The Brown Pigment
The brown colour of brown algae is due to presence of green pigment (chlorophyll a and c) and the brown fu-coxanthine. The seaweeds which live in deep water absorb different wavelength of light due to the presence of these different types of pigments and manufacture their food by the process of photosynthesis. Laminarin, a unique type of starch, is produced in brown algae.
Examples of Brown Seaweeds
1. Kelp
Sea bamboo (Ecklonia maxima), the spilt fan kelp (Laminaria pallida) and the bladder kelp (Macrocystis angustifolia) are three common species of kelp found in the west coast of South Africa. The stipes or stem of Kelp has the strengthening tissue and tubular cells to transport the food through the plant. To deter herbivores, the blades of the kelp have a protective outer layer, starch and tannin containing storage tissue and pigmented photosynthetic cells.
2. Dictyota Group
Plants are thick green and dichotomously branched, also known as flat forking branches. Dictyopteris species are similar but the blades have a central midrib.
3. Wracks
Wracks are also known as carpets of hanging wracks.
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Some of the algae are flat some are branched, blood red sheets but majority are succulent. Red algae seaweeds are basically from phylum rhodophyta, that are different from other seaweeds due to presence of red and blue pigment, phycocyanin and phycoerythrin, in addition to chlorophyll a. The red and blue pigment in this seaweeds make a great advantage so that it absorbs blue-green light in deep water by passing the energy to the chlorophyll for food production by photosynthesis. Red algae live in both high on the shore and at great depth. Algae that are present in deep water having the red pigment but the algae present in inter tidal water having the yellowish, reddish brown or almost black pigment, that’s why many of red algae are confused of brown algae that are yellow
When people hear African history their initial thoughts are slavery and segregation, yet there is more to African history than those two events. The reason why many people would only know the American portion of African history is because that is what is predominately taught in most schools. In the movie Hidden Colors 2: The Triumph of Melanin, it goes deeper into the cultural beginning of the African history. As mentioned in the film “90% of African history makes up everything”. Hidden Colors 2 is an exceptional and informative documentary that extends to telling the hidden truths behind the suppression of the black culture.
The Web. 28 July 2011. http://redpath-museum.mcgill.ca/Qbp/3.Conservation/impacts.htm>. Interaction with kelp & sea otters. asnailsodyssey.com.
Goldfish, like other cold-blooded animals, have pigment cells that are called chromatophores. Inside chromatophores are chromatosomes, which are the organelles which hold the pigment. The chromatosomes can absorb or reflect light. The color of a fish is dictated by what kinds of chromatosomes are in its cells, how many chromatosomes there are, and where in the cell the chromatosomes are located; these, in sum, control which chromatosomes absorb light and which ones reflect it, therefore affecting what color we see when we look at the fish. Chromatophores can change color in two ways: by the chromatosomes spreading apart inside the cells, making the color more apparent to the eye; or by the chromatosomes changing color, prompting a visual difference in color throughout the entire organism.
Soft corals such as sea fingers and sea whips, are soft and bendable and often resemble plants or trees. These corals do not have stony skeletons, but instead grow wood-like cores for suppor...
The outer layer of a reef consists of living animals, or polyps, of coral. Single-celled algae called zooxanthellae live within the coral polyps, and a skeleton containing filamentous green algae surrounds them. The photosynthetic zooxanthellae and green algae transfer food energy directly to the coral polyps, while acquiring scarce nutrients from the coral. The numerous micro habitats of coral reefs and the high biological productivity support a great diversity of other life.
Coral reefs are the most biodiverse ecosystem on the planet. There are more than 25,000 known species of organisms and countless others that have yet to be identified (Helvarg, 2000). Reefs thrive on the shallow edge of tropical seas, most often on the eastern edge of continents along warm water currents that brush the coasts. Reefs cannot live in cold waters and are limited by ocean depth and available sunlight. Coral is the foundation of the reef community, providing a three-dimensional structure where thousands of species of vertebrates and invertebrates live and feed. Some species of coral are hard, while others soft. Some are branched, yet others are compact and rounded. Coral is made up of large communities of tiny jellyfish like polyps. These polyps absorb calcium from the sea water and secrete a hard limestone skeleton. At night the polyps extend sticky, stinging tentacles from their skeletons to capture and consume small floating organisms such as zooplankton. Every coral has a two-stage life cycle: the larva, and the polyp. The larval stage is free swimming, and the polyp is stationary. Ocean currents carry the larva from the stationary parent polyp to any hard, clean, silt-free surface where, if the conditions are perfect, the larva grows into a coral forming polyp, never to move again (Levin, 1999). One of the most valuable resources for coral polyps are algae. Some live on the coral skeletons, but one type in particular, zooxanthellae, lives inside the tissue of the polyps. Zooxanthellae makes up about half the weight of the fleshy polyps and are not only a valuable food resource, but they are responsible for the brilliant colors associated with coral. When coral looses these prec...
