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Author
Stukel, M.R. ; Kelly, T.B.
Title
The carbon: (234) Thorium ratios of sinking particles in the California current ecosystem 2: Examination of a thorium sorption, desorption, and particle transport model
Type
$loc['typeJournal Article']
Year
2019
Publication
Marine Chemistry
Abbreviated Journal
Marine Chemistry
Volume
212
Issue
Pages
1-15
Keywords
POC concentration ; sinking particles. ; depth and relationship with water ; phytoplankton
Abstract
Thorium-234 (234Th) is a powerful tracer of particle dynamics and the biological pump in the surface ocean; however, variability in carbon: thorium ratios of sinking particles adds substantial uncertainty to estimates of organic carbon export. We coupled a mechanistic thorium sorption and desorption model to a one-dimensional particle sinking model that uses realistic particle settling velocity spectra. The model generates estimates of 238U234Th disequilibrium, particulate organic carbon concentration, and the C:234Th ratio of sinking particles, which are then compared to in situ measurements from quasi-Lagrangian studies conducted on six cruises in the California Current Ecosystem. Broad patterns observed in in situ measurements, including decreasing C:234Th ratios with depth and a strong correlation between sinking C:234Th and the ratio of vertically-integrated particulate organic carbon (POC) to vertically-integrated total water column 234Th, were accurately recovered by models assuming either a power law distribution of sinking speeds or a double log normal distribution of sinking speeds. Simulations suggested that the observed decrease in C:234Th with depth may be driven by preferential remineralization of carbon by particle-attached microbes. However, an alternate model structure featuring complete consumption and/or disaggregation of particles by mesozooplankton (e.g. no preferential remineralization of carbon) was also able to simulate decreasing C:234Th with depth (although the decrease was weaker), driven by 234Th adsorption onto slowly sinking particles. Model results also suggest that during bloom decays C:234Th ratios of sinking particles should be higher than expected (based on contemporaneous water column POC), because high settling velocities minimize carbon remineralization during sinking.
Address
Corporate Author
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Publisher
Place of Publication
Editor
Language
Summary Language
Original Title
Series Editor
Series Title
Abbreviated Series Title
Series Volume
Series Issue
Edition
ISSN
0304-4203
ISBN
Medium
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Conference
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Approved
$loc['no']
Call Number
COAPS @ user @
Serial
1002
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Author
Stukel, M.R. ; Ohman, M.D. ; Kelly, T.B. ; Biard, T.
Title
The Roles of Suspension-Feeding and Flux-Feeding Zooplankton as Gatekeepers of Particle Flux Into the Mesopelagic Ocean in the Northeast Pacific
Type
$loc['typeJournal Article']
Year
2019
Publication
Frontiers in Marine Science
Abbreviated Journal
Front. Mar. Sci.
Volume
6
Issue
Pages
Keywords
biological pump ; carbon export ; remineralization length scale ; mesozooplankton ecology ; pteropods ; marine biogeochemistry ; sinking particles ; marine snow
Abstract
Zooplankton are important consumers of sinking particles in the ocean's twilight zone. However, the impact of different taxa depends on their feeding mode. In contrast to typical suspension-feeding zooplankton, flux-feeding taxa preferentially consume rapidly sinking particles that would otherwise penetrate into the deep ocean. To quantify the potential impact of two flux-feeding zooplankton taxa [Aulosphaeridae (Rhizaria), and Limacina helicina (euthecosome pteropod)] and the total suspension-feeding zooplankton community, we measured depth-stratified abundances of these organisms during six cruises in the California Current Ecosystem. Using allometric-scaling relationships, we computed the percentage of carbon flux intercepted by flux feeders and suspension feeders. These estimates were compared to direct measurements of carbon flux attenuation (CFA) made using drifting sediment traps and U-238-Th-234 disequilibrium. We found that CFA in the shallow twilight zone typically ranged from 500 to 1000 m mol organic C flux remineralized per 10-m vertical depth bin. This equated to approximately 6-10% of carbon flux remineralized/10 m. The two flux-feeding taxa considered in this study could account for a substantial proportion of this flux near the base of the euphotic zone. The mean flux attenuation attributable to Aulosphaeridae was 0.69%/10 m (median = 0.21%/10 m, interquartile range = 0.04-0.81%) at their depth of maximum abundance (similar to 100 m), which would equate to similar to 10% of total flux attenuation in this depth range. The maximum flux attenuation attributable to Aulosphaeridae reached 4.2%/10 m when these protists were most abundant. L. helicina, meanwhile, could intercept 0.45-1.6% of carbon flux/10 m, which was slightly greater (on average) than the Aulosphaeridae. In contrast, suspension-feeding zooplankton in the mesopelagic (including copepods, euphausiids, appendicularians, and ostracods) had combined clearance rates of 2-81 L m(-3) day(-1) (mean of 19.6 L m(-3) day(-1)). This implies a substantial impact on slowly sinking particles, but a negligible impact on the presumably rapidly sinking fecal pellets that comprised the majority of the material collected in sediment traps. Our results highlight the need for a greater research focus on the many taxa that potentially act as flux feeders in the oceanic twilight zone.
