Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units Program: Texas
Education, Research and Technical Assistance for Managing Our Natural Resources

Prymnesium parvum (golden alga) is a harmful algal species that has caused serious ecological damage to inland aquatic habitats worldwide and in the USA, especially the southwest. While much field research has been conducted to characterize environmental factors associated with golden alga blooms, the information generated has been mostly descriptive and insufficient to fully understand what triggers or facilitates these blooms. Based on an experimental approach, this study's purpose is to test the validity of several hypotheses about environmental factors responsible for driving golden alga range expansion or bloom formation. This study constitutes the dissertation research of a unit graduate student (R. Rashel) and is supported by Texas Tech University and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department resources. The information obtained is anticipated to reveal cause-effect associations between specific environmental variables and golden alga growth and to inform efforts to predict and control toxic blooms.