Calanus hyperboreus and the lipid pump

Abstract

AbstractLipid‐fuelled overwintering by copepods can be a regionally important contribution to carbon sequestration in the deep oceans. Here, we estimate the contribution for Calanus hyperboreus, found in abundance in the northern reaches of the North Atlantic and Arctic Ocean. Estimates for regions with high overwintering populations, Fram Strait, Greenland Sea and Iceland Sea lie between 3.5 gC m−2 yr−1 and 6.0 gC m−2 yr−1 at depths of 1000–3000 m, comparable to the flux of detrital organic carbon at commensurate depths. Apart from the variation in the abundance of overwintering populations, these estimates are most sensitive to mortality rates. We present a general model based on metabolic theory and isomorphism that can be used to constrain estimates for data poor species in other parts of the global ocean.