wild places to make it onto the statute. 1920s-50s: The National Parks & Access to the Countryside Act and the birth of local Wildlife Trusts Rothschild died early, in 1923 at the age of 46, and stewardship of the SPNR passed to another visionary – a retired gemologist from the Natural History Museum named Herbert Smith.
    [Show full text]
  • Adaptation to Climate Change Sustainable Local Economies Abundant Wildlife Healthy Cities and Green Space for All
    A living landscape A call to restore the UK’s battered ecosystems, for wildlife and people Adaptation to climate change Sustainable local economies Abundant wildlife Healthy cities and green space for all Updated with 100+ Living Landscape schemes So much of the UK now is packed with development Fenton/BBC Beatrice and wildlife is in retreat. There are many fine nature A LIVING LANDSCAPE reserves but our future must be to integrate human and natural communities and restore a better balance. This document lays out exciting and important new plans. Professor Aubrey Manning OBE President of The Wildlife Trusts Matthew Roberts. Cover picture: St Ives and the river Great Ouse, Cambridgshire, Dae Sasitorn/lastrefuge.co.uk Dae Cambridgshire, Ouse, Great river the and Ives St picture: Cover Roberts. Matthew Where will our water come from? When will our land use become truly sustainable? How can our environment adapt to climate change? What would it take to rebuild a wildlife-rich countryside? Why are so many people disconnected from nature? Priestcliffe Lees nature reserve, owned by Derbyshire Wildlife Trust: a treasure chest of local biodiversity. The Wildlife Trusts see such places as nodes from It’s time to think big which plants and animals can recolonise a recovering landscape To adapt to climate change, the UK’s wildlife will need to move Driven by local people and aspirations, The Wildlife Trusts play along ‘climate corridors’ up and down the country, or to shadier a leading role not just in developing the vision but in mustering slopes or cooler valleys. Wildlife has done it all before, after the the support that can allow communities to drive their own last ice age, but this time the change is faster and there are change.
    [Show full text]
  • Spatial and Temporal Variation of Kelp Beds and Associated Macroalgal Assemblages Along the Portuguese Coast
    1 Spatial and temporal variation of kelp beds and associated macroalgal assemblages along the Portuguese coast Daniela Pinho Master’s Thesis presented to Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade do Porto in Ecology, Environment and Territory 2014 1 Spatial and temporal variation of kelp beds and associated macroalgal assemblages along the Portuguese coast Daniela Pinho Master ’s degree in Ecology, Environment and Territory Biology Departament 2014 Supervisor Professor Isabel Sousa Pinto, PhD, Associated Professor, Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade do Porto Co-supervisor Iacopo Bertocci, PhD, Auxiliary Researcher, CIIMAR 2 Todas as correções determinadas pelo júri, e só essas, foram efetuadas. O Presidente do Júri, Porto, ______/______/_________ 3 Acknowledgments First of all, I would like to thank to my parents for giving me the opportunity to do a master degree of my interest. I hope the end of this cycle brings them some pride. I would also like to thank some people that without them I couldn’t have done this master thesis. Thanks to prof. Isabel Sousa Pinto for introducing me this opportunity to do my Msc. João Franco thank you for your guidance and support along the year, without it I would have been lost. Francisco Arenas, thank you for your patience with all of my doubts and for always helping me with identification problems. Continue to have that positive way of living each day…! Iacopo Bertocci I’d like to give you a big thank , for your precious help during the entire process of writing, especially with statistics, and also for your willing to help me understand every step at my rhythm.
    [Show full text]