High-West and Low-East Distribution Patterns of Chlorophyll a, Primary Productivity and Diatoms in the Subarctic North Pacific Surface Waters, Midwinter 1996

We have determined chlorophyll a (Chla) concentration, primary productivity, cell density and species composition of diatoms, and the number of microzooplankton at the surface in the subarctic North Pacific in January 1996. The wet weight of copepods obtained by vertical tows from 150 m to the surface was also measured during the cruise. Chla concentration and primary productivity tended to be higher in the region west of 180°, the western subarctic North Pacific (WSNP), than east of 180°, the eastern subarctic North Pacific (ESNP). The same results were observed for the total diatom cell densities and for the genera Thalassiosira and Denticulopsis. Significant linear relationships were observed between the Thalassiosira cell density and Chla concentration and primary productivity, indicating that Thalassiosira contributes to the high-WSNP and low-ESNP distribution patterns of Chla concentration and primary productivity. Moreover, naked ciliate abundance tended to be lower in the WSNP than in the ESNP, whereas copepod biomass showed an inverse trend. Significantly negative Spearman rank correlations were found between the Thalassiosira cell density and the number of naked ciliates and between the number of naked ciliates and the wet weight of copepods. These results indicate that copepod grazing indirectly controls Thalassiosira cell density via predation on the naked ciliates. We conclude that the high copepod biomass in the WSNP is a factor controlling the high-WSNP and low-ESNP Thalassiosira abundance and hence Chla concentration and primary productivity patterns.     

Kinetics of nitrate and ammonium uptake by the natural populations of marine phytoplankton in the surface water of the Oyashio region during spring and summer

Journal of Oceanography -     

Kinetics of nitrate and ammonium uptake by the natural populations of marine phytoplankton in the surface water of the Oyashio region during spring and summer

The maximum uptake rate (_max) and affinity constant (K _s) for nitrate and ammonium were estimated in the surface water of offshore Oyashio in May (spring) and September (summer), 1990. The average _max/Chl.a for ammonium was 2.1 times larger than that of nitrate in both seasons. The average _max/Chl.a for both nitrogens were 3.5 times larger in summer than in spring. Water temperature and size composition of phytoplankton population were related to the seasonal difference in the _max/Chl.a. Phytoplankton population showed high affinity for both nitrogens in the spring and summer. In addition, the contribution of new production to total production was estimated by _max[_max–No₃/(_max–NO₃+_max–NH₄)]. The spring value was in the range of 0.26 to 0.45 (mean±SD=0.35±0.092), and the values in spring bloom were especially a little over 0.4. The summer value was in the range of 0.30 to 0.37 (0.34±0.04).     

Geographical Variations in Prosome Length and Body Weight of Neocalanus Copepods in the North Pacific

Geographical variations in prosome length and body weight of Neocalanus copepods (N. cristatus, N. plumchrus and N. flemingeri) were investigated on samples from North-South and East-West transects in the North Pacific during spring to early summer in 1998 and 1999. Southward and eastward increasing patterns were pronounced for water temperature, although no significant pattern was observed for chlorophyll a concentrations. All Neocalanus species showed large geographical variations in prosome length and body weight, being smaller in the southern and eastern waters. Comparing the relationship between prosome length and body weight, large deviations (lower body weight at a given prosome length) were evident for the eastern specimens of N. cristatus and N. plumchrus. In stepwise regression analysis, the geographical variations of prosome length and body weight revealed a significantly negative correlation with temperature variations. These results suggest that temperature is a more important environmental factor than chlorophyll a concentration in its effect on geographical variations in prosome length and body weight of Neocalanus copepods in the North Pacific. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Primary productivity and solar radiation off Sanriku in May 1997

We measured the in situ primary production at four stations from the surface to 80 m off Sanriku in late May 1997. The depth-integrated daily primary production in the upper 80 m was estimated to be 391, 468, and 855 mgC m⁻²d⁻¹ in water from the Oyashio, and 336 mgC m⁻²d⁻¹ in the warm-core ring. The variation in the primary production was primarily due to the variation in phytoplankton activity (chlorophyll α-specific primary production). A combination of previous and present studies in water from the Oyashio and the warm-core ring suggested that phytoplankton activity is proportional to light intensity between 12 and 50 Ein m⁻²d⁻¹ which is close to the usual light condition (61–75 Ein m⁻²d⁻¹) off Sanriku in May and June. Light may be a limiting factor for phytoplankton off Sanriku in late spring and early summer.     

