Dr Ibrahim Al-Maslamani

Qatar University · Research & Graduate Studies

The Arabian Gulf is exposed to intensive dust storms during summer until early winter. We investigated the nutritive effect of the dust on microbial biodiversity of the water column and the productivity of the Gulf. We collected samples from three sites in a transect perpendicular to the shore in March (before the strong dust storms) and in October...

The southern-central Arabian Gulf demonstrates a poor understanding of nutrients and chlorophyll dynamics in physical-biogeochemical settings. Here, using data of chlorophyll, nutrients and hydrographic parameters collected in two cruises in summer 2019 and winter 2020, we examined variability in nutrients and chlorophyll concentrations, and the dr...

Seasonal variability of hydrography along a nearshore-offshore transect in the eastern part of the EEZ of Qatar has been analyzed using in situ measurements carried out during 5 different months. The study reveals distinct features in temperature, salinity, density, dissolved oxygen (DO), and chlorophyll fluorescence. The sea surface temperature (S...

Seasonal variability of hydrography along a nearshore-offshore transect in the eastern part of the EEZ of Qatar has been analyzed using in situ measurements carried out during 5 different months. The study reveals distinct features in temperature, salinity, density, dissolved oxygen (DO), and chlorophyll fluorescence. The sea surface temperature (S...

The Qatari mangroves of Al-Khor are being increasingly exposed to a wide variety of anthropogenic pollutants due to land reclamation and urban expansion. In this study, we evaluated the lethal and genotoxic effects of methylmercury, trace metals, and organotins, assessing mortality and aneuploidy levels (abnormal number of chromosomes) in the endem...

Mangroves are important sinks of organic carbon (C) and there is significant interest in their use for greenhouse gas emissions mitigation. Adverse impacts on organic carbon storage potential from future climate change and deforestation would devalue such ambitions, thus global projections of future change remains a priority research area. We model...

Impacts of the exceptionally high temperature and salinity on species composition, abundance, biomass and diversity of zooplankton communities were examined in the central Arabian (Persian) Gulf in late winter and summer of 2010 and 2011. Remarkably diverse zooplankton assemblages were characterized with small calanoids (Paracalanus aculeatus and T...

In situ measurements of physical and biogeochemical variables were conducted along a transect in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of Qatar during late summer (September 2014) and winter (January 2015) to investigate their vertical, spatial and temporal variability. The study reveals that the water column is characterized by strong stratification d...

The outwelling paradigm argues that mangrove and saltmarsh wetlands export much excess production to downstream marine systems. However, outwelling is difficult to quantify and currently 40–50% of fixed carbon is unaccounted for. Some carbon is thought outwelled through mobile fauna, including fish, which visit and feed on mangrove produce during t...

The diploid number and karyotype of three endemic and highly distributed species from the Qatari shores: Brachidontes variabilis (Krauss, 1848) (Mytilidae), Isognomon nucleus (Lamarck, 1819) (Pteriidae) and Neotrapezium sublaevigatum (Lamarck, 1819) (Trapezidae), are described for the first time. Brachidontes variabilis presented a diploid number o...

Global inventories that show mangrove forests have rich carbon stores currently lack data from arid areas where carbon stocks may be functionally impoverished relative to humid regions. We quantified total carbon stocks (C) of three arid Avicennia marina stands in Qatar and report an aboveground biomass allometric equation and the first below groun...

Methylmercury (MeHg) concentrations in three different species from different trophic levels with different amounts of Hg exposures were determined for the first time in the EEZ of Qatar. Sampling was conducted during autumn 2017 in two nearshore (Palm Tree and Al-Besheriya Islands) and two offshore locations (Sherawoo and Ishat Islands). Fish musc...

We analyzed net-tow samples of natural assemblages of plankton, and associated particulate matter, from the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of Qatar in the Arabian Gulf. Size-fractionated suspended particles were collected using net tows with mesh sizes of 50 and 200 µm to examine the composition of small- and large-size plankton populations. Samples...

