Abstract
The decline of a spring bloom dominated by dinoflagellates and the mass sedimentation of dinoflagellate cysts was documented in a coastal area of the northern Baltic Sea, SW Finland in 1983. The exceptionally large spring phytoplankton bloom was observed in early May. After depletion of nitrate phytoplankton biomass declined rapidly. The bloom was followed by intense sedimentation of spherical cysts and of organic matter at the end of May. These cysts were presumably hypnozygotes of Peridinium hangoei Schiller. Sedimentation of dinoflagellate cysts was estimated to correspond to ca. 45% of the maximum sedimentation of particulate organic carbon at this time, although most of the dinoflagellate biomass disintegrated already in the water column and was deposited as organic detritus or washed away by advection. It is concluded that the life cycle strategies of the dominant vernal phytoplankton species have a major impact on the sedimentation of the spring bloom.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
Literature cited
Anderson, D. M. (1980). Effects of temperature conditioning on development and germination of Gonyaulax tamarensis (Dinophyceae) hypnozygotes. J. Phycol. 16: 166–172
Anderson, D. M., Coats, D. W., Tyler, M. A. (1985a). Encystment of dinoflagellate Gyrodinium uncatenum: temperature and nutrient effects. J. Phycol. 21: 200–206
Anderson, D. M., Lively, J. J., Reardon, E. M., Price, C. A. (1985b). Sinking characteristics of dinoflagellate cysts. Limnol. Oceanogr. 30: 1000–1009
Anderson, D. M., Morel, F. M. M. (1979). The seeding of two red tide blooms by the germination of benthic Gonyaulax tamarensis hypnocysts. Estuar. cstl Shelf Sci. 8: 279–293
Anderson, D. M., Wall, D. (1978). The potential importance of benthic cysts of Gonyaulax tamarensis and Gonyaulax excavata in initiating toxic dinoflagellate blooms. J. Phycol. 14: 224–234
Bibby, B. T., Dodge, J. D. (1972). The encystment of a freshwater dinoflagellate: a light and electron microscopical study. Br. phycol. J. 7: 85–100
Bloesch, J., Burns, N. M. (1980). A critical review of sedimentation trap technique. Schweiz. Z. Hydrol. 42: 15–55
Butman, C. A. (1986). Sediment trap biases in turbulent flows: results from a laboratory flume study. J. mar. Res. 44: 645–693
Chapman, D. V., Dodge, J. D., Heaney, S. J. (1982). Cyst formation in the freshwater dinoflagellate Ceratium hirundinella (Dinophyceae). J. Phycol. 18: 121–129
Dale, B. (1977). Cysts of the toxic red-tide dinoflagellate Gonyaulax excavata (Braarud) Balech from Oslofjorden, Norway. Sarsia 63: 29–34
Dale, B. (1983). Dinoflagellate resting cysts: “benthic plankton”. In: Fryxell, G. A. (ed.) Survival strategies of the algae. Cambridge University Press, New York, p. 69–136
Edler, L. (ed.) (1979). Recommendations on methods for marine biological studies in the Baltic Sea. Phytoplankton and chlorophyll. The Baltic Marine Biologists 5: 1–28
Gardner, W. D. (1980). Field assessment of sediment traps. J. mar. Res. 38: 41–52
Grasshoff, K. (ed.) (1976). Methods of sea-water analysis. Verlag Chemie, Winheim
Hargrave, B. T., Burns, N. M. (1979). Assessment of sediment trap collection efficiency. Limnol. Oceanogr. 24: 1124–1136
Kononen, K., Forsskåhl, M., Huttunen, M., Sandell, M., Viljamaa, H. (1984). Practical problems encountered in phytoplankton cell volume calculations using the BMB recommendation in the Gulf of Finland. Limnologica, Berlin 15: 605–614
Kononen, K., Niemi, Å. (1984). Long-term variation of the phytoplankton composition at the entrance to the Gulf of Finland. Ophelia (Suppl.) 3: 101–110
