Phytoplankton |
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The sunlit waters of the surface of the sea are adrift with microscopic, single-celled organisms which use energy from the sun and nutrients extracted from the water to make their own carbohydrates via a set of chemical reactions termed photosynthesis. Collectively, they are referred to as phytoplankton (from the Greek words phytos = plant and planktos = wanderer). The phytoplankton are comprised of a vast, diverse assemblage of organisms which are united by their tiny size and drifting life mode, rather than by genetic relatedness. They have inhabited earth's seas for millions of years, and their lives have changed the face of our planet, for their photosynthesis has generated much of the oxygen in our atmosphere, and when each cell's life is done, their shells have drifed to the sea floor to form its sediments. Phytoplankton communities are made up of four major phylogenetic groups, and many minor/smaller ones. The Cyanobacteria are actually prokaryotic (without a nucleus) organisms. Among the most common Eukaryotes are the diatoms, the dinoflagellates and the coccolithophorids.
Diatoms
Dinoflagellates
Coccolithophorids Miscellaneous Taxa
General
Systematics
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