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Cyst germination of two dinoflagellate species from Galicia (NW Spain)
Juan Blanco

The effects of temperature, salinity, intensity and spectral characteristics of light, anoxia and hydrogen sulfide addition on cyst germination of two dinoflagellate species Gonyaulax polyedra and Ensiculifera sp were studied. The organisms were isolated from Galician waters, an area with environmental characteristics that differ from those in which most germination studies have been carried out to date. Anoxia (negative effect) and temperature (positive effect) were the most important factors affecting cyst germination, even though the latter has a narrow range in the area, followed by light intensity and salinity. Spectral characteristics of light had very little or no effect on germination. Storage of cysts in oxic conditions led to practically no germination of G. polyedra cysts. Under natural conditions higher percentage of cysts of this species germinated as they were buried deeper in the sediment, thus it is likely that they make up important and effective reserve populations for motile phases. Fluorescence characteristics of cysts appeared to be related to both their ability to germinate and to storage conditions, and may be an important tool for the study of germination dynamics of dinoflagellates.

Keywords: Dinoflagellates, cysts, germination, temperature, salinity, light, anoxia, hydrogen sulfide.
Contents of this volume Sci. Mar. 54(3) : 287-291 Back PDF
 
 
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