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Development of a long-term phytoplankton time series in the U.S. Northeast Continental Shelf Large Marine Ecosystem
Kimberly
J.
Hyde, NOAA, kimberly.hyde@noaa.gov
(Presenter)
The Northeast U.S. continental shelf Large Marine Ecosystem (LME) is a highly productive ecosystem that has experienced changes in climate and physical forcings which have contributed to large-scale alterations in ecosystem structure and function. To understand long-term changes in the phytoplankton community, we assembled phytoplankton data from the Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR), satellite imagery and in situ measurements. Preliminary comparisons of in situ annual surface chlorophyll concentrations from the MARMAP study (1977-1988) and ocean color remote sensing data (1978-1986 and 1997-2008) indicate that surface phytoplankton biomass in the present decade is 33% higher than during the MARMAP period. These results contrast with the CPR plankton color index (PCI) time series, which has shown a recent decrease in color. The differences between the PCI and surface phytoplankton biomass trends over the past 3 decades suggest that the observed increase in biomass was accompanied by a change in phytoplankton community structure. Changes in the phytoplankton community can alter the amount of primary production directly available to higher trophic levels and the overall fishery production potential for the ecosystem. The goal of this current study is to evaluate the changes in phytoplankton species composition using data from the CPR, in situ phytoplankton cell counts and satellite remote sensing models of species composition/size fraction in order to improve estimates of primary production available for fisheries production. Presentation Type: Poster Session: Global Change Impact & Vulnerability (Tue 11:30 AM) Associated Project(s):
Poster Location ID: 216
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