THE CULTURE OF DUNALIELLA TERTIOLECTA BUTCHER—A EURYHALINE ORGANISM
Dunaliella tertiolecta Butcher was found to be a euryhaline organism which grew at salinities ranging from 3.75 to 120‰. All the conservative elements of sea water, with the exception of chlorine, were found necessary for growth of the alga. The minimum requirement for sodium was much greater than that for any other element, and it was not possible to substitute other monovalent cations for the minimum requirement. Also, the alga could tolerate high concentrations of sodium chloride. The potassium and sulphur concentrations of the medium could be reduced to very low levels. Dunaliella could also tolerate high concentrations of these two elements. The addition of lithium to the medium inhibited the growth of the alga. High concentrations of sodium could partially eliminate the inhibition due to lithium. The minimum concentrations of calcium and magnesium necessary for growth approached the concentrations found in fresh waters. Calcium and magnesium were inhibitory at high concentrations, but the inhibition at high concentrations could be prevented if a Mg/Ca ratio of 4 was maintained over a wide range of concentrations in the medium.