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Southern Ocean phytoplankton stimulated by wildfire emissions and sustained by iron recycling
Citation
Weis, J and Schallenberg, C and Chase, Z and Bowie, AR and Wojtasiewicz, B and Perron, MMG and Mallet, MD and Strutton, PG, Southern Ocean phytoplankton stimulated by wildfire emissions and sustained by iron recycling, Geophysical Research Letters, 49, (11) Article e2021GL097538. ISSN 0094-8276 (2022) [Refereed Article]
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Copyright Statement
© 2022. The Authors. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License, (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/) which permits use and distribution in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non-commercial and no modifications or adaptations are made.
Abstract
Large ash plumes emitted by the 2019–2020 Australian wildfires were associated with a widespread phytoplankton bloom in the iron-limited Pacific sector of the Southern Ocean. In this study, we used satellite observations and aerosol reanalysis products to study the regional phytoplankton community response to wildfire emissions. The bloom was stimulated by pyrogenic iron fertilization and coincided with elevated cellular pigment concentrations, increased photochemical efficiency, and apparent community structural shifts. Physiological anomalies were consistent with previously observed phytoplankton responses to iron stress relief and persisted for up to 9 months. Supported by a regional iron budget, we conclude that the bloom was sustained by iron recycling and episodic inputs of pyrogenic and dust-borne mineral iron. The continuous regeneration of iron was likely facilitated by the bloom's large size, mitigating edge dilution effects, as well as enhanced bioavailability of pyrogenic and mineral iron due to atmospheric and chemical processing during long-range transport.
Item Details
| Item Type: | Refereed Article |
|---|---|
| Keywords: | Southern Ocean, phytoplankton, wildfire emissions, iron recycling |
| 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: | Weis, J (Mr Jakob Weis) |
| UTAS Author: | Schallenberg, C (Dr Christina Schallenberg) |
| UTAS Author: | Chase, Z (Professor Zanna Chase) |
| UTAS Author: | Bowie, AR (Professor Andrew Bowie) |
| UTAS Author: | Wojtasiewicz, B (Dr Bozena Wojtasiewicz) |
| UTAS Author: | Perron, MMG (Miss Morgane Perron) |
| UTAS Author: | Mallet, MD (Dr Marc Mallet) |
| UTAS Author: | Strutton, PG (Professor Peter Strutton) |
| ID Code: | 150790 |
| Year Published: | 2022 |
| Funding Support: | Australian Research Council (DP190103504) |
| Deposited By: | Oceans and Cryosphere |
| Deposited On: | 2022-06-30 |
| Last Modified: | 2022-11-03 |
| Downloads: | 8 View Download Statistics |
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