Earth’s Cryosphere, 2011, Vol. XV, No. 4, p. 90-92

WATER CHEMISTRY AND PHYTOPLANKTON IN THE GYDA BAY (KARA SEA)

I.V. Tomberg, A.D. Firsova, L.M. Sorokovikova, N.P. Sezko,
T.V. Pogodaeva, Т.V. Khodzher

Limnological Institute, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, 3, Ulan-Batorskaya str., Irkutsk, 664033, Russia; kaktus@lin.irk.ru

Presented are water chemistry and phytoplankton (abundance and biomass) data from the Gyda Bay, an underexplored area of the Kara Sea. Water chemistry varies over the bay being controlled by the tributary rivers in its southern and central parts and by the Kara Sea in the northern part. Correspondingly, the water has extremely low total dissolved solids (32 to 250 mg/l) in the former and a much higher salinity (up to 6600 mg/l) in the latter. Phytoplankton consists mostly of diatoms. Its distribution patterns correlate with the seawater salinity, the highest abundance and biomass of algae being found in the more freshwater part of the Gyda Bay.

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