Oceanic Regimes Research Articles

Contrasting responses in larval and juvenile growth to a climate–ocean regime shift between anchovy and sardine

Anchovy and sardine populations have fluctuated alternately with decadal changes in climatic and oceanic states, although the mechanisms remain unclear. In the western North Pacific, anchovy and sardine share nursery grounds in the Kuroshio–Oyashio transitional waters, where the subtropical and subarctic currents converge from the south and north, respectively. We found that northward expansion of the subtropical waters simultaneously changed the local environment in the nursery grounds to be favorable for late larvae and early juveniles of anchovy, but not for those of sardine during 1996–2002. Increased temperature enhanced growth and survival for anchovy, whereas reduced food availability diminished those for sardine. Northward expansion of the subtropical waters have been linked with wind-forced anomaly of sea-surface height in the central North Pacific. After 1988, when anchovy flourished and sardine collapsed in the western North Pacific, previous studies by other researchers documented similar changes in air–sea interaction. Our results suggest that contrasting responses in growth and survival processes to wind-forced oscillation of the current structures caused the alternate population dynamics between anchovy and sardine in the western North Pacific.

Endemism and speciation in the polycystine radiolarian genus Actinomma in the Arctic Ocean: Description of two new species Actinomma georgii n. sp. and A. turidae n. sp.

Evidence, based on the species and high rank taxa composition and level of domination, skeletal morphological diversity and distributional data of radiolaria from sediment samples, is presented in support of a hypothesis of endemism for the Arctic polycystine fauna, especially arctic actinommids, as presented in the Discussion section. The arctic assemblages have low diversity, few species and very high level of domination of Actinommidae and Cannobotryidae. Two new endemic species, Actinomma georgii and A. turidae, are described based on their unique skeletal morphology. Although the geographic origins of these novel actinommids cannot be determined precisely based on existing knowledge of radiolarian reproductive processes and population biology, the preponderance of evidence presented here suggests that the unique features of the Arctic Ocean environment may contribute to elevated local speciation, and that the remarkable variability in skeletal morphology of Arctic Ocean actinommids may be enhanced by strong environmental selection pressures favoring relatively rapid speciation of polycystines in this high latitude oceanic regime. These actinommid species, including Actinomma boreale, without a 4th shell, are considered to be endemic and reproducing within the Arctic Ocean, suggesting that the two new species are environmentally adapted only to the particular environment of the Arctic Ocean. By contrast, A. boreale without a 4th shell is likely less adapted to this oceanic regime.

Synchrony of Marine Fish Catches and Climate and Ocean Regime Shifts in the North Pacific Ocean

AbstractCatches of 19 marine fish species from the eastern and western portions of the North Pacific Ocean during 1970–2004 were examined to determine whether there was synchrony in their responses to the generally accepted climate regime shifts that occurred during that period. Catches for these species represented approximately 55% of the total fish catch in the North Pacific in the 1990s. Five distinct groups were apparent in the data, and each group exhibited a different response to the climate regime shifts of 1977, 1989, and 1998. Some species appeared to have responded only to the regime shift in 1977, others responded only to the shift in 1989, and a few species responded to both. The trends in the time series of catches for these five groups were not random, and shifts in catch generally coincided with regime shifts as identified by the Pacific Decadal Oscillation and other indices of climate change. Although this study examined the relationship of fisheries to trends in climate, there is an obvious linkage to the population dynamics of a particular species. Understanding how climate affects these linkages may help improve our ability to reliably forecast population and fishery trends in the future.

Density-dependent growth of Alaska sockeye salmon in relation to climate–oceanic regimes, population abundance, and body size, 1925 to 1998

To better understand how density- dependent growth of ocean-dwelling Pacific salmon varied with climate and population dynamics, we examined the marine growth of sockeye salmon Oncorhynchus nerka in relation to an index of sockeye salmon abundances among climate regimes, popu- lation abundances, and body sizes under varied life- history stages, from 1925 to 1998, using ordinary least squares and multivariate adaptive regression spline threshold models. The annual marine growth and body size during the juvenile, immature, and maturing life stages were estimated from growth pattern incre- ments on the scales of adult age 2.2 sockeye salmon that returned to spawn at Karluk River and Lake on Kodiak Island, Alaska. Intra-specific density-depen- dent growth was inferred from inverse relationships between growth and sockeye salmon abundance based on commercial harvest. Density-dependent growth occurred in all marine life stages, during the cool regime, at lower abundance levels, and at smaller body sizes at the start of the juvenile life stage. The finding that density dependence occurred during the cool regime and at low population abundances sug- gests that a shift to a cool regime or extreme warm regime at higher population abundances could further reduce the marine growth of salmon and increase competition for resources.

Numerical study of baroclinic tides in Luzon Strait

The spatial and temporal variations of baroclinic tides in the Luzon Strait (LS) are investigated using a three-dimensional tide model driven by four principal constituents, O1, K1, M2 and S2, individually or together with seasonal mean summer or winter stratifications as the initial field. Barotropic tides propagate predominantly westward from the Pacific Ocean, impinge on two prominent north-south running submarine ridges in LS, and generate strong baroclinic tides propagating into both the South China Sea (SCS) and the Pacific Ocean. Strong baroclinic tides, ∼19 GW for diurnal tides and ∼11 GW for semidiurnal tides, are excited on both the east ridge (70%) and the west ridge (30%). The barotropic to baroclinic energy conversion rate reaches 30% for diurnal tides and ∼20% for semidiurnal tides. Diurnal (O1 and K1) and semidiurnal (M2) baroclinic tides have a comparable depth-integrated energy flux 10–20 kW m−1 emanating from the LS into the SCS and the Pacific basin. The spring-neap averaged, meridionally integrated baroclinic tidal energy flux is ∼7 GW into the SCS and ∼6 GW into the Pacific Ocean, representing one of the strongest baroclinic tidal energy flux regimes in the World Ocean. About 18 GW of baroclinic tidal energy, ∼50% of that generated in the LS, is lost locally, which is more than five times that estimated in the vicinity of the Hawaiian ridge. The strong westward-propagating semidiurnal baroclinic tidal energy flux is likely the energy source for the large-amplitude nonlinear internal waves found in the SCS. The baroclinic tidal energy generation, energy fluxes, and energy dissipation rates in the spring tide are about five times those in the neap tide; while there is no significant seasonal variation of energetics, but the propagation speed of baroclinic tide is about 10% faster in summer than in winter. Within the LS, the average turbulence kinetic energy dissipation rate is O(10−7) W kg− 1 and the turbulence diffusivity is O(10−3) m2s−1, a factor of 100 greater than those in the typical open ocean. This strong turbulence mixing induced by the baroclinic tidal energy dissipation exists in the main path of the Kuroshio and is important in mixing the Pacific Ocean, Kuroshio, and the SCS waters.

Loop Current Response to Hurricanes Isidore and Lili

Abstract Recent hurricane activity over the Gulf of Mexico basin has underscored the importance of the Loop Current (LC) and its deep, warm thermal structure on hurricane intensity. During Hurricanes Isidore and Lili in 2002, research flights were conducted from both National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) WP-3D aircraft to observe pre-, in- and poststorm ocean conditions using airborne expendable ocean profilers to measure temperature, salinity, and current structure. Atmospheric thermodynamic and wind profiles and remotely sensed surface winds were concurrently acquired as each storm moved over the LC. Observed upper-ocean cooling was about 1°C as Isidore moved across the Yucatan Straits at a speed of 4 m s−1. Given prestorm ocean heat content (OHC) levels exceeding 100 kJ cm−2 in the LC (current velocities >1 m s−1), significant cooling and deepening of the ocean mixed layer (OML) did not occur in the straits. Estimated surface enthalpy flux at Isidore’s eyewall was 1.8 kW m−2, where the maximum observed wind was 49 m s−1. Spatially integrating these surface enthalpy fluxes suggested a maximum surface heat loss of 9.5 kJ cm−2 at the eyewall. Over the Yucatan Shelf, observed ocean cooling of 4.5°C was caused by upwelling processes induced by wind stress and an offshore wind-driven transport. During Hurricane Lili, ocean cooling in the LC was ∼1°C but more than 2°C in the Gulf Common Water, where the maximum estimated surface enthalpy flux was 1.4 kW m−2, associated with peak surface winds of 51 m s−1. Because of Lili’s asymmetric structure and rapid translational speed of 7 m s−1, the maximum surface heat loss resulting from the surface enthalpy flux was less than 5 kJ cm−2. In both hurricanes, the weak ocean thermal response in the LC was primarily due to the lack of energetic near-inertial current shears that develop across the thin OML observed in quiescent regimes. Bulk Richardson numbers remained well above criticality because of the strength of the upper-ocean horizontal pressure gradient that forces northward current and thermal advection of warm water distributed over deep layers. As these oceanic regimes are resistive to shear-induced mixing, hurricanes experience a more sustained surface enthalpy flux compared to storms moving over shallow quiescent mixed layers. Because ocean cooling levels induced by hurricane force winds depend on the underlying oceanic regimes, features must be accurately initialized in coupled forecast models.

