Age groups of antarctic krill,Euphausia superba dana, in the Prydz Bay region

Age groups of Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba Dana) in the Prydz Bay region were studied by distribution mixture analysis based on length/frequency data collected by R/VJidi during the 1989/1990 and 1990/1991 austral summer. Five age groups were determined, i.e. 1⁺, 2⁺, 3⁺, 4⁺, and 5⁺, or six age groups in all, if the 0⁺ larvae were included. The mean body length of 1⁺ to 5⁺ age groups was 25.70 mm, 40.47 mm, 45.52 mm, 50.52 mm and 54.52 mm respectively. Supposing the difference in body length between successive age groups is a reflection of the early growth, the maximum growth rate occurred during the period from 1⁺ juveniles to 2⁺ subadults (14.77 mm/a). From 2⁺ subadults to 3⁺ adults the growth rate dropped steeply (5.05 mm/a) because at this stage, increase of body length was substituted, to a great extent, by the growth of sexual products. From 3⁺ onwards the growth rate was maintained at a relatively low level and decreased slowly with age. The relative abundance of age groups 1⁺ and 2⁺, in our sample must be much lower than that in the real population owing to both the large mesh size we used and the distribution difference between juveniles and adults. If we left aside 1⁺ and 2⁺ age groups and just looked at the relative abundance of adults, we found that age group 3⁺ dominated the adult population and that the relative abundance decreased sharply with increasing age. If this situation is normal, one can expect an extremely high mortality rate in adults, 82.6% from 3⁺ to 4⁺ and 94.0% from 4⁺ to 5⁺. This is reasonably expectable for the Prydz Bay region. Contribution No. 3702 from the Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences. The research is an achievement of “NINE FIVE” Key Project of CAS (KZ951-A1-205) and National Key Project (98-927-01).     

The distribution and demography of Euphausia superba in Prydz Bay during the austral summer 2002

This study documents the horizontal distribution and demography of Antarctic krill （Euphausia superba Dana）, col- lected using trawls, from the Prydz Bay region during January 2002. Euphausia superba （E. superba） was distributed primarily south of 64S. The average density and biomass were estimated as 68.85 ind.（1 000 m3） and 24.16 g wet weight-（1 000 m3）, re- spectively. Highest values were located in the open sea （depth 〉 3 000 m）. Body length ofE. superba ranged from 30 to 55 mm （N=1 758）, with a mean length of 38.45~3.68 mm （SD）. The overall sex ratio was approximately 1 ： 1, 47.6% females （41.9% sub-adults and 5.7% adults）, 46.6% males （42.7% sub-adults and 3.9% adults）, while 5.8% were juveniles. The population struc- ture of E. superba exhibited geographical variation. At stations in the western part of the survey area populations had a high pro- portion of juveniles, a lower sexual maturity stage for males and small body size, while the opposite was found at stations in the eastern part. A latitudinal difference was found at stations along 70.5°E and 73°E transects： body length was small and the sex ratio was high in regions of high latitude, while the opposite occurred in areas of low latitude.     

Study on the distribution,abundance and growth condition of Antarctic Krill(Euphausia superba)in the Prydz Bay region,Antarctica during the Austral summer of 1999/2000

Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) were collected from the Prydz Bay region during the austral summer of 1999/2000. The sample - collection was made at 15 sites in 3 longitudinal transects. Although krill were encountered at 14 sites, the abundance was comparatively low in general. The main component of the krill population was of post -larval stages. The mean numerical and weight density of krill integrated for all sampling stations in the survey area were 16. 17 ind. 1000 m -3and 12.02 g 1000 m -3 , respectively. In the survey area, stations with larger krill density are mainly located in the slope zone, except that the largest sample was collected in the open sea zone. No krill occurred in the only station of the shelf zone during our investigation. Krill collected from the slope zone were under better growth condition than those from the open sea zone, but when the survey area is considered as a whole, the growth condition is normal. The results of the comprehensive analysis of the environmental fa     

Biogenic silica in surficial sediments of Prydz Bay,Antarctica

The content and distribution of biogenic silica were investigated in sediment cores from Prydz Bay, Antarctica, during the CHINARE-18/2L cruise. The results show that the content of biogenic silica（ BSiO2 ） is ranged from 4.89% to 85. 41% , and the average content of biogenic silica is 30.90%, the highest value oc- curred at the IV-10 station. The profile of BSiO2 in sediment is contrast to that of sili- cate in the interstitial water. The content of biogenic silica and organic carbon in the surface sediments in the central area of Prydz Bay gyre were much higher than those in other area, and closely related to the Chla content and primary productivity of phyto- plankton in the surface water column.     

