phytoplankton

phy·to·plank·ton

P0280600 (fī′tō-plăngk′tən)n. Plankton that consists of minute plants and other photosynthetic organisms, including cyanobacteria, diatoms, and dinoflagellates.

phy′to·plank·ton′ic (-plăngk-tŏn′ĭk) adj.

phytoplankton

(ˌfaɪtəˈplæŋktən) n (Biology) the photosynthesizing organisms in plankton, mainly unicellular algae and cyanobacteria. Compare zooplankton phytoplanktonic adj

phy•to•plank•ton

(ˌfaɪ təˈplæŋk tən)

n. the aggregate of plants and plantlike organisms in plankton. Compare zooplankton. [1895–1900]

phy·to·plank·ton

(fī′tō-plăngk′tən) Plankton consisting of plants and plant-like organisms, such as algae. Phytoplankton are a major source of food for aquatic animals and fix large amounts of carbon, which would otherwise be released as carbon dioxide.

phytoplankton

A type of plankton that consists of floating aquatic plants.

Thesaurus

Noun

phytoplankton - photosynthetic or plant constituent of plankton; mainly unicellular algaeplant life, flora, plant - (botany) a living organism lacking the power of locomotionplankton - the aggregate of small plant and animal organisms that float or drift in great numbers in fresh or salt waterplanktonic algae - unicellular algaediatom - microscopic unicellular marine or freshwater colonial alga having cell walls impregnated with silica

phytoplankton

Phytoplankton

Mostly autotrophic microscopic algae which inhabit the illuminated surface waters of the sea, estuaries, lakes, and ponds. Many are motile. Some perform diel (diurnal) vertical migrations, others do not. Some nonmotile forms regulate their buoyancy. However, their locomotor abilities are limited, and they are largely transported by horizontal and vertical water motions.

A great variety of algae make up the phytoplankton. Diatoms (class Bacillariophyceae) are often conspicuous members of marine, estuarine, and fresh-water plankton. Dinoflagellates (class Dinophyceae) occur in both marine and fresh-water environments and are important primary producers in marine and estuarine environments. Coccolithophorids (class Haptophyceae) are also marine primary producers of some importance. They do not occur in fresh water.

Even though marine and fresh-water phytoplankton communities contain a number of algal classes in common, phytoplankton samples from these two environments will appear quite different. These habitats support different genera and species and groups of higher rank in these classes. Furthermore, fresh-water plankton contains algae belonging to additional algal classes either absent or rarely common in open ocean environments. These include the green algae (class Chlorophyceae), the euglenoid flagellates (class Euglenophyceae), and members of the Prasinophyceae.

The phytoplankton in aquatic environments which have not been too drastically affected by human activity exhibit rather regular and predictable seasonal cycles. Coastal upwelling and divergences, zones where deeper water rises to the surface, are examples of naturally occurring phenomena which enrich the mixed layer with needed nutrients and greatly increase phytoplankton production. In the ocean these are the sites of the world's most productive fisheries.

phytoplankton

[¦fīd·ə′plaŋk·tən] (ecology) Planktonic plant life.

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Words related to phytoplankton

noun photosynthetic or plant constituent of plankton

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