Accessory pigment overall trend for water to absorb low frequencies, while gilvin and tripton absorb higher ones. This is why open ocean appears blue and supports yellow species such as "Prochlorococcus", which contains divinyl-chlorophyll "a" and "b". "Synechococcus", colored red with phycoerythrin, is adapted to coastal bodies, while phycocyanin allows Cyanobacteria to thrive in darker inland waters. Accessory pigment Accessory pigments are light-absorbing compounds, found in photosynthetic organisms, that work in conjunction with chlorophyll "a". They include other forms of this pigment, such as chlorophyll "b" in green algal and higher plant antennae, while other algae may contain chlorophyll "c" or "d".
Photosynthetic efficiency wavelength range, the theoretical maximum efficiency of solar energy conversion is approximately 11%. In actuality, however, plants do not absorb all incoming sunlight (due to reflection, respiration requirements of photosynthesis and the need for optimal solar radiation levels) and do not convert all harvested energy into biomass, which results in an overall photosynthetic efficiency of 3 to 6% of total solar radiation. If photosynthesis is inefficient, excess light energy must be dissipated to avoid damaging the photosynthetic apparatus. Energy can be dissipated as heat (non-photochemical quenching), or emitted as chlorophyll fluorescence. Quoted values sunlight-to-biomass efficiency The following is a breakdown