Community- and population-level response of marine plankton to stress exposure: learning from the past

Abstract

The effects of stress exposure in marine plankton are difficult to assess directly, because it is hard to replicate realistic conditions in laboratory experiments and because the physiological changes and adaptations in response to stress exposure occur over times scales that cannot be covered by direct observations. A viable alternative is provided by studies of marine microfossils. Census counts of microfossil assemblages allow reconstructions of community-level changes, whilst biometric studies provide information on the reaction of populations to different levels of stress