title: Concentrations of viable oil-degrading microorganisms are increased in feces from Calanus finmarchicus feeding in petroleum oil dispersions.
abstract: Zooplankton are suggested to be biotic contributors to the transport and weathering of oil in marine environments due to their ingestion of oil. In the present experiment, feeding activity and microbial communities in feces from Calanus finmarchicus feeding in oil dispersions were characterized. Feeding activity was significantly reduced in oil dispersions. The microbial communities in clean and oil-containing copepod feces were dominated by Rhodobacteraceae family bacteria (Lesingera, Phaeobacter, Rugeria, and Sulfitobacter), which were suggested to be indigenous to copepod feces. The results also indicated that these bacteria were metabolizing oil compounds, as a significant increase in the concentrations of viable oil degrading microorganisms was observed in oil-containing feces. This study shows that bacteria in feces from copepods feeding in dilute oil dispersions have capacity for degradation of oil. Zooplankton may therefore contribute to weathering of oil by excreting feces with microbial communities already adapted to degradation of oil.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, NO-7491 Trondheim, Norway. Electronic address: ingvild.f.stordal@ntnu.no.
authors.forename: Ingvild Fladvad
authors.initials: IF
authors.lastname: Størdal
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, NO-7491 Trondheim, Norway.
authors.forename: Anders Johny
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Olsen
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, NO-7491 Trondheim, Norway.
authors.forename: Bjørn Munro
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Jenssen
authors.affiliation: SINTEF Materials and Chemistry, Environmental Technology, NO-7465 Trondheim, Norway.
authors.forename: Roman
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Netzer
authors.affiliation: SINTEF Materials and Chemistry, Environmental Technology, NO-7465 Trondheim, Norway.
authors.forename: Bjørn Henrik
authors.initials: BH
authors.lastname: Hansen
authors.affiliation: BioTrix, NO-7022 Trondheim, Norway.
authors.forename: Dag
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Altin
authors.affiliation: SINTEF Materials and Chemistry, Environmental Technology, NO-7465 Trondheim, Norway.
authors.forename: Odd Gunnar
authors.initials: OG
authors.lastname: Brakstad
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001419:Bacteria / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism; D033342:Copepoda / Q000382:microbiology*; D005243:Feces / Q000382:microbiology*; D010578:Petroleum / Q000378:metabolism*; D059392:Petroleum Pollution; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000378:metabolism*; D015048:Zooplankton / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D010578:Petroleum; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical
keywords: Calanus finmarchicus; Clearance rate; Dispersed oil; Oil fate; Oil weathering; Oil-degrading bacteria