Toward More Integrated Ocean Governance in Massachusetts: A Progress Report

Since 2000, recent proposals for new offshore uses such as wind and wave energy projects and liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals have highlighted areas where the Commonwealth of Massachusetts’ ocean management process could be improved in order to move away from the first come, first served approach the state has historically taken to a more coordinated ocean governance regime. Massachusetts proposes to convert the largely reactive case-by-case permitting system to a more proactive governance regime. This article will review past efforts under two main regulatory frameworks, the Public Waterfront Act and the Ocean Sanctuaries Act, propose six key components of a planning approach, discuss recent legislative history, and reflect on Massachusetts’ experience to date through Cicin-Sain's (1990) “Factors Conducive to Ocean Management Initiatives.” Initially proposed over fifteen years ago, in a review of California's Ocean Management efforts, Cicin-Sain (1990) described “four major variables that influence the likelihood that ocean management initiatives will emerge and be sustained in particular states.” They include: (1) Degree of Severity of Ocean and Coastal Governance Problems and the Role of Focusing Events, (2) Political Readiness, (3) Governmental Readiness, and (4) State Ocean Heritage and Popular Opinion Variables.

Valanginian-Hauterivian scleractinian coral communities from the Marseille region (SE France)

Coral beds associated with Valanginian and Hauterivian platform carbonates from the Marseille region show two faunal assemblages corresponding with a Stylosmilia-Baryphyllia community (late Valanginian) and a Mesomorpha-Dimorpharaea community (early Hauterivian). The stratigraphic position of this fauna is based on the associate microfossils and correlation with ammonite-bearing beds. The internal architecture of the coral beds is loosely packed, the geometry of the corresponding bodies is tabulate and flat, and their depositional setting being the deeper, muddy part of the infralittoral zone. The biostratigraphic significance of the encountered species which include: Stylosmilia cf. corallina, Eocomoseris raueni, Mesomorpha ornata, Dimorpharaea catalaunica and Baryphyllia haimei, is low and our data tend to broaden the stratigraphic range of some of them. Assuming that the corresponding species were zooxantellate suggests the existence of an oligotrophic rather than a mesotrophic oceanic regime, postulated by some workers for the time span in question.

Diurnal Precipitation Regimes in the Global Tropics*

Abstract Diurnal variations of the global tropical precipitation are documented by using two complementary Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) datasets (3B42 and 3G68) for 1998–2006 in an attempt to provide a unified view of the diurnal cycle and a metric for evaluating numerical model performance. The 3B42 data have better spatial coverage; the 3G68 data offer more accurate diurnal phase information. The first and second empirical orthogonal function (EOF) modes represent the diurnal cycle and account for 89% of the total variance in 3B42. The third and fourth EOF modes, which account for 10% of the total variance, represent the semidiurnal cycle. Both datasets yield consistent spatial structures and temporal evolution, but they have different advantages: the patterns derived from 3B42 exhibit less noise, while 3G68 yields an arguably more accurate diurnal phase. The diurnal phase derived from 3G68 systematically leads 3B42 by about 3 h. Three tropical diurnal cycle regimes (oceanic, continental, and coastal) are identified according to the amplitude, peak time, and phase propagation characteristics of the diurnal precipitation. The oceanic regime is characterized by moderate amplitude and an early morning peak [0600–0900 Local Solar Time (LST)], found primarily in the oceanic convergence zones in the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Oceans. In contrast, the continental regime features a large amplitude and an afternoon peak (1500–1800 LST), which is particularly pronounced in South America and equatorial Africa near Lake Victoria. Both the oceanic and continental regimes show little spatial phase propagation. The coastal regime, however, shows not only large amplitude but also prominent phase propagation. Two subregimes can also be recognized, often concurring along the same land–sea boundary. The seaside coastal regime is characterized by offshore phase propagation, with peaks occurring from late evening to noon of the next day (2100–1200 LST), whereas the landside coastal regime has landward phase propagation with peaks occurring from noon to evening (1200–2100 LST). The coastal regime is prominent along the land–sea boundaries of the Maritime Continent, the Indian subcontinent, northern Australia, the west coast of America extending from Mexico to Ecuador, the west coast of equatorial Africa, and Northeast Brazil. Note that the amplitude of the diurnal cycle is dependent on season, but the diurnal phase characteristics are not. The underlying mechanism suggested by this analysis, especially over the coastal areas, is also discussed.

234Th/238U disequilibrium and particulate organic carbon export in the northern South China Sea

We utilized 234Th, a naturally occurring radionuclide, to quantify the particulate organic carbon (POC) export rates in the northern South China Sea (SCS) based on data collected in July 2000 (summer), May 2001 (spring) and November 2002 (autumn). Th-234 deficit was enhanced with depth in the euphotic zone, reaching a subsurface maximum at the Chl-a maximum in most cases, as commonly observed in many oceanic regimes. Th-234 was in general in equilibrium with 238U at a depth of ∼100 m, the bottom of the euphotic zone. In this study the 234Th deficit appeared to be less significant in November than in July and May. A surface excess of 234Th relative to 238U was found in the summer over the shelf of the northern SCS, most likely due to the accumulation of suspended particles entrapped by a salinity front. Comparison of the 234Th fluxes from the upper 10 m water column between 2-D and traditional 1-D models revealed agreement within the errors of estimation, suggesting the applicability of the 1-D model to this particular shelf region. 1-D model-based 234Th fluxes were converted to POC export rates using the ratios of bottle POC to 234Th. The values ranged from 5.3 to 26.6 mmol C m−2d−1 and were slightly higher than those in the southern SCS and other oligotrophic areas. POC export overall showed larger values in spring and summer than in autumn, the seasonality of which was, however, not significant. The highest POC export rate (26.6 mmol C m−2d−1) appeared at the shelf break in spring (May), when Chl-a increased and the community structure changed from pico-phytoplankton (<2 µm) dominated to nano-phytoplankton (2–20 µm) and micro-phytoplankton (20–200 µm) dominated.

Multi-species regime shifts reflected in spawning temperature optima of small pelagic fish in the western North Pacific

Small pelagic fish have exhibited cyclic population dynamics in complex marine ecosys- tems worldwide. These fish regime shifts have been associated with ocean regime shifts; however, the biological mechanisms have remained unresolved and have been considered to depend mainly on multi-step processes through food webs. In the present study, we focus on species-specific temper- ature optima and show that similarities and differences in spawning temperature optima reflect those in the long-term population dynamics among multi-species pelagic fish in the western North Pacific. Spawning temperature optima were examined for anchovy, sardine, mackerel and jack mackerel, based on the occurrence of eggs and larvae, using a long-term (1978 to 2004) data set of egg and lar- val surveys off the Pacific coast of Japan. Anchovy exhibited a plateau-like spawning temperature pattern with a peak at ca. 22°C. In contrast, sardine and mackerel exhibited steeply peaked patterns with marked peaks at ca. 16 and 18°C, respectively. On the contrary, jack mackerel showed a very similar spawning temperature pattern to anchovy. These relationships were consistent with their flourish and collapse in long-term population dynamics. Furthermore, sardine and mackerel with stenothermal spawning patterns showed dramatic fluctuations relative to anchovy and jack mackerel with more eurythermal features. The multi-species comparisons extracted a simple and direct path- way: if viewed at large scales, direct temperature impacts on vital parameters provide a plausible explanation of multi-species regime shifts of small pelagic fish in the western North Pacific.

Instabilities of a Baroclinic, Double Diffusive Frontal Zone

Abstract The linear theory of double diffusive interleaving is extended to take account of baroclinic effects. This study goes beyond previous studies by including the possibility of modes with nonzero tilt in the alongfront direction, which allows for advection by the baroclinic frontal flow. This requires that the stability equations be solved numerically. The main example is based on observations of interleaving on the lower flank of Meddy Sharon, but a range of parameter values is covered, leading to conclusions that are relevant in a variety of oceanic regimes. The frontal zone is treated as infinitely wide with uniform gradients of temperature, salinity, and alongfront velocity. The stationary, vertically symmetric interleaving mode is shown to have maximum growth rate when its alongfront wavenumber is zero, providing validation for previous studies in which this property was assumed. Besides this, there exist two additional modes of instability: the ageostrophic Eady mode of baroclinic instability and a mode not previously identified. The new mode is oblique (i.e., it tilts in the alongfront direction), vertically asymmetric, and propagating. It is strongly dependent on boundary conditions, and its relevance in the ocean interior is uncertain as a result. Effects of variable diffusivity and buoyancy flux ratio are also considered.

Sinking fluxes of particulate U-Th radionuclides in the East Sea (Sea of Japan)

A record of radionuclide fluxes at a deep marginal sea of the Northwest Pacific Ocean (39°40′N 132°24′ E, Japan Basin, East Sea/Sea of Japan) was obtained from analysis of a 1-year continuous collection of sediment-trap samples. The trap was placed at a depth of 2800 m, 500 m above the sea floor, and the samples were recovered at the end of one year. Concentrations of 238U, 234U, 232Th, 230Th and 228Th were measured in the trapped material. All of the radionuclide fluxes showed seasonal variations that were in phase with the variations in total particle flux, which were shown in earlier work to be closely tied to the primary production in the surface water. The formation of authigenic 238U appears to be less than in other open ocean regimes. The residence time of particulate thorium isotopes were of the order of a year, resulting in an average settling rate of a meter per day. Comparison of the measured 230Thex flux with that of the theoretical production in the overlying water column yielded about 40% surplus of 230Th, indicating that lateral advection contributes 230Th to this sampling site.

Global zoogeography of fragile macrozooplankton in the upper 100–1000 m inferred from the underwater video profiler

AbstractStemmann, L., Youngbluth, M., Robert, K., Hosia, A., Picheral, M., Paterson, H., Ibanez, F., Guidi, L., Lombard, F., and Gorsky, G. 2008. Global zoogeography of fragile macrozooplankton in the upper 100–1000 m inferred from the underwater video profiler. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 65: 433–442. Mesopelagic gelatinous zooplankton fauna are insufficiently known because of inappropriate and infrequent sampling, but may have important trophic roles. In situ imaging systems and undersea vehicles have been used to investigate their diversity, distribution, and abundance. The use of different platforms, however, restricts the comparison of data from different regions. Starting in 2001, the underwater video profiler (UVP) was deployed during 12 cruises in six oceanic regimes (Mediterranean Sea, North Atlantic shelves, Mid-Atlantic Ridge, tropical Pacific Ocean, eastern Indian Ocean, and Subantarctic Ocean) to determine the vertical distribution of organisms in the upper 1000 m. Nine oceanic regions were identified based on the hydrological properties of the water column. They correspond to nine of the biogeochemical provinces defined by Longhurst. In all, 21 morphotypes were recognized: sarcodines (eight groups), ctenophores (two groups), siphonophores, medusae (five groups), crustaceans (one group), chaetognaths, appendicularians, salps, and fish. The similarity in the community assemblages of zooplankton in the 100–1000 m layer was significantly greater within regions than between regions, in most cases. The regions with comparable composition were located in the North Atlantic with adjacent water masses, suggesting that the assemblages were either mixed by advective transport or that environmental conditions were similar in mesopelagic layers. The data suggest that the spatial structuring of mesopelagic macrozooplankton occurs on large scales (e.g. basin scales) but not necessarily on smaller scales (e.g. oceanic front).

