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Photosynthesis and growth of Spirulina platensis (Cyanophyta) in an equatorial lake (Lake Simbi, Kenya) 1
Author(s) -
Melack John M.
Publication year - 1979
Publication title -
limnology and oceanography
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.7
H-Index - 197
eISSN - 1939-5590
pISSN - 0024-3590
DOI - 10.4319/lo.1979.24.4.0753
Subject(s) - photosynthesis , spirulina (dietary supplement) , crater lake , photic zone , phytoplankton , chlorophyll a , population , cyanobacteria , environmental chemistry , botany , chemistry , biology , volcano , ecology , nutrient , bacteria , genetics , raw material , paleontology , demography , sociology
A unialgal population of Spiruli na platensis (Cyanophyta) was discovered and studied in Lake Simbi (Kenya), a volcanic crater soda lake. Photosynthetic rates of bottled phytoplankton reached 12,900 mg O 2 ·m −3 ·h −1 and areal rates ranged from 620 to 5,220 mg O 2 ·m −2 ·h 1 . Free water changes in dissolved oxygen varied from 2,800 to 12,000 mg O 2 ·m −2 ·h −1 . A principal reason for these exceptionally high rates of photosynthesis was the extraordinary chlorophyll a content of the euphotic zone—200–650 mg Chl a · m −2 . Growth rate measurements based on actual weight changes yielded turnover times of 8.9–18.9 h.