SAPPHIRE · Systematic analysis of Pacific phytoplankton and islands regional effects
Horizon 2020 — Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
- Duration
- 2018-04-02 → 2019-07-01
- EU contribution
- €108,173
- Participants
- 1
- Scheme
- MSCA-IF-EF-RI
Lines connect the coordinator with its partners.
Results in brief
Systematic analysis of Pacific phytoplankton and islands regional effects
The tropical Pacific ocean is a largely unproductive region, characterized by low concentrations of nutrients and chlorophyll (a proxy for phytoplankton). However, local sources of nutrients exist due to the presence of islands. They create hotspots of productivity and biodiversity supporting rich ecosystems. This process, termed “island mass effect” and first identified sixty years ago, represents an important contributor to fisheries potential and to the welfare of islands human populations. However, the vast majority of islands remain unstudied and impacts at the basin scale are not well characterized. Additionally, little is known regarding changes in phytoplankton community structure despite implications for higher trophic levels. In this context, the objective of the SAPPHIRE project (Systematic Analysis of Pacific PHytoplankton and Island Regional Effects) was to elucidate the impact of islands on phytoplankton by conducting a systematic study of the island mass effect from a suite of physical and biological satellite data. The goal was to quantify the impact of islands on phytoplankton biomass and biodiversity, and classify the islands as a function of enrichment process and phytoplankton response. The SAPPHIRE project concluded that islands exert a strong impact on phytoplankton biomass and biodiversity in the tropical Pacific ocean. We also discovered an undescribed type of island effect beyond the classical definition, suggesting that the impact of islands on phytoplankton may currently be underestimated.
Data: CORDIS, © European Union
Project objective
Phytoplankton, the tiny algae that fix carbon dioxide via photosynthesis, represent the base of the oceanic food chain and support essentially all life in the oceans. In the tropical Pacific, where phytoplankton biomass is low, local nutrient enrichments near islands support ecosystems characterized by higher biomass and biodiversity. While this ""island effect"" has been known for 60 years, the vast majority of islands remain unstudied and impacts at the basin scale are unknown. Additionally, little is known regarding changes in phytoplankton community structure despite implications for higher trophic levels. The SAPPHIRE project will elucidate the impact of islands on phytoplankton by conducting the first systematic study of the island effect in the tropical Pacific from a suite of physical and biological satellite data. This project leverages the OUTPACE in situ 20°S transect that sampled phytoplankton community composition nearby several islands in 2015 and the breakthrough satellite-based PHYSAT method that detects phytoplankton functional groups from space. Novel methods identifying and characterizing the island effect will be first developed in the OUTPACE region from in situ and satellite data, then applied to the entire tropical Pacific using satellite data. The ultimate goals are to 1) quantify the impact of islands on phytoplankton and physics in the tropical Pacific and 2) classify the islands as a function of enrichment processes and phytoplankton responses using cutting-edge machine learning techniques. SAPPHIRE provides a highly original perspective on marine ecological research by systematically conducting thousands of small-scale process studies over a large area, effectively providing a large-scale assessment of a mesoscale process. This project will be an important step in my career development by establishing me as a leading scientist in the emerging field of multidisciplinary data-intensive oceanography in Europe.""
Original text from CORDIS.
Participants
- UNIVERSITE D'AIX MARSEILLE · MarseilleCoordinatorFrance
Links
Data: CORDIS, © European Union