Fraction of the world’s photosynthetic activity that is accounted for by the phytoplankton component of marine microbes

Range ~50 %
Organism Biosphere
Reference Weynberg KD, Allen MJ, Wilson WH. Marine Prasinoviruses and Their Tiny Plankton Hosts: A Review. Viruses. 2017 Mar 15 9(3). pii: E43. doi: 10.3390/v9030043. p.1 bottom paragraphPubMed ID28294997
Primary Source [8] Worden, A.Z. Picoeukaryote diversity in coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean. Aquat. Microb. Ecol. 2006, 43, 165–175. doi:10.3354/ame043165 link [9] Field, C.B. Behrenfeld, M.J. Randerson, J.T. Falkowski, P. Primary production of the biosphere: Integrating terrestrial and oceanic components. Science 1998, 281, 237–240. PubMed ID9657713
Comments P.1 bottom paragraph: "Marine microbes comprise more than 90% of the living biomass in the global oceans [BNID 113509] and the phytoplankton component of this biomass are responsible for approximately half of the world’s photosynthetic activity [primary sources]."
Entered by Uri M
ID 113510