Phytoplankton community changes indicated by biomarker from sediment in Prydz Bay, Antarctica

Biomarkers including brassicasterol, dinosterol and alkenone in sediments are used as indicators to reconstruct changes to the phytoplankton community in surface and sub-aerial sediments of Prydz Bay, Antarctica. The results indicate that the bio- marker records in surface and core sediment samples changed with time and space. The total content of phytoplankton biomarkers ranges from 391.0--1 470.6 ng.g-l. The phytoplankton biomass has increased in Prydz Bay over the past 100 years. This variation may be mainly related with climate change in the region. The total biomarker contents in surface sediments from 5 stations in Prydz Bay are in the range of 215.8--1 294.3 ng.g4. The phytoplankton biomass in Prydz Bay is higher than that outside of the bay. This is similar to the distributions of chlorophyll a, organic carbon and biogenic silica in surface waters determined through in situ investigation. Such consistency indicates a coupling between the bottom of the ocean and biogeochemical processes in the upper water.     

Supercooled water in austral summer in Prydz Bay, Antarctica

Supercooled water with temperatures below freezing point,was identified from hydrographic data obtained by Chinese and Australian expeditions to Prydz Bay,Antarctica,during the austral summer.The study shows that most supercooled waters occurred at depths of 63-271 m in the region north of the Amery Ice Shelf(AIS) front.The maximum supercooling was 0.16°C below the in-situ freezing point.In temperature and salinity ranges of-2.14--1.96°C and 34.39-34.46,respectively,the water was colder and fresher than peripheral shelf water.The supercooled water had less variability in the vertical profiles compared to shelf water.Based on analysis of their thermohaline features and spatial distribution,as well as the circulation pattern in Prydz Bay,we conclude that these supercooled waters originated from a cavity beneath the AIS and resulted from upwelling just outside of the AIS front.Water emerging from the ice shelf cools to an extremely low temperature(about-2.0°C) by additional cooling from the ice shelf,and becomes buoyant with the addition of melt water from the ice shelf base.When this water flows out of the ice shelf front,its upper boundary is removed,and thus it rises abruptly.Once the temperature of this water reaches below the freezing point,supercooling takes place.In summer,the seasonal pycnocline at-100 m water depth acts as a barrier to upwelling and supercooling.The upwelling of ice shelf outflow water illuminates a unique mid-depth convection of the polar ocean.     

Fatty acid composition of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Euphausia superba</Emphasis>, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Thysanoessa macrura</Emphasis> and <Emphasis Type="Italic">Euphausia crystallorophias</Emphasis> collected from Prydz Bay,Antarctica

The information of trophic relationship is important for studying the Southern Ocean ecosystems. In this study, three dominant krill species, Euphausia superba, Thysanoessa macrura and Euphausia crystallorophias, were collected from Prydz Bay, Antarctica, during austral summer of 2009/2010. The composition of fatty acids in these species was studied. E. superba and T. macrura showed a similar fatty acid composition which was dominated by C14:0, C16:0, EPA (eicosapentenoic acid) and DHA (decosahexenoic acid) while E. crystallorophias showed higher contents of C18:1(n-9), C18:1(n-7), DHA and EPA than the former two. Higher fatty acid ratios of C18:1(n-9)/18:1(n-7), PUFA (polyunsaturated fatty acid)/SFA (saturated fatty acid), and 18PUFA/16PUFA indicated that E. crystallorophias should be classified as a typical omnivore with a higher trophic position compared with E. superba and T. macrura.     

