Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology Richard H. York, Jr.

1985

N/A

Microalgae were collected from a variety of sites in the Hawaiian islands, including ocean sites and inland saline habitats. The conductivity, dissolved oxygen content, pH, and temperature of each site was recorded. Individual cells were isolated via micropipetting and placed into glass tubes or fluorohalocarbon plastic bags containing either the original sample water, offshore seawater, SERI Type I medium, or SERI Type II medium. The plastic bags, which transmit the full visible solar spectrum, were placed in full sunlight without temperature control. This treatment was therefore believed to provide a good selection for strains that would be able to thrive under outdoor mass culture conditions. The glass tubes were incubated at 25°-26°C at 40 pE^m-2^s-1 under a 16h:8h light:dark regime; these conditions were less stressful than the outdoor
conditions, and therefore led to the recovery of less hardy strains. A large-scale outdoor enrichment culture was also prepared by pumping 1700 L of enriched seawater into a 5.5 m diameter open tank, then strains arising in this culture were isolated.

As a result of these procedures, 100 of the most rapidly growing strains were selected and maintained for further analysis. This group included members of the Chlorophyceae, Cyanophyceae, Bacillariophyceae, and Pyrrophyceae. Two strains, Chaetoceros SH 9-1 (CHAET38) and Cyclotella 14-89 (THALA6), were grown in outdoor cultures consisting of cells in 1-L fluorohalocarbon plastic bags. The highest growth rates measured for these strains were 2.12 doublings^-1 for CHAET38 and 1.43 doublings^-1 for THALA6. These growth rates were reported to correspond to 31 and 33 g dry weight^m-2^d-1, respectively, although how these values were derived is not clear.

I Publications:

York, Jr., R. H. (1987) “Collection of high energy yielding strains of saline microalgae from the Hawaiian Islands.” FY1986 Aquatic Species Program Annual Report, Solar Energy Research Institute, Golden, Colorado, SERI/SP-231-3071, pp. 90-104.