Fine-scale observations reveal distinct frontal phytoplankton communities
8 affiliations
- 1Aix Marseille Univ., Toulon University, CNRS, IRD, MIO UM 110, Marseille, France
- 2Institut de Biologie de l’ENS (IBENS), École Normale Supérieure, CNRS, INSERM, Université Paris Sciences et Lettres, Paris, France
- 3Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, Moss Landing, CA, USA
- 4Sorbonne Université, LOCEAN-IPSL, CNRS/IRD/MNHN, Paris, France
- 5Univ Toulouse, CNES, CNRS, IRD, LEGOS, Toulouse, France
- 6CNR-ISMAR (National Research Council-Institute of Marine Sciences), Lerici (SP), Italy
- 7Institute of Marine Science, National Research Council of Italy, Via Fosso del Cavaliere, 100, Rome, Italy
- 8Laboratory of Marine Ecology and Environmental Sciences, Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao, People’s Republic of China
Abstract
Phytoplankton community composition plays a key role in oceanic productivity and in the biological carbon pump. A few in situ surveys have shown the structuring role of fine-scale physical processes (1-100 km, day-weeks), in particular fronts, on phytoplankton communities. Most of these studies were conducted in highly productive and dynamic regions, while oligotrophic and moderate energy conditions have been less explored, though very common in the global ocean. Guided by novel SWOT altimetry, we used an adaptive and multidisciplinary strategy to conduct high-resolution sampling of the North-Balearic Front in the oligotrophic Mediterranean Sea. An unprecedented 24-hour continuous sampling within the front was crucial to unveiling a distinct frontal community, where the relative contribution of non-dominant phytoplankton groups increased relative to adjacent water masses. This highlights the pivotal role of fine-scale features in increasing phytoplankton heterogeneity, thus contributing to community diversity in oligotrophic and moderately energetic regions. These findings represent a key step toward understanding the ecological response to fine-scale structuring on a global scale.
Related
- Evaluating a multispectral miniaturised fluorometer with three excitation channels for predicting phytoplankton community structure indices from BGC-Argo float observations
- Biomarkers and diatoms as tracers of phytoplankton communities and past sea ice conditions in the southwestern Ross Sea, Antarctica: drivers and variability over the last 200 years
- InSAR observations from multiple tracks reveal rainfall modulation of post-failure reactivation of the Xiongwadashan landslide
- Atmospheric observations reveal Alaskan wetland CH4 fluxes are up to threefold higher than process-based model estimates
- Integrated diagnostic framework for resolving distinct ozone formation mechanisms via observations, modeling, and machine learning
BibTeX
@article{oms2026finescale,
title = {{Fine-scale observations reveal distinct frontal phytoplankton communities}},
author = {Laurina Oms and Andrea Michelangelo Doglioli and Monique Messié and Francesco d’Ovidio and Xavier Capet and Louise Rousselet and Aude Joël and Lloyd Izard and Marina Lévy and Maristella Berta and Anne Petrenko and Marco Bellacicco and Stéphanie Barrillon and Ludivine Grand and Elvira Pulido‐Villena and Sandra Nunige and Karine Leblanc and Blandine Courtois and Wuchang Zhang and Gérald Grégori},
journal = {Communications Earth \& Environment},
year = {2026},
month = may,
doi = {10.1038/s43247-026-03350-0},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-026-03350-0},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Fine-scale observations reveal distinct frontal phytoplankton communities
AU - Laurina Oms
AU - Andrea Michelangelo Doglioli
AU - Monique Messié
AU - Francesco d’Ovidio
AU - Xavier Capet
AU - Louise Rousselet
AU - Aude Joël
AU - Lloyd Izard
AU - Marina Lévy
AU - Maristella Berta
AU - Anne Petrenko
AU - Marco Bellacicco
AU - Stéphanie Barrillon
AU - Ludivine Grand
AU - Elvira Pulido‐Villena
AU - Sandra Nunige
AU - Karine Leblanc
AU - Blandine Courtois
AU - Wuchang Zhang
AU - Gérald Grégori
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/05/29
JO - Communications Earth & Environment
DO - 10.1038/s43247-026-03350-0
UR - https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-026-03350-0
AB - Phytoplankton community composition plays a key role in oceanic productivity and in the biological carbon pump. A few in situ surveys have shown the structuring role of fine-scale physical processes (1-100 km, day-weeks), in particular fronts, on phytoplankton communities. Most of these studies were conducted in highly productive and dynamic regions, while oligotrophic and moderate energy conditions have been less explored, though very common in the global ocean. Guided by novel SWOT altimetry, we used an adaptive and multidisciplinary strategy to conduct high-resolution sampling of the North-Balearic Front in the oligotrophic Mediterranean Sea. An unprecedented 24-hour continuous sampling within the front was crucial to unveiling a distinct frontal community, where the relative contribution of non-dominant phytoplankton groups increased relative to adjacent water masses. This highlights the pivotal role of fine-scale features in increasing phytoplankton heterogeneity, thus contributing to community diversity in oligotrophic and moderately energetic regions. These findings represent a key step toward understanding the ecological response to fine-scale structuring on a global scale.
SN - 2662-4435
ER -