Coccolith-calcite Sr/Ca as a proxy for transient export production related to Saharan dust deposition in the tropical North Atlantic

C V Guerreiro; P Ziveri; C Cavaleiro; J-B W Stuut

doi:10.1038/s41598-024-54001-3

Coccolith-calcite Sr/Ca as a proxy for transient export production related to Saharan dust deposition in the tropical North Atlantic

C V Guerreiro, P Ziveri, C Cavaleiro, J-B W Stuut

Earth and Climate

Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article › Academic › peer-review

Abstract

Atmospheric dust deposition can modulate the earth's climate and atmospheric CO 2 through fertilising the ocean (nutrient source) and by accelerating the biological carbon pump through fuelling the ballasting process. To distinguish the biogeochemical effects of Saharan dust with respect to fertilization and ballasting, and to gain a broader perspective on the coccolith calcite Sr/Ca in relation to the drivers of coccolith export production, we determined the coccolith-Sr/Ca from a one-year (2012-2013) time-series sediment trap record in the western tropical North Atlantic (M4-49°N/12°W). High Sr/Ca were linked to enhanced export production in the upper part of the photic zone, most notably under windier, dry, and dustier conditions during spring. Attenuated Sr/Ca in the autumn probably reflect a combination of lower Sr-incorporation by dominant but small-size placolith-bearing species and the presence of "aged" coccoliths rapidly scavenged during a highly productive and usually fast export event, likely added by (wet) dust ballasting. Higher Sr/Ca observed in the large coccolith size fractions support the existing notion that larger-sized coccolithophores incorporate more Sr during calcification under the same environmental conditions. The presence of the abnormally Sr-rich species Scyphosphaera apsteinii is also shown in the separated large fraction of our Sr/Ca seasonal data.

Original language	English
Article number	4295
Pages (from-to)	1-12
Number of pages	12
Journal	Scientific Reports
Volume	14
Early online date	21 Feb 2024
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-54001-3
Publication status	Published - 2024

Bibliographical note

Funding

The authors thank the crew of Pelagia cruise 64PE378, as well as the NIOZ technicians for their contributions. Mooring M4 was managed by the NIOZ in the framework of the projects TRAFFIC funded by NWO (no. 822.01.008), and DUSTTRAFFIC funded by ERC (no. 311152), directed by JBS. Lab preparation of the 1/5 split of the original sediment trap samples was conducted at the NIOZ; the splitting, filtering, SEM taxonomical analysis were performed at Uni-Bremen, Germany. The coccolith biometric analysis, as well as the quantification and discussion of the coccolith-CaCO3 fluxes were performed at MARUM, Germany, and at the University of Lisbon (MARE/ARNET and Nanolab/IDL), Portugal. Microscope analysis of the coccolith size fractions performed at the University of Lisbon (Nanolab/IDL). Geochemical analysis performed at ICTA-UAB, Institut de Ciència i Tecnologia Ambientals—Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain. CVG benefited from a MSCA supported by Uni-Bremen and the EU FP7 COFUND (Grant No. 600411) and a MSCA supported by the EU H2020-MSCA-IF-2017 (Grant No. 796802—DUSTCO,) and currently benefits from a research grant funded by FCT (CEECIND/00752/2018/CP1534/CT0011—CHASE www.chase-dust.com). This study was also supported by CALMED (#CTM2016-79547-R) and the Generalitat de Catalunya MERS (#2017 SGR-1588). The authors acknowledge the NASA’s Ocean Biology Processing Group (https://oceancolor.gsfc.nasa.gov). This publication was financed by the Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) through the project UIDP/04292/2020 (https://doi.org/10.54499/UIDP/04292/2020), UIDB/04292/2020 (https://doi.org/10.54499/UIDB/04292/2020), awarded to MARE and through project LA/P/0069/2020 (https://doi.org/10.54499/LA/P/0069/2020) granted to the Associate Laboratory ARNET. The authors thank the crew of Pelagia cruise 64PE378, as well as the NIOZ technicians for their contributions. Mooring M4 was managed by the NIOZ in the framework of the projects TRAFFIC funded by NWO (no. 822.01.008), and DUSTTRAFFIC funded by ERC (no. 311152), directed by JBS. Lab preparation of the 1/5 split of the original sediment trap samples was conducted at the NIOZ; the splitting, filtering, SEM taxonomical analysis were performed at Uni-Bremen, Germany. The coccolith biometric analysis, as well as the quantification and discussion of the coccolith-CaCO fluxes were performed at MARUM, Germany, and at the University of Lisbon (MARE/ARNET and Nanolab/IDL), Portugal. Microscope analysis of the coccolith size fractions performed at the University of Lisbon (Nanolab/IDL). Geochemical analysis performed at ICTA-UAB, Institut de Ciència i Tecnologia Ambientals—Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain. CVG benefited from a MSCA supported by Uni-Bremen and the EU FP7 COFUND (Grant No. 600411) and a MSCA supported by the EU H2020-MSCA-IF-2017 (Grant No. 796802—DUSTCO,) and currently benefits from a research grant funded by FCT (CEECIND/00752/2018/CP1534/CT0011—CHASE www.chase-dust.com ) . This study was also supported by CALMED (#CTM2016-79547-R) and the Generalitat de Catalunya MERS (#2017 SGR-1588). The authors acknowledge the NASA’s Ocean Biology Processing Group ( https://oceancolor.gsfc.nasa.gov ). This publication was financed by the Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) through the project UIDP/04292/2020 ( https://doi.org/10.54499/UIDP/04292/2020 ), UIDB/04292/2020 ( https://doi.org/10.54499/UIDB/04292/2020 ), awarded to MARE and through project LA/P/0069/2020 ( https://doi.org/10.54499/LA/P/0069/2020 ) granted to the Associate Laboratory ARNET. 3

