Nitrogen loss processes in response to upwelling in a Peruviancoastal setting dominated by denitrification

Abstract. Upwelling of nutrient-rich deep waters make Eastern Boundary upwelling systems (EBUS), such as the Humboldt Current System, hotspots of marine productivity. Associated settling of organic matter to depth and consecutive aerobic de composition results in large sub-surface water volumes being oxygen-depleted. Under these circumstances organic matter remineralisation can continue via denitrification which represents a major loss pathway of bioavailable nitrogen. Another process removing significant amounts of nitrogen in these areas is anaerobic ammonium oxidation. Here we assess the interplay of suboxic water upwelling and nitrogen cycling in a manipulative off-shore mesocosm experiment. Measured denitrification rates in the oxygen-depleted bottom layer of the mesocosms mostly ranged between 5.5–20 (interquartile range), reaching up to 80 nmol N2 L−1 h−1. However, realised in-situ rates did most likely not exceed 0.6–1.6 nmol N2 L−1 h−1 (interquartile range), due to substrate limitation in the mesocosms. This was in contrast to realised rates in the surrounding Pacific. Both in the mesocosms and the Pacific Ocean anammox made only a minor contribution to overall nitrogen loss when encountered. Over the first 38 days of the experiment, total nitrogen loss calculated from denitrification and anammox rates was comparable to estimates from a full nitrogen budget in the mesocosms and ranged between ∼ 2–6 μmol N L−1. This represents up to ∼ 20 % of the initially bioavailable inorganic and organic nitrogen standing stocks. Interestingly, this loss is comparable to the total amount of particulate organic nitrogen that was exported into the sediment traps at the bottom of the mesocosms in about 20 metres depth. Altogether, this suggests that a significant portion, if not the majority of nitrogen that could be exported to depth, is already lost, i.e. converted to N2 in a relatively shallow layer of the surface ocean, provided oxygen-deficient conditions like during coastal upwelling in our study.