C : N : P stoichiometry at the Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study station in the North Atlantic Ocean
Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) availability, in addition to other macro- and micronutrients, determine the strength of the ocean's carbon (C) uptake, and variation in the N : P ratio of inorganic nutrient pools is key to phytoplankton growth. A similarity between C : N : P ratios in the plankt...
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ftcdlib:oai:escholarship.org/ark:/13030/qt8v30h230 2023-05-15T15:19:27+02:00 C : N : P stoichiometry at the Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study station in the North Atlantic Ocean Singh, A Baer, SE Riebesell, U Martiny, AC Lomas, MW 6389 - 6403 2015-11-09 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8v30h230 unknown eScholarship, University of California qt8v30h230 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8v30h230 public Biogeosciences, vol 12, iss 21 Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences Earth Sciences Environmental Sciences Biological Sciences article 2015 ftcdlib 2021-03-28T08:19:16Z Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) availability, in addition to other macro- and micronutrients, determine the strength of the ocean's carbon (C) uptake, and variation in the N : P ratio of inorganic nutrient pools is key to phytoplankton growth. A similarity between C : N : P ratios in the plankton biomass and deep-water nutrients was observed by Alfred C. Redfield around 80 years ago and suggested that biological processes in the surface ocean controlled deep-ocean chemistry. Recent studies have emphasized the role of inorganic N : P ratios in governing biogeochemical processes, particularly the C : N : P ratio in suspended particulate organic matter (POM), with somewhat less attention given to exported POM and dissolved organic matter (DOM). Herein, we extend the discussion on ecosystem C : N : P stoichiometry but also examine temporal variation in stoichiometric relationships. We have analyzed elemental stoichiometry in the suspended POM and total (POM + DOM) organic-matter (TOM) pools in the upper 100 m and in the exported POM and subeuphotic zone (100-500 m) inorganic nutrient pools from the monthly data collected at the Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study (BATS) site located in the western part of the North Atlantic Ocean. C : N and N : P ratios in TOM were at least twice those in the POM, while C : P ratios were up to 5 times higher in TOM compared to those in the POM. Observed C : N ratios in suspended POM were approximately equal to the canonical Redfield ratio (C : N : P = 106 : 16 : 1), while N : P and C : P ratios in the same pool were more than twice the Redfield ratio. Average N : P ratios in the subsurface inorganic nutrient pool were ∼ 26 : 1, squarely between the suspended POM ratio and the Redfield ratio. We have further linked variation in elemental stoichiometry to that of phytoplankton cell abundance observed at the BATS site. Findings from this study suggest that elemental ratios vary with depth in the euphotic zone, mainly due to different growth rates of cyanobacterial cells. We have also examined the role of the Arctic Oscillation on temporal patterns in C : N : P stoichiometry. This study strengthens our understanding of the variability in elemental stoichiometry in different organic-matter pools and should improve biogeochemical models by constraining the range of non-Redfield stoichiometry and the net relative flow of elements between pools. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic North Atlantic Phytoplankton University of California: eScholarship Arctic |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
University of California: eScholarship |
op_collection_id |
ftcdlib |
language |
unknown |
topic |
Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences Earth Sciences Environmental Sciences Biological Sciences |
spellingShingle |
Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences Earth Sciences Environmental Sciences Biological Sciences Singh, A Baer, SE Riebesell, U Martiny, AC Lomas, MW C : N : P stoichiometry at the Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study station in the North Atlantic Ocean |
topic_facet |
Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences Earth Sciences Environmental Sciences Biological Sciences |
description |
Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) availability, in addition to other macro- and micronutrients, determine the strength of the ocean's carbon (C) uptake, and variation in the N : P ratio of inorganic nutrient pools is key to phytoplankton growth. A similarity between C : N : P ratios in the plankton biomass and deep-water nutrients was observed by Alfred C. Redfield around 80 years ago and suggested that biological processes in the surface ocean controlled deep-ocean chemistry. Recent studies have emphasized the role of inorganic N : P ratios in governing biogeochemical processes, particularly the C : N : P ratio in suspended particulate organic matter (POM), with somewhat less attention given to exported POM and dissolved organic matter (DOM). Herein, we extend the discussion on ecosystem C : N : P stoichiometry but also examine temporal variation in stoichiometric relationships. We have analyzed elemental stoichiometry in the suspended POM and total (POM + DOM) organic-matter (TOM) pools in the upper 100 m and in the exported POM and subeuphotic zone (100-500 m) inorganic nutrient pools from the monthly data collected at the Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study (BATS) site located in the western part of the North Atlantic Ocean. C : N and N : P ratios in TOM were at least twice those in the POM, while C : P ratios were up to 5 times higher in TOM compared to those in the POM. Observed C : N ratios in suspended POM were approximately equal to the canonical Redfield ratio (C : N : P = 106 : 16 : 1), while N : P and C : P ratios in the same pool were more than twice the Redfield ratio. Average N : P ratios in the subsurface inorganic nutrient pool were ∼ 26 : 1, squarely between the suspended POM ratio and the Redfield ratio. We have further linked variation in elemental stoichiometry to that of phytoplankton cell abundance observed at the BATS site. Findings from this study suggest that elemental ratios vary with depth in the euphotic zone, mainly due to different growth rates of cyanobacterial cells. We have also examined the role of the Arctic Oscillation on temporal patterns in C : N : P stoichiometry. This study strengthens our understanding of the variability in elemental stoichiometry in different organic-matter pools and should improve biogeochemical models by constraining the range of non-Redfield stoichiometry and the net relative flow of elements between pools. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Singh, A Baer, SE Riebesell, U Martiny, AC Lomas, MW |
author_facet |
Singh, A Baer, SE Riebesell, U Martiny, AC Lomas, MW |
author_sort |
Singh, A |
title |
C : N : P stoichiometry at the Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study station in the North Atlantic Ocean |
title_short |
C : N : P stoichiometry at the Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study station in the North Atlantic Ocean |
title_full |
C : N : P stoichiometry at the Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study station in the North Atlantic Ocean |
title_fullStr |
C : N : P stoichiometry at the Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study station in the North Atlantic Ocean |
title_full_unstemmed |
C : N : P stoichiometry at the Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study station in the North Atlantic Ocean |
title_sort |
c : n : p stoichiometry at the bermuda atlantic time-series study station in the north atlantic ocean |
publisher |
eScholarship, University of California |
publishDate |
2015 |
url |
https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8v30h230 |
op_coverage |
6389 - 6403 |
geographic |
Arctic |
geographic_facet |
Arctic |
genre |
Arctic North Atlantic Phytoplankton |
genre_facet |
Arctic North Atlantic Phytoplankton |
op_source |
Biogeosciences, vol 12, iss 21 |
op_relation |
qt8v30h230 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8v30h230 |
op_rights |
public |
_version_ |
1766349627863334912 |