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Production and fate of copepod fecal pellets across the Southern Indian Ocean

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Abstract

The vertical distribution of copepods, fecal pellets and the fecal pellet production of copepods were measured at seven stations across the Southern Indian Ocean from productive areas off South Africa to oligotrophic waters off Northern Australia during October/November 2006. We quantified export of copepod fecal pellet from surface waters and how much was retained. Furthermore, the potential impact of Oncaea spp. and harpacticoid copepods on fecal pellets degradation was evaluated and found to be regional substantial. The highest copepod abundance and fecal pellet production was found in the western nutrient-rich stations close to South Africa and the lowest at the central oligotrophic stations. The in situ copepod fecal pellet production varied between 1 and 1,000 μg C m−3 day−1. At all stations, the retention of fecal pellets in the upper 400 m of the water column was more than 99% and the vertical export of fecal pellets was low (<0.02 mg m−2 day−1).

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Acknowledgments

The sampling was conducted during the 3. Danish Galathea expedition. We thank the Captain of HMDS ‘Vædderen’, Carsten Schmidt, and his crew for excellent assistance in connection with our sampling. Birgit Søborg and Jens N. Larsen are thanked for excellent technical assistance during the cruise. The project was supported by grants from Knud Højgaards Fond and the Danish Natural Sciences Research Council. The present work was carried out as part of the Galathea3 expedition under the auspices of the Danish Expedition Foundation. This is Galathea3 contribution no. P68.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Environmental Research Institute, Department of Marine Ecology, University of Aarhus, Frederiksborgvej 399, PO Box 358, 4000, Roskilde, Denmark

    Eva Friis Møller

  2. Department of Systems Ecology, Stockholm University, 106 91, Stockholm, Sweden

    Christian Marc Andersen Borg

  3. National Institute of Aquatic Resources, DTU Aqua, Section for Ocean Ecology and Climate, Technical University of Denmark (DTU), Kavalergården 6, 2920, Charlottenlund, Denmark

    Sigrún H. Jónasdóttir, Cornelia Jaspers & Torkel Gissel Nielsen

  4. Phuket Marine Biological Center, P.O. Box 60, Phuket, 83000, Thailand

    Suree Satapoomin

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  1. Eva Friis Møller
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  2. Christian Marc Andersen Borg
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  3. Sigrún H. Jónasdóttir
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  4. Suree Satapoomin
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  5. Cornelia Jaspers
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  6. Torkel Gissel Nielsen
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Correspondence to Eva Friis Møller.

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Communicated by A. Atkinson.

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Møller, E.F., Borg, C.M.A., Jónasdóttir, S.H. et al. Production and fate of copepod fecal pellets across the Southern Indian Ocean. Mar Biol 158, 677–688 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-010-1591-5

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