Abstract
The results from a series of five cruises (August 1979–January 1981) to examine rates of primary production, nitrogen assimilation and regeneration in Carmarthen Bay, S. Wales, are presented. Chlorophyll, primary production and regeneration were distributed irregularly throughout the bay, with the highest concentrations and rates being found around the shallow periphery. Nitrate was the dominant form of nitrogen assimilated by the phytoplankton, apart from periods of high biomass during the summer when ammonium assumed a more important role. The rates of ammonium regeneration from microheterotrophs were greater than the ammonium demand over much of the year, indicating that the bay was a net exporter of ammonium and was a physically dominated “open” system. During the summer, the rates of ammonium regeneration and assimilation were similar, indicating efficient recycling of nutrients.
Similar content being viewed by others
Literature cited
Bremner, J. M.: Total nitrogen and isotope ratio analysis in N-15 studies. In: Methods of soil analysis, Part 2, pp 1149–1283. Ed. by. C. A. Black. Madison, Wisconsin: American Society of Agronomy 1965
Caperon, J., D. Schell, J. Hirota and E. Laws: Ammonium excretion rates in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, measured by a 15N isotope dilution technique. Mar. Biol. 54, 33–40 (1979)
Conway, H. L. and T. E. Whitledge: Distribution, fluxes and biological utilization of inorganic nitrogen during a spring bloom in the New York Bight. J. mar. Res. 37, 657–668 (1979)
Dugdale, R. C. and J. J. Goering: Uptake of new and regenerated forms of nitrogen in primary productivity. Limnol. Oceanogr. 12, 196–206 (1967)
Eppley, R. W., J. H. Sharp, E. H. Renger, M. J. Perry and W. G. Harrison: Nitrogen assimilation by phytoplankton and other microorganisms in the surface waters of the Central North Pacific Ocean. Mar. Biol. 39, 111–120 (1977)
Fisher, T. R., P. R. Carlson and R. T. Barber: Carbon and nitrogen primary productivity in three North Carolina estuaries. Estuar. cstl Shelf Sci. 15, 621–644 (1982)
Glibert, P. M.: Regional studies of daily, seasonal and size fraction variability in ammonium remineralization. Mar. Biol. 70, 209–222 (1982)
Glibert, P. M., D. C. Biggs and J. J. McCarthy: Utilization of ammonium and nitrate during austral summer in the Scotia Sea. Deep-Sea Res. 29, 337–850 (1982)
Goldman, J. C. and P. M. Glibert: Kinetics of inorganic nitrogen uptake by phytoplankton. In: Nitrogen in the marine environment, pp 233–274. Ed. by E. J. Carpenter and D. G. Capone. New York: Academic Press 1983
Harris, G. P., G. D. Haffner and B. B. Piccinin: Physical variability and phytoplankton communities. II. Primary productivity by phytoplankton in a physically variable environment. Arch. Hydrobiol. 88, 393–425 (1980)
Harrison, W. G.: Experimental measurement of nitrogen remineralization in coastal waters. Limnol. Oceanogr. 23, 684–694 (1978)
Harrison, W. G.: Nutrient regeneration and primary production in the sea. In: Primary productivity in the sea, pp 433–460. Ed. by P. G. Falkowski. New York: Plenum Press 1980
Joint, I. R.: Phytoplankton production in Swansea Bay. In: Industrialised embayments and their environmental problems; a case study of Swansea Bay, pp 469–479. Ed. by M. B. Collins, F. T. Banner, P. A. Tyler, S. J. Wakefield and A. E. James. Oxford: Pergamon Press 1980
Joint, I. R.: Development of an ecosystem model of a turbid estuary. Can. J. Fish. aquat. Sciences 40 (Suppl. 1), 341–348 (1983)
Joint, I. R. and A. J. Pomroy: Primary production in a turbid estuary. Estuar. cstl Shelf Sci. 13, 303–316 (1981)
Lancelot, C., S. Mathot and N. J. P. Owens: Modelling protein synthesis, a step to an accurate estimate of net primary production: Phaeocystis pouchetii colonies in Belgian coastal waters. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 32, 193–202 (1986)
La Roche, J.: Ammonium regeneration: its contribution to phytoplankton nitrogen requirements in a eutrophic environment. Mar. Biol. 75, 231–240 (1983)
Laws, E. A., W. G. Harrison and G. R. DiTullio: A comparison of nitrogen assimilation rates based on 15N uptake and autotrophic protein synthesis. Deep-Sea Res. 32, 85–95 (1985)
