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This study presents the fecal contamination dynamic at the two bathing sites of Aytré Bay (Charente Maritime, France). We quantified fecal indicator bacteria (FIB) abundances (Escherichia coli and enterococci) from water and sediment samples over one-year survey. Then we measured biological (bacterial abundance, chlorophyll-a), physico-chemical (dissolved nutrients and oxygen, salinity, pH …) and climatic (temperatures, rainfall and tidal coefficient) parameters. Results showed that FIB abundances were occasionally higher than the European regulatory threshold during winter, summer and fall. The "poor quality" of the bathing water was due to high enterococci abundance. We found negative significant correlations between FIB and water temperature and salinity, and positive significant correlations between FIB and rainfall, PO

In shallow macrotidal ecosystems with large intertidal mudflats, the sediment-water coupling plays a crucial role in structuring the pelagic microbial food web functioning, since inorganic and organic matter and microbial components (viruses and microbes) of the microphytobenthic biofilm can be suspended toward the water column. Two experimental bioassays were conducted in March and July 2008 to investigate the importance of biofilm input for the pelagic Microbial and Viral Loops. Pelagic inocula (

The Charente River provides nutrient- and virus-rich freshwater input to the Marennes Oleron Basin, the largest oyster-producing region in Europe. To evaluate virioplankton distribution in the Charente Estuary and identify which environmental variables control dynamic of virioplankton abundance, five stations defined by a salinity gradient (0–0.5, 0.6–5, 13–17, 20–24, and higher than 30 PSU) were surveyed over a year. Viral abundance was related to bacterioplankton abundance and activities, photosynthetic pigments, nutrient concentration, and physical parameters (temperature and salinity). On a spatial scale, virus displayed a decreasing pattern seaward with abundance ranging over the sampling period from 1.4 × 107 to 20.8 × 107 viruses mL−1 making virioplankton the most abundant component of planktonic microorganisms in the Charente Estuary. A good correlation was found between viral and bacterial abundance (r s = 0.85). Furthermore, bacterial abundance was the most important predictor of viral abundance explaining alone between 66% (winter) and 76% (summer) of viral variability. However, no relation existed between viral abundance and chlorophyll a. Temporal variations in viral distributions were mainly controlled by temperature through the control of bacterial dynamics. Spatial variations of viral abundance were influenced by hydrodynamic conditions especially during the winter season where virioplankton distribution was entirely driven by mixing processes.

International audience; The migratory shorebirds of the East Atlantic flyway land in huge numbers during a migratory stopover or wintering on the French Atlantic coast. The Brouage bare mudflat (Marennes-Oléron Bay, NE Atlantic) is one of the major stopover sites in France. The particular structure and function of a food web affects the efficiency of carbon transfer. The structure and functioning of the Brouage food web is crucial for the conservation of species landing within this area because it provides sufficient food, which allows shorebirds to reach the north of Europe where they nest. The aim of this study was to describe and understand which food web characteristics support nutritional needs of birds. Two food-web models were constructed, based on in situ measurements that were made in February 2008 (the presence of birds) and July 2008 (absence of birds). To complete the models, allometric relationships and additional data from the literature were used. The missing flow values of the food web models were estimated by Monte Carlo Markov Chain – Linear Inverse Modelling. The flow solutions obtained were used to calculate the ecological network analysis indices, which estimate the emergent properties of the functioning of a food-web. The total activities of the Brouage ecosystem in February and July are significantly different. The specialisation of the trophic links within the ecosystem does not appear to differ between the two models. In spite of a large export of carbon from the primary producer and detritus in winter, the higher recycling leads to a similar retention of carbon for the two seasons. It can be concluded that in February, the higher activity of the ecosystem coupled with a higher cycling and a mean internal organization, ensure the sufficient feeding of the migratory shorebirds.

International audience; The abundance and composition of microbial communities were investigated during 2007 in Marennes Oléron Bay (France) in order to characterize the biological relationships governing the planktonic food web. Compared to the results of previous years, there was lower abundance and lower magnitude of variations in autotrophic and heterotrophic microbial entities in 2007. Using a Spearman rank correlation analysis, a significant link for biological abundance was only noted between bacteria and ciliates. However, an interesting relationship was highlighted between chlorophyll a and bacterial aminopeptidase and β-glucosidase exoenzymatic activities. Two characteristic periods of virus-bacteria uncoupling were observed in spring and autumn 2007. Using multivariate analysis, the clustering of monthly viral community structures (defined by RAPD-fingerprinting) was related to bacterial proteolysis activity and secondarily to flagellates. Spring and autumn were characterized by phytoplanktonic blooms of large cells (> 10µm) and small cells (< 10µm), respectively, during the virus-bacteria uncoupling phases. High predation by flagellates in the autumn, during a period of microbial food web activity, involved the highest viral fingerprint richness, inferring a top-down control in driving the number of virus-host systems. We discuss the proteolysis level as a descriptor in structuring viral assemblages and argue that changes in the quantity and quality of DOM may bridge phytoplankton to bacteria and reflect changes in phytoplankton composition.

