Articles scientifiques
Susan A Huntsman and Richard T Barber (1977)
Primary production off northwest Africa: the relationship to wind and nutrient conditions
Deep Sea Research, 24(1):25-33.
The flux of carbon in a eutrophic coastal upwelling region was studied in the Cap Blanc area off northwest Africa from March through May 1974. Primary production was consistently between 1 and 3 g C m-2 day-1 except inshore, where turbidity limited light penetration. Productivity reached a maximum in the mid-shelf zone and then decreased as the water moved offshore and nutrient levels declined. Chlorophyll a averaged 63 mg m-2 and was distributed similarly to carbon fixation. Assimilation numbers were inversely related to the intensity of the northeast trade wind. Photosynthesis was depressed during periods of deep mixing because the phytoplankton were maintained at an average depth corresponding to about the 10\% light level. The data indicate that mixing can limit primary productivity on a time scale of days and can make the difference between a moderately productive and highly productive upwelling system.
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