Phytoplankton samples were collected on September 16, 2026 at Bullock’s Reach and analyzed in the laboratory shortly after collection.
It was sunny and pleasant on this day. The water temperature was 21.405 °C, the salinity was 26.33 psu, and the chlorophyll a was 6.76 ug/L.
The qualitative tow net sample had a moderate filtration time. The filtrate was light golden brown with some suspended particulates
The analysis of the quantitative whole water sample revealed a total of 547,000 cells/L. The microflagellates were found at 437,000 cells/L. The most predominant phytoplankton genera were Skeletonema spp. at 53,000 cells/L and Eutreptiella spp. at 30,000 cells/L.
200x phase contrast image of Thalassiosira spp.
Thalassiosira are a genus of centric diatoms found in a wide variety of marine environments around the world. Cells can exist individually or in chains connected by organic threads. Thalassiosira can be identified by their characteristic shapes which include: box-shaped, cylindrical, drum-shaped, discoid, and coin-shaped.