Aquatic Sciences Meeting, Albuquerque 2001

SS24 The Ecology of Pelagic Gelatinous Zooplankton

Date: Monday, February 12, 2001, Time: 4:30:00 PM

Location: Acoma/Zuni/Tesuque

Touratier, F, , Université Bordeaux 1, Station Marine d'Arcachon, L.O.B., Arcachon, France, f.touratier@biocean.u-bordeaux.fr

Carlotti, F, , Université Bordeaux 1/C.N.R.S., Station Marine d'Arcachon, L.O.B., Arcachon, France, carlotti@biocean.u-bordeaux.fr

Gorsky, G, , Observatoire Océanologique de Villefranche-sur-Mer, L.O.B.E.P.M., Villefranche-sur-Mer, France, gorsky@obs-vlfr.fr

A model simulating the individual growth of the appendicularian Oikopleura dioica

One objective of the European EURAPP project is to model the population dynamics and the ecophysiology of the most common species of appendicularian to understand their impact in European marine ecosystems. A model and its results simulating the growth of Oikopleura dioica are presented. O. dioica is one of the five most frequent species inhabiting the European seas and several laboratory studies are available for comparison with model outputs. The individual growth and the interactions with the external medium are described by several states variables and fluxes which are described in terms of carbon and nitrogen. Three forcing variables control the growth: the temperature, the food quantity and quality (C:N ratio and size of particles). Model outputs are first confronted to available experimental data, i.e. the effect of food quantity and quality on body length; the influence of temperature on body length, generation time, respiration, excretion and house production rates; and the variability of the filtration rate when influenced by temperature, food quantity and quality. Time-dependent forcing variables are then used to explore the dynamical properties of the model.

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Aquatic Sciences Meeting, Albuquerque 2001

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