Giantism and its role in the harmful algal bloom species Phaeocystis globosa

Abstract

The cosmopolitan alga Phaeocystis globosa forms large blooms in shallow coastal waters off the Viet Nam coast, which impacts the local aquaculture and fishing industries substantially. The unusual feature of this alga is that it forms giant colonies that can reach up to 3 cm in diameter. We conducted experiments designed to elucidate the ecophysiological characteristics that presumably favor the development of giant colonies. Satellite images of chlorophyll fluorescence showed that the coastal bloom was initiated in summer and temporally coincident with the onset of monsoonally driven upwelling. While determining the spatial distribution of Phaeocystis was not feasible, we sampled it in the near-shore region. A positive relationship was found between colony size and colonial cell densities, in contrast to results from the North Sea. Mean chlorophyll a concentration per cell was 0.45 pg cell−1, lower than in laboratory or temperate systems. The contribution of mucous carbon ranged from 63–95% of the total carbon; furthermore, mucous carbon per unit of colony surface area appeared to decrease with colony size, suggesting that the mucoid sheath became thinner as colonies grew larger. Sinking rates averaged 189 m d−1, strongly suggesting that giant colonies could only persist in shallow, turbulent environments. No relationship between colony size and sinking rates was observed. DOC concentrations of intracolonial fluid averaged 5940 μM, 25 times greater than ambient concentrations. Estimated diffusion coefficients of ions across the mucous envelope were ca. 1.0±0.3×10−7 cm2 s−1 for colonies with diameters of ca. 1.0 cm. In total, the characteristics of the giant colonies suggest that the Vietnamese strain is substantially different from that found in temperate environments, and that it has a number of unusual features that influence its growth and development in coastal Vietnamese waters.