title: Ostreopsis cf. ovata (Dinophyta) bloom in an equatorial island of the Atlantic Ocean.
abstract: The epi-benthic dinoflagellate Ostreopsis cf. ovata Fukuyo has an increasingly global distribution. In Brazil there are reports of O. cf. ovata along the coast from 8°S to 27°S latitude and blooms have been registered on the Rio de Janeiro coastline. In the current study, an O. cf. ovata bloom is reported at Saint Paul's Rocks (0°55'10″N; 29°20'33″W), between the southern and northern hemispheres. The Archipelago is not inhabited and not subjected to eutrophication, due to isolation, and sustains a number of endemic species. Therefore, blooms of O. cf. ovata may potentially cause demise to trophic chains by affecting marine invertebrates and vertebrates.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ecologia e Recursos Marinhos, Universidade Federal do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UNIRIO), Av. Pasteur, 458, Rio de Janeiro 22290-240, Brazil. silvia.nascimento@gmail.com
authors.forename: Silvia Mattos
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Nascimento
authors.forename: Julia Vitor
authors.initials: JV
authors.lastname: França
authors.forename: José E A
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Gonçalves
authors.forename: Carlos E L
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Ferreira
mesh_terms: D001267:Atlantic Ocean; D004141:Dinoflagellida / Q000254:growth & development*; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D005068:Eutrophication; D014876:Water Pollution / Q000032:analysis*