Impact of CO2 enrichment on organic matter dynamics during nutrient induced coastal phytoplankton blooms

A mesocosm experiment was conducted to investigate the impact of rising fCO2 on the build-up and decline of organic matter during coastal phytoplankton blooms. Five mesocosms (~38 m³ each) were deployed in the Baltic Sea during spring (2009) and enriched with CO2 to yield a gradient of 355-862 µatm. Mesocosms were nutrient fertilized initially to induce phytoplankton bloom development. Changes in particulate and dissolved organic matter concentrations, including dissolved high-molecular weight (>1 kDa) combined carbohydrates, dissolved free and combined amino acids as well as transparent exopolymer particles (TEP), were monitored over 21 days together with bacterial abundance, and hydrolytic extracellular enzyme activities. Overall, organic matter followed well-known bloom dynamics in all CO2 treatments alike. At high fCO2, higher dPOC:dPON during bloom rise, and higher TEP concentrations during bloom peak, suggested preferential accumulation of carbon-rich components. TEP concentration at bloom peak was significantly related to subsequent sedimentation of particulate organic matter. Bacterial abundance increased during the bloom and was highest at high fCO2. We conclude that increasing fCO2 supports production and exudation of carbon-rich components, enhancing particle aggregation and settling, but also providing substrate and attachment sites for bacteria. More labile organic carbon and higher bacterial abundance can increase rates of oxygen consumption and may intensify the already high risk of oxygen depletion in coastal seas in the future.

Impacts of ocean acidification on multiplication and caste organisation of parasitic trematodes in their gastropod host

Ocean acidification is predicted to impact the structure and function of all marine ecosystems in this century. As focus turns towards possible impacts on interactions among marine organisms, its effects on the biology and transmission potential of marine parasites must be evaluated. In the present study, we investigate two marine trematode species (Philophthalmus sp. and Parorchis sp., both in the family Philophthalmidae) infecting two marine gastropods. These trematodes are unusual in that their asexually multiplying stages within snails display a division of labour, with two distinct castes, a large-bodied morph producing infective stages and a smaller morph playing a defensive role against other competing parasites. Using a potentiometric ocean acidification simulation system, we test the impacts of acidified seawater (7.8 and 7.6 pH) on the production of free-living infective stages (cercariae), the size and survival of encysted resting stages (metacercariae), and the within-host division of labour measured as the ratio between numbers of the two morphs. In general, low pH conditions caused an increase in cercarial production and a reduction in metacercarial survival. The ratio of the two castes within snail hosts tended to shift towards more of the smaller defensive morphs under low pH. However, the observed effects of reduced pH were species specific and not always unimodal. These results suggest that ocean acidification can affect the biology of marine parasites and may also impact transmission success and parasite abundance of some trematodes, with possible consequences for marine communities and ecosystems.

Controls of sediment dynamics on the Galician slope reconstructed from three sediment cores (GeoB11035-1, GeoB130206-1, GeoB13071-1)

Controls of sediment dynamics at the Galician continental slope (NW Iberia) during the past 30 ka were reconstructed from three new gravity cores (GeoB11035-1, 130206-1, 13071-1) based on sedimentological (e.g. sortable silt, IRD), micropalaeontological (e.g. coccoliths), geochemical (AMS 14C, XRF) and geophysical (e.g. magnetic susceptibility) diagnostics. The data are consistent with existing regional knowledge that, during marine isotope stages 3-1, variations in detrital input, marine productivity and sea level were the essential drivers of sediment availability on the slope, whereas deep-water current velocities controlled sediment deposition: (1) the period prior to 30 cal ka BP is characterized by minor but systematic variations in various proxies which can be associated with D-O cycles; (2) between 30 and 18 cal ka BP, high detrital input and steady slope-parallel currents led to constant sedimentation; (3) from the LGM until 10 cal ka BP, the shelf-transgressive sea-level rise increased the detrital particle flux; sedimentation was influenced by significantly enhanced deep-water circulation during the Bølling/Allerød, and subsequent slowing during the Younger Dryas; (4) an abrupt and lasting change to hemipelagic sedimentation at ca. 10 cal ka BP was probably due to Holocene warming and decelerated transgression; (5) after 5 cal ka BP, additional input of detrital material to the slope is plausibly linked to the evolution of fine-grained depocentres on the Galician shelf, this being the first report of this close shelf-slope sedimentary linkage off NW Iberia. Furthermore, there is novel evidence of the nowadays strong outer shelf Iberian Poleward Current becoming established at about 15.5 cal ka BP. The data also demonstrate that small-scale morphologic features and local pathways of sediment export from the neighbouring shelf play an important role for sediment distribution on the NW Iberian slope, including a hitherto unknown sediment conduit off the Ría de Arousa. By implication, the impact of local morphology on along- and down-slope sediment dynamics is more complex than commonly considered, and deserves future attention.

