Surface-film microbial populations: diel amino acid metabolism, carbon utilization, and growth rates

Abstract

Microheterotrophic dissolved free amino acid (DFAA) utilization, and microbial community and bacterial community carbon production and growth were studied using 3H-labeled organics as tracers in marine surface-film and subsurface (10 cm) waters off Baja California in November 1983. DFAA utilization was generally more rapid during the day (0.14 to 0.38 nM h-1) than at night (0.04 to 0.14 nM h-1) in surface-film and subsurface waters, but the percent of utilized amino acid which was respired was always greater during the night (22 to 57%) compared to the day (14 to 18%). Utilization of DFAA-carbon was estimated to range from 0.3 to 5.3 μg C l-1 d-1 for all stations studied. In six of the 8 samples examined, the percentage of microbial carbon accounted for by the bacterial component of the population (1.4 to 5.9%) was strikingly similar to the percentage of microbial carbon production accounted for by bacterial carbon production (1.9 to 5.1%). In all of these six samples, total microbial specific-growth rates and bacterial specific-growth rates were approximately equivalent (0.9 to 2.2 d-1 for the microbial community; 0.7 to 1.9 d-1 for bacteria). The two exceptions were samples apparently influenced by transient flagellate populations migrating into the surface or subsurface waters at night. These observations support the conclusion that surface films contain unique and highly active microbial populations.