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Nutrient cycle is more often used in direct reference to the idea of an intra-system cycle, where an ecosystem functions as a unit. From a practical point, it does not make sense to assess a terrestrial ecosystem by considering the full column of air above it as well as the great depths of Earth below it.
Nitrogen is a limiting nutrient over much of the ocean and can be supplied from various sources, including fixation by cyanobacteria. Carbon-to-iron ratios in phytoplankton are much larger than carbon-to-nitrogen or carbon -to- phosphorus ratios, so iron has the highest potential for sequestration per unit mass added.
When an ecosystem experiences an increase in nutrients, primary producers reap the benefits first. In aquatic ecosystems, species such as algae experience a population increase (called an algal bloom). Algal blooms limit the sunlight available to bottom-dwelling organisms and cause wide swings in the amount of dissolved oxygen in the water.
The seminal synthesis by Geider and La Roche in 2002, [101] as well as the more recent work by Persson et al. in 2010, [102] has shown that C:P and N:P could vary by up to a factor of 20 between nutrient-replete and nutrient-limited cells. These studies have also shown that the C:N ratio can be modestly plastic due to nutrient limitation.
Nutrients are available in the three HNLC regions in sufficient RKR Ratios for biological activity. Primary production is the process by which autotrophs use light to convert carbon from aqueous carbon dioxide to sugar for cellular growth. [7] Light provides the energy for the photosynthetic process and nutrients are incorporated into organic ...
Low-nutrient, low-chlorophyll (LNLC) regions are aquatic zones that are low in nutrients (such as nitrogen, phosphorus, or iron) and consequently have low rate of primary production, as indicated by low chlorophyll concentrations. These regions can be described as oligotrophic, and about 75% of the world's oceans encompass LNLC regions.
Liebig's law has been extended to biological populations (and is commonly used in ecosystem modelling).For example, the growth of an organism such as a plant may be dependent on a number of different factors, such as sunlight or mineral nutrients (e.g., nitrate or phosphate).
Nutrient re-regeneration through sediment bioturbation moves nutrients into the water column, thereby enhancing the growth of aquatic plants and phytoplankton (primary producers). [42] The major nutrients of interest in this flux are nitrogen and phosphorus, which often limit the levels of primary production in an ecosystem. [ 42 ]