Marine Protists

Target Audience: Undergraduate Student
Graduate Student


Institution: Friday Harbor Labs

Institutional Web Link: http://depts.washington.edu/fhl/

Course Description: Microbial eukaryotes – the protists – are the most genetically, morphologically and metabolically diverse group of eukaryotes, exceeding animals, plants and fungi combined. In the oceans, protists play critical roles in the functioning of food webs and the cycling of carbon and nutrients. They exhibit astounding diversity in form, behavior and function: they can be primary producers, consumers, symbionts or parasites. Photosynthetic protists (e.g. diatoms, dinoflagellates) are the major primary producers in most marine ecosystems. Phagotrophic protists (e.g. ciliates, flagellates) are the dominant phytoplankton and bacterial consumers, and are key links that transfer primary production to higher trophic levels. Many protists, if not the majority, are mixotrophs, capable of both photosynthesis and phagotrophy. In the face of increasing ocean temperature, acidification, hypoxia, and eutrophication, a better understanding of the ecology and evolution of protists is critical to predicting trajectories of future ocean food webs.


Course Fees and Expenses: see http://depts.washington.edu/fhl/studentCosts2017.html

Scholarships, Fellowships, Associated with the Course: http://depts.washington.edu/fhl/studentFellowships.html

Funding Source: None


How to Apply: http://depts.washington.edu/fhl/studentApplicationInfo.html

Application Closing Date: 03/15/2017

Course Begins: 2017-06-12

Course Ends: 2017-07-14