Corals are a type of animal called a polyp, the simplest of predators that eat meat in the form of drifting zooplankton…all corals have boarders, zillions of microscopic, one-celled plants called zooxanthellae that live inside the polyps and transform sunlight into oxygen, keeping the corals alive. As you will see, the corals need these algae in order to live, but too much is deadly.
Photosynthesis is, “the process by which plants convert light energy from the Sun into chemical energy in the form of carbohydrates” thus producing, “food for all living organisms, directly or indirectly” (Zheng). Photosynthesis has been examined in thousands of different ways. Many of these experiments include studying the rate of photosynthesis and pigment accumulation by obtaining plants and then stressing their light and nutrient intake (Okunlola and Adekunle). Photosynthetic pigments reflect and absorb different wavelengths of visible light based off their polarity. In this experiment, we studied photosynthetic pigments, first, by determining polarity and then, by measuring the amount of light of a given wavelength that a pigment absorbs. We used two methods in this experiment, chromatography and spectrophotometry. Chromatography “is a method used to separate mixtures of substances into their components” (lab book) and spectrophotometry is the use of a spectrophotometer to measure transmittance of light through a liquid. We used our knowledge of polarity to predict that since the least polar pigments move the most, pigment 1 is chlorophyll b, pigment 2 is chlorophyll a, pigment 3 is an anthocyanin, pigment 4 is a xanthophyll, and since most polar pigments move the least, pigment 5 is
Soft corals are grouped in the phylum Cnidaria, class Anthozoa, and order Alcyonacea. Their distinguishing characteristic is that their polyps always bear eight tentacles which are on both edges fringed by rows of pinnules (Fabricius and De’ath, 2002). The common name “soft coral” comes from the fact that they have no massive external skeleton as compared to the more commonly studied hard corals.
Low in nutrients, highly colored with dissolved humic organic material. (Not necessarily a part of the natural trophic progression.)
The structure of chlorophyll involves a hydrophobic tail embedded in the thylakoid membrane which repels water and a porphyrin ring which is a ring of four pyrrols (C4H5N) surrounding a metal ion which absorbs the incoming light energy, in the case of chlorophyll the metal ion is magnesium (Mg2+.) The electrons within the porphyrin ring are delocalised so the molecule has the potential to easily and quickly lose and gain electrons making the structure of chlorophyll ideal for photosynthesis. Chlorophyll is the most abundant photosynthetic pigment, absorbing red and blue wavelengths and reflecting green wavelengths, meaning plants containing chlorophyll appear green. There are many types of chlorophyll, including chlorophyll a, b, c1, c2, d and f. Chlorophyll a is present in all photosynthetic organisms and is the most common pigment with the molecular formula C55H72MgN4O5. Chlorophyll b is found in plants with the molecular formula C55H70MgN4O6, it is less abundant than chlorophyll a. Chlorophyll a and b are often found together as they increase the wavelengths of light absorbed. Chlorophyll c1 (C35H30O5N4Mg) and c2 (C35H28O5N4Mg) are found in algae, they are accessory pigments and have a brown colour. Chlorophyll c is able to absorb yellow and green light (500-600nm) that chlorophyll a
Algae are wide species of unicellular and multi-cellular organisms that use make use of photosynthesis like plants. They may commonly, though not scientifically, referred to as leafless plants. Algae are present in almost all kinds of ecosystems, whether terrestrial or aquatic, and can live in extreme and harsh conditions [1]. Flue gases from power plants and industrial exhaust gases are responsible for a big chunk of global GHG emissions and contain up to 15% CO2 [2]. These gases can be used as a source CO2 for algae and help mitigate the emissions by a great amount. Algae have shown ability to mitigate CO2 while being more efficient in use of sunlight. Another potential application for algae is in waste-water treatment plants. Nitrogen and Phosphorous in the waste water can be consumed by algae. A variety of species including Chlorella, Scenedesmus and Spirulina have been studied for waste water removal [3].Microalgae has historically been used to produce a large number of different valuable co-products such fertilizers and soil conditioners, anti-oxidants, fatty acids, coloring su...
Scientists aren't exactly sure of how or why algal blooms get started. One theory is that when temperature, salinity, and nutrients reach certain levels there is a massive increase in the amount of algae.
Photosynthesis is a vital process used by plants, some protists, and cyanobacteria in which the light energy coming from the sun is transformed into chemical energy. Chemical energy, then, can be used for cellular processes and stored in the form of glucose, which is essential for life on earth since it fuels the metabolic process of cells (Morris & Moat, 2016, p.227). The purpose of this experiment is to separate and analyze photosynthetic pigments and determine the absorption spectrum of spinach leaves.