NOTES AND COMMENT REFERENCES H., JR., AND J. SANDBAG. 1961. The measurement of dehydrogenase activity in marine organisms.

J. M arine Res., 19: 123-138.

555

CURL,

KANWISHER, J. 1959. Polarographic oxygen electrode. Limnol. Oceanog., 4: 210-217. SNEDECOR, G. W. 1956. Statistical methods, 5th ed. Iowa State Univ. Press, Ames. 534 p.

CORRELATION Certain

OF MELOSIRA

SPECIES WITH TROPHIC CONDITIONS LAKE MICHIGAN~

IN

species of the diatom genus have been associated with different trophic conditions, that is, the degree of available nutrient supply. Hustedt (Ehr.) ( 1945) has called Melosira gram&a Ralfs the planktonic diatom most characteristic of eutrophic waters in Europe. MeZosira granulata and, to a less marked extent, MeZosira ambigua (Grun. ) 0. Miiller characterize strongly eutrophic bodies of water in Britain (Lund 1962a). Melosira Kiitz. has become one of the binderana predominant diatom species in western Lake Erie in the past 30 years (Hohn 1968), while the waters of Lake Erie have undergone accelerated eutrophication during the same time (Beeton, in press). MeZosira islandica 0. Miiller is the dominant diatom in Great Slave Lake, which is considered oligotrophic ( Rawson 1956; Lund 1962b). The distribution of these species in certain regions of Lake Michigan appears also to be correlated with trophic conditions.
Melosira
METHOD

those of the regions sampled in Lake Michigan itself (Fig. 1). The flora of Green Bay was characterized by species that have been associated with eutrophic conditions: large numbers of M. granulata and secondarily, M. ambigua and M. binderana. Although M. islandica occurred only occasionally in the waters of Green Bay, this species was the dominant form in Lake Michigan near the western shore and in the open lake areas. It was a codominant with M. ambigua near the eastern shore. MeZosira granulata and M. bin.derana were seldom found in the lake.
COLLATERAL DATA

A Van Dorn sampler was used to collect 219 samples at 2, 5, and 10 m from five regions in Lake Michigan and southern Green Bay (Holland, in prep.). The diatoms were cleaned with nitric acid. After most of the acid had boiled off, the mixture was diluted and passed through a 0.45-p membrane filter. Diatoms were examined at 970x under phase contrast from a portion of dried filter made transparent with immersion oil. Each complete valve was counted as one-half diatom frustule.
DISTRIBUTION OF MELOSIRA SPECIES

The species association in southern Green Bay was markedly different from
1 Contribution No. 10, Center for Great Studies, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Lakes

Collateral data from the five sampling areas provide a comparison of relative trophic differences. Average diatom concentrations were higher in Green Bay than in the lake (Table 1). Diatoms were more abundant in the nearshore areas of the lake than in the offshore areas, but numbers were about one-third greater at inshore Michigan than at inshore Wisconsin. Total and particulate phosphorus were considerably higher in Green Bay than in the lake, while average nitrate-N levels in the bay were almost three times lower (Table 1)) and at times were not detectable (Allen 1966). Presumably most of the nitrogen was tied up in the plankton and little remained as nitrate. Beeton (in press) has established that southern Green Bay is a eutrophic area. Average values for total and particulate phosphorus near the Michigan shore were much lower than those in Green Bay, but were higher than those of the other areas of the lake. Nitrate-N levels in waters of inshore Michigan were higher than those in Green Bay but lower than nitrate-N levels in other areas of the lake.

556

NOTES AND COMMENT

--_

COC-O=CO~ ---------

Meloslra Melosira Melosira Melosira

ombfguo bmderano granulota island/co

FIG. 1. Sampling locations and abundance southern Green Bay and Lake Michigan, April

of predominant into November

species 1965.

of Melosira

(frustules/ml)

in

TABLE 1. Average concentrations of phosphorus, nitrate, and total diatoms, April into November 1965, and cell volume and total biomass (in parentheses) of predominant species of Melosira at times of peak abundance in southern Green Bay and Lake Michigan. (Values of phosphorus and nitrate in ppb from Allen 1966; diatoms in frustules/ml; cell volume in ,.2; total species biomass in $/ml. A = absent or uncommon)
Inshore Michigan Offshore Michigan Offshore Wisconsin Inshore Wisconsin Green Bay

Total P Dissolved P Particulate P Nitrate-N Diatoms M. ambigua M. binderana M. granulata M. islandica

