Why are zooplankton important?

Zooniverse: Become a Community Scientist Introduction to Zooplankton Why are zooplankton important?

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Without plankton no ocean life could exist. It is important their numbers stay healthy, or our marine ecosystems could be at risk, this would not only impact sea life but humans as well. There are more plankton cells in the sea than our current count of stars in the sky (Varela & Arístegui, 2022), being so abundant it is vital we understand them. The video below summarizes why zooplankton matter if you want to learn more!

Video summarising the importances of zooplankton and potential impacts of temperature changes (Veritasium,2021).

Food Webs: Changing the number or type of zooplankton can impact all ocean animals. If small fish that rely on zooplankton don’t get enough food, their populations shrink—leading to fewer prey for larger fish and eventually affecting top predators like sharks and whales. Many people care most about the big, charismatic animals, but understanding how everything is connected is key to truly understanding our oceans!

Copepods are one of the most numerous zooplankton on earth and feed some of the world’s largest creatures. This image courtesy of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute

Global Warming: Plankton help absorb around half of the carbon dioxide released into the Earth’s atmosphere (Khan & Hashmi, 2023), making the ocean a massive carbon sink. Without them, the effects of climate change would be much worse. If zooplankton populations change or decrease, the ocean’s ability to store carbon could be reduced, making climate change an even bigger problem than it already is. Protecting these tiny but powerful organisms is essential for the health of our planet

Carbon movement from the atmosphere (CO₂) through the ocean in the form of plankton and eventually into the sea floor is a process called **carbon sequestration** and allows this element to be stored in solid and liquid forms for later use. *image courtesy of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute*.

Now you know why research on these tiny organisms is so important! Understanding the bigger picture and the role zooplankton play in marine ecosystems can give you a strong motivation for your studies. Hopefully, this keeps you inspired as you work through your identification studies—because the work you’re doing has a massive impact on ocean health and our planet!

References

Khan, S. A., & Hashmi, M. Z. (2023). A comprehensive insight into phytoplankton: A future prospect of climate change mitigation. Environmental and Sustainability Indicators, 18, 100387. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indic.2023.100387

Varela, M. M., & Arístegui, J. (2022). The importance of the marine microbiome for ocean health, food security, and climate. Frontiers in Marine Science, 9, 936972. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2022.936972

Veritasium. (2021, March 4). How plankton changed the world [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/abZ7PWO97DA

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