Light and Organic Matter Effects on Mixotrophy in the Baltic

Isolde Puts is a researcher at University of Oslo.

The Baltic Sea has received increasing inputs of coloured dissolved organic matter (cDOM) over recent decades. This material is often coloured by humic substances, and binds with nutrients and iron, reducing light penetration, and resulting in stratified areas with hypoxic (low oxygen) bottom waters.

Isolde Puts till talk about how mesocosms are used to simulate stratified anoxic conditions in replicated, large-scale experiments. The controlled mesocosm setup with stratified water columns and induced anoxia allows for precise manipulation of light and organic matter availability, enabling a clear assessment of their roles in shaping heterotrophic microbial production strategies.