IV. Relation of Algæ to Soil Moisture and to the Formation of Humus Substances.
In warmer countries than our own, especially those with an adequate rainfall, the significance of soil algæ is perhaps more obvious to a casual observer. Treub states that after the complete destruction of the island of Krakatoa by volcanic eruption in 1883, the first colonists to take possession of the island were six species of blue-green algæ, viz., Tolypothrix sp., Anabæna sp., Symploca sp., Lyngbya 3 spp. Three years after the eruption these organisms were observed to form an almost continuous gelatinous and hygroscopic layer over the surface of the cinders and stones constituting the soil, and by their death and decay they rapidly prepared it for the growth of seeds brought to the island by visiting birds. Hence the new flora which soon established itself upon the island can be said to have had its origin in the alga-flora which preceded it. Fritsch has also emphasised the importance of algæ in the colonisation of new ground in Ceylon.
Welwitsch ascribes the characteristic colour from which the “pedras negras” in Angola derive their name to the growth of a thick stratum of Scytonema myochrous, a blue-green alga, which gradually becomes black and completely covers the soil. At the close of the rainy season this gelatinous stratum dries up very slowly, enabling the underlying soil to retain its moisture for a longer period than would otherwise be the case.
The gelatinous soil algæ are probably very important in this respect, for their slow rate of loss of water is coupled with a capacity for rapid absorption, and they are therefore able to take full advantage of the dew that may be deposited upon them and increase the power of the soil to retain moisture.