Uncoupled distributions of transparent exopolymer particles (TEP) and dissolved carbohydrates in the Southern Ocean

Transparent exopolymer particles (TEP) are formed by the assembly of dissolved precursors, mainly mono and polysaccharides (DMCHO and DPCHO) that are released by microorganisms. Although TEP formation plays a significant role in carbon export to deep waters and can affect gas exchange at the sea surface, simultaneous measurements of TEP and their precursors in natural waters have been scantly reported. In this study, we described the spatial (vertical and regional) distribution of TEP, DMCHO and DPCHO in a region located around the Antarctic Peninsula, assessed their contribution to the total organic carbon pool, and explored their relationships with phytoplankton (with chlorophyll a (chl a) as a proxy) and bacteria. TEP concentration ranged from undetectable values to 48.9 µg XG eq L^− 1 with a mean value of 15.4 µg XG eq L^− 1 (11.6 µg TEP-C L^− 1). DMCHO and DPCHO showed average values of 4.3 µmol C L^− 1 and 8.6 µmol C L^− 1, respectively. We did not find simple relationships between the concentrations of TEP and dissolved carbohydrates, but a negative correlation between DMCHO and DPCHO was observed. Chl a was the best regressor of TEP concentration in waters within the upper mixed layer, while bacterial production was the best regressor of TEP concentration below the mixed layer, underlining the direct link between these particles and bacterial activity in deep waters.     

透明胞外聚合颗粒物碳输运新途径

目前大家普遍认为,透明胞外聚合颗粒物(Transparent Exopolymer Particles,TEP)因其独特的凝聚效应导致碳通量向海底输出。但是,近几年的研究表明TEP不仅影响了碳沉降途径,其本身能够悬浮甚至向海水表层迁移,导致其在海洋微表层(Surface Micro-layer, SML)积累,最终显著影响海洋表层碳通量。TEP和其他颗粒物聚集形成凝聚物后,其运动趋势则由凝聚物中TEP的含量占比,即最终颗粒物密度所决定。一个新的值得注意的现象是,密度低的TEP通过与其他微粒聚合形成表面活性物质(Surface-active Substances, SAS),会在海洋–大气界面形成薄膜,显著影响海–气CO₂交换通量,甚至对全球气候变化造成影响。     

北白令海透明胞外聚合颗粒物的含量与来源

透明胞外聚合颗粒物(TEP)是海水中大量存在的黏性颗粒物质,它对于海洋颗粒物的聚集、有机碳的埋藏、食物网物质的传递、痕量金属的清除与迁出等均起着重要作用。本研究开展了夏季北白令海陆架、陆坡和海盆区透明胞外聚合颗粒物含量和分布的研究。结果表明,北白令海TEP含量介于34~628 mg/m3(Xeq)之间,其中陆架、陆坡和海盆区TEP的平均含量分别为240, 145和83 mg/m3(Xeq),整体呈现由陆架向外海降低的趋势。在陆坡和海盆区,TEP含量随着深度的增加而降低,但在陆架近底层水中,观察到TEP高含量的特征,与近底层水高的TSM, POC相对应。TEP与荧光强度、TSM、POC等的关系分析显示,研究海域TEP存在两个来源,其一为海洋上层水体的浮游生物,其主要贡献于陆架上层、陆坡和海盆水体;其二为陆架沉积物的底栖生物,其通过沉积物再悬浮贡献于陆架近底层水。     

东海PN断面透明胞外聚合颗粒物分布特征及来源研究

透明胞外聚合颗粒物（TEP）是凝聚网的重要组成部分甚至核心,在微尺度范围上形成了水环境结构的重要梯度,对于元素地球化学生物循环、碳沉降以及食物网有着举足轻重的作用。本文研究了东海典型断面PN透明胞外聚合颗粒物的分布特征及来源。结果表明:东海典型断面PN透明胞外聚合颗粒物含量介于28~376 μg Xeq./L之间,平均值为（115±67）μg Xeq./L;呈现出明显的夏季 > 冬季 > 秋季 > 春季的季节变化特征以及近岸 > 外海和底层 > 表层的分布趋势。通过对比透明胞外聚合颗粒物分布趋势和硅藻、甲藻分布趋势以及统计分析得出,东海典型断面PN透明胞外聚合颗粒物主要来源于硅藻,甲藻贡献不大;而外海TEP的来源可能主要由超微型浮游植物贡献。     

Transparent exopolymer particles (TEP) as a component of hydrothermal plume particle dynamics

