Late-summer distribution of phytoplankton in relation to water mass characteristics in Hudson Bay and Hudson Strait (Canada)

1997 ◽  
Vol 54 (8) ◽  
pp. 1937-1952 ◽  
Author(s):  
M Harvey ◽  
J -C Therriault ◽  
N Simard

Descriptive and multivariate analytical methods were used to analyze the early September (1993) abundance and species composition of phytoplankton in relation to water mass characteristics in Hudson Bay and Hudson Strait. Four groups of stations distributed along well-defined environmental gradients characterizing the distribution of physical and chemical variables were identified. The first group, located in the most southern region of Hudson Bay, was strongly influenced by freshwater runoffs from James Bay and from the other major rivers around the bay and was characterized by a relatively high phytoplankton biomass (chlorophyll a (Chl a) > 1.0 µg ·L-1) in the near-surface waters and by a phytoplankton assemblage equally dominated by small flagellates and dinoflagellates. The second group, located in an area northwest of the Belcher and Sleeper islands, was characterized by relatively well-mixed conditions where small diatoms composed about 50% of the phytoplankton assemblage. The third group occupied the upper part of the bay and the entrance of the strait and was characterized by the lowest surface nutrient concentrations encountered. A clear subsurface chlorophyll maximum dominated by small flagellates (>55% of the assemblage) was observed in this region. The fourth group was located in the central part of the strait where the highest surface nutrient concentrations and phytoplankton biomass values (Chl a > 2.0 µg ·L-1) were observed. The phytoplankton assemblage there was clearly dominated by small diatoms (>80%). These conditions are related to the presence of more intense tidal mixing in this region. The phytoplankton standing crop within this area was comparable with that observed during an autumn bloom situation in most temperate regions of the world's ocean.

2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 1793-1829 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. H. van de Poll ◽  
G. Kulk ◽  
K. R. Timmermans ◽  
C. P. D. Brussaard ◽  
H. J. van der Woerd ◽  
...  

Abstract. The North Atlantic Ocean experiences considerable variability in sea surface temperature (SST, >10 m) on seasonal and inter-annual time-scales. Relationships between SST and vertical density stratification, nutrient concentrations, and phytoplankton biomass, composition, and absorption were assessed in spring and summer from latitudes 30–62° N. Furthermore, a bio-optical model was used to estimate productivity for five phytoplankton groups. Nutrient concentration (integrated from 0–125 m) was inversely correlated with SST in spring and summer. SST was also inversely correlated with near surface (0–50 m) Chl a and productivity for stratified stations. However, near surface Chl a showed an exponential relationship with SST, whereas a linear relationship was found for productivity and SST. The response of phytoplankton to changes in SST is therefore most likely to be observed by changes in Chl a rather than productivity. The discrepancy between relationships of Chl a and productivity were probably related to changes in phytoplankton cell size. The contribution of cyanobacteria to water column productivity correlated positively with SST and inversely with nutrient concentration. This suggests that a rise in SST (over a 13–23 °C range) stimulates productivity by cyanobacteria at the expense of haptophytes, which showed an inverse relationship to SST. At higher latitudes, where rising SST may prolong the stratified season, haptophyte productivity may expand at the expense of diatom productivity. Depth integrated Chl a (0–410 m) was greatest in the spring at higher latitudes, where stratification in the upper 200 m was weakest. This suggests that stronger stratification does not necessarily result in higher phytoplankton biomass standing stock in this region.


2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 4227-4240 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. H. van de Poll ◽  
G. Kulk ◽  
K. R. Timmermans ◽  
C. P. D. Brussaard ◽  
H. J. van der Woerd ◽  
...  

