Hostname: page-component-76d6cb85b7-pn7tm Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2026-07-28T14:06:27.441Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Cell size of Antarctic phytoplankton as a biogeochemical condition

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 October 2009

Christopher D. Hewes
Christopher D. Hewes*
Affiliation:
Polar Research Program, Marine Biology Research Division, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California-San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093-0202, USA
*
*chewes@ucsd.edu
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Two contrasting high nutrient/low chlorophyll regions having different conditions that control phytoplankton production, and separated by an area of blooming, are found during summer in the vicinity of the South Shetland Islands (Antarctica). Low chlorophyll conditions occur either in Fe-rich, deeply mixed and high salinity Weddell Sea shelf waters, or the Fe-poor, shoaled and low salinity Drake Passage Antarctic Circumpolar Current waters, while phytoplankton blooms are located between in mid salinity water. Contrasting phytoplankton communities were found to populate these different biogeochemical provinces. In data from six field seasons (1999–2007), nanoplankton (2–20 μm) were found to be dominant in the phytoplankton populations from light-controlled coastal waters, including blooms, with most chlorophyll found in the 2–5 μm size class. In contrast, the adjacent and presumably Fe-controlled Drake Passage waters were dominated by the microplankton (> 20 μm) size class. The asymmetrical distribution of phytoplankton size classes across the salinity gradient, when analysed independently of total chlorophyll concentration, supports the hypothesis that the different food web grazing dynamics are dependent upon biogeochemical provinces.

Keywords

community compositionsize-fractionmicrobial trophodynamicsmicroplanktonnanoplanktonpicoplankton

Information

Type
Biological Sciences
Information
Antarctic Science , Volume 21 , Issue 5 , October 2009 , pp. 457 - 470
Copyright
Copyright © Antarctic Science Ltd 2009

