Table 1.
Description of sampled snow fields and of the site of isolation of algal strains from the Culture Collection of Cryophilic Algae (CCCryo) used for laboratory experiments.
| Sample | Snow color | Location name | GPS data | Locality description | Estimated organism composition (field samples) or species name (CCCryo strains) | Site orientation | Slope (°) | Altitude a.s.l. (m) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FIELD SAMPLES | ||||||||
| 4/10 | Red and orange | Midterhuken | N77.6623° E14.8164° | Steep snow field stretching down to sea level, surrounded by moss vegetation | 40% orange cysts, 40% red cysts, 15% transient cells (green, oval, thick walled cysts), <5% cysts of Cr. brevispina or Cr. alpina, scattered green cells of Raphidonema sp. and Stichococcus sp. | NNW | 45 | 15 |
| 5/10-1a | Red | Hornsund station | N77.0062° E15.5521° | Snow field below bird colony, surrounded by moss vegetation | >95% red cysts, <5% zygotes of Cr. alpina, scattered orange cysts and cysts of Cr. nivalis; some motile green flagellates | SE | 15–20 | 55 |
| 5/10-1b | Orange | Hornsund station | N77.0062° E15.5521° | Snow field below bird colony, surrounded by moss vegetation | >98% orange cysts (7 × 105 cell ml−1), scattered red cysts, cysts of Cr. alpina and of Cr. nivalis, very scattered green cells of Raphidonema sp. and Stichococcus sp. | SE | 15–20 | 55 |
| 7/10 | Orange | Adriabukta | N77.0066° E16.2215° | Top of steep snow field surrounded by rocks (no bird cliffs nor vegetation above) | >99% orange cysts, little organic matter, a lot of sediment particles, scattered green cells of Cr. nivalis, scattered brown cysts of animal origin? | SW | 40 | 60 |
| 8/10 | Red and orange | Selbukta | N77.0227° E16.3273° | Snow field on side moraine gravel near sea level (no bird cliffs nor vegetation above) | Red and orange cysts | SW | 40–45 | 5 |
| 9/10-1a | Orange | Bautaen | N76.9743° E16.3748° | Intensely orange and red colored snow field on rocky gravel | 100% orange cysts | NW | 20 | 75 |
| 9/10-1b | Red | Bautaen | N76.9743° E16.3748° | Intensely orange and red colored snow field on rocky gravel | 100% red cysts | NW | 20 | 75 |
| 9/10-1c | Red and orange | Bautaen | N76.9743° E16.3748° | Wet lower part of above site | 40% red cysts without sediment, 20% red cysts with sediment, 30% orange cysts with and without sediment, 5% motile green flagellates, scattered cysts of Cr. nivalis; bacteria present, scattered brown cysts of animal origin? | NW | 20 | 75 |
| CCCryo STRAINS | ||||||||
| 005-99 | Bjørnhamna | N79.6500° E11.0000° | Snow field with icy meltwater stream crossing | Chloromonas nivalis | NW | 5–20 | 50 | |
| 010-99 | Spitsbergen | n.a. | Snow field | Chloromonas cf. rostafinskii | n.a. | n.a. | n.a. | |
| 131-01 | Bjørnhamna | N79.6500° E11.0000° | Snow field with icy meltwater stream crossing | Raphidonema cf. nivale | NW | 5–20 | 50 | |
| 140-01 | Raudalgeura | N79.7860° E11.8649° | Snow fields near sea level | Neospongiococcum sp. | NW | 30–40 | 3 | |
Cr., Chloromonas; n.a., not available; cf., confer (taxonomy not clarified). The average slope of the location was determined by estimating by eye the angle between sea level horizon and snow field top layer.