Description: We compared primary production and respiration of temperate (Helgoland, North Sea) and subtidal Arctic (Kongsfjorden, Svalbard) microphytobenthic communities during summer. The diatom communities were generally characterized as cosmopolitan, displayed no site specificity, and had similar chl a and fucoxanthin concentrations. Their net and gross photosynthesis rates and light adaptation intensities, derived from laboratory microsensor measurements, were also similar, despite differences in water temperature. Daily oxygen fluxes across the sediment− water interface were estimated by combining laboratory microprofile and planar optode measurements with in situ data on oxygen penetration and light dynamics. During the study period, the Svalbard sediments were on average net heterotrophic,while the Helgoland sediments were net autotrophic (−22.4 vs. 9.2 mmol O2 m−2 d−1). This was due to high infaunal abundance in the Svalbard sediments that caused high oxygen uptake rates in the sediments and consumption below the sediment euphotic zone. Additionally, bioirrigation of the sediment due to infaunal burrow ventilation was reduced by light; thus, the sedimentary oxygen inventory was reduced with increasing light. Conversely, light-enhanced the oxygen inventory in the Helgoland sediments. Oxygen dynamics in the Svalbard sediments were therefore dominated by bioirrigation, whereas in the Helgoland sediments they were dominated by photosynthetic oxygen production.

Description: Sediment community oxygen consumption is an established measure of benthic activity and recommended by the International Seabed Authority for baseline investigations as part of exploration activities (document ISBA/25/LTC/6). It addresses rates of organic matter remineralization as a key function of seafloor ecosystems. In 2019, oxygen flux measurements were carried out at locations approx. 1000 km apart in the Clarion Clipperton Fracture Zone (CCZ) within the German and Belgian exploration license areas. Rates of total (TOU) and diffusive oxygen uptake (DOU) were quantified in situ with benthic chambers and microprofilers manipulated by remotely operated vehicle (ROV). The study was carried out in the framework of the European collaborative project MiningImpact under the Joint Programming Initiative Healthy and Productive Seas and Oceans (JPI Oceans). The primary aim was to settle a baseline in preparation of a subsequent assessment of the environmental impacts associated with the first test of a manganese nodule collector pre-prototype in international waters. In both license areas, replicate measurements were obtained at different sites across several kilometers distance. Based on this extensive data set, the presentation aims to assess the requirements (e.g., in terms of replication, relevant spatial scales, methodology) for oxygen uptake observations in the context of environmental baseline studies. Lateral variability in fluxes is addressed as well as differences between total and diffusive fluxes and relations to other biogeochemical data obtained in sediment and pore water samples (e.g., nutrients, organic matter, chloroplastic pigments). In addition, first data on immediate effects of the recently performed pre-prototype collector test on oxygen distribution in the upper sediment layer are presented.

Description: Identifying and quantifying nitrogen pools is essential for understanding the nitrogen cycle in aquatic ecosystems. The ubiquitous diatoms represent an overlooked nitrate pool as they can accumulate nitrate intracellularly and utilize it for nitrogen assimilation, dissipation of excess photosynthetic energy, and Dissimilatory Nitrate Reduction to Ammonium (DNRA). Here, we document the global co-occurrence of diatoms and intracellular nitrate in phototrophic microbial communities in freshwater (n = 69), coastal (n = 44), and open marine (n = 4) habitats. Diatom abundance and total intracellular nitrate contents in water columns, sediments, microbial mats, and epilithic biofilms were highly significantly correlated. In contrast, diatom community composition had only a marginal influence on total intracellular nitrate contents. Nitrate concentrations inside diatom cells exceeded ambient nitrate concentrations ∼100–4000-fold. The collective intracellular nitrate pool of the diatom community accounted for 〈1% of total nitrate in pelagic habitats and 65–95% in benthic habitats. Accordingly, nitrate-storing diatoms are emerging as significant contributors to benthic nitrogen cycling, in particular through Dissimilatory Nitrate Reduction to Ammonium activity under anoxic conditions.

Description: Organisms in shallow waters at high latitudes are under pressure due to climate change. These areas are typically inhabited by microphytobenthos (MPB) communities, composed mainly of diatoms. Only sparse information is available on the ecophysiology and acclimation processes within MPBs from Arctic regions. The physico-chemical environment and the ecology and ecophysiology of benthic diatoms in Kongsfjorden (Svalbard, Norway) are addressed in this review. MPB biofilms cover extensive areas of sediment. They show high rates of primary production, stabilise sediment surfaces against erosion under hydrodynamic forces,and affect the exchange of oxygen and nutrients across the sediment-water interface. Additionally, this phototrophic community represents a key component in the functioning of the Kongsfjorden trophic web, particularly as a major food source for benthic suspension- or deposit-feeders. MPB in Kongsfjorden is confronted with pronounced seasonal variations in solar radiation, low temperatures, and hyposaline (meltwater) conditions in summer, as well as long periods of ice and snow cover in winter. From the few data available, it seems that these organisms can easily cope with these environmental extremes. The underlying physiological mechanisms that allow growth and photosynthesis to continue under widely varying abiotic parameters, along with vertical migration and heterotrophy, and biochemical features such as a pronounced fatty-acid metabolism and silicate incorporation are discussed. Existing gaps in our knowledge of benthic diatoms in Kongsfjorden, such as the chemical ecology of biotic interactions, need to be filled. In addition, since many of the underlying molecular acclimation mechanisms are poorly understood, modern approaches based on transcriptomics, proteomics, and/or metabolomics, in conjunction with cell biological and biochemical techniques, are urgently needed. Climate change models for the Arctic predict other multifactorial stressors, such as an increase in precipitation and permafrost thawing, with consequences for the shallow-water regions. Both precipitation and permafrost thawing are likely to increase nutrient-enriched, turbid freshwater runoff and may locally counteract the expected increase in coastal radiation availability. So far, complex interactions among factors, as well as the full genetic diversity and physiological plasticity of Arctic benthic diatoms, have only rarely been considered. The limited existing information is described and discussed in this review.