Abstract
Phytoplankton biomass and primary production rates within semi-enclosed reef lagoons of the central Great Barrier Reef were compared with adjacent shelf waters. Chlorophyll concentrations and surface primary production rates were usually higher in lagoons although seasonal differences were only significant during the summer. Nitrate concentrations were higher in lagoons than in shelf waters year-round. Nano- (<20 μm size fraction) or pico-phytoplankton (<2 μm size fraction) dominated phytoplankton biomass and production within reef lagoons throughout the year. Net phytoplankton (>10–20 μm size fraction), however, were relatively more important in both reef lagoons and open shelf waters during the summer. Biomass-specific production within lagoons (range 41–90 mg C mg chl−1 day−1) was high, regardless of season. Lagoonal phytoplankton production (range 0.2–1.6 g C m−2 day−1) was directly correlated with standing crop and inversely related to lagoon flushing rates. Phytoplankton blooms develop within GBR reef lagoons during intermittent calm periods when water residence times exceed phytoplankton generation times.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Andrews JC, Bode L (1988) The tides of the central Great Barrier Reef. Cont Shelf Res 8:1057–1086
Andrews JC, Furnas MJ (1986) Subsurface intrusions of Coral Sea water onto the central Great Barrier Reef. I. Structures and shelf-scale dynamics. Cont Shelf Res 6:491–514
Barnes DJ (1989) Seasonality in community productivity and calcification at Davies Reef, central Great Barrier Reef. Proc 6th Int Coral Reef Symp 2:521–527
Chavez FP, Barber RT (1987) An estimate of new production in the equatorial Pacific. Deep-Sea Res 34:1229–1244
Corredor JE, Wilkinson CR, Vincent VP, Morell SM, Otero EV (1988) Nitrate release by Caribbean reef sponges. Limnol Oceanogr 33:114–120
Dudek N, Brezezinski MA, Nelson DM (1986) Recovery of ammonium nitrogen by solvent extraction for the determination of relative15N abundance in regeneration experiments. Mar Chen 18:59–70
Pitzwater SE, Knauer GA, Martin JH (1982) Metal contamination and its effect on primary production measurements. Limnol Oceanogr 27:544–551
Furnas MJ, Mitchell AW (1984) A hydrographic, nutrient and phytoplankton biomass survey in Palm Passage (Central Great Barrier Reef) during 1983. Aust Inst Mar Sci Oceanogr Ser OS-84-1
Furnas MJ, Mitchell AW (1986) Phytoplankton dynamics in the central Great Barrier Reef. I. Seasonal changes in biomass and community structure and their relation to intrusive activity. Cont Shelf Res 6:363–384
Furnas MJ, Mitchell AW (1987) Phytoplankton dynamics in the central Great Barrier Reef. II. Primary production. Cont Shelf Res 7:1049–1062
Furnas MJ, Mitchell AW (1988) Photosynthetic characteristics of Coral Sea picoplankton (<2 μm size fraction). Biol Oceanogr 5:163–182
Gordon DC (1971) Organic carbon budget of Fanning Island lagoon. Pacific Sci 25:222–227
Hatcher AI, Frith CA (1985) The control of nitrate and ammonium concentrations in a coral reef lagoon. Coral Reefs 4:101–110
Hitchcock GL (1986) Methodological aspects of time-course measurements of14C fixation in marine phytoplankton. J Exp Mar Biol Ecol 95:233–243
Ikeda T, Gilmartin M, Revelante N, Mitchell AW, Carleton JH, Dixon P, Hutchinson SM, Hing Fay E, Boto GM, Iseki KV (1980) Biological, chemical and physical observations in inshore waters of the Great Barrier Reef, North Queensland 1975–1978. Aust Inst Mar Sci Tech Bull AIMS-OS 80-1:56
Kinsey DW (1983) Standards of performance in coral reef primary production and carbon turnover. In: Barnes DJ (ed) Perspectives on coral reefs. Clouston, Manuka, ACT, pp 209–220
Kinsey DW (1985a) Metabolism calcification and carbon production. I. System level studies. Proc 5th Int Coral Reef Congr 4:505–526
Kinsey DW (1985b) The functional role of back-reef and lagoonal systems in the central Great Barrier Reef. Proc 5th Int Coral Reef Congr 5:296–300
