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Re: Funny little Green Things
Hello Jean:
> I am curious. Volvox can be beastly hard to grow when you WANT to grow it.
> There is another "odd" thing that I have occasionally found growing on the
> glass of my aquariums, and I think it is called "Plumaria." I was told that it
> is a bit like a cross between a plant and a colonial animal - it grows little
> plumes that are spaced upon a slender thread. The plumes MOVE, but the food
> supply is apparently from chloroplasts within them.
I've heard of Plumeria, but I've never even seen a picture of it. We
can't get Volvox to grow either. We use pickled specimens to teach
1st yr undergrads about plant diversity.
> Since we have some serious Botanists on this List, could anyone explain this
> stuff? I was told the "Plumarea" was virtually impossible to grow in a
> laboratory setting.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
There's a world of difference between laboratory culture and a
healthy fishtank! Lab culture usually involves fertiliser, light and
water. Its very far from the natural situation. Usually only one
species is cultured at a time, and we go to great lengths to avoid
contamination. In a fishtank you have a different setup. There are
all sorts of plant (and fish!) produced substances in the water that
can't be simply broken down into X conc PO4. A tank may not be
natural, but its a lot closer than lab culture.
Jacques
___________________________________________________
Jacques Gerber
Botany Department
Rhodes University
Grahamstown
6140
South Africa
Dept Tel#: 046 6038596
Dept Fax#: 046 6225524
Home Tel#: 046 6225000
___________________________________________________
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