Preliminary observations on nutrient cycling and a stoichiometric model for elefsis bay, Greece

The changes in the concentrations of silicate, phosphate and inorganic nitrogen in Elefsis Bay, an intermittently anoxic basin, are described and related to the changes in the physical properties of the water for two seasonal cycles. Winter convection resulted in a very small vertical gradient of temperature, salinity, oxygen and nutrients. Stratification started to develop in May and persisted for about 6 months. In Elefsis Bay, high values of silicate, phosphate and ammonia occurred during the anoxic conditions prevailing in summer. The consumption of oxygen in the lower water column was directly related to density differences in it. The regeneration of nutrients was related to the consumption of oxygen, with seasonal differences in the regeneration of nitrate and silicate. A stoichiometric model indicates that plankton organisms in Elefsis Bay have approximate ratios for C:N:P of 105:14:1, whereas the ratio for nitrogen and phosphorus in the water is only 2:1. The water/plankton relationship in Elefsis Bay appears to be very similar to that in the Baltic Sea.     

Adsorption—desorption control of phosphate in anoxic sediment of a coastal sea,Funka Bay,Japan

Sediment core samples were taken once a month from July 1980 to September 1981 at a station in Funka Bay (92-m depth) for the determination of phosphate, silicate and alkalinity in interstitial water. A remarkable seasonal variation was found for interstitial phosphate, that is, distinct maxima appeared in spring (March—April), just after a phytoplankton bloom which brought a large amount of settling particles to the bottom, and in summer (July—August) when the water was stratified and the dissolved oxygen content of the bottom water decreased due to the decomposition of organic matter. The high interstitial phosphate concentration was always accompanied by a sharp increase in alkalinity, indicating sulfate reduction. This large seasonal variation in interstitial phosphate cannot be explained by in situ decomposition of organic matter and/or the diffusive loss of interstitial phosphate. A more likely explanation is adsorption and desorption of interstitial phosphate coincident with the depth of the active sulfate reduction layer.     

The anoxic water mass in Hiuchi-Nada

Distribution of the anoxic water mass in the eastern part of Hiuchi-Nada was investigated from 1981 to 1983. A cold water mass was found on the bottom of the area concerned in summer, and a second (i.e. lower) thermocline appeared just above the cold water mass. The anoxic water was observed below a second thermocline. The horizontal distribution of the cold water mass coincided with that of the anoxic water mass, and also with a region of high concentration of organic matter in the sediment. These results suggest two important effects of the second thermocline on the generation of the anoxic water mass. Firstly, it prevents supply of dissolved oxygen from the upper to bottom layer of the water column. Secondly, it accelerates settling of particulate material resulting in a large accumulation of organic matter in the bottom water and the sediment which leads to an increase in the rate of oxygen consumption. The net oxygen consumption rate in the bottom layer in this sea was much smaller than that in Mikawa Bay where anoxia occurs at almost the same level as in Hiuchi-Nada. This finding also suggests the important role of the second thermocline.     

Particle dynamics in the deep water column of Sagami Bay, Japan. II: seasonal change in profiles of suspended phytodetritus

Vertical distributions of turbidity & phytodetritus (Chl.a and pheopigment), and their seasonal variations were measured in the deep water column of Sagami Bay, Japan, in June 1999, February 2000 and May 2000. Observations were carried out at eight stations along an east-west section of Sagami Bay using a CTD/water sampling system equipped with a memory-type infrared back-scattering meter which had been calibrated for the suspended particles collected in Sagami Bay. Turbidity increased close to the bottom in both summer and winter, indicating the existence of a benthic nepheloid layer throughout the year. But the vertical gradient of turbidity was much larger in summer than in winter. The concentration of Chl.a and pheopigment also increased in the benthic layer in summer, sometimes reaching values of more than 0.01 and 0.2 μg/l, respectively, much higher than those reported in hemipelagic regions of the ocean. In winter, on the other hand, Chl.a kept a constant low value throughout the deep water column. This indicates that the turbid water mass formed in the benthic layer in summer derives from the deposition of large amounts of phytodetritus in spring and the resuspension of these aggregates, which are subsequently decomposed in the benthic layer during the following autumn. Unlike the benthic boundary layer, the turbidity of intermediate water was lower in summer rather than in winter. Because the phytoplankton aggregates exported from the surface water during the spring bloom not only supply phytodetritus to the benthic layer but also scavenge the suspended particles in the water column, the steep vertical gradient of turbidity observed in summer may reflect the dynamic interaction between suspended and sinking particles in the deep water column.     

