북태평양 생태계의 계절적, 연간적, 사건적 변동

Abstract

In recent years, many specific scientific research efforts have enhanced our understanding of the changes inbiological communities in North Pacific ecosystems. These studies have revealed details of the ecosystem dynamics mostly on regional and local scales. In this study, we attempt to assemble a coherent, synoptic view of North Pacific ecosystem change as a whole within shorter than inter-decadal time-scales. Recent basin-scale information on physical forcing and satellite-derived estimates of chlorophyll-a provide high spatial and temporal resolution data that have revealed seasonal to ENSO scale changes. Comparable data and information of lower-trophic level biological communities (other than chlorophyll) are restricted to research hot-spots - e.g., sites of limited geographic scope, where specific research programs have conducted short-term studies. Our approach is to combine the synoptic basin-scale picture of physical forcing and chlorophyll-a with details of trophic structure derived from more trophically detailed regional studies. Analysis of ocean color data shows interesting basin-scale patterns in seasonality and inter-annual changes in surface chlorophyll-a. Based on this, we concentrate on a couple of regions to compare and contrast the responses in other parts of food web to gain a broader understanding of changes in the North Pacific ecosystem as a whole.