title: Near-island biological hotspots in barren ocean basins.
abstract: Phytoplankton production drives marine ecosystem trophic-structure and global fisheries yields. Phytoplankton biomass is particularly influential near coral reef islands and atolls that span the oligotrophic tropical oceans. The paradoxical enhancement in phytoplankton near an island-reef ecosystem--Island Mass Effect (IME)--was first documented 60 years ago, yet much remains unknown about the prevalence and drivers of this ecologically important phenomenon. Here we provide the first basin-scale investigation of IME. We show that IME is a near-ubiquitous feature among a majority (91%) of coral reef ecosystems surveyed, creating near-island 'hotspots' of phytoplankton biomass throughout the upper water column. Variations in IME strength are governed by geomorphic type (atoll vs island), bathymetric slope, reef area and local human impacts (for example, human-derived nutrient input). These ocean oases increase nearshore phytoplankton biomass by up to 86% over oceanic conditions, providing basal energetic resources to higher trophic levels that support subsistence-based human populations.
authors.affiliation: Ecosystems and Oceanography Program, Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, 1845 Wasp Blvd Building 176, Honolulu, 96818 Hawaii, USA.
authors.forename: Jamison M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Gove
authors.affiliation: Department of Oceanography, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, 1000 Pope Road, Marine Sciences Building, Honolulu, 96822 Hawaii, USA.
authors.forename: Margaret A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: McManus
authors.affiliation: Department of Oceanography, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, 1000 Pope Road, Marine Sciences Building, Honolulu, 96822 Hawaii, USA.
authors.forename: Anna B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Neuheimer
authors.affiliation: Ecosystems and Oceanography Program, Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, 1845 Wasp Blvd Building 176, Honolulu, 96818 Hawaii, USA.
authors.forename: Jeffrey J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Polovina
authors.affiliation: Department of Oceanography, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, 1000 Pope Road, Marine Sciences Building, Honolulu, 96822 Hawaii, USA.
authors.forename: Jeffrey C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Drazen
authors.affiliation: Department of Oceanography, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, 1000 Pope Road, Marine Sciences Building, Honolulu, 96822 Hawaii, USA.
authors.forename: Craig R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.affiliation: Department of Oceanography, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, 1000 Pope Road, Marine Sciences Building, Honolulu, 96822 Hawaii, USA.|Joint Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, 1000 Pope Road, Marine Sciences Building, Honolulu, 96822 Hawaii, USA.
authors.forename: Mark A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Merrifield
authors.affiliation: Fisheries Ecology Research Laboratory, Department of Biology, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, 2538 McCarthy Mall, Honolulu, 96822 Hawaii, USA.|Pristine Seas, National Geographic Society, 1145 17th St NW, Washington, DC 20036, USA.
authors.forename: Alan M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Friedlander
authors.affiliation: Joint Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, 1000 Pope Road, Marine Sciences Building, Honolulu, 96822 Hawaii, USA.|Coral Reef Ecosystem Program, Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, 1845 Wasp Blvd Building 176, Honolulu, 96818 Hawaii, USA.
authors.forename: Julia S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Ehses
authors.affiliation: Joint Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, 1000 Pope Road, Marine Sciences Building, Honolulu, 96822 Hawaii, USA.|Coral Reef Ecosystem Program, Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, 1845 Wasp Blvd Building 176, Honolulu, 96818 Hawaii, USA.
authors.forename: Charles W
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Young
authors.affiliation: Joint Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, 1000 Pope Road, Marine Sciences Building, Honolulu, 96822 Hawaii, USA.|Coral Reef Ecosystem Program, Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, 1845 Wasp Blvd Building 176, Honolulu, 96818 Hawaii, USA.
authors.forename: Amanda K
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Dillon
authors.affiliation: Center for Marine Biodiversity and Conservation, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, 92093 California, USA.|School of Ocean Sciences, Bangor University, Menai Bridge, LL59 5AB Anglesey, UK.
authors.forename: Gareth J
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Williams
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D018533:Biomass; D057894:Coral Reefs; D017753:Ecosystem; D006802:Human Activities; D006801:Humans; D062312:Islands; D009792:Oceans and Seas; D010839:Phytoplankton / Q000254:growth & development*