Nutrient Depletion and Primary Productivity in the Marginal Ice Zone of the Northwestern Weddell Sea During Austral Summer

Abstract

Spatial distributions of phytoplankton biomass and nutrients were examined to investigate the magnitude of phytoplankton blooms along the marginal ice zone (MIZ) in the northwestern Weddell Sea during austral summer of 1995. High phytoplankton biomass was associated with the MIZ in the study area. Vertical stability induced by meltwater appears to be the most important factor controlling phytoplankton biomass distribution. Nitrate concentrations are significantly depleted within the upper water column at the phytoplankton biomass maximum. The time required to attain the observed nutrient depletion was calculated from phytoplankton biomass and nitrate depletion, which ranges from 27 to 68 days in transect 4 and from 33 to 145 days in transect 3. Phytoplankton production was also calculated from nitrate depletion and time-scales of nitrate depletion, which varies from 272 to 1752 mg C m −2 day −1 in transect 4 and from 327 to 2648 mg C m −2 day −1 in transect 3. In the Southern Ocean where primary productivity shows large temporal and spatial variations, the productivity measurement from nutrient depletion can provide an average rate of primary production during phytoplankton bloom.