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Cited by 200Marine and coastal ecosystemsMarine and fisheries researchOceanographic and Atmospheric Processes

The pelagic ecosystem in the N orthern C alifornia C urrent off O regon during the 2014–2016 warm anomalies within the context of the past 20 years

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Peterson, William T., Fisher, Jennifer L., Strub, P. Ted, Du, Xiuning, Risien, Craig, Peterson, Jay, Shaw, C. Tracy·2017·Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans
DOI 10.1002/2017jc012952PMC PMC7668311
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Abstract

A warm anomaly in the upper ocean, colloquially named “the Blob,” appeared in the Gulf of Alaska during the calm winter of 2013–2014, spread across the northern North Pacific (NP) Ocean, and shifted eastward and onto the Oregon shelf. At least 14 species of copepods occurred which had never been observed in shelf/slope waters off Oregon, some of which are known to have NP Gyre affinities, indicating that the source waters of the coastal “Blob” were likely of both offshore (from the west) and subtropical/tropical origin. The anomalously warm conditions were reduced during strong upwelling in spring 2015 but returned when upwelling weakened in July 2015 and transitioned to downwelling in fall 2015. The extended period of warm conditions resulted in prolonged effects on the ecosystem off central Oregon, lasting at least through 2016. Impacts to the lower trophic levels were unprecedented and include a novel plankton community composition resulting from increased copepod, diatom, and dinoflagellate species richness and increased abundance of dinoflagellates. Additionally, the multiyear warm anomalies were associated with reduced biomass of copepods and euphausiids, high abundance of larvaceans and doliolids (indictors of oligotrophic ocean conditions), and a toxic diatom bloom (Pseudo‐nitzschia) throughout the California Current in 2015, thereby changing the composition of the food web that is relied upon by many commercially and ecologically important species.

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  • The start of the Pacific Coast Feeding Group abundance decline preceded the current eastern breeding stock episodic mortality event and may show the Pacific Coast Feeding Group response to the 2014-2016 marine heatwave.

    “The start of this decline in PCFG abundance preceded the current EME of EBS gray whales and may show the PCFG response to the 2014-2016 marine heatwave (Peterson et al., 2017;Khangaonkar et al., 2021;Maniscalco, 2023).”

    From Update on the status of gray whales since the 2020 Implementation Review (2024) · cites this paper as Peterson et al., 2017

    The Conclusions (page unavailable) say that gray whales feeding in the Northern California Current encountered a lower-quality food supply during the 2014–2016 warm anomaly. The paper does not report a Pacific Coast Feeding Group abundance decline, establish when it began relative to the eastern breeding stock mortality event, or link that specific decline to the heatwave. (LLM, conf=0.85)

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Cites

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Research works printed but not linked: 30

