Diel vertical migration and nutrient transport of the dinoflagellate Peridinium bipes f. occultatum in a thermally stratified reservoir

Field observations were conducted with respect to the vertical migration of the dinoflagellate Peridinium bipes and its influence on vertical nutrient transport in a stratified reservoir. P. bipes migrated vertically with circadian rhythms; that is, P. bipes migrated downward and accumulated in the top layer of the hypolimnion from evening to night and then migrated upward and accumulated in the epilimnion in the early morning. In the top layer of the hypolimnion, a rapid decrease in nutrient concentration was observed in the evening, presumably due to uptake by P. bipes. Active migration from the epilimnion to the top of the hypolimnion was also suggested by estimation of the descent velocity of P. bipes, which was advantageous for the uptake of nutrients. Moreover, based on the equilibrium of forces during migration, the energy cost of vertical migration could be inferred to be negligible. The results suggest that active vertical migration of P. bipes played an important role in nutrient transport between the hypolimnion and the epilimnion in a stratified reservoir.