We found a match
Your institution may have access to this item. Find your institution then sign in to continue.
- Title
A year in the life of a central California kelp forest: physical andbiological insights into biogeochemical variability.
- Authors
Koweek, David A.; Nickols, Kerry J.; Leary, Paul R.; Litvin, Steve Y.; Bell, Tom W.; Luthin, Timothy; Lummis, Sarah; Mucciarone, David A.; Dunbar, Robert B.
- Abstract
Kelp forests are among the world's most productive marine ecosystems, yet little is known about theirbiogeochemistry. This study presents a fourteen-month time series (July 2013-August 2014) of surface andbenthic dissolved inorganic carbon and total alkalinity measurements, along with accompanyinghydrographic measurements, from six locations within a central California kelp forest. We present rangesand patterns of variability in carbonate chemistry, including pH (7.70-8.33), pCO2 (172-952 µatm), and thearagonite saturation state, ΩAr (0.94-3.91). Surface-to-bottom gradients in CO2 system chemistry were aslarge as the spatial gradients throughout the bottom of the kelp forest. Dissolved inorganic carbonvariability was the main driver of the observed CO2 system variability. The majority of spatial variability inthe kelp forest can be explained by advection of cold, dense high CO2 waters into the bottom of the kelpforest, with deeper sites experiencing high CO2 conditions more frequently. Despite the strong imprint of advection on the biogeochemical variability of the kelp forest, surface waters were undersaturated with CO2in the spring through fall, indicative of the strong role of photosynthesis on biogeochemical variability. Weemphasize the importance of spatially distributed measurements for developing a process-basedunderstanding of kelp forest ecosystem function in a changing climate.
- Subjects
CALIFORNIA; KELP bed ecology; FORESTS &; forestry; BIOGEOCHEMISTRY; MARINE ecology; TIME series analysis; CARBON compounds
- Publication
Biogeosciences Discussions, 2016, p1
- ISSN
1810-6277
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.5194/bg-2016-360