Alexis Chaigneau

Acoustic Observation of Living Organisms Reveals the Upper Limit of the Oxygen Minimum Zone

Background Oxygen minimum zones (OMZs) are expanding in the World Ocean as a result of climate change and direct anthropogenic influence. OMZ expansion greatly affects biogeochemical processes and marine life, especially by constraining the vertical habitat of most marine organisms. Currently, monitoring the variability of the upper limit of the OMZs relies on time intensive sampling protocols, causing poor spatial resolution. Methodology/Principal Findings Using routine underwater acoustic observations of the vertical distribution of marine organisms, we propose a new method that allows determination of the upper limit of the OMZ with a high precision. Applied in the eastern South-Pacific, this original sampling technique provides high-resolution information on the depth of the upper OMZ allowing documentation of mesoscale and submesoscale features (e.g., eddies and filaments) that structure the upper ocean and the marine ecosystems. We also use this information to estimate the habitable volume for the worlds most exploited fish, the Peruvian anchovy (Engraulis ringens). Conclusions/Significance This opportunistic method could be implemented on any vessel geared with multi-frequency echosounders to perform comprehensive high-resolution monitoring of the upper limit of the OMZ. Our approach is a novel way of studying the impact of physical processes on marine life and extracting valid information about the pelagic habitat and its spatial structure, a crucial aspect of Ecosystem-based Fisheries Management in the current context of climate change.

Oxygen: A Fundamental Property Regulating Pelagic Ecosystem Structure in the Coastal Southeastern Tropical Pacific

Background In the southeastern tropical Pacific anchovy (Engraulis ringens) and sardine (Sardinops sagax) abundance have recently fluctuated on multidecadal scales and food and temperature have been proposed as the key parameters explaining these changes. However, ecological and paleoecological studies, and the fact that anchovies and sardines are favored differently in other regions, raise questions about the role of temperature. Here we investigate the role of oxygen in structuring fish populations in the Peruvian upwelling ecosystem that has evolved over anoxic conditions and is one of the worlds most productive ecosystems in terms of forage fish. This study is particularly relevant given that the distribution of oxygen in the ocean is changing with uncertain consequences. Methodology/Principal Findings A comprehensive data set is used to show how oxygen concentration and oxycline depth affect the abundance and distribution of pelagic fish. We show that the effects of oxygen on anchovy and sardine are opposite. Anchovy flourishes under relatively low oxygen conditions while sardine avoid periods/areas with low oxygen concentration and restricted habitat. Oxygen consumption, trophic structure and habitat compression play a fundamental role in fish dynamics in this important ecosystem. Conclusions/Significance For the ocean off Peru we suggest that a key process, the need to breathe, has been neglected previously. Inclusion of this missing piece allows the development of a comprehensive conceptual model of pelagic fish populations and change in an ocean ecosystem impacted by low oxygen. Should current trends in oxygen in the ocean continue similar effects may be evident in other coastal upwelling ecosystems.

Broad impacts of fine-scale dynamics on seascape structure from zooplankton to seabirds

In marine ecosystems, like most natural systems, patchiness is the rule. A characteristic of pelagic ecosystems is that their ‘substrate’ consists of constantly moving water masses, where ocean surface turbulence creates ephemeral oases. Identifying where and when hotspots occur and how predators manage those vagaries in their preyscape is challenging because wide-ranging observations are lacking. Here we use a unique data set, gathering high-resolution and wide-range acoustic and GPS-tracking data. We show that the upper ocean dynamics at scales less than 10 km play the foremost role in shaping the seascape from zooplankton to seabirds. Short internal waves (100 m–1 km) play a major role, while submesoscale (~1–20 km) and mesoscale (~20–100 km) turbulence have a comparatively modest effect. Predicted changes in surface stratification due to global change are expected to have an impact on the number and intensity of physical structures and thus biological interactions from plankton to top predators.

Finescale Vertical Structure of the Upwelling System off Southern Peru as Observed from Glider Data

AbstractThe upwelling system off southern Peru has been observed using an autonomous underwater vehicle (a Slocum glider) during October–November 2008. Nine cross-front sections have been carried out across an intense upwelling cell near 14°S. During almost two months, profiles of temperature, salinity, and fluorescence were collected at less than 1-km resolution, between the surface and 200-m depth. Estimates of alongshore absolute geostrophic velocities were inferred from the density field and the glider drift between two surfacings. In the frontal region, salinity and biogeochemical fields displayed cross-shore submesoscale filamentary structures throughout the mission. Those features presented a width of 10–20 km, a vertical extent of ~150 m, and appeared to propagate toward the shore. They were steeper than isopycnals and kept an aspect ratio close to f/N, the inverse of the Prandtl ratio. These filamentary structures may be interpreted mainly as a manifestation of submesoscale turbulence through sti...

