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Factors Controlling Phytoplankton Blooms in a Temperate Estuary: Nutrient Limitation and Physical Forcing

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Abstract

A combination of enclosure nutrient enrichment experiments and historical data analysis was used to identify the factors controlling seasonal dynamics and competition of the phytoplankton community in the Curonian lagoon (Southeast Baltic Sea). Experiments using different nutrient (N, P and Si) manipulations were performed in 10-l enclosures for 48 h. Changes in chlorophyll a concentrations, inorganic nutrient concentrations, and plankton cell density were monitored. Results revealed that phytoplankton development in the lagoon is strongly affected by ambient physical factors (wind, temperature). Nutrient limitation, however, also plays an important role in seasonal succession mechanisms showing quite distinct seasonal development patterns. Based on the data, available phytoplankton seasonal succession in the Curonian lagoon could be described as composed by three phases corresponding to different domination and regulatory mechanisms.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Coastal Research and Planning Institute, Klaipėda University, H. Manto 84, LT-92294, Klaipėda, Lithuania

    Renata Pilkaitytė & Artūras Razinkovas

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  1. Renata Pilkaitytė
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  2. Artūras Razinkovas
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Correspondence to Artūras Razinkovas.

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Pilkaitytė, R., Razinkovas, A. Factors Controlling Phytoplankton Blooms in a Temperate Estuary: Nutrient Limitation and Physical Forcing . Hydrobiologia 555, 41–48 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-005-1104-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-005-1104-6

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