Phytoplankton Ecology and Impact Discussion.
Question Description
Photosynthesis is the metabolic pathway by which energy and carbon
enter the web of life. Photosynthetic organisms are at the base of the
food chains that make up and sustain the diverse web of life on earth.
They provide food in the form of glucose for other organisms that feed
upon them. The energy contained within their covalent bonds is
transferred to organisms that ingest the glucose molecules or other
molecules formed from glucose or its breakdown products.
Photosynthetic phytoplankton are at the base of the marine food
chain. El Nino causes changes in ocean circulation, which suppresses the
upwelling of vital nutrients that the phytoplankton depend on for
growth and reproduction.
What would you expect the consequences of El Nino to be for marine food chains?
What impact, if any, might this have on humans and the global environment?
