Ostreopsis cf. ovata (Dinophyta) bloom in an equatorial island of the Atlantic Ocean

Nascimento, Silvia Mattos; França, Julia Vitor; Gonçalves, José E.A.; Ferreira, Carlos E.L.

Ostreopsis cf. ovata (Dinophyta) bloom in an equatorial island of the Atlantic Ocean

2012

Nascimento, Silvia Mattos | França, Julia Vitor | Gonçalves, José E.A. | Ferreira, Carlos E.L.

The epi-benthic dinoflagellate Ostreopsis cf. ovata Fukuyo has an increasingly global distribution. In Brazil there are reports of O. cf. ovata along the coast from 8°S to 27°S latitude and blooms have been registered on the Rio de Janeiro coastline. In the current study, an O. cf. ovata bloom is reported at Saint Paul’s Rocks (0°55′10″N; 29°20′33″W), between the southern and northern hemispheres. The Archipelago is not inhabited and not subjected to eutrophication, due to isolation, and sustains a number of endemic species. Therefore, blooms of O. cf. ovata may potentially cause demise to trophic chains by affecting marine invertebrates and vertebrates.

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