Toxicity of carbofuran to blue-green alga Nostoc muscorum.

Effect of commercial grade pesticide furadan (3% a.i. as carbofuran) was studied on the survival, growth and nitrogen fixation of blue-green alga Nostoc muscorum. The lower concentration of furadan i.e. 25 microgram/ml enhanced survival, growth and nitrogen fixation in the alga whereas these were gradually inhibited in higher concentrations (50--1000 microgram/ml) and the presence of more than 1200 microgram/ml was algicidal. The preliminary observations revelaed that pesticide is biodegraded by the alga.