Baltic Sea diazotrophic cyanobacterium is negatively affected by acidification and warming

Abstract

Nitrogen fixation is a key source of nitrogen in the Baltic Sea which counteracts nitrogen loss processes in the deep anoxic basins. Laboratory and field studies have indicated that single-strain nitrogen-fixing (diazotrophic) cyanobacteria from the Baltic Sea are sensitive to ocean acidification and warming, two drivers of marked future change in the marine environment. Here, we enclosed a natural plankton community in twelve indoor mesocosms (volume ~1400 L) and manipulated pCO2 to yield six CO2 treatments with two different temperature treatments (16.6°C and 22.4°C, pCO2 range = 360 – 2030 μatm). We followed the filamentous, heterocystous diazotrophic cyanobacteria community (Nostocales, primarily Nodularia spumigena) over four weeks. Our results indicate that heterocystous diazotrophic cyanobacteria may become less competitive in natural plankton communities under ocean acidification. Elevated CO2 had a negative impact on Nodularia sp. biomass, which was exacerbated by warming. Our results imply that Nodularia sp. may contribute less to new nitrogen inputs in the Baltic Sea in future.