Enhanced transfer of organic matter to higher trophic levels caused by ocean acidification and its implications for export production: A mass balance approach
Ongoing acidification of the ocean through uptake of anthropogenic CO 2 is known to affect marine biota and ecosystems with largely unknown consequences for marine food webs. Changes in food web structure have the potential to alter trophic transfer, partitioning, and biogeochemical cycling of eleme...
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Online Access: | https://eprints.soton.ac.uk/421509/ https://eprints.soton.ac.uk/421509/1/journal.pone.0197502.pdf |
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ftsouthampton:oai:eprints.soton.ac.uk:421509 2023-07-30T04:06:03+02:00 Enhanced transfer of organic matter to higher trophic levels caused by ocean acidification and its implications for export production: A mass balance approach Boxhammer, Tim Taucher, Jan Bach, Lennart T. Achterberg, Eric P. Algueró-Muñiz, María Bellworthy, Jessica Czerny, Jan Esposito, Mario Haunost, Mathias Hellemann, Dana Ludwig, Andrea Yong, Jaw C. Zark, Maren Riebesell, Ulf Anderson, Leif G. 2018-05-25 text https://eprints.soton.ac.uk/421509/ https://eprints.soton.ac.uk/421509/1/journal.pone.0197502.pdf en English eng https://eprints.soton.ac.uk/421509/1/journal.pone.0197502.pdf Boxhammer, Tim, Taucher, Jan, Bach, Lennart T., Achterberg, Eric P., Algueró-Muñiz, María, Bellworthy, Jessica, Czerny, Jan, Esposito, Mario, Haunost, Mathias, Hellemann, Dana, Ludwig, Andrea, Yong, Jaw C., Zark, Maren, Riebesell, Ulf and Anderson, Leif G. (2018) Enhanced transfer of organic matter to higher trophic levels caused by ocean acidification and its implications for export production: A mass balance approach. PLoS ONE, 13 (5), [e0197502]. (doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0197502 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0197502>). cc_by_4 Article PeerReviewed 2018 ftsouthampton https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0197502 2023-07-09T22:23:07Z Ongoing acidification of the ocean through uptake of anthropogenic CO 2 is known to affect marine biota and ecosystems with largely unknown consequences for marine food webs. Changes in food web structure have the potential to alter trophic transfer, partitioning, and biogeochemical cycling of elements in the ocean. Here we investigated the impact of realistic end-of-the-century CO 2 concentrations on the development and partitioning of the carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, and silica pools in a coastal pelagic ecosystem (Gullmar Fjord, Sweden). We covered the entire winter-to-summer plankton succession (100 days) in two sets of five pelagic mesocosms, with one set being CO 2 enriched (~760 μatm pCO 2 ) and the other one left at ambient CO 2 concentrations. Elemental mass balances were calculated and we highlight important challenges and uncertainties we have faced in the closed mesocosm system. Our key observations under high CO 2 were: (1) A significantly amplified transfer of carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus from primary producers to higher trophic levels, during times of regenerated primary production. (2) A prolonged retention of all three elements in the pelagic food web that significantly reduced nitrogen and phosphorus sedimentation by about 11 and 9%, respectively. (3) A positive trend in carbon fixation (relative to nitrogen) that appeared in the particulate matter pool as well as the downward particle flux. This excess carbon counteracted a potential reduction in carbon sedimentation that could have been expected from patterns of nitrogen and phosphorus fluxes. Our findings highlight the potential for ocean acidification to alter partitioning and cycling of carbon and nutrients in the surface ocean but also show that impacts are temporarily variable and likely depending upon the structure of the plankton food web. Article in Journal/Newspaper Ocean acidification University of Southampton: e-Prints Soton PLOS ONE 13 5 e0197502 |
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Open Polar |
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University of Southampton: e-Prints Soton |
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ftsouthampton |
language |
English |
description |
