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Picophytoplankton community in a tropical estuary: Detection of Prochlorococcus-like populations

DRS at CSIR-National Institute of Oceanography

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Title Picophytoplankton community in a tropical estuary: Detection of Prochlorococcus-like populations
 
Creator Mitbavkar, S.
Rajaneesh, K.M.
Anil, A.C.
Sundar, D.
 
Subject phytoplankton
community composition
population structure
salinity
Prochlorococcus
 
Description The influence of hydrography on the picophytoplankton (PP) abundance in estuaries was studied by sampling along a salinity gradient in an Indian estuary. Prochlorococcus-like cells were detected at salinities ranging from 0.06 to 35, which otherwise is reported from offshore regions, thereby showing that this group is capable of surviving in estuarine waters. PP also comprised picoeukaryotes and two groups of Synechococcus, one rich in phycoerythrin (SYN-PE) and other in phycocyanin (SYN-PC). Salinity played an important role in the picophytoplankton distribution. SYN-PE was represented by two sub-groups, one which was found only in saline waters (SYN-PEII) and the other throughout the salinity gradient (SYN-PEI). SYN-PEI and SYN-PC dominated downstream and upstream, respectively but were present throughout the salinity gradient unlike in other estuarine regions. Picoeukaryotes abundance showed an increasing trend from saline to brackish water and decreased in freshwater. The entry of seawater into the estuary regulated SYN-PE and Prochlorococcus-like cells downstream whereas their higher abundance in freshwater could be due to different strains of freshwater origin. The average contribution of PP to the total photosynthetic biomass during spring and neap tides was 43 percent and 29 percent respectively, which highlights the importance of PP in estuaries.
 
Date 2012-07-27T10:30:25Z
2012-07-27T10:30:25Z
2012
 
Type Journal Article
 
Identifier Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science vol.107; 2012; 159-164
no
http://drs.nio.org/drs/handle/2264/4101
 
Language en
 
Relation Estuar_Coast_Shelf_Sci_107_159.jpg
 
Rights An edited version of this paper was published by Elsevier. Copyright [2012] Elsevier
 
Publisher Elsevier