Coccolithophore bloom dynamics shape bacterioplankton communities in the northern Bay of Biscay

Coccolithophores (Prymnesiophyceae) such as Emiliania huxleyi belong to the most productive calcifying organisms in the oceans. During two consecutive years we assessed bacterial diversity and dynamics during the course of spring phytoplankton blooms dominated by coccolithophores in the northern part of the Bay of Biscay.
Bacterioplankton community composition was assessed by means of denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) in combination with 16S rRNA gene clone libraries. We used ordination analysis to relate bacterioplankton community dynamics to phytoplankton pigment data and environmental parameters (nutrient concentrations, total alkalinity, concentration of transparent exopolymeric particles (TEP), pCO2).
We found a clear difference in composition between the free-living and the particle-associated bacterial assemblage, with the identified Flavobacteria and Sphingobacteria phylotypes being characteristic for the particle-associated bacterial assemblage and Alfaproteobacteria and members of the SAR86 cluster dominating the free-living bacterial assemblage. Stations along the continental margin, at different stages in the coccolithophore bloom, were characterized by distinct bacterial assemblages which correlated well with changes in phytoplankton community composition and TEP abundance.
We hypothesize that coccolithophore bloom dynamics shape both the free-living and the particle associated bacterial assemblages through phytoplankton group-specific associations and TEP production