Microbes and plankton

The open ocean, and the Sargasso Sea in particular, is home to a diverse collection of organisms. Ongoing research seeks to understand these species, which include viruses, bacteria, archaea, protists and animals, and to detail their role in marine ecosystems.

Even though they are too small to see with the naked eye, micro-organisms dominate the ocean, and indeed all of Earth. Marine microbes influence the biology and chemistry of the ocean, and thereby the entire food web as well as the ocean’s climate-related biochemical cycles.

Microbial oceanography is a rapidly evolving field, and BIOS-SCOPE aims to make significant research advances in our scientific understanding. This five-year multi-institutional research collaboration leverages the Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study (BATS) and its associated research as well as our capabilities via the Microbial Ecology Laboratory.

scientists retrieve the CTD from the stern of a research vessel

BIOS-SCOPE

BIOS-SCOPE leverages ongoing research at the time-series sites to foster collaborations and integrate new technologies to study the ocean’s smallest life forms. The collective metabolism of the microbial community plays a vital role in governing global biogeochemical cycles, fundamentally influencing the ocean’s ability to support life on Earth.

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Microbial Ecology Laboratory

The Microbial Ecology Laboratory focuses on the cell biology and biogeochemical activities of major microbial groups within the open-ocean and coastal environments around Bermuda.

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Zooplankton Ecology Lab

Using molecular biology and visual machine learning technology, the Zooplankton Ecology Lab is expanding our understanding of biodiversity in the plankton.

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Invertebrate Physiology Lab

The Invertebrate Physiology Lab explores how the function of marine invertebrates is modified by their environment, using experimental analyses of animal response to cues, such as changing temperature, daily cycle, carbon dioxide or oxygen level.

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