Dimethyl sulfide over oceans

Other odor fields possibly available to birds are ammonia from pastures and, over the ocean, dimethyl sulfide released by herbivorous action of plankton on marine plants (Nevitt etal., 1995). 

Thornton DC, Bandy AR, Dreidger AR III. 1987. Dimethyl sulfide, sulfur dioxide and carbon disulfide over the Southern Pacific Ocean [Abstract], Abstr Pap Am Chem Soc 194 ENVR 92. 

Well over 100 compounds have been determined in seawater (and sediments) using a considerable variety of techniques (Table 2). Methods include n-and branched alkanes (up to about C20, pristane/ phytane), alkenes and aromatic compounds (up to the disubstituted naphthalenes), halocarbons and chlorinated aromatic species, low relative molecular mass alcohols, organic sulfur compounds (notably dimethyl sulfide, a major product of some phytoplankton species, but ranging up to dimethyl trisulfide), and freons (11, 12, and 113 used in studies of oceanic mixing). 

Particle precursor gases are emitted into the atmosphere either directly by natural and anthropogenic sources or by oxidation processes in the atmosphere. The most prominent precursor gas is probably sulfur dioxide (SO2). It is the precursor for particulate sulfates, such as sulfuric acid (H2SO4) or ammonium sulfate [(NH4)2S04]. Sulfur dioxide is directly emitted by natural sources (e.g., volcano emptions). Anthropogenic sources in industrial regions are mostly associated with combustion processes (e.g., coal combustion). Additional SO2 is derived from oxidation processes of dimethyl sulfide (DMS) over the oceans. Estimations of the global sulfur emissions from these sources are listed in Table 3. 

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