Marine Plankton during the Polar Night: Environmental Predictors of Spatial Variability

• Published in: Biology
• Main Authors: Vladimir G. Dvoretsky, Marina P. Venger, Anastasya V. Vashchenko, Veronika V. Vodopianova, Ivan A. Pastukhov, Tatyana M. Maksimovskaya
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2023
• Subjects: bacterioplankton; virioplankton; chlorophyll a; zooplankton; nutrients; Arctic Ocean; Biology (General); QH301-705.5; Arctic; Barents Sea; Fram Strait; polar night; Zooplankton
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.3390/biology12030368; https://doaj.org/article/0a80425b5abd49b3a32f2242cd6399fc

We studied the spatial patterns of the planktonic ecosystems at two Arctic sites strongly affected by Atlantic Inflow (FS, the Fram Strait; and BS, the Barents Sea). A high degree of similarity in the bacterial abundance (mean: 3.1 × 10 5 cells mL −1 in FS vs. 3.5 × 10 5 cells mL −1 in BS) was found, while other plankton characteristics were different. Bacterial biomass reached a maximum in BS (3.2–7.9 mg C m −3 ), while viral abundances tended to be higher in FS (2.0–5.7 × 10 6 particles mL −1 ). Larger bacterial cells were found in BS, suggesting the presence of different bacterial populations at both locations. The virus-to-bacteria ratio was significantly higher in FS than in BS (13.5 vs. 4.7). Chlorophyll a concentration was extremely low (<0.25 mg m −3 ). The highest zooplankton abundance was in the surface layer (919 individuals m −3 in FS vs. 602 ind. m −3 in BS). Zooplankton biomass strongly varied (1–39 mg C m −3 ), with the maximum in BS. High proportions of boreal taxa in the total zooplankton abundance indicate the Atlantification of pelagic ecosystems in the Arctic. Plankton indicators are correlated with temperature, salinity, and sampling depth. Strong intercorrelations were found between major plankton groups, suggesting tight links in the studied plankton ecosystems.