Pore-water distribution and quantification of diffusive benthic fluxes of nutrients in the Huanghai and East China Seas sediments

1 Indroduction The coastal zone and continental shelf area is an important region in the global biogeochemical cycle of nutrients in the ocean. This portion of the global ocean interacts closely with the continents, atmosphere and the open ocean in a comp…     

东海PN断面夏季温盐及化学要素的分布特征

由东海PN断面夏季温鼻度及化学要素CTD资料分析表明，东海夏季的温跃层和盐跃层在次表层生成，其强度随着跃层自陆架坡折区至近岸和外海的上移逐渐减弱。陆架区近表层的温度和盐度呈垂直均匀分布，冲绳海槽次表层呈高温、高盐，近表层呈高温，近表层呈高温、低盐，底层呈低温、次高盐特征。溶解氧浓度自近岸到外海由低变高，表层至底层溶解氧浓度在陆架区由高变低，冲绳海槽区则先由低变高然后又由变低。总二氧化碳浓度自表层至底层和自陆架坡折区到近岸和外海由低变高。磷酸盐和硅酸盐浓度自近岸至外海由高变低，而自表层至底层由低变高。陆架区的近表层和陆架坡折区分别有一个高碱度区。温盐及化学要素的分布特征与夏季海区垂直环流的反气旋运动、长江冲淡水及黑潮水入侵和海面强热辐射有关。此外，化学要素分布还与夏季海区的温盐结构、表混合层与大气间二氧化碳气体交换及表混合层中碳和营养盐光合作用的利用有关。     

Regeneration of chemical elements from settling particles collected by sediment trap in Funka Bay,Japan

Sediment trap experiments were carried out 39 times during the years from 1977 to 1981 in Funka Bay, Hokkaido, Japan. The observed total particulate flux varies seasonally, that is, the particulate fluxes in winter and spring are larger than those in summer. The fluxes in all seasons increased with depth. Major components of settling particles are aluminosilicate in winter, biogenic silicate in spring and organic matter and terrestrial material in summer, respectively. The fluxes of each chemical component observed with sediment traps are normalized to that of Al by assuming that the actual flux of Al is equal to the accumulation rate onto the sediment surface. Vertical changes of the normalized flux of each chemical component indicate the following: Fe was not regenerated from the settling particles in the water column. Mn was regenerated from the settling particles in the lower layer exclusively between 80 m depth and the sediment surface. Cd was actively regenerated in the upper layer above 80 m depth. Phosphate was regenerated in the upper layer, while biogenic silicate was in the lower layer. The silicate regeneration, therefore, occurs after phosphate regeneration. The material decomposing in the water column below 40 m has an atomic ratio of P ∶ Si ∶ C = 1 ∶ 52 ∶ 128.     

Multidisciplinary studies in Onega Bay of the White Sea and the estuary of the Onega River during the summer period

The distribution of the temperature and salinity, current velocities, suspended particulate matter, bottom sediments, bottom morphology, and planktonic and benthic organisms during the summer period are studied in the estuary of the large Onega River and the coastal areas of Onega Bay (White Sea) influenced by interacting marine and riverine factors.     

Features of physical oceanography in the oceans near the Prydz Bay during the 1998/1999 austral summer

1Introduction The Prydz Bay has its open water in the northadjacent to the Indian Ocean sector of the SouthernOcean.It borders on the ice shelf to its south,andthe Antarctic Continent to its east and west.It is thelargest water stretching southward into t…     

Live benthic foraminiferal faunas off Cape Blanc, NW-Africa: Community structure and microhabitats

Live (Rose-Vengal stained) benthic foraminifera were studied along a transect across the main area of organic matter deposition in the Cape Blanc upwelling region. The faunal analyses suggest that at the shallowest station (1200 m) the benthic ecosystem is permanently influenced by the upwelling, whereas at the deepest stations (3010 and 2530 m depth) the ocean bottom is subject to significant organic influxes only in summer. The vertical zonation of foraminiferal species in the sediment shows a close correspondence with the depth distribution of oxic respiration, nitrate and sulphate reduction. It is suggested that this linkage is caused by the presence of various stocks of anaerobic and sulphate- and nitrate-reducing bacteria. Deep infaunal foraminiferal species are thought to feed selectively, either on the bacterial stocks or on nutritious particles produced by bacterial degradation of more refractory organic matter. As such, foraminiferal microhabitats are only indirectly controlled by pore water oxygen concentrations.     

