98
Plankton in Coral-Reef Waters
Table 3.13. Ranges of primary phytoplankton production in
barrier and fringing reef areas
Place
Vairao and Faa lagoons (Tahiti)
Tiahura (Moorea I)
Lakeba I. (Lau, Fiji)
Paama I. (Law, Fiji)
Kaneohe bay, Oahu I. (Hawaii)
St. Andrew reef, Paliali I.
(Admiralty)
Lizard I. (GBR)
Lagoon opposite Townsville
(GBR)
Langemack bay, New Guinea
Praslin I. (Seychelles)
Tulear (Madagascar)
Nosy Be (Madagascar)
Gubbet-Kallansia Bay (Socotra I.)
Ben Goy bay (Central Vietnam)
La Parguera (Caribbean Sea)
Florida keys
Thu I. (Vietnam)
Primary production per
day
mgCm- 3 gCm- 2
8-58 a
0.01-0.68
7-58 a
0.03-0.23
9-28 b
0.03-0.19
3-4i
0.01-0.05
12_60c,i
0,01-0,3
5-14i
0.04-0.2
5_40d ,i 0.01-0.2
1O-130 i 0,15-1.0
27-49 i
0.2-0.9
213-315 i
0.5-2,8
46-57 e
0.2-0.7
4-103 f
0,1-2.4
14-35i
0,1-3.6
28-125 i 0,28-0,65
100-700 g
0.04-0,06 h
23-5i
0.11-0.48
References: a) Sournia and Ricard (1976a); b) Ricard
(1977a); c) Gilmartin and Relevante (1974); d) Griffiths
(1976); e) Maestrini and Pizarro (1966); f) Angot (1968);
g) Burkholder et al. (1967); Gonzales (1965); h) Jones
(1963); i) data by the author.
generalized in those tables show that its level varied drastically even in
waters of the same reef in its different zones. In shallow areas of the reef its
values are usually lower then in deeper waters of lagoons or in the vicinity of
the outer reef slope. Other causes of variations are the seasonal and diurnal
changes in phytoplankton biomass usual in reef waters.
In lagoons of some Pacific atolls of the Lau, Marshalls and Tuamotu
Islands the primary production was usually low (2-4mgCm- 3 ), however
even there seasonal blooms of phytoplankton occurred (Sournia and Ricard
1976a). But most often in lagoons of atolls production exceeds by up to an
order that in the surrounding oceanic waters, being 10 to 50 mg C m -3 day-I,
which is its level in mesotrophic oceanic waters. For example, in the lagoon
of the superatoll Karados-Karahos, situated in the stream of blue
oligotrophic waters of the south trade wind current, the primary production
was up to 250mgCm- 3 day-l, and the phytoplankton biomass up to
5.2gm- 2 (Table 3.12), corresponding to its level in upwelling areas. High
primary production (70-100mgCm- 3 day-l) was recorded in the
Plankton in Coral-Reef Waters
Table 3.13. Ranges of primary phytoplankton production in
barrier and fringing reef areas
Place
Vairao and Faa lagoons (Tahiti)
Tiahura (Moorea I)
Lakeba I. (Lau, Fiji)
Paama I. (Law, Fiji)
Kaneohe bay, Oahu I. (Hawaii)
St. Andrew reef, Paliali I.
(Admiralty)
Lizard I. (GBR)
Lagoon opposite Townsville
(GBR)
Langemack bay, New Guinea
Praslin I. (Seychelles)
Tulear (Madagascar)
Nosy Be (Madagascar)
Gubbet-Kallansia Bay (Socotra I.)
Ben Goy bay (Central Vietnam)
La Parguera (Caribbean Sea)
Florida keys
Thu I. (Vietnam)
Primary production per
day
mgCm- 3 gCm- 2
8-58 a
0.01-0.68
7-58 a
0.03-0.23
9-28 b
0.03-0.19
3-4i
0.01-0.05
12_60c,i
0,01-0,3
5-14i
0.04-0.2
5_40d ,i 0.01-0.2
1O-130 i 0,15-1.0
27-49 i
0.2-0.9
213-315 i
0.5-2,8
46-57 e
0.2-0.7
4-103 f
0,1-2.4
14-35i
0,1-3.6
28-125 i 0,28-0,65
100-700 g
0.04-0,06 h
23-5i
0.11-0.48
References: a) Sournia and Ricard (1976a); b) Ricard
(1977a); c) Gilmartin and Relevante (1974); d) Griffiths
(1976); e) Maestrini and Pizarro (1966); f) Angot (1968);
g) Burkholder et al. (1967); Gonzales (1965); h) Jones
(1963); i) data by the author.
generalized in those tables show that its level varied drastically even in
waters of the same reef in its different zones. In shallow areas of the reef its
values are usually lower then in deeper waters of lagoons or in the vicinity of
the outer reef slope. Other causes of variations are the seasonal and diurnal
changes in phytoplankton biomass usual in reef waters.
In lagoons of some Pacific atolls of the Lau, Marshalls and Tuamotu
Islands the primary production was usually low (2-4mgCm- 3 ), however
even there seasonal blooms of phytoplankton occurred (Sournia and Ricard
1976a). But most often in lagoons of atolls production exceeds by up to an
order that in the surrounding oceanic waters, being 10 to 50 mg C m -3 day-I,
which is its level in mesotrophic oceanic waters. For example, in the lagoon
of the superatoll Karados-Karahos, situated in the stream of blue
oligotrophic waters of the south trade wind current, the primary production
was up to 250mgCm- 3 day-l, and the phytoplankton biomass up to
5.2gm- 2 (Table 3.12), corresponding to its level in upwelling areas. High
primary production (70-100mgCm- 3 day-l) was recorded in the