Kinsey DW, Domm A (1974) Effects of fertilization on a coral reef environment-primary production studies. Proc 2nd Int Coral Reef Symp 1:49–66
Laws EA, Redalje DG, Haas LW, Bienfang PK, Eppley RW, Harrison WG, Karl DM, Marra JM (1984) High phytoplankton growth and production rates in oligotrophic Hawaiian coastal waters. Limnol Oceanogr 29:1161–1169
Laws EA, DiTullio GR, Redalje DG (1987) High phytoplankton growth and production rates in the North Pacific subtropical gyre. Limnol Oceanogr 32:905–918
Legendre L, Demers S, Delesalle B, Harnois C (1988) Biomass and photosynthetic activity of phototrophic picoplankton in coral reef waters (Moorea Island, French Polynesia). Mar Ecol Prog Ser 47:153–160
Lewis JB (1977) Processes of organic production on coral reefs. Biol Rev Cambridge Philos Soc 52:305–347
Marra JH, Heinemann KR (1984) A comparison between non-contaminating and conventional incubation procedures in primary production measurements. Limnol Oceanogr 29:389–392
Martin JH, Knauer GA, Karl DH, Broenkow WW (1987) VERTEX: carbon cycling in the northeast Pacific. Deep-Sea Res 34:267–285
Olson RR (1987) In situ culturing as a test of the larval starvation hypothesis for the crown of thorns starfish,Acanthaster planci. Limnol Oceanogr 32:895–904
Pickard GL (1986) Effects of wind and tide on upper layer currents at Davies Reef, Great Barrier Reef, during MECOR (July–August 1984). Aust J Mar Freshwater Res 37:545–565
Pickard GL, Donguy JR, Henin C, Rougerie F (1977) A review of the physical oceanography of the Great Barrier Reef and Western Coral Sea. Austr Inst Mar Sci Monogr Ser 2:134 pp
Revenlante N, Gilmartin M (1982) Dynamics of phytoplankton in the Great Barrier Reef lagoon. J Plank Res 4:47–76
Ricard M (1977) Phytoplankton contribution to primary productivity in two coral reef areas of Fiji Islands and French Polynesia. Proc 3rd Int Coral Reef Symp 1:343–348
Ricard M, Delesalle B (1982) Phytoplankton and primary production of the Scilly lagoon waters. Proc 4th Int Coral Reef Symp 1:425–429
Ryle VD, Mueller HR, Gentian P (1981) Automated analysis of nutrients in tropical seawater. Aust Inst Mar Sci Oceanogr Ser OS-81–2:24
Sammarco PW, Andrews JC (1988) Localized dispersal and recrutment in Great Barrier Reef corals: the Helix experiment. Science 239:1422–1424
Solorzano L (1969) Determination of ammonia in natural waters by phenolhypochlorite method. Limnol Oceanogr 14:799–801
Sournia A, Ricard M (1975) Phytoplankton and primary productivity in Takapoto Atoll, Tuamoto Islands. Micronesia 11:159–166
Strickland JDH, Parsons TR (1972) A practical handbook of seawater analysis. Fish Res Board Can Bull 167:311 pp
Von Arx WS (1954) Circulation systems of Bikini and Rongelap lagoons, Bikini and nearby atolls, Marshall Islands. US Geol Survey Prof Paper 260B:265–273
Webb KL, Wiebe WJ (1975) Nitrification on a coral reef. Can J Microbiol 21:1427–1431
Wiebe WJ, Johannes RE, Webb KL (1975) Nitrogen fixation in a coral reef community. Science 188:257–259
Williams DMcB, Wolanski E, Andrews JC (1984) Transport mechanisms and the potential movement of plankton larvae in the central region of the Great Barrier Reef. Coral Reefs 3:229–236
Wolanski E (1987) Some evidence for boundary mixing near coral reefs. Limnol Oceanogr 32:735–739
Wolanski E, Hamner WH (1988) Topographically-controlled fronts and their biological influence. Science 241:177–181
Wolanski E, Pickard GL (1985) Long-term observations of currents on the central Great Barrier Reef continental shelf. Coral Reefs 4:47–57
Wolanski E, Burrage D, King B (1989) Trapping and dispersal of coral eggs around Bowden Reef, Great Barrier Reef, following mass coral spawning. Cont Shelf Res 9:479–496
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Furnas, M.J., Mitchell, A.W., Gilmartin, M. et al. Phytoplankton biomass and primary production in semi-enclosed reef lagoons of the central Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Coral Reefs 9, 1–10 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00686716
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00686716