Abstract. Relationships between sea surface temperature (SST, > 10 m) and vertical density stratification, nutrient concentrations, and phytoplankton biomass, composition, and chlorophyll a (Chl a) specific absorption were assessed in spring and summer from latitudes 29 to 63° N in the northeast Atlantic Ocean. The goal of this study was to identify relationships between phytoplankton and abiotic factors in an existing SST and stratification gradient. Furthermore, a bio-optical model was used to estimate productivity for five phytoplankton groups. Nutrient concentration (integrated from 0 to 125 m) was inversely correlated with SST in spring and summer. SST was also inversely correlated with near-surface (0–50 m) Chl a and productivity for stratified stations. Near-surface Chl a and productivity showed exponential relationships with SST. Chl a specific absorption and excess light experiments indicated photoacclimation to lower irradiance in spring as compared to summer. In addition, Chl a specific absorption suggested that phytoplankton size decreased in summer. The contribution of cyanobacteria to water column productivity of stratified stations correlated positively with SST and inversely with nutrient concentration. This suggests that a rise in SST (over a 13–23 °C range) stimulates productivity by cyanobacteria at the expense of haptophytes, which showed an inverse relationship to SST. At higher latitudes, where rising SST may prolong the stratified season, haptophyte productivity may expand at the expense of diatom productivity. Depth-integrated Chl a (0–410 m) was greatest in the spring at higher latitudes, where stratification in the upper 200 m was weakest. This suggests that stronger stratification does not necessarily result in higher phytoplankton biomass standing stock in this region.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (9) ◽  
pp. 674 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ario Damar ◽  
Franciscus Colijn ◽  
Karl-Juergen Hesse ◽  
Luky Adrianto ◽  
Yonvitner ◽  
...  

A study of nutrients, underwater light dynamics, and their correlation with phytoplankton biomass was conducted in the tropical estuary of Jakarta Bay, Indonesia, in the dry season during the period from 2001 to 2019. This study analyzed the spatial and temporal dynamics of phytoplankton biomass and its correlation with phytoplankton biomass. There was significant increase in nutrient concentration in Jakarta Bay, with annual means of 27.97 µM dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) and 11.31 µM phosphates in 2001, increasing to 88.99 µM DIN and 25.92 µM phosphates in 2019. Increased mean nutrient concentrations were accompanied by increased mean phytoplankton biomass, from 15.81 µg Chl-a L−1 in 2001 to 21.31 µg Chl-a L−1 in 2019. The eutrophication status of Jakarta Bay waters was calculated using the Tropical Index for Marine Systems eutrophication index, which showed increased areas of hyper-eutrophic and eutrophic zones, while the mesotrophic area decreased. The hyper-eutrophic zone dominated the areas around river mouths and the inner part of the bay, while eutrophic status was observed in the middle part of the bay and mesotrophic status was found in the outer part of the bay. The area of hyper-eutrophic water increased 1.5-fold, from 75.1 km2 in 2001 to 114.0 km2 in 2019. Increasing eutrophication of the bay has had negative ecological consequences including algal blooms, hypoxic conditions, and mass mortality of marine biota, and it urgently requires remediation.


1983 ◽  
Vol 40 (7) ◽  
pp. 871-887 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Ian Perry ◽  
Bruce R. Dilke ◽  
Timothy R. Parsons

Summer plankton distributions in Hecate Strait, northern British Columbia, were examined during 1979 and 1980 and compared with tidal mixing characteristics. Calculations of the Simpson–Hunter tidal stratification parameter (h∙U−3) indicate that most of Hecate Strait is potentially stratified in summer (in the absence of excessive storms), with a well-mixed region over the shallow shelf adjacent to the Queen Charlotte Islands. Vertical temperature profiles collected from a coastal oil tanker ship of opportunity confirmed the presence of mixed and stratified water masses as predicted. Near-surface concentrations of chlorophyll a, nutrients, diatoms, and copepods were lower in the mixed region (< 1 μg Chl. a∙L−1) than the statified region, but highest (5 μg Chl. a∙L−1) at the front between these mixing regimes. We believe that low phytoplankton biomass in western mixed waters is due to nutrient rather than light limitation, whereas possible advection of nutrients along the edge of the western shelf may support the higher biomass of the frontal region. Such a frontal zone is likely important to groundfish production in this region.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mengyuan Zhu ◽  
Guangwei Zhu ◽  
Hans Paerl ◽  
Wei Zhang ◽  
Hai Xu

&lt;p&gt;Daily monitoring over a period of one year in Lake Taihu, China, included chlorophyll a (Chl-a) and nutrient measurements, determining the taxonomic composition of the phytoplankton community and various water column physicochemical parameters. Chl-a and nutrient concentrations showed strong circadian variations &amp;#8210; Chl-a rised during daylight hours, while ammonium and phosphate rised at night. Chl-a concentrations also showed strong seasonal variations, with one annual peak in spring and another from summer to autumn, dominated by Dolichospermum spp. and Microcystis spp. respectively. Temperature appeared to exert the most important effect in this species succession. A nutrient&amp;#8210;Chl-a balance calculation indicated that both nitrogen and phosphorus in the water column could be limiting factors for phytoplankton growth during bloom periods. Over two thirds of particulate nutrients was attributed to phytoplankton biomass during blooms. Daily (or weekly) monitoring data provided more precise description of water quality, capturing short-term peaks in phytoplankton biomass, and reduced risks of under- or overestimating trophic levels in lakes, which always happened when using monthly monitoring data.&lt;/p&gt;


2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 30
Author(s):  
Wenlong Xu ◽  
Guifen Wang ◽  
Long Jiang ◽  
Xuhua Cheng ◽  
Wen Zhou ◽  
...  

