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This is an accepted version of this page This is the latest accepted revision, reviewed on 8 September 2024. Organisms living in water or air that are drifters on the current or wind This article is about the marine organisms. For other uses, see Plankton (disambiguation). Marine microplankton and mesoplankton Part of the contents of one dip of a hand net. The image contains diverse planktonic ...
Phytoplankton (/ ˌfaɪtoʊˈplæŋktən /) are the autotrophic (self-feeding) components of the plankton community and a key part of ocean and freshwater ecosystems. The name comes from the Greek words φυτόν (phyton), meaning ' plant ', and πλαγκτός (planktos), meaning 'wanderer' or 'drifter'. [1][2][3] Phytoplankton obtain their ...
Plankton. Zooplankton are the heterotrophic component of the planktonic community (the "zoo-" prefix comes from Ancient Greek: ζῷον, romanized: zôion, lit. 'animal'), having to consume other organisms to thrive. Plankton are aquatic organisms that are unable to swim effectively against currents.
A planktivore is an aquatic organism that feeds on planktonic food, including zooplankton and phytoplankton. [1] [2] Planktivorous organisms encompass a range of some of the planet's smallest to largest multicellular animals in both the present day and in the past billion years; basking sharks and copepods are just two examples of giant and microscopic organisms that feed upon plankton.
[2] [3] [4] The megamouth shark has luminous organs called photophores around its mouth. It is believed they may exist to lure plankton or small fish into its mouth. [5] The basking shark is a passive filter feeder, filtering zooplankton, small fish, and invertebrates from up to 2,000 tons of water per hour. [6]
Mixotroph. A mixotroph is an organism that uses a mix of different sources of energy and carbon, instead of having a single trophic mode, on the continuum from complete autotrophy to complete heterotrophy. It is estimated that mixotrophs comprise more than half of all microscopic plankton. [ 1 ] There are two types of eukaryotic mixotrophs.
One explanation to the paradox of the plankton is the "Boom-and-busted dynamic" hypothesis, also called "Kill the winner." In a phytoplankton bloom, an individual species multiplies rapidly in ideal conditions, which increases its cell concentration in an area, outcompeting other phytoplankton. This "boom" in host cells creates an opportunity ...
Dinoflagellate. The dinoflagellates (from Ancient Greek δῖνος (dînos) 'whirling' and Latin flagellum 'whip, scourge') are a monophyletic group of single-celled eukaryotes constituting the phylum Dinoflagellata[5] and are usually considered protists. Dinoflagellates are mostly marine plankton, but they are also common in freshwater habitats.