The Institute

The Phytoplankton team at the INIAP-IPIMAR has a large experience in taxonomical and ecological studies on marine phytoplankton off Western Iberia. In Portugal it is the only Institution carrying out phytoplankton studies on the open ocean and along the whole coast. These studies started in 1985, and have been done on a regular basis since then.
INIAP-IPIMAR is also responsible for the national HAB monitoring program and the National Reference Laboratory for marine biotoxins. Our Institute has had for more than 20 years experience in isolating and culturing marine microalgae. The culture collection is at present being reorganized.
Dr. Teresa Moita is a senior research scientist of IPIMAR and head of the “Oceanography Unit” that includes the phytoplankton laboratory. She has worked on the field of phytoplankton taxonomy and ecology for 20 years. Her main topics in recent years focused on the structure and dynamics of phytoplankton communities (diatoms, dinoflagellates and coccolithophorids) and HABs in the upwelling areas off Portugal and NW Africa.

Role in PLANKTON*NET

The team at IPIMAR will collaborate with the University of Lisbon in adding a collection of harmful algal images to the soon to emerge PLANKTON*NET node at Lisbon.