Biooceanography articles within Nature Communications

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  • Article
    | Open Access

    Giant kelp is sometimes considered the ‘canary in the coal mine’ of coastal ecosystems. However, Reedet al. demonstrate that kelp did not decline during recent ocean warming in California, questioning whether this species is an appropriate indicator for ecosystem responses to future climate change.

    • Daniel Reed
    • , Libe Washburn
    •  & Shannon Harrer

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Sharks’ dorsal fins are thought to assist propulsion and turns while pectoral fins are thought to oppose sharks’ negative buoyancy. Here, Payne and colleagues show that hammerhead sharks use an exaggerated dorsal fin to generate lift by swimming on their side.

    • Nicholas L. Payne
    • , Gil Iosilevskii
    •  & Yuuki Y. Watanabe

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The establishment of marine reserves in areas previously exploited by humans is recognised as an effective conservation tool. Through modelling effects of isolation from human influence, D'agata et al. show that marine reserves fall short of supporting key ecological values compared with wilderness areas.

    • Stéphanie D’agata
    • , David Mouillot
    •  & Laurent Vigliola

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Cyanobacterial nitrogen fixation supplies bioavailable nitrogen to marine ecosystems, but the mechanisms governing iron and phosphorus co-limitation in elevated CO2remain unknown. Here, the authors show a complex cellular response to co-limitation characterized by changes in growth, cell size, and the proteome.

    • Nathan G. Walworth
    • , Fei-Xue Fu
    •  & David A. Hutchins

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The cause of a 20% decline in sea floor calcareous foraminifera species during the Mid-Pleistocene remains enigmatic. Here, the authors present new geochemical evidence, from the Tasman Sea that supports a change in phytoplankton food source as the primary driver.

    • Sev Kender
    • , Erin L. McClymont
    •  & Henry Elderfield

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Seabirds breed in high density colonies, but the factors determining colony position aren't clear. Here, Sandvik et al. show that small-scale coastal topography is related to likely variation in fish larval abundance, which predicts the distribution of seabird colonies along the Norwegian coast.

    • Hanno Sandvik
    • , Robert T. Barrett
    •  & Geir Helge Systad

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Over a geological timescale, plate tectonics are thought to promote biodiversity, but this link remained descriptive. Here, Leprieur et al. model dynamically how plate tectonics shaped species diversification and movement of hotspots on tropical reefs over the past 140 million years.

    • Fabien Leprieur
    • , Patrice Descombes
    •  & Loïc Pellissier

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Predicting coral response to ocean acidification is dependent on our understanding of their internal carbonate chemistry. Here, using microelectrodes, the authors show that corals elevate pH and carbonate ion concentration in their calcifying fluid, but keep total dissolved inorganic carbon low.

    • Wei-Jun Cai
    • , Yuening Ma
    •  & Yongchen Wang

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Large oil spills have negative effects on marine ecosystems, but the effects of chronic smallscale spills are less well understood. Here, Brussaard et al. detect high bioavailability and toxicity of small-scale crude oil spills within 24 hours after release, which are associated with localised declines in marine plankton.

    • Corina P. D. Brussaard
    • , Louis Peperzak
    •  & Jan Roelof van der Meer

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Nitrogen fixation in oceans is facilitated by associations between marine phytoplankton and cyanobacteria such as UCYN-A. Here, Cornejo-Castillo et al. show that UCYN-A diversified in the late Cretaceous under strong purifying selection to become lineage-specific symbiont partners with different prymnesiophytes.

    • Francisco M. Cornejo-Castillo
    • , Ana M. Cabello
    •  & Silvia G. Acinas

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Studies of coral in laboratory settings are limited by a lack of reliable methods for manipulation of the coral microenvironment and monitoring of coral processes in vitro. Here the authors develop coral-on-a-chip, a microfluidic platform to enable study of coral processes at single-cell resolution.

    • Orr H. Shapiro
    • , Esti Kramarsky-Winter
    •  & Assaf Vardi

  • Article
    | Open Access

    As the oceans become acidic, corals reefs are threatened, generating a need to understand the driving forces controlling the chemical state of the Great Barrier Reef. Here, the authors show a greater spatial variability than previously reported, created by the interaction of reef processes and ocean circulation.

