Global latitudinal species diversity gradient in deep-sea benthic foraminifera

Global scale patterns of species diversity for modern deep-sea benthic foraminifera, an important component of the bathyal and abyssal meiofauna, are examined using comparable data from five studies in the Atlantic, ranging over 138° of latitude from the Norwegian Sea to the Weddell Sea. We show that a pattern of decreasing diversity with increasing latitude characterises both the North and South Atlantic. This pattern is confirmed for the northern hemisphere by independent data from the west-central North Atlantic and the Arctic basin. Species diversity in the North Atlantic northwards from the equator is variable until a sharp fall in the Norwegian Sea (ca. 65°N). In the South Atlantic species diversity drops from a maximum in latitudes less than 30°S and then decreases slightly from 40 to 70°S. For any given latitude, North Atlantic diversity is generally lower than in the South Atlantic. Both ecological and historical factors related to food supply are invoked to explain the formation and maintenance of the latitudinal gradient of deep-sea benthic foraminiferal species diversity. The gradient formed some 36 million years ago when global climatic cooling led to seasonally fluctuating food supply in higher latitudes.     

An isopycnal view of the Nordic Seas hydrography with focus on properties of the Lofoten Basin

Few basins in the world exhibit such a wide range of water properties as those of the Nordic Seas with cold freshwaters from the Arctic in the western basins and warm saline waters from the Atlantic in the eastern basins. In this study we present a 50-year hydrographic climatology of the Nordic Seas in terms of depth and temperature patterns on four upper ocean specific volume anomaly surfaces. This approach allows us to better distinguish between change due to variations along such surfaces and change due to depth variations of the stratified water column. Depth variations indicate changes in the mass field while property variations along isopycnals give insight into isopycnal advection and mixing, as well as diapycnal processes. We find that the warmest waters on each surface are found in the north, close to where the isopycnal outcrops, a clear indication of downward mixing of the warmer, more saline waters on shallower isopycnals due to convective cooling at the surface. These saline waters come from the Norwegian Atlantic Slope Current by means of a very high level of eddy activity in the Lofoten Basin.The isopycnal analyses further show that the principal water mass boundary between the waters of Arctic origin in the west and Atlantic waters in the east aligns quite tightly with the Jan Mayen, Mohn, Knipovich Ridge system suggesting little cross-ridge exchange. Instead, the main routes of exchange between the eastern and western basins appear to be limited to the northern and southern ends of ridge system: Atlantic waters into the Greenland Sea in the Fram St and Artic waters into the southern Norwegian Sea just north of the Iceland-Faroe Ridge.Analysis of a representative isopycnal in the main pycnocline shows it to be stable over time with only small variations with season (except where it outcrops in winter in the Greenland and Iceland Seas). However, two very cold winters, 1968–1969, led to greater than average heat losses across the entire Lofoten Basin that eroded away much of the Lofoten eddy and induced the greatest temperature anomaly in the entire 50-year record. Interannual variations in isopycnal layer temperature correlate with the NAO index such that waters in the Iceland Sea become warmer than average with warming air temperatures and conversely in the Lofoten Basin.     

Lead in the North Sea and the north east Atlantic Ocean

Lead has been determined in 105 water samples from the north east Atlantic and from the North Sea. Rigorous precautions were applied to avoid contamination during sampling and analysis.Two different analytical methods were used: ASV and AAS. Determinations with ASV were carried out on board, directly after sampling. After two months storage, acidified samples were analysed by AAS after freon dithiocarbamate extraction and nitric acid back extraction. Particulate lead was determined by AAS after an acid digestion.The profiles of lead concentration versus depth show around 160 pM at the surface and around 20 pM at the bottom, both in the Atlantic and in the Norwegian Sea. The shapes of the profiles are different, however, depending on the hydrography of the area sampled. The profiles from the north east Atlantic coincide with a recently published profile from the north west Atlantic. Moreover, these profiles have lead concentrations about a factor of three higher than those in the Pacific.Considering the high lead input to the North Sea, the lead concentrations found there are remarkably low, probably because of scavenging effects in estuaries leading to a short residence time in the water column. The dominant lead input in offshore regions is from the atmosphere. The highest lead levels are found in the northern North Sea, around 300 pM in surface water.In the Atlantic, particulate lead is a minor part of the total lead whereas in the North Sea the particulate fraction is larger, up to 40%.     

