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The Protozoa of Soda Lakes in East Africa

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Soda Lakes of East Africa

Abstract

Protozoa, mainly ciliates, have been studied in East African soda lakes (EASL) since the 1980s. A few studies have noted the presence of flagellates, including Chlamydomonas, Ceratium and chilomonids. Amoebae have been even less studied, although Biomyxa and Platamoeba have been observed. The abundance, biomass and production of ciliates in the EASL are higher than in tropical freshwater, subtropical and temperate lakes. This is attributed to the high phytoplankton and bacterial abundance in these lakes. Accordingly, the ciliate fauna is dominated by herbivorous and bacterivorous taxa. Estimates of growth rates for ciliates in EASL range from 0.18 to 4.75 day−1. High water temperatures allow for these fast growth rates, which together with high biomass lead to high secondary production. Some of this production can reach higher trophic organisms such as zooplankton and fish, while some is consumed by predators within the microbial food web.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biological Sciences, Egerton University, 536-20115, Egerton, Kenya

    Andrew W. Yasindi

  2. Department of Biology and Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada, N2L 3G1

    William D. Taylor

Authors
  1. Andrew W. Yasindi
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  2. William D. Taylor
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Correspondence to Andrew W. Yasindi .

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  1. Department of Limnology and Bio-Oceanography, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria

    Michael Schagerl

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Yasindi, A.W., Taylor, W.D. (2016). The Protozoa of Soda Lakes in East Africa. In: Schagerl, M. (eds) Soda Lakes of East Africa. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28622-8_7

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