Light-Limited Growth and Competition for Light in Well-Mixed Aquatic Environments: An Elementary Model

Light is never distributed homogeneously since it forms a gradient over biomass. As a consequence, the common theories on nutrient competition are not applicable to competition for light. In this paper, we investigate a model for light—limited growth and competition among phytoplankton species in a mixed water column. The model is based on standard assumptions such as Lambert—Beer's law of light absorption, a Monod equation for carbon uptake,...