Upwelling of nutrient-rich UCDW has been suggested to
promote diatom blooms in the upper water column along
the northern portion of the shelf; hydrography and nutrient concentrations just to the
south of the cyclonic gyre in fall suggested that such an
upwelling event had occurred recently. The high abundances
of marine snow that were observed along the outer edges of
the transects at that location may have resulted from
sedimentation of resulting the phytoplankton biomass out
of the upper water column to depth. The elevated
abundances of pteropods also found at that location may
have resulted from a recent response to elevated phytoplankton
food. Such dynamic interactions along the shelfbreak
clearly have important influences on the shelf
ecosystem