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Seasonal and areal changes in standing stocks of phytoplankton, zooplankton and micronekton in the eastern tropical pacific

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Abstract

Five standing stocks were measured together at similar latitudes and longitudes on seasonally repetitive cruises in 3 areas — western, eastern, and southern — of the eastern tropical Pacific. The stocks were chlorophyll a at 0 to 150 m depth (mg/m2), night and day zooplankton at 0 to 200 m depth (ml/1000 m3), and night crustacean micronekton and fish-pluscephalopod micronekton at 0 to 200 m depth (ml/1000 m3). The logarithms of the measurements of each stock in each area were subjected to analysis of variance with the following factors: season (2 month period), latitude, and longitude. Seasonal coverage was most comprehensive, with 7 successive periods, in the western area (approximately 16° N to 3° S latitude, 100° to 122° W longitude). Most stocks in most parts of the western area had a simple seasonal cycle of low amplitude, with a single maximum and minimum that usually differed by a factor <2; some stocks in some parts of the area exhibited no seasonal cycle; all statistically significant cycles, except for fish-plus-cephalopod micronekton, were similar in phase. In the other two areas, located broadly to the east and south of the western area, suitable measurements were made at only 2 periods (opposite seasons) of the year. There were indications of phase differences between chlorophyll a and zooplankton in the eastern area, which should be further investigated. Most standing stocks declined gradually from east to west, and were higher in known upwelling areas and areas of shoal thermocline than elsewhere.

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Author notes

  1. M. Blackburn

    Present address: Institute of Marine Resources, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA

  2. B. Zeitzschel

    Present address: Abt. für Marine Planktologie, Institut für Meereskunde an der Universität Kiel, Hohenbergstraße 2, 23, Kiel, W. Germany

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Marine Resources, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA

    B. Zeitzschel

  2. Fishery-Oceanography Center, Bureau of Commercial Fisheries, Department of the Interior, La Jolla, California, USA

    R. M. Laurs & R. W. Owen

Authors
  1. M. Blackburn
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  2. R. M. Laurs
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  3. R. W. Owen
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  4. B. Zeitzschel
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Communicated by G. L. Voss, Miami

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Blackburn, M., Laurs, R.M., Owen, R.W. et al. Seasonal and areal changes in standing stocks of phytoplankton, zooplankton and micronekton in the eastern tropical pacific. Marine Biology 7, 14–31 (1970). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00346804

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