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The Role Of Copepods And Heterotrophic Dinoflagellates In The Production Of Dissolved Organic Matter And Inorganic Nutrients, Grace Kathleen Saba
The Role Of Copepods And Heterotrophic Dinoflagellates In The Production Of Dissolved Organic Matter And Inorganic Nutrients, Grace Kathleen Saba
Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects
Zooplankton play a key role in the cycling of dissolved organic matter (DOM) and inorganic nutrients. The factors that affect these processes, however, are not fully understood. I measured the effects of various diets on DOM and inorganic nutrient production by the copepod Acartia tonsa and the heterotrophic dinoflagellate Oxyrrhis marina, and explored the mechanisms of nutrient release from copepods. Copepods feeding on a mixed diet, the preferred diet of most copepods, had significantly lower dissolved organic carbon (DOC), ammonium (NH4+), and total dissolved nitrogen (TDN) release rates compared to feeding on a carnivorous or herbivorous diet. Thus, copepod feeding …