Funders	Funder number
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Koninklijk Nederlands Instituut voor Onderzoek der Zee
H2020 Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
Institut de Ciència i Tecnologia Ambientals
MARUM – Zentrum für Marine Umweltwissenschaften
European Commission
DUSTTRAFFIC
European Research Council
EU H2020-MSCA-IF-2017
CALMED	2016-79547-R
NWO	822.01.008
Horizon 2020 Framework Programme	796802
Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia	LA/P/0069/2020, UIDP/04292/2020, CEECIND/00752/2018/CP1534/CT0011, UIDB/04292/2020
Seventh Framework Programme	311152
Generalitat de Catalunya	2017 SGR-1588
Seventh Framework Programme	600411

Keywords

Dust
coccolithophores
Fertilization
Productivity

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10.1038/s41598-024-54001-3

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title = "Coccolith-calcite Sr/Ca as a proxy for transient export production related to Saharan dust deposition in the tropical North Atlantic",

abstract = "Atmospheric dust deposition can modulate the earth's climate and atmospheric CO 2 through fertilising the ocean (nutrient source) and by accelerating the biological carbon pump through fuelling the ballasting process. To distinguish the biogeochemical effects of Saharan dust with respect to fertilization and ballasting, and to gain a broader perspective on the coccolith calcite Sr/Ca in relation to the drivers of coccolith export production, we determined the coccolith-Sr/Ca from a one-year (2012-2013) time-series sediment trap record in the western tropical North Atlantic (M4-49°N/12°W). High Sr/Ca were linked to enhanced export production in the upper part of the photic zone, most notably under windier, dry, and dustier conditions during spring. Attenuated Sr/Ca in the autumn probably reflect a combination of lower Sr-incorporation by dominant but small-size placolith-bearing species and the presence of {"}aged{"} coccoliths rapidly scavenged during a highly productive and usually fast export event, likely added by (wet) dust ballasting. Higher Sr/Ca observed in the large coccolith size fractions support the existing notion that larger-sized coccolithophores incorporate more Sr during calcification under the same environmental conditions. The presence of the abnormally Sr-rich species Scyphosphaera apsteinii is also shown in the separated large fraction of our Sr/Ca seasonal data. ",

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AU - Ziveri, P

AU - Cavaleiro, C

AU - Stuut, J-B W

PY - 2024

Y1 - 2024

N2 - Atmospheric dust deposition can modulate the earth's climate and atmospheric CO 2 through fertilising the ocean (nutrient source) and by accelerating the biological carbon pump through fuelling the ballasting process. To distinguish the biogeochemical effects of Saharan dust with respect to fertilization and ballasting, and to gain a broader perspective on the coccolith calcite Sr/Ca in relation to the drivers of coccolith export production, we determined the coccolith-Sr/Ca from a one-year (2012-2013) time-series sediment trap record in the western tropical North Atlantic (M4-49°N/12°W). High Sr/Ca were linked to enhanced export production in the upper part of the photic zone, most notably under windier, dry, and dustier conditions during spring. Attenuated Sr/Ca in the autumn probably reflect a combination of lower Sr-incorporation by dominant but small-size placolith-bearing species and the presence of "aged" coccoliths rapidly scavenged during a highly productive and usually fast export event, likely added by (wet) dust ballasting. Higher Sr/Ca observed in the large coccolith size fractions support the existing notion that larger-sized coccolithophores incorporate more Sr during calcification under the same environmental conditions. The presence of the abnormally Sr-rich species Scyphosphaera apsteinii is also shown in the separated large fraction of our Sr/Ca seasonal data.

AB - Atmospheric dust deposition can modulate the earth's climate and atmospheric CO 2 through fertilising the ocean (nutrient source) and by accelerating the biological carbon pump through fuelling the ballasting process. To distinguish the biogeochemical effects of Saharan dust with respect to fertilization and ballasting, and to gain a broader perspective on the coccolith calcite Sr/Ca in relation to the drivers of coccolith export production, we determined the coccolith-Sr/Ca from a one-year (2012-2013) time-series sediment trap record in the western tropical North Atlantic (M4-49°N/12°W). High Sr/Ca were linked to enhanced export production in the upper part of the photic zone, most notably under windier, dry, and dustier conditions during spring. Attenuated Sr/Ca in the autumn probably reflect a combination of lower Sr-incorporation by dominant but small-size placolith-bearing species and the presence of "aged" coccoliths rapidly scavenged during a highly productive and usually fast export event, likely added by (wet) dust ballasting. Higher Sr/Ca observed in the large coccolith size fractions support the existing notion that larger-sized coccolithophores incorporate more Sr during calcification under the same environmental conditions. The presence of the abnormally Sr-rich species Scyphosphaera apsteinii is also shown in the separated large fraction of our Sr/Ca seasonal data.

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KW - Fertilization

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Coccolith-calcite Sr/Ca as a proxy for transient export production related to Saharan dust deposition in the tropical North Atlantic

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Funding

Keywords

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Correction to: Coccolith-calcite Sr/Ca as a proxy for transient export production related to Saharan dust deposition in the tropical North Atlantic

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