The course will give the participants a basic knowledge of methodology and taxonomic principles for the study of marine phytoplankton including potentially harmful species. The course will focus on species common in the Gulf region and in the Western Indian Ocean. It aims at both university students and monitoring personnel.

MAIN ACTIVITIES AND EXPECTED ACHIEVEMENTS
At the end of the course, participants will be able to:
Collect phytoplankton samples as well as benthic samples
Preserve and process samples for both LM and SEM
Identify main genera and species of potentially harmful microalgae (HAB) by LM
Isolate and maintain cultures of dinoflagellates
Count phytoplankton samples and understand the statistics behind the method
Molecular methods and phylogenetic analysis will be introduced
Lectures on the ecology of harmful algal blooms will be included
A microscope will be available to each participant during the course
Participants will receive copies of all lectures and additional identification literature as pdf-files