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Article purchase

Temporarily unavailable

References

Atkinson, A., Siegel, V., Pakhomov, E.Rothery, P. 2004. Long-term decline in krill stock and increase in salps within the Southern Ocean. Nature, 432, 100–103.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Becquevort, S. 1997. Nanoprotozooplankton in the Atlantic sector of the Southern Ocean during early spring: biomass and feeding activities. Deep-Sea Research II, 44, 355–373.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chisholm, S.W. 1992. Phytoplankton size. In Falkowski, P.G.&Woodhead, D.D., eds. Primary productivity and biogeochemical cycles in the sea. New York: Plenum Press, 213–237.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cushing, D.H. 1981. Temporal variability in production systems. In Longhurst, A.R., ed. Analysis of marine ecosystems. New York: Academic Press, 443–472.Google Scholar
De Baar, H.J.W., Boyd, P.W., Coale, K.H., Landry, M.R., Tsuda, A.P.A., Bakker, D.C.E., Bozec, Y., Barber, R.T., Brzezinski, M.A., Buesseler, K.O., Boye, M., Croot, P.L., Gervais, F., Gorbunov, M.Y., Harrison, P.J., Hiscock, W.T., Laan, P., Lancelot, C., Law, C.S., Levasseur, M., Marchetti, A., Millero, F.J., Nishioka, J., Nojiri, Y., van Oijen, T., Riebesell, U., Rijkenberg, M.J.A., Saito, H., Takeda, S., Timmermans, K.R.Veldhuis, M.J.W. 2005. Synthesis of iron fertilization experiments: from the iron age in the age of enlightenment. Journal of Geophysical Research, 110, 1–24.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ehnert, W.McRoy, C.P. 2007. Phytoplankton biomass and size fractions in surface waters of the Australian sector of the Southern Ocean. Journal of Oceanography, 63, 179–187.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fiala, M., Machado, M.-C.Oriol, L. 2002. Phytoplankton distribution in the Indian sector of the Southern Ocean during spring. Deep-Sea Research II, 49, 1867–1880.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fiala, M., Semeneh, M.Oriol, L. 1998. Size-fractionated phytoplankton biomass and species composition in the Indian sector of the Southern Ocean during austral summer. Journal of Marine Systems, 17, 179–194.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fahnenstiel, G.L., Lohrenz, S.Redalje, D. 1994. Have we overestimated picoplankton production? Limnology and Oceanography, 39, 432–438.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Froneman, P.W., Pakhomov, E.A.Balarin, M.G. 2004. Size-fractionated phytoplankton biomass, production and biogenic carbon flux in the eastern Atlantic sector of the Southern Ocean in late austral summer 1997–1998. Deep-Sea Research II, 51, 2715–2729.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gall, M.P., Boyd, P.W., Hall, J., Safi, K.A.Chang, H. 2001. Phytoplankton processes. Part 1: Community structure during the Southern Ocean Iron RElease Experiment (SOIREE). Deep-Sea Research II, 48, 2551–2570.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Goldman, J.C.Dennett, M.R. 1985. Susceptibility of some marine phytoplankton species to cell breakage during filtration and post-filtration rinsing. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, 86, 47–58.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hall, J.A.Safi, K. 2001. The impact of in situ Fe fertilization on the microbial food web in the Southern Ocean. Deep-Sea Research II, 48, 2591–2613.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hart, T.J. 1942. Phytoplankton periodicity in Antarctic surface waters. Discovery Reports, 21, 261–356.Google Scholar
Helbling, E.W., Villafañe, V.Holm-Hansen, O. 1991. Effect of Fe on productivity and size distribution of Antarctic phytoplankton. Limnology and Oceanography, 36, 1879–1885.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hewes, C.D., Holm-Hansen, O.Sakshaug, E. 1985. Alternate carbon pathways at lower trophic levels in the Antarctic food-web. In Siegfried, W.R., Condy, P.R. & Laws, R.M., eds. Antarctic nutrient cycles and food webs. Heidelberg: Springer, 277–283.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hewes, C.D., Reiss, C.S.Holm-Hansen, O. 2009. A quantitative analysis of sources for summertime phytoplankton variability over 18 years in the South Shetland Islands (Antarctica) region. Deep-Sea Research I, 10.1016/j.dsr.2009.01.010.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hewes, C.D., Sakshaug, E., Holm-Hansen, O.Reid, F.M.H. 1990. Microbial autotrophic and heterotrophic eucaryotes in Antarctic waters: relationships between biomass and CHL, ATP, and POC. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 63, 27–35.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hewes, C.D., Reiss, C.S., Kahru, M., Mitchell, B.G.Holm-Hansen, O. 2008. Control of phytoplankton biomass by dilution and mixing depth in the western Weddell–Scotia Confluence. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 366, 15–29.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hoffmann, L.J., Peeken, I.Lochte, K. 2007. Co-limitation by iron, silicate, and light of three Southern Ocean diatom species. Biogeosciences Discussions, 4, 209–247.Google Scholar
