East Atlantic-Portugal-Phytoplankton

This collection includes phytoplankton species from oceanic, shelf and estuarine Portuguese waters. The Iberian coast of Portugal is located at the northern limit of the North Atlantic seasonal upwelling system. Biogeographically it is considered to be within the temperate region, but representing a transition to the subtropical region. On this coast, phytoplankton succession is dependent on water column stratification and on cycles of seasonal upwelling (May-September) that alternate with seasonal convergence of oligotrophic oceanic waters into the shelf. The structure of phytoplankton communities along the coast also depends on geographical differences of freshwater runoff, source of the upwelled waters and upwelling dynamics which in turn is influenced by coastline geometry, bottom topography and wind regime. At present, contributors to the collection include the Institute of Oceanography, Faculty of Science, University of Lisbon (IO-FCUL) and the Portuguese Institute of Fisheries and Marine Research (IPIMAR). Other contributors are most welcomed. This collection is being developed within a national project (HABCOL- marine HAB culture COLlection- a critical tool for phytoplankton studies, ref. PDCT-MAR-60086-2004).