James J. Pierson

Predicting the Effects of Coastal Hypoxia on Vital Rates of the Planktonic Copepod Acartia tonsa Dana

We describe a model predicting the effects of low environmental oxygen on vital rates (egg production, somatic growth, and mortality) of the coastal planktonic copepod Acartia tonsa. Hypoxic conditions can result in respiration rate being directly limited by oxygen availability. We hypothesized that A. tonsa egg production, somatic growth, and ingestion rates would all respond in a similar manner to low oxygen conditions, as a result of oxygen dependent changes in respiration rate. Rate data for A. tonsa egg production, somatic growth, and ingestion under low environmental oxygen were compiled from the literature and from supplementary experiments. The response of these rates to oxygen was compared by converting all to the analogous units in terms of oxygen utilization, which we termed analogous respiration rate. These analogous respiration rates, along with published measurements of respiration rates, were used to parameterize and evaluate the relationship between A. tonsa respiration rate and environmental oxygen. At 18°C, our results suggest that A. tonsa experiences sub-lethal effects of hypoxia below an oxygen partial pressure of 8.1 kPa (∼3.1 mg L−1 = 2.3 mL L−1). The results of this study can be used to predict the effects of hypoxia on A. tonsa growth and mortality as related to environmental temperature and oxygen partial pressure. Such predictions will be useful as a way to incorporate the effects of coastal hypoxia into population, community, or ecosystem level models that include A. tonsa. This approach can also be used to characterize the effects of hypoxia on other aquatic organisms.

Long-Term Seasonal Trends in the Prey Community of Delta Smelt (Hypomesus transpacificus) Within the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, California

Abiotic factors and species introductions can alter food web timing, disrupt life cycles, and change life history expressions and the temporal scale of population dynamics in zooplankton communities. We examined physical, trophic, and zooplankton community dynamics in the San Francisco Estuary, California, a highly altered Mediterranean climate waterway, across a 43-year dataset (1972–2014). Before invasion by the suspension-feeding overbite clam (Potamocorbula amurensis) in the mid-1980s, the estuary demonstrated monomictic thermal mixing in which winter turbidity and cool temperatures contributed to seasonally low productivity, followed by a late-spring-summer clearing phase with warm water and peak phytoplankton blooms that continued into early winter. Following the clam invasion, we observed a shift in peak phytoplankton bloom timing, with peak productivity now occurring in May compared to June prior to the invasion. Peak abundance of several zooplankton taxa (Eurytemora affinis, Pseudodiaptomus, other calanoids, and non-copepods) also shifted to earlier in the season. We present the first evidence of a shift in the timing of peak abundance for zooplankton species that are key prey items of delta smelt (Hypomesus transpacificus), a federally threatened pelagic fish species. These timing shifts may have exacerbated well-documented food limitations of delta smelt due to declines in primary productivity since the invasion of the overbite clam. Future conservation efforts in the estuary should consider measures designed to restore the timing and magnitude of pre-invasion phytoplankton blooms.

Temperature Impacts on Eurytemora carolleeae Size and Vital Rates in the Upper Chesapeake Bay in Winter

The copepod Eurytemora carolleeae dominates vernal zooplankton biomass in the Chesapeake Bay estuarine turbidity maximum (ETM) region, where it is an important prey item for larval anadromous fish. Although there have been several zooplankton studies in the Chesapeake Bay ETM focused on spring, the importance of winter zooplankton populations for establishing these vernal conditions has not been investigated. We examined the abundance, distribution, and individual sizes of E. carolleeae in winter of 2007 and 2008 and we investigated the potential impact of varying winter conditions and rising winter temperatures on Eurytemora female carbon content, egg production rate, and generation time. We found higher abundances and larger individuals in the colder 2007 than in 2008 under similar freshwater flow conditions. Empirical estimates showed that overall zooplankton productivity was higher in 2007 than in 2008. Published recruitment indices for anadromous fish including white perch and striped bass were higher in 2007 than in 2008 in the study region. Based on these findings, we hypothesize that colder conditions resulted in larger individuals and therefore increased prey biomass available to larval fish. We further hypothesize that rising winter water temperatures will negatively impact trophic transfer of primary production to copepods and ultimately to fish.