(Table 1) Biomass (as energy) of different elements of the planktonic community in the Equatorial Pacific in the 0-150 m layer

An analysis was made of composition and content of nutrients, salts, particulate and dissolved organic matter, and various plankton groups in a series of samples collected by a 140-liter sampling bottle to depth up to 150 m at 4 equatorial stations between 97° and 154°W. Large and small phytoplankton, bacteria (aggregated and dispersed), heterotrophic flagellates, infusorians, radiolarians, foraminifers, fine filter-feeders, small and large, mostly herbivorous copepods, cyclopoids, predatory calanoids, and other predators were investigated separately. Trophic relations between these elements are established from personal and published data, and rate of their metabolism and some other physiological parameters are determined. Such functional characteristics as extent of satisfaction of food requirements of organisms belonging to various trophic groups, intensity of trophic relations, balance between production and consumption by individual elements of the community, ecological efficiency, and net and specific production of the groups distinguished, of individual trophic levels, of total zooplankton, and of the community as a whole are calculated. Variations of these characteristics along the equator with decreasing upwelling intensity are examined and their possible causes and mechanisms are discussed.

本研究针对97°W至154°W区间内的4个赤道站位，利用140升采水器采集了最大深度达150米的系列样品，并对其中的营养盐、溶解盐、颗粒态与溶解态有机质，以及各类浮游生物类群的组成与含量开展分析。研究分别针对大小型浮游植物、聚集态与分散态细菌、异养鞭毛虫、纤毛虫、放射虫、有孔虫、大小型精细滤食生物、以植食性为主的大小型桡足类、剑水蚤目、掠食性哲水蚤目及其他掠食类群进行单独考察。基于自有实测数据与已发表文献资料，本研究明确了各生物组分间的营养关系，并测定了其代谢速率与部分其他生理参数。同时，研究计算得到多项功能特征指标，包括各营养类群生物的食物需求满足程度、营养关系强度、群落各组分的生产与消费平衡、生态效率，以及所划分类群、各营养级、总浮游动物乃至整个群落的净生产量与单位生产量。此外，本研究考察了这些特征随赤道区域上升流强度减弱的空间变化规律，并探讨了其潜在成因与作用机制。