Vertical distributions of nitrogen,phosphorus and iron in Beppu Bay

Beppu Bay is a shallow basin located at the western end of the Seto Inland Sea with a sill depth ofca. 40 m. The bottom water (belowca. 65 m in summer andca. 70 m in winter) was anoxic and contained high concentrations of hydrogen sulfide, phosphate and ammonium. Maximum concentrations of nitrate and nitrite appeared near the top of the thermocline, suggesting the occurrence of bacterial nitrification in this layer and of bacterial denitrification in the anoxic bottom water. Concentrations of particulate phosphorus and particulate iron were highest near the bottom of the thermocline. The distribution of phosphorus in this bay is probably controlled by a dissolution-diffusion-precipitation cycle of iron or its hydrous oxides.     

Seasonal variations of dissolved organic matter and nutrients in sediment pore water in the inner part of Tokyo Bay

At four stations in Tokyo Bay, pore water profiles of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), nitrogen (DON), phosphorus (DOP), and inorganic nutrients were determined at 3-month intervals over 6 years. Concentrations of dissolved organic matter (DOM) and nutrients were significantly higher in pore waters than in the overlying waters. Pore water DOC, DON, and DOP concentrations in the upper most sediment layer (0–1 cm) ranged from 246 to 888 μM, from 14.6 to 75.9 μM, and from 0.02 to 9.83 μM, respectively. Concentrations of DOM and nutrients in pore waters occasionally showed clear seasonal trends and were highest in the summer and lowest in the winter. The seasonal trends in the pore water DOM concentrations were coupled with trends in the overlying water temperature and dissolved oxygen concentration. Benthic effluxes of DON and DOP were low compared with those of inorganic nutrients, accounting for only 1.0 and 1.5 % of the total benthic effluxes of nitrogen and phosphorus, respectively; thus benthic DOM fluxes were quantitatively insignificant to the inorganic nutrient fluxes in Tokyo Bay. The DOM fluxes represented about 7, 3, and 10 % of the riverine discharge of DOC, DON, and DOP to Tokyo Bay, respectively.     

Some peculiarities of the trace-metal distribution in Baltic waters and sediments

Between 1980 and 1984 extensive studies were carried out in the Baltic Sea on trace metals (Cd, Co, Cu, Fe, Hg, Mn, Ni, Pb and Zn) in water, suspended matter and sediments. The results enabled the influence of different factors on metal distribution patterns to be considered. The vertical profiles of dissolved and particulate metals in waters of the central deep basins reflect influences caused by oxygen deficiency and anoxic conditions in near-bottom water layers. Peculiarities at Station BY15 in the Gotland Deep included high dissolved Fe, Mn and Co concentrations and remarkable enrichment of Zn (0.64%), Cd (51 μg g⁻¹) and Cu (0.15%) in particulate matter from the anoxic zone. Manganese-rich particles were accumulated above this layer.In fine-grained soft sediments below anoxic deep waters, maximum contents of Cd, Cu and Zn were observed, relative to other coring sites, between Bothnian Bay and Lübeck Bight. The Hg content in sediments probably reflects the joint flocculation with organic matter. Land-based sources seem to play the leading part for maximum lead contents.     

长江口邻近海域溶解氧的时空分布及影响因素研究

基于2018年早春和夏季长江口邻近海域的调查数据,分析溶解氧(DO)的时空分布,并讨论其影响因素.结果表明,夏季DO浓度变化范围为1.58～9.37 mg/L,浮游生物光合作用产生的DO是夏季表层水体过饱和的主要因素;夏季调查海域受台湾暖流北上引起海水层化加强,同时水体富营养化导致表层生物大量繁殖所引起有机碎屑的沉降和耗氧分解作用是底层低氧区存在的主要因素.夏季在台湾暖流影响下底层水体表观耗氧量(AOU)与营养盐成正相关关系,底层有机物耗氧降解过程与营养盐的再生密切相关.早春DO浓度变化范围为7.90～10.1 mg/L,长江口外北部海域和浙江近岸海域海水混合均匀,DO浓度主要受温度控制,而台湾暖流影响区海水出现层化现象,其低DO含量也为低氧区的形成奠定了基础.     

