Distribution of coccoliths in surface sediments across the Drake Passage and calcification of Emiliania huxleyi morphotypes ...

• Main Authors: Vollmar, Nele Manon, Baumann, Karl-Heinz, Saavedra-Pellitero, Mariem, Hernández-Almeida, Iván
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: ETH Zurich 2021
• Subjects: Antarc*; Antarctic; Drake Passage; Southern Ocean
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.3929/ethz-b-000529119; http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11850/529119

The Southern Ocean is experiencing rapid and profound changes in its physical and biogeochemical properties that may influence the distribution and composition of pelagic plankton communities. Coccolithophores are the most prolific carbonate-producing phytoplankton group playing an important role in Southern Ocean biogeochemical cycles. However, knowledge is scarce about the record of (sub-)fossil coccolith assemblages in the Southern Ocean, which are constituting invaluable indicators for paleoenvironmental reconstructions. This study investigates coccolith assemblages preserved in surface sediments of southernmost Chile and across the Drake Passage that were retrieved during R/V Polarstern Expedition PS97. We focused on the coccolith response to steep environmental gradients across the frontal system of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current and to hydrodynamic and post-depositional processes occurring in this region. We used statistical analyses to explore which environmental parameters influenced the ... : Biogeosciences Discussions ...