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Instrumentation for the measurement of phytoplankton production 1
Author(s) -
Taylor Craig D.,
Molongoski John J.,
Lohrenz Steven E.
Publication year - 1983
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.1983.28.4.0781
Subject(s) - phytoplankton , instrumentation (computer programming) , incubation , in situ , hydrostatic pressure , environmental science , fractionation , environmental chemistry , chemistry , ecology , biology , chromatography , computer science , physics , biochemistry , thermodynamics , organic chemistry , nutrient , operating system
Automated instrumentation is described that performs time‐course incubation experiments directly in situ where natural conditions of temperature, light, hydrostatic pressure, etc. can be maintained. The sampler incubation device (SID) takes a 1‐liter sample from the water and simultaneously introduces an appropriate radiotracer. During subsequent in situ incubation, 50‐ml subsamples are withdrawn from the main sample at equally spaced intervals and preserved for laboratory analysis. Representative experiments revealed nonlinear carbon uptake within 0.5–1.0 h, emphasizing that even brief end‐point analyses can lead to large errors in estimating phytoplankton production rates. Studies of the rapid fluctuation in phytoplankton activity resulting from cloud‐induced variations in light intensity and the application of cellular fractionation methods for measuring the intracellular distribution of newly fixed carbon illustrated the utility of instrumental time‐course techniques for studying phytoplankton physiology and community metabolism in situ.