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Iron availability influences nutrient drawdown in the Heard and McDonald Islands region, Southern Ocean
Citation
Holmes, TM and Wuttig, K and Chase, Z and van der Merwe, P and Townsend, AT and Schallenberg, C and Tonnard, M and Bowie, AR, Iron availability influences nutrient drawdown in the Heard and McDonald Islands region, Southern Ocean, Marine Chemistry, 211 pp. 1-14. ISSN 0304-4203 (2019) [Refereed Article]
Copyright Statement
Copyright 2019 Elsevier B.V.
DOI: doi:10.1016/j.marchem.2019.03.002
Abstract
At the southern part of the northern Kerguelen Plateau (Southern Ocean) is an active volcanic hotspot, hosting volcanically active Heard Island and McDonald Islands (HIMI), the former of which is largely covered by glaciers. While offshore waters are persistently Fe limited, typical of the broader Southern Ocean, near shore waters over the
Kerguelen plateau show variability in Fe distributions and support a high biomass of phytoplankton during austral spring-summer. This study investigates dissolved iron (DFe) and macronutrient distributions in waters surrounding HIMI during the Heard Earth-Ocean-Biosphere Interactions (HEOBI) voyage in January-February 2016.
Comparison of surface DFe with macronutrient concentrations shows that the majority of the plateau is Fe limited in late summer and, based on comparison with previous voyages, also Fe limited in different years and earlier in the bloom season. The distribution of DFe drawdown from estimated winter inventories to observed late
summer inventories shows that DFe availability drives macronutrient uptake on the plateau. The drawdown of silicic acid decreases relative to nitrate drawdown in proximity to HIMI, in agreement with classical diatom nutrient uptake behaviour under iron replete conditions. Comparison of Fe:nitrate and Fe:phosphate drawdown ratios with expected uptake stoichiometry suggest that recycling of Fe increases with distance from Fe sources on the plateau. Lastly, comparison with data from previous voyages shows that DFe distribution varies inter-annually due to complex oceanographic conditions on the plateau, with greatest variability observed over the rough bathymetry and strongly tidally influenced region closest to HIMI. Together these data highlight the central role of Fe in driving nutrient uptake and stoichiometry in the HIMI region of the Kerguelen Plateau.
Item Details
Item Type: | Refereed Article |
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Keywords: | iron, trace metals, biogeochemistry, nutrient drawdown, Heard and McDonald islands, HEOBI, GEOTRACES process study GIpr05 |
Research Division: | Earth Sciences |
Research Group: | Oceanography |
Research Field: | Chemical oceanography |
Objective Division: | Expanding Knowledge |
Objective Group: | Expanding knowledge |
Objective Field: | Expanding knowledge in the earth sciences |
UTAS Author: | Holmes, TM (Dr Thomas Holmes) |
UTAS Author: | Wuttig, K (Dr Kathrin Wuttig) |
UTAS Author: | Chase, Z (Professor Zanna Chase) |
UTAS Author: | van der Merwe, P (Dr Pier van der Merwe) |
UTAS Author: | Townsend, AT (Associate Professor Ashley Townsend) |
UTAS Author: | Schallenberg, C (Dr Christina Schallenberg) |
UTAS Author: | Tonnard, M (Miss Manon Tonnard) |
UTAS Author: | Bowie, AR (Professor Andrew Bowie) |
ID Code: | 132236 |
Year Published: | 2019 |
Web of Science® Times Cited: | 12 |
Deposited By: | CRC-Antarctic Climate & Ecosystems |
Deposited On: | 2019-04-30 |
Last Modified: | 2020-01-06 |
Downloads: | 0 |
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