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Data Type: Sponsored Research

Variability of biogeochemical processes and physical transport in a partially stratified estuary: a box-modeling analysis

Regional, seasonal, and interannual variations of freshwater inputs, biogeochemical transformations, and pelagic-benthic interactions were examined in the Patuxent River estuary. Monthly rates of net biogeochemical production (or consumption) and physical transport of carbon, oxygen, and nutrients were calculated for 6 estuarine regions using data-constrained salt- and water-balance computations (box model) with hydrologic and water quality … Read more

Drifter Observations of the Gulf of Maine Coastal Current

Two-hundred and twenty seven satellite-tracked drifters were deployed in the Gulf of Maine (GoM) from 1988 to 2007, primarily during spring and summer. The archive of tracks includes over 100,000 km logged thus far. Statistics such as transit times, mean velocities, response to wind events, and preferred pathways are compiled for various areas of the … Read more

Parasitism as a biological control agent of dinoflagellate blooms in the California Current System

Amoebophrya is a marine parasite recently found to infect and kill bloom-forming dinoflagellates in the California Current System (CCS). However, it is unknown whether parasitism by Amoebophrya can control dinoflagellate blooms in major eastern boundary upwelling systems, such as the CCS. We quantified the abundance of a common bloom-forming species Akashiwo sanguinea and prevalence of … Read more

Models of harmful algal blooms: Conceptual, empirical, and numerical approaches

In June 2009, a workshop was convened under the auspices of the Global Ecology and Oceanography of Harmful Algal Blooms (GEOHAB) program to develop strategies for using observations and models to address the science questions articulated in the Open Science Meeting Reports for each of the GEOHAB Core Research Projects (Cembella et al., 2010; Gentien … Read more

Models: Tools for synthesis in international oceanographic research programs

Through its promotion of coordinated international research programs, the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) has facilitated major progress on some of the most challenging problems in oceanography. Issues of global significance—such as general ocean circulation, the carbon cycle, the structure and dynamics of ecosystems, and harmful algal blooms—are so large in scope that they require international … Read more

Suppression of the 2010 Alexandrium fundyense bloom by changes in physical, biological, and chemical properties of the Gulf of Maine

For the period 2005–2009, the abundance of resting cysts in bottom sediments from the preceding autumn was a first-order predictor of the overall severity of spring–summer blooms of Alexandrium fundyense in the western Gulf of Maine and southern New England. Cyst abundance off mid-coast Maine was significantly higher in autumn 2009 than it was preceding … Read more

Distance maps to estimate cell volume from two-dimensional plankton images

We describe and evaluate an algorithm that uses a distance map to automatically calculate the biovolume of a planktonic organism from its two-dimensional boundary. Compared with existing approaches, this algorithm dramatically increases the speed and accuracy of biomass estimates from plankton images, and is thus especially suited for use with automated cell imaging technologies that … Read more

Long-term trends in Chesapeake Bay seasonal hypoxia, stratification, and nutrient loading

A previously observed shift in the relationship between Chesapeake Bay hypoxia and nitrogen loading has pressing implications on the efficacy of nutrient management. Detailed temporal analyses of long-term hypoxia, nitrogen loads, and stratification were conducted to reveal different within-summer trends and understand more clearly the relative role of physical conditions. Evaluation of a 60-year record … Read more

Potential climate-change impacts on the Chesapeake Bay

We review current understanding of the potential impact of climate change on the Chesapeake Bay. Scenarios for CO2 emissions indicate that by the end of the 21st century the Bay region will experience significant changes in climate forcings with respect to historical conditions, including increases in CO2 concentrations, sea level, and water temperature of 50–160%, … Read more

Analyses of the complete chloroplast genome sequences of two members of the Pelagophyceae: Aureococcus anophagefferens CCMP1984 and Aureoumbra lagunensis CCMP1507

Heterokont members of the Pelagophyceae form the massive brown tides that have continually plagued the coastal regions of the eastern U.S. seaboard and the Gulf of Mexico. To gain a better understanding of the photosynthetic competence that may be linked to their success in forming massive blooms, we sequenced the chloroplast genomes of two pelagophytes: … Read more