Optimal Environmental Conditions and Anomalous Ecosystem Responses: Constraining Bottom-up Controls of Phytoplankton Biomass in the California Current System.

ABSTRACT: In Eastern Boundary Current systems, wind-driven upwelling drives nutrient-rich water to the ocean surface, making these regions among the most productive on Earth. Regulation of productivity by changing wind and/or nutrient conditions can dramatically impact ecosystem functioning, though the mechanisms are not well understood beyond broad-scale relationships. Here, we explore bottom-up controls during the California Current System (CCS) upwelling season by quantifying the dependence of phytoplankton biomass (as indicated by satellite chlorophyll estimates) on two key environmental parameters: subsurface nitrate concentration and surface wind stress. In general, moderate winds and high nitrate concentrations yield maximal biomass near shore, while offshore biomass is positively correlated

SUBMITTER: Jacox MG 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4899772 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature