Water chemistry, and abundance and carbon biomass of under-ice fauna during POLARSTERN cruise ARK-XIX/1 to the Storfjord area in 2003 ...

• Main Author: Werner, Iris
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: PANGAEA 2005
• Subjects: Priority Programme 1158 Antarctic Research with Comparable Investigations in Arctic Sea Ice Areas SPP1158; Antarc*; Antarctic; Barents Sea; Sea ice
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.1594/pangaea.849171; https://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.849171

The under-ice habitat and fauna were studied during a typical winter situation at three stations in the western Barents Sea. Dense pack ice (7-10/10) prevailed and ice thickness ranged over <0.1-1.6 m covered by <0.1-0.6 m of snow. Air temperatures ranged between -1.8 and -27.5°C. The ice undersides were level, white and smooth. Temperature and salinity profiles in the under-ice water (0-5 m depth) were not stratified (T=-1.9 to -2.0°C and S=34.2-34.7). Concentrations of inorganic nutrients were high and concentrations of algal pigments were very low (0.02 µg chlorophyll a/l), indicating the state of biological winter. Contents of particulate organic carbon and nitrogen ranged over 84.2-241.3 and 5.3-16.4 µg/l, respectively, the C/N ratio over 11.2-15.5 pointing to the dominance of detritus in the under-ice water. Abundances of amphipods at the ice underside were lower than in other seasons: 0-1.8 ind/m**2 for Apherusa glacialis, 0-0.7 ind/m**2 for Onisimus spp., and 0-0.8 ind/m**2 for Gammarus ... : Supplement to: Werner, Iris (2005): Living conditions, abundance and biomass of under-ice fauna in the Storfjord area (western Barents Sea, Arctic) in late winter (March 2003). Polar Biology, 28(4), 311-318 ...