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Novel combination coccospheres from Helicosphaera spp indicate complex relationships between species

Novel combination coccospheres from Helicosphaera spp indicate complex relationships between species
Novel combination coccospheres from Helicosphaera spp indicate complex relationships between species
Coccolithophores play an important role in global biogeochemical cycling, but many aspects of their ecology remain poorly understood, including their heteromorphic haplo-diplontic life cycle. The presence of combination coccospheres in environmental samples, which represent a transition between the lightly calcified haploid (HOL) and heavily calcified diploid (HET) life phases, provides crucial evidence linking the two life cycle phases of a particular species. Here, we describe combination coccospheres from the Southern Ocean that show a novel association between Helicosphaera hyalina (HET) and Helicosphaera HOL catilliferus type. The ability of Helicosphaera HET and HOL morphospecies to form multiple different combinations indicates a substantial complexity in the relationships between life cycle phases in this group. The findings suggest recent divergence within the Helicosphaera lineage may have resulted in significant inter- and intra-specific variability, with cryptic speciation in one or both life cycle phases contributing to their ability to form multiple HET/HOL associations.
0142-7873
838-838
Sturm, Daniela
b7d00726-3dfb-4f70-bec3-c4f3340a9b4b
Langer, Gerald
88ea3c75-ae95-4fe8-be19-b42c43d8375e
Wheeler, Glen
70608a88-45d6-4d42-968d-00e15c800fd5
Sturm, Daniela
b7d00726-3dfb-4f70-bec3-c4f3340a9b4b
Langer, Gerald
88ea3c75-ae95-4fe8-be19-b42c43d8375e
Wheeler, Glen
70608a88-45d6-4d42-968d-00e15c800fd5

Sturm, Daniela, Langer, Gerald and Wheeler, Glen (2022) Novel combination coccospheres from Helicosphaera spp indicate complex relationships between species. Journal of Plankton Research, 44 (6), 838-838. (doi:10.1093/plankt/fbac044).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Coccolithophores play an important role in global biogeochemical cycling, but many aspects of their ecology remain poorly understood, including their heteromorphic haplo-diplontic life cycle. The presence of combination coccospheres in environmental samples, which represent a transition between the lightly calcified haploid (HOL) and heavily calcified diploid (HET) life phases, provides crucial evidence linking the two life cycle phases of a particular species. Here, we describe combination coccospheres from the Southern Ocean that show a novel association between Helicosphaera hyalina (HET) and Helicosphaera HOL catilliferus type. The ability of Helicosphaera HET and HOL morphospecies to form multiple different combinations indicates a substantial complexity in the relationships between life cycle phases in this group. The findings suggest recent divergence within the Helicosphaera lineage may have resulted in significant inter- and intra-specific variability, with cryptic speciation in one or both life cycle phases contributing to their ability to form multiple HET/HOL associations.

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Accepted/In Press date: 28 July 2022
Published date: 17 August 2022

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 490447
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/490447
ISSN: 0142-7873
PURE UUID: 4459d233-a74f-403b-b3da-994f5cfeafc0

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Date deposited: 28 May 2024 16:45
Last modified: 28 May 2024 17:27

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Contributors

Author: Daniela Sturm
Author: Gerald Langer
Author: Glen Wheeler

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