âI think weâve read every single book they have.â Mark chuckled. He still wasnât ready to put the children downâWill was hanging off of one hip, his hand on Markâs shoulder as he stoically looked down at Bridget, and Mabel had nuzzled into the crook of Markâs neck with a contented sigh.
Diatoms are producers within the food chain. A unique feature of diatom cells is that they are enclosed within a cell wall made of silica (hydrated silicon dioxide) called a frustule. These frustules show a wide diversity in form, but are usually almost bilaterally symmetrical, hence the group name.
Under the right conditions, diatoms can reproduce very rapidly and a population of a small species can double each day. Diatoms normally reproduce by binary fission, where one âmother cellâ splits into two daughter cells. (Eureka 2002) WHERE DO THEY LIVE? Given that diatoms are photosynthetic algae, they are restricted to the euphotic zone during the productive phase of their live cycle. Therefore, they are highly sensitive to any environmental changes such as light availability, temperature, salinity etc. In general, diatoms prefer cold, nutrient rich waters.