  1. Amaya DJ, Bond NE, Miller AJ, and De Florio MJ (2016), The evolution and known atmospheric forcing mechanisms behind the 2013-2015 North Pacific warm anomalies, US CLIVAR Variations, 14(2), 1-6.
  2. Austin JA, and Barth JA (2002), Variation in the position of the upwelling front on the Oregon shelf, J. Geophys. Res, 107(C11), 3180, doi:10.1029/2001JC000858. · DOI
  3. Bi H, Peterson W, and Strub P (2011), Transport and coastal zooplankton communities in the northern California Current system, Geophys. Res. Lett, 38, L12607, doi:10.1029/2011GL047927. · DOI
  4. Bond NA, Cronin MF, Freeland H, and Mantua N (2015), Causes and impacts of the 2014 warm anomaly in the NE Pacific, Geophys. Res. Lett, 42, 3414-3420, doi:10.1002/2015GL063306. · DOI · Paper page
  5. Cupp EE (1943), Marine Plankton Diatoms of the West Coast of North America, 237 pp., Univ. of Calif. Press, Berkeley.
  6. DiLorenzo E, and Mantua N (2016), Multi-year persistence of the 2014/15 North Pacific marine heatwave, Nat. Clim. Change, 6, 1042-1047, doi:10.1038/NClimate3082. · DOI
  7. Du X, Peterson W, Fisher J, Hunter M, and Peterson J (2016), Initiation and development of a toxic and persistent Pseudo-nitzschia bloom off the Oregon coast in spring/summer 2015, PLoS One, 11(10), e163977, doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0163977. · DOI
  8. Fager E, and McGowan JA (1963), Biological species, water masses and currents, in The Sea II, edited by Hill MH, pp. 381-414.
  9. Frischknecht M, Münnich M, and Gruber N (2017), Local atmospheric forcing driving an unexpected California Current System response during the 2015-2016 El Niño, Geophys. Res. Lett, 44, 304311, doi:10.1002/2016GL071316. · DOI
  10. Frost B, and Fleminger A (1968), A Revision of the Genus Clausocalanus (Copepoda: Calanoida) With Remarks on Distributional Patterns in Diagnostic Features, Bull. Scripps Inst. Oceanogr, vol. 12, 235 p., Univ. of California Press, Berkeley.
  11. Garrison DL (1979), Monterey Bay phytoplankton I. Seasonal cycles of phytoplankton assemblages, J. Plankton Res, 1(3), 241-265, doi:10.1093/plankt/1.3.241. · DOI
  12. Gibson G, and Paffenhöfer G-A (2000), Feeding and growth of the doliolid Dolioletta gegenbaurii Uljanin (Tunicata, Thaliacea),J. Plankton Res, 22(8), 1485-1500, doi:10.1093/plankt/22.8.1485. · DOI
  13. Jacox MG, Hazen EL, Zaba KD, Rudnick DL, Edwards CA, Moore AM, and Bograd SJ (2016), Impacts of the 2015-2016 El Niño on the California Current System: Early assessment and comparison to past events, Geophys. Res. Lett, 43, 7072-7080, doi:10.1002/2016GL069716. · DOI
  14. Levine AFZ, and McPhaden MJ (2016), How the July 2014 easterly wind burst gave the 2015-2016 El Niño a head start,Geophys. Res. Lett, 43, 6503-6510, doi:10.1002/2016GL069204. · DOI
  15. Mackas DL, Peterson WT, Ohman MD, and Lavaniegos BE (2006), Zooplankton anomalies in the California Current system before and during the warm ocean conditions of 2005, Geophys. Res. Lett, 33, L22S07, doi:10.1029/2006GL027930. · DOI · Paper page
  16. McCabe RM, Hickey BM, Kudela RM, Lefebvre KA, Adams NG, Bill BD, Gulland F, Thomson RE, Cochlan WP, and Trainer VL (2016), An unprecedented coastwide toxic algal bloom linked to anomalous ocean conditions, Geophys. Res. Lett, 43, 10,366-10,376, doi:10.1002/2016GL070023. · DOI
  17. McKibben SM, Peterson W, Wood AM, Trainer VR, Hunter M, and White A (2017), Climate regulation of the neurotoxin domoic acid, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A, 114(2), 239-244, doi:10.1073/pnas.1606798114. [PubMed: 28069959] · DOI
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  19. Miller JA, Peterson WT, Copeman LA, Du X, Morgan CA, and Litz MNC (2017), Temporal variation in the biochemical ecology of lower trophic levels in the Northern California Current, Prog. Oceanogr, 55, 1-12, doi:10.1016/j.pocean.2017.05.003. · DOI
  20. Peterson WT, and Schwing FB (2003), A new climate regime in Northeast Pacific ecosystems, Geophys. Res. Lett, 30(17), 1896, doi:10.1029/2003GL017528. · DOI
  21. Peterson WT, Miller CB, and Hutchinson A (1979), Zonation and maintenance of copepod populations in the Oregon upwelling zone, Deep Sea Res., Part A, 26(5), 467-494.
  22. Peterson WT, Keister JE, and Feinberg LR (2002), The effects of the 1997-98 El Niño/La Niña events on hydrography and zooplankton off the central Oregon coast, Prog. Oceanogr, 54(1), 381-398.
  23. Peterson WT, Fisher JL, Peterson JO, Morgan CA, Burke BJ, and Fresh KL (2014), Applied fisheries oceanography: Ecosystem indicators of ocean conditions inform fisheries management in the California Current, Oceanography, 27(4), 80-89.
  24. Peterson WT, Robert M, and Bond N (2015a), The warm Blob conditions in the Northeastern Pacific Ocean, PICES Press, 23(1), 36-38.
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  29. Surry AM, and King JR (2015), A new method for calculating the ALPI: The Aleutian Low pressure index, Can. Tech. Rep. Fish. Aquat. Sci, vol. 3135, v + 31 p., Pacific Region Pacific Biological Station, Columbia.
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Authors
Peterson, W. T., Fisher, J. L., Strub, P. T., Du, X., Risien, C., Peterson, J., & Shaw, C. T.
Affiliations
  • NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service (US)
  • Oregon State University (US)
  • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (US)
  • University of South Florida St. Petersburg (US)
Corresponding author
Fisher, Jennifer L.
ORCID
Venue
Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans
Publisher
American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Published
2017-09
Volume
122
Issue
9
Pages
7267-7290
ISSN
  • 2169-9275 (ISSN-L)
  • 2169-9291
DOI
10.1002/2017jc012952
PMC
PMC7668311
OpenAlex
W2746385383
Cited by
200
References
1
Citations by year
2026: 10 · 2025: 17 · 2024: 22 · 2023: 28 · 2022: 25 · 2021: 32 · 2020: 25 · 2019: 20 · 2018: 20 · 2017: 1
FWCI
12.00
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor (vor, 9 d)
Locations
  • Journal of Geophysical Research Oceans (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
  • NOAA Institutional Repository (submittedVersion)
Funders
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NNX13AH22G)
Topics
  • Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Oceanography › Marine and coastal ecosystems
  • Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Global and Planetary Change › Marine and fisheries research
  • Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Oceanography › Oceanographic and Atmospheric Processes
Keywords
The Blob, California Current, pelagic ecosystem, copepods, plankton community composition, dinoflagellates, harmful algal blooms, upwelling, downwelling, krill, larvaceans, doliolids, food webs, North Pacific gyre

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