Precipitation as a driver of phytoplankton ecology in coastal waters: A climatic perspective

Thompson, Peter A.; O’Brien, Todd; Paerl, Hans W.; Peierls, Benjamin L.; Harrison, Paul J.; Robb, Malcolm

doi:10.1016/j.ecss.2015.04.004

Cited by 55 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 55 publications

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“…Knowledge of these environmental barriers and the structures and ecology of the communities confined to the specific salinity classes is important to assess the possible effects of environmental changes. The detection of pronounced alpha-and beta-diversity patterns along salinity gradients corroborates well with the finding of Thompson et al (2015) that precipitation is a driver of phytoplankton ecology in coastal waters. In particular water bodies with pronounced salinity gradients such as the Baltic Sea may experience notable shifts in the salinity regime due to changes in precipitation patterns resulting from climate change.…”

Section: Remane's 'Artenminimum' Concept and The Protistan Diversity supporting

confidence: 87%

“…The detection of pronounced alpha‐ and beta‐diversity patterns along salinity gradients corroborates well with the finding of Thompson et al . () that precipitation is a driver of phytoplankton ecology in coastal waters. In particular water bodies with pronounced salinity gradients such as the Baltic Sea may experience notable shifts in the salinity regime due to changes in precipitation patterns resulting from climate change.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A fundamental difference between macrobiota and microbial eukaryotes: protistan plankton has a species maximum in the freshwater‐marine transition zone of the Baltic Sea

Filker

Kühner

Heckwolf

et al. 2019

Environmental Microbiology

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Summary Remane's Artenminimum at the horohalinicum is a fundamental concept in ecology to describe and explain the distribution of organisms along salinity gradients. However, a recent metadata analysis challenged this concept for protists, proposing a species maximum in brackish waters. Due to data bias, this literature‐based investigation was highly discussed. Reliable data verifying or rejecting the species minimum for protists in brackish waters were critically lacking. Here, we sampled a pronounced salinity gradient along a west–east transect in the Baltic Sea and analysed protistan plankton communities using high‐throughput eDNA metabarcoding. A strong salinity barrier at the upper limit of the horohalinicum and 10 psu appeared to select for significant shifts in protistan community structures, with dinoflagellates being dominant at lower salinities, and dictyochophytes and diatoms being keyplayers at higher salinities. Also in vertical water column gradients in deeper basins (Kiel Bight, Arkona and Bornholm Basin) appeared salinity as significant environmental determinant influencing alpha‐ and beta‐diversity patterns. Importantly, alpha‐diversity indices revealed species maxima in brackish waters, that is, indeed contrasting Remane's Artenminimum concept. Statistical analyses confirmed salinity as the major driving force for protistan community structuring with high significance. This suggests that macrobiota and microbial eukaryotes follow fundamentally different rules regarding diversity patterns in the transition zone from freshwater to marine waters.

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Section: Remane's 'Artenminimum' Concept and The Protistan Diversity supporting

confidence: 87%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A fundamental difference between macrobiota and microbial eukaryotes: protistan plankton has a species maximum in the freshwater‐marine transition zone of the Baltic Sea

Filker

Kühner

Heckwolf

et al. 2019

Environmental Microbiology

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“…This is more evident at St2, in the middle of the estuary which is less influenced by other factors such as increased turbidity, often occurring at St1 or by dilution with offshore waters. This seasonally varying response to increased precipitation has also been observed by Thompson et al (2015). Similarly, it has been suggested that tropical cyclones which strike temperate estuaries in late fall may have a less severe effect on water quality than do those that occur during warmer summer months (Mallin et al 2002).…”

Section: Biogeochemical Effectssupporting

confidence: 52%

Episodic Biogeochemical Variability in a Low-Flow Mediterranean Estuary

Basterretxea

Jordi

Martínez-Soto

et al. 2017

Estuaries and Coasts

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To investigate to what extent episodic physical processes regulate nutrient availability and phytoplankton assemblages of the Mahon estuary (Minorca Island), we carried out an intensive field study during 2010-2011. During the study period, environmental conditions spanned from intense stratification to a continuous mixing and from lack of riverine inflow to intense runoff. Our data reveals a sequence of biogeochemical states of the estuary that result from the interplay between runoff, other non-periodic forcings (winds, sea level oscillations), and variations in water renewal. Seasonal runoff was revealed as a major driver of winter circulation and of the influx of inorganic nutrients, in particular nitrate. However, because of the combination between runoff and flushing time, the effects of floodwater events on phytoplankton are shortlived (days). Conversely, during summer, when freshwater influx declines, water renewal relies on pulsed atmospheric forcing that may be of local or remote origin. As depicted from the low nitrate concentrations (<1 μM) and enhanced ammonium (>1 μM), this change in circulation and external loads carries nutrient assimilation within the estuary head and forces the use of remnant nutrients through regenerating pathways to sustain an enhanced phytoplankton biomass at the lower estuary. Episodic variability represented between 52 and 65% of the annual chlorophyll variance. Despite the fact that episodic pulses represented intense departures from base biogeochemical state of the estuary, at time scale larger than weeks, the phytoplankton community composition and dynamics was largely regulated by the integrated effect of these episodes and other environmental drivers associated with seasonality rather than by individual storm events only. Our results suggest that even though the system presents good recovery capacity to individual storm episodes, it may be more vulnerable to increased nutrient fluxes during summer, as well as to changes in episode timing and frequency.

