Impacts of Eddies on Zooplankton Community Structure and Biogeochemical Cycling in the Open Ocean

浮游生物的分布与水柱的物理结构有关，导致斑块状，这可能显著影响生物地球化学循环和较高营养层的生产。构成海洋中尺度的洋流、锋面和涡旋，有时被称为海洋内部天气，是海洋环流的高度能量和普遍存在的特征。这些现象的动态后果包括化学和生物环境的扰动，这可能极大地影响海洋中的生物地球化学循环。最近的证据表明，中尺度涡旋是低营养副热带环流中一种重要的营养物质输送机制，在控制海洋浮游生物群落的结构和生产力方面起着重要的作用。这项研究是对与中尺度涡旋相关的中游动物群落结构的深入实地研究，以补充美国国家科学基金会最近资助的一个项目，即涡流和混合对公海生物地球化学循环的影响：复杂生物系统的调节。考虑到浮游动物在食物网中扮演的不可或缺的角色和表层水域外的物质流动，这项研究预计会发现浮游动物对这个系统中整体营养能量的转移和流动做出了重要贡献。这项免费的研究将解决以下问题：1.中尺度涡旋特征的具体物理/化学/生物特征如何影响中浮游动物的时空分布？2.涡旋如何在种群和/或个体水平上影响中浮游动物的垂直迁移行为？3.涡旋如何在种群和/或个体水平上影响中浮游动物的生理(身体状况)？4.涡旋特征内外中浮游动物动力学的差异如何影响碳的垂直通量和相关的生物元素？对浮游动物生物量、物种组成、鱼类垂直迁徙行为、身体状况和对垂直通量的贡献的测量将与一系列现有巡航中正在进行的其他物理、化学和生物测量同时进行。其目的是促进我们对涡旋中物理和生物之间复杂相互作用的理解，并阐明中尺度特征在构建浮游动物群落和影响生物地球化学循环中所起的作用。最终，这项自然扰动实验可能会提供有关海洋过去如何应对环境变化以及未来可能如何应对的关键信息。这项研究的更广泛影响包括将海洋科学教育融入研究生教育和K-12教育，以及向普通公众提供信息，从而造福社会。该项目将与现有的涡流计划协调教育和外展活动。这包括在其职业生涯之初得到一名年轻研究人员的支持，编制和加强课程，为科学教师开发公开讲座和网络课程的内容，以及参与邮轮活动的实时网络广播。

The distribution of plankton in relation to the physical structure of the water column results in patchiness, which can significantly impact biogeochemical cycling and production of higher trophic levels. The currents, fronts and eddies that comprise the oceanic mesoscale, sometimes referred to as the internal weather of the sea, are highly energetic and ubiquitous features of ocean circulation. Dynamical consequences of these phenomena include perturbation of the chemical and biological environment that can dramatically impact biogeochemical cycling in the ocean. Recent evidence suggests that mesoscale eddies are an important nutrient transport mechanism in the oligotrophic subtropical gyres, and that they are important in controlling the structure and productivity of marine planktonic communities. This study is an intensive field study of mesozooplankton community structure associated with mesoscale eddies to compliment a recently funded NSF project, Impacts of Eddies and Mixing on Biogeochemical Cycling in the Open Ocean: Regulation by a Complex Biological System. Given the integral role zooplankton play in food webs and flux of material out of the surface waters, this study expects to find that zooplankton contribute significantly to the overall trophic energy transfer and flux in this system. This complimentary study will address the following questions: 1. How do the specific physical/ chemical/ biological characteristics of mesoscale eddy features affect the spatial and temporal distribution of mesozooplankton? 2. How do eddies affect the vertical migration behavior of mesozooplankton at the population and/or individual level? 3. How do eddies affect the physiology (body condition) of mesozooplankton at the population and/or individual level? 4. How do differences in mesozooplankton dynamics within or outside eddy features affect vertical flux of carbon and associated bio-elements? Measurements of zooplankton biomass, species composition, diel vertical migration behavior, body condition, and contribution to vertical flux will be simultaneous with other ongoing physical, chemical, and biological measurements within a series of existing cruises. The goals are to advance our understanding of the complex interactions between physics and biology in eddies, and to elucidate the role mesoscale features play in structuring zooplankton communities and influencing biogeochemical cycling. Ultimately, this natural perturbation experiment could provide critical information about how the ocean has responded to environmental changes in the past, and how it might do so in the future. Broader impacts of the study include a benefit to society by infusing ocean science education into both graduate and K-12 education, as well as informing the general public. This project will coordinate education and outreach activities with the existing eddy program. This includes the support of a young investigator at the beginning of his career, curriculum development and enhancement, development of content for public lectures and web-based curriculum for science teachers, and participation in real-time web casts of cruise activities.