Benthic nepheloid layers in the Gulf of Maine and Alexandrium cyst inventories

Pilskaln, Cynthia H.; Hayashi, Kendra; Keafer, Bruce A.; Anderson, Donald M.; McGillicuddy, Dennis J.

doi:10.1016/j.dsr2.2013.05.021

Cited by 20 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 67 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…There is a well-defined near-bottom nepheloid layer (BNL) in Wilkinson and Jordan Basins (Spinrad, 1986; Townsend et al, 1992; Pilskaln et al, 1998, 2014a, 2014b). Sediment trap flux observations in Jordan Basin at a location in water 280 m deep are not inconsistent with a local balance between input from the upper water column and local resuspension (Pilskaln et al, 2014a).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although no erodibility measurements were made in eastern Jordan Basin, the estimated stresses there are likely sufficient to resuspend sediment that could contribute to the BNL. Indeed, beam attenuation observations suggest resuspension in eastern Jordan Basin, continuing into the Bay of Fundy (Pilskaln et al, 2014b); this resuspended material could be transported throughout the basin by the Jordan Basin gyre (Brooks, 1985; Pettigrew et al, 1998; Aretxabaleta et al, 2014). In Wilkinson Basin, stress exceeded 5% of the time was less than 0.05 Pa in the northern part of the basin, increasing to 0.05–0.1 Pa toward the south.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The life-history of A. fundyense has been described by Anderson and Wall (1978), Anderson (1998), and Anderson et al (2005c). In brief, blooms begin in spring (April and May) when dormant cysts in the bottom sediments or near-bottom waters (Kirn et al, 2005; Pilskaln et al, 2014b) transition to motile, vegetative cells (germlings) when an internal, annual clock allows them to germinate (Anderson and Keafer, 1987). That germination is further regulated by oxygen, temperature, and light (Anderson, 1980; Anderson et al, 1987).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As blooms subside, the A. fundyense cells form cysts that sink to the sea floor and are sequestered in bottom sediment or the benthic nepheloid layer (Kirn et al, 2005; Pilskaln et al, 2014b) over the winter where they remain dormant until the following spring.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Investigating the importance of sediment resuspension in Alexandrium fundyense cyst population dynamics in the Gulf of Maine

Butman

Aretxabaleta

Dickhudt

et al. 2014

Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Cysts of Alexandrium fundyense, a dinoflagellate that causes toxic algal blooms in the Gulf of Maine, spend the winter as dormant cells in the upper layer of bottom sediment or the bottom nepheloid layer and germinate in spring to initiate new blooms. Erosion measurements were made on sediment cores collected at seven stations in the Gulf of Maine in the autumn of 2011 to explore if resuspension (by waves and currents) could change the distribution of over-wintering cysts from patterns observed in the previous autumn; or if resuspension could contribute cysts to the water column during spring when cysts are viable. The mass of sediment eroded from the core surface at 0.4 Pa ranged from 0.05 kg m−2 near Grand Manan Island, to 0.35 kg m−2 in northern Wilkinson Basin. The depth of sediment eroded ranged from about 0.05 mm at a station with sandy sediment at 70 m water depth on the western Maine shelf, to about 1.2 mm in clayey–silt sediment at 250 m water depth in northern Wilkinson Basin. The sediment erodibility measurements were used in a sediment-transport model forced with modeled waves and currents for the period October 1, 2010 to May 31, 2011 to predict resuspension and bed erosion. The simulated spatial distribution and variation of bottom shear stress was controlled by the strength of the semi-diurnal tidal currents, which decrease from east to west along the Maine coast, and oscillatory wave-induced currents, which are strongest in shallow water. Simulations showed occasional sediment resuspension along the central and western Maine coast associated with storms, steady resuspension on the eastern Maine shelf and in the Bay of Fundy associated with tidal currents, no resuspension in northern Wilkinson Basin, and very small resuspension in western Jordan Basin. The sediment response in the model depended primarily on the profile of sediment erodibility, strength and time history of bottom stress, consolidation time scale, and the current in the water column. Based on analysis of wave data from offshore buoys from 1996 to 2012, the number of wave events inducing a bottom shear stress large enough to resuspend sediment at 80 m ranged from 0 to 2 in spring (April and May) and 0 to 10 in winter (October through March). Wave-induced resuspension is unlikely in water greater than about 100 m deep. The observations and model results suggest that a millimeter or so of sediment and associated cysts may be mobilized in both winter and spring, and that the frequency of resuspension will vary interannually. Depending on cyst concentration in the sediment and the vertical distribution in the water column, these events could result in a concentration in the water column of at least 104 cysts m−3. In some years, resuspension events could episodically introduce cysts into the water column in spring, where germination is likely to be facilitated at the time of bloom formation. An assessment of the quantitative effects of cyst resuspension on bloom dynamics in any particular year requires more detailed investigation.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Investigating the importance of sediment resuspension in Alexandrium fundyense cyst population dynamics in the Gulf of Maine

