Modeling the Black Sea Pelagic Ecosystem and Biogeochemical Structure: A Synthesis of Recent Activities

Recent modeling studies on the structure and functioning of the plankton productivity and various other features of the vertical biogeochemical structure of the Black Sea are reviewed in this study. Major findings from the available pelagic ecosystem models, catagorized as the mixed layer based physically simplified models and the vertically resolved coupled physical-biochemical models, are described first. Capability of present models in describing nutrient cycling, oxygen dynamics and suboxic-anoxic layer interactions is then assessed.