1

Biological Productivity andEnergy Transfer

Classification Macroscopic Algae and Plants Microscopic Algae Primary Productivity Ecosystems and Energy Transfer Trophic Levels and Biomass Pyramids

Ocea 101--The Marine Environment

The Linnaean Classification System

Kingdom Animalia Plantae Phylum Chordota Chlorophyta Class Mammalia Chlorophycae Order Cetacaea Ulvales

Family Delphinidae Ulvaceae Genus Orcinus Ulva

Species orca lactuca

2

1976--Carl WoeseRevolutionizes Classification

1976--Carl WoeseRevolutionizes Classification

3

The Tree of Life

Karner et al., Nature 409, 507 - 510 (2001)

The Role ofArchea in theoceans?

4

3 Domains, 5 Kingdoms

Although Kelp is listedunder Plantae, one ofits closest phylogeneticrelatives is a tropicalslime mode that growson walls….

Is Molecular Biology Useful?

“We share half our genome with thebanana. This is more evident in someof my acquaintances than others”

--Sir Robert May

5

Large Algae and Plants

Brown Algae (kelp) Temperate, cold waters

Green Algae Mostly freshwater

Red Algae Abundant, warm and cold water

Seed-bearing Plants Eelgrass, surfgrass, mangroves

6

Small Algae Diatoms

Silica frustule, uniquedivision

Coccolithophores Calcium carbonate plates

Dinoflagellates “two flagella”

P. Roger Sweet, Indiana University

7

Dinoflagellates:Some are bioluminescent

http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/art98/nocti.html

Noctiluca Noctiluca bloom

www.redtide.whoi.edu/hab/rtphotos/rtphotos.html

Dinoflagellates

Naked Noctiluca

8

EUKARYOTES (continued): Division Chromophyta Class Prymnesiophyceae (Haptophyceae)Coccolithophores

CaCO3 skeletal plates pCO2 increases DMS production

Emiliania huxleyiearthguide.ucsd.edu/images/eg/img/ehuxleyi.gif

Other Small Organisms 1977--Hobbie discovers the importance of

bacteria, using Acridine Orange 1981--Chisholm and Olson discover

picoplankton: Cyanobacteria (or blue-green algae) Prochlorococcus

Late 1990s--Delong and others recognizeimportance of archaea

2000-02--Small organisms dominate?

9

PROKARYOTES (continued):Synechococcus

Discovered in 1979 very small (ca. 1 µm) contains phycoerythrin can fluoresce orange or red counted with epifluorescence

microscopy or flow cytometry

reprinted from Johnson and Sieburth 1979http://www.woodrow.org/teachers/esi/1999/princeton/projects/cyanopigs/data.htm

Discovered in 1988 Very small (<1.0µm)

Divinyl chl a Counted by flow

cytometry Most abundant

autotroph on earth

PROKARYOTES (continued):Prochlorococcus

reprinted from Johnson and Sieburth 1979

10

PROKARYOTES (continued):Trichodesmium(Oscillatoria thiebautii)

Forms aggregates Fixes nitrogen Can migrate vertically May transport phosphate

from depth to nearsurface

New productiontransports more C

http://www.botan.su.se/fysiologi/Cyano/Tricho.jpg

www.aims.gov.au/pages/research/ trichodesmium/tricho-01.html

Trichodesmiumbloom

11

Primary ProductivityPhotosynthesis is an oxidation-reduction reaction

6 CO2 + 6 H20 C6H12O6 +6 O2

2 H20 + Light 4 H+ + 4e- + O2 (oxidation of H2O)

CO2 + 4H+ + 4e- CH2O + H2O(reduction of carbon)

In plants, these reactions arecatalyzed by pigments.

Types of Productivity Gross Production: The total amount of

carbon fixed, or oxygen generated

Net Production: Gross minus the cost ofrespiration, reproduction

Net = (Gross - Reprod. - Respiration)

12

13

Export Production Map

“Phytoplankton are the blood of the sea” --- Victor Hensen

“All fish is diatoms” --- Henry Bigelow

Daily average primary production and annual fish catch for the four eastern boundary current largemarine ecosystem regimes (global average daily production is provided for reference). These fourLMEs account for only 1.9% of the world’s oceans, but represent 3.7% of global production andgreater than 23% of global fish catch. Figure based on data from the FAO fisheries database.

14

Patterns of Productivity• The Net Result: there is alarge “Spring Bloom” inthe North Atlantic(temperate latitudes…remember the GulfStream!)

15

Patterns of Productivity

Patterns of Productivity

16

Patterns of Productivity

Ecosystems and Energy Transfer Ecosystem: biotic community + environment Producers Consumers Decomposers

17

Ecosystems and Energy Transfer Energy is always lost!

Ecosystems and Energy Transfer

Trophic Levels: each level of organism Trophic Transfer: percentage of energy

18

The Microbial Web Viruses can account for

a major source ofphytoplankton mortality

Bacteria canprovide 50% ofphytoplanktonnutrients

Some ecosystemscan be netheterotrophic

Illustration by S. Cook, Scripps Institution of Oceanography

19

Food Chains: short, direct transfer ofenergy from phytoplankton to apexpredators