Ythan Estuary, north east coast of Scotland, United Kingdom

Macroalgae and seagrass taxonomy-related counts; Bird counts; Fauna abundance per unit area of the bed; Fish taxonomy-related counts; Insect and earthworm taxonomy-related abundance per unit area of the bed; Nitrate concentration parameters in the water column; Phosphate concentration parameters in the water column; Macroalgae generic abundance in water bodies; Silicate concentration parameters in the water column; Nitrite concentration parameters in the water column; Phytoplankton taxonomic abundance in water bodies

Plankton nets; pelagic trawl nets; benthos samplers; discrete water samplers; observers; nutrient analysers

The Ythan estuary in north east Scotland is one of the best documented in the British Isles. Long term studies have revealed the complexity of its food webs and population interactions. The estuary lies approximately 20km north of Aberdeen. It is about 8km in length and has an average width of 300m. Over 250 species of bird have been recorded within the Forvie National Nature Reserve, where the Ythan estuary is situated. An extensive range of investigations has been carried out on the Ythan's birds, but two species have been the subject of long term studies: the eider duck (Somateria mollissima) and the shelduck (Tadorna tadorna). The estuary's mudflats and mussel beds are home to large numbers of invertebrates, which provide a food supply to the birds and also fish, shrimps and crabs. The most common fish are the flounder (Platichthys flesus) and the sand goby (Pomatoschistus minutus), both of which have been studied extensively. The long term data sets maintained for the Ythan estuary are very valuable for increasing understanding of eutrophication processes. These include information on nutrient concentrations, algal abundance, invertebrate densities and numbers of shorebirds over the past twenty to thirty years.

Gorman, M. and Raffaelli, D. (1993) The Ythan estuary., Biologist. Vol 40(1). pp10-13.

Culterty Field Station, University of Aberdeen
Newburgh
Aberdeen
Aberdeenshire
AB25 3AA
United Kingdom