For the past several weeks, Bigelow Laboratory Senior Research Scientist Ben Twining has participated in the IRON-MAN expedition in and around the southernmost continent.
ANTARCTIC DISPATCH 5: #MICROMONDAY, ANTARTIC EDITION
If you were somehow under the impression that phytoplankton are dainty, unassuming plant-like organisms — microscopic geraniums and ferns floating merrily on ocean currents — think again.
Enter Corethron, a type of diatom found in abundance in Antarctic waters. These phytoplankton are just a fraction of a millimeter long, and like all diatoms, they have a silica shell called a frustule. But Corethron also has some gnarly built-in defenses: long spines, which make them hard for grazers to eat.
Senior Research Scientist Ben Twining spotted these tough-looking phytoplankton during the IRON-MAN expedition, which is focused on how the growth of phytoplankton in the Southern Ocean might be limited by iron and manganese availability.
A phytoplankton that bears an uncanny resemblance to a bristling porcupine? We’re cool with that.
📸: Ben Twining, Chandni Bhickta.
