Now I'm not any type of expert on the subject myself, so I want to put forth the following disclaimer. The following information was gathered and rewritten from a number of different articles and posts written by both hobbiests (most notably florida joe, greenbeen 191, and Spanko) and experts (most notably Borneman, Hatcher, Perun, and Weis). My thanks go out to them for the wealth of information they provided. That said, on to the topic at hand!
Zooxanthellae (zoo-ah-zan-the-lae) are microscopic single-celled yellow-brown algae (Symbiodinium spp.) that are found living endosymbiotically within the tissues of many marine invertebrate animals, such as cnidarians, flatworms, giant clams, jellyfish, nudibranches, sea anemones, and sponges. These endosymbiotic algae have a mutualistic relationship with the host animal. The host animal provides a protected environment and the compounds the algae needs, and in return the algae produce oxygen and help the host organism eliminate its waste. Extremely small, about 10,000 of these algae cells would fit in the area of the period at the end of this sentence. Closely related to the free-living planktonic dinoflagellates, zooxanthellae are critical to the overall health and productivity of corals. Possessing chlorophyll, the zooxanthellae are able to utilize sunlight, CO2 and water in order to conduct photosynthesis and produce O2 and energy rich glucose. Additionally they make glycerol and amino acids available to their host animals which are able to utilize these substances to produce calcium carbonate, carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. The relationship between the algae and its host animal creates a pathway for the recycling of nutrients in the nutrient poor waters around a coral reef. As much as 90 percent of the organic material the algae produce is transferred to their host animal.
Zooxanthellae (zoo-ah-zan-the-lae) are microscopic single-celled yellow-brown algae (Symbiodinium spp.) that are found living endosymbiotically within the tissues of many marine invertebrate animals, such as cnidarians, flatworms, giant clams, jellyfish, nudibranches, sea anemones, and sponges. These endosymbiotic algae have a mutualistic relationship with the host animal. The host animal provides a protected environment and the compounds the algae needs, and in return the algae produce oxygen and help the host organism eliminate its waste. Extremely small, about 10,000 of these algae cells would fit in the area of the period at the end of this sentence. Closely related to the free-living planktonic dinoflagellates, zooxanthellae are critical to the overall health and productivity of corals. Possessing chlorophyll, the zooxanthellae are able to utilize sunlight, CO2 and water in order to conduct photosynthesis and produce O2 and energy rich glucose. Additionally they make glycerol and amino acids available to their host animals which are able to utilize these substances to produce calcium carbonate, carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. The relationship between the algae and its host animal creates a pathway for the recycling of nutrients in the nutrient poor waters around a coral reef. As much as 90 percent of the organic material the algae produce is transferred to their host animal.
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