As agents of mortality, viruses and nanoflagellates impact on picoplankton populations. We examined the differences in interactions between these compartments in two French Atlantic bays. Microbes, considered here as central actors of the planktonic food web, were first monitored seasonally in Arcachon (2005) and Marennes-Oléron (2006) bays. Their dynamics were evaluated to categorize trophic periods using the models of Legendre and Rassoulzadegan as a reference framework. Microbial interactions were then compared through 48 h batch culture experiments performed during the phytoplankton spring bloom, identified as herbivorous in Marennes and multivorous in Arcachon. Marennes was spatially homogeneous compared with Arcachon. The former was potentially more productive, featuring a large number of heterotrophic pathways, while autotrophic mechanisms dominated in Arcachon. A link was found between viruses and phytoplankton in Marennes, suggesting a role of virus in the regulation of autotroph biomass. Moreover, the virus-bacteria relation was weaker in Marennes, with a bacterial lysis potential of 2.6% compared with 39% in Arcachon. The batch experiments (based on size-fractionation and viral enrichment) revealed different microbial interactions that corresponded to the spring-bloom trophic interactions in each bay. In Arcachon, where there is a multivorous web, flagellate predation and viral lysis acted in an opposite way on picophytoplankton. When together they both reduced viral production. Conversely, in Marennes (herbivorous web), flagellates and viruses together increased viral production. Differences in the composition of the bacterial community composition explained the combined flagellate-virus effects on viral production in the two bays.

12 páginas, 6 figuras, 2 tablas., Batch culture experiments using viral enrichment were conducted to test the response of a coastal bacterial community to autochthonous (i.e., co-existing) or allochthonous riverine viruses. The effects of viral infections on bacterial dynamics and activity were assessed by epifluorescence microscopy and thymidine incorporation, respectively, whereas the effect of viral infection on bacterial community composition was examined by polymerase chain reaction-single strand conformation polymorphism 16S ribosomal RNA fingerprinting. The percentages of high nucleic acid-containing cells, evaluated by flow cytometry, were significantly correlated (r 2 =0.91, n=12, p, This work was supported by grants from the French ‘Programme National en Environnement Côtier’ (PNEC, ART 5), the ‘Contrat de Plan Etat Région’ (CPER 2000–2005) and the ‘Conseil Général de Charente-Maritime’ (PhD grant to J.-C. Auguet). EO Casamayor is a ‘Ramon y Cajal’ Fellow supported by project REN 2003-08333 from the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science (MEC) and the European Community. At the final writing period for this work, J.-C. Auguet benefited from a SEUI-MEC Spanish postdoctoral fellowship.

International audience; To assess the in situ impact of oysters, Crassostrea gigas, on planktonic protist and bacteria communities and the potential contribution of protozoa to their food resource intake, the abundance and the diversity of protists and bacteria were followed in 2 Atlantic coastal ponds, with and without oysters. The protist biomass in such ponds was high, with a maximum in spring of 982 μg C l-1 and a minimum in winter of 179 μg C l-1. Whatever the season, the presence of oysters (20 m-2 corresponding to on average 23 mg dry weight m-2) induced a significant decrease in > 5 μm protist abundance. On the contrary, planktonic organisms < 5 μm, such as Chlorophyta flagellates and bacteria, developed similarly in both ponds. It can be assumed that such a depletion in micro-sized protists was especially related to the grazing activity of C. gigas, which efficiently retains > 5 μm particles. In spring, oyster grazing triggered dramatic changes in the protist community by lowering the taxonomic diversity. In autumn and winter, the presence of oysters deeply influenced the taxonomic structure of the protist communities: > 5 μm protists could only develop in the control pond, whereas they were removed by filtration into the oyster pond; on the contrary, < 5 μm protists that were not retained, were favoured in the oyster pond. The set of results showed that hetero/mixotrophic protists represent an important potential resource in coastal ponds: flagellates > 5 μm were the main protist resource for C. gigas; ciliates represented the second resource with a substantial contribution in autumn; diatoms and dinoflagellates, though efficiently removed represented a weak carbon resource. Our study supports the hypothesis that oysters may access to the strong bacterioplanktonic production through hetero/mixotrophic protists, which would thus allow the transfer of carbon from the microbial loop towards C. gigas.