Archaeal diversity and abundance within different layers of summer sea-ice and seawater from Prydz Bay,Antarctica

Fluorescence in-situ hybridization （FISH） and 16S rRNA gene clone library analyses were used to determine the abundance and diversity of archaea in Prydz Bay, Antarctica. Correlation analysis was also performed to assess links between physicochemical parameters and archaeal abundance and diversity within the sea-ice. Samples of sea-ice and seawater were collected during the 26th Chinese National Antarctic Research Expedition. The results of FISH showed that archaea were relatively abundant within the top layer of the sea-ice, and correlation analysis suggested that the concentration of 4NH＋ might be one of the main factors underlying this distribution pattern. However, using 16S rRNA gene libraries, archaea were not detected in the top and middle layers of the sea-ice. All archaeal clones obtained from the bottom layer of the sea-ice were grouped into the Marine Group I Crenarchaeota while the archaeal clones from seawater were assigned to Marine Group I Crenarchaeota, Marine Group II Euryarchaeota, and Marine Group III Euryarchaeota. Overall, the ifndings of this study showed that the diversity of archaea in the sea-ice in Prydz Bay was low.     

Concentrations and distribution of biogenic barium in surface sediments of Prydz Bay, Antarctica

Concentrations ofbiogenic barium were investigated in surface sediments of Prydz Bay, Antarctica, during the 21st and 27th CHINARE cruises. Factors controlling the observed distribution are explored. Biogenic barium concentrations obtained from a sequential extraction procedure are compared with total concentrations obtained from the normative calculation based on a total digestion, and differences in the results are examined. Concentrations of biogenic barium, calculated by the normative calculation, were much higher than the concentrations obtained through sequential extraction; this discrepancy is the result of the occurrence of barium associated with Mn/Fe oxides, which represents an important component of total barium in these sediments. Concentrations of biogenic barium obtained from the sequential extraction range from 104 to 445 ktg.g1, and the average concentration was 227 p.g.g-~. The highest concentrations of biogenic barium occur in the central area of the bay, where the seawater is more stable, while lower values occur in the bank and the ice shelf. Biogenic barium is significantly linearly correlated with biogenic barium and organic carbon, and similar in distribution of Chl a, which may indicate that primary productivity of phytoplankton in the surface water column is the main environmental factor regulating barium concentration and distribution.     

Population dynamics of four dominant copepods in Prydz Bay, Antarctica, during austral summer from 1999 to 2006

Population dynamics of four dominant Antarctic copepods, Calanoides acutus, Calanus propinquus, Metridia gerlachei and Rhincalanus gigas were studied based on zooplankton samples collected in the Prydz Bay during austral summer from 1999 to 2006. We found that C. acutus was the most abundant species among these four copepods, followed by C. propinquus, M. gerlachei and R. gigas. R. gigas occurred mainly in the warmer oceanic regions and showed distribution patterns discrete from the other three species, whose distribution in the whole survey area overlapped. By December 15th (about one month before our sampling) of the years 1999, 2003 and 2006, sea ice retreated earlier and polynyas existed in the neritic region one month before sampling. These periods were characterized by numerical dominance of C. acutus, C. propinquus and M. gerlachei, elevated proportions of Copepodite I and Copepodite II stages especially in the neritic region. While for the years 2000, 2002, and 2005, the ice edge located more northerly and polynyas did not exist in the neritic region, the copepods abundance was lower, indicating poor recruitment. Population structure of R. gigas was mainly composed of advanced stages Copepodite V and female during all cruises. Log10 (x+1) transformed densities of C. acutus, C. propinquus and M. gerlachei showed positive correlation with temperature and chlorophyll a concentration, while mean population stages of these copopods were negatively correlated with these environmental variables. Younger copepodite stages of C. acutus, C. propinquus and M. gerlachei appeared more often in neritic regions. We confirmed that the polynyas had a great contribution to phytoplankton blooms, which promote copepods reproduction and recruitment success. The study suggested that population dynamics of the four copepods have good correspondence with sea ice and polynya variations during all cruises of the Prydz Bay.     