The Arabian Gulf is exposed to intensive dust storms during summer until early winter. We investigated the nutritive effect of the dust on microbial biodiversity of the water column and the productivity of the Gulf. We collected samples from three sites in a transect perpendicular to the shore in March (before the strong dust storms) and in October...

We analyzed net-tow samples of natural assemblages of plankton, and associated particulate matter, from the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of Qatar in the Arabian Gulf. Size fractioned suspended particles were collected using net-tows with mesh sizes of 50 μm (phytoplankton) and 200 μm (zooplankton) to examine the composition of plankton populations...

Relatively few details of hawksbill turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata) nesting ecology exist within the Arabian Gulf. Moreover, little is known about how their nesting dynamics compare to nesting populations throughout the rest of the world. Due to the extreme environmental setting, nesting ecology of hawksbills in the Arabian Gulf is of significant i...

Observed internesting intervals and clutch frequencies. Observed internesting intervals and clutch frequencies for turtles in Qatar over the entire study period. (TIFF)

Interpolated air temperature data. Reported nesting seasons from global studies with start and end months each year. From these dates and locations, air temperatures were interpolated from global gridded data sets from the NOAA National Center for Environmental Prediction. (CSV)

Nesting season lengths. Start and end dates of each nesting season in Qatar with beach coverage calculated from the number of nights where technicians were patrolling. (CSV)

Global dataset. Raw data sets colleated from previously published work. Data includes length of nesting season, CCL, CCW and clutch sizes. (CSV)

Tagging, CCL, CCW and clutch data. Raw data set of all turtles tagged, measured and clutch sizes confirmed in Qatar over the entire study period. (CSV)

In order to implement spatial fisheries management in the Arabian Gulf, a better understanding of the distribution of fish in relation to benthic habitats is required. To facilitate this, hydroacoustic fish surveys were conducted over oyster bed/reef (“shallow”) and surrounding soft sediment (“deep”) habitats in the offshore central Gulf, within Qa...

The trace metal geochemistry of atmospheric dust and terrestrial surface particles were studied on the Qatar Peninsula from November 21, 2013 to November 01,2015. We included samples of the mega dust-storm event on 01-02 April, 2015. Atmospheric dust samples were collected using passive dust traps. Terrestrial surface deposits of recent dust accumu...

As with many other regions in the world, more complete information on the distribution of marine habitats in the Gulf is required to inform environmental policy, and spatial management of fisheries resources will require better understanding of the relationships between habitat and fish communities. Towed cameras and sediment grabs were used to inv...

Total mercury (THg) and methylmercury (MeHg) were recorded in the commercial demersal fish Lethrinus nebulosus, caught from six locations in Qatar EEZ (Exclusive Economic Zone). Concentrations of THg decreased in the order: liver ˃ muscle ˃ gonad. THg concentrations in fish tissue ranged from 0.016 ppm in gonad to 0.855 ppm (mg kg−1 w/w) in liver t...

The Indo-West Pacific genus Coleusia Galil 2006, was recently described and now comprises seven species. We describe a new species from the western Arabian Gulf, Coleusia janani n. sp. The new species is closely related to the congener C. biannulata (Tyndale-Biscoe & George, 1962), and can be distinguished from other species at these genus congener...

The Arabian/Persian Gulf is home to sea turtles surviving at extreme thermal limits. The combination of living under extreme climatic conditions and increasing anthropogenic impacts potentially undermine their survival prospects. But simultaneously, these climate extremes offer a living laboratory for understanding impacts of global climate change...

The combustion of fossil fuels is pushing atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO 2) to unprecedented levels. This rapid increase in atmospheric CO 2 is causing global changes, with noticeable increases in temperature, sea level rise and changes to marine carbon chemistry (i.e., Ocean Acidification-OA). The today average pH of ocean surfac...

The issue of plastic pollution in the marine environment is of increasing global concern. As plastics typically have an intrinsic durability, water insolubility and slow degradation rates, debris has now become both ubiquitous and persistent in the marine environment. Overtime, plastic ultimately result in the generation of microplastics via photol...

