Luxurious Phosphorus and Phosphorus Limitation for Epiphytic and Planktonic Algal Growth in Reed Zones of Lake Biwa

To evaluate the limitation for epiphytic and planktonic algal growth, acid extractable inorganic phosphorus (AP), implying the luxury uptake phosphorus, was measured in five reed zones of Lake Biwa. The AP in epiphytic substances was 0.7 to 1.4 mg P surface stem $m^{-2}$ in summer and 1.2 to 2.8 mg P $m^{-2}$ in winter. On the other hand, the amount in planktonic substances was 1.4 to 5.7 mg P m -3 and 0.8 to 5.4 mg P $m^{-3}$ in both seasons. Contribution of AP in the epiphytic and planktonic phosphorus was 23 to 31% and 8 to 27% in summer, and 17 to 22% and 9 to 17% in winter. It suggests that in summer both epiphytic and planktonic algae had been luxuriously taken up phosphate into cells. The weight ratios of C : N : P were averaged 79 : 20 : 1 for the epiphytic substances and 81 : 12 : 1 for the particulate substances. On the other hand, the ratios without the luxurious phosphorus were 93 : 24 : 1 and 103 : 15 : 1, showing much higher values than the Redfield ratio. High ratio in the epiphytic substances indicates that the phosphorus is the limiting parameter, rather than nitrogen, regulating the growth of epiphytic algal populations.