A study of plankton communities in the Strait of Georgia was
undertaken in order to determine qualitatively and quantitatively the
distribution in time and space of both zooplankton and phytoplankton.
In order to gain some picture of the seasonal, variations in the
plankton communities two cruises were made in the Strait, one in June,
1955, and the other in November 1955. 165 plankton collections were
taken. A complete count of zooplankton organisms was made in 5cc. of
each sample and the number of diatoms cells per liter was tabulated.
Copepods and diatoms were analysed to species; other groups to class
or genera. Surface temperatures were taken. The physical and chemical
data, used to account for the biological distributions were obtained
largely from oceanographic data already available for the area.
The correlation of these data have resulted in a number of
conclusions concerning the distribution of plankton in the Strait of
Georgia. The chief factor affecting the general distribution of plankton
in the Strait of Georgia is the salinity gradient. The inflow of fresh
water from the Fraser River forms zones of varying properties, and leads
to the development of different plankton communities. The extent to which
physical and chemical factors may determine the presence or absence of
certain organisms from the zones described is discussed. / Science, Faculty of / Zoology, Department of / Graduate
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UBC/oai:circle.library.ubc.ca:2429/41665 |
| Date | January 1956 |
| Creators | Legare, Joseph Eugene Henri |
| Publisher | University of British Columbia |
| Source Sets | University of British Columbia |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, Thesis/Dissertation |
| Rights | For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use. |
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