Spatial variations of small phytoplankton contributions in the Northern Bering Sea and the Southern Chukchi Sea

Phytoplankton size classes (hereafter, PSCs) were derived from satellite ocean color data using a present phytoplankton abundance-based optical algorithm in the northern Bering and southern Chukchi Seas to characterize the spatial and seasonal variations of the different PSC and investigate the contributions of small phytoplankton to the total phytoplankton biomass. The comparison results showed that the phytoplankton abundance-based method approach could reasonably classify the three PSCs (pico-, nano-, and micro phytoplankton). The satellite maps of the dominant PSCs were derived using long-term satellite ocean color data. The general spatial distribution showed that the large (micro-) phytoplankton were dominant in the coastal waters and the west side of the Bering strait, while the small size (nano- or pico-) phytoplankton were dominant in the open ocean waters. Nano- and microphytoplankton were dominant in May and October in most of the study area, while pico-phytoplankton were dominant in the summer...