Impact of a coastal‐trapped wave on the near‐coastal circulation of the Peru upwelling system from glider data

alongshore velocity data from a glider repetitive section off the coast of Peru (14°S) are used to study the cross-shore structure and temporal variability of the Peru current system during a 5 week period in April-May 2010. Besides providing substantial information on the surface frontal jet associated with the Peru Coastal Current and the surfacing Peru-Chile Undercurrent that flows poleward trapped on the continental shelf and slope, the glider data reveal the presence of an intense deep equatorward current, which transports up to ˜2.5 Sv. The dynamics of this current are investigated using an eddy-resolving regional model. The variability of the vertically sheared alongshore flow is shown to be related to the passage of a poleward propagating coastal-trapped wave likely of equatorial origin. Solutions from a two-dimensional, linear, coastal wave model suggest that the alongshore current observed vertical structure is associated with the second and third baroclinic modes of the coastal-trapped wave.

Seasonal and interannual variations of the upper ocean energetics between Tasmania and Antarctica

Nine years of Topex/Poseidon and ERS satellite altimetry and XBT data from the SURVOSTRAL program were used to analyze the seasonal and interannual variations of the eddy energetics in terms of its spatial distribution and relation with the upper ocean heat content. Eddy kinetic energy is calculated in two frequency bands one associated with transient and the other with low-frequency variability. The two eddy components have distinct geographical distribution. At the SURVOSTRAL line, the transient eddy energy is twice the low-frequency energy, with maximum transient energy occurring during the austral summer period and maximum low-frequency energy in winter. The site is one of growing eddy energy. Eddy momentum flux is northward over the SURVOSTRAL line, and the summertime eddy heat flux is poleward across the Subantarctic and Subtropical Fronts, and equatorward either side of the fronts. Eddy fluxes are strongly influenced by their position relative to the bathymetry and the mean current.

Lagrangian study of the Panama Bight and surrounding regions

Near-surface circulation of the Panama Bight and surrounding regions [0-9°N; 73°W-90°W] was studied using satellite-tracked drifter trajectories from 1979-2004. This region encompasses three major currents showing typical velocities of ∼30 cm s−1: (1) the eastward North Equatorial Counter Current (NECC), (2) the near-circular Panama Bight Cyclonic Gyre (PBCG), and (3) the westward South Equatorial Current (SEC). We do not observe significant modification of the mean surface circulation during El Nino Southern Oscillation events, even if the SEC is slightly reinforced during relatively warm El Nino periods. At seasonal scales, the circulation is strongly controlled by the activity of the Panama wind-jet: in boreal winter, the currents are stronger and an anticyclonic cell is present west of the PBCG. This dipole leads to a strong ∼200 km wide southward current which then disappears during the rest of the year. In summer, the three major currents have reduced intensity by 30%-40%. Large-scale current vorticity shows that the upwelling associated with the PBCG is also 3-4 times stronger in winter than during summer months. The kinetic energy is largely dominated by eddy activity and its intensity is double in winter than during summer. Ageostrophic motions and eddy activity appear to have a substantial impact on the energy spatial distribution. In the NECC and SEC regions, Lagrangian scales are anisotropic and zonally enhanced in the direction of the mean currents. The typical integral time and length scales of these regions are 2.5 days and 50-60 km in the zonal direction and 1.5 days and 25-30 km in the meridional direction. Lateral eddy diffusivity coefficients are on the order of 11-14 107 cm2 s−1 zonally and 5-6 107 cm2 s−1 meridionally. In contrast, in the PBCG region, the Lagrangian characteristics are isotropic with typical timescales of 1.7 days, space scales of 30 km and eddy diffusivity coefficients of 6 107 cm2 s−1 in both directions.

