Rapid sexual reproduction in a mixotrophic dinoflagellate revealed through temporal partitioning of cellular processes

Dinophysis are specialist mixotrophs that must balance prey capture, cell division, and sexual recombination during blooms, yet relatively little is known about the occurrence and role of sex in their ecology. Here, mating was investigated in D. acuminata through continuous automated microscopy of cells in culture and during natural blooms. Both in culture and in situ, vegetative division and mating were phased on a diel timescale, occurring primarily at night and near dawn, regardless of prey availability. When prey were available, feeding occurred primarily during daylight hours. The sequencing of division and mating phases, the correlation of their daily amplitudes, and the timing of their establishment after a two-day light block suggests linkage of these processes. Mating, though frequent (up to 14% day-1 in culture), was also not associated with zygote accumulation or resting stage formation but rapid cell reproduction via meiosis. Confinement of division and mating to nighttime and early morning may minimize conflict with photosynthesis-related metabolism and/or predator exposure. Sexual reproduction was the dominant mode of proliferation during the observed blooms, accounting for 71% and 64% of new cell production in 2015 and 2021, respectively. Because it is dependent on encounter of a compatible gamete, sexual reproduction is increasingly accessible as blooms intensify. This sexual mode of proliferation may also alleviate populations susceptibility to pathogens, parasites, and other threats via genetic recombination, an example of Red Queen dynamics.