Macro- and megafauna communities in three deep basins of the South-East Atlantic

During ‘Meteor’ expedition ‘DIVA 2’ in 2005 the abyssal macro- and megafauna communities were studied in the northern Cape Basin, in the northern Angola Basin and in the eastern and western Guinea Basin. Water depths varied between 5040 and 5670 m.Surface deposit feeding or predatory ophiuroids dominated the megafaunal community in the northern Cape Basin, sponges, sipunculids and fish in the northern Angola Basin, and asteroids, crustaceans and fish in the eastern Guinea Basin, while in the western Guinea Basin sipunculids dominated.In the northern Cape Basin, peracarid crustaceans were the dominant macrofaunal group, followed by polychaetes and bivalves. In the Guinea Basin, polychaetes, peracarid crustaceans and bivalves dominated, although omnivorous or predatory free-living nematodes of macrofaunal size (>0.5 mm) made up 40–60% of the total abundance, with maxima in the western basin.The chlorophyll a content of sediments was lower in the northern Cape and Angola Basins than in the Guinea Basin, which was consistent with the differences in water masses, primary production and flux rate of organic matter in the three basins of the South-East Atlantic. The differences in structure and function of the macro- and megafauna communities in the three basins correlated with the differences in the amount of food reaching the seafloor in tropical and subtropical settings.     

Upper layer cooling and freshening in the Norwegian Sea in relation to atmospheric forcing

Several time series in the Norwegian Sea indicate an upper layer decrease in temperature and salinity since the 1960s. Time series from Weather Station “M”, from Russian surveys in the Norwegian Sea, from Icelandic standard sections, and from Scottish and Faroese observations in the Faroe–Shetland area have similar trends and show that most of the Norwegian Sea is affected. The reason is mainly increased freshwater supply from the East Icelandic Current. As a result, temperature and salinity in some of the time series were lower in 1996 than during the Great Salinity Anomaly in the 1970s. There is evidence of strong wind forcing, as the NAO winter index is highly correlated with the lateral extent of the Norwegian Atlantic Current. Circulation of Atlantic water into the western Norwegian and Greenland basins seems to be reduced while circulation of upper layer Arctic and Polar water into the Norwegian Sea has increased. The water-mass structure is further affected in a much wider sense by reduced deep-water formation and enhanced formation of Arctic intermediate waters. A temperature rise in the narrowing Norwegian Atlantic Current is strongest in the north.     

利用气候态水文数据Hydrobase II分析北欧海深层水的分布与输运

Deep water in the Nordic seas is the major source of Atlantic deep water and its formation and transport play an important role in the heat and mass exchange between polar and the North Atlantic. A monthly hydrological climatology—Hydrobase II—is used to estimate the deep ocean circulation pattern and the deep water distribution in the Nordic seas. An improved P-vector method is applied in the geostrophic current calculation which introduces sea surface height gradient to solve the issue that a residual barotropic flow cannot be recognized by traditional method in regions where motionless level does not exist. The volume proportions, spatial distributions and seasonal variations of major water masses are examined and a comparison with other hydrological dataset is carried out. The variations and transports of deep water are investigated based on estimated circulation and water mass distributions. The seasonal variation of deep water volume in the Greenland Basin is around 22×103 km3 whereas significantly weaker in the Lofoten and Norwegian Basins. Annual downstream transports of about 1.54×103 and 0.64×103 km3 are reported between the Greenland/Lofoten and Lofoten/Norwegian Basins. The deep water transport among major basins is generally in the Greenland-Lofoten-Norwegian direction.     

Age of the Floors of the Protector and Dove Basins (Scotia Sea)

The tectonic evolution of the transition zone from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean is closely linked with the destruction of the American–Antarctic continental bridge in the Scotia Sea. The western segment of the bridge combines the Terror, Pirie, and Bruce banks, as well as the Protector and Dove basins between them. Modeling—primarily based on original geological and geophysical materials—of linear magnetic anomalies and calculation of the floor kinematics in these basins have made it possible for the first time to reveal that the collapse of the western segment of the American–Antarctic continental bridge occurred 18–25 Ma ago via a two-stage separation of the Pirie Rise from the Bruce Rise with the formation of the Dove Basin and a two stage separation of the Terror Rise from the Pirie Rise with the formation of the Protector Basin.     

