Phytoplankton bloom, possibly Rhizosolenia

[leonardturner]

I recently witnessed an overnight bloom in the Gulf of Mexico; the surface of the water became covered with a highly reflective materiel which revealed a great number of these organisms. I'm no diatomic expert, but they seem to be more compatible with Rhizosolenia than Pseudonitzschia. Any input would be appreciated!

[carlos.uruguay]

Nice

[BJ]

Hi,


i would go with Proboscia alata (= Rhizosolenia alata).

compare with this:

http://www.biol.tsukuba.ac.jp/~algae/PS ... index.html

if the cells have a high oil content they can float - alternatively air bubbles can get trapped in the tangled raft of cells and give buoyancy.

interesting - thanks for posting

Brian

[leonardturner]

Thanks to both of you, and thanks particularly for the reference, Brian. Very helpful!