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Place of Publication
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Language
Summary Language
Original Title
Series Editor
Series Title
Abbreviated Series Title
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Series Issue
Edition
ISSN
2296-7745
ISBN
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Approved
$loc['no']
Call Number
COAPS @ user @
Serial
1066
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Author
Kelly, T.B. ; Goericke, R. ; Kahru, M. ; Song, H. ; Stukel, M.R.
Title
CCE II: Spatial and interannual variability in export efficiency and the biological pump in an eastern boundary current upwelling system with substantial lateral advection
Type
$loc['typeJournal Article']
Year
2018
Publication
Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers
Abbreviated Journal
Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers
Volume
140
Issue
Pages
14-25
Keywords
CALIFORNIA CURRENT ECOSYSTEM ; OCEAN CARBON-CYCLE ; COASTAL WATERS ; FRONTAL ZONE ; TIME-SERIES ; FLUX ; SINKING ; SEA ; PACIFIC ; ZOOPLANKTON
Abstract
Estimating interannual variability in carbon export is a key goal of many marine biogeochemical studies. However, due to variations in export mechanisms between regions, generalized models used to estimate global patterns in export often fail when used for intra-regional analysis. We present here a region-specific model of export production for the California Current Ecosystem (CCE) parameterized using intensive Lagrangian process studies conducted during El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) warm and neutral phases by the CCE Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) program. We find that, contrary to expectations from prominent global algorithms, export efficiency (e-ratio = export / primary productivity) is positively correlated with temperature and negatively correlated with net primary productivity (NPP). We attribute these results to the substantial horizontal advection found within the region, and verify this assumption by using a Lagrangian particle tracking model to estimate water mass age. We further suggest that sinking particles in the CCE are comprised of a recently-produced, rapidly-sinking component (likely mesozooplankton fecal pellets) and a longer-lived, slowly-sinking component that is likely advected long distances prior to export. We determine a new algorithm for estimating particle export in the CCE from NPP (Export = 0.08 · NPP + 72 mg C m-2 d-1). We apply this algorithm to a two-decade long time series of NPP in the CCE to estimate spatial and interannual variability across multiple ENSO phases. Reduced export during the warm anomaly of 2014-2015 and El Niño 2015-2016 resulted primarily from decreased export in the coastal upwelling region of the CCE; the oligotrophic offshore region exhibited comparatively low seasonal and interannual variability in flux. The model resolves intra-regional patterns of in situ export measurements, and provides a valuable contrast to global export models.
Address
Corporate Author
Thesis
Publisher
Place of Publication
Editor
Language
Summary Language
Original Title
Series Editor
Series Title
Abbreviated Series Title
Series Volume
Series Issue
Edition
ISSN
0967-0637
ISBN
Medium
Area
Expedition
Conference
Funding
Approved
$loc['no']
Call Number
COAPS @ rl18 @
Serial
984
Permanent link to this record
Author
Kelly, T.B. ; Goericke, R. ; Kahru, M. ; Song, H. ; Stukel, M.R.
Title
CCE II: Spatial and interannual variability in export efficiency and the biological pump in an eastern boundary current upwelling system with substantial lateral advection
Type
$loc['typeJournal Article']
Year
2018
Publication
Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers
Abbreviated Journal
Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers
Volume
140
Issue
Pages
14-25
Keywords
california current ecosystem ; coastal waters ; flux ; frontal zone ; ocean carbon-cycle ; oceanography ; pacific ; sea ; sinking ; time-series ; Zooplankton
Abstract
Address
Corporate Author
Thesis
Publisher
Place of Publication
Editor
Language
Summary Language
Original Title
Series Editor
Series Title
Abbreviated Series Title
Series Volume
Series Issue
Edition
ISSN
0967-0637
ISBN
Medium
Area
Expedition
Conference
Funding
Approved
$loc['no']
Call Number
COAPS @ user @
Serial
1022
Permanent link to this record
Author
Morrow, R.M. ; Ohman, M.D. ; Goericke, R. ; Kelly, T.B. ; Stephens, B.M. ; Stukel, M.R.
