Appendicularian assemblages and their space-time variability off the La Plata River, SW Atlantic Ocean

Among tunicates, the small planktonic appendicularians generally comprise a significant fraction of the mesozooplankton of estuarine environments. However, no spatio-temporal studies nor estimation of some ecological parameters such as biomass or pellet production of these organisms have been previously reported in La Plata River estuary. We studied the species composition and abundance as well as biomass and pellet production, associated with the river plume variations using data collected during seven spring (October) cruises. Approximately 80 samples were collected in each cruise with a Pairovet net (200 μm mesh size) trawled vertically through the water column; CTD data profiles were also recorded. Three transects at the north, middle and south of the estuary were performed in order to compare the environmental gradients to the species distribution. The river's discharges varied between years and it was reflected on the salinity distribution. The salinity was the main factor driving species composition. Oikopleura dioica, Oikopleura fusiformis and Fritillaria borealis were found, O. dioica being the dominant one. We detected that O. fusiformis was more abundant in stratified waters between salinities of 31 and 33 mainly during 1994, 1995 and 1996. Fritillaria borealis was found only in salinities higher than 33 and in homogenous waters being more abundant in 1995. This year was singular in the sense that no river plume was observed at the middle transect, as it is shown by the homogenous salinity profiles. Oikopleura dioica was present in stratified waters at all salinity ranges. In 1993, it was more abundant at low salinities with temperatures between 12 and 16 °C and a predominance of juvenile animals was observed. The contribution in biomass and pellet production of O. dioica in the stratified waters of this front was very high (27.91-66.58 g C m−2 d−1) revealing their importance in the estuary's carbon cycle.