Primary productivity in the offshore Oyashio in the spring and summer 1990

Primary productivity was measured byin situ method using¹³C in the offshore Oyashio region in the spring (May) and summer (September) of 1990. Most of the values were within the range of 0.1 to 4 gC 1^–1 h^–1 although a very large value, 7.96 gC l^–1 h^–1, was observed in summer. Most daily primary production fell within the range of 372 to 633 mgC m^–2 d^–1 although a very large value, 2,109 mgC m^–2 d^–1, was observed around the frontal area in summer. Chlorophylla (Chl.a) exceeded 1 g l^–1 in many cases, and the maximum was 4.61 g l^–1 in spring and 7.53 g l^–1 in summer. Most primary productivity per unit Chl.a (photosynthetic assimilation ratio) was within the range of 0.1 to 3 gC gChl.a ^–1 h^–1 although higher values, 3–6 gC gChl.a ^–1 h^–1, were observed where small-size phytoplanktons (<2 m) were dominant. These results were compared with results obtained until now in the Oyashio region. The values beyond the range obtained so far in the offshore region were also observed in this study. Furthermore, it was pointed out that the size composition of phytoplankton community has significant influence on the results of Chl.a and photosynthetic assimilation ratio in the Oyashio region.     

Temporal variability in physicochemical properties,phytoplankton standing crop and primary production for 7 years (2002–2008) in the neritic area of Sagami Bay,Japan

Seasonal and interannual variations in physicochemical properties (i.e., temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen and dissolved inorganic nutrients), chlorophyll a (Chl-a), particulate carbon and nitrogen (PC and PN, respectively), and primary production were investigated in the neritic area of Sagami Bay, Kanagawa, Japan, from January 2002 to December 2008. These abiotic/biotic variables, except for NH₄ ⁺–N, repeated similar seasonal variations for all 7 years. On the basis of the analysis of data obtained on 167 sampling dates, depth-integrated primary production in this water can be easily estimated from Chl-a at the surface using the regression equations obtained in the present study. Intermittently high values of dissolved inorganic nutrients, Chl-a, PC, PN and primary productivity at the surface during the summer stratified period were induced by high freshwater discharge from the rivers after rainfalls and by the expansion of nutrient-rich Tokyo Bay Water. Temperature, salinity and dissolved inorganic nutrients showed drastic variations within a scale of a few days and/or weeks, and these variations were related to sea levels that represent the intrusion of the Kuroshio Water, Intermediate Oyashio Water or deep water from the continental slope. However, there was no consistent trend in the variations in Chl-a, PC, PN and primary production due to the complex effects of these waters.     

Comparison of factors controlling phytoplankton productivity in the NE and NW subarctic Pacific gyres

The subarctic North Pacific is one of the three major high nitrate low chlorophyll (HNLC) regions of the world. The two gyres, the NE and the NW subarctic Pacific gyres dominate this region; the NE subarctic Pacific gyre is also known as the Alaska Gyre. The NE subarctic Pacific has one of the longest time series of any open ocean station, primarily as a result of the biological sampling that began in 1956 on the weathership stationed at Stn P (50°N, 145°W; also known as Ocean Station Papa (OSP)). Sampling along Line P, a transect from the coast (south end of Vancouver Island) out to Stn P has provided valuable information on how various parameters change along this coastal to open ocean gradient. The NW subarctic Pacific gyre has been less well studied than the NE gyre. This review focuses mainly on the NE gyre because of the large and long term data set available, but makes a brief comparison with the NW gyre. The NE gyre has saturating NO₃ concentrations all year (winter = about 16 μM and summer = about 8 μM), constantly very low chlorophyll (chl) (usually <0.5 mg m⁻³) which is dominated by small cells (<5 μm). Primary productivity is low (about 300–600 mg C m⁻² d⁻¹ and varies little (2 times) seasonally. Annual primary productivity is 3 to 4 times higher than earlier estimates ranging from 140 to 215 g C m⁻² y⁻¹. Iron limits the utilization of nitrate and hence the primary productivity of large cells (especially diatoms) except in the winter when iron and light may be co-limiting. There are observations of episodic increases in chl above 1 mg m⁻³, suggesting episodic iron inputs, most likely from Asian dust in the spring/early summer, but possibly from horizontal advection from the Alaskan Gyre in summer/early fall. The small cells normally dominate the phytoplankton biomass and productivity, and utilize the ammonium produced by the micrograzers. They do not appear to be Fe-limited, but are controlled by microzooplankton grazers. The NW Subarctic Gyre has higher nutrient concentrations and a shallower summer mixed depth and photic zone than Stn P in the NE gyre. Chl concentrations tend to be higher (0.5 to 1.5 μg L⁻¹) than Stn P, but primary productivity in the summer is similar to Stn P (600 mg C m⁻² d⁻¹). There are no seasonal data from this gyre. Iron enrichment experiments in October, resulted in an increase in chl (mainly the centric diatom Thalassiosira sp.) and a draw down of nitrate, suggesting that large phytoplankton are Fe-limited, similar to Stn P.