STRATEGIES AND KINETICS OF PHOTOACCLIMATION IN 3 ANTARCTIC NANOPHYTOFLAGELLATES

Three Antarctic nanophytoflagellates (two cryptophyte species and a Pyramimonas sp.) were compared for their capacity to photoacclimate and for their kinetic responses in changing photic environments. Division rate, cell size, cellular fluorescence, and chlorophyll a content were measured during steady and transient states Of semi-continuous cultures maintained at 1.0-degrees-C. Of all parameters tested, cell size was most affected by irradiance. Acclimation kinetics were modelled using a first-order equation. Rates of change in cell size following shifts in irradiance were comparable with rates of change in chemical composition reported for temperate algae. Response rates of cellular in vivo red and orange fluorescence were lower. In many cases, however, responses could not be described by the first-order kinetic model. Division rates remained high for approximately 3 days following a shift down in irradiance, after which new division rates were established. The nanoflagellates studied here appear to respond to small irradiance perturbations at low rates. However, they may, fail to adapt to large and abrupt changes in photon flux density (PFD). When shade-adapted (25 mumol . m-2 . s-1) cells were exposed to high PFD (400 mumol . m-2. s-1)for 1-3 days, cells were incapable of readapting division rate and pigment content to the initial irradiance condition (25 mumol . m-2 . s-1)for about 1 month following the shift-down step. The ecological role of the kinetics of photoacclimation in nanophytoflagellate growth performance in Antarctic ecosystems is discussed.