Longhurst, A. R.: Ecological models in estuarine management. Ocean Mgmt 4, 287–302 (1978)
Mantoura, R. F. C. and A. W. Morris: Chemistry of Swansea Bay. II. Spatial heterogeneity and processes. In: Industrialised embayments and their environmental problems; a case study of Swansea Bay, pp 453–463. Ed. by M. B. Collins, F. T. Banner, P. A. Tyler, S. J. Wakefield and A. E. James. Oxford: Pergamon Press 1980
Mantoura, R. F. C., N. J. P. Owens and P. H. Burkill: Nitrogen biogeochemistry and modelling of Carmarthen Bay. In: SCOPE Symposium on Nitrogen Cycling in Coastal Marine Environments. Ed. by T. H. Blackburn and J. Sørensen. New York: Wiley (In press)
Morris, A. W. and R. F. C. Mantoura: Chemistry of Swansea Bay: I. General description. In: Industrialised embayments and their environmental problems; a case study of Swansea Bay, pp 439–452. Ed. by M. B. Collins, F. T. Banner, P. A. Tyler, S. J. Wakefield and A. E. James. Oxford: Pergamon Press 1980
Nixon, S. W. and M. E. Q. Pilson: Nitrogen in estuarine and coastal marine ecosystems. In: Nitrogen in the marine environment, pp 565–648. Ed. by E. J. Carpenter and D. G. Capone. New York: Academic Press 1983
Paasche, E. and S. Kristiansen: Ammonium regeneration by microzooplankton in the Oslofjord. Mar. Biol. 69, 55–63 (1982)
Painter, H. A.: A review of literature on inorganic nitrogen metabolism in microorganisms. Wat. Res. 4, 393–450 (1970)
Pingree, R. D., P. M. Holligan and G. T. Mardell: The effects of vertical stability on phytoplankton distributions in the summer on the northwest European shelf. Deep-Sea Res. 25, 1011–1028 (1978)
Pingree, R. D., G. T. Mardell and L. Maddock: A marginal front in Lyme Bay. J. mar. biol. Ass. U.K. 63, 9–15 (1983)
Pomroy, A. J., I. R. Joint and K. R. Clarke: Benthic nutrient flux in a shallow coastal environment. Oecologia (Berl.) 60, 306–312 (1983)
Preston, T. and N. J. P. Owens: Interfacing an automatic elemental analyser with an isotope ratio mass spectrometer: the potential for fully automated total nitrogen and nitrogen-15 analysis. Analyst 108, 971–977 (1983)
Radford, P. J.: Some aspects of an estuarine ecosystem model —GEMBASE. Ecol. Modelling 7, 301–322 (1979)
Radford, P. J. and I. R. Joint: The application of an ecosystem model of the Bristol Channel and Severn estuary. J. Inst. Wat. Pollut. Control (UK) 79, 244–254 (1980)
Rivkin, R. B.: Carbon-14 labelling patterns of individual marine phytoplankton from natural populations. Mar. Biol. 89, 135–142 (1985)
Ross, P. J. and A. E. Martin: A rapid procedure for preparing gas samples for nitrogen-15 determination. Analyst 95, 817–822 (1970)
Royal Society, London: The nitrogen cycle of the United Kingdom, 264 pp. (Report of a Royal Society study group). London: Royal Society 1983
San Pietro, A.: Measurement of stable isotopes. Meth. Enzym. 4, 473–488 (1957)
Simpson, J. H. and J. R. Hunter: Fronts in the Irish Sea. Nature, Lond. 250, 404–406 (1974)
Slawyk, G.: 13C and 15N uptake by phytoplankton in the Antarctic upwelling area: results from the Antiprod I Cruise in the Indian Ocean sector. Aust. J. mar. Freshwat. Res. 30, 431–448 (1979)
Strickland, J. D. H. and T. R. Parsons: A practical handbook of seawater analysis. Bull. Fish. Res. Bd Can. 167, 1–311 (1968)
Thayer, G. W.: Identity and regulation of nutrients limiting phytoplankton production in the shallow estuaries near Beaufort. N.C. Oecologia (Berl.) 14, 75–92 (1974)
Uncles, R. J.: Computed and observed residual currents in the Bristol Channel. Oceanol. Acta 5, 11–20 (1982)
Uncles, R. J. and I. R. Joint: Vertical mixing and its effects on phytoplankton growth in a turbid estuary. Can. J. Fish. aquat. Sciences 40 (Suppl. 1), 221–228 (1983)
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Communicated by J. Mauchline, Oban
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Owens, N.J.P., Mantoura, R.F.C., Burkill, P.H. et al. Nutrient cycling studies in Carmarthen Bay: phytoplankton production, nitrogen assimilation and regeneration. Marine Biology 93, 329–342 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00401100
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00401100