The origin of sedimenting detrital matter in a coastal system
Lundsgaard, C.; Olesen, M. (1997). The origin of sedimenting detrital matter in a coastal system. Limnol. Oceanogr. 42(5): 1001-1005
In: Limnology and Oceanography. American Society of Limnology and Oceanography: Waco, Tex., etc. ISSN 0024-3590; e-ISSN 1939-5590, more
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| Authors | | Top |
- Lundsgaard, C.
- Olesen, M.
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| Abstract |
Total sedimentation and the fraction due to copepod fecal pellets were measured during the growth season (March-October 1989) in the southern Kattegat, Denmark. In this period the sedimentation of detritus made up 52 g C rn-‘,equal to 82% of the sedimenting matter from the euphoticzone, but fecal pellets (11 g C mpZ) constituted only a minorfraction. The remaining detrital matter was produced by otherheterotrophs than copepods. Published data on heterotrophicbiomass and grazing obtained during the investigation in the Kattegat are reviewed in order to relate the sedimentation toprocesses in the pelagic system. Copepod defecation nearly equaled the sedimentation of fecal pellets, indicating that retentionof this matter in the pelagic system was insignificant. A considerable fraction (lo-24%) of the carbon flow processedby heterotrophic pica-, nano-, and microplankton wasconverted to detritus that was lost from the mixed system bysedimentation. The microbial food web is thus not an exclusively regenerating system. |
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