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Simple mixing criteria for the growth of negatively buoyant phytoplankton
Author(s) -
O'Brien Katherine R.,
Ivey Gregory N.,
Hamilton David P.,
Waite Anya M.,
Visser Petra M.
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
limnology and oceanography
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.7
H-Index - 197
eISSN - 1939-5590
pISSN - 0024-3590
DOI - 10.4319/lo.2003.48.3.1326
Subject(s) - phytoplankton , sedimentation , thermocline , population , mixing (physics) , biomass (ecology) , water column , environmental science , sediment , oceanography , biology , geology , ecology , physics , nutrient , paleontology , demography , quantum mechanics , sociology
Phytoplankton population dynamics are controlled by the relative rather than absolute timescales of mixing, growth, and loss processes such as sedimentation, grazing, and so on. Here, the vertical distribution and biomass of phytoplankton populations are quantified by two timescale ratios: the Peclet number Pe—the ratio of mixing and sedimentation timescales—and the growth number G—the ratio of sedimentation and net growth timescales. Three mixing regimes are defined for phytoplankton and other particles. For Pe ≥ 100, the population is translated linearly down the water column over time and will leave the surface mixing layer completely after sedimentation timeτt s . For 0.1