Following a 20-year data gap, a recent paper by Luca Stirnimann and authors present new analyses of the plankton ecosystem at the Prince Edward Islands archipelago and sheds light on the magnitude and drivers of its island mass effect, which has to-date been largely ignored. They found that the archipelago strengthens the regional biological pump, albeit to a lesser extent than the adjacent Subantarctic islands. They further confirm reports of plankton community changes at the archipelago, likely related to the migration of the Subantarctic Front. Access the full article at:
Stirnimann L, Bornman TG, Verheye HM, Bachèlery M-L, Van der Poel J, Fawcett SE. (2021). Plankton community composition and productivity near the Subantarctic Prince Edward Islands archipelago in autumn. Limnol. Oceanogr, (0):1–19. doi: 10.1002/lno.11949