Summary
Ice algae samples were collected from the winter pack ice off Labrador during March 1984. The population was dominated by centric diatoms. Chlorophyll concentrations ranged from 40 to 190 mg m−3, and particulate organic carbon from 2 to 10 g m−3. Assimilation numbers for the ice algae ranged from 1.4 to 2.8 mg C (mg chl)−1 h−1 with a mean of 2.3, and were not significantly different from the assimilation numbers of the pelagic community beneath the ice. The ice algae were not photoinhibited at light intensities approaching surface light intensities. It is postulated that the dynamic nature of the ice field permits near-surface light intensities to reach the ice algae community at irregular intervals thereby suppressing photoinhibition.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Alexander V (1974) Primary productivity regimes of the nearshore Beaufort Sea with reference to the potential role of ice biota. In: Reed JC, Slater JE (ededs) Symp Beaufort Sea, Coastal and Shelf Res. Arctic Institute of North America, Arlington VA pp 609–632
Alexander B, Chapman T (1981) The role of epontic algal communities in Bering Sea ice. In: Hood DW Calder JA (eds) The Eastern Bering Sea Shelf: Oceanography and Resources. University of Washington, pp 773–780
Anderson OGN (1977) Primary production associated with sea ice at Godhavn, Disko, West Greenland. Ophelia 16:205–220
Booth JA (1984) The epontic algal community at the ice edge zone and its significance to the Davis Strait ecosystem. Arctic 37:234–243
Bunt JS (1964) Primary productivity of undersea ice in Antarctic waters. 2. Influence of light and other factors on photosynthetic activities in Antarctic marine microalgae. Antarct Res Ser 1:27–31
Bunt JS (1968) Microalgae of the Antarctic pack-ice zone. In: Currie RI (ed) Symp Antarct Oceanogr, Scott Polar Res, Inst Cambridge, UK pp 198–218
Bunt JS, Lee CC (1970) Seasonal primary production in Antarctic Sea ice at McMurdo Sound in 1967. J Mar Res 28:304–320
Burkholder PR, Mandelli EF (1965) Productivity of microalgae in Antarctic Sea ice. Science 149:872–874
Clasby RC, Horner R, Alexander V (1973) An in situ method for measuring primary productivity of Arctic Sea ice algae. J Fish Res Board Can 30:835–838
Cota GF (1985) Photoadaptation of Arctic ice algae. Nature 315 (6016):219–222
Cross WE (1982) Under-ice biota at the Pond Inlet ice edge and in adjacent fast ice areas during spring. Arctic 35:13–27
Dunbar MJ, Acreman J (1980) Standing crop and species composition of diatoms in sea ice from Robeson Channel to the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Ophelia 19:61–72
Gallegos CL, Platt T, Harrison WG, Irwin B (1983) Photosynthetic parameters of Arctic marine phytoplankton: Vertical variations and time scales of adaptation. Limnol Oceanogr 28:698–708
Garrison DL, Buck KR, Silver MW (1982) Ice algae communities in the Weddel Sea. Antarctic J US 17:155–157
Gosselin M, Legendre L, Demers S, Ingram RG (1985) Responses of sea ice microalgae to climatic and fortnightly tidal energy inputs (Manitounuk Sound: Hudson Bay). Can J Fish Aquat Sci 42:999–1006
Grossi SM, Kottmeir ST, Moe RL, Taylor GT, Sullivan CW (1987) Sea microbial communities. VI Growth and primary production in bottom ice under graded snow cover. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 35:153–164
Horner RA, Schrader GC (1982) Relative contributions of ice algae, phytoplankton and benthic microalgae to primary production in nearshore regions of the Beaufort Sea. Arctic 35:485–503
Hoshiai T (1977) Seasonal changes of ice communities in sea ice near Syowa Station, Antarctica. In: Dunbar MJ (ed) Polar oceans. Arctic Institute of North America, Montreal pp 307–317
Hsiao SIC (1988) Spatial and seasonal variations in primary production of sea ice microalgae and phytoplankton in Frobisher Bay, Arctic Canada. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 44:275–285
