C. Kinkade et al., MONSOONAL DIFFERENCES IN PHYTOPLANKTON BIOMASS AND PRODUCTION IN THE INDONESIAN SEAS - TRACING VERTICAL MIXING USING TEMPERATURE, Deep-sea research. Part 1. Oceanographic research papers, 44(4), 1997, pp. 581-592
Measurements made in the Indonesian Seas during the 1994 northwest mon
soon (January-February) and the 1993 southeast monsoon (August-Septemb
er) show up to an order of magnitude increase in average surface chlor
ophyll a from 0.25 mg m(-3) during the northwest monsoon to over 2.5 m
g m(-3) during the southeast with a strong east-west gradient. Carbon
assimilation was similar for both seasons in the eastern seas (Banda,
Flores and Seram), 1.2 g C m(-2) day(-1), but dropped by half in the w
estern seas (Sulawesi and Makassar Strait) in February, from 1.2 to 0.
5 g C m(-2) day(-1). Areal chi a decreased in the western seas from 20
.2 to 5.5 mg m(-2) from the northwest to southeast monsoons. The easte
rn seas showed an opposite trend, with areal chi a increasing from 20.
8 to 55.8 mg m(-2) between seasons. The increase in surface and integr
al euphotic zone phytoplankton biomass in the eastern seas is correlat
ed with cooler sea surface temperatures, suggesting that phytoplankton
biomass is proportional to the strength of upwelling and vertical mix
ing. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd.