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Hidden diversity of eukaryotic plankton in the soda lake Nakuru, Kenya, during a phase of low salinity revealed by a SSU rRNA gene clone library

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Abstract

A SSU rRNA gene clone library was constructed to establish the diversity of eukaryotic plankton in the African soda lake Nakuru during a phase of low salinity (9.7 ppt = hyposaline). Normally, the lake is mesosaline (up to 50 ppt) and its phytoplankton is dominated by few species of cyanobacteria, in particular Arthrospira fusiformis, which is the main food resource of Lesser Flamingos. Our study recovered a unique phytoplankton species composition characterized by a high diversity of monadoid and coccoid green algae. Out of 77 clones detected, 52 belonged to Chlorophyta. Many of the chlorophytes were transported from the catchment area into the lake through small seasonal rivers and an outflow of the Nakuru town sewage treatment plant. Other phylogenetic groups detected were Fungi, Cryptophyta, Jakobida, Alveolata, Stramenopiles, and Metazoa. Our findings reveal a hidden diversity, which would not have been detected by traditional observations.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank the authorities of the Republic of Kenya, especially the National Council for Science and Technology for providing research permission (No. NCST/RRI/12/1/BS/232). W.L. thanks for the financial support of the State High-Tech Research and Development Project (863) of the Ministry of Science and Technology of China (2012AA021706), and the Shanghai Rising-Star Program (Grant No. 11QA1407300).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. SOA Key Laboratory for Polar Science, Polar Research Institute of China, Shanghai, 200136, China

    Wei Luo

  2. Plant and Microbial Sciences Department, Kenyatta University, P.O. Box 43844, GPO 00100, Nairobi, Kenya

    Kiplagat Kotut

  3. Leibniz-Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, Alte Fischerhütte 2, 16775, Stechlin, Germany

    Lothar Krienitz

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  1. Wei Luo
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Correspondence to Lothar Krienitz.

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Luo, W., Kotut, K. & Krienitz, L. Hidden diversity of eukaryotic plankton in the soda lake Nakuru, Kenya, during a phase of low salinity revealed by a SSU rRNA gene clone library. Hydrobiologia 702, 95–103 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-012-1310-y

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