Microbial planktonic communities of the Glorieuses coral reefs (Iles Eparses, Western Indian Ocean)

Ecological baselines for the structure and functioning of ecosystems in the absence of human activity can provide essential information on their health status. The Glorieuses islands are located in the Western Indian Ocean (WIO) and can be considered to be pristine ecosystems not subject to anthropogenic pressure. Their nutrient context and the microbial assemblages were assessed by determining the abundances of heterotrophic prokaryotes, picocyanobacteria, picoeukaryotes, microphytoplankton and protozooplankton communities in five stations during two contrasted seasons (November 2015 and May 2016).