Fig. 3: Relation between experiment results and phytoplankton dynamics.
From: Nitrogen and phosphorus differentially control marine biomass production and stoichiometry
Observed N:P ratios in this study (grey, average of day 25 and 29) are compared to N:P calculated ratios based on the eukaryotic phytoplankton groups present in our incubations (average of day 25 and 29) using the meta-analysis results of Sharoni and Halevy5 for phytoplankton grown under nutrient replete (green), nitrogen-limited (blue), and phosphorus-limited (purple) conditions (a). Error bars represent 1 σ. Stars indicate which calculated N:P values are significantly different from the observation (Welch’s t-test, p < 0.05, Observation n = 12 except for -N+P (n = 10) and -N-P (n = 11); Replete n = 64; N-Stress n = 37; P-Stress n = 42). We suggest the underlying mechanisms that may drive the observed particulate N:P ratios (b) as both a function of community structure dictated by inorganic N supply to the system, and physiological acclimation mediated by P supply to the system. The optimal N:P ratios visualized by the green band were extracted from the Sharoni and Halevy5 meta-analysis, and the flexible N:P range visualized with the purple arrow is from Geider and La Roche6. The Redfield N:P ratio is shown as a red dashed line in a and b. Source data are provided as a Source Data file.
