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Investigation of a nutrient-growth model using a continuous culture of natural phytoplankton

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 May 2009

K. J. Jones
Affiliation:
Department of Applied Microbiology, University of Strathclyde, 204 George Street, Glasgow.
P. Tett
Affiliation:
Dunstaffhage Marine Research Laboratory, Oban, Scotland.
B. J. B. Wood
Affiliation:
Department of Applied Microbiology, University of Strathclyde, 204 George Street, Glasgow.

Extract

Phytoplankton from Loch Creran, Argyll was maintained in continuous culture for 41 days. During most of this time the mixture of species retained the diversity and dominance pattern typical of summer phytoplankton in the loch, notwithstanding the manipulation of algal nutrient status to bring about phosphorus control of growth. Results suggest that most detritus was washed out early in the experiment.

The aim of the experiment was to test the applicability to natural multispecies phytoplankton of part of Droop's (1974, 1975) model of nutrient-limited algal growth. ‘Quasi-steady states’ with respect to concentration of chlorophyll, particulate carbon (PC), particulate phosphorus (PP) and particulate nitrogen (PN), wereobserved at two levels of input of dissolved inorganic phosphorus. At other times the algal phosphorus quota (estimated from the ratio of PP to PC) varied from about 0·002 to 0·015 atoms P per atom C. Specific growth rate was estimated from the rate of increase of PC. During part of the experiment, growth rate was linearly related to reciprocal phosphorus quota, thus confirming the applicability of the model.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 1978

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