Transparent exopolymer particles (TEP) have recently been recognized as a class of sticky particles that often stimulate macroaggregate formation. Until now, TEP studies were focused on surface waters, particularly in association with diatom blooms. This is the first report of TEP concentrations in an open ocean deep-sea hydrothermal plume environment. The occurrence of TEP in deep water demonstrates its existence in an environment that is devoid of growing phytoplankton, the organisms generally regarded as TEP's primary source. The main objective of this study was to investigate the presence and potential abundance of TEP within hydrothermal plumes over the Juan de Fuca Ridge. Samples for TEP and bacteria were collected from CTD-rosette casts through hydrothermal plumes over the Juan de Fuca Ridge during the summers of 1999 and 2000. Concentrations of TEP and bacteria within the hydrothermal plumes were significantly greater than in background seawater. TEP number and volume concentrations reported here are low compared to reported values for shallow environments, but are substantially higher than published reports of TEP in other deep water environments. Ratios of TEP anomalies to temperature anomalies (a conservative hydrothermal tracer) increased with distance from the apparent plume source, suggesting that TEP are produced within the aging hydrothermal plumes. Potential TEP sources associated with hydrothermal plumes are discussed. TEP in hydrothermal plumes could stimulate in situ aggregate formation, support populations of attached bacteria, and serve as a potential food source to zooplankton.     

Abundance and size distribution of transparent exopolymer particles (TEP) in a coccolithophorid bloom in the northern Bay of Biscay

The distribution of transparent exopolymer particles (TEP) was investigated during a coccolithophorid bloom in the northern Bay of Biscay (North Atlantic Ocean) in early June 2006. MODIS chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) and reflectance images before and during the cruise were used to localize areas of important biological activity and high reflectance (HR). TEP profiles along the continental margin, determined using microscopic (TEP_micro) and colorimetric (TEP_color) methods, showed abundant (6.1×10⁶–4.4×10⁷ L^?1) and relatively small (0.5–20 μm) particles, leading to a low total volume fraction (0.05–2.2 ppm) of TEP_micro and similar vertical profiles of TEP_color. Estimates of carbon content in TEP (TEP-C) derived from the microscopic approach yielded surface concentration of 1.50 μmol C L^?1. The contribution of TEP-C to particulate organic carbon (POC) was estimated to be 12% (molar C ratio) during this survey. Our results suggest that TEP formation is a probable first step to rapid and efficient export of C during declining coccolithophorid blooms.     

海洋浮游微食物网生物在海洋颗粒形成和沉降中的作用

海洋中存在着大量的颗粒,包括大型聚合颗粒（即海雪,粒径>500μm）、小型聚合颗粒（1~500μm）和亚微米颗粒粒径（<1μm）等。颗粒在海水中营造了不同于纯海水的小生境,其中生活着与自然海水中不同的生物。异养细菌、蓝细菌、真核藻类、鞭毛虫、纤毛虫等微食物网生物可以黏附在海洋颗粒上,或生活在颗粒内部,其丰度高于周围水体中的自由生活生物,这可能是由于颗粒提供了更适宜生长的营养环境。本文综述了海洋浮游微食物网生物在海洋颗粒形成和沉降中的作用。微食物网生物在颗粒物的形成过程中起到很重要的作用,它们可以直接促进颗粒形成,也可以彼此结合成颗粒,或微型浮游动物排粪形成颗粒。微食物网生物还可以对颗粒进行转化,影响颗粒的大小、沉降速度、或对颗粒及其黏附生物进行摄食。微食物网生物由于本身较小,沉降较慢,但这些生物和颗粒的结合使得微食物网生物在碳通量中发挥重要的作用。     

Stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes of sinking particles in the eastern bransfield strait (Antarctica)

A time-series sediment trap was deployed at 1,034 m water depth in the eastern Bransfield Strait for a complete year from December 25, 1998 to December 24, 1999. About 99% of total mass flux was trapped during an austral summer, showing distinct seasonal variation. Biogenic particles (biogenic opal, particulate organic carbon, and calcium carbonate) account for about two thirds of annual total mass flux (49.2 g m^-2), among which biogenic opal flux is the most dominant (42% of the total flux). A positive relationship (except January) between biogenic opal and total organic carbon fluxes suggests that these two variables were coupled, due to the surface-water production (mainly diatoms). The relatively low δ¹³C values of settling particles result from effects on C-fixation processes at low temperature and the high CO² availability to phytoplankton. The correspondingly low δ¹⁵N values are due to intense and steady input of nitrates into surface waters, reflecting an unlikely nitrate isotope fractionation by degree of surface-water production. The δ¹⁵N and δ¹³C values of sinking particles increased from the beginning to the end of a presumed phytoplankton bloom, except for anomalous δ¹⁵N values. Krill and the zooplankton fecal pellets, the most important carriers of sinking particles, may have contributed gradually to the increasing δ¹³C values towards the unproductive period through the biomodification of the δ¹³C values in the food web, respiring preferentially and selectively¹²C atoms. Correspondingly, the increasing δ¹⁵N values in the intermediate-water trap are likely associated with a switch in source from diatom aggregates to some remains of zooplankton, because organic matter dominated by diatom may be more liable and prone to remineralization, leading to greater isotopic alteration. In particular, the tendency for abnormally high δ¹⁵N values in February seems to be enigmatic. A specific species dominancy during the production may be suggested as a possible and speculative reason.     

