Effects of organic carbon, organic nitrogen, inorganic nutrients, and iron additions on the growth of phytoplankton and bacteria during a brown tide bloom

Effects of organic carbon, organic nitrogen, inorganic nutrients, and iron additions on the growth of phytoplankton and bacteria during a brown tide bloom

Christopher J. Gobler, Sergio A. Sañudo-Wilhelmy
Marine Sciences Research Center, SUNY at Stony Brook, Stony Brook, New York 11794-5000, USA

doi:10.3354/meps209019

Additions of nitrate [DON] or urea [DIC] either had no effect or significantly decreased the relative abundance of the brown tide among the algal community during experiments. In contrast, augmentation of A. anophagefferens growth and decreases in non-brown-tide phytoplankton (NBTP) growth during organic carbon (glucose) additions resulted in significant increases in the relative abundance of brown tide among phytoplankton.

This is a hardcore example of carbon dosing causing an undesirable imbalance in the microbial food web whereas nitrogen dosing had a suppressing effect on the imbalance.

The above quote continues…

Simultaneous enhancement of bacterial growth by glucose additions indicated a possible A. anophagefferens-NBTP-bacterial interaction by which monospecific brown tides may be initiated. Therefore, it is hypothesized that processes introducing copious amounts of labile DOC during A. anophagefferens blooms, such as leakage or remineralization of NBTP blooms, could promote monospecific brown tides.

Should we not, then, avoid introducing copious amounts of labile DOC to our tanks?!?