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Ecology of Phaeocystis-dominated ecosystems

par Lancelot, Christiane ;Wassmann, P.;Barth, H.
Référence Journal of marine systems, 5, 1, page (1-4)
Publication Publié, 1994

Article révisé par les pairs

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Résumé :

A three-day workshop on the ecology of Phaeocystis-dominated ecosystems was held in Brussels in January 1991 under the auspices of the Commission of the European Communities in the scope of the R and D Programme Science and Technology for Environmental Protection (STEP) to promote international cooperation and interdisciplinarity in marine ecology. That a nontoxic phytoplankton organism deserves attention of a whole workshop is unique and must be related to the uniqueness of this prymnesiophyte. The uniqueness of the genus Phaeocystis rests not only in the fabulous biomass reached by its blooms but mostly in its exceptional physiology and ecology. No other marine phytoplankter has ever been shown to dominate an entire ecosystem. No other marine species distinguishes itself by a complex polymorphic life cycle that induces dramatic changes in the structure and functioning of the planktonic and benthic food-web as well as in the biogeochemistry of trace elements and sulphur.