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“…Vários estudos em regiões costeiras demonstram correlações positivas entre o aumento da vazão de rios e a estrutura da comunidade fitoplanctônica, especialmente em termos de biomassa (CLOERN et al, 1983;HOWARTH et al, 2000;MALLIN et al, 1993, THOMPSON et al, 2015 cel.L -1 (GOES et al, 2014;SATINSKY et al, 2014;WOOD, 1967) contribuindo para o incremento de Clorofila a (>10 µg.L -1 ) POPE,1996;SANTOS et al, 2008;RUSSELL,1995).…”

Section: Discussionunclassified

“…Estas interações são resultantes de características físicas, geomorfológicas e hidrodinâmicas, mas também do enriquecimento de nutrientes, climatologia e distúrbios humanos. Em muitos estuários, a variabilidade da composição de espécies e biomassa fitoplanctônica está fortemente associada com a hidrodinâmica, quando os requisitos de crescimento básicos, como luz e nutrientes estão sempre disponíveis (PEIERLS et al, 2012;THOMPSON et al, 2015). Desta forma, a compreensão dos fatores que afetam a distribuição do fitoplâncton em regiões costeiras é fundamental para o entendimento de processos, como as florações fitoplanctônicas e, mais recentemente, o aquecimento global do planeta (CULLEN et al, 2002).…”

Section: Resumo O Fitoplâncton Na Zona Costeira Amazônica Brasileira:unclassified

O fitoplâncton na Zona Costeira Amazônica Brasileira: Biodiversidade, distribuição e estrutura no <i>continuum</i> estuário-oceano

Lourenço¹

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Phytoplankton in the Brazilian Amazon Coastal Zone: Biodiversity, distribution and structure in estuary-ocean continuum Phytoplankton biodiversity and structure in the Brazilian Amazon Coastal Zone was evaluated based on 272 publications from the period between 1861 and 2016 and from eight oceanographic cruises carried out in different phases of the Amazon river hydrograph between the years 2013 to 2015. Selected publications were restricted to those which presented taxonomic identification at different levels, and / or quantification in terms of cell density, obtained exclusively by optical microscopy. Specific composition and phytoplankton cell density was evaluated by Utermöhl methodology (1958). Available information in the form of conference abstracts (67%), monographs (13%) and journal articles (11%) were rescued from studies developed on the coast of Pará (131), Maranhão (105) and Amapá (3), as well as on the continental shelf (36). Within these, the best studied ecosystems are estuaries (135 references), the continental shelf (36 references) and the beaches (30), with an ecological approach as the main research objective (96%). Currently, species inventories include 1157 taxa, distributed in 612 diatoms, 252 dinoflagellates, 199 chlorophytes, 56 cyanobacteria, 19 coccolithophorids, 19 euglenoids and one criptoficean. Based on this review and on the results obtained in this study, the structure of the phytoplankton community in the Amazon Continental Shelf is characteristic of coastal environments under the influence of river plumes, with two ecological scenarios related to the Amazon river discharge, one with greater influence in April and July and another with less influence in October and January. The distribution occurs in bands, according to the environmental characteristics and the structure of the phytoplankton community, divided into internal continental shelf under the influence of the plume, transition zone, and external continental shelf with oceanic influence. Diatoms are responsible for the high densities (10 5 cells.L-1) in the coastal region, especially under the influence of the plume, contributing with the increase of chlorophyll a (> 10 μg.L-1). At the oceanic portion without influence of the plume, Cla concentrations are low (<2 μg.L-1) and filamentous cyanobacteria (10 4 cells.l-1) and coccolithophorids dominate. The temporal variability of the discharge of the Amazon river and, consequently, the spatial dynamics of the plume, is the main factor responsible for changes in salinity and nutrient availability, determining the structure of the phytoplankton community. This study reinforces the importance of maintaining time series and biodiversity surveys to understand phytoplankton community dynamics in highly complex environments such as the Continental Amazon Shelf.

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Precipitation as a driver of phytoplankton ecology in coastal waters: A climatic perspective

Cited by 55 publications

References 55 publications

A fundamental difference between macrobiota and microbial eukaryotes: protistan plankton has a species maximum in the freshwater‐marine transition zone of the Baltic Sea

A fundamental difference between macrobiota and microbial eukaryotes: protistan plankton has a species maximum in the freshwater‐marine transition zone of the Baltic Sea

Episodic Biogeochemical Variability in a Low-Flow Mediterranean Estuary

O fitoplâncton na Zona Costeira Amazônica Brasileira: Biodiversidade, distribuição e estrutura no <i>continuum</i> estuário-oceano

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