Hyperproductivity of the Ross Sea (Antarctica) polynya during austral spring

Abstract

Although satellite data of surface layer pigments have suggested that the daily productivity in the Ross Sea is among the largest found in any marine system, no modern oceanographic cruise has entered the Ross Sea polynya to quantitatively assess the austral spring productivity over time scales of days to weeks. We conducted a cruise to the Ross Sea polynya in November–December, 1994 to measure the contribution of phytoplankton during the austral spring to the annual productivity of the region and found markedly enhanced levels of phytoplankton biomass. Chlorophyll concentrations were greater than 3 µg l−1 in mid‐November, a time when the polynya was covered by a thin (ca. 20–30 cm) layer of ice. Particulate matter concentrations increased through time, and by early December chlorophyll and particulate carbon concentrations exceeded 10 µg l−1 and 53 µmol l−1, respectively. Primary productivity also increased through time: the mean productivity in early December equaled 3.53 g C m−2 d−1, and maximum measured rates exceeded 6 g C m−2 d−1. Productivity based on nitrate disappearance averaged 1.52 g C m−2 d−1 (with a maximum rate of 2.49 g C m−2 d−1), suggesting that the bloom's new production was also substantial. The Ross Sea polynya is the most southerly location in the Antarctic where phytoplankton growth is initiated this early and which supports such high standing stocks by early December. Inclusion of this production in a carbon budget for the region suggests that this area supports an annual production of 200 g C m−2, the largest of any region in the Southern Ocean, and confirms its hyperproductive nature.