Antarctic bottom water in the Scotia Sea and the Drake Passage

The quantitative features and circulation of the Antarctic bottom water (AABW) in the Scotia Sea are investigated using an original procedure for the determination of the boundaries between the water masses. It is shown that the AABW is effectively transferred across the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC) from the regions on the south flank of this current where the AABW penetrates into the Scotia Sea. This transfer results in the abyssal water cooling and freshening in the Yaghan Basin of the north Scotia Sea. Some rises and depressions in the bottom relief of the western and northern Scotia Sea are important features that impact the AABW transfer. It is shown that there is an additional path of the AABW transit transport to the North Atlantic passing through the western Scotia Sea. The existence of the semienclosed cyclonic abyssal water circulation in the South Shetland Trench and the westward transport of the Atlantic AABW along the Antarctic slope foot into the Pacific are proved.     

Geographical distribution of fish catches and temperature variations in the northeast Atlantic since 1945

Warming of the northeast Atlantic is expected to affect the location and productivity of fish stocks. It is examined whether variations in catches of cod, herring, mackerel, anchovy and sardines in the ICES statistical areas are related to variations in ocean temperature. Temperatures at certain locations along the Norwegian coast are taken as proxies for temperatures in the Norwegian Sea and the North Sea. It is found that the catches of cod in the North Sea are inversely correlated with temperature and that recruitment and catches of cod in the Norwegian Sea and the Barents Sea are positively related to temperature. There is also some indication of a positive correlation between temperature and the catches of mackerel in the North Sea and the Norwegian Sea, and between temperature and the catches of sardines in the North Sea.     

Oligocene to Lower Pliocene deposits of the Norwegian continental shelf,Norwegian Sea,Svalbard, Denmark and their relation to the uplift of Fennoscandia: A synthesis

This study provides the results of the first integrated study of Oligocene–Pliocene basins around Norway.Within the study area, three main depocentres have been identified where sandy sediments accumulated throughout the Oligocene to Early Pliocene period. The depocentre in the Norwegian–Danish Basin received sediments from the southern Scandes Mountains, with a general progradation from north to south during the studied period. The depocentre in the basinal areas of the UK and Norwegian sectors of the North Sea north of 58°N received sediments from the Scotland–Shetland area. Because of the sedimentary infilling there was a gradual shallowing of the northern North Sea basin in the Oligocene and Miocene. A smaller depocentre is identified offshore northern Nordland between Ranafjorden (approximately 66°N) and Vesterålen (approximately 68°N) where the northern Scandes Mountains were the source of the Oligocene to Early Pliocene sediments. In other local depocentres along the west coast of Norway, sandy sedimentation occurred in only parts of the period. Shifts in local depocentres are indicative of changes in the paleogeography in the source areas.In the Barents Sea and south to approximately 68°N, the Oligocene to Early Pliocene section is eroded except for distal fine-grained and biogenic deposits along the western margin and on the oceanic crust. This margin was undergoing deformation in a strike-slip regime until the Eocene–Oligocene transition. The Early Oligocene sediments dated in the Vestbakken Volcanic Province and the Forlandssundet Basin represent the termination of this strike-slip regime.The change in the plate tectonic regime at the Eocene–Oligocene transition affected mainly the northern part of the study area, and was followed by a quiet tectonic period until the Middle Miocene, when large compressional dome and basin structures were formed in the Norwegian Sea. The Middle Miocene event is correlated with a relative fall in sea level in the main depocentres in the North Sea, formation of a large delta in the Viking Graben (Frigg area) and uplift of the North and South Scandes domes. In the Norwegian–Danish Basin, the Sorgenfrei-Tornquist Zone was reactivated in the Early Miocene, possibly causing a shift in the deltaic progradation towards the east. A Late Pliocene relative rise in sea level resulted in low sedimentation rates in the main depositional areas until the onset of glaciations at about 2.7 Ma when the Scandes Mountains were strongly eroded and became a major source of sediments for the Norwegian shelf, whilst the Frigg delta prograded farther to the northeast.     

