Live autochthonous benthic diatoms on the lower depths of Arctic continental shelf. Preliminary results

• Published in: Oceanologia
• Main Authors: Elena Druzhkova, Anatoliy Oleinik, Pavel Makarevich
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier 2018
• Subjects: Microphytobenthos; Arctic continental shelf; Diatoms; Oceanography; GC1-1581; Arctic; Barents Sea
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oceano.2017.07.001; https://doaj.org/article/2081c75a47914154a1db4f428ff21a66

An autochthonous community of benthic diatoms was discovered in June 2015 in the upper sediment layer at depths of 170, 205, and 245 m in the central Barents Sea. At least three benthic microalgae species (Gyrosigma fasciola, Pleurosigma angulatum, and Pleurosigma sp. 1) were detected in the sediment but not the upper water column. Analyses revealed that these benthic microalgae represent a depleted fragment of Arctic littoral microphytobenthos. Compared with the littoral flora, the deep-water assemblage is less diverse and displays low abundance. The data reported here challenge the generally accepted belief that the presence of certain microalgae at significant depths results from vertical or horizontal transfer.