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Design and Use of an Apparatus for Quantifying Bivalve Suspension Feeding at Sea
Published on: September 5, 2018
Long-term discrepancy between food supply and demand in the deep eastern north pacific
1Marine Biology Research Division, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093-0202, USA. Marine and Environmental Studies Program, University of San Diego, 5998 Alcala Park, Sa.
Abstract:
A 7-year study of food supply [sinking particulate organic carbon (POC)] and food demand [sediment community oxygen consumption (SCOC)] in the abyssal eastern North Pacific revealed a long-term deficit in food supply. The POC:SCOC ratio decreased by 52 to 59 percent between 1989 and 1996. A possible explanation for this trend is the documented sea surface temperature increase and concomitant plankton biomass decrease in the eastern North Pacific, resulting in an apparent reduction in POC export from surface waters to the deep ocean. Continuation of this trend could profoundly impact geochemical cycling as well as the structure and dynamics of deep-sea communities.
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