Title
CCE V: Primary production, mesozooplankton grazing, and the biological pump in the California Current Ecosystem: Variability and response to El Niño
Type
$loc['typeJournal Article']
Year
2018
Publication
Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers
Abbreviated Journal
Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers
Volume
140
Issue
Pages
52-62
Keywords
Carbon export ; Fecal pellets ; Sinking particles ; Interannual variability ; Net primary productivity ; Eastern boundary upwelling system KeyWords Plus:ZOOPLANKTON FECAL PELLETS ; NORTH PACIFIC-OCEAN ; CURRENT SYSTEM ; SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA ; UNDERWATER GLIDERS ; CARBON EXPORT ; ZONE ; CHLOROPHYLL ; STABILITY ; EQUATIONS
Abstract
Predicting marine carbon sequestration in a changing climate requires mechanistic understanding of the processes controlling sinking particle flux under different climatic conditions. The recent occurrence of a warm anomaly (2014-2015) followed by an El Nino (2015-2016) in the southern sector of the California Current System presented an opportunity to analyze changes in the biological carbon pump in response to altered climate forcing. We compare primary production, mesozooplankton grazing, and carbon export from the euphotic zone during quasi-Lagrangian experiments conducted in contrasting conditions: two cruises during warm years – one during the warm anomaly in 2014 and one toward the end of El Nino 2016 – and three cruises during El Ninoneutral years. Results showed no substantial differences in the relationships between vertical carbon export and its presumed drivers (primary production, mesozooplankton grazing) between warm and neutral years. Mesozooplankton fecal pellet enumeration and phaeopigment measurements both showed that fecal pellets were the dominant contributor to export in productive upwelling regions. In more oligotrophic regions, fluxes were dominated by amorphous marine snow with negligible pigment content. We found no evidence for a significant shift in the relationship between mesozooplankton grazing rate and chlorophyll concentration. However, massspecific grazing rates were lower at low-to-moderate chlorophyll concentrations during warm years relative to neutral years. We also detected a significant difference in the relationship between phytoplankton primary production and photosynthetically active radiation between years: at similar irradiance and nutrient concentrations, productivity decreased during the warm events. Whether these changes resulted from species composition changes remains to be determined. Overall, our results suggest that the processes driving export remain similar during different climate conditions, but that species compositional changes or other structural changes require further attention.
Address
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Publisher
Place of Publication
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Series Editor
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Series Issue
Edition
ISSN
0967-0637
ISBN
Medium
Area
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Conference
Funding
Approved
$loc['no']
Call Number
COAPS @ rl18 @
Serial
983
Permanent link to this record
Author
Stukel, M.R. ; Aluwihare, L.I. ; Barbeau, K.A. ; Chekalyuk, A.M. ; Goericke, R. ; Miller, A.J. ; Ohman, M.D. ; Ruacho, A. ; Song, H. ; Stephens, B.M. ; Landry, M.R.
Title
Mesoscale ocean fronts enhance carbon export due to gravitational sinking and subduction
Type
$loc['typeJournal Article']
Year
2017
Publication
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
Abbreviated Journal
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A
Volume
114
Issue
6
Pages
1252-1257
Keywords
biological carbon pump ; carbon cycle ; particle flux ; particulate organic carbon ; plankton
Abstract
Enhanced vertical carbon transport (gravitational sinking and subduction) at mesoscale ocean fronts may explain the demonstrated imbalance of new production and sinking particle export in coastal upwelling ecosystems. Based on flux assessments from 238U:234Th disequilibrium and sediment traps, we found 2 to 3 times higher rates of gravitational particle export near a deep-water front (305 mg Cm-2d-1) compared with adjacent water or to mean (nonfrontal) regional conditions. Elevated particle flux at the front was mechanistically linked to Fe-stressed diatoms and high mesozooplankton fecal pellet production. Using a data assimilative regional ocean model fit to measured conditions, we estimate that an additional approximately 225 mg Cm-2d-1 was exported as subduction of particle-rich water at the front, highlighting a transport mechanism that is not captured by sediment traps and is poorly quantified by most models and in situ measurements. Mesoscale fronts may be responsible for over a quarter of total organic carbon sequestration in the California Current and other coastal upwelling ecosystems.
