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Spatial and vertical variability of primary production in the Kara Sea in July and August 2016: the influence of the river plume and subsurface chlorophyll maxima

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Abstract

Seasonal variations in primary production (PP) in the Kara Sea are underresearched. Previous studies only collected data during autumn or in late summer. However, the middle of summer is close to the beginning of the growing season, when PP can contribute significantly to annual water column integrated primary production (IPP). In addition, differences can be expected in the spatial and vertical distribution of phytoplankton communities in this period. This gap in midsummer data was addressed within the framework of a multidisciplinary research cruise by the R/V “Akademik Mstislav Keldysh” (from 15 July to 18 August 2016). High values of IPP (> 200 mgC m−2 day−1) and surface chlorophyll a (Chl a) concentration (Chl0 > 1 mg m−3) were associated with the Ob–Yenisey river plume, located in the central part of the Kara Sea. Beyond the influence of the plume, in the western and southwestern regions of the Kara Sea, well-pronounced subsurface chlorophyll maxima (SCM) were observed. In some cases, the Chl a concentration in SCM exceeded Chl0 by two orders of magnitude. SCM were often accompanied by subsurface PP maxima (SPM). At stations where SCM was pronounced, IPP values reached 500–800 mgC m−2 day−1, and > 30 % of IPP was accounted for by SPM-integrated PP. Thus, in the middle of summer in the Kara Sea, IPP was linked with the chlorophyll-specific phytoplankton biomass and depended on the strength of the SCM.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Paul Seward, PhD, from Edanz Group (www.edanzediting.com/ac) for editing a draft of this manuscript. We thank the crew of the R/V “Akademik Mstislav Keldysh” for their cooperation during the 66th cruise. We are grateful to the GSFC (Goddard Space Flight Center, Distributed Active Archive Center) at NASA for the MODIS-Aqua data and The Arctic Great Rivers Observatory (Arctic-GRO) project for Ob and Yenisey discharge data. Thanks are given to A. A. Kubryakov and S. S. Stanichny for calculations of river plume dynamics. This work was supported by the Russian Foundation for Fundamental Research (project no. 16-05-00050). Expeditionary observations and sample treatments were supported by the Russian Science Foundation (project no. 14-50-00095, scientific direction “Ecosystems of strategically important marine regions of Russian Federation”). The application of optic data were supported by the Russian Science Foundation (project no. 14-50-00095, scientific direction “Interaction of physical, biological and geological processes at coastal zone, shore waters and inland seas”).

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  1. Shirshov Institute of Oceanology, Russian Academy of Science, 36 Nakhimovsky av, Moscow, Russia, 117997

    A. B. Demidov, V. I. Gagarin, P. N. Makkaveev, V. A. Artemiev, A. N. Khrapko, A. V. Grigoriev & S. V. Sheberstov

  2. Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia

    O. V. Vorobieva

  3. Russian Federal Research Institute of Fisheries and Oceanography, Moscow, Russia

    O. V. Vorobieva

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  1. A. B. Demidov
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  2. V. I. Gagarin
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  3. O. V. Vorobieva
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Demidov, A.B., Gagarin, V.I., Vorobieva, O.V. et al. Spatial and vertical variability of primary production in the Kara Sea in July and August 2016: the influence of the river plume and subsurface chlorophyll maxima. Polar Biol 41, 563–578 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-017-2217-x

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