Generations of spreading basins and stages of breakdown of Wegener’s Pangea in the geodynamic evolution of the Arctic Ocean

Chronological succession in the formation of spreading basins is considered in the context of reconstruction of breakdown of Wegener’s Pangea and the development of the geodynamic system of the Arctic Ocean. This study made it possible to indentify three temporally and spatially isolated generations of spreading basins: Late Jurassic-Early Cretaceous, Late Cretaceous-Early Cenozoic, and Cenozoic. The first generation is determined by the formation, evolution, and extinction of the spreading center in the Canada Basin as a tectonic element of the Amerasia Basin. The second generation is connected to the development of the Labrador-Baffin-Makarov spreading branch that ceased to function in the Eocene. The third generation pertains to the formation of the spreading system of interrelated ultraslow Mohna, Knipovich, and Gakkel mid-ocean ridges that has functioned until now in the Norwegian-Greenland and Eurasia basins. The interpretation of the available geological and geophysical data shows that after the formation of the Canada Basin, the Arctic region escaped the geodynamic influence of the Paleopacific, characterized by spreading, subduction, formation of backarc basins, collision-related processes, etc. The origination of the Makarov Basin marks the onset of the oceanic regime characteristic of the North Atlantic (intercontinental rifting, slow and ultraslow spreading, separation of continental blocks (microcontinents), extinction of spreading centers of primary basins, spreading jumps, formation of young spreading ridges and centers, etc., are typical) along with retention of northward propagation of spreading systems both from the Pacific and Atlantic sides. The aforesaid indicates that the Arctic Ocean is in fact a hybrid basin or, in other words, a composite heterogeneous ocean in respect to its architectonics. The Arctic Ocean was formed as a result of spatial juxtaposition of two geodynamic systems different in age and geodynamic style: the Paleopacific system of the Canada Basin that finished its evolution in the Late Cretaceous and the North Atlantic system of the Makarov and Eurasia basins that came to take the place of the Paleopacific system. In contrast to traditional views, it has been suggested that asymmetry of the northern Norwegian-Greenland Basin is explained by two-stage development of this Atlantic segment with formation of primary and secondary spreading centers. The secondary spreading center of the Knipovich Ridge started to evolve approximately at the Oligocene-Miocene transition. This process resulted in the breaking off of the Hovgard continental block from the Barents Sea margin. Thus, the breakdown of Wegener’s Pangea and its Laurasian fragments with the formation of young spreading basins was a staged process that developed nearly from opposite sides. Before the Late Cretaceous (the first stage), the Pangea broke down from the side of Paleopacific to form the Canada Basin, an element of the Amerasia Basin (first phase of ocean formation). Since the Late Cretaceous, destructive pulses came from the side of the North Atlantic and resulted in the separation of Greenland from North America and the development of the Labrador-Baffin-Makarov spreading system (second phase of ocean formation). The Cenozoic was marked by the development of the second spreading branch and the formation of the Norwegian-Greenland and Eurasia oceanic basins (third phase of ocean formation). Spreading centers of this branch are functioning currently but at an extremely low rate.

Response of the Gulf of Alaska 3D winter circulation to oceanic climate shifts: Ecosystem implications

Recent measurements of zooplankton biomass and biological productivity in the Gulf of Alaska have raised a number of questions regarding possible linkages between climate and availability of renewable resources. In this article we compare 3 abrupt oceanic regime shifts in the Gulf of Alaska, the 1976–1977 warming shift, the 1998 cooling episode, and the 1998 to 1999 El Niño to La Niña transition, against concomitant changes in biological conditions reported in the literature. After the 1976–1977 warming shift, changes in the Gulf's 3D circulation, i.e., interior upwelling, onshore transport and coastal downwelling, had the same sign as their climatological means, thus providing a candidate explanation to the observed increased productivity of the upper ocean. Warming and cooling transitions have associated with them very different patterns of both horizontal and vertical circulation, where the latter is confirmed to be linked to the wind stress curl variability. Important shifts in the local biology have been reported in the literature (warming of 1976–1997 and El Niño to La Niña transition of 1998–1999) when climatological shifts in our simulated vertical velocities were large; in turn, when they were small, the ecosystem did not show significant changes and this was in part due to the resilience set by the 1976–1977 shift through the strengthening of the GOA's mean 3D circulation.

