Summary
The chroococcoid cyanobacterium Synechococcus was found at 5 m depth at a site 6 km off the Antarctic coast where the water depth was 30 m. These cells reached a peak concentration of 140 cells ml-1 in August at the time of maximum rate of development of seaice. They were accompanied in the water column by detritus consisting of diatom frustules and sediment particles. A smaller peak of abundance occurred at the time the sea-ice was breaking up. Cyanobacteria were seen only in very low numbers at one, and were absent at the other, of two deep water sampling sites. We propose that the two peaks of cyanobacterial abundance in the water column result from the suspension of a benthic population by ice crystals during the winter and their release from the sea-ice in summer.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
References
Berkman PA, Marks DS, Shreve GP (1986) Winter sediment resuspension in McMurdo Sound, Antarctica, and its ecological implications. Polar Biol 6:1–3
Booth BC, Lewin J, Norris RE (1982) Nanoplankton species predominant in the subarctic Pacific in May and June 1978. Deep-Sea Res 29:185–200
Caron DA, Pick FR, Lean DRS (1985) Chroococcoid cyanobacteria in Lake Ontario: vertical and seasonal distributions during 1982. J Phycol 21:171–175
Dieckmann G, Rohardt G, Hellmer H, Kipfstuhl J (1986) The occurrence of ice platelets at 250 m depth near the Filchner Ice Shelf and its significance for sea ice biology. Deep-Sea Res 33:141–148
Garrison DL, Ackley SF, Buck KR (1983) A physical mechanism for establishing algal populations in frazil ice. Nature 306:363–365
Glover HE (1985) The physiology and ecology of the cyanobacterial genus Synechococcus. In: Jannasch HW, Williams PJLeB (eds) Adv Aquat Microbiol, vol 3. Acedemic Press, London, pp 49–107
Guillard RRL, Murphy LS, Foss P, Liaaen-Jensen S (1985) Synechococcus ssp. a likely zeaxanthin-dominant ultraphytoplankton in the North Atlantic. Limnol Oceanogr 30:412–414
Horner R (1986) Sea-ice biota. CRC Press, Boca Raton, 215 pp
Johnson PW, Sieburth JMcN (1979) Chroococcoid cyanobacteria in the sea; a ubiquitous and diverse phototrophic biomass. Limnol Oceanogr 24:928–935
Krempin DW, Sullivan CW (1981) The seasonal abundance, vertical distribution, and relative biomass of chroococcoid cyaqnobacteria at a station in southern California coastal waters. Can J Microbiol 27:1341–1344
Li WKW, Subba Rao DV, Harrison WG, Smith JC, Cullen JJ, Irwin B, Platt T (1983) Autotrophic picoplankton in the tropical ocean. Science 219:292–295
Malone T (1980) Algal size. In: Morris I (ed) The physiological ecology of phytoplankton. Blackwell, Oxford, pp 433–463
Marchant HJ, Davidson AT, Wright SW (1987) The distribution and abundance of chroococcoid cyanobacteria in the Southern Ocean. Proc NIPR Symp Polar Biol 1:1–9
Marker AFH, Nusch EA, Rai H, Riemann B (1980) The measurement of photosynthetic pigments in freshwaters and standardisation of methods: conclusions and recommendations. Arch Hydrobiol Beih Ergebn Limnol 14:37–45
Millero FJ, Poisson A (1981) International one-atmosphere equation of state of seawater. Deep-Sea Res 28A:625–629
Murphy LS, Haugen EM (1985) The distribution and abundance of phototrophic ultraplankton in the North Atlantic. Limnol Oceanogr 30:47–458
Newbury TK (1983) Under landfast ice. Arctic 36:328–340
Perkin RG, Lewis EL (1980) The practical salinity scale 1978: fitting the data. J Oceanic Eng 5:9–16
Perrin R, Lu P, Marchant HJ (1987) Seasonal variation in marine phytoplankton and ice algae at a shallow Antarctic coastal site. Hydrobiologia 146:33–46
Platt T, Subba Rao DV, Irwin B (1983) Photosynthesis of picoplankton in the oligotrophic ocean. Nature 301:702–704
Prézelin BB, Glover HE, Campbell L (1987) Effects of light intensity and nutrient availability on diel patterns of cell metabolism and growth in populations of Synechococcus spp. Mar Biol 95:469–480
Putt M, Prézelin BB (1985) Observations of diel patterns of photosynthesis in cyanobacteria and nanoplankton in the Santa Barbara Channel during ‘el Niño’. J Plankton Res 7:779–790
Riemann B, Ernst D (1982) Extraction of chlorophylls a and b from phytoplankton using standard extraction techniques. Freshwater Biol 12:217–223
Takahashi M, Kikuchi K, Hara Y (1985) Importance of picocyanobacteria biomass (unicellular, blue-green algae) in the phytoplankton population of the coastal waters off Japan. Mar Biol 89:63–69
Waterbury JB, Watson SW, Guillard RRL, Brand LE (1979) Widespread occurrence of a unicellular, marine, planktonic cyanobacterium. Nature 277:293–294
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Walker, T.D., Marchant, H.J. The seasonal occurrence of chroococcoid cyanobacteria at an Antarctic coastal site. Polar Biol 9, 193–196 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00297175
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00297175