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- Hagström, Åke, et al.
(author)
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Microbial loop in an oligotrophic pelagic marine ecosystem: Possible roles of cyanobacteria and nanoflagellates in the organic fluxes
- 1988
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In: Marine Ecology Progress Series. - 0171-8630 .- 1616-1599. ; 49, s. 171-178
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In an attempt to quantify the organic fluxes within the microbial loop of oligotrophicMediterranean water, organic pools and production rates were monitored. The production of cyanobacteriaand its dynamics dominated the overall productivity in the system. The largest standing stock wasthat of the bacterioplankton and its growth consumed 8.3 pg C 1-' d-', hence about 60 % of the primaryproduction was required for bacterial growth. Using the MiniCap technique, we measured a predationon bacteria of 2 6 X 104 bacteria ml-' h-'. This was in good agreement with the bacterial production rateof 2.3 X 104 cells rnl-' h-' Thus, growth and predation were balanced for heterotrophic bacterioplankton.Almost all of this predation on bacteria was due to organisms passing a 12 vm Nuclepore filter. Thisraises the question of what mechanisms channel 60 % of primary production into bacteria. We thereforeoutlined a mass-balance model to illustrate routes that could explain this transfer. According to ourmodel the main flux route is cyanobacteria and concomitantly consumed heterotrophic bacteria carboninto bacterivores. A substantial fraction of the bacterivore and the microplankton carbon is released byexcretion and/or cell lysis, to be used by the heterotrophic bacterioplankton. About 86% of theautotrophic production is balanced by respiration due to heterotrophic bacteria and protozoa, leaving6 % of the primary production to higher trophic levels. This scenario should apply to ecosystems wherebacterial production rate is high and comparable to primary production, and the dominant primaryproducers are cyanobacteria. A significant fraction of the photosynthetically fixed carbon will bemineralized within a simple microbial loop, thus rendering it an energy sink in the foodweb.
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