Hi Shannon,
Here's what I've found on the subject. I'll be putting an article into the article section tomorrow.
Marimo (Cladophora aegagropila) have been designated as a special natural treasure by the Japanese government. They grow to a diameter of 25 centimeters or 10 inches at maximum.
Lake Akan is the most famous habitat for the plant in Japan. The balls, which rise to the surface in the morning and sink at night due to photosynthesis, are an unusual natural phenomenon of the lake (area: 12.7 sq km or 4.9 sq mi; circumference: 31 km or 19 mi; depth: 45 m or 148 ft).
In order to conserve this unique plant, the marimo festival is held from October 8 to the 10 in the town of Akan located on the shores of the lake (area: 12.7 sq km or 4.9 sq mi; depth: 45 m or 148 ft). On the first day lectures on the marimo are given and on the second day portable shrines are paraded and festival dances are performed. On the last day, following the performance of traditional Ainu folk dances, the festival is closed with the ceremony during which an elder Ainu chief in a canoe returns the marimo balls, one by one, to the lake.
The marimo is a spherical ball of algae of the cladophora genus, more specifically, of the species Cladophora aegagropila. This species of algae grows specifically in Lake Akan, a freshwater lake in Hokkaido, Japan. Although these balls have been observed to some degree growing in freshwater lakes and ponds in European countries and some other lakes in Japan, only in this particular lake to they grow to be a noticeable size, usually between 20-30 cm (8-12 in.), whereas in Europe they usually only reach between 1-2 inches in diameter. This is normally a filamentous species of algae that attaches itself to rocks or floats freely at the surface of the water. But the shape of Lake Akan allow this algae to take on a spherical shape. This algae is free floating, and displays unique behaviors in response to habitat changes. They will float or sink in the water in response to columns of light, and will actually roll around on the bottom of the lake.
This peculiar species of algae was first discovered in 1823 by Dr. Anton E. Sauter, an Austrian botanist, in Lake Zeller, Austria. They were discovered in Lake Akan, Japan, by Tetsuya Kawakami at the beginning of the 20th century. The marimo algae ball was declared a national treasure of Japan in 1921, and people from all over the country gathered these balls in glass jars to take home as souvenirs. However, after a hydroelectric plant was built on Lake Akan, the marimo was nearly wiped out. In the 1940's, the local people launched a campaign to protect the plant. Many people who had jars of the marimo returned them to the lake.
Here's what I've found on the subject. I'll be putting an article into the article section tomorrow.
Marimo (Cladophora aegagropila) have been designated as a special natural treasure by the Japanese government. They grow to a diameter of 25 centimeters or 10 inches at maximum.
Lake Akan is the most famous habitat for the plant in Japan. The balls, which rise to the surface in the morning and sink at night due to photosynthesis, are an unusual natural phenomenon of the lake (area: 12.7 sq km or 4.9 sq mi; circumference: 31 km or 19 mi; depth: 45 m or 148 ft).
In order to conserve this unique plant, the marimo festival is held from October 8 to the 10 in the town of Akan located on the shores of the lake (area: 12.7 sq km or 4.9 sq mi; depth: 45 m or 148 ft). On the first day lectures on the marimo are given and on the second day portable shrines are paraded and festival dances are performed. On the last day, following the performance of traditional Ainu folk dances, the festival is closed with the ceremony during which an elder Ainu chief in a canoe returns the marimo balls, one by one, to the lake.
The marimo is a spherical ball of algae of the cladophora genus, more specifically, of the species Cladophora aegagropila. This species of algae grows specifically in Lake Akan, a freshwater lake in Hokkaido, Japan. Although these balls have been observed to some degree growing in freshwater lakes and ponds in European countries and some other lakes in Japan, only in this particular lake to they grow to be a noticeable size, usually between 20-30 cm (8-12 in.), whereas in Europe they usually only reach between 1-2 inches in diameter. This is normally a filamentous species of algae that attaches itself to rocks or floats freely at the surface of the water. But the shape of Lake Akan allow this algae to take on a spherical shape. This algae is free floating, and displays unique behaviors in response to habitat changes. They will float or sink in the water in response to columns of light, and will actually roll around on the bottom of the lake.
This peculiar species of algae was first discovered in 1823 by Dr. Anton E. Sauter, an Austrian botanist, in Lake Zeller, Austria. They were discovered in Lake Akan, Japan, by Tetsuya Kawakami at the beginning of the 20th century. The marimo algae ball was declared a national treasure of Japan in 1921, and people from all over the country gathered these balls in glass jars to take home as souvenirs. However, after a hydroelectric plant was built on Lake Akan, the marimo was nearly wiped out. In the 1940's, the local people launched a campaign to protect the plant. Many people who had jars of the marimo returned them to the lake.
