Production of viruses during a spring phytoplankton bloom in the South Pacific Ocean near of New Zealand
2012
Lagrangian studies of virus activity in pelagic environments over extended temporal
scales are rare. To address this, viruses and bacteria were examined during
the course of a natural phytoplankton bloom in the pelagic South Pacific
Ocean east of New Zealand. Daily samples were collected in a mesoscale eddy
from year days 263–278 (September 19th–October 4th, 2008). The productive
bloom transitioned from a diatom to a pico- and nanoplankton-dominated
system, resulting in chlorophyll a concentrations up to 2.43 lg L -1 . Virus
abundances fluctuated c. 10-fold (1.8 x 10 10 –1.3 x 10 11 L -1 ) over 16 days.
The production rates of virus particles were high compared with those reported
in other marine systems, ranging from 1.4 x 10 10 to 2.1 x 10 11 L -1 day -1 .
Our observations suggest viruses contributed significantly to the mortality of
bacteria throughout the bloom, with 19–216% of the bacterial standing stock
being lysed daily. This mortality released nutrient elements (N, Fe) that likely
helped sustain the bloom through the sampling period. Parametric analyses
found significant correlations with both biotic (e.g. potential host abundances)
and abiotic parameters (e.g. nutrient concentrations, temperature). These
observations demonstrate that viruses may be critical in the extended maintenance
of regeneration-driven biological production.
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