Species Of Snow Algae Research Articles

Rosetta gen. nov. (Chlorophyta): Resolving the identity of red snow algal rosettes.

Thick-walled rosette-like snow algae were long thought to be a life stage of various other species of snow algae. Rosette-like cells have not been cultured, but by manually isolating cells from 38 field samples in southern British Columbia, we assigned a variety of rosette morphologies to DNA sequence. Phylogenetic analysis of Rubisco large-subunit (rbcL) gene, ribosomal internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) rRNA region, and 18S rRNA gene revealed that the rosette-like cells form a new clade within the phylogroup Chloromonadinia. Based on these data, we designate a new genus, Rosetta, which comprises five novel species: R. castellata, R. floranivea, R. stellaria, R. rubriterra, and R. papavera. In a survey of 762 snow samples from British Columbia, we observed R. floranivea exclusively on snow overlying high-elevation glaciers, whereas R. castellata was observed at lower elevations, near the tree line. The other three species were rarely observed. Spherical red cells enveloped in a thin translucent sac were conspecific with Rosetta, possibly a developmental stage. These results highlight the unexplored diversity among snow algae and emphasize the utility of single-cell isolation to advance the centuries-old problem of disentangling life stages and cryptic species.

Optimum Growth Temperatures of Three Species of Green Chloromonas Snow Algae from Upstate New York and the White Mountains, Arizona

ABSTRACTThe optimum temperatures of three species of snow algae were studied using four strains of Chloromonas (Cr.) rosae v. psychrophila, six strains of Cr. tughillensis, and one strain of Cr. chenangoensis. These axenic strains were from Upstate New York except for two of Cr. rosae v. psychrophila from the White Mountains, Arizona. Temperatures tested were from 2.5 to 20°C. The high elevation subalpine Cr. rosae v. psychrophila from New York and Arizona grew from 4 to 20°C and had the greatest cell counts at 4 to 15°C. In contrast, the subalpine to temperate low elevation strains of Cr. tughillensis grew from 2.5 to 10°C and optimally at 2.5 or 5°C, and Cr. chenangoensis grew from 2.5 to 7.5°C and optimally at 2.5 and 5°C. Chloromonas tughillensis and Cr. chenangoensis belong to a genetic subclade with low temperature optima, whereas Cr. rosae v. psychrophila belongs to a subclade with broad temperature optima. In acclimation experiments, there were no significant differences in cell counts when acclimating two Adirondack, New York, strains of Cr. rosae v. psychrophila for two weeks prior to experiments vs. using non-acclimated strains that were moved from 4°C directly to 4, 10, 15, or 20°C. For Cr. tughillensis, four of six strains had significantly higher cell counts when grown at 2.5°C after acclimation at 7.5°C for five months. These are the first reports of temperature optima of snow algae from eastern North America.

The Optimum pH of the Green Snow Algae, Chloromonas Tughillensis and Chloromonas Chenangoensis, from Upstate New York

ABSTRACTThe optimum pH of two species of snow algae from Upstate New York were assessed by studying three axenic strains of Chloromonas tughillensis in a pH range of 3.0–7.0 and three non-axenic strains of Cr. chenangoensis in a pH range of 3.0–8.0. Growth was examined at 0.5 pH intervals. Cell counts at the termination of the experiments differed among strains and among pH intervals in individual strains for both species, and strains of Cr. tughillensis responded differently to changes in pH (p < 0.001) while strains of Cr. chenangoensis did not (p = 0.193). Cell counts and absorbance data for Cr. tughillensis indicated an optimum pH of 4.9–6.1 using regression analysis. Strains of Cr. chenangoensis exhibited higher but insignificantly different counts between pH 7.0 and 8.0 with maxima at pH 7.5, but pH optima were not determined. When the range was expanded to include pH 8.5–9.0, an optimal pH of 7.0–8.0 was determined for strain CU 722B, and this is the first snow alga reported to have an optimum alkaline pH. The highest absorbance values, however, occurred between pH 3.0–4.5 and pH 7.0–8.0. The pH values recorded in the field were 5.0–5.3 for Cr. tughillensis and 6.7–7.6 for Cr. chenangoensis.

Himalayan ice-core dating with snow algae

AbstractSnow algae in shallow ice cores (7 m long) from Yala Glacier in the Langtang region of Nepal were examined for potential use in ice-core dating. Ice-core samples taken at 5350 m a.s.l. in 1994 contained more than seven species of snow algae. In a vertical profile of the algal biomass, 11 distinct algal layers were observed. Seasonal observation in 1996 at the coring site indicated most algal growth occurred from late spring to late summer. Pit observation in 1991, 1992 and 1994 indicated that algal layer formation takes place annually. δ18O, chemical ions (Na+, Cl−, SO42− and NO3−) and microparticles failed to show any clear seasonal variation, particularly at depths exceeding 2 m, possibly due to heavy meltwater percolation. Snow algae in ice cores would thus appear to be accurate boundary markers of annual layers and should prove useful for ice-core dating in Himalayan-type glaciers.

