| Description |
The life which the dense water of Great Salt Lake is able to support, has al.ways. been of great interest to the casual observer as well as to the biologist. Extreme points of view have been taken on this subject. In 1889 David Starr Jordan stated that the lake water was so salty that no life could exist in it, except the brine shrimp. On the other hand, consideration was once given to the introduction into the lake of useful marine animals. Up to the present time, investigators have reported. thirteen species of algae, twelve bacteria and nine or ten animal forms as occurring in the lake. Because of the great salinity of the lake water, decay proceeds very slowly. It is therefore possible that fresh water algae could be washed in from many sources and remain for some time in almost a preserved state. It is for this reason that the writer believes the only possible way to determine the species normally present in the Great Salt Lake, is by growing the algae in cultures over a period of time, long enough to eliminate any forms that may have come from extraneous sources. With the exception of the work done by L. L. Dianes (1917), the writer knows of no attempt to culture the algae of the lake over a prolonged period. Data for this paper were obtained by this method and by examination of material taken directly from the lake at various season and at various stations. |
