EEMB250

How sunlight controls all aspects of phytoplankton biolgy, thus affecting many large scale ocean processes where phytoplankton play a central role; primarily production, biogeochemcial cycling, impacts of climate change on oceans due to global warming and ozone depletion. Topics include photosynthesis, photoadaptation, photoinhibition and photoregulation of metabolism, behavior and survival strategies. The evolutionary similarities and differences between taxonomic groupings of photoplankton are examined as well as the present photoecology of harmful algal blooms, picophytoplankton and microalgal symbionts of corals and other marine animals. Different criteria and more sophisticated assignments for grads.