Samantha, UR--Oxygen is a big deal !

   Is it possible that tiny microscopic single cell organisms could be greatly effecting our water? Although these organisms may not be able to be seen with the naked eye they are one of the most critical organisms of marine life. Phytoplankton have an intense impact on a healthy area of water, and an over abundance of nutrients could lead to an imbalance of phytoplankton and cause major problems. Along with the data of water quality in the area I have been working my way to capture and identify plankton in certain body's of water specifically in canals. In doing so I will be attempting to compare species of plankton present in a man made canal opposed to a natural canal.
     
        My identification process is still in progress however I have developed some important crucial data during my field research that could  have a huge impact on a mass amount of plankton  present and could eventually lead to something known as an algae bloom.  A bloom occurs due to mass amounts of nutrients being deposited into the water creating an ideal environment for phytoplankton activity. Algae blooms can be very harmful to marine organisms causing fish deaths as well as effecting humans causing Nausea or sickness.  I traveled to two different canals in the area one being Spruce Creek South Bridge (SCSB) located in Volusia County, this is a natural canal as well as Canal Street, canal in New Smyrna Beach (Volusia County), which is a man made canal.

             While out in the field, I began to take water quality samples, checking salinity, pH, oxygen levels ex.  In doing so I came to realize a significant detail of the water quality in which could greatly effect my research of plankton identification.  Canal street canal seemed to be hypoxic ! This meaning that the levels of oxygen were so low that there is basically no oxygen in that particular body of water. If phytoplankton populations grows to an excessive amount, the amount of unstable oxygen  in the water can be depleted. Oxygen deportation has two algal bloom related causes; respiration and decomposition.  Algae and Cyanobacteria consume oxygen at night when there is no light for photosynthesis to occur.  If there is a bloom, the phytoplankton can consume more oxygen than produced. Likewise, if large portions of the algal bloom die off at once, bacteria will start to consume oxygen in order to decompose the dead algae.  This can reduce oxygen concentrations to below sustainable levels.  If oxygen levels get too low, fish and other aquatic creatures may die.