Seagrass beds form an important part of the coastal ecosystem in many parts of the world but are very sensitive to anthropogenic nutrient increases. In the last decades, stable isotopes have been used as tracers of anthropogenic nutrient sources and to distinguish these impacts from natural environmental change, as well as in the identification of...

The arid subtropical ecosystem of the central Arabian Gulf was used to explore the combined effects of low primary productivity, high salinities, and variable temperatures on the composition and structure of benthic macrofauna at 13 sites encircling the Qatar Peninsula in winter and summer (or late spring) of 2010 and 2011. The low abundance, bioma...

Portunus segnis (Forskål, 1775) is the representative species of the Portunus pelagicus (Linnaeus, 1758) complex described as inhabiting the Arabian Gulf. It represents one of the most important decapod resources within this semi-enclosed hyper-saline and hyper-thermal marine eco-region. Previous biological and ecological descriptions for P. pelagi...

The Arabian Gulf is a semi-enclosed sea with very high evaporation and low discharge rates resulting in extreme saline and thermal conditions. Additionally the system is characterized by a weak hydrodynamic flushing resulting in pollutant build-up over time. As a result, compared to open marine systems, added stress imposed by pollutants is likely...

INTRODUCTION: Mercury (Hg) contamination in the marine environment has long been recognized as a threat to human health. Organic form of mercury: methyl mercury (MeHg) is especially threatening to ecosystem as in the case of Minamata incident in Japan (Tokuomi et al., 1961). In coastal waters of Qatar, MeHg was detected as 5% of total mercury (THg)...

The Arabian Gulf is subjected to some of the most intense sea water temperatures and salinity levels in the world. In an attempt to understand the distribution and species composition of gastropod assemblages which live in these hyper-thermic and hyper-saline conditions a rapid assessment survey was undertaken along the intertidal zone of Qatar. Th...

Biological Collections, which deal directly with identifying and documenting biodiversity, have a major role in assisting biodiversity management. They form the basis for research, documenting flora and fauna and creating repositories of biological information. Without taxonomic research the biological collections would be merely a collection of cu...

Ecological dogma holds that mangroves are predominantly exporting and are sources for production of offshore systems including fisheries (the ‘outwelling hypothesis’). Yet, the amount of export, and thereby the economic benefits to fisheries, varies greatly between locations. Mangrove functional research has focused on tropical and subtropical area...

The dynamics of the lower-level components of the coastal food web of Qatar are presented as an 'organic carbon' budget that summarizes comprehensive sampling of the phytoplankton, zooplankton and benthos at standard, repeated locations seasonally over a two year period. Moderate levels of phytoplankton biomass and primary production support divers...

The “Pearl Oyster” Pinctada radiata has long been associated with the nation of Qatar. Historically pearl oysters were harvested in huge quantities in the Arabian Gulf with Qatari pearls making up a large percentage of the fishery. However, following the discovery of oil in Qatar, combined with the emergence of Japanese cultured pearls onto the mar...

The increasing level of pollutants in the marine environment is a major concern in all countries, in particular where the main diet is seafood. The major goal of this project was to assess the level of pollution and their effects in three local species, namely blue crab (Portunus pelagicus), barnacle (Balanus amphitrite), and shrimp (Palaemon khori...

Knowledge of the interrelationships between habitats and life-stage development in marine turtles requires an understanding of recruitment, size and age at maturity, sex ratios, growth and sexual development rates, survivorship and nesting probabilities. These data may be used to determine the status and survival of turtle populations during earlie...

The diploid number and karyotype of the palaemonid shrimp Palaemon khori (Decapoda: Palaemonidae) were determined for the first time, presenting 2n = 96 and comprising 26 metacentric, 7 submetacentric, 12 subtelocentric and 3 telocentric chromosome pairs. Moreover, a review of the cytogenetic studies published, so far, in the Palacmoninae sub-famil...

