Biomass, feeding and production of Noctiluca scintillans in the Seto Inland Sea, Japan |
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Authors: | Nakamura Yasuo |
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Institution: | National Institute for Environmental Studies Tsukuba, lbaraki 305-0053, Japan |
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Abstract: | The abundance and biomass of the large heterotrophic dinoflagellateNoctiluca scintillans, together with the changes in its potentialprey items, were monitored in the Seto Inland Sea, Japan, duringsummer 1997 (17 July-11 August). Growth and grazing rates ofNscintillans fed natural plankton populations were also measuredeight and seven times, respectively, during the survey period.The abundance and biomass of N scintillans averaged over thewater column (19 m) were in the range 1345 cells 11(temporalaverage = 93 cell11) and 0.149.6 µg C l1(temporalaverage = 13.8 µg C l1; three times higher thanthat of calanoid copepods during the same period). Noctilucascintillans populations followed the changes in phytoplankton:N.scintillans biomass was increasing during the period of diatomblooms and was at a plateau or decreasing during periods oflow chlorophyll a. The growth rates of N.scintillans (µ)were also consistent with the wax and wane of the N.scintillanspopulation: N.scintillans showed highest growth rates duringdiatom blooms. A simple relationship between µ and chlorophylla concentration was established, and the production of N.scintillanswas estimated using this relationship and the measured biomass.The estimated production averaged over the water column wasin the range >0.15.2 µg C l1 day1(temporalaverage = 1.4 µg C l1 day1; 64% of the productionof calanoid copepods during the same period). Diatom clearancerates by N.scintillans were in the range 0.100.35 mlcell1 day1, and the phytoplankton population clearanceby N.scintillans was >12% day1. Thus, although thefeeding pressure of N.scintillans on phytoplankton standingstock was low, N.scintillans was an important member of themesozooplank-ton in terms of biomass and production in the SetoInland Sea during summer. |
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