Bias in satellite-derived pigment measurements due to coccolithophores and dinoflagellates

Satellite-derived estimates of phytoplankton pigments are thought to be affected by the phytoplankton species composition. Measurements of surface algal chlorophyll and satellite-derived pigment were compared for waters containing coccolithophores and dinoflagellates. Satellite-derived chlorophyll concentration was underestimated by a factor of 2–3 in a patch of the large coccolithophore, Umbilicosphaera sibogae, and also in a bloom of the dinoflagellate, Gonyaulax polyedra. Overall abundance and species-specific properties such as light scatter and vertical migration probably caused these results.