    • Mathieu Mongin
    • , Mark E. Baird
    •  & Andrew D. L. Steven

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The Island Mass Effect (IME), where island proximity enhances phytoplankton biomass, remains a poorly understood phenomenon. Here, the authors show the IME is a common feature among Pacific reefs, driving increased production that creates biological hotspots in otherwise barren ocean basins.

    • Jamison M. Gove
    • , Margaret A. McManus
    •  & Gareth J. Williams

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Silicification by diatoms and calcification by coccolithophores are distinct biomineralisation processes that influence global carbon cycling and the abundance of marine plankton. Here, Durak et al. show that diatom-like silicon transporters are present in coccolithophores, and that silicon is required for formation of their calcium carbonate coccoliths.

    • Grażyna M. Durak
    • , Alison R. Taylor
    •  & Glen L. Wheeler

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Diatoms often dominate production in aquatic communities, but the amount of available dissolved silicic acid (dSi) limits their growth. Here, Bondoc et al., show that diatoms perceive gradients in dSi, and can increase the encounter with this resource by chemotaxis toward high concentrations under resource-limited conditions.

    • Karen Grace V. Bondoc
    • , Jan Heuschele
    •  & Georg Pohnert

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Knowing which species traits may confer resilience to human-mediated stressors will help predict future impacts on biodiversity. Here, Mellin et al. show that large bodied fish with small geographic ranges are disproportionately affected by the negative impacts of human disturbance and climate variability.

    • C. Mellin
    • , D. Mouillot
    •  & M. J. Caley

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Little is known about the microbiota of marine mammals, despite the crucial ecological roles played by these animals. Here, Bik et al. describe the bacterial communities associated with various body sites in dolphins and sea lions, as well as the microbiota of their dietary fish and adjacent seawater.

    • Elisabeth M. Bik
    • , Elizabeth K. Costello
    •  & David A. Relman

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The impact of future and past carbonate chemistry changes on calcifying plankton is poorly understood. Here, the authors show that coccolithophore degree of calcification decreased significantly between 6 and 4 million years ago, in line with declining aqueous CO2concentrations.

    • Clara T. Bolton
    • , María T. Hernández-Sánchez
    •  & Heather M. Stoll

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Increasing atmospheric CO2 concentrations causes ocean acidification, which alters marine chemical environments with unknown consequences for marine ecosystems. Here, Gao et al. show that ocean acidification increases levels of phenolic compounds in phytoplankton and zooplankton, implying a food chain impact.

    • Peng Jin
    • , Tifeng Wang
    •  & Kunshan Gao

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Understanding how organisms respond to short-term climate variations will help predict the impact of future global change. Here, Bost et al. show that large-scale climatic anomalies coincide with changes in the foraging behaviour and populations dynamics of king penguins in the Southern hemisphere.

    • Charles A. Bost
    • , Cedric Cotté
    •  & Henri Weimerskirch

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The response of marine fish assemblages to global change is not fully understood. Analysing a 29-year time-series, Magurran et al.show that despite little change in species richness, high species turnover is leading to North Atlantic groundfish assemblages becoming spatially homogenized, likely as a result of climatic change.

    • Anne E. Magurran
    • , Maria Dornelas
    •  & Brian McGill

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The relative contribution of nitrogen fixation and nitrogen diffusion to marine biomes is presently debated. Here, the authors evaluate the contribution of these pathways across the tropics and subtropics of the global ocean and show that nitrogen diffusion, reinforced by salt fingers, is the dominant process.

    • B. Fernández-Castro
    • , B. Mouriño-Carballido
    •  & R. Simó

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Physonect siphonophores are highly mobile jellyfish with complex colonial organization. Here, Costelloet al. show that division of labour among developmental stages controls the direction and propulsion of the colony, with older individuals providing thrust and younger individuals providing torque.

    • John H. Costello
    • , Sean P. Colin
    •  & Kelly R. Sutherland

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The failure of a broad fringing coral reef to protect the village of Hemani from a tsunami-like wave during Typhoon Haiyan came as a destructive surprise. Here, the authors present results from a phase-resolving wave model and show that the steep reef face facilitated the release of energetic infragravity waves.

