Observation of the Saxitoxin Producing Microalgae in the Kenyan Kilindini Port Creek Waters

Abstract

Surface water samples were collected from the Kilindini port creek in Kenya and analyzed for the presence, abundance and distribution of the saxitoxin producing microalgae species as from January, 2014 to July, 2014. Four species; Alexandrium cohorticula, Alexandrium catenella, Gymnodium catenatum and Pyrodinium bahamense out of the total 24 microalgae (Alexandrium catenella, Ceratium furca, Dinophysis acuminata, Oscillatoria limosa, Ceratium lunula, Dictyocha fibula, Alexandrium cohorticula, Anabaena circinalis, Chaetocerus convolutes, Ostreopsis lenticularis, Thalassionema nitzchoides, Hemidiscus cuneiformis, Anabaena variabilis, Oscillatoria agardhii, Prorocentrum lima, Gonyaulax polygramma, Protoperidinium pallidum, Oscillatoria formosa, Skeletonema tropicum, Gymnodium catenatum, Ceratium lineatum, Ostreopsis ovata, Protoperidinium grande and Pyrodinium bahamense) observed existing in the creek were saxitoxin producing. Four species were in abundance of 70% in the case of Alexandrium catenella, followed by Gymnodium catenatum at 22%, Alexandrium cohorticula at 7% and Pyrodinium bahamense being the least at only 1%. Their spatial distribution within the creek using a one-way ANOVA testing, revealed that Alexandrium catenella and Gymnodium catenatum significantly differed (p<0.05) in mean cell abundances±SEM at 95% level of significance within the sampled stations. Alexandrium cohorticula and Pyrodinium bahamense on the other hand did not differ.