Chan F, Barth J A, Lubchenco J, Kirincich A, Weeks H, Peterson W T, Menge B A
Department of Zoology, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA.
Science. 2008 Feb 15;319(5865):920. doi: 10.1126/science.1149016.
Eastern boundary current systems are among the world's most productive large marine ecosystems. Because upwelling currents transport nutrient-rich but oxygen-depleted water onto shallow seas, large expanses of productive continental shelves can be vulnerable to the risk of extreme low-oxygen events. Here, we report the novel rise of water-column shelf anoxia in the northern California Current system, a large marine ecosystem with no previous record of such extreme oxygen deficits. The expansion of anoxia highlights the potential for rapid and discontinuous ecosystem change in productive coastal systems that sustain a major portion of the world's fisheries.
东边界流系统是世界上生产力最高的大型海洋生态系统之一。由于上升流将富含营养但缺氧的水输送到浅海,大片高产的大陆架可能容易受到极端低氧事件的风险影响。在此,我们报告了加利福尼亚北部海流系统水柱陆架缺氧现象的新出现,该大型海洋生态系统此前没有此类极端氧气亏缺的记录。缺氧区域的扩大凸显了在维持世界大部分渔业的高产沿海系统中,生态系统可能发生快速且不连续变化的可能性。