    • Volker Roeber
    •  & Jeremy D. Bricker

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Oceanic SAR11 Alphaproteobacteria and Prochlorococcus cyanobacteria are abundant in phosphate-poor regions, despite it being vital for growth. Here, Zubkov et al.show these bacterioplankton exploit an extracellular buffer of labile phosphate to reduce their dependency on bioavailable ambient phosphate.

    • Mikhail V. Zubkov
    • , Adrian P. Martin
    •  & David J. Scanlan

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Global warming and ocean acidification impact coral ecosystems. Here, the authors show higher skeletal porosity and reduced bulk density at lower pH in corals living along a natural pH gradient in the Mediterranean, which may contribute to reduce population density and increase damage susceptibility.

    • Paola Fantazzini
    • , Stefano Mengoli
    •  & Stefano Goffredo

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Human pressure on the ocean is thought to be increasing globally, yet the magnitude and patterns of these changes are largely unknown. Here, the authors produce a global map of change in cumulative human pressures over the past 5 years, and show that ∼66% of the ocean has experienced elevated human impact.

    • Benjamin S. Halpern
    • , Melanie Frazier
    •  & Shaun Walbridge

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Sinking of organic matter represents the dominant mechanism for sequestration of anthropogenic CO2in the deep sea. Here, the authors report the presence of healthy photosynthetic cells in the deep dark ocean, implying the fast injection of fresh organic carbon at depth across the global oligotrophic ocean.

    • S. Agusti
    • , J. I. González-Gordillo
    •  & C. M. Duarte

  • Article |

    The extent to which the microbial carbon pump contributes to the generation of marine refractory dissolved organic matter (RDOM) remains a matter of debate. Here, the authors report results from a 3-year mesocosm study, and show that most of the microbial DOM is different from RDOM in the ocean.

    • Helena Osterholz
    • , Jutta Niggemann
    •  & Thorsten Dittmar

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Global landings of wild-caught seafood have plateaued in recent years. Analysing trends in global fisheries catches, Watson et al.find that distance between sourcing and consumption has increased steadily since the 1950s, with ocean productivity unlikely to meet current consumption rates by 2100.

    • Reg A. Watson
    • , Gabrielle B. Nowara
    •  & Chris G. Carter

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Conditions below the active permafrost layer in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica, are thought to be ice cemented. Here, the authors use an airborne electromagnetic sensor to image the resistivity beneath the valley floor, which indicates the presence of high-salinity liquids at temperatures well below freezing.

    • J. A. Mikucki
    • , E. Auken
    •  & N. Foley

  • Article |

    The microbial carbon pump is an important pathway for marine carbon sequestration, yet the chemical complexity and stability of persistent molecules remain enigmatic. Here, the authors use bioassay experiments to investigate the complexity and refractory nature of bacterial dissolved organic matter.

    • Oliver J. Lechtenfeld
    • , Norbert Hertkorn
    •  & Ronald Benner

  • Article |

    Dimethylsulphide (DMS) is a volatile compound produced by marine microbes through degradation of dimethylsulphoniopropionate (DMSP). Here, Carrión et al.describe an alternative pathway for DMS production from methanethiol that is widespread among bacteria, especially from soil environments.

    • O. Carrión
    • , A. R. J. Curson
    •  & J. D. Todd

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The last interglacial has been suggested as a test bed for models developed for future climate prediction, yet many climatic parameters remain unknown. Here, the authors present a precisely dated fossil coral and show that temperature seasonality in the southern Caribbean Sea 118 ka was similar to today.

    • Thomas Felis
    • , Cyril Giry
    •  & Sander R. Scheffers

  • Article |

    Deep-sea diving mammals routinely undergo extreme physiological challenges not experienced by their terrestrial counterparts. Using high-resolution electrocardiographic recorders fitted to seals and dolphins, Williams et al. report an increased frequency of cardiac arrhythmias at greater exercise intensity and dive depth.

    • Terrie M. Williams
    • , Lee A. Fuiman
    •  & Randall W. Davis

  • Article |

    Understanding how corals may react to ocean acidification is hampered due to a lack of insight into how corals source the inorganic carbon required to build their skeletons. Here, the authors show that corals are able to concentrate dissolved carbon and that bicarbonate contributes to the carbon pool used to build their skeletons.

    • Nicola Allison
    • , Itay Cohen
    •  & Alexander W. Tudhope

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