Nicole Millette

Education

• Ph.D., University of Maryland Center of Environmental Science, 2016
• B.S., University of Rhode Island, 2011

About

I study the ecology of phytoplankton across a range of marine environments. My primary research interest lies in understanding the phytoplankton interactions within a system. Understanding the interactions between highly diverse components of the phytoplankton community, ranging in size from microns to millimeters, is important to understanding the movement of energy and materials through an ecosystem. The first objective in a system is to identify the key interactions between particular phytoplankton and zooplankton species or groups within the plankton food-web that are transferring the largest amount of energy and materials to higher trophic levels. My next objective is to investigate how changes to the environment will alter these key interactions and the flow of energy. This research will help scientists and environmental managers predict how a system will respond to anthropogenically driven changes, such as increases/decreases in nutrients.

Another research topic my laboratory focuses on is mixotrophy. Mixotrophs are protists that use both autotrophy and heterotrophy to obtain energy and grow, as opposed to strictly employing either autotrophy or heterotrophy. Research on mixotrophy is an integral part of a changing paradigm in phytoplankton ecology, as it is becoming widely acknowledged that most plankton are likely mixotrophic. Of particular interest to me is determining the impact of the in situ mixotrophic assemblage in the environment under variable conditions. Understanding what portion of the plankton population is mixotrophic and how much carbon they are ingesting compared to strict heterotrophs is important because it likely affects the trophic transfer efficiency of nutrients and energy.