Date of Award

Fall 2025

Project Type

Thesis

Program or Major

Biological Sciences

Degree Name

Master of Science

First Advisor

Elizabeth Harvey

Second Advisor

Brittany Jellison

Third Advisor

Easton White

Abstract

The temporal variability of plankton is well documented, particularly in constantly changing tidal systems such as estuaries, but the extent to which this variability applies to plankton nutritional quality is less well known. As the base of the aquatic food web, variation in phytoplankton nutritional quality stands to constrain fishery production, particularly of filter-feeders. Here, community and nutritional data was collected from Great Bay, NH, a model estuary, over seasonal, tidal, and daily time scales to identify the range and variability of nutritional quality in plankton. Bulk spectrophotometric neutral lipid and protein measurements were compared to plankton community composition data (using flow cytometry and FlowCam) as well as environmental parameters to provide insights into the nutritional quality of estuarine seston. We found that lipid and protein concentrations were relatively stable over short time scales but varied seasonally. Lipid concentrations (ranging from 0.8 – 14.3 mg L -1) were primarily driven by time, river discharge, and total particulate carbon. Protein concentrations (ranging from 0.5 – 4.4 mg L -1) were primarily driven by total particulate carbon and nitrogen. Contrary to our original hypothesis, lipid and protein concentrations were not primarily driven by metrics of phytoplankton biomass (such as chlorophyll a), suggesting that most macromolecules were associated with detrital material. Since detritus is a potentially important food source of filter feeders, these findings indicate that a holistic understanding of particle composition is essential for proper management of fisheries.

Download

Share

COinS