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A National Ocean Service/National Center for Coastal Ocean Science Program

Phytoplankton Monitoring Network

Promoting a better understanding of harmful algal blooms by way of volunteer monitoring

Volunteers

Archibald Rutledge Academy: McClellanville, SC

  • Site: McClellanville Town Dock
  • Group Volunteer: Pam Morrison
  • Description: Archibald Rutledge Academy in McClellanville, SC began PMN in early spring 2005. We live in a small, coastal village dependant on the health of our waterways for our seafood industry. Our sampling site is a few miles from school beside the McClellanville Town Hall at the Robert E. Ashley Landing. We check the salinity, tide, weather, and of course, take a plankton tow once a week. Thanks to a local family, the Jessens, we use a donated microscope to take our plankton survey when back in our salt marsh lab. Without PMN, we could not afford the equipment, or the resources to monitor our local water quality. In addition, PMN was gracious enough to lend us a MIC-D microscope to document our future discoveries for finding the algal bloom, Akashiwo sanguinea in September 2005.Thanks so much to all that work hard to bring us such a worthwhile and exciting ongoing project at Phytoplankton Monitoring Network!

9th grade at the landing processing phytoplankton sample the landing sampling site low tide coming in at the landing Akashiwo bloom at 10x Akashiwo bloom at 40x Akashiwo bloom at 40x Akashiwo bloom at 40x Akashiwo bloom at 40x Akashiwo bloom at 40x Akashiwo bloom at 40x