Differential distribution of diatoms and dinoflagellates in a cyclonic eddy confined in the Bay of La Paz, Gulf of California

The differential distribution of diatoms and dinoflagellates in the Bay of La Paz, Gulf of California, Mexico, was analyzed in summer of 2009, when a cyclonic eddy confined in the bay dominated the circulation. An uplift of the nutricline in the eddy drove high concentrations of nutrients to the euphotic layer. A differential phytoplankton distribution was observed to be associated with the eddy: there was an abundance of dinoflagellates close to the center of the cyclonic eddy, whereas diatoms were more abundant at the periphery. A significant inverse correlation (R = −0.62, p