Interannual variability of zooplankton in the Dumont d'Urville sea (139 degrees E-146 degrees E), east Antarctica, 2004-2008

Spatial and temporal variability of zooplankton was studied during five summers (2004-2008) in the Dumont d'Urville Sea, east Antarctica. The species recorded, based on the catch of a 500 mm-mesh Bongo net, were typical of southern continental shelf communities in Antarctica, including Euphausi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Polar Science
Main Authors: Swadling, Kerrie M., Penot, Florian, Vallet, Carole, Rouyer, Armelle, Gasparini, Stephane, Mousseau, Laure, Smith, Martina, Goffart, Anne, Koubbi, Philippe
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Elsevier Science Bv 2011
Subjects:
Salinity
Temperature
Sea ice
Zooplankton-environment relationships
Mertz glacier
D'Urville Sea
Dumont d'Urville
Dumont-d'Urville
East Antarctica
Mertz Glacier
Antarc*
Antarctica
Dumont D'Urville Sea
Polar Science
Copepods
Online Access:https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00230/34123/32600.pdf
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.polar.2011.03.001
https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00230/34123/
Description
Summary:Spatial and temporal variability of zooplankton was studied during five summers (2004-2008) in the Dumont d'Urville Sea, east Antarctica. The species recorded, based on the catch of a 500 mm-mesh Bongo net, were typical of southern continental shelf communities in Antarctica, including Euphausia crystallorophias, polychaetes, pteropods and biomass-dominant copepods. There was a strong degree of temporal variation in abundance, possibly related to the thickness and extent of the sea ice cover during each spring prior to the surveys. Total mean abundance was highly variable between years, with a minimum of 961 ind. 1000m(-3) in 2004 (range 65-3407 ind. 1000 m(-3)) and a maximum of 15,627 ind. 1000 m(-3) in 2005 (range 5109-33,869 ind. 1000 m(-3)). Spatially, within each year, abundances were also variable, and there were no uniform patterns in abundance from year to year. Water column physical characteristics (temperature and salinity) were relatively constant and did not contribute substantially to variation between the years. It is likely that variation in zooplankton distribution was largely related to a combination of localised features, such as the thickness and extent of sea ice cover, the position and extent of the Mertz Polynya, local wind conditions and bathymetric features.

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