Address
Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093
Corporate Author
Thesis
Publisher
Place of Publication
Editor
Language
English
Summary Language
Original Title
Series Editor
Series Title
Abbreviated Series Title
Series Volume
Series Issue
Edition
ISSN
0027-8424
ISBN
Medium
Area
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Conference
Funding
PMID:28115723; PMCID:PMC5307443
Approved
$loc['no']
Call Number
COAPS @ mfield @
Serial
67
Permanent link to this record
Author
Landry, M.R. ; Selph, K.E. ; Decima, M. ; Gutierrez-Rodriguez, A. ; Stukel, M.R. ; Taylor, A.G. ; Pasulka, A.L.
Title
Phytoplankton production and grazing balances in the Costa Rica Dome
Type
$loc['typeJournal Article']
Year
2016
Publication
Journal of Plankton Research
Abbreviated Journal
J Plankton Res
Volume
38
Issue
2
Pages
366-379
Keywords
grazing ; plankton community ; productivity
Abstract
We investigated phytoplankton production rates and grazing fates in the Costa Rica Dome (CRD) during summer 2010 based on dilution depth profiles analyzed by flow cytometry and pigments and mesozooplankton grazing assessed by gut fluorescence. Three community production estimates, from 14C uptake (1025 +/- 113 mg C m-2 day-1) and from dilution experiments analyzed for total Chla (990 +/- 106 mg C m-2 day-1) and flow cytometry populations (862 +/- 71 mg C m-2 day-1), exceeded regional ship-based values by 2-3-fold. Picophytoplankton accounted for 56% of community biomass and 39% of production. Production profiles extended deeper for Prochlorococcus (PRO) and picoeukaryotes than for Synechococcus (SYN) and larger eukaryotes, but 93% of total production occurred above 40 m. Microzooplankton consumed all PRO and SYN growth and two-third of total production. Positive net growth of larger eukaryotes in the upper 40 m was balanced by independently measured consumption by mesozooplankton. Among larger eukaryotes, diatoms contributed approximately 3% to production. On the basis of this analysis, the CRD region is characterized by high production and grazing turnover, comparable with or higher than estimates for the eastern equatorial Pacific. The region nonetheless displays characteristics atypical of high productivity, such as picophytoplankton dominance and suppressed diatom roles.
Address
Scripps Institution of Oceanography, 9500 Gilman Dr., La Jolla, CA 92093-0227, USA; Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
Corporate Author
Thesis
Publisher
Place of Publication
Editor
Language
English
Summary Language
Original Title
Series Editor
Series Title
Abbreviated Series Title
Series Volume
Series Issue
Edition
ISSN
0142-7873
ISBN
Medium
Area
Expedition
Conference
Funding
PMID:27275036; PMCID:PMC4889984
Approved
$loc['no']
Call Number
COAPS @ mfield @
Serial
85
Permanent link to this record
Author
Stukel, M.R. ; Benitez-Nelson, C.R. ; Decima, M. ; Taylor, A.G. ; Buchwald, C. ; Landry, M.R.
Title
The biological pump in the Costa Rica Dome: an open-ocean upwelling system with high new production and low export
Type
$loc['typeJournal Article']
Year
2016
Publication
Journal of Plankton Research
Abbreviated Journal
J Plankton Res
Volume
38
Issue
2
Pages
348-365
Keywords
Eastern Tropical Pacific ; biogeochemistry ; carbon flux ; nutrients ; plankton
Abstract
The Costa Rica Dome is a picophytoplankton-dominated, open-ocean upwelling system in the Eastern Tropical Pacific that overlies the ocean's largest oxygen minimum zone. To investigate the efficiency of the biological pump in this unique area, we used shallow (90-150 m) drifting sediment traps and 234Th:238U deficiency measurements to determine export fluxes of carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus in sinking particles. Simultaneous measurements of nitrate uptake and shallow water nitrification allowed us to assess the equilibrium balance of new and export production over a monthly timescale. While f-ratios (new:total production) were reasonably high (0.36 +/- 0.12, mean +/- standard deviation), export efficiencies were considerably lower. Sediment traps suggested e-ratios (export/14C-primary production) at 90-100 m ranging from 0.053 to 0.067. ThE-ratios (234Th disequilibrium-derived export) ranged from 0.038 to 0.088. C:N and N:P stoichiometries of sinking material were both greater than canonical (Redfield) ratios or measured C:N of suspended particulates, and they increased with depth, suggesting that both nitrogen and phosphorus were preferentially remineralized from sinking particles. Our results are consistent with an ecosystem in which mesozooplankton play a major role in energy transfer to higher trophic levels but are relatively inefficient in mediating vertical carbon flux to depth, leading to an imbalance between new production and sinking flux.