A Community of Snow Algae on a Himalayan Glacier: Change of Algal Biomass and Community Structure with Altitude

A community of snow algae on a Himalayan glacier, the Yala Glacier (5100-5700 m a.s.l.), Langtang region of Nepal Himalaya, were quantitatively analyzed. This is the first report on snow algae from the Himalayan region. In this glacier, 11 species of snow algae were observed: Chloromonas sp., Trochiscia sp., Mesotaenium berggrenii, Cylindrocystis brébissonii, Koliella sp., Ancylonema nol-denskioeldii, Raphidonema sp., three Oscillatoriacean algae, and one unknown coccoid alga.The algal biomass estimated by the total cell volume rapidly decreased as the altitude increased. In particular, the rate of decrease of algal biomass was larger in the upper snow environment than in the lower ice environment. The structure of algal community represented by the proportion of each species to the total algal biomass also differed by altitude. From the difference of the algal community, we divided the glacier into three zones: the Lower Zone (5100-5200 m a.s.l.; stable ice-environment), with 7 species dominated by Cylindrocystis brébissonii; the Middle Zone (5200-5300 m a.s.l.; unstable transition area between ice-environment and snow-environment), with 11 species dominated by Mesotaenium berggrenii; and the Upper Zone (5300-5430 m a.s.l.; stable snow-environment), with 4 species dominated by Trochiscia sp. This vertical zonation of the algal community type and biomass may reflect the difference in summer climatic conditions with altitude. Species number and Simpson's diversity index was highest in the Middle Zone where environmental conditions frequently changed. Our results seems to agree with the intermediate disturbance hypothesis.Since the snow algae in the accumulation area (>5250 m a.s.l.) of the glacier is annually stored in glacial strata, the algal biomass and community structure recorded in glacier ice-cores can be a new information source for the studies on past climate change in this region.

The Effect of Coniferous Litter and Different Snow Meltwaters upon the Growth of Two Species of Snow Algae in Axenic Culture

The Effect of Coniferous Litter and Different Snow Meltwaters upon the Growth of Two Species of Snow Algae in Axenic Culture

The Effect of Coniferous Litter and Different Snow Meltwaters upon the Growth of Two Species of Snow Algae in Axenic Culture

The Effect of Coniferous Litter and Different Snow Meltwaters upon the Growth of Two Species of Snow Algae in Axenic Culture

Optimum Temperatures and Temperature Ranges for Growth of Snow Algae

Blooms of algae are known to occur in snow when air temperatures remain above freezing for extended periods of time. However, hard freezes may occur after snow algae make their appearance, and some species may survive this environmental stress more easily than others. Three species of snow algae, Raphidonema

Algae from Alpine Areas in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado

A collection of algae from alpine lakes (above 3000 m), principally desmids and diatoms, indicates oligotrophic, somewhat acid conditions. There have been few investigations of the algae of the central Rocky Mountain area of the United States. Shantz (1907) reported a few genera of the Pike's Peak area and Robbins (1912) published a preliminary list of Colorado algae. Olive (1955) reported a number of genera and named 35 species. In an excellent limnological study, Pennak (1955) listed 42 genera of algae, including several genera we have not found, and gave notes on their abundance as well as physical data from Bear Lake which we studied. Jones (nee Hallberg) (1937, 1932) reported some blue-green species. The only papers listing a sizable number of species are those of Miller (1936), who reported 112 species of desmids from the Medicine Bow Mountains (Wyoming); Durrell and Norton (1960), who listed 81 genera and 152 species from Grand Mesa; and Thomasson's (1964) paper on some lakes northwest of Denver which lists about 100 taxa. These are regions north and southwest of Rocky Mountain National Park. Stein and Amundsen (1967) reported a few species of snow algae from the Front Range south of the Park. Apparently there are few if any species so far reported from the Park. In early September 1969, one of us (L.A.W.) had the opportunity to collect 16 samples in the Park above 9000 ft (3000 m). Plankton collections were made with a No. 25 silk plankton net in Bear, Sheep and Poudre lakes. Littoral collections were made from the three lakes and a beaver pond near Horseshoe Park, from tundra pools, Iceberg Lake and a snowbank. Collections were kept refrigerated 48 hr until they could be examined fresh in our laboratory. All were then preserved in Transeau's solution and studied in more detail later. Permanent diatom slides were made, and all samples were deposited in the University herbarium. A total of 193 taxa representing 84 genera have been identified. Bear Lake is a small natural lake at 3200 m elevation in the east central part of the Park. It is in the evergreen forest and is about 150 X 100 m in size. Water temperature was 15 C and the pH near 6.5 (Pennak reports pH 6.3-6.7). Dinobryon cylindricum was abundant in the net collection; Ceratium hirundinella was moderately abundant, and Volvox aureus common. Among the 15 genera present were species of Asterionella, Melosira, Tabellaria, Peridinium and four desmids. The littoral zone was dominated by filamentous green algae in the genera Zygnema, Spirogyra, Mougeotia, Sphaerozosma and Bulbochaete. More than 30 other species were seen, mostly Chlorococcales,