University of South Florida Scholar Commons Graduate Theses and Dissertations Graduate School January 2013 Investigations for utilizing pteropods as bioindicators of environmental change along the western Antarctic Peninsula Paul Mark Suprenand University of South Florida, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd Part of the Other Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology Commons Scholar Commons Citation Suprenand, Paul Mark, "Investigations for utilizing pteropods as bioindicators of environmental change along the western Antarctic Peninsula" (2013). Graduate Theses and Dissertations. http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd/4588 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at Scholar Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Graduate Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Scholar Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Investigations for Utilizing Pteropods as Bioindicators of Environmental Change Along the Western Antarctic Peninsula by Paul Mark Suprenand A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy College of Marine Science University of South Florida Co-Major Professor: Joseph J. Torres, Ph.D. Co-Major Professor: Pamela Hallock Muller, Ph.D. Cameron H. Ainsworth, Ph.D. David L. Jones, Ph.D. Brad A. Seibel, Ph.D. Date of Approval: March 19, 2013 Keywords: Climate Change, Ocean Acidification, Modelling, Ecology, Physiology Copyright © 2013, Paul Mark Suprenand Dedication I lovingly dedicate this dissertation to my wife, Lisa Suprenand, and my two sons Jack and Kai Suprenand for their continuous support, patience and love throughout this learning experience. I am endlessly thankful for my wife’s willingness to discover who we are as individuals and as parents, as well as for the boundless curiosity of our sons who taught me the joy in seeking answers to some of life’s most intriguing and simple questions. I could not have completed this effort without them or the everlasting encouragement from our parents and grandparents. Acknowledgments I gratefully acknowledge the many people who have advised and assisted me throughout my academic career. To my academic advisor for my master’s degree at the Colorado School of Mines, Ronald R. Hewitt Cohen, thank you for inspiring me to embrace the intellectual process with humor and believing in me as a new graduate student. Thank you to Joanie Kleypas at the National Center for Atmospheric Research for your guidance in my early interests in the marine sciences, as well as helping me to make the decision to pursue a rewarding career that is both exciting and challenging. To my academic advisors for my doctorate degree at the University of South Florida’s (USF) College of Marine Science, a very special thank you to Joseph J. Torres for the opportunity to explore the wilds of the western Antarctic Peninsula and thank you Pamela Hallock Muller for accepting me to study under your guidance. Both of you, and the rest of my wonderful committee, have helped to shape me into a scientist. Thanks to my other committee members, Cameron H. Ainsworth, David L. Jones, Brad A. Seibel, and Benjamin P. Flower (you will forever be remembered) who often spent many hours working to educate and mentor me. Many thanks to the captains and crews of the R.V. Knorr, R.V. Wecoma and R.V.I.B. Nathaniel B. Palmer. I am thankful for the generous support of USF Endowed Fellowships which included three years of the Carl Riggs Fellowship in Marine Science, the Paul L. Getting Endowed Fellowship, and the Peter R. Betzer Endowed Fellowship, as well as support from the Marine Technology Society, the SEASPACE Scholarship, the University-National Oceanographic Laboratory System, the Integrated Marine Biochemistry & Ecosystem Research (IMBER) project and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. And lastly, thank you to all my amazing friends. Table of Contents List of Tables .................................................................................................................. iii List of Figures ................................................................................................................. iv Abstract .......................................................................................................................... vi Chapter One: Introduction ............................................................................................... 1 The Changing Western Antarctic Peninsula ......................................................... 1 References Cited ................................................................................................. 8 Chapter Two: Distribution of gymnosomatous pteropods in western Antarctic Peninsula shelf waters: influences of Southern Ocean water masses ...................... 18 Abstract ............................................................................................................. 18 Introduction ........................................................................................................ 19 Materials and Methods ....................................................................................... 21 Hydrographic Data Sources.................................................................... 21 Gymnosome Sampling ........................................................................... 22 Oceanographic Remote Sensing Data ................................................... 23 Statistical Methods ................................................................................. 24 Results ............................................................................................................... 27 Sampling Sites and Hydrography ........................................................... 27 Species Vertical Density, Horizontal Abundance, and Hydrography ....... 29 Discussion ......................................................................................................... 35 Acknowledgments .............................................................................................. 41 References Cited ............................................................................................... 41 Chapter Three: Physiology of western Antarctic Peninsula gymnosomatous pteropods, Austral Fall 2010 .................................................................................... 47 Abstract ............................................................................................................. 47 Introduction ........................................................................................................ 48 Methods and Materials ....................................................................................... 50 Gymnosome and Hydrographic Data Collection ..................................... 50 Respirometry (MO2) and Ammonia Excretion Measurements ................. 52 Wet, Dry and Ash-free Dry Mass Measurements .................................... 53 Protein Analyses .................................................................................... 54 Lipid Analyses ........................................................................................ 54 CHN Analyses ........................................................................................ 55 Enzyme Analyses ................................................................................... 55 Statistical Analyses ................................................................................ 56 i Results ............................................................................................................... 57 Gymnosomes and Hydrographic Data .................................................... 57 Physiological Indicators in Gymnosomes................................................ 59 Mass Relationships ................................................................................ 61 Local Distribution Observations .............................................................. 61 Discussion ......................................................................................................... 63 Conclusion ......................................................................................................... 68 Acknowledgments .............................................................................................. 69 References Cited ............................................................................................... 69 Chapter Four: Effects of circulation changes and ocean acidification-related pteropod mortality on mesoscale variations in trophodynamics along the western Antarctic Peninsula ..................................................................................... 78 Abstract ............................................................................................................. 78 Introduction ........................................................................................................ 79 Methods ............................................................................................................. 84 Results ............................................................................................................. 100 Discussion ....................................................................................................... 121 Conclusion ......................................................................................................