In previous articles we saw in depth the red algae. Today we bring you another article related to it. In this case we will talk about green algae. Their special feature is that they have chlorophyll of both ao and b. This fact is what makes green algae have this color. There are more than 7.000 species of green algae around the world. They are distributed between marine, freshwater or terrestrial, although the vast majority are freshwater.
Do you want to know all the characteristics and lifestyle of green algae? Keep reading and you will learn everything
Key features
Green algae, like all organisms that have chlorophyll, sThey are capable of producing energy to live from photosynthesis. The necessary component to live is sunlight. As we can imagine, marine algae have this fact more complicated, since solar radiation decreases with depth.
Water pollution reduces the amount of sunlight that enters marine ecosystems and, therefore, green algae cannot photosynthesize and die. This type of algae can inhabit almost any ecosystem since it has a great capacity for survival. The fact that only 10% of all green algae in the world are marine is related to their ability to photosynthesize and their need for hours of sunlight.
When we go out to sea, we can find many types of green algae. As we go down in depth, we see less and less as the sunlight diminishes. Although we can find some algae suspended in the water or algae of microscopic size, the vast majority of them are at the bottom of the sea floors.
Algae reproduction can be both sexual and asexual. When it comes to analyzing them, we can distinguish stems, leaves and roots as in a higher plant.
Reproduction of green algae
As we mentioned before, algae can reproduce asexually through fragmentation and sexually in various ways. We are going to analyze each of them:
- Hologamy: it is a type of reproduction that is only observed in unicellular algae. Its reproduction consists in the fact that the whole alga itself acts as a gamete and fuses with another gamete.
- Conjugation: it is a type of reproduction that only occurs in algae that are of the filamentous type. In it, some algae act like males and others like females. In this way, they are able to join the filaments and create union tubes through which the reproductive content passes. When the process is finished, a zygospore forms as a result. It is a spore that remains latent until the conditions of the environment are suitable for its germination in which it forms a new filament.
- Planogamy: It is a type of reproduction in which mobile gametes act. Both gametes contain flagella that allow them to move and cross.
- Oogamy: It is similar to the previous one, but this time we find that the female gamete is immobile. As it does not have flagella, it cannot move and requires external reproduction.
Filamentous algae
Filamentous algae are of public interest, as many of them are used in aquariums. They have both chlorophyll a and b and various types of pigments such as carotenes and xanthophylls. We find it mainly in freshwater areas, although it can also be seen inhabiting marine areas. This makes it a versatile plant to use in your aquarium.
They are called filamentous algae because they have cells in the form of filaments like compact hairs. In some aquariums there is the formation of a kind of filamentous green algae that is not very pleasant (similar to weeds in orchards) and that is called Cladophora. You can easily recognize them since they look like a group of dark green filaments and grow fixed to substrates or other plants around them.
Filamentous algae need a lot of light and nutrients to grow well. They need large amounts of nitrates and phosphates that the water contains. If you want to ensure the good condition and growth of green algae in your aquarium, make sure they have good amounts of these minerals.
These algae can also become a pest if there is excess nutrients. It can damage waters with the process known as water eutrophication. It is an exaggerated growth due to the excess of nutrients in the water that leads to a reduction in the amount of light that reaches the bottom due to the excess algae. When they die, they begin to rot and create a putrid environment. This is called water eutrophication.
Causes why they appear in your aquarium
You may have a pond and from one day to the next green algae will begin to proliferate. This situation is due to different causes. One of the main ones is the imbalance between the amount of nitrate and phosphate in the water. In general, there are usually more nitrates than phosphates. Not having the proper values causes these algae to grow in aquariums. To avoid this situation we must very well control the levels of plants that we place in the pond.
Another problem that triggers the unwanted growth of green algae is the little filtration or biological loadto. This situation occurs when The filters they do not have the necessary power to keep the water in good condition. It may be because the aquarium does not have enough power to filter a large amount of water or too large a volume or because it has become blocked / damaged. To take this aspect into account, we just have to look for the necessary power at which it has to work. It should be noted that when inserting the filter into the water, power is reduced by 40%. Therefore, it is necessary to buy a filter that has a higher power.
If the aquarium has an excess of direct sunlight or, conversely, a lack of lighting, it may be the case of unwanted growth. The amount of light that enters must be well measured and be just and necessary.
I hope these tips help you to learn more about green algae.