Abstract
Although sharks, whales, and other large organisms come to mind when one thinks about the most important or most powerful organisms of the sea, in fact, the most powerful are the tiny phytoplankton. Phytoplankton, which are microscopic algae, hold this power because they harvest the light from the sun, making food for all other organisms. Phytoplankton are the foundation for the ocean ecosystem. Through the process of photosynthesis, they also make oxygen and are responsible for almost half of the oxygen in the world. However, some phytoplankton can also be harmful and can kill fish or damage ecosystems. These harmful phytoplankton can also make people sick. The phytoplankton are tiny but mighty!
Highlights
Sharks, whales, and other large organisms come to mind when one thinks about the most important or most powerful organisms of the sea, the most powerful are the tiny phytoplankton
When you think of the most powerful organisms in the sea, does a shark come to mind? Or maybe a huge killer whale? Other powerhouses of the ocean include the sailfish that use their jaws like kids.frontiersin.org
A great diversity of phytoplankton is seen if one compares samples from di erent areas or di erent times. (Image credits: the symbol library of the University of Maryland Integration and Application Network.)
Summary
Every drop of seawater has thousands of microscopic plankton. A great diversity of phytoplankton is seen if one compares samples from di erent areas or di erent times. (Image credits: the symbol library of the University of Maryland Integration and Application Network.). It is the fastest of all the fish All these organisms are amazing: strong, fast, and ferocious. There is another group of organisms so powerful that the oceans could not function without them—but they are so tiny you have probably never seen them! The smallest plankton can only be seen with a microscope and, even though you will see many di erent types of plankton with a microscope, some plankton are so small they may look like teeny-tiny dots (Figure ). What gives these minuscule organisms such power? There would be no fish, no whales, no sharks, no turtles, and no clams or oysters
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