The red tide and Myrionecta rubra’s ecological impact and dynamic in the Columbia River estuary

Intern: Rachel WarnickFrontline Mentor: Lydie Herfort

Senior Mentor: Peter Zuber

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Myrionecta Rubra

• Ciliate • Karyoklepty

– Cryptophyte algae (Teleaulax)

• Red tide blooms in estuary – High primary

productivity • Possible sentinel?

Cryptophyte nucleus

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Our Question 1

• How does the M. rubra bloom start? • Where do the cryptophytes come from?

0 11.5 23 35

Surface salinity (PSU)

Baker Bay

Ocean River Ocean River

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Surface salinity (PSU)

Baker Bay

Ocean River Ocean River

Assimilated model data image of surface water circulation in the Columbia River estuary (CMOP, Antonio Baptista)

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Sampling Locations

• Willapa Bay• Ilwaco Harbor• Chinook Harbor• Hammond• North Channel of Estuary

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2009 Bloom Timeline

June 30

July 21

August 5

No red tide in Baker Bay nor in the estuary

M. rubra and cryptophyte detected in

samples from Baker Bay, not detected in

estuary main channel

Pictures taken by Tawnya Peterson of July 21, 2009 Baker Bay/ Ilwaco sample

Red tide evident both in Baker Bay and the

estuary

Insert M. rubra cell counts???

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How does the M. rubra bloom start?

June 30

July 21

August 5

No red tide in Baker Bay nor in the estuary

M. rubra and cryptophyte detected in

samples from Baker Bay, not detected in

estuary main channel

Pictures taken by Tawnya Peterson of July 21, 2009 Baker Bay/ Ilwaco sample

Red tide evident both in Baker Bay and the

estuary

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• Are different strains of M. rubra and its cryptophyte prey found at different times and locations in the Columbia River Estuary system?

Phylogenetic tree of the cryptophyte chloroplast 16S rRNA gene sequences from the 2007 and 2008 Columbia River estuary M. rubra bloom. Herfort et al 2009 (In Prep)

Our Question 2

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18S

5.8S

28S

5.8S

oMR

Our M. rubra ITS sequence

ITS region

•18S= 18S rRNA gene, ribosomal sequence frequently used for

phylogenetic analysis

•ITS= Internal transcribed spacer, a variable DNA region

Genetic Markers

Euk A Euk B

RUBICSO gene of cryptophyte

L2F

L1R

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M. rubra NCBI database sequence

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1556

1051 1

Our new M. rubra ITS sequence

1242

743

18S M. rubra sequence

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Conclusions continued

• Is there variation, both temporally and spatially, in the strain of M. rubra and the strain of its cryptophyte prey in the Columbia River Estuary system?

Insert rubisco phylogenetic tree here???

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Any Questions?

27 Sept 2008 Picture taken by Alex Derr