Kuparinen, J., Leppänen, J.-M., Sarvala, J., Sundberg, A., Virtanen, A. (1984). Production and utilization of organic matter in a Baltic ecosystem off Tvärminne, southwest coast of Finland. Rapp. P.-v. Réun. Cons. int. Explor. Mer 183: 180–192
Laakkonen, A., Mälkki, P., Niemi, Å (1981). Studies on the sinking, degradation and sedimentation of organic matter off Hanko peninsula, entrance to the Gulf of Finland. Meri 9: 1–42
Margalef, R. (1978). Life-forms of phytoplankton as survival alternatives in an unstable environment. Oceanol. Acta 1: 493–509
Margalef, R., Estrada, M., Blasco, D. (1979). Functional morphology of organisms involved in red tides, as adapted to decaying turbulence. In: Taylor, D. L., Seliger, H. H. (eds.) Toxic dinoflagellate blooms. Elservier, New York, p. 89–94
Niemi, Å (1975) Ecology of phytoplankton in the Tvärminne area SW coast of Finland. II. Primary production and environmental conditions in the archipelago zone and sea zone. Acta bot. fenn. 105: 1–73
Niemi, Å., Åström, A.-M. (1987). Ecology of phytoplankton in the Tvärminne area SW coast of Finland. IV. Environmental conditions, chlorophyll a and phytoplankton in winter and spring 1984 at Tvärminne Storfjärd. Ann. Bot. Fenn. 24: 333–352
Noji, T., Passow, U., Smetacek, V. (1986). Interactions between pelagial and benthal during autumn in Kiel Bight. I. Development and sedimentation of phytoplankton blooms. Ophelia 26: 333–349
Passow, U. (1990). Vertikalverteilung und Sedimentation von Phytoplanktonarten in der mittleren Ostsee während des Frühjahres 1986. Ph. D. Thesis. Ber. Inst. MeeresKde, Keil 192: 1–203
Pfiester, L. A. (1975). Sexual reproduction of Peridinium cinctum f. ovoplanum (Dinophyceae). J. Phycol. 11: 259–265
Pfiester, L. A., Anderson, D. M. (1987). Dinoflagellate reproduction. In: Taylor, F. J. R. (ed.) The biology of dinoflagellates. Blackwell, Oxford, p. 611–648
Rassoulzadegan, F., Laval-Peuto, M., Sheldon, W. (1988). Partitioning of the food ration of marine ciliates between pico- and nanoplankton. Hydrobiologia 159: 75–88
Reid, P. C., Boalch, G. T. (1987). A new method for the identification of dinoflagellate cysts. J. Plankton Res. 9: 249–253
Salonen, K. (1979). A versatile method for the rapid and accurate determination of carbon by high temperature combustion. Limnol. Oceanogr. 24: 177–183
Seliger, H. H., Tyler, M. A., McKinley, K. R. (1979). Phytoplankton distributions and red tides resulting from frontal circulation patterns. In: Taylor, D. L., Seliger, H. H. (eds.) Toxic dinoflagellate blooms. Elsevier, New York, p. 239–248
Smetacek, V. (1985). The role of sinking in diatom life history cycles: ecological, evolutionary and geological significance. Mar. Biol. 84: 239–251
Utermöhl, H. (1958). Zur Vervollkommnung der quantitativen Phytoplankton-Methodik. Mitt. int. Verein. Limnol. 9: 1–38
Walker, L. M., Steidinger, K. A. (1979). Sexual reproduction in the toxic dinoflagellate Gonyaulax monilata. J. Phycol. 15: 312–315
Wall, D., Dale, B. (1968). Modern dinoflagellate cysts and evolution of the Peridiniales. Micropaleontology 14: 265–304
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Communicated by T. Fenchel, Helsingør
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Heiskanen, A.S. Mass encystment and sinking of dinoflagellates during a spring bloom. Marine Biology 116, 161–167 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00350743
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00350743