Micro-size plankton abundance and assemblages in the western North Pacific Subtropical Gyre under microscopic observation

PLoS One. 2021 Apr 26;16(4):e0250604. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0250604. eCollection 2021.

Abstract

While primary productivity in the oligotrophic North Pacific Subtropical Gyre (NPSG) is changing, the micro-size plankton community has not been evaluated in the last 4 decades, prompting a re-evaluation. We collected samples over three years (2016-2018) from depths of 10 to 200 m (n = 127), and the micro-size plankton were identified and counted to understand the heterogeneity of micro-size plankton community structure. The assemblages were consistent to the those of 4 decades ago. Dinophyceae (dinoflagellates) were the most numerically abundant, followed by Cryptophyceae and Bacillariophyceae (diatoms). The other micro-size plankton classes (Cyanophyceae, Haptophyceae, Dictyochophyceae, Euglenophyceae, and Prasinophyceae) were not always detected, whereas only Trichodesmium spp. was counted in the Cyanophyceae. Other unidentified autotrophic and heterotrophic flagellates were also significantly present, and their numeric abundance was higher than or at the same level as was that of the Dinophyceae. In the Dinophyceae, Gymnodiniaceae and Peridiniales were abundant. The chlorophyll a concentration and these class-level assemblages suggested micro-size plankton is not a major primary producer in this area. We applied generalized additive models (GAMs) and principal coordination analyses (PCoAs) to evaluate the habitats of every plankton group and the heterogeneity of the assemblages. The GAMs suggested that every classified plankton abundance showed a similar response to salinity, and we observed differences in habitats in terms of temperature and nitrate concentrations. Based on the PCoAs, we observed unique communities at the 200 m depth layer compared with those at the other sampling layers. The site scores of PCoAs indicated that the micro-size plankton assemblages are most heterogeneous at the 10 m depth layer. At such depth, diazotrophic Cyanophyceae (Trichodesmium spp.) are abundant, particularly in less-saline water. Therefore, nitrogen fixation may contribute to the heterogeneity in the abundance and assemblages in the western NPSG.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Chlorophyll A / metabolism
  • Cyanobacteria / growth & development
  • Cyanobacteria / metabolism
  • Diatoms / growth & development*
  • Diatoms / metabolism
  • Dinoflagellida / growth & development*
  • Dinoflagellida / metabolism
  • Ecosystem*
  • Nitrates / chemistry
  • Nitrates / metabolism
  • Nitrogen Fixation
  • Pacific Ocean
  • Principal Component Analysis
  • Salinity
  • Temperature

Substances

  • Nitrates
  • Chlorophyll A

Grants and funding

This work was supported by grants from the Project of the Bio-oriented Technology Research Advancement Institution, NARO (the special scheme project on advanced research and development for next-generation technology) to all. The funder did not play any role in neither the study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, nor preparation of the manuscript.