Abstract
14C‐labeling of chlorophyll a and subsequent extraction by high‐pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) was adapted for field measurement of both specific growth rate and biomass of diatom films found on muddy intertidal sediments of Savin Hill Cove, a small embayment of northwest Dorchester Bay, Boston Harbor. Primary production was measured concurrently via 14C uptake into total cellular C. An incubation apparatus that incorporates stirring to enhance sediment‐water gas exchange was used at both low and high tides. Over the year‐long study period (August 1987–August 1988) measured specific growth rates were low (0.06–0.27 d−1) while biomass estimates were high (2.21 × 10−4 to 1.54 × 10−3 g C cm−2). C : Chl ratios varied from 18.7 to 60.4. The highest biomass values and C : Chl ratios were found during the 1988 spring bloom. The very low specific growth rates measured during the spring bloom (0.06 and 0.09 d−1) coupled with spring increases in the numbers of grazers may explain the steep decline in biomass that followed the spring bloom in 1986–1988.
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