The spatiotemporal variability of phytoplankton biomass has been widely studied because of its importance in biogeochemical cycles. Chlorophyll a (Chl-a)—an essential pigment present in photoautotrophic organisms—is widely used as an indicator for oceanic phytoplankton biomass because it could be easily measured with calibrated optical sensors. However, the intracellular Chl-a content varies with light, nutrient levels, and temperature and could misrepresent phytoplankton biomass. In this study, we estimated the concentration of phytoplankton carbon—a more suitable indicator for phytoplankton biomass—using a regionally adjusted bio-optical algorithm with satellite data in the South China Sea (SCS). Phytoplankton carbon and the carbon-to-Chl-a ratio (θ) exhibited considerable variability spatially and seasonally. Generally, phytoplankton carbon in the northern SCS was higher than that in the western and central parts. The regional monthly mean phytoplankton carbon in the northern SCS showed a prominent peak during December and January. A similar pattern was shown in the central part of SCS, but its peak was weaker. Besides the winter peak, the western part of SCS had a secondary maximum of phytoplankton carbon during summer. θ exhibited significant seasonal variability in the northern SCS, but a relatively weak seasonal change in the western and central parts. θ had a peak in September and a trough in January in the northern and central parts of SCS, whereas in the western SCS the minimum and maximum θ was found in August and during October–April of the following year, respectively. Overall, θ ranged from 26.06 to 123.99 in the SCS, which implies that the carbon content could vary up to four times given a specific Chl-a value. The variations in θ were found to be related to changing phytoplankton community composition, as well as dynamic phytoplankton physiological activities in response to environmental influences; which also exhibit much spatial differences in the SCS. Our results imply that the spatiotemporal variability of θ should be considered, rather than simply used a single value when converting Chl-a to phytoplankton carbon biomass in the SCS, especially, when verifying the simulation results of biogeochemical models.


Author(s):  
Lathika Cicily ◽  
K. Padmakumar ◽  
C. Asha Devi ◽  
V. Sanjeevan

AbstractThe present communication reports on the occurrence of a multi-species diatom bloom in the upwelled waters along the southwest coast of India. During the late summer monsoon season (September 2009) a multi-species diatom bloom with a pale green discoloration of the sea surface was observed in the coastal waters of southwest coast of India. The bloom spread over an area of approximately 15 km2 along the coastal waters off Kannur (Lat. 11°59.471 N, Long. 75°03.446 E). Total diatom cell density of the bloom area was 16 × 104 cells l−1. Proboscia (=Rhizosolenia) alata (Brightwell) Sandstrom constituted 90% of the total phytoplankton population. Other phytoplankton groups that contributed to the bloom population included Chaetoceros spp., Pseudo-nitzschia spp., Rhizosolenia spp., Coscinodiscus sp., Leptocylindrus danicus, Thalassiosira sp., and Bacteriosira sp. Among these Pseudo-nitzschia multiseries, a toxic species with the ability to produce potent neurotoxin domoic acid, was observed with a cell density of 4 × 103 cells l−1. Surface chlorophyll a concentration of the bloom region was 14.1 μg l−1. Nutrient concentrations of the bloom area were 0.01 μmol l−1 for NO2-N, 0.1 μmol l−1 for NO3-N, 0.83 μmol l−1 for PO4-P and 11.44 μmol l−1 for SiO4.


2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 6419-6432 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Du ◽  
Z. Liu ◽  
M. Dai ◽  
S.-J. Kao ◽  
Z. Cao ◽  
...  

