Microbial iron uptake in the naturally fertilized waters in the vicinity of the Kerguelen Islands: phytoplankton–bacteria interactions

Abstract. Iron (Fe) uptake by the microbial community and the contribution of three different size fractions was determined during spring phytoplankton blooms in the naturally Fe-fertilized area off the Kerguelen Islands (KEOPS2). Total Fe uptake in surface waters was on average 34 ± 6 pmol Fe L^-1 d^-1, and microplankton (> 25 μm size fraction; 40–69%) and pico-nanoplankton (0.8–25 μm size fraction; 29–59%) were the main contributors. The contribution of heterotrophic bacteria (0.2–0.8 μm size fraction) to total Fe uptake was low at all stations (1–2%). Iron uptake rates normalized to carbon biomass were highest for pico-nanoplankton above the Kerguelen Plateau and for microplankton in the downstream plume. We also investigated the potential competition between heterotrophic bacteria and phytoplankton for the access to Fe. Bacterial Fe uptake rates normalized to carbon biomass were highest in incubations with bacteria alone, and dropped in incubations containing other components of the microbial community. Interestingly, the decrease in bacterial Fe uptake rate (up to 26-fold) was most pronounced in incubations containing pico-nanoplankton and bacteria, while the bacterial Fe uptake was only reduced by 2- to 8-fold in incubations containing the whole community (bacteria + pico-nanoplankton + microplankton). In Fe-fertilized waters, the bacterial Fe uptake rates normalized to carbon biomass were positively correlated with primary production. Taken together, these results suggest that heterotrophic bacteria are outcompeted by small-sized phytoplankton cells for the access to Fe during the spring bloom development, most likely due to the limitation by organic matter. We conclude that the Fe and carbon cycles are tightly coupled and driven by a complex interplay of competition and synergy between different members of the microbial community.