Determination of adsorbed and absorbed polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in seawater microorganisms

To distinguish between adsorbed and absorbed PCBs in seawater microorganisms, 2,2′,4,4′,5,5′-hexachlorobiphenyl (IUPAC #153; HCB) was added to a pure culture of Chrysochromulina apheles Moestrup et H.A. Thomsen. After the addition of the HCB, the cells were immediately harvested onto 2 μm polycarbonate filters and rinsed with a gradient of ethanol concentrations. Rinsing with 40% ethanol (v/v) was found to remove 80% of the HCB, which was loosely adsorbed to the cell surfaces, but did not extract the interior of the cells, as tested by chlorophyll a analysis. This method was used in a time course experiment which estimated PCBs adsorption and absorption to different groups of plankton organisms. Three different ¹⁴C-PCBs, 4-chlorobiphenyl (IUPAC #3; MCB), 2,2′,5,5′-tetrachlorobiphenyl (IUPAC #52; TCB), and 2,2′,4,4′,5,5′-hexachlorobiphenyl (IUPAC #153, HCB), were incubated in seawater from the northern Baltic Sea during a spring bloom. Samples were taken every third day and separated by filtration into three fractions; 0.2–2 μm (bacteria), 2–10 μm (flagellates), and >10 μm (microplankton; phytoplankton and protozoa). Two subsamples were retained from each size fraction. One of the subsamples was left untreated, to obtain adsorbed plus absorbed PCB, while the other subsample was rinsed with 40% of ethanol, to obtain the absorbed PCB. The sorption was found to vary depending on the hydrophobicity of the compounds, the structure of the cell membranes, and the lipid content and composition of the cells. The absorption increased for the TCB and the HCB in the largest size fraction over time, which coincided with an increase of the neutral and non-polar lipids.     

Thorium isotopes as tracers of particles dynamics and deep water circulation in the Indian sector of the Southern Ocean (ANTARES IV)

Dissolved and particulate samples were collected to study the distribution of thorium isotopes (²³⁴Th, ²³²Th and ²³⁰Th) in the water column of the Indian sector of the Southern Ocean (from 42°S to 47°S and from 60°E to 66°E, north of the Polar Front) during Austral summer 1999. Vertical profiles of excess ²³⁰Th (²³⁰Th_xs) increases linearly with depth in surface water (0–100 m) and a model was applied to estimate a residence time relative to the thorium scavenging (τ_scav). Low τ_scav in the Polar Front Zone (PFZ) are found, compared to those estimated in the Subtropical Front Zone (STZ). Changes in particle composition between the PFZ and STZ could influence the ²³⁰Th_xs scavenging efficiency and explain this difference. An innovative coupling between ²³⁴Th and ²³⁰Th_xs was then used to simultaneously constrain the settling velocities of small (0.6–60 μm) and large (above 60 μm) particles. Although the different hydrological and biogeochemical regimes visited during the ANTARES IV cruise did not explain the spatial variation of sinking velocity estimates, our results indicate that less particles may reach the seafloor north (60 ± 2 m d^− 1, station 8) than south of the Agulhas Return Current (119 ± 23 and 130 ± 5 m d^− 1 at stations 3 and 7, respectively). This information is essential for understanding particle transport and by extension, carbon export. In the deep water column, the ²³⁰Th_xs concentrations did not increase linearly with depth, probably due to lateral transport of North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW) from the Atlantic to the Indian sector, which renews the deep waters and decreases the ²³⁰Th_xs concentrations. A specific ²³⁰Th_xs transport model is applied in the deep water column and allows us to assess a “travel time” of NADW ranging from 2 to 15 years.     

