Algae Types for Simple Recognition

To keep things easy with visual identification for BioWorld Treatment purposes, use the following three classes:

1. Filamentous - appears as moss, mats or stringy on the surface of the water, subsurface floating or on the bottom. Can also be attached to rocks or plants in the water. Some are slimy smooth while others feel like very course horse hair. Generally, filamentous algae can be picked up by hand.

BioWorld has a 99% project success with filamentous algae when enough product is used for the specific water system.

2. Planktonic - the water has a color of green and the algae cannot be picked up by hand.

BioWorld has a 70% project success with planktonic algae - many factors can dictate the success.

3. Water Weeds - plants that have a root structure where the nutrients are acquired from the sediment in the bottom of the water. When pulled by hand, the root is very apparent.

BioWorld is not designed for rooted plants, duckweed, watermeal, or milfoil. Proper use of selective herbicides or mechanical removal are the most common forms of control. The BioWorld treatment can be used in conjunction with certain herbicides to get the best results.

Algal Divisions

1. Bacillariophyta. The diatoms are placed by the authors in their own division, but others place them in the Family Bacillariophyceae: ( load an image of Asterionella ). These mostly microscopic algae are unicellular, or filamentous
   ( colonial, such as Asterionella ), and typically have a golden brown color; they compose the "pastures" of the sea, carrying on much of the world's photosynthesis. Diatoms are also common in lakes and streams, especially as part of the attached community of algae ( periphyton ) that grows on submerged rocks, logs, plants, and debris.

2. Chlorophyta. The grass-green algae are mostly microscopic and may be unicellular ( Chlamydomonas ), filamentous ( Spirogyra ), or colonial ( Volvox, Scenedesmus ); some are also flagellated.

3. Pyrrophyta. This group of microscopic algae includes the dinoflagellates, or peridinians, that are especially abundant in the ocean where certain species comprise the deadly "red tides". The armored Ceratium is a common freshwater form and its spectacular shape makes it easy to identify in the plankton. Most taxa are unicelluar ( Peridinium ), or small chains of cells; all are flagellated. The "bioluminescence" often seen in the wake of ocean ships is almost always due to dinoflagellates.

4. Cyanophyta. These prokaryotes, the blue-greens, are microscopic and visible algae with no plastids, primarily photoautotrophs; some assimilate organic substances such as acetate and amino acids so these forms are organotrophs. Some blue-greens can "fix" molecular nitrogen converting it to usable nitrates. Blue-greens have been considered "weed" species by many limnologists because they can cause unpleasant growths in lakes where eutrophication occurs. Lakes, for instance, that receive runoff of excess nitrogen and phosphorus from the watershed because of domestic, agricultural, and/or industrial pollution. Noxious "blooms" may occur of such forms as Anabaena and Oscillatoria
   ( load from Cyanophyceae ).

5. Chrysophyta. Chrysophytes are microscopic unicellular, or colonial forms common in lake plankton. Common taxa include Dinobryon and Mallomonas ( load from Chrysophyceae ).

6. Euglenophyta. The euglenoids are microscopic unicellular algae that are flagellated. This group includes the common genus Euglena and Trachlemonas ( load from Euglenophyceae ). One unique feature of Euglena is that it forms spores under unfavorable environmental conditions; Euglena will form reddish spores that usually float on the surface as a reddish scum.

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