Planktonic Communities and Trophic Interactions in the North Equatorial Pacific Ocean

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Abstract/Contents

Abstract: The complex relationships between marine planktonic trophic levels are not yet well understood, despite the importance of the plankton community in the global carbon cycle and its role as a food source for commercial fisheries. In this study, phytoplankton and zooplankton community samples were collected and identified along a transect from a Hawaiian cyclonic eddy, through the oligotrophic North Pacific gyre, to the highnutrient equatorial ocean. Within the phytoplankton community, siliceous diatoms and dinoflagellates were found to respond differently to environmental fluctuations, with more significant correlations between nutrient availability and diatoms than dinoflagellates. Differential responses by different trophic communities were also found, with bottom-up forcings more important for phytoplankton communities and top-down influences primarily controlling zooplankton. Using the different productivities along this transect, planktonic biodiversity was correlated with resource availability. Phytoplankton, due to competitive exclusion, have higher diversity at lower productivities. Zooplankton, due to predation influences, have higher diversity at higher productivities. By tracking changes in planktonic biodiversity over time, both top-down effects from anthropogenic influences like overfishing and bottom-up forcings from nutrient runoff and ocean acidification may be revealed.

Type of resource	text
Date created	June 11, 2007

Author	Hoffman, KJ

Subject	Stanford@SEA
Subject	S-211
Subject	Hopkins Marine Station
Subject	Department of Biology
Subject	Department of Earth System Science
Subject	BIOHOPK 182H
Subject	BIOHOPK 323H
Subject	EARTHSYS 323
Subject	ESS 323
Subject	plankton
Subject	trophic levels
Subject	carbon cycle
Subject	fishing
Subject	phytoplankton
Subject	zooplankton
Subject	Hawaii
Subject	eddy
Subject	oligotrophic
Subject	North Pacific
Subject	gyre
Subject	equatorial
Subject	siliceous
Subject	diatoms
Subject	dinoflagellates
Subject	environmental fluctuations
Subject	planktonic biodiversity
Subject	diversity
Subject	predation
Subject	anthropogenic pressure
Subject	ocean acidification
Genre	Student project report

Location	https://purl.stanford.edu/kw319xt6304

Use and reproduction: User agrees that, where applicable, content will not be used to identify or to otherwise infringe the privacy or confidentiality rights of individuals. Content distributed via the Stanford Digital Repository may be subject to additional license and use restrictions applied by the depositor.
License: This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license (CC BY).

Preferred Citation: Hoffman, KJ. 2007. Planktonic Communities and Trophic Interactions in the North Equatorial Pacific Ocean. Unpublished Student Work, S-211, Stanford@SEA, Stanford Digital Repository. https://purl.stanford.edu/kw319xt6304.

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