Red blooms of snow algae consisting almost exclusively of large spherical red cells of Chlamydomonas nivalis (Bauer) Wille are widespread during the summer in the Beartooth Mountains in Montana and Wyoming. Field studies designed to examine the effects of temperature, light, and water potential on algal activity were performed with natural populations using photosynthetic 14C‐HCO3‐ or 14CO2 incorporation as a measure of activity. The algae photo‐synthesized optimally at 5.4 × 104 lx, but were not inhibited by increased light intensity up to 8.6 × 104 lx, the maximum observed in the field. Photosynthesis was sensitive to a reduction in water potential, and since low water potentials develop in snow at temperatures below 0 C, it is unlikely that significant algal activity occurs at the sub‐0 temperatures which occur throughout winter. Photosynthesis was much lower following melting of the snow, but this was probably due to decreased diffusion of CO2. The optimal temperatures varied considerably among the different algal populations. Most samples photo‐synthesized optimally at 10 or 20 C but retained substantial activity at temperatures as low as 0 or ‐3 C. Exceptional samples photosynthesized optimally at 0 or ‐3 C. It is proposed that the varied temperature responses reflect the presence of different temperature strains. Taken together, the data suggest that development of the snow algae can occur only during the summer months.
Either DDT or polychlorinated biphenyls were added to mixed cultures containing a marine diatom and a marine green alga that were sensitive and resistant, respectively, to these organochlorine compounds. The diatom grew faster and was therefore dominant in control cultures, but its dominance diminished in treated cultures, even at concentrations of chlorinated hydrocarbons that had no apparent effect in pure cultures. Such stable pollutants could disrupt the species composition of phytoplankton communities, thereby affecting whole eco-systems.
The growth rates of two species of marine diatoms were reduced by polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB's), widespread pollutants of the marine environment, at concentrations as low as 10 to 25 parts per billion. In contrast, a marine green alga and two species of freshwater algae were not inhibited at these or higher concentrations. The sensitivity of these species to PCB's paralleled their sensitivity to DDT [1,1,1-trichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethane].
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