Species-specific calcite production reveals Coccolithus pelagicus as the key calcifier in the Arctic Ocean
Through the production and export of their calcite coccoliths, coccolithophores form a key component of the global carbon cycle. Despite this key role, very little is known about the biogeochemical role of different coccolithophore species in terms of calcite production, and how these species will r...
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ftucl:oai:eprints.ucl.ac.uk.OAI2:1524874 2023-12-24T10:13:27+01:00 Species-specific calcite production reveals Coccolithus pelagicus as the key calcifier in the Arctic Ocean Daniels, CJ Poulton, AJ Young, JR Esposito, M Humphreys, MP Ribas-Ribas, M Tynan, E Tyrrell, T 2016-08-18 text https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1524874/1/m555p029.pdf https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1524874/ eng eng INTER-RESEARCH https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1524874/1/m555p029.pdf https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1524874/ open Marine Ecology Progress Series , 555 pp. 29-47. (2016) Science & Technology Life Sciences & Biomedicine Physical Sciences Ecology Marine & Freshwater Biology Oceanography Environmental Sciences & Ecology Coccolithophores Calcification Arctic Ocean EMILIANIA-HUXLEYI NORTH-ATLANTIC CARBONATE CHEMISTRY COMMUNITY STRUCTURE ORGANIC-CARBON CALCIFICATION RATES INORGANIC CARBON GROWTH-RATES CELL-SIZE PHYTOPLANKTON Article 2016 ftucl 2023-11-27T13:07:27Z Through the production and export of their calcite coccoliths, coccolithophores form a key component of the global carbon cycle. Despite this key role, very little is known about the biogeochemical role of different coccolithophore species in terms of calcite production, and how these species will respond to future climate change and ocean acidification. Here, we present the first study to estimate species-specific calcite production, from samples collected in the Arctic Ocean and subarctic Iceland Basin in June 2012. We show that although the coccolithophorid Coccolithus pelagicus comprised only a small fraction of the total community in terms of abundance (2%), our estimates indicate that it was the major calcite producer in the Arctic Ocean and Iceland Basin (57% of total calcite production). In contrast, Emiliania huxleyi formed 27% of the total abundance and was responsible for only 20% of the calcite production. That C. pelagicus was able to dominate calcite production was due to its relatively high cellular calcite content compared with the other species present. Our results demonstrate, for the first time, the importance of investigating the complete coccolithophore community when considering pelagic calcite production, as relatively rare but heavily calcified species such as C. pelagicus can be the key calcite producers in mixed communities. Therefore, the response of C. pelagicus to ocean acidification and climate change has the potential to have a major impact on carbon cycling within the North Atlantic and Arctic Ocean. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Arctic Ocean Climate change Iceland North Atlantic Ocean acidification Phytoplankton Subarctic University College London: UCL Discovery Arctic Arctic Ocean |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
University College London: UCL Discovery |
op_collection_id |
ftucl |
language |
English |
topic |
Science & Technology Life Sciences & Biomedicine Physical Sciences Ecology Marine & Freshwater Biology Oceanography Environmental Sciences & Ecology Coccolithophores Calcification Arctic Ocean EMILIANIA-HUXLEYI NORTH-ATLANTIC CARBONATE CHEMISTRY COMMUNITY STRUCTURE ORGANIC-CARBON CALCIFICATION RATES INORGANIC CARBON GROWTH-RATES CELL-SIZE PHYTOPLANKTON |
spellingShingle |
Science & Technology Life Sciences & Biomedicine Physical Sciences Ecology Marine & Freshwater Biology Oceanography Environmental Sciences & Ecology Coccolithophores Calcification Arctic Ocean EMILIANIA-HUXLEYI NORTH-ATLANTIC CARBONATE CHEMISTRY COMMUNITY STRUCTURE ORGANIC-CARBON CALCIFICATION RATES INORGANIC CARBON GROWTH-RATES CELL-SIZE PHYTOPLANKTON Daniels, CJ Poulton, AJ Young, JR Esposito, M Humphreys, MP Ribas-Ribas, M Tynan, E Tyrrell, T Species-specific calcite production reveals Coccolithus pelagicus as the key calcifier in the Arctic Ocean |
topic_facet |
Science & Technology Life Sciences & Biomedicine Physical Sciences Ecology Marine & Freshwater Biology Oceanography Environmental Sciences & Ecology Coccolithophores Calcification Arctic Ocean EMILIANIA-HUXLEYI NORTH-ATLANTIC CARBONATE CHEMISTRY COMMUNITY STRUCTURE ORGANIC-CARBON CALCIFICATION RATES INORGANIC CARBON GROWTH-RATES CELL-SIZE PHYTOPLANKTON |
description |
Through the production and export of their calcite coccoliths, coccolithophores form a key component of the global carbon cycle. Despite this key role, very little is known about the biogeochemical role of different coccolithophore species in terms of calcite production, and how these species will respond to future climate change and ocean acidification. Here, we present the first study to estimate species-specific calcite production, from samples collected in the Arctic Ocean and subarctic Iceland Basin in June 2012. We show that although the coccolithophorid Coccolithus pelagicus comprised only a small fraction of the total community in terms of abundance (2%), our estimates indicate that it was the major calcite producer in the Arctic Ocean and Iceland Basin (57% of total calcite production). In contrast, Emiliania huxleyi formed 27% of the total abundance and was responsible for only 20% of the calcite production. That C. pelagicus was able to dominate calcite production was due to its relatively high cellular calcite content compared with the other species present. Our results demonstrate, for the first time, the importance of investigating the complete coccolithophore community when considering pelagic calcite production, as relatively rare but heavily calcified species such as C. pelagicus can be the key calcite producers in mixed communities. Therefore, the response of C. pelagicus to ocean acidification and climate change has the potential to have a major impact on carbon cycling within the North Atlantic and Arctic Ocean. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Daniels, CJ Poulton, AJ Young, JR Esposito, M Humphreys, MP Ribas-Ribas, M Tynan, E Tyrrell, T |
author_facet |
Daniels, CJ Poulton, AJ Young, JR Esposito, M Humphreys, MP Ribas-Ribas, M Tynan, E Tyrrell, T |
author_sort |
Daniels, CJ |
title |
Species-specific calcite production reveals Coccolithus pelagicus as the key calcifier in the Arctic Ocean |
title_short |
Species-specific calcite production reveals Coccolithus pelagicus as the key calcifier in the Arctic Ocean |
title_full |
Species-specific calcite production reveals Coccolithus pelagicus as the key calcifier in the Arctic Ocean |
title_fullStr |
Species-specific calcite production reveals Coccolithus pelagicus as the key calcifier in the Arctic Ocean |
title_full_unstemmed |
Species-specific calcite production reveals Coccolithus pelagicus as the key calcifier in the Arctic Ocean |
title_sort |
species-specific calcite production reveals coccolithus pelagicus as the key calcifier in the arctic ocean |
publisher |
INTER-RESEARCH |
publishDate |
2016 |
url |
https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1524874/1/m555p029.pdf https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1524874/ |
geographic |
Arctic Arctic Ocean |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Arctic Ocean |
genre |
Arctic Arctic Ocean Climate change Iceland North Atlantic Ocean acidification Phytoplankton Subarctic |
genre_facet |
Arctic Arctic Ocean Climate change Iceland North Atlantic Ocean acidification Phytoplankton Subarctic |
op_source |
Marine Ecology Progress Series , 555 pp. 29-47. (2016) |
op_relation |
https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1524874/1/m555p029.pdf https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1524874/ |
op_rights |
open |
_version_ |
1786182703946661888 |