Biodiversity of North Atlantic and North Sea calanoid copepods

G Beaugrand,F Ibañez,B Planque,Pc Reid

doi:10.3354/meps204299

Abstract

Spatial patterns in pelagic biodiversity are the result of factors acting from a global to a local scale. The global patterns have been studied intensively using taxa such as foraminifera and euphausiids. However, these studies do not allow direct comparisons of neritic and oceanic regions or examination of relationships between local and regional patterns of pelagic diversity. Here we present a map of the diversity of calanoid copepods, a key planktonic group, summarising 40 yr of continuous monthly investigations in the North Atlantic and North Sea. The high number of samples (168 162) allowed mesoscale patterns in diversity to be detected for the first time at an ocean-basin level. Our results demonstrate pronounced local spatial variability in planktonic diversity and refine previous global studies at a lower resolution. They form a baseline at which long-term changes in planktonic diversity can be better assessed and ecosystem management plans implemented.

Highlights

Resale or republication not permitted without written consent of the publisher In the pelagic marine realm, current spatial patterns in diversity are the result of evolutionary, biogeographic and more local abiotic, biotic and ecological factors (Angel 1998)
We present a map of the diversity of calanoid copepods, a key planktonic group, summarising 40 yr of continuous monthly investigations in the North Atlantic and North Sea
We summarise the diversity of calanoid copepods in the North Atlantic and the North Sea based on intensive sampling by the Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR) for all months and times of day, from 1958 to 1997

Summary

Materials and methods

The CPR survey is an upper layer plankton monitoring programme that has regularly collected about 400 taxa in the North Atlantic and North Sea since 1948 (Warner & Hays 1994) Upon returning to the laboratory, the silk on which plankton is collected, is unwound and cut into sections corresponding to 10 nautical miles and approximately 3 m3 of filtered sea water (Hays 1994). For each of the 168 162 samples, taxonomic richness was calculated (Step 1). In this case, taxonomic richness means the mean number of taxa per CPR sample. Spatial interpolation for each month and 2 h period integrated over 40 yr of CPR sampling

Atlantic and the North Sea

Results and discussion

LITERATURE CITED