Samantha, UR--Capture of the V. Aureus

     Phytoplankton come in all different shapes and sizes. Some are bacteria, some are protists, and most are single-celled plants.  In my continuing research to identify phytoplankton in and near the Indian River Lagoon I have come across some different types of these plankton that I would like to discuss with you.  My first successful  invasion was in a smaller river in Volusia County, the Tomoka River.  On September 18, a cloudy day out in the river I casted my plankton net out in the open river and immediately after went back to the lab to see what interesting organisms I may have found and boy did i find.  

Volvox and Copepod floating together

   

   Volvox, which are freshwater blue-green algae was of the first organism I was able to spot.  Volvox are mostly freshwater organisms and having been a cloudy day and a lot of precipitation in the water may have been the cause of these organisms in my plankton samples.  This organism was also the most interesting and relevant to my research.  The sample that showed up numerous Volvox organisms were taken closer to a canal where there were houses with "beautiful" green grass, assuming that this grass stays so nice due to mass amounts of fertilizer.  The problem with this is, most fertilizer used on the yards of these homes are located on the river, which the fertilizer will runoff into the surrounding water causing an overabundance of Nitrogen, which is a core ingredient in most fertilizers.  Why would this have anything to do with Volvox being present and why is it important? Well, Volvox contribute to the production of oxygen and serve as a food for a number of aquatic animals.  Volvox Aureus, the most commonly found volvox and the species I found in my plankton sample can form harmful algal blooms in warm water with high Nitrogen Content.

Volvox spotted in my plankton sample

Volvox and Copepod floating naturally in my sample