Microbial communities from the sea ice and adjacent water column at the time of ice melting in the northwestern part of the Weddell Sea
Microbial composition and potential metabolic activity of its autotrophic compartment were measured in December 1988 in several micro-environments that characterise the North-West Sector of the marginal area of the Weddell Sea; infiltration and band assemblages of ice floes and adjacent waters were...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
1991
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.vliz.be/imisdocs/publications/121853.pdf |
| Summary: | Microbial composition and potential metabolic activity of its autotrophic compartment were measured in December 1988 in several micro-environments that characterise the North-West Sector of the marginal area of the Weddell Sea; infiltration and band assemblages of ice floes and adjacent waters were investigated. At the time of ice melting, a shift from a diatom dominated population (ice) to a flagellate dominated population (water column) was observed. This shift was not due to an "inability' of the ice-diatoms to grow in the water column. Macrograzing and/or sedimentation are possible causes of the disappearance of diatoms during ice melting. The remaining small autotrophic forms released by the ice would constitute a significant seeding stock for the growth of ice-edge blooms. |
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