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SIMULATING TEMPORAL VARIATIONS IN NUTRIENT, PHYTOPLANKTON, AND ZOOPLANKTON ON THE INNER OREGON SHELF
Citation:
Brown, C A., T. C. Wainwright, AND W. T. Peterson. SIMULATING TEMPORAL VARIATIONS IN NUTRIENT, PHYTOPLANKTON, AND ZOOPLANKTON ON THE INNER OREGON SHELF. Presented at American Society of Limnology & Oceanography, Victoria, B.C., Canada, June 10-14, 2002.
Description:
The objective of this study is to use a numerical model to examine the linkages between physical processes and temporal variability in the plankton dynamics in a coastal upwelling system. We used a nutrient-phytoplankton-zooplankton model coupled to a two-dimensional circulation model of the Oregon shelf. Model simulations were compared to observations of surface nitrate, surface chlorophyll-a, and integrated copepod biomass. During the 1999 upwelling season, temporal variations in nitrate, chlorophyll-a, and copepod biomass on the inner shelf (8 km from shore) off of Newport, Oregon were related to variations in wind stress, suggesting bottom up controls. During the 2000 upwelling season, the model reproduced temporal variations in temperature, nitrate, and chlorophyll-a; however, the model did not reproduce variations in copepod biomass. Model simulations suggest that temporal variations in nitrate, chlorophyll-a, and copepod biomass in the inner shelf are related to variations in coastal wind forcing, rather than offshore wind forcing.