The Arabian Sea: A Natural Experiment in Phytoplankton Biogeography
Abstract
The structure of the phytoplankton community influences the optical properties of the water column, the size distribution and growth rate of higher levels of the food web, and may also control resiliency and stability in marine ecosystems. These small organisms represent a wealth of biodiversity and, because of their small size and rapid growth rates, they have the potential for a rapid evolutionary response to environmental change. I seek to understand the dynamics of marine ecosystems through study of the ways that natural selection influences the distribution and evolutionary trajectory of marine phytoplankton in nature. An important component of this research is an evaluation of the conditions under which water mass history can be used to evaluate changes in the selection regime - i.e. in a fluid environment, is the water mass equivalent to the habitat of an planktonic organism? How much coherence is there between the distribution of a particular community type and water masses of particular character? If water masses define the habitat boundaries, then modern oceanographic techniques can be used to describe the time rate-of-change of conditions in the water mass, thus opening the door to measuring and modeling the selection regime and the response to selection by natural populations of phytoplankton and other microorganisms.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Sep 30, 1997
- Accession Number
- ADA627903
Entities
People
- A. M. Wood
Organizations
- University of Oregon