The toxic metal ions Cu2+, Cd2+, and Pb2+ inhibited growth of the green alga Ankistrodesmus braunii and the blue-green alga (Cyanobacterium) Anabaena, strain 7120. Some concentrations of Cu lysed Anabaena 7120 at early, but not late, stages of growth. The other metals inhibited growth without causing lysis. Adding the chelating agent nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA) did not reduce, and in some cases increased, metal toxicity to Anabaena 7120. This suggests that these metals do not act on this alga only in the ionic form. When Anabaena 7120 grew in a sublethal concentrations of Cu(NO3)2 (10(-5)M) most of the Cu was found outside the cell, in nonionic form. About half the Cd was found to be cell associated when these algae grew in the presence of 10(-5)M Cd(NO3)2. Ankistrodesmus braunii bound substantial amounts of both Cd and Cu when growing in their presence. At certain Cu levels, the amount bound per cell remained virtually constant during growth. In Cd, the amount bound per cell was highest at the beginning of growth and then fell. Cell-associated metals were found in both wall plus membrane and cytoplasmic fractions of A. braunii after mechanical lysis. When these algae grew over dialysis sacs containing sediment loaded with Cd or Cu, substantial amounts of these metals left the sediment and entered the algal cultures. They were found both cell associated and in the culture medium of A. braunii. In cultures of Anabaena 7120, Cd removed from the sediment was found in both cells and culture medium, but Cu was found almost entirely in the culture medium. The effects that bloom of such algae might have on the mobilization of these metals from sediments in natural waters are discussed.