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International audience; In the Bay of Brest (France), benthic fluxes of silicic acid (DSi) are thought to be strongly involved in diatom dominance and their intensity depends on the density of an invasive gastropod, Crepidula fornicata. While the proliferation of this gastropod is likely to support diatom dominance, local fishermen have proposed its removal as it perturbs the development of the native Great Scallop, Pecten maximus. However, such a removal may be associated with potentially harmful algal blooms. The response of the phytoplankton community to modifications of the benthic fluxes of DSi, resulting from a further proliferation or the removal of C fornicata, was examined in a mesocosm nutrient enrichment experiment over a period of 16 days in the spring of 2004. Six mesocosms (5.4 m(3)) were filled using a natural planktonic assemblage from the Bay and received N, P and Si additions at the stoichiometric ratio of the in situ benthic fluxes (Si:N:P=16:16:1), with a gradient of enrichment ranging from 0 to almost 4 times the maximal benthic flux measured in the Bay. The diatom Chaetoceros (mainly C. debilis) rapidly outgrew non-siliceous species of microphytoplankton in all enclosures although kinetic experiments provided direct evidence of Si limitation. This dominance of diatoms at DSi concentrations

Benthic faunal activity and density play an important role in determining the rates of benthic nutrient fluxes, which enrich the water column and contribute to phytoplankton growth. The intensity of nutrient fluxes in the Bay of Brest depends on the density of the invasive gastropod, Crepidula fornicata . In order to study the impact of benthic fluxes on phytoplankton dynamics, realistic daily nutrient inputs simulating various densities of C. fornicata were added to six enclosures during three weeks. The increase in fertilization intensity influenced the phytoplankton biomass. A succession from Chaetoceros spp. to Pseudo-nitzschia spp. and Leptocylindrus danicus was observed in all enclosures, but the dynamics of successions were different. Pseudo-nitzschia spp. was favored in the three more fertilized enclosures, while Chaetoceros spp. persisted longer in less enriched enclosures. Despite an apparent nitrogen limitation, the quantum efficiency of PSII (F v /F m ) was high (>0.5) and stable in all enclosures. The maximal photosynthetic capacity (P B max) was also invariable and oscillated around an average value of 2.23 mg C (mg Chl a ) −1 h −1 . The stability of F v /F m and P B max observed at different nutrient input intensities demonstrates that the daily inputs maintained the physiological balance of the microalgae. The maximal light utilization efficiency (α) and the light saturation parameter (E k ) were also quite stable after day 8, which reveals that photosynthetic parameters were driven by growth constraints due to nutrient availability and not by incident light or species successions. We suggest that our results correspond to an “E k independent variation” regulation. We propose that such regulation of photosynthetic parameters appears when there are frequent nutrient additions which do not allow replete nutrient conditions to be reached but lead to physiological equilibrium. Thanks to our results we can understand how even low benthic fluxes, by supporting their cellular physiological status, allowed diatoms to dominate the phytoplankton community in the six enclosures. These results confirm the importance of daily benthic inputs as much as the amount of nutrient inputs. However, we suggest that high benthic fluxes have a buffering effect on nutrient availability, thereby limiting the consequences of short-term events which can entail a sudden increase of nutrient input, and are known to promote Dinophyta bloom formation.

In situ experiments using isotopically labeled mercury species ( 199 Hg(II) and Me 201 Hg) are used to investigate mercury transformation mechanisms, such as methylation, demethylation and reduction, in coastal and marine surface waters of the Mediterranean Sea. The aim of this work is to assess the relative contribution of photochemical versus biological processes to Hg transformation mechanisms. For this purpose, potential transformation rates measured under diurnal and dark incubation conditions are compared with major biogeochemical parameters (i.e. hydrological and biological data) in order to obtain the relative contribution of various biotic and abiotic mechanisms in both surface (high light) and bottom (low light) waters of the euphotic zone. The results demonstrate that coastal and marine euphotic zones are significant reactors for all Hg transformations investigated (i.e. methylation, demethylation, reduction). A major outcome demonstrates that Hg methylation is taking place in oxic surface seawater (0.3–6.3% day − 1 ) and is mainly influenced by pelagic microorganism abundance and activities (phyto- and bacterioplankton). This evidences a new potential MeHg source in the marine water column, especially in oligotrophic deep-sea basins in which biogeochemistry is mostly governed by heterotrophic activity. For coastal and marine surface waters, although MeHg is mainly photochemically degraded (6.4–24.5% day − 1 ), demethylation yields observed under dark condition may be attributed to microbial or chemical pathways (2.8–10.9% day − 1 ). Photoreduction and photochemical reactions are the major mechanisms involved in DGM production for surface waters (3.2–16.9% day − 1 ) but bacterial or phytoplanktonic reduction of Hg(II) cannot be excluded deeper in the euphotic zone (2.2–12.3% day − 1 ). At the bottom of the euphotic zone, photochemical processes are thus avoided due to the attenuation of UV-visible sunlight radiation allowing biotic processes to be the most significant. These results suggest a new potential route for Hg species cycling in surface seawater and especially at the maximum biomass depth located at the bottom of the euphotic zone (i.e. maximum chlorophyll fluorescence). In this environment, DGM production and demethylation mechanisms are thus probably reduced whereas Hg methylation is enhanced by autotrophic and heterotrophic processes. Experimental results on mercury species uptake during these investigations further evidenced the strong affinity of MeHg for biogenic particles (i.e. microorganisms) that correspond to the first trophic level of the pelagic food web.