Environmental characteristics and E. huxleyi coccoliths mass and morphology in the Mediterranean Sea during MedSeA and Meteor M84/3 cruises (May 2013, April 2011)

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Auteurs principaux: D'Amario, Barbara, Ziveri, Patrizia, Grelaud, Michaël, Oviedo, Angela Maria
Format: Dataset Open Access
Langue:en
Publié: PANGAEA 2018
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author D'Amario, Barbara
Ziveri, Patrizia
Grelaud, Michaël
Oviedo, Angela Maria
author_facet D'Amario, Barbara
Ziveri, Patrizia
Grelaud, Michaël
Oviedo, Angela Maria
collection Datos científicos de ciencias marinas y ambientales
contents To understand the response of marine calcifying organisms under high CO2 scenarios, it is critical to study their calcification patterns in the natural environment. This paper focuses on a major calcifying phytoplankton group, the coccolithophores, through the interpretation of water samples collected along a W-E Mediterranean transect during two research cruises, in April 2011 (Meteor cruise M84/3) and May 2013 (MedSeA cruise 2013). The Mediterranean Sea is a marginal sea characterized by large biogeochemical gradients. Currently, it is undergoing both warming and ocean acidification, processes which are rapidly modifying species distribution and calcification. The species Emiliania huxleyi largely dominates the total coccolithophore production in the Mediterranean Sea. A series of morphometric measurements were performed on the coccoliths of this species to estimate their mass, length and calculate a calcification index (proxy for the size-normalized calcification degree). The most abundant morphotype of E. huxleyi in the Mediterranean Sea is Type A. Coccoliths of this morphotype were additionally analyzed based on scanning electron microscopy images: four calcification varieties were quantified, according to the relationship between slit length - tube width, and the state of the central area (open or closed). The average E. huxleyi coccolith mass along the Mediterranean oceanographic transect depended strongly on both the average coccolith length and calcification index. The variability in average coccolith length and calcification index across samples reflected oscillations in the relative abundance of the calcification varieties. We also demonstrated that the distribution of the calcification varieties followed the main environmental gradients (carbonate chemistry, salinity, temperature, nutrient concentrations). Hence, shifts in the distribution of the calcification varieties and of the average E. huxleyi coccolith mass are to be expected in the Mediterranean Sea under climate change. These physiological and ecological responses will modulate the net coccolithophore calcification and, ultimately, the regional carbonate export to the seafloor.
format Dataset Open Access
id pangaea_https___doi_org_10_1594_PANGAEA_885694
institution PANGAEA
language en
publishDate 2018
publisher PANGAEA
record_format pangaea
spellingShingle Environmental characteristics and E. huxleyi coccoliths mass and morphology in the Mediterranean Sea during MedSeA and Meteor M84/3 cruises (May 2013, April 2011)
D'Amario, Barbara
Ziveri, Patrizia
Grelaud, Michaël
Oviedo, Angela Maria
Mediterranean Sea Acidification in a Changing Climate; MedSeA
To understand the response of marine calcifying organisms under high CO2 scenarios, it is critical to study their calcification patterns in the natural environment. This paper focuses on a major calcifying phytoplankton group, the coccolithophores, through the interpretation of water samples collected along a W-E Mediterranean transect during two research cruises, in April 2011 (Meteor cruise M84/3) and May 2013 (MedSeA cruise 2013). The Mediterranean Sea is a marginal sea characterized by large biogeochemical gradients. Currently, it is undergoing both warming and ocean acidification, processes which are rapidly modifying species distribution and calcification. The species Emiliania huxleyi largely dominates the total coccolithophore production in the Mediterranean Sea. A series of morphometric measurements were performed on the coccoliths of this species to estimate their mass, length and calculate a calcification index (proxy for the size-normalized calcification degree). The most abundant morphotype of E. huxleyi in the Mediterranean Sea is Type A. Coccoliths of this morphotype were additionally analyzed based on scanning electron microscopy images: four calcification varieties were quantified, according to the relationship between slit length - tube width, and the state of the central area (open or closed). The average E. huxleyi coccolith mass along the Mediterranean oceanographic transect depended strongly on both the average coccolith length and calcification index. The variability in average coccolith length and calcification index across samples reflected oscillations in the relative abundance of the calcification varieties. We also demonstrated that the distribution of the calcification varieties followed the main environmental gradients (carbonate chemistry, salinity, temperature, nutrient concentrations). Hence, shifts in the distribution of the calcification varieties and of the average E. huxleyi coccolith mass are to be expected in the Mediterranean Sea under climate change. These physiological and ecological responses will modulate the net coccolithophore calcification and, ultimately, the regional carbonate export to the seafloor.
title Environmental characteristics and E. huxleyi coccoliths mass and morphology in the Mediterranean Sea during MedSeA and Meteor M84/3 cruises (May 2013, April 2011)
topic Mediterranean Sea Acidification in a Changing Climate; MedSeA
url https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.885694