Sunday #Plankton #Factoid 🦐🦠

#Noctiluca scintillans has been in the news lately. Called sea-sparkle for its bioluminescence. It's a heterotrophic (no photosynthesis) athecate (no shell) #dinoflagellate that feeds by phagotrophy (engulfing). Quite large for a single-celled organism, up to 2 mm in diameter. Though not algae it can form colorful orange harmful blooms by releasing ammonium toxic to invertebrate and fish gills. #HABs
Also available as a giant microbe plush.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.king5.com/amp/article/tech/science/environment/water-orange-noctiluca-bloom-west-seattle/281-a137d138-cce3-4537-a8d5-8da0e1a04014

Studying impact of #bioluminescent 'blue tears' on #waterquality around Pingtan Island.

#Noctiluca #Vargula #plankton

https://phys.org/news/2023-05-impact-bioluminescent-blue-quality-pingtan.html