Pseudo-nitzschia and domoic acid fluxes in Santa Barbara Basin (CA) from 1993 to 2008

Blooms of domoic acid (DA) producing Pseudo-nitzschia, regularly occur off the coast of California. Although it has been hypothesized that these blooms are increasing in frequency, the lack of historical records limits our understanding of potential causal mechanisms. In this study, an 15-year time-series (1993–2008) of sediment trap samples collected from the Santa Barbara Basin (SBB) at 540 m were analyzed for Pseudo-nitzschia (n = 196, microscopy and SEM) and DA (n = 206, LC–MS/MS) concentrations and fluxes. Results suggest that there was an abrupt shift towards greater frequency and higher magnitude Pseudo-nitzschia blooms and toxic DA flux events in the SBB after the year 2000. SEM analysis of sediment trap material indicates that these events were mainly blooms of P. australis, with cell fluxes increasing by an order of magnitude from a maximum of 4.5 × 106 cells m−2 d−1 pre-2000, to as high as 3.2 × 108 cells m−2 d−1 thereafter. Similarly, sediment trap DA fluxes increased by an average of 13.4 μg m−2 d−1, with only one large event (>5 μg m−2 d−1) from 1993 to 1999 versus 16 large DA events from 2000 to 2008. While the causes of this abrupt shift remain ambiguous, we suggest that this shift may be related to natural climate variability associated with a change in phase of the North Pacific Gyre Oscillation (NPGO) and its potential influence on the composition and magnitude of waters that are upwelled into the SBB.

► Blooms of domoic acid producing Pseudo-nitzschia have been occurring in the Santa Barbara Basin since 1994.
► There is an abrupt increase in Pseudo-nitzschia bloom abundance and domoic acid toxicity in 1998–2000, with only one large event (>5 μg m−2 d−1) from 1993 to 1999 versus 16 large DA events from 2000 to 2008.
► This abrupt shift in Pseudo-nitzschia bloom intensity and toxicity may be related to natural shifts in climate associated with the North Pacific Gyre Oscillation.