hors/Affiliations
Shea Gilkinson Humboldt State University, 1 Harpst Street, Arcata, CA 95521
Abstract Phytoplankton may be small, but they are the critical for the food web of the ocean. Because they are one of the primary producers it is important to understand how they absorb and retain energy for others to use it. Different conditions such as light and nutrients yield different outcomes. Using a fluorometer, the effects of light and nutrients absorption was measured based on growth rate and abundance of cultured phytoplankton Tetraselmis suecica. The results were in the form of p-values and converted to growth coefficients using different tests such as the 2 Sample T-Test and Mann-Whitney Test. Based on p-values and growth coefficients, it was then determined which sets of data were significant different(high nutrient vs. low nutrient & high light vs. low light). This showed that light was the primary factor for growth rate and nutrient were the primary factor for abundance.
Introduction There are many people that don’t think of phytoplankton first when hearing the word ocean. Instead many would think about larger
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The black vertical lines indicate the range of outliers in the data. The blue boxes represent the normal distribution of data within each sample. The black horizontal line included in the blue boxes represents the average for each sample. Growth rates were calculated using the equation µ = (1/t)*ln(N/No). “Here “µ” is the specific growth rate (in units of t-1) and “t” is the duration of the time over which you were measuring growth. For our purposes, “No” is the concentration of chlorophyll at the beginning of the experiment and “N” is the concentration of chlorophyll after time t has elapsed. Although “N” and “No” usually refer to actual numbers of cells, we will be using changes in bulk phytoplankton chlorophyll-a as a proxy for cell number.”(OCN 310
Glibert, Patricia M. and Daniel E. Terlizzi. “Nutrients, Phytoplankton, and Pfiesteria In the Chesapeake Bay.” Available: http://www.arec.umd.edu/policy/Pfiesteria/terlizzi/terlizzi.htm (22 Nov. 1999).
Once that step is determined, scientists will assign that group of species to a trophic level; to either the primary producers, primary consumers, secondary consumers, or the tertiary consumers. The bottom of the chain and the trophic level that depends upon by all others is the primary producers. These primary producers consist of autotrophs, which are capable of deriving their food and energy source without consuming organisms or substances taken from other organisms. In the Arctic lake of Alaska, one of it’s primary producers consists of aquatic plants and algae. These aquatic and algae contain chlorophyll, which means that they can use light energy from the sun to synthesize glucose and other organic compounds, that they can use for cellular respiration and building material for growth.
Because of farm fertilizer, an excess quantity of nitrogen and phosphorus can be wash down becoming runoff into rivers. From this, marine algal blooms cause the water to turn green from the chlorophyll (Reed, 2011). Eutrophication then becomes a dilemma in the system causing either an increase of primary production or an expansion of algae. An enormous expansion of phytoplankton on the water’s surface is then established. At the same time the water column is also stratified, meaning things such as the temperature and salinity are not sync from top to bottom. The seasonal warm surface water has a low density forming a saltier layer above while the cooler and more dense water masses near the bottom layer is isolated from the top cutting off oxygen supply from the atmosphere (Overview, 2008).
An Analysis and Evaluation of Data from Photosynthesis Experiments Graph analysis This is my analysis for the investigation in to the affect of light intensity on the rate of photosynthesis to the Canadian pondweed, elodea. In the results the pattern is that when the light intensity is higher the readings are generally higher. On the graph the less the light intensity the lower the gradient of the curve. the equation for the photosynthesis process is; CO2 + 2H2O + Light Energy = =
Methodology: The experimenter used two ten gallon tanks. One tank will be used for the controlled group and the other tank will be used for the experimental group. Each tank will have two pounds of sand spread among the bottom of the tank along with rocks and artificial habitats to add nitrogen to the tanks. To add optimal living conditions for the oceanic life water filtration systems, temperature regulator, circulation systems, and a light to mimic the sun’s rays were added to each tank. At all times both tanks had a temperature of 75 degrees F. This experiment was done over a three month period. The first month was to allow the nitrogen cycle to occur. This allows the fish to be exposed to the water without having stress reactions due to unhealthy living conditions due to the nitrogen. Once the first month was complete six fish was added to both tanks. Two tangs, two damsels, and two clownfish. At first both tanks had a pH level of 8.2, ideal living conditions. After one week the experimental group was exposed to a pH level of 8.6. After two weeks it was raised to 9. Two weeks later it was raised to 9.3. The final raise was done two weeks after making the pH level 9.5. The final week of the experiment the pH lev...
