Quantitative grain density autoradiography and the intraspecific distribution of primary productivity in phytoplankton

Analysis of a method of grain density autoradiography demonstrates that reliable measurements of the primary productivity of individual phytoplankton species can be obtained with this technique. Grain density autoradiography is particularly useful for providing an estimate of the intraspecific distribution of primary productivity. As an example, the productivity distribution of the marine diatom Chaetoceros curvisetus became positively skewed during a period of population decline