Although plankton thin layers have been described and modeled in a variety of environments, the physical structure surrounding the layer, associated biological rates, and distributions of multiple trophic levels are rarely examined simultaneously. Similar combinations of measurements, such as growth, mortality, and spatial relationships among plankton, are key to understanding how physical processes generating thin layers can influence abundances, composition, and predator‐prey interactions. An in situ imaging system was deployed along a southward‐oriented transect to describe the full ~ 2.3‐km extent of a thin layer arching from 8 to 4 m deep, with Chlorophyll a enhanced by an order of magnitude inside the layer (23.9 mg m⁻³ peak concentration). Physical oceanographic measurements, distributions of different plankton groups, and output from a high‐resolution model indicated that surface convergence and vertical shear drove the formation of the layer, which was dominated by Odontella sp. diatoms that were relatively scarce in the broader study region. Phytoplankton apparent growth (0.64 d⁻¹) balanced microzooplankton grazing rates (0.52 d⁻¹) within the layer, whereas grazing mortality (2.23 d⁻¹) greatly exceeded phytoplankton growth (−0.39 d⁻¹) outside the thin layer. Mesozooplankton had starkly differing distributions; copepods aggregated south of the layer near the surface, and doliolids followed the thin layer trajectory. A physical oceanographic model run over a 1‐month time period, including the time of sampling, indicated that similar surface convergences occurred frequently. Thin layers driven by convergence and shear may be common, with behavioral and buoyancy differences among plankton likely contributing to community structure and modification of trophic transfer.

中文翻译：

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形成硅藻为主的薄层驱动的浮游动物的细尺度分布模式

尽管已经在各种环境中对浮游生物薄层进行了描述和建模，但很少同时检查该层周围的物理结构，相关的生物速率和多个营养级的分布。相似的测量组合，例如生长，死亡率和浮游生物之间的空间关系，对于理解产生薄层的物理过程如何影响丰度，组成和食肉动物与猎物之间的相互作用至关重要。沿向南样带部署了一个原位成像系统，以描述从约8 km到约4 m深的薄层弓形的整个〜2.3 km范围，其中叶绿素 a增强了该层内部的数量级（23.9 mg m ⁻³峰值浓度）。物理海洋学测量，不同浮游生物群的分布以及高分辨率模型的输出表明，表面会聚和垂直剪切力推动了该层的形成，该层主要由Odontella sp。主导。在更广泛的研究区域中相对稀缺的硅藻。浮游植物的表观生长（0.64 d ^-1）平衡了该层内微浮游动物的放牧速度（0.52 d ^-1），而放牧死亡率（2.23 d ^-1）大大超过了浮游植物的生长（-0.39 d ^-1））以外的薄层。Mesozooplankton的分布完全不同。pe足类聚集在靠近表面的该层以南，而杜利利多遵循该薄层轨迹。包括采样时间在内的为期1个月的物理海洋学模型表明，相似的表面会聚经常发生。由会聚和剪切驱动的薄层可能很常见，浮游生物之间的行为和浮力差异可能有助于群落结构和营养传递的改变。