Abstract
Our knowledge of the horizontal distribution of heavy metals in the open ocean with time and space is still very incomplete. Complementary to chemical water analyses suitable biological indicator species may be used to fill this gap. The pleuston organism Halobates micans was collected from 1966 to 1987 at 151 sampling stations of the tropical and subtropical Atlantic Ocean. The cadmium data from more than 1000 individuals analysed display a chemicaloceanographic meaningful distribution in surface waters and compare favourably to primary production values. Chemical analysis of individual plankton species offer a new tool for a better understanding of geochemical cycling of heavy metals in the ocean.
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Communicated by O. Kinne, Oldendorf/Luhe
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Schulz-Baldes, M. The sea-skater Halobates micans: an open ocean bioindicator for cadmium distribution in Atlantic surface waters. Mar. Biol. 102, 211–215 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00428282
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00428282