Oceanologia (Jun 2014)

Large red cyanobacterial mats (Spirulina subsalsa Oersted ex Gomont) in the shallow sublittoral of the southern Baltic

  • Maria Włodarska-Kowalczuk,
  • Piotr Balazy,
  • Justyna Kobos,
  • Józef Wiktor,
  • Marek Zajączkowski,
  • Wojciech Moskal

DOI
https://doi.org/10.5697/oc.55-3.661
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 56, no. 3
pp. 661 – 666

Abstract

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We report the first observation of large red cyanobacterial mats in the southern Baltic Sea. The mats (up to 2.5 m in diameter) were observed by SCUBA divers at 7.7 m depth on loamy sediments in the Gulf of Gdańsk in mid-November 2013. The main structure of the mat was formed by cyanobacteria Spirulina subsalsa Oersted ex Gomont; a number of other cyanobacteria, diatoms and nematode species were also present. After a few days in the laboratory, the red trichomes of S. subsalsa started to turn blue-green in colour, suggesting the strong chromatic acclimation abilities of this species.

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