The effects of short-term acidification on the intertidal macroalgae Palmaria palmate and Saccharina latissima

Nunes, J, McCoy, S, Findlay, HS, Hopkins, FE, Kitidis, V, Queiros, AM, Raynor, L and Widdicombe, S 2015 The effects of short-term acidification on the intertidal macroalgae Palmaria palmate and Saccharina latissima. ICES Journal of Marine Science. https://doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fsv081

Text icesjms.fsv081.abstract - Published Version Download (66kB)

Abstract/Summary

Ocean acidification, the result of increased dissolution of carbon dioxide (CO2) in seawater, is a leading subject of current research. The effects of acidification on non-calcifying macroalgae are, however, still unclear. The current study reports two 1-month studies using two different macroalgae, the red alga Palmaria palmata (Rhodophyta) and the kelp Saccharina latissima (Phaeophyta), exposed to control (pHNBS = ∼8.04) and increased (pHNBS = ∼7.82) levels of CO2-induced seawater acidification. The impacts of both increased acidification and time of exposure on net primary production (NPP), respiration (R), dimethylsulphoniopropionate (DMSP) concentrations, and algal growth have been assessed. In P. palmata, although NPP significantly increased during the testing period, it significantly decreased with acidification, whereas R showed a significant decrease with acidification only. S. latissima significantly increased NPP with acidification but not with time, and significantly increased R with both acidification and time, suggesting a concomitant increase in gross primary production. The DMSP concentrations of both species remained unchanged by either acidification or through time during the experimental period. In contrast, algal growth differed markedly between the two experiments, in that P. palmata showed very little growth throughout the experiment, while S. latissima showed substantial growth during the course of the study, with the latter showing a significant difference between the acidified and control treatments. These two experiments suggest that the study species used here were resistant to a short-term exposure to ocean acidification, with some of the differences seen between species possibly linked to different nutrient concentrations between the experiments.

Item Type:	Publication - Article
Additional Keywords:	DMSP growth macroalgae net primary production ocean acidification Palmaria palmata respiration Saccharina latissima
Subjects:	Ecology and Environment Marine Sciences Oceanography
Divisions:	Plymouth Marine Laboratory > Science Areas > Marine Ecology and Biodiversity
Depositing User:	Helen Findlay
Date made live:	30 Jun 2015 13:23
Last Modified:	25 Apr 2020 09:56
URI:	https://plymsea.ac.uk/id/eprint/6422

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