The Control of the Numbers of Freshwater Phytoplankton by Small Invertebrate Animals

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Abstract
The plankton-feeding animals Brachionus pala and Daphnia pulex, when present in sufficient numbers, can reduce the numbers of the phytoplankton very rapidly. In all cases observed, such a rapid reduction of the phytoplankton was accompanied by almost complete O2 depletion, and death of the animals, after which the numbers of algae again increased. This cycle of events, first observed in exptl. tubs, occurs also in ponds. In addition to such rapid and sudden reduction in numbers of algae, plankton-feeding animals may have important effects on the rate of increase in numbers of algae at any stage of the annual cycle.

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