Grazing Characteristics and Growth Efficiencies at Two Different Temperatures for Three Nanoflagellates Fed with Vibrio Bacteria at Three Different Concentrations.

Small inocula of one of the flagellates Paraphysomonas imperforata, Pteridomonas danica, and Cafeteria roenbergensis were added to suspensions of the bacterium Vibrio natriegens at each of three concentrations between 107 and 108 cells ml-1 and incubated at each of the temperatures 10 degrees C and 25 degrees C. Samples were taken at intervals for counting the flagellates and bacteria to determine the timing of the maximum of flagellate numbers and the concentrations at that time. Measurements of the protein concentration of the suspensions during incubation were used to determine the gross growth efficiency (GGE) or yield of flagellate grazing in each experiment. The most effective grazer was Pteridomonas, followed by Paraphysomonas, with Cafeteria being least effective, as judged by the threshold bacterial concentrations at which flagellate multiplication ceased, which were about 2 x 105, 2 x 106, and 2 x 107, respectively, and by the finding that Pteridomonas consumed 99%, Paraphysomonas about 95%, and Cafeteria only 60-70% of the available bacteria in the experiments. Peak concentrations of flagellates were reached later at the lower temperature, but the numbers of flagellates produced and of bacteria eaten were of a similar order at the two temperatures and the GGE was only slightly higher at the lower temperature. The time taken to reach peak flagellate numbers changed little with a threefold increase in bacterial concentrations, but the GGE increased and the numbers of bacteria eaten to produce one flagellate decreased when the bacterial concentration was increased. The three flagellates show clear evidence of niche specialization in differences in thresholds of bacterial prey concentration.