Editing Phytoplankton (section)

==Types==
Phytoplankton are [[photosynthesizing]] microscopic protists and bacteria that inhabit the upper sunlit layer of marine and fresh water bodies of water on Earth. Paralleling plants on land, phytoplankton undertake [[Marine primary production|primary production]] in water,<ref name=":0" /> creating [[organic compound]]s from [[carbon dioxide]] dissolved in the water. Phytoplankton form the base of — and sustain — the aquatic [[food web]],<ref>{{cite web |last=Ghosal; Rogers; Wray |first=S.; M.; A. |title=The Effects of Turbulence on Phytoplankton |url=https://ntrs.nasa.gov/search.jsp?R=20040171754&qs=Ntx%3Dmode%2520matchany%26Ntk%3DTitle%26Ns%3DLoaded-Date |work=Aerospace Technology Enterprise |publisher=NTRS |access-date=16 June 2011}}</ref> and are crucial players in the Earth's [[carbon cycle]].<ref name=NASA2015 />

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| image1            = Diatoms through the microscope.jpg
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| caption1          = [[Diatom]]s are one of the most common types<br />of phytoplankton
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| image2            = CSIRO ScienceImage 4203 A bluegreen algae species Cylindrospermum sp under magnification.jpg
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| caption2          = A [[cyanobacteria]] species (''Cylindrospermum'' sp)
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Phytoplankton are very diverse, comprising photosynthesizing bacteria ([[cyanobacteria]]) and various unicellular [[protist]] groups (notably the [[Diatom|diatoms]]). Many other organism groups formally named as phytoplankton, including [[Coccolithophore|coccolithophores]] and [[Dinoflagellate|dinoflagellates]], are now no longer included as they are not only [[Photoautotrophism|phototrophic]] but can also eat.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Mitra |first1=Aditee |last2=Caron |first2=David A. |last3=Faure |first3=Emile |last4=Flynn |first4=Kevin J. |last5=Leles |first5=Suzana Gonçalves |last6=Hansen |first6=Per J. |last7=McManus |first7=George B. |last8=Not |first8=Fabrice |last9=do Rosario Gomes |first9=Helga |last10=Santoferrara |first10=Luciana F. |last11=Stoecker |first11=Diane K. |last12=Tillmann |first12=Urban |date=27 February 2023 |title=The Mixoplankton Database (MDB): Diversity of photo-phago-trophic plankton in form, function, and distribution across the global ocean |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jeu.12972 |journal=Journal of Eukaryotic Microbiology |language=en |volume=70 |issue=4 |pages=e12972 |doi=10.1111/jeu.12972 |pmid=36847544 |issn=1066-5234}}</ref> These organisms are now more correctly termed [[mixoplankton]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Flynn |first1=Kevin J |last2=Mitra |first2=Aditee |last3=Anestis |first3=Konstantinos |last4=Anschütz |first4=Anna A |last5=Calbet |first5=Albert |last6=Ferreira |first6=Guilherme Duarte |last7=Gypens |first7=Nathalie |last8=Hansen |first8=Per J |last9=John |first9=Uwe |last10=Martin |first10=Jon Lapeyra |last11=Mansour |first11=Joost S |last12=Maselli |first12=Maira |last13=Medić |first13=Nikola |last14=Norlin |first14=Andreas |last15=Not |first15=Fabrice |date=2019-07-26 |title=Mixotrophic protists and a new paradigm for marine ecology: where does plankton research go now? |url=https://academic.oup.com/plankt/article/41/4/375/5531601 |journal=Journal of Plankton Research |language=en |volume=41 |issue=4 |pages=375–391 |doi=10.1093/plankt/fbz026 |issn=0142-7873|hdl=10261/192145 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> This recognition has important consequences for how we view the functioning of the planktonic food web.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Glibert |first1=Patricia M. |last2=Mitra |first2=Aditee |date=2022-01-21 |title=From webs, loops, shunts, and pumps to microbial multitasking: Evolving concepts of marine microbial ecology, the mixoplankton paradigm, and implications for a future ocean |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/lno.12018 |journal=Limnology and Oceanography |volume=67 |issue=3 |pages=585–597 |doi=10.1002/lno.12018 |bibcode=2022LimOc..67..585G |issn=0024-3590}}</ref>

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