A short term study on vertical distribution of phytoplankton biomass and nutrients in the pelagic zone in Lake Tanganyika Student: Bigeyo Kuboja

Phytoplankton are microscopic plants that gain energy from the sun through photosynthesis. They are important primary producers in most lakes. Lake Tanganyika exhibits a greater relative range between annual maximum and minimum phytoplankton biomass than most tropical lakes or temperate Great Lakes (Hecky and Kling, 1981; Hecky and Fee, 1981). This is due in part to the permanent stratification of lake, which can be disrupted by shifts in weather. Upwelling of hypolimnetic nutrients usually follows a change in the depth of the thermocline (e.g. from internal waves), and such shifts in nutrient availability cause differences in species composition and productivity of phytoplankton (Hecky and Kling, 1987).