西北冰洋表-底层碳动力学耦合作用的同位素(13C,234Th)指示

The coupling of upper ocean-benthic carbon dynamics in the ice-free western Arctic Ocean(the Chukchi Sea and the Canada Basin) was evaluated during the late July–early September 2003 using natural stable(13C) and radioactive(238U-234Th) isotope tracers. POC export flux estimated from 234Th/238 U disequilibria and dissolved CO2 concentration([CO2(aq)]) pointed out that the strengthened biological pump in the Chukchi Shelf have significantly lowered [CO2(aq)] and altered the magnitude of isotopic(12C/13C) fractionation during carbon fixation in the surface ocean. Further, d13 C signatures of surface sediments(d13Csed) are positively correlated to those of weighted d13 CPOC in upper ocean(d13Csed =13.64+1.56×d13CPOC, r2=0.73, p0.01), suggesting that the POC isotopic signals from upper ocean have been recorded in the sediments, partly due to the rapid export of particles as evidenced by low residence times of the highly particle-reactive 234 Th from the upper water column. It is suggested that there probably exists an upper ocean-benthic coupling of carbon dynamics, which likely assures the sedimentary d13 C record an indicator of paleo-CO2 in the western Arctic Ocean.     

2017年春季长江口-东海连续体pCO2的空间分布特征及其控制因素

厘清河口-陆架连续体的碳源/汇机制是认识海洋在"碳中和"中作用的重要基础.本研究基于2017年春季长江口-东海的走航CO2分压(pCO2)及温、盐等资料,分区域阐述春季长江口-东海连续体pCO2的空间分布格局,半定量解析水团分配、有机质生产及降解等过程对pCO2的控制作用.结果表明:水团来源是决定春季长江口-东海连续体...     

El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) Related Variations in Particulate Export Fluxes in the Western and Central Equatorial Pacific

Time-series data from sediment trap moorings intermittently deployed during 1991–1999 show that the fluxes of biogenic material (carbonate, opal and organic matter, including amino acids) and other related parameters are temporally and spatially distinct across the Western Pacific Warm Pool (WPWP). These variations resulted from the El Niño and La Niña conditions, which alternately prevailed over the equatorial Pacific Ocean during the mooring deployments. The westernmost WPWP (a hemipelagic region) recorded relatively high average total mass and amino acid fluxes during the El Niño event. This was in sharp contrast to the eastern part of the WPWP (oligotrophic and weak upwelling regions) which recorded higher flux values during the La Niña event. Settling particulate organic matter was rich in labile components (amino acids) during La Niña throughout the study area. Relative molar ratios of aspartic acid to β-alanine together with relative molar content of non-protein amino acids β-alanine and γ-aminobutyric acid) suggested that organic matter degradation was more intense during La Niña relative to that during El Niño in the WPWP. This study clearly shows that during an El Niño event the well documented decrease in export flux in the easternmost equatorial Pacific is accompanied by a significant increase in export flux in the westernmost equatorial Pacific Ocean.     

Spatio-temporal variability of small copepods (especially Oithona plumifera) in shallow nearshore waters off the south coast of South Africa

Although small copepods are one of the main dietary sources for many commercially important fish, their role in the pelagic trophic dynamics has traditionally been underestimated due to the methodology commonly used in plankton sampling. Temporal variation in abundance of adults and nauplii of small copepods (particularly Oithona plumifera) in nearshore waters on the south coast of South Africa was investigated fortnightly over 14 months at site (km) and location (100 m) scales. Sampling was within <500 m of the shore, where depth was ca. 10 m, using vertical hauls of an 80-μm mesh plankton net from 1 m above the seabed to the surface. Twenty-seven adult copepod taxa were recorded, but Oithona spp. was consistently the most abundant. Taxon richness was 7–19 on each sampling occasion. There was strong temporal variation (Oithona varied between 0 and 2300 m⁻³), but much of this was short-term variability (e.g. between consecutive sampling sessions), with no seasonality or other long-term discernable patterns. There were periods of consistently low numbers, but very high numbers often followed samples with low abundances. Nor was there spatial structure at the location scale, though numbers differed between sites. Despite considerable variability at the location scale within sites, Kenton consistently showed higher densities than High Rocks. Separate analyses, with Bonferroni adjustment, showed that this difference was significant on eight out of 21 occasions for Oithona, six for other pelagic copepods and three for nauplii. This suggests that hydrodynamics favour aggregation of plankton at Kenton. A high degree of short-term variability, with a tendency for aggregation of small zooplankton at certain sites has implications for both pelagic processes and food-web links between the benthic and pelagic environments.