Distribution and structure of zooplankton communities in the austral summer in the Prydz Bay, Antarctica

As a structure linking the ecosystem and population, community plays an important role in the marine ecology. Abundance of different species and development stages were used in our classification to the sampling stations with clustering-analysis and multi-dimension scaling, through which three geographic communities were marked out, respectively as following: the Salp community characterized by presence of Salp thompni in the northern area, the Near-shore community by Euphausia crystallorophias in the south and the main ocean community located between the above two communities. Indicator species method was then carried out between every two communities to findout which species or stages differ most. It tells that Rhincalanus gigas, adult cheatognath, late stages of Metridia gerlachei and calyptopis of Euphausiidae are indicators between Salp and neritic communities, between Krill and Salp communities are Salp thompni, adult and larvae of Cheatognath and R. gigas, and the most notable indicator between the Krill and the neritic communities are E. crystallorophias, then nauplii of Euphausiidae and Onceae conifera with less evidence.     

Identification of Antarctic minke and killer whales with passive acoustic monitoring in Prydz Bay,Antarctica

Journal of Oceanology and Limnology - Although four species of odontocete and four species of baleen whale have been recorded in Prydz Bay, their vocalizations have been rarely investigated....     

Distribution and abundance of euphausiid larvae and salps during austral summers in Prydz Bay, Antarctica

The distribution and abundance of euphausiid larvae and salps was studied from samples collected in 2002 and 2006 from Prydz Bay, Antarctica.Larvae of Thysanoessa macrura and Euphausia superba were mainly distributed in the north of the continental shelf. T. macrura was more abundant and had a relatively wider distribution. In 2006, with ice having retreated and higher seawater temperatures and chlorophyll a levels, E. superba and T. macrura occurred in higher abundances and at more mature developmental stages. Euphausia crystallorophias was mainly distributed in the neritic region. In 2002, with severe ice conditions in the neritic region, abundance of E. crystallorophias was consisted of metanauplius (MN) and calyptopis I (CI). Salps, mostly Salpa thompsoni, had a low abundance in Prydz Bay. In 2002, S. thompsoni was only m)-3. In 2006, S. thompsoni was found at three stations located near the contimental factors, such as the timing of ice melt, polynya formation and food concentration appear to have a marked effect on the distribution and abundance of euphausiid larvae and salps.     

Grazing of Salpa thompsoni on phytoplankton in summer in the Prydz Bay region, Antarctica

During the CHINARE-Ⅺ cruise in austral summer of 1998/1999, the abundance and feeding activity of Salps thompsoni were investigated in the Prydz Bav region. Salps samples were collected by vertical tows from the depth of 200 m to the surface with a conical net of 330 μm mesh-size. At Ⅵ-3 station, the grazing rates were studied by the gut fluorescence method and culture experiments. S. Thompsoni was mainly distributed in the northern part of the survey area, and its maximum densities reached to 2795 ind. · 1000 m-3. A dramatic decrease in salp stock was observed at the Marginal Ice Zone. The results of the feeding experiments at the Ⅵ-3 show that the gut pigment contents of S. thompsoni ranged from (0. 14 - 1.27) μig ind. -1(average 0. 98 μg ind.-1). The individual ingestion rate is 7. 9 μg ind. -1 · day-1, and the filtration rate is 28 L ind. -1 · day-1 Through the daily grazing rate of S. thompsoni, which takes account of less than 1% of the phytoplankton standing stock, it shows arelatively higher grazing impress on the primary production (72. 2 % ).     

Thermodynamic properties of snow cover on sea ice during the austral summer in Prydz Bay,East Antarctica

The thermodynamic properties of snow cover on sea ice play a key role in the ice-ocean-atmosphere system and have been a focus of recent scientific research. In this study, we investigated the thermodynamic properties of snow cover on sea ice in the Nella Fjord, Prydz Bay, East Antarctica(69°20′S, 76°07′E), near the Chinese Antarctic Zhongshan Station. Our observations were carried out during the 29th Chinese National Antarctic Research Expedition. We found that the vertical temperature profile of snow cover changed considerably in response to changes in air temperature and solar radiation during the summer. Associated with the changes in the temperature profile were fluctuations in the temperature gradient within the upper 10 cm of the snow cover. Results of previous research have shown that the thermal conductivity of snow is strongly correlated with snow density. To calculate the thermal conductivity in this study, we measured densities in three snow pits. The calculated thermal conductivity ranged from 0.258–0.569 W?m-1?K-1. We present these datasets to show how involved parameters changed, and to contribute to a better understanding of melting processes in the snow cover on sea ice.     

