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Contribution of dinoflagellates to Antarctic coastal zone carbon flux

Entry ID: ASAC_988

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Summary

Abstract: Some scanning electron microscope images were taken of dinoflagellates sampled as part of this project. A catlogue of the images taken is provided as part of the download file at the url given below. The images are currently held by the Electron Microscope Unit of the Australian Antarctic Division, but have not yet been entered into their electron microscope database (as at the 30th of April, ... 2004).

From the abstracts of the referenced paper:

The abundance and biomass of ciliates, dinoflagellates and heterotrophic and phototrophic nanoflagellates were determined at three sites along an ice-covered Antarctic fjord between January and November 1993. The water column showed little in the way of temperature and salinity gradients during the study period. In general, the protozooplankton exhibited a seasonal variation which closely mirrored that of chlorophyll a and bacterioplankton. The fjord mouth, which was affected by the greatest marine influences, consistently had the highest densities of ciliates and the most diverse community, with up to 18 species during the sampling period. Small aloricate ciliates were present throughout the year with Strobilidium spp. being dominant during the winter. Larger loricate and aloricate ciliates became more prominent during January and November, along with the autotrophic ciliate Mesodimium rubrun and two mixotrophic species (Strombidium wulffi and a type resembling Tontonia) suggesting evidence of species successions. Data on dinoflagellates were less extensive, but these protists showed greatest species diversity in the middle reaches of the fjord. A total of 13 species of dinoflagellate were recorded.

Ciliates made a significant contribution to the biomass of the microbial community in summer, particularly in the middle and at the seaward end of the fjord. In winter, heterotrophic flagellates (HNAN) and phototrophic nanoflagellates (PNAN) were the dominant component of protistan biomass. In terms of percentage contribution to the microbial carbon pool, bacteria dominated during winter and spring. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first seasonal study of an Antarctic fjord. The Ellis Fjord is very unproductive compared to lower latitude systems, and supports low biomass of phytoplankton and microbial plankton during most of the year. This relates to severe climatic and seasonal conditions, and the lack of allochthonous carbon inputs to the system. Thus, high latitude estuaries may differ significantly from lower latitude systems, which generally rank among the most productive aquatic systems in the world.

The fields in this dataset are:
EMU Image Number
Fiona Scott Image Number
Species
SEM Stub Number
Location
Collector

Related URL

Link: GET DATA

Description: Download point for the data

Geographic Coverage

(Click for Interactive Map)

Spatial coordinates

	N: -68.0	S: -69.0	E: 79.0	W: 78.0

Min Depth: 5 M Max Depth: 20 M

Temporal Coverage

Start Date: 1993-01-01

Stop Date: 1993-11-30

Location Keywords

OCEAN > SOUTHERN OCEAN

GEOGRAPHIC REGION > POLAR

Science Keywords

BIOSPHERE > VEGETATION > CHLOROPHYLL

BIOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION > PROTISTS

ISO Topic Category

BIOTA

OCEANS

Platform

FIELD SURVEYS

Access Constraints A PDF copy of the referenced papers are available for download from the url given below.

A catalogue of Scanning Electron Microscope images taken from this project is provided as part of the download at the url given below.

Use Constraints This data set conforms to the PICCCBY Attribution License
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/).

Ancillary Keywords

ANTARCTIC

ANTARCTICA

Data Set Progress

COMPLETE

Originating Center

Data Center

Australian Antarctic Data Centre, Australia

Data Center URL: http://data.aad.gov.au

Data Center Personnel
Name: DATA OFFICER AADC Phone: +61 3 6232 3244 Fax: +61 3 6232 3351 Email: metadata at aad.gov.au Contact Address: Australian Antarctic Division 203 Channel Highway City: Kingston Province or State: Tasmania Postal Code: 7050 Country: Australia

Distribution

Distribution Media: HTTP

Distribution Size: 2104 KB

Distribution Format: PDF, excel

Fees: Free

Personnel

ANDREW MCMINN

Role: INVESTIGATOR

Role: TECHNICAL CONTACT

Role: DIF AUTHOR

Phone: +61 3 6266 2980

Fax: +61 3 6226 2973

Email: Andrew.McMinn at utas.edu.au

Contact Address:

Institute of Antarctic and Southern Ocean Studies

University of Tasmania

Private Bag 77

City: Hobart

Province or State: Tasmania

Postal Code: 7001

Country: Australia

Publications/References

Grey, J., Laybourne-Parry, J., Leakey, R.J.G. and McMinn, A. (1997) Temporal patterns of protozooplankton abundance and their food in Ellis Fjord, Princess Elizabeth Land, eastern Antarctica. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 45, 17-25.

Creation and Review Dates

DIF Creation Date: 2000-08-09

Last DIF Revision Date: 2008-04-10

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