Decadal changes in phytoplankton functional composition  in the Eastern English Channel: possible upcoming  major effects of climate change

Hubert, Zéline; Louchart, Arnaud P.; Robache, Kévin; Epinoux, Alexandre; Gallot, Clémentine; Cornille, Vincent; Crouvoisier, Muriel; Monchy, Sébastien; Artigas, Luis Felipe

doi:https://doi.org/10.5194/os-21-679-2025

Articles | Volume 21, issue 2

https://doi.org/10.5194/os-21-679-2025

© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Special issue:

Coastal marine infrastructure in support of monitoring, science,...

https://doi.org/10.5194/os-21-679-2025

© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Articles | Volume 21, issue 2

Research article

| Highlight paper

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20 Mar 2025

Research article | Highlight paper |

| 20 Mar 2025

Decadal changes in phytoplankton functional composition in the Eastern English Channel: possible upcoming major effects of climate change

Zéline Hubert, Arnaud P. Louchart, Kévin Robache, Alexandre Epinoux, Clémentine Gallot, Vincent Cornille, Muriel Crouvoisier, Sébastien Monchy, and Luis Felipe Artigas

Data sets

Dynamics of phytoplankton on RADiale of the Saint-Jean Bay (DYPHYRAD) surveys Hubert Zéline et al. https://doi.org/10.17882/104524

Co-editor-in-chief

This is an original study on a on a coastal ecosystem, combining environmental data with data on phytoplankton functional groups. Such a time series on flow cytometry in combination with environmental data at high temporal resolution over multiple years is relatively rare and can give a detailed view into the variability of the phytoplankton community over the last decade. This is the first pluri-annual study of the whole size-range of the phytoplankton community characterized by one unique method.

Short summary

This study provides the first assessment of decadal changes in the whole phytoplankton community, addressed by flow cytometry, in the highly productive waters of the Strait of Dover. A significant surface seawater temperature increase of 1°C, associated with an important change in the nutrient concentration and balance, has triggered a change in the phytoplankton communities, characterized by a higher total abundance and an increasing proportion of the smallest cells (picroeukaryotes and picocyanobacteria).