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McGillicuddy DJ, Brosnahan ML, Couture DA, He R, Keafer BA, Manning JP, Martin JL, Pilskaln CH, Townsend DW, Anderson DM. A red tide of Alexandrium fundyense in the Gulf of Maine. Deep Sea Res 2 Top Stud Oceanogr 2014. [PMID: 25170191 DOI: 10.1016/j.dsr2.2013.01.037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
In early July 2009, an unusually high concentration of the toxic dinoflagellate Alexandrium fundyense occurred in the western Gulf of Maine, causing surface waters to appear reddish brown to the human eye. The discolored water appeared to be the southern terminus of a large-scale event that caused shellfish toxicity along the entire coast of Maine to the Canadian border. Rapid-response shipboard sampling efforts together with satellite data suggest the water discoloration in the western Gulf of Maine was a highly ephemeral feature of less than two weeks in duration. Flow cytometric analysis of surface samples from the red water indicated the population was undergoing sexual reproduction. Cyst fluxes downstream of the discolored water were the highest ever measured in the Gulf of Maine, and a large deposit of new cysts was observed that fall. Although the mechanisms causing this event remain unknown, its timing coincided with an anomalous period of downwelling-favorable winds that could have played a role in aggregating upward-swimming cells. Regardless of the underlying causes, this event highlights the importance of short-term episodic phenomena on regional population dynamics of A. fundyense.
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Affiliation(s)
- D J McGillicuddy
- Department of Applied Ocean Physics and Engineering, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA 02543, USA
| | - M L Brosnahan
- Biology Department, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA 02543, USA
| | - D A Couture
- Resource Access International, Brunswick, ME 04011, USA
| | - R He
- Department of Maine, Earth, and Atmospheric Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USA
| | - B A Keafer
- Biology Department, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA 02543, USA
| | - J P Manning
- National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration, Northeast Fisheries Science Center, Woods Hole, MA 02543, USA
| | - J L Martin
- St. Andrews Biological Station, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, St. Andrews, NB E5B 2L9, Canada
| | - C H Pilskaln
- School of Marine Sciences, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, North Dartmouth, MA 02747, USA
| | - D W Townsend
- School of Marine Sciences, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469, USA
| | - D M Anderson
- Biology Department, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA 02543, USA
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