A cold phase of the East Pacific triggers new phytoplankton blooms in San Francisco Bay

Ecological observations sustained over decades often reveal abrupt changes in biological communities that signal altered ecosystem states. We report a large shift in the biological communities of San Francisco Bay, first detected as increasing phytoplankton biomass and occurrences of new seasonal blooms that began in 1999. This phytoplankton increase is paradoxical because it occurred in an era of decreasing wastewater nutrient inputs and reduced nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations, contrary to the guiding paradigm that algal biomass in estuaries increases in proportion to nutrient inputs from their watersheds. Coincidental changes included sharp declines in the abundance of bivalve mollusks, the key phytoplankton consumers in this estuary, and record high abundances of several bivalve predators: Bay shrimp, English sole, and Dungeness crab. The phytoplankton increase is consistent with a trophic cascade resulting from heightened predation on bivalves and suppression of their filtration control on phytoplankton growth. These community changes in San Francisco Bay across three trophic levels followed a state change in the California Current System characterized by increased upwelling intensity, amplified primary production, and strengthened southerly flows. These diagnostic features of the East Pacific "cold phase" lead to strong recruitment and immigration of juvenile flatfish and crustaceans into estuaries where they feed and develop. This study, built from three decades of observation, reveals a previously unrecognized mechanism of ocean-estuary connectivity. Interdecadal oceanic regime changes can propagate into estuaries, altering their community structure and efficiency of transforming land-derived nutrients into algal biomass.

The Emergence of International Ocean Regime and Korea's Counter-Strategy in the Changing Power Concepts of International Society

The Emergence of International Ocean Regime and Korea's Counter-Strategy in the Changing Power Concepts of International Society

CO2 control of Trichodesmium N2 fixation, photosynthesis, growth rates, and elemental ratios: Implications for past, present, and future ocean biogeochemistry

Diazotrophic marine cyanobacteria in the genus Trichodesmium contribute a large fraction of the new nitrogen entering the oligotrophic oceans, but little is known about how they respond to shifts in global change variables such as carbon dioxide (CO2) and temperature. We compared Trichodesmium dinitrogen (N2) and CO2 fixation rates during steady‐state growth under past, current, and future CO2 scenarios, and at two relevant temperatures. At projected CO2 levels of year 2100 (76 Pa, 750 ppm), N2 fixation rates of Pacific and Atlantic isolates increased 35–100%, and CO2 fixation rates increased 15‐128% relative to present day CO2 conditions (39 Pa, 380 ppm). CO2‐mediated rate increases were of similar relative magnitude in both phosphorus (P)‐replete and P‐limited cultures, suggesting that this effect may be independent of resource limitation. Neither isolate could grow at 15 Pa (150 ppm) CO2, but N2 and CO2 fixation rates, growth rates, and nitrogen : phosophorus (N : P) ratios all increased significantly between 39 Pa and 152 Pa (1500 ppm). In contrast, these parameters were affected only minimally or not at all by a 4°C temperature change. Photosynthesis versus irradiance parameters, however, responded to both CO2 and temperature but in different ways for each isolate. These results suggest that by the end of this century, elevated CO2 could substantially increase global Trichodesmium N2 and CO2 fixation, fundamentally altering the current marine N and C cycles and potentially driving some oceanic regimes towards P limitation. CO2 limitation of Trichodesmium diazotrophy during past glacial periods could also have contributed to setting minimum atmospheric CO2 levels through downregulation of the biological pump. The relationship between marine N2 fixation and atmospheric CO2 concentration appears to be more complex than previously realized and needs to be considered in the context of the rapidly changing oligotrophic oceans.

KILLER WHALES, WHALING, AND SEQUENTIAL MEGAFAUNAL COLLAPSE IN THE NORTH PACIFIC: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE DYNAMICS OF MARINE MAMMALS IN ALASKA AND BRITISH COLUMBIA FOLLOWING COMMERCIAL WHALING

AbstractThe hypothesis that commercial whaling caused a sequential megafaunal collapse in the North Pacific Ocean by forcing killer whales to eat progressively smaller species of marine mammals is not supported by what is known about the biology of large whales, the ecology of killer whales, and the patterns of ecosystem change that took place in Alaska, British Columbia, and elsewhere in the world following whaling. A comparative analysis shows that populations of seals, sea lions, and sea otters increased in British Columbia following commercial whaling, unlike the declines noted in the Gulf of Alaska and Aleutian Islands. The declines of seals and sea lions that began in western Alaska around 1977 were mirrored by increases in numbers of these species in British Columbia. A more likely explanation is that the seal and sea lion declines and other ecosystem changes in Alaska stem from a major oceanic regime shift that occurred in 1977. Killer whales are unquestionably a significant predator of seals, sea lions, and sea otters—but not because of commercial whaling.