ELEMENTAL COMPOSITION OF 5 SUBMERSED AQUATIC PLANTS COLLECTED FROM LAKE OKEECHOBEE, FLORIDA

Chemical composition of the macrophytic alga chara (Chara sp.), and fo ur angiosperms-hydrilla (Hydrilla verticillata (L.f.) Royle), Illinois pondweed (Potamogeton illirtoensis Morong), southern naiad (Najas gua dalupensis (Spreng.) Magnus), and vallisneria (Vallisneria americana M ichx.) was determined on samples collected during August 1990 from 146 sites in Lake Okeechobee, Florida. Eleven macro- and micro-nutrients were analyzed: C, N, Ca, Mg, Mn, K, P, Zn, Na, Fe, and Cu. MANOVA was able to separate plant species on the basis of their chemical composit ion; micronutrients were most important in separation of species by di scriminant analysis. Hydrilla and southern naiad had the highest conce ntration of nitrogen and phosphorus in the species tested.