The potential role of Antarctic krill faecal pellets in efficient carbon export at the marginal ice zone of the South Orkney Islands in spring

Belcher, Anna; Tarling, Geraint A.; Manno, Clara; Atkinson, Angus; Ward, Peter; Skaret, Georg; Fielding, Sophie; Henson, Stephanie A.; Sanders, Richard

doi:10.1007/s00300-017-2118-z

Cited by 37 publications

(38 citation statements)

References 64 publications

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“…3). However, some studies in the seasonal and marginal ice zones of the Southern Ocean indicate that krill faecal pellets can be transferred extremely efficiently, with minimal attenuation with depth, i.e., the amount of krill faecal pellet carbon in the surface is similar to that at depths of 100 s of metres below 6,37,39 . Such low rates of faecal flux attenuation have not been observed in other oceanic regions or for other crustaceans, suggesting that krill play a disproportionately important role in the sinking of carbon to the deep ocean 35 .…”

Section: Krill and Biogeochemical Cyclesmentioning

confidence: 99%

The importance of Antarctic krill in biogeochemical cycles

et al. 2019

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Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) are swarming, oceanic crustaceans, up to two inches long, and best known as prey for whales and penguinsbut they have another important role. With their large size, high biomass and daily vertical migrations they transport and transform essential nutrients, stimulate primary productivity and influence the carbon sink. Antarctic krill are also fished by the Southern Ocean's largest fishery. Yet how krill fishing impacts nutrient fertilisation and the carbon sink in the Southern Ocean is poorly understood. Our synthesis shows fishery management should consider the influential biogeochemical role of both adult and larval Antarctic krill. O cean biogeochemical cycles are paramount in regulating atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO 2) levels and in governing the nutrients available for phytoplankton growth 1. As phytoplankton are essential in most marine food webs, biogeochemistry is also important in fuelling fishery production 2. The role of phytoplankton in atmospheric CO 2 drawdown and fish production has been the central focus of many biogeochemical studies (e.g., refs. 3,4). However, despite evidence of their potential importance, higher organisms (metazoa) such as zooplankton (e.g., copepods and salps), nekton (e.g., adult krill and fish), seabirds and mammals 5-12 , have received less attention concerning their roles in the global biogeochemical cycles. One of the main mechanisms by which metazoa can influence biogeochemical cycles is through the biological pump 1 (Fig. 1). The biological pump describes a suite of biological processes that ultimately sequester atmospheric CO 2 into the deep ocean on long timescales. During photosynthesis in the surface, ocean phytoplankton produce organic matter and a fraction (< 40 %) sinks to deeper waters 13. It is estimated that 5-12 Gt C is exported from the global surface ocean annually 14 , with herbivorous metazoa contributing to the biological pump by releasing fast-sinking faecal pellets, respiring carbon at depth originally assimilated in the surface ocean and by excreting nutrients near the surface promoting further phytoplankton

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Section: Krill and Biogeochemical Cyclesmentioning

confidence: 99%

The importance of Antarctic krill in biogeochemical cycles

et al. 2019

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“…Krill fecal pellets are known to contribute to 60–85% of the POC in the upper 200 m, with great variability (Belcher et al, ). Vertical flux out of surface waters, attributed to krill feces, range from 0.01 to 15.6 mg C·m −2 ·day −1 (Pakhomov et al, , ; Ross et al, ).…”

Section: Biology Ii: Food Web Of the Wgmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Weddell Gyre, Southern Ocean: Present Knowledge and Future Challenges

Vernet

Geibert

Hoppema

et al. 2019

Reviews of Geophysics

146

147

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The Weddell Gyre (WG) is one of the main oceanographic features of the Southern Ocean south of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current which plays an influential role in global ocean circulation as well as gas exchange with the atmosphere. We review the state‐of‐the art knowledge concerning the WG from an interdisciplinary perspective, uncovering critical aspects needed to understand this system's role in shaping the future evolution of oceanic heat and carbon uptake over the next decades. The main limitations in our knowledge are related to the conditions in this extreme and remote environment, where the polar night, very low air temperatures, and presence of sea ice year‐round hamper field and remotely sensed measurements. We highlight the importance of winter and under‐ice conditions in the southern WG, the role that new technology will play to overcome present‐day sampling limitations, the importance of the WG connectivity to the low‐latitude oceans and atmosphere, and the expected intensification of the WG circulation as the westerly winds intensify. Greater international cooperation is needed to define key sampling locations that can be visited by any research vessel in the region. Existing transects sampled since the 1980s along the Prime Meridian and along an East‐West section at ~62°S should be maintained with regularity to provide answers to the relevant questions. This approach will provide long‐term data to determine trends and will improve representation of processes for regional, Antarctic‐wide, and global modeling efforts—thereby enhancing predictions of the WG in global ocean circulation and climate.

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“…Another possible mechanism is ingestion of MPs by zooplankton or vertebrates and then subsequent egestion as part of their fecal pellets. Such pellets have a higher density than the surrounding water and would act as vectors for the MPs to reach the pond bottom and form part of its sediments [58,59]. Simple hydraulic mixing might also be an explanatory factor for smaller buoyant MPs ending up in the sediments, as stormwater retention ponds are shallow water bodies with high mixing rates, also during dry weather [28].…”

Section: Mps Size Distributionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Microplastics in a Stormwater Pond

Olesen

Stephansen

Alst

et al. 2019

Water

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Large amounts of microplastics (MPs) enter our environment through runoff from urban areas. This study presents results for MPs in stormwater from a wet retention pond in terms of its water, sediments, and vertebrate fauna. The analysis was done for the size range 10–500 μm, applying a focal-plane array-based µFourier transform infrared (FPA-µFTIR) imaging technique with automated data analysis. Sample preparation protocols were optimized towards this analytical method. The study revealed 270 item L−1 in the pond water, corresponding to 4.2 µg L−1. The MPs in the pond were highly concentrated in its sediments, reaching 0.4 g kg−1, corresponding to nearly 106 item kg−1. MPs also accumulated in vertebrates from the pond—three-spined sticklebacks and young newts. In terms of particle numbers, this accumulation reached levels nearly as high as in the sediments. The size of the MPs in the pond water and its fauna was quite similar and significantly smaller than the MPs in the sediments. A rough estimate on MPs retention in the pond indicated that MPs were retained at efficiencies similar to that of other particulate materials occurring in the stormwater runoff.

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The potential role of Antarctic krill faecal pellets in efficient carbon export at the marginal ice zone of the South Orkney Islands in spring

Cited by 37 publications

References 64 publications

The importance of Antarctic krill in biogeochemical cycles

The importance of Antarctic krill in biogeochemical cycles

The Weddell Gyre, Southern Ocean: Present Knowledge and Future Challenges

Microplastics in a Stormwater Pond

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