Aquatic Sciences Meeting, Albuquerque 2001

CS28 Phytoplankton: Distributions in Space and Time

Date: Thursday, February 15, 2001, Time: 11:30:00 AM

Location: Dona Ana

Higgins , H, W, CSIRO Marine Research, GPO Box 1538, Hobart, 7001, Australia, Harry.Higgins@marine.csiro.au

Mackey , D, J, CSIRO Marine Research, Hobart, Australia,

PHYTOPLANKTON DISTRIBITION IN THE SEPIK RIVER (PNG) PLUME AND COASTAL WATERS OF THE BISMARK SEA DURING THE 1997 EL NINO

The outflow of the Sepik River forms a surface plume about 2m thick, which, during the SE Trade season, flows NW along the coast of PNG. Suspended sediments, which limit the ambient light level, nutrients and mixing between fresh and marine waters are important factors controlling the spatial distribution of phytoplankton in the plume. Along a transect from the Sepik River through the New Guinea coastal current and undercurrent of the Bismark Sea, the phytoplankton distribution was estimated by analysis of algal pigments using HPLC and CHEMTAX software. Chlorophytes were the most abundant algal class in the Sepik River and, along with haptophytes, cryptophytes and diatoms decreased significantly as salinity increased. Cyanobacteria were present in both fresh and marine waters but decreased markedly toward the oligotrophic end of the transect whereas prochlorophytes, absent in the Sepik River, increased significantly (both in relative and absolute terms) in oligotrophic waters.

This Session Listing

Aquatic Sciences Meeting, Albuquerque 2001

Quicklinks