Acoustics reveals the presence of a macrozooplankton biocline in the Bay of Biscay in response to hydrological conditions and predator-prey relationships.

ABSTRACT: Bifrequency acoustic data, hydrological measurements and satellite data were used to study the vertical distribution of macrozooplankton in the Bay of Biscay in relation to the hydrological conditions and fish distribution during spring 2009. The most noticeable result was the observation of a 'biocline' during the day i.e., the interface where zooplankton biomass changes more rapidly with depth than it does in the layers above or below. The biocline separated the surface layer, almost devoid of macrozooplankton, from the macrozooplankton-rich deeper layers. It is a specific vertical feature which ties in with the classic diel vertical migration pattern. Spatiotemporal correlations between macrozooplankton and environmental variables (photic depth, thermohaline vertical structure, stratifi

SUBMITTER: Lezama-Ochoa A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3913746 | biostudies-literature | 2014

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature