TY - JOUR T1 - Copepod manipulation of oil droplet size distribution JF - Scientific Reports Y1 - 2019 A1 - Marco Uttieri A1 - Nihongi, Ai A1 - Hinow, Peter A1 - Jeffrey Motschman A1 - Houshuo Jiang A1 - Miquel Alcaraz A1 - J Rudi Strickler AB - Oil spills are one of the most dangerous sources of pollution in aquatic ecosystems. Owing to their pivotal position in the food web, pelagic copepods can provide crucial intermediary transferring oil between trophic levels. In this study we show that the calanoid Paracartia granican actively modify the size-spectrum of oil droplets. Direct manipulation through the movement of the feeding appendages and egestion work in concert, splitting larger droplets (Ø = 16 µm) into smaller ones (Ø = 4–8 µm). The copepod-driven change in droplet size distribution can increase the availability of oil droplets to organisms feeding on smaller particles, sustaining the transfer of petrochemical compounds among different compartments. These results raise the curtain on complex small-scale interactions which can promote the understanding of oil spills fate in aquatic ecosystems. VL - 9 UR - https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-37020-9 IS - 547 ER -