Long-term diatom fluxes in response to oceanographic conditions at Stations AB and SA in the central subarctic Pacific and the Bering Sea, 1990–1998

Abstract

Long-term monitoring of diatom fluxes during 1990–1998 was conducted at Station AB in the Bering Sea and Station SA in the central subarctic Pacific in order to decipher the relationships between sinking diatom and the upper water mass environments. The total diatom flux at Station AB was generally twice as high as that at Station SA. The dominant species in the sinking flora was primarily Neodenticula seminae at both stations, which was a significant contributor to organic carbon flux. The flora at Station AB was represented by relatively abundant coastal taxa including Chaetoceros resting spores. These results suggest more favorable conditions for diatom production at Station AB compared with those at Station SA. The possible influences of oligotrophic and temperate water masses were discerned from the positive SST anomaly and the occurrence of a few specimens of temperate species. The cumulative annual fluxes of total diatoms at Stations AB and SA are apparently related to the variation in the mean annual depth of mixed layer. At Station SA, annual mean of total diatom flux showed a negative correlation with the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) Index, which suggests a significant relationship between surface water turbidity and diatom production. At Station AB, the annual change of coastal diatom flux was correlated with the PDO and the winter value of the Arctic Oscillation, which may suggest a significant influence of Alaskan Stream waters via the Aleutian Islands and intensity of surface water mixing.