Sedimentary and water column processes in the Oyster Grounds: a potentially hypoxic region of the North Sea

The purpose of this research was to investigate the potential causes of low oxygen levels in the bottom water of the Oyster Grounds region of the shallow southern North Sea, an area which provides suitable conditions for low oxygen levels to develop. At the end of the summer stratified period, relevant biogeochemical processes were investigated using a combination of sedimentary and water column rate measurements. Phytoplankton nitrate and ammonium uptake was measured throughout the water column using (15)N labelled isotopes and showed ammonium uptake dominated in the upper and bottom mixed layer with a maximum 294.4 micromol N m(-3)h(-1). In the deep chlorophyll maximum at the thermocline, primary production was dominated by nitrate uptake, with an average of 35.0 micromol N m(-3)h(-1), relative to ammonium uptake, with an average of 24.6 micromol N m(-3)h(-1). This high relative nitrate uptake will in part result in exportable new production to the isolated bottom mixed layer and sediments, as opposed to regenerated ammonium driven uptake. This biomass export was indicated by significant benthic oxygen consumption rates in the stratified region (782-1275 micromol O(2)m(-2)h(-1)micromol N m(-3)h(-1)) long after the end of the spring bloom. The sediments were also an active net source of nitrate, ammonium, phosphate and silicate into the bottom mixed layer of 4.4, 8.4, 2.3 and 68.8 micromol m(-2)h(-1), respectively. The export of new production within the thermocline to the bottom mixed layer and the consequent sediment oxygen consumption in the isolated bottom mixed layer in the Oyster Grounds are expected to have contributed to the low bottom water oxygen concentrations of 2.07 mg l(-1) (64.7 micromol l(-1)) measured. The long stratified period associated with this low oxygen is predicted to occur more regularly in the future and continued monitoring of this ecologically important region is therefore essential if the causes of these potentially damaging low oxygen levels are to be fully understood.     

Effects of short-term environmental disturbances on living benthic foraminifera during the Pacific oyster summer mortality in the Marennes-Oléron Bay (France)

Sediment cores were collected from April to August 2004 on tidal mudflats of the macrotidal Marennes-Oléron Bay (SW France), famous for the cultivation of Pacific oysters (Crassostrea gigas). The response of living (stained) benthic foraminifera to short-term biogeochemical disturbances in the sediment and overlying water, which may be involved in oyster summer mortality, was monitored. Short-term hypoxia occurred in early June, in conjunction with a sudden rise in temperature. In mid-June, the ammonia content of sediment porewater increased, leading to potentially maximal flux towards overlying waters. Foraminiferal assemblages, particularly in the topmost layer, were altered. Ammonia tepida was the most tolerant to temperature increase and hypoxic conditions whereas Brizalina variabilis and Haynesina germanica were sensitive to organic degradation and hypoxia. Cribroelphidium gunteri was the most opportunistic during recolonisation. Benthic foraminifera showed that short-term biochemical changes in the sediment are toxic and may be involved in the summer mortality of Pacific oysters.     

The mechanism of bottom water DO variation in summer at the northern mouth of Isahaya Bay,Japan

Recently, bivalves have been massively killed by anoxia or hypoxia in summer at the northern part of Isahaya Bay, Japan, which constituted a major problem for fisheries. However, the mechanism behind the occurrence of hypoxic water masses is unclear. It is known that the bottom water dissolved oxygen (DO) in this area is affected by the inflow of seawater into the northern mouth of Isahaya Bay. To understand the mechanism of hypoxia, it is necessary to determine the physical processes that cause changes in the bottom DO concentrations in this area. This study shows that there is a neap-spring tidal variation in bottom DO due to a change in vertical tidal mixing, and it also suggests that the decrease in bottom DO was generated by a baroclinic flow, which is due to the internal tide, and a shear flow, which is induced by the external tide in the bottom boundary layer. In addition, our study suggests that the source of cold and hypoxic water that appears in the bottom layer at low tide is the inner area of the Ariake Sea.     

