The influence of temperature and light on the upper limit of Microcystis aeruginosa production in a hypertrophic reservoir

Primary production was measured for 7 years, using the in situ¹⁴C-method in hypertrophic Hartbeespoort Dam, South Africa,to examine the influence of light and water temperature on theupper limit of Microcystis aeruginosa production. Water temperaturesvaried from 11 to >25°C and chlorophyll concentrationsreached 6500 mg m^–3. The maximum volumetric rate of production(A_max) was 12->8800 mg C m^–3 h^–1 with areal productions(A) of 69->3300 mg C m^–2 h^–1 for euphotic zonedepths of <0.5–8.4 m. The intrinsic parameters of phytoplanktonproduction (, A_max/B, I_k) indicated that the phytoplankton populationwas adapted to high light levels. Both A_max/B and I_k were correlatedwith temperature. Under optimal conditions, , the theoreticalupper limit of A, was calculated to be 2.8 g Cm^–2 h^–1,while the measured rate was 2.5 g Cm^–2 h^–1. Measuredareal rates exceeding were overestimated due to methodologicalproblems when working with Microcystis scums. Light and watertemperature interacted to yield high production rates: watertemperature through its direct effect on photosynthetic ratesand indirectly in the formation of diurnal mixed layers; lightindirectly through water temperature and directly through itsattenuation and induction of light-adapted physiology in Microcystis.