THE MYXOPHYCEAE OF LAHORE. 



BY 



S. L. Ghose, M. Sc., 

 Government College, Lahore. 



Probably no other group of the vegetable kingdom has been so 

 much neglected by morphologists as that of the Myxophycece. In 

 India practically no work on them has been done at all. With the 

 exception of a few stray records of certain Indian species by Schmidle, 

 Hassal, Turner and West, absolutely nothing is known about the 

 Indian Blue-green Algae. 



At first sight, one would not think that the Blue-green Algae are 

 found to any large extent in Lahore, but a little careful observation 

 reveals a large variety of them, and in fair abundance. After the 

 rains, that is in the months of October and November, they are at their 

 best, and then again in February and March. Even in such bad 

 months as May and June, or December and January, they are quite 

 easily obtainable ; so that one can rightly say that the Blue-green 

 Algae flourish fairly well in Lahore throughout the year. In this 

 connection it might be noted that Lahore is situated in 31 35' N. 

 and 74° 20' E. Its height is 732 feet above the sea-level. The 

 hottest months, namely May and June, have a mean maximum 

 temperature of about 106° F., the actual highest might go up to 

 120° F. The coldest months, namely December and January, have a 

 mean minimum temperature of 40° F., the lowest never going below 

 29° F. Bainfall is chiefly confined to the months of July, August and 

 September, and ranges between 8 and 25 inches. 



The sources of material for examination are manifold. A large 

 number of the Blue-green Algae are found throughout the year in 

 places, where there is a constant flow of water, such as drains and 

 water-courses. Artificial tanks kept constantly full of water, such as 

 those in the Shalamar and Shahadara Gardens, also form a useful 

 permanent source. Again, after the rains, a few natural ponds and 

 ditches are left by the road-side in the outskirts of Lahore, which 

 take quite a long time to dry up, and are generally found to be full 

 of algal flora. In addition to all these, short-lived varieties are found 

 on ordinary ground or lawns, on which rain or well-water has stood 

 for even a short time. Another interesting source is afforded by the 

 tree-trunks, which are sometimes covered by beautiful varieties after 

 the rain has moistened them. 



