title: Surface/Volume ratio: implications for phytoplankton morphology.
abstract: Plankton autotrophs vary greatly in size and shape. Computation of surface/volume ratios for biomass units of 27 coexisting phytoplankton species in a tropical lake indicates that these ratios are conserved within a range much narrower than expected by random choice of shapes. Conservation of surface/volume ratios suggests new explanations for the shapes of phytoplankton biomass units.
authors.forename: W M
authors.initials: WM
authors.lastname: Lewis