High nutrient pulses, tidal mixing and biological response in a small California estuary: Variability in nutrient concentrations from decadal to hourly time scales

Elkhorn Slough is a small estuary in Central California, where nutrient inputs are dominated by runoff from agricultural row crops, a golf course, and residential development. We examined the variability in nutrient concentrations from decadal to hourly time scales in Elkhorn Slough to compare forcing by physical and biological factors. Hourly data were collected using in situ nitrate analyzers and water quality data sondes, and two decades of monthly monitoring data were analyzed. Nutrient concentrations increased from the mid 1970s to 1990s as pastures and woodlands were converted to row crops and population increased in the watershed. Climatic variability was also a significant factor controlling interannual nutrient variability, with higher nutrient concentrations during wet than drought years. Elkhorn Slough has a Mediterranean climate with dry and rainy seasons. Dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) concentrations were relatively low (10–70 μmol L⁻¹) during the dry season and high (20–160 μmol L⁻¹) during the rainy season. Dissolved inorganic phosphorus (DIP) concentrations showed the inverse pattern, with higher concentrations during the dry season. Pulsed runoff events were a consistent feature controlling nitrate concentrations during the rainy season. Peak nitrate concentrations lagged runoff events by 1 to 6 days. Tidal exchange with Monterey Bay was also an important process controlling nutrient concentrations, particularly near the mouth of the Slough. Biological processes had the greatest effect on nitrate concentrations during the dry season and were less important during the rainy season. While primary production was enhanced by nutrient pulses, chlorophyll a concentrations were not. We believe that the generally weak biological response compared to the strong physical forcing in Elkhorn Slough occurred because the short residence time and tidal mixing rapidly diluted nutrient pulses.     

对虾、青蛤和江蓠混养系统氮磷收支的实验研究

为减少养殖污水中营养盐的排放量,降低对近海水质的污染,采用海水陆基围隔实验法,对凡纳滨对虾(Litope-naeus vannamei)、青蛤(Cyclina sinesis)和菊花心江蓠(Gracilaria lichevoides)不同混养系统的氮(N)、磷(P)收支状况进行了实验研究。结果表明:实验中的单养组投放的饵料占N总输入的75.5%,占P总输入的93.6%,混养组投放的饵料占N总输入的54.7%~64.8%,占P总输入的81.6%~88.7%;在支出项目中,单养组和混养组收获的养殖生物分别占N总输入的25.0%和44.4%~51.5%,占P总收入的11.2%和25.1%~31.8%;底泥沉积N,P为其主要支出项目,单养组和混养组分别占总输入的45.1%和30.0~32.5%,68.3%和50.3%~57.1%,其中混养组N,P的底泥沉积量低于单养组。     

Nutrient Cycling and a Stoichiometric Model in Epidavros, a Deep Basin in the Aegean Sea

Abstract. The nutrient cycling of Epidavros, a deep basin in the Saronikos Gulf, was studied in relation to various environmental factors during 1973–1976 at a station characterized by stagnant conditions. The regeneration of nutrients was related to the consumption of oxygen, and a seasonal nutrient cycle occurred with low nutrient concentrations in the spring and summer, followed by high nutrient levels in autumn and winter. In addition high values of nitrate and silicate were observed in the deeper waters, which tended to be anoxic, although the water masses were renewed during spring 1974. The distribution pattern of nutrients together with nutrient ratios were compared with previous studies of the same and neighbouring areas as well as of other isolated basins. A stoichiometric model indicates that plankton organisms in the Epidavros basin have approximate atomic ratios for C: N: P of 150: 14:1, while the ratio of change for nitrogen and phosphorus in the water is only 8.8:1 by atoms. This is probably because of the slow rate of regeneration of nitrogenous material and/or assimilation and regeneration in organic forms. The water/plankton relation in the Epidavros basin appears to be very similar to that in the Baltic Sea.     

