Aquatic Sciences Meeting, Albuquerque 2001

PC03 Undergraduate Education

Date: Tuesday, February 13, 2001

Location: Southwest Hall

Ranelletti, M, E, Bermuda Biological Station for Research, Inc., St. George's, Bermuda, mranelletti@hotmail.com

Steinberg, D, K, Bermuda Biological Station for Research, Inc., St. George's, Bermuda, debbie@bbsr.edu

FREQUENCY AND ECOLOGICAL IMPACT OF SALP BLOOMS AT THE BERMUDA ATLANTIC TIME-SERIES STUDY (BATS) SITE IN THE SARGASSO SEA

Salps are gelatinous zooplankton (pelagic tunicates) that periodically form large blooms in coastal and open ocean environments. Salp blooms may go undetected due to insufficient sampling frequency, especially in the open ocean. We examined the frequency and ecological impact of salp blooms occurring at the Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study (BATS) site in the Sargasso Sea using archived monthly plankton net tows from 1991-1999 and collections of live salps. More than 60 salp blooms (densities over 0.10 salps/m3) were found in this 9-year period, with densities ranging from 0.10 - 608 salps/m3. The most common bloom formers were Thalia and Salpa spp. Sinking rates and carbon content of salp fecal pellets and carcasses were used to investigate their contribution to flux of particulate organic carbon (POC) at BATS. Rapid sinking rates of fecal pellets and carcasses (240-1076 m/day and 286-691 m/day, respectively), support previous evidence that salps are significant contributors to POC flux. The importance of salp blooms in the consumption of phytoplankton and flux of POC to the deep sea will also be discussed.

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Aquatic Sciences Meeting, Albuquerque 2001

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