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Summer macroalgal biomass in Potter Cove, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica: its production and flux to the ecosystem

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Abstract

Summer macroalgal biomass and production were analyzed at Potter Cove, King George Island, Antarctica and the potential carbon transfer of macroalgal production to the coastal ecosystem of the cove was estimated. A total of 38 algal species were found, with Desmarestia anceps, D. menziesii and Himantothallus grandifolius accounting for almost 80% of the biomass. Biomass data and published growth rates were combined to calculate the production of the five most abundant species. The standing stock for each summer month was estimated as the product of the average biomass and the area of the macroalgal stands. The monthly biomass production was calculated for each species by difference between the expected biomass and the observed biomass at the previous month. The macroalgal production showed a decreasing trend during the summer months. The average standing stock in the whole cove was 792.84 MT and the production was 1,401.33 MT during the summer 1994–1995. The flux of biomass to the ecosystem during the summer period was 1,370.61 MT, which is almost as much as the total summer production. The study demonstrates that macroalgae are one of the main energy sources in Potter Cove, and probably support a large fraction of the secondary production of the benthos.

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Acknowledgments

We wish to thank the scientific and the logistic companions at Jubany Station for support and especially the German and Argentinean SCUBA divers for collection of the samples. We are grateful to Dr. G. Ferreyra for his critical comments on the manuscript. Thanks also to Dr. H. Klöser and Dr. Wiencke for the help in species identification. Finally we thank the anonymous reviewers for helpful comments and suggestions on the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Instituto Antártico Argentino, Cerrito 1248, C1010AAZ, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    M. L. Quartino

  2. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales Bernardino, Rivadavia Av. Ángel Gallardo 470, C1405DJR, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    M. L. Quartino

  3. CONICET, UNPSJB, Facultad de Humanidades y Ciencias Sociales, Ciudad Universitaria, 9000, Comodoro Rivadavia, Chubut, Argentina

    A. L. Boraso de Zaixso

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  1. M. L. Quartino
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Correspondence to M. L. Quartino.

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Quartino, M.L., Boraso de Zaixso, A.L. Summer macroalgal biomass in Potter Cove, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica: its production and flux to the ecosystem. Polar Biol 31, 281–294 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-007-0356-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-007-0356-1

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