Abstract. Based on four cruises covering a seasonal cycle in 2009–2011, we examined the impact of the Kuroshio intrusion, featured by extremely oligotrophic waters, on the nutrient inventory in the central northern South China Sea (NSCS). The nutrient inventory in the upper 100 m of the water column in the study area ranged from ∼200 to ∼290 mmol m−2 for N + N (nitrate plus nitrite), from ∼13 to ∼24 mmol m−2 for soluble reactive phosphate and from ∼210 to ∼430 mmol m−2 for silicic acid. The nutrient inventory showed a clear seasonal pattern with the highest value appearing in summer, while the N + N inventory in spring and winter had a reduction of ∼13 and ∼30%, respectively, relative to that in summer. To quantify the extent of the Kuroshio intrusion, an isopycnal mixing model was adopted to derive the proportional contribution of water masses from the SCS proper and the Kuroshio along individual isopycnal surfaces. The derived mixing ratio along the isopycnal plane was then employed to predict the genuine gradients of nutrients under the assumption of no biogeochemical alteration. These predicted nutrient concentrations, denoted as Nm, are solely determined by water mass mixing. Results showed that the nutrient inventory in the upper 100 m of the NSCS was overall negatively correlated to the Kuroshio water fraction, suggesting that the Kuroshio intrusion significantly influenced the nutrient distribution in the SCS and its seasonal variation. The difference between the observed nutrient concentrations and their corresponding Nm allowed us to further quantify the nutrient removal/addition associated with the biogeochemical processes on top of the water mass mixing. We revealed that the nutrients in the upper 100 m of the water column had a net consumption in both winter and spring but a net addition in fall.


2016 ◽  
Vol 76 (s1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariano Bresciani ◽  
Claudia Giardino ◽  
Rosaria Lauceri ◽  
Erica Matta ◽  
Ilaria Cazzaniga ◽  
...  

Cyanobacterial blooms occur in many parts of the world as a result of entirely natural causes or human activity. Due to their negative effects on water resources, efforts are made to monitor cyanobacteria dynamics. This study discusses the contribution of remote sensing methods for mapping cyanobacterial blooms in lakes in northern Italy. Semi-empirical approaches were used to flag scum and cyanobacteria and spectral inversion of bio-optical models was adopted to retrieve chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) concentrations. Landsat-8 OLI data provided us both the spatial distribution of Chl-a concentrations in a small eutrophic lake and the patchy distribution of scum in Lake Como. ENVISAT MERIS time series collected from 2003 to 2011 enabled the identification of dates when cyanobacterial blooms affected water quality in three small meso-eutrophic lakes in the same region. On average, algal blooms occurred in the three lakes for about 5 days a year, typically in late summer and early autumn. A suite of hyperspectral sensors on air- and space-borne platforms was used to map Chl-a concentrations in the productive waters of the Mantua lakes, finding values in the range of 20 to 100 mgm-3. The present findings were obtained by applying state of the art of methods applied to remote sensing data. Further research will focus on improving the accuracy of cyanobacteria mapping and adapting the algorithms to the new-generation of satellite sensors.


2017 ◽  
Vol 56 (8) ◽  
pp. 2221-2237 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ping Yang ◽  
Guoyu Ren ◽  
Wei Hou

AbstractHourly datasets obtained by automatic weather stations in Beijing, China, are developed and employed to analyze the spatial and temporal characteristics of relative humidity (RH) and urban dryness island intensity (UDII) over built-up areas. A total of 36 stations inside the sixth ring road are considered as urban sites, while six stations in suburban belts surrounding the built-up areas are taken as reference sites. Results show that the RH is obviously smaller in urban areas than in suburban areas, indicating the effect of urbanization on near-surface atmospheric moisture and RH. A further analysis of relations between RH and temperature on varied time scales shows that the variations in RH in the urban areas are not due solely to changes in temperature. The annual and seasonal mean UDII are high in central urban areas, with the strongest UDII values occurring in autumn and the weakest values occurring in spring. The diurnal UDII variations are characterized by a steadily strong UDII stage from 2000 to 0800 LT and a minimum at 1500 or 1600 LT. The rapid shifts of UDII from high (low) to low (high) occur during the periods 0800–1600 LT (1600–2000 LT). The occurrence time of the peaks varies among different seasons: the peaks appear at 0700, 2100, 2000, and 0800 LT for spring, summer, autumn, and winter, respectively. Further analysis shows that large UDII values appear in the evenings and early nights in late summer and early to midautumn and that low UDII values mainly occur in the afternoon hours of spring, winter, and late autumn.


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