You are here:
Phytoplankton community composition in nearshore coastal waters of Louisiana
Citation:
SCHAEFFER, B. A. AND J. C. KURTZ. Phytoplankton community composition in nearshore coastal waters of Louisiana. MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN. Elsevier Science Ltd, New York, NY, 64(8):1705-1712, (2012).
Impact/Purpose:
Characterize phytoplankton abundance, biovolume, and taxonomy, including identification of harmful algal species
Description:
Phytoplankton community compositions within near-shore coastal and estuarine waters of Louisiana were characterized by relative abundance, biovolume, and taxonomic identification to genus and species when possible. The range of total nitrogen was 0.5 to 1.3 mg L-1 and total phosphorus was 0.02 to 0.36 mg L-1. Surface salinity was between 0.8 and 26.6. Surface water temperature increased from 17.2 oC in February to 29.7 oC in June. Bacillariophyta were dominant in relative abundance and biovolume at almost all stations for all cruises. The highest abundance and biovolume occurred in February. Barataria Bay had the highest abundance and lowest biovolume indicating a community of smaller cells. Vermilion Bay typically had the highest nutrient concentrations and lowest abundance. G. sanguineum was the most frequently encountered potentially harmful algal species, but K. brevis, L. minimus, P. micans, P. minimum, Alexandrium sp., Amphidinium sp., Chaetoceros sp., and Pseudo-nitzschia sp were also present.