Protist Trophic Mode and Size Dynamics in Central Baltic Spring Blooms

Carolin Paul categorized the aquatic protist community by trophic modes and taxonomic groups during the spring bloom period in the Bornholm Basin, central Baltic Sea. The dataset likely contains temporal succession data on trophic mode composition, community composition, and correlations with environmental factors and prey-size. The data was uploaded to figshare on March 19, 2026.

Use Cases

• Analyze temporal succession of protist trophic modes based on the described categorization.
• Model correlations between community composition and environmental factors like sea surface temperature.
• Study prey-size preferences and size trait-based trophic relations among heterotrophic and mixotrophic species.
• Track seasonal succession in body size-classes of heterotrophic ciliates from 10-20 µm to >55 µm.

Strengths

• Focuses on a specific ecological event (spring bloom) in a defined location (Bornholm Basin, central Baltic Sea).
• Explicitly addresses trophic complexity and mixotrophy, a recognized but understudied functional trait.
• Includes temporal data covering the progression of the spring season.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• The dataset is small (205.3 KB), suggesting limited scope.

Provenance

Source

figshare, authored by Carolin Paul.

Collection Method

Categorization of protist community by trophic modes and taxonomic groups during a field study.

Time Range

Spring bloom period.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-19 05:19:26; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Bornholm Basin, central Baltic Sea.