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Granskog, M. A., Kaartokallio, H., Kuosa, H., Thomas, D. N., Ehn, J., & Sonninen, E. (2005). Scales of horizontal patchiness in chlorophyll a, chemical and physical properties of landfast sea ice in the Gulf of Finland (Baltic Sea). Polar Biol, 28(4), 276–283.
Abstract: Horizontal variation of first-year landfast sea ice properties was studied in the Gulf of Finland, the Baltic Sea. Several scales of variation were considered; a number of arrays with core spacings of 0.2, 2 and 20 m were sampled at different stages of the ice season for small-scale patchiness. Spacing between these arrays was from hundreds of meters to kilometers to study mesoscale variability, and once an onshore–offshore 40-km transect was sampled to study regional scale variability. Measured variables included salinity, stable oxygen isotopes (δ18O), chlorophyll a (chl-a), nutrients and dissolved organic carbon. On a large scale, a combination of variations in the under-ice water salinity (ice porosity), nutrient supply and the stage of ice development control the build-up of ice algal biomass. At scales of hundreds of meters to kilometers, there was significant variability in several parameters (salinity, chl-a, snow depth and ice thickness). Analyses of the data from the arrays did not show evidence of significant patchiness at scales <20 m for algal biomass. The results imply that the sampling effort in Baltic Sea ice studies should be concentrated on scales of hundreds of meters to kilometers. Using the variations observed in the study area, the estimate for depth-integrated algal biomass in landfast sea ice in the Gulf of Finland (March 2003) is 5.5±4.4 mg chl-a m-2.
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Granskog, M. A., Kaartokallio, H., Thomas, D. N., & Kuosa, H. (2005). Influence of freshwater inflow on the inorganic nutrient and dissolved organic matter within coastal sea ice and underlying waters in the Gulf of Finland (Baltic Sea). Estuar Coast Shelf Sci, 65(1-2), 109–122.
Abstract: A study was conducted to measure the biogeochemical characteristics of freshwater plumes underlying Baltic Sea land-fast ice, and the overlying sea ice. A 40-km long transect was conducted in the northern Baltic Sea in March 2003, following a freshwater plume from its source into the fully mixed open-sea area. The spreading of river outflow below the ice resulted in a well-stratified low-salinity surface layer further out than normally occurs in the open-water period. The freshwaters were high in dissolved organic matter (DOC, DON and CDOM), and inorganic nutrients (ammonium, nitrate and silicate), although the levels of phosphate were low. In general these parameters changed concurrently with salinity in such a way that mixing was conservative. The characteristics of the ice varied from the freshwater source to the open water, with increasing salinity and brine volumes (porosity) occurring in the more open-sea stations. Coinciding with the changes in ice properties there was an increase in sea-ice algal growth in the more marine stations along the transect. Biological activity in the ice was largely confined to bottom ice assemblages. In contrast to the conditions in the underlying water, no relationship between salinity, inorganic nutrients and organic matter was observed in the ice. In particular ammonium, phosphate, DOC and DON were present in excess of those levels predicted from the dilution curves, indicating the presence of considerable DOM production by ice assemblages, inorganic nutrient uptake and remineralization within the ice.
Keywords: coastal oceanography; sea ice; river plumes; estuarine chemistry; nutrients (mineral); dissolved organic matter; Baltic Sea
Notes: Sampling: Nine stations along a 40km salinity gradient from inner Pojo Bay through the Archipelago to the edge of the open sea
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Krell, A., Schnack-Schiel, S. B., Thomas, D. N., Kattner, G., Zipan, W., & Dieckmann, G. S. (2005). Phytoplankton dynamics in relation to hydrography, nutrients and zooplankton at the onset of sea ice formation in the eastern Weddell Sea (Antarctica). Polar Biol, 28(9), 700–713.
Abstract: The quantitative and qualitative distribution of phytoplankton was investigated along five North–South transects in the eastern Weddell Sea during the transition from late autumn to winter. Relationships with the regional hydrography, progressing sea ice coverage, nutrient distribution and zooplankton are discussed and compared with data from other seasons. To the north of the Antarctic Slope Front (ASF) a remnant temperature minimum layer was found above the primary pycnocline throughout summer. Surface waters had not entirely acquired typical winter characteristics. While temperature was already in the winter range, this was not the case for salinity. Highest biomass of phytoplankton, with the exception of the first transect, was found in the region adjoining the ASF to the north. Absolute chlorophyll a (Chl a) concentrations dropped from 0.35 to 0.19 µg/1. Nutrient pools exhibited a replenishing tendency. Ammonium concentrations were high (0.75–2 µmol/1), indicating extensive heterotrophic activity. The phytoplankton in the ASF region was dominated by nanoflagellates, particularly Phaeocystis spp.. North of the ASF the abundance of diatoms increased, with Fragilariopsis spp., F. cylindrus and Thalassiosira spp. dominating. Community structure varied both due to hydrographical conditions and the advancing ice edge. The phytoplankton assemblage formed during late autumn were very similar to the ones found in early spring. A POC/PON ratio close to Redfield, decreasing POC concentration and a high phaeophytin/ Chl a ratio, as well as a high abundance of mesozooplankton indicated that a strong grazing pressure was exerted on the phytoplankton community. A comparison between primary production (PP) in the water column and the sea ice showed a shift of the major portion of PP into the ice during the period of investigation.
Keywords: Weddell Sea; Asf; Hydrography; Phytoplankton; Seasonal change; Community composition; Primary production; Zooplankton
Notes: Isi:000231421200006
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Mock, T., & Thomas, D. N. (2005). Recent advances in sea-ice microbiology. Environ Microbiol, 7(5), 605–619.
Abstract: Over the past 50 years there has been much effort invested in the investigation of the ecology of sea ice. Sea ice is an ephemeral feature of the Arctic and Southern Oceans and smaller water bodies such as the Baltic and Caspian Seas. The semisolid ice matrix provides a range of habitats in which a diverse range of microbial organisms thrive. In the past 5 years there has been considerable steps forward in sea-ice research, in particular regarding the analysis of sea-ice microstructure and the investigation of the diversity and adaptation of microbial communities. These studies include: (i) controlled simulated and in situ studies on a micrometer scale to unravel the dynamic of the microhabitat with consequences for the organisms; (ii) the introduction of molecular approaches to uncover the diversity of uncultured still unknown microorganisms; and (iii) studies into the molecular adaptation of selected model organisms to the extreme environment. This minireview presents some of the most recent findings from sea-ice studies within the framework of these aims.
Notes: Minireview
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Thomas, D. N. (2005). Photosynthetic microbes in freezing deserts. Trends Microbiol, 13(3), 87–88.
Abstract: Polar deserts are not devoid of life despite the extreme low temperature and scarcity of water. Recently, patterned stone fields – caused by periglacial activity – have been surveyed in the Arctic and Antarctic. It was found that the productivity of the cyanobacteria and algae (hypoliths) that colonise the underside of the stones is strongly related to the pattern of the stones. The hypolith assemblages were in some cases as productive as lichens, bryophytes and plants that resided nearby.
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