Our paper on picophytoplankton (PicoP) dynamics in the Neuse River Estuary (NRE) and impacts of storms was just published; have a look below!
The main ‘take homes’: 1) Tiny PicoP are significant contributors to phytoplankton biomass in the large estuary, 2) understudied ‘green’ Synechococcus-like cells are most dominant, and 3) picoeukaryotic phytoplankton dominate in Spring, Winter and following high-precipitation storms. Moderate to extreme precipitation events are anticipated to reduce PicoP numbers, lowering their food we contribution and promote more picoeukaryotic phytoplankton.
The core data derives from the MS thesis of Rebecca Venezia and features analyses by PhD student Joel Sanchez.