Phytoplankton Production and Distribution in Howe Sound, British Columbia: A Coastal Marine Embayment–Fjord Under Stress

1977 ◽  
Vol 34 (7) ◽  
pp. 907-917 ◽  
Author(s):  
John G. Stockner ◽  
David D. Cliff ◽  
Douglas B. Buchanan
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Surface Layer ◽  
Light Attenuation ◽  
Marine Phytoplankton ◽  
Annual Production ◽  
Phytoplankton Production ◽  
Strong Light ◽  
Strait Of Georgia ◽  
Coastal Marine ◽  
Production And Distribution

Phytoplankton production and distribution were examined over a 2-yr period in relation to man-induced and natural factors that stress the system by mainly affecting the light regime in surface layer(s) of Howe Sound, British Columbia. Production rate and biomass values were greatest at the seaward boundary of the Sound where surface waters mix with the Strait of Georgia. Production decreases linearly in an up-inlet direction, reaching minimum values at the head of the Sound where the influence of the turbid Squamish River discharge is greatest. Annual production in the boundary waters of the Sound for 1973 and 1974 was 300 and 516 g C∙m−2, compared to an average of 118 and 163 for remaining stations. Strong light attenuation by the turbid Squamish River and flushing by the seaward moving surface layer were considered the most important factors controlling phytoplankton production and distribution in Howe Sound. Colored effluent from two pulp mills and turbid mine tailings and gravel washing water were minor perturbants to the system as a whole, but in affected bays and subregions of the Sound their effects on phytoplankton production were considerable. Annual production in Howe Sound was slightly higher than values for the Strait of Georgia and considerably greater than estimates from the North Pacific. Key words: phytoplankton, production, fjord–embayment, coastal marine, phytoplankton distribution, succession

Phytoplankton Ecology of the Strait of Georgia, British Columbia

1979 ◽  
Vol 36 (6) ◽  
pp. 657-666 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. G. Stockner ◽  
D. D. Cliff ◽  
K. R. S. Shortreed
Keyword(s):  
Surface Waters ◽  
Light Attenuation ◽  
Marine Phytoplankton ◽  
Phytoplankton Production ◽  
Fraser River ◽  
Heterogeneous Distribution ◽  
Phytoplankton Primary Production ◽  
Strait Of Georgia ◽  
Phytoplankton Ecology ◽  
Phytoplankton Distribution

Observations of phytoplankton production, abundance, and distribution were made at 16 stations in the Strait of Georgia from 1975 to 1977. The discharge of turbid Fraser River water exerts a strong influence on phytoplankton production and distribution in surface waters by rapid light attenuation and horizontal advection. At plume boundaries and back eddies where light conditions improve, very high production occurs (> 4–5 g C∙m−2∙d−1), because of rapidly replenished nutrients supplied by the Fraser River. Advection, turbulence, zooplankton grazing, and summer nitrate depletion collectively impart a heterogeneous distribution pattern to phytoplankton in the surface waters of the Strait of Georgia. Mean annual production varies from lows of 150 g C∙m−2 in Fraser River plume to highs of over 500 g C∙m−2 in sheltered boundary waters of inlets. Recent increases in ammonia and nitrate from land drainage and domestic sewage, mainly through the Fraser River, are related to increases in phytoplankton standing stocks in the Strait. Key words: phytoplankton, primary production, eutrophication, coastal marine, phytoplankton distribution and succession, chlorophyll a, pelagic

Effects of Pulpmill Effluent on Phytoplankton Production in Coastal Marine Waters of British Columbia

1976 ◽  
Vol 33 (11) ◽  
pp. 2433-2442 ◽  
Author(s):  
John G. Stockner ◽  
David D. Cliff
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Skeletonema Costatum ◽  
Light Attenuation ◽  
Quantitative Difference ◽  
Axenic Culture ◽  
Marine Phytoplankton ◽  
Phytoplankton Production ◽  
Selective Absorption ◽  
Phytoplankton Assemblages ◽  
Zone Of Influence

Phytoplankton production adjacent to two kraft pulpmills in Howe Sound, British Columbia, was considerably lower than daily rates at control stations removed from the zone of influence. Average daily production at the Port Mellon mill was 29 and 24 mg C∙m−2∙day−1 in 1973 and 1974, in contrast with 332 and 367, in respective years at the control. Less difference in production was seen between Woodfibre mill and its control, because this mill is situated in a more actively flushed location. Howe Sound studies showed little qualitative or quantitative difference between chlorophyll a levels or phytoplankton assemblages among mill and control stations. Skeletonema costatum and Thalassiosira spp. were dominant phytoplankton species. Light attenuation and selective absorption of 400–500 nm wavelength light by kraft mill effluent was considered the major factor responsible for reduced production in the zone of influence. Axenic culture studies with marine phytoplankton showed that phytotoxicity occurs only at high effluent concentrations. Our laboratory experiments suggest that, given sufficient time, it is possible for phytoplankton to adapt to relatively high effluent concentrations, if pH remains normal.

