Water Weed
by Science Photo Library
Title
Water Weed
Artist
Science Photo Library
Medium
Photograph - Photograph
Description
Water weed. Clumps of water weed, Spirogyra sp. infest a ditch. Otherwise known as Mermaid's tresses" or "water silk", Spirogyra is a green alga which forms slimy threads in stagnant or slow- moving water. It is particularly abundant in spring and autumn. Spirogyra is capable of accumulating large amounts of phosphate from the surrounding water. Water draining from farm land is often rich in this chemical, and can cause the weed to grow rapidly. This growth blocks light from other plants which then die. The bacteria decomposing the dead vegetation can consume most of the water's oxygen, leading to extermination of many of the ditch's resident species."
Uploaded
September 24th, 2018
Embed
Share
Similar Subjects
Similar Images
Comments
There are no comments for Water Weed. Click here to post the first comment.
Recently Viewed
