Predicting plankton biogeography and stoichiometry

Andrew Irwin
Dalhousie University

Marine microbial communities form the base of the marine food web and perform about half of the photosynthesis on Earth. They are key components of the global carbon cycle and help to sequester carbon in the deep ocean, removing it from the atmosphere, through the burial of organic matter on the seafloor. The productivity and function of marine microbial communities are determined in part by the biogeography — which species live where.

In our work, we assemble and analyze observations of microbial communities to develop predictive statistical models that describe community composition. Our long-term objective is to develop skill in predicting phytoplankton biogeography from both statistical and simple differential equation models. A synthesis of biogeographic
information and complex ecosystem models will enable the testing of modeling approaches and the development of improved biogeographies to fill in the under-sampled regions of the ocean.

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