Nannoplankton of the Atlantic Ocean from sediment trap samples

Calcareous nannoplankton from sediment trap samples collected at six sites in the Atlantic Ocean from 23° S to 73° N (cruise 20 of R/V Vityaz’ and cruise 33 and 34 of R/V Akademik Mstislav Keldysh). Those samples were studied with a scanning electron microscope. In the coastal and open-sea regions of the North and South Atlantic and in the subarctic region of the Norwegian Sea, the conditions are significantly different. In the shelf area of the Benguela upwelling, 11 species were recognized; some of them were agglutinated by diatoms and tintinnides or covered the surface of pellets. The Broken Spur and TAG pelagic areas of the North Atlantic contained up to 43 coccolith species. They included holococcoliths, large pelagic, and delicate easily soluble species distributed over the entire water column. The presence of coccoliths in the high-latitude area of the Norwegian Sea is related to their supply with the warmer North Atlantic waters. These assemblages are distinguished by a low species diversity and an enhancement of the coccolith solubility with the depth increase.     

Hydrography and through-flow in the north-eastern North Atlantic Ocean: the NANSEN project

The circulation and hydrography of the north-eastern North Atlantic has been studied with an emphasis on the upper layers and the deep water types which take part in the thermohaline overturning of the Oceanic Conveyor Belt. Over 900 hydrographic stations were used for this study, mainly from the 1987–1991 period. The hydrographic properties of Subpolar Mode Water in the upper layer, which is transported towards the Norwegian Sea, showed large regional variation. The deep water mass was dominated by the cold inflow of deep water from the Norwegian Sea and by a cyclonic recirculation of Lower Deep Water with a high Antarctic Bottom Water content. At intermediate levels the dominating water type was Labrador Sea Water with only minor influence of Mediterranean Sea Water. In the permanent pycnocline traces of Antarctic Intermediate Water were found.Geostrophic transports have been estimated, and these agreed in order of magnitude with the local heat budget, with current measurements, with data from surface drifters, and with the observed water mass modification. A total of 23 Sv of surface water entered the region, of which 20 Sv originated from the North Atlantic Current, while 3 Sv entered via an eastern boundary current. Of this total, 13 Sv of surface water left the area across the Reykjanes Ridge, and 7 Sv entered the Norwegian Sea, while 3 Sv was entrained by the cold overflow across the Iceland-Scotland Ridge. Approximately 1.4 Sv of Norwegian Sea Deep Water was involved in the overflow into the Iceland Basin, which, with about 1.1 Sv of entrained water and 1.1 Sv recirculating Lower Deep Water, formed a deep northern boundary current in the Iceland Basin. At intermediate depths, where Labrador Sea Water formed the dominant water type, about 2 Sv of entrained surface water contributed to a saline water mass which was transported westwards along the south Icelandic slope.     

Deep-sea benthic diversity linked to seasonality of pelagic productivity

Latitudinal gradients in biodiversity are found in both terrestrial and marine environments, but little agreement exists on the mechanisms or ecological causes creating these patterns. Marine biodiversity patterns have been particularly challenging to document, because of the lack of appropriate data sets from ocean basins. We document latitudinal patterns of North Atlantic deep-sea benthic foraminifera and show that seasonality of primary productivity, as estimated from SeaWiFS satellite imagery, has a significant effect on diversity indices, with generally lower values of H(S), species ?, and species equitability found with high seasonality between 40 and 60°N. High foraminiferal diversity is not found in areas with phytodetritus deposition in the North Atlantic basin, which indicates that patch dynamics, biological disturbance, and sediment heterogeneity resulting from phytodetritus deposits do not create high deep-sea foraminiferal diversity. Annual resource stability, reflecting the timing of organic carbon flux and the mode of sedimentation, accounts for the benthic foraminiferal patterns found in this study and is an important variable structuring the deep-sea benthic foraminiferal community.     

Circalittoral Macrobenthic Assemblages of Strymonikos Gulf (North Aegean Sea)

Abstract. Six macrobenthic assemblages of the circalittoral zone found in Strymonikos Gulf, North Aegean Sea, are described and compared with the corresponding ones from other Mediterranean and Atlantic areas. For the delimination of these assemblages and the evaluation of the major environmental gradients governing their distribution, several numerical techniques were used.     

