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An unprecedented coastwide toxic algal bloom linked to anomalous ocean conditions
Author(s) -
McCabe Ryan M.,
Hickey Barbara M.,
Kudela Raphael M.,
Lefebvre Kathi A.,
Adams Nicolaus G.,
Bill Brian D.,
Gulland Frances M. D.,
Thomson Richard E.,
Cochlan William P.,
Trainer Vera L.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1002/2016gl070023
Subject(s) - domoic acid , upwelling , bloom , algal bloom , oceanography , diatom , spring bloom , nutrient , environmental science , nitzschia , range (aeronautics) , fishery , phytoplankton , biology , ecology , geology , toxin , biochemistry , materials science , composite material
Abstract A coastwide bloom of the toxigenic diatom Pseudo‐nitzschia in spring 2015 resulted in the largest recorded outbreak of the neurotoxin, domoic acid, along the North American west coast. Elevated toxins were measured in numerous stranded marine mammals and resulted in geographically extensive and prolonged closures of razor clam, rock crab, and Dungeness crab fisheries. We demonstrate that this outbreak was initiated by anomalously warm ocean conditions. Pseudo‐nitzschia australis thrived north of its typical range in the warm, nutrient‐poor water that spanned the northeast Pacific in early 2015. The seasonal transition to upwelling provided the nutrients necessary for a large‐scale bloom; a series of spring storms delivered the bloom to the coast. Laboratory and field experiments confirming maximum growth rates with elevated temperatures and enhanced toxin production with nutrient enrichment, together with a retrospective analysis of toxic events, demonstrate the potential for similarly devastating ecological and economic disruptions in the future.