Phytoplankton bloom

Coale, K. H., Johnson, K. S., Fitzwater, S. E. et al. (1996). A massive phytoplankton bloom induced by an ecosystem-scale iron fertilization experiment in the equatorial Pacific Ocean. Nature 383, 495-501. 

Wilkerson EP, Dugdale RC, Hogue VE, Marchi A (2006) Phytoplankton blooms and nitrogen productivity in San Erancisco Bay. Estuaries Coasts 29(3) 401-416... 

It is important to note however that Equation (10) assumes steady state in the Th distribution so that production truly is balanced by decay and export. It is easy to imagine a scenario after a phytoplankton bloom, when the export of POC (and " Th) has decreased or even ceased, such that the water column " Th profile would still show a deficit with respect to caused by prior high flux events. This relief deficit will disappear as " Th grows into equilibrium with on a time scale set by the " Th half-life. The magnitude by which the Th flux is over- or under-estimated depends on whether deficits are increasing or decreasing and at what rate. 

Niven SEH, Kepkay PE, Boraie A (1995) Colloidal organic carbon and colloidal dynamics during a coastal phytoplankton bloom. Deep-Sea Res II 42 257-273 Nozaki Y, Thomson J, Turekian KK (1976) The distribution of Pb-210 and Po-210 in the surface waters of the Pacific Ocean. Earth Planet Sci Lett 32 304-312... 

Johnson, D.L. and R.M. Burke. 1978. Biological mediation of chemical speciation. II. Arsenate reduction during marine phytoplankton blooms. Chemosphere 8 645-648. 

Irigoien X (2006) Reply to Horizons Article Castles built on sand dysfunctionality in plankton models and the inadequacy of dialogue between biologists and modellers Flynn (2005). Shiny mathematical castles built on grey biological sands. J Plankton Res 28 965-967 Irigoien X, Flynn KJ, Harris RP (2005) Phytoplankton blooms a loophole in microzooplankton grazing impact J Plankton Res 27 313-321... 

Other chemically non-characterised UV-absorbing compounds have been reported in the water column near phytoplankton blooms such as the so-called P380, which exhibits abroad absorbance between 300 and 470 nm with a maximum at about 380 nm (Llewellyn and Mantoura 1997). 

The interplay of physical controls is less complicated in the Polar and Trade (tropical) domains. As shown in Figure 24.11a, only one phytoplankton bloom occurs in the Polar domain, but is larger in amplitude than at mid-latitudes (Westerlies). Phytoplankton growth in the subpolar region is prolific because uniformly cold atmospheric temperatures suppress density stratification of the water column. Abundant winds ensure that... 

The prevailing view of the dynamics of many phytoplankton blooms is that they often terminate due to nutrient exhaustion, increased grazing pressure, and/or physical dispersal. Evidence is now accumulating that tamarensis blooms have ended when grazing and advection were low and nutrients were above detection limits (18, 21). Instead of persisting without division as nutrients disappear... 

Fig. 5. Simulation results showing the development and decay of a phytoplankton bloom and the changes in the standing stocks of the associated heterotrophic compartments with increasing daily rates of sedimentation out of the mixed layer. (A) no sedimentation, (B) 10% sedimentation, (C) 20% sedimentation, (D) 30% sedimentation. Axes give nitrogen standing stocks (mg.N.m-2 integrated over 60 m depth) and the nitrogen pool concentration (pg.at.l- ) (After Moloney et al., 1985).

Weichart, G., 1980. Chemical changes and primary production in the Fladen Ground area (North Sea) during the first phase of a spring phytoplankton bloom. "Meteor" Forschungsergebnisse, Reihe A., n° 22 79-86. 

In sediments of the Kiel Bight, three periods of accumulation of organic material could be distinguished s in autumn, winter and spring (Fig. 7 Meyer-Reil, 1983). The enrichment of organic material during November could be traced back to the breakdown and sedimentation of the autumn phytoplankton bloom composed of dinoflagellates and... 

As shown for sediments of the Kiel Bight, bacteria reacted to the "autumn-" and "spring-input", respectively, with two separate peaks. The first peak already occurred when concentrations of organic material started to accumulate in the sediment surface. This demonstrates that bacteria almost immediately responded to the availability of decomposable organic material. The second peak in bacterial parameters coincided with the main input of organic material following the final breakdown and sedimentation of the phytoplankton blooms (Fig. 8). 

The bacterial population faced with the "autumn-input" was derived from an anoxic population (fermentative bacteria, sulfate reducers) which prevailed during summer stagnation. Within this population the input of freshly produced organic material caused a drastic shift. Bacteria primarily reacted with a strong increase in cell volume (biomass production). Deviating from its "normal" distribution (cf. above), the size spectrum was dominated by medium and large-size cells. Following the final breakdown and sedimentation of the autumn phytoplankton bloom, the bacteria subsequently responded with cell division (increase in cell number). 

Base upon studies of diurnal fluctuations at a shallow water sediment in the Kiel Bight (cf. above), a bacterial net production of 80 mg of carbon per m2 per day was calculated. Further estimates of bacterial production were derived from investigations of seasonal varaitions in bacterial biomass at two sediment stations in deeper waters of the Kiel Bight. As response to the input of the phytoplankton bloom in autumn, bacterial production amounted to 140 and 370 mg of carbon per m2 per day (sandy-mud and muddy sediment, respectively). The corresponding values in spring were 300 and 120 mg of carbon per m2 per day, respectively (cf. Table 1). As it was pointed out above, these values well... 

Graf, G., Bengtsson, W., Diesner, U., Schulz, R. and Theede, H., 1982. Benthic response to sedimentation of a spring phytoplankton bloom process and budget. Mar. Biol., 67 201-208. 

Kepkay, P., S. E. H. Niven, and T. G. Milligan. 1993. Low molecular weight and colloidal DOC production during a phytoplankton bloom. Marine Ecology Progress Series 100 233-244. 

Kirchman, D. L., Y. Suzuki, C. Garside, and H. W. Ducklow. 1991. High turnover of dissolved organic carbon during a spring phytoplankton bloom. Nature 352 612-614. 

Coale, K. H., K. S. Johnson, S. E. Fitzwater, R. M. Gordon, S. Tanner, F. P. Chavez, L. Ferioli, C. Sakamoto, P. Rogers, F. Millero, P. Steinberg, P. Nightingale, D. Cooper, W. P. Cochlan, M. R. Landry, J. Constantinou, G. Rollwagen, A. Trasvina, and R. Kudela. 1996. A massive phytoplankton bloom induced by an ecosystem-scale iron fertilization experiment in the equatorial Pacific Ocean. Nature 383 495-501... 

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