scholarly journals Algal plankton turn to hunting to survive and recover from end-Cretaceous impact darkness

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (44) ◽  
pp. eabc9123
Author(s):  
Samantha J. Gibbs ◽  
Paul R. Bown ◽  
Ben A. Ward ◽  
Sarah A. Alvarez ◽  
Hojung Kim ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Primary Production ◽  
Food Webs ◽  
Food Chain ◽  
Evolutionary Modeling ◽  
Marine Food Webs ◽  
Marine Food Chain ◽  
Post Impact ◽  
Light Inhibition ◽  
Marine Food ◽  
The Impact

The end-Cretaceous bolide impact triggered the devastation of marine ecosystems. However, the specific kill mechanism(s) are still debated, and how primary production subsequently recovered remains elusive. We used marine plankton microfossils and eco-evolutionary modeling to determine strategies for survival and recovery, finding that widespread phagotrophy (prey ingestion) was fundamental to plankton surviving the impact and also for the subsequent reestablishment of primary production. Ecological selectivity points to extreme post-impact light inhibition as the principal kill mechanism, with the marine food chain temporarily reset to a bacteria-dominated state. Subsequently, in a sunlit ocean inhabited by only rare survivor grazers but abundant small prey, it was mixotrophic nutrition (autotrophy and heterotrophy) and increasing cell sizes that enabled the eventual reestablishment of marine food webs some 2 million years later.

scholarly journals Host-specific symbioses and the microbial prey of a pelagic tunicate (Pyrosoma atlanticum)

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne W. Thompson ◽  
Anna C. Ward ◽  
Carey P. Sweeney ◽  
Kelly R. Sutherland
Keyword(s):  
Microbial Communities ◽  
Food Webs ◽  
Rrna Gene ◽  
Marine Microorganisms ◽  
Marine Animals ◽  
California Current System ◽  
Marine Food Webs ◽  
Marine Food ◽  
Marine Microbial Communities ◽  
The Impact

AbstractPyrosomes are widely distributed pelagic tunicates that have the potential to reshape marine food webs when they bloom. However, their grazing preferences and interactions with the background microbial community are poorly understood. This is the first study of the marine microorganisms associated with pyrosomes undertaken to improve the understanding of pyrosome biology, the impact of pyrosome blooms on marine microbial systems, and microbial symbioses with marine animals. The diversity, relative abundance, and taxonomy of pyrosome-associated microorganisms were compared to seawater during a Pyrosoma atlanticum bloom in the Northern California Current System using high-throughput sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene, microscopy, and flow cytometry. We found that pyrosomes harbor a microbiome distinct from the surrounding seawater, which was dominated by a few novel taxa. In addition to the dominant taxa, numerous more rare pyrosome-specific microbial taxa were recovered. Multiple bioluminescent taxa were present in pyrosomes, which may be a source of the iconic pyrosome luminescence. We also discovered free-living marine microorganisms in association with pyrosomes, suggesting that pyrosome feeding impacts all microbial size classes but preferentially removes larger eukaryotic taxa. This study demonstrates that microbial symbionts and microbial prey are central to pyrosome biology. In addition to pyrosome impacts on higher trophic level marine food webs, the work suggests that pyrosomes also alter marine food webs at the microbial level through feeding and seeding of the marine microbial communities with their symbionts. Future efforts to predict pyrosome blooms, and account for their ecosystem impacts, should consider pyrosome interactions with marine microbial communities.

Effects of climate-driven primary production change on marine food webs: implications for fisheries and conservation

2010 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 1194-1212 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. J. BROWN ◽  
E. A. FULTON ◽  
A. J. HOBDAY ◽  
R. J. MATEAR ◽  
H. P. POSSINGHAM ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Primary Production ◽  
Food Webs ◽  
Marine Food Webs ◽  
Marine Food ◽  
Production Change

Recent decrease in gentoo penguin populations at Iles Kerguelen

2006 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 171-174 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amélie Lescroël ◽  
Charles-André Bost
Keyword(s):  
Food Webs ◽  
Food Availability ◽  
Climate Changes ◽  
Gentoo Penguin ◽  
Pygoscelis Papua ◽  
Marine Food Webs ◽  
Coastal Species ◽  
Marine Food ◽  
The Impact

Several sub-Antarctic penguin populations have exhibited decreasing trends in the last 5–20 years. At Iles Kerguelen, the gentoo penguin (Pygoscelis papua) has decreased by approximately 30% over the last 15 years. This decrease is likely to be related to reduced food availability for this coastal species. We discuss this decrease with regard to the impact of overfishing and to the potential effects of climate changes on marine food webs.

Stable nitrogen and carbon isotopes in sediments and biota from three tropical marine food webs: Application to chemical bioaccumulation assessment

2017 ◽  
Vol 36 (9) ◽  
pp. 2521-2532 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hui Zhang ◽  
Yun Teng ◽  
Tra Thi Thanh Doan ◽  
Yun Wei Yat ◽  
Sheot Harn Chan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Webs ◽  
Carbon Isotopes ◽  
Marine Food Webs ◽  
Marine Food

scholarly journals Krill: a potential vector for domoic acid in marine food webs

2002 ◽  
Vol 237 ◽  
pp. 209-216 ◽  
Author(s):  
S Bargu ◽  
CL Powell ◽  
SL Coale ◽  
M Busman ◽  
GJ Doucette ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Webs ◽  
Domoic Acid ◽  
Potential Vector ◽  
Marine Food Webs ◽  
Marine Food
Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document