Nitrogen fixation by naturally occurring duckweed–cyanobacterial associations

Nitrogen fixation as measured by acetylene conversion to ethylene was found to be common for duckweed blooms on ponds, lakes, and streams in Michigan. Twenty-six of 29 sites with duckweed sampled over a 2-year period showed acetylene reduction activity (ARA). These activities corresponded to N inputs of 3.7–7.5 kg N∙ha−1 per annual cycle for typical blooms but dense Lemna trisulca blooms could be 10 times greater. The ARA was stimulated five- to six-fold by light, was not removed when plants were shaken in water, and was usually associated with the leaves and not the roots. Colonies of heterocyst-bearing cyanobacteria of the genera Nostoc, Gloeotrichia, Anabaena, Calothrix, and Cylindrospermum were observed attached to the lower epidermis or in the reproductive pockets of leaves of Spirodela and Lemna plants but not on Wolffia plants. The ARA correlated reasonably well with the density of cyanobacterial colonies observed. The duckweed appeared to provide a more favorable environment for the cyanobacteria which should result in enhanced nitrogen inputs to aquatic and sediment environments harboring duckweed. The N2 fixation was not sufficient, however, to meet all the nitrogen needs of the duckweed bloom.