Irwin BD, Platt T, Harrison WG, Gallegos CL, Lindley P (1982) Phytoplankton productivity experiments and nutrient measurements in Ungava Bay, N.W.T. from August 1 to September 3, 1979. Can Data Rep Fish Aquat Sci 287:208 pp
Irwin BD, Caverhill C, Dickie P, Hodgson M, Platt T (1986) Primary production of ice algae on the Labrador Shelf from March 16 to March 27, 1984. Can Data Rep Fish Aquat Sci 559:143 pp
Markham WE (1981) Ice atlas: Canadian Arctic Waterways. Canadian Government Publishing Centre, Supply and Service Canada, Hull, Quebec, 198 pp
Matheke GEM, Horner R (1974) Primary productivity of benthic microalgae in the Chukchi Sea near Barrow, Alaska. J Fish Res Board Can 31:1779–1786
McConville MJ, Wetherbee R (1983) The bottom-ice microalgal community from annual ice in the inshore waters of east Antarctica. J Phycol 19:431–439
McRoy CP, Goering JJ (1974) The influence of ice on the Primary productivity of the Bering Sea. In: Hood D, Kelley E (eds) The Oceanography of the Bering Sea. Institute of Marine Science, University of Alaska, pp 403–421
McRoy CP, Goering JJ, Shiels WE (1972) Studies of primary production in the Eastern Bering Sea. In: Takenouti AY (ed) Biological Oceanography of the North Pacific Ocean, dedicated to S Motoda, pp 199–216
Meguro H, Ito K, Fukushima H (1966) Diatoms and the ecological conditions. of their growth in sea ice in the Arctic Ocean. Science 152:1089–1090
Michel C, Legendre L, Demers S, Therriault J-C (1988) Photoadaptation of sea-ice microalgae in springtime: photosynthesis and carboxylating enzymes. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 50:177–185
Palmisano AC, Sullivan CW (1982) Physiology of sea ice diatoms. 1. Response of three polar diatoms to a stimulated summer winter transition. J Phycol 18:489–498
Palmisano AC, Sullivan CW (1983) Sea ice microbial communities. 1. Distribution, abundance and primary production of ice microalgae in McMurdo Sound Antarctica in 1980. Polar Biol 2:171–177
Palmisano AC, Kottmeir ST, Moe RL, Sullivan CW (1985a) Sea ice microbial communities. IV. The effect of light perturbation on microalgae at the ice-seawater interface in McMurdo Sound Antarctica. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 21:37–45
Palmisano AC, Soohoo JB, Sullivan CW (1985b) Photosynthesis irradiance relationships in sea ice microalgae from McMurdo Sound Antarctica. J Phycol 21:341–346
Platt T, Gallegos CL, Harrison WG (1981) Photoinhibition of photosynthesis in natural assemblages of marine phytoplankton. J Mar Res 38:687–701
Platt T, Harrison WG, Irwin B, Horne EP, Gallegos CL (1982) Photosynthesis and photoadaption of marine phytoplankton in the Arctic. Deep-Sea Res 29:1159–1170
Rivkin RB, Putt M, Alexander SP, Meritt D, Gaudet L (1989) Biomass and production in polar planktonic and sea ice microbial communities: a comparative study. Mar Biol 101:273–283
Rochet M, Legendre L, Demers S (1986) Photosynthetic and pigment responses of sea ice microalgae to charges in light intensity and quality. J Exp Mar Biol Ecol 101:211–226
Strickland JDH, Parsons TR (eds) (1972) A practical handbook of sea-water analysis. Bull Fish Res Board Can 167:311 pp
Sullivan CW, Palmisano AC, Kottmeir S, Moe R (1982) Development of the sea ice microbial community in McMurdo Sound. Antarctic J US 17:155–157
Talling JF (1957) Photosynthetic characteristics of some freshwater plankton diatoms in relation to underwater radiation. New Phytol 56:29–50
Whittaker TM (1977) Sea ice habitats of Signy Island (South Orkneys) and their primary productivity. In: Lano GA (ed) Adaptations within Antarctic ecosystems. Smithsonian Institute, Washington, DC pp 75–82
Williams PJLeB, Jenkinsen NW (1982) A transportable microprocessor controlled Winkler titration suitable for field station and shipboard use. Limnol Oceanogr 27:576–584
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Irwin, B.D. Primary production of ice algae on a seasonally-ice-covered, continental shelf. Polar Biol 10, 247–254 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00238421
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00238421