Hoffmann, L.J., Peeken, I., Lochte, K., Assmy, P.Veldhuis, M. 2006. Different reactions of southern Ocean phytoplankton size classes to iron fertilization. Limnology and Oceanography, 51, 1217–1229.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Holm-Hansen, O.Hewes, C.D. 2004. Deep chlorophyll-a maxima (DCMs) in Antarctic waters: I. Relationships between DCMs and the physical, chemical, and optical conditions in the upper water column. Polar Biology, 27, 699–710.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Holm-Hansen, O.Riemann, B. 1978. Chlorophyll a determination: improvements in methodology. Oikos, 30, 438–447.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Holm-Hansen, O., Mitchell, B.G., Hewes, C.D.Karl, D.M. 1989. Phytoplankton blooms in the vicinity of Palmer Station, Antarctica. Polar Biology, 10, 49–57.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Holm-Hansen, O., Hewes, C.D., Villafañe, V.E., Helbling, E.W., Silva, N.Amos, A. 1997. Phytoplankton biomass and distribution in relation to water masses around Elephant Island, Antarctica. Polar Biology, 18, 145–153.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hopkinson, B.M., Mitchell, B.G., Reynolds, R.A., Wang, H., Selph, K.E., Measures, C.I., Hewes, C.D., Holm-Hansen, O.Barbeau, K.A. 2007. Iron limitation across chlorophyll gradients in the southern Drake Passage: Phytoplankton responses to iron addition and photosynthetic indicators of iron stress. Limnology and Oceanography, 52, 2540–2554.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kang, S.-H.Lee, S.H. 1995. Antarctic phytoplankton assemblage in the western Bransfield Strait region, February 1993: composition, biomass and mesoscale distributions. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 129, 253–267.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kawaguchi, S., Ichii, T.Naganobu, M. 1999. Green krill, the indicator of micro- and nano-size phytoplankton availability to krill. Polar Biology, 22, 133–136.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kawaguchi, S., Shiomoto, A., Imai, K., Tsarina, Y., Yamaguchi, H., Noiri, Y., Iguchi, N.Kameda, T. 2000. A possible explanation for the dominance of chlorophyll in pico and nano-size fractions in the waters around the South Shetland Islands. Polar Biology, 23, 379–388.Google Scholar
Lance, V.P., Hiscock, M.R., Hilting, A.K., Stuebe, D.A., Bidigare, R.R., Smith, W.O. JrBarber, R.T. 2007. Primary productivity, differential size fraction and pigment composition responses in two Southern Ocean in situ iron enrichments. Deep-Sea Research I, 54, 747–773.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Li, W.K.W. 1986. Experimental approaches to field measurements: methods and interpretation. Canadian Bulletin of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, 214, 251–286.Google Scholar
Li, W.K.W. 1990. Particles in “particle free” seawater: growth of ultraphytoplankton and implications for dilution experiments. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, 47, 1258–1268.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Marchant, H.J., Davidson, A.T.Wright, S.W. 1987. The distribution and abundance of croococcoid cyanobacteria in the Southern Ocean. Proceedings of the NIPR Symposium on Polar Biology, 1, 1–9.Google Scholar
Murphy, L.S.Haugen, E.M. 1985. The distribution and abundance of phototrophic ultraplankton in the North Atlantic. Limnology and Oceanography, 38, 47–58.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pakhomov, E.A., Froneman, P.W.Perissinotto, R. 2002. Salp/krill interaction in the Southern Ocean: spatial segregation and implications for the carbon flux. Deep-Sea Research II, 49, 1881–1907.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Selph, K.E., Landry, M.R., Allen, C.B., Calbet, A., Christensen, S.Bidigare, R.R. 2001. Microbial community composition and growth dynamics in the Antarctic Polar Front and seasonal ice zone during late spring 1997. Deep-Sea Research II, 48, 4059–4080.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sheldon, R.S. 1972. Size separation of marine seston by membrane and glass-fiber filters. Limnology and Oceanography, 17, 494–498.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shiomoto, A., Kawaguchi, S., Imai, K.Tsuruga, Y. 1998. Chl a-specific productivity of picophytoplankton not higher than that of larger phytoplankton off the South Shetland Islands in summer. Polar Biology, 19, 361–364.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Smetacek, V. 1999. Diatoms and the ocean carbon cycle. Protist, 150, 25–32.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Smetacek, V., Assmy, P.Henjes, J. 2004. The role of grazing in structuring Southern Ocean pelagic ecosystems and biogeochemical cycles. Antarctic Science, 16, 541–558.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Smith, W.O. JrLancelot, C. 2004. Bottom-up versus top-down control in phytoplankton of the Southern Ocean. Antarctic Science, 16, 531–539.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Stockner, J.G., Klug, M.E.Cochlan, W.P. 1990. Leaky filters: a warning to aquatic ecologists. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, 47, 16–43.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ter Braak, C.J.F. 1987. Unimodal models to relate species to environment. PhD thesis, Rijksinstituut voor Natuurbeheer, Agricultural Mathematics Group, The Netherlands, 151 pp. [Unpublished].Google Scholar
Thingstad, T.F. 1998. A theoretical approach to structuring mechanisms in the pelagic food web. Hydrobiologica, 363, 59–72.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thingstad, T.F.Sakshaug, E. 1990. Control of phytoplankton growth in nutrient recycling ecosystems: theory and terminology. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 63, 261–272.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Varela, M., Fernandez, E.Serret, P. 2002. Size-fractionated phytoplankton biomass and primary production in the Gerlache and south Bransfield straits (Antarctic Peninsula) in austral summer 1995–1996. Deep-Sea Research II, 49, 749–768.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Villafañe, V.E., Helbling, E.W.Holm-Hansen, O. 1995. Spatial and temporal variability of phytoplankton biomass and taxonomic composition around Elephant Island, Antarctica, during the summers of 1990–1993. Marine Biology, 123, 677–686.CrossRefGoogle Scholar