Source and spatial distributions of particulate organic carbon and its isotope in surface waters of Prydz Bay,Antarctica, during summer

In this study, we investigated the distributions of sea-surface suspended particulate organic carbon （POC） and its stable isotope （δ13C POC） in Prydz Bay, Antarctica, and examined the factors influencing their distribution, sources, and transport. We used measurements collected from 61 stations in Prydz Bay during the 29th Chinese National Antarctic Research Expedition, in combination with remote sensing data on sea surface temperature （SST）, chlorophyll a concentration, and sea ice coverage. The POC concentration in the surface waters of Prydz Bay was 0.28-0.84 mg.L-1, with an average concentration of 0.48 mg.L-1. The δ13C POC value ranged from -29.68‰ to -26.30‰, with an average of-28.01‰. The concentration of suspended POC was highest in near-shore areas and in western Prydz Bay. The POC concentration was correlated with chlorophyll a concentration and sea ice coverage, suggesting that POC was associated with phytoplankton production in local water columns, while the growth of phytoplankton was obviously affected by sea ice coverage. The δ13C poc value in suspended particles decreased gradually towards the outer waters of Prydz Bay, while in eastern Prydz Bay the δ13Cpoc value become gradually more negative from nearshore to deep-water areas, suggesting that δ13C poc was mainly influenced by CO2 fixation by phytoplankton. The δ13C POC value in suspended particles near Zhongshan Station was significantly negative, possibly as a result of the input of terrigenous organic matter and changes in the phytoplankton species composition in the nearshore area.     

Short- and long-term response of phytoplankton to ENSO in Prydz Bay,Antarctica: Evidences from field measurements,remote sensing data and stratigraphic biomarker records

The study provides one of the first lines of evidence showing linkages between Antarctic phytoplankton abundance and composition in response to ENSO, based on historical reconstruction of sediment biomarkers. In addition to sediment biomarkers, field measured and remote sensing data of phytoplankton abundance were also recorded from Prydz Bay, Eastern Antarctica. Com-munity structure of field measured phytoplankton showed significant El Ni？o/La Ni？a-related succession during 1990 to 2002. In general, the number of algae species decreased during El Ni？o and La Ni？a years compared to normal years. Austral summer monthly variation of remotely sensed chlorophyll-a （Chl-a）, particulate organic carbon （POC）, and sea surface temperature （SST） indicated that ENSO impacted the timing of phytoplankton blooms during 2007 to 2011. Phytoplankton blooms （indicated by Chl-a and POC） preceded the increases in SST during El Ni？o years, and lagged behind the SST increases during La Ni？a years. Stratigraphic record of marine sedimentary lipid （brassicasterol, dinosterol and alkenones） biomarkers inferred that the proportions of different algae （diatoms, dinoflagellates and haptophytes） changed significantly between El Ni？o and La Ni？a events. The relative proportion of diatoms increased, with that of dinoflagellates being decreased during El Ni？o years, while it was reversed during La Ni？a years.     

The distribution and concentration of particulate biogenic silica in surface waters of Prydz Bay, Antarctica, during the austral summer of 2011

The concentrations and distributions of particulate biogenic silica （PBSi） in the upper surface waters of Prydz Bay, Antarctica, were investigated during the 27th Chinese National Antarctic Research Expedition cruises of January 2011. We aimed to characterize the correlations between PBSi and plankton, nutrients and particulate organic carbon. The results showed that the concentrations of biogenic silica ranged from 0.76--19.72 ktmol-dm3 and the average concentration of biogenic silica was 6.06 mol.dm3. The distribution of surface PBSi had significant regional characteristics： The concentrations were higher south of 67S than to the north. The distribution of PBSi, chlorophyll a and particulate organic carbon showed similar patterns, and PBSi distribution had a negative correlation with that of silicate. In the vertical direction, the mole ratio of PBSi and POC （Si/Co） decreased with increasing depth. This trend indicated a higher rate of PBSi dissolution, or a lower rate of organic matter reminer- alization rate, in the upper 200 m.