Adaptation of Styrofoam Substrate to Benthic Algal Productivity Studies in Lake Tahoe, California‐nevada1

A routine sampling technique has been developed using artificial styrofoam substrate to estimate benthic algal productivity in the littoral zone of lakes. Estimation of maximum carbon fixed in Lake Tahoe ranged from 11.1 mg C·m−2· day−1 at 0.5 m to 17.1 mg C·m−2· day−1 at 1.0 m. Estimates were made for communities composed of both diatom and green algal populations in water between 0.5 and 3.0 m. Maximum productivity occurred between 1–2 m. The technique developed can give comparable estimates of productivity if adequate replication is undertaken to decrease problems associated with periphytic heterogeneity.