Sediment organic matter composition and dynamics in San Francisco Bay, California, USA: Seasonal variation and interactions between water column chlorophyll and the benthos

Sediment and water column data from four sites in North, Central and South San Francisco Bays were collected monthly from November 1999 through November 2001 to investigate the seasonal variation of benthic organic matter and chlorophyll in channel sediments, the composition and quality of sediment organic matter (SOM), and the relationship between seasonal patterns in benthic organic matter and patterns in water column chlorophyll. Water column chlorophyll peaked in the spring of 2000 and 2001, characteristic of other studies of San Francisco Bay phytoplankton dynamics, however an unusual chlorophyll peak occurred in fall 2000. Cross-correlation analysis revealed that water column chlorophyll at these four channel sites lead sediment parameters by an average of 2 to 3 months. Sediment organic matter levels in the San Francisco Bay channel showed seasonal cycles that followed patterns of water column production: peaks in water column chlorophyll were followed by later peaks in sediment chlorophyll and organic matter. Cyclical, seasonal variations also occurred in sediment organic matter parameters with sediment total organic carbon (TOC) and total nitrogen (TN) being highest in spring and lowest in winter, and sediment amino acids being highest in spring and summer and lowest in winter. Sediment chlorophyll, total organic carbon, and nitrogen were generally positively correlated with each other. Sediment organic matter levels were lowest in North Bay, intermediate in Central Bay, and highest in South Bay. C:N ratio and the ratio of enzyme hydrolyzable amino acids to TOC (EHAA:TOC) data suggest that SOM quality is more labile in Central and northern South Bay, and more refractory in North Bay and southern South Bay.     

Turbid bottom water layer and bottom sediment in the Seto Inland Sea

Measurement of the vertical distribution of total suspended matter (TSM) was carried out during summer throughout the Seto Inland Sea. TSM concentration near the bottom is influenced significantly by water movement and turbid bottom water is observed in all areas where median grain size (Md) of the bottom sediment is more than 47gf. The high concentration of TSM near the bottom may be due to resuspension of the surface layer of bottom sediments. Comparison of the organic content of the resuspended matter with that of the bottom sediment shows that the resuspended matter contains more organic matter with a lower C : N ratio than the bottom sediment. The C : N ratio of the resuspended matter is similar to that of TSM in the surface layer of the water column. It is thought that TSM in surface waters sinks and settles on the surface of the bottom sediment. This deposited material is then easily resuspended in the water column by tidal currents before becoming permanently incorporated into the bottom sediment.     

Features of winter sedimentation processes in Curonian Bay of the Baltic Sea

The concentration distribution was studied for dissolved oxygen, phosphorus forms, and particulate matter in Curonian Bay of the Baltic Sea in poorly known consolidated ice cover conditions during the winter seasons of 2010, 2011, and 2013. The surface and near-bottom waters were sampled at 51 stations. The ice cover exerts no significant effect on the typical seasonal variation of all considered parameters in the basin. The concentrations of mineral and organic phosphorus in the bay appeared to be lower by factors of 2–4 compared to summer values. A two- to threefold decrease in the concentrations of organic phosphorus since 2010 to 2011 and then to 2013 was recorded in the bay, which resulted from a decrease in phosphorus production by phytoplankton. Despite water being isolated from air by ice, the absence of wave mixing, and the decrease in oxygen production owing to the seasonal winter decrease in the intensity photosynthetic processes, no oxygen deficiency was found in the basin. This is because oxygen supplied to the bay by river runoff and production by photosynthesis in the bay exceed the utilization for oxidation of organic matter resulting from low bioproductivity of the waters during winter. The winter decrease in the fraction of biogenic particulate matter is seen as a four- to sevenfold drop in its total concentration in the waters compared to summer seasons. The absence of wave roiling of bottom sediments also caused a decrease in the secondary supply of biogenic particulate matter from sediments into near-bottom waters. No negative trends of geoecological conditions in the bay were revealed by the studied parameters under consolidated ice cover conditions.