Back to Search
Start Over
Distribution and Abundances of Planktic Foraminifera and Shelled Pteropods During the Polar Night in the Sea-Ice Covered Northern Barents Sea
- Source :
- Frontiers in Marine Science, Frontiers in Marine Science, Vol 8 (2021)
- Publication Year :
- 2021
- Publisher :
- Frontiers Media SA, 2021.
-
Abstract
- Planktic foraminfera and shelled pteropods are important calcifying groups of zooplankton in all oceans. Their calcium carbonate shells are sensitive to changes in ocean carbonate chemistry predisposing them as an important indicator of ocean acidification. Moreover, planktic foraminfera and shelled pteropods contribute significantly to food webs and vertical flux of calcium carbonate in polar pelagic ecosystems. Here we provide, for the first time, information on the under-ice planktic foraminifera and shelled pteropod abundance, species composition and vertical distribution along a transect (82°–76°N) covering the Nansen Basin and the northern Barents Sea during the polar night in December 2019. The two groups of calcifiers were examined in different environments in the context of water masses, sea ice cover, and ocean chemistry (nutrients and carbonate system). The average abundance of planktic foraminifera under the sea-ice was low with the highest average abundance (2 ind. m–3) close to the sea-ice margin. The maximum abundances of planktic foraminifera were concentrated at 20–50 m depth (4 and 7 ind. m–3) in the Nansen Basin and at 80–100 m depth (13 ind. m–3) close to the sea-ice margin. The highest average abundance (13 ind. m–3) and the maximum abundance of pteropods (40 ind. m–3) were found in the surface Polar Water at 0–20 m depth with very low temperatures (–1.9 to –1°C), low salinity (Neogloboquadrina pachydermaand the subpolar speciesTurborotalita quinqueloba. The dominating polar pteropod speciesLimacina helicinawas represented by the juvenile and veliger stages. This winter study offers a unique contribution to our understanding of the inter-seasonal variability of planktic foraminfera and shelled pteropods abundance, distribution and population size structure in the Arctic Ocean.
- Subjects :
- Nansen Basin
Science
Population
Ocean Engineering
the Arctic ocean
QH1-199.5
Limacina helicina
Aquatic Science
Oceanography
planktic calcifiers
Foraminifera
Bottom water
nutrients
Sea ice
VDP::Mathematics and natural science: 400::Zoology and botany: 480::Marine biology: 497
education
Water Science and Technology
geography
education.field_of_study
Global and Planetary Change
geography.geographical_feature_category
Polar night
biology
pH
General. Including nature conservation, geographical distribution
Ocean acidification
VDP::Matematikk og Naturvitenskap: 400::Zoologiske og botaniske fag: 480::Marinbiologi: 497
biology.organism_classification
winter aragonite and calcite saturation state
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 22967745
- Volume :
- 8
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Frontiers in Marine Science
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....e3477ba38b8408d8612c8c4bed2a0f76
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.644094