9.3 3.6 5.5 100 813 2.9 x l@ (0.7 x 105) A A 25 x lo2 (4.2 x 10)

6.5 2.8 3.9 113 390 A A A 22 x lo2 (2.3 x 10)

6.0 2.4 3.3 112 350 A A A 21 x lo2 (1.7 x 105)

6.2 2.4 4.0 109 514 A A A 25 x lo2 (2.3 x 105)

33.0 7.0 26.3 37 944 6.1 x 10 (1.6 x 105) 23 x lo2 (3.8 x 105) 24 x 10 (17 x 105) A

NOTES AND COMMENT TROPHIC SIGNIFICANCE RUTH

557

E. HOLLAND~

The distribution of species of MeZosira appears to reflect trophic levels: eutrophic conditions in Green Bay, oligotrophic conditions in offshore waters and waters near the Wisconsin shore of Lake Michigan, and intermediate conditions near the Michigan shore. The size of the standing crop of MeZosira in the different areas (Fig. 1) supports the above conclusions. Eutrophication generally favors the development of large numbers of cells as well as the occurrence of large forms or colonies (Findenegg 1965). Although M. isZundica at times had a greater cell volume than the forms which have been associated with eutrophy, the greater combined numbers of the latter in Green Bay produced a significantly greater total biomass there (Table 1). Thus, the total biomass of MeZosira was greatest in Green Bay, least along the western shore and in the open lake, and intermediate near the eastern shore. Nalewajko ( 1966) reported a similar phenomenon of differences in diatom species among regions in Lake Ontario. MeZosira islandica was a predominant species of the central lake, while Stephunodiscus tenuis predominated in coastal areas, suggesting differences in trophic levels between inshore and offshore waters.

Center for Great Lake Studies, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milzcaukee 53201.

REFERENCES in phosphorus ALLEN, H. E. 1966. Variations and nitrate in Lake Michigan and Green Bay, 1965. Paper, 9th Conf. Great Lakes Res., Chicago, Ill., March 1966. BEETON, A. M. In Press. Changes in the environment and biota of the Great Lakes. Proc. Natl. Acad. Intern. Symp. Eutrophication. Sci. Relationship between FINDENEGG, I. 1965. and primary productivity. standing crop 18: Suppl. 271-289. Mem. 1st. Idrobiol., Major changes in the HOHN, M. H. 1968. plankton diatom flora of the Bass Island region of western Lake Erie, 1938-1965. Paper, 11th Conf. Great Lakes Res., Milwaukee, Wise., 18-20 April 1968. HUSTEDT, F. 1945. Die Diatomeenflora norddeutscher Seen mit besonderer BeriicksichtArch. igung des holsteinischen Seengebiets. Hydrobiol., 4.1: 392-414. LUND, J. W. G. 1962a. Phytoplankton from some lakes in northern Saskatchewan and from Great Slave Lake. Can. J. Botany, 40: 1499-1514. 1962b. The periodicity of Melosira is-. landica 0. Mull. in Great Slave Lake. J. Fisheries Res. Board Can., 19: 501-504. NALEWAJKO, C. 1966. Composition of phytoplankton in surface waters of Lake Ontario. J. Fisheries Res. Board Can., 23: 1715-1725. RAWSON, D. S. 1956. Algal indicators of trophic lake types. Limnol. Oceanog., 1: 18-25. 2 Mrs. Alfred M. Beeton.

DETERMINATION OF SALINITY OF SOUND VELOCITY,

FROM SIMULTANEOUS MEASUREMENTS TEMPERATURE, AND PRESSURE ity equation and in reducing the SVTP data from the digital magnetic tapes.
THE SALINITY EQUATION

Available SVTP (sound velocity, temperature, and pressure) instruments (Lovett 1963) do not approach the accuracy possible with in situ induction salinometers for the determination of salinity. Nevertheless, in the absence of a salinometer, the SVTP instrument is at least capable of delineating the gross features of the salinity profile. I am indebted to J. Garber and L. Lipton of this center for help in programming the computer to determine the salin-

To compute salinity from the SVTP instrument data, the experimental data of Wilson ( 1959, 1960a, 1960b) over the range of -3 to +3OC, 1 to 1,000 kg per cm2, and 10 to 37%0salinity were used to derive the following empirical equation:
s = 35 + A&
+ A& + A& + AsTpv,

where AS, = -3.31986T - 2.57236 x 1O-3 X