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They are algal mats. Looks like multiple groups, possibly both cyanobacteria and chlorophytes.
You really can't ID this stuff much further than that without microscopes and a great deal of phycological expertise.
You really can't ID this stuff much further than that without microscopes and a great deal of phycological expertise.
OP
Hoosier
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That's funny that you mention this...
I see some bare areas that are covered in a fine layer of purple or reddish haze that looks like it's oozing out of the ground. Do you see that as well.
I wish I had a camera!
I see some bare areas that are covered in a fine layer of purple or reddish haze that looks like it's oozing out of the ground. Do you see that as well.
I wish I had a camera!
OP
Hoosier
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It isn't only a nuisance matter, but an enviornmental matter to me. I suspect some over-fertilizing water drain and enriched nutrient (like phosphorus) on the quarry.
I might need to collect some sample for the lab test.... I think the quarry water should be sampled as well.
This is another reason why vis used to be not good at the quarry in mid-west.
I might need to collect some sample for the lab test.... I think the quarry water should be sampled as well.
This is another reason why vis used to be not good at the quarry in mid-west.
The whitening or loss of pigment (which can also turn green-colored algae maroon-colored or black) is common. It can be caused by excessive sunlight, temperature swings... pretty much anything.
When the filamentous algae are green-colored, it can be difficult to differentiate green algae from blue-green algae without getting a close-up comparison of scale (blue-green's are much thinner). "Hair algae" is also common with brown and red algae (though usually not in freshwater).
The white thready-looking things look big... maybe a big aquatic plant like coontail (Ceratophyllum). That stuff usually starts senescing in late summer/early fall in most North American lakes. It'll come back in the summer and clog up everything. It's normally "fed" by natural nutrients from spring turnover and runoff, plus the additional days of sunlight.
Your submerged aquatic plants can be commonly coated with layers of diatoms and blue-green algae as they age. Makes the plants look real skuzzy.
When the filamentous algae are green-colored, it can be difficult to differentiate green algae from blue-green algae without getting a close-up comparison of scale (blue-green's are much thinner). "Hair algae" is also common with brown and red algae (though usually not in freshwater).
The white thready-looking things look big... maybe a big aquatic plant like coontail (Ceratophyllum). That stuff usually starts senescing in late summer/early fall in most North American lakes. It'll come back in the summer and clog up everything. It's normally "fed" by natural nutrients from spring turnover and runoff, plus the additional days of sunlight.
Your submerged aquatic plants can be commonly coated with layers of diatoms and blue-green algae as they age. Makes the plants look real skuzzy.
Are there any easy to read books with lots of pictures and small words that you would recommend- like a Limnology for Dummies guide?
I have lots of questions about freshwater and I'm seeking the answers, the truth, the righteous path... oops, got carried away.
Really, I'm looking for explanations why the silt seems to disappear after the quarry freezes over, or why the silt in the deeper sections tends to look black and burnt, but is quite brown and mungy in the shallower sections, or what causes the white wispy precipitate layer above the tea-like tannic layer and why does this happen at certain times. What happens to blue sock when you toss it into the Red sea?
I have lots of questions about freshwater and I'm seeking the answers, the truth, the righteous path... oops, got carried away.
Really, I'm looking for explanations why the silt seems to disappear after the quarry freezes over, or why the silt in the deeper sections tends to look black and burnt, but is quite brown and mungy in the shallower sections, or what causes the white wispy precipitate layer above the tea-like tannic layer and why does this happen at certain times. What happens to blue sock when you toss it into the Red sea?
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