Photosynthesis is the conversion of carbon dioxide, water, and light into chemical energy through a series of reactions, and can occur in plants both on land, and in the water (Ensminger PA 2004). However, a variety of things can affect photosynthesis; water levels, temperature, and light availability are just some of the many that can cause fluctuation in the photosynthetic reaction of plants (Carr et al. 1997). This lab was a result of this observation. With so many factors affecting photosynthesis, interest was expressed about whether water type could affect it as well. This could be important for several reasons. For example, as more and more carbon dioxide gets absorbed into the water on Earth, figuring out which water source provides a better habitat for aquatic plants such as Elodea could lead to further understanding global
This is representative of how eutrophication works in an aquatic environment. It shows that the greater the number of blue-green algae then the faster the oxygen depletion
The data we found supported our original water hypothesis. My group and I believed that adding ammonium nitrate into our eco-column would ultimately damage the ecosystems. The increase in levels of minerals from the aquatic ecosystem also indicates that the entire column was being destroyed. Through this experiment, I have learned that too much nutrients and minerals within an ecosystem can be extremely harmful to the wildlife. Throughout this experiment the water in our eco column began to turn yellow because of a surplus of nitrogen and phosphorous in the eco-column. In some of the eco-columns of the other groups in the classroom, they had eutrophication in the early stages of their eco-column which resulted in the death of many of their
According to NOAA phytoplankton are microscopic organisms that continuously convert sunlight and nutrients into living tissue. Phytoplankton can be harmful to the bay because they at an uncontrollable rate causing harmful algae blooms when there is an abundance of nutrients. Phytoplankton also serve as the main food source for a larger but still microscopic organism named Zooplankton. Marine Bio.org did a study on zooplnkton revealing that they are very weak swimmers making them an easy food source for any larger organsim. Zooplanktons’ main purpose serves as the main food source for small fish and
Do you love the slimy,green,and gooey, flavor of kelp? Many people don't , not realizing
28 October 2010. 16 April 2014 http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/06/0607_040607_phytoplankton_2.hyml. “Solutions to Plastic Pollution in our Ocean” Natural Resources Defense Council. 3 March 2014. web.
The “Fast Plant” experiment is an observation of a plants growth over the span of twenty-eight days. The objective is to observe how plants grow and use their resources throughout the span of their life. In our lab we observed the Brassica rapa, a herbaceous plant in the mustard family which has a short cycle which makes it a perfect plant to observe in this experiment. Like other plants the Brassica rapa must use the resources in the environment to create energy to complete itʻs life cycle and reproduce. By observing the plant it is easy to see in what organ or function the plant is using itʻs energy and resources and if overtime the resources switch to other part of the plants. By conducting this experiment we are able to observe where and how plants allocate their resources throughout their life by harvesting plants at different points in their life.
The experiment measured the survival rate, the growth rate, and the size of the brine shrimp at the time harvested in various environments. To obtain these measurements, three environments were created: sea water, brackish water, and freshwater. For this experiment the scientists used 5 liter plastic buckets. Every two days, half of the water from each bucket was discarded and new water, of each respective salinity, was added into each bucket...
Oceans are such so vast that people underestimate the impact their actions —seeming so insignificant— have on them. Humans have by and large taken the oceans for granted; not considering how important a healthy ocean is to our survival. A popular mind-set is that the oceans are a bottomless supply of fish, natural resources, and an infinite waste dump. There are myriad reasons why the oceans should be saved and the most obvious one is marine life. With 71% of the Earth being covered by water, it is obvious that sea creatures are predominant form of life, making up 80% of the species of life on Earth. However, as important as marine life is, that is not the only reason why saving the oceans is crucial. The ocean floor provides natural resources such as, oil, natural gas, petroleum, minerals, medications, and ingredients for foods and products. The economic benefits of the oceans are huge and significant, as well. Fishing and fish products have provided employment to 38 million people and have generated about $124 billion in economic benefits. However, oceans are on the verge of crisis, marine life, natural resources, transportation, the economy, and important ingredients are at risk due to overfishing, pollution, and acidification. Thus, in this essay I will argue that, oceans are not impervious to human activity and threatening the health of the ocean threatens the health of humanity, since oceans key to our survival.
These results agree with the hypothesis that our “untouched and super-productive world” is affecting marine life ecosystems (Vannela, 2012). All of these results combined confirm the overall hypothesis that pollution is getting worse in the ocean and more marine life ecosystems are being affected, but there