Address
Scripps Institution of Oceanography , University of California at San Diego , La Jolla, CA 92037 , USA
Corporate Author
Thesis
Publisher
Place of Publication
Editor
Language
English
Summary Language
Original Title
Series Editor
Series Title
Abbreviated Series Title
Series Volume
Series Issue
Edition
ISSN
0142-7873
ISBN
Medium
Area
Expedition
Conference
Funding
PMID:27275035; PMCID:PMC4889986
Approved
$loc['no']
Call Number
COAPS @ mfield @
Serial
90
Permanent link to this record
Author
Selph, K.E. ; Landry, M.R. ; Taylor, A.G. ; Gutierrez-Rodriguez, A. ; Stukel, M.R. ; Wokuluk, J. ; Pasulka, A.
Title
Phytoplankton production and taxon-specific growth rates in the Costa Rica Dome
Type
$loc['typeJournal Article']
Year
2016
Publication
Journal of Plankton Research
Abbreviated Journal
J Plankton Res
Volume
38
Issue
2
Pages
199-215
Keywords
Costa Rica Dome ; growth ; microzooplankton ; mortality ; phytoplankton
Abstract
During summer 2010, we investigated phytoplankton production and growth rates at 19 stations in the eastern tropical Pacific, where winds and strong opposing currents generate the Costa Rica Dome (CRD), an open-ocean upwelling feature. Primary production (14C-incorporation) and group-specific growth and net growth rates (two-treatment seawater dilution method) were estimated from samples incubated in situ at eight depths. Our cruise coincided with a mild El Nino event, and only weak upwelling was observed in the CRD. Nevertheless, the highest phytoplankton abundances were found near the dome center. However, mixed-layer growth rates were lowest in the dome center ( approximately 0.5-0.9 day-1), but higher on the edge of the dome ( approximately 0.9-1.0 day-1) and in adjacent coastal waters (0.9-1.3 day-1). We found good agreement between independent methods to estimate growth rates. Mixed-layer growth rates of Prochlorococcus and Synechococcus were largely balanced by mortality, whereas eukaryotic phytoplankton showed positive net growth ( approximately 0.5-0.6 day-1), that is, growth available to support larger (mesozooplankton) consumer biomass. These are the first group-specific phytoplankton rate estimates in this region, and they demonstrate that integrated primary production is high, exceeding 1 g C m-2 day-1 on average, even during a period of reduced upwelling.
Address
Scripps Institution of Oceanography, 9500 Gilman Dr., La Jolla, CA 92093-0227, USA; Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
Corporate Author
Thesis
Publisher
Place of Publication
Editor
Language
English
Summary Language
Original Title
Series Editor
Series Title
Abbreviated Series Title
Series Volume
Series Issue
Edition
ISSN
0142-7873
ISBN
Medium
Area
Expedition
Conference
Funding
PMID:27275025; PMCID:PMC4889980
Approved
$loc['no']
Call Number
COAPS @ mfield @
Serial
112
Permanent link to this record
Author
Stukel, M.R. ; Kahru, M. ; Benitez-Nelson, C.R. ; Décima, M. ; Goericke, R. ; Landry, M.R. ; Ohman, M.D.
Title
Using Lagrangian-based process studies to test satellite algorithms of vertical carbon flux in the eastern North Pacific Ocean
Type
$loc['typeJournal Article']
Year
2015
Publication
Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans
Abbreviated Journal
J. Geophys. Res. Oceans
Volume
120
Issue
11
Pages
7208-7222
Keywords
satellite-derived export ; carbon export ; model algorithms ; mesozooplankton grazing ; sinking particles ; gravitational flux
Abstract
Address
Corporate Author
Thesis
Publisher
Place of Publication
Editor
Language
Summary Language
Original Title
Series Editor
Series Title
Abbreviated Series Title
Series Volume
Series Issue
Edition
ISSN
2169-9275
ISBN
Medium
Area
Expedition
Conference
Funding
Approved
$loc['no']
Call Number
COAPS @ mfield @
Serial
113
Permanent link to this record