北黄海盆地中生代地层的地质特征和油气潜力(英文)

位于山东半岛东北部的北黄海盆地沿东北方向可以延伸到朝鲜的西朝鲜湾盆地和安州盆地 ,而沿西南方向可以延伸到中国的胶莱盆地。长期以来该盆地的找油重点为第三系 ,结果收效甚微。2 0世纪 80年代末朝鲜在西朝鲜湾靠北黄海盆地一侧钻井数口且在中生代地层中发现了商业性油气流 ,自此中生代地层替代新生代第三纪地层成为人们关注的焦点 ,人们希望在北黄海盆地的中生代地层中也能找出商业性油气流。本文以李四光 ( 1 979)划分的新华夏系第二隆起带理论为指导 ,将胶莱盆地、北黄海盆地、西朝鲜湾盆地和安州盆地作为一个整体进行考虑 ,在详细分析了安州盆地、西朝鲜湾盆地和胶莱盆地的中生代地层分布、油气潜力及其类比关系后认为 ,北黄海盆地在基底结构及其上覆盖层的沉积特征上应具有与安州盆地、西朝鲜湾盆地和胶莱盆地相似的特征。目前 ,西朝鲜湾盆地和胶莱盆地在中生代地层中已取得重要的油气发现和油气显示 ,而它们主要是由下白垩统和上侏罗统组成。因此 ,我们有理由相信 ,北黄海盆地的中生代地层很可能成为有远景的勘探靶区。     

Isopycnal displacements within the Cape Basin thermocline as revealed by the Hydrographic Data Archive

The transfer of upper kilometer water from the Indian Ocean into the South Atlantic, the Agulhas leakage, is believed to be accomplished primarily through meso-scale eddy processes. There have been various studies investigating eddies of the “Cape Basin Cauldron” from specific data sets. The hydrographic data archive acquired during the last century within the Cape Basin region of the South Atlantic provides additional insight into the distribution and water mass properties of the Cape Basin eddies. Eddies are identified by mid-thermocline isopycnal depth anomalies relative to the long-term mean. Positive depth anomalies (the reference isopycnal is deeper than the long-term mean isopycnal depth) mark the presence of anticyclonic eddies; negative anomalies mark cyclonic eddies. Numerous eddies are identified in the whole region; the larger isopycnal displacements are attributed to the energetic eddies characteristic of the Cape Basin and indicate that there is a 2:1 anticyclone/cyclone ratio. Smaller displacements of the less energetic features are almost equally split between anticyclones and cyclones (1.4:1 ratio). Potential temperature, salinity and oxygen relationships at thermocline and intermediate levels within each eddy reveal their likely origin. The eddy core water is not solely drawn from Indian Ocean: tropical and subtropical South Atlantic water are also present. Anticyclones and cyclones carrying Agulhas Water properties are identified throughout the Cape Basin. Anticyclones with Agulhas Water characteristics show a predominant northwest dispersal, whereas the cyclones are identified mainly along the western margin of the African continent, possibly related to their origin as shear eddies at the boundary between the Agulhas axis and Africa. Cyclones and anticyclones carrying pure South Atlantic origin water are identified south of 30°S and west of the Walvis Ridge. Tropical Atlantic water at depth is found for cyclones north of the Walvis Ridge, west of 10°E and for stations deeper than 4000 m, and a few anticyclones with the same characteristics are found south of the ridge.     

Spreading of Antarctic Bottom Water and its effects on the floor of the Indian Ocean inferred from bottom-water potential temperature,turbidity, and sea-floor photography

Data on bottom-water potential temperature, turbidity and current indications show that in the Southern Ocean west of the Kerguelen Plateau, Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW) of Weddell Sea origin spreads northwards from the Atlantic—Indian Basin in two directions: (1) AABW enters the Agulhas Basin through relatively deep areas in the Mid-Indian Ridge at 20–25°E and possibly at 35°E, and flows northwards into the Mozambique Basin as far as its northern limits; (2) a more easterly spreading path extends from the Atlantic—Indian Basin through the Crozet into the Madagascar, Mascarene, Somali and Arabian Basins. The passage in the western branch of the Indian Ridge for the AABW spreading from the Crozet into the Madagascar Basin appears to be at 29-26°S and 60–64°E.East of the Kerguelen Plateau in the South Indian Basin, the bottom water formed mainly along the Adélie Coast and Ross Sea travels west towards the Kerguelen Plateau and then parallel to it. This water finally flows eastwards hugging the Southeast Indian Ridge. Significant deviations from this general circulation pattern occur due to local topographic effects. Some AABW in the South Indian Basin exits through a passage at 120–125°E in the region of the Australian—Antarctic discordance in the Southeast Indian Ridge and enters the South Australian Basin and subsequently the Wharton Basin. This passage is clearly indicated by the northward extension of a cold, bottom-water tongue as shown by the temperature distribution in the region; the bottom-water effects in the passage are reflected in the high turbidity and current lineations on the sea floor.In the Southern Ocean basins, bottom-water turbidity is generally high, reflecting in part the strong bottom-water activity. The effects of AABW circulation on the sea floor—in the form of well-developed small- or large-scale current ripples and erosional/depositional features, manganese-nodule formations, and unconformities and reworking of sediments observed in cores — are also marked in these basins. Even though the AABW in the Wharton Basin is cold, its spreading effects on the sea floor are minimal in this basin in contrast to the basins west of the Mid-Indian Ridge at comparable latitudes.     

