Towards a Latin American and Caribbean international census of marine microbes (LACar ? ICoMM): overview and discussion on some current research directions

The International Census of Marine Microbes (ICoMM), together with the South American and Caribbean Steering Committees of the Census of Marine Life program (CoML), supported the initiative of launching a regional ICoMM node (LACar ICoMM). This network aims at promoting discussions among sci- entists currently involved in marine microbial studies carried out at both the South American and the Caribbean regions, in order to evaluate the research capabilities and to identify complementary strengths and/or possibili- ties for enhanced collaboration, that would improve the knowledge on marine microbes and their biodiversity in both regions. We present an overview and discussion on some of the directions of current research on marine microbes in these regions. Concerning the marine phytoplankton studies, the best known taxonomic groups are diatoms and dinoflagellates. In Mexican marine waters, the number of taxa recorded to date is of about 1400. Studies dealing with bacterial, phytoplankton and/or cyanobacterial dynamics are carried out in the Caribbean coastal and oceanic marine systems, underscoring the importance of various environmental states, modulated by geographic and seasonal patterns as well as by the expression of large South American rivers. One of the main issues of this type of survey is the determination of wet and dry seasonal patterns of bacterial dynamics, in seascapes off Puerto Rico, with moderate to absent river inputs. Phytoplankton and bacterioplankton dynamics are also studied in F. Guiana coastal and shelf systems under direct Amazon influence, well known for their important fisheries resources, as well as in other South American marine systems influenced by important fresh water inputs or under upwelling conditions. Bacterial and/or picoeukaryotes diversity are assessed in particular