Back
Biotic vs. abiotic forcing on plankton assemblages varies with season and size class in a large temperate estuary
Journal article

Biotic vs. abiotic forcing on plankton assemblages varies with season and size class in a large temperate estuary

  • Rollwagen-Bollens, Gretchen ORCID School of Biological Sciences, Washington State University, Vancouver, Washington, 98686, USA
  • Bollens, Stephen School of Biological Sciences, Washington State University, Vancouver, Washington, 98686, USA
  • Dexter, Eric Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
  • Cordell, Jeffery School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, 98195, USA
  • 2020-3-5
Published in:
  • Journal of Plankton Research. - Oxford University Press (OUP). - 2020, vol. 42, no. 2, p. 221-237
Ecology
Aquatic Science
Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
English Abstract
Large river estuaries experience multiple anthropogenic stressors. Understanding plankton community dynamics in these estuaries provides insights into the patterns of natural variability and effects of human activity. We undertook a 2-year study in the Columbia River Estuary to assess the potential impacts of abiotic and biotic factors on planktonic community structure over multiple time scales. We measured microplankton and zooplankton abundance, biomass and composition monthly, concurrent with measurements of chlorophyll a, nutrient concentrations, temperature and salinity, from a dock in the lower estuary. We then statistically assessed the associations among the abundances of planktonic groups and environmental and biological factors. During the late spring high flow period of both years, the lower estuary was dominated by freshwater and low salinity-adapted planktonic taxa, and zooplankton grazers were more strongly associated with the autotroph-dominated microplankton assemblage than abiotic factors. During the early winter period of higher salinity and lower flow, nutrient (P) availability exerted a strong influence on microplankton taxa, while only temperature and upwelling strength were associated with the zooplankton assemblage. Our results indicate that the relative influence of biotic (grazers) and abiotic (salinity, flow, nutrients and upwelling) factors varies seasonally and inter-annually, and among different size classes in the estuarine food web.
Language
  • English
Open access status
closed
Identifiers
Persistent URL
https://sonar.ch/global/documents/5729
Statistics
Document views: 17 File downloads: