Large-scale temporal and spatial patterns of marine phytoplankton in the north-east Atlantic ...

• Main Author: Edwards, Martin
• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: University of Plymouth 2000
• Subjects: North Atlantic; North East Atlantic
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.24382/2290; https://pearl.plymouth.ac.uk/handle/10026.1/2552

Phytoplankton constitute the main algal biomass in pelagic ecosystems and, therefore, play a fundamental role in the functioning of the marine trophic web. Information on long-term trends in marine phytoplankton may help to distinguish between biological responses to natural oscillations in climate and global warming, and to evaluate possible regional effects of eutrophication. The aim of this work was to contribute to the general understanding of how phytoplankton are spatio-temporally structured at the large-scale. To achieve this aim, the Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR) survey data were used to identify the dominant large-scale spatial patterns of phytoplankton in north-western European continental shelf waters. Spatial patterns have been described in relation to their variability in time (seasonal and decadal). Finally, fluctuations of phytoplankton in space and time are described in relation to changes in the environment of the North Atlantic. The analysis included approximately 70,000 samples taken ...