One of the most fascinating and unexpected discoveries during the Qatar University Marine Expeditions to the marine Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of Qatar in 2000-2001, was the detection of a hypoxic water layer in the central region of the Arabian Gulf in waters deeper than 50m. Hypoxia was defined as the region where the concentration of dissolve...

One of the most fascinating and unexpected discoveries during the Qatar University Marine Expeditions to the marine Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of Qatar in 2000-2001, was the detection of a hypoxic water layer in the central region of the Arabian Gulf in waters deeper than 50m. Hypoxia was defined as the region where the concentration of dissolve...

The Arabian Gulf, surrounded by deserts, is an ideal marine basin to study the effects of nutrient input from dust on primary productivity. We studied the microbial community composition of the water column and sediment using 16S r-RNA gene sequencing, and the activity of photosynthetic microorganisms using pigment analysis and microsensors measure...

Mangrove forest productivity is normally sustained by nutrients from terrestrial runoff, with freshwater inputs driving the resulting outwelling of production, but arid mangroves lack this input. The movement of material between seagrass beds and mangroves was examined using the stable C and N isotopic composition of organisms, sediments and suspen...

The Arabian Gulf represents one of the more northerly extremes of mangrove distribution in the Indo-Pacific, and is populated only by Avicennia marina, due to its tolerance of high salinity and wide temperature extremes. Recent studies suggest that in the arid coastal environment of the western Arabian Gulf, export of carbon and nitrogen from mangr...

Phytoplankton biomass (chlorophyll a concentration), primary production, abundance, species diversity and species groupings were measured in the coastal waters surrounding Qatar (Arabian Gulf) at 13 stations in February 2010, July 2010, February 2011 and May 2011. In addition, a broad suite of physico-chemical characteristics were measured: tempera...

Penaeid shrimp can be useful ecological indicators of linkages between shallow tropical coastal habitats, acting as integrators of carbon and nitrogen sources due to their generalist feeding habits and their mobility between habitats and with tidal cycles. In the current study, the contribution of mangrove, seagrass and microbial mat to the nutriti...

A series of experiments investigated the potential role of microbial mats in nutrition of the early settlement stages of Penaeus semisulcatus. From 3 days post-metamorphosis, the microbial mat supported high growth and survival rates in postlarvae, equivalent to that supported by a control diet of Artemia nauplii and mussel. Examination of gut cont...

The feeding ecology of the green tiger shrimp Penaeus semisulcatus was studied in inshore fishing grounds off Doha, Qatar, using a combination of stable isotope (δ13C and δ15N) analysis and gut contents examination. Samples of post-larvae, juvenile and adult shrimp and other organisms were collected from intertidal and subtidal zones during the spa...

A new species of palaemonid shrimp, Palaemon khori sp. nov. is described from Qatar. The new species is closely related to Palaemon debilis Dana, but can be distinguished from that species by its rostral shape, the near quadrate fifth pleuron, a winder and less elongate telson, longer mesial telson spines, as well as details of the male first and s...

A new species of palaemonid shrimp, Palaemon khori sp. nov. is described from Qatar. The new species is closely related to Plaemon debilis Dana, but can be distinguished from that species by its rostral shape, the near quadrate fifth pleuron, a wider and less elongate telson, longer mesial telson spines, as well as details of the male first and sec...

This study examined the feeding and nutrition of Penaeus semisulcatus using a combination of stable isotope (δ13C and δ15N) analysis and gut contents analysis. Field collections included post larvae, juvenile and adult shrimp inhabiting intertidal and subtidal habitats on the coast of Qatar. Post-larvae were collected in shallow water seagrass beds...

Fouling organisms at twelve different pearl oyster beds in the Qatari waters of the Arabian Gulf have been examined and their degree of abundance was assessed. The majority of fouling organisms were algae, sponge , bryozoans, polychaetes, crustaceans , gastropods, bivolves, amphineurans, stelleroida , hydrozoans and ascidians. The highest number re...