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The microbial plankton of freshwater lakes in the Vestfold Hills, Antarctica

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Summary

The plankton of twelve freshwater and slightly saline lakes in the Vestfold Hills, Antarctica was sampled in February 1991. All of the lakes are oligotrophic. The chlorophyll a concentrations in the lakes ranged from 0.10–2.69 μg · 1−1. The majority of the phytoplankton were flagellates or picoplanktonic cyanobacteria with the species composition varying between the lakes. Cyanobacteria were found in five of the lakes. Five to 6 species of ciliated protozoa occurred, among them oligotrichs, including the mixotrophic species Strombidium viride. The concentrations of protists and bacteria were an order to several orders of magnitude lower than reported from lower latitude oligotrophic lakes. Low species diversity and low numbers in the plankton characterise these eastern Antarctica lakes which reflects their low nutrient status and isolation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Environmental and Biological Sciences, University of Lancaster, LA1 4YQ, Lancaster, UK

    Johanna Laybourn-Parry

  2. Australian Antarctic Division, Channel Highway, 7050, Kingston, Tasmania, Australia

    Harvey J. Marchant

Authors
  1. Johanna Laybourn-Parry
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  2. Harvey J. Marchant
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Laybourn-Parry, J., Marchant, H.J. The microbial plankton of freshwater lakes in the Vestfold Hills, Antarctica. Polar Biol 12, 405–410 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00243111

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00243111

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