Postglacial paleoceanographic environments in the Barents and Baltic seas

This paper presents reconstructions of ice sheet boundaries, lacustrine and marine paleobasins, as well as the connections of the Barents and Baltic seas with the North Atlantic from the Last Glacial Maximum to the Holocene. The reconstructions are based on original and published data obtained from the northern and western parts of the Barents Sea and Baltic depressions with account for the available regional schematic maps of deglaciation. The early deglaciation of the Scandinavian–Barents ice sheet culminated with the Bølling-Allerød interstadial (14.5–12.9 cal ka BP), which was characterized by a more vigorous Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) and a corresponding increase in surface Atlantic water inflow into the Barents Sea through deep troughs. The Baltic Ice Lake (BIL) remained a dammed-up isolated basin during deglaciation from 16.0 to 11.7 cal ka BP. In the Younger Dryas (YD), the lake drained into the North Sea and was replaced by a brackish Yoldia Sea (YS) at the beginning of the Holocene (Preboreal, 11.7–10.7 cal ka BP), due to a limited connection between two basins through the Närke Strait. In the Barents Sea, the next increase in the Atlantic water influx into the deep basins corresponded to terminal YD and Preboreal events with a culmination in the Early Holocene. The Yoldia Sea became a lake again during the next stage, the Ancylus (~10.7–8.8 cal ka BP). Atlantic water inflow both into the Barents and Baltic seas varied during the Holocene, with a maximum contribution in the Early Holocene, when the Littorina Sea (LS, 8–4 cal ka BP) connection with the North Sea via the Danish Straits was formed to replace the Ancylus Lake. The recent, post-Littorina stage (PS, the last 4 cal ka) of the Baltic Sea evolution began in the Late Holocene.     

On the renewal of Labrador Sea Water in the Irminger Basin

New evidence of Labrador Sea Water renewal as a result of deep convection in the Irminger Basin is obtained on the basis of the analysis of the data of the distribution of the dissolved oxygen concentration over six sections in the Subpolar North Atlantic in March–October of 1997.     

The mesoscale variability in the Caribbean Sea. Part I: Simulations and characteristics with an embedded model

The variability in the Caribbean Sea is investigated using high resolution (1/15°) general circulation model experiments. For the first time in this region, simulations were carried out with a 2-way nested configuration of the NEMO primitive equation model. A coarse North Atlantic grid (1/3°) reproduces the main features of the North Atlantic and Equatorial circulation capable of influencing ocean dynamics in the Caribbean Sea. This numerical study highlights strong dynamical differences among basins and modifies the view that dynamics are homogeneous over the whole Caribbean Basin. The Caribbean mean flow is shown to organize in two intense jets flowing westward along the northern and southern boundaries of the Venezuela Basin, which merge in the center of the Colombia Basin. Diagnostics of model outputs show that width, depth and strength of baroclinic eddies increase westward from the Lesser Antilles to the Colombia Basin. The widening and strengthening to the west is consistent with altimetry data and drifter observations. Although influenced by the circulation in the Colombia Basin, the variability in the Cayman Basin (which also presents a westward growth from the Chibcha Channel) is deeper and less energetic than the variability in the Colombia/Venezuela Basins. Main frequency peaks for the mesoscale variability present a westward shift, from roughly 50 days near the Lesser Antilles to 100 days in the Cayman Basin, which is associated with growth and merging of eddies.