Akashiwo sanguinea (Dinophyceae) blooms in a sub-tropical estuary: An alga for all seasons

Abstract

Abstract:Akashiwo sanguinea is a cosmopolitan dinoflagellate that has been observed to form major blooms in coastal ecosystems around the world. A. sanguinea plays a major role in the ecology of many marine environments, including coastal ecosystems with variable salinities, where its euryhaline character makes it competitive. The study involved monthly water sampling and measurement of physical-chemical parameters at four sites from the upper reaches of the Caloosahatchee Estuary to San Carlos Bay bordering the Gulf of Mexico. Major A. sanguinea blooms were observed in the Caloosahatchee estuary, with biovolume up to 30.5 10 6 μm 3 mL 1 , equivalent to 740 cells mL 1 , in the upper estuary. The latter regions of the estuary also had the greatest range of salinity and the highest total nitrogen and total phosphorus concentrations. The dynamics of blooms are discussed within the context of spatial and temporal patterns of salinity, temperature and nutrient concentrations, as they relate to hydrologic and climatic conditions.

Cryptic diversity within the harmful dinoflagellate Akashiwo sanguinea in coastal Chinese waters is related to differentiated ecological niches

“…Tang and Gobler (2015) found several ribotypes of Akashiwo sanguinea that corresponded to different geographic origins (). Its presence has been reported in temperate, sub-tropical and tropical water columns throughout the year despite major differences among the environmental conditions (Badylak et al, 2014;Koening et al, 2014;Reñé et al, 2015).…”

Akashiwo sanguinea (Dinophyceae) extruding mucous from pores on the cell surface

“…The highest density of mucous covered A. sanguinea cells was observed in the upper Caloosahatchee, during blooms associated with salinities (i.e., <14 psu) lower than observed in the rest of the estuary during the same time period (Badylak et al 2014). Salinities during the bloom were on the low end of the range previously reported for A. sanguinea blooms, i.e., 5-30 psu (Matsubara et al 2007, Badylak et al 2014.…”

“…Salinities during the bloom were on the low end of the range previously reported for A. sanguinea blooms, i.e., 5-30 psu (Matsubara et al 2007, Badylak et al 2014. It is possible that the presence of mucoid cells is a response to suboptimal environmental conditions, perhaps a precursor to the formation of resting cysts.…”

“…A. sanguinea represented over 90% of total phytoplankton biovolume during the bloom event (Badylak et al 2014). The sample (Dodge 1973).…”

“…A. sanguinea is cosmopolitan in its distribution and has been observed to form blooms in coastal ecosystems around the world (Kim et al 1993, Voltolina 1993, Horner et al 1997, Lee et al 2001, Lu and Hodgkiss 2004, Feyzioğlu and Öğüt 2006, including the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic coast of North America (Robichaux et al 1998, Steidinger et al 1998, Badylak and Phlips 2004, Badylak et al 2007, Phlips et al 2011, 2012. The cosmopolitan distribution of A. sanguinea is in part attributable to its eurythermal and euryhaline character (Matsubara et al 2007, Badylak et al 2014.…”