Abstract
EELGRASS (Zostera marina L.), a marine angiosperm which grows on the Pacific coast of North America from the Gulf of California to the Chukchi Sea1, has been found living under the winter sea ice in Safety Lagoon, an embayment of the Bering Sea near Nome, Alaska. A submarine television system revealed the plants to be in good vegetative condition in the 20 to 30 cm of water between the sediment and the undersurface of the ice (Figs. 1 and 2). The odour of hydrogen sulphide and subsequent tests with an oxygen probe showed this water to be anoxic.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
McRoy, C. P., Pacific Sci., 22, 507 (1968).
McRoy, C. P., thesis, Univ. Washington, Seattle (1966).
Grøntved, J., J. Cons. Perm. Int. Explor. Mer, 22, 292 (1957).
Richards, F. A., in Chemical Oceanography (edit. by Riley, J. P., and Skirrow, G.), 611 (Academic Press, New York, 1965).
Setchell, W. A., Univ. Calif. Publ. Bot., 14, 389 (1929).
Gran, H. H., in Norwegian North Polar Expedition 1893–96 (edit. by Nansen, F.), 4 (J. Dybwad, Christiania, 1904).
Wilce, R. T., Bot. Marina, 10, 185 (1967).
MacGinitie, G. E., Smithsonian Inst. Misc. Coll., 128, 1 (1956).
Broekhuysen, jun., G. J., Arch. Neerl. Zool., 1, 339 (1935).
Hartman, R. T., and Brown, D. L., Ecology, 48, 252 (1967).
Billings, W. D., and Godfrey, P. J., Science, 158, 121 (1967).
Sculthorpe, C. D., The Biology of Aquatic Vascular Plants, 161 (St Martin's Press, New York, 1967).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
MCROY, C. Eelgrass under Arctic Winter Ice. Nature 224, 818–819 (1969). https://doi.org/10.1038/224818a0
Received:
Revised:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/224818a0
This article is cited by
-
Model fit versus biological relevance: Evaluating photosynthesis-temperature models for three tropical seagrass species
Scientific Reports (2017)
-
Influence of light, temperature and salinity on dissolved organic carbon exudation rates in Zostera marina L.
Aquatic Biosystems (2012)
-
Seasonal Production and Biomass of the Seagrass, Halodule wrightii Aschers. (Shoal Grass), in a Subtropical Texas Lagoon
Estuaries and Coasts (2009)
-
Light Requirements for Growth and Survival of Eelgrass (Zostera marina L.) in Pacific Northwest (USA) Estuaries
Estuaries and Coasts (2008)
-
Top-down impact through a bottom-up mechanism: the effect of limpet grazing on growth, productivity and carbon allocation of Zostera marina L. (eelgrass)
Oecologia (1996)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.