Carbon and nitrogen primary productivity in three North Carolina estuaries

Uptake of inorganic carbon and ammonium by the plankton community of three North Carolina estuaries was measured using ¹⁴C and ¹⁵N isotope methods. At 0% light, C appeared to be lost via respiration, and at increasing light levels uptake of inorganic carbon increased linearly, saturated (mean I_k = 358±30 μEin m⁻² s⁻¹), and frequently showed inhibition at the highest light intensities. At 0% light NH₄⁺ uptake was significantly greater than zero and was frequently equivalent to uptake in the light (light independent); at increasing light levels NH₄⁺ uptake saturated (mean I_k = 172±44 μEin m⁻² s⁻¹) and frequently indicated strong inhibition. Light-saturated uptake rates of inorganic carbon and NH₄⁺ were a function of chlorophyll a (r² = 0·7−0·9); average assimilation numbers were 625 nmol CO₂ (μg chl. a)⁻¹ h⁻¹ and 12·9 nmol NH₄⁺ (μg chl. a)⁻¹ h⁻¹ and were positively correlated with temperature (r² = 0·3−0·7). The ratio of dark to light-saturated NH₄⁺ uptake tended to be near 1·0 for large algal populations at low NH₄⁺ concentrations, indicating near light independence of uptake; whereas the ratio was lower for the opposite conditions. These data are interpreted as indicative of nitrogen stress, and it is suggested that uptake of NH₄⁺ deep in the euphotic zone and at night are mechanisms for balancing the C:N of cellular pools. A 24-h study using summed short-term incubations confirmed this; the cumulative C:N of CO₂ and NH₄⁺ uptake during the daylight period was 10–20, whereas over the 24-h period the ratio was 6 due to dark NH₄⁺ uptake. Annual carbon and nitrogen primary productivity were respectively estimated as 24 and 4·0 mol m⁻² year⁻¹ for the South River estuary, 42 and 7·3 mol m⁻² year⁻¹ for the Neuse River estuary, and 9·6 and 1·6 mol m⁻² year⁻¹ for the Newport River estuary.     

N2 fixation variability in the oligotrophic Sulu Sea, western equatorial Pacific region over the past 83 kyr

N₂ fixation is an important biological process that adds new nitrogen to oceans and plays a key role in modulating the oceanic nitrate inventory. However, it is not known how, when, and where N₂ fixation rates have varied in response to past climate changes. This study presents a new record of nitrogen isotopic composition (δ¹⁵N) over the last 83 kyr from a sediment core (KH02-4 SUP8) taken in the Sulu Sea in the western equatorial Pacific region; data allow the N₂ fixation variability in the sea to be reconstructed. Sediments, sinking, and suspended particulate organic matter (POM) all have lighter isotopic values compared to the δ¹⁵N values of substrate nitrate (av. 5.8‰) in North Pacific Intermediate Water. These lighter δ¹⁵N values are regarded as reflecting N₂ fixation in the Sulu Sea surface water. A δ¹⁵N mass balance model shows that N₂ fixation rates were significantly enhanced during 54–34 kyr in MIS-3 and MIS-2. It has been speculated that higher interglacial denitrification rates in the Arabian Sea and the eastern tropical Pacific would have markedly decreased the global oceanic N inventory and contributed to the increase in N₂ fixation in oligotrophic regions, but such a model was not revealed by our study. It is possible that changes in N₂ fixation rates in the Sulu Sea were regional response, and accumulation of phosphate in the surface waters due to enhanced monsoon-driven mixing is thought to have stimulated enhancements of N₂ fixation during MIS-3 and MIS-2.     

厦门港中华哲水蚤碳氮收支的研究

本文在分析厦门港中华哲水蚤元素组成基础上,研究其各项生理速率并估算碳氮收支.结果表明:摄食率与饵料含量呈线性相关,未发现饱和摄食.同化效率介于92％～96％之间,与饵料含量及摄食率无关.呼吸率与摄食率及同化率均呈线性相关,其SDA系数介于摄入碳量的9.3％(m/m)或同化碳量的9.9％(m/m).总氮排泄率随摄食率与同化率的提高而呈线性增加.随着摄食率的提高,分配给卵生产的能量也增多,二者呈线性相关.饵料中N含量是厦门港中华哲水蚤生长的主要限制因子,当其对N的摄食率低于10.5×10~(-3)(m/m)/d时,动物“负”生长.     

氮浓度对盐生杜氏藻和纤细角毛藻叶绿素荧光特性及生长的影响

在温度为(23±1)℃,盐度为31,光照强度为5000lx的条件下,用含有不同氮浓度(0μmol/L,55μmol/L,440μmol/L,880μmol/L,1760μmol/L,7040μmol/L)的培养基对中国海洋大学微藻种质库保存的盐生杜氏藻(Dunaliella salina)和纤细角毛藻(Chaetoceros gracilis)进行培养,研究两种微藻在一次性培养过程中,不同氮浓度对其PSⅡ最大光能转化效率(Fv/Fm)、叶绿素含量以及细胞密度的影响。单因子方差分析结果表明,氮浓度对两种微藻的光合作用及生长均有显著影响(P<0.05)。两种微藻的Fv/Fm比值、叶绿素含量以及细胞密度均随着起始氮浓度的增加而增加,在1760μM时达到最大值,其后随着起始氮浓度的增加,上述指标反而下降。多重比较结果表明,盐藻和纤细角毛藻进行光合作用和生长的最适氮浓度都为1760μmol/L。。     

海水养殖与生态环境关系的研究——Ⅰ.无机氮对浮游植物生长的影响

采用中尺度受控生态实验、小型混养实验和虾池取样测定,研究海水中无机氮、N/P比值和藻类光合作用速率的变化规律,分析了无机氮和溶解有机氮(DON)的相互转化,比较了钙质角毛藻对不同形式无机氮的吸收,探讨了人工养殖海水中无机氮对浮游植物生长的影响。     

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.