Analysis of chlorophyll-a and phytoplankton abundance in Ujung Pancu Waters, Aceh Besar, Indonesia

Abstract Phytoplankton plays the important role as primary producers which determine the productivity of the waters. The purpose of the research was to determine the abundance of phytoplankton and the distribution of the chlorophyll-a at Ujong Pancu Waters, Aceh Besar, Indonesia. This research was conducted from November 2017 to January 2018. Samples were collected from five observation stations using purpossive sampling method. Samples then were identified to figure out the species of phytoplankton and the chlorophyll-a was analyzed using spectrophotometric method. It was obtained 17 spesies of phytoplankton from those sites, and Chaetoceros sp. (469 ind/l) was the most abundant spesies from class of Bacillariophyceae. The chlorophyll-a concentration was obtained ranged from 0.32 - 2.05 μg/l.