Zooplankton time series in the coastal zone off Chile: Variation in upwelling and responses of the copepod community

Seasonal variability of emerging invertebrate assemblages in a sheltered soft-bottom sublittoral habitat

“…The variation in our results closely resembles the dynamics of pelagic zooplankton assemblages in northern Chile, which are well coupled with seasonal oscillations in upwelling intensity (Escribano et al, 2012;Hidalgo et al, 2010;Thiel et al, 2007).…”

“…Seasonal variability in the structure of invertebrate assemblages in this ecosystem appears habitat specific. For example, time series studies reveal significant increases in species richness, biomass, and abundance of dominant pelagic (defined broadly here to include all water column environments) copepods coupled with the seasonal intensification of upwelling during the transition from spring-summer to autumn-winter months (Escribano et al, 2012;Hidalgo et al, 2010). In contrast to the pelagic realm, timeseries analyses and experimental studies of soft-bottom macrobenthic invertebrate assemblages suggest that fluctuations in diversity, biomass, and structure are not necessarily in phase with the seasonal variation and/or upwelling intensity (Carrasco, 1997;Carrasco and Moreno, 2006;Laudien et al, 2007;Moreno et al, 2008;Pacheco et al, 2010).…”

Presence of fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus) in Mejillones Bay, a major seaport area in northern Chile

“…Even though we were not able to directly record feeding or the presence of prey in Mejillones Bay, the observed non-directional milling of whales in a circumscribed area was strongly suggestive of feeding behavior. Mejillones Bay and particularly Punta Angamos are located in front of the strongest and most persistent (i.e., year-round) upwelling center in northern Chile (Escribano & Hidalgo 2000, Escribano et al 2010, which supports large populations of E. mucronata , Antezana 2010). As euphausids constitute the primary prey of fin whales globally (Aguilar 2009) and also in some areas of Chilean waters (Isla Chañaral and Isla Choros-Damas, Marine Protected areas) individuals have been observed feeding on E. mucronata (Pérez et al 2006) it appears reasonable to hypothesize that this highly productive micro-habitat may serve as a focal feeding ground for the observed fin whales.…”

Scaling copepod grazing in a coastal upwelling system: the importance of community size structure for phytoplankton C flux

“…indicus dominate most of the year and numerically represents up to 80% of the copepod community (Hidalgo et al, 2010). At times of the year, A. tonsa can also account for more than 80% of the community (Escribano et al, 2012). The cyclopoid Corycaeus spp.…”

“…They are far apart (ca. 2000 km), but have similar copepod communities (Hidalgo et al, 2010), and their oceanographic conditions have been characterized (Escribano et al, 2012).…”