Control of ambient pH on growth and stable isotopes in phytoplanktonic calcifying algae

The present work examines the relationship between pH-induced changes in growth and stable isotopic composition of coccolith calcite in two coccolithophore species with a geological perspective. These cells (Gephyrocapsa oceanica and Coccolithus pelagicus) with differing physiologies and vital effects possess a growth optimum corresponding to average pH of surface seawater in the geological period during their first known occurrence. Diminished growth rates outside of their optimum pH range are explained by the challenge of proton translocation into the extracellular environment at low pH, and enhanced aqueous CO2 limitation at high pH. These diminished growth rates correspond to a lower degree of oxygen isotopic disequilibrium in G. oceanica. In contrast, the slower growing and ancient species C. pelagicus, which typically precipitates near-equilibrium calcite, does not show any modulation of oxygen isotope signals with changing pH. In CO2-utilizing unicellular algae, carbon and oxygen isotope compositions are best explained by the degree of utilization of the internal dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) pool and the dynamics of isotopic re-equilibration inside the cell. Thus, the "carbonate ion effect" may not apply to coccolithophores. This difference with foraminifera can be traced to different modes of DIC incorporation into these two distinct biomineralizing organisms. From a geological perspective, these findings have implications for refining the use of oxygen isotopes to infer more reliable sea surface temperatures (SSTs) from fossil carbonates, and contribute to a better understanding of how climate-relevant parameters are recorded in the sedimentary archive.

Effect of ocean acidification on growth and otolith condition of juvenile scup, Stenotomus chrysops

Increasing amounts of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) from human industrial activities are causing changes in global ocean carbonate chemistry, resulting in a reduction in pH, a process termed "ocean acidification." It is important to determine which species are sensitive to elevated levels of CO2 because of potential impacts to ecosystems, marine resources, biodiversity, food webs, populations, and effects on economies. Previous studies with marine fish have documented that exposure to elevated levels of CO2 caused increased growth and larger otoliths in some species. This study was conducted to determine whether the elevated partial pressure of CO2 (pCO2) would have an effect on growth, otolith (ear bone) condition, survival, or the skeleton of juvenile scup, Stenotomus chrysops, a species that supports both important commercial and recreational fisheries. Elevated levels of pCO2 (1200-2600 µatm) had no statistically significant effect on growth, survival, or otolith condition after 8 weeks of rearing. Field data show that in Long Island Sound, where scup spawn, in situ levels of pCO2 are already at levels ranging from 689 to 1828 µatm due to primary productivity, microbial activity, and anthropogenic inputs. These results demonstrate that ocean acidification is not likely to cause adverse effects on the growth and survivability of every species of marine fish. X-ray analysis of the fish revealed a slightly higher incidence of hyperossification in the vertebrae of a few scup from the highest treatments compared to fish from the control treatments. Our results show that juvenile scup are tolerant to increases in seawater pCO2, possibly due to conditions this species encounters in their naturally variable environment and their well-developed pH control mechanisms.

Impacts of elevated CO2 on particulate and dissolved organic matter production: microcosm experiments using iron-deficient plankton communities in open subarctic waters

Response of phytoplankton to increasing CO2 in seawater in terms of physiology and ecology is key to predicting changes in marine ecosystems. However, responses of natural plankton communities especially in the open ocean to higher CO2 levels have not been fully examined. We conducted CO2 manipulation experiments in the Bering Sea and the central subarctic Pacific, known as high nutrient and low chlorophyll regions, in summer 2007 to investigate the response of organic matter production in iron-deficient plankton communities to CO2 increases. During the 14-day incubations of surface waters with natural plankton assemblages in microcosms under multiple pCO2 levels, the dynamics of particulate organic carbon (POC) and nitrogen (PN), and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and phosphorus (DOP) were examined with the plankton community compositions. In the Bering site, net production of POC, PN, and DOP relative to net chlorophyll-a production decreased with increasing pCO2. While net produced POC:PN did not show any CO2-related variations, net produced DOC:DOP increased with increasing pCO2. On the other hand, no apparent trends for these parameters were observed in the Pacific site. The contrasting results observed were probably due to the different plankton community compositions between the two sites, with plankton biomass dominated by large-sized diatoms in the Bering Sea versus ultra-eukaryotes in the Pacific Ocean. We conclude that the quantity and quality of the production of particulate and dissolved organic matter may be altered under future elevated CO2 environments in some iron-deficient ecosystems, while the impacts may be negligible in some systems.

Effects of ocean acidification on growth and physiology of Ulva lactuca (Chlorophyta) in a rockpool-scenario, link to supplementary data

Rising atmospheric CO2-concentrations will have severe consequences for a variety of biological processes. We investigated the responses of the green alga Ulva lactuca (Linnaeus) to rising CO2-concentrations in a rockpool scenario. U. lactuca was cultured under aeraton with air containing either preindustrial pCO2 (280µatm) or for the end of the 21st century predicted (700µatm) pCO2 for 31 days. We addressed the following question: Will elevated CO2-concentrations affect photosynthesis (net photosynthesis, rETR(max), Fv/Fm, pigment composition) and growth of U. lactuca in rockpools with limited water exchange? Two phases of the experiment were distinguished: In the initial phase (day 1-4) the Seawater Carbonate System (SWCS) of the culture medium could be adjusted to the selected atmospheric pCO2 condition by continuous aeration with target pCO2 values. In the second phase (day 4-31) the SWCS was largely determined by the metabolism of the growing U. lactuca biomass. In the initial phase, Fv/Fm and rETR(max) were only slightly elevated at high CO2-concentrations whereas growth was significantly enhanced. After 31 days the Chl a content of the thalli was significantly lower under future conditions and the photosynthesis of thalli grown under preindustrial conditions was not dependent on external carbonic anhydrase. Biomass increased significantly at high CO2-concentrations. At low CO2-concentrations most adult thalli disintegrated between day 14 and 21, whereas at high CO2-concentrations most thalli remained integer until day 31. Thallus disintegration at low CO2-concentrations was mirrored in a drastic decline in seawater DIC and HCO3-. Accordingly, the SWCS differed significantly between the treatments. Our results indicated a slight enhancement of photosynthetic performance and significantly elevated growth of U. lactuca at future CO2-concentrations. The accelerated thallus disintegration at high CO2-concentrations under conditions of limited water exchange indicates additional CO2 effects on the life cycle of U. lactuca when living in rockpools.

Effects of thallus disturbance on abundance and biomass of soft-bottom species in Kongsfjorden in summer 2013

The effects of biotic disturbances, like seaweed whiplash, on the diversity of benthic communities are well documented for temperate coastal systems, yet missing for Arctic benthos. In Arctic soft-bottom habitats, kelp thalli occur either continuously (e.g. trapped by sediment) or sporadically (by drifting on the sediment) after detachment from rocky shores. To explore whether a kelp thallus can disturb the structure and diversity of a coastal Arctic soft-bottom assemblage, we continuously fixed a single thallus of the kelp Saccharina latissima to or sporadically (i.e. biweekly) moved it on the sediment and compared treatment effects to unmanipulated plots (= controls). On 6 September 2013 (i.e. after 73 days of manipulation), one sediment core was taken from each of the 30 plots (n = 10), from which the number of individuals of each of the 45 encountered animal species were recorded. The continuous presence of an experimentally fixed kelp thallus significantly reduced the number of individuals on average by 27 %. This disturbance effect was even stronger, on average 49 %, where a kelp thallus was biweekly moved on the sediment. Likewise, taxon richness was lowered by an average of 19 and 36 % where a S. latissima thallus was continuously or sporadically present, respectively. While the composition of taxa was also significantly different among all treatment groups, evenness and biomass were unaffected by kelp treatments. We conclude that the presence and already movements of a single kelp thallus can promote small scale patchiness in near-shore soft-bottom assemblage structure and diversity and exemplify a significant connection between rocky and sedimentary coastal habitats.