Primary production within the sea-ice zone west of the Antarctic Peninsula: I—Sea ice, summer mixed layer, and irradiance

Winter and spring controls on the summer food web of the coastal West Antarctic Peninsula

“…Whereas individual factors of winter and spring forcing can constrain seasonal phytoplankton dynamics, Relatively, high ice extent in the winter likely facilitates higher stratification in the following spring and summer via two mechanisms: first, by insulating the water column from high winter winds and thus preventing the formation of a deep winter mixed layer 7,19 ; and second, by providing a larger volume of sea ice melt water that strengthens the density gradient in the upper water column in the following spring and summer 18 . Similar to Marguerite Bay farther south along the WAP 19 , Palmer November-December mixed layer depth (MLD) was not significantly correlated with summer chl-a.…”

“…Phytoplankton dynamics have previously been associated with ice-mediated changes in water column stability 18,19 . In turn, sea ice changes are governed by fluctuations in the Southern Annular Mode (SAM) and/or the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) [20][21][22] .…”

Multiscale control of bacterial production by phytoplankton dynamics and sea ice along the western Antarctic Peninsula: A regional and decadal investigation

“…In years with a late sea ice retreat, enhanced stratification from melting 22 sea ice leads to shallower mixed layers and higher PP. Vernet et al (2008) late over the shelf and inshore, and Chl and PP in those years were also high (Figs. 9,10).…”

Two decades of inorganic carbon dynamics along the West Antarctic Peninsula

“…Summertime surface temperature, salinity, and NO − 3 + NO − 2 are generally lower close to the coast, while Chl a, primary production, Si(OH) 2 , and water column stability decrease from the coast toward the open ocean (Smith, 2001;Garibotti et al, 2003;Vernet et al, 2008). The freshwater along the coast may originate, to a large part, from melting of glacial ice and snow .…”

“…If not counteracted by strong winds, freshwater from melting sea ice, glaciers, and snow stabilizes the water column in close proximity to the inshore and southward moving sea-ice edge. Stratification and presumably iron availability provide favorable conditions for phytoplankton blooms (Garibotti et al, 2003Vernet et al, 2008), resulting in a strong drawdown of DIC and flux of CO 2 from the atmosphere into the ocean (Carrillo et al, 2004;Montes-Hugo et al, 2009;Wang et al, 2009). Subsequent iron depletion results in a decreasing trend of chlorophyll a (Chl a) from onshore to offshore, with interannual differences in the gradient strength, depending on the onset of the sea-ice retreat , but possibly also the timing of sampling in relation to the timing of sea-ice retreat and phytoplankton blooms.…”