Seasonality in marine ecosystems : peruvian seabirds, anchovy, and oceanographic conditions

In fluctuating environments, matching breeding timing to periods of high resource availability is crucial for the fitness of many vertebrate species, and may have major consequences on population health. Yet, our understanding of the proximate environmental cues driving seasonal breeding is limited. This is particularly the case in marine ecosystems, where key environmental factors and prey abundance and availability are seldom quantified. The Northern Humboldt Current System (NHCS) is a highly productive, low-latitude ecosystem of moderate seasonality. In this ecosystem, three tropical seabird species (the Guanay Cormorant Phalacrocorax bougainvillii, the Peruvian Booby Sula variegata, and the Peruvian Pelican Pelecanus thagus) live in sympatry and prey almost exclusively on anchovy, Engraulis ringens. From January 2003 to December 2012, we monitored 31 breeding sites along the Peruvian coast to investigate the breeding cycle of these species. We tested for relationships between breeding timing, oceanographic conditions, and prey availability using occupancy models. We found that all three seabird species exhibited seasonal breeding patterns, with marked interspecific differences. Whereas breeding mainly started during the austral winter/early spring and ended in summer/early fall, this pattern was stronger in boobies and pelicans than in cormorants. Breeding onset mainly occurred when upwelling was intense but ecosystem productivity was below its annual maxima, and when anchovy were less available and in poor physiological condition. Conversely, the abundance and availability of anchovy improved during chick rearing and peaked around the time of fledging. These results suggest that breeding timing is adjusted so that fledging may occur under optimal environmental conditions, rather than being constrained by nutritional requirements during egg laying. Adjusting breeding time so that fledglings meet optimal conditions at independence is unique compared with other upwelling ecosystems and could be explained by the relatively high abundances of anchovy occurring throughout the year in the NHCS.

Acoustics Reveals the Presence of a Macrozooplankton Biocline in the Bay of Biscay in Response to Hydrological Conditions and Predator-Prey Relationships

Bifrequency acoustic data, hydrological measurements and satellite data were used to study the vertical distribution of macrozooplankton in the Bay of Biscay in relation to the hydrological conditions and fish distribution during spring 2009. The most noticeable result was the observation of a ‘biocline’ during the day i.e., the interface where zooplankton biomass changes more rapidly with depth than it does in the layers above or below. The biocline separated the surface layer, almost devoid of macrozooplankton, from the macrozooplankton-rich deeper layers. It is a specific vertical feature which ties in with the classic diel vertical migration pattern. Spatiotemporal correlations between macrozooplankton and environmental variables (photic depth, thermohaline vertical structure, stratification index and chlorophyll-a) indicate that no single factor explains the macrozooplankton vertical distribution. Rather a set of factors, the respective influence of which varies from region to region depending on the habitat characteristics and the progress of the spring stratification, jointly influence the distribution. In this context, the macrozooplankton biocline is potentially a biophysical response to the search for a particular depth range where light attenuation, thermohaline vertical structure and stratification conditions together provide a suitable alternative to the need for expending energy in reaching deeper water without the risk of being eaten.

Density dependence, prey accessibility and prey depletion by fisheries drive Peruvian seabird population dynamics

In marine ecosystems top predator populations are shaped by environmental factors affecting their prey abundance. Coupling top predators’ population studies with independent records of prey abundance suggests that prey fluctuations affect fecundity parameters and abundance of their predators. However, prey may be abundant but inaccessible to their predators and a major challenge is to determine the relative importance of prey accessibility in shaping seabird populations. In addition, disentangling the effects of prey abundance and accessibility from the effects of prey removal by fisheries, while accounting for density dependence, remains challenging for marine top predators. Here, we investigate how climate, population density, and the accessibility and removal of prey (the Peruvian anchovy Engraulis ringens) by fisheries influence the population dynamics of the largest sedentary seabird community (≈ 4 million individuals belonging to guanay cormorant Phalacrocorax bougainvillii, Peruvian booby Sula variegata and Peruvian pelican Pelecanus thagus) of the northern Humboldt Current System over the past half-century. Using Gompertz state–space models we found strong evidence for density dependence in abundance for the three seabird species. After accounting for density dependence, sea surface temperature, prey accessibility (defined by the depth of the upper limit of the subsurface oxygen minimum zone) and prey removal by fisheries were retained as the best predictors of annual population size across species. These factors affected seabird abundance the current year and with year lags, suggesting effects on several demographic parameters including breeding propensity and adult survival. These findings highlight the effects of prey accessibility and fishery removals on seabird populations in marine ecosystems. This will help refine management objectives of marine ecosystems in order to ensure sufficient biomass of forage fish to avoid constraining seabird population dynamics, while taking into account of the effects of environmental variability.