Ongoing acidification of the ocean through uptake of anthropogenic CO 2 is known to affect marine biota and ecosystems with largely unknown consequences for marine food webs. Changes in food web structure have the potential to alter trophic transfer, partitioning, and biogeochemical cycling of elements in the ocean. Here we investigated the impact of realistic end-of-the-century CO 2 concentrations on the development and partitioning of the carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, and silica pools in a coastal pelagic ecosystem (Gullmar Fjord, Sweden). We covered the entire winter-to-summer plankton succession (100 days) in two sets of five pelagic mesocosms, with one set being CO 2 enriched (~760 μatm pCO 2 ) and the other one left at ambient CO 2 concentrations. Elemental mass balances were calculated and we highlight important challenges and uncertainties we have faced in the closed mesocosm system. Our key observations under high CO 2 were: (1) A significantly amplified transfer of carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus from primary producers to higher trophic levels, during times of regenerated primary production. (2) A prolonged retention of all three elements in the pelagic food web that significantly reduced nitrogen and phosphorus sedimentation by about 11 and 9%, respectively. (3) A positive trend in carbon fixation (relative to nitrogen) that appeared in the particulate matter pool as well as the downward particle flux. This excess carbon counteracted a potential reduction in carbon sedimentation that could have been expected from patterns of nitrogen and phosphorus fluxes. Our findings highlight the potential for ocean acidification to alter partitioning and cycling of carbon and nutrients in the surface ocean but also show that impacts are temporarily variable and likely depending upon the structure of the plankton food web. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Boxhammer, Tim Taucher, Jan Bach, Lennart T. Achterberg, Eric P. Algueró-Muñiz, María Bellworthy, Jessica Czerny, Jan Esposito, Mario Haunost, Mathias Hellemann, Dana Ludwig, Andrea Yong, Jaw C. Zark, Maren Riebesell, Ulf Anderson, Leif G. |
spellingShingle |
Boxhammer, Tim Taucher, Jan Bach, Lennart T. Achterberg, Eric P. Algueró-Muñiz, María Bellworthy, Jessica Czerny, Jan Esposito, Mario Haunost, Mathias Hellemann, Dana Ludwig, Andrea Yong, Jaw C. Zark, Maren Riebesell, Ulf Anderson, Leif G. Enhanced transfer of organic matter to higher trophic levels caused by ocean acidification and its implications for export production: A mass balance approach |
author_facet |
Boxhammer, Tim Taucher, Jan Bach, Lennart T. Achterberg, Eric P. Algueró-Muñiz, María Bellworthy, Jessica Czerny, Jan Esposito, Mario Haunost, Mathias Hellemann, Dana Ludwig, Andrea Yong, Jaw C. Zark, Maren Riebesell, Ulf Anderson, Leif G. |
author_sort |
Boxhammer, Tim |
title |
Enhanced transfer of organic matter to higher trophic levels caused by ocean acidification and its implications for export production: A mass balance approach |
title_short |
Enhanced transfer of organic matter to higher trophic levels caused by ocean acidification and its implications for export production: A mass balance approach |
title_full |
Enhanced transfer of organic matter to higher trophic levels caused by ocean acidification and its implications for export production: A mass balance approach |
title_fullStr |
Enhanced transfer of organic matter to higher trophic levels caused by ocean acidification and its implications for export production: A mass balance approach |
title_full_unstemmed |
Enhanced transfer of organic matter to higher trophic levels caused by ocean acidification and its implications for export production: A mass balance approach |
title_sort |
enhanced transfer of organic matter to higher trophic levels caused by ocean acidification and its implications for export production: a mass balance approach |
publishDate |
2018 |
url |
https://eprints.soton.ac.uk/421509/ https://eprints.soton.ac.uk/421509/1/journal.pone.0197502.pdf |
genre |
Ocean acidification |
genre_facet |
Ocean acidification |
op_relation |
https://eprints.soton.ac.uk/421509/1/journal.pone.0197502.pdf Boxhammer, Tim, Taucher, Jan, Bach, Lennart T., Achterberg, Eric P., Algueró-Muñiz, María, Bellworthy, Jessica, Czerny, Jan, Esposito, Mario, Haunost, Mathias, Hellemann, Dana, Ludwig, Andrea, Yong, Jaw C., Zark, Maren, Riebesell, Ulf and Anderson, Leif G. (2018) Enhanced transfer of organic matter to higher trophic levels caused by ocean acidification and its implications for export production: A mass balance approach. PLoS ONE, 13 (5), [e0197502]. (doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0197502 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0197502>). |
op_rights |
cc_by_4 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0197502 |
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PLOS ONE |
container_volume |
13 |
container_issue |
5 |
container_start_page |
e0197502 |
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1772818419817644032 |