Effects of a fluctuation in Fraser River discharge of primary production in the central Strait of Georgia, British Columbia, Canada

1997 ◽  
Vol 54 (5) ◽  
pp. 1015-1024 ◽  
Author(s):  
K Yin ◽  
P J Harrison ◽  
R J Beamish
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Primary Production ◽  
River Discharge ◽  
Euphotic Zone ◽  
Early Summer ◽  
Phytoplankton Production ◽  
Fraser River ◽  
Strait Of Georgia ◽  
Chl A ◽  
First Time

High-resolution vertical profiles of salinity, temperature, fluorescence, and nutrients (NO3 and SiO4) were taken along a transect in the central Strait of Georgia, British Columbia. The Fraser River discharge increased rapidly over 4 days and then decreased over the following 3 days (June 16-19, 1991). The thickness and extent of the estuarine plume increased as a response to the increased river discharge. As the estuarine plume flowed seaward, the nutricline (NO3) became shallower and broader, resulting in an increase in NO3 in the euphotic zone. Entrainment of NO3 may explain the increase in NO3 in the surface layer, and the amount of NO3 entrained was estimated to be 5-10 times higher than river-borne NO3. The utilization of entrained nutrients increased Chl a concentrations and primary production to levels comparable with spring bloom values. Our results clearly demonstrated for the first time that entrainment of nutrients and phytoplankton production in the central Strait of Georgia are closely coupled to fluctuations in the Fraser River discharge as the estuarine plume moves seaward. The timing and magnitude of the May-June freshet could control the entrainment of nutrients and thus maintain high primary productivity in late spring - early summer.

scholarly journals Upper-crustal structure beneath the Strait of Georgia, Southwest British Columbia

2007 ◽  
Vol 170 (2) ◽  
pp. 800-812 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. K. Dash ◽  
G. D. Spence ◽  
M. Riedel ◽  
R. D. Hyndman ◽  
T. M. Brocher
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Crustal Structure ◽  
Strait Of Georgia

Characterizing spatial structures of larval fish assemblages at multiple scales in relation to environmental heterogeneity in the Strait of Georgia (British Columbia, Canada)

2018 ◽  
Vol 75 (11) ◽  
pp. 1902-1914 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lu Guan ◽  
John F. Dower ◽  
Pierre Pepin
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Environmental Heterogeneity ◽  
Multiple Scales ◽  
Larval Fish ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Multiscale Approach ◽  
Spatial Structures ◽  
Strait Of Georgia ◽  
Medium Scale

Spatial structures of larval fish in the Strait of Georgia (British Columbia, Canada) were quantified in the springs of 2009 and 2010 to investigate linkages to environmental heterogeneity at multiple scales. By applying a multiscale approach, principal coordinate neighborhood matrices, spatial variability was decomposed into three predefined scale categories: broad scale (>40 km), medium scale (20∼40 km), and fine scale (<20 km). Spatial variations in larval density of the three dominant fish taxa with different early life histories (Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii), Pacific hake (Merluccius productus), and northern smoothtongue (Leuroglossus schmidti)) were mainly structured at broad and medium scales, with scale-dependent associations with environmental descriptors varying interannually and among species. Larval distributions in the central-southern Strait were mainly associated with salinity, temperature, and vertical stability of the top 50 m of the water column on the medium scale. Our results emphasize the critical role of local estuarine circulation, especially at medium spatial scale, in structuring hierarchical spatial distributions of fish larvae in the Strait of Georgia and suggest the role of fundamental differences in life-history traits in influencing the formation and maintenance of larval spatial structures.

Factors influencing the distribution of Egregia menziesii (Phaeophyta, Laminariales) in British Columbia, Canada

1978 ◽  
Vol 56 (9) ◽  
pp. 1198-1205 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. K. Gordon ◽  
R. E. DE Wreede
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
High Temperature ◽  
Laboratory Experiments ◽  
Algal Flora ◽  
The West ◽  
Common Component ◽  
Strait Of Georgia ◽  
Low Salinity ◽  
Factors Influencing ◽  
Juan De Fuca

Egregia menziesii (Turner) Areschoug is a common component of the algal flora along the west coast of Vancouver Island, Queen Charlotte Strait, and the Strait of Juan de Fuca but is absent from the Strait of Georgia in British Columbia, Canada. This distribution pattern was found to be correlated with temperature and salinity in that E. menziesii is not present in areas where there are seasonal periods of low salinity and high temperature. To test this correlation, field transplants of sporophytes and laboratory experiments with sporophytes and culture work were carried out. The results suggest that the distribution of E. menziesii is limited by specific combinations of salinity and temperature; it requires high salinities and temperatures less than 15 °C for its survival.

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