 This is a jar of water a jar of sea water to be precise. It doesn't look like much But in here could be the key to the next science breakthrough Welcome to the world of plankton a tiny floating micro habitat full of strange creatures and There's one plankton in particular that could start making waves in science Plankton are everywhere in the ocean a mixture of tiny plants and animals plankton floats with the currents and tides forming the basis of the entire ocean ecosystem It's a world that fascinates marine biologist Aki Masenaga of the Oist Lusk amulet For me plankton are very interesting because most of them are so small and hard to see But when you actually look at them underneath the microscope you'll be amazed by how diverse they are In terms of their color and shape so because they're so diverse. It's almost like looking at art Not only they are visually interesting But they are very important because they are at the bottom of the food chain So that means they become food for larger animals like fish and even whales Some species of plankton are becoming tiny titans able to show us cutting-edge views on genetics Evolution morphology and much more besides Some are evolving so quickly. They're forming separate tribes But before we can learn about them We have to catch them first We sample plankton twice a month from a harbor nearby the Institute The method we use is very simple First we just throw in a bucket to scoop up some surface water and they are usually in there and we also use this small plankton net to get a concentrated sample and The mesh size of the net is about 100 microns So anything smaller than that will pass through the net Whereas anything bigger will be captured and get trapped and then eventually collected in the bottom We record certain parameters that could potentially influence the abundance of plankton such as water temperature salinity and so on. A Single haul can scoop up scores of animal and plant species Some are just plankton part-time like fish and crustaceans in their larval stages But others spend their entire lives as drifters But Aki is looking for one kind of plankton in particular