Butman

Aretxabaleta

Dickhudt

et al. 2014

Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Particle residence time and biogeochemical dynamics occurring in the benthic nepheloid layer, a common feature on many margins, are important processes impacting the fluxes of key constituents (e.g., oxygen, macro-and micro-nutrients) across the sediment-water interface (Townsend et al, 1992;Hwang et al, 2013;Pilskaln et al, 2014). Biologically mediated reactions in surface sediments (Burdige, 2007) are responsible for the degradation and alteration of organic matter, affecting the distributions, cycling and benthic fluxes of redox-sensitive species.…”

Section: Temporary Storage and Biogeochemical Transformationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A science plan for carbon cycle research in North American coastal waters. Report of the Coastal CARbon Synthesis (CCARS) community workshop, August 19-21, 2014

Benway¹,

Alin²,

Boyer³

et al. 2016

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Toward a quantitative and empirical dissolved organic carbon budget for the Gulf of Maine, a semienclosed shelf sea

Balch

Huntington

Aiken

et al. 2016

Global Biogeochemical Cycles

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

A time series of organic carbon export from Gulf of Maine (GoM) watersheds was compared to a time series of biological, chemical, bio-optical, and hydrographic properties, measured across the GoM between Yarmouth, NS, Canada, and Portland, ME, U.S. Optical proxies were used to quantify the dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and particulate organic carbon in the GoM. The Load Estimator regression model applied to river discharge data demonstrated that riverine DOC export (and its decadal variance) has increased over the last 80 years. Several extraordinarily wet years (2006)(2007)(2008)(2009)(2010) resulted in a massive pulse of chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM; proxy for DOC) into the western GoM along with unidentified optically scattering material (<0.2 μm diameter). A survey of DOC in the GoM and Scotian Shelf showed the strong influence of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence on the DOC that enters the GoM. A deep plume of CDOM-rich water was observed near the coast of Maine which decreased in concentration eastward. The Forel-Ule color scale was derived and compared to the same measurements made in 1912-1913 by Henry Bigelow. Results show that the GoM has yellowed in the last century, particularly in the region of the extension of the Eastern Maine Coastal Current. Time lags between DOC discharge and its appearance in the GoM increased with distance from the river mouths. Algae were also a significant source of DOC but not CDOM. Gulf-wide algal primary production has decreased. Increases in precipitation and DOC discharge to the GoM are predicted over the next century.

show abstract

Benthic nepheloid layers in the Gulf of Maine and Alexandrium cyst inventories

Cited by 20 publications

References 67 publications

Investigating the importance of sediment resuspension in Alexandrium fundyense cyst population dynamics in the Gulf of Maine

Investigating the importance of sediment resuspension in Alexandrium fundyense cyst population dynamics in the Gulf of Maine

A science plan for carbon cycle research in North American coastal waters. Report of the Coastal CARbon Synthesis (CCARS) community workshop, August 19-21, 2014

Toward a quantitative and empirical dissolved organic carbon budget for the Gulf of Maine, a semienclosed shelf sea

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About